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Sincerely,
Russell Keppner
TJEdRefers generally to the concepts presented in the book A Thomas Jefferson Education, written by Dr. Oliver DeMille. We also have an Introduction to Thomas Jefferson Education available elsewhere on this site..org Administrator
Welcome Farrah!
You said:
"I have an eight year old who has been wallowing in all things Roman for the past fourteen months. We read books and make maps, he sets up battles and makes armor, all the regular stuff. He also loves nature and the ocean, constantly asking me to read nature books to him, drawing pictures of sea life, making habitats in the bathtub etc. I keep thinking of him as core because to him it is all play and he doesn't seem ready to set a goal or stick to any plan we would make at a weekly meeting, but the amount of hours he spends and the quality of what he is learning make me thing love of learning. Do love of learners make plans for what they are going to learn and need to stick to it?"
Love of Learners never stick to ANYTHING! LOL! They go back and forth, trying new things, and they do often revisit favorite subjects. I had one son who learned all he could about ants for about 3 years. Another constant of his has been battles. And now that he's in Practice Scholar, he does still set up lots of battles and plays table top war games, etc.
Love of Learning is all about variety and play. If the learning is not fun to them, they won't love the learning. I have one love of learner who adores workbooks-- they are play to her. But her older brothers would have staged an insurrection if I had sat them down and given them assignments. (Boys naturally like more hands-on interactive approaches to learning.) The learning in LofL might not LOOK like learning some days to us-- especially since we were schooled on the conveyor belt-- but it IS still learning.
And keep in mind that Scholar Phase is when "the gaps" get filled in as the student recognizes them, and sees the need to fill them. It happens-- I'm seeing it in my own home. But I still have to be patient, because it doesn't happen all at once. It's bit by bit, little by little, but the learning is so much more effective and powerful when THEY choose it.
Enjoy Love of Learning. It is so fun! And think of the relationship that is being formed and nurtured between you and your son. There is a trust being built that will carry you both through the hard work of Scholar.
And Mom, YOU may be in Love of Learning, too! Embrace it, and find the joy in learning that you may never have had, or might have lost along the way. I know revisiting Love of Learning was a wonderful experience for me.
You ARE doing it! :-)
Rachel Keppner
"ASPIRE to INSPIRE before you EXPIRE!"
my 7yo
My 7yodd decides what she wants to do this week or for a couple days in advance, but no further than that. And her interests change over time.
My sons went through a knights in shining armor phase at about that age. Then they went on to other things, gradually or suddenly. We went through a Pokemon phase, learning to take turns, card trading and game playing strategies, plus learning about what each Pokemon was based on. They had broad areas they wanted to explore, but no real set plans from day to day.
My eldest son didn't start setting definite plans until he was about 14, and didn't get really diligent about holding himself to his plans until this year (he just turned 17). My second son is holding himself to doing some math and some Japanese every day at age 13, almost 14, because he's a more driven personality. My eldest dd, on the other hand, zipped through Saxon Math 5/4, 6/5, and partway through 7/6 before starting Key to Algebra workbooks, along with setting and accomplishing numerous personal and church-group-related goals, starting at about 13. At 15 she's taking trigonometry as a college course online, with calculus next semester.
Before about age 12 or 13, they didn't set firm goals, partly because we had not instituted regular interviews and partly because they did not appear ready to do so. My 11yodd is plugging away at writing a novel and reading a chapter of scripture every day, because she decided to do so on her own. We parents are not pushing her to do so; neither are we holding her accountable; she specifically asked us not to hound her nor even to be expectant about it. She wants no pressure from us. I understand, I think. She wants to make it her own accomplishment.