Activities Kids Love – Special Replay
I homeschooled from 1986 to 2018 and now enjoy time teaching my grandkids the fun stuff that got shoved to the back because we had to “get school done,” and there was no time left. In this podcast, I’ll share activities kids love and, “Shh!” it might be educational!
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Are you a kid at heart? Can you think back and remember the activities you enjoyed that were actually educational? I remember so much and growing up in a climate, New York and Canada so different than Florida where I live now, I can tell you there is so much kids can do that is enjoyable and educational!
I wanted to share some off the beaten path type of activities with you. Yes, I mention some of the tried and true, but I feel sometimes we stay on those worn paths and as homeschoolers, I always wanted to provide something that is different!
The first place to start is with your children. What are they interested – what are you studying? If you start with something they love they won’t consider it school.
I could list a bunch of different topics and activities but will walk you through the through process of setting up activities that will be something the children can learn from as well as hold their interest.
For example, we were studying simple machines, pulleys, and levers – this can be considered applied science and mechanics – also physics right? Well after we were finished the kids asked if they could use the information they learned and make a catapult in the front yard. Of course, anything that kept the three younger ones 13, 10, 7 busy is a win. Right? Well, when they called me an hour later to take a look the catapult was 6’ high! Did I mention my husband is a contractor and there is often construction materials left over from a job in our yard? I almost had a heart attack as I watched them use it… of course, once it worked I ran to get my camera and took a video.
This is real learning. This is what happens when kids are engaged, encouraged although I would encourage more parental supervision and after this believe me we revisited the “science safety class.”
Another off the normal path is studying pets. Some kids love horses and will not get the opportunity to ride or own a horse. They would love to do a study on horses, the different breeds, and read a book – read about the wild horses and some works of fiction by Marguerite Henry.
When you think about activities kids would love would you consider a pet?
Animals & Pets
I love dogs, cats are okay – I really love goldfish and anything that doesn’t make the house dirty And while my husband and I talked about all the important things in life we never discussed my adamant rule – No Pets Allowed. Do you want to know what type of pets we’ve had (and let me say my husband loves almost all pets!)
We’ve had dogs, three to date. We had a lab, two of them, one Black and one Golden. We had a German Shepherd for a short period of time – he kept breaking out and the neighbor down the road begged to take him and the kids did not like the dog – he was a runner. Then a mixed dog, some shepherd some lab – and man is she protective! I’m taking care of Indy now who was Nick’s dog – is now Anne’s (who is in college) and is currently begging me for a treat. (Don’t tell Anne she is very strict about treats for her dog).
We also had fish, turtles and hurt birds that we took to the nature center.
Pets taught my kids so many things! Responsibility, cleanliness, and love! They had a schedule of who was to feed or brush the dog. I’m so happy that Indy does not like the pond, because add wash the dog to the list.
There are also guide dogs to consider when you have older teens – truthfully I don’t know the rules and imagine that adults must be the trainer, but I saw many homeschool families that had guide dogs. There is the danger of the children bonding to the dog and then giving it up – but it is for such a good cause! Those who have them love them.
Camping: Start in your own yard!
- Kids help plan – challenge to take least amount of things. What will fit in one backpack?
- What we need
- Food
- Help pack
- Moms and Dads plan
- Schedule
- Nature walk
- Science activities
- Collecting (permissible only)
Bubbles – study the science of bubbles – type that into a search engine and you will find a ton of great activities — you can learn about how things stretch, chemistry, light, tension, math! Your kids will love it and you will be amazed at how engaged they will be.
Make a gigantic bubble wand and purchase or make the liquid.
Air and Flight – again so many great activities you can do with this. We studied flight without even knowing that a group of hot air balloons was taking off nearby. We got up at 5 am to watch them and it was amazing. Something the kids will always remember is that the flight never got off the ground due to windy conditions but we were able to get closer to the balloons and talk to some of the owners. The children made many paper airplanes, learned how to design them to do tricks as well as go far, etc.
Of course, there are science projects, history projects and displays the kids can make. Of course, there is art, painting, clay, sculpting, crafts, music, etc.
I hope this podcast has encouraged you to think differently about your homeschool.
Again, I’d like to thank our sponsor, Time4Learning.com – please visit their website and thank them for bringing you this podcast for free.
Special Thanks to Our Network Sponsor -TimeforLearning.com
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VHM-337--LearningTakesPlaceThroughFun.mp3 (17:12, 29MB)
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