self-directed learning

When we began homeschooling in 2006, my children were excited about the time they then had to pursue their interests. Honestly, so was I! We made weekly trips to the library, we went on field trips with our homeschool group, we had play dates and park days, and we attended extra-curricular classes such as dance and wrestling. One of the things that my oldest two loved was to check out How to Draw books from the library. If you’ve ever found this section at the library with your child, you know that many books exist which cover how to draw cars, dinosaurs, puppies, horses, insects, people, comic book characters, and so much more! My children were enthralled with this new interest and pursued drawing with everything they had and as often as they could. This type of pursuit of learning is what I would call self-directed learning. Others may call it delight-directed, child-led, or even unschooling. In all of these cases, in my opinion, this is learning that the child pursues due to his or her interest rather than as a result of pressure or initiation by parents or teachers.

Over the years my children have continued to take an interest in art. They have studied math, science, music, sports, literature, and more. All have held their interest for some period of time, but none like the subject of art. Last fall we became involved with a local co-op and my two oldest finally took their first formal art classes. At the end of the school year, both of them were invited to join the Advanced Art Class beginning the next semester (currently ongoing) due to their skill and obvious love for drawing. They were ecstatic, and I was very pleased for them, as well!

You may be wondering why I’ve shared all of this with you. I simply want you to see what homeschooling can be!

Yes, there are academics involved.

Yes, some days are difficult, academically as well as spiritually, physically, and emotionally.

The truth and joy, though, is that children truly can enjoy learning. They can and will work hard to gain a skill they want to learn.

I have continued to encourage my children, if they really wanted to learn how to draw well, to keep trying. I employ this same thought process in other areas, too. Sometimes this helps motivate them to work towards a goal. At other times, they decide they really aren’t that interested and do not work as hard or pursue a topic very long. I believe that, overall, this has helped them to enjoy their homeschooling journey. We do have some ‘musts’ in our homeschool, but we are much more relaxed than we were at the beginning. The reason for that is because I have seen the learning take place, much of it aside from our ‘school’ assignments. Life is a wonderful teacher, and I am now watching my children reap the rewards.

My eldest daughter is now using the skills and knowledge she has gained through her pursuit of art, and is teaching younger children. She just held her first art class in our home today. I enjoyed watching her work with the girls, teaching them to enjoy the pursuit of art and to take pride in their work. Teaching this class is also allowing her to earn some money for her own expenses, including saving for a summer missions trip. She continues to learn through life, and benefit herself and others, even while teaching and pursuing one of her loves.

I encourage you to observe your children. What are the topics they are drawn to? What do they spend a lot of time talking about, playing with, and researching? Perhaps you could allow them extra time to learn more after their academic work is done, or possibly in place of it. Allow them to grow into self-directed learners. I believe you, and they, will enjoy it as much as we have!

Did you miss our previous How to Homeschool posts? I’ve linked them below for you!

HOW do I homeschool?

How to Homeschool: Homeschooling Methods, Curriculum, and Resources

How to Homeschool: Homeschool Field Trips

This week we have linked up with The Homeschool Village. Click on the image below to go see what everyone else is sharing!