Christalyn Aitken

I am fortunate to have Kelly Lovejoy in the same town as I. Kelly
said something about just getting "it" at some point this afternoon
while over at my house. We've been homeschooling for a long time.
Sort of eclectic. Little bit of this and that. Now moving into
unschooling...I have all the regular fears.

They (the kids) aren't doing anything...Trust is sooo hard. Do I
really have to step back and trust them Kelly?

CAn someone tell me exactly how to strew? And when does it just feel
right to you? unschooling I mean. In other words when will I know
I've got it? I don't have much in the way of patience. What
thinking can I change to help me "get it."

Christy

J. Stauffer

<<<<CAn someone tell me exactly how to strew? And when does it just feel
right to you? unschooling I mean. >>>>>

Think of your kids in terms of your husband.

Let's say your husband was interested in birds and in the newspaper you read there was to be a bird watching class. You might mention it to your husband. He might want to go, might not. If he didn't want to go, would you ask him why not, try to get him to go? Probably not. You would figure he has the information and knows best for himself if he is interested.

If I come across something I think the kids might be interested in, I tell them about it. That is about it.

Actually, the best strewing around here is me getting interested in my own stuff. I am big into organic gardening although I really suck at it. I study women's spirituality and military strategy (how's that for a combo?) and I just got my first spinning wheel.

My excitement tends to be infectious and off the kids go.

Julie S.
----- Original Message -----
From: Christalyn Aitken
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, January 12, 2005 7:27 PM
Subject: [unschoolingbasics] Strewing



I am fortunate to have Kelly Lovejoy in the same town as I. Kelly
said something about just getting "it" at some point this afternoon
while over at my house. We've been homeschooling for a long time.
Sort of eclectic. Little bit of this and that. Now moving into
unschooling...I have all the regular fears.

They (the kids) aren't doing anything...Trust is sooo hard. Do I
really have to step back and trust them Kelly?

CAn someone tell me exactly how to strew? And when does it just feel
right to you? unschooling I mean. In other words when will I know
I've got it? I don't have much in the way of patience. What
thinking can I change to help me "get it."

Christy





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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Jenny Altenbach

> and I just got my first spinning wheel.


Ooooh, where'd you get it?

Jenny
(who just started flamenco dance lessons this evening, wants to learn
mosaic tile work, and has fantasies about spinning her own yarn even
though she has no idea how to knit.....)

[email protected]

In a message dated 1/12/2005 8:39:17 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
christybaitken@... writes:

They (the kids) aren't doing anything...Trust is sooo hard. Do I
really have to step back and trust them Kelly? <<<<



You have to step back and trust them. <g>

What do you mean "they aren't doing anything?" Are they catatonic? Do they
not eat? sleep? run? watch tv? play games? talk? read?

I was just there---and they were all doing *something*!

On the way home, James was talking about the army & marines and 50 caliber
guns and WWII flying aces and storming beaches! ----all SORTS of things I know
nothing about! <G> So he's picking it up somewhere!

At CiCi's, he didn't shut up! He and Duncan have played well all evening.
They had Miso soup and burritos and hot chocolate. They played video games (he'd
never played an X-box!) and jumped on the trampoline and talked about
Yu-Gi-Oh! They found their birthdays on Duncan's new Yu-Gi-Oh! calendar. They
stayed up and watched a new episode of Inuyasha. All this is just what I
witnessed. Lots went on that I wasn't around to see.


>>>>>CAn someone tell me exactly how to strew?<<<<<

You have to engage them and *be* with them and *do* with them. It involves
knowing what they like and helping them learn about that. It's also about
throwing something new into the mix to see how they like that.

Have you read Sandra's pages on strewing? _http://sandradodd.com/strewing_
(http://sandradodd.com/strewing)


>>>>>And when does it just feel right to you? unschooling I mean.In other
words when will I know I've got it? <<<<<<


<BWG> You'll know it when you know it. Kind of like falling in love! <G>
Until you're there, you never quite sure whether it's *it*.


>>>>I don't have much in the way of patience. What thinking can I change
to help me "get it."<<<<

Think long and hard about the difference between teaching and learning.
Think of your children as whole human beings NOW---not grubs waiting to
become human.
Respect Who They Are ---NOW.
Trust that they WILL learn. That they are hard-wired to learn. That the only
way to stop that innate desire to learn is to force it.
Find your own passion (art) and throw yourself into it. Let them *see* that
passion. Know that modeling is the best way for them to learn from you.
Relax and let it come to you. *DO* the unschooling! *BE* the unschooler! <g>

~Kelly






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

J. Stauffer

<<<Ooooh, where'd you get it?>>>>

An acquaintence GAVE it to me. It wasn't in working condition so I went to a local wool market and asked around. I found a guy who got in working condition for $100 and threw in an hour lesson.

I thought all wheels were basically the same but he said my wheel wasn't for beginners and to not be discouraged....but in his shop, he had me spinning on a Great Wheel within 5 minutes.

I'm having a ball and have visions of Angora goats mixing in with my dairy goats...we will see.

Julie S.


----- Original Message -----
From: Jenny Altenbach
To: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, January 13, 2005 1:07 AM
Subject: Re: [unschoolingbasics]Spinning wheel was: Strewing


> and I just got my first spinning wheel.


Ooooh, where'd you get it?

Jenny
(who just started flamenco dance lessons this evening, wants to learn
mosaic tile work, and has fantasies about spinning her own yarn even
though she has no idea how to knit.....)



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Yahoo! Groups Links

a.. To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/unschoolingbasics/

b.. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[email protected]

c.. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

jecaam28

--- In [email protected], Jenny Altenbach
<salten@c...> wrote:
>
> Jenny
and has fantasies about spinning her own yarn even
> though she has no idea how to knit.....)

Oh! I am right there with you!

Jennifer

Ren Allen

I also wanted to add that sometimes learning happens in cycles. A
really intense time of exploration is often preceded by
restlessness...so hang in there. He's probably going to be off and
running soon.

Ren

Patti Diamondlady Diamond, SCHM

This is quite true Ren!

I know with my boys and their passions, sometimes they are just a
fleeting thing for a day or two, and others, like that of Yu-Gi-Oh are
the kind that they eat, sleep, dream, and absorb almost every waking
moment kind of a passion. Shoot even my hubby is into Yu-Gi-Oh with
the boys and has many decks and duels with them sometimes until all
hours of the night!:)LOL!!

To quote from a few excerpts from my book "One of the most exciting
aspects of Life Long Leaning is that of watching your children grow
and learn through their passions in life. At times these passions can
be quite intense, and other times they are often fleeting.
No, I am not describing a passionate romance between two people, but
rather a "love affair" of learning in a particular thing that
interests them. This is something can lead to a lifetime passion or
maybe even become your child's life career. Or, it could be something
that your child has an interest in for a day or two......Now, of
course, our boys have their share of ever fleeting love affairs with
certain passionate interests. There is the remote control cars, of
which they love playing with and troubleshooting when they break, but
once they are broken beyond foreseeable repair, they move on to the
next interest. There has been interests in rocks, paper mache, candle
making, writing on the white board in our bedroom (and sometimes they
will even write math problems along with their sketches and stories
they make on the board), sewing, guitar playing and many, many other
interests. Much more than I can ever write here!
One of the most wonderful parts of Life Long Learning is that we
simply have our whole lives to learn from as in-depth of an interest
as we wish, as well as the fleeting interests. The key is to get into
our children's' passions with them and learn together. It can open up
the world to so many other connections of learning that you never even
dreamed possible!"

In Love and Light,

Patti Diamond and the boys (Life Long Learners Chris 13 1/2, Matthew
8, Anthony 7)
Life Long Learning Academy
JUST PUBLISHED!! "Life Long Learning ~ Transforming Learning -
Discovering Learning Through Living Life in Unlimitless Possibilities"
http://www.lifelonglearning4all.com
http://www.diamondlady.net

*NOTE - Look for me to speak on Life Long Learning at the CHN
Homelearning Expo June 10-11, 2005. For more information, go to
http://www.californiahomeschool.net See you there! *

"For no matter where knowledge and learning come from - no matter what
shape, size, or dimension it assumes - it still is what it is,
knowledge and learning. Therefore knowledge and learning should always
be embraced." ~ unknown


--- In [email protected], "Ren Allen"
<starsuncloud@n...> wrote:
>
> I also wanted to add that sometimes learning happens in cycles. A
> really intense time of exploration is often preceded by
> restlessness...so hang in there. He's probably going to be off and
> running soon.
>
> Ren