Unschooling – Page 7 – a hippie with a minivan

Apple picking…

Took a while to get this post up but I guess it is better late than never…

Last Thursday we went apple picking at an orchard on Mont-St-Gregoire, south of Montreal. It was an activity with the Homeschooling group but it was supposed to be on Wednesday and was cancelled because of rain and then put for Thursday as a non-official outing which ended up being nice because we were a smaller group then intended and it was nice to be able to talk to people more…

The day turned out to be gorgeous and the kids got to play in the park and eat their lunch while us mom talked and shared until we decided to buy our bags and head out to the Orchard on the tractor ride…

We were let off of the tractor in the orchard where there was another park and we were able to go pick apples and the kids played and we talked more…

Xavier didn’t stay long to pick apples.. but he did pick a few…

Colin and Khéna though loved it and I sat on the ground and they filled up the bag completely…

When it was time to go the kids didn’t mind at all because it meant another tractor ride and they were getting tired from a day full of playing and fresh air… a quick stop in the shop and a few purchases and we headed back home…

This is what we ended up with…

A BIG bag of apples… I don’t know how much exactly but at least 30 lbs, probably more… A few pounds of plums, Local Blueberry blossom honey and some Apple Ice Cider for Simon…

Over the weekend a few pounds of the plums and apples got made into some yummy treats… and I still have a lot to do…

Great video on "Informal Learning" aka Unschooling

“Dr Thomas is a developmental psychologist, author and a Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Education. Interviewed at HESFES, Dr Thomas explains about his research into how children learn and his investigation into autonomous, or informal learning.”

I think this explains the theory of unschooling very well.

Back at the Cabin…

I visited my mom at the Cabin on Friday and we had such a great day…

A friend of ours from BC was visiting and he is someone who is just really nice to talk to… My uncle was also there, as he went for a visit last month and hasn’t went back home yet… it is just a really nice and calming place to be, so I don’t blame him for not wanting to leave…

Xavier and Colin have been spending the last days dressed as Knights and they didn’t hesitate brings their armour along…

Two times when we were there, the Deer came to visit… two mamas and two fawns…

This one was trying to get closer to eat some food just across the lake from the cabin.. the boys though were having trouble keeping quiet though and she went and met up with the others again and they headed back into the forest…

One of the boys favourite pass times at the cabin is playing in the dirt and rocks and just getting dirty…

Lilies on the lake…

Khéna was poking around in the water for bit…

and inspecting what he found very closely…

the deer came back again while we were there… this time getting a bit closer…

But the boys were also getting a bit closer… a little too close for comfort…

So off she went….

and off they went…

We headed back home just before dark and two of the boys were asleep within minutes…

I hope they remember their days at the cabin…

Picnics and parks…

We have been keeping busy lately with making the most out the rest of the summer…

With most kids going back to school, the homeschooling scene comes alive again and we have been having something each week with one group or another…

Though I don’t have many pics of it, we went to the first meeting/outing of the new unschooling group here in Montreal. We still have to get together and figure out what the group will become, but it was great going to a park in Montreal and hanging out with quite a few other unschooling families… it will be definitely worth the travel! Xavier is really starting to come out of his shell and is now having so much fun with other kids when we go out instead of playing alone as he used to..

My kids are somewhere around in this pic (or on the other play structure) … but I love that it is a picture of all kids that are unschooled 🙂

Then we had another Picnic, this time with the Montérégiennes group on the south-shore of Montreal. We headed to Ile Ste-Helene /Parc Jean Drapeau where there is an amazing park for kids… I hadn’t been there in years (to the kids park) but I will definitely go back soon… Simon and the boys will be going back tomorrow to go to the amusement park and I would love to check out the Biosphere and head to the park again…

The turnout for the Picnic was pretty good and we stayed for hours while the kids played and we talked…

The climbing structure is amazing and the ground surrounding the park is all bouncy… so bouncy that the kids were having fun falling and rolling on it….

I got this candid shot of Xavier walking around with Khéna and holding hands… I just found them so cute 🙂

Next week we have another Picnic with yet another homeschooling group… This time it will be on Mont-Royal at Beaver lake with the Montreal Homelearners group for the Not-Back-to School annual picnic….

Though we have a lot of fun when we go, I wish that I was a lot closer to these groups… The Travel time and the gas to get there add up quite abit.. but the local group is just not a lot of fun and I really don’t feel like we fit in… with the others however, our differences don’t seem to matter, and we can talk, and share, and just all be part of the group…

Great post on Unschooling…

Here is a post written by an Unschooled teen who lives in Montreal. She talks about the differences between unschooling and eclectic homeschooling and why it bothers her so much when the eclectic homeschoolers refer to themselves as unschoolers. It is something that bothers me also, but hearing it from a teen that was unschooled herself, makes the reasons why it bothers me more clear.

A few thoughts about unschooling…

Unschooling is not just about schooling… it is a way of life and you just can’t seperate the two.

If you are new here, or want to know more about it, here is my definition of Unschooling