Holly

Hi Everybody,

Just wanted to say hello. We are new to unschooling, (January 2005),
so this sounded like a group that might benefit us. I am a stay-at-
home mom that does administrative work for my husband's business and we
have one son, Adam, who is 8 and was traditionally educated until 2nd
grade, August 2004, which is when we began our adventure.

Hope to get to know some of you.

Holly

christamnt

Hi Holly,

We are in the same "boat" so to speak. We began homeschooling last
August after my oldest (also age 8) attended school through first
grade. Unschooling is also a new experience for us.

I have found this board to be very helpful and encouraging. Looking
forward hearing more and comparing notes.

-Christa


-- In [email protected], "Holly" <randhbinkley3@a...>
wrote:
>
>
> Hi Everybody,
>
> Just wanted to say hello. We are new to unschooling, (January 2005),
> so this sounded like a group that might benefit us. I am a stay-at-
> home mom that does administrative work for my husband's business and
we
> have one son, Adam, who is 8 and was traditionally educated until 2nd
> grade, August 2004, which is when we began our adventure.
>
> Hope to get to know some of you.
>
> Holly

Dawn Mendoza

Hi,

I am new to this concept. We just decided to homeschool our boys this coming Sept. Can you tell me what unschooling is?

Thanks,
Dawn




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Robyn Coburn

<<<<<<I am new to this concept. We just decided to homeschool our boys this
coming Sept. Can you tell me what unschooling is?>>>>>>

Unschooling is "not schooling", renouncing the imposition of the structures
and culture of school or school-at-home in favor of everyone in the family
living a real life and following their interests. It is fundamentally
Trusting that needed learning will happen without force or judgments in the
course of children enjoying their passions. It is less an educational
philosophy than a lifestyle methodology. For a great overview of it working
try www.sandradodd.com/unschooling . Also keep reading here and check the
archives.

That question requires either a hundred thousand words or just a few.

Why are you waiting to pull your kid out of school? You don't have to finish
the school year, even if you don't choose Unschooling in the end.

Robyn L. Coburn

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Dawn Mendoza

Robyn Coburn <dezigna@...> wrote:
Why are you waiting to pull your kid out of school? You don't have to finish
the school year, even if you don't choose Unschooling in the end.





Robyn,

Thank you for the reply. In regards to your question ... we just thought it would be better for them to finish the school year.

Dawn





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Ruth

Hi Dawn

I took my kids our mid term - and my biggest regret was I waited until the half term holiday to do it. Thre is nothig to be gained by waiting. They are just gettigng more and more school orientated which takes ages to shake off the longer they stay in. It is telling my youngest two have never been to school and have a completely different attitude to learning than the others who did. If you are sure I would bail out asap.

Ruth

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scrapgal

--- In [email protected], "Ruth" <grayfamily9@g...>
wrote:
> Hi Dawn
>
> I took my kids our mid term - and my biggest regret was I waited
until the half term holiday to do it. Thre is nothig to be gained
by waiting. They are just gettigng more and more school orientated
which takes ages to shake off the longer they stay in.

I have to agree with Ruth! My oldest two have had varying years in
and out of school. Last year all the kids were in school (and
miserable) and after January, my oldest came home one day and
said, "I hate school. I'm never going back and you can't make me."
At first I thought, "What about just til the end of the year? Or
the end of this grading period? Or the end of the week" (it was a
Tuesday or Wednesday) And then I thought, "Why? What is she going
to gain in that period of time?" So the next day her brother and
sister went off to school and Emily stayed home (actually, I think
she went to work with me.) Summer was our test period to see if the
kids could be at home most of the day without being at each other's
necks while I was at work and it failed miserably. So I quit
working LOL!

Michelle

Pam Sorooshian

On Apr 4, 2005, at 7:41 AM, scrapgal wrote:

> Summer was our test period to see if the
> kids could be at home most of the day without being at each other's
> necks while I was at work and it failed miserably. So I quit
> working LOL!

Wow. Michelle - I read the first sentence and thought, "Oh, how sad."
Then I read the last sentence: "So I quit working." and was very very
pleasantly surprised!!! Way to GO!!

-pam

scrapgal

--- In [email protected], Pam Sorooshian
<pamsoroosh@e...> wrote:
>

> Wow. Michelle - I read the first sentence and thought, "Oh, how
sad."
> Then I read the last sentence: "So I quit working." and was very
very
> pleasantly surprised!!! Way to GO!!
>
ROFL! NOOOooooooooOOOOO!!!! After how badly school went for the
kids there was no way I was going to put them through that. In fact
even the "ever so stressful mom working through the summer
experiment" was better than what they were getting in the school
system.

Michelle - who watched her children make crowns today and go through
a very lawyeresque argument over queens, kings, princesses and
successions and kept wanting to quote "And so the time has come my
dears to speak of many things. Of ships and shoes and sealing wax
and cabbages and kings. And why the sea is boiling hot and whether
pigs have wings."

mother_bhaer

Hi everyone. I just wanted to introduce myself and I'll try to make
it quick. I have two children (11 yob and 7 yog) and I have been
married for almost 13 years. We have been homeschooling from the
beginning and for the most part we have always been very relaxed with
times of radical unschooling mixed in. I'd have to say that right
now we are a little more eclectic.

It's been harder for me to let go of all the schoolish looking things
than the chores and bedtimes and so on. We have never had set chores
and our bedtimes have always been flexible depending on what was
going on. I do have to admit that dh would have liked me to enforce
chores because that's the way he grew up, but I never would agree to
that. I never had chores growing up and I didn't see how having
chores ever taught dh to be more responsible. I did see how much he
resented his parents though for all the controlling they did of him.

I feel like I should expand on what we consider schoolish looking
things. Since we have always been very relaxed, we have done very
little with workbooks and we've never used textbooks at all. I have
never used a phonics program or readers to teach reading. I have
read things like A Child's History of the World, Christian Liberty
Nature Readers, and classic children's literature to my children. I
also read things they want me to read.

All the time I am reading they are free to play quietly if they
choose. Many times I would start reading to them and they would play
quietly but before long they would be in my lap looking at pictures
or just cuddling while I read.

We play all sorts of games when I feel like I need to see some math
practice like Monopoly, chess, checkers, and Yahtzee. I have a hard
time just letting go of some idea I have that we need to practice
every so often. I ask the kids if they want to play and if they
don't that's ok.

I feel that I am very relaxed, but I don't feel like we are truly
there when it comes to unschooling. I know that I feel more
comfortable with advice I get from unschoolers than most anyone else
I have been around. I'm here to learn more.

Sorry, I said this would be quick and it's not. Thank you all for
reading this far.

Terri (feeling like I'm the only person who is so relaxed but not
completely unschooling)

pattesontaylorfamily

I don't think I have introduced myself. My name is becky. I have
a daughter that is 5. I've been lurking for awhile because I have
been trying to figure out my homeschoolimg style. I wasn't sure I was
going to stay with this group.
Like you Terri, I am not completely unschooling. I am very
eclectic as well, but I find unschooling methods and thoughts very
interesting and I like to lean towards these methods when I can. I
might not speak much on the site but I will be learning from
everyone. Ocasionaly I might have an unschooling question.
In our house, we have chores and try to keep a regular bedtime.
My daughter attends classes at community centers and our curriculum
is the public library, games, workbooks, and homemade books. I am
constantly looking for new approaches because I usually feel like I
have to light a fire under my daughter's butt. But when this happens
I also try to remember that she did JUST turn 5 and that the more I
push, the more she will rebel.

Becky


--- In [email protected], "mother_bhaer"
<Kent_Terri@...> wrote:
>
> ... times of radical unschooling mixed in. I'd have to say that
right
> now we are a little more eclectic.
>
> We play all sorts of games when I feel like I need to see some math
> practice like Monopoly, chess, checkers, and Yahtzee. I have a
hard
> time just letting go of some idea I have that we need to practice
> every so often. I ask the kids if they want to play and if they
> don't that's ok.
>
> I feel that I am very relaxed, but I don't feel like we are truly
> there when it comes to unschooling. I know that I feel more
> comfortable with advice I get from unschoolers than most anyone
else
> I have been around. I'm here to learn more.
>
> >
> Terri (feeling like I'm the only person who is so relaxed but not
> completely unschooling)
>

S Drag-teine

"I also try to remember that she did JUST turn 5 and that the more I

push, the more she will rebel."



Welcome Becky,



My son is 5 1/2 and that is just right.



Over the summer he decided he wanted to go to school - wow what a pain that
was... all the paper work. It lasted less then a month and we were back to
homeschooling. Concerned with the PSS review I... hmm what is the word...
traded school work for what he wanted to do.



He wanted to play playdough, he had to do a handwriting worksheet.



He hated, I hated it and it was no fun anyway I just let go. Especially
after reading that children really aren't ready to write until age seven and
above. He is now asking about writing and I got the Kumon book for Uppercase
letters but he hasn't asked since I got them.



The idea at this age (anyone correct me if I am wrong, I know you will) is
to make things available. If she asks about something do what you can to
help her find out.



Quentin spends a lot of time watching movies (check out netflix.com), things
I tape off PBS (check out thinkport.org), playing blocks, gears gears gears,
play dough, kid concoctions, cooking, drawing, painting, reading with an
adult or making up a story by looking at the pictures, playing cards (card
decks and flash cards purchased from dollar store), listening to music
(borrowed from the library), PC games if you are interested I can suggested
a bunch.



If he isn't interested in something usually because I think he would enjoy
it but it wasn't his idea. I play with it with the interest of a five year
old. He goes about doing whatever and most the time will come over and
watch, then he might play then other times after I have put it away then he
wants to get out either immediately or days later.



Shannon

<http://www.melaleuca.com/> Melaleuca Customer



<http://www.paperbackswap.com/index.php?n=2&r_by=triskele@...> Join
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-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of pattesontaylorfamily
Sent: Tuesday, February 21, 2006 8:12 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [unschoolingbasics] Re: I'm New Here





I don't think I have introduced myself. My name is becky. I have

a daughter that is 5. I've been lurking for awhile because I have

been trying to figure out my homeschoolimg style. I wasn't sure I was

going to stay with this group.

Like you Terri, I am not completely unschooling. I am very

eclectic as well, but I find unschooling methods and thoughts very

interesting and I like to lean towards these methods when I can. I

might not speak much on the site but I will be learning from

everyone. Ocasionaly I might have an unschooling question.

In our house, we have chores and try to keep a regular bedtime.

My daughter attends classes at community centers and our curriculum

is the public library, games, workbooks, and homemade books. I am

constantly looking for new approaches because I usually feel like I

have to light a fire under my daughter's butt. But when this happens

I also try to remember that she did JUST turn 5 and that the more I

push, the more she will rebel.



Becky





--- In [email protected], "mother_bhaer"

<Kent_Terri@...> wrote:

>

> ... times of radical unschooling mixed in. I'd have to say that

right

> now we are a little more eclectic.

>

> We play all sorts of games when I feel like I need to see some math

> practice like Monopoly, chess, checkers, and Yahtzee. I have a

hard

> time just letting go of some idea I have that we need to practice

> every so often. I ask the kids if they want to play and if they

> don't that's ok.

>

> I feel that I am very relaxed, but I don't feel like we are truly

> there when it comes to unschooling. I know that I feel more

> comfortable with advice I get from unschoolers than most anyone

else

> I have been around. I'm here to learn more.

>

> >

> Terri (feeling like I'm the only person who is so relaxed but not

> completely unschooling)

>



















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