“Children really learn best when they are able to pursue their own interests and follow their own timetable.”
Alternatives To School
Mandy Spiczka has been helping kids learn and grow all of her life. Through mentoring, a summer program counsellor, an after school coordinator, tutor and then as a public school teacher she has always been drawn to work that allows her to support kids.
But once Mandy became a parent herself, she decided she wanted her daughter to “have an education that is as unique as she is”. She wanted an education that aligned with everything she had learned about in child psychology and development, everything that she had studied as a teacher and as a person that has always been connected to children. The education that aligned with her values was not found in the school. It had to be an alternative to school. It was homeschooling, or more specifically, self directed learning. And once Mandy made the decision to homeschool her daughter, she knew it was the right choice.
SHINE Together
Mandy has spent the last decade leading groups for parents and children, including the St. Cloud Unschooling Network. The St. Cloud Unschooling Network links over sixty families in central Minnesota who believe learning cannot be separated from life and who value play, exploration, growth, and following their children’s leads.
As Mandy met more families that shared her views on self directed education, she also met families that were not able to put this type of learning into action because of varying obstacles; a spouse that didn’t agree or a work schedule that could not support learning from home or a parent that needed a little extra help. Mandy knew she could help these families by offering what they were not able to do. She has now founded SHINE Together, LLC, a holistic learning space that supports families that wish to home educate or unschool full-time, but for individual reasons, cannot. SHINE Together is a flexible space where each child’s interests, needs, and strengths take center stage and where academic learning is fully integrated with real-life experiences.
In This Episode
In this episode Mandy shares why she is an advocate of self directed learning and holistic learning. She shares her experiences as a teacher and and did not want for her daughter; an environment that is “creating so many kids that are out of alignment with who they are as human beings”. She also shares her own struggles as a parent on the self directed learning path and explains why deschooling is such an important part of the self directed learning process.
- What helps to keep her focused on the self directed path?
- The challenges of conventional schooling
- Reading and why so many children have lost the joy to read
- Why children should be at the centre of education
- How she approaches testing in a state that requires homeschoolers to test every year
- What a week in her holistic learning community, SHINE Together looks like
- The advantages of home education
- Advice to parents that are new to learning at home with their children
- Why it’s important to help your child establish a rhythm and not a strict schedule
Many more families are beginning to question the model of schooling and if it is where their children learn best. If you are a parent that is looking for alternatives to school and how you can best support your children on their life learning path, there’s no time like the present to start. Mandy suggests, “Think about the values and educational philosophies that are specific to your family. Find the groups and communities that are out there that can support you.” I am sure you will find more alternatives. If you need a little more help on this path, don’t be afraid to reach out.
Resources
SHINE Together Facebook
https://www.shinetogethermn.com/
If you would like to learn more about Micro schools, or other alternatives to conventional school, check out my episode on Microschools with Mara Linaberger. I speak with Daniel Greenburg, one of the original founders of the Sudbury Valley School, the longest running Democratic School in North America here. If you would like to be inspired by a parent that saw the importance of nature along with natural learning, listen to my episode with Michelle Goulet, founder of Wild Child Forest and Nature school.
If you enjoy the show and it has provided value, you can support the show through Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/honeyimhomeschoolingthekids By becoming a patron, you will receive a special episode bonus that Mandy and I recorded on the topic of reading and when or if there is a time that a child ‘should’ begin to read. Look out for more to come!
