One of the biggest revelations offered by people who live outside of schools and enforced curriculum is just how effortless, how ever-present, how natural learning can be. People sometimes ask me how I learned a specific thing, growing up, and I often have trouble answering. Both because, by now, my […]
Inquiry encourages students to explore and understand the application of concepts in a real-world context. from shutterstock.com Inquiry-based learning emphasises a student’s role in the learning process and asks them to engage with an idea or topic in an active way, rather than by sitting and listening to a teacher. […]
International research suggests homeschooled students’ achievements are as good, if not better, than those of their schooled peers. from shutterstock.com This article is part of our series on homeschooling in Australia. The series answers common questions including why homeschooling is on the rise and whether homeschooled children have enough opportunities […]
Children who are homeschooled spend a lot of time in community environments. from shutterstock.com This article is part of our series on homeschooling in Australia. The series answers common questions including why homeschooling is on the rise and how outcomes of homeschooled children compare with those who attend formal schooling. […]
Homeschooling is legal in Australia and thousands of families are doing it. from shutterstock.com This is the first article in our four-part series on homeschooling in Australia. The series will answer common questions including whether homeschooled children have enough opportunities for socialisation, and how their outcomes compare with children who […]
Explicit instruction is based on a learning theory that suggests we remember what we think about most. from shutterstock.com Explicit instruction is a term that summarises a type of teaching in which lessons are designed and delivered to novices to help them develop readily-available background knowledge on a particular topic. Explicit […]
Trustful parenting is thrown off course, in various ways, when fear prevails. By Peter Gray Ph.D. Freedom to Learn I have long been advocating, on this blog and elsewhere, for what I refer to as trustful parenting. Trustful parents allow their children as much freedom as reasonably possible to make their own decisions. They trust their […]
It’s a cosmic whodunit. Electrons and their antimatter counterparts, positrons, interact around a neutron star in this visualization. Why is there so much more matter than antimatter in the universe we can see (Image: © NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center) Paul M. Sutter is an astrophysicist at The Ohio State University, host […]
By Idzie Desmarais I’m Unschooled. Yes, I Can Write Unschooling is all about respecting and trusting children. So when people who have liked my unschooling Facebook page start defending the practice of hitting children, I’m baffled as well as upset. Because the thing is, and I can’t state this strongly […]
You can help your children investigate any online hoax. Shutterstock/junpinzon It’s a parent’s responsibility to protect their children from harm, no matter where that threat of harm comes from. But what if the threat is a hoax? We’ve seen recently a rollercoaster of panic from parents trying to protect their […]