<p>This was posted in the Princeton forum by "tokenadult", but I think this is a good place for it, too!</p>
<p>how would you guys define unschooling?</p>
<p>if a student did everything by himself (purchased books, organized study plans, took tests), would that be unschooling? or would it just be self-directed homeschooling?</p>
<p>I think of unschooling as the kid decides what to study and how much and when. The parents are just a resource for the child's curiosity. </p>
<p>While allowing one's children to follow their interests, this method is not for us - our kids would probably convienently leave out such subjects like "math".</p>
<p>6-page reading list. How many books did she read in total during her homeschooling years?</p>
<p>I think of unschooling as what kids do in the summer when they are allowed to do whatever they want, or what adults do when they pursue an interest in some area for their own intellectual satisfaction. Say an adult was planning a trip to Italy and decided they wanted to learn a little Italian and something about Renaissance art. They might check out materials from the library or bookstore, visit a local museum, buy some tapes, watch relevant programs on PBS or the Learning Channel, talk to people with expertise in the area. They might audit a class or take an informal class, but it is unlikely that they would fool with tests, organized study plans etc. Whenever they had learned to their own satisfaction, they would stop. Or not. Maybe the trip would spark a lifelong interest in Italian or Renaissance art and they would continue learning about it for the rest of their lives.</p>