Clare Kirkpatrick

One of my daughters' best friends goes to school. She appears to get on fine there. She had friends and enjoys it. My daughter occasionally asks to go to school, drawn to it by her friends' experiences (although even get friend tries to dissuade her because she thinks my daughter wouldn't really like it) and by tv programmes that only ever seem to portray the fun bits. I think she's drawn to the camerarderie aspect, rather than the actual lessons and rules etc. - the feeling of a united, shared experience of groaning about lessons starting or homework or moaning about the school lunches or a particular teacher. That's the impression I get anyway. She's not able to really articulate why she wants to go to school.

Anyway, I was trying to find articles on Sandra's site about how to approach this kind of situation with unschooling principles in mind but I'm not sure what to search for and I'm wondering if anyone has any they know of off the top of their heads?

Thanks in advance

Clare

Jo Isaac

This one first came to mind, Clare:
http://sandradodd.com/schoolchoice

Public School on Your Own Terms - Sandra Dodd
How different can a child's experience of public school be if he is there of his own choice instead of from compulsion or coercion? Most people never consider that.




Jo Isaac, PhD

Post-Doctoral Research Assistant, 
Centre of Tropical Biodiversity and Climate Change, 
James Cook University, Townsville.

Scientific Writer and Researcher: http://joisaac.wordpress.com


From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Clare Kirkpatrick claremkirkpatrick@... [AlwaysLearning] <[email protected]>
Sent: 08 November 2015 09:36
To: [email protected]
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Articles about children wanting to try school
 
 

One of my daughters' best friends goes to school. She appears to get on fine there. She had friends and enjoys it. My daughter occasionally asks to go to school, drawn to it by her friends' experiences (although even get friend tries to dissuade her because she thinks my daughter wouldn't really like it) and by tv programmes that only ever seem to portray the fun bits. I think she's drawn to the camerarderie aspect, rather than the actual lessons and rules etc. - the feeling of a united, shared experience of groaning about lessons starting or homework or moaning about the school lunches or a particular teacher. That's the impression I get anyway. She's not able to really articulate why she wants to go to school.

Anyway, I was trying to find articles on Sandra's site about how to approach this kind of situation with unschooling principles in mind but I'm not sure what to search for and I'm wondering if anyone has any they know of off the top of their heads?

Thanks in advance

Clare

Alex & Brian Polikowsky

My 9 year old daughter decided to go to school this year. My 23 year old son has no interest.

She says she likes it. She likes the teachers and doing things in school. She likes being surrounded by many kids.
She is doing really well and likes but not everything.

I remind her of homework but she is usually very diligent about doing it.

She had missed 9 days in 2 months of school and o already received a call from the counselor's office asking about it . All of them have been excuse but still they called.

In the end the counselor asked me if Gigi liked school. I think she is used to kids not liking it and pretending they are sick not to come. Little does she know she does like it and that mom will let her stay home as much as she wants.

Hopefully that won't be a problem in the future if she wants to stay in school.

It is very different to a child who chooses to go to school than one that does not have an option for sure!
Alex Polikowsky

Sent from my iPhone

On Nov 8, 2015, at 3:46 PM, Jo Isaac joanneisaac@... [AlwaysLearning] <[email protected]> wrote:

 

This one first came to mind, Clare:
http://sandradodd.com/schoolchoice

Public School on Your Own Terms - Sandra Dodd
How different can a child's experience of public school be if he is there of his own choice instead of from compulsion or coercion? Most people never consider that.




Jo Isaac, PhD

Post-Doctoral Research Assistant, 
Centre of Tropical Biodiversity and Climate Change, 
James Cook University, Townsville.

Scientific Writer and Researcher: http://joisaac.wordpress.com


From: [email protected] <[email protected]> on behalf of Clare Kirkpatrick claremkirkpatrick@... [AlwaysLearning] <[email protected]>
Sent: 08 November 2015 09:36
To: [email protected]
Subject: [AlwaysLearning] Articles about children wanting to try school
 
 

One of my daughters' best friends goes to school. She appears to get on fine there. She had friends and enjoys it. My daughter occasionally asks to go to school, drawn to it by her friends' experiences (although even get friend tries to dissuade her because she thinks my daughter wouldn't really like it) and by tv programmes that only ever seem to portray the fun bits. I think she's drawn to the camerarderie aspect, rather than the actual lessons and rules etc. - the feeling of a united, shared experience of groaning about lessons starting or homework or moaning about the school lunches or a particular teacher. That's the impression I get anyway. She's not able to really articulate why she wants to go to school.

Anyway, I was trying to find articles on Sandra's site about how to approach this kind of situation with unschooling principles in mind but I'm not sure what to search for and I'm wondering if anyone has any they know of off the top of their heads?

Thanks in advance

Clare

Sandra Dodd

-=-My 9 year old daughter decided to go to school this year. My 23 year old son has no interest.-=-

Alex’s son is 13, probably; I know he’s not 23. :-)

Sandra

Cass Kotrba

-=- My daughter occasionally asks to go to school, drawn to it by her friends' experiences...  I think she's drawn to the camerarderie aspect, rather than the actual lessons and rules etc. - the feeling of a united, shared experience of groaning about lessons starting or homework or moaning about the school lunches or a particular teacher-=-

My daughter has sometimes found the idea of school appealing for the reasons you mention as well as a desire to learn new things & have new experiences.  She went to school full time from K-3rd grade, unschooled for 2 years and during the 3rd year she decided that she wanted to go back to school.  I think that part of it was because she was curious about what she was missing.  Also, when she left school she was feeling trampled upon and small.  She then spent 2 years healing and recreating herself in her mind & I think she wanted to go back and try out her new self!

Last year she went to school full time for 7 months.  Her experience was exhausting but she enjoyed it and was glad she went.  She started a month into the school year and that made it tough for her at first so I would recommend to anyone to start at the beginning of a school year if at all possible.  She chose to continue going until the spring.  I supported her in every way that I could think to.  For her, going full time and for so long helped her feel like she was truly a part of the group.

This fall she decided that she wanted to go again but did not want to have so much on her plate.  I talked to the folks at her school and arranged for her to take a few classes and go part time.  That was better and much less exhausting while still giving her a chance to be a part of things.  She took science, reading, drama/choir, computers/Spanish.  She did not have much homework with that schedule and was interested in the subjects (except computers, ironically since she loves computers.  She said the class was so boring and they made the simplest things seem difficult).  She went for 2 months and last week she decided that she'd had enough for this year.  She is thinking about going back next year.  She definitely wants to try high school so she may do the part time thing for awhile every year - who knows!  We were told that she is welcome to come back next year if she wants to.

Her younger brother went to school K-2 and started unschooling when his sister did.  He went to middle school this year, part time, for 2 days and that was enough.  He says he has no desire to go back.  He does play football through the middle school.  They practiced, played games - some of which required bus rides - for 3 months and that seems to be a good fit for him at this time.  He plans to do that again next year.

It has been our experience that our public schools are more than happy to accommodate home school kids.  In elementary school it is not easy to go for a half day but they welcome the kids to come for "specials" - classes like gym/pe, art, music - that take place outside of the regular classroom.  Once they hit middle school (6th grade, 11-12 year olds) our school system switches to periods.  They no longer stay in one main room all day but switch from class to class every 50 minutes.  Under this system it is much easier for someone to come part time.  My daughter would be at home for the first 4 periods and come for the last 4.  She arrived at 11:30, went to a class, had lunch and recess, went to a few more classes and was able to ride the bus home.  That was a great set up for her.  When she grew tired of it we went in and informed them, in person and by letter, that she would be completing the school year at home.  No drama, no stress.  

The schools don't advertise this type of thing but we have found that they are very accommodating and flexible when asked.  We have also found that the math & English classes are the only 2 that build on what was learned the previous year & have an expectation that the kids know specific terminology, etc.  Jade was able to finagle her way through those classes last year but she didn't enjoy it, which is not to say that all kids would have that same experience.  All of the other classes were easy for her to figure out and her fresh, thoughtful perspective was often admired by teachers.  

At first I found the idea of her being at school to be stressful.  Then I started thinking about the time when I was 12 & I went to a week long bible camp with my cousin.  There were things about it that I enjoyed and plenty of things that I disliked or found uncomfortable.  I am glad I had the opportunity to go and have the experience but I'm also glad that I had the choice not to go back the following year.  So now I think of school like going to camp & that helps me think my way around biases I may have toward school.  She can choose to go as much or as little as she wants.

Did my daughter's time at school mean she was no longer an unschooler at that time?  I don't think so because we still approached the experience from an unschooling perspective but at the same time, I really don't care about what label we might be wearing at any given time.  I care about helping my kids have the experiences they are wanting and that will help them feel complete and whole. :D

-Cass

Cass Kotrba

Interestingly, my daughter just started spontaneously saying to me that her online friend goes to a school for home schoolers where she gets to choose what classes she wants to take and when.  The friend likes it.  We don't have any co-ops or anything like that around us but there are probably a much wider variety of choices for people living in larger cities that would provide an opportunity for a child to be in a setting with other kids, doing stuff that feels important, that might fill that desire in their lives. 
-Cass


belinda.dutch@...

Hi,

We are in the UK and at 11 young people start ‘secondary school’ and it’s a big deal.  My daughter saw all her schooled friends starting and attending school (they are a bit older than her) and she felt she was missing out.  So i treated it like any other unschooling idea, desire, interest, and we researched it, discussed it,  and i supported her with it as best I could. I found her a school place locally (unfortunately we couldn’t afford or weren’t in the right catchment to attend the same schools as her friends!) which she could start at the same time that her cohort were starting.  She got excited about having local friends and attending lessons, learned to get the bus and lots of other big steps.

While she was there I made a point of telling her teachers that she was there BY CHOICE.  This seemed quite exciting to some and irrelevant and strange to others.  I was aware that I was communicating with the teachers much more than most parents (the school made the email of each teacher available) but they were usually responsive and helpful. I supported her when she was misunderstood and put in the ‘wrong’ class just because she had no grades from previous schooling to show them. If she was humiliated by a teacher (it happened) I took them up on it if she wanted me to.  So I took an interest and supported her in this ‘project’ just as I would in any other.  I didn’t just hand it all over.  I helped her with homework, but didn’t make her do things she thought were stupid or irrelevant.  We had quite a good time picking apart some of the homework actually!  She wasn’t significantly behind in any topic at all, and found it quite easy, and my daughter is not (so far) naturally studious.  (what had they all been doing for 7 years???!!!).

After a term, the novelty totally wore off! The friendships and the lessons were diasappointing, the social media pressures started to encroach on home time and the pressure on attendance was RELENTLESS.  (In the UK, even a 95% attendance record is seen as less than good, you will get letters home and threats.  I tried to hide this from my daughter but she knew about the letters and hated to feel like she was ‘in trouble’.  Sometimes the pressure of going in every day, even when you feel a bit poorly, or tired, was too much.) 

I had stayed at home with my older boy (13, no interest in school at all), and she made the decision at christmas to leave the school and rejoin us at home.  I think, looking back, that going to school was one of the best bits of unschooling we have ever done!  

If she had attended a different school, things MIGHT have been different, as there was quite a lot of disruptive behaviour at this school that she found really exasperating, and the quality of teaching was pretty patchy, but we had no other choice without moving house.  But she has really relaxed into being at home now, appreciates the good friends she has (quality not quantity!) and has thrown herself into a hobby that she probably wouldn’t have time for if she was at school (she now has a pony - another big journey for us together - I have started from zero knowledge but recognised her dream as a big learning opportunity…for both of us!..). 

She understands the mainstream schooling/parenting world better now and has a deeper level of self awareness and where she fits into a larger concept of society other than school.  She knows being at home is a CHOICE that SHE made, not something imposed upon her because of her parents’ ‘’hippy ideas’’ (her words).

Hope this very personal perspective helps!  Throughout this time i was avidly reading Always Learning and applying the principles as far as I so far understand them, always asking what was the better choice at that time.  Not feeling like I needed to have some big masterplan, but that this was a learning adventure with no real idea where it would lead.  As long quitting was an option it seemed (mostly!) fun.

Belinda

Sandra Dodd

Belinda, when I read your account, I thought all the way through that it was in the “Unschooling Success” topic! :-)

I love these stories of kids choosing something so profound as going to school (as 99+% of the kids in school are powerlessly in “no choice” mode), and then choosing to come home. Children with real power in their own lives. Thank you for sharing in so much detail.

If you have any more energy to do so, maybe you could tell us about her hobby (here or in the unschooling success thread).

Sandra

belinda.dutch@...

I suppose this topic is no longer about trying school, so feel free to move it to new thread or elsewhere, I'm not sure how to from my email program (I'm afraid I find Yahoo Groups confusing!).

You asked about my daughter's hobby, that she wouldn't have time for if she was at school.  It's interesting that I'm feeling quite conflicted about this at the moment and so this might be a good opportunity to get to a more peaceful place with it.  I'm afraid this might be a long post....

My daughter has a long history of loving horses and ponies, she was sniffing them and lying on them from a toddler, and her dad was wonderful in supporting her passion, taking her for rides at the local stables and really enjoying doing that with her.  I have never been 'horsey', not the type to have ponies on my bedroom wall, and was frankly a bit dismissive, thought it was a girly thing. We lived in a small terrace in a city and I felt like ponies were just not on the radar, physically and financially.  But I loved that Rob was so supportive and soon saw the joy they both got.

10 years and a house move to the 'burbs (with our own small field) later, I am homeschooling my children by their choice (boy 14, girl 12 - I want to say "unschooling" but I know that's more of an ideology that supports me rather than an objective reality but that's another post...)  and Olivia's pony love is as strong as ever. I have thus far supported her by taking her to the various ponies that she rides, organising and paying for hacks, lessons, and more recently loaning a pony she takes charge of for 3 days a week at the horse yard next door.  Up until the loan it was something I supported her in by paying other people to 'do pony things'  with her, declaring myself fully supportive but still 'not into horses myself'.  (She has become a good rider but has not much experience in training and the details of 'horse care')

The loan is different, because looking after the pony 3 days a week is HER responsibility, not a paid activity. I'm not sure how much I consciously thought about the fact that 12 year olds are not necessarily going to be fully reliable in that score, and I seem to have unwittingly created a potential source of friction by trying to fulfil her dreams!  So on the days when she is less than enthusiastic about visiting Willow (her pony), I end up chivvying her and bossing her into it and questioning her dedication.  Argh!  So I have reminded myself that the pony is ultimately MY responsibility, being the adult, but it seems strange to me that I would be going down there without her.  But is this what I should do?  Model love and dedication instead of pressuring her into it?  (I know this isn't the place to ask for definitive answers but these are questions I am asking myself.) 

When we go, she always wants me to come to the yard with her, which I do.  I've been getting more and more out of it as we read up together about training and looking after ponies, I help her put the equipment out and i help her groom, cuddle and make a fuss of Willow. I network as best i can with the other riders there and have encouraged the owner of the yard to ask Olivia to help her out, make her feel part of the yard, and important. I am actually warming to ponies and my interest and knowledge is growing even though I don't feel the urge to ride.   We watch lots of Youtube videos  together of people riding bareback and natural horsemanship gurus and they do make me weep they are so beautiful!  I am starting to 'get it'.

Olivia is frustrated by her loan pony.  She loves her but is not 'in love'.  She is difficult and naughty and a bit small.  She doesn't trust the pony fully so won't hack her out.  She thinks her problems will be resolved and her dedication deepened if we buy her a really lovely bigger pony that she can keep at the same yard and have as a friend and companion - for life.  She gets very passionate about this, she is researching breeds, horse boxes, and I realise that ponies are a real passion for so many people, it gets very emotive.  We could, at a stretch, afford to do this, and she understands that it IS on practical levels possible.   I understand her reasoning and some of it makes perfect sense.  I so want her passionate dream to be fulfilled, for her to have a sense of abundance.  
On the other hand, I am aware that it is a huge responsibility, that her dreams and passions could change so much in the next few years, she may move away, and that I can't possibly hold her to her promise to 'love it forever'.  It would still be MY responsibility and I'm frankly not sure I want it, both physically and financially. It may become a source of sadness to Olivia as well, as she potentially 'fails' at looking after it.

When I mention the possibility of loaning a more compatible pony instead of buying one, she goes rigid and her eyes well up.  She puts her hands over her ears and says 'you just don't understand mum!'.

So. How to balance sensible, real, concerns of mine with keeping the trust and allowing my daughter to feel like I support and respect her dreams?

Any feedback gratefully received.  Thanks for reading this essay!

Belinda


---In [email protected], <Sandra@...> wrote :

Belinda, when I read your account, I thought all the way through that it was in the “Unschooling Success” topic! :-)

I love these stories of kids choosing something so profound as going to school (as 99+% of the kids in school are powerlessly in “no choice” mode), and then choosing to come home. Children with real power in their own lives. Thank you for sharing in so much detail.

If you have any more energy to do so, maybe you could tell us about her hobby (here or in the unschooling success thread).

Sandra

[email protected]

She is right that a bigger pony or horse maybe a lot better. Something like a POA (pony of America)or small horse.

There needs to be a bond and trust between horse and rider and she is not ready for a difficult animal.

Do your homework with her and talk to several horse people and take your time to find the perfect horse for her.

That is her biggest passion after all.

You do not need to ride to be supportive and learn about her passion.I am not a good video game player but I know a lot about them , from hardware to stories behind them, because of my kids.

I even learned about baseball to be able to talk to my husband when it is baseball season. Now I like it!

Sent from my ASUS MeMO Pad 7 LTE

-------- Original Message --------
From:"belinda.dutch@... [AlwaysLearning]" <[email protected]>
Sent:Sat, 14 Nov 2015 09:16:58 -0600
To:[email protected]
Subject:Re: [AlwaysLearning] Articles about children wanting to try school

  

I suppose this topic is no longer about trying school, so feel free to move it to new thread or elsewhere, I'm not sure how to from my email program (I'm afraid I find Yahoo Groups confusing!).


You asked about my daughter's hobby, that she wouldn't have time for if she was at school.  It's interesting that I'm feeling quite conflicted about this at the moment and so this might be a good opportunity to get to a more peaceful place with it.  I'm afraid this might be a long post....

My daughter has a long history of loving horses and ponies, she was sniffing them and lying on them from a toddler, and her dad was wonderful in supporting her passion, taking her for rides at the local stables and really enjoying doing that with her.  I have never been 'horsey', not the type to have ponies on my bedroom wall, and was frankly a bit dismissive, thought it was a girly thing. We lived in a small terrace in a city and I felt like ponies were just not on the radar, physically and financially.  But I loved that Rob was so supportive and soon saw the joy they both got.

10 years and a house move to the 'burbs (with our own small field) later, I am homeschooling my children by their choice (boy 14, girl 12 - I want to say "unschooling" but I know that's more of an ideology that supports me rather than an objective reality but that's another post...)  and Olivia's pony love is as strong as ever. I have thus far supported her by taking her to the various ponies that she rides, organising and paying for hacks, lessons, and more recently loaning a pony she takes charge of for 3 days a week at the horse yard next door.  Up until the loan it was something I supported her in by paying other people to 'do pony things'  with her, declaring myself fully supportive but still 'not into horses myself'.  (She has become a good rider but has not much experience in training and the details of 'horse care')

The loan is different, because looking after the pony 3 days a week is HER responsibility, not a paid activity. I'm not sure how much I consciously thought about the fact that 12 year olds are not necessarily going to be fully reliable in that score, and I seem to have unwittingly created a potential source of friction by trying to fulfil her dreams!  So on the days when she is less than enthusiastic about visiting Willow (her pony), I end up chivvying her and bossing her into it and questioning her dedication.  Argh!  So I have reminded myself that the pony is ultimately MY responsibility, being the adult, but it seems strange to me that I would be going down there without her.  But is this what I should do?  Model love and dedication instead of pressuring her into it?  (I know this isn't the place to ask for definitive answers but these are questions I am asking myself.) 

When we go, she always wants me to come to the yard with her, which I do.  I've been getting more and more out of it as we read up together about training and looking after ponies, I help her put the equipment out and i help her groom, cuddle and make a fuss of Willow. I network as best i can with the other riders there and have encouraged the owner of the yard to ask Olivia to help her out, make her feel part of the yard, and important. I am actually warming to ponies and my interest and knowledge is growing even though I don't feel the urge to ride.   We watch lots of Youtube videos  together of people riding bareback and natural horsemanship gurus and they do make me weep they are so beautiful!  I am starting to 'get it'.

Olivia is frustrated by her loan pony.  She loves her but is not 'in love'.  She is difficult and naughty and a bit small.  She doesn't trust the pony fully so won't hack her out.  She thinks her problems will be resolved and her dedication deepened if we buy her a really lovely bigger pony that she can keep at the same yard and have as a friend and companion - for life.  She gets very passionate about this, she is researching breeds, horse boxes, and I realise that ponies are a real passion for so many people, it gets very emotive.  We could, at a stretch, afford to do this, and she understands that it IS on practical levels possible.   I understand her reasoning and some of it makes perfect sense.  I so want her passionate dream to be fulfilled, for her to have a sense of abundance.  
On the other hand, I am aware that it is a huge responsibility, that her dreams and passions could change so much in the next few years, she may move away, and that I can't possibly hold her to her promise to 'love it forever'.  It would still be MY responsibility and I'm frankly not sure I want it, both physically and financially. It may become a source of sadness to Olivia as well, as she potentially 'fails' at looking after it.

When I mention the possibility of loaning a more compatible pony instead of buying one, she goes rigid and her eyes well up.  She puts her hands over her ears and says 'you just don't understand mum!'.

So. How to balance sensible, real, concerns of mine with keeping the trust and allowing my daughter to feel like I support and respect her dreams?

Any feedback gratefully received.  Thanks for reading this essay!

Belinda


---In [email protected], <Sandra@...> wrote :

Belinda, when I read your account, I thought all the way through that it was in the “Unschooling Success” topic! :-)

I love these stories of kids choosing something so profound as going to school (as 99+% of the kids in school are powerlessly in “no choice” mode), and then choosing to come home. Children with real power in their own lives. Thank you for sharing in so much detail.

If you have any more energy to do so, maybe you could tell us about her hobby (here or in the unschooling success thread).

Sandra

lucy.web

> On 14 Nov 2015, at 16:16, belinda.dutch@... [AlwaysLearning] <[email protected]> wrote:
>
> When I mention the possibility of loaning a more compatible pony instead of buying one, she goes rigid and her eyes well up. She puts her hands over her ears and says 'you just don't understand mum!'.


I used to ride 'difficult' horses for a living. I also had ponies on loan when I was around your daughter's age. I loved those loan ponies :) The ponies I had on loan were all my responsibility, full time. If I didn't go and feed them then they wouldn't get fed. No-one else in my family was in the slightest bit horsey. My mum or my brother would drive me to the stables if it was raining, and would then sit in the car and wait.


I'm not sure I quite understand the situation with the field. The current loan pony is not at home, but kept at a stables next door? Would an owned pony be kept in the home field? If so, this might be easier for all of you. Personally, I always found other people (like at the riding stables) got in the way of the relationship between me and the horses. And also knowing that someone else rides 'my' pony on other days of the week would have put me off, too ;)


It might be possible to find the right pony to buy, but agree with the seller to have it on loan for a few weeks before finalising the sale. That way your daughter would know that this could be her 'forever' pony if all goes well, but there would be a trial period where she can make sure that she and the pony are compatible.


Lucy

Chetana K

This is what I had written in December of 2013, when my older daughter was 3.5 years old and had decided to experience school. This experiment lasted a few months and the best part about it was the school is right across our house!

**********************************

We live in a house surrounded by schools. Disha has, over the months, been peeking out of our living room window watching the day-to-day proceeding of the school in front of our house. Sometimes, she would spend long minutes looking outside, sometimes she would run outside, sit on the stone by the side of the school playground and observe.

She has friends who attend the school. Over time, she has been seeing them going everyday, in uniform to sit in classrooms with teachers. She has been pretending to be a teacher or a student and playing with friends using the black board and chalk. One morning, about a month back, Disha, announced that she is going to the school. So she packed her bag, went to the classroom where her friend was and sat next to him. She spent two hours on the first day and came back home. Soon, it became an every day thing. Each day she went on her own, stayed for longer. After 4-5 days, she took a break to hang around at home and spent sometime with me reading, drawing and playing. But was back at school the next day.

Every morning she wakes up asking if it is time to go to school and she is off. Breakfast is just something to be had in as minimal time as possible. She helps packing her lunch and school bag.

I used to take Disha along for any errands, meetings or field work. But she has been consistently refusing to come with me, so I have had to leave her at school to get all my work done. Yesterday was the first time I left her at school for 6 hours. We have friends staying over at our place, so I knew that in case she came home, she would find someone who would offer her food or anything else she needs. I also informed our neighbors and the teacher that I will not be available. Most importantly Disha was totally ok with me taking time off!

Disha, did come home and went to use the bathroom. After that she told our friend that she wanted to go back to school and went right back. She did not even look for me!

It was an organic progression for Disha to end up at school. She is there as long as she wants. If she gets bored or overwhelmed, she comes back home. At times she goes back, other times, she is content just staying with me and doing something together. On some other days, she is tired so she comes home, has her lunch and naps. Sometimes, she spends the entire day at school. She comes home singing some song, her teacher sang in school. Yesterday she came back home in 20 mins, saying that her teacher did not come today so she did not want her to go to school. One of the days, she came home and told me how a teacher yelled at her. I went, spoke to the teacher and explained how Disha expects to be treated with respect. Maybe the teacher is not used to a parent coming and telling her something like this or she understood, she was willing to change her tone to be less intimidating.

When I filled out her school admission form, I spoke to the principal and told her that Disha would go to the school on her own terms. For which the principal heartily agreed and so did the nursery teacher. I was initially apprehensive and disappointed, thinking- so much for homeschooling! But did not stop her from doing what she wanted. She clearly enjoys being at school and since our home is right across, she freely comes and goes.

********************************************

This lasted for a few months- from November of 2013 to April of 2014 after which the school closed down for vacation. The next school year she told me in no uncertain terms that she did not want to go to school anymore as her nursery teacher had quit and also her friend had moved to the next class. She did not like the teacher (nor did I, I thought she was quite scary!). But for the longest of time she spoke about her nursery teacher and still remembers her quite fondly at times.


Cheers,
Chetana

Sandra Dodd

-=-One morning, about a month back, Disha, announced that she is going to the school. So she packed her bag, went to the classroom where her friend was and sat next to him. She spent two hours on the first day and came back home. Soon, it became an every day thing. -=-

I’m guessing you’re in India or somewhere, then.

This can’t happen in an American public school. Maybe in a private schoo, but probably not then, either. :-)
A visitor to a school these days (here) needs paperwork, waivers, permissions…. OR more likely, just wouldn’t be allowed.

I think it’s cool that your daughter was able to infiltrate, and visit. ;-)

When I was a kid in the 1960’s, we could take visitors with us to school just for asking and getting permission from the teacher, and they said yes to visiting cousins or travelling-family friends. Many years have passed since then, and the fear of lawsuits is bigger, and the responsibilities of teachers (and teacher union safeguards) change things, too.

So in the U.S., at least, and maybe in other places, a child needs to fully enroll, to try school out.

Holly visited a classroom with her friend twice in a small town in England when we visited in 2000. Holly was eight, and they used her as an interesting show-and-tell element. Probably the other kids had as much fun having a talkative American kid in as Holly had being there. She took American coins to give away—mostly nickels.

Sandra

Chetana K

-=-’m guessing you’re in India or somewhere, then-=-

Yes we live in India and the school across our house is a public one. Its highly improbable that a private school in India will make such accommodations.

Cheers,
Chetana

On Mon, Nov 16, 2015 at 1:33 AM, Sandra Dodd Sandra@... [AlwaysLearning] <[email protected]> wrote:
 

-=-One morning, about a month back, Disha, announced that she is going to the school. So she packed her bag, went to the classroom where her friend was and sat next to him. She spent two hours on the first day and came back home. Soon, it became an every day thing. -=-

I’m guessing you’re in India or somewhere, then.

This can’t happen in an American public school. Maybe in a private schoo, but probably not then, either. :-)
A visitor to a school these days (here) needs paperwork, waivers, permissions…. OR more likely, just wouldn’t be allowed.

I think it’s cool that your daughter was able to infiltrate, and visit. ;-)

When I was a kid in the 1960’s, we could take visitors with us to school just for asking and getting permission from the teacher, and they said yes to visiting cousins or travelling-family friends. Many years have passed since then, and the fear of lawsuits is bigger, and the responsibilities of teachers (and teacher union safeguards) change things, too.

So in the U.S., at least, and maybe in other places, a child needs to fully enroll, to try school out.

Holly visited a classroom with her friend twice in a small town in England when we visited in 2000. Holly was eight, and they used her as an interesting show-and-tell element. Probably the other kids had as much fun having a talkative American kid in as Holly had being there. She took American coins to give away—mostly nickels.

Sandra