Why Delight-Directed Homeschooling Works for the Middle School Years

Ever since I first started writing about our experience with delight-directed homeschooling a few years ago, I’ve gotten a lot of questions. I enjoy answering them because it’s fun to share the joy of learning and the freedom found in delight-directed homeschooling. It really does make learning a life-long adventure!

You Might Like to Read: A Day in the Life of Delight-Directed Homeschooling

Year-round homeschooling goes hand-in-hand with delight-directed homeschooling because we’re really learning all the time. After so many years of being programmed to follow a traditional schedule, now I can’t even imagine following an arbitrary schedule just to fit in with what the local schools are doing. My entire mindset about education has changed and it has been a wonderful gift!

You Might Like to Read: Our Delight-Directed, Literature-Rich Homeschool Curriculum Choices

Delight-Directed Homeschooling in the Middle School Years

I’ve noticed that parents especially start to worry as their children get older. It’s only natural when you’ve got full responsibility for your child’s education! I’ve heard these same questions over and over from concerned parents:

What if child-led or interest-led learning isn’t enough?
How do I handle major subjects with delight-directed homeschooling?
Is it an all or nothing proposition?

The middle school years are a time of transition in more ways than one. Our kids are changing physically, emotionally, and intellectually at a mind-bending rate. We’ve gotten past the basics of homeschooling, but the high school years and keeping a transcript for coursework have not yet begun. So what happens between the three R’s and calculus?

In my experience, the middle school years are a good time for the freedom of delight-directed homeschooling!

Our children are gaining independent study skills and general self-confidence during this time. It’s a good time to give them a little leeway into what they choose to study. This can also help guide them into the high school years with a better grasp on what they really want to do with their future.

Delight-directed homeschooling during the middle school years:

Increases independent study skills
Encourages a lifelong love of learning
Inspires initiative in their own education
Prepares them for choosing high school electives
Helps them with self-discovery and following God’s call in their lives
Gives them self-confidence during an awkward transitional time
Provides a “safe space” to experiment with their personality and explore interests
Builds a relationship of trust between you and your child

Allowing your child to explore interests with delight-directed homeschooling at this time can really open up the lines of communication between you. When you show each other mutual respect, your tweens and teens are more likely to share their deepest thoughts and feelings with you, not just academics.

Recommended Resources

I wrote a chapter on Beginning Independence in Middle School in The Big Book of Homeschool Ideas Volume 2. I recommend this book for anyone homeschooling the middle school and high school years, regardless of learning style and method. It’s full of great tips from experienced homeschool moms. You can find it on Amazon in either Kindle or print editions.

I’ve created some free printables to help you with keeping track of your delight-directed homeschooling. You can print out Interest Inventory pages (you’ll find these in the free subscriber library which you can join in the form below) and sit down with your middle schooler to go over ideas that they’d like to study. While you’re there, check out what a day in the life of delight-directed homeschooling looks like for us, what we’re using for our delight-directed, literature-rich homeschool curriculum this year, and read even more in the Ultimate Guide to Delight-Directed Homeschooling.

Make the Most of the Middle School Years

The middle school years don’t have to just be an awkward time that must be endured just to get through it. With some gentle encouragement and guidance, they can be a time that our kids really begin to blossom into who God created them to be. Delight-directed homeschooling gives them a chance to express their ideas while gaining the skills that will do them well long into the future.

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Sara

Author/Speaker/Consultant at Heart and Soul Homeschooling

Sara is a homeschool mom to 3 creative girls. She holds a degree in Social Work specializing in early childhood development, which led to her interest in individualized educational options like homeschooling. She believes that learning should be a lifelong adventure, not just a checklist to get through. She is a writer, avid reader, introvert (INFJ), and dreamer of dreams.