I hear a lot of doubt around whether unschooling can work for children with special needs. Perhaps it's because many of these children need so much help and support to get through formal education. And if it's stressful and exhausting even with everyone trying so hard, logic follows that without all that effort and structure, … Continue reading The many benefits of unschooling for children with special needs
Things I wish I had known
A friend asked me recently what I wish I had known when we began unschooling. It's an interesting question. There were lots of things that I didn't know, and there were others that, intellectually at least, I did know, but didn't quite believe. So, here's my list. All the things I wish I had known, … Continue reading Things I wish I had known
Let them game!
This lockdown sort of caught us between places. We had just rented a house in the UK, and brought over some of our belongings. We were due to travel back to Barcelona in March to get the rest of our things plus our three cats. Obviously that couldn't happen, so we're living a fairly minimalist … Continue reading Let them game!
Why lockdown is a little like childbirth
The birth of my first child was much harder than I'd expected it to be. I was ready for pain, but was also pretty confident that I'd be able to deal with it. What I hadn't realised was that my mind and my body would be so resistant to the process. I fought every step … Continue reading Why lockdown is a little like childbirth
Things I’ve learned about working at home with children
If you're one of the millions of parents who has suddenly found themselves working from home at the same time as caring for their children, things could feel challenging right now. Balancing so many needs whilst dealing with the uncertainties in the world is a huge task. Over the last few years, I've become fairly … Continue reading Things I’ve learned about working at home with children
What did we do today?
Well, so far we're doing pretty well during lockdown. Everyone is missing aspects of normal life, but there are some entertaining new activities. The groups the children had joined are now online, so they're still connected with the people and things that matter to them. There are also whole-family Zoom calls, and a lovely Whatsapp group … Continue reading What did we do today?
Time to be, not time to do
As we all hunker down in our homes, almost certainly with some fear and anxiety about our personal situations and the world around us, parenting has become a very different proposition from just a few weeks ago. For millions of people, alongside the health and financial worries is the sudden reality of being together all … Continue reading Time to be, not time to do
Is anybody listening?
Over the last year, I've had the beautiful experience of being part of a listening circle. As myself and my fellow circle members became more adept in the art of active listening, the experience of both talking into the circle and listening to the speaker took on a power that I've rarely experienced in daily … Continue reading Is anybody listening?
A new vision
A friend shared this blog post with me the other day. I always enjoy reading Peter Gray, and here he puts into eloquent words something I've been thinking for a long time about school/no school. I wrestle with the knowledge that although we've made this work for our family, it can be difficult for families to opt out … Continue reading A new vision
Learning to read #3
It's been just a couple of months since my first post about C learning to read by herself. Just like with our sons, I am in awe of her capacity to learn. In a couple of months she has gone from feeling like this would be really hard to being quite a fluent reader. She … Continue reading Learning to read #3
