What do you wish kids would learn?

[Cerina]

I'm not talking about things like not talking during a movie or not running in the grocery store.

 

Our homeschool group organizes a co-op every semester, and they asked me to teach in the fall and spring. Mostly the classes are extra-curricular and fun. Noah has taken theater, gardening, active games, science experiments, and world geography. They also usually have art classes and yoga. Sometimes anatomy, math games, snakes, survival, book discussions, etc. You get the picture. The parents volunteer to teach things that they themselves are well versed in or passionate about. Classes are divided into K-2nd grade, 3rd-5th grade, and middle school, and are an hour long once a week.

 

So I'm trying to come up with some ideas. I'd like to do something real world useful for the middle schoolers, like beginning formal logic, personal finance, etc., and something different and super fun for the youngins like something Hogwarts themed or using other things from pop culture to think critically about a topic.

 

Any ideas?

[Driver]

tolerance

[Cerina]

That's a good Hogwarts theme!

[Darth Ender]

Peer leadership and support groups

 

STEM group (like model rockets) where problem solving techniques are explicitly taught.

 

Start a small business

 

Video production where the kids have to write/ edit scripts, take leadership roles, work as a team, how to give and receive constructive feedback, etc. I think it would be cool to start a home school video production club where students where students report on different issues on homeschooling, projects/ fieldtrips, student reviews of home school via Netflix films, how to get into college, local extracurricular stuff, how to get into college, etc. Make it into a community thing.

[Cerina]

The video production thing would be an awesome club for the teen group. It should be ongoing and not just a semester.

 

I like the STEM group idea. Especially engineering challenges. I'm going to hold on to that one.

 

I'm also going to see what I can make of the small business idea for the elementary kids. We did that in my elementary school's GATE pull-out program one year, and I LOVED it. We already have a group that particpates in the Junior Achievement's BizTown program. Those kids seem to really like it.

[Darth Ender]

The video production thing would be an awesome club for the teen group. It should be ongoing and not just a semester.

 

I like the STEM group idea. Especially engineering challenges. I'm going to hold on to that one.

 

I'm also going to see what I can make of the small business idea for the elementary kids. We did that in my elementary school's GATE pull-out program one year, and I LOVED it. We already have a group that particpates in the Junior Achievement's BizTown program. Those kids seem to really like it.

Video production is very front loaded. You will do a lot of work training the kids and such, but once the kids learn the technical and leadership skills, they will take control and you are the facilitator...you are just kinda there...which is so cool! I know quite a few elementary video programs that kick ass so I would open it up at age 8.

 

What about starting a competitive academic home school team like Odyssey of the Mind or Science Olympiad?

[Guest El Chalupacabra]

Critical thinking skills, maybe? I found this site that may be helpful....

 

http://www.criticalthinking.org/pages/critical-thinking-where-to-begin/796

[Iceheart]

The teen group would probably get a major kick out of experimental archaeology. Pick a time period and a place to study, and start reenacting.

[Cerina]

*grumble* Odyssey of the Mind *grumble*

[D-Ray Kenobi]

I'm not sure how to tie it into anything fun, but I think one of the tools that's going to be most needed in the upcoming generation is far more skepticism and critical thinking.

Perhaps not to the point where they're just cynical about everything ever, but I see far too much groupthink in every adult generation right now. If someone they look up to says something is true, there's evidently no need whatsoever to check other sources or to verify it's authenticity. I think modern humans have a built in bullshit detector, but I see that tool being used far lesser than most should be comfortable with.

[Iceheart]

*grumble* Odyssey of the Mind *grumble*

So do an Odyssey instead. My college "Homerathons" every other year, we do a 24 hour reading of the Odyssey every four years. Like this, but we did it first, and Sir Ian McKellan has yet to read with us. Have special food and games that tie in to the story. Learn about ancient Greece! Have fun with it.

[Driver]

I think the filmmaking model could be used elsewhere. I think group projects are great-- ones where kids may be in charge, or have a lowly position so they get the idea in the real world they can't be insta-boss.

[Cerina]

Yesterday I told Noah that he needs to write kids books about animals because I'm tired of him asking me to read him these books only for him to have more facts in his brain about them than what's on page, and he said he's waiting for Luke to get bigger so they can be the next Kratt Brothers. So there might be something to the whole film/video production thing.

[Cerina]

My sister suggested I do a puzzle of the week sorta thing. Where I make up these artifacts with clues/codes/ciphers on/in them and they have to solve it. She and her husband own/run an escape room place and now they're travelling around designing and building them for other people. That sounds fun to me, but I wonder if kids would agree.

[Poe Dameron]

I just wish kids would learn to do basic arithmetic without screaming for a stupid calculator.

 

Can you do that for me?

[Cerina]

No. Calculations are for calculators. I don't believe we should keep future generations from technology simply because we didn't have it or have as much access to it.

[Poe Dameron]

You don't think the ability to do 13 + 12 without the aid of a calculator might be useful in life?

 

I'm seriously not exaggerating, and it's crippling kids from being able to do fairly simple equations with anything approaching fluency because they lack the ability to look at the numbers and move them around in their head during practice or while they're being taught.

 

Yeah, it's boring and rote and all that. But it's a rather critical foundation and makes things so much easier on the back end. To this day I thank my 3rd grade teacher for drilling us to death on flash cards and multiplication tables. Because of that, I was free to learn the basics of algebra by focusing on the new rules I was being taught and can figure out decently complex pieces of arithmetic in my head without effort.

[Driver]

If there's one thing good about the common core system being pushed on grade schools around the country, is that as jacked as it is, it teaches number sense. My kid can do math in his head that I need a calculator for.

[Cerina]

I don't know a single kid over 7 who can't add 12 + 13 in their head. So I'm not sure if you're exaggerating to make a point or what.

[Poe Dameron]

Boy, I wish I were even mildly exaggerating. Or that I were talking about 7-year-olds. I've been in several classrooms with students twice that age in full rebellion because they couldn't use a calculator to solve equations that don't contain any arithmetic more difficult than what you'd find on a flashcard.

[DANA-kin Skywalker]

Overdependence on calculators is definitely a thing for adults, and that has to be fixed during school. It slays me how many people can't figure their bill out at a restaurant. Just add up what you got, take ten percent for the tax, then double THAT amount for twenty percent tip and add those all together. Everybody should be able to do that in their head and come within a dollar. You could just use a calculator and do a one-step calculation and multiply by 1.3...but those that have to whip out a calculator typically don't know what to DO with it. Wait, what was the tax, again? How much of it is mine? Okay I figured out the tip..what was the original amount again? And so on. A balance needs to be struck with calculator use so they don't grow up sucking at basic math.

 

As far as what I think kids should learn:

 

Learn...how to learn. That's most important skill to possess. That is accomplished by learning how to study effectively, and take school seriously and responsibly. Unfortunately, most kids don't take it serious enough until their senior year in high school, because...they are kids. Some never truly learn how to do this despite getting good grades, then drop out of college the first year. "too much partying" is the common response. I call bullshit. You can party and learn. There are 24 hours in a day to accomplish this. You just need to put in the effort, manage your time, and study effectively.

[Cerina]

Knowing the why and how of using a calculator isn't the same as just using a calculator. If someone know how to figure the top on a bill, but uses a calculator, what's wrong with that? Nothing. A calculator is a tool, and we should use it to make our lives easier. Mental calculations are not pertinent in most people's lives. I bought the BS line that " won't always have access to a calculator" when I was in school (last millennia) as a reason to practice flawless calculations until I memorized them, but that's not the world we live in any longer. I almost ALWAYS have a calculator in my purse, pocket, or diaper bag. If I don't for some unfortunate reason, someone I'm with does! Not only that, but now they're even scientific calculators. In my pocket. At all times.

 

Let's not get caught up in the idea that we're educating children for a world that no longer exists. And we should not look down on future generations for having tools and access to tools that we did not. And especially not for using those tools.

[Ms. Spam]

They should know how to count back change.

[DANA-kin Skywalker]

Knowing the why and how of using a calculator isn't the same as just using a calculator. If someone know how to figure the top on a bill, but uses a calculator, what's wrong with that? Nothing. A calculator is a tool, and we should use it to make our lives easier. Mental calculations are not pertinent in most people's lives. I bought the BS line that " won't always have access to a calculator" when I was in school (last millennia) as a reason to practice flawless calculations until I memorized them, but that's not the world we live in any longer. I almost ALWAYS have a calculator in my purse, pocket, or diaper bag. If I don't for some unfortunate reason, someone I'm with does! Not only that, but now they're even scientific calculators. In my pocket. At all times.

 

Let's not get caught up in the idea that we're educating children for a world that no longer exists. And we should not look down on future generations for having tools and access to tools that we did not. And especially not for using those tools.

Sigh. Always so uppity when it comes to kids. You missed my point. Let's walk it back.

 

There's nothing wrong with using a calculator to figure out the bill, but everybody should be competent enough to do it without one. This is basic non-algebra math. You shouldn't NEED to use one. Requiring one means you CANNOT do it without one, and you are lacking in basic math skills. This is the hallmark of a stupid person. I know you obviously understand the difference, but all too often I see people bang away at a calculator and screw up, because all they really know about math is press the buttons. Garbage-in, garbage-out. This is OVER-DEPENDANCE.

 

Furthermore, I never said people SHOULDN'T use calculators because...IDK... you think I didn't grow up with the oh-so modern technology of calculators in the classroom or whatever. What I DID say was that, based on my own observation, TYPICALLY those that DO use them in this situation do so because they MUST. They don't know HOW as evidenced by how they struggle too much to get the (sometimes even wrong) answer. This is because they don't have strong enough basic math skills in the first place. You build these basic math skills by DOING basic math. If you don't know that 10% of $39.56 is $4, 20% is $8, so you owe $52, but are pressing buttons feverishly on a calculator, making mistakes, and asking for help, then the calculator is failing you. Your math teachers have failed you as a kid. Unfortunately, I see this too often. However, if you use one regularly for basic calculations such as this, and don't screw it up, great! You passed! There's nothing inherently wrong calculator use (it's obviously a valuable tool) and like most people I constantly use one at work. My point was, again, a BALANCE should be met with their use when it comes to teaching kids, to build some basic math skills FIRST, so when they grow up they can either figure out the tip on their heads OR use a calculator and not bumble around like an idiot.

 

You say mental math isn't crucial to people's everyday lives. That's true. Maybe it's because I play a lot of poker, but I am constantly doing mental math, even when kicking back doing something I enjoy in my free time.

[The Kurgan]

Verbal and written language comprehension.

 

Just think of the b.s we could avoid if there was still even the most basic language comprehension skills among the general populace. Combine abysmal comprehension with social media, and it's no wonder SJWs and Donald Trump are happening.

 

Professional educators: please please PLEASE stop graduating pupils until they are able to correctly understand what their fellow citizens are trying to communicate when they use the English language.