Homeschooling is a Piece of Cake III

The Unit Studies Approach

A Unit Study involves taking a theme or topic (a unit of study) and delving into it deeply over a period of time, integrating language arts, science, social studies, math, and fine arts as they apply. Instead of studying eight or ten separate, unrelated subjects, all subjects are blended together and studied around a common theme or project. For example, a unit study on birds could include reading and writing about birds and famous ornithologist (language arts); studying the parts, functions, and life cycles of birds and perhaps even aerodynamics of flight (science and math); determining the migrating paths, habitats, and ecological/sociological impact of birds (social studies); sketching familiar birds (art); building birdhouses or birdfeeders (hands on activates) and so forth.

One of my favorite Unit Studies involved a comparison of The War Of The Worlds by H.G. Wells. First they read the book which was published in 1898. Then they listened to Orson Wells 1938 radio broadcast. This was followed by watching the 1953 film and the 2005 film. This showed a progression of storytelling over time. There is even a musical adaptation. To see a more complete list check out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_War_of_the_Worlds

This just shows that you are not limited when you use unit studies. Be creative and have fun, you never know what you (and your kids) might learn.

Some of my favorite Unit Study Resources are:



http://www.konos.com/index.html

http://www.easyfunschool.com/

http://www.unitstudy.com/