When Rules for Teenagers Aren’t Necessary
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It’s Not a Periscope 2: Pictures
Did you watch my first it’s-not-a-periscope? It only took ten minutes to make it. I spoke. My daughter Sophie recorded. We did it all in one take. “That was easy,” I said when we’d finished “I could make loads of…
Unschooling Adventure Juice
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Junk Food and Poor Hygiene: Is Radical Unschooling Wrong?
Have you heard the stories? The ones about the radically unschooled kids who refuse to eat healthy food and never brush their teeth? Perhaps these stories make you wonder if there’s actually something wrong with radical unschooling. How can parents…
Are There Times When You Should Never Give Up Unschooling?
Are there times when you should never give up unschooling? Are there circumstances that could cloud your judgement and lead to poor decisions? Life might not be going well, and you could blame unschooling. You decide everything will be better…
Unschool Cemetery Maths
The mist drifts across the field and through the cemetery. Together with the rising sun, it streams between the trees and onto the graves. Golden rays fall upon a black marble monument which rises high, taller than the surrounding stones. I stop in front of this memorial pillar, shivering in the cold morning air. My eyes scan the words inscribed upon it. and, immediately, my brain moves up a gear. Without any encouragement from me, it starts manipulating the numbers,…
Strange Goings-On in the Cemetery
I wonder if we’re the first people ever to film a music video in our local cemetery? Has anyone else ever stood next to one of the old sandstone headstones and sung a song from The Phantom of the Opera? I doubt it. Did the people driving by early last Friday morning see us? Maybe they wondered what we were doing amongst the graves with two tripods and three cameras? Did they think something strange was going on in the…
Ideas, Passions, and Earning an Income
Has blogging changed? Are people no longer very interested in reading my posts? Maybe they prefer listening to my podcasts? Is it time to close up my blog and move onto other things? I pondered these questions in my last blog post. I came to the conclusion that blogging may indeed have changed since I created this blog 5 years ago. But despite this, I’m not going to stop blogging. No, I still have some followers who like reading my…
Love and a Mother’s Heart Stories
Children bring us great joy. Our hearts overflow with love for them. We enfold them in our arms and enjoy. But sometimes that same love can cause our hearts to ache. There are times when we wonder if our soft mothers’ hearts will survive. And then there are days when the joy that comes from parenting becomes buried under a heap of tiredness as we try to keep up with everything a mother needs to do. I could tell you…
The Dead Body and Other Stories
At the moment, it’s the school holidays here in Australia. My school teacher husband, Andy, is home from work for a couple of weeks. Life around here changes a bit when Andy’s at home. We tend to do different things at different times. And because of that, I wondered if I’d get around to recording my usual weekly podcasts. Just to be sure I’d have something to publish, I decided to record a couple of episodes ahead of time, leaving…
The Fear of Failing
Last Wednesday morning, just after sunrise, we headed into the bush to record another music video for Imogen. “What song are you singing today, Imogen?” I asked. “May it Be from The Lord of the Rings, the Enya song.” “Do I know that one?” “You’ll recognise it once you hear it.” Did I recognise it? Was the song familiar to me? I don’t know. I have to admit I didn’t listen properly. I was far too distracted to concentrate on…
Dealing with Our Fears and Other People’s Critical Comments
The other day my daughter Sophie received an email. She read part of it out to me and then said, “What do you think?” “She hasn’t expressed herself very well,” I remarked. “I don’t suppose she meant to sound so abrupt.” “How do I reply?” We discussed a few ideas and I finished with these words: “Whatever we write, perhaps the most important thing is to be kind.” Sophie giggled. “Have courage and be kind.” “Yes, like Cinderella,” I agreed.…
Learning about Fashion and other Friday Afternoon Stories
It’s a warm autumn Friday afternoon. I’m sitting on the family room sofa, computer on my knee. Now and then I gaze out the window. I can see gum trees. A slight breeze rustles their leaves. Each tree has a crown of cream flowers. Sitting next to the window is my youngest daughter, Gemma-Rose. She’s writing a new novel. It’s day 1 of Camp NaNoWriMo. “How many words have you written today?” I ask. “3,577.” Only 46,423 words to go.…
Changes
This week, in episode 106 of my podcast, I’m talking about changes both in my online and offline lives. I’m sharing: Some further thoughts…
Encouraging Kids to Write (and the Youngest Child in the Family)
When my son Duncan was about six or seven years old, his head was bursting with stories he wanted to tell. Every morning he…
What to Do When Unschooling Kids Reach the Teenage Years
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Unschooling: Trust, Autonomy, and The Realities of Learning
The Ladies are Fixing the World again! Cecilie, Sandra and I are discussing the words ‘self-regulation’ and ‘limits’. When we say, “I’ve let go of control, and now I’m waiting for my child to learn how to regulate his time playing video games (for example),” do we have expectations about what that regulation should look like? Do we want…
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…
Unschooling, Attachment, and the Art of Letting Go: Building Trust Instead of Rules
We don’t make rules in our family, so how do my children know what is right and what is wrong, if they aren’t guided by clearly stated limits? Do I believe my own quiet example of appropriate behaviour is all that is needed in order to influence my children? Perhaps I stand back, hands-off, and let my children behave as…
Unschool: Greater Things
She was tempted to aim low, afraid to risk failure, but she knew she shouldn’t settle for ordinary. More was expected. So she gathered her courage, did what she should, and life got exciting. And she changed. How often do we aim low because we’re too afraid to risk disappointment or failure? We want to stay where it’s comfortable and…
Pondering Trust
I never wanted to be in a position where I had to trust God. I preferred to rely on my own resources. I wanted to be totally in control of my own life. That seemed easier to do because trusting is so very difficult. Or so it can seem. Then one day, at a time when I was feeling rather…