An Intro to Our Delight Directed Homeschool
In our case, the delight directed homeschooling method chose us, we didn’t choose (well, certainly I didn’t choose) it.
But I love it.
It has become more than just our homeschooling style; it’s become our lifestyle.
I would hazard a guess that this is the most widely varied homeschooling style because it is so individualized–but therein lies its beauty. There are any number of ways to approach a school day in a delight directed homeschool. You can read more about what a day in our homeschool life looks like here.
In our situation, we do not spend a large chunk of time on lessons during any part of the day. We do a little here, a little there, from morning until bedtime. This is in part because Billy has a hard time maintaining focus on certain tasks and also because there are two other little guys under 2 years old who need some of mommy’s time, too.
Yet even outside of “lesson time” I’ve come to see so many learning moments happening just in the process of daily life, even when Billy doesn’t realize it. It’s almost become a game for me: “What is he learning now?”
There are times that I feel more like a supervisor than a teacher; but sometimes I find that I am more of a hindrance to Billy’s learning than a help and I need to know when to step back and let him go on his own.
Billy is extremely self-motivated and can easily have his feelings hurt and become embarrassed. If I tell him something is wrong, it can cause him to get frustrated and quit the whole activity. I noticed this–particularly with writing–very early on. He is only 5, so at this point, that he WANTS to read and write at all is more important to me than him being able to read through an entire book or write a perfect sentence on his own.
If I try to push him, I know it will simply push him away.
Does your child have a subject like that?
In spite of the fact that we are not using a formal curriculum, Billy is doing very well learning to read and write. He reads words everywhere and asks us how to spell words he wants to write. The key is that desire–he wants to write something, so he figures out how to do it and we encourage and praise him when he does.
I choose a more “go-with-the-flow” style, for now. However, Delight Directed does NOT necessarily mean “no plan.”
You could plan out a whole unit study and “strew” some items around your home to pique your child’s interest, and then introduce your lesson when they’ve picked up on the items you’ve strewed. (If you’d like more information on strewing, you can find some articles on my Delight Directed Homeschooling Pinterest board.)
You could use a more formal style for some subjects and add in just a few delight directed activities. Don’t, however, be tempted to discount the educational value of these activities simply because your child enjoys them! Look beneath the surface to uncover deeper learning that is happening!
The most important thing of all is to know your legal obligations to your state and meet them. Join HSLDA and perhaps a state-wide or local group that can help you to figure out your rights and responsibilities. Fellow members of these groups can be an invaluable resource to help you figure out how to be a delight directed homeschooler in your state.
If you’d like to learn more, check out my Delight Directed Learning Pinterest board. It’s full of wonderful articles and ideas on delight directed learning strategies and ways you can implement them to enhance your homeschool!
Author BioHeather is married and blessed to be called “mom” by 3 awesome boys (and 2 German Shepherds). She blogs about homeschooling, her faith and their family (coffee mug in hand!) at Homeschooling…On Faith and Coffee.