apfelbluete_0

My daughter went to an all girls catholic school for 4 years. This
year we began teaching her at home with a new on-line charter school.
I thought this would be great for her so she can learn at her own
pace. She also takes an on-line Math course called EPGY. It is a good
program because she gets to work through things on her own, as fast or
as slow as she likes. This year she has gone through all of the work
for her grade in the charter home school. I have told her that she can
now learn whatever she wants to learn and that it is up to her. I told
her that with all of her hard work this year, she has earned the right
to learn something on her own and to take a break and find new
interests. The problem that I am having is that she WANTS direction.
She tells me that if she is to be taught at home, then she wants me to
teach her and for me not to just sit there. My question is what should
I do? How can make her be an unschooled student? I am not looking for
support, I am looking for a way to make her want to be unschooled.
thank you,
Apfel

[email protected]

In a message dated 5/2/05 9:15:38 AM, apfelbluete_0@... writes:

<< I told

her that with all of her hard work this year, she has earned the right

to learn something on her own and to take a break and find new

interests. >>

This doesn't really fit in with the whole unschooling principle. With this
reasoning, you're using freedom and "fun learning" as dessert, and equating
what we do wholeheartedly and fully as "taking a break."

While I think this list might be able to help you with practical ideas, a
philosophical basis would help you more in the longrun than practicalities.
Still...

-=-The problem that I am having is that she WANTS direction.

She tells me that if she is to be taught at home, then she wants me to

teach her and for me not to just sit there. -=-

She's right. If she's to be taught at home, you must teach her!

If you change the way you're approaching learning, and you come to see
learning as a separate thing from teaching, you must DEFINITELY not just sit there.

http://sandradodd.com/wordswords

That's an intro to the importance of looking at "learning" as a whole
separate thing far from "teaching."

-=-My question is what should

I do? How can make her be an unschooled student? -=-

#1, by not thinking of her as a student.
#2, by switching gears from thinking you can "make her be" anything (other
than maybe miserable)
#3, by spending a lot of your own time really looking at learning. Think
back to how you have learned things in your life and what helped and what didn't.
Look at how she learns things best and most happily. What has she learned
in non-academic ways? What does she love and what is she curious about?

-=- I am looking for a way to make her want to be unschooled.-=-
-=- This year she has gone through all of the work

for her grade in the charter home school. I have told her that she can

now learn whatever she wants to learn and that it is up to her.-=-

How old is she?
Do you intend to press her to learn what she wants just until next year when
she starts the next year's charter school work for her grade?

In either case, it's not a path to unschooling to say "Okay, now learn! Do
it now! Are you doing it yet? Is it fun? What are you learning? You should
learn whatever you want to learn. It's up to you."

Here are some articles I think might help you change directions and get
involved with her in ways that are not what she's used to, and maybe she and you
will catch the spark of learning for fun. But you need to stop looking for the
learning, and just look for the fun. You'll see it out of the corner of your
eye, and eventually it might flood in, but it won't as long as you're really
dissecting your life to pull out the math and writing and history. You have
to leave the seeds in the ground and just water them and let the sun shine.
Don't dig them up to see if they're sprouting.

http://sandradodd.com/deschooling
http://sandradodd.com/checklists
http://sandradodd.com/morning
http://sandradodd.com/unschool/gettingit
http://sandradodd.com/unschool/sparkly

Sandra