As a relaxed homeschooler increasingly persuaded of the power of a child’s natural ability to learn, I’m always reading the thoughts of educational reformers who have tapped into this forgotten phenomenon.
The Everyday Genius: Restoring Children’s Natural Joy of Learning, is the incredibly fascinating book I’m reading now, and so far, I love his ideas on how children learn so much differently from the way schools teach. (He’s not a homeschooling advocate, per se, but where school teachers benefit from his research, homeschooling moms so much more.)
And quite by accident, I had the chance to see one of his learning examples played out this week. In one way it’s simple, in another, quite profound. He tells the story of a method by which a group of miners were taught to read. They were asked to tell about themselves, while the woman teaching them recorded their words. She then typed them out and the next day, handed them their own words to read.
Once the words were recognized as their own, both familiarity and intrigue/interest in seeing their words typed out, caused them to much more easily learn the words they were reading, which encouraged them, gave them more confidence, and facilitated their desire to read more.
Coincidentally, the day after I read this, our sweet neighbor friend who is an artist and a book-binder, took my younger girls to her studio where she taught them to bind their own books (with hand-painted covers). They left them blank to fill in later.
Of course the girls came home excited and were eager to write their stories. For one, her reading/writing is a little slower, so she dictated and I wrote the words.
But afterwards, I asked her to read the story. What Kline described in his book was exactly my experience with her. She read much more fluently, even the harder words, and was excited to read it several times, to different people.
The difference? It was her book, something that interested her (as opposed to just being handed a random Dick and Jane book), and the whole process was meaningful.
The secret ingredient to real learning, then, is that students learn and remember what is interesting and meaningful to them. Our job is to present information in such a way that it becomes interesting and/or allow them to pursue learning the things that already interest them.
If you think about your own learning, you know that what you really learned well and what has stuck, are those things that you need or in which you are interested. That, opposed to “force-fed” learning, is far superior and way more fun.
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I love this, but I’m also conflicted. I sometimes feel pressured rather than liberated by this approach. (That my job is to present things in order to make them interesting) I certainly desire to give my children lots of freedom to pursue learning what interests them, but there are also a lot of things that I simply need them to learn whether they are interested or not, and the thought of spending hours researching and trying to come up with creative and interesting ways to present material overwhelms me and and quite frankly, sometimes I just do have those hours. I feel like there has to be a balance somewhere between “present information in an interesting way” and “I know this is boring, but I’m your mother/teacher and I’m saying you must learn this.”
I hear you. I’m in the middle of trying to balance these two ideas, but I’ve done so much research that I feel like the ones who need taught are us–that is, we need to be un-taught. So, let me play devil’s advocate:
What kinds of things do you mean that you “simply need them to learn”? Why can’t they learn it when it’s needful? Will they learn it anyway, if you “force” it? (I still insist my kids learn some things–multiplication tables, for example.) But I’m largely learning that the standard method of simply feeding information is a large waste of time because when that information isn’t relevant (“learn this because I say so” still produces a temporary retainment) they simply don’t usually keep it. Then, ponder this from “The Objective of Education is Learning”:
“Traditional education focuses on teaching, not learning. It incorrectly assumes that for every ounce of teaching there is an ounce of learning by those who are taught. However, most of what we learn before, during, and after attending schools is learned without its being taught to us. A child learns such fundamental things as how to walk, talk, eat, dress, and so on without being taught these things. Adults learn most of what they use at work or at leisure while at work or leisure. Most of what is taught in classroom settings is forgotten, and much or what is remembered is irrelevant.”
So do you think there is any value in our children doing schoolwork they aren’t interested in so that they learn the skill of pressing through work they do not like? I’m thinking I want to prepare my kids for future careers that include work no one likes even if it’ is an ideal job. Or can chores at home do this effectively?
How do you all feel about higher education? College. We kind of took the approach you are describing through high school. By a certain point she wanted to learn what she felt she needed to learn to prepare for college. She wanted to go to college. She really wants to be a writer/ artist. She is also gifted with children. She is now graduated high school and attending community college to get an AA and transfer to a university to study towards a career in writing/art. She is frustrated by some of the required courses she must currently take. Esp. a “college transfer success” course. They have to spend a lot of time taking career interests/ skills tests and writing short answers/ planning their course load, etc. The problem is it is a one hour class and the instructor is very particular. She personally is wasting time doing this work and the test do not even lead to the careers she is interested in. Yet she has to make plans towards the careers identified by the test, take more classes about study skill, time management, etc. It was reminiscent of why we home schooled. I wish we could home school college. Some of the work is meaningless.
Thank you Kelly! I am passionate about true education and saddened by how so many fellow homeschoolers settle for “school” at home. It saddens me because I know they are missing the joy that is inherent in learning as God designed!!
My goal from day one was to instill a love of learning in the heart of my children. My oldest would read encyclopedias for fun and would talk to me about what he was learning. He still (now 20) loves to learn and critically evaluates all that he reads.
I cannot figure out what to do about our current situation. We have 4 rough and rowdy, loud and messy boys at home. I often cannot be heard over the noise! Sitting and reading for hours (like I did with our first child) is no longer possible.
After one page someone needs a snack, someone is pestering, someone has to use the bathroom, someone is making noise, etc. I am a visual person and easily distracted.
My boys are all under 10. They enjoy Legos, making machines from Legos, electronics, audio books and playing board games. After much desperate prayer, I really believe that giving them freedom to do these things right now is priority over “academics”. We still work on Bible, some Science, reading (at their readiness) and math. Other than that, I try to provide a rich atmosphere of love and learning naturally. As they get older, I look forward to providing them with opportunities to develop their God given talents and drives.
Deadlifts and Romanian deadlifts are each excellent exercises for
constructing strength and muscle mass. The best train for you depends on your individual fitness targets and
wishes. If you are looking to construct power within the back, legs, and glutes, then each deadlifts and Romanian deadlifts are good choices.
Nevertheless, if you’re seeking to specifically goal the hamstrings and
glutes, then the Romanian deadlift may be a better
choice. Basically, if your goal is maximal energy
and powerlifting efficiency, typical deadlifts should be your go-to.
It is carried out by standing together with your ft hip-width aside, knees barely bent, and again straight.
You will then lower your torso by bending
at the hips, maintaining your again straight and core engaged.
Decrease the weight until you are feeling a stretch in your hamstrings, then return to
the starting place. When comparing the two exercises, it may be very important
contemplate particular person targets, coaching focus, and biomechanics.
Pause for a second, then squeeze your glutes
as you reverse the movement to the beginning position. If
you are looking to put a little extra strain on the posterior
chain, try out the Romanian deadlift, or RDL. This variation reverses the traditional deadlift—the movement begins within the standing position, which is where the standard model finishes.
As evident by the long list of muscular tissues above, the deadlift recruits many various muscular tissues without delay.
You Will prepare several muscular tissues directly, maximising your time in the fitness center.
Plus, you’ll load up heavy weight given the amount of muscle recruitment,
which can help construct strength.
Not Like the common deadlift the Romanian Deadlift is a high
down motion. That Means that one rep starts when you have the weight at the prime
(in a standing place.) You then decrease it and return to the top for
one rep. The “dead” in deadlift stands for dead weight so every rep should start on the floor, from a lifeless cease.
The best exercise for you is dependent upon your particular person targets, health level, and any injuries or limitations.
At the top of the rep, maintain your knees slightly bent, and end your exhalation. You should be on the finish
of your inhalation at this level, so exhale as you get up, again hinging on the hips together with your
knees virtually straight, your chest out, and
your head up. In yoga, some educate to think about pushing your tailbone down and your cranium up, actually lengthening your backbone in the
course of. By doing this whereas partaking your core muscular
tissues, you align your backbone for a proper and protected RDL.
Continue pushing through your heels, and as your knees start to straighten, flex your erector spinae to straighten your back (standing you
up straight). On the exhalation, push via your heels, preserving your chest up
and your chin degree with the ground.
The majority of us have postural imbalances, and tons of are quad dominant,
that means that most of the muscle mass in our legs is attributed to the quadriceps.
Do you only have access to a weight bench, both in your house fitness center or at a business gym, and
wish to get in an efficient full-body workout? As a personal trainer, many purchasers I work with have entry to minimal equipment,
but this doesn’t mean they nonetheless can’t see progress
with their muscle progress; it’s all about being
inventive. Whereas I do like the traditional lat pulldown on the machine, there are other ways to hit those same muscle teams and help you
construct a much bigger back. Targeting your back from
multiple angles with numerous workouts engages all of
these muscle fibers in your lats. If using a barbell, make sure your
arms graze your legs as you decrease and raise.
As A Outcome Of the classic deadlift drops the hips lower and
entails extra of a knee-bend than the RDL, it engages the quads to a larger diploma.
The RDL, meanwhile, hammers the hamstrings and glutes more for the precise same reason. But no matter what variation you carry out, you can be certain that you’re
working almost your whole posterior chain, which is essential for bettering each energy production and total athletic efficiency.
The Romanian deadlift and single-leg deadlift are both valuable workout routines
for building energy, enhancing stability, and enhancing athletic efficiency.
Ultimately, the only option depends on your particular person targets, expertise level, and
any limitations you might have. By understanding the differences and benefits of each train,
you’ll find a way to choose the proper one to help you achieve your
fitness objectives.
Whereas both movements are hip hinge exercises, the Romanian deadlift
is “purer” in that the primary joint concerned is the hips.
Again, whereas the knees have a slight bend, this is to permit the hips to be pushed again rather
than involve the quadriceps. As mentioned, the standard deadlift is
the heaviest of all barbell movements and allows folks to use the best amount
of weight. As stressing the neuromuscular system is the primary driver of constructing power, it is fair to
say the regular deadlift has the potential to make you actually strong.
For most individuals, Romanian Deadlifts are a great place
to begin out out to build up the hip, hamstring and
lower back power.
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