Young unschoolers
Sandra Dodd
2 of 6, of someone's beginning questions, and a comment by me after
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Young unschoolers
I have twin daughters about to turn 5 next month. What does unschooling look like at this age? Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not? They have been in preschool for 2 years and I'm expecting that after deschooling they will have interests of their own, but right now it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in.
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What does life look like for four year olds?
What would you like for life to look like for them?
What would you like to have done when you were that age?
-=-Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?-=-
DO you take them places? Have you take them places in the past, or did you expect preschool.... (they were in preschool when they were two years old!?) to provide their access to all the world outside your house? (Don't answer these questions here—they're questions for you to consider inside of you, to aid your thought.)
-=-Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?-=-
Never say "field trip" again. It means a foray outside of the school. Even when professors use it, it means going out where normal people are, or musicians, or lizards.
Without school there can be no extra-curricular activities. Without school, there can be no field trip. Step away from the school.
When you take them places, don't do it to find out if they're interested or not. ONLY take them to interesting places. YOU make it interesting.
-=-it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in.-=-
Since you don't know, why do you expect them to know, at the age of four?
If you step carefully into unschooling now, and don't screw it up, they might want to be right where they are, and be interested in everything.
Sandra
_______________________
Young unschoolers
I have twin daughters about to turn 5 next month. What does unschooling look like at this age? Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not? They have been in preschool for 2 years and I'm expecting that after deschooling they will have interests of their own, but right now it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in.
__________________________
What does life look like for four year olds?
What would you like for life to look like for them?
What would you like to have done when you were that age?
-=-Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?-=-
DO you take them places? Have you take them places in the past, or did you expect preschool.... (they were in preschool when they were two years old!?) to provide their access to all the world outside your house? (Don't answer these questions here—they're questions for you to consider inside of you, to aid your thought.)
-=-Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?-=-
Never say "field trip" again. It means a foray outside of the school. Even when professors use it, it means going out where normal people are, or musicians, or lizards.
Without school there can be no extra-curricular activities. Without school, there can be no field trip. Step away from the school.
When you take them places, don't do it to find out if they're interested or not. ONLY take them to interesting places. YOU make it interesting.
-=-it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in.-=-
Since you don't know, why do you expect them to know, at the age of four?
If you step carefully into unschooling now, and don't screw it up, they might want to be right where they are, and be interested in everything.
Sandra
Joyce Fetteroll
> I have twin daughters about to turn 5 next month.Right now you're looking for what you can do *to* them to help them learn. What you want to work towards is creating an environment where they can explore their interests. You want to create the environment they would create for themselves if they had your knowledge about the world and an understanding of who they are.
> What does unschooling look like at this age?
> Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?
Shift your role right now to getting to know who they are. And giving them some space to find out who they are too.
What kind of books do they like? What kind of TV shows and movies? What do they like to do? Right now your understanding may be sketchy. As is theirs.
Build on what you know they like. Then add in things they haven't yet experienced. Dancing. Singing. Tractor pulls. Classical music. Beatles. Puppet shows. New playgrounds. Soccer. Indian food. Walks in the woods. Bake cookies. Blow bubbles.
Joyce
Juliet Kemp
>What do you do together with them when they're not at preschool? Which of their toys or books are the ones they play with most? What do the staff at the preschool tell you they do & like? What TV do they like? What games do they like on a tablet?
> === I have twin daughters about to turn 5 next month. What does unschooling look like at this age? Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not?
> They have been in preschool for 2 years and I'm expecting that after deschooling they will have interests of their own, but right now it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in. ====
(If you don't have a tablet, *seriously* consider getting one. Or two, to avoid arguments. So much awesome stuff on tablets :) )
If you're expecting a child of that age to explicitly say what they're into, you may be out of luck (depends on the child, of course) - you might be better off just watching them closely for a while. Hang out, play with them, watch things with them, all that.
If they're just out of preschool they may also be tired & just want to hang out at home for a while.
My child is 3, & we spend a lot of time just at home or out locally (shops, playground, bike ride). We do also go to museums & Legoland & so on (we live in London - lots of places to go!) but that's a small minority of time. There's lots to do at home. When we do go out, sometimes the thing I expected he'd like isn't what he is actually fascinated by when we get there - it's good to hold plans loosely :)
Juliet
Sandra Dodd
-=-Dancing. Singing. Tractor pulls. Classical music. Beatles. Puppet shows. New playgrounds. Soccer. Indian food. Walks in the woods. Bake cookies. Blow bubbles.-=-
That all sounds really good. :-)
Puppet shows are harder and harder to find, but you can find them on youtube!
There are puppet-show scenes in some movies. Sound of Music has a really great one, and you could research the production of that scene. It was NOT done by Julie Andrews and some kids. :-)
While the mom is looking into things, she'll be learning more about how learning works, and reclaiming her curiosity and sense of wonder. That's valuable.
http://sandradodd.com/wonder
Sandra
That all sounds really good. :-)
Puppet shows are harder and harder to find, but you can find them on youtube!
There are puppet-show scenes in some movies. Sound of Music has a really great one, and you could research the production of that scene. It was NOT done by Julie Andrews and some kids. :-)
While the mom is looking into things, she'll be learning more about how learning works, and reclaiming her curiosity and sense of wonder. That's valuable.
http://sandradodd.com/wonder
Sandra
kirkpatrick clare
"What does unschooling look like at this age? "
It looks like it does at any age: fun and connection. Do what is fun for them. If you're also working on better connection with them, a closer relationship with them, you'll also start to learn what they may find fun that they don't yet know about. Also do what is fun for you. Learning to help yourself to do fun things will help you realise that your children's learning and richness of life will come from helping them to do things they find fun.
At the moment in my house, I am having fun thinking hard about unschooling. My husband and my 12 year old are having fun and connecting with each other by playing Call of Duty together. I have helped my 6 and 8 year olds by making some space for them to build a little home for their polly pocket dolls out of wooden blocks and they are now having fun working on that and playing together. My 10 year old is having fun watching Mako Mermaids on Netflix and occasionally turning round to watch her sister and dad playing and ask questions about the game. Actually, while I've been writing that, the six year old has now snuggled next to my 12 year old to join in the chat about the game. Connection and fun. And, therefore, learning.
It looks like it does at any age: fun and connection. Do what is fun for them. If you're also working on better connection with them, a closer relationship with them, you'll also start to learn what they may find fun that they don't yet know about. Also do what is fun for you. Learning to help yourself to do fun things will help you realise that your children's learning and richness of life will come from helping them to do things they find fun.
At the moment in my house, I am having fun thinking hard about unschooling. My husband and my 12 year old are having fun and connecting with each other by playing Call of Duty together. I have helped my 6 and 8 year olds by making some space for them to build a little home for their polly pocket dolls out of wooden blocks and they are now having fun working on that and playing together. My 10 year old is having fun watching Mako Mermaids on Netflix and occasionally turning round to watch her sister and dad playing and ask questions about the game. Actually, while I've been writing that, the six year old has now snuggled next to my 12 year old to join in the chat about the game. Connection and fun. And, therefore, learning.
michelle_m29@...
>Puppet shows are harder and harder to find, but you can find them on youtube!
This is the season for puppet shows and plays and all sorts of fun things, at least in my neck of the woods. Our local library's summer reading program has all kinds of activities that don't involve books. They do free performances once a week - this year there's a magician, a reptile guy, and a juggler. A few years back, there was a wonderful show with music and jointed shadow puppets. See what your local library has to offer. They're usually short and, especially if the library is close to home, not a huge excursion like a trip to the zoo.
I remember taking Alex to one of those events because they were going to have real ballerinas dancing on their toes and doing an excerpt from Swan Lake. Turns out my little girl had no real interest in ballerinas....but it was a trip to the library and she got her armload of books, so it was still a fun afternoon.
Leif asked a question about sign language one day, so we looked up some videos on youtube and he spent an afternoon stopping and starting a video, learned few words, then moved on to other things.
Watch for things that spark their interest, then let them know what options are out there for exploring those things...if that's providing raw materials or taking them to see things, or offering to help with things they can't do on their own quite yet.
Michelle
emmamarieforde@...
---I have twin daughters about to turn 5 next month. What does unschooling look like at this age? Do I take them places/fieldtrips to find out if they're interested or not? They have been in preschool for 2 years and I'm expecting that after deschooling they will have interests of their own, but right now it's as if they have no idea what they want or are interested in. ---
We have two daughters who are 4yrs and 8yrs. One of the benefits of unschooling for our family is that we have been able to follow our children's rhythms and their interests as they have emerged. We try things and see what they enjoy and then do more of that. They both love dinosaurs and sea creatures so we have followed their interests and we have visited fossil festivals, aquariums, museums, shows that they might enjoy.
We watch programmes together such as documentaries, Dinosaur Train, Wild kratts and play games with them of their tablets. I follow their interests or look on applayground.com or other Facebook groups for suggestions of games/videos they might like. They love playing with me and their dad and we have invented imaginary games together where they are dinosaurs and I am their keeper or games of rough and tumble. They also like swimming and recently riding their bikes and my 4yr old daughter likes horse riding.
At home we have also focused on creating a rich environment where things they enjoy can be easily accessed. So we have a sand and water tray, paints and craft materials displayed in open shelves as well as lego, puzzles and other toys and small tables and chairs they can use to paint/make things. We also have a room set up with dens, dressing up clothes and trampoline where we also play together and a mud kitchen outside.
I make suggestions but I am guided by what they feel like doing, whether they want to stay at home or go out. At 4yrs my younger daughter continues to have a sleep in the afternoon if we are at home and breastfeeding continues to be a part of our daily rhythm. They also enjoy snuggling up and watching a videos or reading a book with me to relax. Overtime you will get to know what they prefer and what the rhythm of your day may look like.
Whatever it is we are doing I would say that the main focus is on our relationships with our daughters and being connected, sensitive and responsive to them. They enjoy being with us and spending time with us, particularly when we play with them and we actively engage in activities with them. They also enjoy snuggling and being close to us and watching videos or playing games on their tablets with us. If your children have been in pre-school for some time you may be feeling a bit disconnected from them and they might be feeling the same. There will be things that they enjoy doing which will emerge if you can create the right kind of relationships and environment for them.
In the video Doing Unschooling Right available on YouTube, Sandra describes the importance of the emotional environment and the quality of relationships within the family which all help create a nurturing unschooling. This has been particularly important for us in terms of creating an environment where our children can thrive and explore their interests. Minimising the stress in our lives and being close and connected to our children enables us all to relax, play and find joy in the things that they love doing.
Emma
emmamarieforde@...
Sorry the following sentence was meant to read as below:
--- In the video Doing Unschooling Right available on YouTube, Sandra describes the importance of the emotional environment and the quality of relationships within the family which all help create a nurturing unschooling nest.
Emma
Sandra Dodd
-=- In the video Doing Unschooling Right-=-
I don't like the name of that, but it was part of a series, so the Doing [whatever] Right was the default title. :-)
It's here with a transcript (thanks to Marta Pires)
http://sandradodd.com/video/doright
and here with Portuguese subtitles and a transcript (also thanks to Marta)
http://sandradodd.com/portuguese/doright
Sandra
I don't like the name of that, but it was part of a series, so the Doing [whatever] Right was the default title. :-)
It's here with a transcript (thanks to Marta Pires)
http://sandradodd.com/video/doright
and here with Portuguese subtitles and a transcript (also thanks to Marta)
http://sandradodd.com/portuguese/doright
Sandra