Books like The Unschooling Handbook: How to Use the Whole World as Your Child's Classroom

I found this in the anemic "parenting" section of my new library. It's a lean little volume, mostly of extended quotes from self-titled "unschooling" parents. The technology is excruciatingly outdated (just go to AOL Member home to join a list!) circa 1997, and even though it calls itself a "handbook" there's nothing very handy or step-by-step about it.With those criticisms out of the way, though, this was a very interesting book.I'd never heard of "unschooling" before but the more I read the more I recognized my own experience as a 9th grade high school drop out. When school became so painful and miserable that I no longer was recognizable to myself or my family, my mom finally pulled the plug on it and said, "fine, no more school for you." I stayed home making mountains of sculpey beads, eating ayurvedic food, drawing anatomical diagrams of the bones in my hands, reading my parent's college textbooks, learning latin and middle english, and "helping" my mom with her home businesses. My mom basically left me alone to learn what I wanted, though I relished her very smart criticisms and direction. It was the most healing and life-giving year of my life. When I did eventually go back to public school, I was transformed-- learning at school was suddenly easy. This book is basically a gentle introduction to a model of very kid-directed homeschooling, where you allow the kid to choose her passions and then spend days or weeks doing nothing but. You provide plenty of raw materials-- books or animals or travel or responsibilities or friends or whatever-- but you don't try to do school at home.If I hadn't done it myself, I would guffaw. But knowing what a beautiful experience I had "unschooling" I would gladly do it with my kids.I think this book does gloss over some of the problems and day to day how-tos of unschooling in favor of evangelizing the concept. But it's such an intriguing glimpse of a school-free life that I want to go on and read more. As my dad always says, "don't let your schooling get in the way of your education!"