tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39868133099112691852024-03-13T13:20:40.793-04:00Learning All The TimeWelcome to our unschooling blog. We hope you enjoy reading about our adventures without schooling!wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.comBlogger22125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-23257295406692270672011-07-19T21:34:00.000-04:002011-07-19T21:34:37.246-04:00June Nature Study: BirdsWe've finally made it back on the focused-nature-study bandwagon! Last month, we decided to head back over to one of our favorite homeschooling resources, the <a href="http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/">Handbook of Nature Study blog</a> to check out the June Outdoor Hour Challenge. We decided to focus on our own backyard and, while we can boast of many bird visitors, we have one bird in abundance: chickens!<br />
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We started off by observing our girls while they scratched around in the run. We took our colored pencils and sketchbooks with us and focused on their heads, tails and feet:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0jI-tYY8zSs/TiYum7U3Y1I/AAAAAAAAAQw/ZhnAJ5q-CZE/s1600/DSC_1540.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-0jI-tYY8zSs/TiYum7U3Y1I/AAAAAAAAAQw/ZhnAJ5q-CZE/s320/DSC_1540.jpg" width="272" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">In this one above, Syler was really intent on capturing all the intricate details of the comb, the waddle, the ears, and especially the four toes.</div><br />
<div style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7fLaBOPeGZQ/TiYurNE4ULI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/TJZVaCF3Xt0/s1600/DSC_1542.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-7fLaBOPeGZQ/TiYurNE4ULI/AAAAAAAAAQ4/TJZVaCF3Xt0/s320/DSC_1542.jpg" style="cursor: move;" width="293" /></a></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: left;">Violet sounded out the work "chicken" all on her own. I believe the second word is "beak."</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hINsbBkyNXU/TiYuqAko8ZI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/WPaH7lFLabQ/s1600/DSC_1541.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hINsbBkyNXU/TiYuqAko8ZI/AAAAAAAAAQ0/WPaH7lFLabQ/s320/DSC_1541.jpg" width="245" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div> The next day, we collected feathers from the run and labeled them. Sy was able to make out the quill, the fluff and the barb of a tail feather (above).<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ry7C6d5jxY/TiYusyff4HI/AAAAAAAAARA/DCPnpjDg7hc/s1600/DSC_1544.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3ry7C6d5jxY/TiYusyff4HI/AAAAAAAAARA/DCPnpjDg7hc/s320/DSC_1544.jpg" width="292" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Violet found a wing feather and was able to distinguish between the quill and the fluff.</div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-80668678079341756052011-03-08T20:45:00.000-05:002011-03-08T20:45:11.456-05:00Everglades National ParkWhat an exciting spring break trip we've had. In addition to collecting shells and building sand castles at Fort Myers Beach, we took an amazing trip into the <a href="http://www.nps.gov/ever/index.htm">Everglades National Park</a>. There, we took a ranger-led <a href="http://evergladesnationalparkboattoursgulfcoast.com/">boat tour</a> of the Ten-Thousand Islands, which was absolutely breathtaking. I, unfortunately, forgot my camera - big fail, since the kids were looking so adorable in their sunglasses and sunhats, writing furiously in their Junior Ranger Workbooks (so as to do enough prep work to be sworn in as Junior Rangers - more on that later!) We saw nesting terns, <a href="http://www.nps.gov/ever/naturescience/osprey.htm">ospreys</a>, gulls, pelicans, herons/egrets, ibis and, Syler's favorite by far, the infamous <a href="http://www.nps.gov/ever/naturescience/turkeyvulture.htm">turkey vultures</a>! We were even treated by three dolphins who decided to swim in front of, alongside and behind the boat - the kids were in absolute awe. <a href="http://www.nps.gov/ever/naturescience/birds.htm">Here's</a> some great info on all the bird species that you can see in the Everglades.<br />
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After the tour, we drove about a mile away to the <a href="http://www.nps.gov/bicy/index.htm">Big Cypress National Preserve</a> where we were in for a real treat: big black alligators gliding (and hiding, rather well-camoflaged) in the swamp waters! We got out for a closer look but were warned by a ranger at one of our stops that we needed to carry the kids, since some of the alligators had been recently (illegally) fed: hence their tendency to glide <i>toward</i> us rather than <i>away</i> from us. Scary, but totally cool.wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-27880146566360391522010-11-12T22:30:00.014-05:002010-11-13T20:54:50.933-05:00Hey Ducka Ducka!<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">While my kids may be avid readers, they are obsessive artists, and they don't need any coaxing to whip out the paper and pencils. Observational drawing, interpretive drawing, representational drawing - you name it, they're doing it. Here are some of their recent works:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">1. Rhyming and drawing: Violet is a huge fan of </span><a href="http://www.ayles.com/biography.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Jim Aylesworth</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, and we currently have his </span><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Cat-Fiddle-More-Jim-Aylesworth/dp/0689317158/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1289619650&sr=8-1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Cat and the Fiddle and More</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">checked out of the library.</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">One afternoon while Sy and I were out and about, she wrote her own rhyme:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hey Ducka Ducka</span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The rabbit drove a trucka,</span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The dog learned to jump real high,</span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The little pig laughed to see such sport</span></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And the spider ran away with the fly.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then she illustrated her rhyme:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN85GG-koJI/AAAAAAAAALw/W7931zJwhl8/s320/IMG_6634.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539208843804057746" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 289px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">2. Drawing what you hear: we always have music one for the kids (though you won't catch The Wiggles anywhere near our stereo) and one day Jason suggested to Sy that he draw everything he heard while listening to an album by Emeralds. After about 20 minutes, Sy showed him this:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN85Y7WS9jI/AAAAAAAAAL4/o1o7tpRYQVo/s320/IMG_6635.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539209167099852338" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 259px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Not only did he draw the drummer, keyboardist, violinist, guitarist and "the guy making that beeping sound," but he drew them from different positions (both side and front) - this was a first, and I was totally amazed!</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">3. Observational drawing: this is by far the hardest! How do you paint the "whippy parts of the wind" or the gases surrounding the planets? Here is Sy's pencil drawing of the Ring Nebula, which he drew while looking at a photo from one of his space books:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN87nY28m6I/AAAAAAAAAMI/XoI-DFb6qmM/s320/IMG_6611.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539211614562851746" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 302px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">4. Creative/improvisational drawing: these are my favorites. While some of them are representational, they aren't your run of the mill representations. Sy's clown is probably the easiest to "read" for the viewer:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN87oRohjRI/AAAAAAAAAMg/PQwd5NTDbNw/s320/IMG_6640.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539211629803179282" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 250px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In case you didn't notice, his hands are behind his back.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy's most recent "mass product" is the laptop, complete with "an ocean of letters":</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN89fB9DOLI/AAAAAAAAAMw/a1R9rghCYIY/s320/IMG_6644.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539213669998737586" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 310px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">But then there is Violet's lion:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN87nhRWNAI/AAAAAAAAAMQ/b-svUpheqpc/s320/IMG_6636.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539211616821064706" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 253px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy's crying monster:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN89fV9HKJI/AAAAAAAAAM4/1V9-JMHm3e4/s320/IMG_6639.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539213675367704722" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 262px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Violet's picture of "Mommy and Invisible Sy" (that's him on the right):</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN87n15RUMI/AAAAAAAAAMY/OPrDIpV_ea8/s320/IMG_6638.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539211622357225666" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 254px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And finally, Violet's "faces":</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TN87olgGPmI/AAAAAAAAAMo/Dw3IQWhvWDo/s320/IMG_6641.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5539211635136544354" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 245px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">I am pretty convinced at this point that she will either be a visual or a circus artist - this stuff really blows me away.</span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-13695134588163249292010-08-26T23:12:00.009-04:002010-08-27T21:38:08.381-04:00Cookies and Math<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/THczMIj2SUI/AAAAAAAAALg/GodN1FVCNIU/s1600/cookie_monster.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/THczMIj2SUI/AAAAAAAAALg/GodN1FVCNIU/s320/cookie_monster.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5509928952660379970" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Syler is multiplying and "squaring" (is this a verb?) It all started with addition a few months ago: 2 cookies and 2 more cookies are 4 cookies. Now he's multiplying by twos, threes, fours and fives: "Eight twos are 16, and two eights are 16!" he exclaims at lunch one day. I ask, "How much is six fours?" He counts fours with his hands (1, 2, 3,) "4," (5, 6, 7,) "8" . . . "24!" he says triumphantly. "And four sixes?" I ask with a raised eyebrow and cheshire grin. He tilts his head, raises both brows, reflecting my grin: "24! That's a fun trick!"</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">He has a plate of cookies in front of him (yes, he has already finished his vegetables!). I put them into a square. "Two cookies 'squared' is four. Three cookies 'squared' is nine. How many is four cookies 'squared'?" We pull out lots of cookies and make a nice 4x4 square. "16!" Two eights, eight twos, and four fours. Cool. Why bother with the times tables when you have a table full of cookies at your disposal? Math - yum! </span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-75376806672382084572010-06-21T21:47:00.008-04:002010-06-26T20:30:03.603-04:00Salamander Walk<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TCaZVVvSBII/AAAAAAAAAKg/uDEy-tHHn6E/s1600/IMG_6095.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 308px; height: 320px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TCaZVVvSBII/AAAAAAAAAKg/uDEy-tHHn6E/s320/IMG_6095.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487241787889288322" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />Our friend, Brad, took a group of us to Devil's Bathtub at Mendon Pond for a salamander walk a couple of weeks ago. Now is the time when salamanders emerge from a pond or other small body of water and crawl underneath a rock or log to begin their terrestrial life ("because it's moist under there and they won't drown from too much water, but they also won't dry up, because they need to be moist or damp on their skin," Sy explained to me afterwards).</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TCaZWsuKXGI/AAAAAAAAAK4/yv3oNFrrRRM/s320/IMG_6092.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487241811238476898" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 315px; " /></span></div><div><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salamander#Taxonomy"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Salamander"</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is actually the common name for over 500 species of amphibians. What we discovered the most of were efts, or immature/juvenile </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newt"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">newts</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. A newt is an aquatic salamander (most salamanders are terrestrial.)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TCaZV7dfRzI/AAAAAAAAAKo/hVCKtRiiGlQ/s320/IMG_6084.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487241798015207218" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">These efts will all become red-spotted newts upon maturity. The kids must have spent about 30 minutes splashing through a small pond just off of the trail, each time coming back with another eft. Some of them were quite protective of those they had found, insisting that they be put right back and not passed around too much, for fear they might not survive long away from the water.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/TCaZWcvWopI/AAAAAAAAAKw/hUK-oa9uDfQ/s320/IMG_6090.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5487241806948508306" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 238px; " /></span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-47884958013118714362010-04-20T19:54:00.022-04:002010-04-21T08:02:36.299-04:00Unschooling in the news<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">A recent post by one of my favorite unschooling bloggers, </span><a href="http://childplay.wordpress.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Child's Play</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, remarked on </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Good Morning America</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">'s recent </span><a href="http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Parenting/video/extreme-parenting-radical-unschooling-10413158?tab=9482931&section=1206835&playlist=1363742"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">segment on unschooling</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> in Massachusetts. I really appreciate her analysis of the interview, in which she addresses the overt bias and negative bent of the segment, the condescending position that "well-meaning" but "extreme" parents are allowing their children to "play hooky," and are unable to successfully put into practice a "utopian ideal." The graphics themselves suggest the unbelievability of the entire proposition: "Imagine no school: parents let kids go free" (gasp!) Some of the responses posted by readers address the positive aspects of unschooling that were edited out of the segment, and I would like to add some of my own thoughts to the discussion.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">First to the issue of discourse and investigative journalism. While some may disagree, </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Good Morning America</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is not "news." Rather, it is infotainment and, as such, says a good deal about the spectators who were so incensed at the thought of American children being educated not simply outside the confines of an institution, but, further, without the institutionalization of thought. While many of those viewers were dumbfounded (and I use this term with its valences of meaning) upon discovering that parents could sleep at night knowing their children were learning without textbooks and tests, what I find most troublesome is that those same viewers are able to sleep peacefully with the assurance that </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Good Morning America</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is providing them with a "complete" and "objective" representation of what unschooling is/could be. The overwhelming popular desire for soundbites and partial truths (as long as they can be crammed in between infomercials and celebrity gossip) underscores that public/formal education does not create critical consciousness. If that were the case, </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bill Moyers Journal</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> would not be running at 10:00pm on a Friday night, and George Stephanopoulos would be out of a job.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Besides the numerous problems that Child's Play raises in regard to the segment, I would like to consider a few more. Aside from Chang's incorrect use of scare quotes ("miss" and "regret" aren't multivalent here, only "normal" is -</span><a href="http://peck-creech-clan.blogspot.com/2010/04/musings-and-dialectics-1.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> Sy could have told her that</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">), she asserts that school offers kids options to explore things they might not otherwise experience citing examples of Phys Ed (basketball, volleyball, etc.) Regardless of the fact that schools are offering less and less in the way of non-academic experiences (some are getting rid of recess and phys ed altogether), she seems to suggest that these are not experiences one could have outside of formal schooling. Am I wrong, or did most of us spend our childhood free time, our time outside of school, playing those games? Is it the job of school to teach us how to play basketball? Can't we learn even that on our own? And, given that unschooling is all about free time (time to choose what we will do, how we will do it, and when), it seems that unschooling will clearly provide those opportunities in excess of what the institution of school could ever offer.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Another major problem with Chang's interview is her question regarding coercive parenting. "Isn't it the job of the parent to teach the child to do things they don't want to do?" she asks. While this mode of thinking about children reveals certain mainstream assumptions about children (they have to be forced to be good/helpful/studious/well-rounded, etc.; parents and children naturally have a contentious relationship; children must be controlled if they are to develop properly) and about the society in which we raise them ("democracy" is only possible in an authoritarian form), it does not reflect the ideals and goals of unschooling. We want to raise our children to take control of their learning, to think critically about their lives and the world around them. Teaching to the test does not accomplish this. Why do we assume that children will not make the "right" choices? Or better yet, what are the "right" choices? Do we want them to run on autopilot, filling out worksheets, memorizing facts they will then dump after the test, enrolling in courses at college because "it's what I've always done," because their "parents think it's a good idea," because they "don't know what else to do"? (Yes, spoken from the mouths of my freshmen advisees - they are 18 and still don't know what they want out of life.). Is it "right" for them to go to college if, after graduating, their career expectations are thwarted because of a failing economy that no one seems to know or understand how to fix?</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><div><div><div><div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">What does this fear of (not) learning without tests and textbooks say about our ideas of learning, our (lack of) respect for children's inherent desire to learn and their natural ability to do so? Aristotle said that all men, by nature, desire to know; that what we have to learn to do, we learn by doing. Are either of these assertions fulfilled via standardized testing and textbook learning? Many great thinkers and poets were wary of the institution of school because they saw that it went hand in hand with the institutionalization of thought (Mark Twain and Friedrich Nietzsche being only a couple who are famous for their scathing critiques). Perhaps our true fear is of a nation of critical thinkers - that would be a difficult citizenry to manage (again, no scare quotes here.)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><a href="http://peck-creech-clan.blogspot.com/2009/09/why-do-we-homeschool.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Elsewhere</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, I have discussed some of the reasons we have chosen against formal schooling. While I would not assert that our parenting could be defined as "radical unschooling" (we do place some limits on diet, access to commercial TV and other forms of media, bedtimes and hygiene), we are doing our best to facilitate our children's learning, rather than educate them, and we are attempting to do so with respect and without coercion in the form of punishments or rewards. We read a lot. We travel. We play sports. We hike and play in nature. We do research on the internet. We make art. We sing, dance and make music (including formal lessons and informal play). We snuggle. But I think the most important aspect of our unschooling journey is the respect we have for our children's right to make decisions and assert their agency. They don't *have* to read about this or that, just like they don't *have* to apologize (when they don't mean it!) or clean up the playroom (unless they've decided it's easier to play down there when they can find their stuff.) The result? They read a lot, and they read what they want. They argue, but they are kind and considerate of each other's feelings, often offering help and apologies without us hovering and enforcing "correct" manners. They question assertions; they see grey (as well as black and white); they wonder and consider and hypothesize. They act like human beings because we treat them as such.</span></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-36627186306540895072010-04-17T13:39:00.010-04:002010-04-17T20:00:04.185-04:00Ephemera (1)<i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Family room. Coffee started, not yet consumed. Children seek out objects to occupy their time. Mama arranges her reading spot on the couch. Oldest child approaches.</span></i><div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></i></div><div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy: </span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We have an office with scare quotes.</span></div><div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Mama:</span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No, Sy, we have an actual office - that's without scare quotes.</span></span></i></div><div><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy:</span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">No, me and Violet have an office with scare quotes! See what I mean?</span></span></span></i></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-21217468455456953712010-04-13T23:30:00.005-04:002010-04-13T23:44:30.124-04:00Think! Project: Cantilevers<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S8U5LN2aaKI/AAAAAAAAAKY/dMOTSujkOf8/s1600/IMG_6022.JPG"></a></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S8U5Knfaa_I/AAAAAAAAAKQ/8nrYzMlJBZw/s1600/IMG_6021.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S8U5Knfaa_I/AAAAAAAAAKQ/8nrYzMlJBZw/s320/IMG_6021.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459832977818807282" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We decided this past week to try our first </span><a href="http://kidswhothink.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">Think!</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> challenge. The wonderful thing about the Think! challenges is that mechanical engineering becomes a kind of everyday experience - who knew? Our first challenge: using only one roll of scotch tape and 100 straws, build the longest cantilever you can.</span></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We started by looking up </span><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantilever"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">cantilevers</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"> on wikipedia (I know, this is not the same as doing research with the card catalogue at the local library, but hear me out). After getting a basic definition of a cantilever - a beam supported on only one end - we then looked at and discussed photos of various types of cantilevers. Then we got out our blocks to try to imagine how to go about building ours. Finally, we counted out straws and got to work. Ours measures 54 inches. Pretty cool, eh?</span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S8U5LN2aaKI/AAAAAAAAAKY/dMOTSujkOf8/s320/IMG_6022.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5459832988115822754" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:medium;"><br /></span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-14064925310550170692010-03-14T15:12:00.024-04:002010-03-14T22:19:46.027-04:00Planting the seeds<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52RWmSE9VI/AAAAAAAAAIs/CWLB3VOcW4k/s1600-h/IMG_5849.jpg"></a></span></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504ZIMqKxI/AAAAAAAAAIk/yXhQP4QuHUc/s1600-h/IMG_5850.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504ZIMqKxI/AAAAAAAAAIk/yXhQP4QuHUc/s320/IMG_5850.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448573128536632082" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504WHexemI/AAAAAAAAAIE/k2PzaguyCdU/s1600-h/IMG_5857.JPG"></a></span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Well, it's that time of year again, when we </span></span><a href="http://www.seedsavers.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">order our seeds</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> (or pull some from last year's stash out of the fridge) and get to planting! Yes, our gardening adventures are getting underway, and we have already spent 2 weekends learning about and planting our seeds.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We started in mid-February with tomatoes (heirloom and </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Riesentraube</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> - giant cherries), carrots, eggplant, onions, broccoli, lettuce and some lovely annuals, giant zinnias and African Star of the Veld. We borrowed some grow lights (actually just full spectrum lights) from our friend Lily, brought up a storage shelf from the basement, and set to work. First, Sy and Vi sat down to make labels for the seed trays. </span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504WHexemI/AAAAAAAAAIE/k2PzaguyCdU/s320/IMG_5857.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448573076804565602" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504WWcDrRI/AAAAAAAAAIM/4NyclE1puCc/s320/IMG_5858.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448573080819707154" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S504XgG_dQI/AAAAAAAAAIU/_3aTj9OP2Yk/s320/IMG_5847.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448573100595574018" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52RWmSE9VI/AAAAAAAAAIs/CWLB3VOcW4k/s320/IMG_5849.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448670941607687506" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 181px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Then we added peat pellets to our trays and watched them "grow" with warm water. Once our trays were ready, we pulled out a packet of seeds, read about their origins, light preferences and growth tendencies, and took turns planting them. It was really cool to see how different each seed was.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52Y4ECvhKI/AAAAAAAAAJc/9wRPOzxpeC4/s320/IMG_5852.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448679213113509026" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52Y4Z4rPbI/AAAAAAAAAJk/kAN-_La8Lm4/s320/IMG_5855.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448679218976865714" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 186px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">At the beginning of March, we planted another round of seeds: pumpkin, chives, smaller zinnias, a new perennial - cupid's dart - as well as our herb staples - basil, rosemary and cilantro (we have so much thyme left over from last year, we decided not to plant anymore!) The pumpkins have really taken off and are already bigger than the Star of the Veld:</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52Tm_bdnsI/AAAAAAAAAI0/O77KCGKHljg/s320/IMG_5900.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448673422259101378" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 238px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">pumpkin</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52TnZfkyaI/AAAAAAAAAI8/HcEqanaJG-8/s320/IMG_5901.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448673429255670178" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 266px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Star of the Veld</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">By mid-March we already needed to do some transplanting, and it seems to have been successful: our tomatoes, broccoli and lettuce have all sprouted new leaves since transplanting. Next weekend we will be transplanting the rest of our seedlings into 2- or 4-inch pots. Our efforts have been very fruitful, indeed.</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52UIRcL0fI/AAAAAAAAAJM/XtZeFeKRxgI/s320/IMG_5899.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448673994029650418" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 252px; " /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">lettuce</span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S52UIJtPo9I/AAAAAAAAAJE/BrnlUl3EbpI/s320/IMG_5898.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5448673991953720274" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 292px; " /></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">tomatoes</span></span></div></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-78597304077192190432010-03-04T15:28:00.010-05:002010-03-04T20:11:01.173-05:00R is for Reading<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BXIacfN8I/AAAAAAAAAHs/xeZ9a1ZzAPQ/s1600-h/IMG_5810.JPG"></a></span><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BUvls5m0I/AAAAAAAAAHk/aKYDpxyBrms/s1600-h/IMG_5861.JPG"></a></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BUu2tT8HI/AAAAAAAAAHc/8jpBD0Ui58s/s1600-h/IMG_3692.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BUu2tT8HI/AAAAAAAAAHc/8jpBD0Ui58s/s320/IMG_3692.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444945113427210354" /></a><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BUud0kJLI/AAAAAAAAAHU/4kdqR3ypHqQ/s1600-h/IMG_5810.JPG"></a>As a homeschooler, I am constantly aware of what my kids "should" be learning, according to school-based requirements, according to my own experiences in school, and according to general social expectations. Reading is always on my mind, and can at times become a source of anxiety. While the days of Syler's infancy and early toddlerhood were filled with hours (literally) of reading, as our family grew each child became more interested in and able to accomplish other things. Some days are simply too full of these other things: hikes and nature play, soccer and gymnastics, piano lessons and music class, dress up and make believe play, painting and working with clay, and so on. Some days we only open one or two books. (gasp!) I say this jokingly, but as someone who reads for a living, it can be a source of guilt.</span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And while Syler was quite keen on doing his alphabet puzzles, tracing his letters and learning the sounds that accompany each, Violet is far from being a fan of phonics. However, one thing remains: they absolutely love to be read to. Picture books, chapter books, rhyming books, poetry, in English or German, each has them sitting and listening for as long as you, not they, have the patience.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BUvls5m0I/AAAAAAAAAHk/aKYDpxyBrms/s320/IMG_5861.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444945126041951042" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">And now, Sy is reading to us. Not just his </span><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bob-Books-Set-Beginning-Readers/dp/0439845009/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1267749007&sr=1-1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bob Books</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">but also </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Hop on Pop; Panda Bear, Panda Bear</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, and he reads to us from his </span><i><a href="http://www.nwf.org/ChildrensMagazineCenter/KidsPubs_Offer.aspx?campaignid=NS10AG9XXXTS46&s_src=GoogleAdWords_Toggle&s_subsrc=TOG_KidsPubs_Brand_Search_YourBigBackyard_Merkle1995&ssource=GoogleAdWords_Toggle&kw=TOG_KidsPubs_Brand_Search_YourBigBackyard_Merkle1995&gclid=CObR0r2toKACFUFM5QodMgNzbA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Your B</span></a></i><i><a href="http://www.nwf.org/ChildrensMagazineCenter/KidsPubs_Offer.aspx?campaignid=NS10AG9XXXTS46&s_src=GoogleAdWords_Toggle&s_subsrc=TOG_KidsPubs_Brand_Search_YourBigBackyard_Merkle1995&ssource=GoogleAdWords_Toggle&kw=TOG_KidsPubs_Brand_Search_YourBigBackyard_Merkle1995&gclid=CObR0r2toKACFUFM5QodMgNzbA"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">ig Backyard</span></a></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> issues! His voracious appetite for reading has even been encouraging Violet - not only does she sit down to read to her baby, Mickey, and to us, but she points out letters while driving along in the car and she's really become interested in how different letters have similar shapes.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S5BXIacfN8I/AAAAAAAAAHs/xeZ9a1ZzAPQ/s320/IMG_5810.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5444947751540307906" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 251px; " /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">In fact, my anxiety about their ability to learn to read is about as silly as anxiety about them learning to walk or talk. As <a href="http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/margaret_phinney.html">Margaret Phinney</a> has suggested, the only thing children need to become good readers is a reading-friendly environment that includes real books (not level-appropriate readers!), someone to read to them and with them, a risk-free environment to practice, and time. Oh, and the parents have to be reading, too. </span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-15013566818574229542010-02-28T22:03:00.001-05:002010-02-28T23:25:34.020-05:00winter wonderland<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4s-RFYDcpI/AAAAAAAAAG8/04VlEtQJuUQ/s1600-h/IMG_5866.JPG"></a></span><div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SGqfbj_lI/AAAAAAAAAGc/nfDI7ptxPMI/s1600-h/IMG_5727.JPG"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SGqfbj_lI/AAAAAAAAAGc/nfDI7ptxPMI/s320/IMG_5727.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441622314320133714" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 249px; " /></a><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SGCa6zGaI/AAAAAAAAAGU/Q3OEYYa8K2w/s1600-h/IMG_5866.JPG"></a></span><div style="text-align: left; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We have spent much of the winter playing hard. We begin each week with our Tracks & Trails group (formerly referred to as </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">waldschule, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">w</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: normal; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">e made the change because</span></span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> people had trouble pronouncing it). Regardless of the amount of snow on the ground, as long as it's 20 degrees or above, Monday finds us in the woods tracking animals, converting sticks into swords, climbing trees, comparing mosses, spotting cardinals and bluejays, listening for deer and other woodland creatures, climbing hills and using our bums as make-shift sleds. While we often don't make it very far into the trail - because we've discovered a magical shelter someone left behind, a giant log that resembles a dragon or simply because Violet is, yet again, demanding cheese - our time spent in the great outdoors is never wasted.</span></span></div><div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SHewnWM9I/AAAAAAAAAGs/1CLOy9NAVsA/s320/IMG_5732.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441623212286161874" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 293px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SG9SnyVtI/AAAAAAAAAGk/DXwSEk21kLY/s320/IMG_5722.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441622637299259090" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#0000EE;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4SHfc5iYBI/AAAAAAAAAG0/K9df_jTWS8w/s320/IMG_5764.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5441623224173617170" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Two weeks ago was the </span><a href="http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Great Backyard Bird Count</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, organized by the </span><a href="http://www.birds.cornell.edu/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Cornell Lab of Ornithology</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. In preparation, Syler pulled out our </span><i><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Birds-York-Field-Guide-Second/dp/1591931088/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1266809530&sr=1-1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Birds of New York Field Guide</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> </span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">and got to work looking up all the birds we typically see in our backyard during the winter. He then made a list of birds we were likely to (or really wished we would) see:</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4s-RFYDcpI/AAAAAAAAAG8/04VlEtQJuUQ/s320/IMG_5866.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443513037829141138" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">While we did not see a Bald Eagle or a Brown Thrasher, we did see a Hairy Woodpecker, several Bluejays, a Red-Bellied Woodpecker, Chickadees, Nuthatches, Tufted Titmice and several Cardinals. We then forgot to keep track of how many. Oh well.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">This past weekend was the weekend of winter bliss! Sledding, igloo building, and snow eating. Mmmm . . .</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4s_Y8zBYyI/AAAAAAAAAHE/v0zEylb64jg/s320/DSC_2863.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443514272476914466" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 206px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/S4s_ZUM_BMI/AAAAAAAAAHM/I5yw4CnlLQo/s320/DSC_2889.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5443514278759826626" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 215px; " /></span></div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "></span></div></div></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-21426451996424713772009-11-15T11:30:00.004-05:002009-11-15T14:51:31.231-05:00Why do we homeschool?<div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SwAqF58OalI/AAAAAAAAAF8/KxgaDsTowy8/s1600-h/IMG_5279.JPG"></a></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SwAqFiXqv1I/AAAAAAAAAF0/goTxpEhEAXs/s1600-h/IMG_5273.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SwAqFiXqv1I/AAAAAAAAAF0/goTxpEhEAXs/s320/IMG_5273.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404365827458383698" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy contemplates his homemade "light saber" complete with a fleet of flying "attack mice."</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SwAqF58OalI/AAAAAAAAAF8/KxgaDsTowy8/s320/IMG_5279.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5404365833785731666" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 240px; height: 320px; " /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Like so many other parents who homeschool, we are regularly beset with questions regarding our decisions to do so. And, while I often welcome the opportunity to explain to others the potential joys of keeping your kids at home and allowing them to "grow without schooling" (which is what they've been doing successfully so far), it is a near impossibility to explain this in the 10 minutes or less that most people expect. One of the unschooling blogs I've recently discovered has a very succinct </span><a href="http://unschoolgirls.blogspot.com/search?q=our+values+are+not+represented+within+the+public+school+system"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">answer</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to this question.</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Like this homeschooler and many others, there are hundreds of reasons why we choose to homeschool, and why we have decided to unschool in particular. Here are just a few of the reasons why we choose to homeschool:</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School is </span></span><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=KS0jIGX0sOEC&dq=john+taylor+gatto&printsec=frontcover&source=bl&ots=RVjB5ufcaE&sig=QN5U79efEA0SJETb7UFZHuAfdlM&hl=en#v=onepage&q=&f=false"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">authoritarian</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">: schools are designed "for the scientific management of a mass population. Schools are intended to produce . . . human beings whose behavior can be predicted and controlled" (Gatto </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Dumbing Us Down </span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">23); in school, children are discouraged from questioning adults and school rules, and are often </span></span><a href="http://www.alternet.org/rights/142652/a_recipe_for_disaster:_school_cops_are_being_armed_with_50,000-volt_tasers/?page=2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">punished</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> when they don't obey.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School is contrived: learning takes place away from the real world, and children often have difficulty making connections between what they learn in school and how that knowledge can be practically applied in the world around them (my own experience with math attests to this).</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School segregates: children are grouped by age; class and race divisions in the community often determine that most schools are homogenous, rather than heterogenous; and adults are present as authority figures, not as friends or allies. Thus, children's socialization is artificially homogenous in comparison to the diversity of ages, classes and races they will come into contact with upon leaving school.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School does not provide children with healthy lifestyle options: children (even </span><a href="http://www.allianceforchildhood.org/sites/allianceforchildhood.org/files/file/kindergarten_report.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Kindergarteners</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">!) are tied to their desks for many hours per day, </span><a href="http://school.familyeducation.com/educational-innovation/growth-and-development/38674.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">recess</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and physical education are being reduced and in some cases eradicated all together, </span><a href="http://www.cspinet.org/2007schoolreport.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">school food</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> is over processed, fatty, loaded with sugar and has little </span><a href="http://www.cspinet.org/new/pdf/school_nutrition_standards_fact_sheet_2009.pdf"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">nutritional value</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School encourages </span></span><a href="http://www.commercialfreechildhood.org/issues/inschools.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">consumerism</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">: in addition to the fast food options available at lunch, children are the targets of marketing everywhere in their schools, from the vending machines, to the curriculum materials, to the advertising on their sports equipment, to </span><a href="http://www.commercialfreechildhood.org/actions/busradio.htm?v=FuEPsgZxc08&eurl=http://commercialfreechildhood.org/actions/busradio.htm&feature=player_embedded"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">bus radio</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School is </span><a href="http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/grace_llewellyn.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">not for </span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><a href="http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/grace_llewellyn.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">learning</span></a></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">: children are </span></span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">forced</span></span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> to read and perform according to a uniform curriculum - they have no voice in curricular choices; their intellect is not respected nor is it encouraged; their love of learning is strangled and "learning" (facts, dates, correct answers for standardized tests) becomes work; they focus on </span></span><a href="http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/ggg.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">extrinsic rewards</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, which inhibits learning and makes what they have learned difficult to translate into practical situations.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School teaches </span></span><a href="http://www.alfiekohn.org/teaching/compinCL.htm"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">competition</span></span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, rather than collaboration: "</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Researchers have found that competitive structures reduce generosity, empathy, sensitivity to others' needs, accuracy of communication, and trust" (Kohn "Is Competition Ever Appropriate"); this seems contrary to their development as caring, helpful and sensitive family members, neighbors and citizens.</span></span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: collapse; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School encourages the </span><a href="http://www.naturalchild.org/jan_hunt/learning_disorder.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">pseudo-diagnosis</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> of </span><a href="http://www.naturalchild.org/guest/john_breeding.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">attention disorders</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and the </span><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/medicatedchild/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">overmedication</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> of children: forcing children to conform to the </span><a href="http://www.hpakids.org/holistic-health/articles/195/1/Attention-Problems-in-Children"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">unnatural</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> context of school (sitting still for long periods of time, forcing direct attention) and neglecting their inquisitive, explorative, demonstrative natures.</span></span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">School teaches patriotism (read "nationalism"), rather than </span><a href="http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=957688"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">civics</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">: if a thriving democracy depends on it citizens to be critical thinkers, who understand the necessity of questioning, critiquing and, when necessary, actively seeking change, then patriotism is a thorn in the side of democracy.</span></span></li></ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">These are some of the many reasons why we have chosen to grow without schooling. Next up: why we think "unschooing" is for us.</span></div></div></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-37174750002381435262009-09-15T11:44:00.004-04:002009-09-15T11:53:13.655-04:00Storytelling<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Sq-4GuOv9yI/AAAAAAAAAFs/K3MRxBWfPFk/s1600-h/theseventreefolk.jpeg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 150px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Sq-4GuOv9yI/AAAAAAAAAFs/K3MRxBWfPFk/s320/theseventreefolk.jpeg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5381722505359652642" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We just discovered a wonderful new resource online thanks to one of our unschooling friends: </span><a href="http://storybird.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Storybird</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">! It is a free resource for creating stories to share online. The artwork is inspiring, and you can collaborate with others in writing your story. Sy has chosen to start with the artwork of </span><a href="http://storybird.com/victoriausova/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Victoria Usova</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, who states that her inspiration is a mixture of Rublev, Chagall, Hokusai, and Dr. Seuss. Be sure to check it out! Sy's first storybird begins, "the trees have faces. happy, princess faces." We'll let you know when the tale is all told! </span>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-27558042931062962582009-08-13T22:42:00.016-04:002009-08-14T20:59:54.997-04:00Busy Bees<div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Well, this has been a rather busy summer for the Peck-Creech clan.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy has almost finished the first Suzuki book, and has now begun improvising with left hand chords and right hand virtuosity. He gives us regular concerts. This involves zero negotiation, since he sees this as a joyful act in and of itself. </span><a href="http://www.alfiekohn.org/index.html"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Alfie Kohn</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> would be proud.<br /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Violet is learning how to use the potty all on her own, without the "help" (or hindrance, shall we say) of the infamous (and ineffective, perhaps even traumatizing) </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Potty-Train-Your-Child-Just/dp/0743273133/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250218004&sr=1-2"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">potty party</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> touted by some as "effective" and "enjoyable" (yeah, right.) Okay, so maybe we are clapping and singing her praises, but there is no chocolate or threat involved, so I think we're on the right track.<br /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYGyyfrKqI/AAAAAAAAAFk/ZcRpBTE5Ahk/s320/IMG_5253.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369987075303746210" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 203px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We are watching our garden grow (and get rather weedy). The kids can identify all of the mints, the zinnias and bee balm, and enjoy walking on the cushy irish sagina moss around the wigwam.<br /><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We have spotted a hummingbird at the bee balm, and have discovered lots of wildlife in the backyard: besides the usual suspects (caterpillars, toads, rabbits, deer) we have a large family of wild turkeys that walk through a couple of times per day, browsing in the butterfly garden. Our woodchucks have disappeared - I imagine they have found other foraging spots, but we certainly miss them.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoTXVlT2yRI/AAAAAAAAAE0/vKBcD-0QNBw/s320/IMG_5016.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369653421525092626" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 184px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The </span><i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Waldschule</span></i><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> has taken off! Our first trip was to </span><a href="http://www.monroecounty.gov/parks-mendonponds.php"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Mendon Ponds Park</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> with the </span><a href="http://rochesterbutterflyclub.org/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Rochester Butterfly Club</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. There we were introduced to a variety of caterpillars, including that of the Cecropia Moth (beware of hairy and colorful caterpillars - they can be aggressive!)</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDDCg6b5I/AAAAAAAAAFU/EByn-OR2co0/s1600-h/IMG_5187.JPG"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDDCg6b5I/AAAAAAAAAFU/EByn-OR2co0/s320/IMG_5187.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369982956435304338" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 210px; " /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">W</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">e also saw a crysalis up close</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDDmSop7I/AAAAAAAAAFc/OiCycVeb6bM/s1600-h/IMG_5192.JPG"><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDDmSop7I/AAAAAAAAAFc/OiCycVeb6bM/s320/IMG_5192.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369982966039095218" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 237px; " /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> spotted a Common Wood Nymph</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoTWAR5GCxI/AAAAAAAAAEc/5EStenzMWyI/s320/common_wood_nymph_med.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369651956023692050" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 256px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">a White Admiral</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoTWA9j_LbI/AAAAAAAAAEk/RYuEgf7sKnU/s320/white-admiral-butterfly.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369651967746321842" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">and a Cicada Killer (including two flying through the air, bum-to-bum, in a mating dance!)<br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: underline; "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoTWB8RjklI/AAAAAAAAAEs/Ze5QCd0HS3A/s320/cicada_killer_03_med.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369651984580448850" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We ended the afternoon with a lovely picnic while the kids frolicked under the trees and transformed into birds of prey.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDBixxDsI/AAAAAAAAAE8/ueOQ2nxIT_o/s1600-h/IMG_5211.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDBixxDsI/AAAAAAAAAE8/ueOQ2nxIT_o/s320/IMG_5211.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369982930736189122" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 311px; " /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDCq8KW1I/AAAAAAAAAFM/oaM5ii2URLU/s1600-h/IMG_5215.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDCq8KW1I/AAAAAAAAAFM/oaM5ii2URLU/s320/IMG_5215.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369982950107142994" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 246px; " /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDCGr0_UI/AAAAAAAAAFE/x3ZKaB0nu60/s1600-h/IMG_5214.JPG"><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SoYDCGr0_UI/AAAAAAAAAFE/x3ZKaB0nu60/s320/IMG_5214.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5369982940374957378" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 188px; " /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><span class="Apple-style-span"></span></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Sy has started reading the </span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Bob-Books-Set-Beginning-Readers/dp/0439845009/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1250219094&sr=1-1"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bob Books First! </span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">series and thinks they're pretty cool. He has read almost all of the first book in the first series. It has also been the summer of the fairy tale, and we have been reading our favorite Grimm and Andersen tales all summer (only the Svend S. Otto and Lisbeth Zwerger versions, of course, since we adore the illustrations!) and listening to a few on LP. Violet continues to ignore her ABCs and give all the wrong answers when you ask "what color is this?" I think she's figured out that she's "supposed" to know and is just pulling one over on us.</span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-65211259868332468102009-07-25T20:35:00.002-04:002009-07-25T20:49:13.697-04:00Death of the Dinosaurs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Smun4AhxRGI/AAAAAAAAADw/j1uUo6IdYE0/s1600-h/kronosaurus.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 214px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Smun4AhxRGI/AAAAAAAAADw/j1uUo6IdYE0/s320/kronosaurus.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5362564361970861154" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Syler's </span><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HvM1SuUZ5Do"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">dramatic re-enactment</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> of the death of the dinosaurs, with a special epilogue on Kronosaurus.</span>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-69893458707563634312009-06-25T23:07:00.007-04:002009-06-26T21:49:54.591-04:00Outdoor Hour Challenge #1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SkV5qIujdyI/AAAAAAAAADo/IzM9U6b5ytQ/s1600-h/IMG_4960.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 276px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SkV5qIujdyI/AAAAAAAAADo/IzM9U6b5ytQ/s320/IMG_4960.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351817497003915042" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br />So we've decided to participate in the "Outdoor Hour Challenge" posted weekly at the </span><a href="http://handbookofnaturestudy.blogspot.com/"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Handbook of Nature Study blog</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">. A friend in our 0-5ish Playgroup, Del, put us on to the blog, and the amazing book it uses as its "textbook," t</span><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Handbook-Nature-Study-Botsford-Comstock/dp/0801493846"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">he Handbook of Nature Study</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, by Anna Botsford Comstock. It's a wonderful way for us to be a bit more schematic with our nature study, even though we're outdoors almost every day and the kids seem to need little motivation. However, the first challenge asked us to read the first 8 pages of the Comstock text, go outside and explore, and then discuss what we observed. Here's what we did:</span><div><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">While gardening/weeding, the kids discovered some snails, tent caterpillars and various bugs living in and around the rotting stump of a dead tree. We watched them, picked some up, and talked about what we saw.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The next day, I made two terraria (glass jar, moist soil, leaves, cheesecloth and rubber band) and sent the kids out to find a garden snail; I had already found a tent caterpillar that morning while filling up the bird feeder.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">After the kids collected a snail, I we put the snail and caterpillar into two different terraria and started watching our new "pets."</span></li></ul><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SkV5pyPLInI/AAAAAAAAADg/4d9EXtuviQM/s320/IMG_4962.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351817490966717042" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 224px; " /></span><ul><li><span style=""><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We watched the tent caterpillar explore the terrarium, climbing on leaves and wall; I pulled out the Comstock and read to them about the different body parts and Sy identified his head, thorax and abdomen, counted his legs (3 pairs of “true legs,” 4 pairs of “prolegs,” 1 “propleg,” called the "anal proleg" below), observed his head w/mouth, watched him eat some of the leaf, observed his movement, and identified his coloring (black with red spots) and his hair. We looked for his spiracles (holes on the side of the body for breathing), but we couldn't find them.</span></span></li></ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SkQ_bFFj5dI/AAAAAAAAADQ/jR66v-n4mZA/s320/caterpillar_anatomy.gif" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351471991677511122" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 176px; " /></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The snail soon dove down into the soil and didn't emerge for a couple of days, despite the fact that we've given him a nice chunk of sweet apple to nosh on. </span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">After adding a bit more water to his terrarium, he resurfaced and we were able to check out his really long eye stalks, his feeler stalks, and look at his striped shell.</span></li></ul><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SkV5pTUUJ3I/AAAAAAAAADY/e_B6WDtXp9g/s320/IMG_4958.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5351817482666780530" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-59329913040023338342009-06-20T12:30:00.003-04:002009-06-21T15:28:00.945-04:00Free, Conscious Activity<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Sj6JoWOznlI/AAAAAAAAADI/15YhZVS_M84/s1600-h/IMG_4760.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 240px; height: 320px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Sj6JoWOznlI/AAAAAAAAADI/15YhZVS_M84/s320/IMG_4760.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5349864733618183762" /></a><br /><span class="Apple-style-span" style="line-height: 17px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"When productive work is suffused with the qualities of play--that is, with freedom, creativity, and imagination--we experience that work as play . . . In our culture today, those people who have the most freedom of choice and opportunity for creativity within their work are most likely to say they enjoy their work and regard it as play" (Peter Gray, </span></span><a href="http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200906/play-makes-us-human-i-outline-ludic-theory-human-nature"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Play Makes Us Human I"</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">).</span></span><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">"Labor [is] life-activity, productive life itself . . . the productive life is the life of the species. It is life-engendering life. The whole character of a species - its species character - is contained in the character of its life activity; and free conscious activity is man's species character" (Karl Marx, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts of 1844</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, The Marx-Engels Reader, ed. Robert C. Tucker, 75-76).</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">These two quotes have given me a bit to think about. As homeschooling parents, we are constantly searching for ways to engage our children's desire to productively play, to learn with freedom and imagination, without squashing that desire through any preconceived notions of intellectual or academic progress, the pitfalls of rewards and punishments, or pressure from outside to "prove" they will be intelligent, well-rounded kids as a result of their not being schooled with others. I have to also consistently remind myself that play is necessary, psychologically, socially, humanly, and that the institutions we regularly engage often are not of the same opinion.</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">While I find the above quotes to be similarly enlightening, I often wonder why play and "free conscious activity" are thwarted so early on in children's lives. And yet, in the process of watching David Simon's HBO series, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Wire</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, in reading Linn's </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The Case for Make Believe</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, Louv's </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Last Child in the Woods</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> and now John Taylor Gatto's </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Dumbing Us Down</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, I have to admit that I don't wonder why, rather I know why. The institutions we must engage cannot be disentangled from the global system for which they were designed, and a system that stands in clear opposition to "free conscious activity."</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">As homeschooling parents, we are able to make a small difference in our children's lives by extending the length of time they can resist these oppressive modes of thought, their estrangement from what Marx has called their "species being." In enabling their "free, conscious activity," we are hopefully giving them more time to understand that being before having to confront the myriad institutional obstacles to "life-engendering life."</span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" line-height: 17px;font-size:13px;"><br /></span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-84052167115543466812009-06-08T19:33:00.004-04:002009-06-08T19:56:28.014-04:00Bugs, slugs and caterpillars<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Si2iubQbf1I/AAAAAAAAADA/K19Ap7nWu-Q/s1600-h/toad.jpg"></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">We spent the early morning observing bugs in the backyard. We discovered a tent caterpillar on the slide . . .<br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Si2iuB_NoII/AAAAAAAAACw/kG6T3Y3JcgE/s320/tentcaterpillar.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345107244449898626" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 286px; height: 175px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">a snail on the deck . . .</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Si2iuA4WYdI/AAAAAAAAAC4/vlxO-ix5WQ8/s320/snail-2.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345107244152676818" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">and a small toad on the patio.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/Si2iubQbf1I/AAAAAAAAADA/K19Ap7nWu-Q/s320/toad.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5345107251232997202" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 239px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238);"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size:small;">I just started Richard Louv's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;">Last Child in the Woods. </span>I'm glad the woods are in our backyard.</span></div></span>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-90065059402714734932009-06-07T14:06:00.000-04:002009-06-07T15:01:17.056-04:00An unschooling summer 1<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwK2boX0BI/AAAAAAAAACo/eyPPeb8uSOs/s1600-h/IMG_4761.JPG"></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwDAPFfPUI/AAAAAAAAACA/6mEuqjZQsZU/s1600-h/IMG_4672.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 315px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwDAPFfPUI/AAAAAAAAACA/6mEuqjZQsZU/s320/IMG_4672.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344650160366370114" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Having some unstructured play in the sand - a perfect beginning to the summer! <br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwC_xxodVI/AAAAAAAAAB4/D5aT7UYOsK0/s1600-h/IMG_4683.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 210px; height: 320px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwC_xxodVI/AAAAAAAAAB4/D5aT7UYOsK0/s320/IMG_4683.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344650152498459986" /></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">With the semester finally over, we have been enjoying the summer and our unfettered time with the kids. In addition to the usual dinosaur books, we've been reading lots of fairy tales by Hans Christian Andersen and the Grimm brothers (Syler's favorite: </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Rotkäppchen</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> - he's quite enamored of the wolf dressing up like grandma and devouring the heroine; Violet's favorite: </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Die Bremer Stadtmusikanten</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">, which Uncle JD has expanded upon by gifting us the Lithuanian DVD of the Russian production from 1968, </span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.videoline.lt/_img_catalog/1/5/529_csm.jpg"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Bremeno Muzikantai/bremenskii musikanti</span></a><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> -</span></span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"> full of late 60s psychodelia, which the kids are loving.) The kids are busy playing in the backyard, making music, learning baseball basics, and digging in the dirt, while I'm delving into some pleasure reading venturing into more blogging time. Jason is still the domestic god, whipping up delicious dinners, mowing the lawn, and keeping the kids' creative juices flowing.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">The kids have really gotten into observational and creative drawing, in the driveway, after hikes and on chilly days.</span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwIGob7CcI/AAAAAAAAACY/xsh1OVhm_9Q/s320/IMG_4747.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344655767808707010" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Driveway art</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238);"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwJVr1USII/AAAAAAAAACg/Pw8SFgtGjoA/s320/IMG_4748.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344657125930190978" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 260px; height: 320px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwIGHeNSgI/AAAAAAAAACI/Fie61qV-DRQ/s320/IMG_4739.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344655758959921666" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">Pine cones found along the trail.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwIGQSrIDI/AAAAAAAAACQ/BWYkCmIkfWc/s320/IMG_4744.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344655761327464498" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">We've also discovered the joy of Ed Emberley's drawing books . . .</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 48px;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color: rgb(0, 0, 238); font-size: 16px; "><img src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SiwK2boX0BI/AAAAAAAAACo/eyPPeb8uSOs/s320/IMG_4761.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344658788028239890" style="display: block; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: auto; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: auto; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " /></span></span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: small;">which show us how to use basic shapes in creating elaborate animals and entire worlds. Thanks, Ed.</span></div><div style="text-align: center;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;"><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-size: 13px;">We've been talking a lot about tall tales after reading Rebecca and Ed Emberley's version of <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=1317976033&searchurl=an%3Demberley%26sts%3Dt%26tn%3Dpaul%2Bbunyan%26x%3D0%26y%3D0">The Story of Paul Bunyan</a></span>. Sy is now ready to counter any exaggeration with "hey, I think that's a tall tale." Today we were entertained by a live circus performance, complete with feats of gymnastic agility and frolicking dances. Yesterday was the puppet magic show: the magician couldn't keep the purple egg from prematurely producing characters that couldn't breathe underwater. It was a comedy of errors. Today, Jason and the kids baked a pie and built Lego garages for the Hot Wheels. Violet will most likely read <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Runaway-Bunny-Margaret-Wise-Brown/dp/0060775823/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244401168&sr=1-1">The Runaway Bunny</a></span> to Mickey for the 40th time, and I will try to finish Susan Linn's <span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Case-Make-Believe-Saving-Commercialized/dp/1595584498/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1244401138&sr=8-1">The Case for Make Believe</a>.</span></span></div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-81349142169657723242009-01-24T20:36:00.000-05:002009-06-06T22:18:06.473-04:00Will they learn all they need to know?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisgdBErwwI/AAAAAAAAAAU/CfQQcvnDaU4/s1600-h/IMG_4269.JPG"><img style="text-align: center;float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 320px; height: 240px; " src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisgdBErwwI/AAAAAAAAAAU/CfQQcvnDaU4/s320/IMG_4269.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344401065681601282" /></a><br /><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">The biggest challenge (and joy) in growing without schooling is learning to trust our children, to respect their desires and to allow them to take the lead. Sometimes it is difficult to say, “it’s fine that Sy doesn’t want to write this week,” or “24 hours of just make believe play <i>is</i> learning!” Yet, both of these statements are true. The problem is simply that we’ve all grown up in an educational system that removes us from the world we are supposed to understand, where only certain forms of knowledge are valid, and those are compartmentalized and stripped of all contexts. Sy and Violet <i>are learning</i> and they are learning <i>a lot</i>. Certainly, they are both amassing what one might consider “book” knowledge: Violet is already counting to 10 and saying her ABCs; Sy can read words with various consonant blends and vowel combinations, count to 100, and tell you the difference between carnivorous and herbivorous dinosaurs. Yet, what is most interesting to me are the ways in which they have come to understand things and to do so in great depth. Sy knows more than I ever did about dinosaurs because he <i>wants to know</i>. No amount of coaxing, rewards, direction or punishment could move him to delve into a topic for so many hours per day the way his <i>desire to know and learn</i> can. This is how we came, today, to do research on amoebae. Before the nap, we read <i>The Biggest Thing in the Ocean</i>, about a giant squid that thinks it’s the largest thing in the ocean, but ends up being eaten by a whale. At the end of the book, a small fish on the copyright page says, “I’m bigger than plankton,” to which Sy responded, “Plankton’s not bigger than anything.” I responded by saying, “Well, a plankton is bigger than an amoeba,” which was enough for him to decide that we needed to look it up after the nap. We spent about 20 minutes on the internet looking at drawings and photos of amoebae, learning about how this single-celled organism can eat without a mouth, stomach or digestive system (using pseudopods and a food vacuole), learning about where they live (fresh water, salt water, in the soil, in other organisms - “like us!” Sy said). While it seems ludicrous that an almost 4 year old can assimilate such knowledge, I know he’s learning because it interests him, because he relates what he learns to experience, because he returns to the things he likes over and over again, and because those interests lead to other related interests (the discussion of amoebae actually led to research on hammerhead sharks - there is a shark in the book - which led to an attempt to identify all of the sea creatures on the final page of the book - eels, rays, sharks, squids, octopi, various fish, etc.)</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Here’s just a brief glimpse of the things we worked on this week:</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Music: Violet and Sy have both been singing <i>A Rum-Sum-Sum </i>and <i>High and Low </i>in music class this week (tapping out the macro and micro beats, changing words to fit various actions/scenarios, incorporating the names of friends into the revised songs); Sy has been playing <i>Twinkle A-D, Honeybee, Hänschen Klein</i> and <i>Cuckoo</i> on the piano, he’s supposed to start <i>Mary Had a Little Lamb</i> this week.</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Art: “Flag of India” - at Indian buffet on Monday night, Sy saw the flag of India and decided to look it up online, he then made his own version; observational drawing (bananas, pencil can, lollipop drum, cardboard box); painting: batik (dripping wax onto paper, painting over, ironing off wax); window ornaments: tracing, cutting (star, heart, oval, circle from batik painting)</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 19px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 22px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Storytelling: weaving parts of <i>The Curious Demise of a Contrary Cat, Hänsel & Gretel, Rotkäppchen</i> and various dinosaur facts, Sy is beginning to create “jokes” and “stories.”</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Science: dinosaur, amoeba and shark research</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Math: Uno (counting, matching, sequencing), Sy’s game of “I love you 160 million degrees” (we try to increase the number and form of measurement to the best of our ability)</span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; min-height: 17px; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 15px/normal 'Bookman Old Style'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px">Reading: “Word Card Game” (reading and matching words ending in <i>-an, -at, -ay, -e, -ee</i>, <i>-ick, -in, –ish,</i> <i>–it, -on, -op</i>; consonant blends <i>ch-, cl-, cr-, dr-, fl-, kn-, pl-, sh-, sl-, spl-, st-, th-, thr-</i> )</span></p>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-1045555856269099102009-01-06T21:56:00.000-05:002009-06-06T22:18:06.474-04:00Turtles, Snakes and Brumation!<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisjSpLR5jI/AAAAAAAAAAs/kzTxaW7Wpmc/s1600-h/IMG_4323.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 220px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisjSpLR5jI/AAAAAAAAAAs/kzTxaW7Wpmc/s320/IMG_4323.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344404186003007026" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Our trip to Cincinnati for the holidays was lots of fun. In addition to trips to the Natural History Museum, Children’s Museum, and Newport Aquarium we attended two lectures offered by the Hamilton County Park and Recreation Board.</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Raptors at Woodland Mound!</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">We observed 4 raptors that day: the Red-Tailed Hawk, Eastern Screech Owl, Barred Owl and Great Horned Owl. We learned about their predatory habits (day/night hunting, use of eyesight vs. hearing, size and types of prey, use of talons/beaks), their physical characteristics (feathers and markings, facial features, size and weight), and we discovered that that awesome sound an eagle makes in all of those Hollywood westerns is actually the call of the Red-Tailed Hawk! Who knew? Later we hiked on the nature trail and pretended to be owls hunting different small rodents. </span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Snakes, turtles and brumation at Miami Whitewater Park!</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">We observed 3 turtles (2 Box Turtles and 1 Red-Eared Slider) and 2 snakes (Black Rat Snake and Fox Snake). We learned all kinds of things: Box Turtles get their names from their ability to pull all of their body parts into their shell, as if retreating into a box; they are omnivores (like us), who live mostly on land; females have flat bellies, males have a thumb-sized indentation on the belly; the scutes (circular scales on the shell) are shed like skin and grow in rings (like a tree trunk) each year - you can estimate a turtle’s age by counting the scutes on its shell; their backbones connect their soft bodies to their shells (which means that if they lose their shells, they die); Box Turtles can live up to 100 years! Brumation is the hibernation-like state that cold-blooded animals use during the cold weather: their circulation slows down, they become very lethargic and sleep, but not so much that they have to expend a lot of energy in order to eat, if they have to. They typically brumate in a burrow, rock crevice or, in the case of the Box Turtle, they use their back legs to dig deep into the leaf litter and cover themselves up.</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 21.6px; text-indent: -21.6px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">For the rest of the week, we were playing “snakes in the cage” in Nana’s living room. Exhausting, but more stimulating than Super Mario.</span></span></p> </div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3986813309911269185.post-19412032626367800312008-12-15T22:09:00.000-05:002009-06-06T22:18:06.474-04:00Walking Like Dinosaurs<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisiPAWayAI/AAAAAAAAAAk/Pgzr7kxf3wY/s1600-h/IMG_4032.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 298px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_7SuH_syaM-c/SisiPAWayAI/AAAAAAAAAAk/Pgzr7kxf3wY/s320/IMG_4032.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5344403023992637442" /></a><br />Monday, Dec. 15 2008<div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Imagine a time when there were no cats, no dogs, no tigers, no elephants, no stores, no zebras, no daddies, no mommies, no Sylers and no Violets . . .</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Like most 3.5 year olds, Sy is a Dinosaur FANATIC. We have been doing lots of internet research recently on our favorite pre-historic non-lizards. We especially like the one provided by London’s Natural History Museum</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="text-decoration: underline ; letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">http://internt.nhm.ac.uk/jdsml/nature-online/dino-directory/index.dsml</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px ;color:#ffffff;"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">and the Discovery Channel’s “dino viewer” </span></span><span style="text-decoration: underline ; letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">http://dsc.discovery.com/dinosaurs/dinosaur-games/dinosaur-viewer/dinosaur-viewer.html</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Sy spent about 1.5 hours the other day looking up dinosaurs based on their shape, the period during which they lived, and the continents on which they were discovered. He has learned to navigate both sites with the arrows, looking at sketches, models, and motion simulation. It’s cool enough that he can read “go to” and “next dino” while doing his “work,” but what he then does with his dino knowledge is absolutely thrilling.</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;">Sy’s dinosaur research has led to a slew of new make-believe scenarios. In just the last few days, we have played:</span></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:georgia;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></span></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; "></p><ul><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:georgia;">“Walking like dinosaurs”: here, we must recreate the dinosaur movements we have researched online as we trudge around the house playing Velociraptor, Triceratops, Protoceratops, Tyrannosaurus, Maiasaura [good mother lizard - she’s my favorite] and Oviraptor [egg thief]: Maiasaura has to protect her eggs while Oviraptor tries to steal them; Stegosaurus uses his spiked tail and Triceratops uses his three-horned head to defend themselves from an Allosaurus/Velociraptor attack.</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:georgia;">“Paleontologist”: using action figures or Haba figures, we go on a dinosaur excavation and, using our large Dinosaurs floor book, discover various fossils (pictures of dinos) under the rocks (pages of book).</span></li><li><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:georgia;">“Lego dinosaurs”: we build Stegosaurus, Ankylosaurus, T-Rex and Velociraptor with Legos; we build separate “houses” for carnivores and herbivores (complete with troughs for meat for the former and plants/trees/flowers for the latter), and we use our action figures to feed the carnivores meat in their troughs.</span></li></ul><p></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 0px; font: normal normal normal 16px/normal 'Bradley Hand ITC TT'; min-height: 20px; "><span class="Apple-style-span" style=" ;font-family:georgia;">This play currently takes up hours of our time and can be rather exhausting. In fact, he just woke up and asked if I’m ready to be Maiasaura again. How can I say no to that? </span><br /></p> <p style="margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 16.0px Bradley Hand ITC TT; min-height: 20.0pxcolor:#ffffff;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.0px"></span><br /></p> </div>wondergirl1973http://www.blogger.com/profile/15272429944401695513noreply@blogger.com0