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Our Unschooling Progress Report #1

December 22, 2020

This report contains some affiliate links.

how to document unschooling for record-keeping

We’ve officially been unschooling for 6 months now! We’re hooked. I don’t see our kids going back to public schools anytime soon, if ever.

I’ll start doing these reports quarterly, but this one consists of six months (June 2020-December 2020). Why? Coming out of the school system, I wanted to forget about “school.” Our focus has been on deschooling.

Now, six months in, I’m ready to reflect on what’s been happening in the learning department around here.

Enjoy our first unschooling progress report!

The kids gave input on their own progress reports

I observed the kids too (and I’ll share my notes below), but in the core of my unschooling beliefs:

Self-observation is important for cultivating a lifelong learning attitude. They need to notice their own growth and to define their own weaknesses.

So, I invited them to share with me what they believed they’ve:

improved on
learned
had fun with
and want to learn / try / improve upon / do for fun in the coming year.

They verbally responded to my questions. I’d love to ask 100 more questions, but that was all they had the patience for!

Kendall’s summary:

I’ve improved on:

iPad self-regulation
making forts
having camp outs
emotions – “roll with it” being one strategy to use
cooking
spending time with my brother

I’ve learned about:

the Christmas Star
how it’s not easy having a house full of boys
Helen Keller, Malala, Anne Frank, George Washington, Ben Franklin, and Dolly Parton
the Appalachian trail – it takes about 6 months to hike it
freeze-dried food (camping meals)
making bows & fashion design

I’ve had fun with:

iPad games
video making
playing pretend & FaceTiming my friends
watching movies with mom & dad
making bows

I want to:

work on our Appalachian Trail training
spend more play time with Tripp
do math worksheets & color by number sheets
keep doing face painting
meditate
save money
go kayaking and horseback riding
practice roller skating
do the Goal Setting for the New Year & Beyond class on Outschool
learn wilderness survival skills
improve my swimming

My notes on Kendall’s progress:

In our deschooling process, I’ve learned that Kendall’s been conditioned to believe that learning is boring and terrible. We’ve discussed how free play (following all of her interests) is learning and working to reframe the magic of learning.

Therapy (CBT) has been wonderful at growing Kendall’s self-awareness! She’s gained tools for dealing with adverse situations and understanding why some behaviors to get what she want can backfire.

Kendall’s had years of trauma built-up from Levi’s untreated ADHD symptoms. He’s improved immensely, but those wounds she has still exist. It’s like she’s bracing herself for the next trauma. Again, with therapy, we’ve worked on this and it’s been wonderful to see them play together more than ever.

Kendall loves to think like an inventor or engineer! She loves to tell us facts about why something is the way it is (which is often an opinion, rather than a fact ;)). This side of her has become prominent in our day-to-day.

The girl can rock the game of “pretend” like no other! We’re thankful she’s found a dear, dear friend to who loves to play pretend as much as she does. The two of them get lost in all kinds of storylines for hours on end—whether in real life or through Messenger video chats.

Levi’s summary:

I’ve improved on:

iPad self-regulation
reading
being responsible in taking my medicine by myself
swimming
take care of my tools when I’m done with them

I’ve learned:

axing, chainsawing, and splitting wood
about the Washington Monument & Washington D.C.
about the Amish people
to find Wild Garlic in our yard
the difference between Left and Right (and how to see the L on my left hand)

I’ve had fun with:

fishing
bike riding
mowing the lawn & weed whacking
making fires
chainsawing with daddy

I want to:

practice math worksheets
cut big trees down alone – big and tall trees!
sell firewood
work on cooking more things
splitting hard pieces of wood
learn some wilderness survival skills

My notes on Levi’s progress:

I am SO PROUD of the emotional growth Levi has shown! If you’re new to our story, Levi was diagnosed with ADHD & ODD when he was 5. Finding the right treatment plan wasn’t easy. He’s 7 now. In the past 3 months, his physical and aggressive response to anger has finally disappeared! I think this is just as much emotional maturity as it is the treatment he receives.

Levi loathes reading or listening to stories. That said, he’s still learning to read (slowly) on his own. We were baking cookies awhile ago and I told him to go press “bake” on the oven. He did! Yesterday, mail came and he said, “it’s for dad.” He knew David. To see him reading for the context of his day-to-day world is progress. Frankly, I don’t care if he doesn’t fluently read until he’s ready. There’s no rush.

Things I’ve noticed Kendall and Levi have done / learned in the past 6 months:

First, this does not include photos with friends. I don’t want to get signed permission to share photos on here and all that. I’m telling you so that you don’t think that my kids have become the stigma of weird, unsocialized homeschool kids. They’ve had lots of interaction with people of all ages—even in the pandemic!

both have made fairy / gnome gardens
both have learned and cared for goats
both have swung on vines in our forest
both have started pen pal letter exchanges
both have learned about Black Lives Matter and protested in our city
both have learned about various snakes, bugs, and insects in our area
Kendall rescued a baby mouse

Kendall kayaked for the first time
Kendall held a baby raccoon and Levi held a chicken
Levi drove a four-wheeler by himself
both have learned about working K9 dogs through my soon-to-be brother-in-law K9 officer’s dog, Wyatt
We started a “store” to practice money and earning from various chores, having a good attitude, kindness rewards, and more. A sample of their potential purchases:

teach kids about money by creating a store

Both have written countless lists for various things, like: our Thanksgiving Dinner menu, packing lists, wish lists, and more
Kendall is making snickerdoodle cookies, jam muffins, ramen noodles, grilled cheese and more by herself.
Levi is making peanut butter cookies with minimal help and bacon and grilled cheese by himself.
Both did an Outschool meditation class

Levi’s added 3 fire pits to our property. Kendall helped with one.
The kids saw Sandhill Cranes while in Michigan
Kendall made a dream catcher with her Grammie
Both have had a handful of sleepovers with friends and met up with friends a few times at the moto track, forest school at Croft State Park, and biking at another local track
Both created treasure hunts for each other and buried candy

saw / learned about garden / writing spiders (we had one in the lilies this year!)

Both assembled rolling carts for me without help
Both have had an abundance of forest school free play & learnings
Lots of Uno and Skip-Bo Junior have been played
They went bowling with Papa
We went camping in Pennsylvania with friends, visited Amish Country (learned tons about their culture!), watched a blacksmith work, toured Old City Philadelphia, walked the National Mall in Washington D.C., visited the Smithsonian National Zoo, and roamed all through Arlington National Cemetery.

Kendall learned about puberty and sex
They’ve made forts & have done lots of art projects
Both helped Dave build our little cabin in the woods
Both learned about wild turkeys
Levi started a YouTube channel
Levi made a table using a piece of wood & a log by himself

Levi made car tracks out of palate wood and paint
As a family, we volunteered to clear a tree in our community after hurricane Zeta blew through
We gave a welcome gift to a new family in our neighborhood
The kids have learned how awesome it is to find treasures and goods at Goodwill and how awesome it is to save money!
Kendall and I have worked on the Big Life Journal together. Both have the Big Life Daily Journals and started strong, but we’ve gotten away from them.
It goes without saying, they’ve learned (and lived) about life during the global Coronavirus pandemic

iPad games: Roblox (both), Gacha Life (K), EverMerge (K), Family Island (L), Funky Bay (L), Golden Farm (L), Block Craft 3D (K)
Both have watched countless YouTube videos on various topics. Lots (!!!) of Adventure Agents and Buckin’ Billy Ray Smith (L).
We listened to several episodes on the Brains On podcast
We’ve called to the coyotes and heard responses!
Both have become baristas in the cabin making coffee or tea
Both are loving sticker by number books and scratch pads
Levi built a Christmas tree out of logs and also earned his first $5 for selling firewood!

Books we’ve read / started:

Heaven is For Real (both)
Great Danes and several other books on Epic (both)
Currently Reading: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Kendall & mom)
Shelter Dogs (both)
Malala: My Story of Standing Up for Girls’ Rights (Kendall & mom)
What Were the Salem Witch Trials? (Kendall & mom)
Grandma Gatewood Hikes the Appalachian Trail (both)
Audiobooks: Who is Dolly Parton? and Who was Anne Frank? (both)
Various BOB books (L)
Aaron is Cool (L)
Turkey Trouble (L)
Give Me Back My Bones (both)
The Mare’s Tale (K)

DVD’s we’ve watched:

The Coat of Many Colors (K)
Night at the Museum (L)
Pitch Perfect 1 & 2 (K)
Men in Black I and II (L)
Animated Hero Classics: Helen Keller (K), Benjamin Franklin (both), Alexander Graham Bell (both)
Disney’s American Legends (both)
PBS documentaries: My Life as a Turkey (both), American Experience: The Amish (K)
He Named Me Malala (K)
Fly Away Home (K)
Kendall watched her first “grown up” scary movie: The Birds
The von Trapp Family: a Life of Music + The Sound of Music (K)

Monthly Writing Project

There’s one structured activity I require the kids to do each month: write their favorite memory of the month.

I bought a special book for this. I hope this helps them to innately notice and acknowledge the stories they’re living!

Final Thoughts for our Unschooling Progress Report #1

I’m wrapping this up just before Christmas and will add the end of December in the next report.

Something I’ve been delighted by:

The kids have learned to entertain themselves!

I used to think I could never ever have my kids home. I love my creative time and alone time. After school or when they were home for holiday breaks, they used to drive me crazy! I couldn’t get anything done. I was irritable on top of it.

Fast forward to now, I’ve been working all day… I’m talking about 12 hours (which is not typical) and they haven’t “bothered” me once. They’ve been in and out of the same room with me, in fact!

These days, I love their company.

The point:

We’re all growing over here.

The difference is deliciously mind-blowing. I think this is attributed to deschooling. They’ve unlearned what it’s like to have their time filled with being told what to do by adults all day, every day.

That’s a huge win in my book.

Cheers to a Happy New Year to all our other un/homeschooling friends! If you’re someone curious or considering this method of education for your family, but not sure what to do, these are some wonderful reads.