free schooling?

**La Que Sabe** · 02-09-2008 11:59

is there any body on here that has done or is doing or is planning on doing free schooling?

i'm planning on it, but would love to hear your stories of how you taught them, or if you taught them at all [DD's dad was free schooled but they did nothing except play until they were 9 years old and then put into t he schooling system].

please share your stories =]

**NibbleCurlynBub** · 02-09-2008 12:05

This is pretty much what I will be doing.

There are a few approaches to it.

Mine will be to provide experiences and information to a topic my kids show interest in.
Almost child-led.

Obviously it is very wrong to withhold an education completely like that and kids DO need to learn things. The Gov't WILL take kids who are not learning out of a home-schooling arrangement to put them in public school.

But there are SO many different ways of helping them learn things that there should never be a problem as far as that is concerned.

**neostudded** · 02-09-2008 12:07

Are you talking about un schooling?
I am seriously considering it.
I believe my son has the abilty to learn without being "taught" how to learn, so to speak.

I have only one concern,

~I am bad at english as the public system failed me.

But it is never to late for me to learn

I plan to teaching them about what they are interested in and teaching them english and maths.

**Ffrenchknickers** · 02-09-2008 12:21

We are homeschoolers....we do follow a curriculum for the core subjects - mainly English and Maths...this works for us....but alot of what they learn, we elaborate on and go off on tangents....they are interested in different things daily so we design the way we do things around that....so we are quite free about the way we do things with a basic framework in place as well.

Neo, you could always loosely follow an English curriculum so that you can be confident with what he is learning in that regard....and freeschool for the rest of his learning....Bear in mind though that here in Qld you will need to register and therefore have some kind of curriculum....otherwise they will make you look for work (to be able to claim anything from Centrelink) once Julius turns 6.

**neostudded** · 02-09-2008 12:30

Thanks Ffrenchstar, I will do that for sure.

**thekellygang** · 02-09-2008 13:48

The great thing about homeschooling is that there are so many ways to go about it.

Many find success in combining several styles and ways of doing this.

The important thing is that we have a style that meets the needs of our children. Some children learn and retain more in varying styles.

I do believe that it is important to provide a framework for children, how we go about that may vary.

I agree with Ffrenchstar - provide your child with the Key Learning Areas but approach them in a creative way that is interesting and appealing to our children.

I believe that our children are very smart and have the capacity to learn and comprehend far beyond where they are normally challenged.

Homeschool allows us to nurture and develop their love for learning and tailor it to their special talents and interests.

Have a great day.

Tracy

**La Que Sabe** · 02-09-2008 16:38

thanks for that girls!
yes neo, i mean un-schooling

**Mum2Lucas** · 03-09-2008 11:15

my son's only 3 but to get him to learn to do certain things i leave it out for him to see and then eventually he tries it. he won't do anything otherwise. he has some early learning workbooks at home and i just leave them out where he knows where they are and can see them and i'm sure in the next few months he'll pick them up and want to learn something.

**babyluv3** · 29-09-2008 02:04

We are unschooling! We did one term of 'homeschooling' with a curriculum and that was enough for us, the kids were sooo bored and totally uninterested!!

I have done a ton of reading and found a really supportive unschooling forum, and my kids are soo happy! We have just finished our first term of unschooling, so its all new to us, but I have found it incredibly exciting and liberating.

As far as the govt is concerned, unschooling is still seen as schooling, and to meet their requirements, you can write out 'how' you are going to provide learning experiences. Theres an unschooling mum who has written out a basic outline that you can use for yourself and change it to suit your situation. Its floating around on the web somewhere, when I find it I will post it.

Heres a fantastic american site from the Life Learning publication, where you can order back copies (theyve now amalgamated with the natural life magazine) and you can also read the whole issue of each past magazine. Theres some fantastic information in them.

http://www.lifelearningmagazine.com/

Also, google unschooling books. Ive ordered John Holt's book 'Growing without schooling'. And another one called 'The unschooling handbook: how to use the whole world as your child's classroom'

In fact, google John Holt, he is considered the originator of 'unschooling' philosophy!! AND he was an educator in the system!!

A great aussie unschooling website
http://homeschoolaustralia.beverleyp...lingindex.html

Hope this is enough info to wet your appetite!!

Message me for the forum if you are interested (not sure what the code of conduct is about those things!!)

Happy 'Life Learning'!!

Michelle