What a 200-year-old experiment teaches parents about home schooling

What a 200-year-old experiment teaches parents about home schooling

2

What is your mother tongue? How did you learn to speak it?
What foreign languages do you speak? How did you learn them?
When and how did you learn to ride a bike?
Approximately how old were you when you first used a computer? Who taught you how to use it?

trial and error 

anxious 

grapple with 

nvaluable 

privileged 

radical 

special needs 

curriculum 

juggle

 remarkably

Match the key words with the definitions. Then find them in the article to read them in context. The paragraph numbers are given to help you.

1. worried because you think something bad might happen __________________________ (para 2)

2. try to do several things at the same time, especially when this is difficult __________________________ (para 2)

3. the subjects that students study at a particular school __________________________ (para 3)

4. in a way that is unusual and surprises or impresses you __________________________ (para 5)

5. doing something by trying different ways and learning from your mistakes __________________________ (para 6)

6. try hard to understand a difficult idea or to solve a difficult problem __________________________ (para 6)

7. a way of doing something that is very new or unusual __________________________ (para 7)

8. having advantages and opportunities that other people do not have because you have a lot of money or high social status __________________________ (para 7)

9. the particular requirements of people who have physical or mental disabilities __________________________ (para 10)

10. extremely useful __________________________ (para 10)

    
    

    Are these sentences true (T) or false (F) according to the article? Correct any that are false.

    1. According to the article, all children in the UK will return to school in September.

    2. During the Covid-19 pandemic, schools have been closed and most children have been learning at home in virtual classrooms.

    3. In the 18th-century, a French school teacher in Belgium showed that children are able to teach themselves many things with the right encouragement.

    4. Through his experience, Jacotot developed a radical new style of teaching that claimed boys are more intelligent than girls.

    5. The results of Jacotot’s experiment should make us worry about the time our children spend on the internet.

    6. Parents and carers can help children learn by asking questions and giving them challenges even if they do not understand or remember all the school subjects.

    7. Teaching children at home means that they miss out on social interaction with other children.

    8. If they have a computer, all children are equally able to learn and do their school work at home through virtual learning.

    
    a. Complete the sentences using some of the key words from task 2.

    1. The internet is an __________________________ resource for students.

    2. I worked out how to use the new software by __________________________.

    3. Zena was __________________________ about her exam results. Would they be good enough for university?

    4. Latin is no longer on the school’s __________________________.

    5. Daniel did __________________________ well in his practical exam.

    6. Chloe had a very __________________________ upbringing.

    b. Now use the key words in sentences of your own.

    5 Discussion

    
    • Talk about a time you learnt something by trial and error.

    o How did you feel during the process?
    o How did you feel afterwards?
    o Are you still be able to do the thing that you learnt?

    • Talk about someone you know who has special needs. Do they use any special equipment or do they need any special assistance at work or at school to help them learn or do certain tasks?