More Beginnings

Well, today is the beginning of Fall. A new season - my favorite actually because of the colors and temperatures. For me that is all it is. A turn of the calendar, a change of season. But each new beginning, each change of season, makes me consider time and how precious it is.


I also took a step on what may be a new journey today. I sent in my resume for a job. A temporary, part-time ministry job. I don't know if I will be offered the position, but I felt God encouraging me to knock on the door. I am seeing it as part of the discernment process for my future work. With the homeschooling journey ending, I'll be starting something new this time next year. Hoping to figure out what it is. So I begin and try to trust God for the journey.

So, what's new with you?

Meme-ic Monday: The Library

It has been said -- I found it quoted in several places -- that the public library is the poor man's university. Perhaps it should be poor person's university. 

You can learn about literally anything at a good public library, and most libraries can borrow from other libraries, even university libraries, if they don't have information on what you are looking for themselves. 

Many libraries provide free internet access as well, opening a plethora of online courses and resources about just about anything. 

Libraries even offer classes themselves. J and I have learned how to write resumes and do well on job interviews, we've supplemented our geography and history knowledge at engaging lectures, met interesting people at reenactments, and tasted new foods at cooking demonstrations. J has also learned how to program 3D printables in tinkercad, how to solder, and how to code computer games. On top of learning how to find books and do basic research. All for free. All at local public libraries. 

And that's just a sample. 

Libraries aren't free of course. Our taxes pay for them. Which makes it all the better to use them well to support lifelong learning. 

They aren't quite free, but they are a blessing and a help. I thank God for them. 

So I encourage you to get to the library, support your library, enjoy your library.  It's yours, after all.

I mean, that's Albert Einstein up there in that meme. He was a smart dude. And he went to the library. 

I dedicate this post to the memory of my sister Pam, a dedicated library director, who passed away a few months ago. Her town was better for her educational leadership. We were all better for knowing her. Love you, Pam!

Craft Time: Giant Chess Board

I found myself needing a giant chess board.

I am the parent advisor/teacher for my son's chess club and we like to do dress up and have a live action game now and then. Last year we used painter's tape and a permanent black marker on a white plastic table cloth. It was a one time use solution and the squares were too small (1 foot).

Then my son started helping a family friend plan a Harry Potter party, based on the Sorcerer's Stone. They needed a giant chess board for one of the scenes.

I volunteered to make one. I wanted a reusable board that would stand up to child use and provide enough room for live action players to stand comfortably. I started by searching for used sheets via my friends, freecycle, etc. It didn't work out.

I ended up at the fabric store with a small budget. I discovered some heavy "eco felt" (made from recycled stuff) marked way down from it's usual price. Bingo!

 It was 72 inches wide and I bought 4 yards of black and 4 of white. My son and I cut out 64 eighteen inch squares (32 white, 32 black).

The next part was the most daunting part for me. Honestly, sewing 60 straight seams sounded tedious. Afriend volunteerd to help. (Thanks, L!!) Things are friendlier and quicker with two, and in one evening, fueled by chocolate mint fudge, we sewed 16 strips of four squares each, alternating black and white. We used 5/8 inch seams, but any seam size will do as long as it is consistent.

 

A few days later, I pressed the seams open so they wouldn't be bulky.

Then, I sewed four sets of four strips together with right sides together, being careful of the checkerboard pattern.  I ended up with four pieces of 16 squares each. Again, I used  5/8 inch seams.

 I had considered various options for connecting the four pieces. I thought of Velcro (too likely to gather dirt), zippers (expensive and time consuming at 6 ft each) and sewing. In the end, I borrowed a solution from a blogging buddy: Duct tape: (Check out: DIY Cheap and Chic Outdoor Area Rug). This solution allows for maintaining the board in four pieces which are easier to store than one whole and the pieces can be washed at home, rather than in the commercial size washers at the Laundromat.

To use this solution:

Put right sides of two pieces together, being careful to preserve the checkerboard pattern. Pin the seams together:

 For each square, stretch duct tape from seam to seam on one side.

 Lift and press the tape down on the other side, forming a seam. Remove pins.

 

Repeat this with the other two pieces, taking care that this new side matches the checkerboard on the other side.

 

Then, pin and duct tape the two sides together, being careful to remove the pins. You then have a ready to use chessboard:

 

We look forward to using our chessboard many times. I hope this is helpful if you ever need something similar.

What crafts have you made lately?

 

First six photos by J. Parry. Final Photo by J. Brown.

 

On Facebook

My son now has a Facebook account. We allowed it primarily so that he can have access to his photography group without going through my account and so that he can keep in touch with geographically distant relatives.

We are, however, limiting who he can friend. It's a very short list. Family and a few friends from church and CYC. That's it. Also, he does not have his password yet. He can only log on with a parent. He also has to be friends with his parents.

This isn't just -- or even primarily -- a concern over "safety" and "appropriateness." Those are factors. Jordan needs to learn how to deal with dangerous situations in all contexts, including online. It's also important for him to recognize when something isn't appropriate for him to see --whether it's just for now or ever -- and look away.

There's another aspect of social media that needs to be addressed and is probably the most important. My son needs to learn how to present himself online. Whether he is updating his own status, commenting on someone else's or sharing a link, he needs to think about how others will perceive it and if he's sending the message he intends. Is he coming across politely and respectfully? Is he being unintentionally hurtful? Could his phrasing be clearer?

Some of this will be learned by trial and error. That's part of the reason for starting with a small friends list. These are people who will "love him anyway" if he missteps. I will also be giving him some guidance in these early days so that he understands the why of certain things and doesn't go too far out of line.

That's not to say I'll be constantly looking over his shoulder. Unless he asks for my help with wording, private chats and messages will be for him and the recipient. Only if he gets a message from someone he doesn't know or one that makes him feel uncomfortable is he required to disclose it. It's the more public stuff I want to help him navigate.

I also want to ensure that he doesn't become either overwhelmed or "obsessed" with online stuff. I see that as a parent's role.

Gradually, we will release full responsibility for my son's online behavior and connections to him. Our hope is that this time of training will prepare him to make wise decisions.


What has been your experience with young teens online?




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Christian Youth Conference at Ocean Park (CYC) is a quality two week leadership development program for high school teens. Meeting for two weeks in August on the beautiful southern coast of Maine, it offers a blend of worship, Christian education and recreation. Check it out! 

Extreme Legos

Jordan went to a Lego event recently. He was given a base and told to build whatever he wanted on it. His "creation" would then be added to a map of the US. The organizers hoped to fill the whole map before the end of the weekend.

Jordan, in the midst of Iron Man fever (though he's never actually seen the movie) decided to build a tall version of Tony Stark's Malibu Mansion.

He was, as you can see in this clip very intent on his work. The staff asked him what his plan was and he said he wanted to build something tall. They  told him the limit was four feet. I don't know what he was originally thinking of as "tall," but he took that as a challenge. Four feet or bust. The staff got behind him, helping him find the pieces he needed and cheering him on.


He had to change his design a few times. because of the pieces that were available. He showed great flexibility. He added new ideas as went along. (Does Tony Stark play golf?)




It took over two hours (in the middle of the day on Friday -- yay, homeschooling!) but he did it.
Then he had a little celebration:

The staff asked him where on the map he wanted it. He said "California, of course. That's where Malibu is." So they put it there.

It was an adventure. It was fun to see so many people rooting for a kid and helping him to accomplish a goal. Children shouldn't expect to be the center of attention most of the time, but once in a while, it's probably good for them.

A final clip showing how he feels about his work. Quite proud of himself, really.

                                                     


When have you seen a child work at something?



Sorry about the orientation of the videos. I don't know how to rotate them. If you do please let me know!

Besides my son, I get to watch teens from the Christian Youth Conference at Ocean Park accomplish things all the time. Two weeks at the beach in August experiencing Christian community and learning leadership skills? What's not to love?

Challenging Youth

I took my son to a conference on global poverty today. There was an excellent program and I will share some of the solutions discussed in future blogs.

Today, I want to talk about challenging teens and respecting their intelligence. I know some people who do this very well. I also know that there are many groups, organizations and people who take the idea that adolescence should be a good time or a chance to blow off steam before the responsibilities of adulthood. I wonder, though, how well prepared such kids will be for those responsibilities.

My son was the only child at the conference. I took him as part of his schooling. He heard people talk about subsistence living, compassion, and the dream destroying effects of real poverty. He learned about biosand filters, medical missions, microfinance, farmers' cooperatives and how the Gospel of Jesus Christ has changed lives and communities in various contexts. He would have asked a question of one of the speakers but someone else asked that same question first. It was a good question. He made comments about some of the visuals.

My son seemed to grasp what was being discussed, except when the keynote speaker gave his talk. That man was discussing "fiscal restraint," "austerity measures," and "debt liquidation." Challenging concepts even for adults, especially those who haven't studied economic theory. Still, the boy listened, only fidgeting a little, and maybe learned something. At one point, I told him he could go hang around outside during the rest of the final speech. He chose to stay.

This was an adult conference and Jordan did fine. Much as the proud Momma in me wants to think that Jordan is exceptionally bright (he is rather smart) he really isn't all that unusual. Teens can handle a lot. They just need the opportunity and, like all of us, the encouragement not to be intellectually lazy.


A pastor I know has repeatedly stated, "Don't talk down to teens." In our homes, schools, communities and, perhaps especially, our churches we need to encourage kids to reach their full potential. In fact we need to push them. It's part of parenting and part of youth ministry.


That's my opinion any way. What's yours?






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The academic program at the Christian Youth Conference at Ocean Park has been raising the bar, working with the kids to give them a solid foundation in Biblical literacy, basic doctrine and church leadership skills. (We do throw in some fun during the two-week conference, too.) In August, on the beautiful southern coast of Maine. Check it out!

Mermaids and Babies

I run a creative writing club for homeschool kids and right now they are working on a set of shared world stories. My son decided to populate an underwater kingdom with good and evil mermaids.

He began with an illustration, drawing mermaids in traditional form with their chests  obsured by  long hair and their lower private parts replaced by tails.

This lead to an interesting question: How do mermaids reproduce?

My son pointed out that there are mermen but didn't think that really was a complete explanation, because of the tails. We discussed fish reproduction but didn't find that a satisfactory answer either. Merpeople have too many human characteristics.

So after debate and discussion, we concluded that these amazing legendary creatures reproduce by:

IMAGINATION.

If you have a better answer, please let me know. 

Have a blessed day!

Random Oddity

Just chalk this one up to random things that happen in homeschool settings. Or maybe it would happen in other settings, too.

We had a Valentine Dance last night. People dressed up. The lights were dim and there were battery operated candles, hearts on the walls, tables full of activities ("stack conversation hearts with chopsticks,"make a tissue paper flower) and snacks. Lights were projected on the ceiling

Girl's danced together at one end of the room. Boys swarmed all over the hall moving crazily to the music. For slow dances, mother's danced with sons or daughters, fathers danced with daughters, or siblings danced together. No kids have paired up yet.

So far normal for a family dance, yes? I think so, anyway. I haven't been to too many.

Then, two kids decided to lie down in the middle of the hall. A few more joined them. Then a few more. Soon all the kids and even some of the  Moms were stretched out on the floor in their finery. I would have joined, but for my crutches. They make it hard to get up.

I didn't really know what was going on, though. Well, I guess I did, I just didn't know why it was going on. At the end of the song, everyone got up at once. I asked my son what they had been doing. "Watching the stars on the ceiling. They move in a thirty second pattern." Oh. That makes sense. I had just never seen anything like it before. Not indoors at a dance.


How about you? Have you seen anything unusual lately?

Patience While Driving, Please

I used to teach cognitively impaired teenagers and young adults to cross the street. Well, I hope I taught them a lot of other things, too, but street-crossing was on the list.

We would venture out and learn this skill in the natural environment. Learn by doing. So, we crossed a lot of streets. At corners, at lights, in crosswalks.

Crosswalks could be an interesting experience, actually. At times a car would politely stop for us. My student, sometimes in leg braces or a wheelchair, would start confidently across.

And then a car would pull around and go past in front of them. Or maybe stop just short of the crosswalk. Apparently, they thought the car in front of them was stopped for no reason and they could just go. Or they were in a hurry and not thinking at all. Impatient, they just went.

This became my mantra: "Cars do not always do what they are supposed to do."

I used that mantra while teaching my son street safety as well. Recently, we had a demonstration.

We were coming out of the library. At the nearby crosswalk, an elderly couple was slowly crossing the street in front of a stopped car. The driver behind got impatient, failed to look, pulled out and hit the man sending him flying into the air.

At the sound of the woman's screams, my attention was called to the event, my old lifeguard training kicked in and I ran to the scene. I was beaten to the spot by an off-duty fire fighter who attended to the gentleman. I handled the onlookers, getting them to move away. The driver who had done the hitting remained on scene and the police spoke to him when they arrived. At that point, Jordan and I left.

But all the way home we talked about drivers that don't wait, cars that don't do what they are supposed to do.


Please, when you are driving out there, have patience. Remember that car in front of you is probably stopped for a reason. Be mindful of crosswalks and walk lights. Think how you'd feel if you hit someone.

Have you ever witnessed an accident or 
near accident caused by impatient driving?

Visit with the Aunties

Jordan's aunties from England are here for a visit.

They stayed with us a few days and then headed off into the city for sightseeing and shopping. Since Jordan doesn't get to see them very often, we went in to see them today. We had a walk around and ate lunch with them.

That meant, of course, that we didn't get much schooling done. We had also missed some last week as we visited and celebrated an early Christmas. So, we'll be doubling up over the next few days.

This time with David's sisters was important. Jordan learned a few things, too, about family history, how to handle his excema, how to navigate the transit system. This wasn't wasted time. 

Deciding what to put first each day is about priorities. last week extended family time took precedence. Starting tomorrow, school work and housework are highest on the list for a few days. Next week it might be something else. I am glad that homeschooling gives us this flexibility.

How do you set your priorities?

15 Minutes

We had a homeschool support group meeting the other night on the topic of "Keeping the Home in Homeschooling". We talked about building a family, maintaining a home and meeting your child's educational needs. It was an active discussion.

One thing that came up was The Fly Lady's idea that "You can do ANYTHING for 15 minutes." She encourages people to set a timer for 15 minutes and tackle a task.

With this in mind I am going to do two things every day for 15 minutes:

Clean my playroom

            This space is currently a disaster. I look at it and shut the door. No more. Everyday for 15
            minutes I will clean and organize it.


Knit

           This is not an onerous task. I quite enjoy it. But this baby is going to born and I want the blanket
          to be done without me pulling allnighters in April. So, I will find 15 minutes a day to knit.


Easy goals right?

Here's hoping I can be consistent!


What do you need to work on 15 minutes a day?

Khan Academy

My son very recently "enrolled" in Khan Academy.

We were aware of this resource before and used it from time to time, but now he has decided to sign up officially.

Here's what he says:

"It's Fun! It's Amazing! It's Educational! And you get to earn Badges!

I was even able to learn about Negative Exponents!"

Khan is a series of video lessons designed to help any child in the world obtain a free education. It is strongest in math and science, but some humanities courses are available and more classes are being added all the time.

What you do is watch a video and then practice. Practice exercises are provided for many topics. Hints and solutions are available if you get stuck. Students earn badges for proficiency and also for consistent work, persistence and perserverance. Parents and teachers, as well as students, can track progress quite easily.

Khan will not provide a complete education, but for now it will be excellent supplement to what we do at home. I recommend that homeschoolers check it out.

But there is more to it.  Khan Academy was founded by Salman Khan and is run by a small international team with the goal of providing a high quality education to just about everyone -- anyone who has access to an internet connected computer. It is a donor-supported nonprofit and all of it is free to users, so even kids in dire poverty have a chance to use it.

I think that is a great mission.


What educational resources have you found helpful lately?

Homeschooling

Why do we homeschool?

Everyone has their own reasons for making this choice. We've been chatting and here's our lists.


The children said:

You get to choose which topic you study when.

You get to go to school in your pajamas.

You can gear your education to what you want to do.

You can stay with friends anytime.

You can do lessons outside and include fun games.

You get to see your family a lot more.

It's topic -based instead of time-based so you can finish earlier

When you wake up in the morning, you can just walk downstairs. No getting ready for school.

One kid also wants me to say:
You might not have a lot of friends. Some friends aren't available.You are with the same small group of people all day.


The adults said:

Flexibility. You can travel, do things in the middle of the day, set your own schedule. The curriculum is also flexible. You can use whatever you want -- although, on the down side, it can be hard to find something you like.

Time with the kids -- you don't send them away from you every day.

It's a better education - some schools are great, there are many good teachers out there, but nothing beats one-on-one tutoring from someone who knows you well and always has your best interests in mind.

There are many more opportunities to share your faith and values.


That's why we homeschool in our little conglemeration.


Why did you make the educational choice you are working with?




This is my 23rd post for the October Ultimate Blog Challenge. Eight to go!

Bible, the BMX track and Physics...

I wasn't expecting to teach physics yesterday. Or this month for that matter.

But Jordan's Bible lesson yesterday morning including a definition of energy. It lead us into a discussion about potential and kinetic energy. Who knew that would happen?

Then, we decided to spend our physical education hour at the BMX bike track in town. Jordan decided to figure out how far he could go with out pedaling if he started on a downward slope. He then began pedaling different distances, stopping, and seeing how far he could coast. I pointed out that he was experimenting with potential and kinetic energy.

He snarled, but he got the idea.

So we got an extra lesson.

I love homeschooling for a million reasons, but one of them is this element of serendipity in learning. We have fun, we make connections, we grow -- often in unexpected ways.

What kind of serendipity have you found lately?

Explosions, fizzles and lab reports

So I am teaching chemistry this week to three children in my homeschool.

We've learned what happens when you wet a mixture of baking soda and citric acid. We've watched raisins dance in seltzer water. We've popped a cork off of a coke bottle. Of course, we had a few failed experiments, too. Actually, more than a few... The kids have done some independent experimenting, too. Or at least playing with the materials.

Oh, and we've learned to write lab reports and balance chemical equations.

Tomorrow, we do work sheets.

Well, when we are not blowing  up marshmallows, filtering food coloring out of water and separating salt from pepper after they are mixed together. (I'm a mean teacher, sometimes.)


I am hoping the kids more and more excited about science. I think one of them will actually pursue it as a career.

In the meantime...

First Day of School

Originally, I had planned to start school yesterday, the Wednesday after Labor Day, which is when I used to start school as a child and when our town opens the public schools. But, my husband teaches in a district that starts today, so Jordan convinced me to do the same.

So what do homeschoolers do on the first day of school? Approximately 1,972,433 different things. Actually, some of the 1,972,433 don't acknowledge a "first day of school". They just keep going with their usual activities, which include education.

I can tell you what we did at our house.....

Jordan knew I would wake him up at 7:15 for a 7:30 school start, so he got up at 6:00 to do his "own stuff" which included reading, drawing and a computer game.

We each did our own Bible lesson at 7:30 and then moved right on to our history reading.

After our breakfast break we rode our bikes down to the BMX track and Jordan took a few stabs at beating his fastest time.

Back at home we dissected a seed pod, studied a little French and learned about graphs in math.

We finished up at 10:30 and Jordan went into his self-directed educational hours. After a little baseball, he rode down to the library to make a bar graph related to his family tree and check his email. The email had some information that he added to the tree. Genealogy is his current special interest.

Next is lunch and chores and more self-directed educational time, followed by 4H.

Doesn't seem very exciting --- but it is :) I am very grateful for the freedom to follow our own schedule and interests and I love the extra time with my son.

How was your first day of school?

What I Came Home To........

So we went away to CYC for two weeks and came home to some interesting stuff....


An Exploded Garden...

When we left we had one struggling tomato plant with about six mini-tomatos, a few tall sunflowers that showed no sign of budding, some nasturtium plants that were all leaves and a few healthy green bean and herb plants.

Upon our return, our eyes widened. The garden looked like to had exploded. The tomato plant was now HUGE and had about 50 tomatos and many, many flowers. (A week later, the tomatos are starting to ripen.)

The sunflowers had shot up about 1 1/2 feet and there was an open flower. We headed back to OP for a wedding after a few days and we returned the next night from that trip there were six flowers open and several buds.

The nasturtium plants had more than a dozen flowers.

The green beans yielded a big harvest and the spices had gotten bigger.

Jordan wants to plant more and go away for two weeks again. But that isn't all we came home to. There was also

Notice of Jury Duty

The federal government wants me to serve. I have been called for state jury duty before, but never assigned a case. In the federal government's case, I will be "on-call" for 15 days. Since I homeschool, that means moving in with a friend for at least part of the time, so that Jordan will have supervision and education if I am unavailable.  But, hey, I like New Bedford...

As inconvenient as it may be, I am OK with serving the court system. It might even be interesting to get on a case as long as it isn't too extensive and doesn't deal with a horrible crime. We also came home to, well,

Home

You know, clean showers, a comfortable bed, private time with the family and ........

an intense longing to go back!!

There, that'll do. What did you come home to, after your vacation?

Jordan Off Adventuring

As I write this, the plane my son is on is landing in Orlando, Florida. He's off to DisneyWorld for a week.

Jordan is in the care of my siblings, his aunt and uncle, and accompanied by the twelve year old daughter of my sister's friend. He's in safe hands and he'll have a great time.

But it's always a challenge having him away. He's fairly practiced at it. He goes to camp for a week every year and he stayed with trusted friends for two weeks once while I was out of the country. Still this is another milestone. He has never flown without us and he's never been this far away from both of us. It's bittersweet. The fact that he wasn't nervous about the separation shows that he is growing up ... and toward that time when he will strike out on his own.

This is a practice session, in a way. I think it is good for him. This is one reason I am an advocate of camp for kids. It helps move them toward independence. Small steps lead to bigger steps and when it is time for them to leave the family circle, they are ready. Hopefully, so are we.

Christmas Ginberbread What?

We were cutting out gingerbread cookies yesterday. We made plenty of angels, reindeer, trees, people and camels. But we also cutters for other holidays, so Jordan decided to go with a Watership Down theme. We, therefore, have a whole warren of gingerbread rabbits.


A bit unusual for Christmas, I admit. But it does show that a really good story can stick with you. Jordan has been joyously busy getting ready for Christmas and is excited about his upcoming trip to Disney World. We finished reading and discussing Watership Down two weeks ago, but even given all that it is still on his mind.


Watership Down is about rabbits, but it's a real boys story. It has danger, fights, even war. Parts of it are downright brutal. It's full of examples of courage, leadership and self-sacrifice. Well - written, conversational in style and real, this is what Charlotte Mason would call a living book. No twaddle here.


I am happy to have gingerbread rabbits because it shows how deeply Jordan has connected to a good piece of literature.


Merry Christmas!

Education

"It is, in fact, nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry; for this delicate little plant, aside from stimulation, stands mostly in need of freedom. Without this, it goes to wreck and ruin without fail. It is a very grave mistake to think that the enjoyment of seeing and searching can be promoted by means of coercion and a sense of duty."

                                                                                ~Albert Einstein





All parents, with very few exceptions, want what is good for our children and we know them best. I firmly believe that God has placed each child with the parents who have the best potential to give them the environment and stimulation they need.

I am a homeschooling Mom. I am not an unschooler. I have been at this six years and am still finding my way, experimenting with styles, methods and curricula.

For some the best way to learn is school, for others it is not.

So, what do your children need? What works for them? What ideas do you have to share? How's it going?