Spotty Banana Homeschool

We like to think of our eclectic approach to homeschool as a favorite family recipe. You know, the kind that doesn’t have exact measurements of anything, just general ingredients with vague terms like a ‘dash of salt’ and a pinch of sugar, to taste. And just as these recipes are shared with the next generation, so to is education in the eclectic homeschool family.

In other words, there is no set ‘curriculum’ with neatly organized lesson objectives, timelines, timed tests, etc. The approach to learning is natural and to the ‘taste’ of the student and parents. Don’t be fooled into thinking of this as a lazy, cop-out approach, because it is far more work to gather lesson materials and answer tough questions that arise from such an open-ended approach than it is to use a prepared curriculum for every subject. Think of it as preparing homemade meatballs instead of getting a fast food burger at the drive-through.

The end result is that learning becomes an adventure. Usually, our homeschooler can’t wait to start learning more about paleontology, space, or Luciano Pavarotti. And when children enjoy learning, they learn more and with more depth. We roll up our sleeves, load up on books, magazines, dvds and even a microscope from the public library. We cover math, science, language arts, reading, spelling, writing, poetry, art, music, foreign language, geography, world history and anything else that comes up in conversation. We take frequent ‘field trips’ to local museums, parks, performances and schedule plenty of social time with homeschool groups and even find time for karate and swimming practice!

We take a pinch of this and a scoop of that, mix it together with enthusiasm, stir it up a bit, taste for well-roundedness, let thoughts simmer lightly but steadily until questions are answered and intellectual curiosity is satisfied. In other words, we just follow our instincts and know there is no set recipe for learning or life.