Homeschool article on Etsy

(Click on the title of this post to see the article.)

For those of you who haven't heard of it, Etsy is "the place to buy and sell all things homemade." Very cool.

The story of my life

No, not mine...Helen Keller's...

I've been reading a book for an upcoming Multnomah County Library book discussion group, so I had to put down this one for a few weeks.

I'm now coming back to it (well, after I finish Tales of Beedle the Bard) and wanted to share a couple of quotes that I found interesting, from a homeschooling perspective.

In case you care, I'm quoting from The Restored Edition, ISBN 0679642870.

In order to understand how Helen Keller was able to articulate this insight at the age of eleven, how language became her mind's wings, we must look at Anne Sullivan's methods as a teacher, reminding ourselves that The Story of My Life is above all the story of a unique education. John Macy commented that Sullivan's method was both a "natural method" and "a deconstruction of method." By this he meant that Sullivan did not teach Keller language in a series of structured lessons, but rather she created for her--and immersed her in--a total environment of language. (xix)

I like this because it's kind of how we homeschool...total immersion in life.

It was my teacher's genius, her quick sympathy, her loving tact which made the first years of my education so beautiful. It was because she seized the right moment to impart knowledge that made it so pleasant and acceptable to me. She realized that a child's mind is like a shallow brook which ripples and dances merrily over the stony course of its education and reflects here a flower, there a bush, yonder a fleecy cloud; and should be fed by mountain streams and hidden springs, until it broadened out into a deep river, capable of reflecting in its placid surface, billowy hills, the luminous shadows of trees and the blue heavens, as well as the sweet face of a little flower.

Any teacher can take a child to the classroom, but not every teacher can make him learn. He will not work joyously unless he feels that liberty is his, whether he is busy or at rest; he must feel the flush of victory and the heart-sinking of disappointment before he takes with a will the tasks distasteful to him and resolves to dance his way bravely through a dull routine of textbooks. (33)

I like the ideas expressed here...that children can be exposed to a lot of things, and while we might not witness their learning right away, they're soaking it all in. I also like the idea that children need to feel empowered to learn on their own...that no one can make anyone learn anything. However, if we can provide the right materials/opportunities/things they need at the time they need them, our children can't help but learn.

But I soon discovered that college was not quite the romantic lyceum I had imagined. Many of the dreams that had delighted my young inexperience became beautifully less and "faced into the light of common day." Gradually I began to find that there were disadvantages in going to college.

The one I felt and still feel most is lack of time. I used to have time to think, to reflect, my mind and I. We would sit together of an evening and listen to the inner melodies of the spirit, where one hears only in leisure moments when the words of some loved poet touch a deep sweet chord to in the soul that until then has been silent. But in college there is no time to commune with one's thoughts. One goes to college, it seems, not to think. When one enters the portals of learning, one leaves the dearest pleasures--solitude, books and imagination--outside with the whispering pines. I suppose I ought to find some comfort in the thought that I am laying up treasures for future enjoyment, but I am improvident enough to prefer present joy to hoarding riches against a rainy day. (79)

I didn't necessarily feel this way at college, maybe because Cornell College uses the block plan, where you take one class at a time for 3.5 weeks then move on to another class, but I feel grateful that my kids have the luxury of time...with their thoughts, and to pursue their interests.

While my days at Radcliffe were still in the future, they were encircled with a halo of romance, which they have lost; but in the transition from romantic to actual I have learned many things I should never have known had I not tried the experiment. One of them is the precious science of patience, which teaches that we should take our education as we would take a walk in the country, leisurely, our minds hospitably open to impressions of every sort. Such knowledge floods the soul unseen with a soundless tidal wave of deepening thought. "Knowledge is power." Rather, knowledge is happiness because to have knowledge--broad, deep knowledge--is to know true ends from false, and lofty things from low. To know the thoughts and deeds that have marked man's progress is to feel the great heart-throbs of humanity through the centuries; and if one does not feel in these pulsations a heavenward striving, one must indeed be deaf to the harmonies of life. (83)

Knowledge is happiness. Yes!

I'm looking forward to getting back to this inspirational story.

The Bitter Homeschooler's Wish List

(Click on the title of this entry to view the list, from Secular Homeschooling Magazine) OK, so this is a little blunt. But dang it's funny. We don't get all of these questions, because Sabine's so young, but I've heard a lot of them...and would add a response to the question we have heard a lot, "So...just how long are you going to homeschool her?" I usually just say we're not worrying about later...just trying to enjoy it now...but I'm thinking there could be a better response. Suggestions?

Two of my favorites on the list are:

11. We didn't go through all the reading, learning, thinking, weighing of options, experimenting, and worrying that goes into homeschooling just to annoy you. Really. This was a deeply personal decision, tailored to the specifics of our family. Stop taking the bare fact of our being homeschoolers as either an affront or a judgment about your own educational decisions.

and

17. Stop saying, "Oh, I could never homeschool!" Even if you think it's some kind of compliment, it sounds more like you're horrified. One of these days, I won't bother disagreeing with you any more.

Read and enjoy!

Thrift Store Goodies

I found the following items (all for $5) at Forget Me Not today:

A 1968 dictionary which I plan on cutting up to make Artist Trading Cards.

A BUDDHA BOARD water painting slate (mainly for Sabine and Vivian, but it does have a message on it to "live in the moment" so maybe it's meant for me, too).

Giant pickup sticks (played several times today with Sabine, and she and Vivian made up their own game with them, surprised we still have 4 eyes between them).

Also, (not pictured) a groovy set of retro-colored measuring spoons. We do a lot of baking, and often the 2 sets we own are in the dishwasher when we need them.

Lest you worry that my house will fill up with such bargains, I also dropped off several bags to said thrift store earlier in the week. I figure it's like renting some cheap homeschooling fun.

The first day of (no) school

A special thanks to the support of all of our family and friends (especially Kristin, Allison and Nancy here in Jackson) who tell us that we're not crazy for wanting to spend more time with our kids.

For those of you wanting more info on homeschooling, here is a link to answers John Holt gave regarding common objections to homeschooling. Jan Hunt, creator of the Natural Child Project spoke at the LIFE is Good conference, and her book The Natural Child was one of the early influences on our parenting style.

An incomplete list of what Sabine, Vivian and I did today:
Read the Ladybug and Click magazines that arrived in the mail
Cut out the leaf matching game that was in Ladybug
Created a princess story book
Read a Find the Insect book
Went to the bank, Second Helpings and Forget me not -- got suckers, a battery operated pottery wheel (need to get batteries for it), a toy horse (Sabine), a Pooh stuffed animal (Vivian), and an electric ice cream maker (Carolyn), all for under $10
Sabine and Vivian helped me make meatloaf, then used the leftover parsley to make a special dessert (hmmmm...think I'll stick with the ice cream maker)
Sabine read the book Tickle Tickle by Helen Oxenbury to Vivian (multiple times)

All in all a great first day of no school.