Two Canadian sisters, nine spectacular kids, no school.
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 →
"Every kid starts out as a natural boorn scientist, and then we beat it out of them. A few trickle through the system with their wonder and enthusiasm for science intact." -Carl Sagan Last week my 5 year old came in the house with a brown, dry ball of dead hydrangea flowers from last summer.... Continue Reading →
Guys, I've been writing/complaining lately about how my homeschool group has been shrinking and becoming lame. Well, I've been pumping myself full of vitamin D and I finally feel ready to come up with some solutions instead of just feeling sad about it. Today's post has 2 problems and 2 solutions. Problem 1 The free... 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 wish their were a better word for the lifestyle we live. Unschooling is the most widely known and used term, but the word has some PROBLEMS. For one thing, it already had a meaning before John Holt used it to describe the educational philosophy we follow and it was NOT GOOD. Check out this... 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 →
So, my second son who's almost eight is figuring out arithmetic and it's pretty fantastic. Here's how it looks: Earlier in 2017, this little boy couldn't count to twenty without getting lost in the teens, but within the last couple of months he has become really fascinated with numbers. I noticed that he began to... 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 →
The Unschool Sisters 