PreK is a brand new thing. Kindergarten was new and voluntary when I was born (1979). The idea that humans can’t learn how to socialize without a school system that has only existed for ~100 yrs is absurd.
OpenEd
I haven’t finished the first episode, but I’m really excited about OpenEd.
It’s a newly-branded company aiming to provide individualized support for learners of all stripes.
Private School vs. Home School
Private schools are accredited by the same government that runs public schools.The rules and regulations are indistinguishable. If you look at John Taylor Gatto’s history of the American school system, you will see that all schools are training children to be factory workers. The only difference is that private schools produce more factory managers.
1. More Personalized Education: You can’t get more personalized than home education.
2. Better Grades: Grades do not exist in the real world. To acheive goals, individuals must learn what motivates them and how to motivate themselves.
3. Friends: Social opportunities abound with home education. Children get to build friendships with children and adults of all ages. In school, it is frowned upon to have a friend who is even a few months different in age if that child happens to be in a different grade.
Homeschoolers are more varied in interests than those in school. There is greater diversity of thought and belief than are allowed in school.
Mini Lego Festival
Our friends are First Lego League Champions and hosted an outreach festival with a contest, robot demonstrations, and free building.
Will Homeschool Kids Be Successful?
The “success” question is fear-based. Once you let go of ego-attachment to your child’s future, you can have a positive relationship with them in the present.
12 Years
“Do you know these kids?”
That question usually comes along with elevated noise levels and some brewing trouble.
This time it was to praise a group of young teens on their first public performance as a band.
This is a new phase of parenting.
Westen has always loved music. This picture was taken 12 years to the day of his first public performance.
Now he’s looking like a full blown rock star on the bass guitar
WORLD OF CHAOS
My son’s new band World of Chaos will debut at Rainbow Records tonight!
Westen been a stage hound since David Stradley asked for volunteer readers at a Delaware Shakespeare event on Market Street in Wilmington. He couldn’t read yet and Stradley had to feed him his line.
Westen actually made it onto a DelShakes stage in their production of The Merry Wives of Windsor and has acted in too many plays to name here (most for Pages Alive Theater).
He’s been learning guitar for a little while now and has had a crash course in bass to prepare for his musical debut.
If you’re local to Newark, Delaware, and want to support some awesome kids, we’d love to see you tonight!
Where I Find God
The first time I remember connecting with God was in the woods.
As a child, we had a trickle of a stream that ran along the back of our property and the spot was magical.
I could feel the whole Universe in those woods, like God was there in every leaf and breeze. Everything was in that one place.
I’ve had these moments throughout my life, but for a long time they were scattered over years.
Since finding Christ in my heart, quitting alcohol, and devoting myself to healing, I’ve found God present every day.
Even so, it’s not until I submerge myself in a quiet wood or float alone along a peaceful river, that I return to a feeling of oneness with Spirit.
Although my sons and their companions are a riotous bunch, a long tubing trip allowed me to break away and once again connect with God’s Creation. I’m not skilled at meditation, but it’s easier when magic is all around you.
More Lego
We’re getting ready to host an ocean-themed building event and I enjoyed yesterday’s set so much that I’m constructing a modified duplicate.
Do What You Can
My parents wanted to homeschool me 40 years ago, but circumstances prevented that path.
They always encouraged a
home learning environment that had little to do with school. My father, especially, put my education in my hands and taught me to question the arbitrary authority of the school system.
I didn’t learn about their homeschooling intentions until I announced that we were going to homeschool our sons. In their quiet, unschooling ways, they gave me the space to imagine a more free future for my children.
We don’t get to heal everything in one lifetime, but we do get to set the course for future healing.