by Kathleen Lynn

Created on: January 15, 2009   Last Updated: January 31, 2010

Hands-on education involves the students in the learning process in a unique, memorable way. To realize the importance of hands on experiences, one needs to reflect upon their own education. What teacher made the biggest impression in your early years? Was it the teacher who presented everything in the same monotone voice everyday? The teacher who wrote it all on the blackboard for you to copy? Or was it the teacher that sat in a circle on the floor and used books, illustrations, even Lego's to help you realize a concept? It is much easier to remember the teachers in our past who brought education to life in their classroom. Years later we can recall faces or names of those teachers that interacted with both the students and the learning materials.

The math teacher who played basketball while teaching simple math techniques, the history teacher that taught the lesson on the Civil War wearing a Southern Belle costume. These are the lessons and teachers that can make a long lasting impression upon students' minds.

While field trips are one way to bring hands on experiences to the homeschooler, there are many other ways that a parent can bring the classroom to life without ever leaving the home. Look around in your child's room. Make a mental note of what toys the child gravitates too. Then when you sit about planning your lessons think about those toys, things you have on hand in your kitchen, and ways to broaden the lessons.

A very simple tool in hands on learning can be home made play dough. Take a few minutes of an elective course such as art to bring your child in the kitchen and whip up the recipe to be used later in class.

http://babyparenting.about.com/cs/activities/a/playd ough.htm

Play dough can be used to illustrate a variety of subjects. Have them build an Indian tepee with it during a history study on Native Americans. Have them build an old pioneer fort for the same purposes. Use the play dough to mold various people and talk about careers. The possibilities with play dough are endless and after the lesson put it in a resealable container and store in the refrigerator for the next time. Most children love the interaction with play dough, and will eagerly anticipate future lessons that might have possiblities for this activity.

Play games during math. Don't just tell them about math, involve them in the concept. Get a bag of M&Ms or Peanuts or whatever treat your child and you both enjoy. Then each day they can take a handful of the treat to use

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