Deciding to homeschool and even unschool your children is perhaps one of the most important decisions you will make as a parent. Understandably, you may find yourself questioning this decision at times. Being well prepared can help ease some of the worries that new unschooling parents may have. Read on to learn some helpful tips on how to start unschooling successfully!
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How to Start Unschooling – Build a Library
Unschooling is all about child led learning. How can you know what your children want to learn if you don’t expose them to different topics and areas of interest? One of the easiest ways to do this is by having a lot of books on hand on all sorts of different subjects. This way you can let your children choose what they want to learn about from a variety of books, or you can read different books to them to gauge their interest in each area.
Of course, you can certainly visit libraries and do this. In fact, I encourage you to visit libraries often! However, having your own home library is really important too. It need not be expensive. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to build a home unschooling library is to check out local library book sales. Many towns have huge yearly library sales with hundreds of kids fiction and non fiction books. These books are usually anywhere from $.25 to $1.00 each. We go to several of these a year and fill up bags of books – and usually end up spending less than the price of just one brand new book from a book store!
Once you have your home library started, make sure it is in an accessible place in your home. Make reading a big part of your child’s life, and allow them to choose books based on their interests. It’s great to have as many books on hand as you can – so when your children ask questions you can grab a book and find the answers together!
For the basics of how to start unschooling – check out my related post “What is Unschooling – A Beginner’s Guide”
Don’t Eliminate Curriculums Entirely
When you’re learning how to start unschooling, you might be thinking you don’t want to use a curriculum at all. This may be true, but curriculums can still be a valuable resource for unschooling families. They can be especially helpful for subjects such as reading and math. Of course you don’t need to follow any specific curriculum, you can mix and match as you see fit. You also don’t need to follow a curriculum to the letter – you can choose what to share with your children based on their individual needs. This is one of the major advantages of homeschooling and unschooling. You can go at your child’s own pace – spending more time on a subject when needed and skipping ahead when appropriate.
Related – https://eschooled.com/why-kids-dont-need-school-6-big-reasons/
Unschooling is all about allowing your child to direct their own learning rather than forcing learning upon them. This doesn’t mean that you need to eliminate everything that resembles school entirely. Some children really enjoy completing worksheets or having their parents read to them from actual school books. My daughter really loves math and asks to do lots of math worksheets – so it’s good to have these things on hand!
The best thing to do is buy a few workbooks on subjects such as math, reading and social studies, and present them to your children. They may scoff at first, or they may show interest right off the bat. The point here is that you don’t force it, but you make it available to them. If they’re showing an interest in reading, for instance, having a phonics workbook to share with them can be very helpful. Having some materials on hand ahead of time is important, so you don’t miss the opportunity when it presents itself.
How to Start Unschooling – Make Learning a Part of Everyday Life
One thing that really sets unschooling apart from other types of school is that learning doesn’t need to be confined to a specific place or time. Learning is everywhere, and unschooling really allows for this. When learning how to start unschooling, this is perhaps the most important concept to take to heart. There are opportunities to learn everywhere, we need simply to take notice.
Every time your kids ask you “how much longer” or “when are we leaving” or any question like that is an opportunity to learn about time. Signs, video games, recipes, food labels, sticky notes and so on all present opportunities to teach or practice reading. A walk outside can allow for learning about plants, trees, architecture, animals, and more. The opportunities are endless if we remember to pay attention.
This concept is really the cornerstone of unschooling. Making learning a part of everyday life eliminates the need for setting a specific time or place to do “school.” Fostering in our children a lifetime love of knowledge and learning is so important. Teaching them how to acquire the knowledge they seek is really our ultimate goal as unschooling parents. Pay attention and you will soon see all the many opportunities that present themselves each and every day.
How to Start Unschooling – Take Field Trips Often
One of the great benefits of unschooling is the freedom kids get during the week when most other kids are in school. This means lots more time for family adventures! Getting out and exploring is a great way to expose our children to new things while learning about their interests. When learning how to start unschooling, this can be on of the most exciting and fun aspects!
There are so many places you can go, and it’s great to be able to visit places when many other kids are in school. You can have more time to explore with fewer crowds, meet other homeschooling families, and perhaps even receive a homeschool discount! You can also check with your local library about museum passes – many libraries have passes that you can borrow to get in for a discount or even free at some of the top local museums, parks and other attractions! And if you happen to be a family who receives SNAP benefits, there’s a good chance you will get in for free or at a very reduced rate for your whole family!
Some fun ideas of places to go include childrens museums, parks, hiking trails, natural history museums, zoos, art museums, living history museums, farms, libraries, local performing arts venues, or just walk around and explore a new town or city!
Connect With Others
Knowledge isn’t acquired in a vacuum, and children naturally want to be around other children. If you are just getting started with unschooling, you may be surprised to find that there are probably quite a number of other families in your area doing the same thing. You just need to find and connect with them!
Facebook is a great place to find other unschooling families. There may be a local unschooling group you can join. If you aren’t having luck finding a specific unschooling Facebook group, you can most likely find a homeschool group to which unschooling families also belong. Often times these groups will organize get togethers, outings, trips, classes and even dances and Prom for older kids!
Don’t be afraid to start conversations with other families you see when you’re out and about during the week. If you see a family with school age kids at a park, library or other place during a school day, there’s a good chance they are homeschoolers as well!
Consider Online Learning as an Option
Just like with paper curriculums, unschooling families can incorporate online learning as well. There are many resources that you can choose from, and just like with a print curriculum, you don’t need to follow anything to the letter. Online learning is just one more option of the many tools available to unschooling families.
For younger children, ABC Mouse is a popular option. Affordable and fun, this is a good website to consider if your younger kids enjoy using the computer. You can choose the level and adjust up or down based on your child. You can also pause or cancel at any time, which is helpful as your child may tire of it but then want to take it back up a few months later.
For kids of any age from preschoolers right through high school – Time4Learning is a wonderful resource. You can adjust the grade level for each subject, depending on your child’s skill-level and interests. It’s flexible and student-paced, with with thousands of interactive lessons in math, language arts, social studies, and science. My daughter has been enjoying this a few times a week for the last few months.
Another helpful resource, especially for math, is Khan Academy. This is a free website with tons of video lessons and practice problems that anyone can use. It can be a really helpful resource.
The point here is, online learning is another tool that you should have as an unschooling family. Whether you use this tool a little or a lot is really up to your kids and their individual needs and interests.
Find Homeschool Classes in Your Area
When learning how to start unschooling. you may be surprised to find several local classes offered for homeschool families. You may have to do some digging, but chances are you will discover quite a few options that you may never have known existed.
For instance, in my area, we have found and tried several different and fun programs for homeschoolers. A local farm offers a wonderful year round wilderness program. Another local farm allows homeschool families to come observe and ask questions around the farm one day a week for free. There is a children’s museum nearby that offers homeschool science classes and day camp opportunities throughout the year. There is a local art studio that offers homeschool art classes. There are even homeschool ice skating classes!
Many museums also have “homeschool” days specifically geared towards homeschool families.
Attending these types of classes is another great way to connect with other families in your area. It gives your kids a chance to socialize and make friends while having fun learning in a less formal way than traditional school. Hopefully you can find some fun opportunities where you live!
Unschooling is a Wonderful Way of Life
If you are thinking of are have already begun unschooling in your family – congratulations! This is such a special gift for your children, one I’m sure you will not regret giving them. I hope some of these tips will help you get started in your family’s unschooling journey. Please consider signing up for our newsletter so we can stay connected as an unschooling community!
