Nine ducks ready for a swim. But, wait! What are those three chickens doing in line? Do they think they can swim, too? Why not? After all, the ducks and chickens do everything else together. They eat, drink, play, and even sleep together, so why not swim?

It's funny. Sometimes I catch myself running my homeschool that way. I mean, my kids eat, drink, and play together. They often even choose to sleep in bunk beds in the same room, so doesn't it make sense that they would share all the same academic and life skills, too? If one curriculum works for my 1G9, shouldn't I just be able to teach my 2B6 the same way?

I suppose not. Even children who share an environment and much of the same DNA, can and probably will have learning styles as different as chickens are from ducks. Parenting.com had an interesting article on this very phenomenon, and while this is most certainly not new information to most seasoned homeschoolers, it is certainly worth a review. I don't know about you, but sometimes I get struck with a case of back-to-school Alzheimer’s, and forget to really look into my own children's strengths and weaknesses--and consider how they really best learn.