John Holt on Unschooling

"Birds fly, fish swim, man thinks and learns. Therefore, we do not need to motivate children into learning by wheedling, bribing or bullying. We do not need to keep picking away at their minds to make sure they are learning. What we need to do, and all we need to do, is bring as much of the world as we can into the school and classroom (in our case, into their lives); give children as much help and guidance as they ask for; listen respectfully when they feel like talking; and then get out of the way. We can trust them to do the rest." ~ John Holt, How Children Learn

Manisha and I consider John to be our mentor, even though we never met him in person. His books opened our eyes to the reality of schools. He had a wonderful style of writing that made his books very accessible and readable. We have most of his books and still pick them up to mine gems every now and then.

For more information about unschooling visit the Unschooling.com website.