Anybody who’s followed my posts probably knows by now that tv shows tend to ignite my thoughts about unschooling. Usually, it’s kid shows I have something to say about, but today I’m writing about one of a handful of grown-up shows I manage to watch: Harry’s Law. This particular episode caught my attention because it […]
Unschooling And Traditional Education
Unschooling: Constantly Learning
My son has a good friend who attends public school. As you can imagine, Paul and Thomas have many lively discussions about the differences in their days. Paul still can’t quite wrap his head around the unschooling philosophy. He’s not alone. Lots of people -children and adults alike – struggle to make sense of something […]
Unschooling: Unmaking Stereotypes
Recently I connected with an old school acquaintance via Facebook. We hadn’t been in touch since graduating high school, and it was cool to catch up and to read his posts. But it was also kind of shocking. Why? Because as I read over his posts, I was amazed to discover the guy was a really good writer -when, […]
Confessions of an Academic Imposter
In his book How Children Fail, John Holt discusses the damaging messages that schools and teachers send to children. There are a lot of them, but one really resonated with me, because it described my own experience. Here’s what Holt has to say: What teachers most reward is not knowledge and understanding but the appearance […]
Unprepared! How the Push-Down Effect is Stressing our Children
It’s bedtime, and Katy is pouring out her troubles to me as we lay snuggled together. She mentions the usual: the baby still gets too much attention, her brother always gets to stay up later, when can she have a playdate with Jennifer? But then she brings up something new. Something that bothers me as […]
Unschooling: It’s a Wondeful Life
Last night I had an “It’s a Wonderful Life” kind of experience. You know that old James Stewart movie in which the main character gets a look at what life would be like without him? Sitting with my son as he eagerly wrote a letter to a friend, I found myself “flashing sideways” to what his […]