The number one request I get from readers is to explain, describe, somehow convey how we do school. We unschool. How can that possibly work?
It is all about relationship. Relationship and trust and respect are all at the core of how we learn and live. Everything after that comes freely. So we don't have school days. We don't set up hour blocks. We don't spend oodles of dollars on fancy packages of worksheets and books and we don't spend oodles of time talking about what learning systems and what packages work better than others. We can spend that time on the go.
We just do. We just go.
Just is such a tricky word, because things that are just something are never really that simple. I'm not just a mom and we don't just play.
My kids do chores with me, they explore their interests, they build things, they take apart things, they teach each other things, they observe, they paint, they play, they sing, they go! go! go!......
And randomly, always in context, they give us a window into all the things they are learning. Lily often gives tours of the farm and points out the various kinds of weeds and plants and their practical applications. We somehow got on the topic of linear mapping and Euclidean geometry and for days Lily pondered and puzzled out loud how 3 points could not form a triangle....that was incredibly amusing, until it frustrated her. Holly can put together ingredient combinations that are fantastic. She is five and taught herself how to play a trumpet and is now exploring scales. Isaac figured out the iTouch and has mastered five levels in Reading Raven (a K-2) reading program (he's 2 and nonverbal). These things just come along. We don't do table work. We don't drill facts. We walk, observe, cook, work create, and discuss together and in the world.
I could go on, but I think that a visual record will be the best introduction to our methods. Here is June:
It is all about relationship. Relationship and trust and respect are all at the core of how we learn and live. Everything after that comes freely. So we don't have school days. We don't set up hour blocks. We don't spend oodles of dollars on fancy packages of worksheets and books and we don't spend oodles of time talking about what learning systems and what packages work better than others. We can spend that time on the go.
We just do. We just go.
Just is such a tricky word, because things that are just something are never really that simple. I'm not just a mom and we don't just play.
My kids do chores with me, they explore their interests, they build things, they take apart things, they teach each other things, they observe, they paint, they play, they sing, they go! go! go!......
And randomly, always in context, they give us a window into all the things they are learning. Lily often gives tours of the farm and points out the various kinds of weeds and plants and their practical applications. We somehow got on the topic of linear mapping and Euclidean geometry and for days Lily pondered and puzzled out loud how 3 points could not form a triangle....that was incredibly amusing, until it frustrated her. Holly can put together ingredient combinations that are fantastic. She is five and taught herself how to play a trumpet and is now exploring scales. Isaac figured out the iTouch and has mastered five levels in Reading Raven (a K-2) reading program (he's 2 and nonverbal). These things just come along. We don't do table work. We don't drill facts. We walk, observe, cook, work create, and discuss together and in the world.
I could go on, but I think that a visual record will be the best introduction to our methods. Here is June:
Hi, I stumbled across your blog randomly and am really enjoying it - your kids sound fantastic! That said, I'm a little worried about a five-year-old self-teaching trumpet - if it's something she's spending a lot of time on, I would seriously suggest getting a private teacher. There's a lot of muscular and skeletal problems, as well as some respiratory issues, that can arise if the basic technique is off.
ReplyDeleteHer dad plays trumpet and is guiding her through that, she isn't self teaching completely. We bought her the smaller trumpet because of those concerns. Thanks for your comment!
DeleteAlso, I'd love to discuss what you know about this. Could you respond not anonymously? I researched up and down and could not find anything at all about skeletal problems related to trumpet playing.
DeleteThanks!