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! Thank you for asking me!”…
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 many exotic agapanthus plants. In…
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 a woman I recently heard…
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 with freedom. If we always…
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 are magnificent. We swell with…
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 Quinn’s leash and then run.…
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 deliberately tried to upset me.…
Christian Unschooling: Should We Encourage Our Kids to Seek Security?
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.…
When an Unschooler Feels Like Taking a Course
Do you ever feel like taking a course, reading a textbook, or following someone else’s instructions to learn something? Do you want someone to say, “Follow my plan, and when you get to the end, you’ll know how to bake bread, fix a car, understand classical music, draw a face…
A Teenager Talks About Unschool Maths
My daughter Sophie hasn’t done any formal maths since she was about 9 or 10 years old. But she does know a lot about this subject. She’s been learning maths in a different way. Several years ago, I said to Sophie, “I’m thinking about making…
Could Unschooling Be Exactly What Teens Need to Do?
When unschooling children reach the teenage years, is it time for them to stop following their interests and do some serious structured work instead? If they continue to unschool, will they fail to gain enough knowledge to get into university? Do they need to learn…
What if Unschooling is Wrong?
Today, I’m sharing an incomplete thought. Some thoughts are like that. They sit at the edge of our minds, refusing to enter completely. We…
Unschool Love Stories
About a month ago, I wrote the following story for my unschooling community: This morning, I didn’t want to go for a run. It…
Why We Have to Accept Ourselves as We Are
Sophie points her camera at me and says, “Smile, my beautiful mother!” I reply, “I’m not beautiful. Look at all my wrinkles!” Sophie pushes…
Nothing is More Important than Love
“What would you rather do, play that computer game or come and give me a hug?” I ask my daughters. Without a moment’s hesitation,…
Accepting, Respecting, and Loving Unconditionally: An Unschooler’s Thoughts
In episode 70 of my podcast, Trust, Respect, and Love Unconditionally. my daughter Sophie shared some very insightful thoughts about respecting kids, accepting them…
Is Our Unschooling Life Rich Enough?
Some unschooling families seem to live very adventurous lives that make ours look rather ordinary. And I wonder: Is our life rich enough for…
Questioning Our Decision to Unschool
Sometimes events in our lives make us stop and reassess what we’re doing. I’ve been doing a bit of this kind of reassessment about…
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…
I ask, “Watch the movie or read the book? Which one do you prefer doing first?” Imogen replies without hesitating, “Read the book.” Then she adds, “Unless the book is [...]
Just over a year ago, I was in a dark place. The world had returned to normal after covid, but I was finding it hard to shrug off the effects [...]
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 [...]
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 [...]
Examining An Unschooling Life
I drop a peppermint teabag into my favourite glass mug, add boiling water, and carry it to the living room. Opening the blinds so…
Another Unschooling Holiday
Last night I said to the girls, “Tomorrow is the last day of the school term.” Sophie and Gemma-Rose groaned. Years ago, we used…
My Unschool Unplanning Strewing Notebook
How can we unschool and, at the same time, be registered homeschoolers? What if our kids have to follow the school syllabus in order…