Young children engaged in self-motivated activities learn a multitude of concepts in a natural, informal, and enjoyable way. Very young children learn to walk and talk, count and identify symbols, differentiate between light, dark, and various colors, observe the natural world and social relationships, and feel the effects of motion, gravity, etc., with little or no explicit instruction.
Children continue to learn through playing, having fun, experimenting, etc., for as long as they are free from a coercive teaching environment. The methods conventional educators use to teach, or the way they try to help children learn, may do more harm than good. Coercive pressure to learn, i.e., material incentives (bribes) and arbitrary consequences (threats), may inhibit learning rather than aid it.
Play is a Natural Method of Learning
By whatever name one calls unschooling, i.e, natural learning, child-led, self-directed, etc., it describes an approach to living with children in which a family lives and learns together in respectful partnership. Coercion and other punitive practices are out of accord with unschooling philosophy. Many unschooling families come from an attachment parenting style of living with children, and incorporate complementary philosophies such as Marshall Rosenberg's compassionate, nonviolent communication and Alfie Kohn's unconditional parenting.
Unschooling might be called "natural learning," because of the way it manifests as a variety of learning practices that predate the invention of conventional schooling methods. These natural practices might include
- Trial
- Observation
- Invention
- Asking for help
- Any other activity that occurs naturally to the learner as a way to accomplish goals
Although the term, "natural," might not evoke the image of a child using modern technology, tools such as computers, television, etc., can be used within a natural learning style.
Learning Through Play is Effective
Despite conventional precepts that learning is hard work or not fun, unschooling philosophy asserts that
- Learning need not be difficult or unpleasant to be effective
- Play is both important for development and is a valid mode of learning
Play is useful, meaningful, and fun. It might include fantasy, make-believe, poetry, song, drama, art, and on and on. Children use these activities to explore and understand the world. They play at doing adult work. They play at finding their place and contributing to their communities.
The unschooling style of learning is not a new method of homeschooling. It models the oldest form of learning, fully integrated into life. Modern unschooling is a varied and flexible approach to learning that predates the establishment of conventional schooling methodology. It puts conventional educational materials to friendlier uses and embraces new technologies.
Related Reading
For more information on unschooling see Unschooling: A Lifestyle of Learning.
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