Here are your questions with my hopefully helpful answers. I am not the final authority on these matters, but I hope my own experiences will be beneficial to you. Do you focus on one study at a time? Or are there times when you have multiple studies going on? I am trying to help Parker […]
Foundation Education ~ Cultivating Curiosity
When we first started this delight directed gig, I wasn't sure how I was supposed to handle everything. (Should we learn a foreign language? What about art lessons? Grammar? Spelling?) So, I started making things up–making my own plan to bring the best of both worlds together. I wanted to give my son as much […]
FREE Tools for Delight Directed Studies ~ Cultivating Curiosity
Did you really think I could go ten blog posts without printables? Holy withdrawal, Batman! I could never do that. So, here are a few tools to get you going with delight directed studies! You can use these documents to create a small notebook for each of your students. It will serve as an idea […]
What Does a Delight Directed Study Look Like? ~ Cultivating Curiosity
One day a few weeks ago Simon started buzzing about Ancient Egypt — question after question. That afternoon I had him help me gather a pile of books (from our shelves) and we started our Ancient Egypt adventure. It continued over the next few days as we read through the stack. That was it. No […]
A Delight Driven Education ~ Cultivating Curiosity
I don't skip through the halls of homeschool conventions singing this news (for fear of being smacked, punched, or gunned down — or maybe all three!), but my children do enjoy learning. It gives them pleasure and satisfaction. They delight in their studies. So there. I said it. I usually refrain from advertising my love-to-learn […]
Cultivate Curiosity by Reading Great Books Together
Yesterday, I gave you a list of twenty-five ways to stir the pot and cultivate curiosity. Today, I want to dissect #25: Read great books together. Read. Which means exactly that. Read. Read-read-read-read-read. And then read some more. Do it often and frequently and much. Read! Great books. Not just any book will do; it needs […]
25 Ways to Cultivate Curiosity in Your Children
Sometimes kids lose a bit of their curiosity. And sometimes learning gets stagnant. But it doesn't have to stay static. You can keep kids curious. I'm often asked, "What if my child isn't interested in ANYthing?" What then? If your child is bored or in the doldrums, tempt him with miscellaneous items — a tub […]
How to Keep Wonder Alive in Your Homeschool
Asking questions and answering questions is imperative for cultivating curiosity, but sometimes we need to go a bit further. Sometimes we need to stop, drop, and roll with discovery. This starts with me. This starts with you. We must make the deliberate decision to allow our children to make discoveries on their own. I love […]
Inquisitive and Quizzed: Using Questions to Cultivate Curiosity
What do badgers eat? Why can't we see the wind? Does metal come from the ground? What's the gospel? Is anyone going to the moon ever again? Why can't you turn left at a red light? Can I have a puppy? Were there giant woolly mammoths? Why do people have sin in their hearts? Why do […]
Why You Need to Cultivate Curiosity in Your Children
I'm a trained teacher. A few months ago I flipped through my ancient portfolio–the culminating project required of teacher trainees at the university I attended. I spied my philosophy of education. I scanned it. I laughed a little at my words and the praises my profs penned in the margins. I knew so much before […]