"The world doesn't need to be a classroom--it's the WORLD!"

This quote jumped out at me today. I tracked down Guerrilla Learning: How to Give Your Kids a Real Education With or Without School and have been reading it again. I have read it before although it's been quite awhile. I want to give it to my oldest sister, Kelly, when she comes down on Sunday.

My 15 year old nephew Spencer is struggling at school. They are VERY mainstream, very well-indoctrinated. He works hard, does his best and is starting to feel like he is "broken"--that there must be something "wrong" with him that he just can't "get it." (Meaning English class in particular, essays is general, etc.) He is getting very frustrated and it is starting to spill over into other classes and stuff. He gets mad at Kelly when she tries to talk to him about it now. I have been talking to her on the phone a lot this week swinging back and forth between how things are here with Jossilyn and what is happening with Spence.

I have been doing my best to refrain from my knee-jerk"radical" opinions and take a more middle of the road approach that would be less frightening for them than a complete break from school. ("Let's declare education a disaster and get on with our lives." Frank Smith) She kept saying, "I don't understand why he can't just do it." After trying to talk her around and through this I finally told her she just needed to accept the fact that she probably will never 'understand" it but she needs to accept that this is the person he is. He has always been a conscientious student--granted with much prompting from parents. But he is finally starting to give up and no amount of prompting, encouraging or threatening is having any effect. Except of course to make him more frustrated and angry. He is an awesome kid and I hate to see this happen.

I have been explaining that he has options and discussing those various options with her. I hope he comes down with her this weekend so I can have a chance to talk to him too. Kelsey is going to find our copy of the Teenage Liberation Handbook for them also. I don't know if Spencer will read it but I hope at least Kelly will. I also said that Kelsey and Jacob would talk with him (They are 15 and 14) but we'll see.

I also got a little frustrated with her last night. I ended up saying, "Think about it this way. What if you got put in this position? What is he is diagnosed with a life threatening disease tomorrow? What would you do different? What would be important? Why wait?" I upset her and she told me she thought that was an unfair thing to say. But it is true. It could happen. It helped to give her a different perspective on the issue though, which is what I wanted. Who is important in this picture? Spencer.

I can only hope that it makes a difference.

Something that I'm finding odd...When I am home and we are living our "normal" lives and doing our thing, I don't think too much about the theory of unschooling. It is just our life and has been for years. I am so thankful we found this path all those years ago.