This is our first official year of not sending the little pickle to public school. Up to this point she has attended the cute public school just down the block from our house in the big city. This year, for various reasons, we decided to do something different. Our philosophy of homeschooling so far has been molded from various teaching modalities. We resonate with Waldorf concepts for their close to nature ideas and natural, organic rhythmic approach to the day and to learning. We love the Montessori method for its child led approach and practical observation for learning.
We are, by our own definition, radical thinkers, living consciously and close to nature. Having a child learn how to learn is the most important role of any schooling and doing this by empowering the child to be who they are in every sense of the word is rewarding beyond measure. A close friend of mine often states its very important to play to the strength of the individual. This has become the bottom line for us as a family. Check out this video, it pretty much sums it up for us.
We have created structure for our little pickle while maintaining a style of unstructure so she can thrive. Art and drama classes are on the agenda as are guitar lessons. A homeschool brownie troop and her regular Aikido classes round out the mix. In the midst of all this structure we have time, everyday, to be with the little pickle and connect as a family, learning together how this journey of schooling will unfold. We cook together, we research countries together, craft together, read, write stories and draw together. The day is full of rich experiences that nourish us on a deep and soulful level.
I leave you today with a few images of our journey so far. ((Just scroll over the picture for the explanation, I am still getting used to the ‘how’ of this blogging adventure.))
