Welcome to The Educating Parent Beverley Paine's archive of articles about homeschooling and unschooling written over a period of 30 plus years

HomeAbout Blog Articles Curriculum Resource Directory Shop Kids Pages Facebook

Download our FREE The Educating Parent Resource Directories today! Plus... more FREE resources!

Free download a quick guide to getting started with homeschooling and unschooling by Beverley Paine The Educating Parent in this excellent Resource Directory

 

Free directory of Australian homeschooling and unschooling support groups organised by national, state and territories

 
Plan, record and report all in the one document! Always Learning Books planners available in each year level to suit your homeschooling needs, includes curriculum checklists
Australia's original homeschooling manual from veteran home educator Beverley Paine, how to write your own learning plan and curriculum to meet your child's needs
Let Beverley and friends help you design and write your own curriculum to suit your child's individual learning needs, learn how to prepare lessons, unit studies and more, record and evaluate your children's learning in this series of 3 parent workbooks developed on Beverley's popular homeschool manual Getting Started with Home School Practical Considerations
Introduction to
Home Education
  National and State
Support Groups
  Yearly Planner, Diary & Report Beverley's Original Home Ed Manual Series of How To
Parent Workbooks

Support Groups: National SA VIC NSW QLD TAS ACT NT
Registration Guides: VIC NSW QLD SA WA TAS ACT NT

Looking for support, reassurance and information?
Join Beverley's The Educating Parents Homeschooling and Unschooling Facebook online group.

 

Learning to Love Reading

© Beverley Paine, 2004

It's hard to raise a reader if the rest of the family only read the weekly paper, recipe books and instructions on the annual tax form! Children immersed in a world where reading is valued and an every day part of life naturally develop a desire to read too. With help and encouragement they will soon become readers, even those for whom learning to decode the little squiggles on the page is difficult. My son falls into this category and although he wasn't reading independently until after his tenth birthday, he always saw himself as a writer of stories...

Reading is a great way to escape; from a long day of tiring chores, a pesky sister, a boring drive, or things you'd rather not think about right now. Most people think of reading as reading fiction, but it's not. You can derive pleasure from reading anything at all, and many people do. My sixty-year-old neighbour worked his way through a pile of ancient National Geographic magazines and loved to relate tales of faraway places and exotic cultures... Anything that excites you will keep you turning those pages!

Our role as parents is to encourage a love of our language and for reading that will last a life-time. The aim is to provide an inviting atmosphere for reading in our homes. I'm not interested in spelling bees, or how well my child can do in a standardised reading test. I am interested in how engaged my child is in the text, how much she can recall and retell, what the information or story tells her about herself and the world she lives in. I want her to love to read, to lose herself in the stories, to be amazed at the information she finds, and to emerge transformed and moved.

Learning to read unlocks a powerful transmitter of culture. It's not the only way we communicate - in fact, it's only a tiny fraction of the different ways we transmit culture, but it's one that gives everyone a chance to transcend traditional barriers. A child who can read can access information, discover how people lived a long time ago and reveal worlds and times where different values prevailed. He can begin to understand why people live the way they do now. He can piece together his own view of history from first-hand accounts, make his own moral judgements, and find his own path in life. From his early reading of fairy tales, legends and myths and picture books to detailed and moving autobiographies and fact-filled encyclopaedias, a child can learn much about our place on this planet, who we are, where we've been, where we are heading, and why.

Who wouldn't want a child to have, and use, this powerful key?

Traditional methods of education have all but killed the desire to learn to read. Thousands of years ago humanity relied upon the spoken word, song, dance and pictures to pass information from one generation to the next. As I watch yet another re-run of M.A.S.H. on the television I am aware that pictures have once again claimed dominance. Our brains are tuned into deciphering and making sense from visual media. Many people bemoan the dominance of television, movies, computer and video games, but in essence children today are doing nothing their ancient counterparts didn't... except perhaps they may be processing the information much faster. I don't see this as a necessary worry, but I am saddened that television has replaced conversation, in much the same way that the 'wireless' replaced family and communal singing and dancing... Art has left the world of the farmer, tinker, tailor and furniture maker; people no longer embellish their craft with rich cultural designs that in themselves transmit ancient knowledge and rituals. Artists explore their inner and outer worlds and we absorb their produce as entertainment.

The telling of stories, once an oral tradition, and then transferred to paper, has now moved into the box... It's not a good thing, or a bad thing: it is a fact of life. I believe we are all richer for experiencing, in abundance, every form of cultural transmission every day. So sing, laugh, dance, draw, paint and sculpt, write in the sand and on paper and talk - do all these things and your children's lives will be rich and full.

Unless there is a disability, children naturally begin to talk, and instinctively know how to dance and sing without much input from ourselves, but reading is a skill that is learned over time. Some of us find it easy and do it early; others find it more difficult and can experience some frustration as they develop the technical skills. Most people, if given the chance, and if they are immersed in an environment that uses and values books every day, will learn to read in a very natural way.

How can you encourage the development of reading skills and give your child the key to a world of knowledge far beyond your, and her, experience? I hope this brief booklet will give you some reassurance that the path is not a difficult one and what's more, it's easy and enjoyable. Learning to read doesn't have to be a chore!

One of the well-known vital ingredients to reading success is parents reading to children. You don't have to structure formal shared reading sessions into your day; there are many different ways you can share reading experiences to you daily homeschooling program without making a fuss. For reading to occur as an everyday experience you need material to read: fill your house with books and visit the library every week. Children need something more than the back of the cereal box to read!

Once a child is reading, how do you keep them reading? You'll find tips on how to develop life-long reading habits on other pages in this website. There are tips for enhancing your own reading experiences too!

Was this article helpful? Was it worth $1.00 to you? Your gift of $1 or more helps to keep this site operating offering encouragement and reassurance to families wanting better outcomes for their children.

Thank you for your gift contribution!

Beverley Paine with her children, and their home educated children, relaxing at home.

Together with the support of my family, my aim is to help parents educate their children in stress-free, nurturing environments. In addition to building and maintaing this website, I continue to create and manage local and national home educating networks, help to organise conferences and camps, as well as write for, edit and produce newsletters, resource directories and magazines. I am an active supporter of national, state, regional and local home education groups.

"You've been an inspiration to me, I love the way
you really listen to people."
Vanessa

"Whenever I read your writing I always come away
with increased confidence in my ability to provide and
share a wonderful learning journey with my family!"
Davina

"Your guidance, understanding, support and words of
wisdom changed our lives. We now offer support and
organise many homeschooling events for others."
Lesley

"Thank you once again for your prompt and friendly service.
I am convinced that your books are going to add
quality and peace of mind to my journey of teaching my kids
at home! Just from studying your website, until almost
2am in the morning, I 've been encouraged!"
Louisa

"Thank you for all your many,many reassuring words
over many, many years. You probably don't know exactly how valuable you are to the Australian Home Education community. I've been reading your stuff for maybe 8 years or more now. And I'm very grateful."
Gythaa


CLICK HERE if you want to learn
how to write your own education plans
to suit your unique children's individual learning needs?

Or you are looking for quality curriculum and teaching tips...

Welcome to the World of Home Education
and Learning without School!

We began educating our children in 1985, when our eldest was five. In truth, we had helped them learn what they need to learn since they were born. I am a passionate advocate of allowing children to learn unhindered by unnecessary stress and competition, meeting developmental needs in ways that suit their individual learning styles and preferences. Ours was a homeschooling, unschooling and natural learning family! There are hundreds of articles on this site to help you build confidence as a home educating family. We hope that your home educating adventure is as satisfying as ours was! Beverley Paine

3 ESSENTIAL STEP BY STEP GUIDES

Getting Started with
Home Educating Series of

PARENT WORKBOOKS

#1 Create Your
Own Curriculum

#2 DIY Lesson Plans
& Unit Studies

#3 Recording and Evaluation Made Simple

$10.00 each (includes postage)

let experienced home educators Beverley, Tamara and April walk you through HOW to create a learning plan that builds on solid foundations that works for YOUR family AND ticks all the boxes for home educaton registration with part 1 of this getting started with home educating serioes of parent workbooks, Create Your Own Curriculum!
Let experienced home educators Beverley, Tamara and April walk you through HOW to create a learning plan that builds on solid foundations that works for YOUR family AND ticks all the boxes for home educaton registration!

To see the full range of Beverley Paine's books on homeschooling, unschooling and natural learning visit Always Learning Books

Tap into Beverley's experience
through her books

"Your books, your blogs helped me beyond words... they helped me to find comfort in knowing it is ok to choose exactly what is best for my family." Nisha

"Your books and information are mind blowing and already I am feeling good about this new experience." Diane

"Your guidance, understanding, support & words of wisdom changed our lives." Leslie

"I feel specially inspired by Beverley's words and, the more I read her comments, the more inspired I feel, since my need for support, respect for different parenting styles, and information are fully met." Marijo
purchase Beverley's practical and common sense books on homeschooling and unschooling
Connect with Beverley and ask questions
through her online The Educating Parents Homeschooling and Unschooling Facebook support group
.

The information on this website is of a general nature only and is not intended as personal or professional advice. This site merges and incorporates 'Homeschool Australia' and 'Unschool Australia'.

The Educating Parent acknowledges the Traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Owners, the Custodians of Australia, and pay our respects to Elders past and present and extend that respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people viewing this website.

Advertise on this site.

say goodbye to home education registration stress with this ultimate rego bundle from Fearless Homeschool

complete comprehensive step by step program that teaches you how to craft your ultimate homeschool

make homeschooling a lot easier, zero to homeschool's excellent course is here to help

Australia's best home education consultant, let Tamara Kidd guide and help you prepare your home education registration application or review

Twinkl downloadable Home education resources helping you teach confidently at home

Online science lessons for primary school aged home educating children

30% discount for purchases from ReadyEd Publications when you use the code 'homeschool' at  the checkout

reset your mindset for homeschooling success with deschooling essentials a quick course to help build your confidence as an educating parent

200 pages of templates, planning pages, tables, prompts and record sheets to organise your whole year!

subscription video art lessons by Australian artist

Australia's premier online annual conferences, lifetime access to video and audio recordings, freebies, notes and associated resource guides.

EVERY SUMMIT IS UNIQUE!

$29 each 2023 2022 2021
$25 each 2020 2019 2017

"Biggest and best Aussie homeschool event of the year!"

Home education is a legal alternative
to school education in Australia.
State and Territory governments are responsible
for regulating home education and have different
requirements, however home educating families
are able to develop curriculum and learning programs
to suit the individual needs of their children.

animated Australian flag

Without revenue from advertising
by educational suppliers and Google Ads
we could not continue to provide information
to home educators. Please support us by letting
our advertisers know that you found them on
The Educating Parent. Thanks!

Support Centre
Contact Us | Join a Support Group | Beverley's Books | Resource Directory | Blog | Donate

About The Educating Parent
Beverley Paine | April Jermey and Always Learning Books | Advertise with us

Sitemap

What is Home Education Why Home Educate Getting Started & Registering Different Ways to Home Educate
Life as a Home Educator Resources & Support Teens and Beyond Curriculum and Teaching Tips
Unschooling & Natural Learning Travelling & Home Educating Record Keeping Children's Pages

animated smiling face Thank you for visiting!

Beverley Paine, The Educating Parent
The opinions and articles included on this website are not necessarily those of Beverley and Robin Paine,
nor do they endorse or recommend products listed in contributed articles, pages, or advertisements.
This website uses browsing cookies and conducts other means to collect user information in order to display contextual ads.
Text and images on this site © All Rights Reserved 1999-2023.