unschooling comfort
Mary
Reading what Pam wrote about how she came to be confident with unschooling has me thinking about something I do think about from time to time.
I don't at all think everyone just get some concepts right away. There are many things that take me awhile before I understand to my comfort level.
Unless I'm not just seeing it though, unschooling, for me has never been a struggle. And the reason why I bring it up is because I'm not sure why it hasn't been, or maybe I just haven't *seen* it.
I've been parenting a lot longer than I've been unschooling and parenting is harder for me to get. I do have to make a definite effort every day to watch what I say or what I do or how I handle a certain situation. I'm hoping as my kids get older, I won't have to as much. I know with Tara now it's so much easier to not do the wrong thing!
We wanted to homeschool way before Joseph was ready to go according to his age. He was 2 when we joined our local homeschool support group. At that time, I wasn't really interested in checking out exactly *how* to go about it. We just knew we wanted to. Within a year, I met someone locally who was very much an unschooler. Knowing more now, I still know she really got it. She explained what it was to her and what they did and didn't do. It all just made so much sense to me right away. Maybe because the kids were still really little. But I did have a daughter in school and my husband and I had always gone to school. I remember telling my husband about it and reading one book about the Colfaxes. I never went searching again for more information. I have read other things, but just because they seemed interesting to me. Not really looking for info.
I just wish my respectful parenting ways came as easy to me as the unschooling did.
Mary B
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I don't at all think everyone just get some concepts right away. There are many things that take me awhile before I understand to my comfort level.
Unless I'm not just seeing it though, unschooling, for me has never been a struggle. And the reason why I bring it up is because I'm not sure why it hasn't been, or maybe I just haven't *seen* it.
I've been parenting a lot longer than I've been unschooling and parenting is harder for me to get. I do have to make a definite effort every day to watch what I say or what I do or how I handle a certain situation. I'm hoping as my kids get older, I won't have to as much. I know with Tara now it's so much easier to not do the wrong thing!
We wanted to homeschool way before Joseph was ready to go according to his age. He was 2 when we joined our local homeschool support group. At that time, I wasn't really interested in checking out exactly *how* to go about it. We just knew we wanted to. Within a year, I met someone locally who was very much an unschooler. Knowing more now, I still know she really got it. She explained what it was to her and what they did and didn't do. It all just made so much sense to me right away. Maybe because the kids were still really little. But I did have a daughter in school and my husband and I had always gone to school. I remember telling my husband about it and reading one book about the Colfaxes. I never went searching again for more information. I have read other things, but just because they seemed interesting to me. Not really looking for info.
I just wish my respectful parenting ways came as easy to me as the unschooling did.
Mary B
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 7/1/2003 4:28:34 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
mummy124@... writes:
Just the other day we were at the fabric store picking out stuff for a Harry
Potter robe. I was SOOO frustrated at Duncan's indecision. Looking back, I see
ALL those fabrics and they're ALL so beautiful and shiny and soft and...well,
I do that too!
But he'd changed his mind only a dozen times or so! Black with blue and
purple. No, black with red and yellow. No, grey with garnet and gold. No, shiny
black with the silvery stars. I was about to pull my hair out!
Finally he blew up at me that it was HIS robe and didn't I understand that he
wanted it a certain way? Why couldn't I see what was important to him?
Gotta love 'im! <G>
It's black with red trim on the hood and mantle with silvery stars on the
sleeves and a black hat with yellow lining. Whew!!!
Short of wanting to strangle him---well, it was more about time and
money---(final cost? $25! and time spent? 1 hour!)
He's going to be SO THRILLED with this robe! It will be all worth it. I'm a
GOOD unschooling mom---a "radical", so I hear---but I still struggle with being
the most respectful mom I can be!
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
mummy124@... writes:
> I just wish my respectful parenting ways came as easy to me as theMe too.
> unschooling did.
Just the other day we were at the fabric store picking out stuff for a Harry
Potter robe. I was SOOO frustrated at Duncan's indecision. Looking back, I see
ALL those fabrics and they're ALL so beautiful and shiny and soft and...well,
I do that too!
But he'd changed his mind only a dozen times or so! Black with blue and
purple. No, black with red and yellow. No, grey with garnet and gold. No, shiny
black with the silvery stars. I was about to pull my hair out!
Finally he blew up at me that it was HIS robe and didn't I understand that he
wanted it a certain way? Why couldn't I see what was important to him?
Gotta love 'im! <G>
It's black with red trim on the hood and mantle with silvery stars on the
sleeves and a black hat with yellow lining. Whew!!!
Short of wanting to strangle him---well, it was more about time and
money---(final cost? $25! and time spent? 1 hour!)
He's going to be SO THRILLED with this robe! It will be all worth it. I'm a
GOOD unschooling mom---a "radical", so I hear---but I still struggle with being
the most respectful mom I can be!
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Mary
From: <kbcdlovejo@...>
<<He's going to be SO THRILLED with this robe! It will be all worth it. I'm
a
GOOD unschooling mom---a "radical", so I hear---but I still struggle with
being
the most respectful mom I can be!>>
Good for you and good for him. I think it helps a lot, well especialldy with
me, when the kids can snap me back to reality. Every now and then Joseph
will say, "well why are you getting mad at me???" That's my note to chill a
bit. Of course Tara will say something, but so far Sierra and Alyssa won't.
I'm actually looking forward to when they will too. It helps me because
sometimes I don't see how I'm getting.
We have summer kids cards for the Blockbuster store for free family movie
rentals. So the first time I got it, I picked out a movie. Then I figured I
would take Alyssa and let her pick, then Sierra and then Joseph. It's only
one movie a day. So I went on Monday with Alyssa and we spent a half an hour
in the family section while she picked one up and said maybe this, then
NOOOOOOO and went along to do it about 100 times. At the end of the time,
before I was just about to scream she ended up telling me what she wanted.
It was the same movie we had just brought back. The 2nd Peter Pan movie. So
I had to tell the girl to get it for me from the bin I had dropped it into.
Then we got to go grocery shopping. I had about $200.00 worth of stuff to
get and Alyssa insists on pushing the cart the whole way. She's not yet 3 so
you can imagine how long it took us. I was trying so hard to be good and I
did a pretty good job if I do have to say so. She was just having such a
good time!!!!
Luckily I made it home before I erupted. My other two came running out of
the house to greet me and helped with bringing in the groceries. I was all
better then. <BG>
Mary B
<<He's going to be SO THRILLED with this robe! It will be all worth it. I'm
a
GOOD unschooling mom---a "radical", so I hear---but I still struggle with
being
the most respectful mom I can be!>>
Good for you and good for him. I think it helps a lot, well especialldy with
me, when the kids can snap me back to reality. Every now and then Joseph
will say, "well why are you getting mad at me???" That's my note to chill a
bit. Of course Tara will say something, but so far Sierra and Alyssa won't.
I'm actually looking forward to when they will too. It helps me because
sometimes I don't see how I'm getting.
We have summer kids cards for the Blockbuster store for free family movie
rentals. So the first time I got it, I picked out a movie. Then I figured I
would take Alyssa and let her pick, then Sierra and then Joseph. It's only
one movie a day. So I went on Monday with Alyssa and we spent a half an hour
in the family section while she picked one up and said maybe this, then
NOOOOOOO and went along to do it about 100 times. At the end of the time,
before I was just about to scream she ended up telling me what she wanted.
It was the same movie we had just brought back. The 2nd Peter Pan movie. So
I had to tell the girl to get it for me from the bin I had dropped it into.
Then we got to go grocery shopping. I had about $200.00 worth of stuff to
get and Alyssa insists on pushing the cart the whole way. She's not yet 3 so
you can imagine how long it took us. I was trying so hard to be good and I
did a pretty good job if I do have to say so. She was just having such a
good time!!!!
Luckily I made it home before I erupted. My other two came running out of
the house to greet me and helped with bringing in the groceries. I was all
better then. <BG>
Mary B
nellebelle
>>>>Alyssa insists on pushing the cart the whole way. She's not yet 3 soyou can imagine how long it took us.>>>>>
Our local grocery store has self check units available and my kids love em. It (seems) takes forever! Oh well, if they decide to get a job as a checker someday they'll have previous experience!
Mary Ellen
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