Re: Lessons
[email protected]
In a message dated 04/08/2002 3:22:33 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[email protected] writes:
guitar lessons from a wonderful woman who talks with him with great respect,
as two people who love music. He's joined a series of enrichment courses at
MIT for ten weeks, and has a blast wandering about the MIT campus, eating
lunch at the cafeteria, figuring out where they might have moved the Music
Theory class THIS week. He is eagerly anticipating a hands-on program this
summer in oceanography in Northern Maine, by the Boston Museum of Science.
When I see an opportunity I think he might like, I mention it to him, and he
decides if he'd like to do it. Sometimes he asks me to keep an eye out for
something specific he'd like to do. At this point, I am the Resource Person
-- he relies on me a lot for outside resource opportunities. I suspect in the
next couple of years that will be changing. (But I am also a
Resource-kinda-gal among adult friends and relatives. I tell all kinds of
people when I see something I think they'll love.)
The thing about the classes and lessons that has happened is: He always seems
to end up learning from people who LOVE what they're doing, and want to share
it. The MIT classes are taught by MIT students who are passionate about the
thing they care about. The Oceanography is led by scientists, and the
assumption is that the kids will act as scientists. I think Julian would run
screaming from a class taught in a less empowering way. And if they tried to
give him a TEST about it...well, forget it. None has been condescending or
"schooly" in any way.
Maybe when you have choices you find people to learn from who see you as a
partner in a journey rather than someone who requires wisdom to be imported
upon.
Kathryn Baptista
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected] writes:
> I think the question is how does your child feel about them. :)My son Julian (12) loves a bunch of structured classes and lessons. He takes
> My question is this: How do unschoolers feel about lessons? Piano lessons,
> swimming lessons, tai chi lessons, etc. I'm talking about where the child
> goes to a place, with another adult, not the parent, and learns in a
> structured way about something. Ever do that? Or is it bad-bad-bad?
>
>
guitar lessons from a wonderful woman who talks with him with great respect,
as two people who love music. He's joined a series of enrichment courses at
MIT for ten weeks, and has a blast wandering about the MIT campus, eating
lunch at the cafeteria, figuring out where they might have moved the Music
Theory class THIS week. He is eagerly anticipating a hands-on program this
summer in oceanography in Northern Maine, by the Boston Museum of Science.
When I see an opportunity I think he might like, I mention it to him, and he
decides if he'd like to do it. Sometimes he asks me to keep an eye out for
something specific he'd like to do. At this point, I am the Resource Person
-- he relies on me a lot for outside resource opportunities. I suspect in the
next couple of years that will be changing. (But I am also a
Resource-kinda-gal among adult friends and relatives. I tell all kinds of
people when I see something I think they'll love.)
The thing about the classes and lessons that has happened is: He always seems
to end up learning from people who LOVE what they're doing, and want to share
it. The MIT classes are taught by MIT students who are passionate about the
thing they care about. The Oceanography is led by scientists, and the
assumption is that the kids will act as scientists. I think Julian would run
screaming from a class taught in a less empowering way. And if they tried to
give him a TEST about it...well, forget it. None has been condescending or
"schooly" in any way.
Maybe when you have choices you find people to learn from who see you as a
partner in a journey rather than someone who requires wisdom to be imported
upon.
Kathryn Baptista
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]