Re: OT Words again/Homeschool

[Guest guest]

> My quandary is what to do with my son who will be 4 in January. He is

very bright and

> sensitive. I really don't want to put him in public school... I don't

think he would do well in that

> environment. I have toyed with the idea of homeschooling when he gets to

" school " age but, I

> don't think I am going to have any other children and I think interaction

with other kids would

> be good for him.

You might want to check out what the homeschooling community(ies) are like

in your area - some places organize regularly (weekly or monthly) groups &

outings " field trips " of homeschool families.

There are always 'after-school' activities, clubs & lessons to fill in the

desires to interact with other kids.

I wish there were more of the Sudbury-valley style free schools in the

country - I would have *so* loved to have gone there as a kid.

-- Cat tinawind@...

Consent...its not just for adults anymore. www.takingchildrenseriously.com

[Guest guest]

> My quandary is what to do with my son who will be 4 in January. He is

very bright and

> sensitive. I really don't want to put him in public school... I don't

think he would do well in that

> environment. I have toyed with the idea of homeschooling when he gets to

" school " age but, I

> don't think I am going to have any other children and I think interaction

with other kids would

> be good for him.

If you continue to explore the home schooling idea, you may want to note

that there are many approaches to it. Some families are very " school "

oriented and have " school at home " with strict class routines; others, like

ours, are unschoolers. Unschooling is a less structured, typically quite

" child-centered " path. It's a kick! It's things like the thrill of having

your 5 year old come up to you, well into the evening relax time, asking you

to solve a word problem they've just come up with. We have such fun with

teaching / learning. We give each other silly pop quizzes, out of the blue,

just because. We are constantly " teaching the moment " whenever something

interesting pops up. For us, there is no formal distinction between " school

/ learning " time and any other time -- it's _all_ learning opportunities.

We have two kids, and the older is often involved in helping teach the

younger one, often without my intervention.

re: having a bright little one. Our son is also bright -- he taught himself

to read at 4 (we give credit in part to some good how-to-read software from

Disney, of all people!). It may go against your socialized " instincts " ,

but trust that your son _wants_ to learn, and unless you or " the system "

block it somehow, he will. Provide him with a rich environment of learning

materials and opportunities and just stand back and be amazed. Providing a

computer with some more-than-just-games software for his use may give him

the chance to move along at his own speed, fast or slow, and according to

his own changing interests. Despite what the anti-TV naysayer would have

you believe, there is good stuff out there too. I would never have guessed

that age 4 my son would have been utterly fascinated, for months, by

cephalopods, but he was, and he soaked up everything he could find on the

subject at the time, including some great science shows on TV. At 6, we

were watching " Standard Deviants " shows about algebra that I expected would

be way over his head, but he got the concepts anyway. Now both kids pester

me to give them some equations on the white boards so they can work them

out. Who would have guessed? re: TV. It's quite helpful to have a

Tivo-type system that lets you pause what you're watching together and

discuss something, then resume the program, but tapes offer that feature

too.

on my home school email list, many folks complain about that undying " but

they won't be socialized " anti-home schooling barb. The best reply I've

seen is from a parent who points out that there is a significant difference

between " being socialized " and socializing... I've seen enough exclusively

peer-bonded, disconnected-from-their-family kids to know that I want to help

my kids find a happier path. Relating well to people of all ages is

apparently a common attribute among home schoolers.

[Guest guest]

This is great! It was too funny as I got to the end of this fabulous

response to see my own name signed... kind of...

We unschool also, and I have too agree with everything you said about

it. Life is learning!

L.

> If you continue to explore the home schooling idea, you may want to note

> that there are many approaches to it. Some families are very " school "

> oriented and have " school at home " with strict class routines; others, like

> ours, are unschoolers. Unschooling is a less structured, typically quite

> " child-centered " path. It's a kick! It's things like the thrill of having

> your 5 year old come up to you, well into the evening relax time, asking you

> to solve a word problem they've just come up with. We have such fun with

> teaching / learning. We give each other silly pop quizzes, out of the blue,

> just because. We are constantly " teaching the moment " whenever something

> interesting pops up. For us, there is no formal distinction between " school

> / learning " time and any other time -- it's _all_ learning opportunities.

> We have two kids, and the older is often involved in helping teach the

> younger one, often without my intervention.

>

The best reply I've

> seen is from a parent who points out that there is a significant difference

> between " being socialized " and socializing... I've seen enough exclusively

> peer-bonded, disconnected-from-their-family kids to know that I want to help

> my kids find a happier path. Relating well to people of all ages is

> apparently a common attribute among home schoolers.

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

@@@ :

> I would never have guessed

> that age 4 my son would have been utterly fascinated, for months, by

> cephalopods, but he was, and he soaked up everything he could find on the

> subject at the time, including some great science shows on TV

@@@@

Yeah, but did he *eat* any??? I mean, what could be more natural for

an NT household!

BTW, I have some friends who do an experimental music/performance

group called Snacks, and they prepare food for the audience as part of

their performances, often with a focus on cephalopodic cuisine. I

have eaten their squid pizza and squid cake. Not bad. They have

also replaced the dialogue and music of a Turkish B-grade kung-fu

movie with a new version in which the Tarzan-like protagonist has his

various adventures all in pursuit of squid pizza. FWIW (probably not

much).

Mike

SE Pennsylvania

The best way to predict the future is to invent it. --Alan Kay