What is Enquiry-Based Learning?
Enquiry-based learning is a dynamic approach to education where children take the lead in their own learning journey. Instead of simply being given facts to memorise, they are encouraged to ask questions, explore topics that interest them, and discover answers for themselves. This method turns the traditional teacher-student relationship on its head, with the educator acting more as a guide or facilitator. The process is centred around investigation and critical thinking, helping children to develop a deep and lasting understanding of a subject.
How Can Enquiry-Based Learning Benefit Home Educated Children?
For home-educated children, who already enjoy a flexible and personalised learning environment, an enquiry-based approach can be particularly beneficial. Here’s how a weekly set of age or stage-appropriate activities can enhance their education:
1. Fostering a Love for Learning: When children get to choose how and what they study, they are naturally more engaged and motivated. Providing a set of activities tailored to their interests, and allowing them to explore those areas further, can transform learning from a chore into a passion. This sparks a natural curiosity that can last a lifetime.
2. Developing Independent Thinkers: Home education is all about independence. Enquiry-based activities build on this by giving children the tools to think for themselves. They learn how to research, analyse information, and form their own conclusions. This is a crucial skill for navigating an ever-changing world.
3. Building a Deeper Understanding: Rote memorisation often leads to information being forgotten quickly. However, when a child actively investigates a topic, they form connections and build a solid foundation of knowledge. A weekly set of activities can provide a structured framework for this deep-dive learning, ensuring they cover a wide range of subjects thoroughly.
4. Encouraging Real-World Application: Enquiry-based projects often link academic subjects to real-world scenarios. For example, a child interested in nature might explore the life cycle of a butterfly, learning about biology, ecology, and even art by sketching their observations. A weekly set of tailored activities can provide these kinds of hands-on, multi-disciplinary opportunities.
By providing a curated set of weekly activities, home educators can support their children’s natural curiosity while ensuring a well-rounded and structured learning experience. This approach empowers children to become confident, capable, and lifelong learners.
To assist parents in this, we have worked with experts to create a set of resources for each age/stage. They are due to be published very soon.