The Unschooling Unmanual: Nurturing Children’s Natural Love of Learning Paperback – 21 Sept. 2016

This is probably not the book to read if you are still deciding whether or not to embark on home education. However, if you have already started down that road, this is the perfect book to guide and inspire, but most of all encourage you.The Daniel Quinn chapter is absolutely perfect in summing up all my own reasons for supporting home education and unschooling in particular. The love of learning can so easily be stifled by schools as they attempt to teach the wrong skills, to the wrong children, for all the wrong reasons.If you need guidance, reassurance, or just a great deal of food for thought on the topic, this is most definitely the book to read. A slender volume in short stand-alone chapters packed with interesting and subversive ideas - irresistible!

I was expecting a 'manual' of ideas, ways to approach unschooling, tips, tricks, encouragement etc.... somethingkind of 'how to' to dip in and out of when neeing a boost.... I'm already a convert to unschooling and have been doing it for many years so didn't need a flimsy book of convincers..... good intro if you are new to the iea of unschooling but definitely not a manual!

Love it! Everyone should read it if they wish to be a part of their children's journey to grow and learning. Which everyone should want to be :D

The book is a treasure for those that are seeking a path to learning that is from the heart. Many of us have had our internal voice let us know that the path most traveled does not feel right when it comes to our children's education but we often don't know what to do. I know I studied many different educational methods before I found unschooling. When I did, I not only felt at home, but at peace. In these essays, you will hear from many parents who explain what unschooling means to them. You will learn that trusting your child and providing loving support are some of the most important components to creating a natural love of learning. My daughter is 6 1/2 and I continue to be amazed with her ability to connect with people of all ages. I believe by living we learn about life's greatest lessons. I've learned that I have much to learn from my children. It's an exciting adventure not only for your children, but your whole family. You will grow together and become closer as a family. Enjoy this book. It's a gem.

I started unschooling my son this year and have faced more well meaning people who think I'm ruining my son's education than I could have ever expected. Public school teachers, grandparents, childless friends, etc. all seem to think that the only effective way for a child to learn is to sit still for hours at a time and be force fed information. That might work for some people, but others find more to learn from being free to ask questions, make mistakes and explore the world around them on their own time.This book is a welcome reassurance that we're on the right track in following our instincts, learning at our own pace and stretching our imaginations to reach beyond the limits of a public school education. Unschooling may not be for everyone (my other child is still in public school and happy with it for now), but for those of us who just need an emotional boost now and then, reading a short essay or two from this collection will do wonders.Not exactly a manual or even a guide book (because unschooling isn't about rules), this little tome is a pick-me-up and a love letter to families who seek to learn from the world around them, not just a text book.

This book is a collection of writings from different authors -- parents and/or educational philosophers -- that each illuminate a different facet of the reality of an unschooling lifestyle. I have read the The Unschooling Handbook, which I found to be adequate but simultaneously disquieting (because some of the parents seemed to be so 'hands-off' as to be bordering on neglect), and Radical Unschooling, which clarified my own approach to unschooling by demonstrating what I was not comfortable doing (the 'radical' portion of Radical Unschooling involves allowing children to make all their own decisions... not just around what they want to learn, but also when they sleep, what they eat, how much and what television they watch, how much and which video games they play... and I think that ventures from 'unschooling' into 'unparenting'). I also read Homeschooling Our Children, Unschooling Ourselves, which I found to be very helpful as one family's journey into unschooling, however this book offers more and varied experiences.Unschooling, at its best with involved, flexible, interested parents, allows children to grow and develop into their own unique, passionate, entire selves, and this book helps to see how that is possible.

I enjoyed this book from start to finish. I homeschool five children and have used a number of methods in our home to teach them with, and I find that unschooling and giving your children the freedom to explore and learn is wonderful. This book is very insightful, and short for those of us who don't have tons of time on our hands to read a lengthy book! It is great for people just starting to homeschool, or those, like me, who have been doing it for a while, and just are interested in new ideas!