Chris in VA Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I stopped homeschooling several years ago, and am no longer tutoring a homeschooled little boy like I was last year. I started preschool teaching, and have been quite busy making materials and researching and such. I am also finishing Education for Ministry, a seminary-based, 4yr lay theological education program. I've gone every week for 3 hours, with 3 hours of homework, for 4 years. I am now interested in Forest Schools, where kids get time every week or so to spend the morning in play in a nonstructured forested/natural area. It's a big hit in Britain and Scandinavia, apparently. There's a facebook group that just started up, for homeschoolers who want to do a type of homeschool forest school (it's easy to find if you want to join). Anyway, I find myself researching a ton about Reggio Emilia and Forest Schools and outdoor ed and on and on and on. I think my mind is hungry for new information, for a new interest, a new hobby. Do you get like that? I almost feel anxious about it all. IDK. I'm babbling. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2myboys Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Yes, I have those times too. (And those Forest Schools do sound fascinating.) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Yes, I get like that. I find a very large number of things interesting and it doesn't take much for the switch to flip and I suddenly want to learn about Tesla or Russian history or how to play the Ocarina. Usually I just indulge whatever the thing is until it runs its course, although obviously I need to be wise enough not to spend a lot of money on a fleeting interest. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScoutTN Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Yes! I definitely get this way too. Dh laughs when I come home from the library with a huge stack of books about some new fascination. It is good. Education is life and we are always learning! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PrincessMommy Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 yup, i'm a bit like that too. I'm actually having trouble narrowing my interests down, like Quill. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heatherwith4 Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I get it, too! :) 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 My dd did a program similar to the forest schools idea one day per week for a couple of years. It was fantastic for her. If you're studying this, the premier book on the subject is this one: http://www.coyotesguide.com/ 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fraidycat Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Always. This is why I quite enjoy hanging here at The Hive. There's always an interesting rabbit trail to follow, usually mentioned in a very offhand fashion in the course of conversation, that piques my interest. We have such a diverse group that a person can't help "learning something new everyday". 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I definitely get that way - and enjoy following the trails where they lead. I can't imagine ever wanting to be done learning new things. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penguin Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Chris, I think one of my favorite things about this forum is that the vast majority of people here have hungry minds :) I don't know if I can be of any help, but I live in Denmark and would be happy to help with your research if possible. A good search term for Danish forest schools is skovbørnehave (literally forest kindergarten). The plural word is skovbørnehaver. When we moved here, our youngest was 10 so I don't have any personal experience. But I will tell you that the first year we were here, my son went to an international school. When I first saw the outdoor play area, I was stunned. It wasn't even a forest school, but it seemed magical to my American eyes. And by American standards, there was very little supervision of playing children. If there were any adults around, they might be helping the kids roast snobrød over a little bonfire. Too bad that the outdoor play was the best thing about the school...but that is another tale altogether, LOL. ETA: You might find something of interest on the site that I linked for the snobrød, but I don't think there is an English version. Here is the International page. I would also hope that you post some updates about your reading / learning. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SparklyUnicorn Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I figure the day I stop wanting to learn about stuff is the day I'll drop dead because what will be the point of living?! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Ah, see, I feel that way a lot too, but have no idea which way to go. I'd like to study something and feed my need to explore, but I can't pin down a topic I'm interested in spending time reading about. I'd rather be inundated with lots of ideas to narrow down rather than trying to come up with something that appeals to me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I love learning things but I tend not to implement them. So, for instance, I know a great deal about making multicolored beads with Fimo but have never actually tried it. I guess that to some extent I'm more of a planner than a doer. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I get you too. I also get vast stacks of books from the library on various topics, only to return them unread. At this stage of my life I don't have a lot of time for extra study. But, the desire is there and I hope once my homeschooling gig is done I will have some time for it. The librarians are so impressed with my family, but I keep telling them that we don't actually read even a quarter of what we check out. But we help keep their circulation numbers up! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lailasmum Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 I get like that too. I get really antsy if I'm not learning something. Forest schools are definitely really popular in the UK, however there are some seriously lame ones around where I don't think they fully get the idea but want to be seen to be getting the kids outside. The one at my old school is strange, small empty fenced space with some posts in it where they sit around, and the one at my friends kids school seems to just be normal playtime but they've slapped the term forest school on it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 In the one my DD attended, they spent a whole day each week in a huge (acres and acres) wooded, hilly park, mostly undeveloped except for a few bathrooms and picnic tables, with streams running through it. They opened and closed with a circle. They played the kinds of games that teach animal behavior/stalking/hiding skills, interpersonal exercises, and nature crafts. They built shelters. They did survival skills exercises. They told and listened to stories. They ran around like crazy and had a blast. They also each chose a specific spot to sit quietly in that formed a major vantage point. The idea was to observe it through a multiplicity of seasons and weather patterns, and get to know one natural area very deeply. They were encouraged to journal there and to stay very quiet and still otherwise. There is a profoundly healing aspect to these things. Running around, deeply observing, hearing natural 'white noise', seeing an area closely and distantly--these are all intensely natural to humans, and yet quite unusual in modern life. Good, good stuff. The practices are based on field work observing how traditional non-farming cultures convey their survival skills to the next generations. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIch elle Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Yes, the brain is wired to be "hungry." That's why video games, shop therapy, vacations/travel, TV and other pursuits are so important to people. But that's not the way I "feed" my brain. I love to read and learn NEW things and to be challenged not in the typical way as most people. Chris, are you done with EFM? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 Oh, yes. The whole appeal of home schooling for me was to make sure that my kids would feel free to be like this if they were that way. Both of my younger kids are very much like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Posted March 30, 2015 Share Posted March 30, 2015 It's threads like this one that help me KNOW you guys are MY people. I love real estate because it's a new problem or puzzle to figure out every day. Sometimes several in a day. It's been a very educational and stretching career. I love seeing a stack of books where I sit in the evenings and beside the bed--and how random the subjects are. I love learning new stuff. Oh my forest schools sound wonderful....I'm so glad I know about them now... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 31, 2015 Author Share Posted March 31, 2015 Yes, the brain is wired to be "hungry." That's why video games, shop therapy, vacations/travel, TV and other pursuits are so important to people. But that's not the way I "feed" my brain. I love to read and learn NEW things and to be challenged not in the typical way as most people. Chris, are you done with EFM? I'll be done in June--graduation is the 21st, I think! :hurray: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris in VA Posted March 31, 2015 Author Share Posted March 31, 2015 Here's a sweet video about a forest school in Britain. The first graders (and others) go out to the woods once a week all year. As homeschoolers I think it'd be easier for us--this just shows a more open-minded type of education than one usually finds at B&M school, IMO. I really love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marbel Posted March 31, 2015 Share Posted March 31, 2015 It's threads like this one that help me KNOW you guys are MY people. I love real estate because it's a new problem or puzzle to figure out every day. Sometimes several in a day. It's been a very educational and stretching career. I love seeing a stack of books where I sit in the evenings and beside the bed--and how random the subjects are. I love learning new stuff. Oh my forest schools sound wonderful....I'm so glad I know about them now... This is how I feel about studying Latin. I'm studying it to help my kids. But really when they are done I think I will go on. I love it. Not quite the same (not a career!) but, yeah. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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