Sparkling Adventures in Child Neglect: Vive La France

[Stephanie66]

How long is she staying in France? And is she "homeless" there, too?

[happy atheist]

She's not in France anymore. She's in Iceland.

[ladyaudley]

and apparently

I may be the only person in Iceland with dreadlocks. A random local touched my hair & said that she hadn't seen dreads except in America.

...just....what?

[freejugar]

I can't believe a grown woman thinks she's a special snowflake cause she has dreads. It's almost funny.

[August]

And google comes up with multiple people in Iceland with dreads, even though the population's only 300,000.

[Trudestar]

and apparently

...just....what?

What? She didn't mention that the the lady who touched her sparkly dreads was an indigineous Icelander and they shared a super special primal bond?

Oh my. Hahahahaha. What a twat.

[Brittany15]

what really bugs me about Lauren is that she does not even try to do what is right for her kids. While I don't agree with the beliefs of the other fundi blogs I follow I think that they are acting out of love. While I may be against their actions, I think they have good intentions of doing right by their kids. I don't think Lauren really cares if she is doing right by them.

[paganhomeschooler]

Isn't it illegal to homeschool your children and then not teach them anything? I have a friend who, along with her siblings, was homeschooled until Middle School. Her mother had to cover a wide range of subjects and submit reports showing what she was teaching and how her children's school hours were being divided. At the end of the year, she and her siblings had to take an official test to prove that they had mastered the proper skills. My friend said it was ridiculously easy, but then again she was lightyears ahead of the rest of us when she started traditional schooling.

I don't know how it works in Australia, but is there really no annual assessment or some sort of way to make sure homeschoolers are being taught properly? How can Lauren's complete failure to teach her girls anything more than rudimentary literacy and basic arithmetic (if even that) go unnoticed? Surely there is some cause for the authorities to look into the girls' education if not their standard of living?

Even in the States, homeschooling laws vary greatly by state. Some, you don't even have to notify that you're homeschooling. Some require very stringent standards. Our state is somewhere in the middle. We have to notify and provide, for informational purposes only, a list of what material we may use as well as assurance we are high school graduates, will provide 900 hours of instruction, and that we will cover topics X, Y, Z. To continue homeschooling, we must notify every year and have either a portfolio review by a certified teacher, have our child take a standardized test and submit the composite score, or another means mutually agreed upon with the superintendent.

[paganhomeschooler]

Unschoolers all share tips on writing normal life up as learning for the authorities. Baking= fractions, etc. Every time I bake I think how it really really isn't giving a real understanding of fractions even though they use the words. Like Lauren saying her kids all knew percentages because of the power bar on the ipads.

It depends on how you do it! lol My daughter learned fractions by baking...and that was when she was in public school to boot. She just couldn't get it, but she wants to be a chef when she grows up, so she helps me bake a lot. I was baking a pie, and as I cut the apple in 1/2, 1/4, 1/8, etc, she could actually see what the fraction was. That really helped her. I would say the percentage by iPad thing is a crock of shit, but I know the baking and fractions really can work. When I was in school, I remember having games for fractions that were pies cut up into the fractions. Liquid measuring cups are also great ways to show fractions. I agree, it would be harder with the dry measure cups since they're separate.

I'm in no way an unschooler, either. I actually get pretty anal about my curriculum and record keeping. We do workbooks every day. It doesn't hurt to work in unconventional ways to teach a concept, though, especially if you're dealing with a child with learning disabilities. (2 of mine have dyslexia.)

[August]

Everyone uses a circle cut up to show fractions. Unschoolers think that by using measuring cups they're going to intuit how to multiply a half by a sixteenth or reduce a fraction or any one of the dozens of other things beyond recognising a pie that involve fractions.

[miffy]

Everyone uses a circle cut up to show fractions. Unschoolers think that by using measuring cups they're going to intuit how to multiply a half by a sixteenth or reduce a fraction or any one of the dozens of other things beyond recognising a pie that involve fractions.

They (Lauren) also seem to think that outings to the museum can replace school. Most kids go to museums & such as well as going to school 5 days a week, 40+ weeks a year for 13 years.

[paganhomeschooler]

I guess I've met different unschoolers than you have, then. They may not use textbooks and do child-led learning, but the vast majority I have met take the time to explain and demonstrate concepts...just not out of a textbook while sitting at a desk. Not every unschooler goes on a sparkly adventure and sends their kids into the outback with no shoes on to "learn".

Like I said, maybe with dry measuring cups it is more difficult to show fractions, but it's very easy to show fractions on a liquid measuring cup. It would also be a good way to explain adding/subtracting fractions and showing why 1/3 is bigger than 1/4, even though 4 is a larger number than 3, things like that. Some kids need that extra bit of seeing/doing to really grasp a concept, which is a large reason why kids are hurt by the big push for teaching to the test, as hands on learning is unfortunately nowhere near as prevalent as it was when my generation was going through school.

[Ariel]

I like the idea of unschooling in theory, but I just don't see how it pans out as children get older (unschooling calculus? Writing a persuasive essay?)

One of the things that I think is good about schooling (that many unschoolers/homeschoolers hate about school) is that being in a classroom trains you for adulthood. You learn how to work in groups, deal with deadlines, gather information from a resource and apply it. Of course, a lot of unschoolers probably don't want their children to fit in as adults anyway.

[ohnomoe]

Some kids need that extra bit of seeing/doing to really grasp a concept, which is a large reason why kids are hurt by the big push for teaching to the test, as hands on learning is unfortunately nowhere near as prevalent as it was when my generation was going through school.

I think it really depends on the state. We are moving to a national curriculum in Australia now but Queensland's own curriculum did put a lot of emphasis on hands-on or "enquiry based" learning. I learned about fractions and volume by pouring liquids at primary school for example and got to design my own science experiments in high school for assignments. Quite often I see unschooler's touting how a particular hands-on experience is much better than working from a textbook in school and want to scream at them that we did that same hands-on experience, in a school classroom (or playground), and then backed it up and built on it.

I think QLD had a really progressive curriculum in terms of the amount of enquiry based learning that was done and were adding more all the time, even through to high school where final grades were based on a portfolio with a significant focus on assignments rather than just tests. Unfortunately this (and other curriculum differences) meant that QLD students tended to do poorly in the national standardised tests compared to other states because we were not as well trained in test talking.

I don't know too much about the national curriculum because I've been out of the education system for a few years but I believe that initially it was going to be modelled more on the NSW systems which I found disappointing. Maybe that has changed?

[August]

I like the idea of unschooling in theory, but I just don't see how it pans out as children get older (unschooling calculus? Writing a persuasive essay?)

One of the things that I think is good about schooling (that many unschoolers/homeschoolers hate about school) is that being in a classroom trains you for adulthood. You learn how to work in groups, deal with deadlines, gather information from a resource and apply it. Of course, a lot of unschoolers probably don't want their children to fit in as adults anyway.

People who fit in are automatons! Mindless cogs in a machine!

The group points you mentioned are true, but most of all, dealing with people you don't like and people who are not like you. What non-schooler would put their kids with a mix of children, most if whom aren't nice, for 30 hours a week? The only experience they get of that is with siblings, which is different.

We never talk about academics at teacher conferences, it's all about social stuff.

Unschooling seems to works best for really really motivated and intelligent kids. There's an article out there which talks about kids at Sudbury realising they need to do SATs to go to college and learning math from arithmetic to calculus in six weeks. I suspect they're more likely to look at what's required for it and change their mind. Because if you've never been challenged, how are you suddenly going to enjoy it or have the ability to rise to it? And, also, because apparently there's a room full of boys playing video games at Sudbury.

But, there are good and crazy unschoolers. Good teachers use unschooling techniques. Just the label doesn't mean they're neglecting their child's education.

They (Lauren) also seem to think that outings to the museum can replace school. Most kids go to museums & such as well as going to school 5 days a week, 40+ weeks a year for 13 years.

And they wait until the child discovers the existence of the museum and asks to go.

brb, see if I can find some crazy unschooler threads on the internet.

[DifferentGurl]

I went to an online school ( is that considered homeschooling? ) that was accredited by the school district. It was technically a public school, but it was online and not in-person. Online schooling really was great. I learned how to deal with deadlines, how to schedule my time, and how to gather information from a resource and apply it. Before when I was homeschooling and not through an online school, I really didn't know whether or not I was on-level with my peers. The online school really helped me to catch up to my peers. It offered the best of both worlds: flexibility and learning materials that are at level with those in the regular public schools ( and in many ways, the online school did better because it offered a lot of other classes as well that may or may not be in a regular public school).

Lauren could have done this since it'd be homeschooling. She wouldn't have to deal with the teaching. The children would be on pace with their peers. There would plenty of flexibility. But instead, she's doing...whatever she is doing.

[samithemage]

According to her Instagram, she is now sharing her sparkling presence with the Netherlands.

[Ms Jess]

Does she have a return "home" date? And by "home," I mean her nomadic lifestyle in the bush amongst strangers and other sparkling personalities.

[Jinderella]

According to her Instagram, she is now sharing her sparkling presence with the Netherlands.

OMG, what is she doing in the land were homeschooling is not allowed?

[Evilbad]

Weed.

[Trudestar]

Poor old Alice (who is very kindly looking after Lauren's kids) has just posted on fb that she is "so depleted, to the point of tears"

And......

"Sophie & Vinny offered to stay with all the children so I'm having a day to myself for some much needed body maintenance (wax & haircut)..

Just needed a bit of me time to rejuvenate & lift my spirits & get back to my peace loving self â¤"

It can't be easy going from 1 child to 5 children, for 2 whole weeks. Who knows how Lauren's girls are reacting to their mother taking off and leaving them. I'm sure Alice had all good intentions, but the reality is often quite different from the expectation. I do sympathise with her.

But I bet the Sparkling one couldn't give a flying fuck.

eta Someone asked her return date.

From her original post about going away.....

Red Gypsy Lauren

"Hello friends! I'm wondering if there is anyone who may be able to join Alice Wenzel in being present with my children from 18 September to 2 October. I'm going away from my four (independent) daughters for that time, and I'd love to leave them (in our housebus) within a family community who can provide conscious support when they need it."

[Stephanie66]

Are we hedging bets on whether or not she will be home tomorrow?

[miffy]

Poor old Alice (who is very kindly looking after Lauren's kids) has just posted on fb that she is "so depleted, to the point of tears"

And......

"Sophie & Vinny offered to stay with all the children so I'm having a day to myself for some much needed body maintenance (wax & haircut)..

Just needed a bit of me time to rejuvenate & lift my spirits & get back to my peace loving self â¤"

It can't be easy going from 1 child to 5 children, for 2 whole weeks. Who knows how Lauren's girls are reacting to their mother taking off and leaving them. I'm sure Alice had all good intentions, but the reality is often quite different from the expectation. I do sympathise with her.

But I bet the Sparkling one couldn't give a flying fuck.

eta Someone asked her return date.

From her original post about going away.....

Red Gypsy Lauren

"Hello friends! I'm wondering if there is anyone who may be able to join Alice Wenzel in being present with my children from 18 September to 2 October. I'm going away from my four (independent) daughters for that time, and I'd love to leave them (in our housebus) within a family community who can provide conscious support when they need it."

Its sad that Lauren's 'independent' daughters have driven a single mother to tears.

[miffy]

Are we hedging bets on whether or not she will be home tomorrow?

She would need to leave within the next few hours. I really wouldn't be shocked if she doesn't come back tomorrow.

[ILoveJellybeans]

Poor Alice, it must be hard to have four feral children who barely know you dumped on you for a few weeks. Im guessing theyre not as independent as Lauren thinks they are, and are probably desperate from attention from an actual mother figure