Casper Mtn. Child & After Homeschool Care

The massive hills from clearing snow provide lots of sledding fun! The first run down showed how abrupt the bottom portion of the hill was, so they worked together to build it out a bit. Problem solved!

I decided to introduce a talking stick to the kiddos today and it was such a hit! If you’ve not heard of these, the concept is that the child or adult that holds the stick gets to say whatever is on their mind or relevant to the group conversation and those that don’t have the stick, listen until it gets passed to them, at which point they have the same opportunity to speak. In groups of children, it’s a tangible promise that their opinions are valued and will be heard no matter their age or measure of their physical voice.

Each child had the choice to contribute a string to the stick using any or all of the sensory happy supplies - velvety yarn, sparkly pompoms, textured ribbon and bells. The result was a creation that kept small hands busy during their shares today.

About Me:

Hi!

I'm Macinsey.

I am a homeschooling Mom to my ten year old son and six year old daughter. Years ago, as I made the transition from stay-at-home Mom to working-out-of-the-house Mom, I came to realize how challenging it was to find what I saw as very basic childhood needs, under one "daycare roof". Dropping my daughter off each day quickly became a huge internal tension. This experience in stark contrast to the level of peace I felt years earlier as I dropped my son off to a preschool he attended while our family lived out of state.

A spark of desire to create a space like the one we so enjoyed and to serve families looking for the same things was palpable in 2015. Since then it has only amplified and I am so happy to bring it to life present day with each family that untrusts me to care for their children.

Due to property limitations, I am unlicensed and until I am able, I work to maintain the same standards as if I was. I am CPR certified, use my nutritional background as a health coach to serve nutrient dense, organic, whole food snacks and maintain a comfortable home to nurture play, learning and social emotional development.

You'll find my goals, interests and philosophies pull from a little bit of everywhere, but I love the ethos of forest schools, find resonance in Magda Gerber's work on infant care and respect and seek reprieve in books such as John Holt's "How Children Learn" and John Taylor Gatto's insights on traditional education.

On Proper Clothing:

One of my favorite days so far this season was when we trekked through deep snow to the nearby meadow in an effort to find sunlight on an otherwise windy and miserable day. One child built a dragon nest beneath a sheltered tree. A couple others transformed into mama and baby jaguars that lived in a forest den built out of a fallen tree. The remaining kids were messengers back and forth.

Wind and storms occasionally keep us inside for safety reasons, but you'd be surprised the conditions the kids want to go out in and the length of time they want to be out - especially if it flows with a game they're playing. That said, I do ask for all kids to come prepared for extended, messy outdoor play daily. I recommend having a pre-packed duffel bag with all the clothes they need to stay warm and dry - suggestions listed below.

Note: It is my goal to have extra coats, snow pants, boots, etc. on hand so that we can still get outside even if something doesn't make it up here. I have misc. items right now and welcome additional donations that are in good condition from smoke free homes!

Winter:
Snow Pants (overalls work best)
Snow Boots
Heavy socks
Coat
Waterproof Gloves or Mittens
Hat
Neck Warmer

Spring:
Muck or Rain Boots
Light puffer coat
Rain Coat
Extra Outfit - socks, pants, shirt

Summer:
Extra Outfit
Jacket/Sweatshirt
Rubber Shoes - Crocs, Keens (no flip flops, please)
Sneakers

This little baby cabin, not far from the main house has so much charm! It's pretty hard to access in the winter - my kids and I snowshoed out to get this picture and discovered it's surrounded by much more snow than it appears and it's only January! But...come spring, I'm thinking it'll make a perfect Mud Kitchen!

In the process of building grasshopper houses this fall, we learned a few interesting facts. Most interesting of which, was that grasshoppers have ears are on their abdomens that allow them to hear the song of their friends!

On Medical Freedom:

It's important to me that you feel confident in and aligned with the values that will be upheld in my home and business, which is why I don't think there can be any ambiguity on where I stand regarding mandates/masks/injections in our ever changing world. I understand that upholding health freedom in my home and all outings may be off-putting or celebratory depending on varying value systems.

This photo illustrates the mass amount of nerves throughout a child's face that are actiely helping to inform a connection and relationship with their environment. Almost entirely via sight, smell and taste. The younger a child is, the more they rely on the responsiveness of a caregiver's expressions and vice versa. Because of this, placing a mask on mine or a child's face would be an unethical violation I don't make concessions on.

I believe in parent's ability to know and choose what is best for their children over all other governing entities.

A long, but worthwhile read on what's happening behind the scenes of kids allowed to self direct and play.

"How Do Children Learn When They Don’t Go To School?
Won’t they end up behind?

Most people have no idea what child development and education looks like outside school when young people have autonomy. I've been told that children will endlessly move from whim to whim, or that they'll never learn to set goals or work hard. Here's what actually happens.

Young self-directed children play. They play in a wide range of ways, and they often play in unconventional ways. Their play becomes more sophisticated as they get older, but it's still play.
At this stage, most of their learning would be termed 'discovery'. They interrogate the world and their parents. They create theories and test them out. They are in a state of constant enquiry. They follow their interests. Professor Alison Gopnik's research describes this stage well - she calls it ‘child as scientist’. Anyone who has spent much time with a young child will know exactly what she means.

Some of them develop very intense interests, and those are all they want to learn about for months or years. Some of these interests are deemed worthwhile by adults (e.g. Henry VIII, coding) others often are not (Pokemon, Roblox).

They learn through following their interests. They often don't set goals or practice things unless made to do so by an adult. They don't really make the connection between effort and improvement yet, and improvement isn't really their aim. They live in the moment.

This goes on for much longer than many parents had expected and certainly for longer than is allowed for at school. Children are often still mostly play-based learners at the age of nine or ten. Some of them will have learnt to read, but often self-directed children won't be reading until later than schooled children.
Late reading is not a significant problem to their educational progress when they are out of school, because they can access learning in other ways. It does not hold them back. They learn through conversations, audio books, documentaries and experience. Dr Harriet Pattison's research demonstrated this well.

As they go through puberty, their brains start to change too. The part of their brains which is responsible for self-control starts to mature, and they (gradually) become more capable of setting goals, working towards something and focusing on improvement and mastery.

This change happens over a long time and is dependant on both the neurological maturation which adolescence brings, and experience. Parents tell me that their self-directed teenagers start to think about the future in a way which seemed impossible only a year before.

Self-directed teenagers then often go through a phase when they seem hungry for knowledge and skills. They learn all of primary maths in a couple of months, or acquire coding languages. They memorise the countries of the world or the Russian alphabet. They write novels. Some of them learn several languages, or become accomplished artists or musicians.

This is the stage when they start to think about what they would like to do, and they start to plan the path ahead. This doesn't necessarily happen in the same time scale as schooled teenagers. They may decide to take exams (lots do), or they decide to take a different route.

The self-directed teenagers I know share a belief in themselves as the driver of their learning, which is what makes the difference. If they think they need to catch up on maths, they'll find a way to do it. If they want to improve their handwriting, they’ll get a book and practice. They don't wait to be taught or for it to come up in the curriculum. This makes life for their parents full of surprises. ‘Oh, you just decided to learn maths, and now you’re doing trigonometry? How did you do that?’. The information is often out there if you’re willing to search.

And that is what the heart of a self-directed education is. All those years of discovery and play was when they were learning to be active agents in their learning. They were learning how to make choices and to manage consequences. They were learning that they were the one who could make a difference.

A self-directed education isn't easy for either parents or young people. Managing your own learning is hard - and supporting can be hard too. It's hard not to be scared when your 9-year-old still wants to play all day. It's hard not to worry that they are 'behind'. It’s so difficult not to compare them with schooled children of the same age.

But ultimately, self-directed education isn't a way to do the same thing as school, without lessons. It's a different way to learn, another form of education, and it has its own rhythm and journey. Enjoy the ride."

-Dr. Naomi Fischer

On Winter Accessibility:

Navigating the learning curve to operate the bobcat this year for snow removal, while necessary to run a business out of my home, also reminded me how rare (and challenging) it is for adults to do something entirely outside of our comfort zones. It offered perspective for the times my son's frustration builds with brand new concepts in his language curriculum and gave me an appreciation for the grace of the beginners mind most often demonstrated by our youngest of children.

Accessibility is certainly a question for a childcare on Casper Mountain. It's true, conditions up here are much harsher than in town yet, I have been pleasantly surprised at how well the mountain roads are maintained throughout the winter. Even so, a reliable 4WD or AWD vehicle is a must to get up here throughout the winter months.