Homeschooling is no doubt a tough yet rewarding journey, as it provides your kids with a learning environment tailored to their needs and learning styles. As a parent, you need to be prepared for the fact that not everything will turn out as you plan it and your children may not always live up to expectations.
When your homeschooled children don’t seem to accomplish as much as others, it can be challenging and will require patience and understanding on your part. In this article, we provide 15 questions that you should ask yourself to help you handle the situation in a proactive way.
1. How Is Your Child Different from Others Doing Homeschooling?
The first thing you should explore is how your child differs from other homeschoolers. Do they have different learning styles or skills than their peers who are doing well?
Do they need a different approach or specific accommodations in the way the material is taught? Or do they simply have other interests and goals than their peers? It’s important to understand that every child is unique and that this should be kept in mind when approaching any issue or discrepancy in academic performance.
2. Are You Holding Your Homeschooled Kid to the Same Standards as Other Kids?
Another important question to ask yourself is if you’re holding your homeschooled child to the same standards as other children. Oftentimes, homeschool students are held to higher expectations than those in the traditional school system due to the individualized learning environment.
This can lead to frustration, overworking, and other issues that negatively impact your child’s performance. It’s important to have reasonable expectations of your child and to give them the same support and understanding you would other children in their age group.
3. Have You Started Any Challenges for Your Homeschoolers to Reach Goals?
One way to incentivize progress and motivation in your children is to set up a challenge system. Set short-term and long-term goals for yourself and your children to reach. You could reward achievement with small rewards such as books, coupons, or other incentives.
This will help them to stay motivated and interested in learning.
4. Are You Utilizing Teaching Aids to Enhance Their Learning?
Using different teaching aids can make the learning process more interesting for your kids. You can use task cards, worksheets, games, role-playing, music, videos, charts, and more.
In fact, teaching aids are great tools to present the same concepts in different ways, as different children may respond better to different approaches.
5. Are You Implementing an Appropriate Structured Schedule?
Homeschooling can easily become disorganized and chaotic. To avoid this, you should make sure that you have a structured schedule where things are planned in advance. This will help you keep on track and ensure that your children are not under an undue pressure to complete tasks.
You should also make sure to take regular breaks and allow your children to explore other interests.
6. What Are Some Learning Strategies You Could Use for Different Study Topics?
Different study topics can require different learning strategies. For example, for math, you may want to focus on memorizing facts and formulas, while for history you may want to focus more on reading and memorizing dates.
Having a clear plan for each subject will help your kids stay focused and understand the material better.
7. Are You Providing Enough Resources for Your Children to Succeed?
When it comes to homeschooling, you need to ensure that you have the right resources for your children to succeed. This includes having access to books and other materials such as worksheets, online lessons, and other sources of information.
If you don’t have the right resources, it may be a hindrance to your children’s learning and progress.
8. Is There a Lack of Motivation or Discipline Within the Home Environment?
Another factor in your children’s academic performance is their motivation and discipline. If your home environment is not conducive to learning, then it may be difficult for them to stay on track.
Create an environment where they can focus on learning and developing the skills and habits necessary for success.
9. Are You Allocating Enough Time for Your Children to Spend on Academics?
When it comes to successful homeschooling, it’s important to make sure that you are allocating enough time for your children to learn and stay on track. Depending on their age and learning goals, you should set aside a certain amount of time for academics.
This does not need to be too stringent and you should still allow your children the freedom to have nonacademic interests.
10. Are You Using Responsive Teaching Techniques?
The best way to ensure that your children are engaging with the material is to use responsive teaching techniques. You should be open and willing to answer any questions they may have, as well as make sure that they understand the material before moving on to the next topic. You should also be consistently assessing their skills and abilities and adjust the material to their level.
11. Are You Using Technologies and Digital Tools to Make Learning More Engaging?
The digital world provides many interesting tools and technologies that can be used to make learning more interactive and engaging. You can explore virtual labs, e-books, video lessons, brain-training games, and more to make the learning process more interesting.
12. Are You Giving Enough Self-Assessment Opportunities for Your Children?
One important element of success in homeschooling is self-assessment. You should give your children the opportunity to evaluate their own work and progress.
This will help them understand their strengths and weaknesses, as well as give them a sense of ownership over their learning journey.
13. What Are Some Extracurricular Activities You Can Explore?
Another great way to motivate your children to learn is by exploring extracurricular activities. Participating in activities such as sports, robotics, art, music, and more can help your children become more engaged and invested in their academic journey.
14. Are You Giving Your Children Time to Unwind and Enjoy Free Time?
It’s equally important to allow your kid the opportunity to unwind and enjoy free time. You should avoid overworking your children and instead make sure to set aside a few hours each day for them to relax and just enjoy the moment.
15. Are You Open to Ask for Help and Support as Needed?
As a parent, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to go through this journey alone. Seek guidance from school officials and other homeschool parents when needed. Don’t be afraid to reach out for help or ask for advice.
Conclusion: Handling a situation where your homeschooled kid is not as successful as others can be daunting. It’s important to take a step back and evaluate the situation in a calm, objective manner.
The 15 questions outlined in this article will help guide you in that process to ensure that the best strategies for your children will be implemented. With patience and understanding, you’ll be able to help your children thrive and reach their fullest potential.