December is the month when people talk a LOT about holiday stress. Maybe not so much this year since Covid has prevented us from being pulled in a hundred different directions... But when you think about it, many of these get-together were more obligations that we didn’t even really want to do. So, silver lining maybe??
What happens in many homes, is that the parent is trying to make the holiday fun and meaningful, but someone - a spouse, a relative, a neighbor - says something that feels critical.
“Not doing any schooling this month, eh?”
If we’ve been unschooling a while, we may answer back,
“No more or less than any other month!”
But if we’re new, they might tap into that self-doubt that hasn’t been dealt with adequately. And suddenly, we’re thinking,
“AM I doing enough for these kids?”
And suddenly our holiday spirit comes crashing down.
Obviously, you may need to read more about deschooling or how unschooling works.
When you’re in the middle of a panic about what’s the right thing to do with the kids THIS WEEK?
THAT'S how unschoolers can help you out! It's not that unschoolers live a stress-free life. But we don't stress much about the learning. We're pretty clear that humans are hard-wired to learn - and that means our kids too. And during the holidays! Just like any other day!
I want to do a quick walk-through to show you that when you're immersed in the holidays, TONS of learning is happening!
Maybe you just need me to point it out for you.
SO let’s look at some specifics. I have a PDF for you that you can download and read along.
This beautiful 10-page Holiday Learning Guide will be something you can glance back on every year for reassurance.
The holidays are full of all kinds of opportunities to learn - and now you'll have those specific subjects at your fingertips! Perfect for conquering your own fears or for quick comebacks when friends or relatives try to plant seeds of doubt!
When we think of shopping, we often think of money. So it's pretty easy to make the connection to seeing math. But let's look at the specifics of what they're learning.
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS
SOFT SKILLS
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
SCIENCE/MATH/GEOGRAPHY
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
SCIENCE
SOCIAL STUDIES
ART
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
SCIENCE/CHEMISTRY
SCIENCE/PHYSICS
SOCIAL STUDIES
ART
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
SCIENCE
HEALTH
SOFT SKILLS
Look around the community to see where you and the kids could help.
It's very empowering to be able to make a difference in the world!
MATH
LANGUAGE ARTS
PSYCHOLOGY
SOCIAL STUDIES
SCIENCE
Unschoolers live every day like this - and that’s why I wanted to share it with you.
Hopefully you can begin to see that learning really IS everywhere and this can bring down your stress level!
Maybe you’ll just be an unschooler in December!
Or if you were already on the unschooling path, maybe you can do it with a little more confidence.
Because when you are more confident about this unconventional approach for learning, it all goes so much better.
Your stress level comes way down and you actually get to ENJOY your holidays with the family!
Here's a single-page PDF that shows you SPECIFICALLY what subjects weave through various holiday activities.
If you're stressing that the kids might "fall behind" this month - you should see this! It will be so reassuring!
