false 305758 5 You won't find this book on a school library shelf--it's pure teenage anarchy. While many homeschooling authors hem and haw that learning at home isn't for everyone, this manifesto practically tells kids they're losers if they do otherwise. With the exception of a forwarding note to parents, this book is written entirely for teenagers, and the first 75 pages explain why school is a waste of time. Grace Llewellyn insists that people learn better when they are self-motivated and not confined by school walls. Instead of homeschooling, which connotes setting up a school at home, Llewellyn prefers "unschooling," a learning method with no structure or formal curriculum. There are tips here you won't hear from a school guidance counselor. Llewellyn urges kids to take a vacation--at least for a week--after quitting school to purge its influence. "Throw darts at a picture of your school" or "Make a bonfire of old worksheets," she advises. She spends an entire chapter on the gentle art of persuading parents that this is a good idea. Then she gets serious. Llewellyn urges teens to turn off the TV, get outside, and turn to their local libraries, museums, the Internet, and other resources for information. She devotes many chapters to books and suggestions for teaching yourself science, math, social sciences, English, foreign languages, and the arts. She also includes advice on jobs and getting into college, assuring teens that, contrary to what they've been told in school, they won't be flipping burgers for the rest of their days if they drop out.<p> Llewellyn is a former middle-school English teacher, and she knows her audience well. Her formula for making the transition from traditional school to unschooling is accompanied by quotes on freedom and free thought from radical thinkers such as Steve Biko and Ralph Waldo Emerson. And Llewellyn is not above using slang. She capitalizes words to add emphasis, as in the "Mainstream American Suburbia-Think" she blames most schools for perpetuating. Some of her attempts to appeal to young minds ring a bit corny. She weaves through several chapters an allegory about a baby whose enthusiasm is squashed by a sterile, unnatural environment, and tells readers to "learn to be a human bean and not a mashed potato." But her underlying theme--think for yourself--should appeal to many teenagers. <I>--Jodi Mailander Farrell</I> 932937 1991 The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education total:310|5:172|4:101|3:30|2:6|1:1| 310 1367 478 67 2 3 false false Thu Apr 10 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 10 10:46:06 -0700 2008 Thu Apr 10 10:46:06 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 3 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Fri Nov 07 10:05:42 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 07 10:12:05 -0800 2008 2 Grace Llewellyn beautifully touches on...more...]]> 5 2 false false Fri May 04 12:37:48 -0700 2007 Fri May 04 12:50:05 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Apr 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 26 08:49:59 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 26 09:03:11 -0700 2009
I for one love...more...]]> 2 2 false false Mon Nov 12 00:05:04 -0800 2007 Mon Nov 12 00:05:04 -0800 2007
Not only that, it does rely on teens being near a place with good public services (a good...more...]]> 0 1 false false Sun Feb 15 08:04:29 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 15 08:05:01 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 2 false false Tue Dec 18 08:51:33 -0800 2007 Sun Jan 06 08:30:12 -0800 2008
Read John Holt instead.]]> 4 1 true true Fri Nov 18 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Sun Feb 17 17:33:27 -0800 2008 Sun Feb 17 17:34:51 -0800 2008 2 0 false false Fri Jul 31 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 24 20:36:29 -0700 2009 Fri Jul 31 23:41:32 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1995 Sun May 11 18:21:58 -0700 2008 Thu Jun 26 14:57:49 -0700 2008 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Fri Aug 31 08:23:20 -0700 2007 Fri Aug 31 08:34:40 -0700 2007 i went to public schools all the way, then went to college (my friend calls this "playing...more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Feb 13 18:49:05 -0800 2009 Fri Feb 13 18:52:03 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Nov 12 10:23:38 -0800 2009 Thu Nov 12 10:28:17 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Tue Sep 16 09:18:16 -0700 2008 Fri Feb 29 21:27:04 -0800 2008 Tue Sep 16 09:18:16 -0700 2008
Been re-reading this, now that my older kids are teens. I've been rather unschooling in our approach the whole time we've homeschooled, even before I knew it.

I forgot, however, how "ANARCHY!" this book was!

I love it, though, because this ch...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Oct 26 09:33:03 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 09:37:29 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sat Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2000 Thu Feb 19 16:31:38 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 19 16:33:58 -0800 2009 I have read this several times over the years, but it always seems like an old friend. Love it!]]> 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Sat Jan 24 21:01:57 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 24 21:03:07 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 1989 Thu May 21 09:38:32 -0700 2009 Thu May 21 09:41:16 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Mon Jan 05 14:58:16 -0800 2009 Mon Jan 05 15:01:53 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Mon Mar 16 21:28:55 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 16 21:31:03 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=305758