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RSSArchive for the ‘education’ CategoryThe Staggering Relevance of BonhoefferPosted February 4th, 2012 by Jen in features, germany, history, persecuted church, politics/world news, religion9 Comments » Bonhoeffer’s been dogging me for decades and sometimes I do wish he’d back off, because he’s always reminding me that anything of value has a high price. I’m a tight-wad, I don’t like to pay high prices. Perhaps you’ve not been introduced to Dietrich Bonhoeffer? Today is his birthday, and 106 years ago he entered the world, along with his twin sister, Sabine, in Breslau, Germany, bringing great joy to Paula and Karl Bonhoeffer, and eventually there would be eight children who had the most lovely and nurturing family a child could hope for. Above the west entrance of Westminster Abbey in London are 10 modern martyrs – Bonhoeffer’s statue is among them. In the briefest of words, Bonhoeffer was a theologian, a pastor, a writer, a Christian, a prophet, an anti-Nazi spy. He was executed on April 9, 1945 in a German concentration camp for his involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler, just days before liberation of that camp. But I’d like to talk about why we should be concerned about Bonhoeffer in the 21st century.
Exactly why is he relevant to such a degree that people are still writing biographies about him and giving talks and holding congresses? Germany in the 1930s and 40s is challenging to comprehend — the Nazi and Jewish issues, of course, the role of the church, and I wonder how to extrapolate from those times without finding a Nazi behind every overreaching government act. The state of Bonhoeffer’s world was that the German Christian church looked the other way as Jews were being carted off for “resettlement in the East.” In Bonhoeffer’s last great work, Ethics, though unfinished he considered it his magnum opus, he rebukes the church for her grave offenses against humanity and allowing herself to be subjugated by the Nazi regime:
Could this not have been written ten minutes ago, as Metaxes said in an interview? What are today’s burning issues? I ask, as I seek to find Bonhoeffer’s relevance. Abortion is one. I’m not comfortable addressing this contentious subject. Every person I know has been affected by this, either she has personally had an abortion or knows someone who has. And so who wants to go around telling a woman she is a negligent person, a selfish creature, a murderer? Not me. I vaguely, then rather insistently, wondered if Bonhoeffer ever had an opinion on the topic of abortion or the right to life. I discovered in his book, Ethics, what I was looking for.
Bonhoeffer considered many facets of abortion, including the pastoral care that necessarily should be involved:
He further speaks to extreme cases:
I’m amazed at the specific issues Bonhoeffer addresses with regard to abortion, and it all leaves me little room to wonder what Bonhoeffer would say today in the 21st century. As Eric Metaxas said, Bonhoeffer is staggeringly relevant. He further makes it clear that the right to life is not based on the qualities of the individual.
I read all this from Ethics just yesterday and my head fell into my hands and I wept. I almost didn’t want to know; silly, it’s not like Bonhoeffer’s opinion would change my mind, I had concluded when I was very young that abortion was an injustice. But have you ever experienced knowledge that suddenly unloads responsibility? It was this, and I wept, and I couldn’t even allow myself to grasp the entirety as I would have literally fallen to the ground from the weight of it. I don’t want to become a radical, oh, at least not any more radical than I already am. It’s dangerous to be radical. It’s so much safer to be non-radical, at least on this side of Heaven. Bonhoeffer was a radical of sorts by all accounts, and he paid for it with his life, with a a piano wire around his neck as he dangled naked in the courtyard of the Flossenbürg Concentration Camp in Germany. And yet he is my hero, and has been for two decades. Someone gave me The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer when I was in my early twenties, and that was my introduction to this compelling man. I read bits and pieces and the words just sat smoldering in the recesses of my mind for twenty years. I do gravitate to the edge of costliness, but to actually take the leap, like Bonhoeffer, is not fully in my nature.
So from the beginning of my life as a committed Christian, I’ve had in the background of my thinking, always, the cost of discipleship, which is of course clear in the teachings of Jesus, but made so visible to me by Bonhoeffer. Bonhoeffer was continually accused of being a single-issue fanatic in his time. And why? He vehemently opposed Nazi interference in the church and so was stripped of his pastoral license and forbidden to speak in public or print or publish. He then helped Jews escape to Switzerland which led to his first arrest. Don’t we look back from our vantage point and not see this as fanatical at all? We are not allowed the privilege of seeing our present from a future viewpoint, and that’s why I spend all this time with Bonhoeffer, searching and probing for relevance and truth to help myself, and maybe spare myself from death of conscience. But I’ve come to realize there are rarely single-issue fanatics. There is a vast underpinning of philosophies and moralities that find expression in a single-issue, and start digging and you will find the true breadth of it all. Bonhoeffer’s extensive writings demonstrate this theory, and the complexity of what appears to be a single-issue begs to be examined. Five years ago, on the anniversary of Bonhoeffer’s execution, I wrote an essay exploring Bonhoeffer’s call to the church, a call to action for times when the state is involved in illegitimate actions. I said I’d write more later. And here it is, it took me a while. I quote again from Bonhoeffer’s writings in Ethics, scathing words to the church in his day relating to the Jews, but equally applicable and significant for the unborn in our day:
Bonhoeffer, oh, could he have known that he would suffer to the last and to the fullest, with Christ and with the Jews and the undesirables? I do think he knew, and he intentionally chose the way of the cross.
May I leave you with some resources for you to further examine the relevance of the life of Dietrich Bonhoeffer to your world? Following are some links (which have been of immense help to me) to books, essays, videos, blogs, all of which either directly speak of Bonhoeffer, or involve current issues to which his principles could be applied. Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy by Eric Metaxas
Technorati Tags: abortion, Cost of Discipleship, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Eric Metaxas, Ethics, Jewish question, Nazi Germany  Preparing for Elise: Partie Deux (or, hosting a foreign exchange student)Posted August 23rd, 2011 by Jen in education, family life, france/french9 Comments » Elise arrives next week from France! Her presence always creates a pleasant stir, a certain je ne sais quoi, an excitement of the exotic and faraway lands–and of course, a nervous energy on my part as I prepare for her once again. The first time around, four years ago when Elise was fourteen, I worried about having her room just so, I squawked about in French trying to improve my language skills real quick like, I fretted over the menu, I positively wrecked myself over itinerary. I’ve since learned, after hosting several foreign students, and especially with Elise, that:
And then there’s this. How to handle politics and religion? She is liberal atheist, I am conservative Christian. Our differences made for some interesting discussions last time. I love her so, and I love her country, and want for her to intimately know the love of God and the miracle of salvation in Christ, and surely the Lord’s merciful hand is upon her return here. I will speak only as the Holy Spirit leads, and love a lot. I’m not backing down to avoid a conflict, I think I’ve just learned a lot about the French postmodern culture since she first came, and I need to be deeply prayerful about, and educate myself about, how to represent Jesus Christ to the postmodern. The French hand towels Elise brought as a gift on that first visit are still used daily in my kitchen, and I pray as I dry my hands and a dish, Lord, how can she know objective truth? How to present one crucified and risen Savior, when the very thought of only one and utterly necessary is offensive?
I’ll be driving to the airport in Portland a week from now, and would you pray for me if it comes to mind? And for Elise? We’ll all have so much fun, she’ll teach us new songs and folk dances and read French fairy tales to the children again, I’m sure. I’ll correct her English because she asks me to, and play chef in the kitchen with her and instruct her about American measures, and she’ll have many questions. And the things of eternity will swirl around, and oh that I will be always full of grace and seasoned with salt, knowing how to answer.
Technorati Tags: education, family life, France, God, hosting foreign exchange student, postmodern culture A Package from England!Posted June 12th, 2011 by Jen in book reviews, education, france/french3 Comments »
I really was like a kid at Christmas yesterday! My friend Anita Mathias, a writer and blogger from Oxford, sent me the movie Être et Avoir, an award-winning French film that we’d discussed, and it being difficult to procure here in the states, she generously mailed me her very own copy. It was with huge surprise that I opened the mailbox yesterday, expecting some bills and ads perhaps, but not a package from England! I knew Anita was sending me the movie, but so quickly? She’s a professional! The movie intrigued me first of all because it’s a French film, a genre I love, and more importantly, because it’s on the subject of education – in particular a one-room schoolhouse in rural France in modern times, not some century-old school. I honestly didn’t know this institution existed in France, but apparently there are quite a number of such little village schools. Être et Avoir (2002) is a documentary by the celebrated French film-maker Nicolas Philibert that chronicles one full school year in the life of teacher Monsieur Lopez and his 12 students aged four to eleven in a French village in the Auvergne. It’s been called a movie that every teacher and parent should see, and it’s been said that M. Lopez has an extraordinary talent for teaching. For those of you (like me) who are engaged in multi-age teaching of small groups, I think Être et Avoir will be incredibly enlightening. My review will follow shortly. And Anita intrigues me just as much. Her background is colorful and varied–born and raised in India, she tells a fascinating story of her conversion and her work with Mother Teresa in Calcutta. Anita goes on to live in America for a season, teaching at the College of William and Mary in Virginia, and writing two books, Wandering Between Two Worlds and The Church That Had Too Much. She is happily now back in Oxford, raising two girls and a garden with her husband and business partner, Roy, oh, and running a publishing company. My kind of woman! You can visit Anita at her blog, Dreaming Beneath the Spires, where you will be inspired and educated at every turn. And maybe you’ll end up with a free movie, too, someday. {I’m saving my Royal Mail stamp, Anita.}
Technorati Tags: Etre et Avoir, education, France, French films, Anita Mathias, multi-age teaching What makes a desert beautiful?Posted May 5th, 2011 by Jen in education, family life, features, the ranch2 Comments » Life, death, and the breath of God — we were blessed to see all on a simple hike through our spring desert last weekend. {life} {death}
{the breath of God}
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, country life, nature hike, nature study, Oregon wildflowers On an enchanted journeyPosted May 3rd, 2011 by Jen in education, family life, features5 Comments » ~scenes from a family hike at Sahalie Falls, Oregon~ If God had wanted to be a big secret, He would not have created babbling brooks and whispering pines. ~Robert Brault
Technorati Tags: childhood, family life, Sahalie Falls, McKenzie River, Oregon hikes, nature hike How to Draw a Self-Portrait (and some wisdom from the child)Posted April 25th, 2011 by Jen in arts & crafts, education, family life, humor10 Comments »
I think my boy here could give some art lessons on self-portraiture {and life}. 1. Know how many freckles adorn your face and love them all. {Or, love every unique mark the Lord has blessed upon your countenance, and love that you are wonderfully made.} 2. Realize how far your ears really stick out. {Or, be aware of your faults, your weaknesses, your differences, and make them as darn cute as possible.} 3. Make your eyes brighter than they really are. {Or, know that the eyes are the gate to the soul, and work to let all the love of God pour out through them and smile through them, too, and so bless those who look upon you.} 4. Draw yourself happy. {Or, remember that a cheerful heart is good medicine, and the joy of the Lord is your strength, so do not grieve.} Thank you, Little L. for the art lesson. Technorati Tags: art, family life, self-portrait In the Garden with ChildrenPosted March 13th, 2011 by Jen in education, family life, features, parenting, the ranch7 Comments »
{Parts of this post were previously published here at Diary of 1 on April 6, 2008.} Planning, planting, nurturing, enjoying the beauty and the bounty~there are so many facets to a child’s gardening experience that makes planting a garden one of the most treasured gifts you can give your child. You should have no trouble in getting a child to garden with you. No surprise, children are drawn to dirt like nothing else! You mean you want me to dig holes? I’m allowed to get filthy and mucky? To direct that childish energy and wonder into a productive endeavor like a garden is not only wise on the part of the parent, it’s a lifelong blessing to both of you.
I ended up deciding that the sense of community and family in the main garden would not at all be diminished by each child’s ownership in their own scratch of earth. In fact, it would probably deepen their respect for the family garden, knowing the responsibility and effort their own gardens required. I found a wonderful book to guide me through some activities to do in the garden with children. It’s called Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: gardening together with children, by Sharon Lovejoy. The book covers not only the basics of how to plan, plant, and care for your garden, but the top 20 plants for kids, theme garden ideas, and many little bits of garden wisdom. I would say that my first tip for gardening with children is to involve them in every decision. Where should we put the garden? Is this spot too shady or too sunny? This area is nice and level, but we’ll have to dig up some rocks, is that okay? What shape do we want the garden to be? What should we plant that will thrive in our region? Let’s test the soil and decide what supplements we may need. All of the issues that arise in the planning of the garden are incredible teaching tools, and there’s no better way for your kids to really understand the complexity – and joy – of it all than to walk through it with you step by step. And the sense of ownership will be there from the start – the greatest motivator I know. I never have to twist their arms to go work on the garden.
Here are the top 20 plants for children to grow. This list comes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots, based on the fact they are proven winners: They have personality, fragrance, texture, and color — vibrant color. They grow quickly — something kids need in response to their work. And they’re versatile; they can be used as jewelry, toys, clothes, musical instruments, and household utensils. 1. Pumpkins Do keep in mind your climate – some of these will fare better than others depending on where you live. In Central Oregon, for example, root crops like potatoes and carrots grow well with our short growing season and cool nights; but for some vegetables like corn or tomatoes, a short-season variety is a must for your plant to mature.
Theme gardens can be a joy for children, and I’ll highlight just one of the themes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: the pizza patch. The Pizza Patch: gardening in the round is sure to delight children who are used to seeing a straight-row vegetable garden. This pizza patch garden is a giant sized six-foot-wide wheel shaped plot, divided into seven great wedges and edged with a thick rock crust. Ms. Lovejoy suggests the following ingredients for your pizza patch garden, but you can add other favorites as well: 3 seedlings plum tomatoes To begin this project, select a flat 10×10 foot plot of ground that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day. Place a stake in the center of the area, and tie a 3-foot string to it. Your child can take hold of the very end of the string and walk in a circle, while another child walks behind with a hoe to mark what will be the outer boundary of the garden bed. Divide the garden into slices: mark spots at 32 inch intervals along the outer edge. Draw a line with a stick from each of the seven marks to the center stake, to denote the seven slices. Then place rocks along those lines for a permanent boundary, and you can remove the center stake. Place the five tall vegetables in each of the five slices on the northern side of the wheel – the plum tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini. In a slice on the south side, plant the herbs, onions, and garlic. Set aside one slice to be the pathway for the little feet tending the garden. The bright gold marigolds and Calendulas can be filled in around the vegetables and herbs, the “cheese” of the pizza. To plant each slice, start from the center and work your way out. Plant tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini 12-18 inches apart. In the small herb slice, space them 6 inches apart from the onions and garlic. The flowers are scattered throughout each slice, but allow 3 inches between them and other plants. When harvest time comes, you can throw a big pizza party with toppings straight from the garden! You can find more fabulous garden ideas and activities to do with children, such as a sunflower house, container gardens, and a moon garden, in Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots. Don’t forget to teach your children about the use and care of gardening equipment, about watering requirements for various plants, and about safe weed/pest control. You can also measure plants, make growth predictions, learn about pollination, visit with a master gardener…the opportunities in a garden are endless. Mostly, just have fun!
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, family life, gardening with children, high desert, outdoor education, planting Homeschool RecessPosted March 9th, 2011 by Jen in education, the ranch10 Comments »
Recess on the ranch is more fun than I remember from my childhood schoolyard. My school playground wasn’t nearly as bad as some (at least I had one), and I loved swinging the tetherball and merry-go-rounding, but I still have shadowy memories of pulled hair, pavement, and skipped turns. Over here, though, our homeschool co-op kids get to build forts, dig holes while belting out “From the Halls of Montezuma” and run wild with all God’s creation for their recess. In my yard yesterday, toes curled around shovel heads, small hands arranged sticks, muscles flexed under loads of dirt. Real play in a real place. And I breathed slow, inhaling the moment, that springtime of life that was all exhilaration and wonder. We are blessed. What do you remember most about your school days? I’ll bet recess is among the top memories, whether good or bad. ***** Technorati Tags: education, homeschool recess, recess A Peek into a Homeschool Co-opPosted February 27th, 2011 by Jen in education, features13 Comments » Back in August, four families decided to do school together in a co-op style of educating, with moms each assigned to a class and kids grouped by ability. On the first day of school at the start of September, nine children arrived at my doorstep at 7:30 a.m., ready to hit the books and expand their brains, pushing hard until noon when our official school day was done. {If you read to the end of this very long post, you’ll see our daily schedule, and that despite the seemingly rigorous routine, we have a ton of fun!} Monday through Thursday we follow a very structured program, with every half-hour increment planned carefully and little time wasted. Friday is a no-school day, reserved for field trips, outings, family time. This type of co-op is not for everyone, but I’d love to share how we do it, because depending on your goals for educating, it just might work for you.
A homeschool cooperative is a group of families who choose to work together on a consistent basis in the educating of their children, a “mini-school” of sorts. Some co-ops meet once a week, some once a month, and in my case, every day, with each child having one or two others working at their same level. But first, why co-op? I’ll give you my goals, though there are many more out there that are equally valid. I’ve homeschooled solo in the past, just me and my kids. That was a great season, and rather laid-back without the intense structure under which I currently operate. But my needs have changed and this season calls for Regarding efficiency, I had to be honest about my many obligations. I have another job that consumes quite a bit of time, and streamlining is critical for me. Afternoons require a free block of time to work on the business I run with my husband, and though I work from home, I can’t, in fairness to my kids, have my work constantly interrupting their education. Those dedicated blocks of time are vital to our overall family productivity. Why couldn’t I just be efficient on my own? First, more teacher-parents means the same number of teaching hours yields a multiplied teaching time with the other teachers than on my own. The first grader learns to read during the same period the second grader is taught to write, impossible on my own (at the same time) with the level of care I want. Co-oping lets me leverage time. Second, there is the matter of accountability, addressed below–would I be efficient without a structure forced upon me?
Accountability was an issue I had to candidly face. I’m prone to procrastination and distraction, and without those little hands knocking on my door by 7:20 a.m., I can assure you I wouldn’t always be dressed and ready to tackle all that a day holds in the life of a busy homeschooling/business-woman mother and wife. I’m willing to share my house, give up some privacy, and add to the wear and tear around here, to ensure that rain or shine, we do school. I believe in the discipline the children are presented with, the order that follows, the resulting self-regulation that begins to take hold. I lose some flexibility, a Holy Grail to many homeschool parents. If I don’t feel like doing school, or my kids want a day off, or there’s an enticing rabbit trail to follow, it’s too bad, the others are showing up. But really, when you look at how much free time we have compared to regular-school counterparts, it’s a small sacrifice.
Positive social pressure is the last goal I’ll discuss. I wanted an education model that included daily work with peers. Not a once-a-week or monthly interaction, but day-in, day-out. I’m not wanting public school, but I am wanting to meet my kids’ spoken wishes for friends to work with and my own desires for them to experience a healthy social pressure. Friendly competition is a marvelous thing for pushing a child to their best limits. Iron sharpens iron, and for our little co-op, the small sparks that fly tell me that we are helping to work out each other’s character, we are showing the other a different way to think, we are growing together more than we would alone.
What does my schedule look like? It’s changed throughout the year slightly, as one of the moms had a baby and is now homeschooling at home, so we currently have six kids here each day instead of nine. But, here is what we started with, four families hoping for the best education for their children. You’ll see that the students range from K/1st to 4th grade, we cover all the core subjects, and each mom has the opportunity to teach her own child throughout the sessions. (The moms are called “J,” “K,” and “L,” since that’s what each of our names begins with.) Our Homeschool Co-Op Schedule 7:30-8:00
8:00-8:30
8:30-9:00
9:00-9:15
9:15-9:45
9:45-10:45
10:45-11:00
11:00-12:00
And that’s the end of our school day! We do assign homework every day. Always reading, and a small amount of spelling and math. One of the moms has been good about helping us schedule field trips with other homeschool families. We’re planning a trip to the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry in Portland in March. And the final quarter of school will see us taking a break from Story of the World to do an Oregon Trail unit, culminating with an overnight trip to Baker City, Oregon to visit the Oregon Trail Museum and surrounding area. We took time off from Botany during the cold winter months to do a human body study, and built our very own bodies as we studied each organ! Links to the curriculum I use: Abeka phonics, spelling, handwriting Lists of chapter books each level has read so far this school year (and wrote reports, created posters or other visuals for, and presented before all the students): 2nd grade 2nd/3rd level 4th grade Yes, that is a lot of reading! These particular kids are generally great readers, and we do expect a lot in the way of good literature. This heavy of a reading schedule may not work for every child, but if it does, don’t miss the window of opportunity! A few of the kids got through books they were struggling with by having a parent co-read with them or listening to parts of the book on audio CD. A P.S. on pitfalls–True, a lot can go wrong with a homeschool co-op. I’m sure some of you have horror stories. Here’s a short list of some red flags to watch for as you consider whether you’d want to commit to something like this.
P.S.S.–I don’t have time in this post to cover the many other benefits of a homeschool co-op, but want to quickly acknowledge that I love for my kids to learn from other teachers, to experience varying teaching styles and other parents’ areas of expertise. I so appreciate the daily fellowship with other moms, and I really adore all those kids! How do you homeschool? Do you work with other families? Share your journey in the comments box!
Technorati Tags: education, homeschool co-op, homeschool curriculum, homeschool goals, homeschool schedule Hurray for boring!Posted January 31st, 2011 by Jen in education, family life2 Comments » I saw the word written plainly this morning atop his new spelling list. The list of small words for a small six year old boy. I would not have noticed the message had he not pointed it out. “Do you know what this says, Mom?” he asks with a cheeky grin. It was his own newly minted penmanship, each letter carefully proclaiming his fledgling independence.
Asking him to read the word to me, I worked hard to conceal my heart. Surely it was a bit naughty to write such a word on one’s work…but he wrote it all by himself, oh, the joy of a mother-teacher! Corncob Dolls and Christmas ComingPosted December 18th, 2010 by Jen in education, family life, features, parenting5 Comments »
I caught my breath on these words, picturing Mary and Laura playing for hours in the dusty-spicy attic with nothing but a rag doll and a corncob. Life was very hard, I know, and sometimes the romanticized view of pioneer life does it such injustice…but still. Still. Having no flat, dimensionless drivel flashing before them incessantly such as modern children are subject to, these girls had the freedom to develop the creative power of a brilliant sunrise. That Laura’s corncob doll was given such power of feelings, and never a second’s thought as to her stature, speaks volumes for the strength of simplicity. I told my children to guess what Pa did with the pig’s bladder. First, they had to be informed what a bladder was, for they didn’t know. In 1870, a four year old knew what a pig’s bladder was, and what fun it could be! Pa blew it up into a little white balloon, which the girls batted about and bounced along with endless joy. Who needs a bounce house? Oh, and the pig’s tail was even more fun! I’m sort of old fashioned and nostalgic, so I need to not get carried away with sentimentality. I know that about myself. I live in the 21st century and I’m glad I do, but still. Good literature always demands a response from me. I can’t read something meaningful and not come away with an action, however small. With Christmas just days away, and since tomorrow’s reading with the kids is the Little House chapter entitled “Christmas,” I have a reply. If you know Little House, you know that simple is not dull. Ma loved beautiful things, and I’m amazed at how she used so very little and so common a thing to make her home charming. I hope to create beauty with simple things.
Maybe I’ll make pancake men for breakfast for the kids on Christmas morning, like Ma. We’ll bake together, sing carols, make pictures in the snow, sit and look at the fire, read stories, and of course talk about the birth of Jesus. Anyone have a pig’s bladder to lend me? Ein Deutsches Requiem!Posted May 16th, 2010 by Jen in features, germany, music1 Comment » Today was full of beautiful things, the highlight being attending the Central Oregon Symphony’s presentation of Brahms’ German Requiem, joined by the Cascade Chorale and Central Oregon Mastersingers. My dear friends Jane and Julia were my company, along with the heavenly music, from cellos and violins to the lone harp that Julia was so happy to be just five rows away from. My mom was supposed to go with Jane and me, but wasn’t feeling well, so I called Julia at the last minute, and she was able to meet us there in a moment’s notice! She was really meant to be there, I told her. She has a thing for the harp, and had the best seat in the house for harp viewing! Due to our late arrival, we were instructed to go down to the front left, directly in front of the lovely lady plucking the long strings. And I learned that Julia hadn’t been to the symphony since she was a child, so this was a treasured time. I totally owed her for taking my kids for me when Luke had his surgery last month, so the requiem was my requital. The Requiem begins: “Selig sind, die da Leid tragen, denn sie sollen getrostet werden,” or “Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted.” I do wish that I’d had the program to follow along with (being late the ushers had left their places), as I don’t understand German, but I’m sitting here tonight going over the text and translation, hoping to someday hear this again with more understanding. But music does transcend translation, and it all still spoke to me.
I had worked in my garden for several hours just before heading out for the concert, and returned home to a refreshing spring rain. I had been fretting about not watering my little seedlings prior to leaving. Oh, for patience. Michael Gesme is the music director and conducter of the Central Oregon Symphony, and if you ever have the opportunity to see him, it’s an entertaining treat. He is an active conductor, so energetic and lively, and I did see him jump fully several inches at least once! Thank you, Johannes Brahms, for a lovely afternoon.
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon Symphony, Michael Gesme, Johannes Brahms, Ein deutsches Requiem, A German Requiem Our Oregon DucksPosted November 14th, 2009 by Jen in education, features9 Comments » My class at our small country school hatched out the cutest little baby ducks a few weeks ago. After 20 some days of the children carefully turning the eggs twice daily, checking the temperature and humidity, and barely checking their excitement, the eggs cracked. Several of them hatched right before their eyes, and can you even imagine the squeals I heard?!
They have now returned to the farm. After two weeks and ducks that tripled in size and smell, their time had come. But not before many little children drew pictures of them, wrote stories about them, and even dreamed about them. Next up, a visit to the farm to visit Chloe, Blackjack, Stripe, and the others. Technorati Tags: classroom projects, Central Oregon, Oregon Ducks, hatching ducks, education Dang, the kid can color!Posted October 25th, 2009 by Jen in arts & crafts, education, family life, parenting10 Comments » I’m not one to pay much attention to developmental milestones in my children. But my five year old boy gives new meaning to “color inside the lines.” Here is what he accomplished last week, all in one sitting.
I thought it was pretty cool, my husband thought it was pretty freaky. “Did you notice how he colored every shape the same color?” he asked incredulously. While father was proud of his son, he wondered at the sophisticated color patterns and the precision of his little strokes. Talk about fine motor skills. Had I not observed him complete this entire masterpiece, I wouldn’t have believed it. I remembered being annoyed with him for stomping around the room in frustration because he couldn’t find yellow. Apparently, he had run out, and no other color would do. He found what he wanted, and continued. So, could you do as well? Not me! Technorati Tags: art, art for children, coloring, developmental milestones October’s PartyPosted October 2nd, 2009 by Jen in education, features, poetry12 Comments »
Isn’t that just entertaining to read aloud? I love it! Boy’s eye view of sciencePosted August 25th, 2009 by Jen in education, family life, features, parenting, science10 Comments »
My favorite photo from last week is my 10 year old son putting together his “Snap Circuit Set.” He needs a more advanced electricity kit because he does this one by heart and so fast it would make Franklin and Faraday spin. But he still loves it. What is it about boys and energy/power? Not that girls aren’t into this, I do have a daughter who loves to dabble with this electricity kit as well. But notice I said “dabble.” I certainly give my girls every opportunity I give my boys, and my 8 year old daughter rides a motorcycle right there with her big brother. But still. Anyway, just look at his intensity and concentrated tongue as he eyes the invisible current; curious, so curious. My blog theme this month was supposed to be something about mothers being present with their children. I haven’t written much, I’ve been busy. But a good sort of busy and doing what I can with the kiddos in the midst of busy-ness. I suppose I would just recommend to moms out there to include your children in whatever it is you are doing, and include yourself in whatever it is they are doing. The jobs I give my children I do with them as much as I can. The girls are responsible for the kitchen. Since they can’t reach the cupboards, it means I have to be in there as the hand-to person, grabbing each plate and bowl as fast as they pass them up. As my boys tend the garden, watering and weeding, I will sit with my coffee and marvel with them at how tall the sunflowers have grown, and rejoice with them over the size of the squash. I was careful to let my son know that I would love to take a picture of him as he constructed a current. This meant a lot to him. My daughter wanted to know that I took a picture of her, too, which I did. This wasn’t about them being proud of being in the spotlight, it was about Mom caring and noticing that they did something noteworthy. The American Revolution and the Marquis de LafayettePosted July 5th, 2009 by Jen in education, features, history, politics/world news3 Comments »
Historians all agree on the fact that without the significant economic and military aid of the French government, the fledgling United States of America would have likely lost the Revolutionary War against the British. And this particular Frenchman, the Marquis de Lafayette, was perhaps the most crucial piece of French support. Born in 1757 as Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, he suffered the death of his father before he was two years old and the death of his mother at age 12. His family belonged to the French nobility, so he was left with quite a fortune. In addition, at the age of sixteen, he married into the very wealthy de Noailles family. There was no need to seek fame and fortune in a faraway land on a dangerous mission, so why on earth would this young man, only 19 years old, be so resolved to volunteer for the colonies in the American cause of freedom, a land he had never seen, a people he did not know? I’m sure the reasons for Lafayette’s service in the American Revolutionary War are complex, and I’ve tried to search out some of his motives. The first thing that comes to mind is his youth. While at first glance it’s his age that strikes me as so uncommon for such a glorious cause, there is also a freshness and vigor and sense of invincibility that comes with youth. However, he did have a wife and young son he left behind when he first landed near Charleston, South Carolina in June of 1777. Being orphaned at a young age and married with child certainly matures one beyond his years. There must be more. I turned to the issue of revenge. I considered the tragedy of his father’s death–his father was killed by a British cannonball during the Seven Years’ War. For a young man who likely longed to know his father and who he must have revered as a hero, I wondered if Lafayette had found vengeance for his father’s death. To support the American cause of liberty was to defy and destroy British domination. Revenge can only carry one so far, however, and reflecting on how Lafayette put his very life on the line, as well as spending his personal fortune to buttress the American forces, I searched still deeper. When considering the whole of Lafayette’s life, well beyond the American Revolution, I found in him a profound and immense freedom-fighting spirit that must have propelled him even from youth. Were the American Revolution just about personal glory or youthful fantasy, Lafayette’s quest would have likely ended there. However, as we see him fight for representative government in the French Revolution, it’s clear that Lafayette was one of those unique persons in human history who was born to fulfill an instinctive yearning for freedom, no matter the time or place. Independence and self-government are ideals that simply resonated with Lafayette. As he served under General George Washington, these two men developed a life-long friendship and considered one another as father and son. Great people like these do find each other, invisibly drawn together by the same passion and intellect. Lafayette participated in key battles of the Revolution, including those at Brandywine and Yorktown. In addition to military expertise, he exercised great diplomacy in convincing the king of France to increase his support in substantial excess of his original intent. As Americans celebrate their Independence, I do hope they remember France and one particular Marquis de Lafayette. sources:
Technorati Tags: American Revolution, Fourth of July, France, French Revolution, Independence, Marquis de Lafayette Fun with Seeds and SeedlingsPosted April 25th, 2009 by Jen in education, family life, features, science, the ranch11 Comments »
All of these cups of seed and soil are sitting in our sunny mud room, busily sprouting in preparation for the big move to the outdoor garden after the last frost. Whether we will time the transition correctly, have the proper soil amendments, possess a well fortified fence to keep out the ever encroaching deer and jackrabbits, and be left with sufficient growing time for full maturation of the vegetables, all remains to be seen. Central Oregon is not a gardening paradise and there are odds to overcome, but it’s not impossible (even though my neighbor says it is). This is our beginning.
He still needs to build the gate, secure the bottom with boards, and string some baling wire at the top to deter the deer which can easily jump a 6 foot fence. We also have to bring in a ton of compost and nutrient rich soil, but I can see the finished product, and it’s beautiful. I’m sure you are getting the picture that gardening can be a lot of hard work, but it’s best to know the challenges before you begin. For a no-nonsense look at this from someone who has years more experience than I, read The Joys and Trials of Caring for your Seedlings. Here are some tips on gardening in Central Oregon from the Oregon State Extension Service:
Now, on to some fun seed activities to do with children. These three ideas are from The Family Game Book (1967, Doubleday-out of print). I think these are appropriate projects for all elementary grades. I just planted vegetable starters with my sixth graders (as well as my own children), and from ages 4 through 12, they all were totally engaged. One of my sixth grade students called me at home a few nights ago just to tell me how beautiful her new plants were! 1. See how seeds actually grow. When a seed is buried in the ground, you can’t see exactly what is happening to it. Here is a simple experiment you can perform to watch the seed develop into a little plant. Get a sheet of clean blotting paper or a small sponge. Put the paper or sponge in a drinking glass so that it is pressing against one side of the glass. Fill the other side of the glass with gravel or sand. This should press the blotting paper or sponge tightly against the glass. Now get some fast-growing seeds like lima beans. Force them between the blotting paper and the glass. They should be pressing tightly against the glass so that you can see them through the glass. If the seeds don’t stay in place, you do not have enough sand or gravel in your glass, as its purpose is to keep the seeds in place. Keep the blotting paper or sponge moist. In a few days you will see the seeds sprout roots. These are called root hairs. They help absorb food for the plant. After the roots become longer, carefully transfer your seeds to a dirt-filled flowerpot or even the garden–if it is warm enough. You will have a little bean plant. Just think how much you will know about this particular little plant! 2. How strong are seeds? A rock is broken in two, and a healthy tree is growing in the split. Have you ever seen such a sight–a tree growing in a rock? Perhaps you have seen a sidewalk with a crack in it, and a plant growing through it. Chances are that the seed of the plant split the sidewalk. It’s hard to believe, but here’s an experiment to prove that seeds can really exert great force. Get a small flat bottle. An empty medicine bottle will do. Pack the bottle right up to the very top with dried beans, for beans are really seeds. Get a piece of cloth and tie it over the top of the bottle in place of the cap. Stand the bottle upside down in a glass partly filled with water. Watch your bean bottle from time to time, and in a day or so you will discover that the bottle has burst. The beans soak up all the water and become swollen. As they swell they push against the walls of the bottle, and when they push hard enough the bottle bursts. That is what happened to the rock and the sidewalk. Do you believe it now? 3. How important are the plant’s first leaves? By now you have had some experience with plants. Have you noticed that all the different kinds of seeds you planted (flower and vegetable) start growing with the same kind of leaves? They all have what look like two thick leaves that dry up and fall off when the seedling develops other leaves. Have you ever wondered what these first leaves do? A little experiment will answer this question. Plant three quick-growing seeds, such as bean or cucumber seeds, in a flowerpot. Water them and one day you will notice you have three little plants, all with the same two first leaves, which are called cotyledons. Now, leave one seedling exactly as it is. From the second seedling, cut off one leaf. From the third, cut off both leaves. Continue to take care of your plants and you will discover something interesting. The seedling from which you cut off both leaves will be very small. The seedling with one leaf cut off will be a little larger. The seedling you did not touch will be the largest and healthiest. From this experiment you can gather that the cotyledons are storehouses for the young plant and should fall off only when the plant is strong enough to get nourishment by itself. Losing first leaves too soon hampers a plant’s growth. I hope you enjoy your seeds and seedlings this spring! Do your homework on best growing practices for your region, and don’t forget to have fun with the kids along the way. There are so many life lessons and spiritual truths to be learned from planting a garden. Related post: Gardening With Children
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, education, family, gardening, outdoor activities, planting, plants, plant experiments, seedlings, vegetable garden, science Expressive Social StudiesPosted March 25th, 2009 by Jen in education, features7 Comments » Oh boy, I’ll have to make this a quick post, but I hope to come back to this subject another time when I can deal with it more in depth. For now, here’s a short list of some methods I’ve had great success with in regards to bringing some life to the history and social studies lessons. I vary the method I use to add interest, and only do one of these at a time. 1. Act it out. As I read aloud the lesson from our textbook, I have my students stand at their desk and create motions to go along with the words. If we are studying about Alexander the Great crossing a vast desert on his way to conquer another nation, I’ve seen students galloping on their horses, brandishing swords, or taking a victory stance. A word of caution–if you don’t want this to get too out of hand, let your students know ahead of time what the boundaries are. After dealing with kids racing around the room, falling to the floor with gasps and spasms as they “die,” and engaging in hand-to-hand combat, I had to make some rules! Extra points went to groups who acted silently (so as to hear the teacher), stayed behind their desks, and if they must die, they do so with a minimum of fanfare. Just sayin’. 2. Group skits. This is a modification of number 1 above. Instead of each student acting individually, I assign sections of the text to groups of 3-4 students (about 1-2 pages per group) and give them 15-20 minutes to come up with a skit to represent their section. This is not meant to be an extended project, and must be accomplished within that timeframe. Each group has up to five minutes to present their skit, so with about five groups of students, this fills the social studies period. Twenty minutes to read their section and prepare the skit, plus 25 minutes of group presentations – 45 minutes. Much more fun than just reading and filling out a worksheet. And truly, the retention is miles beyond the traditional approach. A note on the skits–visit with each group as they are preparing, and point out the main ideas that should make it into their skit. They will need some guidance o this, especially if they are new to this activity. Names of characters should be stated, location and date should be made known. As your students become familiar with what you require, the quality of their skits really improves. 3. Poetry. From prose to poetry is the goal here. When we go the poetry route, we read the chapter aloud, then I offer a poem starter to get the kids in the right frame of mind. I’ve been requiring just six lines of poetry for now, because this is a more difficult one for my kids. As they become more comfortable with this method, I would expect my students to write eight lines for every page of the lesson. Let’s try a quick lesson here. Go the the Alexander the Great wikipedia page and read the intro. Write six lines of poetry. Here’s my poem, done in less than five minutes.
It’s amazing how much you have to examine the words and think about synonyms to turn prose into poetry. I think this is a method I will continue to explore! 4. Jeopardy! Who doesn’t love a good game? We read the lesson aloud to get the big picture. Then break into groups of three or four students each. Each student must write at least three Jeopardy questions, which are then submitted to me to choose from. Sometimes, to get good coverage, I will assign groups the pages their questions must come from. I also typically have them label their questions Easy, Medium, or Difficult. On the whiteboard, I draw a modified Jeopardy game board, with group names and points. We play a simplified version of the TV game show. Some other ideas for teachers to explore…reader’s theatre, songs, puppet shows. The bottom line for me is this: how can I engage my students in a subject that is typically called “boring” by a huge number of young people? I know how critical it is to know our history – how else can we know ourselves? History is anything but boring! If you have some great ideas for spicing up the social studies, let me know. And do you have an Alexander the Great poem for me? Technorati Tags: education, history lesson ideas, creative social studies, teaching Inspired Book Reports: Lapbooking Where the Red Fern GrowsPosted March 17th, 2009 by Jen in book reviews, education, features14 Comments » A fun, creative way to do book reports–it’s called a lapbook, or a folder full of mini-books to organize the main ideas and story elements of literature. The lapbook can be the whole book report for younger to middle ages, or a tool for gathering information as the student reads before he writes a formal report for upper grades. I’d like to show you an example of a lapbook for Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. I created this for my 6th grade students, and they are loving it. What I like most about the lapbook is the myriad of options available–all sizes, colors, shapes, and topics, all to be worked out according to the book and limited only by your imagination. As a logistical note, I chose to make the entire lapbook right upfront, rather than make one mini book at a time, because with the way I set this up, the students are adding a bit to almost every mini book each day. You’ll need to gather two manila folders per child as well as the pre-printed templates which I’ll reference below (just follow the links). I would set aside two class sessions of 30-45 minutes each to set up the entire lapbook. Start with a letter size manila folder. Open it up, and fold each flap into the middle and crease. And because I wanted an extra pocket in the back, I taped up the sides of a second manila folder and glued it to the back of the first folder. Here is what the lapbook looks like from the front:
I picked three main characters from Where the Red Fern Grows – Billy, Old Dan, and Little Ann, and as we read the book together in class, I prompt the students to stop and make notes on 3×5 notecards when they learn something new or important about each character. The 3×5 notecard must be folded in half or cut to fit into this pocket. Here are examples of student entries on their character cards:
Here is the link to the template for the pockets. Open up the lapbook and you’ll discover a treasure of little books:
I’ll start on the left inside flap. There is an Author mini-book, called a rectangle petal book. On the four outside flaps I wrote the words birth, early childhood, writing, and my one regret. Under each of these flaps, the students are to write a sentence or two about Wilson Rawls on that subject. I handed out this study guide for Where the Red Fern Grows which includes information for several of the mini-books, including this author mini-book. By the way, Wilson Rawls’ one regret was that his father died before Wilson could show him a copy of his book. Under the author book is “the Ozarks” mini-book (the hexagon mini simple fold book), which in a traditional book report would be the setting. In this little space, the students will share details such as how the Ozarks are a highland region, and in Where the Red Fern Grows, the part of the Ozarks described is in the northeastern section of Oklahoma. Thick forests of oak, hickory, pine, and maple, caves, mountain streams, and abundant wildlife should all be mentioned. The wheel book under the Ozarks book is for Sequence of Events. It is divided into eight sections, and meant for students to think hard about boiling down the main events of the book into just a few steps. For example, the first event listed could be The adult Billy has a flashback to his childhood after rescuing a redbone hound. The second event could be Billy works hard for two years and earns money to buy his hounds. Right away you probably noticed the bright, multi-colored layered book called Chapter Summaries. We made these out of colored construction paper following these easy instructions. This is where the students record a few concise sentences about each chapter as they go, touching on the main action, thus creating an entire summary of the book by the time they have completed the last chapter. I cut off a smaller section of the original layered book and used it for the skinnier multi-colored layered book to the right called Fave Quotes and Phrases. I encouraged my students to be on the lookout for figurative, expressive language, for which Wilson Rawls is famous, fun plays on words, or thought-provoking quotes. Examples that made it into some student’s lapbook are:
Under the chapter summaries is a Daily Journal, made using the same method as the chapter summary mini-book, except with plain paper. I typically give a writing prompt for this exercise, and here is an example of the prompt I wrote for Ch. 9:
The Book Report mini-book in the center of the lapbook is the most simple of them all. It’s a basic flap-book, and here is what’s under the cover – a place to record the nuts and bolts of the book: title, author, illustrator, publication date, setting, main character, and what I thought of the book. Directly under the Book Report mini-book are two index card accordion books (very easy!). It’s hard to make out the writing, but they say Vocabulary Words. Listed here are words from each chapter the students may not be familiar with and should know. As you pull open the index card, there is a place for the student to write the words I’ve assigned, as well as their own personal list. Here is the word list from chapters 1-7 as an example: allot v. to parcel out A lapbook on Where the Red Fern Grows would not be complete without a mini-book on the coon! At the top right of the inside of the lapbook folder you’ll see the Raccoon flip-flap book. As you lift the cover of this mini-book, you’ll find three flaps to label, and under each flap the kids will write a description. For the coon book, the three labels I chose were Description, Behavior, and Eating Habits. Another pocket is under the Raccoon book, labeled Spiritual Truths. Where the Red Fern Grows is chock full of biblical and moral truths and opportunities for spiritual growth. For example, after reading chapter 3 and learning how persistently Billy works for two years to earn the money for his hounds, students could write Proverbs 14:23 on an index card: In hard work there is always something gained, but idle talk leads only to poverty. The final mini-book I’ve included in the lapbook for Where the Red Fern Grows is a must–a redbone coon hound book, and I chose the template of a T-book. Inside the flaps of this book are a square in the center for a picture of a redbone coon hound, and three other flaps for information about the breed. The study guide I mentioned earlier has a nice section on the redbone hound. A word on attaching the mini-books to the base folder: Students either glued them down or stapled them. What happens if a student fills her journal and needs more room? She would pull off the mini-book, place it in the folder which is glued to the back of the lapbook, and make a new journal to affix into the lapbook. If you think you have wordy kids on your hands who will fill up their little books, think about attaching the mini-books with velcro for easy removal. The folder is also the depository where the student will empty out her pockets when they are full (the character cards and spiritual truth cards) to make room for more. How does the teacher grade a lapbook? I periodically check on each student, walking about the room and inspecting a bit of each student’s book every day we use it, to ensure they are keeping on top of it. I also invite volunteers to share what they have written, which they enjoy tremendously. When we are finished with Where the Red Fern Grows, I will collect each student’s lapbook and grade each mini-book on a simple scale, giving an overall grade of up to 100%. The breakdown of points is as follows: All mini-books except the Chapter Summaries and Daily Journal receive up to 5 points each, and the Chapter Summaries and Daily Journal receive up to 20 points each. That’s about it! I hope you were able to follow this lengthy description of a lapbook, and if you have any questions or ideas for improvements, please let me know. Where the Red Fern Grows is a fabulous book for a project like this, and is a book that should not be missed, whether you lapbook it or not.
Technorati Tags: book reports, education, lapbooks, literary log, mini books, Where the Red Fern Grows The Masters and the ClassicsPosted March 8th, 2009 by Jen in arts & crafts, education, features12 Comments » “Get your journals ready,” I tell my 6th grade students every morning. From 8:00 to 8:10 a.m. most school days, I have a short piece of classical music on queue in the CD player, along with a work of art from one of the masters displayed on the music stand at the front on the classroom. I feel that this beginning part of our day is perhaps the most important thing I do. I had to work hard to squeeze it in, because if you work for a school, you know that your schedule is very tight with all the other subject requirements and content you are obliged to cover in a given year. But the beauty this brings to my classroom is worth every bit of effort. Music feeds the soul, and art, well, a good long look at a masterpiece could be the equivalent of reading a 300 page classic novel. I have to make clear that this 10-15 minute art/music journal time is meant to be a broad overview to simply expose kids to the greatest works of art and music of all time. I figure that by the end of the school year, they will have been introduced to more masterpieces than most adults ever will be familiar with. On the whiteboard, there is a section on the left side reserved for the daily journal questions. In bold letters I write “Look” with little eyeballs in the o’s, followed by the title of the painting and the journal question. Below this I draw an ear icon next to the word “Listen,” along with the title of the musical piece and a query. Writing prompts help them to get started and stir up ideas. Here are a few examples of how it works: Day 1: LOOK: The Dancing Couple, by Jan Steen, 1663. Journal Question: Jan Steen loved to paint life “as it is,” and used painting as storytelling. What details of this painting tell you that Steen captured daily life with all its messiness? (My students noticed broken eggshells strewn on the floor, a stray spoon, turned over containers, and a general chaotic, merry feeling.) LISTEN: Art of the Fugue, BWV 1080, by Johann Sebastian Bach (1685–1750), from Classical Kids, Mr. Bach Comes to Call. Journal Question: A fugue is when you have have more than one musical line going on at once, and they all use the same theme. It’s called imitative counterpoint. Bach is the prime example of the fugue. Can you hear the themes? (I will generally have the kids write in their own words what a fugue is for this journal entry, otherwise it would simply be a yes or no answer.) ***** Notice that the above painter and musician come from generally the same time period. I like pairing them like this. Even better is pairing the artist and the musician from the same country and time period, and aligning this with your history curriculum. Day 2: LOOK: Red Boats in Argenteuil, by Claude Monet, 1875 Journal Question: Pure black is rarely used by the impressionist painters. Monet would instead combine several colors to achieve the appearance of black: blues, greens and reds. What color are the shadows in this painting?
Journal Question: Write down each character and the musical instrument that corresponds to it. Which is your favorite? ***** One of my proudest moments came earlier this year, just after the Super Bowl, actually. During the Super Bowl, a cute Coke commercial was aired, the one with the insects in a meadow who steal away with the sleeping guy’s Coca Cola. The entire commercial is set to just one sound, with no voices: the music from Peter and the Wolf. It was Peter’s theme, the most recognized piece of the composition. That Monday, I asked my kids if any of them watched the Super Bowl and noticed the Coke commercial. A few of them made me jump for joy – Yes! they chimed in–it was Peter and the Wolf! A few parents even noted to me how surprised they were when their children recognized the tune. This small incident highlighted for me why I do what I do. Now, I’d like to share some resources that make this art/music series possible and mostly FREE. I don’t have a written program I follow at this point, but I hope to develop one to make this much easier for teachers to replicate, along with journal questions for each piece. For now, I gather materials as I go, and decide about a week ahead of time what to present, trying to align this with our history/social studies units. Here’s a short list to get you started. 1. National Gallery of Art. Most folks are unaware that the National Gallery of Art has a free lending program. This has been invaluable to me! So far, almost all of my art, with the exception of some books I own, has come from this fabulous program. Most teaching packets come with a teachers guide, a CD of images, slides, and large color study prints. I sign up online for the programs I want, NGA ships them right to me at no cost, and I’m responsible only for the cost of returning them media mail. Can’t beat this. If you don’t have a slide projector, look for one. Or just use the large prints. If you are fortunate enough to have a projector for your computer, you certainly have an easy job! Some of my favorite teaching packets so far have been: Painting in the Dutch Golden Age 2. Your local public library. This has been the source of nearly all my classical music for kids. If you have a collection built up already, you’re in luck. The most difficult part of the music for me was coming up with journal questions. I loved the classical kids CDs that incorporated a story with the music, because this made the journaling so much easier for the kids. This way, my questions can also be about details from the composer’s life, which are typically included in these CDs, or questions about the storyline if it’s an opera or ballet. Here are my favorites: Famous Composers, written by Darren Henley, read by Marin Alsop.
More Famous Composers, written by Darren Henley, read by Marin Alsop.
Peter and the Wolf by Sergei Prokofiev, by Stephen Simon and narrated by Yadu.
The Story of Swan Lake, by Tchaikovsky, from Maestro Classics.
I hope you’ve been encouraged today to devote some teaching time to the classics of art and music. Just a few minutes a day, with consistency, will achieve more than you can imagine. Some of you may have some other great resources to add to my short list – if so, let me know about them! Music is a more potent instrument than any other for education. Plato The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance. Aristotle
Technorati Tags: art education, music education, classical music, the master painters, journaling Richard Wurmbrand MoviePosted March 1st, 2009 by Jen in education, persecuted church, religion5 Comments » I saw this over at Challies, and love this kind of feature. It’s the story of Richard Wurmbrand, and is the latest in the Torchlighters Heroes of the Faith series (perfect for ages 8-12).
Richard Wurmbrand spent 14 years in Communist imprisonment in his homeland of Romania, suffering horrific torture for his Christian faith. Wurmbrand later became the founder of the The Voice of the Martyrs. He tells his shocking story in his book Tortured for Christ. This DVD from Torchlighters also includes a one-hour documentary that Challies liked even better than the animated feature. His wife Sabina also has an amazing story, told in her autobiography, The Pastor’s Wife.
Technorati Tags: Christianity, Voice of the Martyrs, communism, Richard Wurmbrand, Romania Benjamin Carson: star neurosurgeon sees God in sciencePosted February 8th, 2009 by Jen in education, features, religion, science22 Comments »
Dr. Benjamin Carson is one of the world’s best neurosurgeons. He made history in 1987 when he accomplished what every neurosurgeon before him had failed to do: he successfully separated Siamese twins who were joined at the back of the head. Many other “firsts” followed this, and Dr. Carson continues to blaze a trail in the field of pediatric neurosurgery. He is currently a professor of neurosurgery, oncology, plastic surgery, and pediatrics at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and he has been chief of pediatric neurosurgery at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center for nearly a quarter of a century.
Dr. Carson has been a leader in scientific research his entire career. He has over 120 major scientific publications in peer reviewed journals, almost 40 books and book chapters, and grant awards of about one million dollars. With his clear intelligence in the fields of medicine and science, I think his opinion on the origin of life deserves to be heard. Does evolutionary theory have any direct bearing on his daily work as a neurosurgeon? Only philosophically, I would say, but can you tell me one field of science where evolutionary theory actually makes a tangible, measurable difference in how that scientist works and contributes to society? It merely plays out in a theoretical or metaphysical or political way. A lot of people believe in evolution because most scientists do (or at least it’s the common perception that most scientists do). I don’t know the statistics, but I suspect the number of scientists who do not believe in evolution is large and growing. I am not speaking of microevolution, but the general theory of Darwin that all life originated and evolved by gradual and chance advantageous mutations – which is entirely void of factual support. Back to Benjamin Carson–I’m more than pleased to know that this distinguished man speaks openly and honestly about his faith in God and belief in a Creator and Designer. He looks to the facts and wonders at Darwin’s own assertion that within fifty to 100 years of his lifetime fossil remains would be found of the entire evolutionary tree, displaying an indisputable step-by-step evolution of life from amoeba to human. As Carson points out, this does not exist:
Dr. Carson is certainly a risk-taker in more ways than one. In fact, his latest best-selling book is called Take the Risk. In his surgical field, he continually pushes forward with innovation and new techniques. For example, with hemispherectomies (removal of half of the brain to prevent untreatable severe seizures), he significantly increased the safety of the procedure by coming up with better ways of controlling bleeding and infection, as well as developing a system of incrementally removing specific brain parts. In his willingness to explain his creation views, he is also a risk taker. He addressed the National Science Teachers convention in Philadelphia and the very prestigious Academy of Achievement, which includes many Nobel scientists. Dr. Carson’s basic message was that “evolution and creationism both require faith. It’s just a matter of where you choose to place that faith.” If you’d like to find out more about Benjamin Carson, there are some fantastic resources available. Just this past Saturday, Feb. 7, 2009, TNT aired Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story. Superbly played by Cuba Gooding, you will be inspired to learn of Carson’s upbringing in extreme poverty in Detroit, raised by a single mother with a third grade education. Ben Carson’s story is also told in his autobiography, Gifted Hands: The Ben Carson Story. Visit the Carson Scholars Fund for information on Benjamin Carson’s education initiatives and scholarships. Resources:
Technorati Tags: Benjamin Carson, Christianity, creation, evolution, faith, neurosurgeon, science Berthe Fraser, from Housewife to French Resistance HeroPosted January 18th, 2009 by Jen in features, france/french, germany, persecuted church, politics/world news14 Comments » In Nazi occupied France during the dark days of WWII, there was a group of valiant and daring individuals known as the French Resistance. They dared to defy the vice-grip of Nazi Germany (as well as the French collaborators) using stealth, reconnaissance, infiltration, and whatever means necessary to save their beloved country and fellow man from destruction. Most of these brave souls were subject to betrayal, unspeakable torture, or death. One of these members of the French Resistance appeared to be an ordinary housewife, but Berthe Fraser was anything but ordinary. Berthe Fraser was among hundreds of people who rose to the treacherous task of defending France. Be they a housewife, a mother, a Catholic, a Jew, a communist, an artist, or a politician, these resistance fighters came from all layers of society, both male and female, young and old, and without their heroic acts, Hitler’s march through France may not have been halted. The French Resistance took many forms, from groups of armed guerilla bands who escaped to the mountains, known as the Maquis, to organizers of escape networks for Jews and other targets of the Nazis, to publishers of underground newspapers, to those who carried out sabotage operations, to couriers who carried coded messages back and forth between Allied members. Mrs. Fraser’s story begins with her birth in 1894 as Berthe Emilie Vicogne. She married an Englishman and thus became a British subject. When the rumblings of WWII hit France, Berthe Fraser was going about her domestic life in her hometown of Arras, France, all the while organizing an underground network that saved the lives of countless English agents and pilots. Her husband reported later to an English newspaper:
Twice betrayed but never broken, Berthe Fraser was an unshakable woman for whom I have the utmost awe and respect. I can relate to where she was in life; a woman in her 40s, tending to her home. I don’t know if she had any children, but as a woman, I feel the risks of undertaking the work of the Resistance were doubly perilous. I wish there was more information available about this woman. I know she suffered extreme torture during her second capture, and this trauma surely accounts for the lack of details. Who wants to recall the horror? I can find no record of a public interview. I discovered in the back matter of the book SOE in France by M.R.D. Foot, that Berthe Fraser died in 1956, her health never restored. In 1941, someone betrayed Berthe, and she was arrested by the Gestapo. She spent 15 months in a Belgian prison, and was released in December 1942. Did this imprisonment deter her? No. Berthe immediately jumped back into the work of fighting Hitler’s campaign of death and terror.
From the Charlotte Gray website, an excellent Warner Bros. movie about a Scottish woman living in England, parachuted into France by the British Government (SOE) to support the French Resistance. Berthe was betrayed again in 1944, unbelievably by one of the very English agents whose life she saved. She spent six months in solitary confinement at Loos where she was tortured every day. She was stripped and flogged in front of Nazi troops and condemned to death. Never did she betray her friends in the Resistance or the English army. How many lives she saved through her own afflictions will never be known. When the Allies stormed the prison on September 1, 1944, Berthe Fraser was just hanging onto life, and she is reported to have said, “Thank you boys, you are just in time.”
Sisters in Resistance, a documentary film by Independent Lens.
Charlotte Gray, a Warner Bros. film.
For Freedom, a novel by Kimberly Brubaker Bradley. An excellent young adult book for grades 6-12.
Outwitting the Gestapo, a memoir by Lucie Aubrac.
Sisters in the Resistance by Margaret Collins Weitz.
Code Name Christiane Clouet: A Woman in the French Resistance by Claire Chevrillon.
An American Heroine in the French Resistance: The Diary and Memoir of Virginia D’Albert-Lake by Virginia D’Albert-Lake.
Behind Enemy Lines: The True Story of a French Jewish Spy in Nazi Germany by Marthe Cohn.
Carve Her Name With Pride by RJ Minney. Also on film.
A Life in Secrets: Vera Atkins and the Missing Agents of WWII by Sarah Helm.
Flames in the Field: The Story of Four SOE Agents in Occupied France by Rita Kramer.
Technorati Tags: Berthe Fraser, French Resistance, France, Nazi Germany, Hitler, women in history Cole Family Christmas: A Treasured TalePosted December 24th, 2008 by Jen in book reviews, education, family life, holidays, parenting7 Comments »
This newest plaything came with a book, Cole Family Christmas, which I read to the children a few nights ago. As the fire crackled before us and little ones snuggled in my lap, this heart-warming story of an Appalachian family struggling in a 1920s coal mining town became an instant family classic. Cole Family Christmas is based on the true story of the Cole Family – Mama and Papa and their nine children, set in the small company town of Benham, Kentucky. Co-written by the youngest and only surviving Cole child, 88-year-old Hazel Cole Kendle, along with her granddaughter-in-law, Jennifer Liu Bryan, this is the tale of one special Christmas in the heart of the Appalachian coalfields.
The deep significance of the story goes beyond the antics of a goat, however, and is found in the beauty and simplicity of these family memories, which culminate in the Christmas morning giving of gifts that speaks a tender message about sacrificial giving and cheerful receiving. Illustrations in Cole Family Christmas are done by Jenniffer Julich, who skillfully depicts Appalachian life with just the right mix of family love and tough times. The pages are bordered with six different vintage Christmas-themed fabric designs, based on Mama Cole’s quilt. Great care was taken by Julich to accurately portray the essence of family life in Benham, including visits to the Kentucky Coal Mining Museum and with residents of Benham, Kentucky. As a read-aloud book, Cole Family Christmas is a hit. Its 74 pages were a bit lengthy for one sitting for my youngest, so I split it into two sessions. The book includes a nice mix of activity including both boys and girls, so it appealed to my family of two boys and two girls. The girls were absorbed in Ruble’s yellow ribbons and Mama’s glass bowls; the boys were intent on Dock’s work at the railroad, collecting iron scraps and fallen lumps of coal. If you have an Appalachian heritage, this book is a must for your collection. This is my dad’s heritage, so Cole Family Christmas belongs in my library. If Appalachia is not a part of your personal history, I would still suggest discovering this rich culture that has a special place in the fabric of American life. The publisher, Next Chapter Press, is contributing a percentage of the net proceeds of sales of Cole Family Christmas to the Berea College Appalachian Fund.
By the way, Hilda is the official spokesgoat for ReadAloud.org, an organization supporting family literacy and urging families to read aloud to their children every day. Do you have a favorite Christmas story, either old or new? My encouragement to you today: record your family Christmas memories–you just may have a story someday!
Technorati Tags: Appalachia, book review, Christmas story, children’s books, Cole Family Christmas, Hilda the goat Christmas Music: Annie Moses Band!Posted December 6th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, features, holidays, music, religion4 Comments » Do you have a favorite Christmas song or album? I discovered my latest rave last Christmas, as I heard a completely unique rendition of “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen” come over the airwaves.See what I mean? I’m talking an amazing mix of contemporary Christian with classical strings that is now called “chamber pop,” delivered up with the voice of an angel, and to top it off, this is a family band. I love family bands, and this one, the Annie Moses Band, goes well beyond what you might see at the county fair. About the Annie Moses Band: First, this is a family outfit, whose members include parents Bill (composer/arranger/pianist) and Robin (lyricist/vocalist) Wolaver and their children: Annie, Alex, Benjamin, Gretchen, Camille, and Jeremiah, in ages ranging from twenty-four down to ten.
Their music is fused with jazz, bluegrass, classical, celtic, country, and pop sounds, and is hard to define, but overall, there is a message of hope and love through Jesus Christ. Their latest Christmas album, This Glorious Christmas, was just released in October, and includes God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen and other classics, as well as another of my new favorites, the soulful Bethlehem House of Bread. The lead singer, Annie Wolaver, is named after her great-grandmother, Annie Moses. Annie shared about her namesake:
What an inspiring story! I am addicted to their sound, stirred by their spirit. The Annie Moses Band cares deeply about the next generation, and hosts a Fine Arts Summer Academy where students can play with the band and other teachers and mentors.
If you’re in the Nashville, Tennessee area, and would like some fun, challenging music training for your young one, ages 4 through college-age, don’t miss this! Mark your calendars for July 10-25, 2009. I’m on the other side of the country in Oregon, and this isn’t an option for me. However, I have friends here in Central Oregon who attend a similar, smaller-scale, music camp with another amazingly talented local family, so check out the Booher Family Music Camp held in Sisters, Oregon. So, tell me, what music is awakening your soul this Christmas season? Had you ever heard of the Annie Moses Band before? Technorati Tags: Booher Family Music Camp, Bethehem House of Bread, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen, Christmas music, music, music education, Annie Moses Band Text Messaging: Concerns for the AdolescentPosted November 22nd, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, parenting16 Comments »
A parent of one of my students was recently telling me about her 12 year old son receiving “interesting” text messages from a female classmate; another friend related how her 7th grader regularly receives dozens of texts a day up to 11 p.m. from classmates and friends of both sexes. Is texting just akin to the talking on the phone that we parents engaged in as young adolescents? Some things to consider: Texting gives your child a privacy in conversation that he or she may not be ready for, and may be inappropriate. Texting allows for an immediacy in written conversation that opens the door to impulsive, potentially hurtful words. Texting removes the inhibitions of face-to-face or even over the phone conversations, and may result in inappropriate messages. Text messaging is a simple idea, but despite its extreme brevity is really a complex form of communication, simply for the lack of context (i.e., emotion, expression, descriptive words) it provides for any texting conversation. Some suggestions for adolescents regarding text-messaging: 1. Consider the worst possible interpretation your words could have, or the worst possible situation that could result from them. Know that text messages, especially abbreviations, can be unclear or ambiguous, and not read how you intended. Parents, consider putting strict time/place/person limitations on your child’s text-messaging, such as “no texting after 7 p.m,” “no texting in your bedroom,” or “no texting with members of the opposite sex.” Or simply, “no texting.” Dear reader, what do you think of text-messaging among young adolescents? Are you a parent with experience in this area? Do you feel helpless at the hands of modern social media? What rules have you instituted in your household? Technorati Tags: cell phone, youth culture, cyber bullying, social media, text messaging The Child’s Inventor’s BoxPosted October 12th, 2008 by Jen in education, features, science9 Comments » An “inventor’s box” full of odds and ends that has a permanent place in your home play area or in your classroom–this is the child’s invention kit, the perfect tool for science exploration and innovation. The idea is to create the atmosphere of an inventor’s workshop, where there is no fixed set of materials and no particular goal established in advance; rather, the bountiful collection of materials is there for the child to explore, experiment, and give creative expression to his ideas. And voila, an enthusiastic and independent science mind is being created in the process. I. For the frugal and simple approach, here is a list (in no particular order) to get you started. These materials can be gathered over time from a craft store, RadioShack, around your house and garage, thrift stores, garage sales, lumber yards, and more. Let me know what else I should add to my list, and some simple experiments to go with this list!
Now, what can you do with all these materials? Here are some ideas cards to keep handy, if your child/student wants a specific activity: 1. Human conductor of electricity Supplies: Directions: 2. Periscope-mirrored tube that lets you see over walls and around corners: Supplies: Directions: For more amazing science activities for the home or classroom, visit The Exploratorium.
The PicoCricket Kit uses a tiny computer which allows the student to make things spin, light up, and play music; you basically make your creations come to life with simple robotics. The price tag is $250 for the complete kit, which includes the following: motor and motor board, display, beamer (send programs from your computer to your PicoCricket), resistance sensor, sound sensor, colored lights, sound box, PicoCricket programmer (to control your creations), touch sensor, and light sensor. Also included in the kit is easy-to-use software for programming the Cricket (PC and Mac compatible), USB cable, a collection of craft materials and lego bricks to create motion modules, and ten project placemats with sample Cricket activities. This is a reusable kit–only the craft materials are consumable, but are inexpensive to replace. Mitchel Resnick, an MIT professor who worked on the project, made an important point about the accessibility of the PicoCricket kit: We knew that lots of kids are interested in art and music, so we wanted to make sure that there were lots of ways for them to be able to use art and music as an entry point to explore math, science and engineering. Wow~whether your budget is small or large, there are options. The basic inventor’s box is more time consuming to put together, but cheaper; and the pre-packaged kits offer efficiency but at a cost. I hope you’ve been inspired to provide some creative science outlets for your child or classroom! Don’t Get Mad!Posted September 18th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, religion5 Comments » Following up on my last post about teaching patience to children, here is another great resource I discovered on overcoming anger. I’ll be going through this short worksheet with my own children as well as my students. If you are battling with anger or have a child who does, I’d recommend reading the scriptures listed here and memorizing them with your children. Don’t Get Mad! Take Preventive Steps to Avoid Getting Angry(material gathered from Doug Britton, author of Victory Over Grumpiness, Irritation and Anger; permission granted to print for personal use) Man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires (James 1:20). There is such a thing as “righteous anger,” but most of our anger is not righteous. In fact, our anger usually is destructive. My greatest obstacle to overcoming anger is _________________________________________ . Compare your answer to: “Not recognizing I am sinning when I am angry.” It is rare that our anger is righteous anger. As James wrote: Man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires (James 1:20). I won’t have as much trouble getting angry if I am ___________________________________________. Compare your answer to: • Patient. Look at God’s example in 2 Peter 3:9 and then read Proverbs 15:18. • Eternally-minded. Look at Paul’s example in 2 Corinthians 4:16-18. • Forbearing. Read Ephesians 4:2 and Colossians 3:13. • Understanding of other people. Read about God’s understanding in Hebrews 4:15. • Aware of anger’s destructiveness. Read about the results of anger in Psalm 37:8 and Proverbs 15:1. • Secure in who I am in God. Read about Jesus’ silence before Pilate in Matthew 27:12-14. Note that Jesus didn’t “need” to defend himself. Personal application I will pray to become more: ___________________________________________________. One practical step I will take to make this change is: ________________________________________________________________________________________. Key Bible verses on anger management:
Blessings to you, my friend, as you work toward victory over anger! I’m right there with you, and I’ll share some more later about how this process is going with my students and my family. Remember, HE IS ABLE, and our God has already won for us every victory, and I plan on not turning down my blue ribbon. :-) Teaching Patience to ChildrenPosted September 13th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life10 Comments » The information below comes from The Patient Parent. I’ve been praying for strategies to deal with a few (many, actually) of the students in my class who deal with anger management issues. What’s the best way to handle the child who breaks pencils, rips up papers, and bursts into angry tears, and you’re not even sure what caused this reaction? Does one use the kid gloves or a firm hand? I’m a teacher, not a counselor, I want to cry out. However, in today’s world, a teacher must be both. This was a helpful website I discovered, and I hope to incorporate some of these ideas into my interactions with these students. I don’t always like “strategies” or “techniques,” and prefer to rely on God’s wisdom and the Holy Spirit’s guidance to help me discern what is best for each individual. However, didn’t God gift this person with insight to help little ol’ me?! Thank you, Patient Parent, for the following: Below are three primary temperaments of children (remember that children can cross over into more than one, so get to know them all), their characteristics, and how to work with each on patience skills…You can begin to incorporate these ideas around age 3. 1. FEISTY
•Need Opportunity and Challenge THREE ELEMENTS OF PATIENCE Empathy – Mindfulness Self-Leadership 2. FEARFUL
•Need Time and Practice Empathy Mindfulness Self-Leadership 3. FLEXIBLE
•Need Acknowledgement Empathy Mindfulness Self-Leadership I trust this was helpful to some of you! Blessings to you all as you raise your children, in your parenting and your teaching. …that holds a mother to life…Posted September 6th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life10 Comments »
Just wanted to share this wall hanging sign my mother-in-law gave me for my birthday last month. I love it. Do you ever feel this way? After my first hectic week of teaching, I’m needing my children! I’ve been mostly away from them for seven hours a day, and what a joy to come home and be anchored again. I do see them throughout the day for bits here and there, since I teach at the same school they attend. For that I’m grateful. Many of you have asked me how that first week has been. In many respects, it was wonderful. God has given me a deep love for all my students and I want the best for them. We’re off to a good start and getting into a comfortable routine, and most of the kids are working very diligently. In other ways, it was very difficult, as I’m learning how to handle a few of the very challenging students in my class. This little saying on the sign, “Children are the anchor that holds a mother to Life” – it’s a sweet way of acknowledging that as a mother, my responsibility in caring for and raising my children, however rigorous it may be at times, actually offers me a lot of security! If I’ve had an exhausting, grueling day in the classroom, and a student says he hates school or maybe has a violent outburst in class, it’s nice to know that I’m still a mother with four lovely little children who adore their mommy and can’t wait for me to be home. Can you think of some ways that your children keep you anchored to life? A Simple Woman – September 1Posted September 1st, 2008 by Jen in book reviews, education, family life, religion8 Comments »
For Today… Outside my Window…is a pale blue September sky, a hint of chill in the air. The day is warming up after a *freeze* last night! I am thinking…about God, His plans for our future, how He will provide our needs, how we can be a blessing to others. From the learning rooms…The two older kids are playing Monopoly, a game continued from yesterday, which was continued from the previous day. The youngest arranges his blocks and works on a puzzle book. I am thankful for…my amazing husband, my healthy children, our home, the many opportunities before us. Thank you, Jesus. From the kitchen…dishes that need washing, bread that needs baking. I am wearing…a long sleeved blue t-shirt, gray exercise pants, socks. I am reading…The Hoosier School-Master by Edward Eggleston. An old, old book first published in 1871. An amazing piece of American regional writing and a stunning showcase of old Hoosier dialect – this is backwoods Indiana, the story of a young schoolteacher on the Indiana “frontier” before the Civil War. I love old books. The novel begins:
I am hoping…to be ready to face my first day of school tomorrow (shaking in my boots a bit). I’m hoping for lessons to be planned, room organized, lunches packed, kids scrubbed and fresh. I am creating…grading charts, lesson plans, discipline procedures, and ideas are swirling in my head. I am hearing…Big L and JJ moving Monopoly pieces, adding numbers, “What do I owe you?” “$20!!” Around the house…clean laundry to put away, clothes to be sorted. Do the kids even have clothes to wear to school?? One of the greatest setbacks of moving from homeschool to private school is that now we can’t go around in rags all day! We have to actually dress nice every day. My budget is taking a big hit. A huge thank you to Grandma T. who bought each child a few outfits to start us out. One of my favorite things…is hunting for obsidian chips around the property, and once in a while even finding a near complete arrowhead. I love that my kids all delight in this activity as much as I do, and can spend patient hours in this simple pursuit. A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week… get all the orders packed up for TeamMASCOT ahead of time; run to Lowe’s with hubby to get some last minute items for the house (electrical cords, bits of pipe, etc.); stop at my school and have the room totally ready; buy lunch boxes and ice packs for the kids; figure out my teaching plan for the adopted Social Studies/History text the school uses, and align it chronologically and with the correct timeline. Thankfully, I have Susan Wise Bauer’s The Story of the World to help me with this. Here is a picture thought I am sharing with you…
Back to the ClassroomPosted August 25th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, religion14 Comments » Hello friends, You can hold the Homeschool Blog Awards, I won’t be qualified. I’m headed back to the classroom and all my kids are going with me. I’ll be teaching at a private school somewhere in Oregon, and that’s all I’ll say because I’m a security freak. So if you know me personally, please keep your comments general! I labored a great deal about having to write this post, and the main reason I am is because I noticed that I’m on a lot of bloggers’ dedicated “homeschool blog rolls” and I can’t just be sneaky about it! And I suppose with this transition in our family life, I’m sure to want to write about teaching and school life occasionally. I love homeschooling and it’s been a great blessing in our family life. I will continue to support my homeschool friends and write about the homeschool issues I care so much about, like the situation in Germany and other freedom of education topics. Part of my hesitation to write about this change is very personal. I have friends who believe that homeschooling is THE only way to educate a child, so of course I have concerns about certain people feeling like I’ve betrayed the movement. On the other hand, certain folks are rejoicing that I’m no longer homeschooling because they’re of the opinion that it’s a bad choice for all children (you know, the socialization contention). When it comes down to it, my husband and I make our family decisions based on God’s call on our life, not anyone else’s opinion. I will have some questions to throw out for you as I’m attempting to integrate my educational philosophy with a more traditional school system. I’m not dealing with a public school, so at least I won’t have many of the obstacles I would otherwise face. I have the freedom (and responsibility) to teach a biblical worldview in this school–a duty I approach earnestly and prayerfully. But how do I maintain the individual child’s sense of unique identity and liberty in a classroom of 20+ kids? How do I avoid treating information/knowledge as a commodity to be dispensed by me, the teacher? School has the potential to be a huge waste of someone’s childhood if the teacher is not engaging her students in meaningful, purposeful and effective learning-related pursuits. How do I maintain a child’s sense of being in control of and responsible for his own learning? I have so many more questions. I’ve been a classroom teacher in the past, before I homeschooled, and I never truly dealt with these questions. Mostly because I hadn’t yet homeschooled nor had I fully developed my own personal philosophy of education. I was trained in public institutions and taught in public institutions–it was all I knew. So, why, you may ask, if I have so many questions and doubts, am I teaching in a classroom and sending my kids there as well? I may discuss that another time, but I do feel called by God to this place for this time. I hope to honor God, my administration, my students, my students’ parents, and my own educational ideals all at the same time. I would really love to hear your thoughts on this big transition in our family life, and would appreciate your prayers for both me and my family. Technorati Tags: Christian education, education, family life, homeschool, teaching Frugal Field TripsPosted August 20th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, features, parenting, science, the ranch12 Comments » Local field trips for children are lurking around every corner, even in some everyday places if you recognize the opportunity. Every town will have its own unique chances for family excursions, but here are a few around my Central Oregon town for the budget-minded. The Greenhouse
If, like me, you’re not looking to schedule a full-blown field trip, just try asking questions, and you’ll probably discover that the employees are fairly eager to pass on some knowledge, especially when you have children asking their own questions as well. You may want to take a few minutes before entering the greenhouse to prep your kids for the experience, and “plant” some questions in their heads to get them thinking, and encourage them to be inquisitive (but polite). The Ranch
So, our friend Alisha invited my family and a few others out for a “horse lesson,” as my daughter said. This daughter is my equine lover and longs for her own trusty steed. My girl was counting down the days until this trip, dutifully marking her calendar. I only wish the cowboy boots from Grandma had arrived before this trip–but it’s okay, the boots have seen plenty of action since. Alisha did a fantastic job of walking the kids through her stables and introducing the children to the various horsey things that seem to enchant young ones.
I think this was the favorite field trip of the year. All the families involved were so thrilled to have this visit to the ranch. I know this isn’t a feasible option for many of you who don’t live in the country or know ranchers/farmers. But I’ll bet if you sat down and really thought hard, you’d come up with someone you know in an interesting field of work who just might welcome a few kids into their daily routine, and maybe even enjoy it as much as the kids. The State Park
There is a perfect covered overlook with several large picnic tables which looks down on this breathtaking view you see here. I love this spot for the chance to have the kids sit and sketch the scenery and really notice the amazing rock formations and the gentle curves of the river. Sometimes, I’ll have the kids stop and gather some leaves to look at later, but mostly it’s just a tremendous location that we never tire of.
The kids will of course discover caves and rabbit trails and rocks to climb. There are several large boulders they routinely climb up, nearly giving me a heart attack, but I forget what I was like as a child. The older I get, the more cautious I become and the more afraid of heights I get!
My kids often ask as we drive by Smith Rock, “Mommy, how did that get there?” and I can remind them of the plaque we read, with the illustrations of the volcanic explosion, and it all comes back. My older son now stops to read the plaque aloud to the other children and plays tour guide. Oh my, there are so many other wonderful little trips we make around town. I may have to do another post to tell you about the museums, the free concerts, the goat farms, and even how to turn a trip to the grocery store into a field trip. I spend very little money on these outings, and I mostly stay local, but I’m discovering that what makes a valuable experience for one’s family is an eager attitude about learning. The ability to spot a teachable moment paired with an inquisitive spirit will bring many frugal field trips to your front door. What frugal field trips does your town offer?
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, education, family life, Clydesdale horses, nursery, greenhouse, outdoors, field trips, frugal, plants, ranch, Smith Rock Ms. Gilbert, 1975Posted July 22nd, 2008 by Jen in education18 Comments » The only thing I remember about Ms. Gilbert is her hair. I was just five, and she was my kindergarten teacher. She had amazing hair, shiny brown, straight as a pin, cascading in sheets down to her bottom. I sense kindness and sweet energy when I try to recall any details. No details come, just a knowledge that this was a lovely young woman, and then a flash of bright colors – either from her actual clothing or her warm personality. And again those long chestnut locks. Wait, I remember books. She read to us. While children played with her hair. That sums up 1975. Do you have a memory of a favorite teacher?
Technorati Tags: childhood memories, favorite teacher, school German Homeschooling Ban Comes to Blog Talk Radio Tomorrow!Posted July 20th, 2008 by Jen in education, germany, persecuted church, politics/world news7 Comments »
This new Home School Talk radio show is hosted by Dana of Principled Discovery, who has written extensively about the homeschooling situation in Germany. The guest tomorrow is Rina, an Irish woman who homeschooled her children in Germany for a period and faced constant harassment from German authorities. Rina kept a blog updated through Dec. ’07 if you’d like to follow some of her saga there, as well as stories of many other German homeschoolers who dealt with similar harassment, fines, criminal penalties, loss of custody of children, and jail – just for homeschooling. Also a great source of updated information on German homeschooling is Kinderlehrer’s blog, Educating Germany, dedicated solely to this issue. Whether you’re a homeschooler or not, I’d encourage anyone who cares about basic human rights, parental rights, educational choice, and living in a free and democratic society, to tune in and educate yourself on this issue. If you’re not able to listen live, but have a question, comment, or encouragement for Rina, consider emailing Dana with your thoughts to pass on to her guest. Making MusicPosted May 11th, 2008 by Jen in education, features, music12 Comments »
Julie teaches private piano lessons, and she was kind enough to answer some questions for my blog readers. She is in high demand and has a waiting list for after-school hours, but for homeschooled students who can fill in earlier school hours, you’re in luck! Julie and her husband, Cory O’Neill, run Joyful Noise Music Studios in Redmond, Oregon, and between the two of them, offer a wide range of piano and guitar classes. A side note on Cory: coming up is his fabulous summer guitar camp for beginning and intermediate students, June 16-20. Classes are for 9 – 14 year old beginners, 15 year old – adult beginners, and then an intermediate class. Class includes 5 hours of instruction, CD with all the music and a binder with all the music. Held at Redmond Music Supply. For more information, contact the O’Neills at corynjulie[at]gmail[dot]com. I asked Julie to include some details here on her little bro, David Klinkenberg, who, if you haven’t heard, is the most amazing fiddle player ever, and shares his sister’s really awesome, silly sense of humor. I can’t remember when I’ve been to a concert and seen such a dynamic connection between a performer and his audience. Jen: How did you get started with teaching private piano lessons?
Jen: You and your husband are both involved in music ministry and music education; with your children, are you able to trade off the childcare and the teaching and cover for each other, or how does this work?
Jen: I’d love for you to share a little bit of your latest adventure with touring with your brother, David Klinkenberg. I’m a big fan of his (and yours) and want to make sure my readers get a chance to hear about this piece of your life.
Jen: It’s neat how both you and your brother are such musical talents, and I know your brother started really young. What advice would you give to parents of young children who don’t have a lot of money to spend on private lessons but still want their kids to get a music education?
Jen: You have many interests besides music. You’re an avid runner and you also like to write, educate people on health issues, do photography and quilting, and you’re a soccer mom, among other things. How do you find balance?
Didn’t you just love this time with Julie? If you’re lucky enough to live in Central Oregon, and have kids, you may want to explore the possibility of music lessons with Joyful Noise Music Studios. If you’re a stay-at-home mom with musical talent, and have been wondering how to bring in additional income, I hope you’ve been inspired to take the leap and start teaching. And I’ll be sure to let you know if Julie and David are coming to a town near you.
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, guitar camp, Kindermusik, David Klinkenberg, piano lessons, music education, music Religious Rights of Students in Public EducationPosted April 22nd, 2008 by Jen in education, politics/world news, religion10 Comments » A commenter made a good observation on my previous post about the case of the Wisconsin high school art student receiving a Zero and subsequent detentions for including in his landscape drawing a cross and the lettering “John 3:16.” The student, named as A.P. in a lawsuit against the school district, signed a policy the teacher presented at the beginning of the semester, which “prohibited any violence, blood, sexual connotations or religious beliefs in artwork.” Hmmm, placing religious beliefs alongside and seemingly on the level of violence, blood, and sexual connotations is interesting. Anyway, the comment was this:
Her question got me thinking. A minor can void a legal contract, true. The contract was not binding, but neither should it be meaningless. I don’t think it’s smart to be teaching kids that they can break contracts willy-nilly and be free of all responsibility. HOWEVER, this particular contract…oh boy. This student should have carefully read the contract at the beginning of the class and raised a stink at that point – because on the face of the policy itself is a violation of student rights, as set forth in legal precedent (Tinker v. Des Moines Community School District (1969) which upheld the right of students to wear black armbands in protest of the Vietnam War). Tinker held that the First Amendment did apply to public school students and teachers, and that regulation of student speech in the classroom would be allowed only if there was a constitutionally valid reason, like “substantial interference with school discipline or the rights of others.” A mere desire to avoid controversy is not a valid reason to suppress student expression. Tinker has since been limited by other cases, with the scope of free speech not including indecent speech (Bethel School District v. Fraser) and with school newspapers being regulated (Hazelwood v. Kuhlmeier). See also Perry Education Association v. Perry Local Educators Association and Morse v. Frederick. Not only the Tinker case, but a document from the Department of Education, circulated in 2003 (Guidance on Constitutionally Protected Prayer in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools), makes it clear that students have a right to religious expression in the classroom. Here is the relevant portion from that D.O.E. document:
The fact that this “contract” the student in Wisconsin signed was ever conceived and drafted shows not only the ignorance, but the bias, of this teacher/school. There is a lesson here for all students and parents of students in public schools: Know your rights. Because it’s obvious that attempts will be made to violate and undermine your rights, often out of honest ignorance of the law and confusion among school leaders about the religious liberties of students. That Dept. of Education document is a good one to print out and go over carefully with your child. The prevailing anti-religious climate and the extreme, sometimes absurd, secularization of public life doesn’t appear to be letting up, so be on top of the issues and use favorable laws to your advantage while we have them. Vigorously protect religious expression – this is a unique American principle. The point of the First Amendment is to prevent a state-sponsored religion, not to squash religious expression in American public life. It is unjust and unconstitutional to mandate that public schools be religion-free zones. Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof … — Religious-liberty clauses, First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution
Technorati Tags: religious liberty, First Amendment, religious expression, U.S. Constitution, religious freedom, public school It’s a good thing Raphael didn’t attend public school in modern day WisconsinPosted April 19th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, education, history, religion14 Comments »
The Tomah Area School District in Wisconsin has a policy that bans Christian symbols in students’ artwork, leading to a high school student receiving a Zero on his illustration depicting a landscape with a cross and the lettering “John 3:16.” Michelangelo, Raphael, Da Vinci, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, Giotto, and the rest of the famous artists who produced the religious masterpieces of the world: I’m forever grateful that you didn’t live in 21st century America where you have to sign away your freedom of religious expression.
Technorati Tags: art history, famous artists, First Amendment, religious expression The Child’s Spring BookPosted April 13th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, book reviews, education, family life, features, giveaways, science17 Comments »
I present to you today the fruit of our outdoor adventure. We made several ziplock-bag-books yesterday, full of specimens of Central Oregon, in particular, Smith Rock State Park, where we had our outing. For those of you who already have your children keep a nature journal, you’ll find this project to be a perfect companion. (I’m giving away two of our books – an Oregon one and a blank one; leave a comment below by next Sunday if you’d like to enter!) The Zip-Lock Bag Book Supplies:
How To: The Pages:
Assembling the Book:
JoJo is so proud of her book, and slept with it last night. She couldn’t wait to decorate the cover with the foamy letters she received for her birthday. The other kids chose to use markers and pens to create their cover art. Some other ideas:
The hardest part about this project was the identification. Now, is that an arnica mollis or an arnica parryi? Sometimes, we just made our best guess. The rest of the project took no external motivation at all – this was such a delight for them. But certainly, the identification was one of the most valuable pieces of this book. The kids learned to look critically at a plant and really notice things they hadn’t before. The shape of a leaf, the texture, the number of petals. By the way, we are not done with the identifying – we need to check out a few books from the library. Like I said above, I’m giving away two of our homemade books, one filled with Central Oregon specimens and the other one blank for your region. Keep in mind that when I do crafts, it’s a fairly practical endeavor – just whatever is on hand – so these books will not be perfect, beautiful things! My 8 year old son will probably be doing most of the work. This is my plan: I’d like to give these two books to someone with a child who’s interesting in learning about Oregon plant life, and who will use the blank book to create his own regional book. I’m hoping that this child will then create an extra ziplock-bag-book from his region, and another blank one, and pass them on as well. And so on. Leave a comment below by next Sunday, April 20, if you’d like to win these books. My son will draw a random name and I’ll email the winner. I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about our spring ziplock-bag-book! I think this is an ideal science/nature/art project for students of all ages. If you have any ideas to add, let me know. Resources:
Technorati Tags: art activities, art for children, Central Oregon, giveaway, home education, homeschool, outdoor play, ziplock bag book, nature journal, Smith Rock, spring Gardening With ChildrenPosted April 6th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, book reviews, education, family life, features, giveaways, parenting37 Comments »
This picture here is my little JoJo who spent several hours last week with her pint-sized rake and shovel. I was working on the main garden area, while she staked out a small spot of her own. The other children were doing likewise. I hesitated a moment when suddenly all the children wanted their own garden space in addition to the main garden. Was this okay? Would I be teaching them to be selfish and looking out only for themselves? I ended up deciding that the sense of community and family in the main garden would not at all be diminished by each child’s ownership in their own scratch of earth. In fact, it would probably deepen their respect for the family garden, knowing the responsibility and effort their own gardens require. I found a wonderful book to guide me through some activities to do in the garden with children. It’s called Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: gardening together with children, by Sharon Lovejoy. The book covers not only the basics of how to plan, plant, and care for your garden, but the top 20 plants for kids, theme garden ideas, and many little bits of garden wisdom. (I’m giving away a copy – leave me a comment on this post to enter.)
I would say that my first tip for gardening with children is to involve them in every decision. Where should we put the garden? Is this spot too shady or too sunny? This area is nice and level, but we’ll have to dig up some rocks, is that okay? What shape do we want the garden to be? What should we plant that will thrive in our region? Let’s test the soil and decide what supplements we may need. All of the issues that arise in the planning of the garden are incredible teaching tools, and there’s no better way for your kids to really understand the complexity – and joy – of it all than to walk through it with you step by step. And the sense of ownership will be there from the start – the greatest motivator I know. I never have to twist their arms to go work on the garden. Let’s jump right in to the top 20 plants for children to grow. This list comes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots, based on the fact they are proven winners:
1. Pumpkins Do keep in mind your climate – some of these will fare better than others depending on where you live. In Central Oregon, for example, root crops like potatoes and carrots grow well with our short growing season and cool nights; but for some vegetables like corn or tomatoes, a short-season variety is a must for your plant to mature. Theme gardens can be a joy for children, and I’ll highlight just one of the themes from Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots: the pizza patch. The Pizza Patch: gardening in the round is sure to delight children who are used to seeing a straight-row vegetable garden. This pizza patch garden is a giant sized six-foot-wide wheel shaped plot, divided into seven great wedges and edged with a thick rock crust. Ms. Lovejoy suggests the following ingredients for your pizza patch garden, but you can add other favorites as well:
Divide the garden into slices: mark spots at 32 inch intervals along the outer edge. Draw a line with a stick from each of the seven marks to the center stake, to denote the seven slices. Then place rocks along those lines for a permanent boundary, and you can remove the center stake. Place the five tall vegetables in each of the five slices on the northern side of the wheel – the plum tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini. In a slice on the south side, plant the herbs, onions, and garlic. Set aside one slice to be the pathway for the little feet tending the garden. The bright gold marigolds and Calendulas can be filled in around the vegetables and herbs, the “cheese” of the pizza. To plant each slice, start from the center and work your way out. Plant tomatoes, eggplants, bell peppers, and zucchini 12-18 inches apart. In the small herb slice, space them 6 inches apart from the onions and garlic. The flowers are scattered throughout each slice, but allow 3 inches between them and other plants. When harvest time comes, you can throw a big pizza party with toppings straight from the garden!
Technorati Tags: Central Oregon, children, dirt, garden, gardening with children, giveaway, homesteading, outdoor play, Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots, pizza patch garden The Poison PostPosted March 31st, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, health/cooking/food11 Comments » I had a terrible scare this afternoon that led me to even know the following information:
Well, I did not want to write this post and have put it off, because I hate those stupid emails about freakish things that could happen to you. I always delete them, and just today a friend sent me an email about all the symptoms of a deadly form of breast cancer. I just can’t handle it all. HOWEVER, because MY CHILD just today nearly poisoned himself to death, I do feel compelled to give you all a reminder about Tips to Prevent Poisonings. I just wrote a post this morning about how Little L got into Big L’s candy basket. He is just one of those kids. He is 3 1/2, loves sweet things, and he is naughty, sneaky, and dishonest, God bless his cute little cheeks. We are working on all of these issues. And DAMN IT, children’s medicine is SWEET. I’m sorry, I’m just really angry about that right now. I couldn’t find Little L. He was supposed to be playing with Big L and the girls on the porch. They didn’t know where he was. I raced into the kitchen and there he was, and he blurted out, “I didn’t drink the medicine!” WHOA, what?? Thank you, Jesus, that the boy had a guilty conscience. Of course, I immediately knew he must have gotten into the Children’s Tylenol, because it wasn’t where I had stupidly left it on the counter in plain sight (and obviously with a lid not completely secure). Little L eventually led me to Grandma’s bathroom, where he had gone into hiding to do his evil deed. There on her toilet seat was the nearly empty bottle of Children’s Tylenol and I FREAKED OUT. Yes, completely. I had enough sense to call Poison Control, which phone number is posted on my refrigerator (Parents, take note, please have this number posted: 1-800-222-1222). The operator was wonderful. She was calm, and since I wasn’t, that was immensely helpful. Be prepared to know the weight of your child, have the bottle in your hand, and DO NOT take your child’s word about how much he ingested. Little L told me he had “just a little bit, Mommy,” but if memory served me, the bottle that was 3/4 full was now almost empty. And for the sake of LIFE, please keep your medicines locked up and NEVER refer to them as candy. She talked me through the ordeal. The total capacity of the bottle was 4 ounces, at 80 mg per 1/2 teaspoon. I measured what was left: 2 Tablespoons. We figured Little L had drunk 4 Tablespoons, based on what was left over and what was originally in the bottle. THANKFULLY, even though that sounded like enough to endanger his life, it was not a toxic level. This, folks, is why those bottles of Children’s Tylenol are so darn small. Poison prevention. Had this been ADULT medicine, this story would have a different ending. I was advised to have Little L drink some water to dilute the medicine in his tummy. He laid down and slept for two hours. This close call really rattled me. I held all of my little ones tighter and counted my blessings. And clearly, I need to get a handle on my casual way of leaving medicine on the counter. Dad and I had a talk with all of the children about medicine, and how it is POISON if taken in the wrong amount. Based on information I’ve read today, children who have episodes like Little L today are likely to do it again. So, here is a list I’m copying from the Centers for Disease Control website for your safety: Keep Young Children Safe from Poisoning • Put the poison control number, 1-800-222-1222, on or near every home telephone and save it on your cell phone. The line is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. What to do if a poisoning occurs 1. Remain calm • the victim’s age and weight 3. Stay on the phone and follow the instructions from the emergency operator or poison control center. God bless you, dear friend, as you parent and care for your little ones. I’m tucking Little L into bed now. Technorati Tags: children, Poison Control, medicine safety Business 101 From an Eight-Year-OldPosted by Jen in education, family life, the office11 Comments » Hello, and welcome to Business 101. Today, I share a story from my lovely family. I am Mom, Dad is my husband, Big L is our eight-year-old son and first-born genius. There is also Little L, the three-year-old who hangs around the fringes of this story, and not to be forgotten, the girls (in between the bookend boys), JJ and JoJo. Principle #1: Never Miss an Opportunity Big L doesn’t like candy. He just never has. He’ll eat an occasional Smarty, and perhaps a Skittle every blue moon. Give him a piece of bread, oh, he loves bread, but the candy he’ll pass. There IS an exception. We had the annual Easter Egg Hunt at Aunt & Uncle’s house, and Big L was caught up in the wild excitement. He collected 43 eggs, all brightly colored and filled with candy. The fact that candy is not one of his indulgences was no matter. Big L had a plan. Several days after Easter, he set up shop at our dining room table. He earned about $3.25 from his sisters who love candy, and were more than happy to buy his goods after they’d gobbled up their own baskets. “That will be 10 cents,” he’d say, eyeing the size of the candy. And “If you buy three, you get one free,” he would bargain. Even Mom and Dad bought some. (Some merchandise was eaten by Little L while he was “napping” one afternoon, else Big L would have earned much more.) Principle #2: Fill a Need This morning, Big L asked Dad a question: “Dad, what is something that every human needs?” I overheard the conversation, and thought perhaps Big L had a new joke, or a trick question. “I don’t know…why do you ask?” said Dad, not sure where the conversation was headed. “Well, I was thinking about inventing things, and figured I should make something that everyone would need, so they would buy it.” Dad was amazed at the eight-year-old’s business sense! He has a business degree in marketing and management and can spot good business principles (though, honestly, such common sense does not come by degree). Being an entrepreneur himself, Dad was amused to see his son following in his footsteps. When Dad was not much older than Big L, he started a detective agency, a candy store, and a football league. These little adventures into industry were short lived and not exactly successful, but are great examples of a child’s business mind at work. Dad had a string of other businesses in his young life, and continues to this day with new ideas. He encourages this inventiveness in his sons and daughters. He sat Big L down and told him all about patents and the role of the patent in American life as a protection and encouragement for new ideas – new ideas which have shaped America’s amazing progressions in science and medicine and agriculture and other areas. Dad has promised Big L that if he comes up with a really useful and unique invention, he will help him obtain a patent. For real. Even eight-year-olds should be given the opportunity to be the next Thomas Edison. p.s. Lest you think our girls are any less business savvy or industrious, they melted down all the chocolate purchased from their big brother, and attempted to sell it at a much higher price to Mom and Dad. You should have seen the smooth division of labor: JoJo did the purchasing (as she just had a birthday and was the one with more money), while JJ made up the recipe for “Roasted Chocolate” with a fancy recipe card and all, and kept driving up the price.
Technorati Tags: children, home education, homeschool, business, Easter eggs Oregon BeautyPosted March 25th, 2008 by Jen in carnivals, education, family life, france/french8 Comments »
This is a view of Mount Bachelor from Sparks Lake, from a hike we took last summer. Talk about The Perfect Day – we hiked and picnicked with dear family friends, and also our French exchange student. Of course, our French guest had to mention the Alps. Mount Bachelor is part of the Cascade Range, and is the youngest prominent volcano in the Three Sisters (three volcanic peaks) area. Apparently, none of the three sisters could win over the bachelor. Anyway, I had to give you something pretty to look at while I make some public service announcements. Get your submissions in for the Christian Carnival by tonight, Midnight ET. Submit here, and also, Parableman has further information on the carnival. Publishing right here at Diary of 1 tomorrow. Other blog carnivals of interest: Make It From Scratch This concludes the public service announcement. You may continue to gaze at Oregon beauty. Two homeschooling families on a log; same hike (my four kids on the right end):
Technorati Tags: blog carnival, Central Oregon, Christian Carnival, France, Mount Bachelor, Three Sisters An Integrated Family in a Segregated WorldPosted March 5th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life9 Comments »
I have faced this dilemma many times, and still don’t have a firm philosophy on this issue of Who is Invited to the Party. We are probably in the minority, but we do most things as a family, and I cringe at age-segregation. Do you realize that this seemingly harmless age segregation of little children continues all the way on to the age segregation of our senior citizens, put away in nursing homes with no honor? And the age segregation in between those years has been noted as the cause of many ills from bullying and youth gangs to low intelligence? Probably because we are a homeschool family, and obviously not separated into different rooms according to age, our kids are sort of confused by this idea of only other four-year-old girls being invited to a four-year-old girl’s birthday party. My kids haven’t yet been socialized into segregation. I consider that to be a very good thing, even though some would disagree with me and say just follow the culture! People tell me that it’s just natural for kids to drift into their narrow age groups, but I disagree–there is one big force out there which causes this unnatural age segregation, and it’s called school. It makes complete sense for kids to only play with other children their age when they’ve been trained in that way since preschool. That doesn’t make it right or natural, it just explains the phenomenon. I tend to stand on principle. It wouldn’t be a terrible thing to allow JoJo to go to the party by herself. But it just undermines our philosophy of living an integrated family life, and my husband and I want to present a connected, cohesive family model to our children. And logistically, it’s difficult. I have three other kids. I don’t drop a four year old off at a birthday party, so I’d have to stay with her. What do I do with my other three kids if my husband is working? Hire a babysitter so my child can go to a birthday party? That’s simply not in my budget. What I’m up against, however, is a mammoth cultural icon. Little boys invite all the little boys in their class at school to their birthday party. This is how it’s done. Let’s say there are 15 boys in the class. That’s a lot of children eating cake and blowing noise makers. If each of those boys also brought siblings, it’s just too much for the party host to handle. Me and my four kids would tip the scales into chaos. This is nearly impossible to overcome. What’s a family like ours to do? Be counter-culture? Anti-birthday party? Weird? Taking a stand on this “we all come or no one comes” conviction certainly puts us at the fringe of society. However, I think strict age-segregation is unhealthy, unwise, artificial, and impractical. Where an important principle is at stake, maybe I just need to be okay with the fringe. Technorati Tags: birthday party, children, age segregation, homeschool, integrated family Leonardo da Vinci For KidsPosted February 17th, 2008 by Jen in education, features106 Comments »
There are volumes written about the genius of da Vinci, and it can be hard to know where to start, but if you’re interested in a unit study on this magnificent artist, I would begin with the Museum of Science website. This website neatly breaks up the study into sections, including Scientist, Inventor, and Artist. First, let’s explore his early life — and notice that I have included kids’ activities in each section, to bring some hands-on fun to the study of Leonardo da Vinci! ONE: Childhood in Vinci Leonardo di ser Piero da Vinci was born on April 15, 1452, in the small village of Vinci, in a region of Italy called Tuscany. He was the illegitimate son (unmarried parents) of a peasant woman named Caterina (some scholars believe her to be a Middle Eastern or Mediterranean slave) and an ambitious notary named Ser Piero da Vinci. Probably because of his illegitimate status, Leonardo had little early education, other than the local priest teaching him how to read and write and use an abacus. He lived for a time with his grandparents (on his father’s side) Shuffled around to various family members as a child, Leonardo was left to himself quite often, and perhaps this solitude is what we’re still grateful for five centuries later, as he spent his days outdoors studying birds, plants, and nature. Activity: Nature Study Try a nature study! Find a quiet place outdoors where there is plenty of the natural world to observe. This may be in your front yard or near a local park. Keeping a Nature Journal is an excellent way to make this a habit, and the Handbook of Nature Study blog has just the right tools to get you started, including free downloads of several types of journal pages. Ideas for drawing in your nature journal — this link is fantastic, and includes pages on wildflowers, birds, trees, animals, and more. Leonardo da Vinci kept one of the very first nature journals history knows of, so why not give it a try? Another type of Nature Journal is what I call a “Spring Book,” which I wrote about here. Also known as a Zip-Lock Bag Book, this type of nature journal collects actual specimens and labels each one in a small zip-lock bag which you then compile into a little booklet. You may also want to check out the book Keeping a Nature Journal: Discover a Whole New Way of Seeing the World Around You by Clare Walker Leslie. It is part journal, with space for you to actually write and draw, part ideas and sketching lessons. Amazing resource. TWO: Apprentice to Verocchio
It was with Verrocchio that young Leonardo was trained in all the countless skills of a traditional workshop — not only drawing, painting, crushing and mixing pigments, sculpting and modelling, but drafting, chemistry, metallurgy, metal working, plaster casting, leather working, mechanics and carpentry. According to the artist biographer Vasari, Leonardo and Verrocchio worked together on the painting Baptism of Christ (1472-1475). Vasari wrote that Leonardo painted the young angel holding Jesus’ robe so skillfully and with such superior quality to his master that Verrocchio put down his brush and never painted again. New ideas in painting, and indeed culture, were rising up in Florence around this time, as the Renaissance was blossoming. Oil painting had just been introduced to Italy from northern Europe, and Leonardo spent a lot of time mixing different materials, and soon surpassed everyone in his use of the new medium. Leonardo also brought new perspective and depth to painting, as he used his skills in math and geometry to calculate the placement of lines in his drawings and paintings. And perhaps foremost to the new Rensaissance art was Leonardo’s passion to draw things as realistically as possible. He sketched incessantly and was an ardent observer of nature, animals, plants, people, as noted above. Activity: Make Your Own Paint In the days of da Vinci, everyone made their own paint. Artists would use paints made by hand from ground pigments of minerals and other elements, and sometimes with tempera paint made with egg whites. A fun activity to try is to make your own paint. This link has easy directions for making all kinds of homemade paints, including egg yolk paint, dishsoap paint, milk paint, yogurt paint, and more! If you are a serious painter or professional who wants to make paint, this site is for you. THREE: Independent Master When Leonardo da Vinci was 30 years old, he left Florence for Milan, where he spent the next 17 years. At the persuasion of Lorenzo de’ Medici (hoping to secure peace between Florence and Milan), Da Vinci presented himself to the Duke of Milan, Ludovico il Moro. In 1481 or 1482, Leonardo wrote a letter to Ludovico, offering himself as a military engineer, and came before the Duke with a lira da braccio, lute, which he made himself and beautifully played before the court. Leonardo’s letter told of all the weapons and fortifications he could design to keep the city safe. His letter began like this: “Most illustrious Lord, having now sufficiently seen and considered the proofs of all those who count themselves masters and inventors of instruments of war, and finding that their invention and use of the said instruments does not differ in any respect from those in common practice, I am emboldened without prejudice to anyone else to put myself in communication with your Excellency, in order to acquaint you with my secrets, thereafter offering myself at your pleasure effectually to demonstrate at any convenient time all those matters which are in part briefly recorded below. 1. I have plans for bridges, very light and strong and suitable for carrying very easily, with which to pursue and at times defeat the enemy; and others solid and indestructible by fire or assault, easy and convenient to carry and place in position. And plans for burning and destroying those of the enemy. 2. When a place is besieged I know how to cut off water from the trenches, and how to construct an infinite number of bridges, battering rams, scaling ladders, and other instruments which have to do with the same enterprise. 3. Also if a place cannot be reduced by the method of bombardment, either through the height of its glacis or the strength of its position, I have plans for destroying every fortress or other stronghold unless it has been founded upon rock. 4. I also have plans for making cannon, very convenient and easy of transport, with which to hurl small stones in the manner almost of hail, causing great terror to the enemy from their smoke, and great loss and confusion. 5. And if it should happen that the engagement was at sea, I have plans for constructing many engines most suitable either for attack or defense, and ships which can resist the fire of all the heaviest cannon, and powder and smoke.” The letter continues on with many more ideas! Because Italy at the time was involved in many wars, both between various city-states and an invasion from France, plans about better warfare would have been quite welcome. Firearms and explosives were already in use, and Leonardo’s military engineering ideas were actually well ahead of his time.
Leonardo’s love of music led him to study the science of sound, and he was one of the first to liken it to the motion of waves. He was also one of the first to note that il sole non si muove, the sun does not move – a remarkable observation in a day when people thought the sun revolved around the earth. In 1484 the plague struck Milan, and the thousands of dead people were left to rot in the streets. Leonardo, being the ultimate problem solver that he was, turned his attention to disease prevention. He designed a layout of the city that had wide streets and canals in place of the narrow ones, wide enough for proper sewage disposal, and a system for washing the streets automatically with locks and paddle wheels. It was a two-tiered town design, with the top streets for homes and churches, and the bottom streets to be used for deliveries and wagons.
Leonardo also received a commission to paint an altarpiece, for which he created Virgin of the Rocks, a stunning work which reflects his interest in nature. One of Leonardo’s most famous paintings, The Last Supper, was also painted in Milan. It took him over three years to complete this painting. Leonardo’s work habits are best reflected in The Last Supper. He often didn’t even finish his work, so the world is fortunate to have this masterpiece. Here’s a description of his work on The Last Supper:
When Leonardo finally finished, the painting was immediately acclaimed as a masterpiece, with superb design and characterisation. However, because Leonardo had used tempera paint over a ground of mostly gesso, instead of the more reliable fresco, it rapidly deteriorated. The Last Supper has undergone extensive restoration over the centuries, but is still one of the most reproduced works of art ever. Activity: Make Your Own Fresco Although The Last Supper was not created in a true Fresco style, many Renaissance artists used this method, and it’s fairly easy and fun for kids (and adults) to replicate! Here are detailed directions for making your own fresco, and the main ingredients are plaster of Paris and water colors. You are sure to enjoy this unique art experience. FOUR: Later Life With Italy at war with the French, Leonardo returned to Florence in 1500. In 1502, Leonardo entered the services of Cesare Borgia, the Duke of Valentinois. Borgia helped the French conquer Milan, and had ambitions to conquer all of central Italy. Borgia hired Leonardo da Vinci to be his military engineer, and Leonardo traveled all over Italy with him, examining castles and fortresses, and suggesting improvements for fortifications. It is now believed that the identity of the woman in the portrait is Lisa di Gherardini, the third wife of a Florentine silk trader named Francesco del Giocondo. Lisa di Gherardini was 26 years old at the time of the sitting and had recently lost a child. Perhaps this is the reason for the gloomy look and the strange smile? Leonardo was back in Milan by 1508, and then moved to France at the behest of King François in 1516. He settled in the Loire valley in the beautiful manor house Clos Lucé, near the royal chateaux in Amboise, France, and became First Painter and Architect and Engineer of the King. Leonardo and King François visited together often, discussing philosophy, art, science. Though now paralyzed in one arm, Leonardo could still draw and supervise the work of his pupil. Leonardo wrote in his notebooks, “I shall continue,” and he never gave up his studies or his work. Leonardo died on May 2, 1519, and French legend tells us that he died in the arms of King François.
Other Resources: WebMuseum, Paris
Technorati Tags: art activities, art for children, art history, inventions, Leonardo da Vinci, Mona Lisa, The Last Supper Art Heist: What’s Your Theory?Posted February 12th, 2008 by Jen in arts & crafts, germany, politics/world news5 Comments »
The spectacular art heist of this past Sunday at the Bührle Museum in Zurich has rocked the art world, and police are working around the clock to solve the case and find any possible connections with other recent thefts, including the theft the previous week of two Pablo Picasso paintings stolen from a Swiss exhibition near Zurich. A note on the museum’s website says “The museum remains closed.”
The stolen art work has been valued at $180 million and comprised four Impressionist masterpieces: Poppies near Vetheuil by Claude Monet (1879), Count Lepic and his Daughters by Edgar Degas (1871), Blossoming Chestnut Branch by Vincent Van Gogh (1890) and Boy in a Red Waistcoat by Paul Cezanne (1888). Since this month my blog features have been about great artists, and the first artist I covered was Impressionist painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir, this breaking news certainly caught my attention. The Bührle Museum did have a Renoir on display, Little Irene, but it wasn’t touched, probably because the three masked gunmen couldn’t carry anymore heavy paintings, and the robbers appeared to have just taken the first four they came to. Motive? I mean, you can’t go out and sell the famous stolen art. “It’s extremely hard, if not impossible, to sell these works,” said Michaela Derra of Ketterer Kunst GmbH, a Munich, Germany-based purveyor of modern and contemporary art. Here is a speculation:
However, I have my own little theory. There is apparently a Saudi collector sending his thugs out to steal art for his private collection. None of the current stories I’ve found on the Bührle theft have mentioned this connection, so I could be promoting an absurd idea. Nonetheless, just two months ago, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, paintings by Picasso and Portinari were stolen, but recovered. One of the suspects in the case told detectives the paintings were to be delivered to a Saudi collector, who has not been publicly named by authorities. The history of Mr. Emil G. Bührle is very interesting, and perhaps he himself was a collector who obtained stolen art, and conceivably everything has come full circle. Bührle, born in Germany, was an industry tycoon who provided weapons to the Third Reich during World War II. In the aftermath of the war, he amassed one of Europe’s most valuable collections of art. It’s a tragedy of the war that the Nazis looted much of the great art owned by Jews, and many of Bührle’s pieces were on a “looted art list.” Exactly how Bührle obtained his collection is unknown, but some of it is “flight art,” works smuggled out by Jews and sold at bargain-basement prices to avoid confiscation by Nazis. Maybe this art heist was Jews taking back their rightful property, via a Saudi collector, who will ask for a ransom. At this point, any theory can be thrown into the ring. Reactionary Homeschooler, Inquiring About OptionsPosted February 11th, 2008 by Jen in education9 Comments » Frankly, I homeschool more for reactionary reasons than for proactive reasons. I much agree with many of the “why homeschool” reasons I hear about, like the ability to fine tune your educational approach to meet the specific needs of your child, the wonderful freedom of learning through living, the pleasure of having your own child at your side and imparting the best of what you know as well as learning new things together. However, I also have no problem with sending my child off to school, either, provided it’s a safe, quality, moral environment. And that’s where I become reactionary. I am anti-school violence, anti-indoctrination in secularism and humanism, anti-standardized, one-sized education, anti-teacher-knows-best, anti-parent-serves-the-state. And so I homeschool. I enjoy all the positive aspects of homeschooling, don’t get me wrong. It’s just interesting to explore the roots of my motivation. Parents are joining the homeschool movement in droves for reactionary reasons. When will we get a New Deal? If there were some better choices out there, this wouldn’t be happening. I think a lot about the plight of many parents who are unable to homeschool for a variety of reasons, yet can’t afford a school of their choice, and I’d really like to see something done about this. I think many homeschool families would be wise to think beyond their own four walls for a moment. For true, global change to happen, is it possible that you need to think outside the care and education of your own children? For the majority of children who have no choice but to attend the local propaganda center (pick up your straight jackets and bullet proof vests at the door), otherwise known as public school, can you do something? What are some options we can pursue and promote? School choice. Charter schools. Private, church-run schools, hosted by nearly every church, with a very minimal cost. Large homeschool co-ops. Let government money follow the child, no matter what the educational choice. I like all of these options. Can reactionary homeschoolers do something proactive about the state of education? I Really Like Homeschooling, I Just Want Someone Else to Do It For MePosted January 14th, 2008 by Jen in education, family life, parenting, religion, the office10 Comments » There are days, there are seasons to be sure, when a homeschooling parent has a tough spell. After spending a week investigating a local fine arts charter school, a private Christian school, and homeschool co-op options, I’m back to where I started. At home. My many conflicting commitments have sent me into a tailspin. With pressing financial obligations that require me to leave Homeschool Fantasy Land, I’ve seriously looked at my options. How can I homeschool and run a business? When I can’t afford outside tutors, how do I teach my kids in the disciplines in which I’m not equipped, like music, but which are very important to me? Can’t someone else do this for me? I did what I have to do in cases of extreme distress: I called Catherine. I look upon her as my Homeschool Mentor-Mom Mentor-Wife Mentor, and she’s always the one to help me readjust my perspective. She gave me a real talkin’ to this time. She’s not one to say, “Oh, honey, you poor thing, I feel for you.” It’s more like, “Are you even thankful for what you have? You are where you are, now work with it.” I complained about not being able to afford private music lessons, and how, unlike her, I don’t have 10 years of music training in the French conservatories. “You can listen to CDs of classical music, can’t you?” I grumbled about having to work at our family business. “Do you know how many people would die to have a family business? To have that opportunity to teach their kids a life skill at their side?” I groused about feeling inadequate. “Jennifer, I would say that about some people, but never you. You’re intelligent, educated, and love the Lord.” However, she maintained that all my education and degrees may actually hinder me, as I’m tempted to reproduce an educational institution in my home. Her main point, as she talked, and I humbly listened, was that God has our family where He has our family. She is adamant about just living life with your children, and learning as you go. Her style is much more un-schooling than mine, and her children are so bright and lovely and competent. “You just need to ask the Lord, how do I accomplish this? will You please provide what I need?” she asserted. Nothing has changed about my situation. I still have to find a way to spend several hours a day working on the business; I still have to buckle down and really stretch myself on the music education; I still don’t have anybody to pass my kids off to; I still don’t have any more money than I did a week ago. However, I’ve regained a little bit of the mind of Christ, which was lost over the past month of holiday insanity. The mind of Christ seems to be telling me to chill out. Chill out and educate my children one day at a time. “Why do you homeschool?” Catherine had pointedly asked me. Oh, yeah. It affords us the opportunity to bring up our kids as children of God. It empowers our family to grow together in ways that we can direct. It enables me to take advantage of those daily moments where training happens, moments I can even set up in advance to teach my children life lessons on character and friendship. And homeschooling, perhaps most importantly, ensures that my children are not trapped in an artificial construct, but are learning to live a real life in the real world. Okay, I’ll do it. No guns, oh, and no free speech on public transitPosted January 1st, 2008 by Jen in education, politics/world news, religion5 Comments » The Texas woman who was kicked off the Forth Worth, Texas public transportation system “T” bus this past Saturday – was she concealing a weapon, endangering passengers with violent behavior, or selling drugs? No, she was reading her Bible to her children, enroute to church. Public Transportation is rife with problems. Last April in St. Paul, Minnesota, the city saw a 16 year old shot and killed while a passenger on the Metro Transit bus. In November, a 71 year old man was brutally beaten with a baseball bat in Gresham, Oregon by a 15 year old gang member at the MAX public transit station. Just two weeks ago in Baltimore, a 14 year old boy was shot and wounded on a Maryland Transit bus. And here’s just two paragraphs from the Baltimore Sun article to give you a taste of the real problems facing public transportation in major cities:
So don’t give me this flap about a lady reading the Bible on the bus. Is there nothing more interesting happening in Fort Worth, and the terribly bored bus drivers must resort to throwing off Bible reading mothers? According to MyFox Dallas-Fort Worth, the woman kicked off the bus, Christine Lutz, sees this as a clear case of religious persecution. Lutz told FOX 4 that she was sitting in the back of the bus, not being disruptive, and reading to her children from the Bible. She said she was stunned when the bus driver asked her to stop reading her Bible. Lutz responded, “No, I’m reading the Bible, I’m teaching the kids, I’m going to continue.” Before she knew it, the bus had pulled over, and she and her kids were escorted into a supervisor’s van and driven the remainder of the way to church. Now, as a homeschooling mom, I’m quite familiar with teaching on the go. In the van on the way to Cub Scouts, along the grocery aisles, in the waiting room at the doctor’s office, in line at the Post Office. I’m always teaching, reading the kids a story, answering questions. When dealing with children, animation is often required. I’ve surely annoyed some people along the way. However, the person waiting in line behind me to get his package shipped has no constitutional right to not be annoyed by my teaching. And I have a right to free speech. So does the obnoxious person shipping that package talking at full volume on his cell phone. So does the mother reading the Bible to her children on the public transit system. Officials at the Fort Worth T (Trinity Railway Express) claim that their treatment of Lutz had nothing to do with the content of what she was reading, but that she was simply too loud. They point to signs on the bus warning against playing radios and loud behavior. “If she were reading Moby Dick or reciting the Pledge of Allegiance or reading anything else, the same thing would have occurred,” said bus representative Joan Hunter. Really, Joan, does everyone sit in complete silence on the Fort Worth T? Perhaps I’ll try riding the T and read Winnie the Pooh to my children and see if I get thrown off. Given that not a single passenger had complained, this story is pretty weak. Given the real, bona fide problems facing mass transit systems in large cities, like thieves, gangs, and drug dealers, it’s clear to this blogger that the bus driver was in fact engaging in a form of religious persecution. Or maybe just an extremely low annoyance tolerance level. This woman deserves the public apology she is seeking. Veterans History ProjectPosted November 11th, 2007 by Jen in education, history, holidays3 Comments »
My family is participating in the Veterans History Project as part of a homeschool history project. We will be interviewing a family friend who is a Vietnam veteran. You don’t have to submit the oral history you collect to the Project, but it’s really simple and would benefit us all if you’d be willing to contribute and help preserve these stories as part of America’s folklife. The Veterans History Project is primarily focused on first-hand accounts of U.S. veterans from the following wars:
The Project also invites U.S. civilians to share their stories of their active support of the war efforts, such as war industry workers, USO workers, flight instructors, and medical volunteers. The participation guidelines are straightforward, and includes a Veteran’s Release Form, which is included in the Project Kit. Only one interview, between 25-90 minutes long, is allowed per veteran or civilian interviewee. Sample interview questions for veterans are available at the Project website, and are an invaluable resource! The questions are divided into segments, making it easy to conduct interviews in sessions if required: Jogging Memory, Experiences, Life, After Service, and Later Years and Closing. “Do you recall the day your service ended?” is a question I’m sure all veterans will have no trouble recollecting. This weekend my children were in two different Veterans Day parades. My son, who is a Cub Scout, marched with his troop in the neighboring town on Saturday, and my daughter, who is a Brownie (Girl Scout), marched with her troop on Sunday in our town. I took several photos of veterans who lined the streets with the other parade watchers, and I so wish I could have sat down with them all right there and heard their stories! Here are some of my favorite shots: A World War II veteran: Two Vietnam veterans: Navy Lieutenant Commander, veteran of WWII, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War: Since I walked the parade route, I only had time to stop and ask permission to take a photo, and thank these men for their service to our country. From this last fellow, though, I had the privilege of hearing a snippet about his thirty year military career. No matter where your politics lie in regard to war, please be pro-veteran. Someone handed my husband a card which said Pro-Troop. War-Neutral. That’s a nice non-partisan way to honor our military men and women. Please let me know if you participate in the Veterans History Project! What We Really DidPosted November 5th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life8 Comments » It’s always a little nerve-wracking to post a schedule, proclaim a goal, or shout out to all of blog-land what you intend to do. Because then you have invited accountability of sorts. What if someone asks me about what I said I was going to do? And what if I didn’t do it? Then do I look like a loser or a liar? I did post a schedule for our homeschool, and I know that doesn’t make me answerable to you, gentle reader, but I will follow up. There’s a certain amount of accountability I need to function well, to stay disciplined, to maintain the course. Like I said in that post, I was feeling overwhelmed with inability and disorganization, and writing out our homeschool schedule – and posting it – was just the framework I needed to lock down on myself. Now I get to tell you that writing out a rigid schedule doesn’t mean you have to be chained to it. Let it act as a mere suggestion on the days you don’t need it because all is well; let it serve as the guiding principle when your objectives have become dim; or demand that it be the strictest procedure when reigning chaos requires order. I have the first few months of school behind me, and I can say that our schedule has been somewhere between a strict procedure and a guiding principle. I’d like to tell about what we really did mostly for those who are freaked out about their ability to homeschool. A comment I hear fairly often from non-homeschoolers is this: I could never do it because… I’m just not organized enough, I don’t have enough patience, I’m not smart enough…and so on. You’ll see following that there is, and arguably should be, a lot of room for flexibility. Here’s what was in the planner, with what we really did on one particular day below each subject entry: 9:00 Math: Ray’s New Arithmetics
“Mama, look at my pretty float on the St. Clair River,” says little L., pridefully pointing a chubby finger at his stack of Cuisenaire rods.
9:30 Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons
10:00 Language Arts: First Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind, by Jessie Wise.
10:30 History: The Story of the World: History for the Classical Child, by Susan Wise Bauer.
11:00 French
11:30 Science
12:00 Art/Music
Formal schooling for the day is done. Next, we ate lunch and had a clean up time. Now the three year old needs his nap, and the rest of the children have a quiet time for 1 1/2 hours. I’m busy on the computer, catching up with the business, maybe a little blogging. Once afternoon naps and/or quiet time is complete, we head over to the office for about an hour. I pack up orders for the day while the kids play with projects they’ve brought with them. Today it’s gluing beans onto cardstock, making interesting designs. Back home, it’s time for dinner, clean up, storytime, and bed. There you have it, a day in the life of a homeschool family. Of course, no two days are ever the same, but you get the flavor. Speaking of flavor, my six year old just brought me a cup of something that she made. “Here Mom, it’s a banana shake I made for you! It has cinnamon, milk, yogurt, mashed up bananas, and that’s it – it’s a simple recipe!” Project Generation ConnectionsPosted October 22nd, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, parenting9 Comments » Do you sense a disconnect between generations? This report is one of many which shows a detachment of today’s young people to their heritage and history. Many factors could be at work, including the breakdown of families, loss of respect for (including neglect and abuse of) elders, an ultra-mobile society in which children, parents, and grandparents rarely live in the same town anymore, and even technology heightens the disconnect.
If that’s not the case for you, try to make it a priority to include grandparents or other seniors in your daily life. I’m sure there is a neighbor, a friend’s grandmother, or your own parent or grandparent in close enough proximity to make this a reality. My current project is a series of interviews with my mom to try to capture a bit of life in her generation. I came across a great article entitled Family History is American History which makes a positive case for this kind of documenting:
Here is one of our recent interviews, where my six year old daughter, J, helped me conduct the interview:
Well, you get the idea. I like including my children in the interview process, because they will be more involved, absorb more of her life as she speaks to what they want to know about, and she will be communicating directly to them. When I teach my kids about World War II, they will already have this framework to layer the information upon – a very real, tangible fabric that brings to life dry facts of history. Here’s a fun generation-connecting lesson to be learned from the American Crow:
Generational connections can bring health to our extended family life, increase our knowledge of family history, and surely promote knowledge of our national history. Are your children terrified of “old people”? My kids certainly have that tendency, because our society is prone to segregating our senior citizens. I have to be purposeful about fostering these generational connections, even with Grandma living with us. Tell me if you have any ideas for a Project Generation Connections! Feeling Like an IndianPosted October 12th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life2 Comments » From Benjamin Franklin’s (1706-1790) Remarks Concerning the Savages of North America.
I just had an interesting conversation with a friend from Bulgaria. He’s been here ten years now, and his insights on our public school system were interesting. He’s seen communism and post-communism in his homeland, and now American democracy. Given the distance of ten years, he can see both the good and bad in all the systems. On education, he finds it appalling the lack of discipline in American schools. When he was counseled to not use the word “punishment” with his rebellious teenager, but rather “consequences,” he threw up his hands. We just had another school shooting in Ohio, and the violence, bullying, and drugs in our schools are famous. These problems begin in the home, where there is not proper training of children, then spill over into the schools where the hands of the school officials and teachers are usually tied – they can not hand out the kind of discipline that is meant to be dealt by a parent. Like the Indians noted in Lancaster, our children are emerging from our public schools almost “totally good for nothing.” They are disrespectful, selfish, self-absorbed, undisciplined, and barely educated by the dumbed-down textbooks. They come back to us unable to engage in critical thinking, brainwashed with an atheistic, postmodern relativistic worldview, their love of learning destroyed. But the good Department of Education still asks that we turn over our children. While I am obliged by their kind offer, I decline to accept it. And I would call on all able parents to instruct their own children in all they know, and make men and women of them. Progress at the RanchPosted October 8th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, the ranch13 Comments » Building a house…we are determined to make this a positive experience for the family, despite the reality of the many pressures and strains such a project can create. We pray for grace and mercy in this endeavor.
So, here’s a little photo journey of the latest developments. We all worked and played there over the weekend, and our Friday homeschool day was spent learning about septic systems, barn building, pump houses, mixing concrete, and such.
I hope the kids remember this time. I would love to raise my family in this home, on this land, but I don’t know the future. Come what may, I hope the kids tuck away treasured memories of helping their daddy build a house.
Do your kids love to gather firewood? I don’t know any kids who don’t. The only problems encountered were fighting over choice pieces of wood, or arguing over whose turn it was to push the wheelbarrow. We somehow navigated those bumps without tears.
So, the day at the ranch ended with a stunning sunset closely followed by a lovely campfire, complete with the roasting of hotdogs and marshmallows, and even a few campfire songs. Kum-Ba-Yah, anyone? My husband said to me, “I hope we keep having these campfires even after the house is built.” The HunterPosted September 23rd, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, the ranch11 Comments »
I’ve mentioned our 20 acres in Central Oregon where we’re currently building a house. It’s not an enormous piece of land as far as hunting grounds go, but it’s situated in an ideal location for the sport. One end of the terrain drops down to a rimrock cliff which is the natural path of herds of deer and elk that run though here. The other end is bordered by a large canal which makes a nice watering hole, and the other sides of the property are bordered by large acreages. So it works. The Hunter has been rifle-hunting for years – mostly for elk in Eastern Oregon. Last year, he switched to bow hunting and seems to enjoy the sporting challenge. Since we lived on our property last year at this time, in our travel trailer, we had opportunity to see all the wildlife up close. There was an enormous buck (“Chester”) that came by nearly everyday during the late summer, and The Hunter was out looking for him all during the hunting season, but with no luck. The night before this hunt, The Hunter had taken our eight year old son (The Scientist) to the property to hunt, and with just two days left of the bow season, he was anxious. The Scientist has his own small bow, and just target shoots for fun – but you can imagine that he really feels like he’s hunting with Daddy. They were hoping that Chester would make an appearance. The hunters saw nothing that evening. So, the following morning, JJ begged to go with The Hunter, as she had been in tears the day before at not having gone. But The Hunter just wants one child at a time at this point. I’m sure you can understand all the noise made by a six and eight year old poking each other. I was home with the other children and had really forgotten about the morning activity. My phone rang, and there was a bad connection, but I did hear the word “spike.” Yes, The Hunter and his young huntress had accomplished the mission. Standing in our future master bath, they were getting ready to leave, when along came the buck. The Hunter waited patiently for the deer to change his head-on position, took the shot, and the well-placed arrow shot clean through the animal. Here’s where it was really neat to have him hunting less than 10 minutes away. I was able to grab the neighbor to come and help, pack up some supplies and the other three kids (and Grandma), and head over. Now all my children are well educated in the gutting, hanging, and skinning of a deer. If we were lost in the wilderness, we’d all survive. :-) Family Hunt: notice the various expressions…and the proud huntress posing next to her Daddy. The Scientist was so jealous, and on the way to the property, said, “I hope JJ didn’t help Daddy track the deer.” I said, “Honey, you will have your time.” Gutting the deer: the kids and I learned what an awful, dreadful, and vile smell is created in this endeavor. Hanging the deer: the old Juniper tree, rope and pole are skillfully used. Skinning the deer: not for the faint of heart, but now we all know the ins and outs of this.
The deer needs to hang for a few days, then The Hunter will take it to the butcher and we’ll have a freezer full of venison. Dinner last night? Backstrap, of course. According to The Hunter, tradition in the hunting camp calls for the backstrap to be cut off immediately and cooked for dinner, so this coincided well with the fact that the neighbor who helped him was having us over for a BBQ that night. Much to The Hunter’s delight, I’m now convinced that hunting can be a family activity for us. He likes that the kids are learning not just the sport of hunting, but the entire process, from field to fridge. We know where our food comes from. :-) Bonhoeffer and Gatto on EducationPosted September 15th, 2007 by Jen in education, germany9 Comments » For Kinderlehrer , a post for her International Freedom in Education Day. Since I just spent a great deal of time reading about Dietrich Bonhoeffer, I’ll submit something interesting I came across in Eberhard Bethge’s Biography of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. From p. 17, where he briefly discusses the fact that Dietrich’s mother, Paula Bonhoeffer, homeschooled all eight children for their early schooling:
If Paula Bonhoeffer were raising her family in Germany today, would she have landed in jail? Would Dietrich and his siblings have become wards of the state? Those sound like ridiculous questions; however, that is the reality of what is happening in Germany today. John Taylor Gatto’s The Public School Nightmare: why fix a system designed to destroy individual thought is an excellent essay in which he describes the evolution of modern compulsory education.
Gatto continues his essay with a very interesting remark from none other than Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
I’ll wrap up this post with a simple warning given by Gatto. My hope is that if people understand what sinister objectives lurk beneath compulsory schooling, they will stop being so willing to comply. German citizens need to rise up, en masse, and rebel against this kind of tyranny that leaves them no options, no power to choose.
International Freedom in Education DayPosted September 14th, 2007 by Jen in education, germany5 Comments » Kinderlehrer over at Educating Germany is hosting the International Freedom in Education Day. If you have a post to add to her carnival, please head over there; she’ll be running this through tomorrow. If you would like to learn more about the education crisis in Germany, spend some time browsing her site. I’ve written several times, including here and here, about Germany’s mandatory school laws which leave homeschooling families living in fear, often being fined, jailed, or having their children taken away by the state – simply for refusing to send their kids to the public school, choosing instead to educate their own children. I’ll have something by tomorrow to add to Kinderlehrer’s effort. She certainly needs our prayers as she works for reform. There is also an incredible wealth of information on education/homeschooling in Germany at Dana’s site, just do a search on her site for Germany. Why do I care? I live in the United States and have the freedom to homeschool my kids if I want. Well, I could talk about the fact that there is indeed a trickle-down effect in the international community, I could talk about the U.N. trying to apply international law to the United States, I could talk about many legal or political issues. However, the reason I truly care is not even definable. It’s something about being human and loving and caring for other people, no matter where in the world they live. It’s about brothers and sisters in the Lord who are being persecuted for their faith. It’s about freedom. My Christian Carnival is ComingPosted September 7th, 2007 by Jen in carnivals, education, family life, religion3 Comments » Hey, I get to host the Christian Carnival next week, and I really want a post from you! Do you have something to say from a Christian perspective? The current carnival is being hosted at Bounded Irrationality, so check it out if you’re wondering what kinds of posts might be appropriate for this carnival. Submission deadline for this Christian Carnival is: Tuesday, September 11, 2007 23:59, and will be up RIGHT HERE on September 12! Use the handy Carnival Submission Form to get your post in right away! If you have any trouble with that submission form, go ahead and email me your post: blessedinthewest at yahoo dot com. Share your best post from the previous week, and as the carnival description states, your topic does not necessarily have to be about Christianity, but the writer must be Christian to qualify, and whatever your subject matter, the post must reflect your Christian worldview. Please get those posts rolling in, I’m very excited to see what you all have to say! I will just mention that I’ve been both reading and participating in the Christian Carnival for several months, and have absolutely loved getting to know some of the regular contributors through their writings and I guarantee you will be blessed by something you come across there. And you will be a blessing to another, I’m sure. Do share. Elsewhere in Carnival land, check out the Carnival of Homeschooling, the Carnival of Education, and the Carnival of Family Life. How’s your end of summer/fall routine? We just completed Week 2 of our homeschooling year, and pretty much stayed on track. And what a refreshing thing to get back in a routine after the helter-skelter summer we had! We all thrive on order in some form, so blessings to you as you make good plans (and stick to them) for the coming months! Puzzling CommentPosted September 4th, 2007 by Jen in education9 Comments » I get a lot of peculiar homeschooling comments thrown my way, but this one was just downright tommyrot, eyewash, hooey. Those are just really fun words for nonsense.
I’m really not making this up. That’s about verbatim what this person said to me. I’m still shaking my head. Would these people please just come right out and say they think I’m a nut for homeschooling? That’s much preferable to codswallop. Planning for the Disorganized SlackPosted August 10th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, religion13 Comments » How are you? Have you been busy? Of course. Me, too. The long hot days are winding down, and the last of my summer guests is leaving tomorrow. My thoughts are turning toward fall, which for many of us with children, means school.
This is the first time, outside of teaching in a classroom of 30-some elementary students, that I’ve sat down and felt the need to fairly rigidly schedule our homeschool day. It’s sort of like do or die. I have that business to manage, and it’s not going away, and I have the rest of life to manage as well, such as house and husband. I was feeling so incredibly overwhelmed and unable to do anything just a week ago, but once I started planning our days, I slowly regained my sanity and my sense of I can do this. First, my husband gave me a kick in the pants when I said last week, “I don’t think I can do this. I need help.” His decidedly non-sympathetic response was, “Please, you have a Master’s in Teaching and you can’t figure out how to teach just four kids?” I shot back, “Well, it’d be a little easier without your business to run.” He corrected me, “Our business.” Oh, yeah. So, I don’t get to have a perfect little life where I just homeschool and run the kids around to fun activities all day. C’est la vie, right? Next, I ran to God. A good place to run. “Help!” I cried. You have to know, and I’ve said before, organization does not come naturally to me. I feel like I need serious help in getting control of the mess around me. There are solutions. Like getting up earlier. Scheduling. Making Lists. Taking baby steps to do even the little things. Constant prayer has been my companion on this issue lately. Do I trust God to provide for my needs, even helping me to be more organized? You bet. I can’t explain how insurmountable this appears to be at the moment – it’s like I’ve been tangled up in a web and I’m too weak to begin fighting my way out. Where does my help come from? Oh, that’s right, from the Lord, Maker of Heaven and Earth. Ding, light comes on! Have I been spending time with the Creator? Not really, been too busy. Have I been studying His life-giving Word? Not really, been too busy. Okay, there’s the real problem. Somehow, I forget, until I’m at the bottom of the pit, that I truly can’t do anything apart from Him. But with Him, all things are possible!
Now I’m ready for the Teacher Plan Book! I bought it at Barnes & Noble the other day, and as I cracked it open this morning and penciled in a weekly schedule, my anxiety began to melt away. Here’s the rough schedule so far, for the older two, and it’s a very simple schedule. Half-hour increments, from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. [My four year old will be mainly working her way through Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, also she and the soon-to-be three year old will be playing with lumps of playdough or puzzles or reading with Grandma, who lives with us.] Monday through Thursday: [for my 1st and 2nd Grade Kids] 9:00 Math: Ray’s New Arithmetics
9:30 Spelling: Spelling Workout, Modern Curriculum Press.
10:00 Language Arts: First Language Lessons for the Well Trained Mind, by Jessie Wise.
10:30 History: The Story of the World: History for the Classical Child, by Susan Wise Bauer.
11:00 French: Miscellaneous.
11:30 Science: Teaching Science to Children: An Inquiry Approach, by Alfred Friedl
12:00 Art/Music: Miscellaneous.
People often ask me, “What curriculum do you use?” Or “What is your homeschool style?” As you can see, I mix and match. I use what I have, what I can get cheaply, or occasionally, I will pay full price for something I really like. I lean toward the Classical Method of homeschooling, as you can see from some curriculum choices that are laid out in The Well Trained Mind. I also love and employ many of Charlotte Mason’s methods, and I’m a little bit Principled as well, and very unschooled on certain days. I’m certainly not definable. What is important to me are ideas like this: the knowledge of God is primary, discovering how we fit into God’s amazing universe is critical, living books should be predominant, history should be chronological, science should be practical and observable, free time and outside time should be ample, all subjects should be a series of relationships, and curiosity and wonder should be nurtured. update:It’ funny, after I first posted this, I realized I left out two things that are such a part of what we live and breathe, that I did not put them in the schedule. I mean, who schedules in the need to have a drink of water? First, Bible, and second, living books. Neither is on the above schedule, because both are just integrated into our lives. We do not have a formal Bible curriculum at this point. We just talk about God and our Christian walk all throughout the day, in a very natural way, not as a separate “study.” Especially for young children, I think this type of integration is essential. Reading Bible stories is a part of our evening ritual, and is prayer. And the living books – again, not scheduled in, but we are a book loving family and my two older kids read on their own and I read to all of them several books a day, and we always have a longer book in progress that we typically do as a “Family Read Aloud” in the evenings, such as the “Little House” series or our current “Treasure Island.” And just a few extracurricular activities I’ve scheduled in:
Other than that, afternoons will be for Quiet Times, Chores, and preparing for Dinner. For the younger kids, Quiet Time will usually be nap time. For the older kids, Quiet Time will be a time to spend with books of their choice for fun reading. And did you notice that I did not schedule anything for FRIDAYS? That day will typically be our Day Out. We’re members of the High Desert Museum, and we spend quite a few days of the year out there. And there are dairies to be toured, farms to be visited, trails to be hiked, and sights to be seen. So, when does Mom work on her other jobs? 5:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. will be devoted to God first, then TeamMASCOT. The kids’ Quiet Time (typically 2 hours in the afternoon, about 1-3 p.m.) will be for the multitude household chores, like laundry and cleaning and some other jobs which the kids can’t easily help with, and any remaining TeamMASCOT work left from the early morning. Can this disorganized slack of late step up to the task? Deep breath. I can do it. I’ve asked my husband to roll me off the bed at 5 IN THE MORNING – that’s the only way this will all happen. I do realize this schedule is subject to change, and I’m okay with that. I just really, really needed to get a handle on this. And above all, I’m trusting God to be my Helper. photo credits: www.logosoftwear.com ********************************************** Some current carnivals I forgot to mention: Carnival of Family Life “Homeschooling is Illegal in France,” She Said.Posted July 28th, 2007 by Jen in education, france/french9 Comments » My 15 year old niece, Karen, who has been staying with us this summer, along with Elise (who sadly just returned to France – we miss her!), asked me the other day that question that so many homeschoolers have heard: “How long do you plan on homeschooling?” What this question implies, as we all know, is that surely you won’t homeschool forever? At least you’ll send the kids to middle school or high school? Before I could even respond to Karen, Elise piped in, “Homeschooling is illegal in France.” I immediately assured Elise that homeschooling was, in fact, legal in France. Not so in Germany, but France, yes. Elise would not back down. She insisted over and over that it was illegal, that her teachers had told her so. I’ll try not to go on a rant about that kind of propaganda, but the source of her information infuriated me. It wasn’t until I sat her down at the computer and showed her Les Enfants d’Abord that she relented. I wanted her to see, in her own language, the truth of the matter. Homeschool Legal Defense Association is also a good source of information on the legality of homeschooling across the world, but for Elise, she needed French intelligence. I asked Elise why she thought her teachers would have told her homeschooling was illegal. She could barely stand to admit that she was wrong about this. “I think because it’s not normal,” was her reply. Of course, she doesn’t actually know any homeschoolers. That’s propaganda for you, mes amis. Let me take a moment to highlight a family successfully homeschooling in France, the Hoffmeisters. This family of five up and moved to France about four years ago! They set aside their homeschooling way of life initially, opting for the French schools to help the kids with the language immersion. After a few years of great difficulty for one of the children in particular, the Hoffmeisters resumed homeschooling in France. Despite what many consider to be heavy regulation on homeschooling in France, such as annual inspections and certain mandated educational outcomes, they are doing it! By the way, the Hoffmeister Family has started a wonderful home business to help with the costs associated with homeschooling, such as the fact that one of the parents is most likely to be without an income. Since we have a family business as well, I just love supporting other families in this endeavor whenever I can.
Here’s what it is, as explained on the website:
And from the About Us section of their website:
For Americans, you need to email for pricing. info@apresentfromfrance.com. If you are a homeschooling family in France, I’d love to hear from you!! Bonne chance pour tout. Summer LearningPosted July 16th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life7 Comments » There are all sorts of occasions for learning. Some call certain occasions “teachable moments,” “learning outside the classroom,” or “the school of life.” I’ll just say we learned some great lessons this week. Here’s a quick bullet list of our family’s summer learning this past week: 1. Drake Park in Bend would be no fun for kids without ducks to feed. 2. Make a point to take a few pictures of yourself with your closest friends. Here I am, on the left, with my dear friend Julie last week, as our kids played at the above mentioned Drake Park. This is the only picture I have of us. I guess we’re always too busy having fun to stop for a silly picture. 3. Expect your children to find a creative lounging place nestled in the rock in front of the High Desert Museum. And yes, the yearly membership is well worth it. 4. If your van’s alternator goes broke for the second time in a week, and you find yourself barely rolling into a country store in the itty bitty town of Leaburg, Oregon, hope that a God-sent older gentleman from across the street happens by to recharge your battery. Then hope that God answers your prayer of Please let me make it to Springfield, just 15 miles ahead but on a dead alternator and a only a spark of battery, that’s quite a feat. Then pray that Zilkoskis Auto and Electric, which garage the lady at the country store recommended, is open. Then praise God for again answering when the good folks are indeed there and willing to squeeze in a desperate family in a van loaded with eight people on a hot day. Be thankful that the children don’t notice that you are hoofing it a mile through a drug infested neighborhood with homes adorned by thick plastic over broken out windows, as you make your way to the only nearby park to wait for two hours. Know that God speaks through the mouths of babes as your four year old daughter makes up a song to praise God (which she sings the whole way back to Zilkoskis) for helping us get our van fixed. The French exchange student who is a self-described atheist hears every word and can best receive it from a four year old, not the host mother. 5. Do not be alarmed when your eight year old son wakes the morning after a trip to the coast and can barely get out of bed and walk. It is not a mysterious coastal disease, merely the result of jumping waves for two or three hours, combined with a hike up the hill to see the Heceta Head Lighthouse – along with a tour up the winding staircase which brings one 205 feet above the Pacific Ocean.
7. Take the mother who lives with you to the coast. You know she loves it there. Endure the crowded van, the repeated questions, the frequent bathroom breaks, the snoring nearly 80 year old woman who must share your room on the overnight stay. Just do it. The Story About PingPosted June 26th, 2007 by Jen in education, religion6 Comments » My children love this little book called The Story About Ping, written in 1933 by Marjorie Flack, illustrated by Kurt Weise. I read it to them at least once a week, it seems. Sometimes nightly for a season. The flow of the language when read aloud is beautiful, and I suspect that’s one of the reasons they request this book so often. Ping was a little duck who lived with his huge family on “a boat with two wise eyes on the Yangtze River.” Fearing the spank the last duck receives upon returning to the boat each evening, Ping hides. He gets lost and has several adventures before reuniting with his family. One of the adventures involves coming across some trained fishing birds with rings around their necks to prevent them from eating the delicious fish, and so they dutifully carry the catch to their master. The constraining rings prevent them from eating anything but small morsels. This scene evokes such sadness in me, and can be interpreted on many levels. My kids have actually never commented on this episode and they take it literally and matter-of-factly, for now. But I think I’ll have a discussion with them soon. I’ve been thinking a lot about church issues lately, as well as education. What are the rings placed around our necks? Is it constraining to sit under one head teacher who predigests material for us? Has this “objectivist” type of learning, as Debra Murphy discusses in her article Worship as catechesis: Knowledge, desire, and Christian formation, twisted what it means to “know” something? What if we could enjoy the whole, delicious fish, and not some pasty morsel? How marvelous that would be. What would it look like? How can we remove rings from around our necks? I honestly don’t have the answers, but I’m exploring. Murphy argues that the objectivist view of knowledge needs dismantling. No longer should knowledge be the transfer of educational content from teacher to pupil, but some kind of community experience that repairs the disconnect between what goes on, for example, in the church and what happens in the outside world. Believe it or not, we may need to return to the Middle Ages for an answer. Jeffrey Stout, in his book Flight From Authority, traces how the Middle Age experience of strong community, intertwined with the authority of religious institutions and human inquiry, gave way to the Modern experience of a “flight” from this authority, leaving us today with what he calls “scientism” and “logical positivism,” in which any belief which cannot be certainly proven is folly, and the human conversation in the process gets removed. That’s a mouthful, folks, and I hope you follow what I’m trying to say! I’m not a scholar, but this is my understanding. I haven’t read the full texts of these works I mentioned, but will do so in my quest to find something tangible I can do. Yes, something I can do and you can do, not just a philosophical conversation. The Story About Ping got me thinking. And thinking alone is fruitless. Will someone be willing to read with me, with an eye toward something new? I understand that a real shift in the paradigm may take centuries. It took centuries to get where we are now, after all. Vacation Bible School Shut OutPosted June 25th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, religion9 Comments » My kids enjoyed a week of Vacation Bible School last week, but not me. Don’t get me wrong, I was thankful that the hosting church put on such a fun-filled adventure for the children, and the kids all benefitted greatly. But here’s the other side of the coin: parents are not welcome. The same problem the larger society has in regard to family exists in the church as well. Our American culture, indeed many other modern cultures, has seen parents relinquish their parental obligations, and quickly we’ve observed public schools and other public institutions take on the surrogate parent role along with the attitude of “leave the schooling to the experts.” At the bottom of this phenomenon is a disregard for the family unit. One of the reasons I homeschool my children is in an effort to preserve my family, because there does not currently exist a widespread school model that does so. Segregating children by age, locking parents out of curriculum decisions, endowing teachers with greater authority in the system than parents – these practices all serve to undermine the family integrity. I’m used to this in the public sector. So, when I arrived at Vacation Bible School and wanted to walk my kids in myself, meet their crew leaders, and follow the children to their stations so I could get a handle on the physical layout of the place, I was met at every turn with: “Are you lost?” “Can I help you find something?” “Is there something you need?” No, I just have a four year old child that I refuse to drop at the door with strangers. Mind you, I had never been to this particular church before, so as a responsible parent, it seemed like a no-brainer to want some information and get a feel for the place. The staff was excellent and I ended up having no issues with the place, BUT. I stuck out in the crowd like you wouldn’t believe. Out of almost 200 kids at this event, I was the ONLY parent to be lurking around, and I know that half the kids had not been to this church before, either. Does this mean that all those other parents are bad, bad people? Does this mean the church people are inconsiderate? No. It means our modern culture has succeeded in enculturating the citizens with a very wrong view of family, responsibility, and society. Our institutions have taken over the familial role. No longer do parents rule – and yes, they should. Now, instead of society and culture fitting into its proper place within the family, the family is required to fit into a proper place within the culture, and it’s a subordinate place. I have a huge problem with this, folks, and I wish more people did. Yes, I know, it would have created a log-jam at Vacation Bible School if every parent were like me, wanting to be a little more involved and present. So, you change the paradigm. Maybe you have a parent/child session on day one. Maybe you make parents fill out a criminal history check and offer them the opportunity to be present (sad, but this is what it would take). Maybe you limit the number of children who can attend so there is more room for whole families. Or maybe you just put on your own family-friendly Vacation Bible School. Letters as Colors?Posted June 11th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, parenting5 Comments » I just made an astonishing discovery. My seven year old son sees letters as colors. As we sat at the table finishing lunch just in this past hour, my daughter said, “Amy is a special name.” “Why is that,” I queried. “It starts with the letter A,” she replied, “which is the first letter of the alphabet.” “And A is red.” This announcement from my son would have gone completely unnoticed by me, except for a very bizarre coincidence. Just about 20 minutes earlier, I had visited my cyber friend Dana, and clicked through to a link from commenter Julie. I glanced at a recent post by Julie, The Color of Thoughts, wherein is mentioned by commenter Bobbie that there exists a human gene that causes words to actually be a color. We all know that kids say crazy things, and with the never ceasing chatter over here, I honestly would have paid no heed to, and likely would not have even consciously heard, my son’s color comment. So, sincere thanks, Dana, Julie, and Bobbie, for that string of discussion I trailed. I began interrogating my son. What do you mean when you say the letter A is red? Are whole words colors? Are other objects associated with colors? Are numbers colors? We all should know what I did next. Google. There is a name for this phenomenon, and it’s called synesthesia – a neurological condition in which two or more senses are coupled. My son appears to have grapheme-color synesthesia, where an individual’s perception of numbers and letters are associated with the experience of colors. Guess what else wikipedia said? A is likely to be red. While no two synesthetes will report the same color associations, there are some commonalities. Hey, my son is in good company. Nobel Prize winning physicist Richard Feynman was among those with synesthesia. Wow, I’m just beginning to look into this (obviously!), so if anyone out there has some information or advice for me, I’d love to hear from you. Break a Leg, er, FingerPosted by Jen in arts & crafts, education, product review3 Comments » In honor of this week’s Carnival of Homeschooling theme of “Fun,” (up tomorrow) this post is about a fun past-time over here, puppet shows.
We began with about a dozen puppets I gathered from various stores, and I’m such a frugal shopper that I found them all for between $1 and $5 – and some free, if you count the socks and gloves. I’m still on the lookout for some reasonably priced little boy and little girl (normal-looking children) puppets, so if you know of a deal, pass it on. I will not pay $15 for a puppet, so don’t bother passing that information along.
Occasionally, I visit the Well-Trained Mind swap board, and that’s where I discovered our first scripts. Thank you, Kristin!! There’s this amazing homeschool mom on a farm in Nebraska, Kristin Greenhalgh, who’s written several Christian-themed Puppet Script books. I ordered every single one, and you can find them here. We’ve performed several of these, and most are perfect for 1-4 children of a variety of ages, maybe ages 6-12. My favorites are The Reason for the Seasons volumes, covering every holiday from Advent to Yom Kippur. I told Kristin many months ago that I’d review her books here, so considered them reviewed: A+. Along with the Seasons scripts, Kristin has written Walking with God, 16 short scripts depicting important steps in the Christian walk. We like “Taming the Tongue.” Her scripts aren’t cheesy or tacky like some I’ve seen, but have very age appropriate dialogue. The third series, Living Like Jesus, includes 20 short scripts teaching Christ-like character traits and virtues. Great discussion questions follow each script, and when I say short, they are 1-2 pages long, perfect for young performers. You may also be interested in some online scripts that you can download for free. Reader’s Theater Editions has dozens of free scripts adapted from stories written by Aaron Shepard and others – lots of myths and tall tales. Reader’s theatre is different from puppet theater, but I’ve easily modified them. My kids especially enjoyed taking to the stage with The Baker’s Dozen. Acting and playmaking is such a wonderful, creative outlet for children. For homeschoolers, consider practicing a play with your own family or joining with another family, and put on a show for friends and relatives. You certainly don’t need the traditional “school play” model preventing your homeschooling kids from putting on a grand production! Plurals and PossessivesPosted May 29th, 2007 by Jen in education4 Comments » I just have to air a pet peeve. Jennifer’s pet peeve, the pet peeve belonging to Jennifer. When I receive a card that is signed “The Johnson’s” – - well, the Johnsons may as well have grated their fingernails across a chalkboard. The Johnson’s what, I ask? The card is from the Johnson’s cat? What belonging to the Johnsons is sending me this card? Since plurals lack an apostrophe, can I hope this was just a typo? Wishful thinking. The Smiths and the Browns also send me cards presenting the grating apostrophe (with love, the Smith’s; blessings from the Brown’s). They all saw it on the Johnson’s card (the card belonging to the Johnsons), and think that must be the way it’s done. Please don’t sleep through grammar, it hurts my ear’s. Ha, that hurt, didn’t it? I Own a MonetPosted May 21st, 2007 by Jen in arts & crafts, education5 Comments » Our art time lately has been focused on Impressionism. My kids just seemed to like the feel of a fleeting moment on canvas, so we’re going with it. Impressionists were known for leaving their studios to get outside and paint in the open air, and were intensely interested in every aspect of light. Hey, that fits our family, it’s no wonder the kids like this style. I’m not artistic and have taken just one art class ever. But I’m here to encourage you that it doesn’t matter if you know Monet from Manet, if you even care about shadows and shading, or if you’re artistically clumsy like me. You can successfully teach art to your kids, and the method that’s working for me is Classical Immersion. I don’t know if that’s really a term, I just made it up.
The Classical Immersion method that produced this darling reproduction was simple. Lots of time spent with originals.
I think it’s great for kids to have plenty of creative self-expression time, and we have lots of that over here. The usual bag of art supplies is always handy – construction paper, glue, markers, paints, play dough, doodads. But by Classical, I mean being somewhat ordered, using original sources. Ruth Beechick writes, “Our society is so obsessed with creativity that people want children to be creative before they have any knowledge or skill to be creative with.” I think she’s referring to teaching language, but the idea can be applied across the spectrum. Those people who are trained to spot the counterfeit bills – guess what they spend all their time doing? Studying the original. Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise put it this way in their book, The Well Trained Mind: “Squeeze a dry sponge, and nothing comes out. First the sponge has to be filled.”
For studying Monet, we got some videos from the library about his life. Linnea in Monet’s Garden was really fun. Little Linnea gets to visit Giverny and walk among the gardens where Claude Monet painted his “blobs and smears,” as she notes. Monet from the series Getting to Know the World’s Greatest Artists was also a hit. If we had an art museum nearby, we’d go. But we don’t. So the books and videos are our museums, and we’ve had quite a few strolls down the their halls.
Here is the original Camille Pissarro, which now hangs in the Musee du Louvre in Paris.
After spending weeks on Impressionism, my son declared that he wanted to be an artist. That just means that he enjoyed our art time. After digging into a fun science project, he wants to be a scientist. That’s a good measuring rod for me, and his reactions tell me whether I’m teaching in such a way that reaches him and allows him to fully respond to the subject. Hunting!Posted May 15th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life4 Comments » We’re off to hunt for “cool stuff.” It’s outdoor school today. Remember the owl hunt? We’re going to our property, where my amazing husband is busy working on building our house. We had some friends out recently, and all of our children had a great romp around the place, and their kids even came away with some treasures to take home. Their daughter scored a deer shed,
the son rooted out a hornet’s nest for his collection,
and our little girls were entranced by a dead baby deer. Eeewwww…..
What delightful finds await us? I’ll post here in a few days what we stumble across in our hunt today. Carnival of Homeschooling # 71Posted May 8th, 2007 by Jen in education3 Comments »
Also be sure to follow the continuing saga of homeschooling in Germany with Dana of Principled Discovery as she addresses Military Homeschoolers in Germany. Interesting how Americans in Germany could possibly be affected by Germany’s ban on homeschooling. As soon as I can find the original source, I’ll post there about an American homeschooling mom in Germany who told me, on a message board a few months ago, that she does hide the fact that she homeschools, keeping her children inside until the other children are out of school for the day. Many military families appear to be doing just fine, but there are certainly some locations where homeschooling families stationed in Germany do not feel safe. Happy reading, just imagine the rocker on the front porch as you sip that iced tea! Preparing for ElisePosted May 6th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, france/french7 Comments »
Elise is fifteen years old, and lives in a small village outside Paris. She speaks German, some English, some Danish, and of course, French. I tell you, those Europeans and their languages – we Americans have a few things to learn. The letter she sent to introduce herself was adorable. (Voici le courrier d’Elise destiné à ce présenter…) I wondered what she must think of America and Americans…”I like pets, but I’m little anxious when they are big and wild.” “I eat everything, but I don’t like dry fruits.” “I’m not a good climber, so if we go to hill walking, I’m not very stirring.” I stumbled across this fun opportunity through my dear friend, Catherine. Catherine is from France, and is hosting her nephew this summer. The nephew is only ten years old, and understandably his mother wanted a travel partner for him. Elise is a family friend, and given her love of travel and foreign languages, she was the perfect fit. Catherine just couldn’t stuff another person in her home, and when she asked me, I jumped at the chance. Catherine doesn’t live far from me, so we’ll all get to spend a lot of time together. So, I’m preparing. The language, of course, was the first thing on my mind. Although French was one of my college majors, my skills are pitiful, in my opinion. I completed my undergraduate work fifteen years ago (is that possible?), and in the years since, have done little language work. I did start teaching my kids French about a year and a half ago, and that has actually been quite helpful – the teacher must know the subject ahead of the kids and I was forced to get myself back in shape. We’ve also been meeting with Catherine and her kids once a week for French conversation and games – this is invaluable! Better than any of the French children’s curriculum or books or videos – we’ve used Le Francais Facile, Muzzy, The Learnables and love them all- but if you’re trying to learn a foreign language or get a refresher, there’s nothing better than a native (except moving to the country in question)! Also very helpful for adult learners is the free website learner.org by Annenberg Media. Their French in Action video instructional series is something I used in college, and have been revisiting lately as well (I feel like Mireille and Robert are my friends). I have to insert here the funny story of how I met Catherine. I was standing in the checkout line of Fred Meyer, our local grocery/merchandise store, and I heard from the customer ahead of me an accent! I could be mistaken, I thought, but that English sounds very French. I, who am constantly embarrassing my husband by talking to strangers, immediately pounced on her. Are you French? She was. I begged her to call me, and gave her my phone number. She must be the only French person in this entire little Central Oregon town, and I’m not about to let her get away. Much to my surprise and delight, she didn’t think I was a raving lunatic, and she called me several weeks later, and the rest is history…I now count her among my dearest friends.
I have some recreation and travel plans for our family while she’s here, including trips to the Oregon coast, the zoo, OMSI, a local museum, Smith Rock (but nothing too “stirring”), and just hanging out. I don’t want to overwhelm her, but I want to bless her socks off with a good time! What do you think? What is a French girl’s expectation of spending a month in Oregon, USA? photo credits for Eiffel Tower: http://www.offrench.net/photos/gallery-5.php Melissa’s Birthday CakePosted April 24th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, politics/world news9 Comments »
And I couldn’t resist showing some pictures of the aftermath of lighting the candles. My kids had such fun–but they do understand why we celebrated with this cake today. My 5 year old daughter, who wasn’t completely solid on the details, told her grandma the cake was for “Melissa, who turned 16 and escaped from jail.” But as you may know, Melissa herself stated that her time in the psychiatric ward was “like a prison.”
I’ve emailed my cake picture to: falumafischer@aol.com – and if you have a picture, get it on over there, and be sure to post here to let me see it, too! This “Birthday Action” for Melissa is a small token of love to her, and this project will culminate with a special album to be given to Melissa, including all of the photos which are submitted. The pictures will soon be posted on Bildungsinitiative Zukunft.
Melissa, we feasted on your cake, and we speak blessings over you this day. Carnival of Homeschooling – Bee EditionPosted by Jen in education0 Comments
Come and see, come and see – not only bees, but tons of great homeschool and education articles! This is the bee’s knees! Welcome Home, Melissa and Happy Birthday!Posted April 23rd, 2007 by Jen in education, politics/world news5 Comments »
We have been praying, with thousands of others, for this outcome. We continue to pray for the many other German homeschooling families still being persecuted. I wonder what the situation would look like if Melissa were say, only 13 years old? Would that mean three more years in confinement away from her family? There are efforts underway by several groups within Germany to push for education reform and the reversal of the law making homeschooling illegal. The Kolloquium being held this weekend in Germany (April 27-29), hosted by Netzwerk Bildungsfreiheit, is the second annual International Colloquim on Home Education, the goal being freedom of choice in education. If you’d like to make a contribution to this cause, that’s a practical way to give assistance. Most people I know are ignorant of the gravity of this situation. Please investigate. Dana reports that a “Birthday Action” is planned on behalf of Melissa. The idea is to light 16 candles (on a cake? or not) and take a picture – send it to falumafischer@aol.com. The goal is for 123 families to take part, so a total of 1,968 candles may be lit, one for each hour Melissa has been held hostage by the state. The pictures will then be posted here. I’ll post my picture later today! For some other ideas on actions you can take, visit Kinderlehrer’s site, and browse through her posts on who to appeal to in the government, and ideas for letters to write, among other particulars. Another interesting action to look into is the possibility of providing asylum to German families who are fleeing the country or going into hiding to avoid the tragedy of Melissa – their children being stolen away. An article I read recently quoted Home School Legal Defense Association co-founder, Michael Farris as saying:
I was wondering, and perhaps someone out there can inform me — is there a need for people to be offering asylum? Here in America, how would one go about offering asylum? Would German families even want to come here? Legally, does the United States grant asylum to individuals wanting to escape a fellow “democratic” nation? Just thinking. UPDATE: See Dana’s update regarding the startling details of of Melissa’s return home. A refusal by the Youth Welfare Office to allow Melissa to visit her parents for her birthday led her to climb out her foster family’s window at 3 a.m. and make her way home! Expect some further action here. She apparently has not yet been discharged from the foster care system, and the Youth Welfare Office is saying they will carefully consider further steps “in the interests of the child.” If their consideration of the best interest of Melissa is the guiding light here, expect more travesty of justice. Puppy lovePosted April 16th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life7 Comments »
I wasn’t ready for a fifth child, honestly. We’ve talked about getting a puppy, but only after the house is built. We’re in a rental right now, but hopefully by the end of summer/early fall our house with lots of land will be done. So my “plan” was to have the house totally completed, the barn up, the kennel built, the property fenced. But like an unexpected pregnancy, you just jump right in and start loving the little guy, planned or not. My husband had been out shopping with the girls at Big R, and there was a cattle rancher in front of the store with this litter of Border Collie/Heeler pups. The girls begged for a puppy, as usual, and Dad said “No,” as usual. But on the way out, some crazy notion hit him.
I can’t believe that just a few days ago I was commenting to Dana, who’s having a baby today, that I was having tender thoughts about my littlest being almost out of diapers! I’m thrown right back into babyhood overnight, with the all-night whimpering and the constant attention to bodily functions. But, oh, puppy love. I’ve taken 32 pictures of this mutt in the past 24 hours. And he barely has a chance to walk with four children constantly vying for a chance to hold him. Like a good homeschool family, we immediately went to the library to possess books, videos, and manuals on dog breeds, dog training, dog care…and never has motivation been higher to learn about this species. I think we’ll be doing a veerrry long dog unit. For now, puppy duty does not even need to be discussed–it’s a battle over who “gets” to clean up the poo-poo, who’s the privileged one to prepare the food, who gets the enviable job of bathing Reilly. NOTE: Anyone know what a “Celtie” is? I don’t know if I’m spelling that right, but the rancher we bought the puppy from said the mom was pure-bred Border Collie, and the dad was part Heeler, part Celtie. Can’t find any information on this. Thanks! UPDATE: Kelpie, not Celtie! Oops, husband must have “heard” wrong, on this “herd” dog =) Thanks to Catherine, my homeschool-mom mentor and amazing woman. The kids and I stopped by her house yesterday to show off the puppy, and she said, what a beautiful Kelpie! And it turns out mom was full Kelpie (a tough little sheepdog of Australia), dad was Border/Heeler. Does this happen to you when your husband goes shopping? Carnival of Education is here: Week 114Posted April 11th, 2007 by Jen in education0 Comments The Education Wonks is hosting this week’s Carnival of Education – there are some great entries from around the EduSphere! Next Week’s Carnival midway will be hosted by Dan over at DY/DAN. Contributors are invited to send submissions to: dan [at] mrmeyer [dot] com , or use this handy submission form. Entries should be received no later than 11:00 PM (Pacific) Tuesday, April 17, 2007. Please include the title of your post, and its URL, if possible. College bound for Motherhood?Posted April 10th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life3 Comments »
But really, she asked me a very interesting question today: “Mommy, do you have to go to college to learn how to be a Mom?” I thought for a moment, and said, “I suppose there are some classes you could take to teach you some skills, but really, your Mommy and Daddy should be teaching you how to be a mom someday.” I wanted to know what sorts of things she thought she’d need to know to be a mom. “Umm, cooking, baking, boiling, and making waffles.” Then, “And how to treat your kids right, and just how to be a mom!” The paradox of her question hit me a little later. I truly don’t want government schools teaching my children how to parent someday – that’s absolutely the job of my family and my faith community. But what do you do when the family or faith community fails to do its job? At that point, having public schools take over may seem like an option…but don’t go there. We are living out the results of handing over parental responsibilities to the state – no matter the consequence, I don’t consider that an option. I was pondering a solution to this problem, and I thought rather than focus on the children whose parents have already handed over their rights and responsibilities to the state, focus on adult education for young parents. If we can get the parents with young children to wake up, the tide can turn. I’d begin with something very basic, but very complete, like the “fruits of the Spirit” -
If young moms and dads could seriously get a handle on how to just BE a person with these character traits, everything else would follow. There’d be no need to teach these parents the nitty-gritty details of how to discipline a child, how to teach kids to respect each other and to play fair. Because full of the fruits of the Spirit, they’d just know, like a vine instinctively reaching for the sun. And a child who constantly has modeled before her a parent full of love and self-control and peace –this will undeniably produce a child fully equipped to be a mom or dad someday. Forget college. Bonhoeffer executed today in 1945Posted April 9th, 2007 by Jen in general, germany, persecuted church, politics/world news6 Comments » Monday, April 9 – today’s date – in 1945, was the morning of the hanging of Dietrich Bonhoeffer at the Flossenburg Concentration Camp. German pastor, writer, dissident, and martyr. A great force behind the German Resistance to Hitler’s Nazi regime. Sadly, ironically, but perhaps most profound, is the fact that just a few days later, Allied troops liberated the camp. Three weeks following, Adolf Hitler had committed suicide, and within a month, Germany had surrendered unconditionally. But I believe that Bonhoeffer speaks to us through his sacrifice more clearly today than he did in his life.
Just as a prophet is not accepted in his own town (Matthew 13:57), Bonhoeffer was speaking so far ahead of his time that I believe most of his contemporaries benefited little from his life. Many of his fellow pastors and churchpeople supported Hitler’s policies. The true beneficiaries of Dietrich Bonhoeffer are those of us living today. As he explained his involvement in a plot to assassinate Hitler, Bonhoeffer said: “If I see a madman driving a car into a group of innocent bystanders, then I can’t, as a Christian, simply wait for the catastrophe and then comfort the wounded and bury the dead. I must try to wrestle the steering wheel out of the hands of the driver.” A further glimpse into the action-oriented Bonhoeffer was his collaboration in an effort to help a group of Jews escape to Switzerland that led to his arrest and imprisonment in April 1943, two years prior to his execution. So, I’m trying to lay the framework of all of this history onto life today. Here’s a Bonhoeffer quote that helps his death bring some benefit to me today: “Nothing is fixed, and nothing holds us. The film, vanishing from memory as soon as it ends, symbolizes the profound amnesia of our time. Events of world-historical significance, along with the most terrible crimes, leave no trace behind in the forgetful soul.” Can we please not suffer from profound amnesia? Can we please not be illiterate regarding church history? Bonhoeffer displayed the most admirable resistance to tyranny you can hope for; yet this was too late for his own age – we are the recipients, and our call is to respond to the conditions that make tyranny possible. We are offered the opportunity, if we would educated ourselves with this history, to direct action at the root of the problem, instead of being forced into a violent struggle with the full-blown fuhrer. So, The Cost of Discipleship teaches me that believing in Jesus isn’t enough – there is a call to action, and Bonhoeffer sets a real-life example of sometimes radical action. Bonhoeffer warns against the “cheap grace” that advocates belief without obedience. “Christianity without the living Christ is inevitably Christianity without discipleship, and Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ. It remains an abstract idea, a myth.” Here are some issues I’ll be exploring in more detail in another post – this is an excerpt from the 2003 documentary film, Bonhoeffer:
Do you think the church has any reason today to act against the state? Ahh, now we’re getting to the heart of this, and we must examine this closer if Bonhoeffer’s martyrdom is to have been of any profit. Scopes in reversePosted March 26th, 2007 by Jen in education, politics/world news, religion, science5 Comments »
Pebble Chaser has covered this superbly, so I won’t go into the whole terrible ordeal; go see what Heidi said. I did just want to add that I found it incredibly ironic that a brief glance back in history shows that the Butler Act, 1925, prohibited teachers from teaching anything but the Divine Creation of man as set forth in the Bible, and specifically banned teaching that man was descended from a lower order of animals. (Of course, the ridiculous publicity stunt of the Scopes trial changed that.) But here we are, just 80 some years later, and those same teachers are prohibited from teaching anything but that man was descended from a lower order of animals. photo by: Gary Albertson Stop the world, I want to get off!Posted March 22nd, 2007 by Jen in education, politics/world news3 Comments »
And what of the new German case of the Brause family?! What in the world? Two parents with college degrees, a judge who acknowledges the children are “well-educated,” yet the court has taken custody of the five children away from their homeschooling parents (though not yet removed from the home)…The crime, again, is not providing the children with a public school education. (Just in case you haven’t been following, homeschooling is illegal in Germany.) The fears of the International Human Rights Group, and so many others, have come true. The German state has been emboldened by the court’s decision in the Busekros case, and continues to TERRORIZE homeschool families. What planet am I on? “Stop the world, I want to get off!” When I read of the Brause case, on the heels of the Busekros tragedy, I immediately thought of Randy Stonehill’s song, “Stop the World.”
STOP THE WORLD
Stop the world
No, no
In Germany you can prosti*ute
Well, I think I’ll go throw up now. I certainly can’t sleep after thinking about this. If you want to comment, click on the title above, go to the bottom of this post and comment. In Him we live and move and have our beingPosted March 20th, 2007 by Jen in education, poetry, politics/world news, religion10 Comments » I thought I’d take the Apostle Paul’s tactic with Athens, and quote some poetry for Germany. Around A.D. 50, Paul went to preach in Athens, then eminently famous for learning, philosophy, and fine arts. And godless idolatry. The Athenians actually had an altar with the inscription, “To the unknown god,” just in case they missed one in all their god-worshipping.
So, on to Germany…I must say I was inspired by commenter John’s post at Principled Discovery. Regarding the German homeschool case of Melissa Busekros, which I’ve written about here and here, John gave a historical context of the intellectual elitist mentality in Germany:
Many people do not realize that prior to what took place in the late 1930′s and early to mid 1940′s Germany had become the most intellectual and erudite nation on the planet. It is this very mentality that spawned the horrible dilemma of WW2 and the Holocaust that is now part of our World history. Germany reminds me of Athens, I must say. Intellectual, erudite…And John ended his comment with these words: Every civilization that has forgotten God has failed. Well, the Apostle Paul was probably the greatest teacher and most successful evangelizer of all time (besides Jesus), and if he quotes Athenian poetry to Athenians, I can’t go wrong quoting German poetry to Germans.
Excerpt from Faust, Part 1 Der Allumfasser, And in English: The all-embracing one, Goethe Learned men and women of Germany, do not worship intellectualism or philosophy, but worship God, “the all-embracing one, the all-preserving one,” as your own poet has said. Here comes the trainPosted March 19th, 2007 by Jen in arts & crafts, education, science0 Comments I love a picturesque, rural landscape, and my kids adore trains. I caught this scene a few days ago, as we were stopped at a train crossing in Terrebonne, OR. You can see Smith Rock in the background, and if you could hear, you’d be listening to my kids whooping in delight above the loud cry of the train whistle.
We were too inspired to pass up Smith Rock after seeing this, so the next day we headed over to the climbing mecca of the Northwest. Yeah, we go here a lot, and you would, too, if this was in your backyard.
Here I am with the kids, about to head down into the gorge where you see the Crooked River running through. This was part of our school day, and so here we are sketching the amazing spires of rock (…how did this get here, the kids ask). A local artist happened to be hiking by as the kids were happily engaged in their creative drawings, and had some kind words to offer.
What you see here is a wonderful little snapshot of the flexibility I love about home education. An inspiring moment with a train can lead to an afternoon of hiking, exploring, discussions about volcanic origins, creative art, and more nuances of my children’s development than I can know. To comment, click on the title above, then go to the bottom of the post and add your comment. Name that owl! Science outside the classroomPosted March 16th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life, science2 Comments »
Our adventure began nearly two years ago, when we first saw the owl. My husband and I, along with our children, were looking at some real estate in Central Oregon. We fell in love with this big juniper filled parcel the minute we set foot on the rugged soil. The rock outcroppings, the tall, scraggly juniper trees, and the untouched feel of the land had us mesmerized. Then, suddenly, a screech, a whoosh, and gone in a flash. We knew we had an owl.
I’m not sure I realized it at the moment, but as parents, we were shaping and developing our children’s scientific thinking. Our owl hunt was just an everyday activity born out of natural curiosity, but more valuable than any classroom science lesson.
The kids and I visited the Museum again last week, and spent most of our time with the Birds of Prey exhibit, naturally! We decided that most likely (but we could totally be wrong!), our owl is a Long-eared Owl. He sounds like a Screech-Owl, but those owls nest in natural cavities in trees, and ours has a nest. He looks a bit like the Great Horned Owl, but their strongest Oregon habitat association is grassland with fir and ponderosa interspersed. And the Long-eared Owl has a high nest, typically an abandoned nest of another large bird of prey, and their strongest Oregon nesting habitat association is in western juniper woodland. That fits! At first, we nearly discounted the great nest we discovered, because it looked old and abandoned. Yes, exactly what our owl likes – these nocturnal creatures do NOT like to build their own nests. And of course, the juniper woodland describes our property to a “T.” I can’t stress enough the idea that when families pursue scientific inquiries together, and when children are carrying on their own intellectual quests, a natural and deep science foundation is taking root. If you’re lucky enough to have an owl, all the better. ********** Carnival of Homeschooling is here!Posted March 13th, 2007 by Jen in education, family life0 Comments
The child is not the mere creature of the statePosted by Jen in education, politics/world news6 Comments »
The famous words from Pierce v. Society of Sisters, 268 U.S. 510 (1925), would be helpful for the German judges to take to heart: “The child is not the mere creature of the state; those who nurture him and direct his destiny have the right, coupled with the high duty, to recognize and prepare him for additional obligations.” This landmark case held that the Oregon Compulsory Education Act that required attendance at public schools was unconstitutional under the Fourteenth Amendment. There have been a string of other courts cases which have solidified the rights of parents to homeschool their children. An interesting note in the Pierce case is that it was the Ku Klux Klan that was behind the amendment to Oregon’s Compulsory Education Act which would have made it illegal for students to attend private schools. Of course, we know the strong ties during WWI between the KKK and the Nazis. It seems like the same types of people are intent on passing the same types of laws.
Aha! So the German State has further indicted itself, and this is even worse than just saying homeschooling is illegal. They have just violated their own Basic Law (Grundgesetz). The Basic Law, by the way, is the constitution of Germany, and came into effect in 1949 after being ratified by all the German states (Lander) – with the exception of Bavaria, where not so coincidentally, the Busekros family resides. Right off the bat, Article 1 of the Basic Law says “human dignity shall be inviolable.” Skip to the heart of the matter and read Article 4: “Freedom of faith and of conscience, and freedom to profess a religious or philosophical creed, shall be inviolable.” Saying so doesn’t make it so. It’s violable, all right. It says right there that everyone should have the freedom to say that their State is despotic and fascist! Everything the Busekros lawyers need to back up their case is spelled out in the German constitution. Or they can look at similar wording in the U.N. Universal Declaration of Human Rights – which, I must point out, specifically addresses parental rights in education: Article 26(3) says “Parents have a prior right to choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children.” Prior rights means the parent’s right is prior to the state’s right. So what in the world is wrong with these German judges?? I have no idea what German case law looks like, or what legal precedents are in their courts. Is this judicial tyranny? Is Germany still too “newborn” to stand up on it’s wobbly legs of democracy? Would their judges show enough wisdom and humility and look at some of our legal rulings? (At least look at them now, before the tide turns over on this side of the world). Condoleezza, what about Germany?Posted March 7th, 2007 by Jen in education, politics/world news10 Comments »
“A problem for some groups” is truly an understatement of the horrific human rights violations occurring in Germany. Because of a 1938 law prohibiting homeschooling, German families who have a need or desire for an alternative education are literally being persecuted. The Busekros case is unfolding in 2007, so I can’t hold the Human Rights Report to task for this oppression, however, 2006 and previous years are rife with examples of egregious violations. A February, 2006 letter to the U.N. Commission for Human Rights details several violations of German homeschoolers’ civil and human rights, including the following acts enforced against home educating parents by the German state: imprisonment, fines, loss of custody of children, criminal charges, children forced to school by police, and forced admission of children into a psychiatric clinic or foster home. The Busekros case is simply a continuation of a pattern of abuse. Yes, this is current, I am not pulling stories from 1940s era Germany, as it would seem. The 1938 law enacted by the Hitler regime was an effort to control every aspect of free thought, and we all know the results, unless you’re one of the “Holocaust-never-happened” people. And how is the modern German state justifying its position that compulsory education can not include home education? A few quotes I came across shed some light. Here’s an excerpt from a letter from the Consul General of the Federal Republic of Germany, in response to inquiries on the Melissa Busekros case: “The public has a legitimate interest in countering the rise of parallel societies that are based on religion or motivated by different world views and in integrating minorities into the population as a whole.” That doesn’t sound a whole lot different than old Germany, and I can think of an entire parallel culture that was nearly wiped out by that philosophy. Another telling quote, from a 2005 case involving seven homeschool families in Northwest Germany, is even more insidious. Heinz Kohler, the county education director, said that “the parents’ rights to personally educate their children would prevent the children from growing up to be responsible individuals within society…” Clearly, something is going on here, because studies of homeschoolers show higher test scores, greater community involvement, and very well-rounded individuals. What Kohler and the German state meant to say is that the children will grow up to be free-thinking (horrors) responsible individuals within society. I can understand compulsory education in that the state has a legitimate interest in an educated public, but there are many, many ways to educate, and many individual circumstances that call for an alternative education. For crying out loud, an eight year old disabled boy was forced, against his parents’ wishes, and with the threat of removal of custody, to attend the school the German officials demanded he attend (the Gerber case). So, there are strange things going on in Germany. Prostitution is legal and widespread, while homeschooling is illegal and families are fleeing the country. And a precious young girl is still held hostage away from her family. Please visit the International Human Rights Group website for a list of high ranking German officials to contact to voice your protest and demand in the name of human rights that Melissa be released back into the custody of her parents. As for Condoleezza Rice and the State Department, I’d ask that they take a closer look at Germany. A Natural LearningPosted February 21st, 2007 by Jen in education0 Comments Big L, put that bike away and get back to your books about bikes!
Okay, not really. I’m understanding how to apply a natural learning process. Thanks to a wonderful little book by Marilyn Howshall called Wisdom’s Way of Learning, my kids are engaging in more “delight-directed” interests. Howshall says that “Learning in its most natural form is simply like a child at play as he explores the world around him. He finds great pleasure in his discoveries, unaware that he is in an informal learning process.” So, I had noticed Big L the previous day scoping out the bike (see him in the background)…he definitely had something in mind: I had asked Big L when I first saw him with the bike upside down what his intentions were. He said he was thinking that since the tires needed to be replaced anyway, he might take it apart “to help Dad.” This son of mine has a long history of fascination with how things work, and is forever building things only to take them apart again. So, I shouldn’t have been surprised when I saw first this:
And a little later, this:
I used to think that “natural learning” was an educational style for hippies that was completely unstructured and random. Not so. Marilyn Howshall explains it so well: “…to be truly natural there must be structure because all of nature, which is simply God’s creation, has a thoughtfully designed structure.” So, of course, a natural and biblical approach to learning will possess structure and order. My son is required to keep and put his tools away in his tool box (a real tool box with real tools). He can’t leave nuts and bolts laying helter skelter. And when I saw his three year old sister wobble by the window a short while later without the usual training wheels on her little bike, I made Big L put them back on. Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy LessonsPosted February 12th, 2007 by Jen in education, product review2 Comments » My first product review is, fittingly, on my favorite product: a book I can’t live without as a homeschool mom. I really love that this book stands alone. You don’t need any fancy computer program or flash cards or any other bells and whistles. This book, which I bought brand new at Barnes & Noble for $20, along with a sheet of paper and pencil, is it. Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons is brilliant. This book, which is the DISTAR reading program (Direct Instruction – parts to whole, logical progression), has been involved in over a dozen comparative studies, including an enormous educational study done by the U.S. Department of Education, and guess what? It outperforms them all. Don’t ask me why every public school in the country isn’t using this system, because I don’t have the time or energy to rant and rave about public education. Do you wonder why I homeschool my kids? Do NOT skip the first 27 pages of this book, which is the Introduction and Parent’s Guide. It’s invaluable, and you cannot teach this correctly without carefully reading that material. You do NOT have to be a reading teacher to teach your child to read, and in fact, you will know more about teaching reading than most teachers out there by the time you’ve gone through this book with your child. I happen to be a former public school teacher, and have my Master’s in Teaching. But I learned nothing valuable about teaching reading in my educational training, not even when I was a reading specialist! There IS a right way to teach reading, and it’s very systematic, and Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons lays out the sequence better than I have ever seen. This is a scripted program, and there’s a reason for that. Every detail is covered, right down to how to effectively correct any type of mistake the child makes. You’ve got to understand that this program was tested on thousands of children, and you benefit from all of those trials. So don’t feel like you don’t have the “freedom” to teach how you want; the truth is that you have so much more freedom to have fun with your child, and you can heap on the praise, because your child has received the absolute most effective communication from you (through the script), and will be successful. I’ve seen different educational tools out there that claim to work “like magic.” Well, I don’t think Zig Engelmann has ever made that claim, but I’ll make it for him! My kids all have such differing “learning styles” but this book works for everyone. So, if you’ve been cutting and pasting together your reading program for your child, or you’re just hoping he’ll figure it out by reading to him a lot, then this book would seem like magic, because what you’re doing won’t work (at least not well). |
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JoJo spent several hours some time ago with her pint-sized rake and shovel. I was working on the main garden area while she staked out a spot of her own. The other children were doing likewise. I hesitated a moment when suddenly all the kids wanted their own garden space in addition to the main garden. Was this okay? Would I be teaching them to be selfish and look out only for themselves?
This painting 
They say that truth is stranger than fiction, and the story of the Marquis de Lafayette fits this expression well. His is the tale of a teenage orphan who travels to a foreign land to offer his services in a David versus Goliath type battle. Winning that battle, he returns to his homeland where he is a key player in the French Revolution.
We are watching the vegetable starts every day, the children with intense wonder at the new growth, me with a mix of hope and apprehension– will we succeed in this gardening adventure? The sunflower in this photo has been the subject of the greatest amazement, as my son was standing right in front of it when the shell of the seed popped right off the plant as the seedling stretched its tender leaflets in a show of force.
As you can see, your child or student can decorate the front cover and also include some mini-books. I chose to affix three pockets for what I call “character cards.”
The story and person of Benjamin Carson makes me so happy because he is just one more amazingly brilliant and talented individual in the field of science and medicine to blow a hole in the tired argument that Christians who believe in God the Creator and not evolution are just uneducated, fundamentalist religious whack-jobs who don’t know what they’re talking about.
“Do the flying Hilda!” JJ shrieked in delight to her brother as he hung over the balcony, swinging a little plush goat. With four young children in the house, nothing surprises me anymore, not even a goat madly flapping through the air, puppeteered from above whilst a child below scrambles to grab it.
Of course, there is a special personality in this mountain memoir called Hilda the goat. Despite the wonderful character development and authentic dialogue of every member of the cast, my children latched onto Hilda. They loved it when little Ruble was awakened one morning with a rough push from Hilda, sending her tumbling out of bed. All of Hilda’s minor appearances were relished.
I’ve been thinking about text messaging and whether parents are concerned about their child’s use of this social media. My own children are too young for this and don’t have cell phones; however, as a middle school teacher, I’ve been seeing how widespread texting has become, and I have concerns.
II. 
Many greenhouses offer organized field trips for school groups, and this one was no exception. While my group (my family) just walked in as customers to make a purchase, they were still very accessible and education-minded. It’s important to note that this was a small, locally owned nursery, and these are the best ones, in my opinion, to approach for an educational tour. 
Before the kids left, they had all helped to groom several horses, feed them, pick their hooves, ride around the corral, and choose their own horseshoe to take home.
If you go to this particular state park in the summer (Smith Rock in Terrebonne, Oregon), plan an early start to avoid heat stroke, and pack a picnic lunch and a sketch pad/pencil.
One nice feature about most state parks are the plaques of geologic or historic information planted along the way. Don’t rush past these if you want to get the most out of your field trip. I usually have a different opinion about some of the geologic timelines given in the typical state park plaque, but what a great learning opportunity to discuss these issues. 
If you’re following the crisis in Germany regarding that country’s 
I met Julie at a church women’s retreat a few months after moving to Central Oregon. I’d seen her leading worship on several occasions, and thought somebody should turn up the mike. I was thrilled when we ended up rooming together at the retreat. That first night was the typical stay-up-half-the-night-talking-women’s-thing. It seems like I’ve known Julie forever, but I guess it’s only been about 3 1/2 years! This is a picture of us last summer at Drake Park in Bend, catching up while our kids played with the ducks.
Spring is here! It came, then ducked under a series of freak hailstorms and a blanket of snow, only to emerge this weekend for good. The kids and I basked in a perfect April day on Friday, obeying the chipper call of the season to go for a hike.
Voila, you have a lovely child’s spring book! One neat thing about this style of book is that it allows such easy access to the items. Each piece of cardstock can be taken out and handled (as children can’t help but do), and easily returned to its proper place. And of course, the see-through ziplock bag is an essential as well, giving full visual stimulation.
We’ve been spending some time in the dirt getting the soil ready to start a garden. And no surprise, children are drawn to dirt like nothing else! You mean you want me to dig holes? I’m allowed to get filthy and mucky? To direct that childish energy and wonder into a productive endeavor like a garden is not only smart on the part of the parent, it’s a lifelong gift to both of you.
Here in Central Oregon, we’re still in the planning stages. We’re working with virgin land that’s never been planted and we have our own obstacles to maneuver. We have a lot of land to work with and can experiment with several ideas, but the ground itself has some limitations. Giant boulders being one. A very short growing season being another. 
To begin this project, select a flat 10×10 foot plot of ground that gets at least 6 hours of sun a day. Place a stake in the center of the area, and tie a 3-foot string to it. Your child can take hold of the very end of the string and walk in a circle, while another child walks behind with a hoe to mark what will be the outer boundary of the garden bed.
You can find more fabulous garden ideas and activities to do with children, such as a sunflower house, container gardens, and a moon garden, in Roots, Shoots, Buckets & Boots. Would you like to win a free copy? Leave me a comment and let me know you’d like this book! I’ll draw a random winner next week.
It’s 
“Can JoJo come to the birthday party?” read the email I hadn’t yet responded to. I still don’t know my answer and the party is at 3:30 this afternoon. The invitation was extended only to my 4 year old girl. My six year old girl had assumed that she would also be invited, and even my boys don’t want to be left out. Who knew the thought-provoking conversations that would result from a simple birthday party invitation.
When Leonardo was 14 or 15 years old, noting his son’s uncommon artistic talents, his father sent him to Florence, where the young boy became apprenticed to the renowned master Andrea del 
Leonardo was fascinated by technology and the workings of machines. He invented fire throwers and missiles, and made an early design for a machine gun. Hundreds of inventions were sketched out in his notebooks – tanks, helicopters, bicycles, submarines, hang gliders, pulleys, cranes, bridges, and more.
Anatomy was another passion of Leonardo. He went to hospitals to watch operations, he visited morgues to dissect bodies of the dead. He measured muscles, diagrammed organs, discovered the way blood flows through the body, and made important conclusions about lungs and oxygen. His knowledge surpassed the doctors of his time. Leonardo applied this deep understanding of the human body to his art, and excelled in drawing proportional anatomy.
Throughout all of these other pursuits, Leonardo da Vinci continued to paint. His patron, Ludovico, was invaluable during his time in Milan. Ludovico had Leonardo paint his friend Cecilia Gallerani, and Leonardo called the painting Lady with Ermine. It was so lifelike that a poet commented that “Nature herself was jealous.”
Around this time, Leonardo painted the Mona Lisa, beginning in 1503, the most famous painting in the history of art. Leonardo took the painting with him everywhere. Many historians say the Mona Lisa wasn’t finished when he left Florence, and that he completed it during his final stay in France. After Leonardo died, the painting was given to the king of France, and today, it hangs in the Louvre in Paris.
The little ones (3 and 4 years old) sat with Grandma during math. Mulit-age teaching is possible and a beautiful thing, even if hectic at times. Grandmas sure come in handy right about now! In this photo, Grandma was telling little L. that he was building the arched entry way into 
In my family, I try to repair this disconnect by giving my kids ample opportunities to understand the lives of their elders. Since my (nearly 79 year old) mother has lived with us for eight years now, my children are accustomed to having a senior in their everyday life. 
As you can see, our house is framed, sided, and just about ready for roofing. We’re racing against the weather to be dried in before the rain and snow is upon us. This is my husband’s handiwork; he put an incredible amount of effort and detail in the design of this home. He’s been on-site managing and laboring from the beginning – and he’s doing an amazing job. His 
The pole barn/shop is on its way up, as well. I was dreaming of an Amish barn-raising, but it’s mostly just my husband doing the labor, with some help from whoever happens to be around. The poles are set in the concrete and this building will be done within a few weeks. It’s a simple structure, but the man is so excited to have a place for the tractor, the lawnmower, the bikes, the tools. Yes, we want to use the garage to actually park cars, not store the ranch equipment. Man, do you see those clouds rolling in? Hurry it up!
Some little child discovered the physics of wet concrete. There may be a shoe stuck down there. There is some magical, magnetic property of wet concrete, because my kids could not stay away from it. There were little piles of extra concrete that the mixing truck had dripped here and there between poles, and the kids were all over it. My 8 yr. old son quickly scooped together a pile, inserted a piece of metal rebar, and began to “build” something. He pounded with Dad’s sledgehammer and set the pole for his imaginary barn.
I wouldn’t have thought one could take such pride and joy in a septic system. However, this is a rockin’ septic system, folks! My husband could tell you all the reasons why, but I will not put you to sleep nor cause you to even imagine for a moment the reason one has a septic system. But when the inspectors come out and say, “You did this yourself?” you know it’s good. Actually, at every turn, the inspectors have said that to my husband. One even took a picture of his power trench to show the regulars how it’s done – step it up, a do-it-yourselfer is doing a better job than you.
This will be the pump house. I never thought about what a pump house was until we started this project. I think I was imagining the old days when people literally had to pump water by hand. The pump house is just a little storage building to protect the water pump and the pipes. The day after this photo, the older kids went back with Dad to finish the concrete for the pump house. They arrived home well after dark, and apparently the kids were an invaluable help. Sorry, I will admit I was a little surprised to hear this. My husband said he could NOT have finished it without them – they were the stir boy and stir girl, and he would have been facing a big glob of half-dried concrete without their tireless effort. When I gave the kids a bath that night, their hair looked gray.
It was not all sweat and labor, however. The kids and I gathered firewood, which they consider “fun,” not “work.” Because the purpose of gathering firewood is to have a campfire – nothin’ better than that! There is no shortage of firewood on the property, especially with all the downed trees which were cleared for the house. It was a quick and light task, and immensely rewarding. 
I had no trouble getting helpers to rebuild the fire ring, either. The original fire pit was bulldozed aside to make way for the path to the new pole barn. I’ve mentioned before the ROCK around here? I think the well-drillers went through close to 90 feet of solid rock before hitting dirt. Again, no shortage of rock, and with the purpose of gathering rock being to form a new fire pit, the workers were happy little helpers.
My husband (“The Hunter”) just had his first archery kill yesterday. It was special for several reasons. First, he had taken our six year old daughter (“JJ”) with him that morning, since it was her turn. Second, they were hunting on our own property. Lastly, the whole thing turned into a family affair and a great educational experience for all.
We all had a good chuckle as The Scientist put the front legs to good use. He strung them up and made some sort of deer puppet…he said he was making deer tracks. I love the creativity of this child.
Oh, did the Bonhoeffer family have it right, way back in the first decade of the 1900s! Does German schooling “break the back” of its children? Could this be a reason for the number of homeschooling families in Germany, despite the dire consequences? Yes, it’s illegal, since about 1938 (and do you know 
I spent the day pencil in hand, scratching out a schedule in my Teacher Plan Book. I have four little pupils – currently 2, 4, 6, 8, who do we appreciate? Okay, I just had to say that because after next week, I can’t say it anymore, as the two year old will turn three. I do little planning for the 2 and 4 year olds, but the two older kids need a schedule.
Their business is called 
My gift to the kids this past Christmas was a Puppet Theater. You really don’t need a store-bought model, but I found a sale and we’ve dramatized over this enough to pay for it several times.
Our initial “plays” consisted of bopping the other’s puppet over the head and spiraling into wild screams and laughter. This is all good, but sometimes you want a little more. :-)
So, I do own a Monet. To be exact, it’s 
The immersion part of my method is really simple, too. I guess this would fit the Unit Method approach to teaching. Everything Impressionist we could get our hands on, we did. My basic “text” was a book that happened to be on my bookshelf, called 
We spend time there nearly every day, and still the kids never tire of either helping dad, hunting for deer, jackrabbits, bones and tracks, or just playing in the dirt.
Carnival time again, 
We have the great pleasure of hosting a student from France this summer. I’m a serious Francophile, so this is awesome for me! I’ve been thinking about what I can do to prepare for her visit, to make it as memorable as possible for her. For those of you out there who have hosted an international student, or been hosted, feel free to pass on your words of wisdom.
Back to preparations. She must have a room. The room I’m sitting in right now, typing away, will transform from my office and storage room to Elise’s room. This means several trips to Goodwill to get rid of stuff that I store and haul from house to house…why do we do these things? Get rid of it. I have a lovely picture of the French countryside (posted there to the right) that I’m moving from my living room to this room, to keep her company. Oh, and I still need a bed.
I 
Almost better than the cake itself are the rituals of blowing out the candles and then licking the frosting off the candles. With three or more children blowing at once, the task is accomplished in an instant. I had to shoot fast to get this on camera. And hey, we’re all family here, so a little spit on the cake is no matter.
Oh, if you could have seen these kids double-dipping their candles into the white fluffy frosting! Personally, I find the frosting revolting, and have always, even as a child, scraped it right off! And whenever I can get away with it, I prepare our cakes sans frosting.
Wow, I was so thrilled to 
No question about the kids’ reaction. J. (5) said, “Now there’s eight people in our family!” We’ve got Grandma, the dog, the parents, the kids…now we’re complete. My 7 year old son, a bit more serious, said, “Having a dog is a big responsibility.” Our two year old keeps informing us all that “Wi-wee (Reilly) wants to eat some water,” and J. (4) can’t stop dancing around with pure glee, “He wants to chase me!”
