07.18.12
Learning to Read and Write Without Going to School
Here I am, age six, in our house in England. Engrossed in a book, as usual.
And here I am, two years and a move to Canada later, still reading and– although I didn’t know it– I am learning how to write.
Now, as a mom to an eight year old, I’m watching my son explore the world of books and words and stories. He doesn’t go to school– in fact, reading was one of the things that made us decide to pull him out of school at six. He started kindergarten already able to read, and going over the letter sounds repeatedly bored him. Having to read the same books over and over also bored him. And not being able to choose what to read made him furious. Being a rather resourceful little guy, he brought his own science books magazines from home to read during the dreaded daily “book bag time” but he was told that wasn’t allowed. He had to put those away now to read the levelled readers that were in the ziplock bag with his name on it.
He wouldn’t do it.
And in hindsight, I’m glad he had the independence and strength to object.
He still loves books, both fiction and non-fiction: fantasy novels, science books, graphic novels, and– especially– Calvin and Hobbes comics. I’m not convinced that he would love books if he was still in school.
Until recently, he hasn’t been interested in writing. In fact, it’s something he’s generally avoided. If he were in school, he would no doubt be seen as “behind” in writing. One of the lovely things about unschooling is that regardless of your interests or abilities, you are never ahead or behind– you are exactly where you need to be.
Over the last few months, I’ve been watching his interest in writing gradually emerge.
We’ve had great conversations about books. He’d comment on characters (“It’s hard to believe Harry, Ron and Hermione aren’t real people. It’s so strange that they’re just text!”), motivation (“What do you think about Snape? Dumbledore trusts him but he seems bad. I guess sometimes a character can start out bad but maybe underneath they really want to be good…”), structure (“It’s kind of an ABC pattern, isn’t it? Have an adventure, get into danger, escape…”), and interpretation (“Do you think Hobbes is real? Or is it just Calvin’s imagination that he’s alive? I’m pretty sure he’s real.”)
Then he started to see stories everywhere. We’d come across a science story (genetically modified babies, for instance) and he’s say, “Hey, that’d make a great book. Imagine if a future government decided…” and he’d be off, spinning out ideas. He started wanting me to write these ideas down for him. Then he wanted me to write the stories with him. He’d dictate; I’d type.
Handwriting is slow and uncomfortable for him, as for many kids his age, so the computer opens up worlds of possibility. Thanks to his passion for Minecraft, his typing is getting faster and his spelling is improving (spawn, nether, kick, zombie and teleport may not be on your standard BC curriculum grade two spelling list, but given his interest in sci-fi and fantasy, Minecraft vocabulary is probably more useful to him anyway).
It’s fascinating to watch the natural learning of a child driven by his own curiousity and enthusiasm. And it has made me reflect on my own relationship with reading, writing and school. Although I had at least two great teachers (Mrs. Virgin and Mr. Lister, if you are out there somewhere, thanks for two good years!) I don’t think I learned much in school that really helped me as a writer. I learned to write by reading voraciously, and I became an author because I loved books and stories so much so much that I wanted to create a few of my own.
School has a way of turning reading and writing into work when they should be play. As my son commented at the end of kindergarten, “Work is when you do something because someone makes you. Play is when you do something because you want to.”
Which is something I need to keep in mind for myself, as writing has turned from my part-time hobby into my full time job.
So– off to play with my latest manuscript!
Daniel said,
September 15, 2012 at 6:42 pm
Hello Robin,
I went to traditional school k-12 and, like your son, found myself constantly bored. Both my parents worked, so I can’t quite fault them for leaving me in school. In college, I lacked math skills because of all the tedious boring years of going over what I’d learned pre-k from informal talks with my father. I LOVED math in elementary school! but we didn’t learn anything new and went so slowly…
anyways, for me really discovering the accessibility of information on the internet opened the doors for me to learn things at a different pace and in self-meaningful order. After less than a decade of auto-didactery, I feel like I’m way beyond where my peers are at in almost every skill besides cramming, but for me the most important skill is philosophy/critical thinking.
For me, self-study of philosophy formed the gateway to tremendous personal success and incredible lateral thinking skills which I must humanely wish every other person to possess.
I would like to know if and how your children are exposed to the great thinkers of history?
It is not because I want to criticize you, but rather my main life mission is to open a boarding school in Senegal where all the children can grow up with the best possible education, bearing the strength of their currently dispossessed culture against social & economic oppression. I’m always looking to accumulate wisdom toward that end.
The book Sophie’s World is a great start, btw, if I might recommend to your child an approachable book on the history of human thought (I think the audiobook is delightful on a long walk, personally).
The natural philosophers, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Jesus, Christian & Muslim philosophers, studying the British Empiricists, Kant, Nietzsche, Darwin, Marx, Freud, Sartre, Wittgenstein, feminism & multiculturalism: this contributes to an understanding of the breadth and depth of our incredible human history!
(And most are covered in Sophie’s World! At 21, I still love that book!)
But there’s my lengthy story! I would be interested to hear whatever your reaction may be.
Daniel said,
September 15, 2012 at 6:45 pm
Ever tried teaching your child mental-mapping, speed-reading, or multiple languages through simple exposure?
Robin said,
September 16, 2012 at 11:02 am
Hi Daniel,
Thanks for your comment! I loved Sophie’s World too– funny, I was just thinking about that book a couple of days ago and wondering if my son would enjoy it yet. I actually did an undergraduate degree in philosophy and, like you, very much enjoy learning about the history of human ideas. We have a house full of books (I’ve always been an avid reader) and I try to make sure that my son has access to resources (online, print, people, etc) to pursue his interests. At 8, much of my son’s learning comes through conversation– we talk about history, world events, ethics, feminism, religion etc– and while his passions so far lie more in science, engineering and tech, he is curious about everything. The great thing about unschooling is the freedom– and the free time– to delve into one’s interests in depth. Do you live in Senegal, Daniel?
Best wishes- Robin