Throughout my years of teaching, I’ve had the pleasure of helping a lot of parents with their child’s studies, whether it be through direct tutoring or by providing resources that assist them in teaching their children a variety of different subjects and topics as part of their homeschooling day.

One really interesting theme that has repeatedly popped up during my conversations with these parents (and parents in general, actually) is a desire to learn something new alongside their child, but all too often this desire is stifled by uncertainty over the hows, whats, and whens of making it happen, which I think is a real shame.

When I was growing up, I desperately wanted to learn how to play the trumpet. Throughout my childhood, I’d heard many a story about my grandad and the beautiful silver trumpet that he used to play in World War II as part of a brass band, so I wanted to follow in his footsteps by learning to play it myself. Even though I was very keen to join a brass band and learn, it wasn’t easy for me at first and I really struggled trying to get to grips with it on my own.

I would have loved for an adult to learn alongside me and support my passion by joining in, and I think having someone there with me during those moments where I was struggling would have made them a bit easier to manage and the experience as a whole a lot more fun.

As adults, I think we can have a tendency to associate the concept of learning solely with children and school, forgetting about our own development and abilities in the process. It may sound a little cliché, but there truly is no age limit to learning; our brains don’t stop being capable of grasping new skills the moment we leave school or university. If you want to learn something new or perhaps revisit something you used to enjoy, there is absolutely no reason why you can’t or shouldn’t.

For me, learning isn’t just about knowledge or developing skills, though. It’s also an opportunity to bond with your children and create memories you can both treasure, which is why I thought I’d share some ideas with you below to help inspire you to discover something new both inside your homeschool and out:

History:

As you may already know, history is my favourite subject to teach and I absolutely love learning about it, hence the creation of my ever popular series on Facebook. Since I began to post my daily entries on the page, I’ve been delighted to receive a few comments and messages from parents and other adults sharing their newly discovered love of history, even though they had found it a little boring while at school themselves.

History can become a real hobby for people, so if this is a subject that interests you as well, I say go for it! Not only will your passion shine through and encourage your child to actively engage in your homeschooling lesson – you can use your knowledge to plan fabulous family days out visiting historical sites of interest together, too.

A New Language:

British people have a bit of a bad reputation in other countries for only knowing one language, and I must say that in my experience this is somewhat true. Learning a language is quite daunting and takes time, but if your child is interested in learning French, Spanish, German, or any of the other thousands of languages spoken in the world, why not learn to speak it together? You’ll be able to practice with each other, which can help cement the language in your mind and develop your verbal understanding all at once.

Maths:

If you found maths difficult in school or perhaps weren’t able to obtain a qualification in it as you may have liked, now could be a great opportunity to retake it. You can learn alongside your child and take your exams together, which will be a nice show of support for them.

Learning doesn’t have to be classroom based – hobbies count as well! From learning an instrument like me with my trumpet to painting, knitting, netball and more, the possibilities are endless when it comes to tapping into something you love.

One hobby that I think is excellent to have is dancing. I’ve been a huge fan of Strictly Come Dancing for years and find ballroom and Latin dancing beautiful to watch – the costumes, choreography and musicality are all outstanding. Thanks to the show’s popularity, there are lots of classes for varying ages and skill levels all across the country, making it easy for everyone to attend a class should they wish or simply watch YouTube tutorials at home!

If you and your child aren’t big fans of Strictly, there are plenty of other dance style to choose from, such as ballet, tap, jazz and contemporary dance. The health and social benefits of dancing carries over for each style, so there really is no wrong decision to make as long as you enjoy what you’ve chosen. Not only does dancing keep you fit through cardiovascular exercise; it helps improve your coordination, balance, strength and overall stamina, too. Plus, you may find both you and your child are able to make new friends when attending a class and also build your confidence in the process.

If your child is unwell or perhaps unable to make classes due to other commitments but you still want in-person lessons, you will probably be able to find one-to-one tuition local to you by searching your community Facebook groups or Google pages – just check reviews before making any commitments to make sure your teacher is qualified and incorporates a proper warm up and cool down as part of their class to avoid injury.

Whatever you choose to learn, I hope you enjoy your experiences and are able to get some precious bonding time with your child or children in the process. If you’d like some private tuition in History or English to support you and your child in your studies, I am more than happy to assist – simply click here to find out more.

Until next time,