Simple School
Posted by Simcha Fisher in Family on Tuesday, September 21, 2010 6:00 AM
When I first started teaching my kids, I wanted to teach the HECK out of them. I wanted them to play the recorder, scan and analyze poems, appreciate fine art, read the night sky, employ the scientific method, defend the faith, and read and write Greek.
In first grade.
Eventually, I came to my senses. Now I know that, whether you’re homeschooling, supplementing your child’s classroom schoolwork, or just trying to enrich your home life, the first rule of first grade is:
Keep it simple. Keep it simple. Keep it simple.
Did you hear that? I really think you should keep it simple.
Yes, you can teach sophisticated lessons to a first grader. But will he remember them? No, he will not—and you will tear your hair out, thinking of your wasted efforts. Even the most passionate parent sharing the most enriching material with the most receptive child is still working with a first-grader, and a kid that age just doesn’t have the brain power to retain anything elaborate or abstract.
So take it easy. Pick one or two fancy, non-essential topics that you love, and save the rest for later.
Keep it short. If you homeschool, you may be tempted to ensure a “real school” experience by sitting your kid down at a desk for six hours. Some kids actually enjoy doing pages and pages of seat work, but most will simply learn that school is boring. If you finish school at 12:30, that’s fine! Let the kid go blow bubbles.
If your child attends school outside the home, it’s important to let him relax at home. Enrichment is important, but so is rest and play.
Keep it hands-on. Kids this age will not remember a chart about the water cycle, but they will remember splashing in a stream, walking in the rain, or driving through a cloud.
Read, read, read to them. Along with the story books, pick at least one nonfiction book per library visit. Don’t forget the 398 section, which has folklore, fairy tales, and myths, for a change of pace from Bratty Ballerina and Bunny Gets More Ice Cream.
Be organized, but not too organized. I have the same daily goal for meals and school: serve three things, one of which is not brown. For dinner, “not brown” means veggies; for school, it means something fresh, interesting, and pleasant. Spelling and math are brown—planting a terrarium is not.
In the fall, I make a very broad list of skills and ideas that I’d like the kid to grasp by the spring. Then, each week, I make a “three things per day” lesson plan, to be plumped up or trimmed down as we go, depending on how busy or ambitious we get. Every so often, I check the list of annual goals, to make sure we’re covering everything important.
Collect materials and try projects ahead of time. Don’t assume you have wax paper or cheesecloth or white crayons; and don’t believe websites that promise “simple and easy” projects. Your kids will lose enthusiasm very quickly while you hunt for materials or try to figure out ambiguous or misleading instructions.
Frontload the fun. Do any crafts or experiments on Mondays. It seems like Friday should be the day for fun, but you will probably be exhausted by then— and the kids will be more eager to start the weekend than to start a project. Better to tackle anything messy or complicated early in the week, while you’re still feeling fresh and optimistic.
Give rewards. I used to think that learning should be its own reward. This is like expecting kids to thank you for a polio vaccine. Yes, it’s good for them; but no, they won’t appreciate it.
It’s okay to sweeten the deal. Know your kid, and understand what motivates him. Some kids are thrilled with stickers; others want elaborate point systems with prizes they can earn over time. At our house, three “good work” stickers earns them a weekday movie.
Don’t overdose on other mothers’ blogs. It’s great to get support and ideas from other parents, but remember that most people showcase their good days and keep silent about the miserable ones (and everyone has miserable ones). Read until you feel inspired, but stop before you feel like a failure because you’re not doing it all. Remember: no one is doing it all. All good parents have to say “Not this year” to something wonderful and exciting—that’s just life.
Should knowledge always be sugar-coated? Of course not. Shouldn’t first-graders be learning discipline and concentration? Of course. My first-graders do flash cards, spelling drills, and all kinds of things they don’t like.
But the main lesson I want them to learn when they’re little is this: the world is interesting, ideas are exciting, and it feels good to learn something new.
Later comes the hard work; later comes the struggle and the stretching of the intellect. But when they’re still so young, I know it’s been a good school day when the kids can’t wait to tell my husband, “Daddy, guess what we did today?”
—Simcha Fisher is a mother of eight who writes from her home in New Hampshire. She blogs at I Have to Sit Down.
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