tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-10025883483841658942012-01-23T18:22:20.256-08:00Living, loving & learning through Radical Unschooling! Come explore with us, Phil Biegler & Christine Yablonski, and the reason we're here as Radical Unschoolers: Kimi & Shaun Biegler!Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.comBlogger191100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-91915668200765746682010-10-24T19:43:00.000-07:002010-10-24T19:43:51.082-07:00

We are very pleased to announce that we have moved all of our blogs, Living the Unschooling Life (blogger version), Unschoolers on the Road & Unschooling Always (Chrysalis) into one comprehensive blog, now found at: Livingtheunschoolinglife.com We hope this makes our writings easier to find.  So please, come on over to our new site!

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-71293602192617292802010-10-18T08:26:00.000-07:002010-10-18T11:47:04.813-07:00

Labels are useful - they help us categorize & systemize.  They allow for a quick understanding of what something is.  When I go to the bookstore, I follow the labels to find the book I'm looking for.  When I'm researching for something online, I use keywords, another form of labeling, to get to what I need quickly.  Labels are useful. Labels can also hinder.  When something is more complicated

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-25934437987731178322010-10-12T12:54:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:54:12.580-07:00

I was educated in the public school system.  There was no way my parents could afford any kind of private schooling.  Throughout my youth, my parents urged me to do well enough in school that I could get a scholarship to go to UMASS, the cheapest 4-year college they knew of.  It was their hope that I would be able to live a more prosperous life than they ever had - & a good education was the key

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-63579631791889263372010-10-11T09:56:00.000-07:002010-10-11T19:23:10.317-07:00

Most of my friends are fairly progressive in their belief systems.  Most of my friends are not only "tolerant" of gays and lesbians, but, in fact, believe that gay, lesbian, bisexual, asexual and transgender people are, above all else, people.  People who deserve the same rights as currently held by heterosexual people. So it has been a horrible reminder nearly each morning when I open up my

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-66415769775544345712010-09-06T18:04:00.000-07:002010-10-11T19:22:16.634-07:00

I had the honor and privilege to speak at the Northeast Unschooling Conference (NEUC) in Wakefield, MA, last weekend. Below is a segment of the talk (it was 45 minutes, so it seems a little long to blog the whole talk). The talk was targeted at unschooling Dads; however, it's really relevant for the breadwinner in the family, regardless of gender. It speaks of my early experiences as unschooling

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-27652870373418259072010-08-30T19:57:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.628-07:00

It's one thing to say "we're radical unschoolers", but how do we live our day-to-day lives with those principles?  It can get tricky - we all have those triggers, those "lines that shall not be crossed" in our minds.  Remembering to use our unschooling principles can get lost in the scripts that run in our heads. Here's an example from my life.  I prefer to buy organic & locally-grown food

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-85509008707587984742010-06-05T16:07:00.000-07:002010-10-11T19:22:16.635-07:00

There have been a few posts recently about algebra and its relevance in the real world - in particular on the Nightline segment a few days back (http://abcnews.go.com/Nightline/unschooling-homeschooling-books-tests-rules/story?id=10796507). The question seems to be "what if my kids don't learn algebra?" So, I thought, why do we need algebra, and what would we do if we didn't learn it in school?

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-69917858323738137462010-06-04T18:44:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.630-07:00

After watching another TV interview with an unschooling family done by the mainstream media, I found myself again reacting to the fact that the interviewer (Juju Chang, who also interviewed us) was asking 'schooling' questions. I thought to myself, why doesn't she ask unschooling questions? Then I thought, well, what are unschooling questions? If I had an opportunity to write the questions, what

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-50329449214489509952010-05-17T19:01:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.632-07:00

While I don't talk to everyone I know about unschooling, I've never hidden the fact that I unschool my children from people I work with. One of the really positive aspects about the work I've been doing for the past 15 years is that I get to spend time visiting customers around the country (and even around the world - Australia and England, mostly). There's often the opportunity to go out to

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-88711926017135210372010-05-02T16:34:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.633-07:00

We've been thinking about why so many people respond so negatively to the portrayal of our unschooling lifestyle. Of course, many people just don't take the time to think about it - they react emotionally, and outright reject it without understanding what we're doing (frustrating - there's just no discussion to be had there). But others clearly put some thought into it, and ask some decent

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-44289637787394762652010-04-29T19:06:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.635-07:00

I'm reading (and listening to) more fallout from our TV appearances, and I find myself saying "you're missing this point!" way too much. So, once again I try to go at it from the other side. What's the point? How do I say it more clearly so that others will hear it more clearly?First, I hear a couple of times that unschooling (and homeschooling) parents are the ones who are more likely to be more

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-28937326215982427652010-04-28T18:36:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.637-07:00

Based on the feedback we have been getting from our appearance in the media, a few of the big concerns voiced by parents who follow a more traditional education process include: - Socialization - Following rules - Learning how to do things you don't want to do One interpretation of these concerns: - 'Socialization' - if you homeschool or unschool your kid, they will spend all of their time at

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-33692166731501449232010-04-26T08:21:00.000-07:002010-10-11T19:23:10.320-07:00

When everything feels all over When everybody seems unkind I'll give you a four-leaf clover Take all the worry out of your mind Let my love open the door Let my love open the door Let my love open the door To your heart   ~ Pete Townsend, "Let My Love Open the Door" As an unschooling parent I want my love to open the door to my kids' hearts & minds.  I want them to feel confident that my love

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-72230796404575477862010-04-25T13:47:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.639-07:00

We've heard many times over the past couple of weeks that, basically, if not forced, kids will always make a choice that is 'easiest' on them (with the implication that 'easiest' means the choice which requires the least amount of work, or is the most fun). The most common one is that kids will always watch TV instead of reading. It caused me to pay attention to some of the choices that my kids

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-15705027331343449452010-04-23T18:33:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.640-07:00

'Ann Pleshette Murphy, parenting expert and "Good Morning America" contributor, questioned the unusual approach. "This to me is putting way too much power in the hands of the kids, something that we know kids can often find anxiety-producing, and it's also sending a message that they're the center of the universe, which I do not think is healthy for children," she said. 'The above lead in and

Phil Bieglerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06460621327469924054noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-23676759420058876032010-04-22T13:22:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.642-07:00

From The National Sleep Foundation: FACTS:Sleep is vital to your well-being, as important as the air you breathe, the water you drink and the food you eat. It can even help you to eat better and manage the stress of being a teen. Biological sleep patterns shift toward later times for both sleeping and waking during adolescence -- meaning it is natural to not be able to fall asleep before 11:00

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-28768857248709750802010-04-21T15:31:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.644-07:00

We’ve been proactively exposing our kids for years to the many different ideas & things that exist in the world & they do choose to learn about interesting & complicated stuff, such as mythology, forensic science, geography, geology, opera, Shakespeare.  They have been reading since they were little - before school-age - & read every single day from numerous types of literature.Kimi & Shaun can

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-60594856306530811642010-04-21T13:22:00.000-07:002010-10-11T19:23:10.322-07:00

JK Rowling: The fringe benefits of failure | Video on TED.comWhat powerful words from an extremely talented wordsmith!

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1002588348384165894.post-45160383863530431782010-04-21T12:18:00.000-07:002010-10-12T12:56:06.646-07:00

In Massachusetts, we celebrate Patriots' Day, a yearly holiday that commemorates the Battles of Lexington & Concord on April 19, 1775.   On April 19, 2010, our family unexpectedly found itself in a different kind of battle - a battle to defend our reputation & the image of radical unschooling.  We had allowed a national news organization, Good Morning America, to film us in and around our home

Christine Yablonskihttps://profiles.google.com/103643243128066225634noreply@blogger.com2