How to Help Your Middle Schooler Take Ownership of Their Learning: A Guide to Interest-Led Homeschooling

It’s important to foster learning independence as we homeschool. We want our children to love learning and pursue it even as adults. Part of achieving this goal is encouraging self-directed learning and helping kids prepare to lead their educational journey.

Practicing interest-led learning or child-led learning, is a great first step toward preparing your middle schoolers to take ownership of their learning. Giving them a say in what they’re learning and letting them be in the driver’s seat when it makes sense will prepare them for high school and higher education.

Sometimes letting your middle schoolers make decisions about their learning leads to mistakes. We have to accept that possibility if it means they’re learning to take ownership of their education and learning to lead. But how can we help them lead their educational journey successfully?

Why Middle Schoolers need to Take Ownership

During the middle school years, our homeschoolers experience big changes that deepen their desire for autonomy. They’re seeking greater independence and we can support this developmental journey while helping them take ownership of their education.

Your middle schooler’s brain can solve more abstract complex problems, and they can reflect on their own thought processes. Now, your child can evaluate a situation and decide by applying multiple perspectives. It’s amazing to think about!

The result is that our kids start seeking opportunities to apply these new decision-making skills in the real world. As homeschoolers, we can give them a safe space to question the rules and routines, express their preferences, and take ownership of their learning. With each successful decision, our kids build confidence and fuel a desire to lead.

Letting our homeschoolers choose subjects, topics, projects, and even learning methods is a great way to begin letting them flex these new leadership muscles. Practicing independent learning during the middle school years will help them develop critical thinking skills, time management skills, and become more responsible. They might make some mistakes, but they’ll also begin to understand the results of their actions in a whole new way.

Creating an Independent Learning Environment

Creating an independent learning environment is an essential step toward helping your middle schooler lead. As our children transition into their teen years, they crave more freedom and responsibility. It’s important that we give them the space to structure their homeschool learning in a way that allows them to step into the driver’s seat.

Creating a Flexible Schedule

Homeschooling gives us the unique ability to set up a flexible schedule. That way, we can explore and learn in our own time.

Setting up a flexible schedule is the first step toward creating an independent learning environment. For us, this means learning on location while we travel and not getting started quite so early in the morning.

Want to learn more about how we tossed our schedule to practice self-directed learning? Discover why you don’t need a homeschool schedule and get the scoop on our flexible learning routine.

Independent Learning Resources

Providing our middle schoolers with independent learning resources makes it easy for kids and teens to access up-to-date information and take the lead. Check out some of our favorite independent learning resources below:

Real-World Project-Based Learning

Encouraging project-based learning and learning in the real world is another excellent way to engage middle schoolers with subjects that interest them. Projects with real-world applications allow them to take the lead by completing a useful task with real consequences.

Check out our Math in Everyday Life: A New Option for Learning guide to discover all the ways you can engage in real-world math projects to practice critical concepts with middle schoolers, high schoolers, and even elementary-age learners. Your kids will love completing the projects and activities in this helpful resource.

Teaching Goal Setting and Encouraging Self-Motivation

Guiding our middle school homeschoolers to set academic and personal goals is a great way to begin encouraging self-motivation and leadership. Including Emily in field trip planning, choosing topics for unit studies, and our homeschool curriculum choices for middle school has given her more opportunities to take the lead in her education.

Using tools like homeschool planners and apps to track progress is a great way to begin. This can encourage kids to keep track of their progress and take the lead in setting goals and deadlines for themselves. Plus, it’s a great way to begin practicing breaking large tasks down into small manageable steps.

Encouraging Independent Learning with Unit Studies

Interest-led unit studies are our favorite way to learn here at The Waldock Way. We love exploring Emily’s interests and passions through unit studies that weave together great books, hands-on projects, and real-world learning opportunities. If you’re looking for easy ways to encourage independent learning with your middle schoolers, unit studies are an excellent place to begin.

Check out our favorite interest-led unit studies for history, science, literature, and geography in the shop. Letting kids choose topics they’re interested in and curious about during the middle school years is an excellent first step toward encouraging independent learning by getting them invested in what they’re learning about. With our flexible unit studies, you’ll be able to meet state requirements while maintaining an interest-led approach that encourages middle schoolers to take ownership of their learning.

Giving middle schoolers freedom in subjects like art, science, literature, and history is a good way to help them love learning and want to take the lead in their learning journey this year. Which interest-led unit study will you choose to encourage independent learning with your middle schooler?

Share your favorite ways to inspire independent learning and help your middle schoolers take the lead in their education in the comment section. I can’t wait to read about all the ways you’re giving your middle schoolers the freedom to grow and take the lead!