Good Advice

This was going around Facebook and I wanted to keep it here to refer to since it is such a great reminder. Got it from here.

1. Show respect for all of a child's interests equally.

2. Keep the child in mind as I go through life, so that I notice things that might be of interest to that child.

3. Find ways to include the child in my own daily life - live a more"open-book' life than the norm.

4. Follow up on things the child is interested in - and do this in a wide variety of ways, not only by "getting him a book on it."

5. Live a family life that is rich with experiences of a variety of kinds both at home and outside the home.

6. Have resources around the home that are interesting and stimulating - things that will encourage exploration of ideas.

7. Discuss things - spend time in conversation. This is probably overall the most important parental 'action' involved in unschooling.

8..Have a"playful' attitude - play together, have fun, appreciate the amazing world around you. Don't be cynical, be able to be amazed and find the world a fascinating place. THIS is the most important"attitude' for an unschooling parent.

9. Be self-aware of your own thinking and behavior. Purposely stretch your imagination - question your own assumptions, check your own automatic impulses.

10. Be very observant of what your child is really doing - don't view him/her in a shallow superficial way. Recognize that there is a reason for a child's actions, that a child is"born to learn' and is always learning. Get to know your child's own special favored ways of learning

11. Wholeheartedly support a child's passions EVEN if, to you, they don't look like "education."