No longer the Men's Club, woo hoo! It's a big national news in Korea, too, since ICM 2014 is being held in Seoul. I found it interesting to read her and other medalists' interviews and their perspectives on math education in general. Below is an article from the local newspaper. Iranian becomes first woman to win top mathematics award Maryam Mirzakhani, the first female mathematician to win the Fields Medal, the most prestigious honor in mathematics, said confidence is what it takes to make such achievements. “Confidence is what makes a big difference,†said the mathematician at a press conference at the 2014 International Congress of Mathematicians in Seoul on Wednesday. “It is not your talent, but about thinking that you can do it.†The Fields Medal is an award created to commemorate John Charles Fields, a world-renown Canadian mathematician. Often dubbed the Nobel Prize of math, it is given to two to four mathematicians under the age of 40 found to have made the most significant contributions toward the advancement of mathematics over a period of four years. So far, 52 male mathematicians have received the award. Mirzakhani, currently a Stanford University professor, became the first female recipient since the award’s establishment in 1936. Three others ― Artur Avila, a Brazilian-French researcher, Manjul Bhargava, a Canadian-American number theorist at Princeton University, and Martin Hairer, a math professor at the University of Warwick in the U.K. ― also received the medal. She was recognized for her original contributions in the fields of hyperbolic geometry and dynamical systems, in particular the symmetry of curved surfaces and the surfaces of doughnuts. At the conference, Mirzakhani noted that math is the basic medium for science and technology, indicating that it has the potential to bring about a bigger impact on a wide range of fields. Born in Iran in 1977, the professor earned her Ph.D at Harvard University in 2004, and served as an assistant professor at Princeton University from 2004 to 2008. Giving advice on how to get kids interested in mathematics ― a subject often regarded as the most difficult at school ― other recipients said it was up to the parents not to give a bad impression of math. “People say that math is difficult, and children often become afraid of math at an early age,†said Hairer, adding that children can actually understand much more than people think.†Other participants of the conference gave advice on how to bolster the Korean math sector. “Korea’s math sector grew over the years in terms of quantity, but it should now put more focus on qualitative growth,†said Park Hyung-ju, chairman of the Seoul International Congress of Mathematicians 2014 Organizing Committee. “I hope by hosting the ICM, we can inspire younger generations to become more involved in math and make achievements that can compare with those of the recipients of this year’s ICM awards,†he added. Meanwhile, the International Mathematical Union, the global organizer of the ICM, announced the winners of other prizes, including Subhash Khot of New York University who won the Rolf Nevanlinna Prize and Stanley Osher from the University of California, Los Angeles, who won the Carl Friedrich Gauss Prize. Phillip Griffiths of Princeton University was named the winner of the Chern Medal, and the Leelavati Prize went to Argentinian professor Adrian Paenza. By Kim Young-won (wone0102@heraldcorp.com)

My DH is nothing like a flower boy, either. He's a masculine Caucasian guy. So I watch these dramas, LOL. :D And he can't stand flower boys. He calls them all gay, haha. Yes, the Korean culture, while it's rapidly getting westernized, is still deeply grounded in a Confucian tradition and the "group" mentality (versus the "individual culture" in the Western countries). East Asians tend to care more about what others think and often frown upon public display of affection. A couple holding hands are fine, but anything more than that will draw a public attention, get stared or might even get scolded by some older people. More than a half of the South Korean population live in the metropolitan areas like Seoul and Pusan, which are similarly crowded as Manhattan, LA or Tokyo. A majority of the population live in residential skyscrapers and the traffic jam and parking are the biggest pain. So, as soon as you walk out of the door, you're always surrounded by the crowd and there is very LITTLE privacy. So where do young couples (who don't have their own apartment yet) show their affection (cuddling or light kissing) to each other? That's why there are so many different kinds of "rooms (Bang)" everywhere, such as Karaoke rooms, DVD rooms, PC rooms, Soju (bar) rooms, board game rooms, comic book rooms... you name it. ;)

Ahhhhh why are you doing this to me at this late night... :drool: Here are my top 3 choices: Photos deleted

:crying: Can't believe it... Rest in peace....... RW

LOL. :smilielol5: Yes, Flower Boy Next Door is one of the Flower Boy Trilogy with Flower Boy Ramen Shop and Shut Up Flower Boy Band, which I think is the best one.

Nah, I didn't care for Doctor Stranger, either. And "Angel Eyes".... not at all. I hate the crying, screaming, slapping the face, birth secrets, affairs, melodrama parts of the Korean shows and usually prefer romantic comedy or mystery genre (even better if there's an eye candy, lol). If you like a music-related theme, you should check out "Shut Up Flower Boy Band (ë‹¥ì¹˜ê³ ê½ƒë¯¸ë‚¨ë°´ë“œ)," which IMO was much better than Monstar.

That is indeed a long list, Aigoo!! LOL :p Romantic comedy sounds like your kind of stuff. How about Gentleman's Dignity, You're Beautiful, Can We Get Married?, Flower Boy Next Door, Prosecutor Princess, Boys Before Flowers and Queen & I? Have you seen any of these? You've got to watch Queen & I (ì¸í˜„ì™•í›„ì˜ ë‚¨ìž)!!! Playful Kiss and To The Beautiful You were meh to me. I preferred the original japanese versions of these. I think DramaFever is what Hulu has for Korean shows. It's so nice it's becoming easier to find them with English subtitles for free these days... Back in the old days, I had to pause every minute and translate every word for my American DH, lol. :willy_nilly: The only complaint I have is that every website has a different version of translated titles, so I have to look them up when I discuss here... since I know them by their Korean titles. :confused:

Oh, my opinions are usually unpopular here and often get lost in translation so don't let my straightforward comment affect your impression on the book. ;) I'm sure some people liked The Core for reasons but to me, TWTM, Rebecca Rupp's Homeschool Year by Year, Colfax's Homeschooling for Excellence, Frech's Teaching in Your Tiara and even Cathy Duffy's 101 Top Picks were much more helpful.

I didn't like The Core at all. Her writing was so vague, wordy and just boring. There was too much of WHY the classical way throughout the book but very little of HOW to do it. I wanted a more detailed guideline or at least her own stories with her children but it failed in both. If she calls herself "a leader in home-based education," why wouldn't she talk about how her children turned out as a result rather than describing her own educational/career background in detail? Just a few random anecdotes on memory work were not enough meat for me. And she didn't openly advertise CC in the book but she did talk about how she started CC and how popular it became nationwide. I don't know... she came across to me more as a successful business woman rather than a homeschooling mentor.

It sounds very interesting to me. Do you need to pay the private school for that, Halcyon? Think I would like that option of 1-2 days at school for electives from the elementary level. I'm not good at teaching art, music, theater, PE, writing and science labs myself so I'd need to outsource such subjects anyway.

We got most of the audiobooks for kids mentioned above from the last Audible sale and our local library and love them all. We're currently listening to Alice's Adventures in Wonderland read by Jim Dale. If I had an Audible membership, my first credit would go to SWB's The History of the Ancient World.

Another vote for My Love From Another Star. :) And if you liked Kang Ji Hwan, you might also like his other dramas: Capital Standal, Hong Gil Dong and the most recent Big Man. They are all good. ETA: Forgot to mention "Incarnation of Money."

I'm a Korean so I might see these differently, but among the recent popular dramas, I strongly recommend "It's Okay That's Love", "Heirs" (Lee Min Ho), "My Love from Another Star", "I Hear Your Voice", "Nine Time Travels" (slow start but it gets better after episode 4), "The Master's Sun", "I Need Romance 2012" (my favorite), "School 2013" (if you're curious about Korean high schoolers' life), "Answer me 1997" & "Answer me 1994" (about the 90s culture) and "The God's Gift: 14 Days" (about a missing girl and her mom's struggle to save her from death). All of these are on Hulu. :)

I'm glad you liked it. Song Joong Gi is a good actor and such a flower boy. Loved him in the Sungkyunkwan Scandal, too. :)

Exactly. There were times I had the same kind of feeling about my son's progress... I attributed his academic aptitude/advancement mostly to my teaching skills/methods and our nurturing home environment. I never considered him "(profoundly) gifted"--and still don't--because I was also comparing him with myself and other top class students at his age. And then our second child turned 2 earlier this year, and so far she has stubbornly resisted my every single attempt to teach her anything slightly academic. She can't care less about my compliments and positive reinforcement, which worked so well with my son. She likes to play/pick up things independently, and if I interrupt her she walks away. She wouldn't even let me play a puzzle with her or read books to her. She randomly surprises us with what she knows but refuses to tell us again when asked. So I've been leaving her alone and letting her explore the world around her on her own at her slow pace. Under the same circumstances she's turning out quite differently from her brother, and I also became humble about my teaching abilities and careful not to fall into a trap of being a know-it-all on parenting and early education. To my parents, parents-in-law and preschool teachers who have noticed my son's capabilities, I just told "He is an avid learner and hard worker," which is true. I haven't told anybody else about how much he knows or can do academically. If any other parent recognizes some parts of his skills, I respond "Yes, he loves reading books/playing with numbers." and quickly compliment their kids for their good drawings, sports skills or nice manners.

I found these 37 pages of Bibliography of Resources on East Asia complied by East Asian Studies Center of Indiana University to assist in teaching at the K-12 level helpful. The list includes curricular materials and texts for young readers.

Love your perspective so much, and kudos to your effort to help your each child understand her/his roots and have a balanced and comprehensive world view. Hope I can do the same for my half-Korean kids. I plan to supplement SOTW with a wide range of historical/cultural texts published in Korea.

Check out these on Amazon: Life in Ancient Greece Coloring Book (Dover History Coloring Book) by John Green et al. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0486275094/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_cRM3tb1H38316 Life in Ancient Rome (Dover History Coloring Book) by John Green et al. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0486297675/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_iSM3tb0D3CRXG Life in Ancient Egypt Coloring Book (Dover History Coloring Book) by John Green et al. http://www.amazon.com/dp/0486261301/ref=cm_sw_r_udp_awd_VSM3tb18M7RAG SOTW Activity Guide has some coloring pages, too.

Oh my, I can't believe I found a thread about Korean TV shows on the WTM forum. I've got to resurrect it, LOL! Not a TV show, but has anyone watched the movie "Werewolf (2012)" on Netflix? It's nothing like it sounds... but a bit similar to the old movie "Edward Scissorhands." Heartwarming yet sad... I just finished it with DH and enjoyed it a lot. If you have nothing else to watch and have 2 hours to kill, I recommend it to you. :) "Masquerade" is another Korean movie (historical faction) on Netflix I liked.

The "party" aspect of K is VERY tempting for me. My DS, who will be technically a pre-K'er from this fall, has been attending a private preschool two mornings a week and, although he is accelerated in academics, having nothing but a blast there. He is VERY outgoing and needs this social time. He loves his friends and teachers. He writes me a short letter when other kids are scribbling or drawing, and the rest of the time is spent on free play, story telling or in the playground. To OP: If homeschooling were not my option, I'd give K a try without grade skipping but continue to "afterschool" my DS. Doing K or 1st grade seat work only takes about an hour a day anyway. Then, when things get more "serious" and he starts to get bored in the first grade, I'd reconsider my options.

Aha! Thank you both for your explanation. Think I need a better dictionary than dictionary.com. :001_smile: And I agree with your point, regentrude. The word acceleration does connote an increase in speed.

Please bear with my poor English, but I'm just confused so I have to ask. Isn't there a difference between "accelerated learner" and "accelerating learner"? "Accelerated" in the "accelerated learner board" sounds like a passive form to me, which refers to an action done by someone else, not by the learner himself. That's why I got the impression that the board name implies so.

Yes, they all look so nice, pretty and shiny..... until they are in my hand! I'm a buy & try type of person, and I have to see it myself. Wish I could check out all available materials in one place... The ones with few or no samples online are killing me! This is my first year and I ended up with 5 programs just for math, LOL. I love them all. I do. They all make good supplements at least. Yet, the most valuable advice I found here is that the best curriculum is the one that gets done. :)

I have an iPad and a Kindle Paperwhite but am very tempted to buy a Kindle Fire because of its immersion reading function (that syncs an ebook to its audiobook companion, so you read and listen to the book at the same time). OP, it sounds like Kindle Fire is what you're looking for. You can't listen to audiobooks on Paperwhite.

I agree. It implies what we're doing is intentional. But then, "advanced" sounds like others are behind and "gifted" can raise a boundary issue or an argument that everyone's gifted in some way so...