Homeschooling, Unschooling, or both

Homeschooling has become a more popular choice among families when it comes to their children's education. A popular offshoot of traditional home education is Unschooling. Unschooling in effect, is, letting the child take the lead in his or her education.

Unschooling uses the world as the classroom. Math lessons take place in supermarkets, gas stations, and movie theaters. Reading takes place in the library, the car, and anywhere there is a sign, menu, or pamphlet. Learning, while once confined to "age appropriate" texts is now ability and interest based instead.

Children will learn what they are interested in, and they will learn the subject by any means possible. If a child wants to learn about horses, but does not yet know how to read, he may take a beginners book that has easy to read text and teach himself how to read. That same child will teach himself, or find ways for his parents to educate him on everything he wants to know about the subject. Children tend to devour books and activities when it holds there interest. Unschooling allows children to lead the way.

Traditional homeschooling tends to use textbooks, workbooks, and other traditional teaching materials to educate the students. Some children do very well with this method, but others need to have their interest spiked to want to participate. When this occurs, Unschooling steps in, and the child learns.

A compromise between the two is also possible. A parent-teacher may let the child decide what they are going to learn about, and tailor the texts, workbooks, and other materials to that topic. An example of this would be a student wants to learn more about cooking. A parent can use a cookbook as a text, teaching the child reading, and arithmetic out of one "text." The parent can also create worksheets using recipes that are missing ingredients, or have the wrong measurements to reinforce what she has learned. If old enough, the student could also cook a complete dinner for the family as a lesson in home economics.

There are many reasons why people choose to homeschool, unschool or a combination of both. The majority of homeschoolers I have talked to homeschool for academic reasons. The parents were not happy with the way their children were learning (or not learning in some cases) and decided to homeschool. Religious beliefs and safety are also top reasons for parents to decide to homeschool or unschool their children.

The line between the homeschoolers and unschoolers is fading. Many families have found that a middle ground is the best way to go for their family. I feel that this is the best option for my family as well, at least in the beginning while we see how our boys learn, then decide from there how to approach their learning.