Sep 11

Sep 11 Making Learning Fun For Your Child!

Another school year is underway and with school comes the subjects my children love and the subjects they, well, don’t love. With the oldest of my four children now a Senior in High School and my youngest only 10 years old, I have a variety of grades and have experienced the different personalities, school strengths etc. that come with each individual child.

Over the years I have realized that every child is very different which means they learn differently and they are drawn to a wide array of subjects. It seems so simple, but we can so easily forget. Letting them blossom and grow in the areas they are gifted in and not the areas we want them to be gifted in is something I continually need to be mindful of.

I’ve also discovered that “variety” in learning can be so helpful. Sometimes the traditional textbook comes to life when we have a game or hands-on learning experience to support it.

I love when I find extra tools to support what my children are learning at home and of course, as I have over the years, I will continue to share them with you when I come across them. Today, I am excited to share a computer fantasy adventure game that has math learning tucked seamlessly inside. How fun is that?!

Math Mage is a video game for ages 6-13, grades K – 6th grade. It has highly interactive graphics and a great storyline minus all the violence we see in gaming today. But I think the very best part is that it is teaching math along the way!

Again, this is a FULL video game with a FULL storyline. It is so well done. When we tried it, I was very surprised to see such great graphics and a compelling story.

There are two parts to Math Mage. In part one your child will explore levels, fight monsters, fulfill quests, find gold and more! In the second part in order to move on with special magic skills your child must solve math problems and can use math videos inside the game to help!

I love that the math problems and even the math videos are all inside of the game. It is such a great way to help your child practice and learn math in a fun way! If you want a unique twist on math learning this is for you! The creators of Math Mage are offering a coupon code specifically for our community here. (see below)

With homeschooling, we have the unique opportunity to learn from all different angles and tailor our school to each child. But I don’t think this has to be unique to homeschooling. Whether you public school, private school or homeschool, these types of extra tools like Math Mage can help your children gain confidence in an area of learning or focus more on an area they really love.

With all of that said I feel like I should leave you with one simple reminder.

I would say that the biggest hurdle I have had to overcome in my children’s learning is my own insecurities and expectations. As a mom who deeply desires success for my children the outside pressure to meet a certain standard or perform a certain way is real. There have been times in this schooling journey when I have let my own issues get in the way of the growth that we needed to work through and needed to happen in my children.

Ouch.

I mean what mom doesn’t want her child to do the best they can and get good grades and be successful etc. etc.?! The struggle is so real.

Let’s do our best to help our children flourish where they are gifted and make learning fun, but ultimately let’s hand it over to God. He is in complete control, so we don’t have to be.

XO,

Ruth