There is so much more to learning then flash cards, educational videos  and worksheets.   Nothing is wrong with these tools except the fact that children were designed to explore and experiment.  That’s a bit hard to do if kids are asked to sit in chairs and be indoors for hours upon hours everyday.

Real life doesn’t happen when eager learners are made to be quiet and listen to grown ups tell them how things work.  Children are curious and desire to be actively participating in the world around them.  They don’t want to just watch.  They want to do.

Learning Comes From Doing Real Life Things.

Our Homeschooling days are full of active learning and we enjoy every minute of it.

We are remodeling our Kitchen.  Our kids are very active in helping us demolish and getting it ready for a new floor, walls, and cabinets.   They have been shopping with us for granite counter tops and new appliances.

Can you imagine all the life skills they are developing while they are participating?  

Very Proud Helpers!!!

I love books and so do my children.  We learn so much from words and pictures.  Yet children need more.   We don’t know everything about a Star Fish by just reading about it.   One must spend some time with a Star Fish and get to know it!

We must use all of our senses to obtain all the important detail information about the subject we are studying.   

Children are called to explore nature every minute of the day.  They should never be held back by being stuck between four walls and a closed door.  Children’s real classroom is in the middle of nature.  Wildlife pictures decorating the walls with a colorful theme for the month doesn’t compare to a lively walk in God’s creation.

Kids learn by looking around and paying attention to what is right in front of them.

I don’t have my kids learning packaged in one box filled with paper packets.  Instead our day to day life is spent wondering, searching, discovering, and making sense out of our many questions.  And this doesn’t mean we don’t do worksheets. Because we do. 

It’s our questions that lead us to knowledge and understandings.

Paper packages wrapped up in dry curriculum will only cause a child to ask one question, “are we done yet?”

Thinking outside of the box approach allows the freedom to ask questions and discover the answer through living life actively.   How does something work and live are the questions young students should be asking on a regular day to day basis.

What are some thinking outside of the box learning activities you do with your kids?