Late but interested is better

Am I Common Core aligned? No, of course not.

Today, homeschool was informal. I let them watch Cars before school (I was having a slow morning), then we played with salt dough for while. After the movie we had a prayer, recited the Pledge of Allegiance and then we did some arithmetic problems in salt dough (no deep thinking, just the standard algorithm). After that we did a short reading lesson from a primer that is most definitely not Common Core aligned (long live the McGuffey Series and Mother Goose).

Now they are eating popcorn while I make pizza crust for tonight's dinner and do some cleaning.

I'm of the opinion that children should be pushed as far as they can go individually go academically, but until they are about eight years old, at least the better half of their academic day should be play time and personal interest.

Why blunt their brains by killing their curiosity in the name of education? No. Late with a strong desire to learn is better than early and disinterested.

Mother Goose. Not educational, possibly violent, not Common Core approved.

Should I Give Colin a Break?

lifted from this website

Now that the kids have settled down for a nap (I hope), I can ruminate on how the kids and I have been doing in homeschool this week.

Karyn loves going over shapes, numbers, and the alphabet. She has even asked me to teach her the letter sounds. I have no fears for her as far as pre-school education goes.

Colin is doing okay as a reader, in fact, far better than I would expect if I had decided he should go to public school. I should probably keep doing what I am doing with him as far as reading goes: flashcards, phonics instruction, and practice. I'm also starting to give more time and practice to lettering neatly and accurately, which Colin is enjoying. However, we seem to have hit a wall as far as progress in arithmetic goes.

I think he just needs a break. During math time, Colin has become so distracted, that he can not seem to focus. He understands the mechanics of single digit addition and subtraction, but his attention roams all over the place and it takes a long time to get even one problem done. However, when I proposed that we take a two week break from math (we've had school over the summer), he got angry. After twenty minutes and having only gotten through three of the ten math problems I assigned for the day, we were exhausted, and I very gently but firmly said we are going to take a break until Monday or Tuesday. Colin immediately dissolved into tears and cried, "I don't want to take a break from math! I don't wanna!"

If he wasn't so heartbroken I would have laughed out loud. I gave him a big, extra long hug, and told him we would still count by fives and tens, and that we would find some math games to play. That calmed him a little, but he still wasn't very happy.

I'm going to look around for some new ideas on practicing single digit addition and subtraction and decide whether we need some changes in the way we approach math. Next week we will come back to the subject fresh and rested... I hope.

Weekend Lesson Planning

I'm teaching Colin to add, just the x+1 family of math problems. Colin works best with a number line, so I am looking for a very good, proffesional looking number line that a kindergartener would like to use. However, Colin is very particular. This number line is not good enough:

lifted from Elizabeth Richards

He likes the above image because it has animals, but the number line is not "real" because it doesn't have arrows.

So far nearly every time I've drawn a number line, I've included arrows on the ends symbolizing infinity in either direction. It's an old habit from high school and college algebra. Now Colin won't accept any number line without arrows.

Here's the one he liked best that I found online:

lifted from Smart Exchange

Seriously. The absence of numbers does not matter to Colin. As long as it has points and arrows on both ends, he is very happy.

Who Controls the Children

Watch this video, or at least listen to it. If you love your children and have an interest in their education, morals, ability to acquire a job, you must see this video.

It's grainy, a bit low tech, and about one hour in length, you'll probably want some popcorn for a few minutes (after a few minutes you may not want it anymore because you may feel like throwing up).

The video is about federal educational standards and outcomes and it made my blood boil. It connects the dots about where American Education is going, why, and how THEY intend to make it happen.

You must watch this video, please.

Who Controls the Children

Uploaded on Jan 9, 2011

Charlotte Thomson Iserbyt was Former Senior Policy Advisor in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (OERI) in the US Department of Education under President Reagan. Due to her unique perspective she was able to observe firsthand the methods the Federal Government used to deliberately dumb down the American public education system with Soviet style "brainwashing".

Disgusted with the American Government's policy to use a behavior modification system designed to churn out unthinking, uncritical "citizens of the world" trained to accept socialism, Charlotte set out to wake up her fellow Americans.

This documentary is a MUST WATCH for any home-schooler, teacher, parent or anyone interested in methods of education or anyone wondering why we as a people seem to grow less intelligent and less able with each passing generation.

Teach Common Core! Says Korihor.

Inspired by Green Eggs and Ham, by Doctor Suess (which would probably be outlawed under Common Core standards for being too much fun).

"Teach Common Core!
Says Korihor"

That Korihor, that Korihor!
I do not trust that Korihor!

You must teach them Common Core!

I will not teach them, Common Core.
I will not teach that, Korihor.

You must teach them here, at school.

It will not teach it here, at school
I will not teach it. It's not cool.
I will not teach them Common Core,
I will not teach that, Korihor.

You must teach this in your home.
You must teach this as you're shown.

I will not teach that in my home.
I will not teach it as it's shown.
I will not teach it here, at school.
I will not teach it. It's not cool.
I will not teach them Common Core.
I will not teach that, Korihor.

But they must think within the box,
En-tre-pre-neur-ship is the pox!

"Within the box"?
This is a pox!
Not at home,
Not as I'm shown,
I will not teach it here, at school,
I will not teach it, It's not cool.
I will not teach them Common Core.
I will not teach that, Korihor!

They will, they must
Take this test.
Test them, test them!
S'for the best.

I will not
make them
take this test.

You must test them,
and we'll see,
We can make them
more like ME!

I would not, will not, test them, see.
This is not good! You let them be.

They must not learn "within your box".
Common Core, here, is a pox.
I will not teach this in my home.
I will not teach this as I'm shown.
I will not teach it here, at school.
I will not teach it, It's not cool.
I will not teach them Common Core.
I will not teach that, Korihor.

The Change! The Change!
The Change! The Change!
You must teach Man's Climate Change!

No Climate Change! No test, you see!
The test's no good. You let them be!

They must not learn "within the box"
Common Core, here, is a pox.
I will not that in my home.
I will not teach this as I'm shown.
I will not teach it, here at school.
I will not teach it. It's not cool.
I will not teach them Common Core.
I will not teach that, Korihor.

Hey,
It's the Law.
It's now the Law!
You must, you will, follow the Law.

It is not, can not be the Law.

You don't believe that it's the law?

You've circumvent the House and Senate,
Went around the parents' tenet
No proof it works. No peer review.
We can see what's taught ain't true!
Not in our homes! Not in our Schools!
Not as it's shown! We have some rules!
You can not break them, or you'll see,
Just how angry we can be!

You will not teach them Common Core?

I will not teach them Common Core!

You must, you will
Dumb them down.

I would not, will not
Dumb them down.

Now I know that you're a clown!

I would not, will not dumb them down.
I am a parent, not a clown.
I will not teach this, it's no law.
I will not teach this tripe at all.
Won't give the test! It's not the best!
You do not see! Now let them be!
They must not learn "within the box"
This Common Core, here, is a pox.
I will not teach this in my home.
I will not teach this as I'm shown.
I will not teach it here, at school.
I will not teach it. It's not cool!

I will not teach them Common Core!
I will not teach that, Korihor.

Will not teach it.
So you say.
Then we might take your kids away.
Teach them,
or you'll lose I say!

Say that again!

(Imagine something that would frighten a bureaucrat)

EEP!

Alright! Okay!
You may teach them your own way.
And I was wrong, you are no clown,
You do not need to dumb them down.
And if it's voted 'gainst the law
I must not bring it back at all.
So if you teach, and if you care
Common Core will not be there.

You may teach outside the box.
En-tre-pre-neur-ship is no pox
You may teach, as pleased, at home.
You don't have to teach as shown
It will not be taught here, at school.
If by laws it's not the rule.

Please go away now, Korihor.
And thanks for dropping Common Core.

I Am Homeschooling My Children

That's it! I've made up my mind, homeschool is in my children's best interest.

It's healthier:
I choose the meals, they can get as much sleep as they need, their exposure to pathogens is not as extensive, AND THEY CAN RUN OUTSIDE AND PLAY WHENEVER THEY NEED IT!!!!!

image lifted from a blog on wordpress

It's Academically Better:
As their instructor (and mom) I can ascertain their individual strengths and weaknesses and tailor the lesson plans to fit. They will not be held back by a one-size-fits-all approach. If they are strong and interested in math, I can give them more math and broaden their horizons by introducing related subjects. If one of them needs extra practice on grammar, we can slow down the pace on that subject.

It's Better For Social Skills:
It's seems counter intuitive that homeschoolers would have better social skills, but the freedom from desks and schedules give us a greater opportunity to meet other people and hold real conversations. My children will be required to use good manners, become skilled in speaking with adults and other age groups, learn to listen when others speak, and disagree respectfully when hearing an opposing viewpoint.

Supirior Academic Skills:
I do not actually have all day to stand and lecture, so they will need to become skilled researchers and students. After the basics in Reading, Writing, and Math, they will be primarily responsible to use the textbooks and do the learning for themselves. I'm there to check the work, offer guidance, and make sure their education is balanced; but ultimately success is their own doing (hmm, just like it was when their grandparents were in school).

Classics! Classics! Classics!
It is impossible to live with me and not be familiar with the King James Bible. They will be reading classic literature: Shakespeare, Dickens, Poe, Doyle, Hemingway, etc (I got stuck in an American Literature class for losers once in high school, and we never read anything above sixth grade level. I thought my brain would die and rot. There will be no such punishment for my children).

History. Real American History:
We will cover both the bad and (most especially) the good of the American experience, not just the "History of the Evil White Man".

Real Science:
I called a teacher out once for this is high school (he was cool about it and even gave me extra credit). Teaching and test questions that confuse the difference between theories and facts drove me crazy then, and it bothers me to this day. I have no problem with teaching a child about the Theory of Evolution, theory of the Alaskan Land Bridge, or the theory of manmade climate change (ha ha). As long as my children understand that these are theories and not established facts, and that there are other scientific explanations for life on Earth, how indigenous people and species arrived on the American continent, and what causes major climate changes and weather patterns.

Religion:
I full well intend to indoctrinate my children. It is my right and responsibility to transmit the values I love and live by to my children. No school can teach them faith, love, or honor; much less the Ten Commandments.

May my children become their best selves. May they grow to contribute to society in a positive way. May they love freedom and responsibility. May I stand before God at the last day, confident that I executed my duty to my children.

Slightly Grouchy Blog about Public Education

Colin is turning five this spring, which means I need to give some serious thought to his education. School seems like a good idea, and I know he would like to have more friends and playmates, not to mention the advantages I see to getting an exuberant young boy out of my hair for several hours a day; but I keep thinking back to some of my own problems I’ve had with the conventional schools.

In my own experience I’ve seen that we expect way too much of our public school teachers. How can they do any actual teaching when having to coach and police a large classroom full of students who either don’t want to be there, or have a rare student in the mix who is a spazz who should never have been mainstreamed? Combine that with pressure to meet standardized test expectations, monitoring for bullying activity, and conforming to the latest agendas in the educational bureaucracy. What a struggle teachers must have. Teaching a student is easy: no advanced degree or special training required. Teaching a classroom of bored or dysfunctional children in a high pressure social engineering experiment is impossible. No wonder American students seem to be falling behind.

Regarding school security and safety, I’m not overly concerned about it. It seems America is starting to pay attention to the tragic fact that hungry wolves kill and eat lambs and it’s best not to leave them unprotected. God be thanked that school shootings are rare; but what does concern me is that no one will address the problem directly to children. I was in high school during the Columbine shootings and subsequent paranoia. No one addressed the students about it or said anything reassuring. They just installed cheap security cameras and pretended to go about life as normal. Children need to be allowed to talk to the adults about these things and deserve to be reassured that the world is not spinning out of control.

My biggest problem with public education is the educational content. I’ve always hated it when scientific theories are taught as scientific fact. Once I took a test in American history. It was a list of true/false questions, and at the end there was a choice of one of three essay questions. One of the true/false questions went, “T / F: the Native Americans came to the Americas by a land bridge across the Bering Strait”. I had been drinking the Kool –aid all my life, but even I knew better that to answer that question the way the teacher expected me too. I answered that the statement was “T, according to the THEORY”, then ignored his choice of essay questions, and elaborated on the possibility of making the crossing via water craft. I also pointed out that by his own admission, there is zero evidence of crossing by land bridge as all such evidence, if any, would have been pulverized and destroyed by glacial activity… I got a very rare extra credit for that rebellious little essay and a commendation for actually thinking. Then I got reassigned to another class taught by a younger teacher. No one was happy about it.

 We learned a lot in school about civil rights and “The Evil White Man”, evolution as a scientific fact, the virtues of promiscuity and sexual obsession, and that firearms are dangerous, scary, and bad; but if you asked any of us at high school graduation about the Bay of Pigs, or to give an opinion on modern economics, or even how to balance a check book, you would have been unlikely to get more than a blank stare, much less an intelligent answer.

School was fun for me, but mostly a failure. I do much better on my own, and as much as I want Colin to have a school experience, I want more and better for him than what was given to me, even if I have to do it myself. He deserves to be free, he deserves to develop to his fullest intellectual potential, and he deserves to decide for himself what the truth is; and these are opportunities that the public school system cannot give him.

I’ve rambled a lot in this blog, but it’s fun. Maybe someone will disagree with me about my views on public education, I know my mom sometimes does and we still love each other.