Home Schooling Part 8: Learning Through ICT

Originally written in November 2014 as 'ICT Thursday' — Updated for clarity and reflection in 2026.

Once a month on a Thursday I have the boys. I usually have them from Sunday morning to Tuesday evening, sometimes through to Wednesday morning, and the occasional Saturday. It is always nice to have an extra day with them. It does interrupt the home schooling rhythm, although we have always been semi structured. A Thursday needs a different approach, so I decided to turn Thursday mornings into ICT Thursdays. The idea is simple. Every subject links back to ICT so the boys learn through technology while still covering the core topics.

For this ICT Thursday we linked our literacy topic of poetry with descriptive language and the senses. We explored words, images and sounds through interactive tools. We then moved into numeracy and used online subtraction games to practise the week’s topic. It kept the learning active and gave William a clear way to see how numbers change.

We continued into science by exploring life cycles. This week we focused on frogs and the different stages of their growth. Most of this was picture based, which worked well for discussion and comparison. ICT made it easy to move between images, videos and diagrams without losing momentum.

The thing I enjoy most about ICT Thursday is the change of pace. It engages William in a different way. He sees it as fun and modern, which means he relaxes into the work. While he is doing that, we are layering skills without him noticing. He practises mouse control, typing, coordination, cutting and pasting, saving work and safe internet searching. It becomes the easiest and most laid back morning of our week. A change is as good as a rest, so it brings fresh energy into our routine.

I would not advise doing this too often because it would lose the freedom that the rest of the week offers, especially if you've built an environment around a routine. I would still like to add another half day of ICT somewhere, although there always seems to be so much to fit in.

Do you use themed days to layer subjects? How do you structure them? Does it work for you?

I have posted some pictures below to show what we did today.

[Image 2. William’s printed work. Holding images, with small sentences say what William "sess"]

[Image 3. William wearing a blue hoody is working through an online numeracy game during ICT Thursday.]

This is our 8th post on our home schooling, you can read Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6,  and Part 7 here. 

2026 Reflection

Reading this again reminds me how experimental those early home schooling years were. I was still figuring out what worked for the boys and what worked for me. ICT Thursdays became a small turning point. They showed me that learning did not need to be rigid to be meaningful. They also showed me how much William responded to technology when it was used with purpose.

Looking back now, I can see how these early choices shaped the way I think about accessible learning. Technology became a tool for independence, confidence and creativity. It still is. If you want to see how our approach developed, you can jump forward to my later posts on digital learning and accessibility.

To follow our home schooling journey, please click here.