Your child’s education shouldn’t only prepare them to do well academically (book smarts) but should also prepare them for what they will encounter in the real world.
Although you are going to start them young – either in pre-k or kindergarten – you have to consider the more advanced online homeschool curriculum going forward as well. Regardless of how old they are when you start homeschooling them, there are certain things to consider. So when choosing software, resources, and online tools you are going to use for homeschooling, these are a few relevant factors to consider in order to ensure they receive top notch education learning at home.
1. Ongoing learning –
Yes, you are starting them you; but when choosing the online homeschool curriculum consider what they will learn going forward. In choosing software and online resources consider:
– Those which have a “continuation” or go forward sequentially as they age.
– Choosing software which offers testing, short lessons, and interactive tools for learning.
– Choosing programs which offer audio and visual learning, and allow for full customization.
It is extremely important that any online homeschool curriculum you choose to use, does follow a series or order. Your child is going to delve into tougher materials as they get older. You need to select the software that accounts for this, and offers programs for pre-k to grade 12, if you so choose to keep them at home through their high school education.
2. Customization is key –
One child might learn listening to audio stories while others learn with games and visual tools. The online homeschool curriculum and tools you use should account for this. Look for programs which offer you the customization you desire, so you can work with each student in the home. Look for software which has: games, written and audio series, and short (1 to 4 minute long) sessions, for the material being taught. Especially when children are younger, they don’t have the attention span to go too much longer when learning a particular topic. So don’t force it. Rather look for software which allows you to custom tailor their learning, based on their present education, abilities, and the manner in which they learn best.
3. Subject matter –
Sure, your child likes math and hates vocabulary or comprehension skills, but they still have to learn these skills. Make sure the online homeschool curriculum you choose to use has everything they need. From social studies, to sciences, math to English, and even foreign languages as they get older, there are so many custom programs and software options out there today. As a parent who has chosen the homeschooling route, you can truly find everything they would learn in a traditional school setting, as well as electives and additional topics for them to study. Make sure you compare programs, and know what each one offers, to ensure you have the right resources, and best tools to help your child learn the materials they need to learn.
4. More than “book smarts” –
Again, your child should learn the ABCs and learn how to do algebraic equations. With this in mind, the online homeschool curriculum you use to teach them should offer more. They should learn how to reason, and use deductive skills to solve problems. They should learn comprehension skills and how to correlate one subject matter with another. Critical thinking and problem solving should be learned as they excel and move forward with their studies at home. Further, your child should learn creativity, learn how to collaborate, and learn different skills, they don’t typically find in books. So look for the online homeschool curriculum which offers more than the basics. You want something that is going to develop a well rounded individual, and you should look for the online software which is going to provide them with the in depth information they need to do well in courses, and to do well in life and in public situations they are placed in as well.
5. Continual improvement –
The online software you choose to use for homeschooling your child shouldn’t be stagnant. If the material is dated, or if it is teaching them how to do equations the way you learned to do it in school over twenty years ago, this might not be the best product out there for you to use in teaching your child at home. The online homeschool curriculum you use should be ever adapting and changing. It should account for new ways of critical thinking, new ways to solve complex problems, and new methods for teaching students how to solve those problems.
The software should be pliable, in the sense that it allows you to teach them the same thing, in more than one manner. It should allow you to use visual and audio aids to teach them. It should incorporate games, testing, and different methods for teaching, so that your child remains focused, doesn’t lose sight of what they are learning, and does not get too bored with the materials they are learning. Due to the nature of academia, there are always new ways to teach children complex matter, in a simple manner. So look for the online tools and software which allow you to do this, and allow you to custom tailor your teaching style, and their learning method, to work well, and to ensure they are going to get the most out of each session they are in the classroom with you.
As a parent you want to know your child is getting the very best education; if you desire to teach from home, there are a number of great ways to go about setting up the homeschooling materials you are going to use in order to teach your child to succeed in class as well as in life as they get older. These are a few relevant factors to consider when choosing the online homeschool curriculum and software you will use to teach your children, in order to ensure they are always ahead of the curve, and get the most out of each lesson plan you have set up for them.