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Barbie's homemade bed

We do a blend of home-school (math, history, typing) and "unschool"--wherein the kids have time to freely play and create.


The boy is all about Minecraft, Pokemon, and the history of video game systems. He talked constantly for a two mile walk about the various gaming systems, what they looked like, when they were invented, and how well they fared in the market. That's history, technology, & business--none of it assigned. I did not think he had the capacity to recall so much.

He asked me if I "think it's a good idea" for him to "invent his own RPG (Role Playing Game)." He's asking if it's okay to excel in something. He knows what he loves and wants; he needs to know if that's acceptable. Acceptable? It's what we're all looking for--turning our passions/interests into a way of life!

The girl is a crafter, writer, and sketcher. Along with the Barbie bed she invented with chopsticks, cardboard, and a glue gun, she made a playground:

I came home one day, and this was on the floor: design, persistence, and resourcefulness required--not one bit of it "assigned."

There was a Penelope Trunk post about the value of finding one's passions as a means to getting into college. The more I let them delve into their own projects, the better for their futures. This is the opposite of  more testing and curriculum-pushing that schools require.

Schooling says, "Here's what you need to know to make it in the world.

Unschooling says: "Here is what I want to know about; how can I fit this into the world?"