If you choose to become a home schooler for the flexibility it allows then you likely value the philosophy that learning does not begin or end when a school bell rings. You understand the necessity and benefits of incorporating learning activities into life as a whole.
The flexibility of home schooling also allows you the time to devote one on one with your child and assist him in learning in a manner that suits him best and to the best of his abilities.
Remember the old cliché “Reading, Writing and Arithmetic?” There is a reason why reading is place first. This is the fundamental skill upon which all others are built. Therefore, when working with your child it is importance to emphasis his reading skills.
Reading is a subject matter that unfortunately the public schools are not handling well. Many students test at a low
percentile on standardized tests. As a home schooler you have the opportunity to emphasize reading to your child throughout the day, in addition to working one on one with him as he begins the reading process.
Once your child is reading on his own the best thing you can do is make sure he always has books available to him on subject matters that interest him. While it may be hard to convince him to perform math problems in his free time, reading can be cast in a more enjoyable light.
Encourage him to read whatever interests him in his leisure time. If you can get him in the habit of reading when he is young it will stick with him. By assisting him in finding books on subjects that he enjoys he will equate reading with an enjoyable experience, which will assist his education down the road.
It is important that you set a good example for him as well. Make sure he sees you reading. And try to cut down on television time by making a family reading time in the evening. Later in the evening, close to his bedtime, let him know that will be getting ready for bedtime soon as well as you have a good book that you want to read.
Reading assists in problem solving and critical thinking skills. And while reading a book your child will be able to absorb facts within its pages as well.
Since reading is a difficult task to grasp it is important to start your child young. It is equally important to distill an enjoyment of reading while he is young as it will be harder to do so when he gets older.
Jennifer Petersen is a staff writer at http://www.education-digest.com and is an occasional contributor to several other websites, including http://www.careers-digest.com.
