• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
Carolina Homeschooler

Carolina Homeschooler

  • Home
  • Membership
  • Classes & Field Trips
  • Homeschool FAQs
  • Blog
  • Newsletter
  • Log In

high school

Raise Children With a Wild Streak

Wild Streak

by Mark Pruett

A new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics stresses the importance of childhood playtime. It reinforces my own belief that many young adults have been cheated by years of excessive schoolwork and teamwork, too many extracurricular activities, and a straitjacketed “just say no to anything risky” upbringing. I am convinced that modern childhood generally does not build enough independence and thirst for knowledge.

For the past few years I helped interview high school seniors seeking scholarships to come to Appalachian State University. These applicants come from all over the state. They play instruments and sports, participate in church and charity, and work in diverse jobs.

They also display remarkably similar accomplishments. They are at the top of their high school classes and possess generically good manners. They lead teams, groups and clubs. They are smart, solid and hardworking.

They might be surprised to learn that I, like many college professors, yearn for rarer traits — curiosity, passion, a wild streak.

Yes, teamwork and leadership skills will help your child to implement someone else’s ideas, and extensive extracurricular activities will foster responsibility. What your child really needs, though, is an inventive, self-reliant, restless spirit.

The key questions

For me, the heart-wrenching interview moment is when we ask these teenagers what they would choose to do on a day spent alone. Many say they never have the chance. Worse still, some have no answer at all. This should disturb and sadden any parent.

In the end, my scholarship votes ride on two questions: Is this someone that I’d be excited to have in my class? And is he or she open to being changed by my class? Class rank and extracurricular activities are less important than genuine individuality or enthusiasm. It matters not whether someone is bold or shy, worldly or naïve. Is there a flash of determination, a streak of independence, a creative passion, an excited curiosity?

We need more students like the ones who leave after graduation to work as missionaries or in the Peace Corps. More like the ones who start successful businesses while in school. More like the ones who find the courage to go overseas for a summer or a semester because they know their own worlds are far too small.

Some students are team players and high achievers, but I’d trade them for stubbornly creative iconoclasts. Some students as children were taught to color inside the lines, watch Barney the purple dinosaur, and always ask permission. We need students who found out what Crayons tasted like, loved reading “The Cat in the Hat” and paid little attention to rules — students whose parents encouraged their children’s curiosity.

Something’s missing

The irony is that many students begin to perceive late in college that they’ve missed something along the way. They regret not taking risks with difficult professors, unusual courses or semesters abroad. They berate themselves by equating self-worth with grades, and they are saddened by the realization that they have only glimpsed the breadth of the university. They begin to grasp that their uncomfortable sense of passivity has its roots in the highly controlled existence foisted on them.

Parents: love, guide and support your children, but don’t insulate them, control them or let them be too busy. Independence, confidence and creativity come from freedom, risk and a good measure of unstructured solitude.

Encourage studying but make them play hooky, too — partly to learn what it feels like to be unprepared and partly to foster spontaneity, irreverence and joy. Study chemistry together, then blow up a television in the backyard.

Foster camaraderie and connectedness through group activities (especially family ones), but be unyielding in your commitment to teaching them to love doing things entirely on their own. Make each child plan and cook the family’s dinner on his or her own once a week.

Surround them with books, not video games. Raise a garden or build a deck together. Send them on solo trips.

However you choose to do it, give your children, their teachers and society one of the greatest gifts of all: help your kids become creative, independent, curious, interesting people.

About the author…

Mark Pruett is an assistant professor of business and economics at the University of South Carolina – Upstate. Write him at mpruett@uscupstate.edu. Reprinted with permission of the author and The Charlotte Observer. Copyright owned by The Charlotte Observer.

Gabrielle’s Journey

Gabrielle’s Journey

by Kim Blum-Hyclak

My daughter, Gabrielle, graduated several years ago. She had been homeschooled from the beginning, not conforming to the boundaries of a typical education. As a family, we started our homeschooling adventure under the philosophy of John Holt, a pioneer in the homeschool movement. We agreed that children have a natural curiosity. Given the right tools, environment, and encouragement, children can learn what they need to know without much “help” from us. We allowed Gabrielle, as well as her siblings, to follow their interests and have not been disappointed in their academic endeavors. Sometimes frustrated, but never disappointed!

While not following a typical “college preparatory” curriculum, Gabrielle still managed to earn all the necessary credits for graduation, and more. She had always known that college was an option, but not the only one. Her interests and her heart had always been in ministry, and that’s the path her high school studies prepared her for.

After high school, Gabrielle followed her heart and began working in youth ministry. She was accepted for the National Evangelization Team (NET), sponsored by the Catholic Church. She spent five weeks in Minnesota, learning various skits, honing her small group techniques, and becoming a part of her traveling retreat team.

Her team, consisting of ten young adults ages 18-25 and a couple of adult chaperones, spent the following nine months living out of suitcases and backpacks. Luckily, Gabrielle was rather petite, so her clothes didn’t take up a lot of room. She had a storage cabinet at NET headquarters to store her seasonal clothing since she wouldn’t know from one month to the next where she would be.

Gabrielle’s team traveled throughout the United States, putting on retreats for junior and senior high youth. The length of the retreats varied from one night to all weekend, but most nights involved a different city, a different parish, and a different group of teens than the night before. Host families at each stop fed and lodged the team. She soon learned that she better like Sloppy Joes and pizza!

Gabrielle eagerly looked forward to that next phase of her journey, both the literal one and the figurative one. She knew the world extended beyond the county line and couldn’t wait to see new parts of the country. She had grown up in South Carolina and had experienced Ohio winters, but not Minnesota winters! She hoped to get the chance to visit New York and California, and was looking forward to seeing the varied cultures our diverse country holds.

What would happen after NET? She wasn’t sure. All she was sure of is that God would let her know.

Editor’s Note: What happened after NET? Gabrielle has worked as a nanny for the past several years and currently tends a 4-year-old and a 5-month-old. She’s also still involved with her church, teaching Confirmation classes.

About the author…

Lancaster resident, Kim Blum-Hyclak, homeschooled three of her five children for over 20 years. She saw many changes in her homeschooling years, from being required to seek permission from the local school board and being advised to keep her children inside during the school day, to being on the board of one of the original Third Option homeschool associations. She still believes homeschooling was one of the most rewarding experiences she and her children had. Her youngest will begin his final year at USC Columbia in the fall of 2012. He currently works for the University. Her middle child has worked as a nanny for the past several years. Her oldest graduated from USC School of Law in May of 2012 and will begin clerking for the York County Circuit Court Judge in August. As her homeschooling years came to an end, Kim revived her writing aspirations and still enjoys learning – even without the kids going along.

Subscribe to our mailing list for news and updates.Subscribe!

Carolina Homeschooler

Copyright © 2023 Carolina Homeschooler LLC

961 N Main St #3 • Lancaster SC 29720 • director@carolinahomeschooler.com

Disclaimer: Any information provided on this website is for informational purposes only and should not be considered complete, professional legal advice.

Please visit this link for information about our privacy policy.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Contact Us