Key to learning.......

I feel that the biggest part of being a homeschool parent is to find what works for your child and use that to encourage learning. We all know that is we are really into something we have a tendency to go full throttle and learn all we can about it. Why not use this for our kids! If they are not strong readers or have trouble with reading comprehension, then find books(for their grade/age/reading level) that pertain to what they are interested in. We are not all born readers and the key to getting your non-reader hooked is to find something that turns them onto reading. My oldest child is that way. He was never a reader, it was an avoidance for him. He struggled through public school and when we pulled him to homeschool, I was surprised how behind he was. He was and still is a Star Wars fan and that apparently was the key. We started by bumping up his reading with reading comprehension programs and getting the lower level Star Wars books. Easy reads but it made him hunger for more. We gradually bumped up the level to where he is in 8th grade now and reading the adult Star Wars books. My younger son is and always has been a strong reader. He read at an early age, he devours books and many times he will be in his room reading instead of playing video games or on his computer. Which is great since hubby and myself are both that way. I love to read, always have and I am a fast reader. My only problem is time!LOL I am a Mom who runs her business out of her house as well as full-time homeschooling SO.... reading is usually 5 minutes before bed now. So encouraging my younger son in his reading is easy since he is an animal lover. Even this year for Christmas, he will be getting books on animals. Finding other ways for them to practice reading that isn't in a book is by finding online games that they need to slow down and read the steps. I look for any games that encourage this and with my younger son, online animal games are great! Finding Star Wars games online are a bit harder, but they are out there! This has really improved their reading comprehension and their spelling abilities which makes me a happy homeschooling Mama!LOL