Unschooling- Page 21

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Are You an Unschooling Troublemaker Like Me?

ome years ago, the education laws in Australia changed. The minimum school leaving age was raised from 15 to 17 to ensure that every child receives a better education. Well, that was the official reason for the change, but I suspect money was at the heart of the decision. But that’s another story! Today, I want to tell you about how I was labelled a troublemaker because of the changes.…
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Christian Unschooling: Are Desires Important?

Do you have great desires? Are there things you want to do with your life? Maybe you know in a vague kind of way that you need to do something, but you don’t know what you should do. Or perhaps your desires don’t feel important. When I was a child, I had desires, but they came to nothing. Other people said that they knew what was best for me, and…
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Letting Go of Our Own Ideas About Our Kids’ Education

Many years ago, I set out on a big search for the perfect method of homeschooling. I was looking for something that would ensure that my kids learnt all the essentials of a good education. (These basics varied depending on what books I was reading.) The perfect method also had to suit me. What did I want to do each day as far as homeschooling went? What did I enjoy…
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How Ticking Off Boxes Can Be a Waste of Time

Do you ever tick off boxes? When we have a lot of things to do, making a list, and then ticking off the items as we complete them, can be very helpful. It feels satisfying to see the ticks appearing, doesn’t it? Yes, ticking off boxes is good. Well, it usually is. It just depends on what’s on our lists. Years ago, I used to have long lists of things…
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How Both Unschooling Parents and Kids Can Do Amazing Things

What am I going to do next? What are my plans? What’s ahead for me? Someone at the Canberra unschooling meeting wanted to know what I’d like to do now that I’ve published my unschooling books. Will I write more books? Perhaps I’ll take up a new challenge? I was happily surprised by the questions. Normally, when I get together with other parents, the conversation revolves solely around our children.…
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Unschool Writing: What About Grammar and Punctuation?

How do unschoolers learn to write? This was one of the questions we were asked when we spoke at the recent Canberra unschooling talk. First, I think kids need something to say before they want to write. Lots of different things inspire us to write. Here are just a few: books, movies, games, events, and lively discussions that lead to thoughts and opinions. When my kids were little, they acted out…
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How Unschooling Is More Than Educating for a Secure Job

What do we want for our kids? A good education? If so, what does that look like? Do we want our kids to get good grades that will allow them to get into university? Would we like them to study degrees that will lead to high-status careers? Do we hope they’ll get well paying secure jobs that will set them up for life? Or isn’t that enough? Because even though feeling…
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Registered Homeschoolers Who Unschool, Confidence, and Other Thoughts

I wonder if more people would unschool if there was no such thing as homeschool registration. Maybe having to fulfil registration requirements seems daunting. How can we give our kids the freedom to follow their interests when we have to answer to the education department? Can it be done? I think it can, and this was one of the messages I wanted to pass on when I was talking about…
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How Choosing a Different Path Can Cause Conflict

When we choose to do things differently from those around us, it’s rarely simple. Although we might say that it’s okay for everyone to do what suits their own family – which is true – somehow it’s hard not to be affected by each other’s choices and opinions. As unschoolers, we might get criticised for our choices. Some people want to give us advice. They think we’re making a big…
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Why I Concluded That Unschooling Doesn’t Work When It Does

When we first started unschooling, I used to read John Holt’s magazine Growing Without Schooling. Every couple of months or so, a new copy would land in our mailbox. I’d make a cup of coffee and then settle down to devour each edition from cover to cover. I read wonderful stories about children who were doing amazing things such as rewiring their family homes. I got excited. I couldn’t wait…
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Shall We Talk About Christian Unschooling?

I often get to the point where I feel I haven’t got anything more to say about unschooling. I wonder: is it time to move on? At the beginning of last year, I reached such a point. However, instead of thinking about moving away from unschooling, I proposed the idea of exploring unschooling from a different angle. Should we discuss Christian unschooling? I got excited about this idea, and other…
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