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Homeschooling is Life! ~ Calling all unschoolers!

2:51 AM, May. 10, 2007

Greetings Unschoolers!

I thought it would be kind of fun to search for some other unschooler or eclectic style homeschoolers here on HomeschoolBlogger and highlight some of them for my column. I found some pretty interesting folks, and have some emails out to them to see if they would like to be featured. If you are one, or if you know of an unschooler who you admire for one reason or another and would like to see them featured here on my Thursday column, please leave me a comment or email me at nancy baetz @ msn.com (no spaces.)

It has been an interesting time here lately. While a lot of people are "winding down" their school year, which ends right before Summer begins, we are just able to really get out doors and do some learning! We have been sequestered inside for many cold months, it seems, and now we are very happy to be out working in the yard and garden. So far we have done some painting projects, landscaping and gardening and lots of cleaning, tossing and enjoying the beautiful weather. How about you? Does your "home education" become energized at this time of the year? I would love to hear what you have been up to! Even though it was very sunny out today, on Monday we had snow! It is still unpredictable. But we have many trees leafing out, fruit trees flowering, potatoes sprouting, perennials ready to burst forth. I can't wait for the butterflies to start hanging around and my kids are already enjoying all the insects they are finding.

I hope you will share with me what you are up to! I will even bribe you! I will pick one of my commenter's to win a homeschool sticker that I designed. How cool is that?

Blessings,

Nancy

Posted in hsingislife, 3 comments, Link
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<i>Untitled Comment</i>

9:35 AM, May. 10, 2007, posted by ElCloud

We aren't really unschoolers -- but very relaxed homeschoolers who try to use literature as much as possible.

We are finishing up our last two weeks of Tapestry of Grace, which we use quite loosely. Next week is our last week. We were going to go on a field trip to a nature center yesterday, but it rained. :-(

I'm making plans for some fun summer lessons. I've never done that before, but I'm hoping a bit of direction to each day will limit the bickering and "I'm bored" type comments. Although, my children don't usually complain of boredom unless they're just mad I won't let them do what they really want to do. :-/ They're incredibly creative and inventive most of the time -- although I still can't figure out why they'd rather play with pencils (as people) or people cut out of magazines instead of the felt dolls or dollhouse dolls we have.

We're looking forward to our library's summer reading program. It's always a summer highlight. :-)

April

Edited by ElCloud on May. 10, 2007 at 6:37 PM

What We Do....

1:40 PM, May. 10, 2007, posted by eyecorn

We are very eclectic/relaxed/borderline unschooling. DS 14 does VideoTextAlgebra and we read the books in Jim Stobaugh's literature program. However, he is given ALOT of time to pursue interests. In the last 2 months he earned money to download Adobe Photoshop and found free tutorials online. He now has a little graphic making business going and has had to learn money management. He opened a checking account at the credit union (He had to learn the difference between a bank and a credit union.) and he has to keep watch on his monthly statement. He also has a debit card with the account. His other interest is robotics. After his FIRST robotics team finished up their season in Atlanta at the Natl. Championships, we bought a book on Amazon that is a course teaching the AutoCad program the team used during the season. We have an educator's license that expires in the summer (but will renew next Jan. when the robotics season starts up again.) So, to get this course in before the license expires, he's been working through the book on his own. DD6 is very hands-on with a short attention span when a book is put in front of her! We do a variety of activities. Most recently, I purchased 15 blank books from MillerPads, she has been making storybooks and "zoo books". She has to write her own stories, but this is not a problem, as she works at her own pace. Her science has been a variety of projects outside. She has built and painted 3 birdhouses. All have different birds nesting in them now. She keeps track of them. Plus, she has planted her own flower area - some with seeds we started inside and others we put in the ground (her experiment was to see which seeds grew faster.)

Whew, just a bit of what we do. I've tried so hard to follow a set schedule and lesson plan, it's just so hard for our DCs' learning styles.

Edited by eyecorn on May. 10, 2007 at 10:41 AM

Untitled Comment

12:00 PM, May. 16, 2007, posted by SandBetweenMyToes

You can add us to the catagory of very, very relaxed/unschoolers, however, I am not qualified to be much of an example to others, as I am just learning. It seems interesting, I suppose, that I am having to learn how to unschool!
As I have watched other people talk about how their school year is winding down, it's been interesting at my internal reaction of, "It's really cool not to live that way." I know as my younger ones get older, there will be a time when we will have more of a "school year" in certain things, but for now, I'm enjoying the freedom to do what we want.
We've had warm days for quite a while, so my girls have been catching catepillars, and identifying them and watching birds. Our neglected bird feeder just got a refill, too. We will be planting our small garden tomorrow, hopefully. Last week they caught a frog, and he now has a little aquarium home with his supply of crickets. This totally grosses Mom out (!), but they are loving it for a while. We love reading-outside-weather. We sit on the porch swing and read, getting interrupted by butterflies, caterpillars, and birdsong. They are having a ball playing outside on a new disk swing and dressing up pretending something quite involved and dramatic. : ) Dad is building them a new humongous fort/play set/swing set. It will have swings, a slide, a fireman's pole, climbing wall, bridge between 2 "playhouses". In August, we hope to take a trip to Williamsburg. Marissa, especially, is very excited. She loves colonial times, and we hope a combination of us and Gram are going to get them colonial dresses made (see your blog for the funny on that one!). Board games are a constant source of learning in our home, too, so that will continue through the summer, as well. Okay, I'm too long winded, but that's a glimpse at some of the things we'll be doing this summer.
I am very excited to see who your example unschoolers are.
Letitia

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