Karen Mann

I'm sorry my other post was lost---oh but I do
remember writing that I'll do just about anything to
get you lurkers out of lurkdom---including scrubbing
dogs' butts!! <G>

*+*+*+*+*+

LOL!! Kelly and Alex....thank you both so much for
the great information. Alex, I never would have
thought about the kennel club. Great idea! Kelly, I
know how you feel. I was just replying with an intro
and *!POOF!* my browser closed and I lost it.
Blah...I can't quite remember what I had said about
lurking now. But, to defend lurking, it's a great way
to get to know everyone and to absorb the information
that's flying by. (for me at least) I've learned so
much here and at UD, unschooling.com (when it was
up)unschooling.info, and, well, you know all the
sites.

Ok..I guess it's intro time...should I put in a
disclaimer now about how long this could be. <g> I
think I really need to start working on a blog.
Anyway, I'm a mom of 5 kids: Tony (21) Donnie (20)
Brittani (17) Sara (15) Hope (10). Yep...busy house.
Caretaker to 5 mice, 4 cats, 2 dogs and 2 birds.
Yep...messy house. Wife to John. Yep...happy house.
;)

I've known about unschooling for a number of years
now, but the journey began just this year, in
February. You see, back when Tony was in 8th grade he
wanted to commit suicide because all the kids made fun
of him, bullied him and just didn't like him. He was
shy, quiet and emotional. He was ripe for the pickin'
on, so to speak. Tony was Baker Acted at the tender
age of 12 because he told his youth group leader about
his thoughts on suicide. After he came home, he
opened up to me about his feelings and the healing
ALMOST began.

Donnie on the other hand was the outgoing, social one.
He was at school for the friends and fun. He kissed
every administrator and teacher ass on campus. They
all loved him! He skipped classes, but was at school
every day. Had decent grades too. His story is that
he got shafted by the school system for missing too
many days in 8th grade summer school due to a serious
bronchial infection. (He had already been retained in
7th grade for his behavior.) Meanwhile, there was
another boy in a different school that missed more
days than him and was promoted. It seems that the
individual schools can make up their own rules about
attendance.

Anyway, I have never been happy with the public school
system, even when I went to school, so I began
researching homeschooling. Of course unschooling came
up in my research. OMG! I couldn't believe it, here
it was NATURAL LEARNING. Now, I knew that the family
(John, mom, dad, brother, in-laws, etc.) would never
go for the unschooling. They had fits about me
nursing my kids past the age of 9 mos.<g> So, I
gathered all sorts of information about homeschooling
WITH a cirriculum and presented my case to the family.
OUCH!! What resistance I met with. They went
ballistic on me with the two typical concerns:
Socialization and Math. Unfortunately they
outnumbered me and my campaign failed miserably. I
gave in and kept the boys in school. I was always the
good girl. I always did what I was told.
Muhahaha...not anymore. ;p

As the boys were in school, I developed a new
campaign. I just waited until they were 16 and
withdrew them from school. Yes...there were many,
many fights and arguments between John and I over
attendance, homework and their friends (ps kids).
Finally their birthdays came and I gave them the best
birthday presents ever. I withdrew them from school.
When I went to withdraw Donnie, they had the paperwork
all filled out and ready for my signature..LOL!! Now
came the time for the real battle to ensue.

After I withdrew the boys, John started saying things
along the lines of "the girls won't be "dropouts" like
the boys" and "they are going to college because *I*
want them to". OH! Also, that their friends won't be
using drugs and having sex. (LOL!!! He's a pistol,
ain't he. Of course, now he realizes how insane he
sounded back then. <g>)

Well, the girls didn't fair any better in school.
Just a couple of incidents: Sara beat the crap out of
two boys who were pulling on her backpack and hair on
her way home from school one day. Brittani had some
girls try to jump her for liking a certain boy. Hope
was teased mercilessly about her name. Finally, I had
enough!! None of them wanted to go to school. They
were miserable. Plus with this No Child Left Behind
crap, school was becoming worse. All they care about
is testing. Recess even became obsolete in Hope's
school.

I didn't care what anybody thought or said and
withdrew them from school. I blew up John's email
with forwarded posts from these groups, I printed
stuff out and left it in the bathroom, I talked until
I was blue in the face about unschooling. And I'm
still talking about it. <g>

As far as the extended family is concerned, mom and
dad are pretty much ok with it. Mom sees the
difference. I did received a threat from my SIL that
she would never speak to me again if I took the girls
out of school. Funny...cuz she's hosting Thanksgiving
and I'm hosting Xmas this year. <g>

All the kids are doing great. Tony is still working
at the trophy shop he started at when he was 10. (The
owner has no kids and will be passing the shop to
Tony.) Donnie is in his 3rd year electrical
apprenticeship. (He's been playing with electricity
since he was 4) Brittani and Sara are hanging out with
their friends and finding their passions. Hope is
animal crazy and loving her new free life.

Ok..now that I've bored you all to death, I'll close
with a big thank you to all of you for your wonderful
advice and insight. I love being part of this group
an look forward to learning even MORE!!



Karen

What does education often do? It makes a straight-cut ditch of a free, meandering brook.~*~+~*~Henry David Thoreau




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