We want to share with all of our readers this excellent blog on how children learn. The author is Dr. Peter Gray, a research professor of psychology at Boston College. He has conducted and published research in comparative, evolutionary, developmental, and educational psychology and published articles on innovative teaching methods and alternative approaches to education.
The blog starts at the bottom of the web page with the Introduction and then progresses bottom to top. If you have any questions about the value or worth of how our family is being educated, we highly encourage you to read this blog.
http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn
Monday, September 22, 2008
What a great day!
Yesterday we went to the Carnegie Science Center because it was free from 10am to 5pm. The place was so big, we didn't have time to see it all. After the science center, we drove up to Franklin to have dinner with my Uncle Bill and his wife Marsha. Marsha also called my Uncle Dave and his wife Sue to come down and visit with us. We had a lot of fun.
My Uncle Dave brought the Mad Magazine board game to me. This game has a fun story...it's an old game that my Uncle Dave owned and I used to go play it every summer, but I would sometimes have trouble getting people to play with me. When I was 12, I asked my Uncle Dave if I could have the game. I then left and forgot to take it with me. I called him and told him and he told me I could take it next time I was there. I didn't go again until I was 25. By that time, the game was lost.
When I visited last year, Dave told me he still couldn't find the game, he thought someone else might have taken it or it may have been thrown out. Yesterday, he surprised me with the game! It's missing most of its pawns and some of the cards, but he managed to tape up the box and the board is still in good condition. Yay! A new game for me. :)
Today is Aurora's birthday and we'll be baking her a chocolate cake. So far, she's celebrating by playing Guitar Hero. The other 6 kids are letting her play as long as she wants.
Andrea
My Uncle Dave brought the Mad Magazine board game to me. This game has a fun story...it's an old game that my Uncle Dave owned and I used to go play it every summer, but I would sometimes have trouble getting people to play with me. When I was 12, I asked my Uncle Dave if I could have the game. I then left and forgot to take it with me. I called him and told him and he told me I could take it next time I was there. I didn't go again until I was 25. By that time, the game was lost.
When I visited last year, Dave told me he still couldn't find the game, he thought someone else might have taken it or it may have been thrown out. Yesterday, he surprised me with the game! It's missing most of its pawns and some of the cards, but he managed to tape up the box and the board is still in good condition. Yay! A new game for me. :)
Today is Aurora's birthday and we'll be baking her a chocolate cake. So far, she's celebrating by playing Guitar Hero. The other 6 kids are letting her play as long as she wants.
Andrea
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Hello PA!
Wow, this road trip is really truckin' along (pun half intended)! We spent a fantastic five days at Andrea's brother's house in Detroit, MI. The kids all got wild with their cousins, Shane included. Rachel is their three year old who is notoriously shy. Well, she took a shining to both Shane and Aurora, treating the latter like her extra big sister.
We've now pressed on to stay with a family near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are a fantastic family. We have found some more kindred spirits. Aurora has a friend in their daughter, Karma has a friend in their eldest son, and Caed has a friend in their youngest son. Shane is catching up on his sleep and Mom and Dad get along famously with their Mom and Dad.
We are considering buying an annual pass to the local zoo as the pass is reciprocal and we can use it in other cities we visit on the way home, plus several in Texas (not Austin's sadly). The Carnegie Science Center has free admission tomorrow from 10am to 3pm. We plan to visit that early tomorrow then head up to Franklin to see some of Andrea's family and have dinner.
We're not sure yet what it is we're doing for Aurora's birthday on Monday, just that we're baking a cake and she wants to hear 100 years by Five for Fighting ("15 there's still time to choose..."). I'm sure we'll plan something she'll love.
We've now pressed on to stay with a family near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are a fantastic family. We have found some more kindred spirits. Aurora has a friend in their daughter, Karma has a friend in their eldest son, and Caed has a friend in their youngest son. Shane is catching up on his sleep and Mom and Dad get along famously with their Mom and Dad.
We are considering buying an annual pass to the local zoo as the pass is reciprocal and we can use it in other cities we visit on the way home, plus several in Texas (not Austin's sadly). The Carnegie Science Center has free admission tomorrow from 10am to 3pm. We plan to visit that early tomorrow then head up to Franklin to see some of Andrea's family and have dinner.
We're not sure yet what it is we're doing for Aurora's birthday on Monday, just that we're baking a cake and she wants to hear 100 years by Five for Fighting ("15 there's still time to choose..."). I'm sure we'll plan something she'll love.
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Wowee!!
Wow, this trip has just been a blast and we're not even a week into it. As mentioned previously, our first stop was in Norman, Oklahoma, to stay the night with a family we met on an unschooling list. They were great...seven kids and not a moment without someone to watch or interact with. We visited the omniplex in Oklahoma City with them and had even more fun, plus learned lots.
After we departed Oklahoma, we drove through Kansas and ended up spending the night in Kansas City, mere miles from the Missouri border. On Thursday, we made it all the way to Minnesota where we camped in a state park and hit the Mall of America on Friday.
The Mall of America was very exciting. We think it may be so named because you can find just about every major store in America in the mall, including a Best Buy! We do highly recommend a trip to the mall, it's worth it. Friday night, we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows at our camp site.
We packed up Saturday morning to hit the road and head east for Detroit, but we didn't get very far before our car started dinging at us like there was a door open or something, but it gave us no message. We finally found an open Chevy dealership and took the car in to find that the electronic module on the passenger sliding door was not working properly. We were able to not have it replaced (big $$), but we did have to pay to have it diagnosed and the noise cleared, etc. As a result, we're on a much tighter budget than we began.
This has not dampened our spirits, however. We drove straight through from Minnesota to Michigan to save $$. Everyone has declared that this is a great vacation and so it shall remain.
After we departed Oklahoma, we drove through Kansas and ended up spending the night in Kansas City, mere miles from the Missouri border. On Thursday, we made it all the way to Minnesota where we camped in a state park and hit the Mall of America on Friday.
The Mall of America was very exciting. We think it may be so named because you can find just about every major store in America in the mall, including a Best Buy! We do highly recommend a trip to the mall, it's worth it. Friday night, we roasted hot dogs and marshmallows at our camp site.
We packed up Saturday morning to hit the road and head east for Detroit, but we didn't get very far before our car started dinging at us like there was a door open or something, but it gave us no message. We finally found an open Chevy dealership and took the car in to find that the electronic module on the passenger sliding door was not working properly. We were able to not have it replaced (big $$), but we did have to pay to have it diagnosed and the noise cleared, etc. As a result, we're on a much tighter budget than we began.
This has not dampened our spirits, however. We drove straight through from Minnesota to Michigan to save $$. Everyone has declared that this is a great vacation and so it shall remain.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
On the road again
We started our road trip today!! We left Austin at 11:30am and arrived for our first stop in Norman, Oklahoma to visit an unschooling family we met in an online group. We're staying the night with this wonderful family and then visiting the omniplex with them tomorrow before hitting the road again.
We decided to leave the camp chairs and most of the camping gear at home (save for the tent and the sleeping bags), which gave us more space for things like coats--we're headed to the northeast don't cha know. :)
We'll keep you updated as we progress across the country. If you're reading this and would love us to stop and visit, drop us a line!
We decided to leave the camp chairs and most of the camping gear at home (save for the tent and the sleeping bags), which gave us more space for things like coats--we're headed to the northeast don't cha know. :)
We'll keep you updated as we progress across the country. If you're reading this and would love us to stop and visit, drop us a line!
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
Life just works
Sam and I have been participating in a seminar on Integrity lately, which has brought many fun distinctions to our life. In this seminar, integrity is simply defined as having workability in one's life. It is separate from morality in that something can be moral, but still not have integrity because it doesn't work.
This one has been difficult for me because during the course, I came to realize that I have no integrity whatsoever and my life doesn't work. I tend to avoid making commitments and then tend to not keep the ones I make. After that happens, I usually feel terribly guilty and then go hide under a rock and don't answer the phone or e-mails. This doesn't work for people and has consequently left me in a place where I have almost no friends.
It finally all came together for me yesterday. My best friend was terribly angry with me for leaving her high and dry lately and I had no time to go sit down with her to talk things out. I wrote her a long, teary e-mail about how I was sorry and discussing some finer points of our relationship. I consequently made my kids late to their pool party.
On the way to the pool party, I realized I could ask another mom to keep an eye on my kids and then go see to my best friend. I did just that and then while we were mid-stride in conversation, the other mom called letting me know that it started raining, everyone was leaving the pool, and she needed me to come get my kids. On the way to the pool, I realized I hadn't called my seminar group members to let them know I had scheduled a group meeting for 6pm the same day.
I called another group member (the one who already knew) and asked her if she could call everyone else. Then I called someone else for coaching so that I could get what didn't have integrity (that I didn't think of my group members until 3pm) and get clear on that. I picked up my kids, took them home, then headed back to see my best friend and complete our conversation.
I was so powerful in my communication that by the time I got to the seminar at 7pm (after apologizing to my group), I was absolutely high on how well things could work if I simply honor my word. I was floored by this notion and really got that's all there is to making life work, just give my word and then honor it.
Here's to honoring word and living powerfully!!
This one has been difficult for me because during the course, I came to realize that I have no integrity whatsoever and my life doesn't work. I tend to avoid making commitments and then tend to not keep the ones I make. After that happens, I usually feel terribly guilty and then go hide under a rock and don't answer the phone or e-mails. This doesn't work for people and has consequently left me in a place where I have almost no friends.
It finally all came together for me yesterday. My best friend was terribly angry with me for leaving her high and dry lately and I had no time to go sit down with her to talk things out. I wrote her a long, teary e-mail about how I was sorry and discussing some finer points of our relationship. I consequently made my kids late to their pool party.
On the way to the pool party, I realized I could ask another mom to keep an eye on my kids and then go see to my best friend. I did just that and then while we were mid-stride in conversation, the other mom called letting me know that it started raining, everyone was leaving the pool, and she needed me to come get my kids. On the way to the pool, I realized I hadn't called my seminar group members to let them know I had scheduled a group meeting for 6pm the same day.
I called another group member (the one who already knew) and asked her if she could call everyone else. Then I called someone else for coaching so that I could get what didn't have integrity (that I didn't think of my group members until 3pm) and get clear on that. I picked up my kids, took them home, then headed back to see my best friend and complete our conversation.
I was so powerful in my communication that by the time I got to the seminar at 7pm (after apologizing to my group), I was absolutely high on how well things could work if I simply honor my word. I was floored by this notion and really got that's all there is to making life work, just give my word and then honor it.
Here's to honoring word and living powerfully!!
Friday, August 22, 2008
Birthday Fun
We made a commitment at the end of last year to be less materialistic when it came to gift giving within our household. Christmas worked out well, we got five gifts from Santa and then some cash to use as we each saw fit.
For birthdays this year, we had a commitment not to spend more than $50 for each person on gifts. We have been quite successful on this, with both boys having had their birthdays recently and loving their gifts so much that they didn't notice we had spent considerably less than the previous year. Aurora had a specific item in mind that was outside of our dollar limit, however she offered to give up having a party and eating out for her birthday in exchange for the extra amount spent. This worked for us, so we went ahead and bought her the item she requested.
For Caed's birthday, he received Marvel Ultimate Alliance for the Wii (that grandma bought us for all of our birthdays this year) and then we gave him some cash since he didn't have anything else he wanted that would allow us to come in under $50. We also went to Austin's Park and Pizza for his party, which included his two closest friends. We avoided the media room, as usual, and sat in a quieter room so we could have conversation and enjoy one another's company. Surprisingly, we only stayed for 3 hours as Caed became anxious to come home and put together the Lego toy he received from one of his friends.
With the cash he got from us and the Toys R Us giftcard he received from his mother, Caed bought himself a Tomb Raider game for the Wii. He's been spending a lot of time on the Wii lately, but this doesn't bother us as he was spending just as much time reading various books this time last year. He tends to become quite absorbed in whatever interests him, so we know that once his interest changes, so will his activities.
Andrea's birthday was great for her as well. She woke up early for no reason she could tell and promptly showered, gathered a daughter, and went bargain hunting at the Blue Hangar Goodwill (super discounted Goodwill). She found many prizes, including an Unabridged Dictionary published in 1979 (coincidence?), a nice pair of leather sandals (not real leather), and a Holistic Healing Guide. There was much more found and for all she only paid $16.
After Goodwill, she picked up the rest of the family and we went to see a house for lease in the area. It has 6bedrooms and 3bathrooms. It's a lot of space, we fear perhaps too much, but we love the fact that everyone can have their own room during these teenage years and there are many shelves and storage places everywhere. We've been trying to minimize the things we have, but we would still like space to place what we have. The house is available now and we're not sure they'll hold it for us until we return from vacation, but there's only one way to find out, which is to ask.
So, that's been our week. Sam and Andrea start a new workshop tomorrow, which we will be attending from 10am until 10pm. On Sunday, we're planning a birthday party for Andrea, something we haven't done in a long time, so it should be fun!
For birthdays this year, we had a commitment not to spend more than $50 for each person on gifts. We have been quite successful on this, with both boys having had their birthdays recently and loving their gifts so much that they didn't notice we had spent considerably less than the previous year. Aurora had a specific item in mind that was outside of our dollar limit, however she offered to give up having a party and eating out for her birthday in exchange for the extra amount spent. This worked for us, so we went ahead and bought her the item she requested.
For Caed's birthday, he received Marvel Ultimate Alliance for the Wii (that grandma bought us for all of our birthdays this year) and then we gave him some cash since he didn't have anything else he wanted that would allow us to come in under $50. We also went to Austin's Park and Pizza for his party, which included his two closest friends. We avoided the media room, as usual, and sat in a quieter room so we could have conversation and enjoy one another's company. Surprisingly, we only stayed for 3 hours as Caed became anxious to come home and put together the Lego toy he received from one of his friends.
With the cash he got from us and the Toys R Us giftcard he received from his mother, Caed bought himself a Tomb Raider game for the Wii. He's been spending a lot of time on the Wii lately, but this doesn't bother us as he was spending just as much time reading various books this time last year. He tends to become quite absorbed in whatever interests him, so we know that once his interest changes, so will his activities.
Andrea's birthday was great for her as well. She woke up early for no reason she could tell and promptly showered, gathered a daughter, and went bargain hunting at the Blue Hangar Goodwill (super discounted Goodwill). She found many prizes, including an Unabridged Dictionary published in 1979 (coincidence?), a nice pair of leather sandals (not real leather), and a Holistic Healing Guide. There was much more found and for all she only paid $16.
After Goodwill, she picked up the rest of the family and we went to see a house for lease in the area. It has 6bedrooms and 3bathrooms. It's a lot of space, we fear perhaps too much, but we love the fact that everyone can have their own room during these teenage years and there are many shelves and storage places everywhere. We've been trying to minimize the things we have, but we would still like space to place what we have. The house is available now and we're not sure they'll hold it for us until we return from vacation, but there's only one way to find out, which is to ask.
So, that's been our week. Sam and Andrea start a new workshop tomorrow, which we will be attending from 10am until 10pm. On Sunday, we're planning a birthday party for Andrea, something we haven't done in a long time, so it should be fun!
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