Work+Play=Learning

I recently read an article in one of my homeschooling magazines re-stating the truth that children learn through play. However, the author of this particular article advocated getting rid of all the Legos, K'nex and Tinker Toys and replacing them with "real" items, such as old appliances, motors, etc. For instance, when the author was a boy, he was given an old washing machine. His dad told him to take it apart and figure out how it worked. The author also spent countless hours helping his dad and brother rebuild a broken-down car from the ground up. He wrote about how all the knowledge he acquired through these "real life" projects has been a huge benefit to him.

Matt and I were inspired by this article and although we haven't gotten rid of Paul's Legos and K'Nex, we have gone to Goodwill and picked up a few DOA small appliances for Paul to dismantle. Among them, a blender missing the blender jar. Paul, who has had some sort of tool in his hand since he was a toddler, easily took apart the blender and discovered its motor. To him it wasn't work, it was fun. He has yet to put the blender back together again, but someday when the boredoms kick in, I'll suggest he complete that task.

For the past month and a half our house and all its projects have provided an abundance of these "real life" learning opportunities. Paul has used a hack saw, fetched tools, dug holes, shoveled rock, laid pipe, drilled holes and even driven a backhoe (with supervision, of course). Every morning at 7:30 a.m., Paul ran outside to be with the guys and he would keep up with them all day long, learning as he worked alongside them.

At times I was tempted to call Paul inside and make him do some "book work." Then I decided that what he was learning by being with the men was more important than completing another page in his phonics workbook. When we did pick up the phonics again, I was amazed to find that Paul hadn't lost any ground, he'd actually gained some.

Now that the weather is improving, we hope to continue giving Paul more "real life" learning projects. We've found he is much more content when he is working (which to him is playing) than when he just hangs out in the recliner watching t.v. (By the way, the Lenten t.v. experiment is going quite well. I've been surprised at how little we miss the t.v. and how easily we've found more constructive ways to use our time. Maybe we'll make the "experiment" more permanent once Lent is over.)