In my 2009 young adult novel Inferno, Dante met her friend Parker while handing out flyers printed  with the words:  School. Prison. Can you tell the difference?  I wrote that book when my own child was only four and kindergarten still seemed a long way off– but apparently my own not-so-great memories of school were vivid…

Not all homeschooling families start out with the intention to homeschool. Some do, of course—I’ve met lots of parents who knew they would homeschool long before they had school age kids, who came to homeschooling as an extension of their parenting philosophy– but others, like us, had blithely assumed that their kids would happily head off for school at five and spend most their days there until they were, oh, eighteen or so.

I love homelearning, I love unschooling, I’m glad we’re…

I’ve heard this question a few times over the last month or so. Actually, it seems to be right up there with “What about socialization?”on the list of things people say when you tell them your child doesn’t go to school. Tiresome, maybe, but it’s actually kind of an interesting question to unpack.

First of all, “keeping up” isn’t really a concept that…

It’s September, which means it’s time to not-go-back-to-school.

It sounds like a non-event, and in many ways, it is. September looks pretty much the same as August in our house.

On the other hand, it’s hard to tune out the back to school sales, the fall program guides, the general flurries of haircuts and shopping and…

Here I am, age six, in our house in England. Engrossed in a book, as usual.

And here I am, two years and a move to Canada later, still reading and– although I didn’t know it– I am learning how to write.

Now, as a mom to an eight year old, I’m watching my son explore the world of books and words and stories. He…

Today was gorgeous-- one of those sunny blue sky May days when you feel like summer has just arrived. My son and a friend set up a lemonade stand and sold drinks and cookies. After chatting with a handful of neighbours from toddlers to seniors, as well as a few cyclists who stopped for a quick snack, they began painting and selling rocks as well. Pleased with this expansion, they…

We started unschooling almost two years ago now, after my son attended a few weeks of first grade in a local public school. Unschooling-- which my son describes to people as "not following a curriculum and just doing whatever we feel like--" been pretty awesome. Awesome for him, which I expected, but also for the whole family, often in ways I…