Homeschooling your kid is a brilliant substitute for the tedious old school methods. The pandemic has made it even worse because the lockdowns and travel restrictions have kept the teachers and learners at home. Parents are left with no choice but to homeschool their kids at home.
Regardless of how viable homeschooling is, parents often make several mistakes that are costly to their kids. Here is an insight into the mistakes that you should avoid when you resort to homeschooling.
Over-scheduling the lessons
The home learning environment is a very different setup from the regular school environment. This change in the environment has a significant impact on the learners, mostly on the concentration.
Parents must schedule the lessons with caution to have practical lessons: most parents, especially those with zero experience in tutoring and first-time homeschooling parents.
Having four homeschooling sessions daily is great, but anything more than that might prove to be counterproductive. It can work for a few days, but with time, the kids might lose concentration because of boredom. To avoid blunders, seek advice from the experts because under-scheduling is also a mistake that many homeschoolers commit.
Do not think it is all about you
When homeschooling, many parents forget that they are doing it for the kids. Understandably, you want to teach your kids all concepts on earth by taking them through step-by-step procedures of solving problems.
Stop and think! That is spoon-feeding, and it has very adverse effects on your kids. They will not learn how to research and work out problems on their own.
As programming teachers at Coder Kids point out, this is a common mistake in complex tasks like teaching coding to kids. The importance of coding and other life-skills for kids is understandable, but if you try to spoon-feed them, the kids might end up not grasping the content. Some things are better managed by leaving them to the teachers and professional trainers as they know the tricks to maintain a balance.
In homeschooling, you should draw a line between the future of your kids and success. It is a tricky balance, but if you love your kids, you must choose wisely.
Avoid wild expectations
As a beginner, you might have wild expectations of the performance of your kid. This can be dangerous because your decisions will determine how the learner performs. There are tough times when you can be forced to think that your efforts are not bearing any fruits. Homeschooling has a lot of ups and downs that require resilience and patience to succeed.
The unrealistic expectations can also make you go the extra mile by pushing your kid beyond limits the little mind can handle. It will help if you adopt a standard graph and method that gives your kid time to grow and learn. With time, the kid will pick up and grasp all the content.
Teaching in a disorganized room
Kids can concentrate for very few minutes. When homeschooling, you must ensure that the environment is learning-friendly. A proper learning room should be spotless and organized. The room should not have unnecessary paintings or arts on the wall that can distract your kid’s attention but rather keep it simple.
Moreover, the seats and tables should be of good standard to ensure comfort. Some parents often homeschool their kids in the living space. This is not a good idea because the sofas and beds are too comfortable, and the kids can easily fall asleep.
Living rooms also have several distractors like the television and play stations that kids find more interesting than the studies. If you are to succeed, avoid such mistakes.
Skipping breaks to create more learning time
Stick to the timetable! It is a straightforward rule that many homeschoolers often fail to follow. The timetable is curated to maximize learning time while minimizing boredom. Breaks are equally as important as the lessons. If you downplay the vital role that breaks play, you risk exposing your kid to fatigue.
It would help if you made following the timetable a routine because it optimizes the learner’s performance. Furthermore, kids will get a chance to master the topics taught and freshen their minds over the break.