Along with periods of focused academic study and autodidacting, unit studies help make up a well-rounded homeschool plan.
First of all, what is a “unit study”?
A unit study is selecting a specific content subject and spending concentrated time studying every aspect of it while incorporating as many academic disciplines and physical experiences as possible. This can be done independently or as a group.
This is quite different from conventional education. In conventional education, each subject is compartmentalized; one class for language arts, another for history, another for science, another for math, and, if one is fortunate, separate classes for practical living and the arts.
John Taylor Gatto has said that the separating of these different subjects has been done on purpose. The idea has been that keeping learning split up into chunks keeps the public from connecting the dots, so that they are never quite able to analyze and come to important conclusions about life and politics. In this way, an uninformed, indoctrinated populace is created which is docile and easily led by those few who are allowed to see the entire picture.
Unit studies are the antithesis. They take all of the information and allow it to flow naturally, as each subject organically overlaps and includes the other.
For instance, if someone studies something such as Formula 1 racing, the following subjects can be covered:
- History: The history of the races, the history of the automobile, the history of the car makers.
- Geography: Studying the different countries where the races are held, studying the terrain of the races, the climate, etc.
- Science: Studying the combustion engine, the different efforts to increase efficiency and speed in the engines and designs of the race cars. Safety and first aid offered during the races.
- Language Arts: Reading biographies of the racers and the history of the races. Writing about the different aspects of racing. Writing out the vocabulary of racing. Copying lists of races, quotes of the racers.
- Math: Speed of the cars, race times, costs of the cars, winnings, converting foreign currencies, time differences between Europe and the US.
And all the above subjects don’t need to be labeled and separated from one another. While a movie is being viewed, vocabulary and insights into the geography, speed, engines, and different racers are being covered. Later, websites and reference books can be brought in and a notebooking page on one aspect or another can be filled in, which covers the language arts, history, and science aspects.
Here are some of the other pros of using the unit study method:
- Unit studies can be done on multiple learning levels at the same time. This means you can teach all ages of your children at once. You can have your five-year-old learning along-side your ten-year-old and your 15- year-old. You simply take the same information and do different activities with it at the reading and writing ability of each child.
- Unit studies make learning in the content areas more engaging and fun. Instead of reading a few paragraphs about something such as the Revolutionary War and answering some stultifying questions at the end, a child can become involved and inspired as they are immersed in each aspect of the war from multiple viewpoints using varying types of materials and media.
- Unit studies allow the “fun” parts of homeschooling. Sculpting a bust of Mozart while listening to a biography interspersed with recordings of his music. Cooking some Indian curry while dressed in sari’s and listening to a sitar being played. Reciting the Gettysburg Address while wearing a black top hat hand constructed from cardboard and painted black.
- Unit studies help create strong family ties by the memories experienced together. This is the obvious result of all the above activities.
- Unit studies give mom an opportunity to repair and recover from her own education. If you attended public school yourself, it is quite possible you missed out of the most amazing parts of learning. Planning and participating in this type of learning will help you connect the dots yourself and give you a bigger picture of how life on planet earth actually works.
- Unit studies get children to practice their language arts skills and math skills without realizing they are doing it.
With all of this glowing appreciation, there are a few pitfalls which need to be considered:
- Unit studies can be a lot of work for mom and take a lot of her creative energy (but it doesn’t have to be an extreme amount if done correctly).
- Unit studies can get messy. Especially if you have younger children, some activities mean arts and crafts materials, a sloppy kitchen, and mud being tracked back-and-forth through the home.
- Unit studies don’t always include the practice of math operations. This means you may want to continue with a conventional math program at the same time.
- If continued too long, or if forced or overloaded, a unit study can actually kill some of the natural enthusiasm for learning.
There are so many ways to approach Unit Studies.
By subject. Now, the subject matter needs to be narrowed-down a bit. For instance, it’s a bit too broad to study “writing.” Better to study essays, or poetry, or short story writing. Here are some more examples:
- Otters
- Formula 1 racing
- Sour dough baking
- Lake fishing
- The Cold War
- The Sumerians
- Biblical cosmology
- Presidential election process
- Roots of the Olympics
By novel.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl. Possible areas of study are the character traits of the different children, chocolate, sugar, poverty, grandparents, etc.
Freckles by Gene Stratton Porter. Possible areas of study are nature study, logging, orphans and widows, Indiana, character under diversity, dealing with physical limitations, etc.
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes. Possible areas of study are the Boston Tea Party, the Revolutionary War, The Sons of Liberty, Boston, character under diversity, dealing with physical limitations, etc.
The Cabin Faced West by Jean Fritz. Possible areas of study are pioneer living in the 1700’s, how our country was slowly settled going westward, the life of George Washington (and his diary recording), etc.
By person.
Take a figure in history and learn everything you can about him/her.
- The Apostle Paul
- Abraham
- Alexander the Great
- Queen Esther
- Corrie ten Boom
- Florence Nightingale
- George Washington
- Count Zinzendorf
By textbook.
This is a great way to “hack” a textbook you may be require to teach from, but which is boring and filled with misinformation. Use the contents as your outline, but study each point using the unit study method, covering the required information and vocabulary, but adding in some juicy details from alternative perspectives.
Here is a short list of just some of the activities to include (the possibilities are practically endless and could never be adequately covered in this silly little post):
- Read-alouds: Books, stories, poems, articles, etc.
- Independent reading of the type mentioned in the first point in this list.
- Note-taking
- Time lines
- Notebooking
- Newsletter
- Blog on the subject
- Diorama
- Mobile
- Authentic food tasting and meal cooking
- Costumes
- Road trip to a site or event
- Movie–watching and creating
- Map–studying and creating
- Survey gathering
- Game creation
- Music–listen to, write, perform
- Memorization–scripture, poetry, speeches
- Skit
- Display–such as with a science fair
- Poster
- Essay
- Architectural model
- Experiment
- Painting
- Charts and graphs
- Documentary–watch or create
- Physical–exercising, measuring strength, training
- Copywork
There are so many resources out there!
There are pre-planned unit studies in multiple forms to help you get started. If you have a little money, here are a few sources that have been around for quite a while and can give you some structure and ideas to start with:
Unit Studies Made Easy by Valerie Bendt (affiliate)
There are loads more–you can find a partial list here.
However, you don’t have to spend anything to enjoy a first-rate unit study with your children!
One of my favorite sites for free resources and directions is DIYHomeschooler.com.
For the most part, DIY Homeschooler uses free, public domain materials and links. They have created multiple unit studies with suggested activities and links to related content. Here is an example of just one list of unit studies I found by clicking a graphic which read, “10 Favorite Unit Studies 23-24“:
- Free Nature Studies: Our Wonderful World [32 lessons]
- Dickens
- The Horse
- Around the World in 80 Days
- Leap Day
- Free History Lessons: Stories of Great Americans
- Free Science Studies: Great Inventors and Their Inventions
- Laura Ingals-Wilder
- The Equinox
- Free Music Studies: Child’s Own Book of Great Musicians
(I need to create a podcast/post just to cover all that DIY Homeschooler offers!)
Besides all this, here are some of the resources I like to reference:
- Teacher Created Resources (specifically the literature guides–not from a Christian perspective but can be helpful, especially with younger children)
- Answers in Genesis. They cover history and science from a markedly Christian perspective and often add in the Biblical ideas other sources miss.
- Heritage History. There is a reason I mention this free resource often.
How do you plan a Unit Study?
- First, educate yourself. As much as you can, gain a basic outline or overview of the subject area.
- Second, build your library.
Even in the Internet age, it’s a good idea to have a number of reference books on hand. Books which describe how things work, basic scientific information, and history overviews are great.
Look online for booklists. I like to take a peek at what these providers suggest:
- Sonlight
- My Father’s World
- Ambleside Online
Then, I enter one of the books listed into Amazon.com, and see what comes up as a suggestion. I then read the descriptions and look for that book either
- At the local library
- On a second-hand book site
- At thrift stores and garage sales
- On public domain sites such as Internet Archive and Heritage History.
- Third, have basic school and office supplies on hand for different projects that come to mind as you go along.
Then…
- Write down a basic outline.
- Write down names of people and places.
- Make a list of events and important facts.
- Make a list of vocabulary specific to the subject.
- Make a list of movies and documentaries you would like to watch (prewatch a few yourself to eliminate the inappropriate and boring). I like to create a playlist on YouTube.
- Make a list of possible activities.
- Create some connections to math and science if you can.
Next…
- Print off any free materials, then bind and organize them so you will have something visual in front of you.
- Purchase any special items you will need, such as crafting materials and foods.
- Stack your books and materials together, creating files and materials each child may need.
Remember:
You don’t have to plan everything out in detail! Oftentimes I will have a general direction, and just start out. Some of my favorite unit studies have been ones which were spontaneous and we just let each day’s learning direct us to any special trips or crafts we may want to make.
Some more tips:
- Notebooking is a MUST! I keeps everyone focused and gives structure that is not restrictive, time consuming, or discouraging.
- Plan a wrap-up activity. This will give everyone some closure. This can be a field trip, a special dinner with special ingredients, music, etc. or even a party in which friends and extended family are invited and the children show off their different notebooking pages and creations. It can even be done as a homeschooling community.
MOST IMPORTANTLY–remember to relax!
Unit studies can be absolutely murder to a child’s learning enthusiasm (and mother’s nerves) if they are done from a “schoolish” standpoint. You don’t have to get to every little special experience planned. In fact, some of the best unit studies only include one or two special activities, but are full of meaty, interesting learning material that feels more spontaneous than done for a check off list.
No matter how much you have planned, when interest begins to wane, STOP. Let the subject rest, do your wrap-up, and perhaps tackle it again in another season when your kids are older or need a refresher.
Don’t push it or you’ll kill it.
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