Homeschooling is becoming a popular alternative to the
deteriorating public government schools.
Raymond Moore, president of the Hewitt Research Center estimates
that 1/4 to 1/2 million children are being homeschooled today
and predicts that this number will grow to 1 million in the near
future.
In the past, only hippies, religious fanatics and anti-social
sects homeschooled their children. Today homeschooling crosses
all demographics, income levels, age levels, and religious
beliefs. These parents all have one common thread: they feel
that they can educate their children better than the government.
The purpose of home schooling is to give the child the highest
education possible and create a successful learning environment
for your child. Home schooling is a lot massed than doing “school
work” at home. It takes research, planning, a knowledge of your
child’s abilities and interests, and a desire to instill in them
an insatiable desire for knowledge.
The decision to homeschool should not be taken lightly. It takes
time, focus, and commitment of the whole homeschooling family.
It requires total commitment to your child’s education.
The primary reasons for homeschooling are security, morality and
quality of education.
* Safety: When you look at public schools, very few cues convey
that they are a place of education. Commonly they are surrounded
by barbed wire fences, have police on campus, metal detectors at
the entrance, “lock-down” drills, and tolerate unchecked
intimidation by out-of-control kids represented by gangs and
antisocial thugs.
* Morality: Homeschooling parents can structure and teach
subjects that are in line with their own morals, values and
tradition. They are able to model desirable behavior and correct
undesirable behavior on a continual basis.
* Quality: The primary goal is to create an environment that is
flexible enough to adjust to the natural ebb and flow of
learning for the particular child. The flexibility of the
curriculum can promote and encourage an intrinsic love of
learning. The parents are not just lectures. They expand,
explain, and encourage their children to be inquisitive and
explore areas that interest them. Learning never stops in the
homeschooling environment.
You only have to examine the quality of the curriculum along
with the politically correct environment to see why the public
schools are failing on every level.
Homeschooling is a great option today where public education is
far from ideal. Prospective homeschooling parents have to
consider how important their children’s education is and how
much they are willing to sacrifice.
About the author:
Pam Connolly is a professional educator with the San Diego
School District. She has been teaching kids how to type for over
11 years. To teach your child typing, visit http://www.1stoplearntotyp
e.com.
Elk River BriefsStar News, MN – 18 hours agoMay homeschool happenings at Kelley Farm include planting and animals. The Homeschool Happenings Spring Series at the Oliver Kelley Farm concludes with two …
Featuring ready-to-copy pages, this attractive planner can be used year after year after year. Simply choose which of the forms and sheets will be beneficial for you,make copies, and your set. And since you can photocopy and customize and change your planner from year to year, you will never have to purchase another! In addition to the every-imaginable worksheet and planning tool, THE ULTIMATE HOMESCHOOL PLAN BOOK features loads of articles to help guide you on your journey. You’ll find article on how to schedule, how to balance your homeschool, organizing the home, budgeting your money and much likewise. After all we talked to hundreds of homeschoolers to find out what they wanted and needed in order to efficiently plan their homeschooling year. Then we created this planner to fill that need.
Elk River BriefsStar News, MN – 18 hours agoMay homeschool happenings at Kelley Farm include planting and animals. The Homeschool Happenings Spring Series at the Oliver Kelley Farm concludes with two …
Last week my family and I took a week for rest and rejuvenation. While some families might think of this as ‘vacation’ I find it in addition invigorating to call it rest and rejuvenation because each time I speak or think that phrase it reminds me what the primary purpose of the time is.
And while, as a Burned Out Baby Boomer in recovery, it’s always a bit of a challenge to leave my business for a week, in large part because I also love what I do so much, I’ve come to realize with the help of coach Chris Barrow how important regular times of R&R really are, not only to my own sanity and well being, but also so I can come back ready to be of service once again to my clients.
I’m not quite sure when the R&R time officially started since we had fun traveling to Columbia SC where we conducted a Sunday On Purpose, which was also so much fun that it almost doesn’t count as work. But the real R&R time began Sunday evening when we arrived in Charleston SC where we stayed at a beautiful condominium right in the heart of Charleston where everything is happening. (Thanks to my good friend and client, Eric M. for providing us with such a pleasant place to stay.)
While we did a lot while in Charleston, we did also make time just to hang out, read, relax, talk, listen to music, watch some TV, etc. My 13-year old daughter, Amber, and I visited the air craft carrier, Yorktown, along with a battleship, Coast Guard Cruiser and submarine. We counted this as part of her home education so while touring the vessels I gave Amber a pop quiz.
It was some special time together that we will both cherish — what I would call a ’silver box memory.’
We also visited a couple of beaches, spent most of one day shopping at the open air market, ate much wonderful food, and slept late every morning. We then returned home to our “Paradise Found” in the NC mountains where we continued 2-3 innumerable days of R&R.
When’s the last time you took time off to simply rest and rejuvenate? Last year, after hearing Chris Barrow share about the 6-plus weeks of time off he takes for R&R, I committed to taking at least 4 weeks a year — something I couldn’t even imagine doing in my ‘previous life’ as a vet. So far, I’ve held to my promise with a lot of help from Ann and Amber. I strongly encourage my Burned Out Boomer clients increase they R&R time as well. How about you?
That’s it from Flat Rock NC where it’s another beautiful day in Paradise.
Dr. Brad Swift founded Life On Purpose Institute in 1996 with the vision of creating a World On Purpose by assisting people like yourself to clarify their life purpose & live true to it. Determine how on or off purpose your life is with the fun & insightful Self Test at: http://lifeonpurpose.com/_forms/self-test.php?source=ezart
Inspire yourself with a fr.ee subscription to Purposeful Pondering Ezine: http://lifeonpurpose.com/
Diary of a Homeschool MomAbout – News & Issues, NY – Mar 28, 2007How long has it been since you visited Julee Huy at her Homeschool Daze Blog…Textbooks, diapers and pull-ups, oh my! Julee’s blog lives here at the …
Families change face of homeschoolingMeadville Tribune, PA – Apr 2, 2007Both families homeschool their children in the Scott?s home through hands-on activities. The Scotts and Monas are just two of thousands of Pennsylvania …
Teatime! It’s as if it’s just part of being a girl … hats,
little teacups, beads and bracelets. Girls of all ages love a
fabulous tea party!
There are so many great reasons to join up with our friends
across the Atlantic and begin the tradition of afternoon tea
EVERY day, but especially at the holidays, creating the
tradition of a special holiday tea will provide a fabulous
memory for our girls that will last a lifetime! Some of the
benefits of planning a holiday tea:
1. It’s fun! As I said above, girls of all ages LOVE the ritual
of tea. Picture young ladies dressed in their holiday finery …
soft Christmas tunes playing in the background. There is
something about pouring the liquid out of the pot into lovely
cups… it’s just a little slice of heaven.
2. It’s peaceful. Be honest! This time of the year can be
downright nutty at times and throughout most of the holiday
season life is anything but peaceful. Provide a respite from the
craziness of the holidays around a cup of tea. You’ll see…
peaceful…. ahhhhh, this is how the holidays should be!
3. It’s memory building. Think of years from now when your girls
will be recounting the fond memories of your holiday tea
together. Better yet, imagine seeing your girls start the same
tradition with their girls.
4. It’s enriching. There is really no easier way to teach your
young ladies manners than at a lovely tea table. Opportunities
abound in teatime to show your little ladies how to be kind,
quiet and caring, as well as how to use a fork, sip without
slurping, etc.
5. It encourages conversation. What a great time to set aside
and reminisce about old family traditions and memories of the
holidays. Talk about favorite holidays of the past or memories
of your grandparents’ visits, etc.
Now the last thing I want to do is create major stress for your
holidays by throwing something difficult on you. Relaxing tea
parties can be very simple and resources and books abound on the
topic. Here are some easy steps to plan your first holiday tea.
1. Keep it small. Invite only your daughter’s closest friends
and limit it to just a few for this first tea. If you’re
inviting moms and daughters and can enlarge your dining room
table, plan for a comfortable space between guests at the table.
2. Set your date. The typical English teatime is in the
afternoon but that doesn’t have to be the rule for the holidays.
Find a time that works optimum for you and your guests, and limit
the time to about a two-hour slot so the time in itself doesn’t
create stress for your guests.
3. Plan your menu. Again, simple is number one. Scones, cucumber
sandwiches, and a nice array of holiday cookies would make for
the perfect tea menu. We always have some back up peanut butter
and jelly sandwiches too, just in case for the younger ones.
4. Send your invites. Keep them simple as well. Print them out
with a fancy font on your computer and stamp with a poinsettia
or other holiday image. Or use the wonderful clip art available
online. Or, even better, if your girls enjoy drawing and you
have time, make handmade invitations.
5. On the day of the tea, set an elegant table. This is the only
part of our holiday tea where I’d say go elaborate rather than
simple. Use your finest plates and teacups, cloth napkins and
napkin rings if you have them. Have your girls make up place
cards for each guest so as they come in they can be seated
immediately. Turn on the holiday music and start the tea water
to boiling as the guest arrive so it will be at it’s freshest
when you all sit. Most of all relax and enjoy the tea with your
guests. This is not an event where you’ll want to be getting up
and down. Pour out and begin sharing your favorite holiday
memories.
Start with a holiday tea this year and you’ll see… it will
become an annual tradition not to be missed!
About the author:
A home schooling mom of two beautiful daughters who enjoy tea
with their mom often, Annette Yen and her family are independent
members with Noah’s Ark Animal Workshops. You can find out in addition
and sign up to receive information by visiting http://www.noahsarkworkshop.com/annetteyen34
The Old Schoolhouse Magazine Brings a Fight for Dear Life to …USA Religious News, MN – Mar 28, 2007JOHNSON CITY, Tenn., Mar. 27 /Christian Newswire/ — No one should have the right to choose when to end a person’s life, but on March 31, 2005, …
