Pushing Ourselves Instead of Our Kids
Often, we push our kids to try new things, don’t we? We want them to be adventurous. We say, “If you give it a go, you might discover you like it. You might be good at it.’ But what about…
How We Unschool Despite Strict Homeschool Regulations
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we didn’t have to answer to anyone and could unschool our children with total freedom? I guess some people are fortunate to be able to do this. But we’re not. In our state of Australia,…
Unschool Maths: Why and How
A few years ago, we used to unschool everything except for maths. I guess some people would say that’s not really unschooling, but that never worried me. I’ve learnt to ignore other people’s opinions and do what I feel is…
Acts of Love
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Excited About Maths
“Hey! I’ve found an interesting website,” I said. “Do you girls want to have a look?” “What’s it about?” asked Gemma-Rose suspiciously, and when I told her it was a maths site she groaned and didn’t look at all interested.…
The ‘Risky’ Business of Trusting Children
Trusting children to make their own choices sounds risky enough when it applies only to education, but what if you extend this trust to other areas of life? Will children decide they don’t want to go to Mass or eat healthy food? Perhaps they will want to watch inappropriate movies or play computer games all day. Some parents decide they just can’t pass control over to their children as it would be irresponsible. They wouldn’t be fulfilling their duty of…
Rules, Responsible Parenting and Radical Unschooling
If you do a Google search on unschooling it won’t take you very long to find someone criticising unschoolers. The most judged unschoolers are those who have adopted a radical way of life: those who do not force a set of rules and regulations upon their children, in the area of parenting, as well as education. The critics are quick to point out that without parental control and rules, children will go off and do whatever they want without regard…
Unschooling: No Hippie Way of Life Needed…
… unless you want one of course. When our first child was 6 years old we headed off to our very first homeschooling camp. At that time, we thought we were unschooling. Then we met our fellow campers who also described themselves as unschoolers. They were all very lovely people, friendly, accepting and welcoming but we knew immediately, we were very different from them. My husband Andy didn’t have long hair. Our children didn’t have names like Sunshine, Rainbow or…
If You’re Thinking about Unschooling…
It seems to me that very few of us like venturing out into the relatively unknown, especially if it means we are heading off alone. Even when we can see things need to change, we make excuses why we shouldn’t try something different. We persist day after day, knowing in our hearts that all the work we are doing is futile, but still we lack the courage to leave behind what is safe and familiar. And I wonder why this…
Sharing the Catholic Faith With Our Kids
Maybe you’re thinking about unschooling. Letting children follow their own interests, and trusting they will learn all they need to know sounds great. But stop! Wait! What about religion? This is important. You think: “Can I just stand back and hope my children will want to learn about their faith? Doesn’t that sound a bit risky? What if they don’t want to know?” And then because the faith is so very important, you decide you can’t possibly unschool. These were…
Sharing Some Thoughts on Children and Writing
Will my child write? This seems to be a fairly common worry for parents. Some children want to write and some are more reluctant. All my children are writers and always have been. Is this because I am a writer and they are following my example which they have grown up with, or do they have writing genes? I often muse this over, trying to work it out. I recently wrote this post: Why Do Some Children Love to Write?…
Sharing Some Thoughts on Learning to Read
I was asked to share some thoughts on learning to read and write. Shall I start with reading? When I created this blog, Gemma-Rose was almost a fluent reader so I haven’t written many stories on this topic. I will try to think back to how she did acquire these skills. Did I teach her to read, or did she learn to read by herself? A common question people ask about reading is… “Can a parent teach an unschooling child…
How My Daughters Are Organising My Education
Once again, it’s Monday, the day the girls have their piano lessons. Once again, Charlotte took Les Miserables to read, while she was waiting for her turn at the piano. “So how did you get on with your book?” I asked, as the girls reappeared after the lessons. “I’ve almost finished it,” Charlotte answered. “I had to stop reading because I got to a snifferly bit. I didn’t feel comfortable crying away from home.” “It was sad?” Charlotte nodded. My…
Unschool Maths and Uncomfortable Ideas
Some ideas might make us feel uncomfortable. We push them to the back of our minds, not wanting to consider them. This is how…
Misconceptions: Unschooling Children Will Choose Not to Do Difficult Things
I often run down the main fire trail that winds its way through our local bush. The track descends gently at first, but then…
Engines, Muscles, and Spending Time with Dad
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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…
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 maths? How can we provide evidence kids are learning maths when we don’t have formal records like workbooks and test…
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: Do Kids Need Silence and Space to Hear God?
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Reading Out Loud and a Generous Christmas
Do you like listening to stories being read out loud? I have to admit that this isn’t my favourite activity. My mind tends to wander and I miss half the words. But my kids are different from me. They love reading aloud time. Even though most of my children are grown up, they still like to gather whenever anyone opens…