Jun. 9, 2008 Homeschool Talk Show launching in July
I will be launching a homeschool talk show Monday July 7 at 1PM (Central Standard Time). This will be a live, call-in show broadcast over the internet. It will be all about homeschooling, with a particular focus on homeschool advocacy. A live chat will also be available to further discuss the show or anything else you would like to chat with other homeschoolers about while listening.
The radio show's home page is here: Home School Talk, where you will be able to find updates about the show, when it airs and the number to call. You can also set a reminder to have show information emailed to you. The show will also be recorded and available for download after it is broadcast.
You can even listen from your own blog if you wish to embed the player in your sidebar!
If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. And I have written up much more information on my main blog. |
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Mar. 29, 2008 Home Education Week is here
Well, almost....and actually on at my new site. Last week, I shared our governor's ground breaking proclamation, giving Nebraska homeschoolers their own holiday perhaps slightly less well-known than Peanut Butter and Jelly Day. Not to be outdone, Florida's governor followed suit. Now, as I attempt to figure out what I can do in the real world to bring the deserved appreciation to homeschooling, I would like to give all of you the opportunity to participate in Home Education Week.
Now for my graphic, which you are free to use to help promote Home Education Week:
Please consider the following as writing prompts, not assignments. The ideas I list aren't meant to restrict the topic in any way, but only to offer a starting point. Feel free to participate in as many or as few of the prompts as you like! I'll have a Mr. Linky thing set up with each of the posts to make it easier for everyone who chooses to participate to share their posts. Also, since I can easily write most of these posts ahead of time, I will likely set them to publish the night before around 9PM central time.
Looking Back Sunday, March 30
Share your personal history...before you were a home educator. What was life like? Think about things you miss and things you and your family have gained.
Profiling Home Educators Monday, March 31
Describe yourself, your family or one of your children. What is it like to be home educated in your family? What is "normal" for you?
April Fool's! Tuesday, April 1
And we have likely all felt the fool in one way or another. Share your greatest challenge. Or one of those terrible, horrible no good, very bad days where the only thing there is to do seems to involve moving to Australia.
Recipe for Success Wednesday, April 2
It is also National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day! So share a recipe...figuratively, as in two parts love, one part creativity, or literally, as in a super quick, nutritious meal your kids scarf up. Think about what you do in the day, what helps keep it organized and you sane (or how you got past that need for organization and saneness!), and curriculum materials you find effective.
Show and Tell Thursday, April 3
Show off those talents. Share a story, a special moment, a piece of artwork. Any accomplishment, great or small, is fair game.
In Their Own Words Friday, April 4
Share your children's home education experience in their own words. What have they said about their education? What are their likes and dislikes? Share some stories, some quotes, or turn your blog over to your children for the day.
Looking Forward Saturday, April 5
What are your goals for home education? What do you hope to instill in your children? Are you planning any changes to how you educate your children?
I hope to see you next week, and look forward to some interesting reading! |
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Feb. 8, 2008 HOTM, free homeschooling e-zine is up!
Take a look at all the fantastic articles in this month's edition of The Heart of the Matter, a free homeschool e-zine! Just click on the cover:
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Dec. 1, 2007 Christmas cards for German homeschoolers
 Homeschooling is currently illegal in Germany and families who choose to pursue this method of education face court, fines, potential imprisonment and possible loss of custody of their children. Many flee to neighboring countries, but some have also chosen to stay in a fight to allow educational choice for Germany. The Neubronners is one such family. To assist them in their fight, a postcard action is being organized in the hopes of helping their case gain more publicity and foster positive discussion of homeschooling in Germany, as well as hopefully encourage officials in the case to reconsider their stance.
If you are interested, they are requesting post cards or Christmas cards to be sent to the German Education Senator, Frau Jürgens-Pieper. The tone should be friendly and personal. One suggestion:
Dear Mrs. Jürgens-Pieper,
Merry Christmas in the hopes that there will be educational freedom in Bremen by next Christmas!
(Sincerely, your family’s name)
English is generally ok, especially for something so brief, but here is the German for those interested:
Liebe Frau Jürgens-Pieper,
Frohe Weihnachten, In der Hoffnung, dass es bis nächste Weihnachten in Bremen Bildungsfreiheit gibt.
Mit schönen Grüssen von ………… …
The address is:
Senatorin für Bildung und Wissenschaft
Rembertiring 8-12
28195 Bremen
Germany
If you would like to help spread this information, feel free to download the image above and use it on your site! thank you!
Crossposted from Principled Discovery |
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Nov. 3, 2007 Seeking submissions May. 14, 2007 Our precious little Peanut! Jan. 31, 2007 Principled Geology
We've begun studying geology in our little homeschool, which has been an interesting subject to use the Principled Approach with. Here is our rough foundation.
Geology comes from two Greek words: geo, meaning earth and logos meaning discourse. In its basic sense, geology is the discourse, or study, of the earth. Further, from Webster's 1828:
The doctrine or science of the structure of the earth or terraqueous globe, and of the substances which compose it, or the science of compound minerals or aggregate substances which compose the earth, the relations which the several constituent masses bear to each other, their formation, structure, position and direction: it extends also to the various alterations and decompositions to which minerals are subject.
Scripture:
In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.
Genesis 1:1
We actually looked at all of Genesis chapter one to learn more about earth's early history, but this verse was the focus. All the features we seen in the earth were created by God and forces under His control.
Application: God created earth as a unique place capable of sustaining life. Here, we have all we need to live. There are several unique biomes, each displaying incredible biological diversity and interdependence of species. There is even interdependence between biomes. We have mountains, deserts, oceans, wetlands, plains and tundra to name a few important features.
Learning about geology tells more about where we live and the home God prepared for us.
Lesson: Mountains
Definition:
A large mass of earth and rock, rising above the common level of the earth or adjacent land, but of no definite altitude. We apply mountain to the largest eminences on the globe; but sometimes the word is used for a large hill.
Scripture: Gen 8:4, Gen 19:17, Ex 3:12, Ex 19:3, etc.
Mountains are perhaps the most impressive geologic features on earth, towering above their surroundings and affecting the weather patterns of entire continents. In scripture, they are frequently a place of refuge. There are different kinds of mountains, each with its own unique history. We know from scripture that the earth has experienced numerous catastrophic events, including its formation when God gathered the land together, the great flood and earth quakes.
Each of these would have resulted in the shifting of great land masses. This project looks at a particular kind of mountain which is formed when continental plates are forced against each other. The rock, under pressure, begins to fold and rise up. In geologic terms, this is known as an anticline.
To model this, we took three rectangular pieces of playdough and laid them on top of one another. Mouse laid this on the floor and put pressure on both sides of the playdough. The sides push toward the center, forcing the center to rise up. She recorded what this looked like from the top and the side in her notebook. Then, we modeled heavy erosion which can occur due to the slow processes of weather and time, more quickly through glacial movements or very quickly through other catastrophic events. She sliced the top of the anticline off with a butter knife and recorded what that looked like from the top and the side. This gives a good idea of what an anticline might look like "in nature."
Synclines are essentially the opposite of an anticline. When the earth is pushed together, the rocks fold downward, forming a valley between two higher points. We also eroded this with our butter knife acting as an imaginary river carving through the depression. She drew what the syncline and eroded synclines looked like in her notebook.
Finally, an overfold shows uneven pressure. The rock can be pushed up and over itself, creating a sort of "s" shape. She also modeled and recorded this, together with its eroded forms.
I also checked out a field guide to geology and she went through the pictures, looking for examples of each feature and correctly identified each one. Unfortunately, these kinds of forces were not at work in Nebraska, and I believe there is only one place where this kind of feature is visible and that is in a privately owned rock quarry. Otherwise, we'd make a field trip to go see one. |
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Jan. 27, 2007 Holocaust Day
![""]("http://bp2.blogger.com/_g74IYOBka1o/RbwtwqEmSbI/AAAAAAAAAEs/CTFPMgttBww/s200/AuschwitzLiberation.jpg") "Die Ermittlung" (The Investigation) by Peter Weiss is one of the most dramatic plays I have ever read. There is no "dramatic license" and no manipulation of facts to tell the story. There is no real climax. And no real conclusion. It is difficult to read. The terror moves forward, pulling, dragging and compelling through each page. At times, it left me sick to my stomach. He weaves together the testimonies of 9 witnesses and 18 defendants to tell the story of Auschwitz from being loaded into cattle cars to be shipped to the camp, through the selection process and the atrocious living conditions and on toward the gas chambers. Death awaited at every point in the journey.
Perhaps what left me most disturbed and most unsettled were the testimonies of the defendants. They stood at the gates of the camps, reeling at the stench of the cargo they were to unload. (Human beings who could barely walk after hours and days of being stacked in a cattle car with no food, no water and no lavatory facilities. The dead were piled to the side, and the living were in shock.) They pointed their guns, and sorted the first round of survivors. They prodded to keep prisoners working. They sorted the sick and the dying. They shot prisoners. They sent them to the gas chamber.
And yet, I couldn't hate them as I so desperately wanted to. Reading the cold testimonies, I felt a sort of pity. For the first time, I felt a sort of understanding for the Nazi "machine" and an understanding for the perpetrators that defies reason. Defendant 12 summarizes the situation well in Part III of Canto 6 (my translation, punctuation and spacing the same as the original):
Mr. Chairman
I would like to explain something
Every third word in our school time
dealt with those
who were guilty of all
and that must be eradicated
It was hammered into us
that this was the best
for our own people
In the Fuehrer-schools we learned above all
to accept everything silently
When someone asked something else
then it was said
What was done was done according to the law
It helps nothing
that the laws are different today
They said to us
Your job is to learn
You need schooling more than bread
Mr. Chairman
Thinking was taken from us
That was done for us by others
(The accused laugh in agreement)
What happened in Nazi Germany was possible because Hitler had absolute control of the education system. This development was not something which occurred overnight, but instead was the culmination of centuries of centralization. I cannot overemphasize this point. Many speak of Hitler's education law in reference to the current homeschooling situation in Germany, but that makes it seem as if the minor changes he made to existing law were the result of a totalitarian dictatorship. It also makes it seem distant and unrelated to us. What this annoying headline does not consider is that it was the centralized education system which made the totalitarian dictatorship possible. Yes, he outlawed homeschooling and private schools. But essentially all he did was add the weight of enforcement to a previously existing law and outlaw private schools. The change was not dramatic.
January 27 has marked a day of remembrance in Germany since 1996. It has been an international memorial since 2005, the 60th anniversary of the liberation and the 60th session of the General Assembly of the United Nations. Lilly Jacob was also liberated, after having suffered in Auschwitz and losing her family. In the abandoned barracks of an SS officer (in another concentration camp 100 miles from Auschwitz), she found a photo album which contained pictures of her family and friends. No one knows exactly why it was kept or what it was for. No one is really sure exactly who took the pictures. But it survives as the only photographic evidence of Jews arriving at Auschwitz and documents the entire selection process except the execution itself.
As you look through the 56 pages and 193 photos documenting this horror, think about what it takes for a nation to commit such an atrocity. This is not the vision of a single, evil man, but the culmination of a thousand tiny steps. Many of which were taken "for the good of the nation." |
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Jan. 25, 2007 Homeschooling in Germany
For anyone interested, I have begun writing occasional updates on the homeschooling situation in Germany for the Company Porch. These consist largely of translations of German reports with some commentary. You can view the category here:
Updates From Germany
For some reason, one entry didn't make it into the category: War on Homeschooling
I also have some information on my main blog, although this comprises everything I have written about Germany, not just about homeschooling.
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Jan. 23, 2007 Difficulties and successes in our homeschool
Hopefully now that HSB seems to be working AND we have DSL (I can't quite get over that), I will again post here now and again. Not promising anything regular. I don't know how people with multiple blogs do it. I have enough with my one blog that I try to maintain regularly, and the two I contribute to. But that is another story altogether.
Things are going all right in our little homeschool. I think I need to get over my personal aversion to "drill and kill" or anything that tastes of it. My daughter has a good understanding of mathematics. She really understands the principles and can figure out complex problems. She even figured out multiplication all on her own.
But she is hindered in the amount of time it takes her to figure out simple problems. We need to work on some automaticity, I think.
Other than that, we are engaged in a wonderful unit on Jamestown that I'm thoroughly enjoying. Here's a bit more on that, for anyone interested. Our study in Proverbs is going pretty well, but I need to work out the next section. So far, we have derived and worked on two principles from Proverbs 31: diligence and scheduling. She has a binder just for this study. I may share some of it later, but the plan is for her to continue working on this throughout her education. For diligence, for example, we read Proverbs 31:10-31 and talked about the character traits of this ideal woman. My daughter decided she was "hard working." She selected a verse that she thought exemplified this virtue, and copied a portion of it:
She...worketh willingly with her hands. Proverbs 31:13
Then we defined diligence (I love the Latin meaning):
DILIGENCE, n. [L., to love earnestly; to choose.]
1. Steady application in business of any kind; constant effort to accomplish what is undertaken; exertion of body or mind without unnecessary delay or sloth; due attention; industry; assiduity.
My goal is that when she is finished with her education at home, this notebook will serve as a reminder of the years of work she has done and serve as a basic primer in "housewifery." A simple guide that she will write herself on all the basic skills I didn't really have when I moved out, such as cooking, cleaning, scheduling and general household management. |
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Dec. 19, 2006 I am NOT a sandwich short of a picnic.
Do you remember that knee I hurt? Now I think it is infected. It is all red and inflamed and full of pus* and hurts as bad as when I fell and is hot to the touch. It is red in areas that were uninjured. This is really gross, but in church, the puss started leaking out from under the bandage, and slowly soaked through my pant leg. I hope it washes out because my other pair of maternity pants have grass and blood stains on them from falling. That leaves me with nothing but my husband's sweats, which I'm wearing right now.
Triple anti-biotic ointment isn't helping.
My sweet children have been helping with housework. While the average visitor may not be able to tell any housework has actually been done, they are the reason that it is at least safe to walk through the house. And there is a limit to what an 8, 3 and 1 year old can do.
Bug (the one year old) toddles around behind the others, wash cloth in hand, copying everything they do. She really likes doing dishes, but hasn't gotten the left-right progression down, yet. This means that if I'm not paying attention, the dishes from the drainer will all end up back in the sink to be washed. She drags the broom around, too, trying to sweep. But now that we have a new dustpan and a hand broom, my children actually argue about whose turn it is to sweep.
Two more chores they love: washing anything. When is it not great fun to walk around the house with a bowl of soapy water? This includes window washing and mopping. And then there is dusting. I put old socks on everybody's hands and they walk around dusting everything they can reach.
*In case anyone happened in here earlier, before I noticed that HSB apparently has some feature censoring certain words and that that particular word appears to be on the list even though there certainly is nothing wrong with it in the context used, I DID NOT CURSE in this entry. Actually, I don't do that in entries at all. But I didn't like the appearance that I had for some reason, so the entry is now duly edited. |
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Dec. 16, 2006 Are my children resourceful?
Or just deprived?
Being pregnant, I did what many others do and fell. Being pregnant, I did what many others do and fell in an awkward manner, banging up my knee pretty badly, although it was only a small fall. So today I couldn't walk much and didn't feel up to taking the children outside for a walk or even just to watch them run around the yard. (We don't have a fence, so I feel the need to be faster than the baby who is not yet old enough to understand streets.)
So this evening, the children spent a good half hour using my good leg as a slide and giggling their silly little heads off. |
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Dec. 10, 2006 Social faux pas for the holidays
Yesterday, I logged into our state's events page to see if anything interesting was going on in Lincoln to do while we were in town running boring old errands. Given that it was a Saturday and during the holday season, I figured we had a good chance. I found a German feast in Fremont that sounded interesting, so we decided to go.
After I finally found it, no thanks to Map Quest, we almost turned around and left. We were dressed in everyday, errand running clothes. The dining hall was decorated nicely with dimmed lights and white table cloths. The other guests were dressed in suits and nice dresses. We were a little out of place, to say the least.
But we stayed and the food was wonderful. And I was so proud of my three little munchkins. Their table manners are not always the greates, due in part to the fact that we do not actually have a table at home and thus their practice at it is limited. But my Mouse (8) was very concerned about placing her silverware in the proper place, holding her utensils properly and sitting and eating like a young lady. The baby did NOT throw any food and Bear (3) sat relatively still and ate nicely.
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In the interest of managing my time better, I have been debating for some time what to do with this blog. I think I have finally found a solution that will work for me. Cutting and pasting articles from one blog to the other is tedious and something I've never particularly enjoyed. On the other hand, I kind of like blogging over here and enjoy the fellowship of all the homeschoolers here. I don't want to just stop blogging. Even though this blog has sort of been in limbo for some time now.
So I decided that this blog here will become more of a personal one. A bit of my life, the lives of my children and a bit about homeschooling. I probably won't blog quite as frequently here, but certainly won't abandon it anytime soon. It may go back to what it began as...about the best journal of my homeschooling experience I can manage between everything else I'm trying to do.
Everything else I'll keep on my main blog...which I'll finally be able to get categories on! Yeah! I'm so excited, except that I can't log in until they are finished switching it over so I'm not sure I'll get to post tonight.
And I'll start with a little story that made me so proud of my little boy yesterday in the playground at McDonald's:
Baby Bug (my one year old) decided to venture up the playground. In one of the little cubbies, there were some girls (other kids, not employees) trying to replace the mat that had come loose. Baby Bug was in the way and one of the girls tried to pick her up to move her. Bear was not happy. He grabbed hold of his little sister, and shouted, "No! My sister! You don't touch her!"
So much for poems like "Sister for Sale." Not all brothers want to be rid of them. (In fact, if you ask him, he'll tell you he wants the baby to be another sister. He likes his sisters and figures another one would be a good thing!)
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Dec. 5, 2006 Chocolate and some links
Mmmm. I had a few things to talk about and was wondering if I should
narrow them down or just do my own private carnival of random things I
find interesting. But then, a little purple package began calling me
from the other room.
It
is "just" milk chocolate. Nothing special to it. But after eating
Milka, I am not sure why America ever bothered trying to compete. And I
wonder why Americans ever bought enough of the stuff to make Hershey's
recognized worldwide. And I wonder why it is that any of our candy bars
make it on to German shelves. The Germans really should no better than
to eat that stuff we call chocolate.
Good old American
socialism, for you. Hershey wanted a cheap chocolate, affordable to the
masses, and we got it. Both in chocolate and education.
It is interesting to note that many Germans actually criticize the US model of education as "too egalitarian and socialist."
Anyway,
before I stray too far from the far superior German chocolate in my
ramblings, here is a digital piece for you to enjoy as you peruse a few
links.
First off, tonight (Tuesday) at 10PM, BlogTalkRadio will be hosting a discussion on education. The show description is as follows:
School
Your Children Well: We're talking about tot yoga, college prep school,
homeschooling v. public school...featuring Alex Elliott, PhatMommy and
Pundit Mom. PhatMommy is the homeschool mom. Pundit Mom
will be talking about private school. You can tune in or check the
site later to listen to the show. The homeschooling section should
start around 10:30. Shannon would love for you to show your support by
calling in and posing some thoughtful questions for Pundit Mom.
The Carnival of Family Life is up over at Be A Good Dad. Stop by for some family stories.
The Carnival of Homeschooling is up over at Corn and Oil.
And the Carnival of Kid Comedy is up over at In a Shoe.
I think that is it for the moment. I need some sleep. And more chocolate.
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Dec. 3, 2006 Our first Jesse Tree ornament
On Thursday, I talked about celebrating Advent using the Jesse Tree. I promised to document the making of our little ornaments for anyone interested.
First, we read Genesis 2:7 and discussed who the creator is and how man is unique from the animals. Then, to help us remember this, we made an ornament using Sculpey clay. In case you aren't familiar with it, it is basically a grown up version of playdough. I really enjoy making little things with it and we occasionally make things to go along with our lessons. When you are finished, you bake it in the oven and have a permanent little clay sculpture.
The clay comes in small squares divided into four rectangles. To make an ornament the size of those in the printouts from the previous entry, you will need one of those four rectangles. If you have never worked the clay before, or your child is going to be doing this alone, you might want to give them a little extra. (Or shrink the images to make smaller ornaments and use proportionately less clay.) Before making anything with Sculpey, you start by kneading the clay. This strengthens and conditions the clay so that is easier to work and it forms stronger bonds.
Then slowly begin pressing it into shape. Begin by pressing it between your fingers, then lay it on a flat surface and continue flattening it until it is the right size. You can trim the edges if you like them neat, or leave them rough like we do. Flip it over so that you have a smooth, flat surface on your clay. Lay the image face down on top of the clay. Rub with a spoon to ensure complete contact between the clay and the image. Press a small hole to string yarn through later.
Place in an oven at 275 degrees F for about 20 minutes. When it is finished, allow it to cool completely before removing the paper or trying to lift the ornament. It continues to strengthen as it cools. Then carefully remove the paper and string your ornament.
Then you just need a tree or a branch or somewhere to hang it to represent your journey through the Old Testament together with your child. Ours is currently hanging on a lampshade. By the way, these make excellent little presents that young children can make. Photocopy pictures of them and follow the steps. Then you will have little ornaments with their precious faces to hand out to special people. < |
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Dec. 2, 2006 Police in our school
The Lincoln Board of Education just (barely) approved a new expenditure. $120,000 to keep four police officers in the middle schools another year. The argument has been an interesting one. Personally, I think there is something fundamentally wrong with a society that has become so violent that we must have a show of armed government force to keep order in a public school. If anything should hint to America that school is no longer a safe place for children, the perceived necessity of police force should.
The city currently assigns officers to each of Lincoln's high schools, an expense justified by the fact that a high volume of calls originate from these lovely halls of education. But last year the city told the department of education that it could no longer justify the expense of maintaining officers at the middle schools (and whoever thought it was a good idea to have them in the elementary schools?) So the principals went to the school board, arguing their case.
And, begrudgingly, the Department gave in. I'm not sure exactly if board member Lillie Larson realizes how close she is to the root of the problem in her support of these officers, but her comment is worth some thought.
Also, police bring a certain authority to the school that neither teachers or principals have, said board member Lillie Larson.
Teachers have no authority. Principals have no authority. And that is due in large part to the fact that the parents have no authority. Only a man in uniform with a gun.
Oh, yeah. I think I remember why we had officers in our elementary schools. It was part of a big safety plan (we are years ahead of President Bush and his little Conference on School Violence). We had a sex offender leave his group home, get on a city bus, sneak into an elementary school and molest a little boy. That is also why we have this multi-million dollar re-design scheme being batted around. Thankfully, it has been awhile since I've heard anything about actually re-designing those buildings already in use, but the designs for our two new elementary schools have been approved. Everyone must enter through the office and the classroom wings can be easily locked down. Sounds like a mental institution.
That reminds me. The school board would prefer to spend the money on social workers and a school psychologist than police officers. |
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Nov. 30, 2006 Advent, Advent
The Advent season is almost upon us. "Advent" means simply, "important
arrival" and of course refers to the coming of our Savior, Jesus
Christ. According to Webster's 1828 dictionary, it means,
A coming; appropriately the coming of our Savior, and in
the calendar, it includes four sabbaths before Christmas, beginning of
St. Andrew's Day, or on the sabbath next before or after it. It is
intended as a season of devotion, with references to the coming of
Christ in the flesh, and his second coming to judge the world. One
of the special things about celebrating Advent in particular is that it
can help keep the focus on the Christ, and how the world groans
awaiting for His return. Interestingly, the season of Advent seems to
have more significance in Germany, where a plethora of activities take
place and a number of songs specific to Advent are known as well as the
most common Christmas carols. Now that Advent calendars
are getting more commercialized and can be found containing chocolate
and even legos, they are spreading in popularity even here in the
United States. There is even one available online...and you can't peek, so visit begin visiting on the third to see what each new day brings.
This year, we are hoping to start a new tradition to bring some more
focus on what the coming of Christ means to the world. Last year, we
learned about the Jesse Tree,
and decided to try it. The name comes from Isaiah 11:1, "a shoot will
spring forth from the stump of Jesse, and a branch out of his roots."
It is essentially a walk through the Old Testament to prepare the heart
for the coming of Christ and give focus to the season.
In 1599, the words to a beautiful folksong, Es ist ein Ros entsprungen, were first published in Cologne, Germany which began with a paraphrase of the beginning of Isaiah 11. The English version
is also good, and the site provides the melody. We will be learning
this song this season, and we may learn the first verse in German as
well.
The ornaments we will be making for our Jesse Tree follow a simple
pattern. I will document the process and share it Sunday, but all you
need are photocopies of the images you want to use, Sculpey modeling
clay and some string to hang up the finished ornament. Images may be
found here, under Jesse tree ornaments online (I'll include another link if I find ones I like better).
Print off the symbols then photocopy them (black and white).
Cut out the images (around the boxes would be best).
Knead a piece of Sculpey clay until it is soft and maleable.
Roll it out on a flat surface until it is big enough to hold the entire design.
Make sure the surface of the clay is flat.
Place the image face down on the clay and rub gently to make sure all parts of the design are in contact with the clay.
Poke a small hole in the top to hang the ornament from.
Bake in the oven for about 20 minutes at 275 degrees F.
Remove the paper after it cools and the image should be transferred.
Thread it and it should be ready to hang!
Are you planning anything special for Advent?
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Nov. 29, 2006 What does it mean to have a right to an education?
What does it mean to have a right to an education? We have compulsory
education in all of our fifty states, so far as I know, but do we need
to formalize that as a right as well? Is education even something that
you can have a right to? I subscribe to a basic philosophy handed down
from John Locke which holds more to the "natural rights" of life,
liberty and property. I'm no philosopher...and I haven't even read all
that Mr. Locke has to say on the subject...but it seems to me that a
right is something that you have that cannot be taken away from you.
It is not something which is given to you by another.
What would it mean to the United States if we were to amend its
constitution to include a right to education for all children? While
looking for an old link on this general discussion, I found an interesting paragraph:
The Independent Commission on Public Education works within
a human rights framework, which guarantees that every child in New York
City has the right to education. Children have the right to quality
teachers and curricula, and to a school environment that respects the
dignity of every child. This right is not only found in our State
Constitution, it is recognized around the world in the Universal
Declaration of Human Rights, the Convention on the Rights of the Child
and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The
United States does have a markedly different history in regards to the
definition of rights in comparison to much of the rest of the world.
Since this is largely derived from English common law, it is no
surprise that homeschooling is legal in all English speaking countries
(so far as I know). But the paragraph about the child's right to an
education in the Convention of the Rights of the Child also seems to
have been central in the Konrad decision
which sided with Germany, citing that "parents may not refuse the right
to education of a child on the basis of their convictions." The
children were not old enough to foresee the consequences of their
parents decisions, so the state had an obligation to ensure that their
right to an education was not infringed upon. Forcing them into the
public schools therefore was viewed as protecting their right to an
education.
Does a right to an education mean that the parent then does not have
the right to direct such education? On the surface, it does not appear
to be so. However, the European Court of Human Rights seems to believe
it does.
The right to education as enshrined in Article 2 of
Protocol No. 1 by its very nature calls for regulation by the
State...Therefore, Article 2 of Protocol No. 1 implies the possibility
for the State to establish compulsory schooling, be it in State schools
or private tuition of a satisfactory standard... That
obviously does not necessarily mean that decisions would fall the same
way in the United States. But I do sense that we are steadily drifting
far from the vision of our founders in regards to basic rights,
liberties and the role of the state in protecting those rights.
Two carnivals for your perusement:
The Christian carnival over at Brain Cramps for God.
The Education carnival over at A History Teacher.
I haven't had time to look through them much (ok, at all), but the titles look intriguing.
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