So I'll still post about our sudbury experiences but I'm going to talk about other stuff too and I don't feel like I can starting the posts with "off topic" like it's some sort of warning. You'll just have to read all the entries on the off chance that there is some sudbury nugget lodged within. :)
Des is asking to homeschool again. I told him he has to finish serving on JC and he said he still wants to give it a try. I don't know what's going on. Amelia says there is no way she is ever leaving Sudbury.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Friday, April 18, 2008
off topic-nothing new
We all need some stuff for summer time and we are doing some work around the house. I'm trying to do everything used, recycled, refurbished etc. I call it my " nothing new project".
You know what? It's really hard!!
First I have to remember to stick to it. it's like reusable grocery bags. I keep leaving them home or in my car. Now I have to remember when I want something to put it on my yard sale wish list instead of zipping out to Target. Talk about delayed gratification.
Lots of stuff going on at sudbury and I will get back to posting more regularly but a few of my kids are sick and Finn is at that wail the moment I'm out of sight phase so computer time is at a premium right now.
You know what? It's really hard!!
First I have to remember to stick to it. it's like reusable grocery bags. I keep leaving them home or in my car. Now I have to remember when I want something to put it on my yard sale wish list instead of zipping out to Target. Talk about delayed gratification.
Lots of stuff going on at sudbury and I will get back to posting more regularly but a few of my kids are sick and Finn is at that wail the moment I'm out of sight phase so computer time is at a premium right now.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
The language of children
Des and Amelia have a game that they play in the car that has something to do with whether or not a car in front of us turns at the same place that we do. Ray and I have tried to figure out the rules without asking them but we can't. Even when we do ask them we still can't figure it out.
The girl that we car pool with not only gets it but seems to have brought a few ideas of her own to the game. I know the game now officially starts when we pass a certain building on the way to school. I know that the best thing that can happen is called "World Series". I know that she totally gets the game and its rules and has understood it pretty much since we started driving together.
Adult conversations can be cryptic or mysterious to children. I see my kids trying to puzzle out what Ray and I are saying. Yet it still seems strange to me that I can't always understand what my kids are saying to each other. But now that I think about it, maybe they want it that way.
Hmm. It hurts to be shut out but I know I have to accept it. My mom had me when she was very young and she loved it(still does) when people would say "Oh you look like sisters" but she took it almost too literally and would overstep. I can remember feeling resentful and thinking that she needed to act her age or that I just wanted some space. So I'll keep driving and listening and piece things together as best I can. It's like taking a semester of spanish and then trying to watch telemundo. You know enough to know something is going on but not enough to decipher it.
The girl that we car pool with not only gets it but seems to have brought a few ideas of her own to the game. I know the game now officially starts when we pass a certain building on the way to school. I know that the best thing that can happen is called "World Series". I know that she totally gets the game and its rules and has understood it pretty much since we started driving together.
Adult conversations can be cryptic or mysterious to children. I see my kids trying to puzzle out what Ray and I are saying. Yet it still seems strange to me that I can't always understand what my kids are saying to each other. But now that I think about it, maybe they want it that way.
Hmm. It hurts to be shut out but I know I have to accept it. My mom had me when she was very young and she loved it(still does) when people would say "Oh you look like sisters" but she took it almost too literally and would overstep. I can remember feeling resentful and thinking that she needed to act her age or that I just wanted some space. So I'll keep driving and listening and piece things together as best I can. It's like taking a semester of spanish and then trying to watch telemundo. You know enough to know something is going on but not enough to decipher it.
Friday, April 4, 2008
Walkin' the walk
The reason I haven't posted lately is because there has been so much stuff going on at school that I don't even know where to begin. Seriously, I think I have two or three weeks worth of material.
One thing I have been thinking about is what the school-parent relationship should be. Lately, my kick is that parents should look at schools as a resource but accept the ultimate responsibility for their children's education. My dad pointed out to me that most parents aren't that engaged or willing to become more engaged in their kids lives that way. I agree but it drives me crazy when people don't do anything more than complain about the poor job the schools are doing. I think to myself, if your kid isn't learning what you think he should, pick up the slack. It's your kid for heaven's sake.
Well, I always think I have all the answers. A few days later Des says, "Mom, I'm really interested in math. I'm really curious about numbers. Can you teach me?" I reply,"Sure but you can always ask a staff member at school. They're there to help you with that stuff, you know." WTF?!! My child is coming to me, asking for help and I'm trying to pawn him off on his school because what he is interested in falls into a realm of traditional academics. What is galling is that I know I can teach him what he wants to learn, I just didn't feel like it.
Besides humility, this episode taught me that I need to provide more intellectual stimulation for Des at home. The kid is a little sponge and tends to have the same interests that I do. He isn't going to explore that stuff at school right now because he is so obsessed with the computer games.
One thing I have been thinking about is what the school-parent relationship should be. Lately, my kick is that parents should look at schools as a resource but accept the ultimate responsibility for their children's education. My dad pointed out to me that most parents aren't that engaged or willing to become more engaged in their kids lives that way. I agree but it drives me crazy when people don't do anything more than complain about the poor job the schools are doing. I think to myself, if your kid isn't learning what you think he should, pick up the slack. It's your kid for heaven's sake.
Well, I always think I have all the answers. A few days later Des says, "Mom, I'm really interested in math. I'm really curious about numbers. Can you teach me?" I reply,"Sure but you can always ask a staff member at school. They're there to help you with that stuff, you know." WTF?!! My child is coming to me, asking for help and I'm trying to pawn him off on his school because what he is interested in falls into a realm of traditional academics. What is galling is that I know I can teach him what he wants to learn, I just didn't feel like it.
Besides humility, this episode taught me that I need to provide more intellectual stimulation for Des at home. The kid is a little sponge and tends to have the same interests that I do. He isn't going to explore that stuff at school right now because he is so obsessed with the computer games.
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