Liam Eliot played soccer this year for the very first time. This was a brand new experience for Liam and for our family. Liam enjoyed being a part of a team and he learned a lot about the game and teamwork and good sportsmanship. I learned that I am a terrible soccer mom. I have never had any interest in sports but I always assumed a fascination would naturally occur when it was my own offspring doing the sports things. It didn't. But I came and I cheered and I remembered the granola bars and orange slices on my assigned snack day so I am counting it as a success. Not so long ago, I watched The Mask You Live In, a documentary about healthy masculinity in America. In one segment, a high school football coach speaks about the impact of sports on young men and says that the idea that sports teach character is a myth; sports only teach character if the coach deliberately teaches character. This really stuck with me. As someone without a competitive bone in my body, my only reasons for wanting my children to play sports is that I believed they would have fun and also learn teamwork, sportsmanship and communication skills. Thankfully, Liam's first coach was absolutely perfect and I believe he made a real impression on Liam. My energetic kid enjoyed making new friends, the drama of the game, being cheered for, and snack time, but he had a bit of trouble focusing on actually playing. His coach was endlessly patient. At the end of every game, he asked the kids if they had fun. He did not keep score. He focused on the positive and taught them new skills without any unnecessary pressure. I am very grateful for him and the positive first experience he provided for Liam. I loved watching the kids faces glow at the end of the season as their coach handed them their medals and told them how proud he was of them. I believe he really instilled a love of the game in his little team. Liam is already asking when he can play again. I have no idea if sports will become a regular part of our family life. To be honest, Liam's skill set still seems to lean towards technology, but he did have a great time and I believe it was a positive addition to his life this spring. He also made a couple of new friends that he is looking forward to play dates with!
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We do not adhere to any one particular homeschooling philosophy. I have never been convinced that there is any one way of doing anything that will always work for everyone and I simply refuse to discard something only because it does not fit into the box of whatever lifestyle we have chosen. Because my children are still so young, the way we learn is exclusively child-led and play-based. If pressed to define our style, I would have to say it most closely resembles unschooling, but I would probably make most unschoolers shudder with my insistence that Liam practice literacy skills daily. That glaring "flaw" aside, I do limit my role in their education to providing space and resources, limiting distractions, saying 'yes' and observing closely. Every few months, I find myself looking around our home and wondering if it is really providing my kids with a fun, stimulating learning environment. Inevitably, I find myself online, searching for inspiration, writing lists and planning to redo All The Things. We should go more Montessori-Waldorf-Reggio, I always decide. We should have more wooden blocks-silk scarves-plants-lights-wicker baskets. The problem is that we aren't Montessori or Waldorf or Reggio. As beautiful and inspiring as those philosophies are, they each require giving up some of our educational and personal freedoms and that isn't something we are willing to do. I am just not willing to tell my kid that the action figures he loves desperately no longer fit into our chosen lifestyle, that he isn't old enough for the technology he is endlessly fascinated with, or that he must follow a particular procedure if he desires to play with a particular toy. So, this time, when the bug to redo our space returned, I started searching for "unschooling spaces" and you know what I found? Not much. Not nothing, but not much. I did find a few good visuals to pull from but mostly I found explanations about why unschoolers do not need a designated space to learn. I definitely agree with "learning in the real world," but I also enjoy creating inviting spaces for my children to explore, discover and play in. So, I decided to share some pictures of our little play space, as imperfect as it may be. Please do not mind the pajama-clad ragamuffins in these photographs. It was early morning and they do live here. Also, as tempted as I was to straighten up the shelves and remove some of the clutter, I decided to leave things as they usually are. Since this is the kids' space, the kids are usually the ones to clean it up, which means things generally have the slightly disheveled look of small fingers hurriedly completing unwanted tasks. Obviously, we learn in all areas of our home. The boys have toys in every room of the house. A dollhouse sits in the corner of the living room, a wooden play kitchen is in the actual kitchen, a large costume trunk is in the baby's room, the big boys' have a puppet theater in their room and shelves filled with books, cars, action figures and legos, and the dining room table and backyard see more action than most areas of the house. However, when we moved into our little house from our much littler apartment, I felt rich with space and could not wait to create a designated play room for the boys...so I did. It is small and storage is limited but we try to make the most of the space. Also, in order for me to be able to be home full-time to homeschool at all, we have to live frugally, and that means the majority of our house has been rescued from the side of the road, found in thrift stores or given to us as generous gifts. Sometimes, I start to wish we could have a more beautiful, natural space and I get a little bit envious of the spaces I find in my endless searches, but I eventually realize that when we need a shelf or a table or a toy, I am just not in a position to turn it down because it does not fit my aesthetic vision. We make do with what we have and the boys have never expressed a need for more wicker baskets or natural wood or etsy artwork so I suppose it isn't harming them too much. This little art corner has moved with us 6 times and has changed very little over the years. My kids are not overly enthusiastic about art, so the easel usually stays folded up against the wall but it can be pulled out if needed. The supplies we keep out are pretty basic: paper, pencils, crayons, markers, and stamps. Paint is kept in the closet because toddlers, but the brushes and smock are left out as reminders to ask for paint if the mood strikes. We keep our musical instruments near the c.d. player for jam sessions and we keep the c.d. player near the quiet corner for audio books. I also keep alphabet books and word/letter based puzzles or games on these shelves and so we have our quirky cozy musical reading area. The bookshelf is home to books, wooden puzzles, play dough and fidget toys, and beside it is our math and science shelf stuffed full of math manipulatives, blocks, math and science themed books, science kits and plenty of tools for exploring and discovery. The boys artwork hangs above on some rods from IKEA. Because the boys only pursue art on rare occasions, some of Liam's first drawings are still hanging! This distinct lack of interest in art has been a hard thing for me to accept and it took me years to make room for all the math and science my kids prefer to explore throughout the day, but I think I have finally made peace with it and I simply savor the rare moments of artistic expression as they come. The room also serves as a therapy space. Rory has therapy three times a week, but all three boys enjoy the therapy ball, trampoline, ball pit, and other therapy toys we keep out. The foam Little People mat was left over after a toy swap I hosted at our house and it turned out to be a perfect place for Rory to work with his therapist. Our sensory table was given to us by a friend who I can never, ever thank enough. We usually keep one side filled with sand or rice and the other side filled with various liquids. Currently, Dexter is enjoying throwing things into his specifically requested pink water and guessing whether they will sink or float. It is important work.
To the right of this picture is the very small closet which is currently packed full of books, worksheets, board games and craft supplies. It definitely needs a makeover but I am grateful for any storage space we can get! That concludes the tour of our little "unschooling" play space. It isn't perfect but it serves us well. I am hoping to add a few things in the coming months. I am always looking to improve and I would love to see other people's spaces for inspiration! |
WHO AM I?
I am Michelle: a wannabe hippie in love with a bonafide geek. We also spawned. I spend my days with our four wild, beautiful boy children and I overshare about our life online because I am a Millennial and that is what we do.
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