Two Canadian sisters, nine spectacular kids, no school.
The sun is bright, the weather warm, the snow melted, and every day life feels amazing. For one thing, it has been reaffirmed to me that my family and I aren't a bunch of no good lumps of lazy. It's just that winter got a bit...long. And we got a bit...bored. But now everything has changed!... Continue Reading →
Today was my end of year home visit with my school board facilitator...or learning advisor or whatever technical educationese they're calling them nowadays. Debbie. Debbie came for a visit. And I didn't know she was coming. Not that I shouldn't have known she was coming (double negative. Sorry, I know--confusing. Just read it a couple times I'm... Continue Reading →
I've felt a little AWOL lately, but with good reason: we bought a house. And we didn't just buy a house, we bought a house that needed a few (what seemed like a few when I listed them in my mind before actually doing them) upgrades before we moved in. Our possession date was February... Continue Reading →
Today I got the first Life of Fred math book, "Apples", back from a friend who'd borrowed it, because five-year-old L had asked to start reading them together. I haven't read them at all since November when I finally noticed I was killing the joy of math in E by pushing it. I think the... Continue Reading →
In all of my love for the unschooling philosophy and lifestyle, I will admit that I have harboured one main anxiety: math. If I’m being honest, it stems from the classic problem of parents wanting to share all their greatest passions with their children—the same root, I’m sure, as my need for my children to know... Continue Reading →
I don't know. Honestly, I'm just going to start with that. Maybe let out a hearty bewildered sigh. Shake my head. Shrug my shoulders. Seriously. Idk. I've seen all the philosophies. I've read all the articles; the blog posts; the studies (ok no I haven't. I've read articles about studies though. So); I've discussed with other parents,... Continue Reading →
Sometimes unschoolers will describe what they do as "interest-based learning". It's a quick, easy to understand phrase that satisfies the casually curious without triggering shock and confusion. It's not the totality of what makes unschooling...well, unschooling, but it's accurate that interest-based learning is a key component to the philosophy. I have learned, though, that while... Continue Reading →
So the thing, for me, about unschooling, is that it doesn't mean applying the same applicator brush to every child. I thought for a while that it did, and maybe I'll change my mind again on that down the line. But in my current experience, unschooling offers the opportunity to really distill priorities into what... Continue Reading →
On Monday E had a really "unschooling win" kind of day. And by that I mean, as much as we unschool parents may appear to be all chill and confident and laid back about our life choices, like any parent worth their salt we, too, spend the occasional moment panicking that we are ruining our... Continue Reading →
On top of the drama camp, one more thing of note occurred last week. This one's pretty Alberta-specific, full disclosure. Last week I had my initial home visit with my facilitator (the lovely lady who was busily engaged in running a drama camp for a motley crew of whippersnappers by day). So if you're considering unschooling in... Continue Reading →
The Unschool Sisters 