[email protected]

My name is Christina. I live in Granite Falls, WA. I am married and have
three kids. Kayleigh 11, Dylan 7, & Brenna 4. We have been homeschooling
for 2 years and LOVE IT! We started off very structured, then went straight
to unschooling.

The only structure around here is my 7 year old asking "when are we gonna do
school". (I try to tell him we have been doing it all day long. <g>). So, I
usually sit down and do math and reading with him. The rest of his learning
comes under the heading of ONE BIG ADVENTURE.

In the beginning, I did struggle with "are they really learning". But see
evidence of it all the time. Our first year, we had many hardships (an
illness in family, a death). So my very structured style went right out the
window. I considered what we wre doing deschooling (for some term to tell
the relatives). Then when I looked back, I was amazed at really how much my
kids did progress through the year. So here we are.

Don't get me wrong....I still do have the doubts sometimes. MOSTLY wiht the
7year old since he isn't reading yet. I think once he masters that, all the
doors will open and I can relax. Silly huh?

Glad to have found this list and look forward to meeting everyone.
Christina

Robin Stark

>My name is Christina. I live in Granite Falls, WA. ... We started off
>very structured, then went straight
>to unschooling.

So, in Washington, where we have to have our children tested or assessed
once a year, what do you do with yours? How do assessors feel about
unschooling? I can see it for homeschooling, and you could show a
curriculum or textbooks, etc. But what do you do as an unschooler to show
your progress? For testing, do unschooled kids just show up at testings
with their #2 pencils? My child wouldn't even know how to take one of those
tests -- I don't think.

- - - - - - - -
Robin Stark

[email protected]

In a message dated 6/2/99 7:09:15 AM PST, robinstark@... writes:

<<
So, in Washington, where we have to have our children tested or assessed
once a year, what do you do with yours? How do assessors feel about
unschooling? I can see it for homeschooling, and you could show a
curriculum or textbooks, etc. But what do you do as an unschooler to show
your progress? For testing, do unschooled kids just show up at testings
with their #2 pencils? My child wouldn't even know how to take one of those
tests -- I don't think.
>>

I'm in WA - we are able to test at home using Family Learning Organization's
testing services. We don't have to turn in test results to anyone, we just
have to take them every year and have them available in case we decide at
some point, to send our children back to school. We don't have to show
anyone "progress" at all. We file our intent, make sure we are "qualified"
(there are four different ways to be "qualified" - we need to meet one of the
four) and file an "Intent to Homeschool" form every year. Compulsory
attendance age is 8 years old, so we don't need to do ANYTHING until the
child is 8. (My dd turned 8 last July, this year is her first year to be
tested, registered, etc.) When my youngest 2 turn 8, it will be after the
"Deadline" for entry into school, so we will wait an extra year to register
them...

Mary

rebecca delong

I just realized that I have not really introduced myself.

Hi! I'm Rebecca sahm to 2 boys Jaiden and Avery and wife to Jason. We have been together for almost 8 yrs, and married for 1 1/2. I just turned 25. We live in San Diego Ca. We decided to hs in March of this year (after the constant nagging of my parents as to why Jaiden wasn't in preschool) I began researching hsing and all of the different options that I had, have to admit I looked into the whole school at home thing, I was very interested in Waldorf and Mason for a while, until one day I just watched my kids and BOOM I got it, this was their journey not mine, this was their path and their life to live not mine (and just becase something interested me did not mean that it would interest them.) I began to look at it as my privilege not my right to be able to share the journey with them and I will follow as long as they let me, I will help when they ask but I will (try really really hard) not lead. That realization was really a big one for me. I am also blessed with a dh that belives not only in hs but in unschooling, and is active in thr boys life. We do have are problems and things that we still need to work on and I do have to admit that everyday I read something on this list that gets me thinking and looking at my parenting and everyday I think i become a better parent and a better me. and I want to say thank you to all of you. You guys put so much heart into what you are saying and it touches me in very profound ways. And also let me say that because of the opinions on this list there are 2 less kids being spanked, and 2 parents learning that there IS a better way

Thank You All So Very Very Much

rebecca




~*~ what would you attempt to do if you knew you could not fail? ~*~


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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 10/25/02 10:37:58 AM, elfmama92104@... writes:

<< And also let me say that because of the opinions on this list there are
2 less kids being spanked, and 2 parents learning that there IS a better way
>>

Thanks for letting us know that, Rebeca.
Your family sounds Great! You're lucky to have a husband who's with you on
this.

I think maybe once a year I've been involved in an online debate about
spanking. It always goes like this:

Someone says offhandedly that spanking's not so bad if done lovingly.

People snark about that sarcastically, the Bible gets quoted back and forth
some (this discussion was light on the Bible part <g>), horror stories are
told, reinforcements are brought in from other lists, alternatives are
discussed, and sometimes then and sometimes months later, at least one
person, sometimes two or three, will say "I quit spanking after that
discussion."

It's rarely the principal defender of the spanking whose mind is changed.
That's fine, though. There will be people who come through and read this
discussion later who aren't even here right now.

Sandra

Melissa Rogers

Hi, I recently subscribed to this list. My name is Melissa and I'm a single mother who is starting homeschooling my 5 yo. He technically doesn't "start K" til fall, but he's ready and interested in things so I've started teaching him numbers and addition. He loves science, and is very intesting in doing 'real expirements' so we've done some kitchen chemistry and discussed atoms and molecules and chemical bonds....
I've been reading about unschooling and it sounds very interesting to me, so I thought I'd check out this list to see how others do things. I think it may be a good fit for him, as he is stubborn about learning things unless he wants to...I've tried to teach him to read and what's funnny is he knows the sounds of letter, how to blend the sounds, but is blocking anything beyond that. If I did not have an ex-h to deal with in matters reagrding my ds and his education this would not stress me but he has grudgingly agreed to homeschool...but...we have time...
My son is a high energy 'spirited' and sensitive kid...I fear what school would do to him!

Missy


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Jon and Rue Kream

Hi Missy -

>>I've tried to teach him to read and what's funnny is he knows the sounds
of letter, how to blend the sounds, but is blocking anything beyond that.

**I doubt that he is blocking anything. Reading is just like anything else.
There comes a time when a person is developmentally ready and interested,
and it happens. Trying to force it to happen before that time is
counterproductive, and not much fun either :0).

>>he is stubborn about learning things unless he wants to

**I hope he never loses that quality. It's important to me that my kids
never lose that sense of ownership of their own minds.

>>My son is a high energy 'spirited' and sensitive kid...I fear what school
would do to him!

**I feel the same way about my daughter, Rowan. She's six now, and I'm
grateful every day that she will not know what it is to be labeled and
categorized.

>>so I thought I'd check out this list to see how others do things.

**Any particular "things" you were wondering about? ~Rue


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Bill and Diane

Hi, Melissa!

My name is Diane and my son is also 5 and is NOT starting kindergarten
this fall.

He isn't into science and chemistry; he's into trains. He naturally
wants to count train cars and classify them in various ways. I don't
have to "teach" him these things, just answer his questions.

>I've tried to teach him to read and what's funnny is he knows the sounds of letter, how to blend the sounds,
>

He's already mastered the kindergarten level of reading. If his dad
wants to know you can say he's ahead in reading and you're concentrating
on [insert academic-sounding name for his current interest].

:-) Diane

Bill and Diane

>
>
>Counting and classifing are pretty important things :)
>

Right. And they just follow the interests; they never have to be "taught."

>I guess I'm not certain of "reading grade levels" as I was one of those kids who was reading by age four and the only thing I remember about learning to read in school is being bored and finding the phonics worksheets really easy....
>

Here's a link to a well-known "typical course of study."
http://www2.worldbook.com/parents/course_study_curr0.asp I don't advise
using it as a guide to interacting with your child, but it's sometimes
useful as a guide to dealing with others, such as exes.

These are not guidelines as to what should be mastered by September,
BTW; it's a guide for *goals* for the whole year. Most kids will not
have mastered everything listed here by May of their K year.

Under language arts the only specific reading skill it lists is
"phonics." I would guess that by knowing letter sounds and blending your
son has mastered this. You've got breathing room.

:-) Diane

Melissa Rogers

Hi...
Counting and classifing are pretty important things :)
I guess I'm not certain of "reading grade levels" as I was one of those kids who was reading by age four and the only thing I remember about learning to read in school is being bored and finding the phonics worksheets really easy....
Thanks for the welcome...
Missy

----- Original Message -----
From: Bill and Diane
To: [email protected]
Sent: Sunday, July 06, 2003 8:25 PM
Subject: Re: [Unschooling-Discussion] My intro


Hi, Melissa!

My name is Diane and my son is also 5 and is NOT starting kindergarten
this fall.

He isn't into science and chemistry; he's into trains. He naturally
wants to count train cars and classify them in various ways. I don't
have to "teach" him these things, just answer his questions.

>I've tried to teach him to read and what's funnny is he knows the sounds of letter, how to blend the sounds,
>

He's already mastered the kindergarten level of reading. If his dad
wants to know you can say he's ahead in reading and you're concentrating
on [insert academic-sounding name for his current interest].

:-) Diane







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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Melissa Rogers

>>he is stubborn about learning things unless he wants to

**I hope he never loses that quality. It's important to me that my kids
never lose that sense of ownership of their own minds.

Yes, it's funny although his stubborness drives me nuts sometimes it is a quality I appreciate. He can also really argue his mind, which I've had some people tell me I need to "fix" that about him...I just say...hey maybe some day he can be a lawyer...:) I figure between knowing and arguing his mind he'll be less prone to negative peer pressure when he's older...

>>so I thought I'd check out this list to see how others do things.
**Any particular "things" you were wondering about? ~Rue

Chemistry or supposed "advanced" science for 5yos? I have DK books about Chemistry and a few anatomy books for kids. He's very interested in those topics and I'd like to burrow deeper but I'm not sure how. We have no science museum or anything like that nearby (we did visit one while on vacation recently - he was in heaven) does anyone have ideas or book recommendations?

Melissa mom of Kyle





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

[email protected]

In a message dated 7/7/2003 12:55:55 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
kylemom@... writes:

> Chemistry or supposed "advanced" science for 5yos? I have DK books about
> Chemistry and a few anatomy books for kids. He's very interested in those
> topics and I'd like to burrow deeper but I'm not sure how. We have no science
> museum or anything like that nearby (we did visit one while on vacation recently
> - he was in heaven) does anyone have ideas or book recommendations?

How 'bout websites?

Robert Krampf sends a new experiment every Monday morning--really cool stuff.
You can subscribe below:

Robert Krampf's Experiment of the Week

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____________________

This Week's Experiment - #330 Water in a Glass

This week I go back on the road, heading to East Tennessee. I will be doing

a show for the 4-H Electricity Camp at the University of Tennessee, some
science consulting and public shows at the American Museum of Science and
Energy
in Oak Ridge, TN on Saturday. I will be doing shows on lightning and The
Science of Fireworks. You can contact the museum for show times and
admission.

This week's experiment has its roots in a phone conversation I had with my
friend Mik Jacobs (The Fire Guy, http://members.aol.com/findmik/). He is on
a
whirlwind tour, including Hong Kong, California and South Carolina. We were

discussing different ways to explain simple science experiments. Later as I

was doing the dishes, I followed up some of the ideas and would up with this
one. You will need:

a drinking glass
a sink or bathtub
water
a paper plate or piece of cardboard

We will begin with a common, simple experiment. Fill the glass to the top
with water. Place the paper plate firmly over the top of the glass.
Holding
it over the sink (in case it doesn't work), hold the plate firmly in place
and turn the glass upside down. Then release the plate. It should stay in

place, and the water should stay in the glass.

Why? It is tempting to think that the plate is holding the water in, but it

is not. The plate is keeping the air out. The air pressure outside the
glass is holding the water in. How can we show that? Well, first, we can
let
some air in to take the place of the water. Keeping the glass over the
sink,
pull down on one side of the plate, just enough to let a little air get in.

What happens? The water gushes out. But wait. Doesn't that also fit
with the theory that the plate was holding the water in?

To check that, we need to get rid of the plate. Fill the sink most of the
way with water. Holding the glass sideways, place it in the water. Once
it
is totally filled with water, turn it upside down, keeping it under the
surface. Lift it slowly upwards. Though most of the glass is above the
surface,
the water stays inside the glass. As long as the mouth of the glass is
under
water, no air can get into the glass, and the water can't come out. The
external air pressure holds the water in, even without the plate. As soon
as
the edge of the glass is lifted above the surface, air rushes in, and the
water
rushes out.

How can something as light as air hold up that much water? The air around
you is pressing on everything with quite a bit of pressure. At sea level,
it
presses with 14.7 pounds on each square inch of surface. If you draw a grid

of one inch squares on a piece of paper, you can place the mouth of the glass

on the paper and see about how many square inches it covers. Multiply that
my 14.7 pounds and you can see that you have quite a bit of pressure pushing
upwards. When the glass if full of air at the same pressure, you have the
same
amount of push downwards as upwards. They balance each other. With the
glass full of water, when the water starts to move downwards, there is
nothing
to take its place. This produces an area of extremely low pressure. The
higher pressure on the outside is then plenty strong enough to keep the plate
in
place.

Have a marvelous week.

****************************************
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Robert Krampf's on-the-road schedule:
My calendar is now on-line. You can see a detailed calendar, with dates,
times, schools, etc. at http://www.krampf.com/mainsubjectsfolder/m_tour.html

***************
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countries. If your country is not listed, let me know.

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904-388-6381

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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Tia Leschke

>
> Yes, it's funny although his stubborness drives me nuts sometimes it is a
quality I appreciate. He can also really argue his mind, which I've had some
people tell me I need to "fix" that about him...I just say...hey maybe some
day he can be a lawyer...:) I figure between knowing and arguing his mind
he'll be less prone to negative peer pressure when he's older...

I found with my youngest that it really helped me to call it persistance
rather than stubbornness.
Tia

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety." Ben Franklin
leschke@...