When Parents Want What Is Best for Them, Not Their Unschooling Kids
I stretch out my legs in front of me and immediately realise I’ve brought something back from my recent dog-walking expedition in the wet bush. I leap to my feet and scare Quinn by screaming, “Get off me!” A leech is feasting on my blood. I try flicking the leech off, but I know this won’t work: it’s firmly attached…
Unschooling and Connections: How Learning Is All About Creating a Web of Understanding
When I finished my university degree, I threw all my botany and biochemistry lecture notes and books into the garbage bin with relief. And I said, “No one will ever make me learn anything ever again!” I have a science degree, which was presented to me while I was wearing a fancy gown with a mortar board on my head.…
Unschooling Maths – What Does Learning Math/s Naturally Look Like?
Many parents say, “We unschool except for maths.” I understand why some people are reluctant to let go of maths because, years ago, we were in the same situation. For some reason, it seemed hard to let my kids learn maths naturally from being exposed to it in their lives. But one day, my youngest two children began saying, “I…
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…
What if Our Unschooled Kids Complain or Reject Everything We Hold Dear?
I took my blog offline to fix a few technical problems, but at the back of my mind was a question: Have I had enough of blogging? Maybe I should keep my blog hidden permanently from public view. Perhaps it’s time to become an ex-unschooling blogger. Contemplating retirement as a blogger is nothing new. I’ve done this a few times…
Why This Unschool Mother Doesn’t Care
He who doesn’t care has more power. I heard those words somewhere, scribbled them into my journal, and then pondered them. Are they true? Should we care? Or are there some things we shouldn’t waste our time caring about? One thing I do care about is my son Callum and his passion for cars. Recently, I’ve become very interested in…
The Unschool Fangirl Returns
I’ve been a guest on other people’s podcasts, but I haven’t made a new episode on my own Stories of an Unschooling Family podcast for many months. But that has changed. Yesterday, I plugged my mic into my MacBook and started talking. (Unfortunately, I forgot to check my GarageBand settings, but I think the audio quality is still okay.) What…
Unschooling: A Lifestyle of Curiosity, Flexibility, and Trust
I’m a Lady Fixing the World! Cecilie Conrad kindly invited me to join her and Sandra Dodd for Season 2 of her podcastThe Ladies Fixing the World. We recorded our first unschooling conversation together in November 2024 before life got extra-busy with Christmas, and it has just gone live! The audio version. Here’s the audio version: You can also listen…
Examining An Unschooling Life
I drop a peppermint teabag into my favourite glass mug, add boiling water, and carry it to the living room. Opening the blinds so I can see the sun as soon as it rises, I settle on the sofa with the cat, who keeps trying to sit on my head. I grab my journal and chew the end of my…
Why I’m Content to Be a Blogger and Not an Instagram Influencer
I deleted IG. What will I do without social media? Can I blog without it? Is it okay to forget my silly dream of being a famous, unschooling influencer?…
Chores and Kids: What if We Said, “Yes”?
My most popular post ever is Getting Kids to Help With the Chores. After publishing it, readers flocked over to see what I’d written. Had I discovered the secret to having helpful and considerate children? Some readers were very skeptical when they read my words:…
Maths, Chores, and Thanking Our Kids
For the past couple of weeks, we’ve been living a quiet life. We haven’t done anything exciting. No music video shoots. No picnics by the lake. We haven’t even been running. The reason? We’ve all been unwell. It can be frustrating having to slow down,…
The Fear of Failing
Last Wednesday morning, just after sunrise, we headed into the bush to record another music video for Imogen. “What song are you singing today,…
What to Do When Unschool Kids Have No Interest in Topics They’re Required to Learn
‘… if we’re curious people, the whole world is a source of fascinating things to investigate. But this doesn’t mean we will all enjoy…
Interviewing Sophie (13), an Unschooling Teenager
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
I Need Your Help. Do You Need Mine?
I decide to abandon my unschooling blog, leaving it online to look after itself while I move on. But then I discover I can’t…
Home Almost Alone and Pondering What to Do
Here in Australia, the new school year has just begun, and for the first time in nearly 30 years, our family doesn’t have any…
Babies, Toddlers and Unschooling (Part 2)
Felicity, our firstborn child was an excellent baby. She fed every 3 or 4 hours, I’d change her nappy, pop her in her cot…
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.…
Critics, Unschooling, and Independent Learners
A New Podcast Series Do you listen to my podcasts? I’ll still be making new episodes while I’m working on my book. These episodes…
As the Unschooling Season Changes
Parents, sadly fed up with having their kids at home, are beginning to say, “When does school begin again?” My once-glorious hydrangeas are turning…
Unschool Love Stories
About a month ago, I wrote the following story for my unschooling community: This morning, I didn’t want to go for a run. It…
How My Daughters Are Organising My Education
Once again, it’s Monday, the day the girls have their piano lessons. Once again, Charlotte took Les Miserables to read, while she was waiting…