hummmmmmmmm this was a question I asked over and over - I confess I was tiny bit aghast at umm whatever works answers or I dunno we just do but now I have nearly joined that camp - think camping on the edges of unschooling I guess - no doubt that will change.
We do things like - paint a pair of "boring" wellies or paint jeans - M has said for years she wants to be a fashion designer so I will encourage that she has brilliant ideas she draws beautiful sketches of ideas for clothes - I keep them all in a folder she has chosen the ones she likes the most to go in a display folder.she's drawn logos for her shop and designed the window.

She likes to read but is a little hard to motivate to read more than the Felicity Wishes series that's fine I don't like to push a child to read we all like what we like and I really feel a child must get their own feel for books of their choice - she wants to read some books but doesn't feel ready to read them independently,so I read them aloud to her a couple of chapters most nights at the moment we are reading Jacqueline Wilson's diary it's HILARIOUS! it started with the Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe I had always adored that book as a kid but she didn't feel able to manage it so I suggested I read it to her - I read it to her whilst the baby had his milk
I will do individual posts on experiments and things that have gone down really well
today we are making a mosaic on our front path - we had the pleasure of smashing old cups up with a hammer and polyfillering to the stones.. I hope it works!I'm SO thrilled she is at the stage where she can wait another day to do things - my big concern was that she just couldn't carry things on so everything we did had to be short and sweet we've gently moved into do ing things that take a little longer to help her trust that it will be done the following day.
~I find that kids "these days" never have to do any prep work so they have no idea that things take time to get ready then the staff put everything away in break time ..
We have done over the garden we have the privilege of having a huge garden ( I swear we're we're not mega rich!) - it was overgrown so we got out there and began clearing it patch by patch - looking rather respectful out there now we set aside a bit just for M to plant things of her choice sunflowers carrots and some pretty candy tuft flowers.She's done all the work from clearing it to the daily chat to say hello and help them grow.We ourselves have planted lots of vegetables and herbs - a dream fulfilled homeschooling has not just been for the kids it's transformed us as people we started stretching out a little having to be around more in the day and be a little more structured we've made time for lots of stuff that we'd put off before.
We've done lots of experiments that I will post individually we've sat and sketched
I've shown her how to iron - sounds daft but reading another blog made me think if we aren't educating our boys and girls on how to run a home and show them what it takes and VALUE it they never will either.
She's cooked we eat from scratch every day - a curry , bolognaise chicken goujons raw ketchup gluten free cake... plus more besidesShe really enjoys dressing up her mannequin and she loves to use playdough so we made salt dough D likes painting and just being in the garden so more often than not when it's warm he is just trundling about in the garden and we will sit to one side and do some reading or drawing or just sitting C is now walking 10 months old and trundling about - tends to leave me a little ragged !! he likes the garden he pushes balls around and chases them
some days we do little spelling tests - but these days she doesn't feel a need for them some days we play number games with balls ( the ball pit ones )
and we've used those for division - pretending they are giant peas and doing sums like I have a giant mum and a giant dad and baby giant and 12 peas how many do they each get? - she was always a little overwhelmed with division but breaking it up into things like this make her giggle and not afraid to get it wrong- she did have a real problem with getting it wrong some days it'd send her spiralling into tears.

Daniel likes to draw - the pair of them are very good at drawing so, some days when we feel a little bleaugh we tend to just sit together and draw - these are "peoples"

We often do things together - we carved pumpkins at Halloween together

and made Christmas wreaths and our own baubles.

On the advice of a friend I keep a personal journal that's hand written - partly in case we are asked for a visit from the LEA - although it's not compulsory
I think we would accept a visit if it were requested and meet in the library or somewhere neutral.
I'll cross that bridge if it happens when it happens.
Then I started writing it for the children,so they could look back and remember what we'd done together everyday I try get a few words down, I often just sit and observe I don't feel a need to butt in I'll help if they need it or make suggestions about a possibly better way but try and listen to their ideas and let them try it out even if I know it won't work I feel it's important they learn hands on WHY it won't work.
I also feel it's important to know how to do household things - like how things go together how to use a hammer how to iron how to load the washing machine how to do basic things whether they are boys or girls.
I'm often asked how the kids will learn to write if we never "make" them - I think things are misinterpreted a lot I don't make them - as in I'm not sat here demanding they write it's more ok let's do a book review it might meet a groan so I'll gee it up and we'll do it - or we'll do choices of things I'm willing to do today - I typed out various activities like reading book reviews free crafts experiments and then I'll lay out what we are able to do - or even sometimes if I'm tired things I'm willing to do
then she can choose from what is available - I find people think child led means they are running riot and parents exhaustedly running behind them - that is very different that is permissive and is doing no favours to any child it's creating a falsehood - you can give structure and boundaries and have them make choices from what is available just like "real life" you can only choose from what is available you can't do or have things that aren't there......