Creating an Unschooling Environment for Natural Learning

Helping kids recover from the structures imposed on them by schools can require parents to make some big adjustments themselves. Creating an unschooling environment for children can help with that. But how do you create an unschooling environment that nurtures natural learning?

Creating an unschooling learning environment involves leaving various materials around a child’s space that they can use to learn if they want to. Telescopes, reading-level appropriate books, calculators, and more can spark a desire to learn in young children. Parents serve as the facilitator of their child’s learning.

There are a lot of techniques that you can use to guide your kids through the process of learning in an unschooling environment.

Deschooling

After you take your child out of school and before you start unschooling, it’s important to give your child some time to recover from the time they spent in school. School inflicts an attitude of incapability in children and attaches their well-being to adherence to the clock. Un-teaching this is as simple as giving your child the space to do whatever they like for three months or so.

By the end of this time, the child should begin to exhibit a desire to learn again, where that desire may have previously been quashed by the stresses and expectations of schools. However, before any of this can begin it’s important that you have a good understanding of how unschooling works.

Unschooling is all about saying yes instead of no. That being said, if you take your kid out of school and that same day tell them that there are no longer any rules, you are likely to experience a backfire as they begin to behave in unacceptable ways.

While you can’t just tell the child there are no rules anymore, you can’t just leave them to their own devices entirely. This can cause the child to feel like they’re being abandoned or given up on. Instead, it’s important to slowly move towards full unschooling over time.

Strewing

Once your child is excited about learning again and your family is in the habit of saying yes, you can start the practice of strewing, a term used by the unschooling community to mean leaving various educational tools around the house for kids to find and use however they choose.

The principle behind strewing is that people naturally go through phases of being passionately interested in different topics. When allowed to follow that interest, they learn about that thing much quicker than they otherwise would have. When strewing, it’s important to leave materials related to the things that the kids are interested in and things that you are interested in.

This will require you to pay attention to your child’s interests. If they’re interested in astronomy, then leaving out a telescope, star chart, or an atlas of planets could help them follow that passion. If they’re interested in games, leave out some games that will help them learn math. If your child enjoys reading, then leaving out word games, a dictionary, and a wide range of age-appropriate books are good options. If your child enjoys art, you can create an “Art Cart” full of pipe cleaners, paint, blank canvases, colored pencils, and coloring books.

You can also strew based on things that you’re interested in. If you’re interested in learning a new language, having resources for that language around the house that you use can be a great way to show the kids how you yourself learn by teaching by example. Who knows, your kids might take an interest in the same things as you!

Strewing can also involve leaving out things like posters, globes, and maps as decorations on walls and other surfaces. Having these things available will be a visuable reminder to kids so they can easily learn whatever they happen to be interested in at the moment and foster a love of finding the answers to their own questions.

It’s important to keep in mind, however, that strewing isn’t about control. If your kids aren’t interested in the things you expected them to be interested in, watch to see what they are interested in, and try to figure out how best to help them learn through that item.

Live Life Together

Even things that don’t necessarily feel like lessons can become teaching opportunities if you’re looking for them. A great example is cooking. If you’re cooking together with your child, you can teach them about measurements, fractions, and even chemistry, not to mention cooking skills! It’s never too early to start either. We started very young with our son, and he is very advanced and self-sufficient for his age.

This applies to many situations. If your child is spending a lot of time playing a certain video game, try playing it with them to see what they might be able to learn by paying attention to the mechanics of that game. Most games have a basis in mathematics, strategy, problem-solving, and logic that you can help them pick up on.

Even family trips can be opportunities to learn together. If you live near a historical site or museum, try taking a tour from the museum staff or local tour guides. Watch your local newspaper or Facebook page for events coming to the area. This can be a very natural opportunity to learn about history, science, ethics, and other social studies. Make sure that these things follow your child’s interests.

Create Reading Spaces

For older kids who can read on their own, creating dedicated reading spaces with fun, comfortable chairs or couches can help encourage them to read. When creating a reading space, it’s important that it be in a location that’s out of the way so they don’t get distracted by loud noises, and that the space has enough light.

It’s also important for it to be close to where you keep your books, whether you have your own collection or borrow them from the library. You can even have a special basket next to the reading space to put books when you’re done.

Take Advantage of Teachable Moments

Throughout the average days, there are hundreds of opportunities to teach and learn. Kids ask lots of questions, and unschooling parents should use these opportunities to know what interests their kids and facilitate their learning about these subjects.

For example, if you are on a walk, and your child shows interests in rocks, you could rent a book from the library on the types of rocks, go gem mining, or buy a fossil digging kit.

Sometimes, we talk about how the clouds look and what different clouds mean in terms of the weather. Recently, he got a blister on his finger, so we learned all about how the body heals from burns. Go shopping and discuss the cost of different items and if they are a good deal. Let kids help with grocery lists and shopping.

The opportunities for natural learning are endless. Once you start looking for teachable moments, I bet you’ll be shocked at how much you could teach your kids if you are intentional about it.

Conclusion

Unschooling is a great way to allow your children to learn naturally in an environment that supports their interests and passions. By creating an intentional space full of educational resources, you can easily foster a love of learning in your children. Be sure to take advantage of teachable moments as they arise and let your kids lead the way for their own education.

How do you create an unschooling environment at home?