What is the unschooling method of homeschooling?

Answer 1

I asked the same question last year to a group of un-schoolers in Oregon. Every answer was different. So, it depends on who is doing it. Every home-school is entirely different from one another just as every family is different and every person is different. Unschoolers are especially unique and quite independent.

Some unschoolers do what seems like "nothing". They wait for their children to want to learn something before they give them the opportunity to pursue it. I met a lady that had 2 sons. One was 12 and had been reading for a little while. The other one was 11 and did not know how to read anything. He was tired of looking at comic book pictures and his mom refused to read the text to him. She read other books to him though. The only reason she didn't read the comic strips was because she didn't like them. She said that he finally wanted to know how to read. I will withhold my opinion about this method. Eventually the children will learn something.

Other families offer a large amount of educationally stimulating material. They teach the child to read and then allow the child to read if, what and when they choose.

Still others sign up for classes all over town. One "unschooling' mom complained because she was getting tired of driving to so many things during the day. Writing class here. Basket making there. Painting here. Medievel History there. Swimming. Speech. Debate. Volleyball. Algebra. The list was long. They were all group classes and nothing was done at home. I had to giggle --- so, which is it? Group school. Home school. or Unschool. Teehee. It was self-directed learning with parental taxi service. That's okay for them! Actually many home-schoolers do something similar.

One thing that I did learn from those that call themselves Unschoolers is that many of the children DO actually go to college and become successful. Personally, I think that is a very expensive way to get an education. The students end up taking many basic non-credit courses before they qualify for the credit classes. That is a lot of tuition for something they could maybe have learned at home. But, who am I to argue with success! They eventually graduate and get good jobs.

These are just a small sampling of Unschooling. It is whatever the student makes it.

Our home-education consists of self-teaching. It is close to unschooling but yet it has an easy to follow method and a simple structure. The students work at there own pace in a supervised environment. They study math in increments from basic facts to physics in preparation for studying the exact sciences. They write according to their ability --- a minimum of one page every day. They read within their comprehension and skill. Parents choose the books or use books from a prescribed list of books that are included in CD format to be printed if needed.

We use a combination in our home of formal academic studies, self-directed learning and un-schooling. Basically, the way I like to say it is that we are NOT in *school* at all. Because school tends to relay the message of "group". We are home-educated. We study together as a family.

After academic basics are complete each day the children can and do work on anything that they choose. They handle horses, dogs, jobs, woodworking, bicycle riding, driving lessons, team sports, etc.....

We have friends that use the same method of supervised and directed self-teaching -- these students have studied college level material at home and paid only for AP exams and for a few years of college. One young man will graduate with a 4 year degree after taking only 1-1/2 yr of campus studies!!!!!

Unschooling is an elusive term. It can mean whatever you want it to mean.

Answer 2

I actually just found out about this myself a few days ago.Its where parents let there children pick what they want to learn and how they learn it,without ANY textbooks.the kids use games,Internet,library,ANYTHING to learn stuff.I read about a boy who was unschooled all through 12 grade,and He's currently in college studying film making.It seems really whacked to most people,but the kids are learning things from living life,not doing boring studies.I thought that it sounded really cool,and I would suggest that you check out www.borntoexplore.org/unschool to read things about unschooling.