CyndiLJ
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Posts posted by CyndiLJ
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Well, while I am not brilliant, I am still so glad to read this thread as I have a Norton's sitting on my nightstand as I type this, waiting for me to read it ahead of my soon to be 9th grader~! Never having gone to college or taken advanced Lit classes, I had never heard of Norton's until a year ago. I got two old copies and I think they will be perfect!! I find them far better than a high school textbook, though we'll be using one in addition to our Norton's for a few specific things. the selections are fabulous! Glad to know others are using it as well, and that I made a wise choice!
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I think it is actually a sign of your depth, not at all a mid-life sort of thing (though it certainly can be, I suppose. We live lives of incredible ease versus the vast majority of the world. We also live lives of incredible ignorance of that ease. Any thinking person with a sense of compassion and understanding has times when they recognize this, and feel called to do something that makes a difference.
I think where we all get caught up in wrong thinking is seeing some folks make big mission trips to places like Haiti or Africa, or seeing people who completely give up their lives to go teach in a remote village in Asia, and we feel any contribution we might make would be insignificant. We don't realize the ripples from a single small act, and we are paralyzed from doing anything because it seems like it is never enough when compared to the vast need in the world.
Most of us want to live lives of meaning. We want life to be about more than just ourselves, but we simply don't know where to begin.
Our family has long been friends with a missionary couple from Canada, John and Julie Wright, http://www.actofkindness.blogspot.com
who have made an enormous impact in Tokmok, Kyrgyzstan. Now, I absolutely do not feel called to drop everything and move to Kyrgyzstan to work alongside them, but we have partnered with them from time to time on various projects, we have prayed for their work, we have assisted financially in small ways. John is amazing in his ability to help you see the ripples once you have helped, and he has completely reframed my ideas about outreach. You know what his big phrase is?
Stop for the one in front of you.
You don't have to go looking very far, unless you live such an insular life you never find yourself interacting among anyone other than folks in the exact same circumstances as yourself. How many folks in your town work at Walmart and go hungry because they don't have enough paycheck to stretch through the week? How about the guy who helps as a janitor at the local school...does he need help learning English to get a better job? What about the elderly in your community who often sit alone behind closed apartment doors due to immobility, craving human contact but unable to seek it out themselves?
Stopping for the one in front of you places you exactly where you ought to be, doing exactly what you ought to do...but it also can be uncomfortable.
I realized I was feeling just like you are now a year or two ago. I have long been engaged in various efforts here and there to help my world, even though always in small ways. For the past 10 years, it is revolved mostly around orphans and donations to meet their needs, but I started driving for Meals on Wheels at 18 years old, and have done many other things throughout the years. All of it seemed fairly small though. That is until I really looked at what "small"can do, and John helped with that as well.
I involved our church 4 years ago in raising money for a mom in Kyrgyzstan to receive a sewing machine. John knew of a mom who had 4 or 5 children who had landed in an orphanage because she couldn't care for them. She needed an income to get her life back. So, we sent $700 for a sewing machine and supplies to get her started. She began making mattresses (small sleeping mats, really) wholesale for John, who was buying them retail to place in various homes for the orphans and disabled as we as to provide to street people. There must be a thousand or more mattresses in Tokmok now being used in places where people 70+ years old or older were sleeping on concrete floors, or replacing bug infested, rotting ones in orphanages where forgotten children reside. She started making clothing for locals, repairing clothing for orphans,custom orders, and more and now has a thriving sewing business with 4 machines and her daughter employed, her children are all home and doing well...and she is now a foster mom.
All from $700.
The ripples extend further than we ever might imagine.
I decided that since we couldn't go overseas, which never felt like a calling for us, we would seek out our "mission field" right here in our hometown, where poverty reigns though many choose not to see it. In our kids' old public school, more than 75% of the kids qualify for free lunch. I realized we needed to stop for the one in front of us. Last year we all started volunteering at our local food bank, and my husband recently felt called to join their board. We are all learning so much, our ideas about poverty are changing, and we are seeing the need to advocate in the ways we can.
Are there times when it still feels like too little? Yes, but that is because the needs are never ending everywhere you turn. But it is something
, and that is better than nothing. It matters.
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Us too! First one entering the high school years, and I spent much of this past year in great angst over it. Trying to discern a path is not easy :-) Four years from now, we'll be posting about post-high school plans!
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www.lynda.com
Tech classes on almost anything under the sun!
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I am SO happy to read these lists! I had never thought about how much effort clothing takes in our home, and growing up in So Cal I never grew up with "seasonal clothes". Though we've lived in Colorado 16 years, I never gave a thought to putting up winter clothes or summer clothes and narrowing chocies in the closet!
Duh!!!
Thanks for the great tips, keep 'em coming!
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The other way in which you differ, if you are part of a public or charter school at home, is you cannot set your own schedule for what you will cover when and with which curriculum. If you don't like the approach being used for math, you cannot replace it with a different math curriculum of your choosing like homeschoolers can-unless it's changed since I had friends doing it a few years ago. I have heard complaints that some online versions even decide when you will start schooling-a friend whose kids were going to music camp the first week of the charter school schedule had to choose between the two. As I understand it, it's not the case with all the charter options, but that is a huge difference.Some consider that worse or bad. Others consider it different. It's like religious denominations. There's no point in getting upset about another denomination's different views about baptism, communion, election, etcfor
Actually, this IS different for our program. I am able to fully select any curriculum I want to use for any subject, up to and including going Charlotte Mason-y with no textbooks, or mom created curriculum by pulling together resources of my own choosing that can include learning games, puzzles, my own ideas for posters that are well researched, video projects, any number of real books, etc. as long as I explain what we are using and studying for a learning plan. I can school all summer and include most hours (not from June to July 15th), I can switch curricula mid-stream if something isn't working for us, I can homeschool any hour of any day for as long or as short as I wish. We can be off for as long as we want, as long as by the end of the year our hours are submitted and complete. Yes, we do need to finish what we start for high school credit, but we would have to do that anyway if I were to award credit for something. The only real curriculum restriction we have is that it is secular materials, however I always supplement at home with any religiously oriented materials I wish to use.
Yes, legally we are public school students doing "home education", and our kids will get a diploma from the local high school. But if we continue to do as you mention here above, and begin to make such distinctions between communities as people do with denominations, I think we all lose something in the process. Legally or otherwise, parents educating their children in their homes need to support and encourage one another. No one should have to defend their status...and I say that on behalf of those teaching only one subject at home with others outsourced, those in charter programs, those who are K12 and supplementing that with their own materials, or those mainly teaching everything.
I really appreciated your points!
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25 years here.
And yes, hsing has definitely changed. The biggest change has been the commitment--sort of like, "If it doesn't work, we'll just put them back in" mindset. We have far more refugees in the younger years but only ourselves and one other family still at it in the high school years. The vision overall, is gone. Until a few years ago, it was trendy, but then moms figured out it was work. We now have a very reasonably priced private school and we lost over 15 families to that. We've never had a co-op, but just a few classes that a mom would put together--nothing terribly structured. There used to be a feeling of we're all in this together--that's gone now. It's sad really.
Although nowhere as experienced as Margaret, I can totally agree with this. Even in our short four years I have seen several families jump in...and out...then back in...and even out once more. I think moms sometimes underestimate just how much work is involved in homeschooling. It can be arduous, emotionally exhausting, challenging work that almost seems to never end. The commitment required is incredible, especially for those who are doing all or most of the educating themselves. I actually wish we were homeschooling "back in the day". I begin to make a friend here or there, then they go back to a traditional classroom setting.
Also, I recently discovered that we are one of the very few families in our program of over 600 kids that are homeschooling every subject at home aside from athletics. I was shocked, as I assumed most were doing the majority of school work at home with perhaps a class here or there outsourced. I think it is far more likely that those in charter programs like ours are actually outsourcing more than those who are more traditional and on their own, as more of us do fall in that "refugee" status. However, some of us move from "Refugee" to more traditional mindsets rather quickly once we see the benefits.
I do think there is a trendy factor to it all, as well, but I think that dies off rather quickly after a month or so home with kids and the real work has begun. Some don't make it, some do.
Truth is, I have never seen homeschooling as the solution for every child. We need a very strong public education system because no matter how much we believe in the homeschooling model, we will always have those for whom it is not an option. Whether we participate in it or not, we need to ensure that our society has a well educated populace. If not, we all suffer. There are no "one size fits all" answers. Isn't that why we elected to homeschool in the first place? Maybe we need to recognize that there are no "one size fits all" homeschool models either!!
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Our family enrolled in a public school charter program four years ago, after 5 years of public school. I will admit that I get a little tired of hearing how we are not "real" homeschoolers simply because we elected to go a different route than some have chosen. Jumping off the cliff when no one in our family had ever done so before was scary, and I wanted the support...not just the money. I had kids who just couldn't fit in academically and would have drowned had we remained. Do I have to meet a few standards? Yes, but in all truthfulness we would have tried to meet them anyway, as it is what I feel is appropriate. Do I have to use solely secular materials? Yes, but then I would have done so in all likelihood with a few exceptions anyway. Do we have to take state testing? Yes, but ask me if I care much about the results other than for my own information. Do we get funding? Yes, we do...and I have paid for it for years in taxes so I have a right to it and have not a single qualm about it.
We are more like you all than many would like to think, and perhaps far more like you "old timers" than others. I get up every morning and I teach. I teach every single subject to our five kids. I teach special ed, I teach gifted, I teach ELL, I teach regular old stuff. I teach it, I test them, I haul them to a few outside activities...so tell me again how I am so different from you all? Oh yea, we get funding...that somehow makes us not a "real" homeschooler.
The escalation of the "Mommy Wars" really doesn't need to extend to our homeschooling choices, does it? I mean, after all, whether a mom homeschools it all, subcontracts it out, or some sort of hybrid...it is all about educational options.
Or at least, that is what I thought it was about.
I refuse to condemn or judge ANY other parents who make a different choice for their children than I have for mine. After all, most would never do what we have elected to do. As homeschooling and educational choice has grown, even those who do it the so called "traditional" way have benefited with a wider array of materials available, more co-ops if they decide they'd like to utilize them, and more folks to hang out with...that is unless they are deemed somehow "unworthy" because the are part of a charter program, not Christian enough, not rigorous enough...yada yada yada.
I get so tired of how we perceive "different" as somehow "worse than" or "bad". But then, it seems that no matter where we turn, there is a hierarchy inflicted upon us all, much to our detriment.
May we all have the freedom and liberty to do what we feel called to do for our families without being made to feel as if we are somehow inferior.
Signed,
A Damned Proud Charter Homeschooling Mom Who DEFINITELY Homeschools, Regardless of What Others Think
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Legally in most states it would be regarded as sexual assault, and yes, it is generally prosecuted as a crime. I am not sure why you think otherwise.
I am not speaking about the prosecution or legal aspects. i am speaking about the article itself, and the language used.
Words MEAN things. This is NOT mere "hazing", and by calling it such it doesn't send the same sort of message as using other language. That this would be somehow viewed as less-than-rape by any news writer is disturbing to me. Maybe it doesn't bother anyone else, but for me, it is one of the reasons we tend not to take certain acts as seriously as we ought to...because we have labeled them with more benign words than was deserved.
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Yes, the Orthoheel shoes literally changed my life. The are built specifically for plantar fasciitis, and I haven't had another flare sinced I started wearing them, even when pregnant and HUGE. I can walk all day in them. I have a pair of the flip flops, and a pair of the casual shoes, and love both.
Thanks for posting this, checking them out right now! I have yet to find a decent shoe that keeps the plantar fasciitis at bay!
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I don't think I believe this type of...err...I don't know that hazing is the appropriate word, but okay, is common in the school system as a whole.
I am sure you are right, that it isn't common as a whole. At least I'd like to think so. However, they cited 40 cases...the reported cases. That means we all know there are far more than just 40.
What disturbs me most, I think, is that they are calling this "hazing". If it weren't occurring in a school setting, it would be called what it is...rape. Why are they not calling it that?
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I don't know whether to throw up or cry.
And THIS mentality is what my kids are missing in public schools?
Sorry, this one hits too close to home. Norwood School mentioned in the article is in our rural county.
Yea, we aren't missing anything. Maybe I needed to read this today, as just this week I have been having that old "socialization" argument in my own head, as we are struggling to find connections for our kids. This was a stark reminder that public school isn't always what it is cracked up to be either.
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Don't feel like the crappiest mom. We've all guessed at the right way to approach something and turned out to be wrong. It is part of being a parent! We aren't always right (but don't tell the kids that!). We had our son have a similar situation when he was 8, 2 years ago. We opted to have it pulled. we had him in the local endodontist's chair and the man literally couldn't work on it. He wasn't at all used to working in such a small mouth for a root canal, and we opted to walk out after he got flustered and said he thought he might give up...we made the decision for him. We live in rural Colorado, 5 hours away from Denver...and of course this was over a holiday weekend and our son was in major pain.
When we later spoke with the local pediatric dentist, he counseled us to have it removed. He said many would say otherwise, for the reasons mentioned here on other comments, but his thought was that this was such a young age, we'd pay all that money to try and save the tooth and because he was so young it would never last a lifetime with a crown or replacement crown anyway.
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A community is only as strong as its members are, and Nan, you have guided so many on this unusual path. Thank you for all you have brought to the boards...the wisdom and wit, the honesty and insight. We are all better for reading so much of what you have generously shared!
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You might also look at using a curriculum from Connect the Thoughts which has subjects by topic and you can use it in addition to looking up articles online or in a newspaper.
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We do year round school, but we do part-time during the summer. I usually focus on "block learning" and do one subject for summer, usualyl the one that will take the most time. For example, we are doing Biology and Health this summer, and while we won't complete Biology, we will have health all done and a significant jump on Biology. We usually do 3-4 hours a day during the summer, versus our 8 hours a day during the school year.
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I have found that I love AND hate textbooks! We are homeschooling at a lower level than some are, but I have found that most high school textbooks of today are more like the college texts of yesteryear in that they are trying to cover waaaayyyy too much ground too quickly. I also think most textbooks published today are filled with too much in terms of entertaining snippets, and there is no true cohesive flow to them.
For millions of students, high school needs to be high school, not mini college, and they need textbooks that are solid, appropriate, and well laid out. What I have loved about homeschooling is discovering the TERRIFIC textbooks written at all levels intended to be marketed to the homeschool family. Having looked at Notgrass' textbooks and approach, I thought it was so well done...as is Mystery of History. I also love the Connect the Thoughts series which is foundational and builds over and over again. There are other texts that are great as well, even though I may not have elected to use them for one reason or another. I have often found myself asking why schools don't get such great books.
I have found as well, that the texts for special ed or ELL from AGS and Globe Fearon are solid, well illustrated, definitely not overly busy, and do very well at developing vocabulary. Are they dumbed down? For some...sure they are...for others, they are a Godsend and allow us to teach higher level content at a pace and with language that helps a kid hang on to what they are being taught.
However, I do wish there were more programs developed at the high school level that were richer in hands on activities (not worksheets...that is not an "activity" though some textbook companies label it as such) or project oriented. I know there are a couple out there, but they are a bit much for me to handle.
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I saw this textbook set at a homeschool show in Denver recently, and I fell in love with it! It is a civics course that covers so much, in an easy to understand style and very well illustrated. I wondered if anyone else had looked at it and planned to use it this year.
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Awesome! Thanks so much...I have a lot to check out!!
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Our kids have been working with my hubby since they were toddlers...seriously! They have stocked coolers, washed dishes, counted money, etc. But we want to have something as a guideline to get them started thinking more critically about whether self-employment is a path for them to consider. I have at least two of our five who are already talking about it. Surely there is SOMETHING out there for the younger set to introduce business ownership! Have we totally gone so far the "everyone is college bound way" that we no longer have materials to help encourage and teach about being self-employed? I hope not!
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We have been self-employed for many years, and it is important to us that our kids gain some knowledge about business ownership. I have done some research but haven't found anything all that great for curricula or materials. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks!
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What does the Vo-tech just up the road from you offer? Are they considered high school level classes or CC or what? Since CMU offers some classes at the library in town, would any of those be of use? We've always just used Western, and you're just too far away for us for multiple trips a week.
Several kids here have gone to Sterling for the first two years and then transferred to CU or CSU. As they are all CO state schools, the articulation agreements hold. Another choice might be Wyo Tech a few years on down the road.
I just checked on the Vo-tech--looks like the kid basically just has to be 16. They offer all SORTS of things!
Margaret, we are actually looking into Vo-Tech as well as the new Community College connected with Mesa. I have heard mixed reviews about Vo-Tech's depth and breadth, but we will still seriously consider it. There is no way we would ever be able to consider an out of state school, so the CC to 4 year in CO would be a strong possibility.
We are also considering Thomas Edison State University online as well, depending upon area of study, etc.
So much we aren't sure of...this is all SO hard!
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When I first started home schooling I was confident. We had great years and my children learned a great deal, usually even more than I expected. Then, when my oldest daughter was in 5th grade I discovered online forums. In one year I began to question everything and we had a horrible year. I dropped out of forum land for another 5 years at that point.
Online communities can be quite a blessing but they come with many dangers as well.
I have only recently figured out how true this is. We have homeschooled for four full years now, starting our fifth, and the times I feel the least confident in what we are doing comes after I have spent too much time on these boards. That has nothing to do at all with what people are saying here or that anyone is trying to make me feel that way, but the successes and high levels of acheivement noted here of so many homeschooling families can be a little demoralizing from time to time. I know that speaks more to who I am as a person and not who others are...and I am not particularly proud of myself as I admit that.
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Sounds like great, and very wise, plan! As Arcadia says, a student who goes from high school to community college (CC) to a 4-year university is a transfer student. My only thoughts would be to check into the requirements and options at the CC and the unversity. Look into details such as:
Thanks for your warm encouragement, Lori. I have read SO many of your posts, and find you to be a wealth of helpful information to all varieties of homeschoolers! Thanks for taking the time to respond to my question!
What is the quality of the CC courses?
Are they accepted at the 4-year university (i.e., is there a transfer agreement between the CC and the university)? Are the CC's classes accepted at other universities, in case down the line one or more of your students wants to attend a school other than the local university?
What are the CC's admission policies?
While you'll need to check what your CC's specific admissions policies are, I haven't heard of any CC's having any required courses (such as foreign language) as part of their admission policy. Usually, the only requirements most CCs have is that a student is required to have either a high school diploma or a GED -- OR be a high school student doing dual enrollment.
We are homeschooling through a charter (full control for me of curricula, just must be secular) and our kids will all have a standard high school diploma upon graduation.
Keep the university option open
Another thing to consider is that by the time your students reach high school graduation, they may have matured much more than you expected, and might be willing and able to go straight to a 4-year university; so keep that in mind as you plan your high school coursework to keep that option open, too. That will mostly mean accomplishing the credits that a majority of university admissions require of freshmen:
4 credits = English
4 credits = Math
3 credits = Science
2-3 credits = Social Studies (with 1 credit = American History)
2-3 credits = Foreign Language
1 credit = Fine Arts
I think we will easily do all of the above with the exception of a Foreign Language. We have two who are three years into learning English and not ready to tackle another, and another with processing issues who struggles enough with language anyway! I know we can always cover that later, in CC, if necessary, but it gives me heartburn thinking about it now.
That is only 16-18 credits, still leaving you another 4-8 credits for whatever your "mom requirements". And there are many creative ways of accomplishing these credits. :)
Look into your specific CC dual enrollment opportunities
One option is taking 1-2 classes in the senior year at the CC as dual enrollment, to help transition your student very gently into post-high school education. Our DSs did the foreign language at the CC as dual enrollment, with 1 semester of CC = 1 year of high school credit, so the 2 credits of Foreign Language were done in the senior year. Plus, they counted as college credit, both for the CC and for a future 4-year university degree.
I didn't know that 1 semester of CC = 1 year of high school credit. Is that true generally or just for foreign language? I wonder if that would be true for our charter program or if they would make it equivalent to one semester for one semester. Great questions for me to ask!
Another option to look into is possible free dual enrollment while your students are still in high school; some schools offer 1-2 classes per semester with free tuition to high school students.
Check out your CC's transfer options
For example, there may be a transfer certificate option that allows your student to take specific gen. ed. courses at the CC to transfer to the 4-year school, knocking out 2 years at the often-times cheaper CC.
Check out your CC's vocational 2-year degree options
Another option to look for is a 2-year vocational degree that your student might start while in high school, and finish after graduation, that would give your student the opportunity to move into working at higher pay much sooner (such as cosmetology) to earn money for going later to a 4-year college, or as a house down payment, or to start their own business. Or, having that 2-year degree can be a great "fall-back" career option for poor economic times in the futur
You seem to have a feel for where we are heading, while not wanting to cut off the possibility that things might change int he future. The 2-year degree is what we are thinking, or Vo-Tech, and for a couple of our kids this is exactly what they want...run a business or perhaps CAD, etc. which doesn't require the 4 year cost.
While you're at it, compare the CC vocational options -- how much does a 1-year certificate typically earn, vs. a 2-year AAS degree? Compare the quality and acceptance -- i.e. the *employablility* -- of the certificates/degrees of the CC with local tech/trade schools; often the CC certificates/degrees are much more accepted and hire-able, and of a better quality of training than the for-profit tech/trade school
Again, good things to think about...we will most likely take this route and I had never thought about this at all!
Finally, I think you are very wise to slow things down for your students to the pace THEY need, and to focus on life preparation. Since your students came into your family later, you may want to consider the possibility of a 5th year of high school, or doing 8th grade twice, to give your DC an extra year of time and maturity for high school. Two homeschool friends of ours had their children "walk" through the homeschool graduation ceremony this year, but will not award the diplomas until NEXT year, giving their students a chance to finish maturing and take classes as dual enrollment at the CC. This allows the students to accrue quite a few credits, and then still enter the high school as freshmen (to be eligible for the more numerous scholarships), rather than as transfer students (not as many scholarships).
Lori, you have no idea how much I appreciate your words. This board is the BEST place for information, but so often it can be discouraging for families like ours whose kids simply don't fit into the mold. What I would have done versus what I CAN do is so startlingly different, and hard for me to accept once in a while. We are already planning on a 5th year for high school, as we originally were on track for graduation a year later but the State came back to us 2 years after beginning our charter school program and said our daughters had to be pushed up a grade by state law. Someone made a mistake at enrollment, I guess. Three of our five will be graduating at 20 or 21, however the good thing is it will be a real diploma, they will have absolutely covered ALL high school material at a high school level.
Sometimes even thinking about all of this gives me such a headache! We have such an unusual mix of wonderful kids here, who are all over the map. It is making thinking about high school very complicated. Among our five we have three ELL learners, SEVERE auditory processing disorder, other unlabeled processing issues, short and long term memory loss, suspected Traumatic Brain Injury, Dysgraphia, suspected Dyscalcula, executive functioning disorders, and two who qualify as "gifted" though ALL of them are gifted in their own ways! Trying to see a path that makes sense for them is enough to make a full time job on its own, let alone teaching!! Haha!
How I love it though. Lots of doubts and insecurities along the way, but this is the single most important thing I'll ever do, and I know it.
Thanks again for your wonderful posts (Just read the next one). You are a gift to the entire Community here!!
Warmly,
Cindy
BEST of luck as you plan for your high school adventures! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.
Modest Clothing NOT Dresses???
in The Chat Board
Posted
OK Hive, I spent the entire day shopping in our nearest mall which is an hour and a half away, and came away almost empty handed for our daughters. I need help! We are all three so frustrated!!
They are not dress girls...at all. Yet they are very modest. For example, they will not wear a traditional bathing suit, even a one piece, without shorts. One daughter found a triathlon suit that had the longer legs and far more coverage on the top that finally felt comfortable to her. We are looking for clothing that is moderately priced as we just can't afford the more expensive stuff. Our "wish list" includes: No tight fitting tops, no low neck (crew neck is far preferred), no sleeveless (prefer boy tshirt length sleeves but will do a little shorter), nothing tight in the bust, no tummy showing...no layering. Really, can't we just find simple, cute tops that don't show everything? We currentl do polos which are OK, but we'd like a little variety with cuter patterns. Jeans and slacks we can usually find, but tops are killing us!
Any and all suggestions are so appreciated! We do know about Land's End, and can do their sales sometimes, but it is a bit pricey.