This Dad's Take

[Drew]

Last year I decided to contribute a chapter to Valerie Fitzenreiter's new book (not out yet, but keep watching.) Valerie very generously suggested that I post my chapter somewhere on the web. This seems like a good place. So, here is the link. It's my take on unschooling...from the perspective of a father, and a teacher in the public schools.
Thanks!
I'd love to hear your take.

[Sandra Dodd]

That is wonderful. I'm glad you wrote it and that it will be published and that the editor didn't mind you letting it out early!

I loved this part best, though it was a hard decision:
Unschooling is as much a parenting strategy as it is an educational philosophy. This cannot be overstated, and yet, even as I know and understand how closely parenting and learning are interrelated, it is the parenting aspects of unschooling that continue to give me struggles during our adventures as a family. I know schools intimately, their limitations and shortcomings. I have had 30+ years of experience with them. Parenting, however, is still relatively new. I know what kind of parent I want to be and I know what I want for my children, but the conventional wisdom and standards of parenting stand in direct opposition to what I want for my family and myself. Abandoning the traditional roles and expectations of parenthood has been difficult at times, but it is essential for unschooling to be truly successful, and for the health and well-being of the family.

[Stephanie]

Awesome!
Thank you for sharing and I also loved the part that Sandra snipped.

[Karen Raymond]

So glad to see it all up close.

[Amy]

loved it.

[Amy]

loved it.