At some point children learn they can forge ahead to gain knowledge wherever their interests lead. The earlier this happens, the better. They no longer wait for assignments, but ask their own questions and seek answers independently. They have developed internal motivation. This is an energized type of learning and often it is collaborative with another student or a team of learners.
You can promote this kind of learning by:
• Establishing a trustworthy relationship with your child. Safety is an important issue in freedom to learn. Children who are fearful or insecure are not free to engage in explorations that lead to learning.
• Help children to set and work toward their own goals. They’ll learn the world is a very interesting place and they can explore it on their own.
• Involve children socially, emotionally and intellectually. Immerse them in learning situations then allow true engagement, not just observation. For example it’s a better learning experience to visit a zoo rather than just looking at pictures in a book.
• Extend learning by asking who, what, where and why questions. Go beyond the facts. All extensions such as drawing, writing or charting a learning experience.
• Help children to practice, synthesize and generalize. New learning takes practice, but it also take curiosity. So they learn through exploration and later share what they’ve learned with others.
• Help children become increasingly accountable. Go beyond testing to fostering the internal desire to learn and be satisfied with the experience. Praise strategies, efforts, and not merely a right answer. Build hard work and commitment into your child’s character.
• Help your child find a community of learners. It might be a classroom, your family or another group. Each person contributes to the success of the group. This type of learning lasts a lifetime.
Thematic learning with opportunities to interview, share presentations, or demonstrate a new skill fosters self-directed learning. Allowing exploration with freedom to make a mistake and try something new is essential.
Support your child’s “lemonade stand” efforts. If he wants to set a goal and will work to reach it, your support is important. It might be selling 100 cups of lemonade, reading 150 books in a year, or running a mile. Help monitor progress and celebrate when the goal is met.
Watching fully engaged learners is a wonderful thing. The excitement, motivation and learning that takes place will benefit your child all through life. They’re learning grown-up skills in taking on a challenge, making a hypothesis, testing our possible solutions and then coming to a real conclusion.
Jan Pierce, M.Ed., is a retired teacher and author of the book, Homegrown Readers: Simple Ways to Help Your Child Learn to Read. She specializes in education, parenting and family life articles. Find Jan at www.janpierce.net
You can promote this kind of learning by:
• Establishing a trustworthy relationship with your child. Safety is an important issue in freedom to learn. Children who are fearful or insecure are not free to engage in explorations that lead to learning.
• Help children to set and work toward their own goals. They’ll learn the world is a very interesting place and they can explore it on their own.
• Involve children socially, emotionally and intellectually. Immerse them in learning situations then allow true engagement, not just observation. For example it’s a better learning experience to visit a zoo rather than just looking at pictures in a book.
• Extend learning by asking who, what, where and why questions. Go beyond the facts. All extensions such as drawing, writing or charting a learning experience.
• Help children to practice, synthesize and generalize. New learning takes practice, but it also take curiosity. So they learn through exploration and later share what they’ve learned with others.
• Help children become increasingly accountable. Go beyond testing to fostering the internal desire to learn and be satisfied with the experience. Praise strategies, efforts, and not merely a right answer. Build hard work and commitment into your child’s character.
• Help your child find a community of learners. It might be a classroom, your family or another group. Each person contributes to the success of the group. This type of learning lasts a lifetime.
Thematic learning with opportunities to interview, share presentations, or demonstrate a new skill fosters self-directed learning. Allowing exploration with freedom to make a mistake and try something new is essential.
Support your child’s “lemonade stand” efforts. If he wants to set a goal and will work to reach it, your support is important. It might be selling 100 cups of lemonade, reading 150 books in a year, or running a mile. Help monitor progress and celebrate when the goal is met.
Watching fully engaged learners is a wonderful thing. The excitement, motivation and learning that takes place will benefit your child all through life. They’re learning grown-up skills in taking on a challenge, making a hypothesis, testing our possible solutions and then coming to a real conclusion.
Jan Pierce, M.Ed., is a retired teacher and author of the book, Homegrown Readers: Simple Ways to Help Your Child Learn to Read. She specializes in education, parenting and family life articles. Find Jan at www.janpierce.net
