How to move from boredom to motivation?

Building a love for learning is a top reason to homeschool, but even with an amazing curriculum we can become unmotivated even dreading the learning tasks ahead of us. Still many of us continue in our ruts hoping a miracle will occur where tomorrow the same Math lesson sparks a desire in our child to become a mathematician. It’s possible, but in my experience the wait is too excruciating. 

When learning becomes drudgery, it’s time to adapt and supplement our lessons. 

Neurologist and teacher Judy Willis, author of Research-Based Strategies to Ignite Student Learning, explains the science behind this, “Optimal brain activation occurs when subjects are in positive emotional states or when the material holds personal meaning, connects to their interests, is presented with elements of novelty, or evokes wonder. This is why attentiveness is so closely linked to positive emotional cueing and personal meaning. When there is connection to prior knowledge or positive emotional experience, new information passage through the limbic system will be enhanced. The thalamus will then “decide” to pay attention to the information.” 

To get your kids to love learning try playing educational games, do more hands-on activities, add movement, or simply laugh together before a lesson. Here are suggestions other homeschoolers have found useful.

CHANGE THE ENVIRONMENT 

• Avoid sticking to one favorite spot in the house. Even if it’s moving from a chair to the floor, change locations often.
• Add new pictures, colors, themes to your learning space. It should be engaging without being distracting.
• Take learning outside. A backyard, front porch, or park make excellent classrooms.
• Leave the house. Take your lessons to the library for a day or part of your day. For Religion class, extend your time in Adoration with reading materials about our faith and the saints. Learn in the car on the way to a field trip. Your kids are sure to absorb information on fossils while driving to the fossil sites in Nashville).

GET ARTISTIC

• Making books www.makingbooks.com
• Songs can teach more than the ABC’s. Teach all ages some new educational songs https://www.songsforteaching.com/ 
• Homemade art supplies – www.artistshelpingchildren.org/homemade.html
• Lapbooks http://www.homeschoolshare.com/

ADD MOVEMENT

• Combine PE and other subjects http://www.pecentral.org/lessonideas/classroom/classroom.asp
• Math and Movement http://mathdance.org/html/activities.html 
• Recite memory work as they jump on a trampoline, play catch, or other repetitive movement. 
• Make writing gigantic. Use a stick to write in a sandbox, gravel, or dirt instead of paper. In the summer a water gun and wall is a fun option.

INVITE OTHERS

Including even one other homeschooler into a learning activity livens things up. Extended family could even join in. Wether it spurs on a competitive nature or adds some fresh laugher to old jokes an additional person might be what your homeschool needs. Below are some ideas to learn with groups of multiple age kids. Not all of these need to be done in person. A regularly scheduled zoom call might be all the motivation you need for some of these ideas.

• Complete a group research paper or presentation. 
• Start a science club. You can get together for experiments or to do further research, either having the kids choose topics or continue to use your curriculum as the resource. 
• Have a show & tell for the grandparents or as a homeschool group.
• Read aloud time with friends or family
• Host an educational game day.

BORROW TRAVELING KITS

• Tennessee Museum Traveling Trunks
• Nashville Library Curriculum Kits 
• National Park Service Materials for loan 
• Tennessee State Library & Archives NASA STEM Kits & DocsBox