Some things you can't see

"Looking back, we can often see the path pretty clearly. But we can't look ahead and know what the path is going to be."

—Pam Sorooshian

SandraDodd.com/flitting
photo by Nisa Deeves

With and for, not against

Parents who say anything is stupid (laws, art, music) are working against their child's peace and learning, not with and for it.

Living in the Real World
photo by Brie Jontry

Wonder and discovery

No matter how your children learn, take a few more opportunities to share wonder and discovery with them. It will enrich you all.

SandraDodd.com/unschool/allkinds
photo by Sylvia Woodman

The same old story

On a remote farm, there was a nephew, an uncle, a beautiful too-closely-related strongwoman, a wrinkly little one with a stick who was more powerful than appearances suggested...

Little did they know the fate that would take them to a distant place.

I didn't do the art, but I like it. The storytelling is mine.

The juxtaposition of Jed Clampett and the Jedi is a good example of "comparison and contrast." Without using that phrase you can look for, or induce (if you can do it casually and for fun) situations in which your children are comparing one thing to another, looking for similarities and differences.

Just because something is silly doesn't mean high-level cognition isn't happening. If humor helps, find it. Make it. Appreciate it in your children.

...Thinking and Learning and Bears
photo art... shared on facebook, and I can't credit it

Imagining

Take this lightly. Play around.

Play with words, with ideas, with thoughts.
Play with music.
Play in the rain.
Play in the dark.
Play with your food.

But play safely. Play is only play when no one involved is objecting. It's only playing if everyone is playing.

Pretending, with a barn swallow's nest
SandraDodd.com/playing
photo by Sandra Dodd

What do you want?

When you know what you want to find, it's easier to see it. If you know you want learning and peace and joy in your life, removing the smallest of obstacles or distractions will let those things shine forth.

Obstacles
photo by Sarah S.

(quote is from page 203-236 of The Big Book of Unschooling)

Smooth it off

If you want a peaceful life, smooth off the rough parts. Take away the dangerous and irritating things. Spend a moment appreciating peace when you see it or feel it. It's not something you can do once and for all. It's a way of living.

SandraDodd.com/nest
photo by Roya Dedeaux

(quote is from page 203-236 of The Big Book of Unschooling)