Homeschool Australia How Children Learn

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How Children Learn

© Beverley Paine

I used the following information when putting together our home education curriculum many years ago. It formed the basis of our home education philosophy.

A child's learning begins at birth. Every child is born with his or her own individual personal characteristics. Likewise their learning occurs at individual rates and individual levels. The amount of learning will depend upon the child's age, intelligence, maturity, mental, emotional and physical health, interests, motivation, self concept, cooperation, time of day, weather and the environment.

A child's learning environment can be anywhere - at home, in the playground, at a friend's place, in a classroom; anywhere the child is. A child's learning needs to be both structured, formal, unstructured, spontaneous and informal. Learning can be incremental and holistic.

Children learn when alone and when with others. They learn when they are with parents and family, friends, relatives, teachers, mentors, anyone and everyone. They learn individually, with a partner, in small groups and in large groups. Children need access to all kinds of social learning settings.

Children learn when:

it is relevant to them
it relates to their daily experiences of life
it is interesting to them
it is humorous to them
it is what they want to learn
it is serious and important for them
it is meaningful to them
it can be quickly understood
they have self confidence
they are following their own interests
they can benefit from new skills
they are satisfied with their efforts
they feel secure and non threatened
they can make their own decisions
they can take part in making decisions
they have responsibility for their learning
they can solve their problems
they are encouraged and helped
their efforts are accepted
they practice many different kinds of skills
they are engaged in activity
they are actively or passively participating
they are curious
they are personally motivated
they are asking questions
they are being entertained or are entertaining themselves
they are playing or role playing
they are talking, discussing and conversing
when they are exposed to new ideas, skills and concepts
when they reflecting, thinking about and consolidating acquired skills and knowledge
when they are developing their hobbies and interests
when they are having fun
when they are practising
when they are allowed to take risks and make mistakes
when they are experimenting
when they notice similarities and differences
when they are making plans

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	Choosing Homeschool Curriculum
	Getting Started - how to write your own learning programs
	Natural Learning Answers
	Beverley's E-books
	Learning Without School - how 30 families homeschool
	The Homeschooling Trail - Christian unschooling life
	Learning in the Absence of Education - how we did it
	Practical Homeschooling Booklet Series - your questions answered!
	Educational Games Booklet Series - make learning fun!
	Practical Homeschooling Language Development Series
	Natural Learning Series
	Homeschool Diaries
	Ready to use Portfolios / Report Cards
	Sample Learning Programs
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Please note:
the information
on this website is of a
general nature only and is not intended as personal or professional advice.

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March 13th-18th 2012

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Home education is a legal alternative to school education in Australia. State and Territory governments are responsible for regulating home education. Different states have different requirements, however home educating families are able to develop curriculum and learning programs to suit the individual needs of their children. For more information visit the
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Thank you for visiting!

Pioneering members of the home education movement in Australia, Beverley and Robin Paine are passionate advocates of true educational choice for families. They began homeschooling their children in 1986 and three years later started the South Australian Home Based Learners network. Beverley wrote Getting Started with Homeschooling in 1995-97 and since then continues to write books and booklets on home education. She balances spending time helping home educators with working in her garden and renovating her home, as well as continuing to build her collection of writing on a variety of homeschooling subjects. Beverley maintains an extensive collection of websites as well as several Yahoo groups supporting families teaching their children at home. In 2007 Beverley joined the HEA and was a committee member for three years during which time she edited and produced the HEA Newsletter, Stepping Stones for Home Educators magazine, annual Resource Directory and other HEA publications. If you'd like to keep in touch with what Beverley is up to her in her life, sign up for the Homeschool Australia Newsletter or visit her Homeschool Australia Facebook page.

The opinions and articles included in the suite of Homeschool Australia websites are not necessarily those of Beverley and Robin Paine,
nor do they endorse or recommend products (other than their own) listed in contributed articles, pages, or advertisements.