Primary School - Page 2

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How an Unschooler Learns to Write

My daughter Imogen loves writing. It’s part of who she is. “When did you start writing?” I ask. “I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t writing.” My fourth child was writing stories long before she knew how to form letters into words. “Do you remember how Charlotte and I would sit side by side at the kitchen table and draw our stories?” says Imogen. “We’d chat about what was happening…
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Unschool Reading: A Slow Learner

It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was helping my daughter Gemma-Rose learn to read. She’d choose a book and we’d sit side-by-side on the sofa and we’d enjoy the story together. Actually, I don’t know if ‘enjoy’ is the right word. Reading was a very slow process. We hardly ever got to the end of a book. I’d think, “Will Gemma-Rose ever read fluently?” which was a very…
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What Do Children Need to Learn?

Here’s another younger unschooler story. My daughter Gemma-Rose was 8 when I wrote this post. Being the youngest child in the family, Gemma-Rose often slipped under my radar as far as teaching her the essential skills of life goes. But did that matter? Regardless of me, did she learn what she needs to know?  A couple of weeks ago, Gemma-Rose thrust her feet towards me and said, “Please can you…
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How Kids (and Adults) Learn

In this week’s podcast, episode 108, I’m telling some stories and chatting about how kids and adults learn: What is the best motivation for learning? Why do we persist using teaching methods that we know aren’t working? Why do we waste our time? Would more people unschool if there was no such thing as homeschool registration? What bad habits have adults learnt that get in the way of learning? Do other people’s…
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Real Life Family Unschool Maths

A few years ago, when my daughter Sophie was 10, she started to say, “I’m no good at maths. I hate it!” At the time, Sophie was using a formal structured maths course. When she started sighing over her work, I knew that it was time to face an uncomfortable idea and unschool maths. Of course, I could have forced Sophie to keep working at her course. I could have…
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From Around the Web: Unschooling and Learning to Read

How do unschooled children learn to read? Can we trust them to learn to read in their own time? What if a child is still not reading after a ‘reasonable’ amount of time? I’ve gathered a few blog posts from around the Internet on unschooling and learning to read. I hope you enjoy them! 1. How Late is a Late Reader? by Luminara King from Living the Education Revolution Our daughter,…
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The Writing Game: No Shortage of Writing Ideas

My daughter Gemma- Rose and I are having some mother-daughter time. We sit at one of the wobbly white tables in the shopping mall and sip our drinks. I have a coffee. She has a chocolate milkshake. “What have you been enjoying recently?” I ask. Gemma-Rose sucks on her straw for a moment and then says, “Writing. I love writing.” “There’s lots to write about, isn’t there?” “There is?” “Oh…
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Becoming Real Life Maths Detectives

“We use maths all the time,” I say to my daughter Gemma-Rose (10). “Maths is everywhere.” Everywhere? She doesn’t look convinced. “You use maths to count your money,” says Sophie, “and when you’re cooking.” Cooking? How many times have you heard this example when real life maths is mentioned? “Real life maths? You know, cooking.” My girls cook all the time. I have lots and lots of cooking entries in…
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Approaching Maths Backwards

The other day, I made a big mistake. I uttered the word ‘maths’ in Gemma-Rose’s presence. Oh my! She instantly became stiff and prickly.“What’s wrong with maths?” I asked.“It’s boring. It’s just a lot of numbers.” “You don’t like numbers?” “No.” I attempted a little nudge: “Numbers can be fun. We could play a game together… a computer game.” Gemma-Rose flung herself down on the sofa next to me, with…
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When a Child Wants to Read the Same Book Again and Again

I remember when my kids were much younger. They’d bring me a picture book and ask me to read it, and I would say, “Not this one again! Don’t you want me to read you something new?” They’d shake their heads, and I’d sigh and begin the book for the 100th time, or so it seemed. Yes, sometimes children want to stay with the same book for a very long…
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