EASIER SAID THAN DONE

Sometimes homeschooling is like trudging through mud. It is tough but not impossible and best if you keep chugging along. It is when you get thrown off track or lose your balance that make it tough to get your footing back and get in the groove again.

Our home school group breaks for seven weeks beginning in mid-November which occurred right about the time as my son's 16th birthday and Thanksgiving. We took a short enough three day trip out of town to see family, shortly thereafter we had family come visit us. Throw in some Christmas preparations and well, I am a bit off schedule with my homeschooling. OK, a LOT off schedule. There goes my ''HOME EDUCATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD''. I might not have exactly been in the running for that one anyway. Being a stay at home mom is wonderful and sometimes it is just exhausting. It is easy to get off schedule with errands and household chores but remind myself of what is most important. My children aren't going to succeed in life because I vacuumed and dusted. They are going to succeed because I am going to impart upon them love and knowledge. So I will ignore the dust bunnies and get up to speed on our curriculum. It is easier said than done but it will get done.

My Support of Public Schools

I got a parking ticket on our latest venture into Omaha. I didn't even notice the meter. I was cold so I rushed into the store and didn't give it another thought. I obviously should have. Much to my dismay I had a parking ticket on my windshield when I returned to my car. Bummer. I was sure that it was going to cost me an arm and a leg. I have only received one other parking ticket before and that was years ago at an airport. That one cost me $25.00 so I had a sinking feeling that this one was going to be a whopper. Wrong. $16.00. That isn't too bad. Of course I could have avoided it by sticking a couple quarters in the meter but I was relieved that it was under twenty dollars. The ticket comes with an envelope and states I have two weeks to pay it. As I was writing out the check today I noticed the instructions indicate to make checks payable to the Public School Fund. I chuckled at the irony of an avid homeschooler such as myself has to pay a ticket that benefits the Public School Fund.

Not Your Average Homeschooler

Most everyone knows or knows of a homeschooling family but depending on your social circle and geographical area you would think that all homeschool families are white, middle class and Christian but there are increasing numbers of families that choose to educate at home from different segments of the population.

The League of Observant Jewish Homeschoolers has a very informative website I came across.(http://www.chayas.com/homeschoolindex.htm) There is also the Jewish Home Educators Network website (http://snj.com/jhen/).

Most people seem to assume that families opt for homeschooling for religious reasons whether that be Christian or Jewish but that is false. Many do it for fear of physical safety due to gang violence or to avoid vaccinations. There are families that are religious or spiritual but wish to educate their children in a manner that is not based in faith. There are several groups in the United States that support that undertaking. One website I found is Secular Homeschool (http://secularhomeschool.net/).

Regardless of your reasons for homeschooling or considering homeschooling there are support groups of all kinds and that is the best place for information. Check your local paper to see if there are any homeschool groups that meet in your area. Stop by one of their meetings, it is a great way to gather information and meet new people.

Homeschooling is a big decision and a big commitment. The more information you arm yourself with the easier it will be.

PUBLIC SCHOOL SEX SCANDAL

I hesitated to write about this as I don't want to use this space solely for the purpose of bashing the public school system but the latest sex scandal bears mentioning. According to the Augusta Chronicle seven faculty members of a Richmond County middle school have been implicated thus far, two of which still remain employed at the school. Using the school's public safety office on an inflatable mattress they were having sex during school hours.

Yes, during school hours.

While the children were there.

Unbelievable.

I suppose we should be relieved that it was consensual sex and that no children were involved but this kind of behavior is ridiculous . It makes me wonder what other rules they broke or were willing to break given their lack of responsibility and morals.

These are the people in charge of educating hundreds of young children in that school. What must those kids think now that this has been on the news. What kind of message does it send them?

ONE OF MY LEAST FAVORITE WORDS

I was watching a clip on the news about homeschooling and much to my dismay but certainly not to my surprise a representative from John Hopkins University stated he scrutinized homeschoolers applications more because of lack of transcripts and he wondered about their ability to get along with others at college because the lack of socialization. What? How did a chowder head like that get into such a prestigious and most likely high paying position? Wow.

First things first. Lets give good ol' Websters Dictionary a look shall we?

Main Entry: so·cial·iza·tion

Variant(s): also British so·cial·isa·tion /ssh-(-)l-z-shn/

Function: noun

: the process by which a human being beginning at infancy acquires the habits, beliefs, and accumulated knowledge of society through education and training for adult status

Most certainly public school doesn't begin in infancy and considering the problems that the public school system is brimming with these days even they do not fit this definition. Of course Mr. University Chowder Head did not have any specifics or evidence of this lack of socialization. He did not provide evidence anecdotal or otherwise of how homeschoolers do not function as well as they public schooled peers once in college. It is a myth, it is bigotry and it is really irritating. Homeschoolers don't have the peer pressure to act or dress a certain way, they are not bullied or offered drugs in the hallways. They do not fear another Columbine in their school and are not having sexual relationships with their teachers (there were over 2500 reported cases in a five year period!) There would be public outrage if any other group was targeted in this manner. Can you imagine how quickly they would protest or ask for his resignation if he had said this about Blacks, Gays , Southerners, Parochial School students? For now looking down on homeschoolers is a safe prejudice but prejudice is like a mirror and it isn't a very flattering reflection on him or the university he represents.

IMPERIAL NUTCRACKER

Last week the kids and I took a field trip to Omaha to see the Imperial Nutcracker at the Orpheum Theatre. The theatre itself was worth the trip. Built in 1927 and later restored in 2002 the Orpheum is breathtakingly wonderful. Gorgeous velvet curtains, ornate lighting fixtures. What a grand theatre. Its beauty just adds to the experience.

While waiting for the performance to begin I took the opportunity to discuss the architecture with my son and daughter. I wanted them to see and appreciate the difference between the Orpheum and the typical cramped movie theaters they are more accustomed to.

We enjoyed the Imperial Nutcracker very much. The set designers did a fantastic job and the costumes were perfect. We were all enchanted with the dancers, their costumes were a perfect compliment to the set and storyline. We had a fantastic experience that afternoon, one we won't soon forget.

A BAD IDEA ALL AROUND

I know my blogging is slanted much in favor of homeschooling but I don't want it to seem as if I am 100% against public schools. I am not. I think they are adequate for the vast majority of pupils and even great for a small number. I worry about homeschooling rights, especially with a new President. I am not sure where Obama stands on this issue but I know where I stand. For my family homeschooling is the best educational option. I do not need further convincing or proof but if I did this article from CNN would have been another push for homeschooling. (http://www.cnn.com/2008/LIVING/12/03/teacher.ads.on.tests/index.html)
A teacher in a California public high school sold advertising space on the tests he handed out to students. This was in response to budget cuts for his office supplies. This is such a bad idea on so many levels. Who can advertise there? I wouldn't want certain products, services or groups to be advertised to my child at school and that is ripe for a lawsuit if advertising is denied to someone and they decide to litigate. Better to just spend the hundreds of dollars on paper instead of thousands fighting a lawsuit.
Our children's education is important and if a school does not have enough paper then the school board should be lobbying the government on whatever level they need to in order to properly educate these kids.
I find it ironic that there cannot be prayer in school but there can be advertising. Isn't praying in a sense advertising for Jesus? Maybe I will buy an ad!

MONEY TALKS?

Washington D.C. schools have rolled out a new program called the Capital Gains Program.

Aimed at low income students it pays them to have good behavior, good conduct and improve their test scores. I can appreciate that the school system there is trying to improve these kids chances at graduating high school and success in life but I think that this is actually sending negative messages to not only the kids in the program but other children and families who might hear about this. Why strive to work two jobs to stay off welfare when you can get food stamps and put your teenager in this school and they can bring home up to $200.00 a month? Trust me, I used to live on welfare and in low income housing. There were the parents that were the ''strivers'' and then there were the other kind who knew every loophole and could squeeze and manipulate the system to their ongoing benefit. That earned money will go to anything but that child's future. If education is the true focus and the future of the student is what is truly at heart here than make the funds into a scholarship fund or educational IRA that cannot be touched unless it is going to college or vocational school tuition. Would the students be as interested in it then?

The schools do have some sort of money management training but it is vague and not stated that it is either mandatory or ongoing which I believe should be both if they are going to insist on keeping this ridiculous program going. Why not use that money to hire more teachers or improve after school programs such as mentoring and tutoring.

As a homeschooler this annoys me. A portion of my taxes go to the public school system whether I use it or not , however, once a child is approved by the state to be homeschooled any services, testing, educational materials, tutoring, field trips etc are the sole responsibility of the parents even if you have a child with learning disabilities . Regardless of how our children are doing there is not a bonus from the local,state or federal government. Doing a good job on a test should be its own reward. Learning for self enrichment and the excitement of growth is there in all kids, you just have to cultivate it. There is no learn to earn in our household except that if my kids want to earn their usual privileges such as TV or computer time then they need to learn their lessons. I think that teaches them a whole lot more than to stick their hand out for everything they do. I practice what I preach and that is why the buck stops here.