An Awesome Afterschooling Formula

Here's the simple and effective formula I follow for our home education adventures.  Let me outline the components, with three examples.

I'll give you an infographic first, for those who prefer to digest information in that way.  Then I'll go into more detail with 3 examples that you can try at home.

Using this formula, the learning really sticks.  Plus, it's fun!

Now, let me give you some awesome examples you can use.

THE HOOK

The main point of the hook is to get your child asking questions.

Sometimes I do more than one tuning in activity.

Hook Example 1:

The first example is a mystery; a 'Dr Dad for PM' sign appearing in the window of our house one day.

With an election coming up, and the Australian Curriculum requirement to cover Federation for my Grade 6 son, I had a vague idea that I wanted to take my kids to see Parliament sitting.

At this stage, I hadn't assessed their prior knowledge or come up with any firm learning intentions.

Remember, the hook doesn't have to do anything except get them interested!

Hook Example 2:

Again, I had no real idea of what the learning goals would be, but I knew I wanted to do a hands-on activity dissecting a sheep's heart.  I wasn't sure if my kids had any idea about veins, arteries or how hearts work.

The hook in this case was an interesting resource in the form of a fun lift-the-flap book on the circulatory system, which I put on display in our living room.

Hook Example 3: 

Sometimes the best hooks are simple open-ended questions, like when we drove past a tower and I asked, "What do you think this tower is for?" 

THE FIELD TRIP

A field trip takes the learning into the real world.

Before the field trip we usually discuss any questions we have that we want answered.  This is when I assess their prior knowledge and firm up learning goals.

It's a great Visible Learning strategy backed by research to be very explicit with your child at this stage about what they will learn, how they will learn it, and how they will know they have learnt it.

Field Trip Example 1:

The 'Dr Dad for PM' sign sent us off to see Parliament sitting, with the intention of learning what the different roles in Parliament are and who currently fills those roles.

Field Trip Example 2:

The book about the circulatory system took us to a medical museum with the intention of learning about the history of heart surgery.

Field Trip Example 3:

We visited a Shot Tower with the intention of learning when, how and why shot was produced in that way.

THE HANDS-ON ACTIVITY

This is a really, really essential component for me.  

The hands-on activity is less about knowledge, and more about creating a fun memory linked to the knowledge.  It really helps to develop a positive orientation towards learning.

Hands-On Example 1:

My son made this beautiful mace after seeing one on a poster we got at Parliament House:

Hands-On Example 2:

We dissected a heart after reading about the circulatory system:

Hands-On Example 3:

We built towers after visiting the Shot Tower.

I don't always do these components in order.  Sometimes the hands-on activity makes a really good hook, so we do that first.

If you want to see some examples of when I've used a hands-on activity as a hook, try our Cactus Invitation To Play or our Poo Provocation.

IN CONCLUSION

The three essential components of our afterschooling formula are a hook, a field trip and a hands-on activity.

Now it's your turn.  What do you think?  Please hit me up in the comments.

Stay tuned for another example of this formula in action with a post coming soon: 'This Is WAY Better Than Flashcards!'