Several years ago, I student taught under a teacher that told me that it is our responsibility as educators to give students a “hook to hang it on.” Meaning, we build new concepts on information children already know. I am no longer teaching, but that thought has always been in my head now that I am parenting. Students can and should learn new ideas from their life experiences. I think we can agree it’s easier to know how to do something after we have done it instead of just read it in a book or learned it in a formula. I have been wondering why do student have to do worksheets at all? Why do students have to learn how to diagram sentences? What is the point? I’m sure there is a point, but I’m not sure that I really care. Kids naturally want to learn, but by the time many are in 3rd grade, they hate school. Why? I’m not here to change the face of public education. I’m resigned to the fact that public schools won’t change, and that is another blog…
What I am interested in is parental involvement in education, and I don’t mean volunteering at school. I mean teaching my daughter the skills and core standards that I believe are important to having a successful, fulfilling life by utilizing the teachable moments that occur every day. I plan to use our life experiences for lessons and write out goals for learning. I will incorporate our normal daily activities into our lessons and let learning happen. My hope is that my daughter will grow to love learning and find her interests and pursue them on her own without feeling forced or coherced to get good grades. I want her to have an intrinsic desire to gain knowledge.
A Hook to Hang it On 