There Has Never Been a Better Time to Start Unschooling

Have you ever thought about unschooling but have hesitated? Maybe you haven’t quite been able to do it. What if things don’t go well? What if your kids get ‘behind’ while you’re experimenting? Will you regret your decision to give…

Pi and Tea, and Our Dog’s Tea Bag Collection

Our puppy Nora has a tea bag collection. She keeps it under the conifer tree at the bottom of our garden. Every day she pushes her long doggy nose between the wooden slats of the compost bin, in search of…

Basking in the Reflected Glory

Not so long ago,  early one morning, I put on my coat – there was a bitter wind blowing – and set out on a solo adventure with my camera and a travel mug of coffee. Thirty or so minutes…

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Unschooling: Haircut Courage

When I asked the hairdresser to cut my hair short, I had a definite idea of what I wanted. ”I like Andrea’s hairstyle,” I said, mentioning the name of a well-known TV presenter. “Could you cut my hair like hers?” Andrea’s hair was short and bouncy. It brushed the tops of her ears. It was feminine. It also looked very easy to look after. That’s the sort of hairstyle I needed. With three young children, I wanted something that I…

Unschooling: Frozen to the Bone

The other day, my girls and I were talking about our music video days. On film shoot mornings, we’d get up very early, pack our equipment in the car, and then drive to our chosen location, hoping to be there before the sun rose so we could catch the best light of the day. During winter, getting out of a warm bed at 4:30 am was hard. Even more difficult was standing on frosty ground in an icy wind, operating…

Unschooling: Elephant Education

The last time we went to the zoo, we stood shoulder to shoulder along the fence of the elephant enclosure, waiting for an educational presentation to begin. At the advertised hour, a young man dressed in khaki shorts and shirt, holding a mic, strode into the open space in front of us. He treated us to a huge zoo-welcoming smile and shouted, “I’m Noah! I’m your host for today’s elephant talk!” And then he gave a slick word-perfect lecture that…

Unschooling: Dishes

This evening, after dinner, I didn’t want to help with the dishes. I just wanted to relax on the sofa and leave everyone else to clean the kitchen. I could have done that. I could have taken advantage of my position as parent. Or I could have mentioned how tired I am. I’m sure my kids would have said, “Mum, you sit down. We’ll do the work.” Someone would have made me a cup of tea. They wouldn’t have made…

Unschooling: Clock Watching

I used to watch the clock a lot. Many years ago, when I was at school, every classroom had a clock on the wall. And each of those clocks had leaden hands that moved so slowly that I often thought I’d go crazy before they reached the half-hour or hour position. At those magical points on the circle, a bell would ring, releasing us, sending us into a flurry of activity. We’d thrust our books into our bags and race…

Unschooling: Boring or Maybe Not

Do you find certain things boring? Do your kids? I used to tell everyone I disliked science. I found it boring. This was sad because I did a Bachelor of Science degree. On paper, I’m a scientist. In real life, I’m a writer. The other day, I set out across the Internet, hopping from link to link and ended up having a wonderful adventure. It all started when I found an image of some Great Barrier Reef corals that I…

Unschooling: Absorbed

Many of us have a hard time focusing on the things we really want to do. We are easily distracted. We check emails or our social media notifications because that’s easier than getting down to some serious work. I had a distraction problem when I was writing my unschooling books, Curious Unschoolers and Radical Unschool Love. I used to get frustrated with myself because I seemed unable to spend time doing deep work. I read Cal Newport’s book Deep Work…

How Our Unschooled Kids Need a Deep Kind of Example

Sometimes I’m asked: ‘How do I get my kids to get up early? How do I get them to exercise? And I’d like to get the chores done as a family at the start of each day. Then there are prayers and other things I’d like to fit into our day. How do I establish a rhythm in our home that looks like yours?’ So what do I say? Well, all families are different, aren’t they? Our days are never…
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My Unschooling Books

Parents and Kids

How to Live Radically

Radical unschooling children don’t necessarily brush their teeth, or shower and if they want to exist on an exclusive diet of coca cola and…

The Ladies Fixing the World

Is It Working? Wrestling with Doubt in Unschooling

A grey day arrives that completely blots out the memory of all the preceding good days. We feel overwhelmed, tired, worried and lost. We wonder why we ever decided to unschool. A puddle of doubt about unschooling forms around us. What do we do? Cecilie, Sandra and I are discussing unschooling doubts and sharing our experiences in episode 10 of…

The Math Myth: How Do Unschooled Kids Learn Math?

There are many unschool maths questions. Here are just a few of them: Can kids really learn maths without formal instruction? What does unschooling maths look like? Can we strew unschool maths? Is it possible for registered homeschoolers to unschool maths? How can we provide evidence kids are learning maths when we don’t have formal records like workbooks and test…

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…

Christian unschooling

Radical Unschool Love, Praise and Joy

Do you ever praise your kids? Do you tell them you’re proud of them? Some people say we shouldn’t praise our kids. Maybe that’s because our children might end up doing things only because they want to gain our approval. And is there a risk a child might think she is better than everyone else if we praise her too…

A Genuine Invitation for Christian Unschoolers

Sometimes, invitations aren’t genuine invitations. They might sound like proper invitations. We say the right words, “Would you like to…?” but expect a particular response that doesn’t include the right to decline. Then, some invitations are issued without a personal touch. We wonder, “Does it matter if I accept? Will anyone notice if I’m there or not?” This happened to…
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