Unschoolers and high school credit
The washer stopped before the final spin. Kids had to wring out heavy, wet towels and blankets in the tub. That got old, quick! Teen son learned how to fix it by reading web sites and manuals and YouTube videos.
Applied Science credit earned! (or in process of earning)
He also works alongside an AWESOME mechanic to fix his car and others.
A great piece of advice another experienced unschooling parent told me was to look at what my children are doing, learning, engaging in. Find where their activity is taught in a book or curriculum and take note of the “title”. Place that title on their portfolio.
When my younger son is keying trees because he loves to do so, that would be found in Botany or Environmental science. When the other son taught himself how to write code using Khan Academy, that would be labeled Computer Science. Or there’s the time my husband took the older two to the bank to open their checking accounts. Afterward, they had a HUGE discussion about interests, loans, taxes, banking and residual income. Finance? Economics? My daughter is making furniture. Carpentry?
Since I am the home school advisor, I determine how a credit is earned. According to PA law, the supervisor of the home education program sets the standards. This is where SAT scores or community college credit earned validates, to some, your children’s knowledge. To some universities, how can they trust what your mama wrote on your transcript? How can they believe what she said you know? But, ahhhh, this SAT score PROVES you really do know something!
Although I play along with what mainstream academia wants to see to prove my son has earned his high school credits, I don’t need their approval. My working washing machine is proof enough.
17,18,19……. 20!!!
Earlier this week, I was driving home with my 8yo daughter in the back seat. We chatted easily for a while about her dance class we just left and then the conversation casually drifted into silence. At least, that’s what I did. Thoughts about the remaining week wandered through my mind as I navigated the dark county roads. You know how it goes. Your kids are still talking to you and you nod or “uh-huh” at the appropriate times to indicate that you are “there listening, but not really there listening.” (I try not to allow this behavior often, but c’mon, let’s be honest.)
It’s during this alleged silence that I tuned back in to hear my little girl counting. I have no idea what she was counting, it was dark as country black outside, so she couldn’t have been counting trees. But, she was counting,
“1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9…….10!,11…..”
I held my breath.
If you ever had the privilege of teaching a young child to count, YOU KNOW WHEN TO HOLD YOUR BREATH!! It’s those magical numbers that come after “…7,8,9…..” Small kids can come up with the most illogical numbers after the “tricksters” of 9,19,29,39,…. I’ve heard all sorts of craziness! “7,8,9…… 14!” or “17,18,19….. 42!” It’s always said with such enthusiasm, and the preceding numbers are drawn all the way out till you die from suffocation! It’s as if they know “9,19,29,39” are game changers, they know the next numbers are “magical!” and should be expressed with exuberance.
It’s been a minute since I heard my baby girl count from 1 to some higher number. Its a skill that, once aquired, doesn’t need to be re taught or tested. But still, I held my breath.
and on she counted, “17,18,19….20!…. 27,28,29…..30!”
whew. breathe mama. she got it.
At that moment, I wished I could bottle up all those moments I fretted about her “getting it.”
It took her a long time to know what number came next,… or did it? Did it take a long time? Or was I asking at the wrong time?
When she was 4, I began a kindergarten curriculum with her, like I’ve done with all my children prior to switching to self-directed learning. I whipped out the phonics books, math curriculum, handwriting, I mean they were going to “get this thang!” Some of TheHalfDozen picked up on it right away and were interested and did well, some did not. Thankfully, by the time this child,#5, was four years old, I had learned a lot. I learned not to push, not to expect her to do what the others before her had done. I learned that children learn on their own timetable and no amount of drilling to death will speed that up. But, my lessons in learning about learning were not complete. I did still worry about her counting and reading and spelling and knowing where Istanbul is.
As she kept on counting, I smiled. I relaxed. I realized. Between the ages of birth till 8, what has she missed by not being able to count correctly? I mean really, What? So what, she went from “27,28,29…32.”?? Was she in charge of someone’s money? Did she miscalculate a customer’s account? No! Sure she may have shorten the “hide” time during hide and seek, or maybe she misrepresented counting during a board game. I’m sure she was corrected by her older siblings, but who cares? She wasn’t old enough to understand that the units can only hold 9 and when another “one” comes walking up “decimal street” (hello Math U See!!!) the lil green ones need to regroup into blue tens because they can’t live on the roof of the lil “unit” hut! And when the blue tens’ house is full of 9 tens, they need to regroup into red hundreds and live in the big castle! (we loved math u see for many years!)
She wasn’t old enough then, but she is old enough now! I hope I didn’t cause her too much stress by asking something from her she wasn’t ready to give! I hope I didn’t make her feel less than simply because she was too young to understand why 19 comes after 18. I hope to inspire parents to give knowledge to their children. Think out loud with them. Show them why 29 must follow 28 and the magic that is in 30! Show them and then wait, trust, show them again when they ask and repeat.
Knowledge is a gift. A gift that any age can enjoy. It’s no longer a gift when I ask you to give it back to me, especially when you can barely lift it off the floor.