I have wanted to give Unit Studies a try for some
time now but didn't think I had "what it would take" to
actually do one. I also was put off by the cost of some of the
more popular pre-made ones and not really knowing if we would like
doing one, the sticker-price was a big factor in our deciding not to
try one.
Well, last evening while surfing the Internet for
some reading lists for my soon to be 9th grader, I stumbled upon a
link to the Moore
Foundation and Academy website. Dr. Raymond and Dorothy
Moore are considered pioneers in the home schooling movement.
Their extensive research into education in the 1960s and 1970s forms
the foundation of the "formula."
The Moore Formula (http://www.moorefoundation.com/article.php?id=3)
stresses three key concepts: Study, Work and Service.
Children and adults are encouraged to study every day; to engage
in manual work (around the home and later as teens in home-based
businesses); and to commit to serving the Lord and others in the
church and community.
STUDY
(Daily)
Warm
responsive parents who know their children's interests. Drill to
develop their phonics, writing, and math when the children are
ready in senses, brain, and reasoning. More association with you
than with peers.
Encourage
them to freely explore their ideas with few restrictions by
workbooks and school methods, reaching out as interests expand.
WORK
(Daily)
Children
combine household chores (from the time they learn to walk) with
home industries in which they share management. They learn math,
etc. by earning money and accounting for it.
They
also become well and positively socialized as they buy and sell.
And they build character as they work and serve.
SERVICE
(On
a regular basis at variable times)
Service
begins at home and in the neighborhood, with daily or weekly
visits to nursing homes, pediatric wards or other ventures in
community or personal service.
NOTE:
The time you devote to study, work, or service should depend
upon children's maturity and interests. Teens are easiest of all
with Moores' Formula.
(Copied from the Moore Foundation website)
The Moore's recommend no formal schooling until
age 8 or 10. They are not recommended "no
schooling" as some people think but rather a gentle, hands-on
type experience based on the child's level of maturity and
interest. Older children are taught using Unit Studies based
on interest more than academic scope and sequence. Teens
transition to a more traditional schooling method but still pursue
individual interests so that their high school program is tailored
to their individual "bent" rather than a college-prep or
classical/academic path.
I like this approach a lot and think it has
merit. There is much more to this method than this simple
overview. Parents interested in learning more should visit
the website or join the Yahoo Group here:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MooreHomeschooling/
Copyright 1998-2010. Carol Hepburn.