Getting to know my kids and subsequently all the amazingly cool "nerdy" things I never would have learned about otherwise has expanded my world. Cynicism always shrunk it.
—Jen Keefe
photo by Marin Holmes, in Tokyo
"Production" is for factories. Your children are learning and growing. There is nothing they need to "produce."
Learning requires a sense of safety.
Fear blocks learning. Shame and embarrassment, stress and anxiety—these block learning.
So don't pressure, coerce or confuse your children.
Smile and laugh and provide.
Keep them safe and fed and warm and they will grow all sorts of ways.
It's kind of schoolish, the idea that the more one reads the more one knows. Unschooling is one of those things that isn't accomplished by recitation or test-taking, but only by changing thoughts and actions, beliefs and relationships. It's not easy, it's not quick, and it's not for everyone.
Studies are now popping up suggesting laughter makes our brains work better, reduces stress and helps sick people get well...
I don't think humor will guarantee my kid will have a better life, but I know it won't hurt him. If all it does is leave him with happy memories of his childhood and parents, I'll count it among our most useful tools."