My son is bored?

Question

I home school my son who is in the 8th grade and I've been using the same teaching methods for Language Arts on him for a couple of years now.

He watches a video, finishes the work sheets, and writes the paragraphs. I check and grade it.

He is a very smart kid but I feel like he’s getting bored with doing the same things all the time.

I'm not a very creative person so I can't think of any other way to teach him that would be of interests at his age. I also want to mix it up a bit.

Anyone with advice? Thanks.

Answer 1

If you aren't creative why are you teaching him?  

Home school parents seem to be real idiots to me.   You are trying to do the most important thing for your child without any training.   It would be like hiring a plumber without a license to fix your toilet.   We as society don't let that happen but we let ignorant people home school their kids.   Breeding more ignorance.  

Just cause they are too lazy to get up and get their kids to school and want an excuse not to have to go to work.

Answer 2

This website lists reviews of different curriculum.  There are separate sections for Literature, Grammar, and Vocabulary:

http://www.cathyduffyreviews.com/index.h...

Perhaps the two of you can sit down together, look through the site, and what you think what word work for each of you.

For 8th grade, I'm personally planning to use Vocabulary from Classical Roots, Diagramming-the Key to Understanding Grammar, and having a monthly book report on a book from a Great Books list and daily topic journal (50 to 100 words to be used to encourage writing and explore grammar).

This would be a good time to get him involved out in the community if he isn't already.  He could go visit people in nursing homes, read to them, ask them about their history, and write about each persons experiences.  As some one else mentioned, he could work helping younger kids practice their reading.  The volunteer possibilities are endless and could provide many topics for journaling or independent composition.  

Good luck!!

Answer 3

Have him pick out some books and just let him read them.  Have him keep a journal and tell him to write about his feelings towards what ever is going on in the book.  Try books that have specific points of views, like first person.  Edgar Allen Poe has some really great stuff to read.

Answer 4

Take him to the public library and get some books that are according to what you are teaching. Teach the lesson there.

Answer 5

Your son old enough to do something positive and learn from doing it.

He can be a teacher - volunteer

1) He can teach math to small children

    to do it, he will have to write down his own word problems;

It will be nice, if he will make story-problems

(you will check them for grammar, logical connections, clarity, ...)

I run learning center - I would be more than happy to use these problems :)

see www.QUEED.org

2) English as a second language -  for adults

He will have to make exercises, lesson plans, ...

3) He can come up with an idea of changing the world - and then study the topic he chooses

   - create website on this topic

   - write articles

On www.lexile.com, you can get reading level of almost all the books. Let your son a freedom in checking out the books he likes  (restriction: lexile level has to be little higher than his current reading level) from the library - and discuss them with him...

Answer 6

If he really likes creative writing try ;

Learn to write the Novel Way.

It guides you through writing a short novel.

My son enjoyed this as a 7th grader and found those books he likes to read are a lot of work to write.

You can look at it at http://www.christianbook.com

Answer 7

go on a program it is much funner with real teacher and kids www.k12.com

Answer 8

Buy him Nintendo Wii

Answer 9

You need to find things that are

* educational

* fun

* accepted

By educational, I mean that over time the activity will broaden his mind, get him into areas of worthwhile knowledge.

By fun, I mean the entertainment level is such that he will be motivated to do the activity, not because you suggest it, but because he wants to do it.

By accepted, I mean that the process will generally meet the approval of the establishment that judges his coursework.

Consider these ideas:

* Reading for pleasure

* Pen Pal

* Blogging

* War games

Encourage exposure to a diversity of topics.

It really does not matter what subject your son falls in love with ... traditional literature, mysteries, science fiction ... what's important is if he finds any genre of interest ... make sure he has membership in the local public library, transportation to get there whenever he pleases, and gets books returned without being late.

Reading a lot for pleasure improves our levels of overall literacy.

If he falls in love with a particular genre, look into Book of Month Clubs ... generally every specialized content type has at least one ... this tends to be an economical way to get at a lot of high quality reading materials.

Accompany him to some of those book store superstores ... they tend to have a rack all the way across one wall, or more, of magazines of every kind imaginable.  Tell him that if there is any one or two magazines that might interest him, you would be willing to buy him a year's subscription.

Many years ago I joined "British Magazine of Month Club" ... each month I got a different magazine published in Britain ... I got to see Field & Stream, Casltes type stuff, Punch humor, some Political, just a large spectrum of different content topics.  I thought that was just great, so I renewed.  I was disappointed, the second year was same group of magazines.  I cancelled the subscription, looked to see if anything similar other nations, could not find ... I can't find the original any more, don't know if still in business, think it might be nice for a future gift subscription.

Having a pen pal with a person in another nation can be fun and educational many ways.  Your boy gets interested in what the world is like through the eyes of a child in a different culture, different history.  His character is strenthened if the other nation's standard of living is below ours and he looks for what he can do to help his pen pal.  He will appreciate what we have so much more, by realizing that standards of living are lower in other nations.

The process of corresponding with a pen pal means writing letters, which is an art that a lot of people seem to have lost in these days of e-mail.  It builds a level of comfort with communication skills, getting better at writing.

Blogging is having your own web site, with your essays & commentary on what is of interest to you.  There are ways to link the web sites with others of similar interest, quote each other, comment on each other.  

It can lead to aquiring some extremely esoteric computer skills, and getting better at using language to communicate.  You do need to review the content occasionally, to make sure your child is not straying into dangerous territory.

War game simulations teach the players how important it is to avoid war in real life.  

Some games have scoring based on how much territory gained at what cost in armament and lives.  It can be quite educational to realize what a high cost that is.

Some of the games, at a tactical ship & soldier level, require mathematics ... arithmetic, algebra, geometry ... people paying certain games get quite skilled doing that stuff in their heads, and get interested in higher maths.

Many of these games inspire an interest in history and geography.

Answer 10

Language Arts is about reading, writing, speaking and hearing.

The focus should be on him reading--especially things he WANTS to read--and writing about what he's read. Not necessarily about every single thing he reads, but the two of you could decide on a novel or non-fiction book for him to read and do chapter summaries on, for example. He needs to know how to summarize information and he needs to learn how to write essays. So, during whatever time you have set aside for language arts, he should be spending that time reading, maybe sharing or discussing with you parts of what he's reading (it'd actually be really good if the two of you could read the same book) and then write--it could be creatively related or a summary or just a journal he keeps for thoughts about the book. He doesn't need any worksheets.

In addition to all this, ask HIM what he'd like to do. What does he think would be good to help his reading skills improve? His writing skills? Is there a type of writing he's interested in trying out? (Has he been exposed to various types of writing? This is KEY: poetry, novels, short stories, non-fiction, essays, persuasive essays, newspaper articles, movie/book critiques and summaries, etc.) How does he feel about his spelling and grammar and vocab? Get him involved in the decision-making process.

Answer 11

Give him this problem. Ask him how he would like to learn. Ask him what are the most interesting lessons, from which he learns the most. I will tell you that if a certified public school teacher gave only videos, worksheets, and paragraphs, they would get fired. You want him to be actively learning, not passively receiving.

Answer 12

I was homeschooled K-12 and did, in fact, get bored with some of the methods that my mum employed in teaching me language arts- probably because I love that so much and had a natural bent towards it.

Mum remedied the problem by choosing different curriculum options that she approved of, and then letting me have the final say in what I chose for that year. I don't know your circumstances- if you have to have your textbooks approved of by the state or an umbrella program, you will obviously have fewer options than if you are allowed more free rein. You can find suggestions to fit whatever conditions you are required to meet by asking moms with older kids in your homeschool group, or in finding an online forum for parents who homeschool and give more specifics.

Especially once you feel that your child really has the basics of grammar and syntax down very well, you can give him more freedom to branch out. One year, I think (in junior high), I used "Learn to Write the Novel Way"- which focused on having the student write and edit a novel during the school year for his or her language arts program. If you are looking for more of a books-related program, SonLight has some excellent ones- which, depending on your beliefs, you may want to preview a few of their suggested reading matter before your son. As he gets older, you can use the plethora of distance learning or college-prep materials to your advantage. Have him take a basic "Introduction to English" class that most of the public universities in your state require; you will usually find several may offer it online for dual-credit. Or you can offer him more flexibility in designing his own program; give him a goal, such as preparing for the American Literature CLEP test and passing it in one semester, get him the Dummies Guide to American Literature, a CLEP practice test or two and a few anthologies, and turn him loose at the local public library- or allow him to do his own research online. Have him come up with his own study guide, require him to do his own research- which might include writing essays for you on the major eras in American Literature, reading excerpts of a few great works and the entire books of others. At the end of a school year, not only will you have had your English program, you will usually have a few hours of college credit you can put on his transcript which will substantiate your claims of education to any university.

Answer 13

Let him do real reading and writing. Have him read good literature. Let him write reviews, sequals, and lists of unknown words.For creative writing, give him a topic or a first line and let him write. Read poetry with him and let him write his own.  Have him keep a daily journal. He'll learn more that way than from videos and worksheets.

Answer 14

Field Trip! After the usual 2-3 hours of regular work, try adding a field trip. How about a writing lesson on review writing and critique? Restaurant critiquing is fun and also educational. Read some reviews to get an idea of fields he should complete. For example : Service, Food, Atmosphere, best food, etc.

Try a foreign language. Spanish? French? There are easy programs, and you both can learn together if you don't the language. Kids get a great sense that learning is not just for kids and you can help develop that understanding and love for a life and love of learning!

Have him scan the local and city classifieds. Let him see what careers are in demand and which are not really much call for. Have him circle interesting ones with a red marker. There is no limit to what he could circle. Then help him research what kind of classes he would need in High School that would properly prep him for college courses for that career. Call it, career studies.

Answer 15

try books to read by some clasic writers like mark twain that will teach him how to write  welland show him books he may not think about.i know for english classes at schools they made us read books starting from 7-12 and it was a great thing. cheaper by the dozen was one, plays are fun to read and learn if you can find friends of both of you to make it fun

Answer 16

What are his interests?  What gets him excited?  Perhaps a more project-oriented approach that spreads well beyond just Language Arts is more appropriate.  For example:  Read & discuss Fahrenheit 451 (Bradbury) in a small group - ideally with kids of close but various ages - and someone to help guide the conversation whenever the kids stall out.  Integrate themes that come from the book with current events and the kids' personal experiences (such as media control, social apathy, distraction, herd mentality, censorship, curiosity, etc).  Whoever guides the discussion should take a Socratic approach, only asking questions.   Provoke the kids into thought & debate.  Analyze passages from the text, and go on hunts to find examples of these themes in American & foreign societies - relate the literary themes to real life/personal experiences as often as possible.  Perhaps set up a formal debate or 2 between group members over controversial issues in the story - & make sure students focus on logic and the best way to argue, not whether they agree with the argument itself.  Do creative writing exercises influenced by the text, such as writing a letter from a character's perspective, or writing some Fahrenheit Haiku - have the kids create artwork in various mediums, or perform a skit from part of the story (theatrically or through figurines), write persuasive essays, explore the chemistry of book burning, or the psychological process of  Montag's development (the main character), watch the movie after reading the book and compare the two versions of the story - the limits are endless.  You could even use that book as a bridge into exploring 20th Century America's Most Censored Books - and let's be honest, kids in 8th grade love that kind of stuff.  Get creative - wherever you can find an "in" with your son's interests, take advantage - spread into multiple subject areas based on a foundation in something he enjoys.  The group dynamic is important.  Good luck!

Answer 17

Hi!  I've been a teacher for over 20 years, I sympathize with your problem - you and your son are not the only ones, believe me!

I recommend integrating subjects in order to make them more interesting - this not only works in home school, it works wonders in regular classrooms, too.  I wrote a science fiction book that teachers across the country use to integrate science, math, language arts, and visual/creative arts.  The book is called "Maurice On The Moon", you can find it on Amazon, you can also see about teaching science through literature on my website, www.MauriceOnTheMoon.com, and down load curriculum from there.

The best part of studying this way, is that when a student finishes a chapter of the book, they can go on to do interesting activities based upon the adventures of the characters in the story that include science, math, drawing, modeling, art, and writing.  Much more exciting that a video and a worksheet!

Let me know if I can be of further help.

Dr. Daniel Barth

[e-mail]

Answer 18

I really like Lightning Literature from Hewitt Homeschooling resources.  The kids read about 8 classics each year and do a variety of writing projects associated with the books.  The one thing about the courses that make them really great to combat boredom are that they include choices of writing projects, so you kid gets to decide which out of 5-10 assignments sound the most interesting.

http://www.hewitthomeschooling.com

If you go with this you might also get the syllabus, it helps to understand how the program is laid out.

Another thing you might try is entering essay contests, or submitting some of his writing to Youth magazines.  Getting published in some form can do a lot to motivate more writing.

Answer 19

Try

http://www.writeshop.com/writingandhomes...

We also like The Institute for Excellence in Writing

Good luck!

Answer 20

Something to get his interest going would be best. In our home, literature based language arts programs always worked best. Learning Language Arts Through Literature is a good one. You explore different types of writing, you have book studies with comprehension work and writing assignments, just all kinds of things. Even if you don't like that particular series, there are many literature based programs out there.

We've just found that using rich books really helps make language arts more real and relevant.

Answer 21

I really recommend IEW (Institute for Excellence in Writing).  It teaches language arts through writing models, and is multi-level and non-consumable.  My son loves it!  You can either go with pre-made lessons or assign your own based on what he is studying or what his interests are.  Here's the link:

http://www.writing-edu.com/

Edit: Just wanted to say - oaklordlugh and hoamsch1, thanks for posting those links - they're both great as well!  A wealth of info :-)

There are so many great ideas here, I'm sure there is something (or many things) here that will stimulate his interest.

Answer 22

A really good writing program that can be easily integrated into other subjects is the Institute for Excellence in Writing.  I highly recommend you check it out.

Answer 23

Lordy yes!  First, start by joining an online homeschool discussion board, a big one.

Next, plan to do a field trip once a week. Go to a park, the library, a science museum, a local business he's interested in like a lab or a kennel etc.

Get him started writing thesis papers.  Let him choose from vague topics, narrow down his topic..and so on.

Let him have DVD day.  Let him watch ONE classic movie (To Kill A Mockingbird) and one documentary.  There are TONS of great docs at the library!  911, Italy, Cooking, WW2, President Kennedy...then have him write a paper on each!  You could even do one a day, then the next day he goes to the library, picks books on it, writes a five page report the next day!  This is a great way to get him familiar with and interested in different topics!  Then, if he chooses too many fluffy papers, tell him to do better or you will pick!

Let him join an online book club!  Only the classics?  Or any topic.  Barnes and Noble has great ones!

I could go on and on.  I don't want to bore you.

Let him do a science fair project!

Let him pick one BIG project!  Baking all year!  Build a rocket!  My friends' son is building a pedal car with her youngest, a hologram with her oldest!  Or he could....learn car maintenance!  Help at a local garage when he's gotten as far as he can go!



Sign him up for a local class at the college or even a library computer class or an art class or dance or music!

Get family involved!  Find a family member to teach him...woodworking, singing, tuba, swimming and safety.

Get the list of books every college bound student should read!  Then let him read the books and the cliffs notes!

GO CRAZY!  So fun!

Answer 24

When my son was in 8th grade, 2 years ago, he wrote and ilustrated a children's book on plant reproduction, (he was also studying life science), he compiled another booklet on how to set up a play (he was acting in a professional one at the time), and he wrote opinionated reviews to editors of newspapers and magazines in response to some articles he read. We relate literature to life and other subjects. Hope that helps.

               Philomene