Manuela shares with you her wisdom on everything from the basics of home education to trending topics like "slow parenting" and "unschooling".
Manuela is no stranger to the trials and tribulations of home education. In the process of educating all nine of her children, from kindergarten to university, she has learned a thing or two. In her new book, Toddlers, Teens, Tantrums and Textbooks, Manuela guides you toward success with timely topics that affect not just home-educating parents, but everyone who wants to see their children grow to be independent, creative, thoughtful, and intelligent adults.
One of Manuela's favourite topics is "slow parenting" -- taking a step back and letting children learn and grow at their own pace. Enrolling children in dozens of activities and pushing them to succeed has become the norm, but all too often, it seems to backfire. Manuela admits to being a "helicopter parent" in the past, but through many years of parenting, she realised it doesn't do children any favours to be micro-managed. She believes in the importance of fostering independence and allowing children to solve problems, develop personal interests, and take the initiative in their own learning.
Manuela will have you discover early on that home education:
- is not rocket science
- is being intuitive to your child
- is understanding that only you, the parent, really know your child
- is knowing "slow" education that is play-based, child-centred, and child-driven will ultimately make for an innovative and creative individual.
Whether you plan on home educating your children or not, you will find a wealth of knowledge, practical tips and wisdom, condensed into bite-sized, easily digested morsels for the ordinary parent!
As for her success with these methods? Her children's accomplishments speak for themselves:
"At this point in time, we have three daughters who are stay-at-home mothers: one is also a part-time student and blogger, two of them run successful home-based businesses. Our third daughter graduated with a Bachelor of Contemporary Arts (Visual Arts) degree and works in England as curator in an art gallery in England. Two are still at university, one studying medicine and the other fashion design (BA Degree). Two others are successful business owner/operators; one owns a communications and cabling business, the other has two successful gyms. My last, at 16 years, has completed his home education and studying a diploma in music production at college."
Manuela hopes to guide and reassure. other parents who wish to home educate. She has compiled the most influential knowledge and information she's acquired over the last 29 years and translates it into bite-sized, easy-to-digest components. The worries, frustrations, and stress of being both a parent and an educator can lead to burn-out and can keep parents from being fully present. Manuela's goal is to alleviate some of these worries and help both children and their parents by sharing her own extensive learning and experiences.
