So I have always figured I would just learn along with the kids when I didn't know something, but the other night hubby and I watched Lincoln, and I realized just how much I do not know. I'm thinking of putting myself through our History of US books following the Hewitt syllabus and mapping with the Map Trek set. These are all things I bought for Garrett but we never used them... and I'm not selling them...lol I'm also considering using Lightning Literature 7 and 8, and going through the Prentice Hall Science Explorer books. Yes, all of these are pretty much middle school... but I have it here and it won't cost me anything but time. Am I crazy?
Learning is never crazy! If you want to do it then go for it. I love history but I don't feel any urge to study science. (never did do well in science)
You are most certainly not crazy. Well, at least not because you want to further educate yourself. I am working my way through Khan Academy right now as a refresher in math. I took math all the way through calculus in high school but do not remember a lot of the courses other than algebra. Trig was not my friend. I do remember that. Calculus was fun. I've considered teaching myself American history but have not really looked into how I would go about it. Looking back I see I got a terrible education and I do have the desire to learn on my own.
I loved science in school and probably retained way more of it than I did history. I moved a lot, and while it seemed each school I learned something new in science I think I covered the same history over and over from elem to high school... and I don't seem to remember much of any of it.
Math was always a struggle for me. I remember many a tearful night with my dad trying to help me understand my math homework. I want to go through Teaching Textbooks, since I can set up more than one student at a time (I'll be the other student).
Love the idea. When I get out of the toddler stage, I totally plan on doing some courses. In University I always did best on the distance ed courses.
When you start up your TT each day, there are two choices to login; Parent or name of student. Log into Parent and it shows: What do you want to do? There are 4 choices. The last one is: Add another student. I haven't done it yet, but I'm assuming you add another name. I would think that then when you login you'll have Parent and two student names to choose to login to. I don't know that I'll do it yet on TT 3...I might wait until things get a little more challenging.
There is never anything crazy about learning! If you have the time, go for it! I've always been one to go off and learn something I wanted to on my own, maybe it's my homeschool background, I don't know. Currently, I'm learning so much just finding information for the kids! lol I never did find a Native American study that I liked so now I'm putting together a giant unit study/notebooking journey. It's taken me several weeks, and I totally understand why complete books on the subject either don't exist or are hard to find! Holy information overload! I'll probably never use all the information I've found, but I'm sincerely enjoying this aspect of history much more than the dry history I had in school.
I think it sounds like a great idea! Learning is never a bad idea! I just signed up for a distance course at the urging of my hubby and I can't wait to get my brain into overdrive with new thoughts and information!
I LOVE diving deep into books and subjects that I feel I know very little about. I always like to look at everything from all angles too. When I decide to study history (or another topic) I want to study from several sources not just one.
I added myself as a student in TT Algebra I so that I can do it along with my daughter! So, yes. I do! LOL
I would say yes I have self educated to some extent. I learned a lot of Spanish in school (2 years in high school and 1 1/2 in college), but I learned a whole lot more on my own speaking to Spanish speaking people. The formal education gave me a base, but it did not get me near to where I am now. Now if only I could go live in Mexico or Spain for a year or so, maybe I would be fluent. I have also taken quilting lessons. On my own I have picked up things here and there about that also.
I have always loved to learn, but I've learned a lot more from just reading on my own (including internet searches in more recent years) than in a classroom. It's both funny and pathetic: the other day one of my highschoolers marveled and asked "how come when we ask a question, you just 'know it'? You don't have to look it up or anything, it just comes to you, it's just there." After I pulled my eyebrows down off the ceiling where they had fled in surprise, I simply told him, "It's called 'an education'."
Thanks everyone I was just going to read things, but I feel I need to spit it b-ack out in some fashion or it won't sink in.
Are you referring to making yourself do "homework" or paperwork or narration of some kind to learn something? I think it works different for different people, but I don't feel the need to "do" anything but work with what I want to learn, so it depends on the subject. For quilting it is easy, the best way to learn is to watch and do. When I do something a few times it is easy to remember. For Spanish I would say I could learn a whole lot more if I would make myself do so much per week, but honestly I am trying to learn Russian right now and Spanish would just get in the way. I do, however, still speak to people in Spanish here and there at work. I am learning a lot about history right now and I am just reading about whatever I want to and enjoying it. Would I be able to pass a test? NO, but I am learning and some of it sticks with me. I think learning takes place best with little to no outside pressure. If there is to be any pressure it should come from the person learning. WOW, I wish I could let go that much with my son. We are relaxed, but I can't let go completely....
The first thing I want to get started is US history, so not really a "skill" to be learned more of a topic. For that I think I need some kind of output. The Hewitt Syllabus has tests in it, one for each book, it also has a list of suggested activities (make a newspaper, make a display, write a report, etc) that you do one each week (research reports are done in the 2nd and 4th quarters and you skip the smaller projects then). While I don't need to do the projects and reports really, I do think notebooking will be beneficial or something along those lines. Also using the Knowledge Quest Map Trek maps will help me see where things happened. I have taught myself all kinds of crafty things (I can knit, crochet, sew and now quilt, all self taught), but have never put any focus into anything academic since school really I guess.
