About not rushing (for new unschoolers)

I wish I'd had this to read when someone talked about removing all limits at once! It's perfect. It was posted to the Always Learning list today:

We've been unschooling for nearly 3 years now and the one thing I really wish I had done differently was to ease into it. I had a tendency to be all-or-nothing, and that way of doing things really created some struggles that I think could have been avoided if, instead of dropping all rules, we had simply started to say yes more while I continued to read here and get a better understanding of how to apply the principles of unschooling.

Because of my all-or-nothing approach, we made too many big changes way too fast, and then had to come back toward the middle and find balance, which was very difficult for our whole family, but especially for my now 7 year old, who I think felt very confused and angry for quite some time, as she felt that her world was in turmoil.

If I could give you any advice it would be to hear what Sandra means when she says, "Read a little, try a little, wait a while, watch." Small changes seem to lend themselves to the ability to find balance and harmony in family and life, without causing unnecessary pain. Big changes can make everyone feel off-balance and frightened.

Amy Jackson

Anyone who's not a member of Always Learning might want to consider joining. It's a serious discussion, so don't jump in too quickly! Ease in gradually.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/AlwaysLearning/

I will ease out gradually, but will leave this blog as a souvenir for people who attended the symposium. :-)