Mimi Rothschild - Home School Support & Home Education News

By Mimi Rothschild

Free Range Learning is a term I’ve been hearing tossed about in the homeschooling world for some time. Regardless of its connotation, I love the sound of the term. It implies learning without boundaries.

Some unfortunate souls have the misperception that homeschoolers are stuck in a jail-like building, as if they stare teary-eyed out the window at the lucky kids catching the school bus in the morning. On the contrary, to the homeschooler, the world is a classroom. It is in fact the public school student who is forced into a cell-like classroom confined by rigid strictures and stifling monotony. There are many ways to take advantage of the limitless nature of homeschooling. Here are just a few:

Libraries: This one’s pretty obvious. Area libraries are a wealth of information. Most have high-speed internet access in addition to plenty of print materials. Taking full advantage of your local library can really supplement your homeschoolers curriculum well.

Museums: Another no-brainer. Museums offer kids a visual and sometimes hands-on supplement to their learning. If you live in a rural area, plan a weekend trip to the closest city and go museum-hopping. Many museums have a “just for kids” section that will provide hours of fun learning. Older homeschoolers will also be enriched by the regular exhibits.

Colleges: Why not have your high schoolers take a college course or two in a particular area of interest? It’s a great way to expose them to an environment that they will most likely transition to in the near future. If you have a family friend that is currently enrolled in a college, you can even allow your child to spend a weekend with that friend. They will get a taste of dorm life and even attend the same classes. This is also a great way to supplement your homeschooler’s search for the right college.

Friends and Relatives: Last year, I set up an assignment for which each of my homeschoolers interviewed my parents about their experiences during World War II. Not only was it an engaging and informative history lesson, it was an unforgettable bonding experience that they will no doubt carry with them long after my parents have passed. I would encourage you to think creatively about what your homeschoolers could learn from family friends. Perhaps you have a friend who is a farmer that they can shadow for a day. Maybe a friend has just given birth, and you would like your daughters to learn how to care for a newborn baby. The possibilities are only limited to your imagination.

The Internet: Having 24/7 access to the internet will give your homeschoolers an enormous edge over public school students. If your students have a question, encourage them to find out for themselves on the computer rather than instantly providing the answer. This will cultivate essential web-browsing skills and will also build an innate desire to explore and learn on the web. Here are some helpful hints to guide your search for knowledge on the internet.

Field Trips: There are plenty of untraditional places to visit that aren’t generally considered places of learning. Get together with other homeschool families to plan field trips to factories, historical sites, conservatories, zoos, and more. Every once in a while, you can all head out to an amusement park just for fun.