susan

hi dara,

you might be interested to know that growing w/o schools offers
consultations
http://www.holtgws.com/consult.htm

also the following items from their bookstore may be of some help
( http://www.holtgws.com/hsing.htm#NOCURRIC )

LEARNING WITHOUT A CURRICULUM.
Catalog #3182......................Price $16.00
Two 60-minute cassettes and all the handouts from Pat Farenga's seminar at
the Holt Associates offices. Covers the philosophical, historical, research
and educational contexts for learning without curricula, reporting such
learning to school officials, and discusses how interested adults can
facilitate and nurture, rather than dictate and control, children's
learning. We learn without curricula before we reach school age and after
we graduate, so what's the big deal? Explores contexts for learning other
than schooling's structure and discusses when programmed learning is
appropriate.

LIVING IS LEARNING Curriculum Guides, Nancy Plent.
"How do we know if our children are learning what school covers? How do we
report unschooling/homeschooling to schools?"

Nancy Plent, the founder of the Unschoolers Network of NJ, compiles the
curricular goals for each year of school and translates them into real-life
situations unschoolers can relate to. Packed with suggestions for meeting
and exceeding these guidelines, these books double as record-keepers to
help you organize your children's learning into an "after-the-fact"
curriculum that schools can recognize. Compiled from national and state
curricular guidelines, these books help you see what is going on in most
schools for each grade level. A confidence builder for anyone wondering if
they have what it takes to "cover" a year of learning without going to
school.

also here's an actual (low cost) curriculum
http://www.trisms.com/

TRISMS homeschool curriculum was developed for our own children because we
felt it would provide them with a well-rounded education as well as
stimulate interest and a desire to learn. It not only provided directed
study but allowed them to branch off into their own areas of personal
interest.
authors - Linda Thornhill & Sally Barnard

i hope this is of some help.

-susan austin, tx
'unity through diversity'


Dara McMichael wrote:

> I would be more comfortable with some
> structured curriculum but want freedom to go explore and
> discover the world at our pace. Our state requires yearly
> testing so I feel like a curriculum would help us to that
> end

> Thank you.
> Dara in South Carolina

[email protected]

In a message dated 3/26/00 7:21:53 PM Central Standard Time,
mcmich@... writes:

<< It seems as though I am in the minority when it comes to
putting the kids to bed at 9pm. >>

We're definitely in the minority in the night owl thread too. My kids LOVE
to go to bed at around 6:30 - 7:00 pm! They wake up fully charged at 5:00
am, and have a wonderful time until we're up and alert (although the baby has
been getting up around 5:00 as well, so one of us is usually up.) When I've
tried to gently steer their schedule towards a later night and a later
morning, they have become crabby, exhausted, and even ended up getting sick
(unusual stress on the body). I don't push it anymore. Once in a great
while they will ask to stay up late. Everybody's different, I guess! As for
me, between the lupus and the wakeful baby, I'd like to sleep for about 48
straight hours. I would find it sublime to go to bed by 8:00 pm and not get
up until the next noon! I know, I know - what a slovenly attitude - but I'm
POOPED. These days when I fantasize, it's about sleep...

KIM
too tired to run

susan

hi teresa,

you can find it at john holt's bookstore. this link will take you to the
page it's on.
( http://www.holtgws.com/hsing.htm#NOCURRIC )

-susan
austin, tx
'unity through diversity'





> << LIVING IS LEARNING Curriculum Guides, Nancy Plent.
> "How do we know if our children are learning what school covers? How do we
> report unschooling/homeschooling to schools?" >>
> Susan,
> thanks for the info here, I am sure it helped the new people, and this
> particular book is very interesting to me. Is this available from a
> catalog, or would Barns and Nobel have it?
> Teresa
>
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Dara, You are not alone on the bedtime routines; my kids also go to bed
earlier in the evenings, usually they are all asleep by 8:30pm. They, too,
need and even crave the bedtime as they are up early in the morning. It is
not unusual for my kids to up and going strong by 6:00 or 6:30 am. My oldest
would be up that early even if he was up later at night. He just has always
been an early riser. To be honest, after a busy day with my 3, who are all 5
and under in age, I need them to be in bed at a earlier hour, than others may
feel a need for right now. Maybe when the kids are older I will not need
this routine, but for now it is best for my family, as it seems to be for
yours. About C. Mason-- I just ordered the book describing the method she
advocated, & I am eager to read it; later I can decide if it seems right for
our family. I think she had some very good ideas, I just need to do some
studying on it now. I'm sure there will be more thoughts and opinions about
her ideas from others who have/are using them. This list has some very
intelligent, creative parents who contribute timely info & advice that I
always look forward to reading. Karen

[email protected]

In a message dated 3/27/00 1:39:19 AM Eastern Standard Time,
fxfireob@... writes:

<< LIVING IS LEARNING Curriculum Guides, Nancy Plent.
"How do we know if our children are learning what school covers? How do we
report unschooling/homeschooling to schools?" >>
Susan,
thanks for the info here, I am sure it helped the new people, and this
particular book is very interesting to me. Is this available from a
catalog, or would Barns and Nobel have it?
Teresa

Dara McMichael

Kim- With lupus and a baby you DESERVE 48 hours of sleep.
Not slovenly at all!!!
Lisa- I never see articles on homeschooling in our paper.
Susan- Thank you for the great information. I think for me
getting started will be hardest. I am more fearful of
mistakes I will make (which I expect) that will be
detrimental to my kids. I know it will be great once I get
over the fear of taking over their education. I am
considering doing the Five in a Row over the summer to get a
feel for unit studies. I will probably end up taking a bit
of all types of homeschool/unschooling philosophies and
tailor them to suit our needs.
Karen- I too just ordered the C. Mason book (short version)
to review. Our local library has nothing by Mason or Holt!
Shocking since their methods seem to be talked about most.
I just purchased/borrowed the following books and they seem
very helpful with lots of good ideas and resources: Linda
Dobson- "Homeschooling the early years", "Homeschooling the
middle years".
" What your fourth grader needs to know" by E.D. Hirsch. I
have to educate myself so I can better educate them. I
don't want my kids to hate school as I did. I didn't go to
college until I was 21 because of my own experience and can
count on one hand the teachers who inspired me! When I did
go to college, they wanted me to pick a major by my junior
year but I wanted to pick & choose the courses that I would
take. In the end it all worked out but I had forgotten all
of that until this year when my fourth grader complained
about boredom. She also asked if she could learn at home.
She hates school, gets straight a"s and makes no effort.
The most fun she has is when she has to do a project. She is
able to be creative and puts much more effort forth. Based
on what I've seen she would benefit greatly. My 6 year old
daughter is a highly social creature so that may be tough.
She has a great teacher but that won't always be the case.
She will be the one who resists the homeschooling. Any one
else have this problem?
Just today a neighbor who isn't homeschooling gave ma a book
called, "Core Knowledge Sequence- grade K-6" Has anyone
here used this?
I really appreciate the advice and info you all so freely
give. Knowing so many of you are out there makes me feel
supported in my efforts.
Thanks a million! Dara

Lisa Bugg

To be honest, after a busy day with my 3, who are all 5
> and under in age, I need them to be in bed at a earlier hour, than others
may
> feel a need for right now. Maybe when the kids are older I will not need
> this routine, but for now it is best for my family, as it seems to be for
> yours.

Oh boy, can I relate. I had 3 in just a shade over 4 years. There were
nights I passed out at about 8 pm. ;) I had two with complete opposite
schedules and an teen who wanted to talk about the meaning of life from
about 11pm onward. One of my oldest best memories is the night I was
sitting on the kitchen floor listening to her as she cooked dinner for
herself after karate. I was doing really well, or so I thought. I was
asking questions and everything......till I woke up She said I had gone to
sleep mid-sentence. ;)


About C. Mason-- I just ordered the book describing the method she
> advocated, & I am eager to read it; later I can decide if it seems right
for
> our family. I think she had some very good ideas, I just need to do some
> studying on it now. I'm sure there will be more thoughts and opinions
about
> her ideas from others who have/are using them. This list has some very
> intelligent, creative parents who contribute timely info & advice that I
> always look forward to reading

Read everything! All writing on educational matters is food for thought and
each family has to sort out what works for them. Developing your own
philosophy of education is the fun part of all of this. Being able to say
why something rings true for you gives you a solid foundation.

Of course, over time, it's going to shift and change, as you grow and
change. Your children will force you to bend and sway. It's a wonderful
dance!

LisaKK

[email protected]

In a message dated 3/27/00 6:07:52 AM Pacific Standard Time,
HPaulson5@... writes:

<< They, too,
need and even crave the bedtime as they are up early in the morning. >>

My almost 8 year old has always been like this. He will put himself to
bed even if the rest of us are up and he is always the first up in the
morning. But recently I decided to try having all of us go to bed earlier
and get up earlier because I had come across some information on the body's
melatonin being produced to correspond with the natural cycles of lightness
and darkness. My mom read that women who sleep with a night light have
higher rates of breast cancer (she had breast cancer and so is particularly
interested in things relating to it).
Anyway, we started having the kids go to bed by about nine and us by
about ten or eleven (I'm someone who can easily stay up till two or three
reading). We started waking up by about 6:30 and sometimes I even wake up at
5 or 5:30. This has become my new reading time. My 15 yr old, who was
resistant to the idea (but I asked him to just try it for a week or two as an
experiment) actually said he feels a lot better. I like the early morning
quite a lot and felt like I was missing it before. Also, it felt like my
days were flying by too fast. So we think we're going to stick with this.

Lucy