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Andrea Cubelo-McKay's avatar

When talking to parents/visitors in our self-directed education center, I use the Wizard of Oz analogy regularly. And it's always troubling to see the challenge many of our young people face in embracing their "inner Ferrari" after years of felling like a two-wheeled cart. Thanks for sharing the wisdom!

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Jennifer L.W. Fink's avatar

This is a big part of what I say to parents too - "You don’t necessarily have to pull your child out of school. You could take small steps that start to create moments of freedom, choice, and agency." Those small steps make a BIG difference. We did homeschool our oldest kids for a number of years. That wasn't an option with #4. But those years of homeschooling -- learning from my kids & from people like Peter Gray -- taught me the value of honoring & facilitating kids' interests. So, for my youngest son, this looked like prioritizing "garage time" for him. He's a kid who loves to tinker, who's mechanical; he eventually took over a third or more of my garage. And he ultimately rebuilt snowmobiles, started (& continues) a lawn and landscaping business (doing all his own machine maintenance). I knew how important those things were (& are) to his development, so at times, I prioritized his garage time over homework. He's now 18, thriving, and planning to grow his lawn/landscaping business while taking small business entrepreneurship classes at a local tech school next year.

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