Some notes: 1. Although there are more options to Sadbury schools, they still come at a cost esp when there is only one income in the household 2. Some women and parents I read about/heard from who opted for homeschoolbare still finding that they have to take care of them all the time. 3. We wanted to educate our kids but I find women and parents are scattered, sometimes don't have to rub shoulders anymore (e.i. thrives with teaching using digital sources) even when we know that the key to human education is connection and relationship. How to find ways in the post modern lifestyle? 4. If kids have found that school provides friends, how to find middle ground with these wonderful concepts? Thanks. I'm a byproduct of traditional schooling and had a very stressful, insecure, competitive schooling that resulted to mostly compliance.
All three of my kids go to public schools. I can't make homeschooling or unschooling work for many of the same reasons you have. The key isn't necessarily to prioritize a single schooling system over others (though we desperately do need educational reform), but to focus as parents on the things we have power over: giving our kids as much agency and freedom as possible, getting them outside into nature, and prioritizing in-person and creative pursuits that allow for true play. My older daughter is flourishing in middle school because she does theater and outdoor sports (particularly cross country in fall and Nordic skiing in the winter). She's not particularly athletic, but she gets to be out in nature with her friends 5 days a week in the fall and winter, which is huge. And she loves theater and lights up on stage. In the summer we prioritize sleepaway nature camps, family vacations, and between that lots of free time to roam and read. They also play video games and we watch a lot of classic movies as a family.
Is it perfect? No, but it's good for now. My kids are loved, independent, can cook themselves full meals, do their own laundry, converse with strangers, know how to ask for what they need, and spend tons of time reading and doing creative work. I often wish I could send them full time to a nature school or something, but most of us don't live in that world and that's ok.
The Let Grow website (https://letgrow.org/) has a ton of resources on how to encourage autonomy and agency in your kids while encouraging open play. You could think about neighborhood groups, etc., but really most of this starts at home. Good luck! You're definitely not alone.
Some notes: 1. Although there are more options to Sadbury schools, they still come at a cost esp when there is only one income in the household 2. Some women and parents I read about/heard from who opted for homeschoolbare still finding that they have to take care of them all the time. 3. We wanted to educate our kids but I find women and parents are scattered, sometimes don't have to rub shoulders anymore (e.i. thrives with teaching using digital sources) even when we know that the key to human education is connection and relationship. How to find ways in the post modern lifestyle? 4. If kids have found that school provides friends, how to find middle ground with these wonderful concepts? Thanks. I'm a byproduct of traditional schooling and had a very stressful, insecure, competitive schooling that resulted to mostly compliance.
All three of my kids go to public schools. I can't make homeschooling or unschooling work for many of the same reasons you have. The key isn't necessarily to prioritize a single schooling system over others (though we desperately do need educational reform), but to focus as parents on the things we have power over: giving our kids as much agency and freedom as possible, getting them outside into nature, and prioritizing in-person and creative pursuits that allow for true play. My older daughter is flourishing in middle school because she does theater and outdoor sports (particularly cross country in fall and Nordic skiing in the winter). She's not particularly athletic, but she gets to be out in nature with her friends 5 days a week in the fall and winter, which is huge. And she loves theater and lights up on stage. In the summer we prioritize sleepaway nature camps, family vacations, and between that lots of free time to roam and read. They also play video games and we watch a lot of classic movies as a family.
Is it perfect? No, but it's good for now. My kids are loved, independent, can cook themselves full meals, do their own laundry, converse with strangers, know how to ask for what they need, and spend tons of time reading and doing creative work. I often wish I could send them full time to a nature school or something, but most of us don't live in that world and that's ok.
The Let Grow website (https://letgrow.org/) has a ton of resources on how to encourage autonomy and agency in your kids while encouraging open play. You could think about neighborhood groups, etc., but really most of this starts at home. Good luck! You're definitely not alone.
Have you invited your kids to read "Free to Learn" and perhaps discuss it with you ?