Sophie's Way: The Power of Informal Learning

by D.S. Francis

Imagine a place, where children were entrusted to choose their own unique path to the world of knowledge. Would they grow up to be stupid? Not likely. In fact, asking questions about the world around us is an instinct we are all equipped with.
From the time of our birth, our curiosity is a great motivator to wanting to find out more… if... others don’t extinguish our ever growing natural thirst for knowledge with their also inborn urge to teach.
Emotional, physical and mental wellbeing, not uninvited teaching, is the foundation of intellectual growth.
This story encourages you to look at education from the child's perspective. And to ask of yourself: What if…?

Twelve years old Flora Balston, due to some rather fortunate circumstances, recognises the duality of her upbringing, the conflict between her own nature and the expectations of her father and governess concerning her education. She fights for the freedom to follow the guidance of her inner voice, develop her own wisdom of life and discover the wonders of learning, with the help of some truly amazing friends. The question is: will she succeed after years of suppression, or will she join the countless children who grow up only to live a pre-designed life?

Grown up Flora’s memoir takes us back, not only to her childhood to discover how differently every child learns, but we also travel to Victorian England's countryside. Although the story is historical, the human spirit has not changed since those times and the issue at hand is just as true today as it will be tomorrow.

150 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 6, 2016