Some Strange and Interesting Bookish Questions
If you could have only half of a book, would you prefer the first half or the second one? My daughter Imogen and I discuss this question after I tell her a friend gave me too much money for a…
When Parents Want What Is Best for Themselves, 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…
Are You a Curious Unschooler?
Do you ever follow rabbit trails, going from one thing to other until your head is spinning with new knowledge? My head is constantly spinning. I guess my girls’ heads are too. You see, I don’t keep my discoveries to myself.…
Forcing a Child to Do What He is Afraid to Do
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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…
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 answer to the education department? Can it be done? I think it can, and this was one of the messages I wanted to pass on when I was talking about unschooling in Canberra recently. This is our 27th year of…
How Choosing a Different Path Can Cause Conflict
When we choose to do things differently from those around us, it’s rarely simple. Although we might say that it’s okay for everyone to do what suits their own family – which is true – somehow it’s hard not to be affected by each other’s choices and opinions. As unschoolers, we might get criticised for our choices. Some people want to give us advice. They think we’re making a big mistake and feel compelled to say something. I guess they’re…
Why I Concluded That Unschooling Doesn’t Work When It Does
When we first started unschooling, I used to read John Holt’s magazine Growing Without Schooling. Every couple of months or so, a new copy would land in our mailbox. I’d make a cup of coffee and then settle down to devour each edition from cover to cover. I read wonderful stories about children who were doing amazing things such as rewiring their family homes. I got excited. I couldn’t wait until my kids did similar things. Would they research electrical…
Shall We Talk About Christian Unschooling?
I often get to the point where I feel I haven’t got anything more to say about unschooling. I wonder: is it time to move on? At the beginning of last year, I reached such a point. However, instead of thinking about moving away from unschooling, I proposed the idea of exploring unschooling from a different angle. Should we discuss Christian unschooling? I got excited about this idea, and other people did too. But somehow nothing much happened. I just…
Unschooling When Charlotte Mason Also Appeals to Our Hearts
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Turning Waiting Times into Unschooling Adventures
Do you spend a lot of time waiting? I used to. When my kids were younger, I had to wait while they had piano lessons, singing lessons, musicianship lessons and swimming lessons. I waited while they went to Brownies and St John Ambulance meetings. I waited while my daughter Imogen earnt herself some money by cleaning houses. Sometimes I got fed up with waiting. I sat in the car and watched my watch which made time feel like it was…
Leaving Magical Fingerprints on Each Other’s Lives
Friends leave their magical fingerprints on our lives. I remember the day that I heard that Nancy Shuman had died. It was a Sunday. Andy, the girls and I had spent the afternoon with my parents. My son Duncan was at home looking after our new puppy, Quinn. It was just a normal weekend day. But when we arrived home, I knew something was wrong. Duncan’s face was creased into a dozen lines. “What’s the matter?” I asked. “I’ve lost…
Old and New Stories, a Book Club and Other Unschooling Things
A few weeks ago, I received a letter from Fr James Tierney who is the author of the Bush Boys children’s books. Fr and I are old friends. We’re also writing buddies. And Fr is also a great source of inspiration and encouragement for me and my family. As I was writing my reply to Fr’s letter, I realised that Fr Jim must have recently celebrated his anniversary of ordination. Which anniversary was it? I remembered going to a special…
How Do We Encourage Our Kids to Be Independent Learners?
I’m still podcasting while I’m writing this unschooling book series. Here’s this week’s episode! This week, I’m sharing and discussing the story Independent Learners, Toast…
Tired and Difficult Days
Today I’m tired. “Have you got anything you really need to do?” asks my daughter Imogen. “I haven’t yet recorded my podcast,” I reply.…
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…
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…
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: How Do We Know They’re Learning?
There are loads of unschooling questions we could ask about learning: How do we know unschooling kids are learning? Should they be learning particular things? Is there knowledge that all kids need? Are our unschooled kids learning enough? Can they get behind? Should we just trust our kids are learning? But what if we have doubts? Or what if we…
Christian Unschooling: Letting God into Our Kids’ Lives
I used to tick off my spiritual boxes religiously every day. I said a lot of prayers and read my Bible. And I got extra ticks whenever I was able to get to daily Mass, so I made the effort to get there as often as life allowed. It wasn’t easy doing all that, but I did it. I had…
Love or Fear? What Guides Our Lives?
There are so many things we could fear. We might be too afraid to send our kids to school if we listen to the loud voices telling us how bad traditional education is. We might choose homeschooling because of that fear. If we decide to homeschool, we’re still not safe. Fears could follow us. We might be too afraid to…