Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Unschooling, for realz?

If you don't already know what unschooling is, go here first. The article is a transcript of the video, fyi.

I received an e-mail about this today from my funny, funny husband. Dayna Martin said she doesn't remember literature and history she learned in my school and to quote my husband's e-mail directly: "Well sure some people don't remember the books and the plays and all that... wait... did she just say "historians" O. M. G." I spit out my wine (it's been a rough day) when I read that one, because if you know my husband you know he does NOT talk like that. And yes, dear, she just said 'historians' when she meant, you know, people from History, not the people who study it.

Normally, I'm a live and let live sort. Because I don't expect everyone to be a freak about cloth diapering, or a breast feeder, or a sci fi nerd, or obsessed with the beach... but these people are leaving themselves WIDE open to be made fun of. ::rings her hands together over keyboard::

First, they're giving normal homeschooling (which is fully legitimate) a bad, bad name. Second, they are totally uneducated, or maybe the point is they wish they were uneducated and resent their parents for making them learn all about the 'historians'. Third, and most importantly, children are CLINICALLY INCAPABLE of making decisions for themselves- even 18 year olds do not have the same decision-making ability that a 22 year old does so the very idea that I should hop on board this crazy train and start letting my toddler decide what he eats and when he sleeps is just nuts!

The irony that unschooling is not actually a word recognized by any of those pesky dictionary type things is certainly not lost on me.



Tomorrow is Henry's 2 month birthday- prepare yourself for pictures and get your guesses in as to his lenght and weight. He was 8.8 and 19in at birth and 8.11 and 21.75in at 2 weeks.

4 comments:

Kate said...

It's always blown me away that "Unschooling" is legal anywhere. Don't get me wrong, I think that letting kids learn about what they're interested in is valuable (that's what we did in GT in elementary school) it just can't be the only thing they learn.

Kate said...

Oh, I almost forgot; 10 lbs 9 oz and 24 inches :)

Brenna said...

hmmm....I had never heard of unschooling, and now I'm afraid.

Husband said...

Be very, very afraid.

Until I read this article I thought unschooling was something you found in rural, impovrished 3rd world countries due to squalid and destitute circumstances.

No, no, turns out it is a new fad with the unintelligencia in parts of the US of A.