Behind my back!

I don’t monitor “screen time” with my kids.  They both spend a lot of time on the computer, and up until today if you had asked me what they do on said computers, I would have, in all confidence, told you.   Maya is usually working on videos, chatting with friends or watching tutorials on various Sculpey or resin crafts, and Ben?  Well, Ben is usually watching his favorite videos or shows.

Turns out I have been sorely deceived.

This afternoon we decided to spend some time watching an episode of the BBC show “Merlin”.   While the DVD was loading, I sat on the couch next to Ben, who was intently looking at the screen of his laptop.   I leaned over to see what was so interesting and, can you believe it, he was reading an article titled, “How Water Came to Earth” on the website curiosity.com.

Behind my back!  Science articles!

Hey buddy, I’m supposed to be keeping track of the stuff you’re learning.  I have to tell the Dept. of Ed about it every quarter.   And here you are, learning stuff behind my back and not even telling me about it?   Really?

Yep, really.

It’s the beauty and wonder of unschooling that kids learn how to learn.  They become experts at finding answers to their own questions, and don’t feel the need to broadcast it as some great achievement.  It’s just part of life.

Of course, it does make writing those quarterlies a bit more challenging, but all things considered, it’s a challenge I’ll happily take on.

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