Home Schooling and the Study of History

By Marion Jones

Do you think that passing time in traditional classrooms is not worth it? For many people, that is true. For example, a test is coming up and the pupils are told to memorize a lot of dates and names. However, after taking the test, they will definitely forget 90% of those dates and names. That's what the majority of students do every time they have tests. If you are one of these people, you will find traditional history lessons boring, so home schooling, which focuses more on the history of the world will surely catch your fancy.

Just simple memorization is not enough to know the importance of historical, famous people and important events. Through home schooling in history, you can learn about the different cultures of the past in a different, but interesting way - that is your own way! Through the study of history, you will also understand what is happening in the world.

However, if you think that home schooling is the most effective method for your child's education, you should also be prepared to undertake some responsibilities. Since there will be no teacher present 'on site', you will have to supervise your child's learning progress by yourself.

Let's just suppose that your child is interested in a particular sport. Through combining history and home schooling, you can start by just hanging a map on the wall of your child's bedroom and mark the location of his favourite sports team. Make sure that you track all the team's activities and schedules. Then, you could return to history lessons by reading biographies of the various athletes, who had been famous in the particular sport that your child follows. Aside from that, you can also examine the history of that particular sport and discover where it started, its inventor, and the other things happening at that particular time in history.

For instance, let's say your child likes baseball, you can teach your child about the history baseball, government hearings on the use of steroids and other favourite pastimes during that period of time. Just remember that you can adapt this concept to any interest like dancing, flight, cars or any invention. You can also have conversations with your child about current events or read interesting historical documents and other books. Aside from that, you could also watch documentaries together with the rest of the family. There are various resources that your child can use while home schooling, such as TV, maps, newspapers, books, a globe, an atlas, and encyclopedias. Due of the enthralling adventures that you and your child will read about and see on film, he/she will find it easier to remember the names and dates of the history lessons. After all, learning is best when it is done in a fun way.

These methods are recommended for when your child is still young, but once your child is older, you must choose an appropriate home schooling program that is suitable to his/her age group. The programs are available at the elementary, high school, and even college levels. You simply have to search the Internet for these various programs. A good thing about these programs is that you can tailor them to suit the needs of your child. However, you must ensure that all the lessons are studied by your child.

Once you and your child have decided to give home schooling a shot, you will have to be ready to endure some changes in your lifestyle. The educational will now take place in your home not at a remote school and through the various resources that you want to use, which should include a computer and the Internet. - 29956

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