I am probably the world's worst about over scheduling when it comes to home schooling. I know I'm not alone. I hear moms talking about what all they're doing in a year and I know they are over doing it. I have even tried to talk customers out of buying curriculum because they are trying to do 2 or 3 math curricula at the same time, or they want to do 2 or 3 different language arts curricula at the same time. It is so tempting. There is so much good stuff out there to do. We don't want our kids to miss out on anything so we over schedule.
This year, my 7 year old is going to do some US geography. Now, in years gone by, I would've been determined that this little guy was going to learn all 50 states and he was going to do it in one school year. I would've planned all kinds of outings, meals, books, movies and crafty things to go with each state. I would've started the year off with lots of enthusiasm and zeal. By the second week, after many tears and arguments, I would've given up on US geography. Then I would've gotten really upset at myself for not getting it all done.
One of the nice things about home schooling for so many years and with so many children is that I get a chance to do it over. This year will be different. I plan on studying US geography with my 7 year old. Instead of barely touching on all 50 states, we will be looking at 7. We will have the opportunity to do this at a more relaxed pace and get more in depth. Hopefully, we'll maintain enthusiasm and minimize the tears.
So, how do you choose 7 states out of 50? Well, the first one is obvious -- Texas. It's not just because we live here. Texas is a really cool state to study. It has some great stories to read about, some great food to eat (like we don't eat it all the time) and a recognizable shape that should be easy to spot anywhere. Okay, enough about Texas. What are the other states? He has one brother that lives in Florida and one that lives in California. We'll do those states as well. Then, we'll do the states that border Texas -- New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. Now those 7 states look much easier to handle than all 50 states.
So, I've learned my lesson about over scheduling and will never do it again, right? You should see what I have scheduled for the other kids. I'll write all about it in a future post. Until then, don't over schedule!!!
Monday, August 11, 2008 - Godless China vs Christian USA
The Olympics are here. I have always been fascinated with the Olympics. It is amazing what all those people from all over the world can train their bodies to do. On thing I've always wondered is how each sport chooses the type of clothing they will wear.
Why, for instance, does the men's volleyball team wear shorts that almost touch the knee and a shirt while the women's volleyball team wears short short shorts and skin tight tops that only cover what is absolutely necessary.
Why does the men's gymnastic team wear long pants with their tank top while the women wear a bathing suit?
Why, all of a sudden, are the swimmers wearing more clothing than most of the other sports?
I've heard discussions about sports in clothing. I hear people say that they need to make sure that they don't wear anything that will cause them to lose speed, strength, momentum etc. If this were true, then aren't the men's volleyball teams and the men's gymnastic teams giving themselves a disadvantage by wearing too much clothing? It must be something else. There must be some other reason they all dress as they do.
I'm straying from the topic in my title. I was watching the women's volleyball the other day. There was the US team in their "barely there" shorts and skin tight, skimpy tops, bouncing all around the court. The reporter began discussing the fact that China was pretty new to the sport of volleyball. He went on to say that China was having the most trouble adjusting to the dress of the sport. The screen then switched to the Chinese team. Now, keep in mind, these people do not claim to be God-fearing. They do not even try to pretend to be Christians. What were they wearing? They had shorts that went just past their knees and a tops that not only looked more comfortable but covered up everything. There was a short clip of a Chinese girl saying that she would not even think about wearing the clothing the other teams were wearing. It was too immodest.
Hmmm.....
Godless China wearing modest clothing vs Christian USA dressed in nothing more than colorful underwear. I am ashamed of our Olympic teams for their lack of dress.
Back to the men vs women clothing issue. Why would they choose to dress the way they do? Is it because the men can compete better when they have more clothing that might hinder their strength, speed or momentum? Are the women really at an advantage with the clothing they wear? Or is it all about sexual appeal. Our society expects women to flaunt their bodies. There is no reason why the women gymnasts can't wear proper modest clothing like the men. There is no reason why the women's volleyball team can't wear proper modest clothing like the men.
What about the swimmers? Why are they all of a sudden more modest this year than in years gone by? In the past I've been afraid that the suits the men were wearing were going to come right off? Remember Mark Spitz? Scientist have now discovered that more covering is better than less in the water. In fact, the swimmers are breaking world records right and left because of the new swim suit. Of course, they aren't dressing more modestly for modesty's sake but it is nice to watch the swim team compete without seeing so much bare skin.
Just a side note: I've read a discussion recently online about modesty that states we should dress according to the dress of all those around us. If we are at a ball park and everyone is wearing shorts, it is perfectly acceptable to wear shorts. If we are at a swimming pool and everyone has on swim suits, it is perfectly acceptable to wear swim suits. The Chinese girls' volleyball team didn't go along with this way of thinking. They stood out a little at the Olympics. In fact, they got world wide TV coverage because of their modest dress. Some would say that was immodest of them to stand out that way. I don't think so. If our modest dress makes us stand out in the crowd, so be it. We are to be different from the world. We are to be a peculiar people.
When people hear that you're homeschooling, there are questions that immediately pop into their head. These questions are pretty much the same across the board. For example: Is it legal? What about Socialization? What about the prom?
Well....What about the prom?
There are several reasons we home school. One of them being to protect our children from immorality. The schools are filled with filthy language, sexual promiscuity and immodest dress, etc. We have been blessed, for the most part, to have home school friends that have the same values as we have concerning these issues. There is one exception -- the prom.
Home school families that won't allow their children to watch any (or much) TV, attend the public school or date at an early age, are planning proms for their teenage children. My first question is: Why? Why should we try to copy what the public school does? Why do we want to put our children in compromising situations that either encourage illicit behavior or, at least, leaves the impression that what goes on at proms is a good thing?
Here is my perception of a prom from what I hear from others, see from TV and remember from my youth. I never did attend a prom, but being a product of the public school system, I definitely knew what was going on there. A prom is the one night of the year for teenagers to pair off as couples, spend lots of money on tickets, flowers, clothes and transportation, dress immodestly (either not enough clothes or drawing attention to oneself), and dance.
What's wrong with pairing off as couples? The whole idea is that boy/girl friends are going to a party/dance. This either encourages kids to "pair off" with someone they may or may not have any true feelings for and act like a couple while doing it. Acting like a couple means different things to different people, but if you hear the talk amongst high school students it usually involves intimacy that should be reserved for married couples. In fact, the latest fad seems to be getting yourself a "prom baby". Girls are actually wanting to get pregnant on the night of the prom. Not because they're in love with the guy, not because they're looking forward to getting married, not because they want to be a mother. It's because they want to have the status symbol of having gotten pregnant the night of the prom.
One more thing about couples....where does that leave the rest of the kids. If the prom is a night to get together and enjoy each other's company, what about those that don't want to date or don't get a date? They are left out. Doesn't sound like something promoting togetherness amongst a group of teens, does it?
How about all the money that is spent? It is unbelievable (at least to me) how much money is spent for proms. The tickets themselves can be prohibitive for many kids. The clothes they are expected to wear are so expensive. It's not the adult planners that expect these kinds of clothes. It's the kids themselves. Who can go to the prom in anything less than the best? Many kids are renting limousines or other expensive transportation to and from the prom. Their parents are actually encouraging this type of extravagant behavior. What message are we sending our kids when we encourage them to spend money on such self-gratifying items and services. Teenagers tend to think "it's all about them". This sort of extravagance confirms what they think.
What about the immodest dress? I just don't understand how a mom and dad can encourage their daughter to go out at anytime but especially to a prom dressed like these girls are dressing. Their parents can't be unaware of what is on the mind of kids that age. We encourage them to be chaste, to act properly, and then dress them in clothes that have no backs, no straps, are low-cut revealing way too much of the body. What exactly is the purpose of this type of dress? Does it promote good thoughts in the girl? Good thought in her date? Good thoughts amongst others at the prom? When a girl is dressed in such an immodest way, she is advertising to the world that she 1) doesn't respect herself -- thinks that revealing herself to others will cause them to like her and 2) that she will do whatever it takes to keep people liking her. In the case of the girl at the prom it may and many times does end up in "the couple" committing fornication. Last of all, she doesn't think of her body as the temple of God. If she did, she would protect her body and her reputation.
Not enough clothing isn't all there is to dressing immodestly. I've heard girls say that they want heads to turn when they walk into a room. While there is nothing wrong with dressing in a way that is appealing (and I don't mean sexually here), there is a big difference in that and wanting everyone to notice "me". A Christian should not want to draw attention to his or herself. To want "heads to turn" is immodest. Of course, immodesty doesn't stop with the girls. Girls and boys are going to the proms dressed to make statements. They are coloring their hair, wearing things that are not "traditional " prom wear. Why would they dress this way? To draw attention to themselves.
I haven't even talked about the dancing yet. What about the dancing? Is there anything wrong with a couple of teenagers standing front to front with the girl dressed in such a way as to reveal much of her body, swaying back and forth, or worse, to romantic, seductive music? What if they were doing this standing in the middle of Wal-mart? What would most people think? In any situation except a dance (in this case the prom) this would be considered lewd behavior that should not be carried out in public. At a dance, though all the rules change. The movements that are not acceptable in public are now encouraged by parents, teachers, principles, etc. The kids are expected to rub their bodies against each other and then at the end of the night, give a peck on the cheek and happily go home. Slow dancing is nothing more than foreplay. And our young people are encouraged to do this and to do it in public.
I know, not all dancing is slow dancing. There are some kids of music that encourages dancing that does not involve such intimate touching. This type of dancing involves movements that can be quite appealing to young men when the girls are dressed in such immodest clothing. What teenage boy wouldn't want to see his date dancing around and possibly/probably showing even more of herself than the parents at home had intended. The movements involved in this more active dancing can be downright obscene. With the popularity of the TV show Dancing With The Stars, I'm sure the teenagers are trying to mimic what they see the stars doing. What did one judge say about one of the dances she saw on TV recently? She said that watching it was better than good sex. I think that just sums up the whole reason for such dancing.
If any home schooler that is protecting their children from bad language, Godless curricula/classrooms, disrespectful and illicit behavior send their child to a prom, then why are we home schooling. Now I know that you are probably saying that "nothing like that goes on at our prom". You may be right, but by encouraging and allowing your child to go to the prom, any prom, you are trying to get just as close to the fence without actually stepping over. We all tend to be so protective of our kids in so many things and then just let our guard down because we want to be like the public schoolers.
What to do instead? Will it harm your child mentally, physically, socially, spiritually if they don't go to the prom? No. I didn't go to my prom. My husband didn't go to his. My kids have never been to a prom. Life goes on. After the "big night", it's over. All the money, all the heartache over whether or not you have a date, all the extravagance, all the promiscuous behavior....it's over. One night of putting my child in temptation, of giving my child just a hint of what life is like in the world, of encouraging my child to think "it's all about him" is not worth the damage that can be done.
One thing I like to do for my kids is decorate their birthday cakes. The best compliment I've ever gotten was, "Mom, your cakes are better than the ones at my friends' birthday parties". I guess I've spoiled them. The first one I ever decorated was for my 21 year old's first birthday. That was back before digital cameras, so it's hidden away with some photographs somewhere. Since we've been taking digital pictures, I have all of them in the recent years on my computer. I thought I would share them with you. If you'd like to see one larger, or longer, just click on the picture.
It's been a while since I talked about the string orchestra I teach. We've been very busy this year. I have a great group of kids to work with. They (for the most part) work hard and want to do a good job. Last month we had a concert at our local library. There was probably about 70 in the audience. Both groups played and did a great job. I finally figured out how to upload videos to Youtube, so you get to hear and see us perform.
The first year orchestra has been playing since September. We played:
Can-Can
Mozart Serenade -- Mozart
French Folk Song
Theme to Master Piece Theater
Bach Musette -- Bach
William Tell Overture -- Rossini
Polly Wolly Doodle
Before playing, scroll down and stop the audio feed of the quartet I have playing in my right menu bar, or you'll have 2 things playing at once.
The second year orchestra has been playing for 18 months (started last September). They played:
Yankee Doodle -- Traditional
Beauty and the Beast -- Alan Menken
Trumpet Voluntary -- Clarke
Classical Bash
Pomp and Circumstance -- Elgar
"Finale" from the First Symphony -- Brahms
Before playing, scroll down and stop the audio feed of the quartet I have playing in my right menu bar, or you'll have 2 things playing at once.
Here are photos of the groups so you can see their shining faces.
Our co-op just had it's Latin Banquet. This co-op is patterned after Charlotte Mason's teaching style. The kids study Latin, Shakespeare, Art, Nature, Great Books, and Speech. Most of them are involved in a string orchestra as well. The Latin banquet was a lot of fun. Everyone dressed in togas and we had a great meal. The slide show below will let you know what all we did. Sorry for the poor quality of pictures. I'm not a photographer. :)
Sunday, January 13, 2008 - Chore and Menu List Progress
My last 2 entries have been about getting our chores and our meals a little better organized. We've been at it a week and I thought an update was in order.
First of all, the chores have definitely caused us to have a cleaner house. Of course, having company last night helped also. I've found that having company is a wonderful motivator for house work. I need to have another pow wow with the boys and let them know some areas that need improvement, but all in all, I'd consider it a successful week.
The menu list has been a little harder to get in to. I need to buy ahead so I'll the food (especially meat) on hand when it comes up in the list. The meals I had planned this week weren't necessarily on sale, so I didn't do them. Steak was on sale and I bought enough for 1 meal. I would normally cook it up right away, but I put it in the freezer so we could have it when it is scheduled. On the upside of the menu list. We didn't eat out at all and had food for the whole week with only additional trip to the grocery store.
W'er going try to have everything on week 2 this week. We had pizza for the company last night and stew instead of chili this week. I don't know if we'll have these again (to keep on schedule) or have the chili and spaghetti we had planned for last week.
What does your family like to eat on a regular basis?
Saturday, January 5, 2008 - It's Time To Clean The House
Along with starting my 4 week menu plan (mentioned below), I am once again trying to get better organized with house cleaning. I've got 5 boys at home, 3 of which are very capable of doing anything I can do in the cleaning area, and 1 that is always wanting to do what his big brothers do. The youngest is still too young to be given too much to do without me being right there, so he's my right hand man.
I typically give each boy a room to clean, but lately (for the past couple of years), they seem to have "forgotten" how and what to do. My plan is to post each of these lists in the kitchen so they will have no excuses. The lists will also alleviate any "misunderstandings" about what they are expected to do.
I plan to assign one boy to the living room, one to the kitchen and dining room (I help a lot in there), and one to the bathroom and laundry room. The bedrooms will be expected to be done by all of them. I haven't gotten brave enough to assign each boy a day to do his laundry, so I'm still the main instigator behind getting it done, although they know they are to help when asked.
So here's my room cleaning lists:
Living Room Everyday
Straighten music
Straighten piano music
Straighten DVD/videos
Straighten entertainment center
Straighten both small tables
Pick up stuff from floor, couches and chairs
Straighten puzzles
Twice a week (usually Thursday and Saturday)
Dust all furniture
Dust mini-blinds
Dust window sill
Dust light fixtures
Dust pictures
Vacuum all the carpet in living room and down the hall
Clean under couch and chairs
As needed
Clean tree (take outside and clean with hose)
Clean floral arrangements (wash in bathtub)
Clean carpet
Change light bulbs Dining Room
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Wipe applicances with damp cloth
Wipe window sill with damp cloth
Swiffer
Wipe inside of fridge with damp cloth
Wipe inside of microwave with damp cloth
As needed
Clean inside of toaster
Straighten inside of cabinets
Clean cabinet doors
Clean out fridge
Laundry Room
When asked
Fold clothes
Help Jonathan put his clothes away
Put your clothes away
Straighten up
Change light bulbs
Sweep/Swiffer
Bathroom
Everyday
Wipe out sinks
Put dirty clothes/towels/cloths in hamper
Straighten counter top
Check toilet tissue
Twice a week (Usually Thursday and Saturday)
Sweep/Swiffer
Scrub counter
Clean mirror
Scrub toilet
Scrub tub
Wipe down window sill
Dust pictures
As needed
Wash shower curtain
Straighten linen closet
Bedroom Everyday
Make bed
Pick up clothes
Straighten games and computer area
Put up books
Pick up toys
It's that wonderful time of year that we can start everything new. One thing that I have done in the past, but for some reason haven't done lately, was to have 4 weekly prepared menus for the family. I sat down the other night and wrote new menus that I thought we could stick with. When I put together these menus, I don't say we'll this one Monday and this on Tuesday. Instead, I say that we'll have these 7 meals this week. That way I have a little freedom and flexibility, which is very necessary around here.
Now I know that there are some of you that are going to think we should be eating better food than this. Sorry, this is what we eat. We love our red meat, chicken and ham. I try to fix the meals in a healthy manner, but I don't alter them so much that they aren't recognizable anymore. When I say we're having hamburgers and fries, we're having beef patty hamburgers and frozen (usually) fried french fries from Ore-Ida.
I don't list vegetables and side dishes in this menu. We usually have a 1 or 2 vegetables and if bread is not included in the main dish (pasta in spaghetti) I'll add some sort of bread. One goal I have this year is to try and eat more whole wheat products. I love whole wheat anything, but I've got a family that thinks if the bread is brown it must have gone bad.
When I have something on the menu like meatloaf, I'll usually quadruple the batch and freeze 3. That way, I don't have to make meat loaf for another 3 months. There are several dishes I do this with. It is really a time saver. Hopefully there will be some left overs which will be eaten at our noon meal. If not, we'll have sandwiches or something similar for lunch.
Here's what you've been waiting for....the Dow's 4 Week Menu Plan:
Week 1
Hamburgers
Chicken/Beef Enchiladas
Chicken/Beef Fajitas
Ham
Chili
Hamburger Patties
Spaghetti
This article appeared in our local paper -- The Lufkin Daily News. It tells the history of our holiday season landmark -- Rudolph the red-nosed pumping unit. It was written by Bob Bowman, a local historian. I bet you can't find another Christmas decoration like this anywhere else.
CELEBRATING HOLIDAYS WITH
LUFKIN'S RED-NOSED PUMPING UNIT,
RUDOLPH
If you drive through Lufkin during the holidays, be sure to take notice of one of East Texas' most unusual Christmas decorations. For decades "Rudolph the Red Nosed Pumping Unit, the creation of Lufkin Industries, Inc., the inventor of the balance-type oilfield pumping unit, has helped East Texas celebrate the season.
Rudolph, named for the reindeer made famous by the Gene Autry song,m is a fully-operational pumping unit standing about 45 feet high. For about four days before Thanksgiving, an electrician installs 1,000 seven-watt lights on a selected unit. Another work crew spends another two and a half days putting Rudolph together at his holiday home on the parking lot of Lufkin Mall beside Loop 287 and US 59.
Rudolph is actually a full-operational Lufkin Mark 640 oilfield pump painted red for the season. At his holiday home, he is pulling a 38-foot dump trailer, also made by Lufkin Industries, carry Santa Claus and a pile of Christmas gifts. Rudolph, naturally, sports lighted antlers and a red nose.
On each Saturday before Thanksgiving , East Texans gather by the thousands at the mall, Santa Claus arrives, a local band and choir fills the air with Christmas music, and cookies and milk are passed out to the children on hand. Lufkin Industries selects a person or group each year to be the official lighter of Rudolph. The crowd shouts out a countdown, a button is pushed, and Rudolph comes to life.
The origin of Rudolph goes back to the days when Guy Croom, a Lufkin Industries employee, heard the Gene Autry song and decided to decorate a small pumping unit with a red electric light bulb and a red ribbon around his neck. The Christmas decoration was placed at the back entrance of a company machine shop where people driving down Raguet and Angelina streets in downtown Lufkin could see Rudolph bobbing up and down. The site of Rudolph was often changed each year until it found a permanent home beside Loop 287 in south Lufkin.
At the end of each holiday season, Rudolph is dismantled, repainted and sold to an oil producing customer somewhere in the world. The trailer is also sold to a customer to carry goods across America. The same will happen to Rudolph this year and it's not unlikely that he could be placed in a foreign country where Christmas as we know it, is not celebrated.
Monday, December 10, 2007 - Let's Go To The Movies
You may remember this song -- LET'S GO TO THE MOVIES. It comes from the movie ANNIE. It's such an upbeat song that you want to just pack up the family and head out for an evening at the movies. For years, the movies have been a great place to take a date, entertain the family and even drop off the kids while mom and dad are busy doing other things.
I'm sure it's not news to anyone that things have changed. These days, before we take the family to see a movie we have tp analyze it to see if it's appropriate. This change has been gradual but very noticeable. GONE WITH THE WIND comes to mind. It is a great movie, but it was the first to dare to use the "d'" word. Since then, movies have used shocking language just for that -- the shock value. No longer is it enough to use the "d" word. New movies have to push the limits and as I've heard many actors say, take people out of their comfort zone.
Because of the corruption of movies, we have come to rely on a rating system. We as parents have some idea of the level of corruption a particular movie has. While a noble idea, this rating system has been created by worldly people. It catches the big no-no's such as violence, sex and drugs, but what about other things that a Christian should stay away from. What about blasphemy, sacrilege, disrespect for parents and using God's name in vain?
The first movie that pops in to my head is THE GOLDEN COMPASS. It is rated PG-13, so many parents will feel comfortable letting their children see it. According to the rating system, it it appropriate for children over 13. There has been much written on this movie warning parents not to take their child to see it. So what's the problem? Blasphemy. This movie is written with blatant blasphemy as its basis. The world doesn't see blasphemy as a serious issue.
Another movie that comes to mind is EVAN ALMIGHTY . This one gets a PG rating by the world's standards. This sacrilegious movie puts a new slant on the story of Noah by poking fun of it. This story that shows us the power of God and His love for man, for obedient man, has been reduced to a comedy. What's the harm? It's all done in fun. We all know the difference in a movie and the Bible. Do we? This movie has been brought up by 2 different students in 2 different class session while we were reviewing the story of Noah. This sacrilegious movie is what pops up in the minds of these children when we are discussing the story of God's destruction of evil in the world.
The movies mentioned above are just a smattering of what Hollywood has offered us lately. Movies are powerful. They are larger than life and louder than life. When you sit in a theater to watch a movie you are totally surrounded by the images and the sounds. They are so commanding that you can't think of anything else. What you see is unforgettable. When a child or a person with a weak faith sees these powerful images, their whole idea of who and what God is can be altered.
These movies (and many like them) chip away at our faith. A little chip here and a little chip there doesn't seem to make much of an impact at the time. Multiply those chips by all the other things in life that try to hinder our faith and eventually there is great damage done. THE GOLDEN COMPASS presents God as weak and fallible. Our souls are portrayed as something that lives separate from us. Everything the Bible teaches is twisted and distorted. It's done in such a dramatic and enthralling way, that anyone (especially impressionable children) can't help but walk away with images and thoughts that tear down our belief in God.
After watching movies such as these, there will be a permanent link between what Hollywood wants us to think of the Bible and God and what God wants us to think. It takes a strong, mature person to break this link. The fact that my students brought up Evan Almighty during Bible class demonstrates that this is true. We need to protect ourselves and our children from blasphemous and sacrilegious entertainment.
In the words of the Statler Brothers:
Everbody knows when you go to the show You can't take the kids a-long You've gotta read the paper and know the code of G, PG and R and X You gotta know what the movie's about Be-fore you even go Tex Ritter's gone and Disney's dead The screen is filled with sex.
Friday, November 30, 2007 - Consistency, Consistency, Consistency
We've been home schooling for 16 years now. I've seen a lot of people that tried home schooling for a time and then gave up. I've seen a lot of people that home schooled but never quite seemed to get the job done. I've seen a lot of very successful home school families.
Those that have been successful at home schooling have come from very different backgrounds. The parents' education has varied. Their philosophy of education has varied. In fact, the one thing that I can think of that they all have in common has nothing to do with how much money they put into their home schooling or what curriculum they chose. It all seems to come down to one thing -- consistency.
A lot of people have big plans. They are willing to spend lots of money for that perfect thing that will make their kids soar. They may have the perfect school room, the perfect family situation. Everything seems to be going their way. I've seen a lot of these same people either give up their home schooling thoughts or flounder around not getting anywhere in their child's education. What's the problem? They aren't consistent.
The successful home schooling family will have a simple, easily followed schedule and stick with it. It's not the marathon school days that educate our children. It's not the expensive curriculum. It's not even the well stocked school room. Success for our kids depends on the day to day, consistent home schooling.
There are times that I get to thinking we aren't accomplishing much. it doesn't seem that one lesson a day in particular subject is moving very fast. It doesn't seem that the book we're reading aloud is ever going to end. It doesn't seem like the children are making any notable progress. When thoughts like this start to cloud my mind, it helps to do an inventory of what we've studied so far. When I look back over the past few months, I realize that we have done a lot of learning.
Now, don't get me wrong. We take off a day here and there. We've gone a few field trips. We've had some interruptions that made home schooling for a day or two impossible. The key is to keep consistent. Then when those little surprises or even planned events come along, there's time to enjoy them. In fact, they are treasured. We all need a break now and then. Just make sure that the breaks are the exception and not the rule.
Wednesday, August 29, 2007 - Jonathan -- His First real school Year
Jonathan is my sweet 6 year old. He is the 5th of 6 boys in our home. He is officially a full-time student in our home school. Last year, we began phonics, but we just worked about 3 days a week and spent about 15 minutes on those days. This year, he is participating in our co-op and is doing 4 subjects in school.
As most of you know, the beginning of any school year is exciting. Six year olds especially like school. It is no different for my Jonathan. He has been asking for weeks when we were going to start. He couldn't wait.
Monday, we had co-op. This co-op is designed after Charlotte Mason's style of teaching. We study (or I should say, "the kids study") Latin, Shakespeare, Art, Nature and this we have added a Great Books class and a speech class. Jonathan is joining in with the older kids for art and nature. They are learning Watercolor in art. He absolutely loved it. I know he will love nature once the class gets underway, but Monday our teacher was sick so we didn't get to do nature. During the Latin class at co-op, I got to spend some one on one time with Jonathan. We did his phonics and started our first day with Five In A Row.
Tuesday, we had our first official day here at home. Jonathan was still excited about the whole thing but not as much as he was on Monday. We did his Phonics and Math first thing in the morning. He was so excited to start a real math book. Everything was going great until I told him that he was making his 4s backwards. He said, "I don't care." Well, that didn't make me too happy. I let him know that was totally unacceptable. Later in the morning he listened in on my 11 year olds science and his little brother got to listen in on his Five In A Row. It was a long day and he was tired.
Today is Wednesday and we proceeded to begin our day just like we did yesterday. It was a little harder to get him out of bed. He wasn't quite as excited to do any of his work, but he didn't say that he didn't care when I told him his 7s and 9s were backwards. We finished a little earlier (because his older brothers didn't take quite so long) and I let him get snack during the morning studies. I think all that helped him to have a better school day, even if the excitement was waning.
So, tomorrow will be day #3 of our "real" home schooling. I've noticed that throughout life the 3rd of anything is always the hardest. It is always the hardest day after a surgery, it is always the hardest day of a diet (or any new routine) and it is always the hardest day of the beginning of school. I think I'll get to bed early so I can be ready for whatever happens.
Here's a picture Jonathan drew of his big brother's wedding this summer. Sarah is the bride, Matthew is in the middle and Jonathan and Matthew's dad (my husband) is on the right (he performed the ceremony).
Thanks to Oprah, I had the privilege of listening to Al Gore present his opinions on global warming. I don't want to discuss the pros and cons of his opinions. What I found interesting was that Oprah compared him to Noah. It was interesting to see his reaction. He looked a little shocked and wouldn't accept the comparison. At the end of the show Oprah told him that she thanked him for being our Noah. By then, he seemed willing and even pleased to accept the comparison.
Al Gore presented his opinions with all kinds of larger than life charts and statistics. He showed projections of what scientist predict will happen if we don't fix the problem. He kept telling us that we need to do something now. We needed to fix our world and we have the power to do it. We've got to save it so our children and their children will be safe.
What Al Gore didn't do was bring God into the picture. He never suggested that since God made the world, He is the one we should seek help from. He never once suggested that the most important thing is to prepare ourselves for eternity. He never once acknowledged that we are not in control.
Noah, on the other hand, didn't go around from city to city like a celebrity telling everyone that he had figured out how to stop the flood. There wasn't anything in his message about the scientist of the day that proved it was going to happen. Noah didn't suggest that everyone build their own boat. He didn't suggest that everyone start living "green" so that the flood wouldn't come.
Noah proceeded to obey God by building the ark. He laboriously built the ark while others made fun of him. He taught the people that God was going to send a disaster (flood) and that they needed to prepare themselves by obeying God. There was nothing but Noah telling the people what God said. He taught them to obey God.
What a difference in their messages. One is about the physical, the here and now, telling us that we have the power to save the world. The other is humble and hard working, teaching others to obey God.
No, Oprah. I wouldn't compare Al Gore to Noah.
Al Gore
Noah
Warns of Global Disaster
Warned of Global Disaster
His source is men (today's scientists)
His source was God.
Solution is for man to fix the problem so disaster doesn't happen.
Solution was to begin obeying God and teach others to do the same.
Saturday, July 28, 2007 - The Most Important Thing
I hear it all the time. Everyone thinks they know what the most important thing is.
The most important thing is to get a good education.
The most important thing is to learn to read.
The most important thing is to be kind to others.
The most important thing is to be financially successful.
The most important thing is family.
The most important thing is to have good friends.
I went to see the movie Ratatouille last week. It was a really cute movie, but it made the point that the most important thing was family. It really struck me, as I watched those rats interact like family, that they've got it wrong. Family's great, but it's not the most important thing. Neither is a good education, or financial success or any of the other things people put so much importance on.
So, what's the most important thing? God. That's it. There's nothing else that matters. If we don't consider God to be the most important thing, we've failed. It doesn't matter how financially successful we are, how well we read, how kind we are, what good friends we have. None of it matters.
Solomon wrote a whole book on this -- Ecclesiastes. He tried everything. He put lots of things before God. He put his wives before God. He chose to satisfy their desires to worship their idols and even participate with them rather than to put God first. Solomon put his family before God.
Today, we tend to idolize our families. Our children are given such a place of honor in our homes, that we are, at times, willing to go against what we know God wants us to do to please our children. We let their activities, such as baseball (in my family this is the tough one), interfere with our gathering together and worshiping God. Some of us will put too much time into our work so that we can give our children what they want. Instead of being the parent and training our children, we let the children run things. That's not putting God first.
Many times, our families cause us to compromise on our convictions. To keep peace in the family, we choose to keep quiet about error. We choose to let things go that we need to speak up about . When we put our family first, we aren't helping them. It doesn't help a child or a parent or a sibling if we keep quiet while they continue in their sin. Putting God first may require some hard choices. It may cause others to choose to stay away from us. We still must put God first.
Back to Solomon. We can read about his life and see what happened when he began to put others ahead of God. He was the most glorious king. He was king during Israel's highest moment. He didn't put God first and they began to slowly lose it all. By not putting God first, his son was not ready to reign. His son didn't put God first and the fall of the Israelites began. If Solomon had put God above his family, things might have turned out differently.
Solomon summed it all up in the last two verses of Ecclesiastes.
"Fear God and keep His commandments,
For this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every work into judgment,
Including every secret thing,
whether it is good or whether it is evil."
That's the most important thing -- Fear God and keep His commandments. If we all truly believed that God is who He said He is, we'd truly fear Him. He controls it all. He made us. He made everything. He is the great "I am". He has the authority to tell us what to do. it doesn't matter what He tells us to do, if we truly believed that He is God, we'd do it. Even if that meant we had to give up what we thought was most important.
The kids in my Bible class are memorizing Acts 17:22-31 this quarter. It is one of my favorite passages. If you've ever wondered who God is, turn to Acts 17 and find out.
Paul was on his 2nd journey and was walking through the city of Athens. The people in this city were very devoted to worshiping their gods. They had built many gods (idols) and worshiped them religiously. They were so concerned that they not offend one of the gods unknowingly, they built an altar to THE UNKNOWN GOD. Paul was asked to present his "new" ideas to the people of Athens. He took this opportunity to introduce to them the God that they did not know -- the one and only God.
Paul stood up in the Areopagus and said,
Men of Athens, I perceive that in all things you are very religious; for as I was passing through and considering the objects of your worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Therefore, the One whom you worship without knowing, Him I proclaim to you.
Paul then goes on to describe the God they didn't know to the Athenians.
God, who made the world and everything in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands, Nor is He worshiped with men's hands as though He needed anything, since He gives to all life, breath, and all things.
All the gods that Paul had seen in Athens were made with men's hands. They were thought up in men's minds. They needed man to take care of them. Without man, these gods did not exist. But the God that we serve does not need man. He made man. He does not need man to build a place for Him to stay. He does not need man to furnish Him with food. He does not need man to keep Him company. He does not need man for anything. God "made the world and everything in it". He is "Lord of heaven and earth". What could man possibly do for God?
I've heard people try to bring God down to their level. I've heard people try to put themselves on God's level. They want to be God's buddy. They want to be there to comfort God. They want to furnish God with anything He needs. Paul told the Athenians that God doesn't need anything that we have. Why? Because "He gives to all life, breath, and all things". Without God we are nothing. We can offer God nothing because He needs nothing.
So what should our relationship with God be? We should tremble at His awesomeness. We should respect the fact that He is all knowing, all powerful, and present everywhere. We should fear Him so that we would never willingly sin. Our only desire should be to be with Him, to be like Him and to be called a child of His.
As I read about different people in the Bible that displeased God, I'm amazed that they would even consider going against His will. Then I look at my own self and see how easy it is to think that I know what's best. It's easy to forget that God gave me everything -- life, breath and all things. I must continually check myself to bring myself back to my God. He should not and will not ever meet me half way. I must submit all to Him, my "God, who made the world and everything in it." He does not need me, I need Him.
Well, if you answered "no", you just don't know it yet. The recent media has been all a buzz about mothers who are coming out of the closet and admitting the shameful. They are bored. These mothers have had successful careers, decided to take some time out to have a family, and are bored. They bought into the whole idea of mothering is a spiritual experience that will leave you feeling uplifted and fulfilled at all times. Now, they are bored.
Being a mother is wonderful. Having children that look up to you and depend on you for everything is wonderful. Knowing that by rocking the cradle, your hand "rules the world" is awesome. The influence we have on our children as they grow up is immense. Mothers help in guiding their children to become responsible, loving, God-fearing adults. That is amazing.
What these poor mothers that are bored did not understand when they decided to become mothers is that it's not about them. If someone becomes a mother so they will be uplifted, fulfilled, and generally revered, they got into it for the wrong reasons. Someone that takes a break from their "real life" to become a mother and experience the joys of motherhood just doesn't get it. It's not about the mom being fulfilled. It's not about the mom feeling wonderful. It's all about the children having a loving home and being raised to be responsible, loving, God-fearing adults.
Mothering is not glamorous. It is hard work. It is the hardest work you'll ever do. It is not only the hardest work you'll ever do, but it is also probably the only work you'll do 24/7 with no pay. You'll be changing diapers, wiping noses, cleaning spilled milk, reading the same book for the 50th time, watching Barney on TV, singing children's songs over and over, cooking meals the kids don't want to eat, cleaning the same room several times a day, etc. If this doesn't sound appealing to you, don't have a baby. If it doesn't sound appealing to you, you'll get bored.
Now, for the rest of us who find all of the above exciting, motherhood will be a joy. Mothers that aren't bored know they will be doing mundane, repetitive chores everyday for as long as it takes her little brood to fly the nest. Mothers that aren't bored know that anything worthwhile is hard work. Mothers that aren't bored receive their pay in hugs and kisses. They know that their bonuses are the precious dandelion flowers their 3 year old brings to them with grubby little hands, the rocks their 4 year old lovingly hands to them with pride. They know that, eventually, their little guys will grow up and leave them. Then, their pay is in seeing their children treat their spouse with love and respect, see them become responsible members of society and see them lovingly do the mundane chores of raising children that she did.
While our media reports that mothers are bored and should finally come out of the closet and admit it, the rest of us that know better are quietly wiping noses, cleaning spills, and watching Barney as our children "rise up and call her blessed".
Friday, May 18, 2007 - It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year
No, it's not Christmas I'm referring to. This is the most wonderful time of the year. This is the time of year when we are obviously nearing the end of our many books we've been working on all year. I love it. At the beginning of the school year, there is a sense of excitement as we bring out our new books we are going to study from. The end of the school year brings us the satisfaction of a job well done.
This year we have been reading the Uncle Eric Series (my 14 and 15 year olds and myself). They have been very interesting. They have sparked some considerable debate. Richard Maybury (Uncle Eric) has introduced us to the "rest of the story" so to speak. He has definitely given us many things to think about.
My 11 year old and I have read through Apologia's Exploring Creation With Zoology. It is a study of the flying creatures from the 5th day of Creation. We really enjoyed the easy going pace of this book. There are lots of activities to do in the book, but being the laid back home schooler that I am, we chose not to do many of them. Besides, we were involved in a co-op that had a great nature class. I left all the exciting dirty work to them. The Zoology book has great pictures and a conversational style of writing that makes it feel like you've got Mrs. Fulbright right in the room with you.
Our biggest struggle this year has been with math. We use Saxon and are happy with the program. We've just had some unavoidable interruptions during this last half of the year that caused a few problems with math.
This year, my 15 year old has working independently in Advanced Math. That always scares me a little when they work independently. Not because I don't think they can do it, but I'm not keeping up with them and then when/if they have a question, I can't answer it. Thankfully, he hasn't ad any problems.
My 14 year old has been working in Algebra 1. Math is not his strong point, but he's not bad at it either. He got about half way through the book (well, maybe 1/3 of the way through) and started making 70s consistently. I let it go a while think he would finally get out of his slump, but he didn't. We decided to do some remedial math with him for a while. We'll start back in Algebra 1 at the beginning of next year and give him another shot. Sometime, they just aren't ready for it yet. I think he'll do fine next year.
My 11 year old is working in Saxon 7/6. He does fine with it, we just got behind. We're doing about 8 lessons a week right here at the end. I think we'll get finished with most of the book. We'll start in 8/7 next year.
Jonathan has been learning to read this year (he is now 6). We are using Reading Made Easy by Valerie Bendt. This is the first year I've used this phonics program. It has been a good choice. It has no bells and whistles. It is not in color. There are no cute little readers. When I first started home schooling I thought everything needed to be fun and exciting. Reading Made Easy is simple, and down to earth. it's purpose is to teach reading. Jonathan has learned that very well. We are about half way through with the book. He was a little slow catching on, but now we're doing a lesson a day and he thinks it's great fun. He likes to pick books off his shelf and read them. That to me is success in reading.
We've done a lot of reading aloud together this year. We've almost finished reading through the New Testament twice. We read 1 Peter this morning. We should have it done by the time we're through with school. We've also read: King Arthur and The Knights of the Round Table, we started A Tale of Two Cities and didn't finish it, we're reading Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry. I know we've read others, but I can't think of them right now. I really need to keep better records.
Our biggest project this year was the string orchestra. We had 16 kids involved. Three of my kids were in it. One accompanied us on the piano., another learned to play the viola and the last learned to play the cello. It has been lots of fun. We had a concert Monday. I hope to have pictures and music for you to hear in the next few days.
Back to my original thought. It's The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. School is about through and we can look forward to the many plans we have for the summer. Of course, learning isn't about to come to an end, just what we call school around here. Learning is a never ending process for the whole family. I hope you have all had a great year.
Tuesday, April 24, 2007 - Shakespeare in the David Crockett National Forest
Spring is in the air. I'm not big on getting outside and doing all the great nature things that so many home schoolers do. Thanks to some great friends, I've been made/forced/strongly encouraged to get out there and enjoy God's great creation. Today we visited the David Crockett National Forest. We are in East Texas, so you pretty much just step outside and you're in a forest, but we drove to Boykin Springs and saw some neat things I had never seen before.
We got to see a Red Cocaded Woodpecker's habitat. We didn't see any of the woodpeckers, but we saw where they lived and heard them. It was really neat. The live among the long leaf pines. As you can see from the picture, these are very tall pines.
Then we got to see some pitcher plants. These are the neat plants that eat insects. They were about 1 foot or more tall. I didn't know we had those kinds of things around here.
Here are some pictures of the group listening to our guide talk about the woodpeckers. There were about 20 kids and 7 or 8 adults.
So, you may be asking where Shakespeare comes in. This field trip was part of our Charlotte Mason Co-op we've been working with all year. Since we were about 30 minutes from home, we just did the rest of our co-op classes out at the national forest. The kids sat under the trees and did their Shakespeare (As You Like It) and studied Latin.
I've been home schooling for 15 years and, if everything continues as it has, will probably have done it for a total of 30 by the time the youngest is through. YIKES!!! So, you can guess what I'm going to talk about.
The Story of Ping
Lentil
Madeline
A Pair of Red Clogs
The Rag Coat
Who Owns The Sun
The Glorious Flight
Across the Channel With Louis Bleriot
How To Make An Apple Pie
Storm In The Night
The Cat Of Bubastes
Mere Christianity
The Bronze Bow
Silas Marner
Pharoah's of Ancient Egypt
Famous Men of Greece
Famous Men of Rome
Laundry Room
Everyday![](<img src="http://lufkin.com/images/rudolph-s.jpg">)
Jonathan is my sweet 6 year old. He is the 5th of 6 boys in our home. He is officially a full-time student in our home school. Last year, we began phonics, but we just worked about 3 days a week and spent about 15 minutes on those days. This year, he is participating in our co-op and is doing 4 subjects in school.
