Kelly Lenhart

For me the most interesting part was the last few paragraphs about
"possible flaws in the study." -sigh-

http://tinyurl.com/38pkp

Kelly

Kelly Ferry

A couple of weeks ago I took the great advice I got
here and told Tyler that I won't make him stay home or
go to school, that if he needs to take a day off from
school (5th grade) he can with no questions asked.
He's gone every day since with a smile on his face and
has managed his own work load with just the one
reminder he asked me to give him in the evening. Then
someone told me about their experience with that
growing up-how her Mom would let her take mental
health days but that she had to have some activity or
project planned. Apparently that stuck in my school
mode head as a "good idea."

So when Tyler told me last night that he wanted to
take today off, I blurted out "Well, fine. But you're
not going to stay home and play gameboy all day like
you did today. You'll need to plan some kind of
project or have some kind of work you can do."

Uh.

Duh.

So he said never mind (of course), but then we all
overslept this morning and he missed the bus. He
wanted me to drive him, but I couldn't immediately
because I had to get breakfast for the baby.

We started discussing school/no school. I have
succeeded in confusing the hell out of the poor kid
and now he doesn't know what he "should" do. He said
that if he stays home he just wants to lay around and
do nothing. Of course! He needs to deschool! I am
learning to speak more openly with him, but struggling
with allowing him to see that I am not *in control* of
my own thinking.

He's home and I told him that if he has a ton of work
to make up, it's up to him if he wants to do it or
not. I also offered to help if he wants help.

See, his grandpa pays him $10 for every A he gets, so
he's invested in grades. I think that's a huge
mistake, and am trying to find a way to gently pull
out of that, but don't think there is a gentle way. He
wants to do all of the homework and classwork, even
though he knows the material already; because each
assignment counts towards final grade. It's not about
the material, that's for sure.

He said that if he doesn't do his work, he feels like
he's not doing his best work, then got mad and said
"Now I'm starting to sound like the stupid principal!
He's brainwashing me!"

Yes he is!!! and alas, so am I!

He then made the observation that he feels like the
principal is like the owner of a big company and that
the students are all like little workers.

Yeah! They're not LIKE that, they ARE that. So we
talked about how the education system is a business
that employs a lot of people who are all invested in
the success of the school in terms of #'s-grades and
test scores-because then the govt. gives the school
more money!

So some backpedalling today and praying. He spent an
hour or so on the floor in his room playing with all
of his Mage Knight figures. He hasn't played with
those in months. He's got out the wooden blocks and is
building fortresses for them and making a big battle
plan.

Now he just got the acoustic guitar we bought at a
yard sale out of the garage and cleaned it up. We
watched *School of Rock* the other night and it
convinced him of what he's been thinking for a few
months, that he wants to learn to play electric
guitar. We can't swing that right at the moment, would
have to save for a bit, but we do have this acoustic
one that sounds great, and only cost us $2. So I
called our local music store and after the baby wakes
from her nap we're going to drop the guitar off to be
restrung and tuned and to ask some questions. We have
a computer program for learning guitar that he can't
wait to dig into. I want to learn too.

This is tricky. I realize that I am trying to
manipulate him into the realization that he doesn't
need school to learn. I keep leaving The Teenage
Liberation Handbook around, on the couch, on the
coffee table, on the kitchen table, on the bathroom
sink. So far he hasn't said a word or picked it up.

I feel like we're THIS close. I also think I'm going
to make it impossible if I keep getting my signals
crossed like I did last night. I know I have to get
rid of school thinking. I just keep reading more and
more material about unschooling and questioning myself
and my husband. We talk about it daily and examine how
school has taught us to think about everything and
anything in our lives. I want to let it go and just
when I think I've got it, some new layer appears. It's
insidious how deep it runs. I know it can't be
overnight.

It just takes a lot of practice, right? Just keep
going and keep questioning and keep talking? It will
get better?

Thanks,

Kelly




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Lisa H

Kelly - sounds like you're doing a great job. Recognizing yourself and your words when they don't make sense and being willing and able to adjust. Nothing wrong with making mistakes. That's a big part of learning and a great lesson for our kids to see us gracefully adjust from our own "oops- that's not really how I want to sound or be, let's rephrase this..." Just don't beat yourself up.

It does get better and easier and then it gets harder again and then it gets better and easier and then harder again....ha! It just keeps getting.....

I like to say "practice makes progress."
Lisa Heyman
----- Original Message -----
From: Kelly Ferry
To: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, April 05, 2004 12:46 PM
Subject: [UnschoolingDiscussion] Deschooling My Mind


A couple of weeks ago I took the great advice I got
here and told Tyler that I won't make him stay home or
go to school, that if he needs to take a day off from
school (5th grade) he can with no questions asked.
He's gone every day since with a smile on his face and
has managed his own work load with just the one
reminder he asked me to give him in the evening. Then
someone told me about their experience with that
growing up-how her Mom would let her take mental
health days but that she had to have some activity or
project planned. Apparently that stuck in my school
mode head as a "good idea."

So when Tyler told me last night that he wanted to
take today off, I blurted out "Well, fine. But you're
not going to stay home and play gameboy all day like
you did today. You'll need to plan some kind of
project or have some kind of work you can do."

Uh.

Duh.

So he said never mind (of course), but then we all
overslept this morning and he missed the bus. He
wanted me to drive him, but I couldn't immediately
because I had to get breakfast for the baby.

We started discussing school/no school. I have
succeeded in confusing the hell out of the poor kid
and now he doesn't know what he "should" do. He said
that if he stays home he just wants to lay around and
do nothing. Of course! He needs to deschool! I am
learning to speak more openly with him, but struggling
with allowing him to see that I am not *in control* of
my own thinking.

He's home and I told him that if he has a ton of work
to make up, it's up to him if he wants to do it or
not. I also offered to help if he wants help.

See, his grandpa pays him $10 for every A he gets, so
he's invested in grades. I think that's a huge
mistake, and am trying to find a way to gently pull
out of that, but don't think there is a gentle way. He
wants to do all of the homework and classwork, even
though he knows the material already; because each
assignment counts towards final grade. It's not about
the material, that's for sure.

He said that if he doesn't do his work, he feels like
he's not doing his best work, then got mad and said
"Now I'm starting to sound like the stupid principal!
He's brainwashing me!"

Yes he is!!! and alas, so am I!

He then made the observation that he feels like the
principal is like the owner of a big company and that
the students are all like little workers.

Yeah! They're not LIKE that, they ARE that. So we
talked about how the education system is a business
that employs a lot of people who are all invested in
the success of the school in terms of #'s-grades and
test scores-because then the govt. gives the school
more money!

So some backpedalling today and praying. He spent an
hour or so on the floor in his room playing with all
of his Mage Knight figures. He hasn't played with
those in months. He's got out the wooden blocks and is
building fortresses for them and making a big battle
plan.

Now he just got the acoustic guitar we bought at a
yard sale out of the garage and cleaned it up. We
watched *School of Rock* the other night and it
convinced him of what he's been thinking for a few
months, that he wants to learn to play electric
guitar. We can't swing that right at the moment, would
have to save for a bit, but we do have this acoustic
one that sounds great, and only cost us $2. So I
called our local music store and after the baby wakes
from her nap we're going to drop the guitar off to be
restrung and tuned and to ask some questions. We have
a computer program for learning guitar that he can't
wait to dig into. I want to learn too.

This is tricky. I realize that I am trying to
manipulate him into the realization that he doesn't
need school to learn. I keep leaving The Teenage
Liberation Handbook around, on the couch, on the
coffee table, on the kitchen table, on the bathroom
sink. So far he hasn't said a word or picked it up.

I feel like we're THIS close. I also think I'm going
to make it impossible if I keep getting my signals
crossed like I did last night. I know I have to get
rid of school thinking. I just keep reading more and
more material about unschooling and questioning myself
and my husband. We talk about it daily and examine how
school has taught us to think about everything and
anything in our lives. I want to let it go and just
when I think I've got it, some new layer appears. It's
insidious how deep it runs. I know it can't be
overnight.

It just takes a lot of practice, right? Just keep
going and keep questioning and keep talking? It will
get better?

Thanks,

Kelly




__________________________________
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"List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.

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------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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a.. To visit your group on the web, go to:
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[email protected]

c.. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 4/5/2004 1:25:58 PM Mountain Daylight Time,
kpacklight@... writes:
It just takes a lot of practice, right? Just keep
going and keep questioning and keep talking? It will
get better?
=======

Yes, to all of that.

When you think you've made progress, and have reached a good plateau,
something can happen to throw you again. Some family pressure or being sick or
worried about money, and you can blurt out the fears of 50 years ago in the voice
of your grandmother.

Tell him that. Say that when people are stressed sometimes they fall back on
bad messages and bad fears and they're not doing their best thinking. Then
help him avoid stress and fear, and he can learn to help you avoid it too.

Sandra


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Robyn Coburn

<<This is tricky. I realize that I am trying to
manipulate him into the realization that he doesn't
need school to learn. I keep leaving The Teenage
Liberation Handbook around, on the couch, on the
coffee table, on the kitchen table, on the bathroom
sink. So far he hasn't said a word or picked it up.

I feel like we're THIS close. I also think I'm going
to make it impossible if I keep getting my signals
crossed like I did last night. I know I have to get
rid of school thinking. I just keep reading more and
more material about unschooling and questioning myself
and my husband. We talk about it daily and examine how
school has taught us to think about everything and
anything in our lives. I want to let it go and just
when I think I've got it, some new layer appears. It's
insidious how deep it runs. I know it can't be
overnight.>>

You are right about it taking time, and this is one of my ongoing struggles
also - and it has gotten easier for me with the help of the discussions on
this list. You will not get rid of it completely until you are out of school
for good.
Just a thought about Teen.Lib.Han. - he may not be picking it up because he
is still tied up with certain books being "studied" at a certain grade -
perhaps he doesn't see himself as a teen??? Is this a crazy notion? I
remember thinking that way in school - and having the converse that once I
had read a certain book for school it was forever tied to that age/grade as
being "simpler" or "easier" than the later books. This did not apply to the
books I was reading for pleasure outside of school. We read "Romeo and
Juliet" in Year 7, "Anthony and Cleopatra" in Year 10, but "Othello" in Year
12.
It must be hard to have his Grandfather's love so tied to performance and
external things. I suppose he fears that he would lose that love if he was
out of school without the "objective" measure of grades. Since the amount of
money is pretty sizeable, it is easy to see it as a measure of love. What
else do they do together? Have you read "Punished By Rewards" (Alfie Kohn)?
Wouldn't it be great if your son was freely given gifts of money or stuff he
likes, with no strings attached, just for the pleasure of the giver, without
any kind of notion that he was being prepared for "The Real World" where you
have to work for a living. There are excerpts at www.naturalchild.org .

Robyn L. Coburn


---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.567 / Virus Database: 358 - Release Date: 1/24/2004

Joanna Wilkinson

He needs to deschool! I am
> learning to speak more openly with him, but struggling
> with allowing him to see that I am not *in control* of
> my own thinking.>>


I went through this kind of stage when we first started
home/unschooling.
I remember saying to my kids. "I'm not always sure I'm making the
right decisions here." Then I would feel terrible, because I
thought they should have a mom that knew what she was doing, or
atleast fake it well.
It was a rocky transition stage that we all suffered through. So
many issues to think about. Realizing I was a slight control
freak. Trying to let go of that. It made me want to read more and
more and figure it out as fast as possible, so I could feel
confident again.



>
> It just takes a lot of practice, right?>>


Right.



<<Just keep going and keep questioning and keep talking? It will
get better?>>


Soooo much better.

Joanna

Tracey Inman

Sandra Wrote:

>>When you think you've made progress, and have reached a good plateau,
something can happen to throw you again. Some family pressure or being sick or
worried about money, and you can blurt out the fears of 50 years ago in the voice
of your grandmother.<<

I really needed to read this today. Our family has been under tremendous amounts of stress for the last 5 months. We left our last church (we have been in ministry for the last 15 years) over issues we could not support. It was our decision but that still didn't make it any easier. We lived with my dh parents for the first 2.5 months and are now with mine. We have finally made a decision on the where in the world we will live and now we are searching for a home. We have made major transitions in career, etc... There are days I feel like a complete failure with my girls. Just about everything we own is in storage. They don't have the normal access to stuff to do like their art, games, etc., etc.. Our youngest has really had a hard time with all of this. Then of course I have had my MIL say unkind things about the way we homeshool. My mother has been kind in her questions but sometimes just the questions send me reeling. I guess because she will say things like "they need to know what a indirect object is or they need to know this higher level math", and on and on.... And then when I am alone the voices of "50 years ago" come rushing to my mind. Voices that say things like I am not doing all I should do or what if they can't get into a college if that is what they desire...... I tell myself this is only a temporary time in our lives. Soon we will have our own space. And then there are times when I say things to my girls that I don't mean to say. Just old tapes, old junk! I guess this is especially worse since this is our first year homeschooling/unschooling. We are still very much deschooling.

I guess today is just a low day for me. My dh and I did a wedding for a girl from the town we left this past weekend. It was hard being there and our girls didn't want to leave. Our horses are still there being taken care of by a friend and that just compounds everything for our 11yo. And our 8yo stood outside my van refusing to leave her friend's house. As the mommy, I just want to fix the hurt in my girls and make life come together faster....

>> when people are stressed sometimes they fall back on
bad messages and bad fears and they're not doing their best thinking. <<

I guess I am just not doing my best thinking today.....

Thanks for letting me vent... You all are great! This list has been my salvation through this time in our lives.

~Tracey I.



Tracey Inman
Legacy for Life
336.580.1844
http://www.TraceyInman.com

J. Stauffer

Hi Tracey,

I have a new message for your brain recorder. When ever you hear your
mother's voice saying "But they need to know what an indirect object is..."
I want you to respond to yourself with "Julie S. graduated in the top 10% of
her high school class, she made over 1300 on her SAT, she has a Master's
degree.....and she doesn't have a clue what an indirect object is....and she
doesn't give a flying fig either."

Julie S.---who after many years of school and corporate success finally
figured out her dream is to be a goat farmer and she couldn't be happier
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tracey Inman" <traceyinman@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 10:27 AM
Subject: Re: [UnschoolingDiscussion] Deschooling My Mind


>
> Sandra Wrote:
>
> >>When you think you've made progress, and have reached a good plateau,
> something can happen to throw you again. Some family pressure or being
sick or
> worried about money, and you can blurt out the fears of 50 years ago in
the voice
> of your grandmother.<<
>
> I really needed to read this today. Our family has been under tremendous
amounts of stress for the last 5 months. We left our last church (we have
been in ministry for the last 15 years) over issues we could not support.
It was our decision but that still didn't make it any easier. We lived with
my dh parents for the first 2.5 months and are now with mine. We have
finally made a decision on the where in the world we will live and now we
are searching for a home. We have made major transitions in career, etc...
There are days I feel like a complete failure with my girls. Just about
everything we own is in storage. They don't have the normal access to stuff
to do like their art, games, etc., etc.. Our youngest has really had a hard
time with all of this. Then of course I have had my MIL say unkind things
about the way we homeshool. My mother has been kind in her questions but
sometimes just the questions send me reeling. I guess because she will say
things like "they need to know what a indirect object is or they need to
know this higher level math", and on and on.... And then when I am alone
the voices of "50 years ago" come rushing to my mind. Voices that say
things like I am not doing all I should do or what if they can't get into a
college if that is what they desire...... I tell myself this is only a
temporary time in our lives. Soon we will have our own space. And then
there are times when I say things to my girls that I don't mean to say.
Just old tapes, old junk! I guess this is especially worse since this is
our first year homeschooling/unschooling. We are still very much
deschooling.
>
> I guess today is just a low day for me. My dh and I did a wedding for a
girl from the town we left this past weekend. It was hard being there and
our girls didn't want to leave. Our horses are still there being taken care
of by a friend and that just compounds everything for our 11yo. And our 8yo
stood outside my van refusing to leave her friend's house. As the mommy, I
just want to fix the hurt in my girls and make life come together faster....
>
> >> when people are stressed sometimes they fall back on
> bad messages and bad fears and they're not doing their best thinking. <<
>
> I guess I am just not doing my best thinking today.....
>
> Thanks for letting me vent... You all are great! This list has been my
salvation through this time in our lives.
>
> ~Tracey I.
>
>
>
> Tracey Inman
> Legacy for Life
> 336.580.1844
> http://www.TraceyInman.com
>
>
>
> "List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.
>
> Visit the Unschooling website and message boards:
http://www.unschooling.com
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Have a Nice Day!

And may I add to this?

Kristen S graduated in the top fourth of her high school class with an SAT of somewhere around 1200, and graduated from Nursing School with a 3.3 GPA.

She went on and finished her BSN with a minor in Biology, and has been working for the past 16 years in a Trauma Intensive Care Unit.

In addition, she has worked in the Recovery Room, the Emergency Dept, does Conscious Sedation on the floors, and helps out in the Imaging Department.

SHE doesn't know what an indirect object is either, and her mom is a College English Professor!!!

Kristen, who doesn't give a flying fig either since she is very happy being an Unschooling mom while she also turns her rural suburban home into an energy conscious homestead complete with chickens, ducks, and a pig!



----- Original Message -----
From: J. Stauffer
To: [email protected]
Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 11:55 AM
Subject: Re: [UnschoolingDiscussion] Deschooling My Mind


Hi Tracey,

I have a new message for your brain recorder. When ever you hear your
mother's voice saying "But they need to know what an indirect object is..."
I want you to respond to yourself with "Julie S. graduated in the top 10% of
her high school class, she made over 1300 on her SAT, she has a Master's
degree.....and she doesn't have a clue what an indirect object is....and she
doesn't give a flying fig either."

Julie S.---who after many years of school and corporate success finally
figured out her dream is to be a goat farmer and she couldn't be happier
----- Original Message -----
From: "Tracey Inman" <traceyinman@...>
To: <[email protected]>
Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 10:27 AM
Subject: Re: [UnschoolingDiscussion] Deschooling My Mind


>
> Sandra Wrote:
>
> >>When you think you've made progress, and have reached a good plateau,
> something can happen to throw you again. Some family pressure or being
sick or
> worried about money, and you can blurt out the fears of 50 years ago in
the voice
> of your grandmother.<<
>
> I really needed to read this today. Our family has been under tremendous
amounts of stress for the last 5 months. We left our last church (we have
been in ministry for the last 15 years) over issues we could not support.
It was our decision but that still didn't make it any easier. We lived with
my dh parents for the first 2.5 months and are now with mine. We have
finally made a decision on the where in the world we will live and now we
are searching for a home. We have made major transitions in career, etc...
There are days I feel like a complete failure with my girls. Just about
everything we own is in storage. They don't have the normal access to stuff
to do like their art, games, etc., etc.. Our youngest has really had a hard
time with all of this. Then of course I have had my MIL say unkind things
about the way we homeshool. My mother has been kind in her questions but
sometimes just the questions send me reeling. I guess because she will say
things like "they need to know what a indirect object is or they need to
know this higher level math", and on and on.... And then when I am alone
the voices of "50 years ago" come rushing to my mind. Voices that say
things like I am not doing all I should do or what if they can't get into a
college if that is what they desire...... I tell myself this is only a
temporary time in our lives. Soon we will have our own space. And then
there are times when I say things to my girls that I don't mean to say.
Just old tapes, old junk! I guess this is especially worse since this is
our first year homeschooling/unschooling. We are still very much
deschooling.
>
> I guess today is just a low day for me. My dh and I did a wedding for a
girl from the town we left this past weekend. It was hard being there and
our girls didn't want to leave. Our horses are still there being taken care
of by a friend and that just compounds everything for our 11yo. And our 8yo
stood outside my van refusing to leave her friend's house. As the mommy, I
just want to fix the hurt in my girls and make life come together faster....
>
> >> when people are stressed sometimes they fall back on
> bad messages and bad fears and they're not doing their best thinking. <<
>
> I guess I am just not doing my best thinking today.....
>
> Thanks for letting me vent... You all are great! This list has been my
salvation through this time in our lives.
>
> ~Tracey I.
>
>
>
> Tracey Inman
> Legacy for Life
> 336.580.1844
> http://www.TraceyInman.com
>
>
>
> "List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.
>
> Visit the Unschooling website and message boards:
http://www.unschooling.com
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>




"List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.

Visit the Unschooling website and message boards: http://www.unschooling.com



------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yahoo! Groups Links

a.. To visit your group on the web, go to:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/UnschoolingDiscussion/

b.. To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
[email protected]

c.. Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Kelly Ferry

--- SandraDodd@... wrote:
> Tell him that. Say that when people are stressed
> sometimes they fall back on
> bad messages and bad fears and they're not doing
> their best thinking. Then
> help him avoid stress and fear, and he can learn to
> help you avoid it too.
>
> Sandra


Thank you. Yes, I know how well it works when I'm just
honest and humble. It's a challenge letting go of
having/needing/wanting to be clear and together all
the time.

Kelly
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been
> removed]
>
>

__________________________________
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Kelly Ferry

"practice makes progress."

Lisa, I'm going to borrow that! so much more truthful
than "practice makes perfect"

thanks,

Kelly

__________________________________
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Kelly Ferry

--- Robyn Coburn <dezigna@...> wrote:
> Just a thought about Teen.Lib.Han. - he may not be
> picking it up because he
> is still tied up with certain books being "studied"
> at a certain grade -
> perhaps he doesn't see himself as a teen??? Is this
> a crazy notion?

I think that's a very valid point, so maybe I'll speak
about the book instead of planting it around the
house. thank you for pointing that out.

> It must be hard to have his Grandfather's love so
> tied to performance and
> external things. I suppose he fears that he would
> lose that love if he was
> out of school without the "objective" measure of
> grades. Since the amount of
> money is pretty sizeable, it is easy to see it as a
> measure of love. What
> else do they do together?

Well, fortunately his relationship with grandpa runs a
bit deeper and the rewards for grades is just one of
the many ways he shows his love. He's very invested in
the system...retired Superintendant of schools...He
also loves to take him fishing and yard saleing and
poking around in little New England towns and to the
beach. He, of course sees the cash as a great
motivator...which in a way (not necessarily a positive
or helpful one) it is.

Have you read "Punished By
> Rewards" (Alfie Kohn)?

Yes, thanks. Very interesting ideas.

> Wouldn't it be great if your son was freely given
> gifts of money or stuff he
> likes, with no strings attached, just for the
> pleasure of the giver, without
> any kind of notion that he was being prepared for
> "The Real World" where you
> have to work for a living.

The thing with his grandparents is they're always
giving him money for no real reason, other than to
help him get things he wants. But this grades thing is
a real issue.


There are excerpts at
> www.naturalchild.org .

I'll check that out.

thanks so much Robyn,

Kelly
>
>

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Kelly Ferry

--- Joanna Wilkinson <Wilkinson6@...> wrote:

> I remember saying to my kids. "I'm not always sure
> I'm making the
> right decisions here." Then I would feel terrible,
> because I
> thought they should have a mom that knew what she
> was doing, or
> atleast fake it well.

Yes. That's it exactly. It's been drilled into my head
that as an adult, I need to present a solid wall of
confidence and always have my plan in place, my values
and ideals easily recognized within my life choices
and the choices I make with my family. Most days it's
just a wing and a prayer around here.
>

Realizing I was a
> slight control
> freak.

Heh. You too huh?

Trying to let go of that. It made me want
> to read more and
> more and figure it out as fast as possible, so I
> could feel
> confident again.
>
Right. That's what I do too, constantly read and read
and talk with others (mostly online at this point) and
try to regain my equilibrium.
>
Thanks so much for sharing.

Kelly>
>
>

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Robyn Coburn

<<Well, fortunately his relationship with grandpa runs a
bit deeper and the rewards for grades is just one of
the many ways he shows his love. He's very invested in
the system...retired Superintendant of schools...He
also loves to take him fishing and yard saleing and
poking around in little New England towns and to the
beach. He, of course sees the cash as a great
motivator...which in a way (not necessarily a positive
or helpful one) it is..........The thing with his grandparents is they're
always giving him money for no real reason, other than to
help him get things he wants. But this grades thing is
a real issue.>>

Thanks for sharing this info. We seem to hear about difficult grandparents
much more than the supportive stuff. Perhaps the grandpa might get something
from the Kohn book, or Grace Llewellyn's recent book, "companion" for
Ten.Lib aimed at teen's parents - title???
Some people have found the transition to homeschooling easier after the
summer "break" - especially if they start unschooling immediately - by which
I mean allowing the process of deschooling to begin with all the freedom to
vegetate in front of the tv, read or play computer games "all day" ;), and
never worry about back-to-school preparation, reading any of the books for
next session, or looking back at the report cards. Think of how much more
time to go fishing the two would have!
Robyn L. Coburn

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J. Stauffer

<<<<Kristen, who doesn't give a flying fig either since she is very happy
being an Unschooling mom while she also turns her rural suburban home into
an energy conscious homestead complete with chickens, ducks, and a pig!>>>>

I want a pig!!!! It is the only animal our covenents won't allow us to
have.

Julie S.

Kelly Ferry

--- Robyn Coburn <dezigna@...> wrote:

> Thanks for sharing this info. We seem to hear about
> difficult grandparents
> much more than the supportive stuff.

Well, we'll see how supportive the grandparents really
are if and when we do move to unschooling! LOL

Perhaps the
> grandpa might get something
> from the Kohn book, or Grace Llewellyn's recent
> book, "companion" for
> Ten.Lib aimed at teen's parents - title???

If you're talking about "Guerrilla Learning" yes, it's
a great book! Huh. I wonder if they'd be willing to
expand their minds a little...

> Some people have found the transition to
> homeschooling easier after the
> summer "break" - especially if they start
> unschooling immediately - by which
> I mean allowing the process of deschooling to begin
> with all the freedom to
> vegetate in front of the tv, read or play computer
> games "all day" ;), and
> never worry about back-to-school preparation,
> reading any of the books for
> next session, or looking back at the report cards.
> Think of how much more
> time to go fishing the two would have!

Yes. That's what I'm hoping.

Thanks Robyn!

Kelly

> Robyn L. Coburn
>
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