Real money

Our kids are doing great at saving their money in order to buy something.


Kieran saved up and bought his own computer. He did all of the research and picked all the parts and assembled it at home with his dad.

All three boys have been saving for an XBOX 360 since Christmas. They just got it this week along with a few games and another controller and flash drive for extra memory.

They all still have money left.

We are trying to instill good money habits with our kids. We don't want them in debt like we are. We have learned our lesson about credit cards the hard way.  Jason and I weren't taught to save, we were taught to establish credit....

Kieran works with Jason and earns money and now has his own bank account. The other kids have saved money from Holidays and Birthdays so far.

We are providing the example of a good work ethic and to save and pay cash because then it is yours, you own it!

Kieran's computer is awesome and he did it all and now the boys finally have a new game system.

How do you Unschool?

There is a lot of information about unschooling  on the internet. Some great and some not so great. Two favorites of mine are Sandra Dodd and Joyce Fetteroll

Many people new to the concept just want to know HOW to do it. Where to begin? What do  we do if we don't do school.

My advice is to first deschool. It is imperative to rid yourself of the years of indoctrination. This can take time, hopefully not too long. While you are detoxing from the system allow your child the same courtesy. If they have been in school or homeschooled they need to to undo the damage of schooling.


Children learn through play if  you have young kids you can check out my article.


Unschooling is living and learning, it is natural. School is artificial and school is what you need to leave behind.


Be with your kids, be interesting, curious and inquisitive. Talk about everything, discuss current events or your favorite thing.

We unschool by living our lives. My kids wake up each day and choose what they want to do. They play games, watch tv, look at books, maps, draw, create, imagine, talk, ask, research, explore etc... Each day is new, we all have a loose routine but we take each day as it comes.

Learning is happening all of the time, it's inevitable.

How do you know?

People ask homeschoolers/unschoolers questions like, "How do you know they are learning?"

That is right up there with *What about socialization* for me....

How do you know without testing or grading or curriculum?

How do you know?

Well I live with them for starters, pay attention to your kids and you will be amazed at what they know.

I do have an example.

My middle son reads articles online and then tells me about them. That is reading comprehension, right?

He reads, absorbs, and then reiterates in his own words.

Each day my kids learn so many new things and they explore ideas and concepts and discuss them.


Children absorb and make connections everyday, they are learning beings. I know that they know because they exhibit knowledge and understanding on a daily basis.

Testing, grades and curriculum are unnecessary tools in the game of real life learning.

Those are school tools and they don't measure true knowledge or understanding. They are artificial markers just as school is an artificial environment not conducive to real learning.

The way of the future or the status quo?

I believe that the way of the future will be gotten by unschoolers, out of the box thinkers and entrepreneurs to name a few.

Public school and even homeschoolers following the traditional path are not the wave of the future, they are the status quo.

School is producing more and more cogs in society, just going around that hamster wheel, not inventing anything new or blazing a trail.

Peter Thiel awarded 20 people with $100,000 to start a business and skip college. I believe that these kind of people are what the future needs. We need real change and if we as a society keep staying on the traditional path and don't get out of that box, change isn't going to come.

Some schooled people do escape the box, I did and many of you reading here did, we managed to see through the bullshit and not get dumbed down.

I see homeschooled people going through the same traditional path even after opting out of the system.


I believe that unschoolers are going to be the change. I have seen many grown unschoolers emerging into the world lately. Great things can happen when non traditional ways are followed.

Blake Boles who was an unschooler just started Zero Tuition College
I think it is an awesome idea!

I hope my kids will be entrepreneurs and innovators creating change in this world.

Parenting

My parenting convictions are rooted in trust, respect and partnership.


I have been building a foundation for 16 years. It takes time to establish trust and respect. I parent as a partner with my children. I do not believe in top down rules and arbitration.

I want the lines of communication to be open. My kids can tell me anything without fear of punishment or ridicule or shame. I do not believe in force or coercion, it undermines the child's autonomy.

I have always spoken to my kids like real people who deserve respect. I'm not perfect, I make mistakes, I apologize and do better in the next moment.

My kids are getting older and require a different level of parenting from me. It's so different when they are babies, toddlers and little people. I now have two teens and two coming up on those years quickly.

I expect that we can handle anything that comes up because of the foundation I have worked so hard to build.

As unschoolers, life learners we take everything as it comes. Each child and situation is different and warrants a different approach.

I do my best as a mother to listen to and respect my children's individuality. I never punish or shame or take anything away. I think it's wrong to act like that.

When a behavior or situation arises I want to get to the why. Acting out is always a symptom, but getting to the heart of the matter is more important than worrying about the behavior.


Talk, ask, listen, discuss, listen some more, connect and be where they are at.


They grow up so fast, I want their childhood to be pleasant and something they look back on with fondness.

Riptide

Why? I just don't get it!

I honestly don't get why the majority of people send their kids to school.

It is an artificial environment set up based on age segregation. Kids are locked away for 9 or more months of the year then let out on break only to be shuffled away to something else.   Summer school, summer camp, vacation bible school etc....

Kids don't get much time to just be kids, relax, think, reflect, choose their own path....Every waking moment is scheduled so after 12 years of in the box indoctrination they graduate into the real world.

Many can't read well, articulate a thought or do real math... Why do people believe that school is where they go to get an education? Many parents think school is teaching their kids what they need to know and don't supplement their learning by real life application.   I know there are involved parents that send their kids to school and I don't know why they bother.

Who wants that kind of education anyway?

School is nothing more than government babysitting. I'm sorry for those that are neglected at home and school is also a free meal and a place to get away from home. Those instances are rare though, at least I hope they aren't the norm.

I just stand here in awe and watch people send their kids away each year for what I don't know...

Now it's graduation time or what I affectionately call * I survived indoctrination and all I got was this lousy piece of paper*

Until people wake up to the purpose of government education our society will keep spiraling downward into the depths of sheeplehood.

I leave you with this quote:


"School is the advertising agency that makes you believe you need society as it is."

Ivan Illich

My first little article

http://anunschoolinglife.com/unschooling-the-early-years/

Writing

I keep saying I'm not a writer in person and I know I've written it here before.

I need to stop criticizing myself.

The reason I say I'm not a writer is because I have friends who are writers. I don't paint pictures or tell beautiful stories. I do tell it plain and simply, that is how I write.

There are all kinds of writers and I'm just different, doesn't mean I suck, like I think I do...

I can talk to you and answer questions about unschooling and parenting. It's so easy for me to share my philosophy in person.

I had a wonderful conversation with my aunt that I hadn't seen in 22 years. She was a school teacher for 35 years and was asking me about homeschooling. I explained what we do and how we live and she was open and said so it's like *organic learning*   Yes! See I can explain it well. I lose something between mouth and fingers though. I could dictate and have someone else write :)

That was the best talk I've ever had with a teacher, it was nice and she was so thrilled to learn what we do. She loved the kids and could clearly see that what we do was working.

Why this post?

I was asked to write an unschooling article and I'm not sure how I did... If it gets published I'll let you know.

The loss of friendship...

I had a best bud in high school, we did lots of stuff together, not all legal or right.... 

We were there for each other's tough life...

Jason and I moved to CA and we lost touch for a few years....Reconnected by phone when I was pregnant with Kieran....lost touch for several years...

We moved to PA and somehow I found her and she was in PA just a couple hours away... We had all 4 kids by then...She drove up for a visit and it was really great.


We moved to TN...she moved to another state...we found each other online again....

Then we connected on  Facebook and  found out that we have nothing in common.

As a matter of fact my views on schooling and vaccines put us at odds... Other things as well...

I just realized the other day that she unfriended me.... I guess even with our history she can't get past our differences....

Too bad, but oh well, nothing I can do, I'm leaving it and her alone....

Good - Bye!

Why is it better?

I was asked, "Why is homeschooling better than public schooling?"

I use the term homeschool lightly, there is a wide spectrum of styles. This website has the methods listed down on the left hand column.

We fall under unschooling, we don't do school at all. We live and learn period.

Some reasons why I believe home is better are :

Freedom to learn what, how and when you want. 

Freedom to eat when hungry, sleep when tired, use the bathroom as needed without permission.

Freedom from being graded and tested.

Freedom to be who you are, to figure out who you are, your likes, dislikes, strengths, weaknesses, interests, style, hobbies etc. without being forced to conform.

Having control over your own mind and body.

Real, natural learning.

Learning in your own way and time.

Not having to conform to school standards.

Closer family.

Freedom from school schedules and constraints.

Living and learning in the real world, real life, not an artificial environment such as school.

Pictures for the indoor hockey arenas...

Jared and Brenny play hockey in the kitchen and living room so Jared made signs for the arenas.

My view

I will not apologize for being anti-school, which also means anti- teaching, as in the way schools teach.

So many people are engrained with school that they can't see past it. Some say they respect home schooling, private school, charter schools etc...while still advocating public school.

I do not want people to defend their choice of mainstream government schooling to me...I don't care...Nothing anyone could say would make me think that public school is a good idea.

I truly believe that schooling is unnecessary, it is a waste of time and resources...

It is a place to send your kids while you work, it is a place to be bullied and ridiculed and forced to do things you may or may not want to do.

It is government control...Tests and standards are not set with the child in mind but with results for bureaucrats.

I really feel bad for all of those people...

Many do not choose to go, many people don't even make the choice to send their kids, they just do it...How can compulsion be a choice?

Well you can opt out of the system completely, you do have a choice....

Honestly I wish there was no such thing as schools as we know them, I don't believe teaching should be a profession....There I said it, yes my family has several teachers in it and probably wouldn't understand why I would say such a thing.

Schools are not necessary for learning and usually inhibit the natural process.

You don't have to believe me or agree with me...just read the news, schools speak for themselves.

Indifferent

I'm just not  into Easter...

We don't make a big deal out of it.  Even when I was a christian, the Church of Christ didn't recognize Easter as a holy day. They practiced that every Sunday they celebrate the death, burial and resurrection of Christ.

As a child I remember wearing a new dress, going to church  and getting a basket of candy.

When our kids were smaller we did do baskets. Honestly my kids have candy, ice cream, cookies, several times a week so I really don't see the point of getting them a bunch on Easter. I did get them all a chocolate bunny and they decorated eggs because they wanted to.

We had a nice steak dinner because we wanted to, not for any special reason.

I'm not all ecstatic saying *He is Risen* because it doesn't make sense to me.

Yes, I do believe that Jesus died on the cross and arose 3 days later....once....not every year.

You can't even commemorate it like a birthday since it's never on the same day, heck this time it's the end of April for crying out loud.

I'm not trying to step on any toes here, it's just how I feel. We are all free to celebrate and hold our own beliefs.

The day of Easter holds nothing special for me.

Well... except it's another day that I get to spend with my family, they mean EVERYTHING to me!

Unschooling...Learning through Living

I'm a strong advocate for Unschooling, I want all people of all ages to be free to learn in their way and in their time.

It's especially important for children to be able to learn without force, coercion, scopes, sequences, tests and grades...

I've always said we are unschoolers and we are as in we don't do school, nothing that resembles school. My kids are truly free from any kind of school ways.

In that respect and in my opinion Unschooling IS living and learning, it is natural, it is free.

School is completely Unnecessary and a complete waste of precious youth. We lock our children away for 12 years then expect them to be prepared for the real world all the while keeping them from it.

We live in the real world here and now and always have, no schooling to interfere with our real lives.

Real learning takes place every minute of everyday.

Natural learning doesn't look like school and shouldn't be quantified into subjects to appease some government entity that is completely clueless about real learning.

Getting back my groove

We went on a 10 day trip to visit family and I'm just starting to feel recovered from the traveling.

There was a lot of prep before going and now just unpacking, laundry and trying to catch up on sleep this week.

It was a great time, all went well, we had a few bumps but nothing major.

The kids got to see their grandparents and we celebrated my in-laws 50th wedding anniversary.

We stayed in a cozy cottage on Lake Ontario and Jason and the boys got to do some fishing,it was so cold but they went anyway.

We did a little sight seeing on the only warm day, 50 and sunny, we went to Fort Niagara and Niagara falls, the kids had never seen the falls.

Here we are.

Glad to be home :)

An Epiphany

I have suffered with digestive problems my whole life..

I was a colicky baby and diagnosed with irritable bowel at 19.

I have had doctors telling me to eat more fiber, fiber was wheat. Wheat bread, bagels, raisin bran etc..

I cut out dairy and coffee and took fiber  supplements...This was back when I was like 20.

I have had digestive trouble and severe bloating for  years. It is awful, my gut hurts.
They gave me drugs which helped the spasms  but I now know it contributed to the slow digestion.

I don't absorb  nutrients. I have several deficiencies and my whole system is underperforming according to blood tests I had last year.

Not to mention my severe vitamin D deficiency, that has contributed to lots of prolonged sickness.

I had saliva testing done last summer and I tested positive for gliadin, which is an inflammation response to gluten.

I have been *trying*  to be gluten free since then but my downfall is pizza. So I didn't realize  the impact and I was like oh a piece of pizza can't hurt...

So every few weeks I kept poisoning myself with wheat without knowing the impact until now...

Three weeks ago was the last time I had wheat, I suffered serious chest pain/indigestion for 2 days from one piece a pizza...

I  have now realized that wheat is poison to me and that it is probably the root cause of all of my physical ailments....

Amazing and unbelievable.

I'm most likely celiac. I have not been tested, I don't need to spend any more money on tests. I have all the knowledge I need to know that I can never consume wheat again...

I've also heard from more than one source that one bite of gluten can cause up to 6 months of inflammation...

I'm only 3 weeks into it and I've had trouble for years...I'm so looking forward to actually eating, digesting and enjoying food...

I hate food,(well except pizza, chocolate and cheese) I eat out of necessity because my blood sugar makes me wonky.

Here is a site I found on celiac

I'm honored

Thank you Cindy at Guerrila Homeschooling for honoring my blog!

Unconscious Mutterings

1. Recommendation :: Giving a recommendation...not coming up with something for that one...
2. Toilet paper :: I am thankful for toilet paper!
3. Scissors :: sharp
4. Blaze :: fire
5. Frame :: Freeze frame (J.Geils band, I think), Who framed Roger Rabbit?
6. Process :: Everything is a process
7. Flight :: Fight or Flight? I live in that mode...
8. Irish :: I'm Irish but don't kiss me
9. Glasses :: cheers
10. Campaign ::  Campaign for Liberty

Luna Nina

This may come out jumbled, I would've blogged last night when it was fresh but I wasn't able to use my computer and the connection was lost on my laptop.

I got into something on another blog and I won't link it, it's not important.

What is important is that people are out there giving unschooling a bad rap. People claim to unschool and unparent.

Why would anyone freely admit to neglecting their child. Un parenting = Not parenting.

I realize parenting brings on many different styles and practices.

We practice partnership and respectful parenting. Many people practice parenting I completely disagree with.

Specifically though unschoolers that I know of practice respectful parenting or at least strive to be respectful and mindful and treat children well.

Many people I know do not like the word unschooling because of these negative connotations that people come up with.

I like the word in it's simplest form it means NOT schooling.

Of course it has many definitions.

I believe in life learning, learning through living, living without school.

I believe in parenting WITH my children not AT my children.

If I am so ignorant to believe that other unschoolers do this too then so be it.

If people are out there claiming to Un school and Un Parent I don't want to know about it.

Labels are labels they are useful to find others, they don't define me or you.

I dropped the christian label and I dropped the republican label, I don't relate to the majority of what those words mean.

I don't want to drop unschooling because people out there are tainting it.

We live and learn as if school didn't exist that won't change no matter what you call it.