This week on the podcast I’m trying something new: a round table discussion on a single topic. Questions around food are very common as people are deschooling and contemplating releasing control over their children’s food choices and Sylvia Woodman, Jo Isaac, and Meredith Novak join me to talk all things food. I hope you find our conversation helpful!
Also, for the first time, I recorded video of our call as well, which you can find on my YouTube channel.
Questions for the Group
You’ve all been on the podcast before and I’ll share links to those episodes in the show notes, but can you give everyone a quick intro to you and your family?
I’d love to hear about your journeys around food and control. What did life around food look like for your family when you first began unschooling? And what does it like now?
Let’s talk about food fears. The one that comes up most often, I think, is the question of food and health. For example, sugar. When we first contemplate releasing control over our children’s food choices, we so often envision that all they’ll want to eat is sweet, sugary things. And on top of that, when we do start out, often our children are drawn to those choices, precisely because they have been so tightly controlled before. What thoughts and suggestions would you share with someone smack in the middle of this deschooling phase and getting worried?
What about when a person has strong principles around food? For example, they choose to eat vegetarian. I’d love to chat about ways parents can live their principles without controlling their children’s choices. And why is that so important?
Another question I see pretty regularly is around the question of food choices within a food budget. Can you share your approach?
Links to things mentioned in the show
YouTube: watch the video of this call
Meredith’s episode: What Learning Looks Like
Sylvia’s episode: Unschooling Stories
Jo’s episode: Redefining Success
Episode Transcript