Nance Confer

What's the thinking here? That I am walking around with candy in my purse? Or that the other Mom has candy sitting out that nobody is allowed to touch? And why are my kids asking me, if it's the latter? It's not my candy. Why don't they ask the other Mom, like they would with anything else in someone else's house? If it was my house, anything is fair game. If you're not at home, why are you asking me?

Nance

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

Hypothetically. ..

Lets say you are with your kids at your friends house and your child
asks you if he can (for example) have some candy.


Cocking A Snook
A Blog for Thinking Parents
http://cockingasnook.wordpress.com/

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

Joyce Fetteroll

On Jan 7, 2007, at 9:40 AM, Nance Confer wrote:

> That I am walking around with candy in my purse?

If it's something that kids would like you to carry around, or is a
solution to problems in the past, why wouldn't you?

> Or that the other Mom has candy sitting out that nobody is allowed
> to touch?

It happens.

> And why are my kids asking me, if it's the latter? It's not my
> candy. Why don't they ask the other Mom, like they would with
> anything else in someone else's house? If it was my house,
> anything is fair game. If you're not at home, why are you asking me?

Because they're shy, perhaps.

Which is why hypotheticals make for lousy discussions. While we can
make up reasonable explanations for the actions someone has made up,
the real solution lies in why something is happening rather than what
is happening.

Joyce

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

kristenhendricks55

I was asking because I wanted to know what someone would do in that
situation. Because I would feel uncomfortable and not know what to
say.

So I wanted others opinions. I never said whose candy it was, and
maybe I DO walk around with candy in my purse. Nothing wrong with
that.

Sorry if I offended you.

Just looking for advice...


--- In [email protected], "Nance Confer"
<marbleface@...> wrote:
>
> What's the thinking here? That I am walking around with candy in
my purse? Or that the other Mom has candy sitting out that nobody is
allowed to touch? And why are my kids asking me, if it's the latter?
It's not my candy. Why don't they ask the other Mom, like they would
with anything else in someone else's house? If it was my house,
anything is fair game. If you're not at home, why are you asking me?
>
> Nance
>
> ************
>
> Hypothetically. ..
>
> Lets say you are with your kids at your friends house and your
child
> asks you if he can (for example) have some candy.
>
>
> Cocking A Snook
> A Blog for Thinking Parents
> http://cockingasnook.wordpress.com/
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Nance Confer

On Jan 7, 2007, at 9:40 AM, Nance Confer wrote:

> That I am walking around with candy in my purse?

If it's something that kids would like you to carry around, or is a
solution to problems in the past, why wouldn't you?

**Exactly. Only it's usually candy I like -- mints, in my case. The kids have pockets for whatever they want -- usually. Unless they need to stuff something into my purse, which they are welcome to do. All this fuss over who gets to control the treats and I can't even find a pen in my purse half the time. .. :)



> Or that the other Mom has candy sitting out that nobody is allowed
> to touch?

It happens.

> And why are my kids asking me, if it's the latter? It's not my
> candy. Why don't they ask the other Mom, like they would with
> anything else in someone else's house? If it was my house,
> anything is fair game. If you're not at home, why are you asking me?

Because they're shy, perhaps.

Which is why hypotheticals make for lousy discussions.

**Which is was my point. :)

Nance




Cocking A Snook
A Blog for Thinking Parents
http://cockingasnook.wordpress.com/

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

stacisenatore

My daughter is 7yrs.old. She loves being unschooled but it somewhat
worries me that she never wants to do extracirrcular activities. She
takes dance but even though she loves it when she gets there, she never
wants to go. Should I make her? We have already paid for her costumes.
I've suggested of other activities also music,gymnasitics,sports etc.
but no luck. She is very social when she is around others and children
seem to like her very much.She is alone so much and I think thats okay
but I would
like some feedback. Thank you, Staci

Tonya Matthews

Hi Staci,

I have a son that often digs his heels in about going places (events
he's wanted to go, parties, classes, team sports, etc etc!!), too.
I've gone over this time and time again. In my own head, with him,
with my husband, friends, therapists and this is what I've decided.
I would be at a loss. Going over it in my head, trying to be mindful
of him.. I'm sure you know what I mean.

Many times he'll thank us for taking him to the event after he's dug
his heels in so deep not to go!

My conclusion is that Yes, I will have to *make* him go sometimes.
(He's old enough to stay alone) We've also found out that what he's
feeling is anxiety. Transitions can be hard.

I think you should talk to your daughter. Ask her about what makes her
not want to go. Does she *really* like dancing? Ask for her input on
what you should do when she starts to get tense and say she doesn't
want to go. She may have ideas for you! I'd also de-brief after. Go
over what happened and review how happy she seems *after* and could
she try to remember that when she says she doesn't want to go.

I do this *all the time* with my son. It doesn't always seem to help
but he's only getting better. Itty bitty teensy weensy baby steps at a
time.

Hope that helps,
Warm regards,
Tonya in MA

Proud mama to Christian -11 1/2, Rory -7 1/2, Alannah -3 1/2

She loves being unschooled but it somewhat
> worries me that she never wants to do extracirrcular activities. She
> takes dance but even though she loves it when she gets there, she
never
> wants to go. Should I make her? We have already paid for her
costumes.
>

beth1813

Staci-

Why does it worry you that she does not want to do certain activities? What is it that you
are worrying about? Socialization? Motivation? Schedule? Exposure? Does your daughter
share your concern or is she content with her current situation? If she is happy and is not
asking for more stimulation, then could that indicate that it is your own need and not hers
that is at play?

It caught my eye that you used the word "extracurricular." If I am willing to trust my child
to learn without a curriculum-- then it makes sense to me that I should extend that trust
to anything "extracurricular", too.

> even though she loves it when she gets there, she never
> wants to go.

Kids are so great at living in the moment. They can get caught up in the *now* and it
makes it more challenging for them to leave their current situation to move on to another.
If she wants to take ballet, but has trouble with the transitioning, then you two can discuss
ways to make the transition smoother for her.

>"Should I make her?"

This question raises several concerns for me. First, I am wary of any sentence that starts
with *should.* "Should" is often an arbitrary, cultural expectation that falls to pieces upon
a thorough examination. Secondly, why would you "make" anyone do anything? I don't find
value in things that other people force upon me.

My daughter took ballet when she was 5. We paid quite a bit for the class, costumes,
shoes, pictures etc. After awhile she stopped wanting to go, even though she did still
have fun when she chose to go. She explained to me that she loved ballet, but the dances
they did were not graceful or beautiful, It bothered her that they had to dance to songs
like "Teddy Bear's Picnic" and "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." For her ballet was dramatic,
classical music and graceful movements. Eventually she asked if she could stop going. She
still dances at home everyday. She loves it- but I often think that if we had "made" her
finish out her ballet classes, then she might have lost that joy. I wonder if I had prioritized
the money and made her continue to "get my money's worth" what she would have felt
about ballet? How much would that have damaged our relationship?

Hope that helps...

Beth

Jennifer Dion

We live in Michigan but my husband has taken a job in Arizona.The kids and I are staying here until the house sells. (I think we will be here a while). Anyway, how hard is it to unschool there? Michigan gives the parents total freedom to home school/unschool.Which is great.I am so nervous about moving that far away and not knowing if I can unschool there. If any of you are from Arizona please send some information my way.
Jennifer, Mike
Forrest 12, Madeline 8,Christian 5, and Brendan 3


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

Heather

Hey Jennifer,

Arizona is a GREAT place to unschool.
Here is a link from our homeschool website about Arizona regulations.
Basically, you let the school superintendent know you
will be homeschooling by filling out an affadavit & that is it!
http://www.hozho.homestead.com/ArizonaRevisedStatutes.html

Where in Arizona will you be?
You might also be interested in HENA. It is a state-wide homeschool
association with links to homeschool groups around the state.
http://www.hena.us/ They just put on their first weekend conference. It
was great & very unschool-friendly :)

Feel free to contact me off list.

heather
in tucson
swingdancechick@...

On 3/22/07, Jennifer Dion <maggielou007@...> wrote:
>
> We live in Michigan but my husband has taken a job in Arizona.The kids
> and I are staying here until the house sells. (I think we will be here a
> while). Anyway, how hard is it to unschool there? Michigan gives the parents
> total freedom to home school/unschool.Which is great.I am so nervous about
> moving that far away and not knowing if I can unschool there. If any of you
> are from Arizona please send some information my way.
> .
>
>
>


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

Twila Francis

I used to live in Arizona although I don't now and it
is a pretty good state. There are no testing and no
record keeping but you do have to file a notice of
intent. Here is a website you can see the laws for
Arizona and any other state. It gives an idea of how
strict each state is and compares to the other states


http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

--- Jennifer Dion <maggielou007@...> wrote:

> We live in Michigan but my husband has taken a job
> in Arizona.The kids and I are staying here until the
> house sells. (I think we will be here a while).
> Anyway, how hard is it to unschool there? Michigan
> gives the parents total freedom to home
> school/unschool.Which is great.I am so nervous about
> moving that far away and not knowing if I can
> unschool there. If any of you are from Arizona
> please send some information my way.
> Jennifer, Mike
> Forrest 12, Madeline 8,Christian 5, and Brendan 3
>
>
> ---------------------------------
> It's here! Your new message!
> Get new email alerts with the free Yahoo! Toolbar.
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>
>




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Shannon G.

I am rather new to all of the concepts of radical unschooling. I have pretty much been very laid back about teaching my kids and amazingly they pick up stuff as they go along and show tons of interest in all kinds of cool stuff.
I have never had a problem with letting my kids do things in their own time, I let them wean when they are ready, cosleep until they are ready to sleep alone, potty train when they are ready etc..well this is where my problem comes in. My 1st child potty trained at 2, my 2nd child at 2 1/2, my 3rd kid was a very easy going guy and was in no hurry to potty train and did not potty train until he was over 4 years old..I thought that was quite old to potty train but I let him wait until he was ready and when he was ready one day he just said he did not want diapers anymore and that was that.
Well..my 4th kid is 5 years and 3 months old and REFUSES to potty train. He will NOT do it. He knows how..he knows exactly when he needs to go but just refuses to go in the toilet. I have tried all kinds of stuff including not mentoning it at all...but...how far should I go with letting him do this at his own time? What should I do?? just leave it as a non issue and let him figure it out??
Shannon

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

Melissa

I would work really hard on figuring out WHY he won't use the toilet.
My daughter was nearly five, and the reason (I finally figured) was
that the noise was really more than her sensory system could handle.
Not only was there the flush, but every thing from the urine hitting
the water, to the drain that happened to kick in sometimes while
you're sitting there, was just overwhelming, especially in a tile
bathroom that echoed the sounds. We started by putting down carpet
and putting lots of towel racks in the wall (the hanging towels
muffle sounds, I just couldn't bring myself to hang rugs in the
bathroom!) When that still didn't work, we bought a camping potty
(basically a five gallon bucket deal, with a seat that fit on the
top) She was able to use that, and that was much better than 1)
changing pull ups on a five year old and 2) finding piles and puddles
around the house. :-)
As time passed, she was better able to deal with the noise, and she
slowly transitioned from the potty to the toilet. It helped that we
were having her dump the bucket after a while. It was easier for her
to do that, than it was to go directly, because there was a lot more
control on her part, she wasn't vulnerable and unable to escape. If
that makes sense.

Anyway, the short side of that story is to figure out why and then
make your plans from there. He'll do it in his own time anyway, if
there's anything I've figured out by now is that eating and pooping
are two things you really can't do much to help with. You can
facilitate, you can make it easier for him to choose that, but it has
to come in his own time.

Melissa
Mom to Josh (12), Breanna (10), Emily (8), Rachel (7), Sam (6), Dan
(4), and Avari Rose (19 months)

share our lives at
http://360.yahoo.com/multimomma
>
> Well..my 4th kid is 5 years and 3 months old and REFUSES to potty
> train. He will NOT do it. He knows how..he knows exactly when he
> needs to go but just refuses to go in the toilet. I have tried all
> kinds of stuff including not mentoning it at all...but...how far
> should I go with letting him do this at his own time? What should I
> do?? just leave it as a non issue and let him figure it out??
> Shannon
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>



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

mom_to_kbcj

> Well..my 4th kid is 5 years and 3 months old and REFUSES to potty
train. He will NOT do it. He knows how..he knows exactly when he
needs to go but just refuses to go in the toilet. I have tried all
kinds of stuff including not mentoning it at all...but...how far
should I go with letting him do this at his own time? What should I
do?? just leave it as a non issue and let him figure it out??
> Shannon


*******Hi Shannon,
I have no advice for you <g> my ds turned 5 in June (4th child) and
he poops in a diaper. I really don't know why either, he just says
he's not old enough to poop in the toilet, which is funny because he
knows other 5 yr olds and they use the toilet. He has peed in the pot
since he was 2 no accidents in that department. Maybe it's his last
thing of babyhood left, I'm not sure but I do know that I will NOT
force him. I believe that he will go when he is ready, it's kind of
odd but I was just asking other unschoolers if they had experience
with this. I'm looking forward to the responses here. But I believe
the bottom line is he will do it when he is ready just like
everything else.

Stephanie

http://learningthroughliving-stephanie.blogspot.com

[email protected]

In a message dated 8/8/2007 3:34:24 P.M. Central Daylight Time,
jay_steph93@... writes:

> Well..my 4th kid is 5 years and 3 months old and REFUSES to potty
train. He will NOT do it. He knows how..he knows exactly when he
needs to go but just refuses to go in the toilet. I have tried all
kinds of stuff including not mentoning it at all...but...kinds of
should I go with letting him do this at his own time? What should I
do?? just leave it as a non issue and let him figure it out??
> Shannon



Well ladies my son is 10 and he still has problems to with bowel movements
acidents. I have taken him to Dr's about this and he is a bed wetter and has
some accidents with urinating his pants during the day. They have him on
medication for that but can not give me an explanation for the bowel movement
problem. All I can tell you is have patience. The Dr told me sometimes children
just are having difficulty with doing it but they assure me when he is ready
he will do it.



************************************** Get a sneak peek of the all-new AOL at
http://discover.aol.com/memed/aolcom30tour


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

Mara

There has yet to be a healthy adult in diapers. It
took my first son a long time as well and a friend of
his went even longer, at least to 5.6 y.o. Yes, he
will do it in his own time when he is ready. Maybe
offer that he can go diaperless and that you would
put one on him if he needs it to go in it. This way
he would not have to walk around in them all day but
they are there when he wants them to. This is how I
did it with my oldest, until one day we were out and
for some reason I did not have another diaper and I
asked him if he could just go in the toilet this one
time, he did it no problem and after he realized that
it was not so hard as he had imagined he was ready to
go without completely.
Mara

--- mom_to_kbcj <jay_steph93@...> wrote:

> > Well..my 4th kid is 5 years and 3 months old and
> REFUSES to potty
> train. He will NOT do it. He knows how..he knows
> exactly when he
> needs to go but just refuses to go in the toilet. I
> have tried all
> kinds of stuff including not mentoning it at
> all...but...how far
> should I go with letting him do this at his own
> time? What should I
> do?? just leave it as a non issue and let him figure
> it out??
> > Shannon
>
>
> *******Hi Shannon,
> I have no advice for you <g> my ds turned 5 in June
> (4th child) and
> he poops in a diaper. I really don't know why
> either, he just says
> he's not old enough to poop in the toilet, which is
> funny because he
> knows other 5 yr olds and they use the toilet. He
> has peed in the pot
> since he was 2 no accidents in that department.
> Maybe it's his last
> thing of babyhood left, I'm not sure but I do know
> that I will NOT
> force him. I believe that he will go when he is
> ready, it's kind of
> odd but I was just asking other unschoolers if they
> had experience
> with this. I'm looking forward to the responses
> here. But I believe
> the bottom line is he will do it when he is ready
> just like
> everything else.
>
> Stephanie
>
> http://learningthroughliving-stephanie.blogspot.com
>
>




____________________________________________________________________________________
Moody friends. Drama queens. Your life? Nope! - their life, your story. Play Sims Stories at Yahoo! Games.
http://sims.yahoo.com/

Karen Buxcel

This is something we've been living with for a while, too, the pooping
thing, anyway. My ds will be 6 in a few days, and usually has the peeing
thing down, but hasn't been ready to poop in the toily on a consistent
basis.

Here's a bit of a run-down. I would love an outside perspective, ideas, I'm
completely out of ideas and am just handling each incident as it comes, and
breathing a WHOLE LOT.

He wears undies, hasn't asked to go in diapers. But, he'll go days without
pooping. Or, I should say, without *fully* pooping, because while he
doesn't technically go in the toilet, he's going, little bits at a time, in
his underwear. There are days when I clean him up 3 or 4 or more times.
Then, when he's feeling relaxed, and I can see his cues and catch him in
time and help him get to the toilet, he'll have a bm there. Then, the cycle
repeats. Days of 'skid marks' in his pants, followed by a full poop in the
toilet. Yesterday, I found little pieces of poop that had fallen out of his
shorts all over the front porch and down the sidewalk.

We've tried the pull-up thing. He'll poop and pee in it all day long, and
he isn't interested in changing it, until it's literally leaking out through
his shorts, and even then he's not asking for me to change it (nor would I
expect him to have to ask to be changed) and will sometimes even grumble
when I suggest changing it and cleaning him up.

We've not seen a dr. about this, because I don't think there's anything
medically wrong, I just think he gets relaxed when he's playing, he feels
the urge, he tries to contain the urge by holding it in (so he doesn't have
to take a break in the playing) but his body will inevitably push out some,
no matter how hard he tries to hold it in.

So, any ideas? I'm willing to try ANYTHING!!! Thanks so much!
Karen

--
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know
peace."
Jimi Hendrix


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

turnedupcorners

Hi all you very patient mommys, (I so wish I had been unschooling when
mine was that young, oh to do it all over).. any way, I am wondering if
maybe you could make the toilet a fun thing? Sounds crazy but maybe if
you talked about 'where' the poop goes or researched some pictures of a
sewer system or looked at some books on how septic tanks work? Might
be a bit advanced for the little ones but if it makes the whole
experience less scary and more interesting...maybe try putting
different flushable items in the toilet together, watch it go down and
talk about..hmm where is is going? It's sounding really crazy now, but
ya never know?
hang in there, in good time :o)
Andrea

--- In [email protected], "Karen Buxcel"
<thewildtribe@...> wrote:
>
> This is something we've been living with for a while, too, the pooping
> thing, anyway. My ds will be 6 in a few days, and usually has the
peeing
> thing down, but hasn't been ready to poop in the toily on a consistent
> basis.
>

wisdomalways5

--- In [email protected], "Karen Buxcel"
<thewildtribe@...> wrote:
>
> This is something we've been living with for a while, too, the pooping
> thing, anyway. My ds will be 6 in a few days, and usually has the
peeing
> thing down, but hasn't been ready to poop in the toily on a consistent
> basis.
>

I think it is harder for boys to get this concept when they pee
standing up it is hard to transition to pooping where it is a sit down
thing. Girls are already sitting so they go when they go. Just wanted
to make sure they "knew" they could pee sitting down when they also
felt the urge to poop.

Also if you watch children they squat and poop which is a whole
differnt postition than sitting on the toliet. I think that is why kids
poop when playing because they are squatting not sitting. I am not sure
how to remedy this but I think toliets are designed all wrong because
we are made to squat not sit

JulieH

Brian & Alexandra Polikowsky

there is a name for that. he is constipated that is why this happens in the case of your son. Look it up ways to help him have a full bowel movement.
My nephew had it and is now "cured".
sorry NAK
Alex


----- Original Message -----
From: Karen Buxcel
To: [email protected]
Sent: Thursday, August 09, 2007 9:58 AM
Subject: Re: [unschoolingbasics] Re: question


This is something we've been living with for a while, too, the pooping
thing, anyway. My ds will be 6 in a few days, and usually has the peeing
thing down, but hasn't been ready to poop in the toily on a consistent
basis.

Here's a bit of a run-down. I would love an outside perspective, ideas, I'm
completely out of ideas and am just handling each incident as it comes, and
breathing a WHOLE LOT.

He wears undies, hasn't asked to go in diapers. But, he'll go days without
pooping. Or, I should say, without *fully* pooping, because while he
doesn't technically go in the toilet, he's going, little bits at a time, in
his underwear. There are days when I clean him up 3 or 4 or more times.
Then, when he's feeling relaxed, and I can see his cues and catch him in
time and help him get to the toilet, he'll have a bm there. Then, the cycle
repeats. Days of 'skid marks' in his pants, followed by a full poop in the
toilet. Yesterday, I found little pieces of poop that had fallen out of his
shorts all over the front porch and down the sidewalk.

We've tried the pull-up thing. He'll poop and pee in it all day long, and
he isn't interested in changing it, until it's literally leaking out through
his shorts, and even then he's not asking for me to change it (nor would I
expect him to have to ask to be changed) and will sometimes even grumble
when I suggest changing it and cleaning him up.

We've not seen a dr. about this, because I don't think there's anything
medically wrong, I just think he gets relaxed when he's playing, he feels
the urge, he tries to contain the urge by holding it in (so he doesn't have
to take a break in the playing) but his body will inevitably push out some,
no matter how hard he tries to hold it in.

So, any ideas? I'm willing to try ANYTHING!!! Thanks so much!
Karen

--
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know
peace."
Jimi Hendrix

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





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

Manisha Kher

--- Karen Buxcel <thewildtribe@...> wrote:

> He wears undies, hasn't asked to go in diapers.
> But, he'll go days without
> pooping. Or, I should say, without *fully* pooping,
> because while he
> doesn't technically go in the toilet, he's going,
> little bits at a time, in
> his underwear. There are days when I clean him up 3
> or 4 or more times.

Karen,

This sounds to me like encopresis. My daughter had it
following months of chronic constipation. Look that up
online. Here's one link I found -
http://kidshealth.org/parent/general/sick/encopresis.html

Manisha




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Barbara

Hello all..I consider my family to be very relaxed homeschoolers, we do math, reading, and language daily as well as history every week, but the rest is come what may. However, I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted to ask real "unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children, in elementary and beyond. Thanks for any ideas!

Barbara Colwell
barbaracolwell@...

Joyce Fetteroll

On Oct 25, 2010, at 5:53 PM, Barbara wrote:

> so I wanted to ask real "unschoolers" how they go about introducing
> science to their children, in elementary and beyond.

The answer probably won't be satisfying to you.

One aspect of understanding unschooling is seeing how the world
interconnects in order to let go of the idea of artificially dividing
the world into subjects. Science, math, history, language, writing,
engineering, sociology, architecture, computers ... they're all
intertwined and part of everything.

An unschooler learns science the same way he learns to speak. He'll
pick up as much as he needs when he needs it. He'll add bits to it as
he lives and absorbs. He'll refine his understanding as more bits are
added, as more connections happen.

Science will come from movies, from doing things to see what will
happen, from observing life, from conversations, from asking questions
-- the questions are more important than the answers actually :-),
from seeing connections between very different bits of the world.

Unschooled kids who are fascinated by how the world works will
naturally do more things that look like science just because it
fascinates them. You won't be able to stop them! Other kids will do
things that look less like science but will still be building an
understanding of how the world works and absorbing science facts from
living in a home where curiosity is part of the environment.

Joyce



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

Renee Cooper

// I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted to ask real
"unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children, in
elementary and beyond //



I'll leave the "beyond" to others. J For us, here's some of the stuff we do
that could be considered science:

- Checking out books from the library with wacky experiments in
them and doing them for fun

- TV: Mythbusters is a huge fave right now. They also like Planet
Earth and some of the animal-related shows we find on Netflix.

- We get National Geographic Kids magazine and they also like the
videos on the website.

- We grow stuff. We have a garden and flowers and fruit trees and
a worm bin and the kids love to participate along with us.

- They learn stuff about animals by having pets and by visiting the
zoo and aquarium and the local farms and the Serpetarium and so forth.

- We've gone whale watching and we've driven up to the mountains
where they've gotten to see deer and elk and other wildlife in person.

- We go geocaching

- My kids gravitate to the science section at the library and often
come home with a pile of nature books.

- We have an Usborne Children's Encyclopedia and my son in
particular loves to look through the pictures of space and the planets and
sea life and dinosaurs and so forth.

- We had a membership to the local Flight Museum for a year and the
kids just loved going there and climbing on the planes and looking at stuff.

- We have a local science center to visit

- We have 3 Children's Museums, all of which have some hands-on
science exhibits

- There's a local sci-fi museum that's pretty cool

- We go on family walks (we have dogs to walk!) around the local
trails and my kids hunt slugs and try to spot turtles and other life

- We look for constellations and watch the moon wax and wane

- We go down and look for salmon when they are running.

- The kids look for and collect interesting rocks, leaves, sticks
and whatnot

- My daughter is a Brownie girl scout, and they are doing Water
Journey this fall which is all about water.



None of this is rigorous participation in the scientific method. But it's
fun and our kids are young. When they are older we will offer them the
opportunity to take on science in a more traditional fashion if they are
interested. There are science camps in the summer around here, and our
homeschooling group has a Young Inventors and Inventors clubs as well as
Lego League to participate in. There's 4-H and Wilderness School and
probably other opportunities for natural science in a more structured
setting.



-Renee



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Schuyler

Science is a way of looking at the world. It's a method of finding things out.
It isn't a history or a set of facts, although that is often the way it is
described. In our home science is a tool we use to describe and discuss the
things around us. It's weighing and measuring information and opinions and the
things we see and experience. It isn't done in a teaching setting, there isn't
any introduction to science, it just is a part of the many and varied
conversations we have.

Schuyler



________________________________
From: Barbara <barbaracolwell@...>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, 25 October, 2010 22:53:01
Subject: [unschoolingbasics] question

Hello all..I consider my family to be very relaxed homeschoolers, we do math,
reading, and language daily as well as history every week, but the rest is come
what may. However, I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted to
ask real "unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children,
in elementary and beyond. Thanks for any ideas!

Barbara Colwell
barbaracolwell@...

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Kelly Lovejoy

Renee's list was excellent, and I sent it on to Sandra to be included on her website somewhere.


I also wanted to mention Bob Krampf's Experiments of the Week. Go to his website http://thehappyscientist.com/ and subscribe to his FREE weekly newsletter to get an experiment in your inbox every (almost) Monday.


None of his experiments require expensive equipment: he uses simple household items. Not to say that a microscope or telescope isn't a great addition to any home! <G>


If you like a certain experiment, you can find similar/related ones in the archives.


You can support his work with a meager $20/year and have TONS of science fun at your fingertips.


~Kelly

Kelly Lovejoy
"There is no single effort more radical in its potential for saving the world than a transformation of the way we raise our children." Marianne Williamson



-----Original Message-----
From: Renee Cooper <rmilller@...>


// I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted to ask real
"unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children, in
elementary and beyond //





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otherstar

>>>None of his experiments require expensive equipment: he uses simple household items. Not to say that a microscope or telescope isn't a great addition to any home! <G><<<

When I read this, I was reminded of how much fun a microscope has been to have in the house. My husband has the one that he had when he was a kid. He loves sharing it with the kids. We have since found another one at a thrift store. We have also found telescopes and other cool "sciency" stuff at thrift stores too. My girls have picked up on his interest in looking at things under the microscope. I will never forget the time my daughter skinned her knee while riding her bike. While she was sitting there bleeding, she decided that it would be cool to see what her blood looks like under the microscope. We doctored her up and saved some of her blood so we could look at it under the microscope. I think we still have the slide in our slide collection. We were at a store one time and my daughters found a set of prepared slides and had to have them. They have been an unending source of fun. Just last night, we were sitting watching TV and my oldest says, "Hey mom, I wonder what salt looks like under the microscope." I have no idea where it came from but we got out the microscope and they proceeded to look at salt. That led to a quick look at pepper which led to them digging through the slide box.

My oldest has always loved stuff that falls under the category of science. We never introduce her to stuff while thinking about science though. Science tends to naturally occur because there are so many cool things that can be considered science. Cleaning out my drains with vinegar and baking soda usually gets the kids attention because they love seeing the bubbles. There are so many things that we do in a day that can be considered science. When taking a bath, my girls have noticed that the water rises each time somebody gets in even though the water is off. When they shake up their cokes and explode them, that is science. Cooking in the kitchen is science. The discussion my husband and I had about the tires on his car losing air pressure when it got cold was science. My husband's love of amateur radio, astronomy, and making homemade beer (including root beer and soda) is science. There is a good chance that you can find science in pretty much anything. There is no need to isolate it from everyday living.

Connie


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[email protected]

Well said, Schuyler. I don't know how we would get through a day without science and scientific thinking.

Nance


--- In [email protected], Schuyler <s.waynforth@...> wrote:
>
> Science is a way of looking at the world. It's a method of finding things out.
> It isn't a history or a set of facts, although that is often the way it is
> described. In our home science is a tool we use to describe and discuss the
> things around us. It's weighing and measuring information and opinions and the
> things we see and experience. It isn't done in a teaching setting, there isn't
> any introduction to science, it just is a part of the many and varied
> conversations we have.
>
> Schuyler
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Barbara <barbaracolwell@...>
> To: [email protected]
> Sent: Monday, 25 October, 2010 22:53:01
> Subject: [unschoolingbasics] question
>
> Hello all..I consider my family to be very relaxed homeschoolers, we do math,
> reading, and language daily as well as history every week, but the rest is come
> what may. However, I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted to
> ask real "unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children,
> in elementary and beyond. Thanks for any ideas!
>
> Barbara Colwell
> barbaracolwell@...
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Vickisue Gray

Here's a link to my blog which has a couple of posts on how my son has learned
science. It's not an all inclusive list, but maybe it will help you see how he
learns?
I also tend to add links for future reference so possibly some of them will
be useful to you.

http://balderdashandblokus.blogspot.com/search/label/science

http://homeschoolblogger.com/momflippediswow/777412/

My son read a bunch of Stephen Hawkings' books on Black Holes
and physics, which has lead him into further studies of the Cosmos
and such. We have now rented tons of movies including Carl Sagon and all
the Star Trek series. Yes, we are aware that Star Trek is just a 'TV Series'
but it is entertaining and has lead to many discussions and math formulas
being worked, etc, etc. It has also lent itself for discussion on which writers
tried to hold on to facts and science and which ones just ran with a story line
regardless of physics.

Peace and Laughter,
Vicki




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rebecca de

I'm starting to recognize the 'science' around our household also. Just last
night my 4 year old and I had a discussion -- prompted by him about what other
animals lay eggs.... I was fascinated on what animals besides birds he knew laid
eggs. Than he phrased a question to me "now what other animals lay eggs?"
These moments may not come every single day so distinct , however when you
really look at what science entails you find more. Even making ice cubes
(states - liquid to solids), baking, etc

Rebecca De Hate
www.the-team.biz/mv978831
http://readingsbyrebecca.vpweb.com




________________________________
From: "marbleface@..." <marbleface@...>
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tue, October 26, 2010 8:45:15 AM
Subject: [unschoolingbasics] Re: question


Well said, Schuyler. I don't know how we would get through a day without science
and scientific thinking.

Nance

--- In [email protected], Schuyler <s.waynforth@...> wrote:
>
> Science is a way of looking at the world. It's a method of finding things out.

> It isn't a history or a set of facts, although that is often the way it is
> described. In our home science is a tool we use to describe and discuss the
> things around us. It's weighing and measuring information and opinions and the

> things we see and experience. It isn't done in a teaching setting, there isn't

> any introduction to science, it just is a part of the many and varied
> conversations we have.
>
> Schuyler
>
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Barbara <barbaracolwell@...>
> To: [email protected]
> Sent: Monday, 25 October, 2010 22:53:01
> Subject: [unschoolingbasics] question
>
> Hello all..I consider my family to be very relaxed homeschoolers, we do math,
> reading, and language daily as well as history every week, but the rest is come
>
> what may. However, I feel that we don't get nearly enough science so I wanted
>to
>
> ask real "unschoolers" how they go about introducing science to their children,
>
> in elementary and beyond. Thanks for any ideas!
>
> Barbara Colwell
> barbaracolwell@...
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>







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Debra Rossing

Not to mention that Star Trek ideas are already in existence or being
worked on...ever notice how cell phones often flip open like Star Trek
communication devices? Ever wonder who got the idea for the MRI? Did you
know that physicists and others are trying to figure out how to make
transporter technology actually work? They even reference it ON Star
Trek TNG sort of - they refer to a Heisenberg compensator or something
like that...it compensates for the (current) fact that you can't know
the location and motion of an atom at the same time (to put it really
unscientifically). There was a show on TV (Discovery channel maybe?) a
while back that looked at a whole list of things that came about because
Star Trek had a 'thing' and real people said "that would cool to have,
how can I make that happen?"

Deb R


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