Project Based Learning

     I have been researching project based learning lately. It is basically integrating your curriculum into a real world project or theme. For example, students design a new product or solve a problem in healthcare or investigate the causes of racism. All this is done by incorporating English, History, Math and Science. The project spans some time and concludes with some sort of report or presentation. I am curious how the schools are able to do this with all the time and budget contraints. For homeschoolers it seems perfect, except for the fact that it really is designed to be done in groups with the exchange of ideas.  Perhaps some sort of co-op is on the horizon.


     Everyone speaks of creativity and critical thinking but how do we really teach it?  How do you get a child to  take initiative and be take chances on an idea when it may not come naturally to them (or us)? Are the great innovators accidental or were they nurtured by a teacher or parent?  I Find this challenging with Sarah. When I say write a report on anything you want she becomes very overwhelmed and literally shuts down. If I give her a topic, she resists. I think it has a lot to do with confidence and fear. She is afraid she will pick the wrong topic or she wont be able to finish it. I completely understand that fear and it can be paralyzing. How do we overcome this in our children when as adults we struggle as well?


     Back to PBL, this could be a huge shift in how we home school.  If done correctly, it could make sense out of school. The age old question, "when am I ever going to use this?" may actually have merit. Are we raising test takers or great thinkers.   If we open the walls of education and embrace failure as a natural part of learning we may uncover some amazing ideas.   This is such a great time in their life, free of pressure and responsibility. This is the perfect time to explore without having to achieve. Now, onto picking the first project.....