原文链接：How to Be a Master at Anything
作者：Christina Quick Henderson
译者：Esther

版权声明：本文可以任意转载，转载时请务必保持作者、译者署名的完整性。

In the 1960 summer Olympics in Rome, Italy, Wilma Rudolph became the first American woman to win three gold medals in track and field during a single Olympic Games, despite running on a sprained ankle. She was nicknamed the “Tornado” the fastest woman on earth, and the Black Gazelle.

1960年意大利罗马夏季奥运会上，威尔玛·鲁道夫成为全美第一位在单次奥运会上获得田赛与竞赛三枚金牌的女性，尽管她跑步时脚踝扭伤了。人们赠给全球跑得最快的女性一个绰号——“龙卷风”，也称她为黑瞪羚。

By all accounts, Wilma Rudolph was a master at track and field. Some called her a “natural athlete.” But if you know Wilma Rudolph’s story, you’ll know the truth is that Wilma wasn’t a born athlete. She was a sickly, crippled child who turned herself into a world-class runner through tremendous determination and discipline.

从方方面面看，威尔玛·鲁道夫都是田径场上的大师。有人称她为“天生的运动员”。可如果你知道威尔玛·鲁道夫的故事，你就会知道事实是威尔玛并非天生的运动员。她原本是一个病怏怏有残疾的孩子，但通过巨大的毅力和自律，将自己蜕变为世界级跑步选手。

Wilma Rudolph was born prematurely at 4.5 lbs., the 20th of 22 siblings born into a black family in the South in 1940. She was struck with polio as a very young child, leaving her with a twisted foot and leg. She wore a brace and her family drove her to Nashville regularly for treatments. By the time she was 12 years old, Wilma had also survived scarlet fever, whooping cough, chicken pox, and measles.

1940年威尔玛·鲁道夫出生时是个4.5磅的早产儿，是南部一个黑人家庭里22个孩子中的第20个。幼年时，她患了小儿麻痹，腿和脚都变形了。她戴着支架，由家人定期开车送她去纳什维尔进行治疗。到威尔玛12岁时，她先后经历了猩红热、百日咳、水痘、麻疹。

Wilma was determined to overcome her physical challenges and become an athlete like her older siblings. Eventually she left the leg braces behind and became a star on her high school basketball team. Wilma was discovered by Tennessee State track coach Ed Temple, the man who prepared her to win Olympic gold in the 100 and 200-meter dash and the 400-meter relay.

威尔玛下定决心克服自己的生理挑战，成为她哥哥姐姐那样的运动员。最终，她丢掉了支架，成为高中篮球队的明星。田纳西州的田径教练爱德·坦普尔发现了威尔玛，并且帮她做好准备，赢得奥运会100米、200米冲刺及400米接力赛的金牌。

What would YOU like to become a master of? If you’re in the work force, you may wish to become a master at your job. If you’re retired, maybe you would like to achieve mastery at a hobby – become a master gardener, or a master fisherman. Or we could apply mastery to people and relationships – becoming the best in the world at being a parent, or a spouse, or a friend to those in need. But what does it take to truly achieve mastery in any area of our life? Why do only a select few ever become great at what they do?

你想成为什么样的大师？如果你在工作，也许你想成为职场高手。如果你退休了，也许你想在自己的爱好上取得成就——成为大师级的园丁或大师级的渔夫。或者，我们可以将这些技巧用于人际关系——成为世界上最明智的家长、最忠心的配偶或者成为那些有需要的人最可靠的朋友。不过，在生活的任何领域中取得真正成就需要什么？为什么只有一小部分人取得成功？

It is a common myth that talent is what makes some people great. From an early age we’re taught that some of us just have a natural aptitude for athletics, or managing companies, or playing an instrument. God given talent is what makes some people masters. So if we try something and discover we’re not all that great at it, or if we experience initial success only to hit a plateau, we give up on mastery, thinking we just weren’t cut out for it. We become a hacker, content with average performance or we give up entirely.

一个普遍的神话是天分造就人才。很小的时候，人们就告诉我们，我们当中有些人天生就有运动或管理公司或演奏乐器的才能。天生的才能是让某些人成为大师级人物的原因。所以，如果我们尝试某样东西，发现我们根本不擅长，或者我们经历了最初的成功之后，却进入高原状态，我们就会放弃追求精通，以为自己不是那块料。我们成为骇客，对于平庸表现也心满意足，或者干脆放弃。

In his book, Talent is Overrated, Geoff Colvin points out that research conducted in the past 30 years or so has proven this idea of inherent talent false. Studies of a variety of subjects – violin players, chess champions, golf pros, etc. – all indicate that the difference between great performers and average performers is hard work and practice, not natural talent. Masters in a given field did not show unusual giftedness, but rather logged many more hours of practice time than their peers and engaged in “deliberate practice” – systematic practice of techniques involving specific goals and regular feedback to improve performance.

在《被夸大的天才》一书中，Geoff Colvin指出，过去30多年研究表明天生才能的观点不正确。对各种各样主体——小提琴家、象棋冠军、高尔夫职业选手——的研究，都表明伟大的表演家与普通表演家的区别在于勤学苦练，而非天才。给定领域的大师并没有表现出非同寻常的天赋，但却比其他人练习的时间多得多，而且进行的是“有意练习”——涉及具体目标的系统化技巧练习，还有定期反馈改善表现。

George Leonard wrote an inspiring little book called Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-term Fulfillment. Leonard identifies 5 principles that can help you achieve mastery in any area of your life.

George Leonard写了本鼓舞人心的小书，名为《精通：成功及长期成就的关键》。Leonard列了5条原则，可以帮助你在生活的任何领域成为大师。

1. Instruction

There are some things you can learn on your own, but if you really want to be a master in your field you must find a good teacher or coach to guide your efforts. It’s no accident that Bela Karolyi’s gym produced so many Olympic gymnasts or that Meisner, Adler, and Strasberg taught so many great actors – including Jack Nicholson, Marlon Brando, and Paul Newman. Find someone whose students are performing with excellence and learn your craft at their feet.

1. 指导

有些东西你可以自学，但如果你真想在自己的领域成为大师，你必须找个好老师或好教练为你指导。Bela Karolyi的体育馆产生如此多奥运体操明星或Meisner, Adler, Strasberg教出那么多伟大的演员——包括Jack Nicholson, Marlon Brando, Paul Newman，绝非偶然。找一位有众多高徒的师傅，然后拜他们为师。

2. Practice

This weekend I watched my friend, Jeff, play his acoustic guitar so beautifully and masterfully it seemed effortless. But I know that Jeff goes home every night after work and practices his guitar for at least two hours. Deliberate practice is the key to mastery. We have to learn to love to practice in order to become great. You have to love playing scales on your instrument as much or more than you love performing in the concert hall. An old martial arts saying goes, “The master is the one who stays on the mat five minutes longer every day than anybody else.” Be that guy.

2. 练习

这个周末，我见我的朋友杰夫弹原声吉他，弹得太优美太娴熟了，似乎不费吹灰之力。可我知道每天晚上下班之后，杰夫要练习至少两个小时。专门练习是掌握技能的关键。为了出类拔萃，我们必须得学会爱上练习。你爱练习要跟你爱在演奏大厅里表演一样。如俗话说，“大师就是每天比别人多练习5分钟的人”成为这样的人。

3. Surrender.

The courage of a master is measured by his or her willingness to surrender. To your teacher. To the constant routine of hard work to become better. And sometimes we must surrender our own expert status and become beginners again in order to reach the next level of achievement. Tiger Woods famously remade his golf swing AFTER he had already achieved tremendous success in his sport. For the master, surrender means there are no experts. There are only learners.

3．顺服

大师的勇气是用他是否愿意顺服来衡量的。顺服老师。遵守勤学苦练的永恒规则，以期卓越。有时我们必须放弃自己的专家身份，重新开始，以达到下一阶段的成就。泰格·伍兹在已经获得了辉煌成就之后，调整了自己的挥杆。对于大师而言，顺服意味着没有专家。只有学习者。

4. Intentionality

Intentionality is mindfulness, mental practice, having a vision mindfulness of what you want to accomplish. Arnold Schwarzenneger argued that pumping a weight one time with full consciousness was worth ten without mental awareness. Average distance runners let their minds wander during a race in order to forget about the pain. Master runners focus on their bodies the whole time in order to perform to the best of their ability with every stride.

Cognitive psychology has discovered that visualizing an activity triggers the same parts of the brain as if we were actually DOING that activity. Mental practice can be as effective as actual practice in achieving mastery.

4. 意向性

意向性是留神、头脑练习，对自己想要成就的进行愿景培养。阿诺德·施瓦辛格认为用全部意识击打某个重量1次，比没有精神意识下击打十次还值得。普通的长跑运动员在比赛中让他们的思绪随意飞扬，以忘记痛苦。大师级的长跑运动员则在全程中注意自己的身体，以便每迈出一步都能表现得最好。

认知心理学已经发现，幻想某样活动可以触发我们实际进行该项活动时所触发的相同的大脑部分。在获得大师级水准时，头脑练习可以和实际练习一样有效。

5. The Edge.

The edge is the point where the master takes a flying leap. It seems to be a contradiction of what got the expert performer to the height of their field in the first place. After dedication to the fundamentals of their discipline and years of small, incremental steps forward there comes a point where these masters take a leap off the edge. “They challenge previous limits, they break the rules they’ve worked so hard to learn, they take risks for the sake of higher performance.”

5. 边界

边界是大师之所以飞跃的地方。看起来，这与使专家表演者达到事业巅峰的东西相矛盾。在投身到自己学科的基础之后，经过多年细微的进步，有那么一刻，这些大师越过边界向前迈出一大步。他们挑战从前的极限，打破如此辛苦所学习到的规矩，为了更好的表现，他们承担风险。

With All Your Might

Ecclesiastes Chapter 9 verse 10 says, “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with all your might.” Like Wilma Rudolph, you don’t need to be limited by challenges or the myth of talent. Whatever you’d like to be a master of, apply these five principles and be satisfied with the slow, steady rewards of deliberate practice.

全力以赴

《传道书》9章10节：“凡你手所当作的事，要尽力去作。”像威尔玛·鲁道夫一样，你不要被挑战所限制，也无需被天才神话所束缚。不论你想成为什么大师，遵循这5条原则，然后对有意练习所带来的缓慢而稳定的奖励感到心满意足。

《TLH项目 – 学校教育的目的》已发布！

原文链接：Education Needs to Be Turned on Its Head
作者：Leo Babauta
译者：Esther

版权声明：本文可以任意转载，转载时请务必保持作者、译者署名的完整性。

Let kids use their natural curiosity and love of learning.

让孩子们利用他们天生的好奇心和对学习的热爱之情。

“Our culture lies. They say they want to encourage and reward individuality and creativity, but in practice they try to hammer down the pointy parts, and shame off the different parts.” – Sandra Dodd

“我们的文化在撒谎。他们说他们想鼓励奖赏个性化和创造力，但实际上他们枪打出头鸟，打击异己。” – Sandra Dodd

Going through the traditional school system (in California, Washington and Guam) was never my favorite thing as a kid, but as a parent, I’ve grown to realize that the whole system is upside down.

作为孩子，经历传统教育体系绝非我最喜欢的事情，但作为家长，我逐渐意识到整个系统颠倒了。

Not the system of any particular state or nation, but system of education as a concept.

不是哪个州或全国的教育体系，而是教育体系这个概念。

Traditionally, schools use this model:

传统上，学校采用如下模式：

1. Decide on what kids need to know to prepare them for adulthood.
2. Prepare a curriculum based on this.
3. Give students a schedule based on this curriculum.
4. Have educated teachers hand them the info they need, and drill them in skills.
5. The student reads, memorizes the info, learns the skills, and becomes prepared.
6. Students must follow all rules or be punished. This is actually more important than the info and skills, although it’s never said that way.

1. 决定孩子们需要知道什么，以便为成年做准备。
2. 根据上述决定，准备课程。
3. 根据课程，给孩子课表。
4. 让受过训练的老师给他们需要的信息，然后练习技能。
5. 学生阅读，记忆信息，学习技能，有所准备。
6. 学生必须遵守所有规则，否则就要被惩罚。这其实比信息和技能更重要，虽然大家从不这么说。

Unfortunately, this isn’t a great model. Mostly because it’s based on the idea that there is a small group of people in authority, who will tell you what to do and what you need to know, and you must follow this obediently, like robots. And you must not think for yourself, or try to do what you want to do. This will be met with severe punishment.

很不幸，这种模式乏善可陈。主要是因为其背景思想是有一群权威人士会告诉你做什么，你需要知道什么，而你必须像机器人一样顺服。你不能自己思考，也不能做自己想做的。否则，会遭到严重惩罚。

This is ideal if you’re going to be a corporate employee, and need certain skills in order to work for the corporation — mostly skills of obedience, actually. This isn’t ideal for the workplace of the coming decade, when people are less likely to be employed by a large corporation, and more likely to work for themselves. And have to think for themselves. And figure out, for themselves, what they want to do. And learn new things for themselves, without a teacher.

如果你要成为企业员工，需要某些技能在企业工作——其实最主要是顺服的技能。对于未来数十年的工作场所，这差强人意，到那时，人们不太可能被大企业雇佣，更可能地是在家为自己打工。必须自己为自己思考。然后还要想明白自己想做什么。在没有老师的情况下，自己学习新东西。

Things are changing faster than ever before. Every month, new technology is announced that alters the way people work, or will work in the future, and we need to be able to learn and adapt to this ever-changing landscape.

事物以前所未有的速度变化。每个月，都会宣布改变人们当前或未来工作方式的新技术，我们需要有学习能力，需要顺应这种瞬息万变的前景。

How are we to do that, or how are our children to learn that, if they have no authority telling them what they need to know, or how to learn, or what to do?

如果没有权威告诉他们需要了解什么，如何学习，做什么，我们该怎么做，或者，孩子们该怎么学？

People often grow up to be competent learners, and achieve great things, after going through the traditional school system. But this is in spite of the system, not because of it. We are pretty adaptable people, inherently curious, and we can learn without an authority, but the current school system tries to beat this down. It usually fails to some degree, but to the degree it succeeds, it harms people.

在经历了传统教育体系之后，人们通常成长为合格的学习者，学到很多东西，但这并非教育体系的功劳。我们本是相当变通的人，有着天生的求知欲，没有权威我们也可以学习，可当前学校体系试图颠覆这一点。通常，学校体系通常会失败，但也存在成功的概率，这便是症结所在。

Schools fail not because they don’t impart knowledge or skills, but because they kill curiosity, smother excitement for learning, club down with a furious brutality our desires to be independent, to think for ourselves, to learn about things that actually interest us.

学校失败不是因为他们不传授知识或技能，而是因为他们扼杀了求知欲，窒息了学习的劲头，残忍无情地鞭笞了我们想要独立、独立思考、学习我们真正感兴趣的东西的愿望。

“I suppose it is because nearly all children go to school nowadays, and have things arranged for them, that they seem so forlornly unable to produce their own ideas.” – Agatha Christie

“我认为这是因为如今几乎所有孩子都上学，一切都有人给他们安排妥当，所以他们才看上去如此悲惨，无法独立思考、创造。” – Agatha Christie

But Teachers are Great

不过老师们很了不起

Yes, I agree, they are. My wife was a middle school teacher, of English, and she worked tirelessly with her students’ interests at heart. She really wanted to teach them to love reading, and did everything in her power to do so. Unfortunately, she was frustrated by the authoritarian nature of school administration, and left. She now homeschools our kids, and is trying to give them the freedom to learn on their own.

是的，我同意，老师们很了不起。我妻子曾是中学英语教师。她不知疲倦地工作，把学生利益放在首位。她真得很想教他们热爱阅读，每件事情都全力以赴。不幸的是，学校管理的独裁本质让她受挫，她离开了。现在她在家教育我们的孩子，让他们有自学的自由。

My grandmother was a teacher for decades. My aunt is a teacher, first of elementary and middle schools, now of children in a juvenile detention center, and is wonderful at getting kids to love reading. My father is an artist teaching others to love art, and to do it well. I love teachers, and have the highest respect for them.

我祖母当了多年的老师。我姑姑是老师，先是小学老师，然后是中学老师，现在是少年管教所的老师，她很擅长让孩子们热爱阅读。我父亲是位艺术家，教别人热爱艺术，在艺术上有杰出表现。我热爱老师，对他们有着最崇高的敬意。

I just think they’re in a system that doesn’t work. That cannot work, given the nature of what the world has become.

我只是觉得他们置身于无效的系统中。考虑到当今世界的变化，这样是行不通的。

How can we prepare children for a future we cannot foresee? How do we know what skills they will need, what knowledge will be important, in 10 years, or 15? We have no idea what the world will be like then. I sure don’t. Do you? Does anyone know how people will be working 15 years from now?

我们怎么能够让孩子们为我们无法预测的未来做准备？我们怎么知道他们需要什么，在未来10年、15年里，什么知识会很重要？我们压根不知道那时世界会怎样。我肯定不知道。你呢？有没有人知道15年以后大家怎么工作？

I submit this is impossible. And what’s more, it always has been impossible. The workplace now is vastly different than it was when I was a lad in shortpants three decades ago running around in the schoolyard, wiping snot from my nose and learning about the Cold War. People then didn’t have computers in the workplace, at least not most of them, and those who did have computers didn’t have anything resembling what we have today. Most people used electric typewriters, and fax machines weren’t in offices yet. Fax machines.

我认为这不可能。而且，从来就不可能。与30年前我穿着短裤在学校操场上疯跑，擦着鼻涕，学习冷战时相比，如今的工作场所发生了天翻地覆的变化。那时人们上班的地方没有计算机，至少大多数人都没有，而就算有计算机的人所有的东西也和我们如今所拥有的不能相提并论。大多数人使用电动打字机，而传真机尚未出现。

So yes, I love teachers, and think they are incredible at what they do. What I think they need to do, though, is not be teachers, but facilitators.

所以，没错，我爱老师，我认为他们所作的事情无与伦比。不过，我觉得他们需要做的，不是当老师，而是做一名引导师(facilitator)。

Don’t direct learning, because when students grow up they won’t be directed in their learning, they’ll be self-taught. Think about it: when you learn things today, as an adult, do you learn from a teacher, or do you learn things on your own? And isn’t learning on your own more fun? Don’t you love learning new things? Doesn’t that make the learning stick with you for longer than when you had to memorize things in school?

不要指导学习，因为当学生们长大成人之后，没人会指导他们的学习，他们得自学。想想：现在作为成人当你学东西时，你是跟老师学还是自学？而且，自学难道不更有趣吗？你不喜欢学习新东西吗？你学到的东西不比你在学校死记硬背时停留得久？

What we learn in school isn’t nearly as important as how we learn, because how to learn is the lesson of school.

我们在学校里学什么不及我们如何学重要，因为“如何学习”才是学校应有的课程。

“The founding fathers in their wisdom decided that children were an unnatural strain on their parents. So they provided jails called school, equipped with tortures called education.” – John Updike

“开国元勋以自己的理解认为孩子们是家长不自然的负担。所以他们提供了名为学校的监狱，还装备了名为教育的折磨。” – John Updike

How to Learn

如何学习

And the way we’re taught to learn is as receivers of information, non-thinkers. Follow the rules. Read pages 100-132. Do the exercises. Memorize the information. Spit it out in a test. Do this project, because we tell you to, not because it’s fun or interesting.

我们受教的学习方式是作为信息的接收者，而非思考者。遵守规章。阅读100至132页。做练习。背诵。考试时把信息背出来。做这个项目，因为我们告诉你们这样做，不是因为好玩或有趣。

The way we need to be taught to learn is completely different. It’s this: learn about what interests you, gets you curious, gets you excited. Figure out where to get the information you need. Read about it, talk to someone about it, find out about it. Try it. Do it, make mistakes. Figure out how to correct the mistakes. Figure out how to solve the problems you encounter. Repeat.

我们需要别人教我们学习的方式截然不同。这种方式应该是：了解什么让你感兴趣，让你好奇，让你激动；明白在何处找到你需要的信息；阅读相关内容，和别人交谈，寻找相关信息；尝试，实践，犯错；明白如何纠错；明白如何解决你遇到的问题。循环往复。

In other words, find problems that interest you, and figure out how to solve them.

换言之，找到吸引你的问题，然后解决问题。

Sometimes, you’ll have to solve problems that aren’t so interesting, just to solve problems that do interest you. That’s OK. That’s how things work.

有时为了解决你感兴趣的问题，你不得不解决无聊的问题。这也可以。事情就是这样运作的。

And here’s a secret: we already know how to do this. From birth. This method of learning is innate in all of us. It’s built in.

秘密是：我们已经知道如何做。打出生起。这种学习方式是我们每个人都固有的。是天生的。

When a toddler wants to do something, like get a stash of chocolate you’ve hidden on top of the fridge, he’ll figure it out. He’ll find ways to move a chair to the fridge, or climb up onto a counter near the fridge, in order to get the candy. Along the way he’ll learn a thing or two about cabinet doors and fridge doors and why you shouldn’t lean too far in one direction on a chair if you don’t want to fall and get bruises.

当蹒跚学步的孩子想做某件事，比如找到你藏在冰箱上面的巧克力，他会找到办法。为了拿到糖果，他会想方设法把椅子挪到冰箱跟前，或者爬到冰箱旁边的柜台上。在此过程中，他对柜子门和冰箱门有了一点了解，也知道如果不想摔得鼻青脸肿，就不能站在椅子上往一个方向倾斜太多。

When a kid wants to play a video game, she’ll learn things like how to set up and turn on the PS3, how to navigate menus, how to get started with the game, how to convince mother that she’ll clean her room later and that her homework is pretty much all done so that she can play the game now.

当孩子想打游戏时，她会学习如何设置，如何打开PS3游戏机，如何导航菜单，如何开始游戏，如何说服妈妈她稍后会打扫自己的房间，而且作业也基本做完了，这样，她可以现在就打游戏。

Kids know how to solve problems, when they want to do something.

当孩子们想做某件事时，他们知道如何解决问题。

We don’t need to teach them to learn. We need to get out of their damn way.

我们不需要教他们学习。我们只要别挡着他们的路。

And that’s the problem with schools. They can’t motivate kids to learn, because they’re forcing it. They’re trying to impart on them a rigid system of authority that kids naturally rebel against. In fact, this is the main problem kids face, and they come up with all kinds of incredibly creative ways to solve it, from skipping school and smoking pot to drawing incredible doodles in notebooks instead of listening to a history lecture to finding ingenius ways to communicate with peers, through technologies like texting and iPhones and through old technologies like passing notes and so on.

而且那是学校的问题。他们无法调动孩子学习，因为他们强迫孩子学习。他们试图给孩子们传授他们天生就反抗的严格的权威制度。实际上，这是孩子们面对的主要问题，他们发明了各种不可思议的创造性方法来解决这个问题，从逃学到吸毒，不听历史讲座而在笔记本上涂鸦，找各种天才方法与同伴沟通，既有短信和iPhone等技术，也有传统技术如传纸条，诸如此类。

Creativity isn’t dead in our kids. It’s alive, but it’s being marshaled to beat the forces that are beating them down.

孩子们并没有丧失创造力。他们的创造力生机勃勃，只不过用作抵抗那些打压他们的各种力量而已。

“No use to shout at them to pay attention. If the situations, the materials, the problems before the child do not interest him, his attention will slip off to what does interest him, and no amount of exhortation of threats will bring it back.” – John Holt

“冲他们大呼小叫让他们集中注意力，这根本不管用。如果孩子面前的情况、资料、问题引不起他的兴趣，他的注意力就会溜到他感兴趣的东西上，多少威胁与劝诱都拉不回。” – John Holt

Turn Education on Its Head

彻底改变教育

So how to prepare our kids for tomorrow? Better people than I have written on this. Look up Unschooling — it’s already been invented, and it’s what I’d recommend.

那么，该如如何让孩子为明天做好准备？比我更强的人就此写过不少文章（一、二、三）。 看看非学校教育——人们已经发明了它，而这正是我要推荐的。

It’s pretty much just getting out of the way of kids. Let them learn about what they want to learn about, and you know what? They’ll actually care about what they’re learning, because they chose it themselves. They’ll get excited about things, something schools usually fail to achieve.

简单说，就是别拦着孩子们的路。让他们学自己想学的，你知道吗？他们其实很关心自己学什么，因为那是他们自己的选择。他们会对这些事物兴奋，而这是学校通常做不到的。

They’ll learn how to deal with the delicious problem of freedom, a problem most kids don’t have these days. They’ll get some hands-on, down-and-dirty experience with autonomy, something they’ll have in spades as adults.

他们学会如何处理争取宝贵自由的问题，如今大部分孩子都没有这个问题。他们会体验很多实际而又粗暴的自治问题，作为成人，他们肯定会面临这样的事情。

But what if they watch TV or play video games all day? What if they aren’t interested in math or science and never learn them? What if they’re totally unprepared for the workplace?

可是，如果他们成天看电视，打电玩，怎么办？如果他们对数学和科学没兴趣，根本不学，怎么办？如果他们完全没有准备好就业，怎么办？

These are newbie questions in the world of unschooling, and I won’t answer them all here. You’ll have more, in the comments, I’m sure. I’m not the guy to answer those questions. Google unschooling and read up, because many smarter people have answered all your questions and more.

对于非学校教育，这些都是新问题，我在这里也不能一一作答。我相信在评论里你们会有更多问题。我不是能够回答那些问题的人。搜索非学校教育，进行相关阅读，因为很多比我聪明的人都已经回答了你们的问题，而且还不止于此。

I’ll just say a couple things. One, we need to relax and not look at childhood as a time when every minute needs to be filled up with rigid rules and learning. It’s a time that should be enjoyed, and kids should play, and in playing they’ll learn. They’ll learn to play well and work well with each other. They’ll learn how to figure things out for themselves. They’ll learn to love the lovely freedom and its associates, autonomy and responsibility and choice and time management and, yes, passion.

我只说个别问题。其一，我们需要放松，不要把童年当成每一分钟都充满了严格制度和学习的一段时间。这应该是用来享受的时间，孩子们应该游戏，在游戏中他们学习。他们将学习和他人一起开心游戏，开心学习。他们将学习如何自己处理问题，他们将学会热爱可爱的自由及其相关东西，自治、责任、选择、时间管理、当然，还有热情。

Two, remember what we talked about above: we have no idea what the workplace of the future will be, so stop worrying about preparing them for that. In fact, stop worrying so much. Let kids learn how to learn, and learn how to be excited about things. That will prepare them for the future.

其二，记得我们上面已经讨论过：我们不知道未来的工作场所会怎样，所以就不要再担心让他们为将来做好准备。实际上，别再担心那么多。让孩子学习如何学习，学习如何对事情保持兴奋之情。那才是让他们为未来做好准备。

Three, also realize that we don’t need to be hands-off. We can be hands-on, if we’re facilitators instead of directors or dictators. We can help kids find things they’re interested in, expose them to worlds of fun (like science and math), teach them games that they might like, help them solve problems so they’ll learn how to do it on their own, guide them to resources and people who will give them mountains of information. Be there for them, as guides.

其三，还要意识到我们没必要全权放手。我们可以干涉孩子的学习，只要我们是以协助者的身份，而不是指导者或独裁者。我们可以帮助学生找到他们感兴趣的东西，让他们接触有趣的世界（如科学和数学），教他们可能喜欢的游戏，帮助他们解决问题，这样他们将学会如何自己动手，引导他们找到各种资源以及可以给他们提供海量信息的人。陪在他们身边，给他们当向导。

This is a huge topic, and one that I can’t adequately cover in one post. I’ll do another post sometime, talking about homeschooling and unschooling, and how we do it and how to make it work for you. But for today, I just wanted to throw out some thoughts on schooling, and get you riled up a bit perhaps. We could all use some good riling now and then, I think.

这是一个很大的话题，一个帖子无法尽述。以后我将另外发贴，谈论居家教育与非学校教育，我们如何做，让你如何有效进行。不过，今天，我只想就学校教育抛砖引玉。我想，我们随时都可以化愤怒为力量。

“To trust children we must first learn to trust ourselves…and most of us were taught as children that we could not be trusted.” – John Holt

“想要信任孩子，我们必须信任我们自己……而在孩童时期，大人却教育我们，我们不可信。” – John Holt

《TLH项目 – 学校教育的目的》已发布！

原文链接：40 Things To Teach My Kids Before They Leave Home
作者：Serene Journey
译者：Esther

版权声明：本文可以任意转载，转载时请务必保持作者、译者署名的完整性。

As parents it’s our responsibility to teach, guide and encourage our kids. If we do our job right they go on to become responsible contributing members of society.

作为家长，教育、引导和鼓励子女是我们的责任。如果我们尽职尽责，孩子们就会成长为对社会负责为社会做贡献的人。

No pressure…right?

这不是什么压力，对吧？

Teaching practical life skills and philosophies are important parts of developing our children into well rounded and happy adults. The time we have with our kids is precious and relatively short.

教授实际生活技巧和哲学是将孩子培养成全能且快乐的成人的重要部分。我们和孩子们共度的时光宝贵而短暂。

With that in mind, I would like to share with you a list of 40 things that I will teach my kids before they leave home. Some are serious while some are lighthearted, since I think an important part of forming a meaningful relationship with our kids is to have a little fun along the way.

记住了这一条，我想和大家分享我的孩子离家前，我会教他们的40件事。有些很严肃，有些很轻松，因为我觉得与孩子建立有意义的关系的重要部分在于过程中充满点滴乐趣。

Practical life skills

实际生活技巧

I will teach my kids:

我会教给孩子：

…that doing a proper grocery shop, including meal planning, shopping with a list and comparing prices, can save them a considerable amount of time and money.

合理购物，包括计划餐食、带着清单购物，货比三家，这可以为他们节省不少时间和金钱。

…there is more to cooking and baking than simply opening a can or reheating a meal.

烹饪烘焙可比开罐头或者热剩饭意义大得多。

…that it’s important to sort your laundry not only by color, but by fabric type and care instructions.

洗衣服时不仅按颜色分类，也按织物种类和保养指南分类，这很重要。

…that no matter what the fashion is at the time, when it comes to an interview, work or special occasions — grab an iron. Walking around all wrinkled and creased sends a message of laziness.

不论潮流如何，面试、工作或者特殊场合——找把熨斗。穿着皱皱巴巴的衣服，说明你很懒。

…how to grow and care for a plant. This is a relatively easy and inexpensive way to instill responsibility. I’d start with an easy to care for houseplant like an umbrella tree or amaryllis or a potted tomato plant out on the deck.

如何种植照料植物。这种灌输责任感的方法简单而又便宜。我会从易于照顾的盆栽如伞树或桂顶红或盆栽番茄开始。

…how to change a car tire so that when they get a flat they are less likely to be stranded on the side of the road not knowing what to do.

如何换汽车轮胎，这样当有只瘪胎时，他们就不会束手无策地站在路边。

…to drive responsibly and to be acutely aware of the consequences of drinking and driving, even if they are the passenger.

开车时负有责任心，要很了解酒后驾驶的后果，哪怕仅仅作为一名乘客。

…that they can save money on books if they frequent the library.

如果他们经常去图书馆，就可以省下买书钱。

…how to do standard maintenance on their cars like change the oil and various filters as well as top up fluids and replace light bulbs.

如何维修汽车，比如换滑油和各种过滤器，如何加油加水，更换灯泡。

…how to read a bus schedule so if they aren’t in a position to afford a car they can still get around with public transportation.

如何读懂公交站牌，这样，如果他们买不起车，也一样可以利用公共交通工具四处行走。

…that they can have a lot more fun if they build things from scratch. I’m thinking birdhouses, step stools, go-karts, kites and paper planes.

如果他们从头开始自己做东西，就会享受很多乐趣。我能想到的有鸟屋、梯櫈、小型赛车、风筝和纸飞机。

…how to tie a variety of knots so whether they are tying up a boat or pulling a car out of a ditch or snowbank they are better armed.

如何打各种各样的结，这样当他们想把船系牢或者把车拉出沟渠或雪堤时，就会有备无患。

…how to barbecue a perfect meal paying particular attention to pre-grill prep and special recipes.

如何作出美味的烧烤，要格外留心烧烤前准备以及特殊烹饪秘诀。

…the importance of reading food labels. Not only to become aware of individual ingredients but to also know the quantities of sugar, additives and types of fats they contain.

阅读食品标签的重要性。不仅要理解各种成分，还要了解食品中所包含的糖、添加剂和各种脂肪。

…how to hem pants, sew on buttons and mend socks.

怎么给裤子锁边、缝扣子、补袜子。

…how to type properly with both hands on the keyboard. In a society where computers are used for nearly everything, learning how to type properly will increase their efficiency and productivity.

如何两只手打字。在这个计算机无处不在的社会，学习正确打字可以提高效率和生产率。

…the concept of compound interest. Who doesn’t want to make interest on interest?

复利的概念。谁不想用复利赚钱啊？

…how to create an effective budget that allows them to live within their means and continually increase their net worth.

如何计划有效的预算，既能保证生活，又能使净资产持续增加。

…how to read a map and use a compass.

怎么看地图，怎么使用指南针。

…how to build a quinzee and survive a night in the cold. (A quinzee is basically a hollowed out mound of snow and are actually quite warm to sleep in! This was one of my favorite experiences as a kid.)

如何修建雪穴以抵御寒冷的夜晚。（雪穴其实就是一个挖空的雪堆，睡进去很暖和！这是我孩提时最喜欢的经历。）

…how to swim and tread water, these skills could potentially save their life.

怎么游泳，怎么趟水，这些技能可能会救他们的命。

Philosophical life lessons

哲学生活课

I will teach my kids:

我会教给孩子：

…that they can be happy if they choose to be happy.

如果他们选择开心，他们就能开心。

…that a smile is the simplest thing you can do to truly brighten the day of someone else.

微笑是你能够让别人拥有美好一天的最简单的方法。

…about compassion and how they can go beyond empathy by truly understanding and feeling other people’s pain and suffering. Once they have this understanding and a genuine desire to relieve other’s pain it will make them better people.

同情以及通过真正理解感受他人的苦难，如何超越感同身受。一旦他们有这样的理解，而且真诚地愿意帮助别人减轻痛苦，他们就会成为更好的人。

…that there is no such thing as being too polite. You can never say please, thank-you or excuse me too often.

压根没有“太礼貌”这回事。“请”、 “谢谢”和“对不起”永远不嫌多。

…how listening without judgement, criticism or offering solutions to problems, is a guaranteed way to show someone you care.

不评判、批评或提供问题解决方案，纯粹聆听，是告诉某人你关心他的万无一失的方法。

…that respect goes beyond being kind to their elders – it also includes property, people in general, animals and even themselves.

尊重不仅仅是善待长辈-也包括爱惜东西，善待众人，爱护动物，甚至包括自己。

…to focus on enjoying what they already have instead of wasting time focusing on what they don’t have.

专注于享受已经拥有的东西，而不是浪费时间关注自己没有的东西。

…that NOBODY knows EVERYTHING about EVERYTHING.

没有人知道所有事情的所有细节。

…that it’s okay to be wrong as that’s how we learn.

错了没关系，因为那是我们学习的方式。

…to pursue things that are right for them as opposed to blindly following what society says they should do. The road less traveled usually brings the greatest rewards.

追求适合他们的东西，而不要盲从社会认为他们应该做的。人迹罕至的路通常收获最大。

…that nobody will care as much about their money as they will, so they should choose their investments and financial advisers wisely.

没人会像自己那样在乎自己的钱，所以要明智地选择自己的投资和财务顾问。

…that people usually do the best they can with the information and knowledge they have at the time.

人们通常用他们手头所有的信息和知识尽可能做到最好。

…that if something looks too good to be true it likely is.

如果有东西好得难以置信，很可能那东西就是不可信。

…that the more they become attached to a thought or idea in the future, the greater their disappointment (suffering) will be when it doesn’t play out as planned.

如果他们纠结于某个想法或观点，当计划落空时，他们的失望（痛苦）就越大。

…that friends may come and go but family will always be by their side. Always.

朋友来来去去，而家人总会守在他们身旁。一直如此。

…that they will get more than they ever could have imagined simply by being kind and generous to those less fortunate.

慷慨善待那些不幸的人，他们将从中得到的远比他们能够想象的要多。

…that life is short and that they should make the most of each and everyday. They should do things that make them smile, that make them feel alive and energized. Live.

人生苦短，他们应该尽量利用每一天。他们应该做让自己开心、让自己充满生机，充满能量的事情。及时行乐。

…to remember that life is more about enjoying the journey than simply reaching the destination.

记住人生更多的是享受这个旅程，而不仅仅是到达目的地。

There are so many things I want to teach my kids and this list grows with each passing day. I want the best for my kids, as any parent does. I occasionally need to remind myself that they are their own little people on their own journeys in life.

我想教给孩子们的东西那么多，这份清单的长度与日俱增。和任何家长一样，我也望子成龙。偶尔我需要提醒自己，他们是独立的小人儿，走在自己的人生旅途上。

How I see my role as a parent — I’m here to guide them, teach them and make sure they are well equipped with the skills, knowledge and common sense to survive and thrive on their own once they leave home. Time will tell if I’ve done my job well.

我怎么看待家长这个角色—我在这里引导他们，教导他们，确保他们有足够的技巧、知识和常识，一旦他们离开家，也能独自生存，并且茁壮成长。时间会证明我这家长是否合格。

What do you plan on teaching your kids? What is the best life lesson you’ve been taught?

你准备怎么教你的孩子? 你学到的最好的人生功课是什么？

《TLH项目 – 学校教育的目的》已发布！