Hello-Introduction
Amanda B
Hi all! My name is Amanda. I am a FT/SAHM. I have a wonderfully supportive husband-he may not always understand why I do things, but goes with the flow and a beautiful 13 month old little boy.
We have known since before DS was born that we were going to homeschool. I've been researching trying to find the "right way" to go about it. I find the idea of "unschooling" interesting and believe it is something that will work well for us. So I am here to learn all about it and how to implement it into our daily lives.
Thanks!
We have known since before DS was born that we were going to homeschool. I've been researching trying to find the "right way" to go about it. I find the idea of "unschooling" interesting and believe it is something that will work well for us. So I am here to learn all about it and how to implement it into our daily lives.
Thanks!
plaidpanties666
Hi, Amanda, I'm Meredith, mom to Morgan who's 8 and "always" unschooled, and stepmom to Ray, 16, who's been through school, homeschool and now radical unschooling. Unschooling has been great for our whole family.
Have you been to the "omnibus" unschooling websites yet? They're good places to find lots and lots of information:
http://sandradodd.com/unschooling
http://joyfullyrejoycing.com/
Do you have specific goals? Intentions? Hopes? Unschooling tends to work better when your hopes and intentions revolve around emotional and relational benefits. That's an idea that can take some getting used to - we're sooooo pressured to think of our kids in terms of raising them to be successful, of having certain skills. One of the biggest challenges of newer unschooling parents is stepping back from the idea that "children need to learn...". Learning is a natural outgrowth of living and starting from that assumption can go a long way toward seeing what unschooling "looks like".
Learning happens all the time, just from living. In that sense, there's not much to implement ;) In a larger sense, though, it takes some effort to un-learn some of the expectations most parents bring with them to parenting and "raising" children. Providing a warm, rich environment for kids is important - not because it somehow accelerates learning but because people are happier in warm, rich environments!
Right now, with a baby, the best thing you can do is play and love and observe the wonderful little person you get to share your life with. Learn his cues, his rhythms, and his temperament - that's probably something you're doing already!
---Meredith (Mo 8, Ray 16)
Have you been to the "omnibus" unschooling websites yet? They're good places to find lots and lots of information:
http://sandradodd.com/unschooling
http://joyfullyrejoycing.com/
>> I've been researching trying to find the "right way" to go about it. I find the idea of "unschooling" interesting and believe it is something that will work well for us.***************
Do you have specific goals? Intentions? Hopes? Unschooling tends to work better when your hopes and intentions revolve around emotional and relational benefits. That's an idea that can take some getting used to - we're sooooo pressured to think of our kids in terms of raising them to be successful, of having certain skills. One of the biggest challenges of newer unschooling parents is stepping back from the idea that "children need to learn...". Learning is a natural outgrowth of living and starting from that assumption can go a long way toward seeing what unschooling "looks like".
>>So I am here to learn all about it and how to implement it into our daily lives.****************
Learning happens all the time, just from living. In that sense, there's not much to implement ;) In a larger sense, though, it takes some effort to un-learn some of the expectations most parents bring with them to parenting and "raising" children. Providing a warm, rich environment for kids is important - not because it somehow accelerates learning but because people are happier in warm, rich environments!
Right now, with a baby, the best thing you can do is play and love and observe the wonderful little person you get to share your life with. Learn his cues, his rhythms, and his temperament - that's probably something you're doing already!
---Meredith (Mo 8, Ray 16)
Deb Lewis
***I've been researching trying to find the "right way" to go about it. I find the idea of "unschooling" interesting and believe it is something that will work well for us.*
All kinds of information is available on the internet and some sources of information about unschooling are not as good or not as complete as others. I second Meredith's recommendation of Joyce Fetteroll's site and Sandra Dodd's unschooling site.
Maybe still one of the best definitions I've ever read of unschooling was written by Joyce Fetteroll :
"The most basic principle of unschooling is that children are born with an intrinsic urge to explore -- for a moment or a lifetime -- what intrigues them, as they seek to join the adult world in a personally satisfying way. Because of that urge, an unschooling child is free to choose the what, when, where and how of his/her own learning from mud puddles to video games and SpongeBob Squarepants to Shakespeare! And an unschooling parent sees his/her role, not as a teacher, but as a facilitator and companion in a child's exploration of the world.
Unschooling is a mindful lifestyle which encompasses, at its core, an atmosphere of trust, freedom, joy and deep respect for who the child is. This cannot be lived on a part-time basis. Unschooling sometimes seems so intuitive that people feel they've been doing it all along, not realizing it has a name. Unschooling sometimes seems so counterintuitive that people struggle to understand it, and it can take years to fully accept its worth."
There is a list called "AlwaysUnschooled"' for people with younger kids who've never been to school. You might find that list useful too. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlwaysUnschooled/
Deb Lewis
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
All kinds of information is available on the internet and some sources of information about unschooling are not as good or not as complete as others. I second Meredith's recommendation of Joyce Fetteroll's site and Sandra Dodd's unschooling site.
Maybe still one of the best definitions I've ever read of unschooling was written by Joyce Fetteroll :
"The most basic principle of unschooling is that children are born with an intrinsic urge to explore -- for a moment or a lifetime -- what intrigues them, as they seek to join the adult world in a personally satisfying way. Because of that urge, an unschooling child is free to choose the what, when, where and how of his/her own learning from mud puddles to video games and SpongeBob Squarepants to Shakespeare! And an unschooling parent sees his/her role, not as a teacher, but as a facilitator and companion in a child's exploration of the world.
Unschooling is a mindful lifestyle which encompasses, at its core, an atmosphere of trust, freedom, joy and deep respect for who the child is. This cannot be lived on a part-time basis. Unschooling sometimes seems so intuitive that people feel they've been doing it all along, not realizing it has a name. Unschooling sometimes seems so counterintuitive that people struggle to understand it, and it can take years to fully accept its worth."
There is a list called "AlwaysUnschooled"' for people with younger kids who've never been to school. You might find that list useful too. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlwaysUnschooled/
Deb Lewis
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Amanda B
Hi Meredith!
Thanks for taking the time to respond.
With my little guy, I try to steer clear of reading things that say which milestones he "should" be reaching at what ages and try hard not to compare him to other toddlers I know. I want to let him be his own person and progress at a rate that is right for him. I assist him when he wants to do something that he can't quite do on his own(like climb onto his rocking horse) and try not to force him to do something. He is very open to trying/learning new things(I guess as far as being 13 months can allow).
I guess as far as expectaions are concerned, I don't really have any for him. I know that doesn't sound right. I don't expect him to grow up to be a dr or a police officer, etc. I want him to pursue the things that interest him and I will be supportive whatever that is(as long as he doesn't want to be a criminal :p ) Thats one thing my mother was good about with raising my sisters and I. We were able to become who we wanted.
I want to be able to take trips with him, let him see and experience the world around him. Let him follow his intuitions. I also want him to be able to see the importance of being able to help care for the home/garden/pets/other family members. I'm guessing those he will figure out just by watching and participating in daily life.
Does this all sound "right" ? In my minds eye I have envisioned most of our learning being done this(meaning life learning/unschoolong-are they the same?) way. I want learning to be enjoyable.
Thanks
Amanda
Thanks for taking the time to respond.
With my little guy, I try to steer clear of reading things that say which milestones he "should" be reaching at what ages and try hard not to compare him to other toddlers I know. I want to let him be his own person and progress at a rate that is right for him. I assist him when he wants to do something that he can't quite do on his own(like climb onto his rocking horse) and try not to force him to do something. He is very open to trying/learning new things(I guess as far as being 13 months can allow).
I guess as far as expectaions are concerned, I don't really have any for him. I know that doesn't sound right. I don't expect him to grow up to be a dr or a police officer, etc. I want him to pursue the things that interest him and I will be supportive whatever that is(as long as he doesn't want to be a criminal :p ) Thats one thing my mother was good about with raising my sisters and I. We were able to become who we wanted.
I want to be able to take trips with him, let him see and experience the world around him. Let him follow his intuitions. I also want him to be able to see the importance of being able to help care for the home/garden/pets/other family members. I'm guessing those he will figure out just by watching and participating in daily life.
Does this all sound "right" ? In my minds eye I have envisioned most of our learning being done this(meaning life learning/unschoolong-are they the same?) way. I want learning to be enjoyable.
Thanks
Amanda
--- In [email protected], "plaidpanties666" <meredith@...> wrote:
>
> Hi, Amanda, I'm Meredith, mom to Morgan who's 8 and "always" unschooled, and stepmom to Ray, 16, who's been through school, homeschool and now radical unschooling. Unschooling has been great for our whole family.
>
> Have you been to the "omnibus" unschooling websites yet? They're good places to find lots and lots of information:
>
> http://sandradodd.com/unschooling
> http://joyfullyrejoycing.com/
>
> >> I've been researching trying to find the "right way" to go about it. I find the idea of "unschooling" interesting and believe it is something that will work well for us.
> ***************
>
> Do you have specific goals? Intentions? Hopes? Unschooling tends to work better when your hopes and intentions revolve around emotional and relational benefits. That's an idea that can take some getting used to - we're sooooo pressured to think of our kids in terms of raising them to be successful, of having certain skills. One of the biggest challenges of newer unschooling parents is stepping back from the idea that "children need to learn...". Learning is a natural outgrowth of living and starting from that assumption can go a long way toward seeing what unschooling "looks like".
>
> >>So I am here to learn all about it and how to implement it into our daily lives.
> ****************
>
> Learning happens all the time, just from living. In that sense, there's not much to implement ;) In a larger sense, though, it takes some effort to un-learn some of the expectations most parents bring with them to parenting and "raising" children. Providing a warm, rich environment for kids is important - not because it somehow accelerates learning but because people are happier in warm, rich environments!
>
> Right now, with a baby, the best thing you can do is play and love and observe the wonderful little person you get to share your life with. Learn his cues, his rhythms, and his temperament - that's probably something you're doing already!
>
> ---Meredith (Mo 8, Ray 16)
>
Deb Lewis
Responding to my own post:
I've just had a note that the AlwaysUnschooled list might not be a good choice at the moment.
Here's something to read instead!
http://sandradodd.com/beginning
And this lovely by Pam Sorooshian:
http://sandradodd.com/pam/principles
Deb Lewis
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
I've just had a note that the AlwaysUnschooled list might not be a good choice at the moment.
Here's something to read instead!
http://sandradodd.com/beginning
And this lovely by Pam Sorooshian:
http://sandradodd.com/pam/principles
Deb Lewis
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
plaidpanties666
--- In [email protected], "Amanda B" <Mare_Anne@...> wrote:
To some extent, there's "no right way" - unschooling is life learning or organic learning, those terms are often used interchangeably. Not everyone likes the term "unschooling". Live as if school didn't exist is a common axiom of this lifestyle. There are things that get in the way of unschooling and learning joyfully, though, and folks on this list are always happy to point those kinds of things out.
Travel is a wonderful way to explore and experience! It doesn't always work for every family, though, most especially in the toddler and early childhood years. Its more common for moms to get a little stir-crazy in those years as kids focus on mastering the smaller world of the home and "neighborhood" and can sometimes stress out with too much change. Its generally easier to travel with a baby, though, so if your little one is amenable to traveling right now its a good time to do some exploring of your own and bring him along. You may find that he stays comfortable with traveling - or that he needs some time to "nest" for a few years.
Absolutely! Kids like to help out, but this is also the sort of thing that "looks" different at different ages. Toddlers, with their focus on mastering the home-world, are often very excited to participate in care-taking sorts of tasks ("chores") while older kids who've already grasped those skills may lose interest in "helping" for a few years, in preference for exploring other skills and concepts. Once kids are old enough, developmentally speaking, to really start to take into account others' needs and perspectives on a regular basis (sometime in adolescence) they usually start helping out again, voluntarily.
Its good not to compare and to beware of generalities - despite what I wrote above! At the same time, it can be helpful to know what general developmental trends are. Personally I'm fascinated by human development, so I tend to give out a lot of information on the subject, especially when parents are panicking about something that's really developmentally normal. If thinking in terms of "milestones" is the sort of thing that would stress you out, by all means stay away from that kind of information!
---Meredith (Mo 8, Ray 16)
>> Does this all sound "right" ? In my minds eye I have envisioned most of our learning being done this(meaning life learning/unschoolong-are they the same?) way. I want learning to be enjoyable.******************
To some extent, there's "no right way" - unschooling is life learning or organic learning, those terms are often used interchangeably. Not everyone likes the term "unschooling". Live as if school didn't exist is a common axiom of this lifestyle. There are things that get in the way of unschooling and learning joyfully, though, and folks on this list are always happy to point those kinds of things out.
> I want to be able to take trips with him, let him see and >experience the world around him.**************
Travel is a wonderful way to explore and experience! It doesn't always work for every family, though, most especially in the toddler and early childhood years. Its more common for moms to get a little stir-crazy in those years as kids focus on mastering the smaller world of the home and "neighborhood" and can sometimes stress out with too much change. Its generally easier to travel with a baby, though, so if your little one is amenable to traveling right now its a good time to do some exploring of your own and bring him along. You may find that he stays comfortable with traveling - or that he needs some time to "nest" for a few years.
>> I also want him to be able to see the importance of being able to help care for the home/garden/pets/other family members. I'm guessing those he will figure out just by watching and participating in daily life.***************
Absolutely! Kids like to help out, but this is also the sort of thing that "looks" different at different ages. Toddlers, with their focus on mastering the home-world, are often very excited to participate in care-taking sorts of tasks ("chores") while older kids who've already grasped those skills may lose interest in "helping" for a few years, in preference for exploring other skills and concepts. Once kids are old enough, developmentally speaking, to really start to take into account others' needs and perspectives on a regular basis (sometime in adolescence) they usually start helping out again, voluntarily.
> With my little guy, I try to steer clear of reading things that say which milestones he "should" be reaching at what ages and try hard not to compare him to other toddlers I know.******************
Its good not to compare and to beware of generalities - despite what I wrote above! At the same time, it can be helpful to know what general developmental trends are. Personally I'm fascinated by human development, so I tend to give out a lot of information on the subject, especially when parents are panicking about something that's really developmentally normal. If thinking in terms of "milestones" is the sort of thing that would stress you out, by all means stay away from that kind of information!
---Meredith (Mo 8, Ray 16)