Watching a Child Learn
This is a guest post written by Elizabeth Johnson. As mothers (and fathers) we are blessed with an incredible privilege: watching our children’s minds unfold to the world around them. I used to take great pleasure from seeing an “A” at the top of my daughter’s spelling tests and would congratulate myself on parenting well done when my son could…
The Jeans-Wearing Rule
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A Podcast Transcript: Passing On Our Values and Beliefs to Our Children
This post is a transcript of part of my podcast, Episode 102: Sharing Our Values and Beliefs With Our Unschooled Children. I edited my original words to make them flow better. I reordered some of them, cut out repetitions, and made some small additions so that my thoughts are easier to follow. (Unfortunately, words never fall from my lips in a…
Sharing Our Values and Beliefs With Our Unschooled Children
We all have our beliefs. Even if we don’t have a religious faith, we still believe in something. We all have values which shape our lives. Is it okay if we share these beliefs and values with our kids? I’ve heard some unschoolers say that we shouldn’t influence our kids. They should be free to make up their own minds…
How I Gave Up and Started Unschooling
A guest post by Venisa McAllister We started with high hopes. When my oldest daughter Sarah was old enough for kindergarten I enrolled her in a program called k-12. They would give us a computer, fun learning materials, and help me turn my daughter into a genius! We started with high hopes. How could it not work? Everything came beautifully…
Adult Peer Pressure, Clothes, Rules, and Compassion
Have you even made decisions based on other people’s opinions rather than the needs of your own family? I have. I almost ruined my relationship with my eldest daughter by doing this. I chose to listen to my friends rather than to my child. You see, I wanted to be accepted by the group. I bowed to adult peer pressure.…
If We Collaborate Could We Light a Gentle Unschooling Fire?
I’m looking for collaborators. People to work with. Other bloggers and podcasters and vloggers and authors who are passionate about spreading the unschooling message. In a gentle way. Helen Keller said: Alone we can do so little; together we can do so much. And Louisa May Alcott said: It takes two flints to make a fire. I only have to…
My Unschooling Podcast Adventure
Almost three years ago, I recorded my first podcast. For a few hours, I was very excited about what I’d produced. But then a short time later, I almost deleted the episode. I’m glad I didn’t because I know if I had, I probably wouldn’t have continued on and made 100 episodes. Yes, I have arrived at Episode 100. That…
Real Life Family Unschool Maths
A few years ago, when my daughter Sophie was 10, she started to say, “I’m no good at maths. I hate it!” At the time, Sophie was using a formal structured maths course. When she started sighing over her work, I knew that it was time to face an uncomfortable idea and unschool maths. Of course, I could have forced…
A Gradual Approach to Unschooling
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Unschooling: Impressing Other People
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
Encouraging Kids to Become Independent Learners
Many years ago, at a homeschooling picnic, I met a family who had a baby a little less than a year old. I watched her as we sat on a picnic rug together, eating our sandwiches. The little girl reached for a knife. It was…
Encouragement, Example and the Fun of Sharing Passions
It’s the first of November. Today we’re celebrating All Saints Day. Today we’re also starting our NaNoWriMo novels. There is a sense of anticipation…
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…
When Our Help and Strewing Are Rejected
My daughter Charlotte used to be openly enthusiastic about everything. Every evening she’d be eager to tell me about all the things she’d discovered…
Losing Time
I’ve been reading a book called A Time to Die by Nicholas Diat, who visited eight monasteries to talk to the monks about the…
Becoming Brave and Gritty
This morning, I posted the following words on Instagram: Hello! It’s Monday morning here in Australia. I am thinking about the day ahead. Should…
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…
The Curriculum of Life
What curriculum are you using this year? The girls and I are going to be using the curriculum of life. Surely day-to-day life doesn’t…
Resisting the Temptation to Interfere
Or trusting children to learn in their own time I have been rather busy recently, my eyes glued to the computer screen, my mind…
Books, Music, Burnout and a Mystery!
This podcast is a few days late or a couple of days early, depending on how you look at it. It’s also not the…
Reinventing Ourselves
When I was younger, I often came home from social gatherings and replayed conversations in my head. Did I talk too much? Had I…
My New Book!
Quinn barks loudly at a man in a mask who’s walking up our driveway. I open the front door, holding back the dog, and…