Thursday, January 10, 2008

10 Ways To Inspire Others

ANNE
Thanks for the Love and Inspiration :)
Christian






Thanks darlin'
*ArTbyTreZa Bettencourt*
Thanks karina! I'm keeping this one! : )
From: SkySong LoveJoy








10 Ways to Inspire Others
by Michael Angier



We all know people who are inspiring. But just how does one inspire others? Here are ten simple ways you can inspire people to be their best:

1. Be a good example. People watch what you do more than they listen to what you say. Be someone worth emulating.

2. Care about others. People don't care about how much you know until they know how much you care. Ask questions. Take a genuine interest in people.

3. Encouragement. Everyone goes through tough times. When you support people and encourage them through these times, you'll be inspiring them to see the best in themselves and in the situation.

4. Be inspired yourself. Look for people, ideas, environments and knowledge that you find inspiring and motivating.

5. Share from your own experience. You have more to share than you realize. Mine the rich experiences of your life and share your wisdom from your unique point of view. You may be the only one who can touch someone with your inspiring message.

6. Be vulnerable. Be willing to share your failures as well as your successes. Others will relate to you. They'll understand that they're not the only ones with challenges.

7. Tell stories. Facts tell and stories sell. They inspire, too. We learn best from parables and we all need to develop our own inspiring stories.


8. Be a good communicator. Increasing your ability to communicate effectively is a critical element for you to inspire others. Watch how you speak and what you say. Invest in your communication skills.

9. Challenge people. Many of us have had teachers who at times seemed more like tormentors than mentors. They challenged us to do our best, and we were better for it. Practice "carefrontation"--the careful and caring confrontation of others.

10. Read. It may not follow that all readers are leaders, but certainly all leaders are readers. Stay informed. Share what you read with others. Tell people about books that have inspired you. Share the knowledge.


(c) successnetwork.org

Posted by
lightworkers

Reposted by
SkySong

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Tuesday, January 8, 2008

From Home Education Magazine

Unschooling

Defining unschooling is a little like describing a color, and every bit as elusive. You can rely on commonly-held descriptions; for example, we generally all agree what blue looks like, but what about cobalt, aqua, navy, cyan, sapphire, azure, indigo, cerulean, turquoise or cornflower? It’s the same with unschooling. There’s a generally accepted definition, but then there are all these wonderful variations…

Unschooling embraces a broad spectrum of learning, and trying to describe and define it has resulted in some of the most colorful and interesting writings on the web. With this feature we’re sharing highlights from some of our favorite articles, resources, websites and more on unschooling!

Articles About Unschooling

Revelations of a Homeschooling Mom by Carol Wanagel - “You can’t give them knowledge or force it on them; they have to reach out and take it. They’ll only do that when their own nature and interests command them to, and then only if they don’t feel coerced.”

The Things I Really Want My Kids to Learn by Sue Smith Heavenrich - “I think I’d put ‘making your own lunch’ at the top of the list.” Knowing how to make a tuna sandwich or whip up a pot of macaroni is as important as knowing how to divide fractions. Maybe even more important.”

On Unschooling and Life by Ruthe Matilsky - “How unsettling it is sometimes when I think that we have scoffed at the script and now we have to take responsibility for how it all turns out. If we’d done what was expected of us, nothing would ever be our fault. Right?”

Becoming Unschoolers by Janet Keip - “Fear kept the artificial vision alive. Fear made me think Jaime would be “left behind” like some hopelessly out-of-date little coal engine on the railroad tracks of life. Fear made me reject my heart vision and follow the common path.”

Compulsory Education vs. Unschooling by Shay Seaborne - “Human beings are hardwired for learning; we have proportionally huge brains, and are born with the desire to explore and learn about our world.”

Peaceful Unschooling by Charlotte Monte - “I simply couldn’t go on. I felt like picking up the phone and calling the local school district to throw him in the nearest school, public or not! I had to save myself.”

My Kids Won’t Let Me Teach by Ann Leadbetter - “I worry about my lack of discipline, my laziness. Am I justifying our lackadaisical approach to homeschooling just because I don’t feel like doing it any other way?”

Compulsory Unschooling? by Janet Lowry - “Well, here is a quandary I hadn’t anticipated. What is freedom, if the individual given it doesn’t want it?”

Waiting for Unschooling to Work by Shay Seaborne - “Am I doing the right thing? How can I tell if my children are learning? And where are those interests unschooled children are supposed to follow with excitement?”

A Gift of Time by Sue Smith Heavenrich - “‘Do you read books together?’ I ask. ‘Play games, go on walks, ice skate? Do you rake the lawn and look at bugs and see who can blow dandelion parachutes the farthest?’”

What My Children Taught Me by Helen Hegener - “I’m pretty certain that I’ve learned much more from my kids than they ever learned from me.”

How’s School Going? by Mary Kenyon - “I, too, plan each summer, order workbooks, hunt down bargains on used curriculum, and start out each year with the good intentions of buckling down and having daily schoolwork.”

Interview with Sandra Dodd by Emily Subler - “Gradually (or just all of a sudden, if you have that ability) stop speaking and thinking in terms of grades, semesters, school-days, education, scores, tests, introductions, reviews, and performance, and replace those artificial strictures and measures with ideas like morning, hungry, happy, new, learning, interesting, playing, exploring and living.”

Five Steps to Unschooling by Joyce Kurtak Fetteroll - “Maybe a few, well-defined steps in the unschooling direction could lead out of at least the very pea-soupiest part of the fog.”

One of Those Days by Deb Baker - “I look at the children and announce, “This is One of Those Days.” They stop and look up expectantly; ready to hear what crazy cure Mom has in mind this time.”


http://www.homeedmag.com/blogs/closer_look/?p=3

Homeschooling - Unschooling, Freedom or Anarchy?

While some parents may still balk at the thought of homeschooling their children, it is more widely accepted than the relatively new educational approach: unschooling. Unschooling is a rather unstructured approach to education. What are the consequenses of this? Find out by reading this article.

While some parents may still balk at the thought of homeschooling their children, it is more widely accepted than the relatively new educational approach: unschooling. Unschooling is a rather unstructured approach to education. As the name would suggest, it means approaching learning, sans a curriculum, but instead allowing the child to explore whatever interests them. The child proceeds at his or her own pace and can choose to learn any topic in any order that they choose.

The basic concept that underlies this movement comes from two views regarding child development. One is that children are naturally curious. They begin exploring their environment almost from birth. They want to touch, taste, smell, hear and see everything around them. They want to discover for themselves what they can do. As they become verbal they ask question after question.

The second concept is that a child will naturally take an interest in certain things in the world around them but may be less interested in other things. They make these value choices early in life.

By using these two fundamental concepts as a jumping off point, those who advocate unschooling assert that the best approach to learning is to allow the child to lead. The child chooses what to study, when and how. These children have no pre set curriculum, but simply explore the things that interest them.

Unschoolers differ in their approach to parental involvement and guidance. Some believe that the child should take the helm and the parent should adopt a hands off approach entirely while others are more involved, sharing topics that excited them, answer questions and even assist in finding solutions to problems. This experiential approach is controversial and the results are mixed.

This approach is very successful with children who are very independent and highly motivated. These children will actively seek out areas that are interesting to them and useful, making use of the knowledge later. Many unschooled children have gone on to pursue Ivy League academic careers and excelled. These children have a lifelong love of learning.

Other children take a more scattershot approach, gaining in depth knowledge in just one or two areas and getting very little or no knowledge is other areas. Many homeschoolers disagree on just what subjects are important and should be learned and which are not as important. It is a common area of contention among homeschooling families.

For instance, many people do not learning science and mathematics. Either they have a difficult time learning it or they are not interested. For a small population, this is not a problem, but for the majority of people, they need an understanding of math and science that extends beyond the rudimentary, particularly with our society experiencing such rapid technological advances.

On the other hand, some people may focus heavily on subjects such as science and mathematics but have no exposure to art, literature, fine music, history and other areas of the humanities. For some people that is perfectly fine, but for many homeschoolers it indicates a deprivation in an area where the child could be enriched and enlightened.

There is no doubt that there must be a balance between these two camps. Many argue that it is essential. However unschooling does not work to achieve that when it relies solely on the child to discover and choose the route he or she wants to take.

Unschooling has been advocated as far back as the mid 1960s by John Holt, one of the foremost writers on homeschooling. However, as of this date, studies that have followed unschoolers and have analyzed the long term effects of this approach are still inconclusive and on going. At this time only personal views and experience are the only guide to determine the worth of this educational method.

Article Source: http://www.article-outlet.com/