What Is The Real World?
‘You can’t protect them forever’
‘Children need to get used to the real world’
What is this ‘real world’ you speak of?
Is it being indoors all day? Or is it the freedom to play and explore inside or outside depending on what interests you?
Is it sitting at a desk for most of the day? Or is it moving your body however you need to?
Is it eating on schedule? Or is it listening to your body and eating and drinking as needed?
Is it asking permission to use the bathroom? Or is it being allowed the simple courtesy of deciding when to do that for yourself?
Is it learning things according to what others think you should know? Or is it following your own interests, passions, and goals?
Is it socialising with only people your own age? Or is it building friendships unrestricted by the confines of age?
Is it learning from a text book? Or is it learning through experience when things become relevant or necessary?
Is it being constantly tested and evaluated? Or is it learning just for the love of it? Because it has a purpose for your particular life?
Is it meeting standards and developing at the same pace as everyone around you? Or is it following your own path?
Is it being required to wear the exact same clothes as everyone else? Or is it being an individual, expressing yourself, knowing who you are?
Is it only one answer to life’s questions? And one person who holds it? Or is it the thrill of finding your own answers, in your own way?
Is it being confined to one place, day after day? Or is it getting out in your neighbourhood, meeting people, being involved in your community?
Is it being told where you must be every day, and what you must do? Or is it the freedom to plan your own life and make your own choices?
I don’t want to protect them forever. The world is a magnificent place and they are part of it every day. We don’t homeschool so that we can keep our children away from the world. We homeschool because we want to give them more. More than school can provide. More childhood, more freedom, more autonomy, more fun, more learning, more choices, more respect, more responsibility, more individuality, more time, more meaningful relationships, more family. MORE of the real world.
Comments
It’s all of that and ita none of that!! The things we teach as parents and as teachers are knowledge to prepare our children to be apart of and succeed somehow in this magnificent world, the measure of success is that which we decide ourselves somehow
Great article!
Exactly 🙂
I think the happiest and healthiest adults I know march to their very own beat. We are at the very start of an unschooling journey but we are all so much more happy and relaxed. Blogs like yours are inspiration for people wanting to be truly alive with their families rather than just existing, thank you!
Thank you Vicki 🙂
Yes! More of the real world. That comment about protecting our children from the real world by not being in school just really doesn’t make any sense! It’s so obvious to us living this wonderful life just how real our lives are. Time, freedom, autonomy, family… give me more of that 🙂 That is our real world.
Yes! I love our world!
Yes!! I love this post so much. If school is the real world, I’m happy to keep existing in our unreal one 😉
Thank you 🙂
I love, love, love that last paragraph. That’s exactly what I’m going to say the next time someone says I’m trying to protect my daughter from the real world.
Thank you 🙂
Thank you, this is a lovely list!
It seems to me that the ‘real world skills’ you learn by being at school are really useful for… being at school.
If you’re lucky enough to be able to choose to learn elsewhere, then you don’t really need them.
“It seems to me that the ‘real world skills’ you learn by being at school are really useful for… being at school.”
YES!!
I love this post. It is so true. There is a misconception that us homeschoolings want to protect our children from the world when in fact, we are encouraging them to be in it fully.
Can I ask a question…blog related?
What app do you used to write the text on your photos, I’ve been trying to find one but so find they all seem a bit rubbish!
Thanks
Luminara x
I just use photoshop 🙂
I love this article!
Thank you 🙂
I agree with everything you said here, and I especially love this: “We homeschool because we want to give them more.”
I think when people say stuff about the “real world,” though, they are often referring to the fact that once you get a job, you WILL have to adhere to someone else’s rules (to some extent) and be confined to the same place (depending on your job, of course). I know, I know – preparing kids for the job market is silly. I remember your post on that, and I still wholeheartedly agree with it. I’m just saying…I think that’s what they’re referring to a lot of the time.
Yes, I agree. I think that’s what they mean. Although it’s not what everyone’s job is like. I think the thing is that is our choice. We, as adults, get to choose what job we have 🙂
Great post! We intend on homeschooling our children as well, and although they are younger, we have already implemented much of what the homeschool-type learning entails. I look forward to the hands-on learning, and much of what seems so “different” and strange to the way public schools work. Looking forward to reading more of your posts 🙂
Thanks Melissa 🙂
Beautiful thoughts n even more aesthetically put! I exho all dat u say. Loved it
🙂
I love this post. It’s very inspiring! My little man is barely 1 years old but I am already considering homeschooling as a serious option. My husband is a teacher and the strict guidelines to ensure “higher test scores” he has to follow rub me the wrong way. The fun of learning seems to be an after thought, no matter how hard he tries to combat it. I want more than high test scores for my son. I want him to love learning, asking questions, and searching for an answer.
Yes!! Me too 🙂
Excellent!!!!
Thank you 🙂