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…

The Math Myth: How Do Unschooled Kids Learn Math?

There are many unschool maths questions. Here are just a few of them: Can kids really learn maths without formal instruction? What does unschooling maths look like? Can we strew unschool maths? Is it possible for registered homeschoolers to unschool…

Imogen’s Unschooling Plan to Get into University

One of the most common worries homeschooling parents seem to have is: Will my children be able to get into university? The answer to this question is definitely yes. But what about unschoolers? Again the answer is yes. My unschooler…

Latest

Unschool English Records: 20 Ideas for Evernote

I love Evernote. I think it’s A Perfect Method for Keeping Unschooling Records! You might already know this if you’ve read some of my other Evernote blog posts or watched my videos. Yes, I’ve got a lot to say on this subject! A while ago, I promised to make some Evernote videos on each of the 6 Key Learning Areas. So far, my attempts to record screencast tutorials have failed due to technical difficulties. But today, I thought: Why not…

The Awesome Teacher and Other Stuff

My daughter Sophie is very busy. Every morning she opens her computer, impatient to begin work. “What are you doing?” I ask. “I’m coding. I’m modifying the template on my ‘test’ blog.” Sophie shows me what she’s doing. “Are you writing the code from scratch?” I ask. “Sometimes. Other times I’m making changes to other people’s code.” I don’t mind Sophie spending hours coding. I can see she’s learning a lot while enjoying herself. But I do have a problem:…

From Around the Web: Unschooling and Learning to Read

How do unschooled children learn to read? Can we trust them to learn to read in their own time? What if a child is still not reading after a ‘reasonable’ amount of time? I’ve gathered a few blog posts from around the Internet on unschooling and learning to read. I hope you enjoy them! 1. How Late is a Late Reader? by Luminara King from Living the Education Revolution Our daughter, did not learn to read until just before her twelfth…

Why We Don’t Have to Push Kids to Work Hard

This morning, my husband Andy watched as our girls and I got ready to go for a run. As we laced up our shoes, he grinned and said: “What a mean mother you are making everyone run before breakfast!” Although Andy was joking, I’m sure many people might take his words seriously. Perhaps they would indeed think I am a mean mother because what other explanation is there? Surely four girls wouldn’t choose to get up early, pull on their…

Getting Older, Unschooling, and Moving On

My unschooling blog has a limited life. One day, in the not too distant future, I will no longer have anything to write about. My youngest child will have grown up and moved onto a new stage of her life. I’ll no longer be sharing her unschooling learning, and so it will be time for me to move onto a new stage in my life too. What will happen to me when I no longer have children at home to…

Fabulous Christmas: Gift Ideas and Traditions

My head is always overflowing with creative ideas, and there’s nothing I like better than turning them into reality. And so I spend lots of time making things. But they’re things no one can hold. You see, I’m a virtual creator. I make things while tapping on my computer keyboard. But during Advent it’s different. At this time of year, I make real 3-dimensional things. And so do my girls. You might find us at the kitchen table kneading a…

Trying to Be a Fun Mum

When my first two children were very small I had a best friend called Mellie. We got on extremely well despite being very different. I was an always-in-control type person. As well as liking an organised and spotless house, I liked my children clean and tidy and always presentable. Hair ribbons were good too. I encouraged my children to sleep and eat at regular times and I loved empty plates. In contrast, Mellie was a very relaxed and comfortable-with-herself type…

When Amazing Things Aren’t Happening

I haven’t felt my usual self this week. Perhaps it’s got something to do with my son Thomas’ recent birthday and death-day. These days consume a lot of energy. There isn’t much left over for other things. So for the past week or so, I haven’t felt excited about learning. I haven’t jumped out of bed each morning eager to do something amazing. I haven’t worked on my many projects-on-the-go, or helped my girls with theirs. I’ve been drifting through…
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My Unschooling Books

Parents and Kids

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…

The Ladies Fixing the World

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…

Resources for Unschoolers

Strolling towards the shopping centre, I spy an older man with three hand-reared brightly coloured parrots. A few wide-eyed kids are gathered around him, and as I watch, he transfers a parrot to one of their shoulders, where it bounces lightly upon its feet, nuzzling a little ear. The child grins, hardly daring to move. The children have questions which…

Unschooling Is Carried by Conversations

Dinner tables, car rides, bedtime chats, and café corners are the real places where unschooling lives and grows. Conversations—often unscheduled, informal, and unplanned—can become the central structure of a learning life. Gathering at the Dinner Table In our house, we never met for breakfast or lunch. Those were meals where people ate what, where and when they liked. But we…

Christian unschooling

Christian Unschooling: Disciplining With Unconditional Love

If our children misbehave, what do we do? Make them sit on the time-out chair? Punish them? Perhaps we should withdraw our love. Be cold and distant. Make things unpleasant for our kids because they need to know how upset we are, don’t they? We want them to feel bad because then, maybe, they’ll remember to act in the right…
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