Karen Paulson

Lisa, I really  agreed with everything you said .  You have such a reassuring way with words!  With the new traditional school year having just begun here in Evansville, I had a pang of doubt in unschooling.  My oldest  would have started kdg this year, had we gone that route, and so I found myself wanting to push academic activities on him earlier this week on Monday (the first day of local school).  Well, it was a terrible day, and a very l-o-n-g day.  I don't know what got into me, just fear I guess.  The old former teacher in me reared her head, and I let it control me.  Needless to say, I backed off, and Tuesday was so much better.  :)  It may be something I will struggle with off and on-- hope not too much, though.    So, again, I just wanted to say how I enjoyed your post, and how it spoke to me.  ~Karen
----- Original Message -----
From: LisaKK
Sent: Tuesday, August 15, 2000 4:12 PM
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-dotcom] Sesame street

Kandace,

  And....And.... And.... .oh to say this gently.... I am thrilled to know
she is not ready to *school* with you. I'm absolutely in love with her. She
knows in her heart who she is and that's she's glorious just as she is.
She's not bending to the expectation that she should be her brother.  Give
her some kisses for me, will ya.

This baby is 4.  ;)  How can a 4 year old be behind???  Just because one
child read at 4 does not mean anything close to the assumption all children
are ready to read at 4.  .  Your son was very, very, very early ----

You could send her to school.....and they would get her ready for
schooling...and then you could school her some more..... but how very awful
that would be. She'd have to pretzel herself into a chair and learn to do
what others want, instead of unfolding and growing into herself.

Your paragraph down there about hospitals doing things and then recusing you
from the things they do... well that's what schools would do to your
daughter.  But even they would not label her behind at 4.

This child is teaching you your very first and most important lesson about
homeschooling.  Learning at home is about being able to grow and learn at
your own pace. It's about the joyous exploration of the world. If you push
to out school the school, you'll take away all the sweetness of being home.

LisaKK

>Hi all!  Thanks for such a warm welcome.  :)
>I also have one son who is gifted and I found out by accident when he was
>four that he knew how to read already.  I also think it was his love for
the
>children's shows because I sure didn't teach him to read!
>It is my 4 year old that is lagging so far behind I just don't know what to
>do with her but keep waiting for her to be ready to school with me.  I
>thought I was gonna show everyone how much better schooling at home is with
>her because she will be my first one who is entirely schooled at home.  But
>she is NEVER gonna be ready to start.  Ugh!  Now my husband is asking if
>maybe we should let her go to school for a year to get her started.  Maybe
>it would help, he says.  :(
>After having my first 3 babies in the hospital and studying midwifery long
>enough to know what exactly the medical folk do to screw up a perfectly
good
>labor and make you grateful they "saved" your baby, I feel it would take a
>lot of courage for me to birth at the hospital!  LOL!
>
>I'm looking forward to getting to know all of you!
>
>Blessings to you,
>
>Kandice
>If I could show you how to make $300-$800+ mo. part-time at home with no
selling, inventory,or huge
>start-up cost, would you like to hear about it?   NOT Amway!  ;)
kandyc@...
>
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Check it all out at: http://www.unschooling.com

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FWIW, our 4 year old only recognizes a handful of letters on any consistent
basis. Forget about reading (at the moment). He is such a sweet boy and he
resists anyone "testing" him. Our 6 year old has been reading for a year,
knew his letters before 4 and loves the question / answer give and take.
When my wife and I look at how different these two are we are renewed in our
commitment to homeschooling. How can a school that needs to mass educate and
for the most part deliver a one-size-fits-all program possibly accommodate
and adapt to the differences exhibited by these two whole and complete little
children? Only we can do that at home. The one year old twins broaden our
horizons even farther.

Michael

In a message dated 8/16/00 10:14:12 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
learnforlife@... writes:

<< It is my 4 year old that is lagging so far behind I just don't know what to
>do with her but keep waiting for her to be ready to school with me. I
>thought I was gonna show everyone how much better schooling at home is
with
>her because she will be my first one who is entirely schooled at home.
But
>she is NEVER gonna be ready to start. Ugh! Now my husband is asking if
>maybe we should let her go to school for a year to get her started. Maybe
>it would help, he says. :( >>

Kim

Oooh, I know what you mean! I started going through the school materials
today, trying to figure out what we were going to do this year! I just
can't seem to relax! I started watching the math videos that I got from PBS
and I heard the traditional moans from my 10 yo! But after awhile she came
and sat by me and watched the videos and even said that some of the lessons
looked fun! I told her we would do the fun ones only if she wanted to and
she seemed much more receptive! Maybe math will even be fun this year!
Kim (crossing fingers, but not pushing!)


> From: "Karen Paulson" <learnforlife@...>
> Subject: Re: Sesame street-LisaKK
>
> Lisa, I really agreed with everything you said . You have such a
reassuring way with words! With the new traditional school year having just
begun here in Evansville, I had a pang of doubt in unschooling. My oldest
would have started kdg this year, had we gone that route, and so I found
myself wanting to push academic activities on him earlier this week on
Monday (the first day of local school). Well, it was a terrible day, and a
very l-o-n-g day. I don't know what got into me, just fear I guess. The
old former teacher in me reared her head, and I let it control me. Needless
to say, I backed off, and Tuesday was so much better. :) It may be
something I will struggle with off and on-- hope not too much, though.
So, again, I just wanted to say how I enjoyed your post, and how it spoke to
me. ~Karen

[email protected]

In a message dated 8/17/00 12:33:38 AM, sinclai@... writes:

I started watching the math videos that I got from PBS
and I heard the traditional moans from my 10 yo! But after awhile she came
and sat by me and watched the videos and even said that some of the lessons
looked fun! >>

Can you tell me more about these videos?

Thanks,
Carol