unschooling - Page 24

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How Much Is Enough?

Once upon a time I used to worry about how much learning my children were doing each day. “Can we go now, Mum? Have we done enough school work for today?” How much is ‘enough’? I used to look at my records book. Did it have enough written in it? I used to look at the clock? Was there time…
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Nurturing Independent Learners

To me, unschoolers are independent learners. At least mine are. What further can I say? Because one sentence isn’t much of an article, I decided to do a little research to see what other people have to say about this topic.  I did some Googling, but before I found what I was looking for, I got side-tracked by an article…
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Suzie Andres Chats about Unschooling

Last week, Suzie Andres emailed: “Just wanted to let you know that tomorrow…  I’ll be on Judy Dudich’s blog/talk radio show to speak about unschooling…”  So I tuned in, eager to hear what Suzie had to say. I was also eager to hear Suzie’s voice. Although we are friends, we have never met. I soon realised I am pronouncing Suzie’s…
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Having the Confidence to Ignore the Opinions of Others

Gemma-Rose is eight years old, and she still can’t tell the time. Well, that’s not quite true. If I put my watch in front of her and say, “What’s the time?” she’ll screw up her face and look unhappy for a while, and then eventually she’ll give me the correct answer. But her calculating will be accompanied by a lot…
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Resolving to Go on More Adventures

This afternoon I had to drive to town to buy a few essentials: cheese and biscuits, wine and coke. Andy and I are off to our parish’s trivia event tonight, and we need to take along a few things to nibble while we exercise our brains trying to answer the questions.  I wanted to make the most of the 40…
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Remembering to Trust

Our family is problem solving. The oven is broken so we can’t cook scones, muffins, cakes, and biscuits: all those treats we really enjoy. We talked over the problem while we ate lunch. “We do have a microwave…” I started to say. And then someone mentioned the donut maker, the toaster and the sandwich toaster. We wondered what treats we…
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So How Do You Feel On a Monday Morning?

When I was a child, I’d awake on a Monday morning with a pain in my stomach. I was always reluctant to get out of bed and face the week. Five days of school stretched out ahead, and the weekend seemed so far away. I lived for Saturday and Sunday. The rest of the week was to be endured. My…
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Comparing Homeschooling Styles: a Child’s View

 Sophie and I are strolling up to the village together, arm in arm. Sophie is chattering but my mind is a million miles away… until I hear her say, “Miranda does much more school work than we do.”  “What do you mean?”  “She knows every language.”  “She can’t know every language. Which ones is she learning?” I ask.  “French… Greek……
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My ‘Bad’ Homeschooling Days

Some years ago I offended a friend.  She was telling me about her bad homeschooling day. I should have offered some empathy but I didn’t. Before I could stop myself, I tactlessly suggested the problem might lie with the mother rather than her children. I regretted my words instantly when I saw my friend’s upset face. Later I returned with…
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Planning the Next Term’s School Work in Half an Hour

Andy is sitting hunched over his computer. He has been there on and off for the past fortnight. Only one more week until the official start to the new school year and Andy is busy writing lesson plans for his primary school class. I don’t envy him. Homeschooling is so much easier. I don’t have to spend weeks planning work…
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Learning From My Children

My children are always eager to learn.  “Wow! That looks wonderful. Will you teach me to crochet too? Do you think I could make a blanket like yours?”  They always seem willing to have a go. They don’t worry about the possibility of failing.  But me? I’m an adult and I’ve learnt a few unfortunate adult habits. I do like to…
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