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In a message dated 2/9/03 7:37:20 PM, nellebelle@... writes:

<< I don't think people should be offended if they are
told that what they are doing is not unschooling, if unschooling is what
they *want* to be doing. >>

For some reason lots of people want to say they're unschooling, or better yet
have other people say they're unschooling, without really doing it. It's
like some kind of badge of honor. I don't understand it but I've seen it
dozens of times.

Yesterday Holly introduced herself at a little graduation ceremony and said
"I'm Holly Dodd, I'm eleven years old, and I'm unschooled." I cringed. I
need to ask her to say "I'm homeschooled." Because "unschooling" is
gibberish to people who barely know what homeschooling is. It's jargon from
within the homeschooling world. It's nothing anyone outside who thinks kids
should all be in school need to hear anything about.



<<Here is what I think some are saying about unschooling - that we need to
trust our children in everything, not trust them in everything but math, or
everything but feeding themselves, for instance. It doesn't mean that
children are left totally to their own devices either. Parents provide an
environment that includes math/food/etc., and are available to guide and
assist their children in using math/food/etc., and trust that children will
use math/food/etc., as they need to without the parent requiring it of them.>>

I like that and I understand it, but I think it goes too far.
I'm not sure what to say about the full-treatment of kid trust, but I think
the food and the TV and chores stuff, while proving a HUGE big point, is
beyond unschooling in a way. But I have no idea what to call it. And I
think that sometimes those families who DO go beyond "just unschooling" find
unschooling to be easy. Maybe it's just a mark you have to overshoot. Or
maybe when someone sees that learning can work so well, they just know that
trusting their children with other things will work the same simple,
wonderful way.

And maybe it's that if a child is expected to be a person early, not a kid
til 18, not "preparing for the future," maybe part of that rich, early
acknowledgement of their powerful selfhood involves trusting them with their
own lives, while still being entrusted ourselves with shepherding the
peaceful, safe unfolding of it.

It's a big damned unnamed deal.

I don't know what to call it. It's swirling around me, and once in a while a
phrase jumps out, and it's not about "school" or education, it's about
empowerment at a deeper level.

<<Going beyond that, arithmetic and food are things that we use to accomplish
our goals in life, but they are not the end goals by themselves.>>

Yes. But what?

Thanks, Mary Ellen. The water's still muddy, but you're stirring it in a
good place.



Sandra