another video re: education

Here's another video that is fascinating, which details how our current education system began, and why its current problems are the logical outcome of its original purpose.

Video--Changing Education Paradigms

Double-click to see full screen.

Some really good thoughts here--although it seems cut off. I want to hear more!

how one mom got into homeschooling

This is a blog I read regularly--LOVE this family and their hearts.  So this post today caught my attention, and had me laughing--it is SO God.  : )

I have things upcoming to share with you all here, as soon as I find the time!  But in the meantime, please remember you are welcome to post whatever homeschool stuff you think is appropriate for everyone, and I hope the start of your school year has been fairly smooth!

lisa

Beautiful piece on homeschooling--must read!

This is a link to a wonderful, eloquent blog post about homeschooling, which I think you will all enjoy. 

I have to admit, about half-way through my eyes were glazing over her words,  with jealousy, because I could not get over the amazing photos of her homeschool space.  All those gorgeous retro school aids and tools!  Enough wall space for huge maps and art!  In fact, such an overabundance of unused wall space that they can line up their books side by side on a rail?!!!!!  Oh, I admit, I have big time envy.  BIG TIME.  Those of you who know my teeny tiny space I'm schooling in. . . this almost makes me want to cry, and I so full of lust.  So, I will finish reading the article when my eyes have cleared and God restores my heart. ; )

But still, read the post!  Be inspired by a home environment that perfectly incorporates learning and living and style and beauty of what's real.  In all senses of the word. : )

lisa

Not on the Test

Oh, moms who just suffered through STAR testing, this one is for you.

(and for you, Stacy--for Monkey)

great article: Yes, My Grown Homeschooled Children Are Odd — And Yours Will Be Too!

A must-read.

On homeschool parents: "We’re either deliberate, accidental, or reluctant social misfits who imbue our children with a set of values and beliefs that resist the siren songs of government schooling, pop culture, and social engineering."

http://www.homeschoolnewslink.com/blog/?p=629

(Unsure whether or not I'll share this one with the in-laws! Not sure they will get that the article is saying GOOD things about not being fully "socialized" ; )

New documentary on homeschooling

Trailer for new documentary on homeschooling:

http://www.3StoryFilms.com./

Sarah

FREE screening of new documentary!

Hi All,

The Rio Theatre will be showing the new, award-winning documentary Race to Nowhere on Nov. 4 and it sounds like you can reserve free tickets! 

Here is the link to the theatre:  http://www.racetonowhere.com/screenings/rio-theater

Here is the link to info about the movie: http://www.racetonowhere.com/

(too lazy to make it look all nice with html tonight ; )

Out of towners--check the second link to see if there is a free screening near you!

In the News: Increasing Number Of Parents Opting To Have Children School-Homed

From the Onion. A must read.

Why We Homeschool, the Craddocks

Ok, this is my first try at a blog post, so we shall see if this ends up in the right place.

Gwynneth went into kindergarten at our local elem. school when she was young--not yet 5 when the fall semester started. And while we really liked her teacher (and in fact insisted that Meredith have her this year for kindergarten), the whole experience seemed lacking, and had some weird negativities:
--G has always been behind the curve with her fine and gross motor skills, so during one of the parent-teacher conferences, it came out that G was being sent out with a mainstreamed special-needs child for special gross-motor practice. This would not have been a big deal except they did it without talking to us first. Nothing like finding out after the fact that your child has been labeled "special needs."
--the summer after kindergarten, G once mentioned a time at school when the other kids were working on computers and she was watching. I asked if this was because there were not enough computers and so they were taking turns. She said, no, her teacher said she was too little. What the . . . ?! If she is old enough to be in kindergarten to begin with, then she should be helped and encouraged to do all the things the other kids are doing. I never got to ask about that one, since she told me way after school was over. Who knows, maybe there was a very innocent explanation--but even if she misunderstood the teacher and there was a different reason, she THOUGHT that was what happened, and that in itself matters. Let's send our young children messages that they are not good enough or as capable as the other kids! That's the way to get them excited about learning.
--and then just hanging out on the playground sometimes and listening to the older kids at play really made me pine for the innocence I knew my girls would lose so quickly in the public school environment. We do shelter them from some things, but also expose them to other things--we are not trying to blind them from the world, but actually give them a REAL perspective on the world. The words and ideas of the culture are not necessarily real, and there is so much bad stuff out there, how can we parent our kids well without addressing it? I do NOT think you have to homeschool to protect your kids, and also believe good, Christian kids are needed in the public schools to be "salt and light." But I think those kids will need a really strong home foundation of faith, and honestly, I don't think we are providing that yet. I am myself too weak and still learning so much spiritually and make too many mistakes--I do not trust myself to parent well enough to overcome the negative influences of the world they will get through public school.

SO, those are just a couple of reasons behind our choice. I think we can help our children grow and bloom as whole people better than the public school. I think our kids are smarter than the current system and deserve the opportunity to stretch as far as they can go. I remember being in public school my whole life and remember the good and the bad, and there was enough bad to inspire me to try something different with my kids. We are not planning on homeschooling through high school, but hopefully until middle school. High school can offer so many amazing chances for kids, through the sports and activities, etc.--I loved being so involved in h.s. and really found myself as a person through its challenges, so don't want to deny that to the kids. But this is all an organic, evolving thing, and we may change our minds at any time!

I am so glad to be doing this in such a homeschool supportive area, with such great resources, and with lots of wonderful moms to share it with!

Why we homeschool, Willow Lorenz

I actually never had any intention of homeschooling and sent Skye to school all the way to high school... But when i decided to teach Heaven preschool myself because i wanted her to be ready for Kindergarten i started to think about the idea. It seemed easy enough and we had so much fun but i also thought she was too social to want to be at home all the time. We did send her to kindergarten and she had a lovely year, i spent a lot of time there as a parent volunteer and was very happy with the teacher and Heaven loved it. One of the things i noticed though was that she already knew most of what they were learning and i worried that she would be held back from learning new things... So when she started 1st grade with enthusiasm and came home crying the first few days it seemed like an easy decision. She begged me to stay home and we started homeschooling. I really love the freedom that homeschooling gives us and i like that we can cover alot in a short time giving her time to be a kid! Its so fun to be creative and learn from life and find her interests and discover where they can lead. I was homeschooled through 10th grade and always thought that it was a great alternative for some families. I hope that i can continue to stay encouraged and faithful because i really do think that homeschooling is so healthy for our kids! Its challenging for me to keep her interested so i appreciate all of your ideas and input... I feel tempted sometimes to put her in school for my own selfish reasons but for now we are pressing on! It is really nice to see all of our kids interacting and hanging out so i hope that we can all continue to organize fun stuff to do together...

why we homeschool, by Ali McNabb

When we moved overseas, I knew in the back of my brain that "schooling" options would soon need to be evaluated as our girls became old enough to handle some focused time with books, and their attention spans matured. When we arrived in north-western China, Asia was 2 1/2, and Eden was only 8 months old. I figured I had lots of time! (I think I underestimated little ones' abilities!) On our 1st visit back to California, only 9 months later - I realized that I needed to research my options, and get a better awareness of what was "out there" for people like us. We aren't in a city that has an international school, nor anything else for English-speaking children. One option for our kids is the State-run Elementary schools in Chinese, which cost a monthly fee (and tend to be militant). The other option (which I was excited to discover) is homeschooling. In our quick 3-month stateside visit I met a bunch of parents who chose to home school their kids, and have done an excellent job!! They were so inspiring, positive and creative! I was deeply challenged to learn all that I could about this new sphere - and become an expert, for my kids' sake! It has been an exciting journey - and as of today, we are only 1 year in....with 15+ years to go!! Whoa! I don't have any experience with teaching, but I think we as parents are best equipped to love & teach our kids, guiding them in this education process. I am just a normal momma, wanting to instill solid foundations in my kids' hearts so they can soar and make right choices in a challenging world out there. I also love that we can expose them to all kinds of thinking, people & places of the world, and help them find what is True. I really hope & pray they will become bright beacons on the hill.

How did it all begin?

I thought I would kick off our little gathering today, and ask a question. How did you first decide that "Homeschooling" was right for your family? What factors went into your decision, and how to you "feel" about everything now? Or even simpler, Why do you homeschool? This can be as involved as you'd like. I'd just love to hear the fun processes you each took.

Create your own post, no comments to this one.
I will think about it too, and write soon.
Ali