When an Unschooler Feels Like Taking a Course

Do you ever feel like taking a course, reading a textbook, or following someone else’s instructions to learn something? Do you want someone to say, “Follow my plan, and when you get to the end, you’ll know how to bake…

The Power of a Few Encouraging Words

Have you ever had a dream? I have. When I was a child, I wanted to write children’s novels. But somewhere along the way, I gave up the idea of becoming an author. There was no time for dreams. I…

An Adventure Hiding in Every Moment

Every Wednesday afternoon I drive into town to deliver Imogen to her place of work. She spends two hours, house cleaning.  And I wait. For two hours. Filling in hours? I’ve done a lot of that over the years. Waiting…

One Day Life Changed

A few days ago, my sister suggested we swap a daily photo via email, so I’ve been looking around to see what I can capture with my camera. I used to take lots of photos of my kids. They’d be…

Latest

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. All homeschoolers in our state were invited to meet with…

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 so I left my dreams behind. Yes, my desires felt…

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 learning about that I wanted to pass on to my…

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 I wanted my kids to do: complete maths problems, memorise…

When We Reach Crisis Point

The other day, I heard some words to this effect: Only when the pain that it takes to remain the same outweighs the pain that it takes to change are we finally willing to make some decisions and act. We might be aware that things aren’t right. We know we should make some changes, but we put off doing this. Maybe we’re hoping things will get better. We’ll cope. We don’t want to give in. Perhaps change will involve facing…

Focusing on the Smaller But More Important Things in Life

In my last post I said: 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 now know the answer: I’m going to finish editing my third children’s novel, The Angels of Convict Way. You might have heard me talking about…

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. But it shouldn’t. Parents’ hopes and dreams and interests are…

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 what they wanted to say while they played. They also…
1 … 36 37 38 39 40 … 109

My Unschooling Books

Parents and Kids

Why You Should Consider Radical Unschooling

This week, in episode 109 of my unschooling podcast, I’m discussing radical unschooling. Do you unschool but don’t like the sound of radically unschooling? Maybe you’re convinced you’ll…

The Ladies Fixing the World

Unschooling: Coping With the Unexpected

I used to think I could control my life. To achieve a perfect life, all I had to do was organise everything well, including my kids. What is a perfect life? My perfect life vision included a graduated row of good-looking and well-behaved children. I wanted people to admire my family and home, saying, “Sue is such a good mother!…

Unschooling: Trusting the Process and Letting Go of Control

“I kind of love my title for this podcast. It’s very ambitious. Let’s fix it all!” And so begins another Ladies Fixing the World conversation in which Cecilie Conrad, Sandra Dodd and I dive deep into unschooling, sharing our thoughts and experiences. In S2E4, we discuss Unschooling: Trusting the Process and Letting Go.   Want to know more…

Christian unschooling

Speed Angel Joy

I am sitting by the lake watching four girls scooting along the path. They are the Speed Angel Sisters and they are fast! Every now and then the girls veer off onto the grass and come to a sudden halt: a pedestrian is approaching. Now the speedway is clear again, and strong legs start pushing, wheels are revolving, hair…

When Mothering Is Not Enough

Should our kids be our whole world? Should we dedicate all our time and effort to raising the most precious people in our lives? Or is it okay to combine motherhood with our own interests? Could there be advantages in using our gifts and pursuing the things that bring us joy not only for us but also for our kids?…
Go toTop