How do you teach your very hands-on, tactile learner?

[Sue G in PA]

I'm doing some serious re-evaluating. My dd11 and ds8 are very much like I was in terms of schoolwork. They are content doing bookwork, craft projects of any kind and could care less about science experiments and the like. It's easy to teach them :) Then there are my ds9 and ds6. They are different "animals" altogether. Ds9 tolerates the bookwork b/c he knows in some subjects it is necessary. I feel like I'm failing him in the hands-on, tactile stimulation dept. He could do science experiments all day long, 7 days a week. He prefers to be outdoors exploring, experiencing nature, playing sports, building treehouses, watching birds and bugs, catching salamanders and frogs, etc. He's not a crafty, cut and paste kind of kid although he has potential in the drawing dept. and does like this aspect of art. Basically, he is NOT me (except the drawing part) :) How does one who ISN'T wired like this (me), teach someone who very definitely IS (ds9)? Same with ds6 only he just needs to be moving...all.the.time! Planning science experiments just is NOT my forte, KWIM? TIA for any suggestions. I just don't want to ignore his gifts and tendencies just b/c I'm not made like he is!

[Jean in Newcastle]

I hired my neighbor to come in one morning a week. She does hands-on science experiments with the kids (mostly geared to my dd6 but my ds10 loves them too). I choose the experiments from the "Usborne Big Book of Experiments" and one other book like that (I can't remember it's name right now but I'm pretty sure it is by Usborne as well). I get out the materials. I pay her $15 for 1.5 hours of hands-on play. She also does math and phonics games with my dd6 (my ds10 would love to play too but in 5th grade he really doesn't need it!). You could do the same with a teen-ager in the afternoons or on a Saturday.