Long-Newbie with a relatively clean slate
Penn Acres
Deb. Really wanting to say Thanks!! for your posts on this issue.I set up another folder for just this thread.
I have printed off a couple for my husband (68 yrs old) who has found them very interesting reading.
We have been on the unschooling path for almost three years but hadnt paid enough attention to the "grade thing".
The girls have seemed to want to say they are in "grade 4" because their cousin and friend is. I know they have felt "strange" saying it when we don't do subjects or grades.
They seem to be able to grasp more of what unschooling is lately and to talk about it on occasion.
I will be making an effort to explain the concept of "we dont do grades when we are just living our lives"
and that "It doesn't sound useful or reasonable to think that everything we do is only what "grade fours do"-they know that anyway: but I can see that they arent sure there is any other acceptable way.
When the subject comes around I will see if they want to hear me say anything.
They are quick to say we are in grade 4 when a stranger asks and I doubt they want to say any more anyway when they are only politely answering a query in a store or whatever.
I have talked a lot to my husband (who is fully on board although he had never heard of the unschooling concept
It just makes so much sense to him -having a grade 8 education-a basically illiterate european immigrant family-worked his way up to a skilled labourer job before his work injury/retirement-developed all his skills on his own by working and observing. Had never read a whole book outside of school until I began getting him simple adventure stories when we were first married (ages 15 and 18 :-) )
Now he reads for pleasure every day and has off and on since then.
He is so aware of what school would do (and did in Kindergarten and part of grade two) -to these ggd"s
Again Thanks to all who take the time to expound on all of these threads.
My latest purchases and bed time reading is The Book of Learning and Forgetting by Frank Smith that I strongly recommend to those thinking of unschooling and Neufelds latest book -Kids Matter
grace
in the snowy rocky mountains of the the east kootenays in bc -
where the girls are still sleeping after being up till 2-watching The Gods must be Crazy and The Gods must be Crazy 2 (they have to back to the video store today_
I have printed off a couple for my husband (68 yrs old) who has found them very interesting reading.
We have been on the unschooling path for almost three years but hadnt paid enough attention to the "grade thing".
The girls have seemed to want to say they are in "grade 4" because their cousin and friend is. I know they have felt "strange" saying it when we don't do subjects or grades.
They seem to be able to grasp more of what unschooling is lately and to talk about it on occasion.
I will be making an effort to explain the concept of "we dont do grades when we are just living our lives"
and that "It doesn't sound useful or reasonable to think that everything we do is only what "grade fours do"-they know that anyway: but I can see that they arent sure there is any other acceptable way.
When the subject comes around I will see if they want to hear me say anything.
They are quick to say we are in grade 4 when a stranger asks and I doubt they want to say any more anyway when they are only politely answering a query in a store or whatever.
I have talked a lot to my husband (who is fully on board although he had never heard of the unschooling concept
It just makes so much sense to him -having a grade 8 education-a basically illiterate european immigrant family-worked his way up to a skilled labourer job before his work injury/retirement-developed all his skills on his own by working and observing. Had never read a whole book outside of school until I began getting him simple adventure stories when we were first married (ages 15 and 18 :-) )
Now he reads for pleasure every day and has off and on since then.
He is so aware of what school would do (and did in Kindergarten and part of grade two) -to these ggd"s
Again Thanks to all who take the time to expound on all of these threads.
My latest purchases and bed time reading is The Book of Learning and Forgetting by Frank Smith that I strongly recommend to those thinking of unschooling and Neufelds latest book -Kids Matter
grace
in the snowy rocky mountains of the the east kootenays in bc -
where the girls are still sleeping after being up till 2-watching The Gods must be Crazy and The Gods must be Crazy 2 (they have to back to the video store today_
----- Original Message -----
From: Deb Lewis
To: [email protected]
Sent: Wednesday, December 08, 2004 9:40 AM
Subject: Re: [unschoolingbasics] Re: Newbie with a relatively clean slate
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Deb Lewis
***Really wanting to say Thanks!! for your posts on this issue.***
It's been nice to have some time on e-lists again. Life has been busy
but this week is so easy I'm finding all kinds of time to read here and
participate.
***The girls have seemed to want to say they are in "grade 4" because
their cousin and friend is.***
It *is* different for kids who aren't in the system, who haven't arrived
at that grade because they've been assessed by others. Your girls won't
have the baggage of that grade. They just have this kind of mysterious
thing that seems to mean something to everyone else. Their freedom will
come to mean more to them than the mysterious grade, because they'll
eventually figure out schools only assign a grade based on how well a kid
demonstrates her knowledge of things other people have decided are
important. I'm glad no one grades me on my understanding of football or
hydraulics or caviare. <g>
***When the subject comes around I will see if they want to hear me
say anything.***
That's a great sentence and a calm and wonderful thought. : )
***I began getting him simple adventure stories when we were first
married (ages 15 and 18 :-) )***
That's sweet. My husband and I took a long time to get around to
marriage (maawage, that bwessed awangement) but we met when I was ten and
he was almost fourteen. He hated school, spent most of his time in
detention or on suspension.<g> Same as your guy, he didn't even pick up
a book to read for pleasure until he was well into his twenties and
discovered Stephen King.
***My latest purchases and bed time reading is The Book of Learning and
Forgetting by Frank Smith ***
Great book. Life changing.
It's nice to hear from you Grace in the snowy rockies.
Deb Lewis, also in the rockies, (Montana) but snowless. - Which means
it's time to go scoop the doggie doodles out of the yard...
It's been nice to have some time on e-lists again. Life has been busy
but this week is so easy I'm finding all kinds of time to read here and
participate.
***The girls have seemed to want to say they are in "grade 4" because
their cousin and friend is.***
It *is* different for kids who aren't in the system, who haven't arrived
at that grade because they've been assessed by others. Your girls won't
have the baggage of that grade. They just have this kind of mysterious
thing that seems to mean something to everyone else. Their freedom will
come to mean more to them than the mysterious grade, because they'll
eventually figure out schools only assign a grade based on how well a kid
demonstrates her knowledge of things other people have decided are
important. I'm glad no one grades me on my understanding of football or
hydraulics or caviare. <g>
***When the subject comes around I will see if they want to hear me
say anything.***
That's a great sentence and a calm and wonderful thought. : )
***I began getting him simple adventure stories when we were first
married (ages 15 and 18 :-) )***
That's sweet. My husband and I took a long time to get around to
marriage (maawage, that bwessed awangement) but we met when I was ten and
he was almost fourteen. He hated school, spent most of his time in
detention or on suspension.<g> Same as your guy, he didn't even pick up
a book to read for pleasure until he was well into his twenties and
discovered Stephen King.
***My latest purchases and bed time reading is The Book of Learning and
Forgetting by Frank Smith ***
Great book. Life changing.
It's nice to hear from you Grace in the snowy rockies.
Deb Lewis, also in the rockies, (Montana) but snowless. - Which means
it's time to go scoop the doggie doodles out of the yard...
Penn Acres
It's nice to hear from you Grace in the snowy rockies.
Deb Lewis, also in the rockies, (Montana) but snowless. - Which means
it's time to go scoop the doggie doodles out of the yard...
...............................................................
Sooooo off subject-but we have Boarding Kennels....bwaahaaaaaa-and I hear ya.!
"luckily" our own dogs go outside in the snow so I cant find it & not looking either
except our "must be psychic" pug seems to crap in front of the kennel door whenever I am expecting a customer-the little sh** ;-(
g.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Deb Lewis, also in the rockies, (Montana) but snowless. - Which means
it's time to go scoop the doggie doodles out of the yard...
...............................................................
Sooooo off subject-but we have Boarding Kennels....bwaahaaaaaa-and I hear ya.!
"luckily" our own dogs go outside in the snow so I cant find it & not looking either
except our "must be psychic" pug seems to crap in front of the kennel door whenever I am expecting a customer-the little sh** ;-(
g.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Deb Lewis
***Sooooo off subject-but we have Boarding Kennels....bwaahaaaaaa***
Oh heck now I'm ashamed for sniveling about one little Basenji and one
very little Shi Tsu. <G>
Your Pug has something in common with my Shi Tsu, who's known around
these parts as Mr. Poopy Pants.
Deb Lewis, unbelievably engaged in yet another poo discussion.
Oh heck now I'm ashamed for sniveling about one little Basenji and one
very little Shi Tsu. <G>
Your Pug has something in common with my Shi Tsu, who's known around
these parts as Mr. Poopy Pants.
Deb Lewis, unbelievably engaged in yet another poo discussion.
soggyboysmom
--- In [email protected], Deb Lewis <ddzimlew@j...>
wrote:
my Shi Tsu, who's known around these parts as Mr. Poopy Pants.
villain of volume 4 (I think) of Captain Underpants? lol
On the poop scooping side - we've got a Lab mix (75 lbs) and a
German Shepherd (95 lbs) to clean up after. I really really look
forward to winter when it's either under the snow or at least it's
pretty frozen and easy to move. The lab's not bad - he tends to go
way out to the far side of the yard but the Shepherd tends to stay
within 6 feet of the doggie door - which is in the basement slider
and right near the driveway - so poopy abounds going to and from the
vehicles (really nasty in the dark when I get home after work if no
one has turned on the outside light). In his defense, he was a guide
dog and became accustomed by training and necessity to do his
business in a set area so his person could clean it up more easily,
and that happened to be near her back door.
wrote:
> Oh heck now I'm ashamed for sniveling about one little Basenji andone very little Shi Tsu. <G> Your Pug has something in common with
my Shi Tsu, who's known around these parts as Mr. Poopy Pants.
>Pippy Peepee Poopypants by any chance? The inventor-turned-evil-
> Deb Lewis, unbelievably engaged in yet another poo discussion.
villain of volume 4 (I think) of Captain Underpants? lol
On the poop scooping side - we've got a Lab mix (75 lbs) and a
German Shepherd (95 lbs) to clean up after. I really really look
forward to winter when it's either under the snow or at least it's
pretty frozen and easy to move. The lab's not bad - he tends to go
way out to the far side of the yard but the Shepherd tends to stay
within 6 feet of the doggie door - which is in the basement slider
and right near the driveway - so poopy abounds going to and from the
vehicles (really nasty in the dark when I get home after work if no
one has turned on the outside light). In his defense, he was a guide
dog and became accustomed by training and necessity to do his
business in a set area so his person could clean it up more easily,
and that happened to be near her back door.
[email protected]
> Pippy Peepee Poopypants by any chance? The inventor-turned-evil-Actually, it was Professor Pippy P. Poopypants. But you were close. My mother was horrified that not only did I allow my children to read these gross books but that we actually found them funny! I think the author is ingenious!
> villain of volume 4 (I think) of Captain Underpants? lol
>Yes; this is common for assistance animals. We had a retired Golden who did the same thing. Right outside the back door every time. We sort of let her get away with it since she was so sad for so long. Her owner died after they had been together for 7 years and the owner asked my mom if she would take the dog since the dog knew us. She lived for 3 more years, but was fairly sad most of that time :-( Gentle and sweet as can be, but sad.
> In his defense, he was a guide
> dog and became accustomed by training and necessity to do his
> business in a set area so his person could clean it up more easily,
> and that happened to be near her back door.
Michelle
soggyboysmom
--- In [email protected], <wieldingwords@b...> wrote:
children to read these gross books but that we actually found them
funny! I think the author is ingenious!
again, that P. stands for PeePee. Really.
http://www.pilkey.com/showquiz.php?id=19 is a quiz on trivia from
the book and one question is what is the prof's middle name and
PeePee is the right answer.
We're knee deep in Captain Underpants - but then again we've also
got an underwear ball in the living room - made of DS' old, too
small, little boy briefs. The size of a volleyball but soft and
weighty almost like a medicine ball. MIL still chuckles every time
she sees it - yet another sign of her wonderfully wacky son and
grandson.
>close. My mother was horrified that not only did I allow my
> > Pippy Peepee Poopypants by any chance? The inventor-turned-evil-
> > villain of volume 4 (I think) of Captain Underpants? lol
>
> Actually, it was Professor Pippy P. Poopypants. But you were
children to read these gross books but that we actually found them
funny! I think the author is ingenious!
>Yes they generally use his middle initial P. but check the books
again, that P. stands for PeePee. Really.
http://www.pilkey.com/showquiz.php?id=19 is a quiz on trivia from
the book and one question is what is the prof's middle name and
PeePee is the right answer.
We're knee deep in Captain Underpants - but then again we've also
got an underwear ball in the living room - made of DS' old, too
small, little boy briefs. The size of a volleyball but soft and
weighty almost like a medicine ball. MIL still chuckles every time
she sees it - yet another sign of her wonderfully wacky son and
grandson.