Learning What Is Not Necessary

by Stephanie

Recently on a local homeschool list, the discussion turned to the idea of how we define what is "important to learn".  Can you really say that there are things that  are not necessary to learn and how do you make that determination? Some people had good arguments about the benefits of having kids learn things that they may or may not be interested in and others made the argument that kids, if given a wealth of exposure, will learn what they need to know.

I think that all homeschoolers wrestle with these types of questions, regardless of their homeschool philosophy.

One thing I keep in mind is that in this world there is no possible way to teach a child everything. No. Possible. Way. There is just too much out there to know.  Despite this fact, schools tend to give the impression that there is "one body of information" or "one defined set of knowledge" that every child needs to know. But this is not true. Everyone is going to have "gaps" in their knowledge. Everyone.

So how do we answer the question "what is important to learn?" Every homeschool parent consciously or unconsciously answers this question differently. The key thing to remember is that there is no one right answer. Everyone has their own ideas...each school system, each curriculum provider, each parent, each child. They all have their own ideas and no one is right and no one is wrong.

The beauty of homeschooling is that we, as parents, along with our kids get to decide. And of course that is what leads us to debates...unschoolers say it is critical to let the kids lead, classical homeschoolers say that Latin and rigorous studies are important, school at home folks feel that their curriculum should be the foundation. Then there are the Charlotte Mason folks who say that living books are the way to go and the Montessori folks who believe that kids should engage in real work.  And the Waldorf folks who believe in the power of stories.

So it can be daunting to decide what is right for our family and I think that is what most of us as homeschool parents spend a majority of our time doing. Thinking, trying, revising.

And the interesting thing is that one person's "must learn" is often another person's "elective". We all have our own history and interest that we bring to our homeschooling. A parent who struggled with math in school may really focus on math with her kids because she does not want them to struggle like she did. Or she may figure that she did fine without really knowing it, so it is ok if her kids don't know it.

I love children's literature and history...so we naturally do a fair amount of those. I find math interesting and important, so I am always looking for creative ways to approach it. I have to consciously make myself do science (which my kids enjoy). Another family may have more of a focus on music or nature or poetry or whatever. Our own interests and beliefs and backgrounds shape what we do with our children no matter our homeschooling method.

I see one of my jobs as a homeschool parent to be that of exposing my kids to a variety of things...to expand their viewpoints. It is something that I am extremely conscious of. It is also one of my jobs to decide how important something is to learn.  Sounds scary, but it is true. I have found that I often make this judgment based on how it is affecting my relationship with my child as well as how it is affecting his relationship with learning. Is it worth fighting with my child to get them to learn something they are not interested in?

Interestingly enough, my kids are learning what they need to know, albeit on their own timetable. Are there things that I wish they knew better? Yup. But they have time. We all have time.

So yes there will be gaps in my kids' education, just as there are gaps in everyone's education. Because there is no way to learn everything. It is my hope that my kids will come away from their homeschool years with the knowledge that if they need to learn something they can. And that knowledge is not finite and that learning never ends.

Stephanie is constantly trying to find that elusive state of balance in her life while enjoying her two energetic yet vastly different boys. You can read about their ongoing exploits on her blog, Throwing Marshmallows.

Comments

[JoVE]

Great post. One additional joy that I get from homeschooling is filling some of the gaps in my own knowledge with my daughter. For example, there is a lot of classic children's literature that I have never read and I am really enjoying reading it together. Also, she has discovered an interest in art, so I'm learning about art, too.

I think once we accept that there are gaps in our own knowledge and that we can learn at any time, this whole process becomes that much more interesting.