Stories of an Unschooling Family
Want to know more about unschooling? How about radical unschooling? (It’s not as scary or as wild as some people make out!) Join me as I share ideas, stories, homeschool record-keeping tips and resources for living an unschooling life of unconditional love.
Episodes
Tuesday Apr 30, 2024
206: A Birthday Chat
Tuesday Apr 30, 2024
Tuesday Apr 30, 2024
Today, on my birthday, I’m chatting about ageing, experimenting, taking risks, encouraging others, and other things. Show Notes
I mentioned:
The Self Directed podcast with the Conrads
Episode 65 of the Self Directed podcast: Sue Elvis / Stories of an Unschooling Family
The Unschooling Together community
Podcast episode 3, Getting Older, Admitting One’s Age, Lines and Wrinkles
The Video Version of this episode on YouTube
My Unschooling Books
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Where You Can Find Me
Unschooling Community
The Unschooling Together community
Youtube
Sue Elvis
Blogs
Stories of an Unschooling Family
Wholy Souly
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/stories_ofan_unschoolingfamily/stories_ofan_unschoolingfamily
Tuesday Apr 23, 2024
205: Chatting with My Unschooled Author Daughter
Tuesday Apr 23, 2024
Tuesday Apr 23, 2024
I’m back with my author daughter Imogen!
In this episode, we’re chatting about…
Writing and how Imogen is promoting and selling her YA novels
Collaboration and how we achieve more when we work together
The ups and downs of social media
We also share some news and tell a couple of stories, including the one about my frightening Frida Kahlo eyebrows!
Show Notes
We mentioned
The Virtual Kitchen Table podcast
The Self Directed podcast with the Conrads
The Unschooling Together community
The Christian Unschooling group and Zoom discussions within the Unschooling Together community.
Writing podcasts with Imogen: episodes 181 and 183
My Unschooling Books
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Where You Can Find Me
Unschooling Community
The Unschooling Together community
Youtube
Sue Elvis
Blogs
Stories of an Unschooling Family
Wholy Souly
Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/stories_ofan_unschoolingfamily/stories_ofan_unschoolingfamily
Where You Can Find Imogen
Blog
Write.Rewrite.Read
Instagram
write.rewrite.read
Youtube
Imogen Elvis
Books
The Crystal Tree
The Shattering Song
Frost Hands
Thank you for listening to this episode!
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
204: Santa, Books and Expectations
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
Thursday Dec 07, 2023
This week, I’m talking about:
Desires and Expectations
Are desires good? Are expectations about control? Can our expectations spoil our family celebrations?
Challenges
Should we give our kids space to set their own challenges? Do we need to challenge ourselves too?
Books
Do people judge us on our book choices? Can sharing the books we’re reading lead to some stimulating unschooling conversations?
The Santa Myth
Is it wrong to pretend Santa brings gifts to our kids? Is that lying? Should we eliminate Santa from our Christmas celebrations? Or is it possible to include the magic of Santa with the true meaning of the season?
2023
What were the highs and lows of my year? Does blogging about our kids lead to problems? Should adults make time for their passions and interests? Can we feel lost when our kids grow up? How do we move on? What do we do while we’re working out what to do next? Is it important we’re successful in a big way?
Stories
I’m sharing a story about books, people’s opinions, and the difficulties of parenting: Is it Risky to Share Our Book Collections? What Will People Think?
I’m also sharing a story about the Santa myth and family traditions from my book, The Unschool Challenge.
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to leave a comment or say hello.
This is my last episode for 2023. Thank you for listening. I hope you have a very happy Christmas!
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
203: Unschooling: Doing What Is Right
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
Thursday Nov 23, 2023
This week, I’m talking about right and wrong…
If we think something is right, should we do it? Do we have to push through any difficulties we might encounter? Perhaps we can’t give up unless we’re willing to do something we know is wrong. And if we do that, we won’t feel at peace.
The big question is: is unschooling the right thing to do? If it is, we shouldn’t be concerned about the future. Whatever happens, regardless of the outcome, we’ll know we did what we should have done.
Also, how do kids learn right from wrong if we always love them regardless of their behaviour? Are the critics right? Are unschooling parents irresponsible? Or do our strong connections allow us to guide our kids?
I have lots of stories and comments to share with you!
Show Notes
Please visit my blog Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my blog post, Unschooling: Doing What Is Right. It contains this episode’s show notes!
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
202: Tough or Unconditional Love?
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
Do good parents stay firmly in control of their children, demanding obedience, good behaviour and respect? Do they practise tough love? Or are there problems with this method of parenting? Is there some other way of raising kids to be good people who want to do what is right? Is it okay to parent with unconditional love?
This week, I’m sharing a few stories on this topic. I also have a request or plea for help.
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, Tough or Unconditional Love?Parent or Friend? It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Wednesday Nov 08, 2023
201: Unschooling, Drifting, Planning and True Freedom
Wednesday Nov 08, 2023
Wednesday Nov 08, 2023
Is unschooling about drifting aimlessly through each day?
Do unschoolers waste time? Or do they live intentionally responding to their needs and making sure they achieve the things that are relevant and important to them?
Do unschoolers direct their lives instead of letting life direct them? Is that the meaning of true freedom?
Does the word ‘planning’ have a place in unschooling?
This week, I’m discussing these questions and more while telling a few stories.
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, Do Unschoolers Drift Aimlessly Through Each Day? It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Friday Nov 03, 2023
200: Unconditional Love and Parenting
Friday Nov 03, 2023
Friday Nov 03, 2023
It is what it is. An interesting episode or not. I don’t suppose it matters. All that’s important is love.
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, Preventing Childhood Trauma with Unconditional Love. It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
199: Should We Trust and Unschool Teenagers?
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
Is it irresponsible to trust and unschool teenagers? When unschoolers reach the teenage years, is it time for something else? Or could unschooling be exactly what our older kids need? Could it keep them safe?
This week, I’m discussing these questions and more, sharing lots of thoughts, stories and resources.
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, Could Unschooling Be Exactly What Teenagers Need to Do? It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
198: Should Children Be Responsible for Their Own Educations?
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Tuesday Oct 17, 2023
Should children be responsible for their own educations? Or is that an irresponsible idea?
This week, I’m exploring lots of questions including:
Is learning an active activity that needs the learner’s cooperation? Is it impossible to force knowledge into a child without resorting to teaching methods that ultimately destroy their natural love of learning?
Is forced learning real learning?
Is it better to unschool and let children learn what’s important to them?
But if we choose unschooling, will our kids, one day, accuse us of side-stepping our duty and not providing them with a good education?
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, Who Should Be Responsible for a Child’s Education, the Parent or the Child? It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page
Wednesday Oct 11, 2023
197: What Do Unschoolers Do Each Day?
Wednesday Oct 11, 2023
Wednesday Oct 11, 2023
Is unschooling about staying in bed late, spending lazy days in the forest, and baking cookies? Or is there more to unschooling than that? What does a typical unschooling day look like? Will it be different in different families? Will it change over time? Whatever it looks like, will it always be packed with deep learning, the kind that matters and makes a difference?
I discuss these questions and more in episode 197.
Show Notes
Please visit my blog, Stories of an Unschooling Family, to read my post, What Do Unschoolers Do Each Day? It contains today’s show notes.
My Unschooling Books
The Unschool Challenge: Kindle
The Unschool Challenge: paperback
Curious Unschoolers: Kindle
Curious Unschoolers: paperback
Radical Unschool Love: Kindle
Radical Unschool Love: paperback
My Amazon Author Page