Just living and learning
When a child leaves a traditional school environment to begin unschooling, the adjustment period is generally referred to as 'deschooling'. It's a time when, free from external expectations and pressure, they can rediscover their natural rhythms and who they are when no one expects them to be anything in particular. I keep coming across a... Continue Reading →
There is a lot of discussion right now about the power that local authorities in the UK have to ascertain whether children who are not educated in school are, in their opinion, receiving a "suitable education". Around the world, this is something that many unschooling families find themselves navigating—the pressure or legal requirement to show... Continue Reading →
An understandable fear people have about their children leaving formal education is that if they don't do well at school, they won't go far in life. Since school is really the only model that we all know well, and the model that the vast majority of us and our children pass through in order to... Continue Reading →
I was listening to a radio programme this morning and the topic of consent came up. The interviewer and their guest talked at length about how important it is that we teach young people to have strong boundaries. As they chatted, I found myself feeling like while the intention was spot on, they were also... Continue Reading →
Thursday morning began gloriously. The weather was beautiful and, for the first time in a couple of weeks, there were no activities to drive anyone to. The day's plan amounted to baking bread then, after lunch, picking up Belle, the dog we walk, and heading with her to the beach for a swim. I got... Continue Reading →
I realised, when my oldest son was just a baby, that following his rhythm was infinitely easier than attempting to impose anything of my own. It felt right and it also felt just a bit lazy. Occasionally, I would try for something a little more orderly, influenced perhaps by all the people I knew whose... Continue Reading →
PODCAST
A PLACE ON A HILL 