Freeschooling

I was asked by another zaadzster the following .....

"Maybe you can leave a message in this blog and leave me some tips for my adventure as a teacher….what should I know about communicating with children? How can I help them discover their potential for doing great things? What can I share with them?"

Here's my rant ...

Teach your kids that they do not need you. You are there to encourage, guide, love them, but you are not them, they need to learn how to survive without you. That’s the whole purpose we have as parents and teachers, to have our students not need us, to be able to stand on their own and run forward.

Teach them HOW to learn, how to know what they love and what they have natural talent and passion for. Teach them to do what they love. Teach them that falling down is the greatest lesson, all the greatest fall and learn a go on. Teach them to think for themselves, take chances, to be creative in how they accomplish a lesson.

Tell the whole class “I want you all to be able to do THIS  buy the end of this class" …”okay class now how are we going to do THIS”? Strategize with them, they will learn how to learn. They will learn that the world will not tell them how they are called to live only THEY can do that. They must learn to think and act and be confident in themselves.

Sorry to end this rant on a sad note but let’s look at it as a warning. I don’t see self-reliance in most children today. I see people who are living a fear-based life, always looking for someone to tell them what to do. I see frightened sheep; we need to raise courageous, kind, bold, compassionate, strong leaders and learners!

I Freeschooled my sons here's a brief definition:

Freeshooling Is living life in an instructive mode. Freeschooling is not being locked in a house, exactly the opposite it’s being free to learn anywhere, in any way, from anyone you choose! Freeschooling is learning on the beach, in your house, in a museum, taking a class, joining a club, visiting a business, traveling both in real life and taking virtual trips via the Internet and journaling your travels. It’s reading, writing, acting out, experimenting, listening to tapes, videos or talking to an expert about anything you wish to learn and become excellent at or maybe not even go that far with.

Right now if you, an adult, want to know how to do something how do you approach it? I hope you first go out and get all the info you can on that thing .. lets say you want to know more about Florida Architecture because Florida’s Architecture is beautiful to you, you may want to become an architect who specializes in this region’s architecture. Do you look for a college class perhaps degree in this or do you do the following?

1. Get and read every good book and magazine you can find on the subject
2. Visit the buildings both historic and new that are designed in this style
3. Google the hell out of it and follow the multiple leads that come from that
4. Find someone who is considered the best Florida Architect and contact him/her and visit them if they will allow and most will.
5. From steps 1-4 20 more actions will present themselves. Follow them.

Your done, you’re on your way, at the end of step 20 start doing it, actually at step 5 you can start designing, you must take steps and fall and take more steps.

Okay I just outlined Freeshooling. At the beginning of each year decide what you’ll learn and then go learn it. It’s simple, and it’s not simple, because it takes all of you to accomplish. So does a happy life.