Recently, I was interviewed by Rachael from Mogantosh for an article on the Mamabake blog, about homeschooling. There are some lovely interviews with other home educating parents there too, so go have a read. The interview was slightly edited to fit with Mamabake's Curiosity without Judgment series… I admit I may have been slightly snarky about the socialisation question, but from what I can gather, most of us were. Oh that question! Ha!
Anyway, a really lovely exercise we were asked to do (which didn't make the cut), was to ask the owlets what the best and worst bits of home/unschooling were. And then reflect on it myself. I found the owlets answers interesting, reflecting on their experiences of being out in the world, or their perceptions of school based on what they see in the media or hear from friends who've been there… so I thought I might share their answers here...
Big Owlet:
The best thing: Being with our family.
The worst thing: Sometimes people can tease you because they don't understand it.
Little Owlet:
The worst thing: Sometimes people can tease you because they don't understand it.
Little Owlet:
The best thing: You don't get bossed around.
The worst thing: Nothing.
Tiny Owlet:
The worst thing: Nothing.
Tiny Owlet:
The best thing: Co-op!
The worst thing: Poo! (Her 3yo go-to answer when there's nothing to say - ha!)
The worst thing: Poo! (Her 3yo go-to answer when there's nothing to say - ha!)
Me:
The best thing: Can't pick just one, but my top two might be… Flexibility/freedom and witnessing the moment the owlets grasp a new concept.
The worst thing: Saying goodbye to Huz each morning. The 9-5 routine wears thin after a while when there's so much going on where we are! It's difficult juggling a relatively unstructured way of living with a structured one, but hardest of all for him, I expect.*
The worst thing: Saying goodbye to Huz each morning. The 9-5 routine wears thin after a while when there's so much going on where we are! It's difficult juggling a relatively unstructured way of living with a structured one, but hardest of all for him, I expect.*
What are the best and worst bits of your family rhythm? Whether you choose to home educate/ unschool/ school your childen, what works (or doesn't) about it for you?
Have a gorgeous week. xx
*The exciting thing is we're now, finally, after much deliberation, shifting the balance for Huz a bit (and me!), by letting go one day of his paid employment per week so I can work a little bit more and he gets more time with owlets and nature. More on that soon. xx
For me:
ReplyDeleteBest bits: watching my boys grow and developing and feeling like I can teach them whatever we like, whenever we like, with no set curriculum and the flexibility - for instance discussing politics because we hear a report on the radio on the way to do the groceries, or a discussion on the difference between conifers and flowering plants because we were in the botanic gardens... :)
Worst bits: the days when I'm not at all motivated and just need me time. The times when we're trying to work and the boys give me attitude or go all "I can't do it".... its hard not to lose my temper.... working on it
Best bits: Being with my kids 24/7, being part of their learning and sometimes learning alongside them, no early mornings, pyjamas all day (sometimes) and them not being restricted by grade level.
ReplyDeleteWorst: Getting questions like "Not at school today girls" a bazillion times! For me there are no bad bits about being able to home educate...
I keep on day-dreaming about my husband working four days/week, because of all the things I could do in that one extra day. Best of luck with your new arrangement - I hope it will be beneficial to all of you.
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