Out of the Box

Sept 12, 2024

When I was a kid, I was lucky about school, because the way I learned fit squarely into the educational boxes that were available at the time. I could keep up, I was good at standardized tests, I liked to write papers. But back in the '80s, if traditional school wasn't working for you, you were mostly out of luck. As I saw some of my friends get stuck, I realized one size could not possibly fit all.

When my own kids were born, my husband and I discovered that, unlike me, neither of them fit neatly into the pattern of traditional schooling. Fortunately, Madison and Ella were born into an era where alternatives to traditional education were plentiful. And later, as Covid's Zoom schooling years gave parents fresh insights into what traditional schools were teaching and how their own kids learned, the shakeup generated even more educational innovation.

I'm glad we have this abundance of options, to be sure, but having so many can be dazzling. Plus, once you start looking, it's easy to fall down informational rabbit holes. Fortunately, you have help! Click on the following links for descriptions of two different upcoming FREE online seminars: Exploring Alternative Education Pathways on Monday, September 23rd at 7pm EDT, and, for those who are homeschooling or considering it seriously, a Free Homeschool Summit September 26-28 (I'm one of the speakers).

The most useful thing I learned while educating my kids is that if we find ourselves tumbling into boxes that aren't right for us, we can try something else. It's such a simple lesson, but somehow easy to forget.

—Deb