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I guess the definition of "unschooling" can be a fuzzy one. Wikipedia gives the following definition: "Unschooling is a range of educational philosophies and

I guess the definition of "unschooling" can be a fuzzy one. Wikipedia gives the following definition: "Unschooling is a range of educational philosophies and practices centered on allowing children to learn through their natural life experiences, including play, game play, household responsibilities, work experience, and social interaction, rather than through a more traditional school curriculum." I consider our son to have been homeschooled for K-4th grade as we were using a private school's curriculum at home and he was having tests graded by a teacher hired by the private school and paid by us. He went on field trips and did a bunch of other things (played with Legos, studied electricity and geography, etc.) with other homeschoolers and played with both homeschooled and traditionally schooled children. One day when he was 6 and in 4th grade, he was reading a college engineering book (friends of the family had given him when he was five, why I am not sure) when I came to him and said it was "time for school" and to come to the kitchen (where we typically "did school"). He looked up at me and responded, "Why should I stop doing what I am doing here, which is actually helping me to learn something new, to go in the kitchen a fill out a bunch of worksheets on things I've long since known?" Foolishly, I answered, "Because we paid good money for this program. But if you want to go it on your own once you finish the fourth grade curriculum, we can give that a try." I should have just ended homeschooling with a private school curriculum right then and there, but I am not as quick a learner as our son. Anyway, after 4th grade, he learned using all sorts of activities and books, and unschooling was the most delightful part of my career as a homeschool teacher/parent (as really my son was more the teacher than I; he had started correcting my spelling and offering me more precise words for my business letters when he was only two). He went to Shakespearean plays since he was three or four, I think (we had a very smart entrepreneurial friend who owned a tech company by day and ran a Shakespearean group by night and weekend, and he still doing both today). And while I admit I feel history was his worst subject, he was still far better at it than most American adults, as supported by his score on the Culturescope test (where he scored higher at age 7 than most high school seniors) and his being a top student at age 11 and 12 in his university's Honors College upper level history and culture courses. I don't see unschooling as meaning the parents can't provide any direction to the child's education, or use any textbooks, though I also don't think textbooks are necessary for learning in general (the only exception perhaps - and this is only a perhaps - being upper level math).

droithomme 15y ago
Thanks very much for all your posts here, I read them all. There are so very few profoundly gifted kids and hearing all these anecdotes from a parent is a rare treat. Clearly for highly intelligent children, unschooling - going their own way academically, is something that works very well. There's also the traditional child prodigy approach of pushing them even harder, and it seems in those cases the kids are never heard from again, perhaps they crack. Some people ask if unschooling can work well with students that are just normal and aren't highly intelligent. I've seen where it works well in that case as well (or at least as well as traditional schooling). But, obviously for a special needs child with disabilities such as Downs Syndrome, it would not work as they need much more intense interaction just to learn how to live on their own in society. Or say for Helen Keller, what saved her from madness was intense personal tutoring and not just being left to her self. Presumably there is a dividing line in their between disabled and normal where unschooling becomes more suitable. Since unschooling is not a big thing in the modern era, there's few if any studies on results looking into these issues, only anecdotal data and what we know from meeting unschooling students.
- HappyPerson 15y ago
  I think you have a misperception of unschooling as being left on one's own. That's not what unschooling is, at least not typically. It is more just along the lines of learning through ways that aren't a traditional "school" approach to learning. I have to meet some friends for dinner, so can't elaborate more on what you shared above, but will try to do so soon (if not tonight, tomorrow). Thanks for taking the time to read what I shared (I had doubted anyone would see them as nobody had posted in days), and you are most welcome for the sharing - glad at least one person found them a treat! :)
  - droithomme 15y ago
    Thanks for the response and the offer of more details. To clarify, I am fairly familiar with varieties of unschooling and unschoolers and terms such as facilitated learning and strewing. I didn't mean to suggest going one's own way is the same as being left alone, though it can be if the child is ready for that. I hadn't attempted to respond to some of the comments here by others asking how unschooling works since it's not just one single thing or defined approach. Anyway I wanted to clarify that, so you don't waste time answering the wrong question. I'm certainly interested in your further views on the topic. How I interpreted your own story was that after 4th grade your son was able to choose his own path and you were available to facilitate and assist in acquiring needed materials and arranging requested meetings with scientists, going on trips, and what not. His choosing his own path and curriculum as it were is what I saw that you were presenting as consistent with an unschooling philosophy.

droithomme 15y ago

Thanks very much for all your posts here, I read them all. There are so very few profoundly gifted kids and hearing all these anecdotes from a parent is a rare treat. Clearly for highly intelligent children, unschooling - going their own way academically, is something that works very well. There's also the traditional child prodigy approach of pushing them even harder, and it seems in those cases the kids are never heard from again, perhaps they crack. Some people ask if unschooling can work well with students that are just normal and aren't highly intelligent. I've seen where it works well in that case as well (or at least as well as traditional schooling). But, obviously for a special needs child with disabilities such as Downs Syndrome, it would not work as they need much more intense interaction just to learn how to live on their own in society. Or say for Helen Keller, what saved her from madness was intense personal tutoring and not just being left to her self. Presumably there is a dividing line in their between disabled and normal where unschooling becomes more suitable. Since unschooling is not a big thing in the modern era, there's few if any studies on results looking into these issues, only anecdotal data and what we know from meeting unschooling students.

HappyPerson 15y ago
I think you have a misperception of unschooling as being left on one's own. That's not what unschooling is, at least not typically. It is more just along the lines of learning through ways that aren't a traditional "school" approach to learning. I have to meet some friends for dinner, so can't elaborate more on what you shared above, but will try to do so soon (if not tonight, tomorrow). Thanks for taking the time to read what I shared (I had doubted anyone would see them as nobody had posted in days), and you are most welcome for the sharing - glad at least one person found them a treat! :)
- droithomme 15y ago
  Thanks for the response and the offer of more details. To clarify, I am fairly familiar with varieties of unschooling and unschoolers and terms such as facilitated learning and strewing. I didn't mean to suggest going one's own way is the same as being left alone, though it can be if the child is ready for that. I hadn't attempted to respond to some of the comments here by others asking how unschooling works since it's not just one single thing or defined approach. Anyway I wanted to clarify that, so you don't waste time answering the wrong question. I'm certainly interested in your further views on the topic. How I interpreted your own story was that after 4th grade your son was able to choose his own path and you were available to facilitate and assist in acquiring needed materials and arranging requested meetings with scientists, going on trips, and what not. His choosing his own path and curriculum as it were is what I saw that you were presenting as consistent with an unschooling philosophy.