Where does creativity come from?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eNwMut3-z1Y

Here is a great link about creativity.
Have a good Thanksgiving.  We will spend the whole week with our extended family--another benefit of homeschooling and telecommuting!

what will it take for radical education reform?

What if they built a school and nobody came?

Is that what it is going to take for "a radical rethink of our school systems" (words borrowed from Sir Ken Robinson)?  In many neighborhoods (even good ones), people decide to "choice out" of their local school.  Homeschooling is only one of many ways.

Will everyone have to abandon the public education system before there are radical changes made in the way we educate our children?  Watch some of Sir Ken Robinsons' stuff to get inspired about what education can and should be.  (http://www.ted.com/talks/sir_ken_robinson_bring_on_the_revolution.html , http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zDZFcDGpL4U, http://sirkenrobinson.com/skr/)  I just wonder how we can get to a place where the majority of our children (not just a small minority) are taught in safe and loving environments that encourage and reward creativity and thinking outside the box.

What about those families who teach their kids that evolution doesn't exist?

I say, let them.

The homeschooling parents who are teaching their kids this information were probably educated in a traditional public or private school.  Attending a traditional school did not keep these parents from developing their extreme views.  There are all types of extreme views and kids are going to hear them from their parents, whether they are homeschooled or not.  Finally, with all the media out there, it is harder and harder for people to isolate themselves (or their kids) from mainstream ideas---whether they are good or bad.  So, I say let parents teach what they want to teach, within the confines of the state homeschooling regulations.  Their kids will eventually develop their own views--perhaps to their parents' chagrin.

"Oh, you homeschool? I could NEVER do that!"

That is one of the hardest things for me to hear.

This is my response:  "Homeschooling is not easy, but it's not as hard as you think!  Separating yourself from the institutional education system is liberating!  Oh, the things you can do!  Oh, the places you'll go!  Oh, the things you'll learn! You can select your neighborhood based on housing and livability, rather than being limited by the school district.  You can go on vacation in the off season--or take a day off during the week.  You can go to the museum, zoo, etc. when there are no crowds.  You can eat a leisurely breakfast, while reading aloud to your kids.  You can spend your evenings relaxing, or doing fun, family-centered activities instead of homework dictated by someone else.  You can get the amount of sleep you need--and so can your kids."

You could never do that?"

What people also mean sometimes is: "I could never be with my kids all day!"  My response to that is (if they are still listening): "Right now, not only do you spend the hardest time of the day with your kids (4:00 pm til bedtime), but that time is controlled by the school through homework.  Your kids' teachers get to be with them while they are fresh and creative.  You get to be with your kids when they are drained, over-stimulated and have been cooped up all day.  The effects of being in school all week even creep into your weekend and cause stress there."

Now, don't get me wrong, homeschooling is not stress-free. Some days are great, some days are torture.  But, isn't life in institutional schooling like that, too?  The big difference is that self-imposed homeschool stress is more manageable.  Stress doesn't feel so bad when you know that it is under your control.

So, come on...give it a try and never say "never."

i think a little regulation can be a good thing

From my conversations with other homeschoolers, I think many want to be completely unregulated and undocumented.  I don't happen to agree with this.  Is there any part of our life that is completely unregulated?  We are members of a society and global community--no (wo/)man is an island, right?  We have rights and privileges because of our membership and we have responsibilities because of our membership.  I think that assuring some level of learning or education for our children is part of our responsibilities as world citizens.  I realize that the sticky part comes with definitions.  Different people define "learning" and "education" in different ways. 

When I was in another State homeschooling, there were virtually no homeschooling regulations.  We were left alone and we were on our own.  I know that people before me fought hard to allow homeschooling at all, and I appreciate it because I truly feel homeschooling should be an option.  However, after I moved to a State with a moderate (according to HSLDA) amount of regulations, I found more opportunities for homeschooling.  This also had to do with city size, I am sure, but in my previous State most homeschoolers wanted absolutely nothing to do with the public school system.  In my current State, homeschoolers are allowed by law to participate part-time in public schools.  Granted, I have heard that different districts are more or less friendly and helpful allowing homeschoolers in, but at least the law is there to back up any homeschooler who attempts to participate.  Currently, my kids participate in a homeschool enrichment program offered by a public school district.  We can check out all kinds of curricula for free (if we want it), my kids love it, we are not hassled by the schools in any way, the program is very parent-driven and managed by a homeschooling mom.  The school district gets to count the kids in the program and gets funding based on our participation.  To me, it is a win-win situation.  The only extra regulation in my current State we are subjected to is alternate year evaluations (which is liberally defined).

Homeschoolers, speak out!  How do you feel about regulation?

Do I homeschool for religious reasons? Yes.

I used to make it perfectly clear from the get-go that I did not start homeschooling for religious reasons.  After giving it a little more thought, I decided that I do, in part, homeschool for religious reasons.  I homeschool so my kids are not required to pledge allegiance to the flag "under God."  I homeschool so my kids won't be pestered (like I was in school) with the question that served as a litmus test for friendship:  "Do you believe in God?"  In my experience, school and our society is quite Christian-oriented and those who are not Christian (be they humanist, atheist, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.) can easily feel marginalized.

This does not mean we stay at home and avoid people who are not "like us."  We have deep friendships and many relationships with families who have very different religious beliefs than ours.  The one thing we have in common is a tolerance for differing religious views and compassion for everyone regardless of their religious views.

So, yes, we do homeschool for religious reasons.

the effect of homeschooling on the parents

The more I talk to other homeschooling parents, the more I hear "I am getting the education I never got in school!"  I have yet to see any research on the effects of homeschooling on parental knowledge and world understanding.  Has anyone else?  I have learned so much more world history than I knew before I started homeschooling my kids.  The history coops in which we have participated for the last 7 years (wow, has it been that long?) have sparked so many great discussions among the parents that wouldn't have happened if our kids had been in traditional, institutional school settings.  Since our history coops have included people from varying political and religious backgrounds, I have learned so much and had my tolerance tested.

Because of homeschooling, I have also read more books than I ever would have--both children's literature and books on education and learning.  Grad school was hard, but this is just as hard...and the consequences of my "studying" are more important to me.  I am not just getting a grade, I am trying to give my kids the best learning environment possible.


Anyone else have something to add?  What have you learned?  How have you grown as a person/parent because of homeschooling?  How do you think these effects on homeschooling parents affects our society/community, if at all?

finally took the plunge

OK, so I finally decided to join the blog-o-sphere.  It feels a little egotistical, but I figure no one has to read it if they don't want to...so here goes.

The purpose of this blog is to give me a place to express my ever-evolving ideas about education in our society.  Many of my friends have had to endure my rants.  Perhaps this blog will be a place to help those rants develop into well-thought-out ideas.  I hope that readers will add their perspectives, point out my inconsistencies, and have fun thinking and blogging about education and learning.