What We Need to Film Imogen’s Music Videos

The evening before a music video shoot day, I say to my girls, “Have we got everything ready? Are the camera cards empty? Have we charged the batteries?” We find all our equipment and pile it by the front…

How Jesus Was Stolen & Other Christmas Tales

Last night Jesus disappeared.  While eight heads were lying on eight pillows, four feet padded down the hallway towards him. In an instant, in the quiet of Christmas night, Jesus was abducted.  I slept on, oblivious to the danger. I…

Some Maths to Share on One of Those Tired Mornings

Last Friday morning, I had to take Imogen to an appointment. When I returned home, Sophie and Gemma-Rose were waiting for me, hoping I’d spend some time with them. But what I really wanted to do, after driving to and…

A Birthday Chat

Every time I celebrate a birthday, going up a number, I ponder ageing anew. How do I feel about getting older? Am I reluctant to admit my age? Or am I grateful to be who I am at the age…

Latest

Registering as Homeschoolers Using Evernote Unschool Records

The other day I promised to tell you more about our recent homeschool registration visit. An Authorised Person (AP), from the education department (NSW), came to our home to see our children, and look at our records and education plans for the future. And we were hoping everything would be in order and she’d grant us another two years of registration. We’ve had many homeschool registration visits over the years, but this one was a little bit different. For the…

A Successful Evernote Homeschool Registration Visit

 If you listened to last week’s podcast you’ll know I recently had to apply for another period of homeschool registration for my girls. You’ll also know I promised to report back when the visit was over.  Yesterday Sophie asked, “What if we fail our homeschool visit? What if the AP (Authorised Person) doesn’t like your Evernote records? What will you tell everyone?”  “I suppose it could be embarrassing if we fail,” I said. “I might have to confess I led…

Forcing Kids to Learn and to Eat, and Should We Test Them?

“What shall I speak about in this week’s podcast?” I ask my daughters. “What are you thinking about at the moment?” asks Imogen. “Next week’s homeschool registration visit. Perhaps I’ll start with that and see where it leads.” And this is where it led… What kind of records will I be presenting for next week’s homeschool registration visit? I have to make a plan for the next period of registration. How can I do that when we are unschoolers who…

The Inflated Can of Baked Beans

“Do you know what inflation is?” I ask. My youngest daughters Sophie and Gemma-Rose look at me with blank faces. “I could tell you a story about inflation. Do you want to hear it?” The girls aren’t sure but I begin the story anyway. “Once upon a time there was a ten year old girl,” I say. “She was me. I was that girl.” Ah! This is a story of my childhood. Now Sophie and Gemma-Rose are leaning forward, eager…

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 recordings sound more professional. “You should make a podcast, Mum,” urged my daughter. “Try the new mic out.” “You’ll have to help me work out how to use everything,” I replied. So we connected everything together. Imogen grabbed some music…

Why I Like Empty Weeks & Other Busy Week Stories

Last week started off gently, and then life moved into top gear, and we found ourselves hurtling along at a fast pace. But today, I’ve stopped moving. Yes, I am sitting still, enjoying some quiet Saturday time, after a too busy week. There is nothing I enjoy more than an empty calendar: lots of free days stretching ahead, waiting for us to fill as we like. Plenty of time to sit on the sofa, sip coffee, chat with my children,…

Boy Stories

Usually I speak and write about my four youngest daughters. But not today.  For this week’s podcast, I share some boy stories. I received a comment saying: “I want to hear about when your boys were younger.” So that’s what I’m talking about. I relate some of the interesting moments I’ve experienced with my sons Duncan and Callum over the years. These are a few of the questions I explore… What if a son is ‘different’? Should we make our…

Can Unschooling Be a Christian Thing to Do?

When a child has been controlled all her life, she just might grow into the kind of adult who says, “Nobody is ever going to make me do what they want ever again. From now on I’m going to do what I want.” She might close herself off, stand well back, not let anyone get too close. Because you never know what other people might want her to do. Even someone she declares she loves. “If you think I’m going…
1 … 77 78 79 80 81 … 109

My Unschooling Books

Parents and Kids

Are You a Proper Unschooler?

I used to worry about labelling our family as unschoolers. What if someone came along and said, “You’re not proper unschoolers”? Some people don’t…

The Ladies Fixing the World

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…

How Unschooling Doesn’t Guarantee a Fairytale Life

Yesterday evening, like all Sunday evenings, my kids who live locally came to dinner. Six of us gathered around our dining room table, savouring a meal cooked by my husband while enjoying the usual end-of-the-week lively catch-up conversation. There was a time when we dreamed that all our children would buy houses on the same street as our family home.…

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

Unschooling, Homemaking, and a Mother’s Role

Erin wrote: What does the idea of homemaking mean to you? Is it a certain skill set or talent? Does it need to look or happen a certain way, or is it a flexible term? What role does homemaking play for you in home ed life? Do the two need to go together? Are there aspects of homemaking that you…

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 loud voices telling us how bad traditional education is. We might choose homeschooling because of that fear. If we decide to homeschool, we’re still not safe. Fears could follow us. We might be too afraid to…
Go toTop