[email protected]

In a message dated 2/1/2002 7:57:11 AM Pacific Standard Time,
[email protected] writes:


> I'm interested in hearing from those of you who have been unschooling for
> sometime... How did you get comfortable with not racing around and
> "providing" entertainment for your children.

Well - one way is to sign onto really super active email discussion lists.
That has kept me out of my kids' hair! <G>

When we first started unschooling I kept a journal - I got advice from
long-term homeschoolers to make it my job to observe my kids for a few months
-- in detail. My job was to really come to a thorough, deep, profound
understanding of each child's nature/learning style/preferences/dislikes and
so on.

So I started a notebook and I just watched them play and took copious notes.
And every so often I'd read those notes over and over and try to see things
about the kids that I might not have thought about before.

After a while, what happened was that I became much much more respectful of
what they were doing on their own and I became very hesitant to interfere for
fear of short-circuiting something wonderful that they were leading up to. I
started seeing the limitations or closed-endedness of the things I was
tempted to offer them and seeing that what they would develop on their own
was EXACTLY at the right level and the right interest and the right challenge
for them. Eventually, everytime I had the idea to get them to do something
"education" I'd look at what they were already doing and see the value in it
and not want to interrupt them.

--pam

--pam


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Elizabeth Hill

PSoroosh@... wrote:

>
> After a while, what happened was that I became much much more
> respectful of
> what they were doing on their own and I became very hesitant to
> interfere for
> fear of short-circuiting something wonderful that they were leading up
> to. I
> started seeing the limitations or closed-endedness of the things I was
>
> tempted to offer them and seeing that what they would develop on their
> own
> was EXACTLY at the right level and the right interest and the right
> challenge
> for them. Eventually, everytime I had the idea to get them to do
> something
> "education" I'd look at what they were already doing and see the value
> in it
> and not want to interrupt them.
>

Oooh, yeah, that reminds me.

I've been thinking that any time we give in to fear and jump in and
forcibly try to teach our kids something in the tried-and-true,
drill-and-kill fashion, we destroy the opportunity that they had to
develop a more creative and more personally suitable way to learn that
stuff. I love the way my son messes around and putters with ideas.

Betsy



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