Cecilie Conrad logo - dark
Cecilie Conrad logo - light
⌘K
Blog Podcast Unschooling Parent consultant About me
bBlog
pPodcast
uUnschooling
pParent consultant
aAbout me
Back

What is that unschooling thing? | Day 169 of my 2023 Journal

Cecilie Conrad·Jun 19, 2023

🇩🇰 Also available in Danish 🇩🇰

On some days of my travel- and reflection journal, there is not much to talk about.

I can not keep sharing how green the Swedish forest is in the summertime or how I, yet another day, failed to see a moose.

We are enjoying the peace and don’t even want to go on day trips or hikes.

Still reading books, cooking meals, having conversations, and swimming in the lake.

It is still precious.

But of course, there is thinking.

There is always thinking.

I heard a podcast with a statement that got me thinking:

“At that point, we were completely unschooling. She wakes up, and she decides what she wants to learn today.”

You see, this sounds, to me, not like unschooling at all by no means.

It sounds like a maybe very freestyle form of homeschooling, but still, a life where the children are supervised by the adults who ensure they learn.

True unschooling is a lifestyle where the whole idea of school has been removed from the equation, the idea of “you have to learn” and the idea of the curriculum. Both. Both need to go in order for it to be unschooling.

You see, learning is a byproduct of living.

Anything we do voluntarily has a challenge, and therefore we grow.

We learn.

If there were no challenges, it would not be fun.

There is no way a meaningful life will not leave us smarter every day.

The difference for the unschooled child is that the child is not expected to learn anything in particular, not even DO anything in particular. In our family, we all pursue our hobbies, do what we LIKE to do, and find meaningful.

This can be hard to see on the surface. On the surface, it all looks just like a weekend. But it is not. We don’t do weekends. We just live — every day.

Love and light

Cecilie-Underskrift-300x133

Cecilie Conrad

🇩🇰 Also available in Danish 🇩🇰

 

Thank you for reading
I would love to hear from you. Listen to your thoughts and reflections - or praise :) It is often emotional to share our life like this, and we get very happy when we get feedback from you. So feel free to share a comment below 😋 

Previous Life of Pi | Day 170 of my 2023 Journal
Next Look for what you need in what you have | Day 168 of my 2023 Journal

Comments

Write a comment...
00:00 Recording...

Unschooling and Parent consulting, conversations, blogposts, and podcasts on family life and learning

Hi, I'm Cecilie Conrad. I'm a trained psychologist, mother of four, radical unschooler and full-time traveller. I have lived with unschooling for over a decade and help other families find their own path – whether it is about homeschooling, unschooling, or the bigger question of how you want to live as a family.

I offer guidance, conversations and talks. I call my work grandmothering – not coaching in the traditional sense, but presence, professional insight and concrete help navigating motherhood and finding your way home to your own values.

Am I the right person to help you? You can book a free discovery call, and we'll talk and figure it out.

Unschooling & Parent Consultant
Grandmothering – not coaching. Read more here

Listen to my podcasts

I share my knowledge and curiosity about family life and learning in my two podcasts.

Listen here
Listen here

Read my latest blogposts

The privilege of documents | Day 101 of my 2023 Journal
Five years on the roads, and I see the pattern. The marketplaces are worked by the same products and same people; more or less, the landmarks and mai…Read more
One hundred | Day 100 of my 2023 Journal
In the silent chapel, one message came clearly to me: Let peace fall upon you. In my life, it was my grandmother's words, and now God did a replay fo…Read more
Hope is not an illusion | Day 99 of my 2023 Journal
Hope is not an illusion. Hope lifts us out of what is; hope is how we transcend. Not just spiritually but on all levels of life. When we dare to hope…Read more
The same boat | Day 98 of my 2023 Journal
It is so easy to be annoyed with other people, and it is a common trap to believe your perspective is proper and that others got it wrong. I sometim…Read more
Just hanging out | Day 97 of my 2023 Journal
Just hanging out is a great luxury. In the morning, we all did our thing: The teenagers went for a walk and a croissant at the vegan, gluten-free bak…Read more
The memories | Day 96 of my 2023 Journal
Why do we travel to see churches we might forget? Why do we read books that might fade from our memory? Well. Because we are alive. Because the proce…Read more
Slow down | Day 95 of my 2023 Journal
Work is when we engage and take part. But the concept has become hollow, focused only on the monetary outcome. This is part of the suppression of wom…Read more
Steepest decent | Day 94 of my 2023 Journal
Sometimes I feel like a sheep when in big crowds of tourists. Yet at the same time, I am happy for all the other people who get to visit epic places …Read more
Pantheon and Trastevere | Day 93 of my 2023 Journal
I am not particularly focused on my children learning world history. It is one of the many things that happen by itself while living a life with enou…Read more
Previous 1 2 3 … 33 34 35 36 37 … 48 49 50 Next
The privilege of documents | Day 101 of my 2023 Journal
Five years on the roads, and I see the pattern. The marketplaces are worked by the same products and same people; more or less, the landmarks and mai…Read more
One hundred | Day 100 of my 2023 Journal
In the silent chapel, one message came clearly to me: Let peace fall upon you. In my life, it was my grandmother's words, and now God did a replay fo…Read more
Hope is not an illusion | Day 99 of my 2023 Journal
Hope is not an illusion. Hope lifts us out of what is; hope is how we transcend. Not just spiritually but on all levels of life. When we dare to hope…Read more
The same boat | Day 98 of my 2023 Journal
It is so easy to be annoyed with other people, and it is a common trap to believe your perspective is proper and that others got it wrong. I sometim…Read more
Just hanging out | Day 97 of my 2023 Journal
Just hanging out is a great luxury. In the morning, we all did our thing: The teenagers went for a walk and a croissant at the vegan, gluten-free bak…Read more
The memories | Day 96 of my 2023 Journal
Why do we travel to see churches we might forget? Why do we read books that might fade from our memory? Well. Because we are alive. Because the proce…Read more
Slow down | Day 95 of my 2023 Journal
Work is when we engage and take part. But the concept has become hollow, focused only on the monetary outcome. This is part of the suppression of wom…Read more
Steepest decent | Day 94 of my 2023 Journal
Sometimes I feel like a sheep when in big crowds of tourists. Yet at the same time, I am happy for all the other people who get to visit epic places …Read more
Pantheon and Trastevere | Day 93 of my 2023 Journal
I am not particularly focused on my children learning world history. It is one of the many things that happen by itself while living a life with enou…Read more
Previous 1 2 3 … 33 34 35 36 37 … 48 49 50 Next
See all my blogposts
Cecilie Conrad logo - dark
Cecilie Conrad logo - light
Blog
All my blogposts Unschooling 365 Days Challenge 2023
Podcast
The Ladies Fixing the World Self Directed
About me
My story - Cecilie Conrad Stay Updated: Get my Newsletter Visit my danish site CecilieConrad.dk
Consulting
Parent and unschooling support Free Discovery Call - Text me on WhatsApp Testimonials: What Others Say Prices and payment options