Getting Kids to Help with the Chores
Should parents expect kids to help with the chores? How do we encourage kids to have a generous attitude and want to be part of the family team, helping with the work? Here’s a simple suggestion that doesn’t involve chore charts, games, rewards, punishments or…
Chores and Our Typical Unschooling Day
The other morning, after we’d done the morning chores and said prayers together, I asked my girls what they wanted to do. “Can we go to the post office?” asked Gemma-Rose. “I want to post my letters.” My eleven-year-old daughter has been writing a lot…
How Younger Siblings Learn by Listening In
On Sunday Father S began his homily: “In Hamlet, it says, ‘To thine own self be true’.” Gemma-Rose dug me in the side and…
Mothers, Unschooling and a Lazy Way of Life
Is unschooling a lazy way of life? Do mothers choose to unschool because they can’t be bothered putting together a proper homeschool program for…
Are You a Curious Unschooler? [Podcast]
I recorded a new podcast episode! That might surprise you because it’s been quite a while since my last episode. I’ve become a bit…
Thinking about Maths Creatively
It seems to me there are three main ways of learning maths: the workbook way, the real life maths way and the messing-about-with-numbers way.…
Sitting Quietly: Unschool Bits and Pieces
Kids Sitting Quietly in Church The other day, I was asked: How do you get young, unschooled children to sit quietly, without disturbing anyone,…
Telling the Same Story in a New Way
It’s 3.30 pm. “I’m taking Nora for a walk,” I say, and my daughter Sophie replies, “I’ll come with you.” We slip our feet…
Put on Your Real-Life Maths Eyes
Lying awake in bed last night, I did some real-life maths: how long was it before I had to get up for Mass? As…
Punctuation and Grammar and Other Unschool Writing Stories
Many people think kids need to be pushed. If we don’t tell them what to do, they won’t do much at all. But, of…
Unschooling and Trust
I have been struggling with this post for a while now, and wondering why I’m having so much trouble finding the right words. And…
Keeping Teenagers Safe from the Dangers of the World
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
A Real Maths Learning Moment
Sometimes real life maths turns up when I least expect it. Maths learning moments suddenly appear. And if I take advantage of these moments,…