Friday, April 04, 2008

In their own words: Home Education Week Day 6


Day 6 of Home Education Week:

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.

My boy says: Uh.....

My girl says: It's fun. We can have free days when we want. We can have tea in the afternoon. We don't have to get into a bus at 8:00 in the morning! We have time to do things we like, like reading. We can spend time with our dog.

OK, maybe I shouldn't have asked them first thing in the morning. And I have to remember they have very little to compare it to - they've never been to school, so homeschooling is normal. They have no clue what school would be like at their grade levels (3 and 5). The closest comparisons are Sunday School and classes they've taken at local science museums, but those are nothing like regular school. Sometimes I wish I could send them as a visitor for one day to the local public school. But then again, my girlie might like it and decide she'd want to go. She'd do well, too - she is a very conventional learner. My boy never would want to go. He'd never make it in a regular classroom situation.

I know I'm biased, but I think they'd probably prefer being homeschooled.

See more posts at Principled Discovery.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

IMHO, there are some pretty big trade offs — having been brought up in San Jose's public elementary system.

We all know kids are cruel, and the world can be ugly, but J and E will eventually have to enter it — "when?" is the big question.

J gets to enjoy time with his mother, but will never experience having a crush on his fifth grade teacher. Small things like that are those things that stick in our memory and make us smile when we're older. But, I'm sure that he'll have many things to smile about.

And, from a parent's perspective, although I am not, you have yet to experience the joy of your child coming home with an A+, excited to share the great news. Well, maybe, I'm just guessing I guess.

kerri @ gladoil said...

Oh, so cool! I love the Sultans of Swing!!! We have that in our Youtube favorites!

OK, off topic.

Anonymous said...

Love the "uh...." LOL!
That's me in the morning, too.
Thanks for sharing!

Marbel said...

Edward - Common concerns. Cruel kids? Neighborhood, Scouts, sports leagues, daycamps, classes, even church. Yeah, deal with that. They had to endure a week of harassment over our last name in a sports camp a few years ago. Till the last day of the class when the ringleader was gone. Turned out the other kids were pretty nice when the lead guy wasn't there. Great lesson in mob mentality.

Crush on the teacher? Ai yi yi.

A+ on an assignment? True. But, later this month I'll be sending them off to their reading group with a killer presentation. They won't get an A+ 'cause there are no grades. They'll get positive feedback (gag, but can't think of a better term) from the other kids and parents. And they'll know they did a good job. You get any A+s from your boss lately? But you do get compliments, accolades, raises, promotions... I hope, anyway.

You are right. There are trade-offs. Based on my experience in school and the state of public schools now, it's one I'm willing to make. My kids may end up messed up... but they might anyway. Look at it as choosing a different, counterculture way to mess up our kids.

Anonymous said...

My son wonders what public school would be like. Our neighbor girl told him that she thinks homeschool would be easier. She has the impression that Bug plays all day. And I must admit he has a lot more time to play than she does. She has to be to school at 7:30. I'd say, "Uh..." to that. ;)

Marbel said...

Kerri, I love the video bar feature of Blogger. Such fun. A huge waste of time too. Dire Straits is very big in this house. My boy in particular loves the "flowing" guitar.