Homeschool Lessons: Why I Still Believe Books and People Are the Best Teachers
Technology is everywhere today. Children use computers at school, tablets at home, and phones almost everywhere they go. There are so many learning apps and online programs that it can seem like screens are the best way to teach homeschool lessons.
But are they?
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about this question. After reading research and listening to experts, I believe something very simple:
Children learn best from people, not screens.
As homeschool parents, that’s something worth thinking about.
Since I write about homeschooling and education, in my social media feeds lately, I have seen a lot of short videos or posts on this topic. The individuals in these videos are expressing concern over children being on devices all the time especially when they are at school and using them in a learning environment.
The Growing Concern About Children and Technology
Not too long ago, I saw a video of a man (former teacher now a doctor or scientist) giving testimony in congress He gave some very concerning statistics concerning children and how technology is making them less successful academically than their parents.
Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath talked about how this is the first time in history that that has happened. Now, from what I understand, each generation typically gets better than their parents, but the opposite is happening with children today, and it’s because of electronics. See video below.
Dr. Jared Cooney Horvath mentions in the video is that children are less cognitively capable than we were at their age. Supposedly, cognitive development has been tracked since the late 1800s, and every generation has always outperformed their parents.
Gen Z, however, underperforms on every level including attention, memory, literacy, executive functioning, general IQ, and there might have been 1 or 2 other categories that he mentioned.
Then he mentions that across a large number of countries, data shows that once a country widely adopts digital technology, performance goes down. It’s so crazy to think that what we thought would make things better and education more accessible, is the thing that is actually hurting our children.
God Made Us to Learn From Each Other
The reason for this is also very interesting. He stated it’s a biological reason. And then he said that humans learn best from other humans not computer screens or devices. That blew me away. Think about it. Why did God create Eve? God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him.”
Some people might say this is how we evolved, but I believe this is how God created us to be. He created us to be with, need, and love others. It’s all throughout the scriptures.
In the video, the man also talks about dumbing down our education system and testing system to meet the lower performance of children since they aren’t learning as well as they used to. In other words, they have lowered the standard of tests since children today couldn’t pass the old tests.
I have always recommended that homeschooling parents delay the use of computers and tablets etc. until a child is at least in middle school. However, since seeing this, I might just change that opinion all together, especially when it comes to academics. Think about it, if your children are going to be on phones and tablets in their free time, do you really want them on a computer all day doing school work as well?
I See It in My Own Life
I know from personal experience how this can affect a person. I work all day in an office where most of my time is spent on a computer. I also have an online presence that causes me to be on a computer after work as well. This is so exhausting on my brain. It is not easy to keep up with. I noticed myself forgetting things I would normally remember. I rely on the devices instead of my memory so much now.
When I was a teenager, I had somewhere between 5-10 phone numbers I could dial from memory. This was, of course, before the world had cell phones. Now, today, we don’t even know our own phone number. We rely so heavily on the technology instead of exercising our brains like we used to do.
I forgot my phone at home one day, and I could not call anyone. I couldn’t remember a single phone number. It was really an eye opener for me. I had to go buy a tiny little phone book to keep in my purse in case it happens again.
Think about all the things people used to memorize or think about or research. It’s all at our fingertips now, so we are not using our brains as much to try to figure things out or think about things like we used to.
My Experience Homeschooling Before the Digital Age
During the time that I homeschooled my children, all this technology was just getting started. I did not have a cell phone myself until my children were older. They did not grow up with tablets or cell phones. We did have a computer, but they did not use it for school until they were older.
I taught them out of regular books. They read physical books or listened to audio books. I physically held up flashcard as we memorize letters and their sounds or memorized math facts. We didn’t use a fun game on a tablet or phone for any of this. Children can learn perfectly fine without being entertained all the time. Education can be fun without all the games and flashy electronics.
Should Homeschool Lessons Include Technology?
I don’t believe you should stay away from technology altogether in your homeschool. After all, it is everywhere in our world today, so they do have to learn how to use it. However, if at all possible, don’t have your kids using it for the bulk of their school day.
I heard someone say recently that you shouldn’t let your young children spend more than 2 hours on electronics each day. Any more than that and it can start to have a negative affect on them.
So, if you use that 2 hours during school, then you should not let them use tablets or computers in their free time. If you need it for school, and still want to allow your children screen time to play, then I would suggest splitting it up. Use one hour for school and let them have an hour of free time. You can split it up however you see fit, but just keep in mind that the more time they spend on electronics the more negative effect it could have on them.
My One Recommendation for Homeschool Lessons
If I had to recommend a subject to do on an electronic device it would probably be math, but only in middle and high school.
It can really help a parent who had multiple children and it helps the child as well if you have a math program that can grade automatically. That’s just my 2 cents from someone who ‘s been there and knows that math lessons can really start to pile up waiting for mom to grade them.
I would encourage you to go watch some of the videos on Youtube that discuss this issue or read some of the articles online. It is very interesting and may help you decide how to homeschool your children a little better. It could help you make better choices and really give your children a better chance in the future.
Books, Writing, and Real Conversations Still Matter
Another area I’ve been thinking about is handwriting. More schools are moving toward typing everything on a keyboard. Typing is certainly an important life skill, but handwriting matters too.
Writing with a pencil requires different parts of the brain than typing on a keyboard. Children who regularly write by hand are practicing fine motor skills, strengthening memory, and often retaining information better because the process is slower and more intentional.
The same principle applies to reading. There is something different about sitting down with a physical book, turning the pages, highlighting passages, and talking through what you’ve read with another person. Those moments build more than knowledge, and they build relationships.
Homeschooling Parents Get to Choose
One of the greatest blessings of homeschooling is that we don’t have to follow every educational trend. We can slow down. We can read aloud together. We can have meaningful conversations. We can use real books. We can spend more time outdoors.
We can choose experiences that help our children grow academically, emotionally, socially, and spiritually. That freedom is one of homeschooling’s greatest gifts.
Have you found yourself relying more on technology than you would like? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave a comment below and let’s encourage one another as we seek to homeschool our children wisely.
I would love to hear from you! Find me on instagram or facebook.
Or email me directly: Mary@whatabouthomeschooling.com
Please ask me all your homeschool questions.
Wishing you all the best in your homeschool journey!
~Mary
“…And the sweetness of the lips increaseth learning.” ~Prov. 16:31