Why I’m NOT Allowing my Kids to Learn Today

Kids are funny little creatures. Ever tried to throw away a toy? Instantly it becomes their “faaavorite” and they can’t live without it. The opposite is also true. If you call even the most fun project with their favorite toys a “lesson,” they immediately say that they “don’t waaant to” because it isn’t fun to do school.

Why fight the battle when I don’t have to?

“No school today kids!”
Really.
Nobody is allowed to learn today.

I’ve found that one of the easiest ways to avoid tears in our school is to simply stop calling it school. I casually incorporate important material into their everyday life. By not calling it school I am able to pique their interest & curiosity without the dragged feet.

A day of history research is rephrased as “lets skip school and watch youtube videos about the explorers instead.” Educational library books *magically* appear, and craft instructions and supplies are on hand. “No – no, please don’t feel like you have to do that craft dear child.” ~ Insert whines of “PLEASE” here.

Is it always possible? Nope. Not at all. I believe it is very important to make sure to stick to a schedule most of the time. Grammar is just grammar, and you have to do it. No-school days are a beautiful change of pace though.

Dropping the vocabulary of “school”, “lesson,” and “must” for a day changes our entire dynamic. Suddenly my kids are energized. They readily volunteer ideas of how they would like to spend their day and SURPRISE many of those items are not only educational, but better ideas than the ones I had come up with myself.

I love discovering new things that my kids are passionate about. Sometimes I feed these passions, sometimes I try new topics, and sometimes I have my own agenda and focus on things that I believe are important. Learning informally allows my children to grow into the well rounded interesting people that I want them to become.

Children are learning all the time – we can’t stop their education. Why not make it fun? Allow them access to material that is rich and interesting. Provide supplies and instructions and give them the freedom to discover lessons in their own way. The advantage is not only that they are less resistant, but that they become invested in the material, causing them to retain much more of what they learn than if I had forced the memorization.

A great example is our summer learning adventures. We are year round schoolers who take a much more relaxed approach during the summers. This year the kids decided that they wanted to study physics (aka.build a treehouse). They have immersed themselves into this project so fully that I don’t even try to keep up. The have not only learned more physics than I had planned to cover in the book I purchased, but they have gathered tons information from knowledgeable adults by chattering almost non-stop about their passion. They learned about ash borers and binding roots (which I didn’t know existed) from an arborist aunt who they grilled about choosing the right tree, drafting from a talented daddy & uncle, and industriousness – which there is no lesson plan for anywhere on the planet.

Not every project is as extensive as the treehouse. Beautiful classical art is incorporated into our world on tee-shirts and cell phone cases. The kids don’t realize that they are interacting with masterpieces, but begin to recognize them and learn about the artists (for example, they call my phone the Hokusai, which still makes me giggle) without the stigma of Having to memorize the information. It is just there – part of our world. I encourage questions, and show the kids how to look up the answers, but really, simply being near inspiring materials is enough to capture their imagination.

So, want to skip school with me today? I bet you have some great science kits or art supplies that you never seem to get around to. Turn on that audio-book that you have scheduled for next week, and set the kids loose.

Remember. No learning allowed!