Writes Free Your Kids: Our “free” children do not run wild. They don’t run the house. We do not live in chaos. We do have rules in our house, but they derive from one basic premise: do what you wish so long as you’re not harming another. Hitting someone won’t be tolerated. Breaking an agreement…
Category: Items of Note
Keep Their Children Out of School?
Wrote John Holt: Why do people take or keep their children out of school? Mostly for three reasons: they think that raising their children is their business not the government’s; they enjoy being with their children and watching and helping them learn, and don’t want to give that up to others; they want to keep…
The Real World
Writes Kicking it Unschool: There is the opinion that school prepares children for the “real world”. I disagree. First of all, children are often forced to go to school against their will. Then they are forced to associate with the children in their classes, lunch hour, and recess. Their lives are put on a schedule…
True Nature of the Politician
Writes Free Your Kids: Whether you favor a large or limited government (or a stateless society, as we would prefer), always remember the true nature of the politician. These men and women who rule us have no special attributes. They possess no special wisdom, no higher morality. They are dishonorable, power-hungry, and dishonest. They fatten…
Re: Are Children Self-Owners or Slaves?
As an update to this post: After all of the discussion I’ve had on this the last few days, it seems the above is incomplete. I will add this, from Debbie Harbeson, “If one accepts that the principle of non-aggression is valid, there is no need to put children in a separate category of discussion…
Natural Consequences
Writes Matt Stocks: My wife and I recently went through a Love and Logic course. It was interesting because it was presented through the filters of statists with a belief in social contract, etc. We took the parts we felt were simply dealing with addressing a child not following the NAP and how do we…
Education is Learning, Schooling is Training
Writes Kicking it Unschool: I think I upset someone yesterday when I said, “education is learning, while schooling is training.” I don’t like to get all negative on the school system too often, but let’s call a spade a spade. A typical school day in our past involved waking Josh (8y) before he was finished…
Are Children Self-Owners or Slaves?
Children’s “rights”* is a topic of confusion and uncertainty among libertarians. I’d like to solve this once and for all, but not right now. Perhaps someday. Today, I only ask libertarians to consider the logical conclusions of either 1) children owning themselves and therefore possessing all the “rights” associated with ownership or 2) children are…
Children Are People
Writes Kicking it Unschool: Children are people. Whole people. People with rights. People with likes and dislikes. People with wants and needs. People with opinions and perspectives unique to themselves. When we bring a child into our home, we are bringing a younger, less experienced person home, but a person nonetheless. A person who deserves…
What Do Peaceful Parenting Homes Look Like?
Writes Free Your Kids: What does a peaceful-parenting home look like? I won’t presume to speak for all such homes, but, at first glance, ours doesn’t appear to be “peaceful”, at least in the ways many might suppose. Our home is loud. It is raucous. The children often scream. They often shriek and squeal. Towers…