Hey friends, here’s a challenge that’s from my upcoming new book, The Unschool Challenge! Maybe doing the challenge is a good way to begin a new year of learning adventures!

We all know learning doesn’t just happen during the official school hours. Kids can learn anytime, including weekends and the long summer holidays. So can we. We don’t really need to artificially split up a year into terms and holidays or a day into school hours and free time. Every day of the year could look exactly the same. But, when my kids were registered unschooling homeschoolers, that didn’t actually happen.

Our unschooling year had seasons, ebbing and flowing, changing naturally as we moved from the hope and anticipation we felt as we hung an empty calendar on the wall on the first day of January to the excitement of Christmas almost twelve months later.

Throughout the year, we adjusted our days, taking into account what was going on in our lives. The seasons and the weather affected what we did. And so did our health and our levels of energy. The needs of each member of our family also influenced our days. When we had babies and toddlers, they always came first. And so did the various crises that came our way.

Our year was also affected by outside activities and music lessons that were only offered during the school terms. And then there was my husband’s work. Andy is a school teacher, so, for us, the school holidays were times for relaxing, slow mornings, late nights, and going on family outings while he was home. I also forgot about homeschool record keeping for a few weeks. I could stop watching out for educational experiences to write about in our records book and take a break from strewing.

When Gemma-Rose had just turned nine and Sophie was several years older, I wrote about the start of a new unschooling year:

Andy returns to work tomorrow. He’s a primary school teacher.

“This is Dad’s last day of holiday,” I say to the girls.

They are quiet for a moment, and then, it suddenly dawns on them. “You mean the new school term starts tomorrow?” says Sophie, a smile appearing on her face.

I nod, and Gemma-Rose shouts, “Hooray! You can read to us again.”

“Well…” I begin. “I didn’t say our term begins tomorrow.” The smiles disappear.

“But there’s so much we want to do,” says Sophie.

“You don’t have to wait for me,” I say. “You’re good at learning things by yourselves.”

“I know, but what about reading? We like you reading to us, and everything’s much more fun when we do things together.”

Sophie presents me with a list:

Things I want to do

Watch Space Odyssey, Voyage to the Planets. Read the book, too and play around on the website.

Learn all about planets and space.

Read A Little Bush Maid.

Learn about New Zealand.

Learn about the Second World War.

Learn about Australian birds.

Watch more Gilbert and Sullivan musicals.

Learn poetry.

Read Little Women.

Learn more about maths.

Learn about water.

Learn to play the organ.

It looks like my lazy summer days are over. I need to think about how I can help my girls learn all they want to know. Maybe I should walk around the house looking for appropriate resources to strew.

I love Sophie’s and Gemma-Rose’s enthusiasm and impatience to acquire more knowledge. After a long relaxing summer, they can’t wait until we return to our usual school term rhythm.

As a child, I also looked forward to the start of the new school year. I was eager to wear my new uniform, meet up again with my friends, and find out who my new teacher was. A few days later, all that enthusiasm would seep away. It was business as usual as we headed back to the grind. I tried looking ahead to the next summer holiday, but all I could see was tedious work, week after week. I sighed.

I can also remember, years ago, sighing as a homeschooling mother. I’d start the year with great anticipation, armed with new resources and ideas, and then, a few weeks into the term, my enthusiasm would die. Teaching my children no longer seemed like an exciting adventure. It was just one long hard struggle. But that was in the days when we weren’t unschooling.

My girls won’t be sighing in a few days or even a few weeks. I’m sure they’ll still be bouncing around, full of the joy of learning. Their enthusiasm won’t disappear, and mine won’t either. And I am very grateful for that. I’m glad we found our way to unschooling.

Sophie appears again, a book in her hand. “This looks interesting,” she says. “Perhaps I can add this to my list of things I want to do.”

I read the title: Aircraft of Australia and New Zealand. “Aviation: Amelia Earhart, Charles Kingsford Smith, The Wright Brothers.” I pause as I try to remember more.

“Can you spell those names?” asks Sophie. “I’ll go and look them up.”

The new unschooling year has begun.

Perhaps you’re at the start of a new unschooling year. You’ve taken down your tree and packed away the Christmas decorations, and now you and your children are eager to dive deeper into your interests. You may be looking forward to moving naturally from the celebration season to a new learning phase.

But how will you use all those empty days ahead? What will you do, and where will you go? Do you have hopes and dreams? Where will you start?

You could begin your year by taking up this challenge!

The Challenge

1. Write a list of things you hope to do.

Perhaps there’s a hobby you’ve always wanted to try. Or you’ve dreamed of writing a book. Would you like to learn a second language? Ride a bike or a horse? Go for long hikes? Investigate new recipes? How about saying yes more often? Become a better listener? Do you want to be more adventurous this year: try new things and ponder new ideas.

1. Write a list of what your kids would like to do.

Have some family conversations where everyone shares their ideas for the year. Also, chat with your kids during one-on-one times. Would they like to go camping? Or do they dream of having a pet? Are your older children ready to learn to drive? (That’s a scary one!) What about creating a YouTube channel? There may be smaller things they’d like to do, such as listen to read-alouds or go on more outings. How about dedicating a day each week for adventures?

This challenge is not about writing a homeschooling plan you expect your kids to follow. It’s more about identifying the things everyone would like to do and then working out how you will do them.

The Challenge Rules

1. You can put whatever you like on your own lists, but you can’t put things on your kids’ lists. For example, you can only add ‘write more stories’ or ‘practise spelling’ to their lists if that’s what they’d really like to do!

2. You have to seriously consider all of your kids’ ideas and be prepared to help put them into action. Will you need to be brave? Will you need to step outside your comfort zone? Will you need to join in?

If the ideas seem impossible, examine them from all angles instead of rejecting them. Get your kids’ input. Can the ideas be modified and still satisfy everyone?

1. Give your kids and yourself permission to change your minds about anything on the lists. If you start a language course but then decide it’s not for you, drop it and try something else.

2. You can add items to your lists as the year progresses.

3. And if no one has any ideas, you could strew a few!

Of course, you can take up this challenge before the beginning of a new year. You could do it at the start of a new season or any time you feel in a rut and want to reignite your family’s passion for learning.

Related Reading

The Changing Seasons of the Unschooling Year: Curious Unschoolers

The Unschool Challenge

I’ve almost finished my third unschooling book! It’s called The Unschool Challenge and it contains about 75 practical challenges or ways to adopt the unschooling principles and live an amazing unschooling life of respect, trust and unconditional love!

I’m currently proofreading the book manuscript and hope to publish the book very soon. Please watch out for further updates!

Photo

On the first day of 2022, we went bushwalking in a nearby national park. Standing on the lookouts, we could see magnificent views of the waterfalls and valley below us. (I haven’t yet downloaded the photos I took on the first day of 2023. I haven’t had time: I’ve been busy working on my new book!)