It is 3:15 pm. School should be wrapping up, and yet I am covered in the contents of the junk drawer—not the little one that has pencils and vitamins. No, I am in the Drawer of Lost Causes. (I am sure you have one, too.)
Why am I wading through Spirograph parts, lanyards from third grade, and various junk we’ve accumulated over the years? Because I need two things for a science experiment: a red balloon and two D batteries. (What even runs on D batteries anymore?!) You have been there before, right? Please tell me that you, too, find yourself scouring your junk drawer at the last minute for random bits to make your science activity a success.
I had become the mom who hates science experiments. Scattered science experiments and unexpected disruptions like missing parts were making science my least favorite subject.
Pictured in face-masks made by their grandma, Rodger, age 14;Katherine, age 12; and Rose, age 7 are reading their current science book.
Jan. 24-31, 2022 is School Choice Week, a time when Americans celebrate their freedom to choose how to educate their children whether it's in a public school, private school, charter school, homeschooling, distance learning, or some other hybrid set-up.
In celebration of this annual event, we talked to new homeschoolers to find out how contented they are about their choice to homeschool compared to when they first made that choice.
Are they happier with their choice? Less happy? Or feeling the same?
But what we wanted to know is: Now that you are homeschooling, are you happy with it?
Homeschool Happiness Scale 5 out of 5
I was homeschooled in early elementary, but never thought I could do it for my kids, as I own a restaurant with crazy hours. But when schools closed, I started looking and kept being drawn to Sonlight. I almost decided to start in September but let self-doubt get the best of me and opted for virtual learning at my kids' public school, against everything in my gut telling me to homeschool. I called it quits after 3 weeks and ordered Sonlight for my K and 4th grader. It’s turned the dreaded year of more blessings than we can count. The juggling is difficult with a full time job, but the rewards are exponential. We traded frustrations for milestones and busy mornings to cuddly story times in front of the fire. It’s not all sunshine and roses, but I can definitely say the blessings outweigh the hard days. —Summer S.
[Homeschooling with Sonlight has] been by far the best thing I could have done for my kids. I wish I had done this sooner, but better late than never. —Iris T.
This is our first year in school (my oldest is a kindergartener). I had her enrolled in a private Christian school, but due to Covid, they had to close down. I was scrambling to find something as I didn’t want her first experience with school to be online. I asked around, and a friend suggested Sonlight. I’m so glad she did! At first it was a struggle, especially with two younger children (ages 3 and 1). But now that we are about halfway through, we have a system we love! I’m seriously considering continuing with Sonlight next year. —Jessica B.
My homeschool mom friends encouraged me that distance learning and homeschooling are not the same. Before long, I was discussing homeschool options with my husband and ready to move forward with it. I was scared, felt unqualified, and completely overwhelmed. Five months into it and, not only do I love it, but my kids do, too! Best decision ever! We have been able to review areas that my children feel that they struggle with, we have all learned new things, and their confidence in their learning ability is improving. We have our rough moments/days, but we really feel that the good ones out weigh the rough ones. I really never expected it to be like this! 😍🤩 —Lindsey M.
For my family, [homeschooling] has been a very good decision. Since we started in August 2020 our life has changed a lot: less stress, my son is very happy learning, he enjoys the readings, and he is eating better!! I was so nervous about his learning with no grades and no teachers But it was a very good decision, and we are very happy. —Jenny S.
Homeschooling Next Year, Too!
"I’m a pandemic homeschool mom. I have children with special needs. Though I was not sure if I could handle it, it has turned out to be the best thing for my kids. They are less anxious and have fewer meltdowns. I love the flexibility of homeschooling. We have decided to continue homeschooling next year." —Kim O.
Homeschooling has been the best choice for our family. As a former teacher, I said I could never teach my own kids. Well, God showed me not only that I could, but that this [choice] is not just for one year. We will continue to homeschool so that my kids can get individual, accelerated instruction at their levels, therapies, and still have time for fun! —Rachel B.
Happy Kids = Progress in All Areas
Homeschooling for the first time this year. Best decision ever! I love it; my kids mostly enjoy it. We decided to homeschool due to not wanting our children in masks all day. My son's attitude (3rd grade) was very poor while in public school. I felt like every weekend was a detox only to repeat it all over again. His attitude is so much better and my youngest loves preschool. We love all the books so far and really dig into the history. We love it! —Amy Roach
My daughter is very high risk [for Covid-19]. I was terrified. We pulled her out right before the schools closed last spring. We started dabbling in homeschool while the school was trying to get virtual up and running. Virtual was not good for us. I started researching, and Sonlight just kept coming up. I’m so glad we chose it for science and history. My daughter is dyslexic, and the read-alouds are just the right thing. I’m very happy with my choice. She will go back to public school eventually, but I’m not worried anymore and am very grateful for Sonlight to carry us through. —Angela G. S.
Flexibility that Works for Our Life
I needed a school day that revolved around my work schedule as a full time professor, instead of a zoom schedule and demands coming from a school system that did not understand how to be effective with a distance learning model. I found Sonlight during the summer and have been so happy to include Jesus and our Christian faith during this season. Both of my kiddos (2 & 3rd grades) are thriving! I get to see immediate connections made, and also see where they are struggling. —Erin H. W.
This has been the best decision I have made in regards of schooling for my kids! Last year public school ended in such upheaval! My daughter lost her entire second grade year of math due to shutdowns and struggles that the school wasn’t willing to help with. This year she is excelling in math! My son is reading for pleasure now instead of "because he has to" and will read to his little sister who’s a toddler. This is our lifestyle now. Homeschooling has offered such freedom! I’m here to say that homeschooling is easier than homework! —Katie J. B.
Share Your School Choice Experience
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We'd love to hear from you, whether you are a brand new, 2021 homeschooler or a long-time Sonlighter. Choose one of the stories backgrounds below and personalize it with your own photos, text, and stickers that tell why you are happy you chose to homeschool with Sonlight. Just click the image to enlarge it.
Be sure to use #sonlightstories on your share.
Still on the fence? It's not too late to switch to homeschooling with Sonlight and get the same benefits our other rookie families have experienced.
I have to admit that at first I was hesitant about Sonlight Science. I have a background in science, and I wanted a program that would inspire my kids to love it as much as I do. Now that I've used Sonlight Science for seven years, I can say with confidence that it's an excellent curriculum! And it works: my kids love Science! But setting up the experiments, doing them, then cleaning them up makes me want to skip doing science experiments when life gets busy! Here's how I get around that temptation.
I cannot express how great my excitement was when my children began reading their own bedtime stories. Don’t get me wrong...I loved those precious memories of storytime, but on the other hand, my kids wanted to hear Goodnight Train exactly 19 times before bed every single night. After a long day, it was pretty exhausting by the time we got around to the seventh nightly reading.
It’s easy to push for that transition when children can read to themselves without your help. Believe me, I get it.
Yet reading aloud is still valuable, even in the older grades. Perhaps I should even say especially in the older grades. Here are a few reasons we need to keep reading aloud to our children even after they have become independent readers.
1. Reading Aloud Develops Fluency
The best readers are often the readers who were read aloud to the most.
There is something about hearing the English language read fluently that registers in our child’s brain and allows them to perfect their fluency as well. Most children are not necessarily fluent readers by the time they are able to read independently. You might be surprised to hear your independent reader skip punctuation and get hung up on a few words.
Just because a child can read solo doesn’t necessarily mean they are reading fluently.
Did you know that most readers tend to skip words that they don’t know? Don’t believe me?
When was the last time you paused to look up a word in the dictionary as you were reading?
Don’t worry, I can’t remember either! We are generally content with skipping a word rather than digging in to figure out the meaning.
However, when we read aloud to our kids, we are consciously reminding ourselves to look for vocabulary building opportunities. We are inviting our children to begin a conversation about words and ideas.
“What does that word mean?” are sweet words to the reading-aloud homeschool parent. Those words are the cue for us to pull out the big dictionary or ask Google. Those words invite us to store that word in our vocabulary bank and use it another day. Reading aloud is a tool to develop vocabulary.
I used to devour book series. I read the Ramona series as fast as lightning. I can tell you that I rarely stopped to think about whether I was comprehending the storyline, and I am sure that the author’s purpose for writing the books never crossed my mind. While I still loved my experience reading the Ramona books without thinking very deeply about them, I also wish that had thought about them a little more.
I realize now that Beverly Cleary was making a case for a child’s perspective on life. She was giving us a glimpse into the mind of a child and showing us the world through Ramona’s eyes. It was funny, because after I read Ramona the Pest as an adult, I found myself being much more patient with my children when they inevitably made mistakes. There is almost always more to books than meets the eye, and it is our job to dig into the goodness of author’s purpose, prediction, plot, and the many other facets of literacy.
Reading aloud gives us the chance to model excellent reading techniques.
While we read aloud, we stop every so often and discuss the books. This is something we don’t really do very often when we are reading independently. While we may not need these skills quite as much in series reading, be assured that our kids will need them as they get older and begin higher level literature courses.
4. Reading Aloud Builds Bonds
As a mother of four children, I have plenty to do, so I tend to multitask during family movie night. During those nights in the living room when I'm trying to merge family time with productivity, one of my children will turn to me and excitedly say, “Mom, did you see that? It was so cool how he just….”
And I am stuck, not having a clue what they are talking about. I missed out on a moment to connect through movies, and it always makes me sad.
Books connect us too, possibly even more than movies do. When we read books together, we find ourselves laughing together, crying together, and even travelling together.
It is a marvelous thing. Reading aloud builds bonds.
So when do we stop reading aloud?
Never.
I often think about how in the old days, families would sit around the fireplace and listen to the father read aloud from the Bible. This continued forever, even when the children were out of the house and on their own, simply because there was likely only one copy of the Bible.
There is something special about connecting over literature, and there is no age limit to those precious opportunities for connection. I believe that reading aloud can be enjoyed by all ages, anytime. So don’t stop. Keep reading aloud as long as you can.
We'd love to send you a free catalog, full of great books you can read aloud with your children. Request yours here.
It's just plain fun to read a great story to children. When you stop at a cliffhanger, they can't help but beg to know what happens next.
But aside from fun, what good does reading out loud do? Research continues to confirm what we’ve known all along: Reading together does wonders for children.
As you dive into your Sonlight homeschool curriculum, you'll spend hours sharing gripping stories with your kids. In case you ever wonder if it's all worth it, I've compiled a partial list of the wonderful benefits that blossom when you read to your child.
1. Children learn to love books
When you read out loud to your children, you help them enjoy stories far beyond their own reading abilities. Whether children even know the alphabet yet, they can tag along on thrilling adventures and learn that books are a true treasure. Time and time again, Sonlight families discover that reading aloud instills a love of books. After all, who doesn't love to hear a good story?
2. You help develop your children's brains (and their imaginations)
A study in 2015 compared children ages 3-5 who had heard many read-alouds with children who hadn't. The study put children in brain imaging equipment and then had someone read a story to them. The children whose parents had read a lot to them showed significantly more brain activity in the visualization section of the brain when they heard the story.
Even though they couldn't see the pictures in the book, they could visualize what was happening. Children who hadn't been read to much had much less activity in this area of their brain when they heard a story.
As one researcher said, "This brain area is 'a watershed region, all about multisensory integration, integrating sound and then visual stimulation.'" So reading to your children seems to develop key areas of the brain!
3. Children develop empathy
Studies have also shown that reading good literature helps people become more empathetic. When you read the Sonlight Read-Alouds to your children, they get daily practice walking in other people's shoes, as they follow the inner thoughts and experiences of characters very different from themselves. As studies suggest, reading helps us imagine what other people are feeling. What a vital life skill!
4. Children learn the huge vocabulary they need
Children need to hear and read many, many words in order to develop the vocabulary they need to be well-educated. The English language has far too many words to learn through regular conversation alone. But as studies have shown, listening to TV or the radio doesn't build young children's vocabulary. Reading and listening to books read in person, however, do build vocabulary. And not only that, but even children's books contain a much wider range of vocabulary than normal conversation between two college-educated adults. I believe that reading (and listening to others read) often and widely is the only way children will develop a truly robust vocabulary.
5. Children learn about the world
Reading aloud with your children also has an obvious benefit: they learn the content that they hear. This reality is at the heart of Sonlight's approach. When children learn about history and other cultures in the context of a good story, they enjoy it and they remember it. Now that's something I doubt you could say about textbook learning.
As children learn about history through biographies, historical fiction and story-based history books (such as A Child’s History of the World), they form a picture of what life was like at various times and places in history. They remember significant historical events because they've formed an emotional connection to characters who lived through them. They know more than just facts and dates; they understand why and how things happened as they did.
6. Children develop listening skills
Understanding information that you hear is a critical skill in life. Reading out loud develops that skill in a natural and pleasant way. When children hear stories, they learn to translate words into meaning. That helps them in so many ways, and is a vital part of reading comprehension when they read on their own.
7. You expand children's knowledge beyond what they can read on their own
I actually wrote about this here: "The mechanics of reading can be tricky. I think it's analogous to handwriting. You know that a child who is just learning to form her letters can create a much more complicated story when she's talking to you than she could if she sat down to write it. It's similar with reading. Research shows that until eighth grade or so, kids can comprehend a much higher level of writing when it's read out loud to them than they can when they read on their own. So reading out loud to your children all these years helps them access ideas, vocabulary and concepts that would otherwise be out of their reach."
8. You open the door to conversation
Reading together helps you have meaningful conversations with your children. Consider those sticky topics that you know you should talk about with your kids, but you're not sure how. Reading together eases you into that. When you read Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, for example, you see discrimination first hand and can talk about the effects of racism on the main character's family. Your children want to ask you about relationships, money, poverty, war, and other uncomfortable topics.
As you read with your children, their attention spans will lengthen. In a world so full of distractions, the ability to focus on one task will be a huge advantage for this next generation. Even if children are playing quietly with something else while you read, their attention is set on that one story, instead of jumping from Facebook to Twitter to their latest text message. This ability to stay on one task is a vital skill in today's world.
10. You help children develop character (in a way that sticks!)
Reading out loud naturally helps children gain worthy role models and learn what good character really looks like. Life isn't always black and white, and kids learn from the characters they meet in books who make good decisions, and who face consequences and grow from their bad decisions. When you read these books together, you can naturally talk about similar things your own children may be struggling with. The books you read help you discuss real-life scenarios with your children so they can truly grasp what virtue looks like. In this way, I think Sonlight's literature-based approach is far more effective at forming character in the real world than moralistic tales or "character-training" curriculum.
11. You develop your relationship with your child
Relationships are built on shared time and shared experiences. Reading together gives you both. You get to fill up your children's "love tanks" with the love languages of physical touch and quality time. You create a reservoir of shared adventures to reference in your family culture, such as inside jokes or cultural references from books you've shared.
And you accomplish all this in the context of relationship. I love how Perri Klass, a NYT author puts it:
And as every parent who has read a bedtime story knows, [these benefits of reading aloud are] all happening in the context of face-time, of skin-to-skin contact, of the hard-to-quantify but essential mix of security and comfort and ritual.
So here's to a wonderful homeschool year full of beneficial Read-Alouds. Here's to helping our kids grow intellectually and emotionally, all while building family bonds. I trust that God will richly bless your times of sharing stories together.
He bounces out of bed like a pogo stick, dashes outside to jump on the trampoline, eats breakfast while hanging upside down from the bar stool asking a minimum of 523 questions, and then—just when you think he’s worn out—he races back to his room to get his dinosaur so he can show you just how loud he can roar. And it’s only 6:30 a.m.
Did I just describe your kid? If so, you’ve probably thought, “I’d love to use a literature-based curriculum, but my child would never be able to sit and listen during the read alouds.”
After all, you’ve already sat down with him several times and tried picture books. How will he ever be able to listen to chapter books? You might be surprised. You can read aloud without squashing the life out of your lively child.
This is one of my top tips because my kids love to draw and create. Read aloud time is their favorite time to practice their craft. Handiwork keeps hands busy while minds can stay focused. Sewing, crafting, crochet, and building with blocks are all great options.
2. Engage Them in Discussion
Kids will listen much more intently if they know that we genuinely value their opinion on a topic. Look for opportunities to pause your reading and discuss themes and ideas raised in the book. Your Sonlight Instructor’s Guides provide an excellent jumping board of discussion starters for each read aloud.
3. Create an Atmosphere
In the winter, gather in the living room. Pile up on the couch with blankets and light a few candles. Maybe offer your children a special read aloud tea or hot chocolate. In the summertime, grab a quilt and some lemonade and take your read aloud outside. Cultivate an atmosphere that connects reading aloud to warm, family memories.
4. Break it Up
Few people can sit still for two hours, listening to a parade of books. So spread it out. Take care of your longest Read-Aloud in the morning when attention spans are longest and then sprinkle in the rest through the day. Snack times, lunch time, and bedtime provide a captive audience when kids are more prone to listen.
5. Increase Reading Time Gradually
Your first read aloud session won’t be perfect, so don’t set yourself up for failure by expecting it to be. Plan for a short session the first time and increase it gradually as the weeks go by. By the end of the year, you’ll be surprised by how long they can listen to great books.
You probably just glanced out the window to find that your sweet, active child is hanging from a tree limb outside, right? Don’t sweat it mama. Good books fuel imagination and play for lively children every day. Sometimes it just takes a little training and some outside-of-the-box thinking to coax your energetic boys and girls into the land of literature.
Some children hate to read. Whether because of personality or ability, whether because they haven’t yet fallen in love with any book or because their interests really do lie elsewhere, some children are not yet bookworms. Maybe some will never be bookworms.
But if you want to encourage the child who hates to read toward a love of books, what can you do? Here are some of the best tips I’ve seen over the years.
Continue reading below or listen here:
1. Use Graphic Novels and Comic Books
Cartoon or comic book collections aren't intimidating to the child who hates to read. Garfield has few words per panel, and after three short panels . . . the punch line! This offers maximum storytelling in minimum words, a great sense of accomplishment, and high entertainment value. Calvin and Hobbes is another favorite, but the vocabulary and ability level for these cartoons is a good bit more challenging.
2. Let Them Stay Up Past Bedtime
If your children have a bedtime of, say, 8:30 p.m., allow your child who hates to read to stay up until 9:00. (Or as late as they want if the child self-regulates wisely.) Of course, the catch is that the extra time past bedtime must be used reading. This treat is highly motivating for some children.
Offer a stack of cartoons, comic books, magazines, and high-interest novels by the bed with a battery operated lantern or flashlight to set the stage for a nightly reading habit.
3. Stop Reading at an Inopportune Time
If you know of a dramatic cliff-hanger book, you might start reading it aloud, but then have to go elsewhere right at an exciting moment. Ideally, your children will keep reading themselves.
This trick doesn't always work, but it can at least create a sense of anticipation for the next read aloud session with your child who hates to read.
4. Capitalize on the Momentum of a Series
Along these same lines, you might try reading the first book in a series aloud, then leaving the rest of the books for your children to carry on.
Or if a book has no sequel, you may be able to convince the child who hate to read to look for more titles by the same author or even more works in that genre. Use whatever hooks you have!
5. Lean on Audiobooks
For those struggling with the actual reading, either because of eye tracking issues, or dyslexia, or whatever, get audiobooks. These are available to borrow from the library for free, and services like Audible often run significant sales. Audiobooks allow your struggling readers to listen and follow along in their own books, or to listen, like a read-aloud, when you are not available to do the reading yourself.
6. Choose a Literature-Based Curriculum
This suggestion may seem backward. Why use a literature-based program to teach a child who doesn't like to read? The reason is that a child can love books and adore great literature but still hate to read. If you can establish a love of books through reading aloud and exposure to high-quality biographies, historical fiction, and nonfiction, the reading bug may eventually kick in.
Even if you have a child who hates to read, try Sonlight with your family and watch your reluctant readers become enthralled with their books.
If you have questions about your reluctant reader—or any other questions!—you can schedule an appointment to talk to an Advisor. One of our experienced homeschooling moms would love to talk to you.
