When a Child Can’t Cope
A few months ago, a family story made big news in a city newspaper. One Sunday, a married couple decided to take their small son to a restaurant. It wasn’t long before the young boy started to make a fuss.…
Unschooling: A Lifestyle of Curiosity, Flexibility, and Trust
I’m a Lady Fixing the World! Cecilie Conrad kindly invited me to join her and Sandra Dodd for Season 2 of her podcastThe Ladies Fixing the World. We recorded our first unschooling conversation together in November 2024 before life got…
Unschooling: Dishes
This evening, after dinner, I didn’t want to help with the dishes. I just wanted to relax on the sofa and leave everyone else to clean the kitchen. I could have done that. I could have taken advantage of my…
There Has Never Been a Better Time to Start Unschooling
Have you ever thought about unschooling but have hesitated? Maybe you haven’t quite been able to do it. What if things don’t go well? What if your kids get ‘behind’ while you’re experimenting? Will you regret your decision to give…
Doing Nothing?
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
Need Some Unschooling Encouragement and Ideas to Ponder?
I chatted with Cecilie Conrad and Sandra Dodd this morning via Zoom. We were recording episode 6 of the second season of Da Ladies Fixing the World podcast. I’ve known Sandra for many years, much longer than she’s known me. A long time ago, I googled unschooling and discovered Sandra on her website. When I first started blogging about unschooling, after writing a post about some new idea I was pondering, I’d check in with Sandra before publishing it. Was…
Unschooling: A Slow but Productive Way of Life
My beautician and I have thought-provoking conversations. Yesterday, while Bonnie was taming and tinting my ageing eyebrows, making them look fierce, we chatted about time. We started with photography and how phones have simplified the process of capturing images. After buying an iPhone 15 Pro Max—I saved up for it for weeks—I no longer drag my DSLR camera around with me. If I see something I want to photograph, I just reach into my pocket for my phone. It’s convenient…
Unschool: Be Brave, Adventurous and Just a Bit Daring
Sometimes we have to be brave, adventurous and daring. We can’t remain on the sidelines of life where it feels safe. We’ve got to get involved, take up challenges, live life to the full, and not let fear hold us back. But what about the danger? Most times, we inflate it. We tense up and think, “What if?” when maybe we shouldn’t. Is that true when we consider unschooling?…
Strewing to Share Passions and Keep Our Bonds Strong
Driving past a cafe in town, I spied a blue racing car. “I need a photo of the car to send to Callum!” I cried. So Andy turned the car around and headed back to the cafe. As we parked the car, my husband said, “Do you want to jump out and get your photo while I sit here?” Of course, that’s not what I wanted. We were outside a cafe. I needed coffee. So, Andy ordered coffee while I…
Do You Need to Follow an Older Unschooler? (Part 2)
I choose the photos I share online with care, looking for ones with good, flattering light. I also need my photo smile to be just right. Sometimes, my smile looks a bit goofy because of my overbite. I reject these images, wanting to hide my imperfection, though it’s not my fault my teeth are like this. It’s just the way I am. I wonder: what if I let my overbite smile shine bright? I could post myself from all angles…
Do You Need to Follow an Older Unschooler? (Part 1)
Our fluid intelligence – our ability to focus and problem solve – will inevitably decline as we age. Listening to Arthur C. Brooks say this during a YouTube interview, I instantly protested, “No!” What if I keep my brain active by playing lots of video games? I could practise my memory skills. Maybe if I stay interested in everything, look after my health, and keep fit, I can avoid mental decline. I can be the person I was at 30…
How Unschoolers Own the World
What comes to mind when someone mentions nature studies, famous artists, or living books? Charlotte Mason? What about classical novels, The Great Books or Latin? Classical education? Do you think about unit studies when you hear someone is exploring a topic in many different ways? And what about notebooking? Perhaps someone who writes down details of their learning is using this method. We often associate resources and learning techniques with particular homeschooling methods, don’t we? However, Charlotte Mason doesn’t own…
A Genuine Invitation for Christian Unschoolers
Sometimes, invitations aren’t genuine invitations. They might sound like proper invitations. We say the right words, “Would you like to…?” but expect a particular response that doesn’t include the right to decline. Then, some invitations are issued without a personal touch. We wonder, “Does it matter if I accept? Will anyone notice if I’m there or not?” This happened to me years ago when I was a naive Facebook user. I received an invitation to a baptism. There was only…
Trust, Respect, and Love Unconditionally
Yesterday, I wrote a blog post called A Few Raw Thoughts on a Crumpled Piece of Paper. In this post, I explored some thoughts…
When Unschooling Spills Over into Parenting
Some random thoughts about unschooling and parenting… Sometimes I get the feeling most of the world thinks I’m a little strange. Whenever I post…
Unschooling Experts, Criticism, and Radical Chore Rosters
Last week, I wrote a blog post called Are You a Proper Unschooler? I scheduled it to publish while we were away on holiday…
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: 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…
Is It Working? Wrestling with Doubt in Unschooling
A grey day arrives that completely blots out the memory of all the preceding good days. We feel overwhelmed, tired, worried and lost. We wonder why we ever decided to unschool. A puddle of doubt about unschooling forms around us. What do we do? Cecilie, Sandra and I are discussing unschooling doubts and sharing our experiences in episode 10 of…
The Problem With Being Too Nice
Are you too nice? I am. I want to help everyone. Support and encouragement are my middle names. Send me an email and I’ll spend hours answering it. Write me a comment and I’ll always reply. Ask for some mentoring and I’ll do my best even though you tell me you can’t pay. I write a book. And another. Then…
When We Can’t Decide What’s the Best Way to Bring Up and Educate Our Kids
Do you ever swap between the various methods of homeschooling looking for the perfect way to bring up and educate your kids? I used to do that. I’d try one thing after another, confusing myself and my kids, while never finding what I was searching for. As I said in my book Curious Unschoolers: … I pondered lots of questions:…