Exciting Times, Slow Times and Unschool Holidays

There is nothing more exciting than watching a child who is gripped by a passion.

Early each morning, my 13 year old daughter Sophie knocks on my bedroom door. I invite her in, and the first thing I notice is her huge smile. Her first words are always the same: "I've got so many things I want to do today. I can't wait to get started!"

Sophie's excitement is contagious. It's also encouraging for a mother. This is what unschooling is all about. I have a child who absolutely loves learning. She is going to do amazing things, I'm sure.

But sometimes a child doesn't seem excited about anything in particular. "What are you passionate about? What makes you feel alive?" I ask my nearly 17-year-old daughter, Charlotte. She shrugs her shoulders and says, "I don't know..." and I'm tempted to get anxious, but I know I should trust.

I talked about these exciting times and slow times in this week's podcast. I also mentioned the holidays. It's the end of the official school term, which shouldn't affect us as we're unschoolers, but it will. Tomorrow my school teacher husband finishes work and he will be home for two weeks. And this will change our unschool days...