2016-05

72: Choosing Not to Worry About What Other People Might Think

This week,
I talk about:
ageing, appearance and associated insecurities
video making
Facebook
Livestreaming
resources which might spark off some new learning experiences if life is a bit quiet
I also ponder a few unschooling questions such as:
 
Are some kids so resourceful they have no need of basic skills?
You can find me on my blog Stories of an Unschooling Family, 
Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Pinterest. 
You can find my children's novel The Angels of Abbey Creek on Amazon.
If you'd like to sign up for my newsletter, please do. I'd love to have you on my team! 
Podcast music: 60's Quiz Show by Podington Bear, (CC BY-NC 3.0)
 

71: Tired and Difficult Days

This week:
I talk about tired days: do we plough on when we are overtired, trying to do all we normally do? Should we slow down? Ask for help? How do our tired days affect our children? And how does our attitude affect how we feel about being tired?
I ponder the many different definitions of the word 'unschooling' and 'radical unschooling'. Are any of them an adequate description of unschooling? What ingredient do I feel is essential for unschooling? Does it need to be included in any definition, especially when we're talking about radical unschooling?
I share some thoughts about chores
I revisit podcast 70, clarifying a point my daughter Sophie and I talked about last week. Is it ever okay to talk about our concerns about our children? What conditions do we feel are necessary if we do this?
I share my latest projects: my newsletter and my first it's-not-a-periscope. What is an it's-not-a-periscope? I explain in this podcast or you could hop over to my Youtube channel to find out!
Lastly, I talk about the positive aspects of being tired. Yes, there are some!
Thank you for listening!
 
You can find me on my blog Stories of an Unschooling Family, 
Facebook, Instagram, Youtube and Pinterest. 
You can find my children's novel The Angels of Abbey Creek on Amazon.
If you'd like to sign up for my newsletter, please do. I'd love to have you on my team! 
Podcast music: 60's Quiz Show by Podington Bear, (CC BY-NC 3.0)
 

70: Trust, Respect and Love Unconditionally

This week, my 15-year-old daughter, Sophie, joins me to talk about unconditional love, respect, and trust. 
These are some of the questions we explored during our conversation:
Should every parent respect and love their children unconditionally?
Do all children feel loved unconditionally?  If not, why not?
How does Sophie know I love her?
Do all parents talk to their children with respect? If not, what does Sophie think they're doing wrong?
Why do parents criticise their children and what does criticism do to them? Does it result in a child trying harder?
How can a parent encourage a child to overcome her faults?
Is it really necessary to change our children? Do all children have to be the same?
What do misbehaving children need?
Do we gossip about our children?
Is writing down our thoughts and feelings valuable?
What is trust? How can trust grow between parent and child?
Do we judge people on their appearance? Including children?
Am I a perfect mother? Have I got everything worked out? Or is it okay if I make mistakes?
We hope you'll be patient: Sophie is suffering from allergies and this is affecting her ability to speak clearly. Speaking with a stuffy nose was very annoying for her. Sophie did her best and I'm grateful for her effort.
You can find me on my blog Stories of an Unschooling Family, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. 
You can find my children's novel The Angels of Abbey Creek on Amazon.
If you'd like to sign up for my newsletter, please do. I'd love to have you on my team! 
Podcast music: 60's Quiz Show by Podington Bear, (CC BY-NC 3.0)
 

69: Ideas, Passions, and Earning an Income

This week, I talk about:
ideas
passions
Gemma-Rose's latest passion for writing
how passions lead to ideas
how an idea may lead to an income
how we decide if an idea is worth pursuing
unschoolers and entrepreneurship
what kind of jobs my kids would like to have
my son Callum's recent visit home
parenting adult children 
Australian history resources
my new unschooling blog
my newsletter
You can find me on my blog Stories of an Unschooling Family, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. 
You can find my children's novel The Angels of Abbey Creek on Amazon.
If you'd like to sign up for my newsletter, please do. I'd love to have you on my team!  If you feel my podcast is helpful, please consider sharing my link and writing an iTunes review. Let's spread the word about unschooling! And please feel welcome to comment, or you can email me if you'd like to chat or just say hello.
 
Podcast music: 60's Quiz Show by Podington Bear, (CC BY-NC 3.0)