The Photography Girls Head into the Bush

The other week while the girls and I were at the lake, we spied a track that disappeared enticingly into the bush. I promised we’d return another day and head along the path in search of adventure. So last Wednesday…

From Unschooling to University and Work (Part 2)

Ten Minutes on Thursday Last Thursday I posted the first part of From Unschooling to University and Work, a video interview with my 22 year old son Callum. This week, I’m posting the second half of our interview… Callum and…

Should a Child Be Given the Freedom to Choose?

If children are given the freedom to do whatever they want, will they choose to do nothing at all?… Imogen, would you like to discuss this question with me, in this week’s podcast?” My nearly 20-year-old daughter said, “Okay!”, so…

A Real Science Education

The other day I was writing about our experiences unschooling high school science. I mentioned a couple of books I thought my chemistry-loving-daughter, Charlotte, might like to read. Of course, I couldn’t help myself. After publishing the post, I just…

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Resolutions, Reading, Writing, and Coarse Language

I have a lot of questions… What happens when we remain open to new experiences? Do I have any good tips for anyone who has resolved to get fit? What has running got to do with encouraging children to write? Are there advantages to reading many books, on the same subject, by different authors? Can I recommend some interesting novels to read? What do I mean by the words ‘multi-directional learning’? Why am I feeling very excited about writing? Can…

Under the Spell of the Australian Bush: Books, a Movie, a Walk

My daughter Sophie gave me a beautiful pair of silver and pearl dangly earrings. I’ve worn them every day since Christmas. I was wearing them, together with a long skirt, (and a spray of perfume), when we headed off into the bush, a few days ago, for a walk. “Let’s buy ice creams and then stroll around the lake,” I suggested. No need to change into shorts and tough bush trail shoes. No need to remove dangly earrings. Not for…

Unschooling Resources: Discoveries of 2014

This week’s podcast is all about resources. I talk about some of the interesting things we discovered during 2014 and… I answer the following questions: How do I discuss at least 17 resources in only 30 minutes? Do I talk very fast? How many free trial accounts can I sign up for? Can I really find an alternative way of doing things by thinking carefully? How many times can I say, “I Googled it”, in one podcast? Has anyone ever…

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 must have been tired. I didn’t even hear the cry of triumph, the presenting of the gift.  When I got up this morning, Mary’s arms were empty. “Baby Jesus has been stolen!” I shouted to the girls. “Keep a look…

Why We Are Rotten Parents and Other Christmas Stories

I almost recorded this week’s podcast on my own. Then at the last minute, just as I was about to begin, Gemma-Rose appeared. “I’ll talk with you about Christmas, Mum.” This week in my Christmas edition podcast, we chat about: A magical Santa Christmas A magical Christmas without Santa Advent and Christmas traditions Why the Three Wise Men set out to find Jesus before He is even born Why St Nicholas isn’t very reliable Why we are rotten parents Why…

Chores and Kids: What if We Said, “Yes”?

My most popular post ever is Getting Kids to Help With the Chores. After publishing it, readers flocked over to see what I’d written. Had I discovered the secret to having helpful and considerate children? Some readers were very skeptical when they read my words: “That sounds too easy!” But sometimes the easy sounding things don’t turn out to be so easy after all. And sometimes we are called to do the difficult things of life. Have you read my…

Books, Music, Burnout and a Mystery!

This podcast is a few days late or a couple of days early, depending on how you look at it. It’s also not the same podcast I originally recorded. This week I reveal what happened to the first one and I also talk about… Beginnings: How do we capture an audience’s attention? Books, especially Australian ones Free music which can be used for podcasting, video making and any other purpose My new Zoom audio recorder and how it performs What…
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My Unschooling Books

Parents and Kids

The Ladies Fixing the World

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…

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: 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 extra-busy with Christmas, and it has just gone live! The audio version. Here’s the audio version: You can also listen…

Christian unschooling

Respecting Kids and Christmas Presents

Does having a simple Christmas sound good? It does to me. This year, like last year and the one before, I wanted to announce that I’m not buying a lot of Christmas presents. I thought about saying that I’m not buying any at all. I didn’t want to think and think until the perfect gift ideas came to mind. I…

Is Trying to Impress Others a Waste of Time?

Strolling between the gum trees on a winter’s morning with Nora and Quinn, my fingers painful with the cold, I meet Matilda. I smile and stop. So do my dogs. They thrust their grinning heads into the undergrowth, happy to sniff up all the smells of the bush while I exchange a few words with my next-door neighbour. We talk…
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