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3 Fun Ways to Encourage a Love of Learning

There are so many ways to learn AND encourage your kids to learn. Unfortunately, many moms still rely on textbooks which is a result of modern education, where they filter all information into small chunks and feed it to our children. Let’s take a look at better ways to educate our kids that will encourage your kids to love learning.

Guest post written by Kerry Beck

How to Encourage a Love of Learning

# 1: Read Aloud Books as a Family

Reading books aloud to your children allows you the freedom to choose topics your children are interested in. When you do this, you have more opportunity to encourage your children to love learning.

When your kids are interested in the book you’re reading, they will pay more attention and, more than likely, have fun learning from that book. Even when you read a story, your kids can learn so much.

How does this reading aloud work?

Set aside 30 minutes each day to read a quality, classic book as a family. Let your children enjoy it. Don’t give them a list of questions to answer. Instead, wait until later in the day to ask them what they remembered from your read aloud book.

Your job is to LISTEN well. When I listened to my kids, I found fun learning opportunities that we could pursue. It might be a discussion about the main character’s behavior. Or, it might be a scientific discovery, like following the North Star in Freedom Train.

Not familiar with Freedom Train: The Story of Harriet Tubman, by Dorothy Sterling?

It’s a story about Harriet Tubman following the North Star as she leads slaves from the South to the North. Let’s say your children mention the North Star as you discuss the story. What could you do? There are so many options, but here are a few FUN ways to continue learning from your read aloud book.

  • Find the North Star in the sky tonight
  • Discover constellations that are near or have the North Star
  • Make marshmallow constellations with toothpicks and mini marshmallows … Hey, I’m all about enticing my kids to love learning, even with food
  • Create a constellation shadow box from a shoe box. Turn off the lights and point a flashlight to the different constellations.
  • The list can go on and on … what activities might you do about the North Star? Leave a comment below.

# 2: Unit Studies

Have you ever used unit studies? They are so simple to use.

Just like reading aloud to your family, unit studies are based on your children’s interests. When your child is interested in the topic of study, they will pay more attention and grow in their love of learning. If you have more than one child, you can rotate the children’s interests.

After you choose a topic of interest, find books and activities to encourage a love of learning.

  • Find a book to read aloud on the topic
  • Find books on each child’s individual reading level to read independently
  • Use copywork, dictation, narration & reading journals to teach language skills during your unit. Reading journals are great for homeschooling high school and developing critical thinking skills
  • Make a time line of the book you read aloud, or the historical time period
  • Find a science project you could do that correlates with your read aloud book and chosen topic
  • Let each child choose a hands-on project to encourage further learning on the chosen topic

# 3: Grace Week

What in the world is Grace Week? Grace Week is an awesome strategy I used to help my kids love learning and grow leadership skills at the same time.

The first three weeks of the month were mom-chosen activities.

The last week of the month was Grace Week and child-directed.

Each child chose a subject to study or a project to complete. They spent their days working on their own chosen activity. Additionally, we chose an area of weakness in their school subjects. Every day that week my children worked on their area of weakness and their chosen topic. Areas of weakness might be learning their multiplication facts, identifying adjectives or something similar.

You can get more details about Grace Week here.

Encouraging a love of learning is a great way to develop your kids into lifetime learners. When your kids become lifetime learners, they can grow into leaders who influence the world around them.

I’m happy to announce a free class to help you raise your children to be Christian leaders, who love learning and continue to learn for the rest of their lives.

You can sign up for 4 Steps to Raising Christian Leaders in Your Homeschool right here.

Kerry Beck helps you get past the perfect Pinterest, Instagram or Facebook image and get on to real life…real life ways to inspire your kids to grow in Christ and love learning. After 10 years of homeschooling (her kids have graduated), she meets with moms to encourage them to raise kids for Jesus.

She wants to help you inspire your kids to love learning, giving them a superb, Christian education . . . where they will think critically and Biblically.

You can connect with Kerry on her blog and at Mom’s Monday Lunch Bunch weekly Facebook Live. She also hangs out at Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram & YouTube. Feel free to email her at kerry@HowToHomeschoolMyChild.com

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