Stories of an Unschooling Family

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…

Encouraging Kids to Say Thank You

How do we encourage our younger children to say thank you? Do they need only our good example to copy? Is learning good manners enough? Our kids could just repeat the polite words. But is it better if their response…

Unschooling: Impressing Other People

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…

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…

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What if…?

What if instead of doing what you usually do, you did some of those things your children have been wanting to do for ages. All that fun stuff that usually has to wait until all the serious stuff has been completed. The stuff there’s never time for? What if you and your children read a funny book aloud, and watched an entertaining movie, and sang along to some upbeat music, and strolled down to the park to feed the ducks,…

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 had to buy both books. Well, it is the start of the new school year and everyone (on this side of the world) is busy buying resources. It’s the natural thing to do. I know… we have heaps of books and…

An Unschooling Way of High School Science

I hop from blog to blog, sampling a homeschooling science program here, and one there, and I become alarmed and a bit unsettled. The programs all look so impressive and detailed. I creep quietly back to my own little blog and our own little way of unschooling, and I hope no one asks me about my science program, because we don’t actually have one. Now this doesn’t mean my children don’t learn about science. They do. They just don’t learn…

A New Unschooling Year Begins

Andy returns to work tomorrow. He’s a primary school teacher. “This is Dad’s last day of holiday,” I say to the girls. They are quiet for a moment, and then it suddenly dawns on them. “You mean the new school term starts tomorrow?” says Sophie, a smile appearing on her face. I nod, and Gemma-Rose shouts, “Hooray! You can read to us again.” “Well…” I begin. “I didn’t say our term begins tomorrow.” The smiles disappear. “But there’s so much…

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 is all set to study a Bachelor of Arts degree. How has she got to this point? This is Imogen’s year 12 story… Last year, at the beginning of her final official year of homeschooling, Imogen thought carefully about what…

From Unschooling to Successful University Learning

A couple of days ago, Imogen logged into her Open Universities account to check some details she needed for her youth allowance application. She checked her mail while online and received a nice surprise. “Hey! I got a Distinction for that last university unit I did.” “But you finished that unit ages ago. Why didn’t you look at the results sooner?” I asked. Imogen shrugged her shoulders. Then she smiled, “I didn’t expect a Distinction.” Last year, 17 year old Imogen…

Breeding like Mice

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…

Chess, Sudoku and Lazy Summer Days

I haven’t thought much about unschooling, records books, my blog… in a long time. We’ve been far too busy enjoying lots of lazy hot summer days. But I know a time will come when we will be ready for new challenges. After a few weeks of rest, we will want to do more than potter idly through our days. We will be keen to dive into some serious learning. I must admit I could quite happily continue in this lazy…

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My Unschooling Books

Wholy Souly

Belong

On a mid-spring day that feels like summer, I walk through the bush with Nora and Quinn, scanning the sandy track ahead for snakes among the fallen tree branches. The [...]

The Premature End

I’m going to do something I shouldn’t because it’s breaking the rules. But I’m going to do it anyway. I’m breaking my blogging pact. Yes, two weeks in, and I [...]

Rereading the Day

Each evening, do you reflect on your day? Do you make a note of the blessings and delights you received? How about the difficult times? Perhaps you think about the [...]

Shame About AI

Should people who use AI feel ashamed? Should I feel that way? While researching AI, I found a commenter saying authors who use AI to promote their work should be [...]