Learning to trust


Here's information about Unschoolers Unlimited. We are an informal network of people who are learning to trust our own and our children’s ability to choose the best ways to learn and grow.

Ned and I are parents of a 36 year old son. When Cassidy was a baby, we were inspired by John Holt, who said “Children do not need to be made to learn, or shown how. They want to and they know how.” We decided that Cassidy would determine what, when, where, how much and with whom he would learn. We never used school books or taught lessons. We answered his questions when he asked and helped him gain access to the real world when he wanted it. We called it unschooling.

When we went to homeschool support group meetings, the conversation was usually “How do I get my kids to do math, what curriculum do I choose, etc.” When we said we don’t “teach” our son, there might be one or two other parents who said “We don’t either, but we thought we were the only ones.” So we started a support group.

We hold family gatherings -- usually on the third Saturday of every other month. We come together to play and socialize, to support and encourage each other, to share ideas and information, and to reassure ourselves that we are not alone in believing that children and adults can be responsible for our own learning. We publish an occasional newsletter and a mailing list.

Our son celebrated his graduation (Magna Cum Laude!) in 2002 from Hunter College in New York City. After college he moved to Brooklyn and got into bicycle riding. He rode across the country to Seattle where he worked in bike shops and met the love of his life. Lucky for me, he persuaded Kim to come back to Brooklyn.

In 2009 he opened Bespoke Bicycles in Brooklyn NY.
http://www.gq.com/style/blogs/the-gq-eye/2012/05/store-spotlight-bespoke-bicycles.html
Now he and Kim and their beautiful twins live in Philadelphia. Cassidy is managing Mainline Cycles
http://mainlinecycles.com/

Ned died peacefully at home in July 2009 after a long illness.
I continue to do this group because I love talking to people about homeschooling and enjoy holding their hands as they make the leap into self directed learning.

Please call or write if you have questions. I look forward to hearing from you and meeting you.

Courage!

Luz Shosie
Guilford, CT
203-458-7402
nedvare@ntplx.net


Would you like to receive our contact list and occasional newsletter? Send an email to nedvare@ntplx.net
There is no charge. We welcome contributions of any kind.

................................

UNSCHOOLERS UNLIMITED MAILING LIST SIGN-UP
Our mailing list is circulated only to other families on the list.
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CHILDREN’S NAMES AND BIRTH DATES (if you want them published)

What are your interests, concerns, or questions about unschooling?
mail to:
nedvare@ntplx.net

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Resources



SUGGESTED READING

John Holt: Teach Your Own, How Children Learn, Escape From Childhood, Learning All The Time, A Life Worth Living, Instead of Education, Never Too Late, Freedom and Beyond
Thomas Armstrong: In Their own Way and The Myth of the A.D.D. Child
Polly Berien Berends: Whole Child, Whole Parent and Gently Lead
David and Micki Colfax: Homeschooling For Excellence and Hard Times In Paradise
Linda Dobson: The Art Of Education and The Homeschooling Book of Answers and more
Patrick Farenga:The Beginner’s Guide to Homeschooling and Teenage Homeschoolers: College or Not?
John Taylor Gatto: Dumbing Us Down and The Guerrilla Curriculum
Mary Griffith: The Unschooling Handbook: How to Use the Whole World as Your Child’s Classroom
Susan and Larry Kaseman: Taking Charge Through Homeschooling
Agnes Leistico: I Learn Better By Teaching Myself and Still Teaching Ourselves
Grace Llewellyn: The Teenage Liberation Handbook and Real Lives
Susannah Sheffer, Ed.: Everyone Is Able: Exploding The Myth Of Learning Disabilities
Matt Hern, Ed.: Deschooling Our Lives
Daniel Greenberg: Free At Last
David Guterson: Family Matters
Alfie Kohn: Punished By Rewards
Jean Liedloff: The Continuum Concept
Alison Stallibrass: The Self-respecting Child
Charles J. Sykes: Dumbing Down Our Kids
Nancy Wallace: Better Than School and Child’s Work
Cafi Cohen: Homeschoolers' College Admissions Handbook
Jan Hunt: The Natural Child, Parenting from the Heart
Luz Shosie and Ned Vare: Smarting Us Up, the undumbing of America
Laura Grace Weldon: Free Range Learning


NEWSLETTERS

Home Education Magazine - PO Box 1083, Tonasket WA 98855 1-800-236-3278 http://www.homeedmag.com
Unschooling.com -- Free online newsletter http://www.unschooling.com
Life Learning: the international magazine of self-directed learning PO Box 112, Niagara Falls NY 14304-0112 1-800-215-9574 www.lifelearningmagazine.com


CATALOGS

*Home Education Press PO Box 1083, Tonasket WA 98855 1-800-236-3278 http://www.homeedmag.com
*John Holt’s Book Store/FUN Books, 1688 Belhaven Woods Ct. Pasadena, MD 21122-3727
*These free catalogs also include lists of resources, support groups, helpful organizations, and answers to frequently asked questions. Very helpful. Support them if you can.
http://www.amightygirl.com    hundreds of books, etc. featuring strong women and girls


ORGANIZATIONS AND RESOURCES

National Home Education Legal Defense: Attorney Deborah Stevenson (860)354-3590 http://nheld.com/
Ct Homeschool Network info@cthomeschoolnetwork.org
Eli Whitney Museum: 915 Whitney Av. Hamden CT 06517 203-777-1833
National Home Education Network PO Box 41067, Long Beach, CA 90853 http://www.nhen.org
WPKN Radio: 89.5 FM, 244 University Av. Bridgeport CT 06601 203-576-4895 http://www.wpkn.org
The Alliance for the Separation of School and State: 1071 N Fulton St,
Fresno, CA 93728 559/499-1776 voice www.schoolandstate.org


ON THE INTERNET

Ned’s blog: http://school-is-hell.blogspot.com/
Legal information: www.nheld.com
CT Homeschool Network http://www.cthomeschoolnetwork.org
CT Shoreline Homeschoolers www.shorelinehomeschoolers.org
Discussion and support for unschoolers in MA, VT, NH, ME, RI and CT http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NewEnglandUnschooling/
CT Homeschoolers Inclusive has an email list with announcements & activities:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CTHomeschoolersInclusive/
CT homeschoolers discussion group: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/CTHomeEducators/
Unschooling: http://www.unschooling.com

Unschooling CT Facebook page
http://www.livingjoyfully
www.sandradodd.com/unschooling
http://northeastunschoolingconference.com/
 Ned Vare: The School Wars, a series of columns in our local newspaper: http://homepage.mac.com/luzshosie22/TheSchoolWars/Menu4.html
I Am What I Am, Anne Ohman http://www.livingjoyfully.ca/anneo/anne_o.htm
Greater New Haven Homeschoolers: Subscribe: GNHH-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
finding local and state groups: http://www.homeedmag.com/wlcm_groups.html
Parenting from the heart: http://www.naturalchild.org
John Holt: www.holtgws.com
Nedvarecelebration.blogspot.com
 Khan Academy. http://www.khanacademy.org/   over 2,100 videos and 100 self-paced exercises and assessments covering everything from arithmetic to physics, finance, and history.   free   
http://joyfullyrejoycing.com/
Open Yale Courses provides free and open access to a selection of introductory courses taught by distinguished teachers and scholars at Yale University. The aim of the project is to expand access to educational materials for all who wish to learn.     http://oyc.yale.edu/



get lucky!

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