Think It Over Thurs: Can you use a curriculum when you unschool?

I know unschooling children who opt to go to school, and I am completely fine with that choice. I also know that some unschoolers are not. I totally understand this feeling; schools and learning are kind of opposite, unrelated entities when you approach life through life learning, and a lot of us harbor a lot of anger and hurt over our compulsory experiences. But to me, unschooling is children retaining their own power over their own educations, as our species has done since it walked upright up until about 150 years ago or so. And if kids want to go to school, it is their choice. It is also their choice to quit, whether after a few days, weeks, months or years.

Every year I offer the choice to Wood Sprite and she always refuses, although she is curious and does like to go to the school playgrounds and the various events at her friends’ schools sometimes. We even had scout meetings at school last year, but the seat couldn’t contain her for more than a few moments. I would be incredibly sad to see her go into the public system, but I have kept these thoughts to myself and only offer her an objective choice.

On the other hand, I am meeting unschoolers who say their young children ask for curriculum. I have heard of high schoolers and middle schoolers wanting this, but I have to wonder how young kids even know to ask. I guess parents introduce it to them and find out if they want it or not? However it is done, I wholly support it if it’s what the kids want and they thrive with it. My issue, of course, is cost. I have purchased things that Wood Sprite wanted to try—most of them online programs—that she enjoyed for a little while, even after a lengthy free trial, but then disliked later. I don’t want to force to her do them, of course, but boy do I hate that I spent that much money on something for it to just sit. If I could pass our subscription on to someone else, I would be happier about it. That said, if she approached me with another program or curriculum she wanted to try, you can bet I’d pay for it as I continue to do with some of her online learning programs, sports and other activities.

My question is to the unschoolers out there: Do you support school and curriculum as choices for unschoolers? Why or why not?

Photo courtesy of Sara S. This penguin followed Wood Sprite as her shadow during a zoo visit.