Homeschooling and unschooling
There are several fascinating and successful ways to teach children. They all have something special to offer. We recommend using a combination. In this article we will discuss one known as “Unschooling.
Unschooling is based on the knowledge that all people, including children, have a natural desire to learn. Watch the young child as he concentrates on learning to walk or talk. Normally nobody forces it. It is like breathing. Wanting to learn is part of who we are, unless you’ve been crushed at some point in life.
OK! One might wonder: so why do I have to pressure my child to read? The unschooled would answer: “because you are not out of school.” This method tells us to pay attention to the child’s natural rhythms. Just as we know when we are hungry, the child knows when and what he is hungry to learn. Use that natural tendency and you will become a facilitator rather than a teacher who uses many different things to awaken the child’s inner enthusiasm. Some examples will help clarify.
Example one
Koty had learned all of her phonetic sounds and was able to read all of her early readers’ books. He also enjoyed saying long words like “premium” while he and his mother traveled around town playing a word game. But he had no desire to pick up a book and read it. Instead, he preferred that his mother read to him as she had since he was little. Mom was getting a little worried that other kids her age could read better than Koty. But she had read Raymond and Dorothy Moore’s “Better Later Than Early” book (a book on Backward Scholars), and as a result, she decided to keep reading to him patiently.
As time passed, he began to question his decision. One day, Koty asked him to read her a book again. He was fascinated by the image on the cover and wanted to know what was inside. “Sorry Koty,” he replied, “I don’t have time now.” Koty, eager to know what was inside this interesting book, began to read it for himself. He left it until it was over. Mom even allowed him to read late in bed to fuel his enthusiasm.
What a miracle! Just as the Moores had indicated, Koty’s enthusiasm flared. From that day on, he became an avid reader and advanced several degrees in no time … surpassing his peers.
Example two
I know a teacher who moved to a wilderness area. Due to its location, it became necessary to homeschool his large family. Until the children reached the age of seven, she used the “formal method” to teach them the basics (Note: most children who do not attend school would tell you that it is not necessary because you can stop going to school. school from day one).
The family needed a home, so he took them to the library where they began researching. They helped design the family home, draw up the plans, and build it from scratch. In the process, they expanded their ability to read, do geometry, draw, art work, measurement, and many other lessons. But they (and Koty) were thinking about achieving a goal rather than simply learning by learning (the non-scholar would add: unless that’s the child’s interest).
It is interesting to note that all of her children received scholarships to Yale University. She did something right.
Example three
Mom is cooking and asks her son, who is eager to help, to cut the apple. She asks you to cut it in half and then again into quarters. She even asks her little one to measure out half a cup of milk. Yes, the child is learning and you have become a facilitator.
In non-schooling, learning is driven by the individual’s natural learning instinct, curiosity, the need to feel competent and complete, and even their need to have fun! As a parent, you have likely used this method from time to time without even realizing that you were out of school. Awareness is what will help you expand your ability to nurture your little one’s natural desire to learn and retain it for a lifetime. Have fun being a facilitator.