interest-led learning

What is Delight Directed Learning?

The name gives us a good hint
- Letting kids follow their interests and learn what they’re delighted/ interested in
Many call it the most natural way of learning
- As adults, we are free to pursue learning whatever sparks our interest
Is it the same as Unschooling?
- Not quite
- Delight Directed homeschools typically use more formal lessons
- Most Delight Directed homes teach core subjects with formal lessons and curriculum as well
- Still can use the unschooling concept of strewing to spark ideas and introduce new concepts
- Very relaxed and follows children’s interests, generally a bit more structured and may follow more of a schedule than Unschooling
What does Delight Directed learning look like?
- Working with the child’s unique learning needs, learning language, and style
- Children applying interests to real-life and learning real-life research skills
- Choosing a subject they want to learn about and doing a deep dive
- May include- books, documentaries, podcasts, field-trip, crafts, curriculum, visiting with experts on the subject, research, art, and more
- Often begins as a spark of interest from something else covered in school or discovered in life
  - Begins spontaneous and then may progress into something more structured
- May last only a day or may last months!
How does Delight Directed Learning work with Fun-Schooling?
Fun-Schooling is the perfect combination with the Delight Directed (DD) approach!
Students can easily study anything they want with our journals
- Single-subject journals give students a guided deep-dive into dozens of topics
- Or students can choose a core journal and library books, documentaries, podcasts, interviews with experts, hands-on projects, etc. to study anything they can.
Aligns with the idea Delight Directed learning teaches of following the natural learning process
- As adults, we decide what we want to, or need to know, and dive in!
- A relaxed, fun, and encouraging learning process like DD focuses on
Students can cover all the main subjects like math, language arts, history, science, social studies in alignment with their interests.
Sets students up to dive deep into the skills, knowledge, and tools they will need to have for their future callings and careers

Be sure to join the main Fun-Schooling Moms group on Facebook, and then click below to watch a video on Fun-Schooling journals that are Delight Directed-Friendly!

When helping your child choose a major, remember, each topic is important and if your child is passionate about a topic set them free to go deep and research all aspects of the topic. The goal is for the child to begin learning in a deep and joyful way, where they will indulge their curiosity through passionate research that leads to creativity and excellence.

Parents and Educators often allow children to only scratch the surface of the things that interest them, because we want them to be “well rounded and normal”. Perhaps we pull them away from art to force them to focus on memorizing math facts or learn about the Civil War. I challenge you to just choose two themes for your child to “Major” in and go very deep, opening all the doors and windows that lead to deeper discovery and expertise. Don’t raise a well rounded child. Raise a child that is very skilled and an expert in their chosen fields, that is the foundation of a life of learning.

Twelve Ways to Help Your Child Master their Major:

1. Help your child choose books on the topic they love.
2. Take your child to the bookstore or Library, and don’t limit them by only visiting the children’s section.
3. Build a fun-Schooling Basket with items that represent your child’s interest.
4. Learn about jobs that involve your child’s favorite topic.
5. Use these topics as a theme when choosing books for the Main Curriculum Journal.
6. Encourage the student to meet people who are experts in the field your child loves, go on a field trip to a relevant location.
7. Choose films and documentaries about the topic.
8. Allow your child to take lessons or watch tutorials about the skills involved in the topic.
9. Find ways to use the skills and knowledge your child is developing in practical ways at home.
10. Allow your child to volunteer in a related field.
11. Help your child to study the history related to the subject of interest.
12. Allow your child to study the life and biographies of people who are also passionate about the topic.

Once the child becomes an expert in one area they will be able to build a future in that area, or use the skills they developed in researching that topic, and apply those skills to ANY topic they want to unlock and master for the rest of their lives.
When we homeschool we are FREE to spend five years majoring in film-making, fashion, the arts or horsemanship.
Can you think of a topic your child might choose that does not involve history, science, mathematics, politics, social aspects, literature, geography, economics, and art? You don’t have to study each subject independent of the child’s passion.

To fully engage the child and make the most of their time – let all things spring from the passion of their heart and mind.

Embrace the Natural Process of Learning:

When a child explores their passion first they will be curious, next they will play, next they will explore, next they will research, Next they will question, next they will copy, next they will communicate, next they will seek mastery, and in mastering they will apply the learning and create. Allow your child the joy of EVERY phase of true learning. when we try to control the learning process we do it out of order, and seek results. Allow the child to spend as much time as they need in each area, and bounce back and forth between the stages. Play (not practice) is actually the most powerful form of learning, creativity is the expression of learning and looks a lot like play.

Let go of false expectations… and hold on tight to what you know is true. Children are born to learn, just look at how they learned to speak! They are able, we only hold them back with our limiting forms of teaching that seek to mold them into the shape of society, and give them a watered down education that is irrelevant and brings no joy.

Learning is playful, creative and joyful, and if you have a hard time believing it, you need to listen to a bunch of TED Talks on this topic. If people close to you are being critical, send them the TED Talks.

Teach your child from a place of rest, through your example, not through guilt. When you fun-school there are no gaps, your child will be equipped to learn everything they need to know when they need it. You don’t need to strive for standardization, there are millions of standardize students, the world needs more creative people. Do not education through fear, have faith in the natural learning process and trust in the way your child is designed. There is need to restrict or limit your child with educational fluff and educational walls.

You are free to equip and empower your child though the careful facilitation, and nurture, that comes only through the love of a mother who truly knows her child.