Session length: 15-30 minutes

Target ages: 8-12 years old

Learner Type: collaborator

Knowledge source: Topic of study is chosen in conjunction with educator. The educator ensure that all resources are available to the student.

Recording tactic: Student records the outline notes with assistance

Primary outcome: Students produce an original piece of work from the experiance

Session length: 10-20 minutes

Target ages: 5-8 years (early reader) or life skills adult

Learner Type: emergent

Knowledge source: Educator chooses a topic with student in mind. Educator sets up a successful learning path.

Recording tactic: Educator records most notes with some contributions from the student

Primary outcome: Student’s produced work can be identified as related to the topic

Educators are able to fully define what what success looks like for the student. The student has mastered identification of a task and understands what they are embarking upon. The educator continues to maintain most of the skills needed for a successful learning experience, and plans the experience. The topics begin to open a dialogue with the student by helping them to identify methods that work for them.

Session length: 5-15 minutes

Target ages: 1-5 years old (non reader) or Life skills adult

Learner Type: Dependant

Knowledge source: Topic chosen by educator, success dictated by educator

Recording tactic: educator records all notes

Primary outcome: occupied and informed learner; low demand outcome

Educators are able to fully define what the topic is and what success looks like for the student. For instance, the topic may be something as concrete as “Identify Zoo Animals” or more open-ended such as “Preparing to leave the house.” The topics are created with the direct intention of being completely achievable.

In the summary area at the end of this book you will be able to list your sources.   

There are three types:

• Primary: You encounter the original source
  • Original work (Interviews, speeches, diaries, first person websites), 
  • Creative work (photographs) 
  • Relics
• Secondary: Biographies, essays, textbooks, journals, 3rd person websites & books
• Tertiary: Almanacs, dictionaries, handbooks

Understanding the benefits and flaws of each type of source can allow you to create a solid knowledge base.

Primary sources:
Pros- original, unfiltered information and ability to draw your own conclusions

Cons- may be too close for accurate perspective, time consuming to read and analyze. May not be considered valid for academic purposes

Secondary Sources:
Pros- quick and comprehensive overview, but may take a while to sort through. Scholarly sources often pass academic rigor.

Cons- information filtered through a lens that may skew information. Often quickly outdated in some fields

Tertiary Sources:
Pros-Extremely brief and quick insight into a subject and great access to secondary sources

Cons- may oversimplify our distort a topic

In order to complete your workbook, you will first create an outline.  Outlines give you a chance to see what you want to embark on.  It can be intimidating to plan for a large course of study but by breaking it into chunks it becomes more manageable.

The brainstorming session will help you get going.  Picking 3 areas and then subdividing into 5 smaller subjects you begin to process the data you are observing.

In the second portion you hone in and try to focus on one piece of the previously learned information. This can be exact (another list of subjects) or more abstract (a quality or trait of the subject)

Finally, you circle back and observe the information.

Taking this on:

Syllabus: Those who have ever seen a syllabus for a long course know how overwhelming it looks on the outset. Creating an outline is similar to a syllabus. It might seem overwhelming but knowing the task will help you stay on track.

Goal setting: Each mini unit introduces a way of goal setting or project management

Data management: Each weekly unit gives a visual information management example and how to accomplish it. These are exercises that can help you find the best way for you to learn.

Time management:

• Know what’s important; schedule them first
• Choose time and insert a buffer
• Block out distractions; don’t try to multitask
• Know that time investment and productivity are different
• Work in small chunks
• Reward yourself

Learning Focus:

For the youngest learners topics are going to be more concrete.  In studying animals they may brainstorm that they’d like to study farm animals, pets, etc.  In focused learning they would learn about birds and amphibians.  In the end it may be exploring animals in larger habitats such as tropical mammals or marine.

For growing learners topics may begin in a concrete and factual way but evolve into a more detailed science.  The topic is flowers. Brainstorming on flowers the learner decides to learn by size and type.  Upon further inspection they focus on how flowers become fruit and are grafted.  In blended learning the concepts surrounding genealogy and inheritance traits can be explored.

For advanced learners topics may begin concrete and quickly delve into the esoteric. The subject transportation immediately evokes images of cars, airplanes, trains and even horses.  Yet upon further examination the psychology of movement, the need to travel or even anatomy of bipedal movement could be focused on.  As the learner draws conclusions they are enlightened to an element of the human condition. 

For learners seeking a skill the initial brainstorming may be completely different.  Often practice involves daily activity.  Drawing every day may be a linear activity but the focus and interest may vary. A musician may find that they need to deeply focus on a particular genre or even a cord.  Using this outline to complete a complex artistic may mean that tangents are taken!