My husband calls me the flower child of education. He was referring to my idea that one needs to “de-school” their brain in order to educate properly. This can be expressed best by one of my favorite quotes by Mark Twain; “I never let my schooling get in the way of my education.” My husband has heard me quote this many times and smiles each time at my enthusiasm for the nontraditional. He also lives in fear that I will influence my children to be hippies of education that cannot get up before 9 in the morning and know nothing of a structured day. He’s cute, isn’t he? He is a very logical and ordered man who appreciates a good education. You would think he fits a traditional mold when it comes to education when in fact he follows a living books, living history and living math type of road. He just demands structure. He feels my love of freedom and experience will crush any hope of a structured home. To his credit, he knows me very well and knows how much I detest structure. So, it led me to wonder if structure and freedom conflicted. I am a flower child and he is ordered. Can the two methods merge and create something special?
Through the years I have rebelled against a traditional method and approach. I have done so with good reason; my educational psychology background and understanding of how children learn has allowed me to see the flaws of the approach. Yes, there are families who thrive using a schooling at home or a traditional approach. I believe it is because we inherently strive for structure. Children look for boundaries. Structure is not a bad word. In my experience, I have found that structure has provided the wings to fly a different course. Structure has not conflicted but enhanced my approach. I found freedom through structure. So, in a sense both my husband and I were correct. I love it when battles end and everyone wins. I retain my freedom to educate beyond textbooks and a traditional method and he knows my children will understand a schedule. Besides, Charlotte Mason (the approach I use) was very structured. Structure does not negate freedom or vice versa.