Mom Pulls Daughter Out of School to Home School Her on Climate Change

A mother has decided to pull out her seven-year-old daughter from her primary school and shift her to homeschooling to learn better about climate change.

Clare Gregory, 39, decided that her daughter, Cora, would learn more about taking care of the environment, growing food in the backyard, and sustainability if she's teaching the class, even as the mother has no teaching experience.

The mom revealed that Cora's classes take place three hours a day only and follow her daughter's pace for as long as she's ready for the lessons. After Gregory educates her daughter, they tend to the garden and the chicken coop, where Cora also learns how to handle animals.

Gregory feels that the lessons she imparts to Cora will prepare her for the future as a "green change-maker." Her husband, Christian, 44, also supports pulling out their daughter from a formal school where "not enough" is done about climate change.

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No Regimented Structure

The parents said that they had based their homeschooling style on the non-regimented school structure of Denmark, Finland, and Norway. Since Cora can tell her parents what she wants to learn, they adjust their classes to be "more hands-on, relevant and experiential." Gregory also applies other subjects like Maths and Information Technology in a practical way.

Cora idolizes the famous teen climate activist Greta Thunberg, who spearheaded the school strikes across the world and demanded more action from adult leaders on climate change. Gregory said that her daughter sees Thunberg as a brave person for standing up to the grown-ups.

Because she is guiding Cora's homeschooling lessons full time, Gregory has given up her job as a childbirth teacher. She's also taking a course as a Green Educator this September. Her husband provides for the family as a manager of the customer service department at the Manchester airport. They plan to also do the same for Cora's younger brother, Kit, 15 months when he's old enough for school.

However, friends of the family think that they made the wrong decision to change Cora's education. However, the mother said that everyone should be concerned about the world the next generation will inherit and prepare their kids for it.

"We would like to inspire families to see the benefits of taking responsibility for teaching their children greener ways of living," Gregory said.

Back in the Streets

Meanwhile, Thunberg said that there would be another global climate strike this Friday, September 24, to push world leaders to take action. In a video statement from her home in Stockholm, Sweden, Thunberg said that kids worldwide would be back on the streets to show the adults that their passion for the climate change crisis has not decreased amid the pandemic crisis.

Thunberg said that their collective voices will be "more urgent" today because of the pandemic, which has highlighted the threats of mass extinction. The last in-person global climate strike was in 2019.

The climate activist said that she has not yet decided if she'll attend the 26th U.N. Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in November to face off, yet again, with world leaders.

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