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Originally Posted by robina_josephine  * can you talk about your decision to unschool/homeschool your daughters?
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We started out on the normal path of preschool, etc, but felt as though we were watching dd1's spirit squashed and her light go out before our eyes. She started changing her likes, etc, to what she thought was expected of her. It was painful to watch. We started looking into alternative education. She's also always been a night-owl and a late sleeper...no matter what dh and I did. I started thinking about fighting with her every morning for the next 13 years...
: ...and wondering if that's the way it had to be.
We met some homeschooled teens and were very impressed with them, so we started doing some research about it. Dd1 has so many interests that she is passionate about and is she also very earthy and physical. I was worried about her not having time to pursue these things and also about her being labeled with behavior problems because she was over-tired and didn't want to sit and be still when it didn't feel right to her.
Dh and I have such busy lives...he has duty shifts all the time and works long hours (right now, he lives in another city 4 days a week for school!) and most of my work happens on the weekends, etc. I can't deny that this has played into the decision. If the kids are gone 7-9 hours a day, 5 days a week, when are we ever going to spend time together as a family? Why should the kids go into an artificial environment, do busy-work that someone else decides is important, and be away from their family and community...when we can provide for their academic needs at home?
We started out as "school at home" folks and honestly, it was hyperemesis with dd2 that turned us into unschoolers. I was too sick to do activities and lessons with dd1...I could barely move. I was so worried about her and spent a lot of time crying and agonizing about my neglect of her education. And you know what? She thrived from it!
Every single time I was crying about this...she would walk into my room, with a spring in her step and a smile on her face and say something like "so, how do you spell 'alligator'? I'm writing a book!" or "so, 3 groups of 3 is 9, right?" "Okay! Thanks, Mom. I gotta go...I'm busy!"
She learned and "accomplished" more during that time than ever before. She had projects and such stacked all over the house! The freedom liberated her own passion for learning...just for the sake of learning. I started doing some more research and read about unschooling. It really resonated with us and we've been stumbling down this path ever since!
yay jessica! 
)
That and a lot of fruit!
