Homeschool parents exploring various approaches to education may wonder, “What is a unit study?” This overview answers this question and provides examples for real world learning.
I am often asked to explain units studies, usually by newcomers to homeschooling or frustrated textbook parents. Well, first let me tell you what it is not. A good integrated study does not involve dry reading or memorization, busy work, endless worksheet completion, and bored children.
What Is A Unit Study?
A good unit study involves learning about one topic in an interesting and engaging way that will captivate the student and make them want to learn more and continue to think about the things they are learning. From cell phones to Ethiopia to catapults and elephants, unit studies can open up the world to your child, one topic at a time.
As the process of “education” has developed through the ages, people have slowly but surely categorized and compartmentalized almost everything in our world into specific areas of learning. These include science, history, geography, art, and many others.
However, to a child that is eager to learn, the world is viewed as whole pieces, not segmented bits and parts. When they see the vast ocean, they see it as teeming with wildlife, full of sunken pirate ships and seashells, covered with rolling waves. A unit study tries to work from this viewpoint, taking one topic at a time and explaining the way that it works as a whole to the child that already sees it as a whole.
A unit study captures children’s attention and helps them understand the pieces of the whole as they fit together. When they learn about the oceans with a unit study, they learn about whales and dolphin, how the oceans flow, how explorers traveled the oceans with currents and wind, and how big and wide and deep the oceans. Through this approach, children develop critical thinking skills as they see how all of these components work together.
More Homeschool Helps
Learn more about the unit study approach to homeschooling:
- What is a Unit Study?
- How Does this Method Compare to Others?
- Take the Tour: Learn About Unit Studies
Enjoy the journey,
