Of Babies and Bombs
You will enjoy this post, I’m sure. It’s the first in a new series of guest posts and was written by Hamilton Carter from the blog Copasetic Flow. If you need a good giggle, keep reading! We’re a baby-wearing family.…
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…
From Unschooling to Successful University Learning
A couple of days ago, Imogen logged into her Open Universities account to check some details she needed for her youth allowance application. She checked her mail while online and received a nice surprise. “Hey! I got a Distinction for that…
Misconceptions: Unschooling Children Will Choose Not to Do Difficult Things
I often run down the main fire trail that winds its way through our local bush. The track descends gently at first, but then drops away so steeply I have to take care not to lose my footing. After I…
Saying Yes: Unschool Bits and Pieces
Saying Yes When Gemma- Rose asked if we could get a puppy, we could have thought of many reasons to say no. But we didn’t. A year ago, a tiny Shar Pei/ Great Dane puppy joined our family and we…
Pushing Ourselves Instead of Our Kids
Often, we push our kids to try new things, don’t we? We want them to be adventurous. We say, “If you give it a go, you might discover you like it. You might be good at it.’ But what about ourselves? Are we willing to try new things? Or do we make excuses to avoid pushing ourselves outside our comfort zones? I wanted to give podcasting a go. So, I made an episode and uploaded it to the Internet. I…
Chatting with My Unschooled Author Daughter
It’s been a while, but I’m back with a new podcast episode! My author daughter Imogen is back too. In episode 205 of my Stories of an Unschooling Family podcast, we’re chatting about: Writing and how Imogen is promoting and selling her YA novels Collaboration and how we achieve more when we work together The ups and downs of social media We also share some of our latest news and tell a couple of stories, including the one about my…
Challenging Ourselves to Put Away Our Phones
Did you hear the story of the photographer who visited the Grand Canyon and took millions of photos of the awe-inspiring sights, and then later realised that he hadn’t seen a thing despite having his eye glued to his viewfinder the whole time? He retraced his steps, his camera dangling idly by his side, and looked at everything properly. I wonder: do we fail to see the bigger picture when we view the world via our cameras and phones? Perhaps…
Taking Risks, Looking Strange
… And we shouldn’t be afraid of taking risks: doing something different and trying new things. People might look at us strangely, but then again, they might not. They might think what we’re doing is great. It’s strange how many of us tend to stick to the same way of doing things, isn’t it? We want to blend in, stay under the radar and not stick out. Unschooling can be a bit that way. When my kids were growing up,…
An Almost Empty Unschool House
Recently, two of our daughters moved out of home, leaving behind two empty bedrooms, which my husband and I are turning into a study and a studio. For the first time ever, I will have my very own space where I can write, record audio and video, and join in with Zoom calls. For many years, our home was crammed full of children, toys, books, pets, clothes and everything else a family gathers. My kids shared bedrooms, sleeping in bunk…
Too Anxious to Unschool?
Some parents say they can't let go of control and unschool because they're too anxious about the outcome. What if things don't work out and kids fail to receive the upbringing and education they need? Perhaps it seems like unschooling and anxiety are incompatible. But I've never had a problem with unschooling despite my anxiety. That's because I believ…
When Children Move Out of an Unschool Home
Some parenting ‘experts’ advise us to push our kids out of the family home as soon as possible. They tell us to make our kids stand on their own two feet. But my husband and I have ignored this advice. We’re happy for our kids to remain with us as long as they need to be here. Some of them moved out of home when they were 18 or 19. Some stayed longer. Now, we only have one child left.…
How to Respond to ‘Unlovable’ Kids and Cats
Poppy died, and I cried despite not liking the cat. Poppy was a grumpy animal. She was messy and unkempt, preferring not to groom herself. An unpleasant odour followed her wherever she went. We bathed the cat, clipped her long fur, and sprinkled deodoriser all over her body, trying to make her an acceptable family member. She protested. Poppy died, and we no longer have to deal with a messy, unkempt animal. I should have cheered, but I cried. I…
Stories About Connection from Radical Unschool Love
In this week’s podcast, I’m sharing a few stories that can be found in my book, Radical Unschool Love: A Teenager’s Thoughts Learning Right…
How to Unschool During the Baby Seasons of Life: The Magic Answer
Maybe most people think of me as an older unschooler blogger because, at the moment, I'm surrounded by unschooling teens and young adults. I'm…
How Will You Know if Unschooling Works?
How will you know if unschooling works? Will you know it works if your children get into good universities, earn degrees, and then get…
Learning to Read and Trusting Unschooling
It is absolutely essential that we are curious people who are excited about the possibilities in life. The atmosphere in our homes gets picked up by our kids so they think it’s normal to learn, to be curious, to follow thoughts and ideas and try things out… I was battling with my kids for a while. They kept saying, ‘Why…
Unschooling Isn’t Freedom Gone Wild: Why Choices Matter More Than Ideals
My husband Andy returned to work today after two weeks at home. Holiday time is over. We’ve now moved into term time. A whole term of possibility days stretches before me. I’m free to do whatever I like with my time while Andy is at school. My eyes light up with delight. But then I remember there are many…
Unschooling: Trust, Autonomy, and The Realities of Learning
The Ladies are Fixing the World again! Cecilie, Sandra and I are discussing the words ‘self-regulation’ and ‘limits’. When we say, “I’ve let go of control, and now I’m waiting for my child to learn how to regulate his time playing video games (for example),” do we have expectations about what that regulation should look like? Do we want…
Christian Unschooling: Should We Encourage Our Kids to Seek Security?
Should we encourage our kids to seek security? Is it our parental duty to make sure they receive the education and opportunities they might need to get safe, well-paying jobs when they leave our care? Or is that kind of security not what our children need? Could security be about something else?…
Parenting: Doing Our Inadequate Best
Do you ever look back - a few years, months or even days - at your younger self and wish you could have done better? Perhaps you remember dragon parent days when you failed to be gentle. Could you have said things you now regret? I know I do. Sometimes, I want to go back and put things right. But…