FAQ

What is unschooling?

Unschooling is a philosophy that allows that given a rich, interesting environment, and attentive, supportive parents, that learning will happen naturally.  To believe in unschooling is to believe that true learning happens best when it arises from the experiences and interests of the learner, not from an imposed curriculum or a teacher or a parent.  As unschooling parents, we don’t act as teachers, but as facilitators and partners.  We do not separate the day into subjects, or into school time, or play time, or learning time.  We live as if school does not exist.  We live our lives and we learn from it.

While some people will call unschooling a method of homeschooling, I believe that this implies that it is something that is done to children, and I prefer to think of it as the manner in which we live and interact with our children.

What’s the difference between unschooling and ‘radical’ unschooling?

Generally speaking,  the basic term ‘unschooling’ refers only to the type of self-directed, life-learning from the previous question, but does not  take into account different types of parenting.   For example, many people will use the term ‘unschooling’ to define their style of homeschooling… but will still otherwise exert a lot of controlling, punitive rules, regulations, and externally imposed structure on their children.   With ‘radical’ unschooling, there is a complete paradigm shift away from a traditional, authoritative, “I’m the parent and I said so” type of  parenting to one of mutual respect and partnership.    Radical unschoolers won’t have chore charts, enforced bedtimes, or time-out chairs.  They live and work together as a family unit, and strive to simply treat each other as they’d like to be treated…. with respect and kindness.

Why does the label matter?

It doesn’t.  I, along with lots of unschoolers, would keep doing exactly what we’re doing regardless of what its called.  For us, it’s just a way of life.  But for the sake of clarity, it makes sense to realize and recognize that there is a world of difference between someone who says they unschool simply because they don’t use a curriculum;  and someone who has embraced and lives the whole life philosophy that is referred to as ‘radical’ unschooling.

What do you do all day?


We live!  We play, we read, we build things, we research, we watch movies, we play games, we do science experiments, we talk, we discuss, we run errands, we take care of the animals, we bake things, we make things, we go to museums, we sit and run and play outside, we do yard work, we go to the library, we go to the park, we invent things, we work on projects, think and postulate and try and learn…

Is unschooling a new concept?

Not at all.  Families have been living and working and playing and learning together since the beginning of time…. long before it was called “unschooling.”  John Holt was writing about unschooling and educational reform four decades ago.  It is not a trend, or a fad, but simply something that has always been done by lots of mindful families.

Is unschooling legal?

Unschooling, which falls under the broader umbrella of homeschooling, is legal in all fifty states, and in many countries.   The specifics of each state vary (some states require book keeping or portfolios, some ask for yearly evaluations, some have mandated testing) so you need to be aware of your own state’s laws, as well as your rights as a homeschooling parent.  You can look up your state’s laws here

Should Christians unschool?

I know wonderful unschoolers who are Christians, Atheists, and everything in between.

I’ve read a lot of negative things about why Christians should not unschool (something about some taken-out-of-context scriptures about “training up” a child) but I have not found anything about unschooling that is at odds with my faith.  In fact, the longer I unschool, the more I wholly believe that they both enhance and strengthen each other.  Jesus loved children, and he treated them with such kindness, dignity, and respect.  He told us to become like children!   At its heart, unschooling is about honoring children as the unique individuals that they are, which is exactly what Jesus did.  He also taught us to have love for Him, and for others, something that plays an integral part in how I live, and how I parent.  To take it further, Jesus was not a dictator but a friend to children (and to adults for that matter)  He walked with them, talked with them, told them stories, and helped them.  He essentially was an unschooler.   And finally, the Bible is a book about the FREEDOM we have in Christ.  As a Christian unschooler, I am raising my children in that same freedom.

What if my child just wants to play video games all day?

I’m going to ask you to do something.  Read that question again, only replace the words “play video games” with “read books.”  Do you feel differently about the question?  If you do, you’re still looking at unschooling with a traditional “school” mindset.  Truly understanding unschooling means an entire shift in perspective, to one in which there is no distinguishing between a learning activity and a non-learning activity.  Learning is everywhere and in everything.  Playing video games is as valuable a learning tool as anything else.   Now, let’s say that your child does play video games all day, and you give him or her the freedom to do so.  A couple of things could happen:  Chances are, because he’s been giving the freedom to choose, the child will explore it until he’s had his fill (whether that means for a day or a week or a month), then move on to something else.    It will then become just like any other option… something he could take or leave, enjoy in moderation, or avoid altogether.  Or maybe it’ll turn into a true passion, something he continues to explore and learn from for a long time to come.  Maybe it’ll turn into a future career.  Or maybe it will be the catalyst that leads to other interests and areas of exploration.  In any case, while it’s unlikely that your child will do any one thing all day every day for any length of time, it’s not a bad thing if he does.  When someone is free to choose, what may look to someone else like an “obsessive” amount of time spent on one activity, may well in fact be a normal, healthy, and important step in that person’s personal path to growth and learning.

How will they learn to read and write if I don’t teach them?

Babies learn to walk and talk without being taught.  They learn because that’s what people do.  “Birds fly, fish swim, man thinks and learns.”  (John Holt)  People learn.  They learn because they’re surrounded by walking and talking people who (one would hope) love them, and support them, and help them.  Reading and writing are no different.  When children are immersed in a literate world filled with the written word, they learn.  When children have parents who read to them, read with them, write with them, draw with them, play with them…  they learn.

What about math? 

Basic math is virtually everywhere.  You would have to make a conscious effort to keep your kids from math if you didn’t want them learning it.   We use math every day, in a myriad of ways, so the kids learn it easily, and naturally.  It looks different than the math they would do in school, to be sure, because they are doing it in a practical, functional way.  They are learning it as they are actually using it, instead of just filling in a worksheet or repeating it back on a test.  As for higher level math, such as algebra or trigonometry (which are things that a lot of potential home/unschoolers worry about), if they’re like me, they will never even use it.  If they do have a need or a desire to learn it, they’ll learn it the same way they learn anything else…. in their own time, in their own way;  whether it’s self taught through a book or a website, or shown to them by a parent or a friend.  The difference will be that they won’t be resistant to learning it, because it will be something they are ready and willing and to learn.

It should be noted too, that John Taylor Gatto (a former New York city school teacher) tells us that “reading, writing, and arithmetic really only take around 100 hours to transmit, as long as the audience is eager and willing to learn. ”   100 hours.  Less than three weeks worth of a full-time job.  What then, are these kids doing in school all day, for twelve years?

Can I unschool certain subjects, and use a curriculum for the rest?

You can do anything you want to.  But if you’re still dividing learning into subjects, and  insisting that certain things need to be taught, you’re not unschooling. 

How do you know they’re learning if you don’t test them?

If they’re engaged, and living, and breathing… they’re learning.  When you learn to cook a new meal, or knit yourself a scarf, or play a new game, do you test yourself at the end to see if you’ve learned it?  Of course not.   You eat it, or wear it, or play it…. and you know you’ve learned.  I know my kids are learning because I see them learning.

How will I know they’re learning everything they need to know in order to be successful?

You won’t.  The fact is, no one knows what another person in going to need to learn in order to fulfill his or her personal destiny.  Schools don’t have a magic set of “must know” facts and skills that if you learn and memorize you’re guaranteed to be successful.  They can’t know what today’s child is going to need in the future.  Our children today could one day be working at jobs that haven’t even been invented yet.   What you can know is that by giving them the freedom to learn in their own way, in their own time, that they will retain their natural love of learning, and their natural desire to learn more.  They will be confident and eager and able to learn what they need to know when they need to know it, no matter what career path they decide to pursue.

What if my child is resistant to learning? And similarly, what if my child is 7, 8, 9 and still not reading?

Children have a natural love of learning.  It’s what they do.  If they’re resistant to learning, it’s because they’ve been forced or coerced or otherwise just not ready to learn that particular thing at that particular time.   And reading, like anything else, comes at different times for different people.  There is not a magic window that exists in which we have to learn how to read or the opportunity will be lost.  Lots of kids, both schooled and homeschooled, are not ready to read at 6.  The difference is, when they’re in school they’re labeled as “slower” learners, and made to endure extra practice, special classes, more homework, tutoring, etc, because they must.  catch.  up.  It damages their self-esteem, squashes that natural love of learning, and turns something that should be fun (reading should be fun!) into a painful and difficult chore.  And for what?  Maybe that child would have learned to read easily, naturally, if they were allowed to do so in another 6 months, or a year.  Or two.   And let’s say one child begins reading at age four, and another begins reading at age nine.  When they’re both thirty, would you be able to tell which was which?  They both can read!

The beauty of unschooling is that the children get to learn at their own pace, in their own way, in their own time.

What if my child has special needs?

By its very nature, unschooling is an absolutely unique and personal journey for every individual child.  Because of the structures and limitations of school, classes need to be aimed at sort of the “average” student.  Anyone who is different from the norm in any way (which is most of us) is then segregated.  There are honors classes and remedial classes.  Special ed and resource rooms.  Tutors and extra credit.  Kids are labeled as gifted or slow.  They are either made to feel that they need to “catch up,” or pressured into feeling like they have to “get ahead.”   That segregation does not exist in unschooling.  Kids are allowed to be who they are… and they live, work and play with others of all ages, abilities, and differences.

Unschooling, can be, and IS, a respectful alternative for any child, of any and all abilities.

How will they learn to respect authority?

Unschoolers, like everyone else, behave as well as they are treated.  They treat people with the same amount of respect that they are given, and that they are shown as their parents interact with others.    We show them, through both words and actions, what respect means, and what it doesn’t.  Do I think they’ll grow up and automatically follow the lead of anyone with more age or power, without questioning it, and without checking it against their own moral compass?  No, and I wouldn’t want them to.   But they do treat people with respect… both because they see us doing so, and because they themselves are treated with respect.

How will they get into college?

Unschoolers get into college the same way anyone else gets into college.  They research their chosen college/s, find out what they need to do for admittance, and they do it!  They prepare a transcript, they study for any exams they need to take, they write their essays.  And because they’re not spending their days in middle or high school, they have the opportunity to attend college even earlier than “normal” if they so choose.  A friend of mine has a fourteen year old unschooler who has taken, and enjoyed, more than one college class.

How will they adapt to a college environment if they’ve never been in school?  How will they be able to get and keep a job if they’ve never had any kind of structure?

I think one huge misconception that exists about unschoolers is that they never do anything that involves a set schedule, or any structure, or any rules…. that they just sort of free-flow through life, and are ignorant to what it means to adhere to an outside set of fixed circumstances.   While it certainly could be true for some unschoolers (just like it could be true for anyone else) I have not personally seen it.  Life is full of schedules and structure, and unschoolers adapt to it like everyone else.  They do things like cub scouts and little league.  They take art classes and guitar lessons and gymnastics.  They show up for their dentist appointments.  They make it to church on time.  They’ve even been known to set an alarm when they want to get up at a certain hour.   Heading off to college or starting a new job is an adjustment for anyone, but unschoolers are as prepared for the challenge as anyone… perhaps even more so, because they are used to following their own intrinsic motivation that got them there in the first place. 

How will they ever _______, if I don’t make them ________?

This is a very, very common question, and it kind of makes me sad.  It seems to be built on the negative supposition that kids are inherently lazy and unmotivated, and wouldn’t possibly do anything on their own unless they were forced to do it.  I actually think the opposite is true… making someone do something does not create motivation at all, but rather resistance, and eventually resentment.  Even now, as an adult, I still feel that resistance towards things that I was forced to do.  That little part of me that wants to stand up and say, “try and make me.”  My children willingly do all kinds of things that people think must be forced in order to learn….  from taking out the trash if they are asked, to brushing their teeth at night, to using “please” and “thank you,” despite never having been prompted with “What do you say?”   They do them because they want to do them, because they respect me and respect themselves.  They do them because they are happy and confident people… and happy and confident people have an inner desire to behave in a certain way, both for themselves and for the people around them.

How will they learn to function in the real world?

This always makes me chuckle a little bit.  Unschoolers live in the real world, right now, and for their whole lives.   They are living in it, and learning from it.  For those of us who went to school, we spent 12+ years in the artificially created environment of school, and then were thrust into the “real world,” at 18 or 22 years old.  There’s no such thing as having to enter the real world for an unschooler, because they’re already there. 

How can I unschool without teaching experience? What if they want to learn about things I don’t know about?

When you send your kids to school, do you think that their teacher knows everything?  Do you think that their teacher has the answer to every question that they might ask?  I say that with no disrespect towards teachers.  But teachers are human, like the rest of us.  No one knows everything.  No one has all the answers.  My kids ask me things that I don’t know ALL THE TIME.  And together, we find the answers.  I learn from, and with, and beside my kids daily.   They don’t need to be shown how to learn… kids know how to learn.  What they need is an attentive and supportive and patient partner and facilitator.  Someone who will answer their questions.  Someone who will provide them with the experiences, people, places, and materials with which they need to learn.  Someone who will help them when they need help, and leave them alone when they don’t.  If you can do all those things, you can unschool.

I find it somewhat odd and confusing that as a society we think we’re qualified to help them learn as they are babies… as they learn to talk, and walk, and count, and recognize circles… and then they  reach a magical, mythical age, and we stop being qualified and need to send them to someone else to learn?  It honestly doesn’t make sense to me. 

How can I unschool if I have to work? How can I unschool if I’m a single parent?

Lots of unschooling families have two working parents, and find a way to make it work.  They may work staggered schedules so one parent is always home, one may work part time only, they may work from home, they may run their own family businesses.   And while it may take more determination, and surely more creativity, many single parents unschool as well.  One single mom I know runs a small daycare from her home.  Another sells Mary Kay.  Another earns a (modest) living as a freelance writer.  All while spending their days with their children.  I’ll be really blunt when I say that if you’re a single parent and your goal is lots of money and lots of “stuff” and a certain standard of living, and the ability to home/unschool, you might waste your whole life waiting for the opportunity to do so.  If, however, you simply want to stay and learn with your children, and be able to provide for them with a safe and comfortable home, food on the table, and clothes on their backs… there are many creative ways to make it happen.   People make it happen.

What about socialization?

Spending the day in a room with 20 other kids of the same age and roughly the same ability is not socialization.  Your children’s opportunity for real socialization increases ten-fold when they are not in school.  You can read more here.  

Will unschooling make my kids weird or different?  Will they stick out of a crowd? 

If you’re doing it right! 😉  If you want cookie-cutter children, you definitely won’t want to unschool.

How do I start?

If your kids are still young, and have not yet gone to school, great!  Keep doing what you’re doing.  Read to them, play with them, support their interests.  Expose them to new people, new places, new things to do.    TRUST… trust the children, and trust yourself.  Read, read, and read some more about unschooling, mindful parenting, and alternative education.

If your kids are in school, and you decide to take them out, you will both have to first go through a period of “deschooling.”   Your kids will need to decompress, and rest, and likely need to learn to love learning again.  There’s a rule of thumb that for every year your child spent in school, you should give them one month of deschooling time…. time to just BE.  Time to sleep.  Time to read.  Time to zone out.  Time to find out what it is they want from their education.  And if they’re burnt out, time to recover.  Give yourself, and your child, time.  Talk.  Wait.  Watch.  Listen.

Where can I learn more?

I thought you’d never ask!  First, go to your library and check out everything they have by John Holt and John Taylor Gatto, as well as the growing number of books written for new unschoolers.  You can visit my Amazon store for recommendations of specific titles, and check out my Resources page for some of the best unschooling websites and blogs.

(Visited 1,725 times, 1 visits today)

39 Responses to FAQ

  1. Pingback: An Educational Philosophy {The Journey Thus Far}

  2. Heidi

    My insecurity (among other things…LOL!) is with the teens. For example, for our state, my 17 year old needs X number maths, sciences, etc. So, we are S-T-R-U-G-G-L-I-N-G through chemisty. We have tried a variety of tactics. Now, if I personally, as an adult wanted to learn chemistry, I’d find books that I think look good, if I don’t like them, I’d move on until I found one that made sense. That is what adults do all the time, right?

    But with a student who needs to have so many years of sciences (he wants to go to college, but not for science! LOL!), how do I read a book about chemisty and call it a year of chemistry? See what I mean? I am in a state that is a bit more stringent about “rules”. So it makes both this child and myself a bit uptight. My little kids all run around like animals and rejoice that they aren’t hanging out at the school ALL DAY (ha ha!), but my 17 year old once did, too.

    So, I am not at all arguing against unschooling–I am wishing I could make that work and feel secure about what my kids “need” to graduate, and to go to college (if they so choose–our oldest is 23 and in college, but we were tough rule-followers then! LOL!).

  3. It is the only way that has worked for the 5 of my 8 kids who were extremely resistant to structured book/classroom study. Once I finally caught on and let go, after about a year or two of ‘deschooling’ I noticed a distinct change. Instead of the usual blank-out look on their faces each time I TRIED to teach them something, they actually started asking ME questions. They gained an intense desire to know not only the whats, but the hows and the whys! WOW, was THAT ever thrilling!

    Now that they are grown, they are proud of the fact that they know as much and more in many areas as their ‘schooled’ peers without having had to give up 12 years of their lives being institutionalized for it.

    I firmly believe that it is vitally important to preserve their natural desire to learn whatever it takes to do so. My only regret is that it took me so long to actually do what my heart was telling me all along. I should have started unschooling from the very beginning!

    Excellent and concise explanation! I never tire of reading the benefits and love being able to pass the info on.

    Cindy@Baptist Taliban and Beyond

  4. Love this! Thank you, it’s so helpful!

  5. Thanks for taking the time to post this. I have only recently realized that I am an “un” schooler. I always thought I was just a lazy, irresponsible homeschooling mom because I didn’t do stuff according to “the norm”…because I don’t have a schedule and really…bow down and worship the school-god.

    I have 8 kids…and my 2nd “graduate” from my schooling basically was “on his own” since he was bigger than me…and…I felt irresponsible…but yet…when he got to the time for his GED last summer guess what? He passed it and got a 99% in the reading section (because he loved reading and not because I made him do it). And, so it just is true…they just do learn by living. 🙂

  6. Pingback: Unschooling FAQ | The Path Less Taken

  7. Alemogo

    Excellent, Jennifer!
    You are truly an inspiration! Thank you!
    Alessia

  8. Karina Jeremy

    A great overview of what unschooling is actually all about…

  9. Pingback: TODDLER n, 1. A Noise With Dirt On It.

  10. Pingback: How to unschool | Glorious Adventure

  11. Sarah

    While I can certainly appreciate the idea behind unschooling, as a ‘graduate’ of an unschooling family, I can assure you that this is not the best way for everyone.

    My struggles began in high school and continued well beyond college. It wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy the freedom and I certainly wanted to learn, I just had absolutely no idea what it was I NEEDED to learn to get where I wanted to be. For example, I have been interested in the law and going to law school since I was twelve. From that point on, I read everything about the law that I could get my hands on, but I was directionless.

    Even though I was motivated, interested, and felt I was going in the correct direction, I was extremely unprepared for even my local community college and I was very, very lost when I transferred to a university.

    Writing essays, taking tests, and even working within a ‘traditional’ school setting were all very foreign to me and the consequences were painful. While these are constricting for a child and may not benefit learning at the time, exposure to such things are essential in the college setting.

    In the end, unschooling was the biggest obstacle I have ever overcome rather than the educational freedom my family was promised.

    • Carey

      Sarah, thank you for sharing your experience. I really appreciate hearing various perspectives.
      As a parent, I worry about giving my kids the best I can to help them be prepared to have success in what they desire to do. I worry that they could have the experience you had going into college. But I worry that they can have that experience, whether or not they go to public school. You see, I went through the public school system. I got good grades, tested highly, was offered scholarships…and yet what you write about being lost and struggling when going to college…well, that resonated so much with me, because that was *my* experience. I even felt that same sort of “why didn’t people direct me or help me figure out what I needed to do to prepare better?” I learned a lot of things the hard way going into college…by falling flat on my face!

      I also know people who have unschooled as kids and transitioned smoothly and succeeded very well in college, and in their careers.

      Don’t know if there is a moral from this, but I appreciate hearing and considering all varieties of experiences.
      One thing that I know that both I and my kids have had to/will have to learn, is that nothing is ever arranged perfectly, and we do the best we can to work through those patches where we stumble and struggle, for whatever reason.

  12. Jennel Youssef

    Awesome article – i was unschooled for at least 4 years of my life; and am now a succesful wife, mother, and business woman, who has travelled the world, has tons of friends of many ages and stages of life; and am ALWAYS thinking outside of the box (much to the chagrin of those who are so limited by the walls that were put around them).

  13. Pingback: People who live differently… | Living Differently

  14. Pingback: Homeschooling - Unschooling - The Squishable Baby

  15. Pingback: The Question that Changed How We Homeschool | Living Life at Home

  16. AmandaC

    I truly believe in the way unschooling works, but I don’t know if I can provide an unschooling environment. I have 6 kids age 16 down to 10 months. I spend most of my day trying to keep the house picked up and it’s never done. I”m not being super picky, but I”m talking about being able to walk through the house and not have trash all over the floor. I can’t seem to keep things balanced so we have time for fun and learning together. By the time I get an area clean I have to nurse the baby, then make a meal. Then it’s all a mess again and I have to go work on the mountain that is laundry. This was an issue when we did traditional homeschooling too. How in the world does everyone get what needs done, done and do fun things too!?

  17. Pingback: Interesting Articles | MahoeLearning.info

  18. Pingback: An Alternative Education – Learning Without School | hippyhappymama

  19. Angela

    I have been unschooling for the past 3 years with our 15 year old special needs daughter and I never realized that what we were doing had an actual name. I always called it “Interest led and opportunity led learning” My question is: what if our state (NC) has an annual testing requirement (and it does) for homeschool children? Does anyone have any suggestions? Thank you so much.

  20. Pingback: Unschooling at Home and at Work: Part I « The Unschooling Professor

  21. Pingback: An Alternative Education - Learning Without School - HippyHappyMama

  22. Karen

    You are a brilliant and natural writer, and this article was a great source of strength and comfort for me!

    I am happily and proudly unschooling a single child in Southern California. Most of our family has judged and criticized me recently for continuing to unschool our son now that he’s getting older – turning 10 recently. It’s like they all thought it was “cute” when he was 6, 7, 8, then when I kept doing it they were like “wait, what? but why? and how??” and all the questions and harrasment began. To survive the mental stress, I admit I have shut some of them out and don’t stay in close contact like we once did. But it’s my child I’m most concerned about!

    I am proud to be a native of Los Angeles, and to still live in the area, and to have so many freedoms and privileges in our State for all “home”schoolers.

    Thank you so much for giving us a voice online! 🙂

    • Wyatt Hayes

      Hello, I too am in California and i am very curious about unschooling. If it’s not too much to ask, what would we have to do to make it legal? Additionally, what do YOU do to keep it legal? Thanks in advance!

  23. Pingback: Common Concerns: How do they deal with real life, schedules, and college/work environments? | MahoeLearning.info

  24. ANON

    “I’m going to ask you to do something. Read that question again, only replace the words “play video games” with “read books.” Do you feel differently about the question? If you do, you’re still looking at unschooling with a traditional “school” mindset. Truly understanding unschooling means an entire shift in perspective, to one in which there is no distinguishing between a learning activity and a non-learning activity. Learning is everywhere and in everything. Playing video games is as valuable a learning tool as anything else. Now, let’s say that your child does play video games all day, and you give him or her the freedom to do so. A couple of things could happen: Chances are, because he’s been giving the freedom to choose, the child will explore it until he’s had his fill (whether that means for a day or a week or a month), then move on to something else. It will then become just like any other option… something he could take or leave, enjoy in moderation, or avoid altogether. Or maybe it’ll turn into a true passion, something he continues to explore and learn from for a long time to come. Maybe it’ll turn into a future career. Or maybe it will be the catalyst that leads to other interests and areas of exploration. In any case, while it’s unlikely that your child will do any one thing all day every day for any length of time, it’s not a bad thing if he does. When someone is free to choose, what may look to someone else like an “obsessive” amount of time spent on one activity, may well in fact be a normal, healthy, and important step in that person’s personal path to growth and learning.”
    That reads a lot like what I imagine living with Basic Income would be like but could never put in words. Sounds nice.

  25. Pingback: Sharing with Our Families | Free Spirited Learning

  26. Pingback: People who live differently… | Living Differently

  27. Pingback: What ‘school’ looks like for our family | Heather Costaras / HAT

  28. Wolfgang

    UNSCHOOLING IS **NOT** LEGAL AND IS CHILD ABUSE!!!

    Most State’s Laws require curricula, specific subjects to be taught, and standardized testing.

    How will a child learn algebra or biology playing video games?

    My People created public school, but it does more harm than good now.

    I would not be too opposed to unschooling.

    However, by saying it is legal is setting people up for losing their children and gaining a prison sentence…

  29. Heinrich

    Unschooling IS illegal.

    You have never read the laws and are inciting people to commit crimes and abuse their children!

    Many State laws require that curricula be taught, including math, reading, history, and so on. As well as standardized testing.

    Replacing these with letting your kids play video games all day, is therefore ILLEGAL

  30. Rose

    You’ve addressed so many questions here, but not the one I was looking for. I’m all for unschooling, but radical unschooling is a huge turn-off for me. See, I’m a homeschooler so I have a small community of homeschooling/unschooling parents, and I know some radical unschoolers. These children have no rules, no boundaries whatsoever, and it does not make them naturally respectful and kind. Contrariwise, they are mean, mannerless bullies who boss the other kids around and ignore their parents completely. I’ve seen kids hurt others physically and destroy things that do not belong to them, and their parents offer the recipients of this abuse little more than a shrug and an explanation of “they are learning from their own mistakes” or suggest to the child that they “hug it out” with their parent. I’ve seen them become lazy and entitled to the point that they basically own their parents. I LOVE the freedom unschooling allows kids to discover themselves without anyone telling them who they should be. I love that the kids in our community get to be kids, and yes, learn from their own mistakes and make their own decision. But when all the radical unschoolers I know have kids who are destructive, selfish and cruel, all I see is parental neglect. Sometimes saying “no,” “stop,” or “you need to deal with the mess you made” is necessary. My children have lots of freedom, and I expect they’ll be as rebellious to authority as I am. But they know when to behave. They know wrong from right because we have guided them in that direction. Oh, and before I go, let me talk about this “what if they want to play video games all day” issue. I know a kid who was given the opportunity to do just that, and he did. At 9 years old, he became addicted to the Xbox to the point that he would sit in his own filth because he couldn’t be bothered to get up to go to the bathroom. You’re delusional if you think kids don’t need discipline and a measure of parental authority.

    • jen

      Hi Rose, it’s unfortunate that what you are describing (kids who are mean or mannerless, kids who hurt other people or destroy other people’s property, etc) does exist, but it comes from parents who are *neglectful*, which is not synonymous with radical unschooling. Do some parents neglect their kids and call it radical unschooling? Sure. It does happen. But in reality, unschooling well is the very opposite. It requires a very attuned, attentive, CONNECTED parent who would absolutely respectfully intervene if her child was doing something that was harmful, disrespectful, or hurtful to others. It’s our job as parents to help our children learn to navigate the world with kindness and respect, not just for ourselves, but also for the people and property around us. I would never, nor have I ever, advocated for any style of parenting that would leave children to “run wild” (for lack of a better term) So no, no delusions here.

  31. Steve Dodd

    Wanting to unschool in the state of Pennsylvania where there are strict Homeschool guidelines and what seems to be not inline with the way we want to unschool our children. Any advice or help in this matter would be greatly appreciated.

    Thanks,

    Steve Dodd

    • Steve,
      Often times it is a matter of learning “school-ese” wording and fitting subjects into the required structure. I don’t remember PA laws exactly (almost moved there 3 years ago) but I do remember thinking we’d have to do some serious rewording of things. 🙂 I use World Book Encyclopedias Typical Course of Study to make sure we are covering what is required by law in NC.

      • Paige Jobe

        Mary,
        Would you explain more about how you meet the NC requirements? Isn’t one of their requirements that your child take a standardized test every year? If so, how do you handle that?
        Thanks,
        Paige

  32. Sorcha

    The idea of deschooling is great! I’ve just finished my last year of high school and I’m having a gap year. Many people said that it was a bad idea but now I can just say I’m deschooling which actually since I was in school for 13 years will take a year and 1 month!

  33. Sylba Boldt

    I have a child (13 year old – almost 14) he is public school and absolutely hates it. I heard one of new friends talking about unschooling. My fear is his lack of motivation to do any school work. Would unschooling help with that? He is currently failing almost all his classes. I have tried everything else. I don’t know what else to do.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.