Work sheets....

 
I felt compelled to write this post in response to a common complaint on some home schooling pages- work sheets.

"What have they been doing all year?"

The situations usually goes like this. A child is being pulled out of school for what could be a variety of reasons. The parents go to the school to collect their books, and on looking at their workbooks are horrified that there are SSSOOO few works sheets. A post to Facebook usually goes up about "what have they been doing all year" because there's no worksheets to see in their books. And usually the 'me too- slack teacher" comments follow.

Applying knowledge is important

I strongly encourage anyone who has the passion and the drive to home school their kids, and I think anyone can teach their kids. However, this 'why are there no worksheets' complaint clearly separates those who have studied teaching philosophies and those who haven't. Students learn the best through being engaged in their lessons and using their knowledge in real life experiences. The over use of work sheets often creates students who can do the sums and equations with 100% accuracy, but can't apply it. I'm talking about students who could get top marks on a test filled with equations, but couldn't tell you how much change they should get from their lunch order. Being able to do the sums means nothing if you can't apply it.

As a teacher, if I went into a colleague's classroom and saw a book filled with worksheets I would "rate them" low as a teacher. I pride myself on NOT having worksheets. I love it when parents ask their child 'what did you do today' and the student says 'we did no school work at all." This means that the learning is so integrated into their day that it doesn't feel like work. Worldwide "best practise" standards for teaching refers to the use of rich, open-ended and engaging learning opportunities for students. Nowhere does it mention worksheets as a good source of engagement.



Learning by doing

To answer the 'what have they been doing' question- here it is. Instead of completing a worksheet they may have been playing games to learn their times tables, they may have been cooking to learn about fractions and measurement. They may have been creating a budget on how to spend the money they raised at the last fundraiser. They may have been writing letters to the local council making suggestions about how to reduce rubbish in their area. They may have been working out how much material they would need to make new cushions for their reading corner. They could have been working out which seeds they should plant in the veggie patch and how much it would cost. They may be writing to the local nursery negotiating free seeds to plant in their veggie patch in exchange for free advertising in the school newsletter. They could have been learning about strategy and forward thinking by playing chess. The list could go on and on... literally.... So before parents ask the question on Facebook (which is always asked as rhetorical question) maybe they should actually ask the question to the only person who can accurately answer it.... the teacher. I can assure you they haven't been sitting around watching cat videos all day.



Is this how you want your child to spend their day?
Fill in the gap- where the answer is already given to you?
 

So what's so bad about worksheets? Where do I start? To begin with they are often very closed in their nature. The focus is usually on the answer rather than the process. Worksheets don't often allow for application of skills in a real setting. They are often boring. There is limited opportunity for differentiation. As a teacher I see worksheets as lazy teaching. LA-ZEE! If you haven't worked out by now- I loath worksheets.




"My student has completed two books worth of worksheets in their first two weeks of home schooling and can now say their time tables." I highly doubt that the improvement was as a result of doing work sheet after work sheet. Maybe it was the one on one ratio. Maybe it was improved concentration in a quieter setting. Maybe it was due to not having to worry about the class bully. And a question- can they apply their new found knowledge? For new home schoolers I'm sure work sheets are a good way to start and this may be great for some kids in the long term but before you bag teachers out for not having a book stuffed full of worksheets, legitimately ask "what HAVE they been doing instead of book work?' You may get some good ideas for future lessons.

Some parents are bound to say 'hey, how can you say that work sheets are bad.... my kids love them!' Great, I'm glad to hear your kids love them, however do they love them because that is all they know? If they have been to school before starting home schooling there is a chance that they are 'used'  to work sheets and know no different. They have said they enjoy them, but do they know any other type of learning? Have they said that they enjoy them even after being exposed to other types of learning? A good education isn't reliant on the use of work sheets.

By all means use worksheets if that is what works for your kids, but please don't bag teachers who choose more engaging means of education for their students.

I hope you have found this post valuable. Please feel free to share, like and comment. Please message me with any typos or edits.

Happy homeschooling.
Love Alexis XOXOXO