5 Ways to Nurture Your Child’s Curiosity

A friend showed me a clip of her nine-month-old baby.

I looked into the baby's eyes as I watched the video. The intense alertness and the acute observation of each facial move she saw in her mother's face was fascinating.

The baby wanted to know how to make the same expressions her mother was making.

It's the intense desire to know that all healthy children possess, yet why do so many children forsake that infinite sense of curosity as they grow older? 

“No thief, however skillful, can rob one of knowledge, and that is why knowledge is the best and safest treasure to acquire.”

— L. Frank Baum

The most common cause for a loss of curiosity and a disinterest in learning is school. By the time a child reaches kindergarten or first grade, his innate curiosity and genius begins to dim, according to the research and from what many parents observe.

Think about it: if your child has a small shovel in his hand, but every time he tries to shovel something he has a teacher who tells him to stop, he will eventually stop picking up the shovel.

When a child cannot follow his curiosity and exercise his interest of something, he will eventually shelf it.

The tragedy is that his curiosity is related to his intelligence. The more curious he is, the more he will discover and learn things, and the more intelligent he’ll become. Without a desire to know, how can he ever fully develop his potential in life?

It’s essential that we protect our child’s love of learning, so they grow up to live more fulfilling lives. If you want to encourage your child’s natural curiosity, here are five things you can do:

1. If you have to put your child into an outside program, look for a daycare or preschool that is play-based and ideally held in the outdoors, such as a Forest School. Make sure the school is operated by people who understand what children need at these tender ages.

2. Do not entertain your child! It is not that you don't ever play with your child, but only that you do not become his full-time playmate. Allow him to follow the dictates of his curiosity and figure things out for himself, so he develops his mind. Children are little scientists by nature, and they find the world fascinating. Unless we interrupt this process, children are quite content to entertain themselves: this is what’s natural for a child.

3. Be curious yourself. Take your child into the outdoors and explore with him. Let him walk barefoot on fallen leaves and dip his feet into spring water to awaken his senses. Bring his attention to the songs of birds and the rustling of the trees as the wind blows through them. Collect a bug or two and read about them when you get home.

4. Immediately remove all screens from your child's life both inside and outside the home. Under no circumstances should you hand him your cell phone to quiet him because you are busy. Screens are a cause of a dimming curiosity; not only that but they will thwart your child's brain development. 

5. Lastly, if you can, don't put your child into any school programs until he is at least ten years old. Until then, teach him yourself because so many learning problems take root during those early years. The first few grades of elementary school are easy to teach when you have the correct understanding of homeschooling.

6. Ideally, you will continue to homeschool your children through high school, if circumstances permit.

“An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.”

— Benjamin Franklin

Our ability to excel, to become the best version of ourselves, begins with our desire to know. Let’s work to keep our children’s curiosity alive by teaching them ourselves— so they can become all that they can be.

Don’t miss your free download, 6 Reasons Homeschooled Kids Have Better Social Skills.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with groundbreaking Essays on educating your kids by John Taylor Gatto, Dorothy Sayers, and Liz herself.

Elizabeth Y. Hanson is a homeschooling thought-leader and the founder of Smart Homeschooler.

Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a “whole” child, based on tradition and modern research, Liz devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of two unique online courses, Raise Your Child Well: Preserving Your Child's Natural Genius by Laying a Solid Foundation During the First Seven Years and the Smart Homeschooler Academy: Homeschooling the "Whole" Child for a Well-Trained Mind and Character

As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, Liz has 23 years of experience raising children and working in education.

Elizabeth is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

*****

“Elizabeth has given us counseling and guidance to help us succeed with our home school planning. When I feel overwhelmed, scared, or lose my confidence, she offers words of wisdom and support.”

— Sherry B., Pittsburg, PA

The Steve Jobs Habit Every Homeschooling Parent Should Adopt

Steve Jobs had a habit homeschoolers can benefit from.

But first, consider this: on average, we make 35,000 decisions in a single day. As homeschoolers, it’s likely that we make even more of these than the average person.

After making thousands of decisions, we begin to experience what the theorists refer to as “decision fatigue.”

When decision fatigue kicks in, the quality of our decisions starts to plummet. Over time, poor decision making will compound and eventually determine how successfully or unsuccessfully we raise our children, which includes homeschooling them.

The key to making better decisions then is the Steve Jobs’ strategy.

#1 Think Like Steve Jobs

You may know that Steve Jobs wore black T-shirts every day. He wasn’t being lazy or eccentric, he was practicing a technique to preserve his decision-making energy by automating trivial every day decisions

By wearing a black T-shirt, it was one less decision he had to make every day. The more decisions he could automate, the more energy he could conserve for more important Apple related matters.

Parenting Decisions that Impact Our Children

How does the strategy of automating every day decisions translate into the life of a homeschooler? We make Black T-shirt decisions every day, such as when to pull ourselves out of bed, when to serve breakfast, and when to take a break between lessons.

Our more important decisions might include deciding upon the most appropriate discipline for a misbehaving child or whether or not to join a field trip mid-week when we already have a full week and want to maintain a healthy balance for our family.

These aren’t the same level of decisions Steve Job has to make, but they are not unimportant decisions. Each decision we make contributes to our competency—or lack of—as parents, and it helps to mold who our children become.

Our characters are the sum of our habits, and this is true for our children too. We want them to learn to act in the best way possible; not perfectly, but on the side of right choices more than wrong choices.

Effective parenting skills is one of the ways we help them to develop well, and these parenting skills are tied up in the little decisions we make all day long.

It follows then that the more Black T-shirt decisions we can automate, the more energy we’ll have for making decisions with foresight and wisdom, not from a place of reaction and exhaustion.

Black T-Shirt Decisions

If the idea of automating some of your “black T-shirt” decisions makes sense, the first step is to begin paying attention to the decisions you make each morning.

Note which ones repeat themselves every day, such as how you spend your time before your children wake up, what clothes to wear, what time you’ll get your children out of bed, what clothes they’ll wear, who will clear the breakfast dishes, what chores need to be completed before homeschooling begins, and when you begin your homeschooling day.

That's a very short list of the thousands of decisions we make before the clock even strikes noon. Now that you have your list of decisions, you can then automate them by deciding one time how you will handle the decision, so you never have to waste time on it again.

For example, decide what your morning routine will be and stick to it. Maybe you’ll grab a cup of coffee and read a book, or you’ll workout for 30 minutes. Establish routines so you don’t waste energy deciding what to do and when to do it.

“In any moment of decision, the best thing you can do is the right thing. The worst thing you can do is nothing.”

— Theodore Roosevelt

On the night before you sleep, review your plan for the next day. If there are any trivial every-day decisions to make, make them at night when your children have gone to sleep and you can spare the energy.

Know what your morning plan is, know what your children's morning plan is, know what you will prepare for breakfast, and definitely know what you are going to wear the next day (hopefully not a black tee!).

Without a fixed plan, not only will decision fatigue plague us much earlier in the day, but we might also linger in bed another ten minutes, decide to skip chores that day because we mismanaged our time, or start homeschooling three hours later than we intended to. The end of the day will arrive, and we will not feel good about how we managed it.

“You are fettered,” said Scrooge, trembling. “Tell me why?”
”I wear the chain I forged in life,” replied the Ghost. “I made it link by link, and yard by yard; I girded it on of my own free will, and of my own free will I wore it.”

— Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

Automating as many decisions as possible will help us to stay on course, which is critical as homeschoolers. We have a window where we can teach our children, and that window passes quickly. If we aren’t careful, we can squander it on poor planning which leads to poor decision making.

Think Like Buddha

Inevitably, we will face making decisions when we are tired. In many cases, we can postpone making the decision until the next day, but only if we are mindful about it. Staying present with our levels of energy will help us to determine when it’s better to postpone making a decision.

We all know that moment when a friend asks us to do something, such as go out to dinner or meet for coffee, but we know we don't have time to accommodate her. However, we're tired when she asks us, and we say yes anyway, only to regret it later.

Sometimes, if we know we want to decline an invitation, and we are maxed out on decisions for the day, we can also be clumsy in our reply and inadvertently offend a friend. The next day, thinking more clearly, we’ll have to patch up our blunder.

Knowing when to postpone making a decision or when to reply to someone is critical to maintaining harmonious relationships. When I look back at some of the poor choices I’ve made, it’s often because I made them at an inconvenient time.

Had I waited until I could think more clearly, I would have made a better decision and caused myself, and possibly a friend, less disappointment.

Learning how to manage our decision-making energy and to postpone making weightier decisions until we are refreshed will lead to better parenting skills, well-adjusted children, and less regret in life. 

Don’t miss your free download, 6 Reasons Homeschooled Kids Have Better Social Skills.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with groundbreaking Essays on educating your kids by John Taylor Gatto, Dorothy Sayers, and Liz herself.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a “whole” child, based on tradition and modern research, Liz devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of two unique online courses, Raise Your Child Well: Preserving Your Child's Natural Genius by Laying a Solid Foundation During the First Seven Years and the Smart Homeschooler Academy: Homeschooling the "Whole" Child for a Well-Trained Mind and Character

As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, Liz has 23 years of experience raising children and working in education.

Liz is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

11 Ways to Convince your Spouse to Homeschool!→

If your husband or wife’s mind is already set against homeschooling, you have to approach the situation very gingerly. It’s not wise to push our views on someone, least of all a spouse.  

“It is time that we squarely face the fact that institutional schoolteaching is destructive to children.”

— John Taylor Gatto

Usually when a spouse doesn’t agree with homeschooling, it’s because he doesn’t understand what John Taylor Gatto refers to as "the dangers of public school."

The Conversation

But you can start the conversation by asking your spouse a question, such as, "What are your hopes and goals for our children’s education?"

You have now opened the channels for him to let you know his hopes and goals in a non-threatening way. As he shares these with you, listen for his concerns too.

Once you’ve got a friendly discussion going, approach the subject of homeschooling.

If you were to consider homeschooling, would he have any objections or concerns? If so, what would those be?

The Objections

The typical objections to homeschooling are the following:

• The children will be academically behind and fail to get into a reputable college.

• Homeschooled kids lack good social skills.

• Homeschooled children don’t have any friends.

• You aren’t qualified to homeschool unless you’re an accredited teacher.

• You aren’t qualified to homeschool unless you have a college degree.

Maybe your husband doesn't know any homeschoolers and the idea sounds too fantastic to him?

Keep in mind that your spouse wants what is best for his children as much as you do.

The Persuasion

Whatever his objections are, you want to take note and ask him if he would be open to watching some videos on the subject, looking at some research, or even reading some books together.

If you keep the conversation neutral and show a genuine interest in his views and concerns, most reasonable spouses will oblige the other. 

Now, here comes the tricky part: you will need to provide him with information that is sound and relevant.

No need to panic though because we have you covered. You can download our free resource list to convince anyone about the merits of homeschooling.

The list will provide you with 11 resources to educate your husband (or anyone) about the many problems with public school and why homeschooling is the best option today. 

This resource is also helpful if you have family members or friends who are strongly opposed to homeschooling.

Grab your free download here: 11 Resources to Convince Anyone to Homeschool.

Once someone truly understands what is fundamentally wrong with public school, it is near impossible to enroll the child unless the person has no other choice.

Some Cautionary Advice

Be careful about taking the attitude of proving your spouse wrong. No one likes to be proven wrong, and trying to show your spouse that you were right will not help your cause. 

Instead, you want to humble yourself and be gentle in the way you handle the situation.

Go slowly.

When someone has a fixed opinion, it’s prudent to allow time for that person to shift into a new mindset.

Start early by educating your spouse when your children are young.

By the time they are ready to go to school, hopefully, you'll both be excited about homeschooling! 

“School is a twelve-year jail sentence where bad habits are the only curriculum truly learned. I teach school and win awards doing it. I should know.”

— John Taylor Gatto

Free Download: 11 Resources to Convince Anyone to Homeschool.

Not sure what kind of books to buy your children? Get Liz’s list of Ten Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Grab a copy of the essential homeschooler’s book: Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with gripping essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers?

Elizabeth Y. Hanson is a homeschooling thought-leader and the founder of Smart Homeschooler.

As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, she has 21+ years of experience working in education.

Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a child, based on tradition and modern research, and she devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.

Elizabeth is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling

Raising Hopeful Children in Turbulent Times→

“Hope is the thing with feathers,” wrote Emily Dickinson. During a dark time like the one we are living through, it’s a poem that’s worth memorizing.

If you’ve ever lost hope, then you know it’s a very scary place to be. Without hope, we lose our will to live. Suicide rates are some of the highest in America, with its youngest victim, Samantha Kuberski, being six years of age.

She hung herself from a crib.

Children as young as five are experiencing anxiety and depression. Gen Z earned the reputation of being the most cynical generation in modern times, and who can blame them?

Yet, hope is a precious quality of the human spirit and the belief upon which resilience lies. There are many things wrong with the world, but hope is something we want to help our children preserve, because there is tremendous good in the world too and, as we know, difficulties pass.

The human spirit is capable of rising again, even when everything one loves in life is lost. There are several things we can do to help our children experience hope, so they don’t grow up to be cynical or succumb to despair when life hands them a wrench.

“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope.”

— Martin Luther Kind, Jr.

Serve Others

One of the greatest gifts we can give our children is the gift of serving others, because it gives us purpose in life and purpose keeps us going. When families were larger and lived closer together, helping others was a normal expectation of a child.

A child might be asked to get his grandfather a blanket, or to look after a younger sibling while his mother was busy in the kitchen, or to help an elderly neighbor carry her groceries into the house. 

But with the myriad changes in society, such as grandparents moving into rest homes, children going to day care and preschools at early ages, and neighbors remaining strangers to one another, we no longer call on children for these things. 

“It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. ”

— Victor Frankl, Man's Search for Meaning

Yet, when children help take care of others, it gives them a sense of purpose, and in purpose we find hope. Children will learn to think about the needs of others, to see the positive effect of their actions in a person’s life, and to know that for those persons they touch, they matter greatly.

Silence Is Golden

When there are awful things happening in the world, it’s best to protect your children from knowing about them. What good does it serve to hear about the “real life” brutalities of mankind, if it doesn’t affect them directly?

It’s fine in fairy tales or history books, because the cruelty is removed from the immediate world of the child, but hearing about these things in real time can be traumatic.

Telling our children about crime in our neighborhoods or war crimes in times of war, or the struggle of inflation will only cause them emotional distress before they have the emotional tools to handle it.

“No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful experience is, if we lose our hope, that’s our real disaster.”

— Dalai Lama XIV

I grew up in Marin County, California in the 1960s and 70s. From the endless riots during the Civil Rights Movement to mass murders in California—when murders still made headlines—there was a lot to disturb one.

As a child, I used to read the newspaper. I remember being frightened by the news and having nightmares about not being able to lock the doors in our house. Sixty years later, I can still have those very same nightmares!

I have no idea what the hard science says, but I don’t believe protecting a child’s innocence qualifies for coddling them. If it does, I would wager that the science is wrong.

When you homeschool, it’s much easier to protect your children, and it’s a fair reason to homeschool with violence in schools being so prevalent now.

Pets Are Good for the Heart

I never understood people who mourned the loss of a pet, until I had a pet of my own and lost him. Maybe you remember my little Don Quixote? Never a day went by that he did not make me laugh, and laugh hard. He was the funniest cat, ever.

When he showed up one night, meowing under my window because he had lost his mother, I brought him inside not knowing what a source of healing he would be for me and I for him.

Pets are critical to a child’s well-being. It’s not that a child isn’t well without a pet, but in this age of cynicism and despair, a pet gives a child hope. If all else seems dismal in life, a child will always look forward to his pet.

He will play, laugh, and cry with his pet. And he will always have a reason to get out of bed, because he will have his pet cheer him up and to care for. As we don’t always know the workings of our children’s hearts, pets are a remedy during hard times. They are also a source of joy in a child’s life, so it’s a win-win.

The secret here is to give your child absolute responsibility for the pet. If you have more than one child, consider getting different kinds of pets, as long as they are pets the children can hold and bond with.

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Even if everything is falling apart around you, do your best to keep up a good front for your children. If not, they will see your sadness and assume wrongly that it is their fault.

They may sense at times that you are sad about something, but as long as you do your best to smile and find moments of joy with them, it will reassure them that they are not to blame.

If times get tough, as they do now and then, build things into your day and week that you look forward to, because it will ease the more challenging periods. It could be something as simple as having a hot cup of tea with a good book in the afternoon or having lunch with a friend, but try to keep your own state hopeful.

Mirroring hope for our children will help them learn how to stay hopeful too.

Rumi said, “It’s rigged — everything, in your favor. So there is nothing to worry about."

I believe this saying works for us collectively, too. There are so many variables in life we can't control, even in times of war. I've read of many battles lost and won because of the unexpected, such as the wind suddenly changing directions, someone becoming a traitor to his own people, or a sudden death of a leader. 

We never know when the winds will change, we just know they'll change.

Below is Emily Dickinson’s poem about hope that you can help your children memorize today, and they can carry the poem’s wisdom with them throughout their lives.

"Hope" Is the Thing with Feathers

“Hope” is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet - never - in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of me.

—Emily Dickinson

Not sure what kind of books to buy your children? Get Liz’s list of Ten Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Grab a copy of the essential homeschooler’s book: Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with gripping essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers?

Don’t Be Afraid to Homeschool: Here’s Why…

The ‘Not Enough’ Syndrome

As women, we tend to think we are not enough as we are. Add homeschooling into the mix and our list of not enoughs now includes neither smart, nor patient, nor educated enough to homeschool.

The thought of homeschooling conjures up fears that you may fail, disappoint your family, or even worse, hinder your children's chances of success.

You might think that homeschooling moms are smarter, better educated, and have it more together than you do.

The truth is that even if all of these beliefs were true, which is unlikely, you could still succeed at homeschooling if you put your mind to it.

You can overcome the unwelcome thoughts in your head that say you are less than every other mother trying to give her child a better education at home. 

I'm Not Smart Enough or Educated Enough

To this, I would ask, who is? My father was in the category of truly learned men of the 20th century, and he never considered himself educated. My father's position used to baffle me until one day I understood that the more you know, the more you comprehend how little you know.

We still can’t answer fundamental questions with 100% certainty, such as, Who am I? Where did I come from? Where am I going?

“It’s an irony of life that the most simple questions contain the greatest mysteries.”

While it is true that most of us are far less intelligent than we would have been had we been properly educated during our prime learning years, but we can always choose to correct the problem.

It’s never too late to work at developing our intellects.

The Almighty Brain Gives Us Hope

We used to think the brain became fixed at a certain age and didn’t change after that, other than to decline as you aged, but neuroscientists have shown that this isn't true. The brain continues to wire itself, which is why learning unto the grave prevents ailments like dementia and Alzheimers. 

The good news is that you need not despair. When you homeschool, you will develop your mind alongside your children. Becoming smarter and improving your brain's capacity is a byproduct of homeschooling.

Talk to homeschooling moms to discover how this works. You'll find that homeschooling moms always have a lot of general knowledge. But ask them how much they knew before they began homeschooling, and their answers may surprise you.

I’ll go first: I did not know the eight parts of speech. I didn’t even know that there were eight parts of speech! As painful as it is to share this, it’s more painful to know so many moms are afraid to homeschool because they don’t know the eight parts of speech either.

I learned them and you will too. You don’t have to know everything to homeschool; you just have to want to know everything!

Even with no college education, you will still do a better job homeschooling your children than the public school system. There are millions of homeschooled kids to prove it.

Do not let a feeling of intellectual inferiority stop you. You will rise to the occasion and become a better person by having done so. 

I'm too Impatient; I could Never Homeschool

You may be impatient, but you can correct this. Impatience stems from three causes: 1) a physical imbalance or 2) an emotional imbalance, 3) bad habits.

Physical Imbalance

When people are irritable and impatient, it can be for many reasons, including not enough sleep, poor dietary habits, health imbalances and not enough exercise.

If you feel run down and exhausted—and you don’t have a child under the age of two—you might consider seeking alternative health care to improve your diet, get on an exercise plan, and take any natural remedies they might recommend.

Exhaustion is not something you want to ignore, because you'll raise your voice more and have less time for your spouse. The latter can lead to a negative feedback loop too. 

The less time you have with your spouse, the less support you feel, and the more exacerbated your symptoms become. Instead of being a respite for one another during the years when your young children are more demanding, you begin to grow apart and you obviously don’t want that to happen.

Emotional Imbalance

If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, resentful, or unhappy with your life, it may be because you aren’t doing anything to replenish yourself. Mothers get into these states when they eliminate all the things they enjoyed doing before having children.

Life suddenly becomes all work and no play.

Play is important for children, but it’s also important for us. Play is what rejuvenates us and keeps us going. Figure out what it is that you love doing most and build some of it back into your life.

“When enough people raise play to the status it deserves in our lives, we will find the world a better place.”

— Dr. Stuart Brown

Take care of yourself so you can take better care of those who depend on you without feeling overwhelmed.

If I could give my younger self one piece of advice, it would be this!

Bad Habits

You may have a bad habit of getting upset too easily. In this case, you want to pay close attention to when this happens so you can start to correct your behavior. Easier said than done, I know, but you can do it.

You Missed the Patience Hand-Out

You may think you don’t have the patience to homeschool. Homeschooling moms were dealt a “saint-like” portion of patience, but somehow you missed out. The assumption here is that homeschooling is going to be too challenging and difficult for you.

In my experience, the moms I work with find they have the patience to homeschool, often to their own surprise. If you get a sound handle on homeschooling, it’s fun to learn alongside your children, and you don’t need patience to do the things you enjoy doing.

The truth is, true homeschoolers would need to intend to fail their children and no one is going to do that.

But you won't know this until you take the leap. It takes courage to homeschool, and courage comes from acting despite your fears. We all experience fear, but mothers who homeschool don't let it get in their way.

The cost is too high, and they know it. 

Not sure what kind of books to buy your children? Get Liz’s list of Ten Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Grab a copy of the essential homeschooler’s book: Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with gripping essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers?

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling

Are You Maximizing Your Child's Natural Genius?

Throughout history, there are stories of the influence of a mother in the life of an accomplished figure. 

Thomas Edison was one of them, as your child may be too. His mother, Nancy, pulled him out of school after he was labeled "addled" by his teacher. Mrs. Edison was told that her son could not think clearly. He was only eight years old. 

What an unjust misdiagnosis for an eight-year-old who had entered school for the first time. Fortunately, his mother ignored the teacher's assessment, and Thomas would grow up to be known for inventing many things, including the incandescent light bulb.

When he died, he would leave behind over 1000 patents to his name!

Fast forward to today, where many mothers are allowing the medical industry to medicate their children and label them with "learning disorders" because of similar complaints. 

A friend told me something awful happened in his apartment building. A tenant committed suicide, and the odor of a rotting body was permeating the hallway, but it took a week for anyone to call the police department. 

It's the decision not to act sooner that struck me because it is a strange phenomenon amongst us mortals. We know something is wrong, but we don't want to face it because it feels too overwhelming.

Or maybe we think people will laugh at us for thinking that there "may" be a dead body in one of the apartments. Or maybe we just don’t want to get involved.

Yet, this person told me the residents that week were unusually quiet about the stench; no one mentioned it, but they all suspected the worst.

For many parents, questioning our institutions feels overwhelming. Who are we to know better than a doctor or a teacher? We ignore the stench of over-medicating and dumbing down our children, and we bank on everything turning out fine. 

But Gen Z tells a different story. Gen Z, according to neuroscientist and educator Dr. Jared Cooney, is the first generation to under perform in modern history.  Gen Z under performs previous generations of the same age on every "cognitive measure." 

These measures include basic attention, memory, literacy, numeracy, executive functioning, and general IQ. In other words, Gen Z is a medicated and dumbed-down generation.

What contributes to higher cognitive measures? An ability to sustain focus and attention, strong memories, competence in reading, writing, and speaking, emotional maturity, and numeracy. 

These measures are things children no longer develop and learn in school or at home, unless they are true homeschoolers. 

How many Edisons were lost to a system that dumbs down our children, and what does this mean for the individual, our families, and our future?  

Dr. Cooney goes on to say that the decline in cognitive development is due to the ed-tech industry, and he is absolutely correct. We know online learning does not work, but still the ed-tech companies and the US government promote it as a viable means of education. 

If we know anything about how the US government works, it is that corporate greed pulls the strings. The Covid epidemic conveniently forced the majority of US schoolchildren into virtual schools, and homeschoolers, for some odd reason, jumped on board too. 

Parents have their children sitting in front of computers instead of reading real books and having real-life experiences. Online learning is not homeschooling; it's virtual schooling, which is why your child is registered as a "public" school student. 

We can name things anything we want, but it doesn't change their reality.

How would Thomas Edison have fared if his mother had signed him up for the K-12 online education? He would have been doing online busywork in the name of an education, and then he probably would have spent his afternoon playing video games. 

One thing is for certain: Edison would have had no time left to think about the complexities of inventing a light bulb. He probably wouldn't have had the creative bandwidth either.  

But the tech industry is not the only one to blame. There is a lot of money being made by convincing mothers that "having a life" means going back to work and paying exorbitant fees to enroll their children in early education centers of "learning." 

Nancy Edison said no to school, and she homeschooled her son. No early education centers, no online learning, just real books and real life. 

Each child is a potentially budding genius. Some children learn some things faster than others, but all healthy children have the potential to develop their minds to a very high degree. 

Much of it depends upon the parents and the kind of choices they make for their children during their childhood and educative years. 

As parents, we can change our future's trajectory if we stop medicating our children and putting them into daycare, early education centers, and government-funded educational programs (schools, virtual schools, charter schools). 

Even with homeschooling, not everyone will become a Thomas Edison; however, a generation of true homeschoolers would turn the tide on the dumbing down of America's children. 

Not sure what kind of books to buy your children? Get Liz’s list of 10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read: CLICK HERE.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with gripping essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

Learn more

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz helps parents raise and educate , creative, resourceful, and respectful children by combining timeless wisdoms with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, she specializes in guiding families through their children’s early years and homeschooling journey.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

She is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

Children Can Increase Intelligence by Increasing Focus

The ability to focus leads to faster comprehension, better memory retention, and more efficient study habits which equates to higher intelligence.

The Problem

Children, however, are losing the ability to focus for sustained periods of time because we’re failing to raise them in ways that develop this skill. Then, when they are too easily distracted, we are very quick to cry "ADHD!" 

When you observe infants, you will note how absolutely focused they become when something catches their interest.

What happens between that time and a ten-year-old’s inability to concentrate long enough to complete a task or follow directions?

Prior to the 1970s, only 1-3% of children were diagnosed with any problems of the ADHD sort. If only 1 - 3% of children had any learning or behavioral problems, should we not ask what’s going on?

Speaking from experience, I went through 12 years of schooling and never once encountered a classmate who couldn’t sit still and focus.

But childhood today looks very different from how kids experienced it 50 years ago, and with the different came a whole host of problems. 

One of which is a country of over-medicated children. Regardless of whether or not your child has received an ADHD label—even though there is zero scientific proof that such a malady exists—there are many things you can do to help your child learn how to focus better.

Focus Tip #1

Help your child develop the extremely important skill of listening. We overlook this skill today, but it is a skill that's vital to communication, comprehension, intelligence, and good manners.

“Being relevant simply consists in paying close attention to the point that is being talked about and saying nothing that is not significantly related to it.”

— Mortimer J. Adler, How to Speak How to Listen

There are 3 things you start doing today, that will help your child tremendously:

1. Teach him not to interrupt you or anyone else when he is being spoken to.

2. Take him into nature and let him sit quietly while paying attention to every single sound he can hear.

Ask him to write down the sounds or, if he is too young to write, you can write them down for him. If you have multiple children, you can let them play a game of who can hear the most sounds. Children love little games like this.

We are losing the ability to hear more subtle sounds because of all the noise pollution in the world. Taking your children into nature and helping them to develop more acute hearing will serve them well.

Good hearing is critical to our safety, but also to the simple joys in life, such as playing a musical instrument, singing in tune, or listening to the songs of the birds.

3. Read out loud to your children every day.

Read to your children in the afternoons and before they sleep at night.  This gives them plenty of time for developing good listening skills, as well as all the benefits that come from reading to your child.

Mortimer Adler said that the ability to listen is not a natural gift, but it's a skill that we must work to acquire. He also pointed out that nobody teaches it, though it should be taught. 

Focus Tip #2

Encourage your children to engage in activities that help develop their focus.

1. Provide your children with puzzles from an early age.

Puzzles require children to concentrate as they figure out where each piece of the puzzle goes.

2. Give your young children colored pencils and blank paper and let them draw for as long as they like.

For older children, teach them the rudiments of drawing because it not only develops the skill of observation (a critical skill for reading the signs of people’s characters), but it also requires that they focus intently on their subject. 

3. Raise your children to play sports that require intense focus; such as ice skating, tennis, or ping pong. 

Focus Tip #3

Choose entertainment for your children wisely. 

1. Raise your kids to love reading quality books. A good story will keep their focus for a long time. 

If they are young and fidgety, give them Legos to play with while you read.

2. Have your children study a musical instrument and take them to classical music concerts. 

3. Well, the last one you know. Keep your kids away from screens!

This is a no-brainer. All screen use interferes with a child’s brain development, social skills, and ability to concentrate and focus on the task at hand. 

And, while we're helping our kids improve their focus, we can strengthen our own focus muscles too.

Many adults half-joke about having ADHD themselves. We do have an attention deficit problem, but not one that stems from a disease process.

A few things we can do to increase our focus include less screen time and more meditation, reading, and exercising, all of which are necessary for optimal brain function.

Reading alone improves our memories and focus, and it lowers stress levels. Exercise increases our “feel good” hormones, lowers stress levels, and protects our brains.

Meditating daily can increase the grey matter in our brains, which is critical for our memories and emotional well-being

The skill of being able to focus for long periods is so critical to many benefits in our lives, and it is not a difficult skill to develop.

It’s the consistent efforts over time that bring the greatest rewards. Less screen time and daily reading, exercising, and meditating equals greater focus and increased well-being.

Not sure what kind of books to buy your children? Get Liz’s list of 10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read: CLICK HERE.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with gripping essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz helps parents raise and educate , creative, resourceful, and respectful children by combining timeless wisdoms with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, she specializes in guiding families through their children’s early years and homeschooling journey.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

She is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Psychologist Blames Zuckerberg for his Parenting Skills

I'm not going to mention names but I was listening to this reel about screens and children from someone whose work I respect. This time,  I hit the "watch again" link. 

"Did I really just hear that?" I asked myself. So I played it again, and yes,  I did really just hear that. 

Below is the transcript of what he said, and then I'm going to analyze it. The problems inherent in this message sum up what is wrong with pop psychology’s views on raising children.

It also shows why turning to it for guidance on how to raise your children will leave you in the same predicament as our psychologist, whose words I quote:

"Once kids get a phone and social media, the rest of the family life turns into a fight over screen time. And this is happening everywhere. This is happening in Silicon Valley, where the parents know what's going on. In fact, in Silicon Valley, you're much more likely to find parents who say, no, you cannot have this because we know how bad it is.

Why do we give our 10-year-olds a phone? The main reason is because everyone else did, and we don't want our daughter to be the only one who's left out. I'm facing this now with my 14-year old daughter on Snapchat. So the tech companies put us in a bind, and then they're trying to blame us for what they did.

They, a few companies, three or four companies largely own childhood. They have far more influence on our children than we do, at least in terms of the amount of time they can spend influencing. They vastly exceed the power of parents. And then they want to say, "oh, but it's your fault!"

"No," it's their fault." 

What’s Wrong With This Picture?

Do you see anything wrong with the picture he has painted of parents, children, and screen use?

As a certified parenting coach under John Rosemond, one of the few psychologists I know of with any common sense left, here's my analysis: 

Point One

"Once kids get a phone and social media, the rest of the family life turns into a fight over screen time."

He is absolutely right, but he speaks as if it is a given that a child who reaches ten years of age automatically gets a phone, as if the parent has no choice. 

So why do we give our 10-year-olds a phone? He answers the question for us, and his answer is what  led me to listen to his reel twice. 

Point Two

"The main reason is because everyone else did, and we don't want our daughter to be the only one who's left out. I'm facing this now with my 14-year-old daughter on Snapchat."

OMG. 

"Because everyone else did," is not a reason! If everyone else was telling their child to drink poison, would that be a reason for you to tell your child to do the same?

Of course not!

What said psychologist is telling us is that parents have failed to establish their authority with their children, himself  included. 

And then he goes on to tell us what kind of a parent he is being…

Point Three

"So the tech companies put us in a bind, and then they're trying to blame us for what they did."

Now, before I make my next comment, don't get me wrong. Where children are concerned, the tech industry is particularly unethical and cruel. I stand 100% with our psychologist on this point. 

But to blame the tech companies for your failure to establish boundaries with your child is to put yourself in the position of a victim, a person without agency. 

If you cannot accept responsibility for your decisions as a parent, then you cannot correct any problems that arise because of them. We all make mistakes but we also remedy them once we realize we’ve made them. The key is to recognize the mistake, but we can’t recognize it we are putting the blame elsewhere.

Point Four

"They, a few companies, 3 or 4 companies largely own childhood. They have far more influence on our children than we do, at least in terms of the amount of time they can spend influencing. They vastly exceed the power of parents."

They do because you handed your child over to them. You bought your child the phone. You gave your child permission to use social media. If you want to reclaim your children, the first step is to get rid of the screens, and then establish a loving but authority-based relationship with your children, so you can influence them in healthier ways.

Point Five

"And then they want to say, "oh, but it's your fault." "No," it's their fault." 

Screens and social media are problematic, but they are not the problem here; they are a symptom of the problem. The problem is that we have agency as parents and we can say no to phones and screen use for our children, but we aren’t for the reasons mentioned above.

Screen-Free Children Do Still Exist

There are plenty of parents raising their children screen-free who do not have the kind of  problems our psychologist mentioned.

Our psychologist went on to advise parents to hold off on the smart phones until the child is 14 and to hold off on social media until the child is 16. 

If you give a 14-year old a smartphone, they will use it for social media—that's a no-brainer.

John Rosemond's advice is no smart phones as long as the child lives at home, and it is wise advice. 

Real-Life Experience

My daughter got a smart phone at age 17 and my son at age 15. The reasons for their phones seemed legitimate at the time. My son had a job and his employer gave him the phone and paid the bill so they could stay in touch. I gave my permission for this. 

My daughter had wanted a smart phone, and she was soon going to be a legal adult, so I told her that as long as she paid for it and paid for her bill, she could get one. 

Both decisions I lived to regret because once the smart phone enters the home, so do the conversations of when and when not it is to be used. 

While my children were not argumentative with me about their phone use, it was still a conversation I resented having to have with them. The dynamics in our home changed once the smart phone was invited in. 

My advice for parents is no smartphones for the children, ever, as long as they live at home.  If they reach the teens and must have a phone to stay connected with friends, let it be a flip phone. Also, the child pays for his phone with money he earned, and he pays his phone bill. 

I understand that times have changed, but the needs of children have not changed. They still need parents who stand tall, who protect them, and who guide them to become the best of who they can be.

Don’t miss your free download: 10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz helps parents raise and educate , creative, resourceful, and respectful children by combining timeless wisdoms with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, she specializes in guiding families through their children’s early years and homeschooling journey.

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available, too.

"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

# 1 Most Intelligent New Year's Resolution for Parents

In 2026, so many parents have caught on to the dangers of screen use for their children, thanks to the work of people like Jonathan Haidt and his book, The Anxious Generation. 

The Resolution

Consequently, many parents have made it a New Year's resolution to severely limit screen time and not just for their children. 

For themselves too!

Each wise parent knows that her children will imitate her behavior. 

If you are polite, your children will be polite. If you eat in moderation, your children will eat in moderation. If you read books, your children will read books.

Of course, this isn't a guarantee because there are other factors at play, but it's a good general principle to live by. As the saying goes: Monkey see, Monkey do—and this includes screen use too.

Habit is the Key

If you were not amongst the parents who resolved to reduce screen time for their children in 2026, do not despair. It is never too late to put good habits into place.

Good people are the sum total of good habits, as Aristotle taught us.

Instilling good habits in your children from an early age will make all of the difference. But again, there is never a guarantee. We do our best as parents, and we leave the outcomes up to a higher power, God, if I may. 

Our job is to understand what we have to do. One of the things to consider today is the irresponsibility of the social media companies regarding your children’s well-being, and how it will affect your children's lives. 

“Boys are at a greater risk than girls of “failure to launch.” They are more likely to become young adults who are “Not in Education, Employment, or Training.” ”

— Jonathan Haidt, The Anxious Generation

An Amazing Woman Who Has A Lot to Teach Us

Now, I am politically neutral, as I think most politicians have their heads screwed on backwards these days, so what I am about to tell you is about the person, not the politics.

I watched the last interview with the beloved Jane Goodall, which aired after she passed, may she rest in peace. She tells her host that she would like to put Musk, Trump, Netanyahu, and a few others in a rocket and send them to the planet Musk is trying to inhabit. 

I was surprised to hear her say these things, but then she knew she would be dead when her interview was aired.

As I listened, I have to admit that I was disappointed she hadn’t mentioned men, such as Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates, because they have definitely earned a place in that rocket.

John Taylor Gatto said that schools were dangerous places for children, but I would take it a step further and say that the Zuckerberg’s and Gates of this world are dangerous men for the children of this earth.

They are messing with the healthy development of a child’s heart and mind.

Freefalling Madness

With more than very limited screen use, we have to recognize that our children’s ability to think clearly, rationally, creatively, and logically is at stake, as well as their emotional and mental health.

I have watched the dumbing down and over-medicating of America’s youth during my lifetime—this stuff is real. 

And don't be shocked.

The idea of controlling people is as old as mankind. How much easier is it to control a non-thinking, medicated people than a people who can't be fooled?

Jane Goodall said these were the darkest times she has seen, but she also said never lose hope.

Fight to the end because we must always keep up our fight for our children's sake and for our children's children.

Our precious ones do not need to be corrupted by this stuff. They do not need to be brain-damaged by this stuff. They do not need to be made soulless by this stuff. 

People who can think creatively and logically will be the people who are in demand for the future we are facing. Life as we know it is changing, and it is changing fast. 

It's up to you and how you raise your children.

Be brave. Go against the grain. Find like-minded people. And say no to screens.

If you haven't made zero screen-use for your children a New Year's resolution yet, right now is the perfect time. Raise them without it. It's so much easier. 

I did it. My parents, for the most part, did it. Parents throughout history have done it. Many, many young parents are saying no to screens for their children, even today when screen avoidance has become virtually impossible for adults. 

Because they know it is harming their children, and as mama bears, it's unacceptable. 

“There is a “God-shaped hole” in every human heart. Or at least, many people feel a yearning for meaning, connection, and spiritual elevation. A phone-based life often fills that hole with trivial and degrading content. The ancients advised us to be more deliberate in choosing what we expose ourselves to. ”

— The Anxious Generation

Don’t miss your free download: 10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available, too.

"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

The Secret Ingredient of Gratitude→

Thanksgiving is a holiday of gratitude, and it's a day that serves as a reminder to count our blessings.

What is astounding about blessings is that once we start naming them, where do we stop? Blessings are infinite, and we all have plenty of them.

That doesn't mean that life is always easy, but no matter how difficult our lives can seem at times, there is always plenty to be grateful for. 

“It’s rigged — everything, in your favor.
So there is nothing to worry about.”

— Rumi

Coming from America, a country that's considered wealthy on an international scale, one thing I learned from the people in poor countries is that gratitude has nothing to do with what we "have," but it has everything to do with who we are. 

I learned this in Casablanca from a woman who was a student in a French class I was taking. One day, after we'd been studying together for a few months, she invited me to her home for lunch. 

Was I in for a shock.

I found myself walking to her house through tiny passageways that led into a part of town I didn't even know existed. It was the ‘poorer-than-poor’ section. 

As the streets grew narrower and narrower, my level of surprise by the extreme poverty climbed higher and higher. And that was when I found #52, my friend's house. The entire home consisted of  two tiny rooms about the total size of my bedroom. I was told that 10 family members lived there.

We had a plate of rice for lunch. 

“Be grateful for your life, every detail of it, and your face will come to shine like a sun, and everyone who sees it will be made glad and peaceful.”

— Rumi

At first, I found it slightly odd that someone would invite me to lunch when they didn't have any food other than rice to eat.

In the very next instant, I saw how incredibly generous it was that someone had invited me to lunch when all they had to eat was rice! 

Their generosity overwhelmed me.

It's a memory that has always stayed with me because it was the event in my life where I learned the meaning of real gratitude.

It’s not just about counting our blessings, though it’s helpful to reflect on them, and we definitely want to help our children learn to ponder the wonderment of their blessings.

But true gratitude comes from the joy of being alive, even if you only have a plate of rice to eat.

Because life, in and of itself, is the crown of all blessings.

“I know there is a gold mine in you, when you find it
the wonderment of the earth’s gifts
you will lay aside
as naturally as does
a child a
doll.”

— Rumi

There will come a moment when we will still have all of the stuff, but we will have lost our lives.

So when Rumi tells us to be grateful for every detail, he really means every detail.

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available.

"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Raising Children Who Will Be in Demand Later→

Today, I came upon a reference book on Amazon that I wanted to buy. But I didn't buy it because it was a paperback book selling for $35.00, even for a used copy.

Why?

It was overpriced because it had sold out only a few years after being published. "How strange," thought I, that a book on the subject of creativity would be in such demand—or was it strange?

Raising children in the 21st century of massive technology and a dumbed-down education is a perfect recipe for raising dull children. 

THE IRONY

Twenty-first-century parents make decisions around technology and education for their children, and then they buy books, such as the one mentioned above, to correct the problems their decisions produce.

Why not prevent the problems in the first place? 

If you want to train a racehorse, you don't raise him to be out of shape and then try to fix the problem later—by then, it's too late. No, you train him from the beginning to become the best racehorse he can possibly be.

It's the same thing with our children. Creativity is innate to each of us, and it is a large part of what makes our lives rewarding and interesting. Creativity is one of the key qualities that will aid our children in becoming their very best. 

And children who are raised to function at their optimal levels—to become their very best—will be the children who are in demand later.

The formula is pretty simple: if you want to raise a creative, independent-thinking innovative child, do the opposite of what everyone else is doing.

EARLY YEAR’S HABITS

Don't coddle your children, but raise them instead to be independent of you. After all, your job is to teach them how to function as an adult so they can live a rewarding life.

For example, as early as two years, lay snacks out on their kid-size table and teach them that when they want a snack, they can get it themselves. Teach them how to get a cup of water when they are thirsty, which you also set up on the kid-size table, spill-proof, of course. 

You can teach them how to put their toys away. If you give them more than one or two toys to play with at a time, they'll struggle to put them all away. Instead, give them one or two toys to play with, and when they are finished, exchange them for two more.

Start them in the habit of picking up after themselves when they are tiny, so they don't think about not picking up after themselves when they are not tiny.

Give them plenty of childproof space to roam in. A child raised competently can occupy himself for up to an hour at a time by the time they are 3 - 3 ½. This should be your aim. You do not need to be your child's 24/7 playmate—that's exhausting! 

Play with your child when you feel like it or when you sense they need you, but let them learn how to play by themselves too.  For most of their lives they'll have to figure out how to spend their time, and the sooner they learn how to do this, the easier and more rewarding their lives will be. 

“The habits we form from childhood make no small difference, but rather they make all the difference.”

— Aristotle

INTELLIGENT PRECAUTIONS

Keep your children off of screens. You would not let your child jump out a window because he would hurt his body, and sometimes irreparably. In the same vein, you do not want to allow your child to do things that will damage his developing brain, sometimes irreparably. 

Maybe an hour of screen use a day won't hurt him, but at the end of one year, that's 365 hours that could have been spent learning a skill, such as a foreign language, a musical instrument, or a sport.

It's also an hour a day he could have spent reading hundreds of books over the years that would develop his language skills and expand his mind. 

At the end of 10 years, that  3,650 hours, which would put him at an intermediate or advanced level in any skill he attempted to improve upon. 

And that's only one hour a day!

NO SCREENS IS EASIER!

The reason I am a proponent for no screen time is because an hour a day, or even 10 minutes a day, of screen time will probably not be fatal, but it does open the door for constant discussions and arguments that will develop around screen use.

And it’s the stress of it all that I'm opposed to because it undermines your parent/child relationship. So why bother, especially when screens are so harmful to your children?

By harmful, consider the retardation of neural connectivity in the brain, less knowledge, poor social skills, poor emotional regulation, obesity, eye damage, and other health-related issues, decreased mental health with an increase in depression and anxiety. 

It’s also a bad habit they develop, when they could develop a good habit instead.

“It is impossible, or not easy, to alter by argument what has long been absorbed by habit”

— Aristotle

In addition to no screen time, other than the odd well-selected film now and then—and only after they have developed a reading habit—if you can delay school, or even homeschool until your child is about seven, then you will be well on your way to raising a creative child. 

And children who are creative and can think independently will be the adults who are in demand tomorrow. Because until we bring about a significant change in how we raise children, there will continue to be a dearth of creative, independent-thinking innovators. 

And, as long as the world keeps turning, we will always need creative, independent-thinking innovators. 

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available.

"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Some Scary Facts About Public Schools You May Not Know→

During the last few years of his life, John Taylor Gatto and I exchanged a good number of emails, and in one of those emails, for the first time, I believe, he wrote emphatically that it was time to get our children out of government schools. 

Until then, he painted the picture of why we should get our children out of government schools, but he never told the parents what to do.

“School is a twelve-year jail sentence where bad habits are the only curriculum truly learned. I teach school and win awards doing it. I should know.”

— John Taylor Gatto

That email exchange happened eight years ago. Things are far worse today than even John could have imagined. 

Here are a few facts about schools to illustrate just how urgent the situation has become: 

PORNOGRAPHY

Sixty-nine percent of male adolescents and 39% of females watch pornography. 

My friend enrolled her son in high school, and he was considered odd because he was the only boy who had never watched pornography. He discovered that it was the latest “in” thing to do.

I’m assuming you’re aware of the increase in pornography use amongst youth and the negative impact pornography can have on your child, but if not, you can check out this FACT SHEET.

EXPOSURE TO SEX

About half (54%) of adolescents age 15-19 have had some type of sexual experience.

Your child might be exposed to early sexual experiences you may not approve of. Check out this article to read the stats about what teens are up to regarding cardinal pleasures. 

TRANSGENDER PHENOMENON

Youth aged 13 to 17 comprise 25.3% of those who identify as transgender (aged 13 and older) compared to 7.7% of the U.S. population.

Why are so many of our youth now claiming to be transgender? 

And please spare us the line that our youth "feel safer to speak out now."

Rubbish.

When I was growing up, no one had trouble understanding their gender. If it was simply a matter of being free to speak out, they would have spoken out by now. 

Here's an interesting article that sheds light on how government schools are a breeding ground for the transgender craze.

ILLITERACY

By the time a child reaches his teens, his chance of reading for enjoyment drops to 12%, yet reading is the key to a good education. 

The US literacy rates are no longer an accurate indicator because the standards no longer reflect true literacy.  When half the population cannot read at or above a sixth grade level, we have a problem.

“Government schooling made people dumber, not brighter; made families weaker; ruined formal religion with its hard-sell exclusion of God; set the class structure in stone by dividing children into classes and setting them against one another; and has been midwife to an alarming concentration of wealth and power in the hands of a fraction of the national community.”

— John Taylor Gatto

The Price We Pay for a Tax-Dollars’ Education

Putting children into public school is a gamble you take, and you better be prepared to lose, because 75% of parents do lose.

I base that number on a study done in the Christian community where 75% of public school children no longer share the beliefs of their parents by the time they graduate from high school. 

When children are being educated in a system that does not share the family’s values and beliefs, and then they are influenced by peer-pressure, it is no wonder that 75% of them will adopt the values and beliefs encouraged in the system.

“To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.”

— E.E. Cummings

A Low-Cost Alternative to School

Homeschooling is the obvious answer, but what if you can't homeschool? Personally, I would sit my kids down in a room full of excellent books and tell them to read anything they want for as long as they want. 

In addition to that, I would give them household chores, put them into volunteer programs, and have them develop a minimum of at least one skill to an advanced level, such as a sport, musical instrument, or foreign language.

Then, I would sit back and watch them bloom. 

Oh, I would teach them a few manners too. "Yes, please," and "no, thank you" will work wonders for their social and emotional development. 

In 10 years, they'll emerge, kinder, wiser, more skilled, and better read than most adults you'll meet, not to mention their schooled peers. 

“Children allowed to take responsibility and given a serious part in the larger world are always superior to those merely permitted to play and be passive.”

— John Taylor Gatto

To raise excellent children, keeping them in a bubble for as long as possible is a good place to start. By the time they witness any of the aforementioned behaviors, their heads will have been screwed on so tightly that they'll see things for what they are.

The last thing they'll ever be confused about is their gender, because they’ll be too wise and self-assured to fall for such craziness.

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not homeschool without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available.

"I know Elizabeth Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Is My Child Behind or Am I Being Anxious?→

Perhaps, you have chatted with other family members or friends to learn that their schooled children have already met certain milestones, which yours have not.

Or maybe you have a six-year-old who hasn’t begun to read but all of his friends in school are reading.

Whatever the comparison is you have to remember that your children are on a different trajectory than their schooled peers and even their homeschooled peers.

If you find yourself worried that your children are behind, instead of falling into the trap of comparing your children, focus on the unusual things they have done or the particular interests they’ve developed because they are being homeschooled.

Perhaps your eight-year-old son has learned 20 poems by heart or fallen in love with ancient history or memorized his list of prepositions!

Or it’s possible that your son has taken an interest in woodwork and has been building things like the homeschooled boy I knew who had a collection of knives that he’d carved out of wood.

“To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.”

— E.E. Cummings

The woodwork may seem irrelevant to you, but it’s not. It’s a pursuit that contained many gems for this child.

1. This boy had developed an interest in and a passion for woodwork. Being interested in things lets kids discover what they are good at, what they enjoy doing, and it makes them grow into more interesting people. Most children today are only interested in their screens, and they will probably grow up to be pretty dull individuals.

2. He had also developed his fine motor skills, because it requires precision to carve wood with a knife, and he must have good control over his fingers. Many children lack fine motor skills and struggle in their penmanship because of it.

3. Not only had he carved one knife from wood, but he had a collection of different kind of knives that he had carved. During this process, he had educated himself about the kind of knives we make.

4. Before he began making his knives, he had to imagine the end product which required a good use of his imagination and further helped to develop it. A strong imagination is necessary for any sort of genius to emerge.

Compare the boy’s above skills and traits to the many useless things children do in schools, such as reading books that aren’t worth reading or spending time studying for standardized test.

Keep Your Blinders On

What I discovered while teaching my children is that when a homeschooled child is about nine or ten, your friends will begin to notice a difference between their children and yours. They might comment on what great readers your kids are or how they seem to love learning or how mature and polite they are.

You’ll start to see your children pass their public-schooled peers up in various subjects, and your children will have a love of learning that their schooled peers have lost. If you are homeschooling using sound methods, your children will also be miles ahead in their vocabulary and reading ability. Plus, they’ll have a love of reading too, which is always key to a good education.

But, until then you’ve got to be patient and keep your blinders on.

Be like a race horse. Some race horses wear blinders to stay focused on getting to the finish line.

Not that you’re in a race, but you do have a finish line. Your finish line is the day your children graduate from high school.

You don't want to be distracted into thinking you're doing a poor job when you're not; you're doing your job your way.

Comparison when your homeschooling can cause you unnecessary stress and doubt. Instead, stay focused on what you’re children have accomplished, not what their public-schooled peers are doing. If you can do this, you’ll eliminate half of the stress many homeschooling parents experience.

Because with homeschooling, there’s no race to the top; there’s only the top.

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Timeless Tips for Encouraging Your Children to Read

My son and I were on a train through the south of Germany when I looked to my left and saw a child reading. And then I saw another child reading. And then another child.

I said to my son, "Look, there's actually children reading on this train; how exciting!" 

"What a sorry day it is when you get excited about a child reading," he replied. 

"I know, tell me about it." 

But non-reading kids are the reality today. Kids are staring at screens instead of absorbing what's going on around them, learning from great books, engaging in life, or socializing with real people. 

“They are living virtual lives,” as my son put it. 

My eyes kept glancing over at these children, and then I noticed their parents were speaking English. At some point, I couldn't hold back any longer, so I went up to the parents and told them it was a joy to see that they were raising kids who actually liked to read. 

And they pointed down the train to another family of kids who were reading. I can't tell you what a delight it was to see kids with books in their hands and no screens. 

One Family's Success

We talked about the loss of reading in our culture, and they expressed their contentment in having kids who enjoyed a good book. I could see they were really pleased with their success in raising kids who read. 

The youngest child, a boy, was playing hangman with his dad. His father said to me, "He is supposed to be reading too!"

These kids were all screen-free. No whining. No complaining. The children were happily occupied on a long train ride through Germany with their noses in books (minus one). 

Took me back to my own kids and how they used to do the same. Or they’d gaze out the window and take in the sights or we’d chat about something they found interesting—as I’m sure the children on the train did too.

Amongst many other non-tech activities, screen-free kids will read books, and that's why "reading" kids are so uncommon now. Because kids have their noses stuck in screens, kids everywhere are staring at screens, kids are living in a virtual world. 

They are growing up in an alternative reality.

How to Raise Screen-Free Kids

However, luckily for us, it's not difficult to raise children who prefer a book to a screen, either. You just have to do two things. 

1. Keep screens out of sight, and chances are that your kids will never ask for one.

2. Keep an endless supply of good books in your home.

In my experience, it's much easier to raise kids without screens than with "one hour after dinner" or "two hours on the weekend." 

When you raise kids without screens, they learn how to occupy themselves, otherwise known as being resourceful. They won't whine and complain that they are bored, and they won't argue with you over screen time.

Honestly, keeping your kids screen-free will alleviate a lot of the tension in the home too.

And, if you have books in the house, they'll grow up reading too. My son told me, while on this train through southern Germany, that he read so much as a child because books were all there were in the house.

Exactly. He still reads. 

Jonathon Haidt’s book, The Anxious Generation, spurred a movement to get smartphones out of schools, and it is proving to be quite successful.

But it always baffles me why so many parents wait until they are given permission to do what they know is best for their kids? 

When it comes to our children, we have to protect them from the harmful elements of society, and smartphones are a very toxic and damaging element.

We have countless studies to prove it. We also have our common sense.

“In almost every house we’ve been,
We’ve watched them gaping at the screen.
They sit and stare and stare and sit...
Until they’re hpynotized by it,
But did you ever stop to think,
(What) This does to your beloved tot?
IT ROTS THE SENSES IN THE HEAD!
IT KILLS IMAGINATION DEAD!
...
IT MAKES A CHILD SO DULL AND BLIND
HE CANNOT THINK HE ONLY SEES!”

— ROALD DAHL

The No-Tech Kids Movement

Today we have a generation of children who grew up with technology, and who are active in this movement to remove smartphones from schools. 

They know the harm it causes their generation, and they want it to stop. We are hearing this from the children! 

They want it to stop.

One parent told me that her older kids told her not to let the younger children near technology. They recognized the damage it had done in their lives, and they wanted their mother to understand this and to protect their younger siblings. 

The Forbidden Apple Syndrome

There is one caveat with the "no screen" policy, and that is that when you are raising children, you need to find like-minded families to raise your kids with. Your kids can't be the only "screen-free" kids if you are raising them amongst technophiles. 

It becomes the "forbidden apple" syndrome. They'll want what their friends have but they can't have. Eventually, they'll grow up and head straight for the technology.

In this case, two hours on the weekend is a good compromise. But if you have like-minded friends who keep their kids off of tech, that's ideal.

The general rule of thumb is that if your kids want a phone, wait until they are at least 16 and let them get a job to pay for it. Also, no smartphones. Flip phones only for as long as they live with you. I got this bit of advice from my mentor and parenting guru John Rosemond, and it is sound advice. 

What Can You Do About the Problem of Technology and Your Kids?

Read a book about the dangers of technology on a child's developing brain, socio-emotional skills, and physical health. For this, I would recommend Glow Kids by Dr. Nicholas Kardaras.

Invite some friends to read the book with you and discuss ways you can agree to keep your kids away from screen use. 

Become a support group for one another in raising tech-free children. 

Given the studies about the harm technology causes to a child's grown brain, it seems a no-brainer that kids growing up without technology would be more intelligent, more socially adept, more emotionally balanced, and have better physical health. 

Say no to your kids now, and later they will be grateful to you for protecting them against the ills of screen use in childhood. As more and more studies come out, more and more people are becoming aware of how utterly damaging screen use is to children. 

By the time your kids are grown, even more research will have been published. If you let them use screens now, they may grow up to ask you, "Why?" 

Many children are asking this question today. Don't let yours be the next.

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read.

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with Essays by John Taylor Gatto and Dorothy Sayers.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Liz Hanson helps parents raise and educate whole children by bridging timeless wisdom with modern research.

As an educator, writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach with 23 years of experience, Liz specializes in guiding families through the transformative early years and the homeschooling journey. After successfully homeschooling her own children, she now devotes her expertise to helping other parents get it right from the start.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses:

• Raise Your Child Well

• Smart Homeschooler Academy

• How to Raise a Child Who Loves to Read

Whether you're navigating early childhood, considering homeschooling, or wanting to nurture a genuine love of learning in your child, Liz offers practical guidance rooted in proven principles.

One-on-one consultations available.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

Less Stuff, More Love: The Case for Simplicity in Family Life

Over the years, I've watched a lot of parents raise their children in the Greater San Francisco Bay Area, but one family has always stood out for me as remarkable in the simple yet wise choices they made.

I learned a lot from them, as you may too. 

While most of our friends lived in gated communities sporting homes that now range well over a million, this particular family lived in the worst part of town. 

Not only was it the worst part of town, but it was one of the worst parts of town, in one of the worst suburbs of  the Greater San Francisco Bay Area.

The mother chose to stay home with her children and the father, who was an extremely talented man, devoted his time to working for a non-profit he believed in while earning extremely low wages.

They had nothing more than a dinky two-bedroom apartment, and they had one beat-up car. There were three children who all shared one bedroom for their entire childhood.  

But these parents were more successful in raising their children than some of the well-paid executives the father worked for.

What was their secret?

They chose to raise their children with very little, so that their mother could stay home and educate with them. But the "very little" paid extremely high dividends.

These children were unspoiled, they espoused the mother's excellent values, and they were closely-knit due to their tight living quarters. 

They had no extra-curricular activities, no fancy clothes, no 3-car driveways, just simple living. All three children grew up to be wise, kind, and extremely bright. 

In a sense, the parents lived lives of service, which modern psychology tells us is the key to lasting happiness;  the father’s in his work and the mother’s in her home. 

I was reflecting on this particular family the other day after reading an article in the news about the increase in RV living because of the unaffordable cost of living in America.

There was one striking story of a single mother who lost her home and had to move her son and daughter into an RV. 

What I found so promising was the change in the boy Dante, who could not longer play his video games and was forced to find his entertainment in the raw and wild outdoors. 

Here's what Dante said about his new circumstances: “Before we moved, I hate to say it, but I was just a shut-in. I was inside all the time playing in my room, playing video games, doing whatever just inside,” he said. “But now I’m a lot healthier. I’ve been outside. I’ve been running around, getting some sun.”

Over the past few months, he said he’s learned how to fish and cook and gotten to spend more time with his mom and sister.

“I think it’s actually better than having a big house because I’ve learned a lot of stuff this summer,” he said. “I’ve learned more in three months than I have in my whole entire 11 years of being alive.”

The article goes on to say that "Dante, who celebrated his 12th birthday in the RV, is in no rush to leave."

His mother’s misfortune will probably result in Dante becoming more intelligent, more creative, and more successful in life just by virtue of having to use his mind more.

Sometimes good things come in unwanted packages.

I share these stories with you because Western society tends to forget the things that matter most, such as a mother in the home to instill wholesome values and educate her children, not to mention screen-free childhoods.

A mother's presence will always trump a bigger house, endless play outdoors will always trump a video game, and homeschooling "done right" will always trump a government education. 

Don’t miss your free download:

10 Books Every Well-Educated Child Should Read

Get a copy of Liz’s “could not live without” book, Education’s Not the Point: How Schools Fail to Train Children’s Minds and Nurture Their Characters with groundbreaking Essays on educating your kids by John Taylor Gatto, Dorothy Sayers, and Liz herself.

About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a “whole” child, based on tradition and modern research, Liz devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses, Raise Your Child Well: Preserving Your Child's Natural Genius by Laying a Solid Foundation During the First Seven Years; the Smart Homeschooler Academy, educating children who are brilliant, happy, and well-socialized; and How to Teach Your Child to Read and Raise a Child Who Loves to Read.

As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, Liz has 23 years of experience guiding parents through the amazing journey of raising and educating their children.

Liz is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.

How Do You Teach Your Child to Be Creative?

Modern sciences tells us that to a significant degree,  we wire our own brains. So how does the brain get wired for creativity? Why are some people more creative than others? Can we teach creativity?

To the latter two questions, some people will always be "more" than others—let's not put our attention there—and, contrary to what many experts believe, creativity cannot be taught. 

Creativity is not a skill that someone can teach us, such as we might learn critical thinking skills from a logic teacher or how to play the piano from a piano teacher, because creativity is more like curiosity. 

We can't teach a child to be curious because children are born curious, but we can teach a child not to be curious. We do this very successfully in school where children learn to curb their questions or stop asking them at all.

And what a tragedy because curiosity is at the root of creativity and creativity is at the root of genius. 

Do you ever wonder what great contributions to the world and to humanity have we missed because of our factory school model? 

“I don’t want a nation of thinkers. I want a nation of workers. ”

— John D. Rockefeller

According to the late scientist, George Land, we can also teach children not to be creative, yet, without creativity, there is no genius.

Creative people are curious about the external world, the internal world, and the world of possibility. Creative people connect unrelated ideas to form an original idea. They find solutions to problems that others can't see. They imagine what could be and bring it to life. 

They are the creators. 

But curiosity can’t be all a child needs because all healthy children are born curious. Enter George Land, who did a creativity study for NASA, and what came out of that study was the realization that 98% of children have imaginations that operate in the zone of genius, until they go to school.

“I’ve concluded that genius is as common as dirt. We suppress genius because we haven’t yet figured out how to manage a population of educated men and women. The solution, I think, is simple and glorious. Let them manage themselves.”

— John Taylor Gatto

But that study was conducted in the 1968. A lot has changed since then, and, besides the problem of school, there are a lot of other factors contributing to dull minds. 

So how do we get it right today? Consider that your child is like a garden you want to grow, so you have fresh vegetables, fruits, and flowers. 

You have cleared the ground, prepared the soil, created rows, and planted seeds according to kind.

But that's not all that’s required of you to produce a vibrant, healthy garden. You have to water the plants, make sure they get the right amount of sunshine, and sometimes shade, and make sure the soil has the right combination of minerals to nurture the plant. 

Children, like plants, also need the right kind of environment in order for their creativity to bloom and blossom. Let's look at a few of the many ways in which you can adjust your child's environment to help nurture his creativity. 

1. BE THERE

Science tells us that stress kills creativity. I know this is true, and I'm sure you do too. It's difficult to be creative when we have a lot of stress because our energy goes towards dealing with overwhelming challenges in order to meet our basic needs and responsibilities. What time is there left for being creative?

Children also experience stress. It's critical to their neurological and emotional development  that they feel safe, loved, and cared for. Children need a home environment that meets these needs, which means that they also need us. 

The worst environment for a young child is daycare, preschool, kindergarten, first grade, and even second grade, according to an analysis of approximately 8000 early childhood studies conducted by Dr. Raymond Moore in the 1970s. 

One of the many things he discovered is that if children are kept out of school until they are about age ten, they will experience better mental and emotional health. Let me take the liberty of adding that common sense dictates they will be more creative too. 

2. FREE TO ROAM

 Unstructured play is critical for raising a child who is creative. Play-based programs are not bad but they are not beneficial either, unless you need a break. And, let's be honest, it isn't easy raising children without extended family help. Some of us need more breaks than others, and that's okay.

Structured play found in programs deprives children of the kind of play that comes from within, which is the best kind for developing creativity.  As long as you aren't about to pull your hair out, I'd opt for unstructured play over play programs.

Play serves many purposes, all of which are fundamental to the healthy development of a child, and one of them is developing the imagination which make-believe play nurtures.

For example, a child can turn a box into a castle and he will see a castle, he won't see a box. The last thing we want to do is to tell him to "put the box away!" Children encounter problems in their free play which they need to solve. All problems require creative solutions to solve them.

3. STAY OUT OF THE WAY

A child who can help himself should always be encouraged to help himself. Say your child decides that he wants to draw a bird, but every time he draws the bird he messes up the bird's beak. Now he whines from frustration. You don't want to step in and help him. 

Let him learn to work through his frustration now rather than getting into the habit of falling apart when things don't go the way he wants them too. 

“Parents should not agonize over anything a child does or fails to do if the child is perfectly capable of agonizing over it himself.”

— John Rosemond, Parenting Guru

Habits like "easy-to-get-frustrated" are not easy to break as adults, and they will get in the way of your child's ability to function in a healthy, productive way as an adult. 

Tough love means being willing to let our children experience uncomfortable emotions, so they learn to accept them as part of life's journey without losing hope and giving up too soon. How else will they be able to accomplish anything? 

4. Rhymes, Rhymes, and More Rhymes

Read rhymes to your children and play rhyming games with them to build their creativity muscle. You say a word or sentence and they have to find a word or sentence that it rhymes with. 

Fairy tales will also stimulate a child's imagination, especially if the book contains few to no illustrations.

Children love picture books, and these kind of books have their place, but without the pictures, children use their imaginations to conjure up the scene in their mind. This also makes reading more enjoyable for them. 

Have you ever read a book and then watched the film it was based on? There is nothing worse than having a perfectly imagined character in your mind, only to have Hollywood ruin it for you. After that, you will always see the Hollywood actor, never your original creation. 

5. A NO-BRAINER

If you've been reading my weekly  blog posts, you know what I am going to say next don't you?

Absolutely no screens for your budding genius! Nothing will kill a child's memory, imagination, or curiosity faster than screen use. 

The bad news is that if all of their friends are using screens, you may not want to become the "problem" parent. I don't recommend it because the screen becomes the forbidden apple, and your kids will flock to them as soon as they get the chance. 

When I was young, my mother threw out all of the white sugar in the house. I used to go to my best friend's horse and eat sugar from the sugar bowl. You don't want your children doing this with screens.

The good news is that if you are able to recruit other parents  or find parents whose children are screen-free, then your children will think a screen-free childhood is what's normal. Sadly, it isn't, but they don't need to know this right now. 

Did you know that there are many young adults now who are disappointed with their parents for letting them have screens and phones when they were younger?

Please, please, please don't let your child be one of them!

If you follow the guidelines here, your children will be developmentally ahead of most of their peers who are in school and using screens, and they'll be well on their way to living a more productive and enriching life.

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About Elizabeth Y. Hanson

Developing a comprehensive understanding of how to raise and educate a “whole” child, based on tradition and modern research, Liz devotes her time to helping parents to get it right.

Liz is a homeschooling thought-leader, as well as the creator of three unique online courses, Raise Your Child Well: Preserving Your Child's Natural Genius by Laying a Solid Foundation During the First Seven Years; the Smart Homeschooler Academy, educating children who are brilliant, happy, and well-socialized; and How to Teach Your Child to Read and Raise a Child Who Loves to Read.

As an Educator, Homeschool Emerita, Writer, and Love and Leadership Certified Parenting Coach, Liz has 23 years of experience guiding parents through the amazing journey of raising and educating their children.

Liz is available for one-on-one consultations as needed.

"I know Elizabeth Y. Hanson as a remarkably intelligent, highly sensitive woman with a moral nature and deep insight into differences between schooling and education. Elizabeth's mastery of current educational difficulties is a testimony to her comprehensive understanding of the competing worlds of schooling and education. She has a good heart and a good head. What more can I say?”

—John Taylor Gatto Distinguished educator, public speaker, and best-selling author of Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. For a copy of The Short Angry History of Compulsory Schooling, click here.