Morning Cogitations

I am not an unschooler... but I have been re-reading John Holt's 'Teach your own' and much of what he says makes sense. Children have their passions and delights and when they are allowed to follow their noses, what some folks call 'rabbit trails', they learn easily and with joy.

I was recently reminded of how *rabbit trails* can lead to wonderful learning: As with many children, my eldest son is fascinated by Ninjas and Samurai. He has, at various times, read books on the subject. Recently, though, he conceived of a novel -- and a good idea it is too. Right before falling asleep one night, he outlined his idea for his father (who, in the tradition of all good fathers, wrote it down) and in the morning, he and I started writing the novel. It is going slowly -- the words are being shaped to match his ideas. He knows what makes a story he wants to read. Now he is trying to create just such a story. But that is not the end of it. In addition to his novel, he has taken up game programming and is trying to create a computer game to go with the novel! He does not lack ambition, my son:)