When We Don’t Know What to Do
I’ve just updated my blog. I started at the first post I ever wrote and then worked my way through 14 years of stories, reading each one before deciding whether to keep it or revert it to draft. I then…
So How Do You Feel On a Monday Morning?
When I was a child, I’d awake on a Monday morning with a pain in my stomach. I was always reluctant to get out of bed and face the week. Five days of school stretched out ahead, and the weekend…
Our Reluctance to Trust and Other Croaky Thoughts
A week or so ago, three boxes arrived on our doorstep. Imogen cheered and jumped up and down, and said, “Wow! Our new home audio recording studio!” Yes, we now have some new sophisticated equipment which should make our audio…
Being Honest: Talking about Mistakes and Perfection
Some things are absolutely perfect, like our recent holiday to Jenolan Caves. As I look at the photos, I smile. I know I’ll enjoy the memories of that wonderful time again and again. But some things are far from perfect.…
My ‘Bad’ Homeschooling Days
Some years ago I offended a friend. She was telling me about her bad homeschooling day. I should have offered some empathy but I didn’t. Before I could stop myself, I tactlessly suggested the problem might lie with the mother…
An Unschooling Imposter
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
How an Unschooling Life isn’t Perfect and Why That’s Okay
I take a look at my drafts file. I have SEVENTY half-written blog posts! Can I finish any of them? How about this one? I began writing this post some time ago when I was enthusiastically working on my unschooling book. If I publish it, will I feel motivated to continue writing my book? I’m writing an unschooling book. I’ve been thinking about the main message I want to share. What do I really want to say? Of course, I want…
Turning Unschool Learning into Homeschool Records Notes
Why would I want to turn something as unique and wonderful as unschooling into routine homeschool records notes? I wish I could take delight in my daughters’ learning without ever thinking about homeschool records. Unfortunately, that’s not possible. I always have to keep one eye on the records book so that my unschoolers can fulfil the necessary homeschool registration requirements . While my girls are busy learning, I have to do a lot of behind-the-scenes work. I have to translate all their…
Unschooling Siblings and Other Stories
I started writing this blog post last Friday. This is all I managed to write before I was interrupted: I didn’t make a podcast last week. Some unexpected things happened and so I didn’t find time to sit in front of my mic and record one. I felt a little frustrated because I’d promised to get back on track and podcast more regularly. But perhaps we just have to accept what life brings, go with the flow, just do our best…
What Do Unschoolers Do All Day?
Years ago, when we first started homeschooling, I used to wonder, “What do unschoolers do all day?” Even though I’d read a few books, I couldn’t find a satisfactory answer to my question. I needed a fly-on-the wall view into the unschooling life. This is why I decided to tell stories about our unschooling life when I began this blog. Turn unschooling theory into stories about real children. Perhaps it’s helpful to see unschooling in action? In this week’s podcast,…
Our Unschooling Story
Imagine if you visited us. You’d knock at our front door. We’d invite you in. We’d sit around our kitchen table. Sip coffee. Eat chocolate muffins. What would we talk about? Lots of things! You’d tell me about your family. I’d tell you about mine. We’d probably chat about unschooling. Maybe you’d ask about our unschooling story. In this week’s podcast, episode 93, I tell you about our unschooling story. I share stories about how we started as unschoolers but drifted…
Does My Trust in Unschooling Ever Waver?
A friend asked if I’ve ever been unsure about unschooling. And I replied: Yes, there have been times when I’ve questioned what I’m doing. Even now I have an odd day when I wonder if I should be doing something different. Hard to admit because this is probably not what everyone wants to hear. But I think that it’s quite okay to have low days when we question things. Unschooling isn’t a magic solution. It’s life and life can be…
How Unschooling is About Being Connected With Our Kids
Some parenting ideas seem to make a lot of sense. For example, children have far less life experience than parents, so we are in a better position than them when it comes to decision making. If we give our kids too much freedom, they might make poor choices. Some mistakes might not be significant, but what about those that affect their futures? Surely, a responsible parent will tell her kids what they should be doing? And many parents do exactly…
Helping a Child Discover Her Talents
If a child has a talent won’t it just appear without any encouragement? If you’re meant to be an artist, it will be very…
More Sibling Rivalry: Another Unschooling Interview
Yesterday, I posted a video about sibling rivalry. It’s an interview with my 14-year-old daughter Sophie. Towards the end of the interview, I asked,…
Unschooling Books and Bedtimes
Knock! Knock! My husband Andy looked at me and I looked at him. We both looked at the clock. Who could that be at…
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.…
How Unschoolers Can Deal with Questions and Sceptics
My mother-in-law visited us for the birth of our son, Thomas. After he died and we’d buried him in his tiny white casket, Andy’s mother asked me if we wanted more children. As I replied, “Oh, yes!”, my mother-in-law’s face dropped into a disapproving frown. “She thinks we already have enough kids,” I thought as my defence hackles rose. But…
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!…
Christian Unschooling: the Foremost Task of a Parent
A few days ago, in my Stories of an Unschooling Family community, I posted these thoughts: A parent does her best to give her child a good education but should concentrating on academic success be her main focus? Perhaps a parent’s most important task is to teach a child about love. Intelligence and academic achievements are highly regarded by the…
Should We Encourage Our Kids to Follow Their Dreams?
What did you want to be when you were a child? I wanted to be a writer. I had a cardboard box inside my wardrobe where I stored my scribbled stories about princesses, dragons and faraway kingdoms. At night, in bed, before dropping off to sleep, I’d think up stories about large happy families who were a lot like the…