Worldschooling from home is the very first baby step to worldschooling abroad. And it’s something you can start right now.
From local cultural events to international cooking and foreign language studies, a globally-centered education is possible for anyone, at any income level or stage of development.
Bonus? When you build a strong foundation for cultural awareness at home, it makes your worldschooling trips so much richer and more rewarding for your homeschoolers.
Cook International Food
Cooking is one of the most entertaining, fun, and engaging ways to get kids interested in other cultures.
Make crepes on the weekend for brunch and talk about the French Revolution.
Or, combine a botany lesson on garden herbs with a lesson on Italy and whip some bruschetta.
Study a Foreign Language
Studying a foreign language opens up worlds and breaks down barriers for your kids.
It’s the powerhouse of cross-cultural studies.
Don’t speak a second language yourself? No problem. It’s entirely possible (and even more rewarding) to teach your kids a foreign language even if you don’t speak it.
Take Advantage of Local Culture
Do this.
Go to the Wiki page of your hometown and look at the demographics.
If you don’t already know what the major immigrant populations in your area are, find out. Then, check out their festivals, food, and any public events they host (especially cultural holidays, ect).
For example, our area offers Indian classical dance classes, an epic Dia Del Muerte festival at one of our historical cemeteries, and a mind-blowing Chinese lantern festival—-all extraordinary opportunities to teach your homeschooler international culture without booking a single flight.
Don’t Neglect Geography Lessons
I hear so many homeschoolers say they hate teaching geography.
Personally, it’s one of my favorite subjects, because there are so many ways to teach it hands-on.
Don’t just learn look at a map of Mexico. Try making a recipe together from Oaxaca.
Don’t just memorize a map of Europe. Read (affiliate link—>) Murder on the Orient Express by Agatha Christie and then map out the route yourself with pushpins.
A solid understanding of geography makes learning history and global politics so much easier down the line.
And your child will be so much more fluent in conversations about global affairs if they understand, you know, where things are happening.
Understanding geography is way, way underrated.
If you don’t believe me, just recall how cringy it was the first time you heard an American high schooler mistake Africa for a country.
Make Time for International Art
Art in any form is one of the most direct, invaluable ways to discover a culture. It is the very soul of a place, a people, and a history all rolled into one.
And it’s not just for high school students or college kids.
There’s no reason not to teach your child art history as early as preschool.
Learn about Frida Khalo as an introduction to Mexico, or study Yayoi Kusama to jumpstart an interest in Japan.
