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homeschooling preschoolers
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Question:
we always assumed we would be homeschooling, and assumed we would know when it
was time to statr "teaching". My daughter just turned four and has shown
interest in learning to read and just wrote her name for the first time. I'm
sure this sounds like basic stuff, but now I'm scared. Suddenly I'm worried
about "teaching" her things the wrong way, but I'm just as worried about not
teaching her at all. I can't remember how I learned to read - whole language
or phonics?
My problem isn't so much how to teach her, but that all of a sudden it's time
for her to learn. I wasn't expecting it so soon. It seems as though the real
work of homeschooling starts now.
Anyone else feel scared when they first started? How did you know what to do
and when to do it?
Answer:
-Go to your nearest bookstore and order "The Core Curriculum - What your
kindergartener needs to know" and follow it's curriculum. You're on your
way.
-Everybody does, even those who have taught others' children. Just spend
lots of time with her. Read to her, encourage her to look at the
pictures, answer questions, don't push.
As far as what 'every kindergartner needs to know', get such a book if
you feel so inclined, but recognize that there is no such thing. Every
kindergartner is different, both in readiness and learning modes.
Standardizing them only reduces their possibilities, for we cannot
standardize excellence, we can only standardize mediocrity.
What your child needs to know is that she's loved, whether she can read
or not. Every minute you spend nurturing her will yield hours worth of
achievement. Children have an appetite for learning as surely as they
have an appetite for food. Let that appetite be your guide.
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