How to Help Our Kids With Their Career Choices
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An Irresistible Invitation to an Unschooling Voyage of Discovery
Isn’t it wonderful to receive an invitation? Someone has chosen us! There are all kinds of invitations, from coffee dates to weddings. I love hearing, “Mum, would you like to meet up for lunch with me?” Sometimes, we eagerly accept an invitation: “Lunch sounds good!…
Unschoolers Taking Over the World
A sign at our local nursery recommends purchasing native plants like wattles, bottlebrushes, waratahs, and hakeas for our gardens because we live so close to the Australian bush. Everyone in our village seems to have ignored this advice. Each front garden on our road has…
Irreplaceable Unschool Dogs and Kids
People often have favourite breeds of dogs, don’t they? Maybe they love greyhounds like a couple living in a nearby town who dress their trio of thin dogs in bright-striped pyjamas to keep them warm on below-zero days. Or they might be dachshund people like…
How to Write a Million Unschool Love Stories
I used to think the defining word of unschooling was freedom. Freedom attracted me. I wanted to be free to do whatever I liked. I wanted to get up each day and do anything or nothing at all. But I soon realised there’s a problem…
Reflecting Badly On Our Family
Andy and I take Nora and Quinn to the vet for their annual checkups. We wonder if our dogs are the correct weight for their size. Are their coats clean and shiny? Do they look happy and well cared for? The vet says our pets…
What Snakes Can Teach Us About Unschooling
Strolling through the bush on a spring afternoon, sunscreen on my bare arms, a dog on a leash, I round a bend in a track and almost trip over a writhing venomous brown snake. With my heart beating fast, I jump, tighten my hold on…
When Our Kids Are Wired Differently
Amina lowers her voice. “I don’t like to admit this, but one day I said, ‘Harry, can’t you do as I want for once? Can’t you be nice to me just for one day?’ Harry looked confused. Be nice to me? I don’t think he…
Christian Unschooling: Should We Encourage Our Kids to Seek Security?
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Today is Thomas’ birthday. Andy and I drove to town this morning to choose a scented candle and a card to display with his photo. We also bought flowers for [...]
As I exit the car, the tree attacks me. It grips and twists my hair with its sticky fingertips. It pokes me sharply in my ribs. “Could you have parked [...]
In my post, The Spark, I told you I was updating my first children’s novel, The Angels of Abbey Creek. I was revising the words and, with AI’s help, generating [...]
We give our daughters our Aldi pod coffee machine when they leave home. “We’ll treat ourselves to a new one,” we say, not realising there isn’t a single Aldi coffee [...]
Why Unschooling Isn’t Just Another Method of Homeschooling
In my last post, An Unschooling Experiment, I urged anyone who’s unhappy with their present method of homeschooling to give unschooling a go. So as we get into the new year… I’d like to say: Try unschooling. Be courageous. Try and trust, especially if your…
What is it Like to Be an Unschooling Parent?
Ten Minutes on Thursday I have to admit I failed: Five Minutes on Friday has turned into Ten Minutes on Thursday. I just couldn’t say all I wanted about this week’s topic, in only 5 minutes. Well, maybe I could have, if I’d been organised…
Embracing Gaming: An Unschooling Challenge
What do we do if our kids want to play games for hours, and we’re not happy about that? We could limit their screen time. Make some rules about when and what and where children can play games. We could…
Younger Unschoolers: What About Technology and Screen Time?
[wonderplugin_audio id=”3″] When I announced that I was going to write about younger unschoolers, a friend said, “I’d love to read about little kids and technology!” Could I share how we approached…
How to Turn Cooking into Unschool Maths Homeschool Records Notes
When you hear the words ‘real life maths’ or ‘real world maths’ what do you think of? Cooking? That’s the usual example, isn’t it?…
The Problem with Disguising Maths Practice as Fun
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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…
Drawing, Geometry and a Happy Girl
Sophie is happy. She grins from ear to ear. “I’m off to do some maths, Mum!” What a change from a couple of weeks…
Real Maths Running
At the bottom of our road, only 100 metres away from home, is a park surrounded by bushland. And winding through the bush are…
Getting Older, Unschooling, and Moving On
My unschooling blog has a limited life. One day, in the not too distant future, I will no longer have anything to write about.…
How to Unschool Maths and Still Fulfil Homeschool Registration Requirements
Can Registered Homeschoolers Unschool Maths? Perhaps you’d like to let your kids unschool maths, but you’re worried. Will you have enough maths notes in…
Real Life Family Unschool Maths
A few years ago, when my daughter Sophie was 10, she started to say, “I’m no good at maths. I hate it!” At the…