Pam Hartley

> Here's a situation I'd like to see how unschooling would apply.

Unschooling doesn't directly apply to braces (or eating habits or bedtimes),
but once you start to think that children are both capable and entitled to
direct their own education, that thinking tends to leak over into other
areas of family life.

>
> Your child needs braces, not because of major tooth misalignment, but
> because of a hidden jaw alignment that, if not corrected, will
> develop into TMJ in later life. His smile looks fine, his teeth are
> straight and white...but there is a flaw in his bite that will lead
> to health probs down the road. He doesn't want braces. He dislikes
> how they look on people and thinks they would be too painful, esp.
> when he can't see anything wrong with how he looks and no one is
> teasing him about crooked teeth.
>
> Do you have him fitted with braces, anyway?

How certain is it that TMJ *will* develop later in life? Is it really that
predictable, or is it "can" develop? How much later in life? His 20s? 40s?

If it was an absolute this-will-happen-by-the-time-he's-22 vs. a
this-might-happen-when-he's-50 it would affect how urgently I would feel the
need to go against his stated wishes.

>
> Also, your child begins to find an interest in higher learning at
> about age 17...he is nearly at the end of his high school years

snip

>But lack of planning in his earlier years has left
> him with FEWER OPTIONS than he would have had, if there'd been some
> structure and some pushing back there. A child may not know himself
> well enough to realize that formal education is something he wants to
> do...MAY not? I'd venture, he WON'T know himself well enough.
>
> What say ye?


What if he discovered at 17 an urge to become an olympic gymnast? Oh no!
Left too late now, he'll never make it.

What if I discovered last year (at 35) that what I really wanted to do was
become a steeplechase jockey? Whoops! Too late to start a career.

College prep at 17 is a slam-dunk in comparison. Heck, college-prep at 35
would be slam-dunk in comparison!

He could work his way through, as you said. He could do his college prep for
a year or two from home and then apply. He could attend junior college and
get an AA degree and then transfer. He could try qualifying for scholarships
(how many of those have an age limit? All scholarships? Some? What age?) He
could get military aid, or family help.

17 is not the magic age where all humans must decide what they are going to
do for the rest of their lives. If it were, I'd be an accountant today.
Instead, I've been an accountant, dog trainer, and now bookseller. Sometime
I might be something else for a career. I don't feel I'm limited just
because I'm 36.

Pam