2022
What Kind of Home Do Kids Need?
The other day, while walking our dogs through the bush close to home, I met a neighbour who warned me to watch out for snakes. He’d almost stepped on one and had sighted others that had slithered away. Years ago, one of my kids yelled, ‘Mum, there’s a snake outside!’
2022
Heavy Metal Music and Keeping Kids Safe
Often we make decisions based on the opinions and expectations of others. Without considering whether something is good for us or not, whether it suits our family or fulfils our needs and those of our children, we toss away anything that might make us unacceptable in the eyes of other
2022
Unschooling: Learning the Important Things Before Time Runs Out
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2022
How Do Kids Learn to Be Generous?
On Monday, my daughter Imogen and I were the filling in a truck sandwich as we drove from our quiet village, along the busy motorway, through the heavy rain, to the city shops. I wanted to buy some white sneakers, and Imogen suggested we visit the Converse shop. I protested:
2022
The Dangers of Distraction
We often let ourselves be distracted, don’t we? But while we’re enjoying the excitement of pursuing something new and sparkly, there’s a danger we’ll lose the important things we already have. I dart from one project to another as they catch my attention. And then I have a brand new
2022
Should We Encourage Our Kids to Follow Their Dreams?
What did you want to be when you were a child? I wanted to be a writer. I had a cardboard box inside my wardrobe where I stored my scribbled stories about princesses, dragons and faraway kingdoms. At night, in bed, before dropping off to sleep, I’d think up stories
2022
Embracing Gaming: An Unschooling Challenge
What do we do if our kids want to play games for hours, and we’re not happy about that? We could limit their screen time. Make some rules about when and what and where children can play games. We could try ignoring our worries, remind ourselves of the benefits of
2022
Giving Our Kids Time to Discover Who They Are
Did you go to school? Were your teenage years crammed full of lessons, homework and preparation for exams? Perhaps, like me, you had very little free time for yourself. And when you did have a few quiet hours, were you encouraged to do something useful with them rather than rest
2022
This Time Next Year: Where Will You Be?
Do you ever play the game, ‘this time last year…’? What about ‘this time next year…’? How does it feel looking back? What do you hope for the future? Several days ago, my very thoughtful phone made me a video using some of the many photos in my camera roll.
2022
Clock Watching, Short Lessons and Curious Questions
This morning, after a long break, I dusted off my mic, sat down and made a new podcast episode! I enjoyed doing this, but I don’t know if I’m back permanently. Can I afford to keep podcasting? Can I afford to keep blogging? (I recently received some huge hosting bills.)
2022
Can Video Games Be Safe Places For Our Kids (And Us)?
Do kids who are denied their freedom want to spend a lot of time on their devices? Do they retreat into their games because, unlike the real world, they’re in control of these virtual ones? Do kids use games as a safe refuge from a sometimes difficult real world? Are
2022
How Seemingly Trivial Interests Are Full of Valuable Learning
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2022
Sharing the Ice Cream and Rejecting Tough Love
There’s a woman on YouTube who sips wine from a large glass while digging into a family-sized bucket of ice cream. She has some advice for parents. Her message goes something like this: Parents take back the reins. Forget all this being friends stuff. Show some tough love. It doesn’t
2022
Can Christians Unschool?
Can Christians unschool? We’re Christian unschoolers. Maybe you’re Christian unschoolers too? There are lots of us living this way of life. But are we doing the right thing? Or are we side-stepping our responsibilities when we choose to unschool? Are we choosing the easy, lazy path? I often hear of
2022
Extracting Every Drop of Joy from Our Parenting Days
Did you go searching for joy today? Did you look for ways to turn ordinary moments into something special for you and your family? Did you linger in bed with a child snuggled up beside you, savouring the warmth and softness of little-person-skin instead of rushing to get on with
2022
A Message We Can All Share Even if Our Unschooling Lives Aren’t Picture-Perfect
When we’re posting photos or writing stories or talking about unschooling directly with our family and friends, do we ever stop and wonder if it’s necessary to have perfect kids when we’re sharing this way of life? Lots of people want to promote or defend unschooling. I do as well.
2022
Do Beautiful Photos Fail to Tell the Whole Unschooling Story?
Can photos reflect the beauty of an unschooling life? We could post loads of pictures of smiling kids involved with impressive activities or running wild and free, surrounded by the spectacular beauty of nature. How about sharing photos of the stunning places where we live? Or visit? The campervans, the
2022
Unschooling Poster Kids
All seven of my unschooled kids went to university when they were 14 and got their degrees before they reached adulthood. No they didn’t. That’s wrong. I lie! But wouldn’t it be impressive if they had all done that? I could have written a book called Brainy Unschoolers: how to
2022
When the Outside Looks Wrong Because We Don’t Understand
My daughter Imogen knows I love proteas so when she saw a bouquet of native Australian flowers while shopping, she decided to buy them for me. A day or two previously, I’d told Imogen about the magnificent native flower garden that was in front of the house where we lived
2022
Putting Our Kids Ahead of the Opinions of Other People
Have you ever put other people ahead of your kids? I have. And I wonder: how could I have done that when my kids mean so much to me? It doesn’t make sense, does it? Years ago, there were many times when I cleaned my house rather than spend time
2022
When We Can’t Decide What’s the Best Way to Bring Up and Educate Our Kids
Do you ever swap between the various methods of homeschooling looking for the perfect way to bring up and educate your kids? I used to do that. I’d try one thing after another, confusing myself and my kids, while never finding what I was searching for. As I said in
2022
Reinventing Ourselves
When I was younger, I often came home from social gatherings and replayed conversations in my head. Did I talk too much? Had I sounded silly? I’d wish I could go back and change what I’d said. I wanted to be a different person. I wondered: could I reinvent myself?
2022
Radical Unschool Love, Praise and Joy
Do you ever praise your kids? Do you tell them you’re proud of them? Some people say we shouldn’t praise our kids. Maybe that’s because our children might end up doing things only because they want to gain our approval. And is there a risk a child might think she
2022
A Wasting Time Unschooling Challenge
When I was a child, I always felt I should be doing something useful rather than sit still and dream, think or watch TV. I thought I had to be productive and not waste time. As an adult, I‘ve discovered that we learn a lot by doing such things as
2022
Rules for Having Fabulous Unschool Learning Adventures
I know unschooling isn’t supposed to have any rules, but we do have a few. They’re called Our Rules for Having Fabulous Learning Adventures. When my kids were younger, whenever we headed out the door to explore the bigger world, we chose to follow these seven rules: ♡ Adventure with
2022
What’s the Best Place to Bring Up Kids?
Do you ever wonder where you should live? Are you providing the best environment for your kids? Is it rich and full of opportunities for learning? While Imogen and I were on holiday together, we wandered around Kiama where we were staying, taking photos and chatting about the differences between
2022
When You’re Tempted to Leave Unschooling and Try Something Else
Every evening of our recent holiday, Imogen and I swished through the warm waves as we walked along the beach, waiting for the sun to set. One evening, I noticed a group of birds on the sand. At first glance it looked like a gathering of seagulls, but there were
2022
Could a Lack of Freedom Damage Our Kids’ Mental Health?
On the first morning of my recent holiday with my daughter Imogen, I got up early, grabbed my camera and headed to the beach. I sat alone on the sand, waiting for the sun to rise and thought about freedom. The last couple of years have been hard, haven’t they?
2022
Parents Or Friends? Or Can We Be Both?
A few weeks ago, my gorgeous adult daughter, Imogen, said, “Mum, we need a break. How about we go to the beach together for a few days?” Oh my, that was a fabulous suggestion. We’ve both had a hard time this last year or so. A holiday away from the
2022
How to Turn Cooking into Unschool Maths Homeschool Records Notes
When you hear the words ‘real life maths’ or ‘real world maths’ what do you think of? Cooking? That’s the usual example, isn’t it? “My kids did lots of real life maths today. They cooked a cake for morning tea.” When my children were younger, they often made cakes and