| During this holiday, it's worthwhile reminding ourselves, or perhaps learning for the first time, our country's true history, which is so often glossed over, forgotten, or even deliberately rewritten for political purposes. Reprinted here is President George Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1789: "Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor -- and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me "to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness."
Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be -- That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks -- for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation -- for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his Providence which we experienced in the tranquility [sic], union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed -- for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted -- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us. And also that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech him to pardon our national and other transgressions -- to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually -- to render our national government a blessing to all the people, by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed -- to protect and guide all Sovereigns and Nations (especially such as have shewn [sic] kindness onto us) and to bless them with good government, peace, and concord -- To promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the encrease [sic] of science among them and us -- and generally to grant unto all Mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best. Given under my hand at the City of New York the third day of October in the year of our Lord 1789. George Washington" Happy Thanksgiving, everybody! |
Thursday, November 25, 2010
Washington's Thanksgiving Proclamation
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
Written in the Stars
For stargazers, this is one of those weeks to stay up late (or get up early) for as the Leonid meteor shower is back in town.
I'm not quite that dedicated to astronomical observation, but I did pry my family out the living room/entertainment complex long enough to go outside and take a look before bedtime. I only saw a couple of shooting stars, but we were all delighted at the clear sky, which allowed us to easily distinguish the different colors of the various stars that make up Orion (just about the only constellation I can identify with certainty). What's more, we got a magnificent example of how upper atmosphere turbulence can affect viewing as we watched two low-lying stars twinkling furiously and changing colors like a Christmas strobe. Topping off the show was an appearance by Jupiter, not far from the Moon. In looking up Jupiter, we found that this week is the last for what is called the planet's retrograde motion--that is the four months when Jupiter appears, from Earth, to move westward in the sky instead of eastward as it orbits the sun. Some of the best learning moments don't occur in classrooms. |
Friday, November 12, 2010
The Procrustean Classroom
One of the subjects they used to teach in schools (and that homeschoolers can still get into) was Greek mythology.
After an exchange of Internet "gunfire" this week, I got to thinking about the old tale of Procrustes.
MYTHOLOGY RESOURCES
Procrustes was a son of Poseidon and a bandit who haunted the roads near Athens. He had a particularly nasty reputation because he was in the habit of inviting "guests," his victims, to spend the night on an iron bed he had made. If the guest didn't fit the bed, he was made to fit. If too short, the victim was stretched; if too long, his feet were cut off.
The online firefight was precipitated by a story on NPR's health blog, "ADHD On The Rise: 1 in 10 Kids Now Affected."
According to a 2007 federal survey, the number of diagnosed ADHD cases rose 22 percent from 2003. The reasons are unclear, according to the researchers. (Although the fact that the highest rate of increase was among non-whites and non-English speakers should raise some eyebrows.)
ADHD RESOURCES
The conflict was between those who were adamant that children need to be medicated in order to control them, and my examples of children I've known who were deemed classroom troublemakers but flourished under homeschooling without needing to be put into an induced coma.
Most homeschoolers probably know how this story goes. Once a child is labeled, usually by the first or second grade, that's it. The rest of a public school career will probably be spent living down to expectations.
As with the story of Procrustes, it's not the "guests" who are the problem, it's unyielding perceptions. Too many schools don't listen to the children or have any respect for differences in learning. The results are written in the newspapers every year as more and more children drop out of high school.
Yet we keep throwing tax money at failure.
Don't get me wrong. There are definitely real problems for some students who can benefit from medicine. However, there is also a clear tendency to label and dose children who just learn differently.
If schools ever hope to fulfill their job of educating children, they need to reorient themselves around the children's needs, not the needs of teachers, state education officials, the pharmaceutical industry or self-absorbed parents.
After an exchange of Internet "gunfire" this week, I got to thinking about the old tale of Procrustes.
MYTHOLOGY RESOURCES
- Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes by Edith Hamilton
- The Greek Myths: Complete Edition by Robert Graves
- Bulfinch's Greek and Roman Mythology by Thomas Bulfinch
- Encyclopedia of Things That Never Were: Creatures, Places and People by Robert Ingpen and Michael Page
- The Hero With a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell
The online firefight was precipitated by a story on NPR's health blog, "ADHD On The Rise: 1 in 10 Kids Now Affected."
According to a 2007 federal survey, the number of diagnosed ADHD cases rose 22 percent from 2003. The reasons are unclear, according to the researchers. (Although the fact that the highest rate of increase was among non-whites and non-English speakers should raise some eyebrows.)
ADHD RESOURCES
- CHADD (Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder)
www.chadd.org - ADDA (Attention Deficit Disorder Association)
www.add.org - National Resource Center on AD/HD
www.help4adhd.org
Most homeschoolers probably know how this story goes. Once a child is labeled, usually by the first or second grade, that's it. The rest of a public school career will probably be spent living down to expectations.
As with the story of Procrustes, it's not the "guests" who are the problem, it's unyielding perceptions. Too many schools don't listen to the children or have any respect for differences in learning. The results are written in the newspapers every year as more and more children drop out of high school.
Yet we keep throwing tax money at failure.
Don't get me wrong. There are definitely real problems for some students who can benefit from medicine. However, there is also a clear tendency to label and dose children who just learn differently.
If schools ever hope to fulfill their job of educating children, they need to reorient themselves around the children's needs, not the needs of teachers, state education officials, the pharmaceutical industry or self-absorbed parents.
Monday, November 8, 2010
Don't Know Much About History
| One of the reasons so many of us parents take on the burden of homeschooling is because we have experienced, one way or another, the biases and shortcomings of the textbooks that are used in public education. Take history books, for example. The texts being used today in most schools don't often bear a strong resemblance to what we parents were taught when we were children. And what we were taught was often a watered-down version of what our own parents were taught. I don't know exactly how it happened, but through the years, successive history texts have bit by bit glossed over key points in our history, buried certain facts that used to be considered basic, played up lesser events, and sadly come to promote a viewpoint that seems to have more to do with a political agenda than education. Going even further back in history results in an even bleaker picture, as the Judeo-Christian contribution to western civilization and the world often gets downplayed or distorted. The only real solution to the problem is to turn to different scholars and even to original sources, an intimidating task made only slightly easier by the Internet. But what sources? How do you find them? There's no way around it--parents are going to have to work to dig up the information our kids should have. We're at a distinct disadvantage as we have to fill in the gaps in our own educations. We have to play catch up so that one day our children won't have to. In an effort to help other parents, here is a list of some of the sources, both original and scholarly, that I have found useful in teaching early American history. Some of them are obvious, some might not occur to you:
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Monday, November 1, 2010
Why We Homeschool
Nonconformists. Wackos. Extremists. Fanatics.
Homeschooling parents get called a lot of names in the media and occasionally to their faces. The above are just some of the few that are printable in a family environment.
As amazed as some people can be that anybody would attempt homeschooling, I'm equally amazed at how few people realize that homeschooling was the norm in this country probably until about the beginning of the 20th century.
Remember those Founding Fathers who set up this formerly great country of ours? Homeschooled, nearly all of them.
Of course, I suspect parents back then generally felt more qualified to teach their children. By all accounts, even a simple farmer in Colonial times not only was literate, but was well-versed in history and probably could have debated circles around many of our modern politicians.
There is a long list of reasons why parents abandon our modern schools in favor of the burden of homeschooling. Most of them boil down to the central failure of our public school system to actually teach children fundamental skills and the schools' abandonment of common American history and culture in favor of "diversity" and special-interest indoctrination.
I don't know if my child can ever reach the intellectual heights of a John Adams or Thomas Jefferson, but I do want him to love his country, and I want him to be able to think logically and clearly (a rare ability these days), and I want him to understand his culture and what makes America special.
I've seen hopeful signs. After years of exclusive homeschooling, my child's taking a couple of classes at the local public school. He wanted to try his hand at a more structured environment (and get to use a real laboratory). By his and his teachers' accounts, on most days, he blows the non-homeschoolers out of the water.
He's still at the age where he parrots a lot of my opinions, but he's started asking his own questions and formulating his own ideas about things, and that's something for a parent to be proud of, too.
But it's a lot of work, this homeschooling. It's early mornings, long struggles with difficult homework, responsibility for challenging a budding mind. Sometimes it means sacrificing work or social opportunities to help forge your child's future.
Ultimately, the main reason any parent chooses to homeschool is because he loves his kids. And if that's extreme, well then, call us extremists.
Homeschooling parents get called a lot of names in the media and occasionally to their faces. The above are just some of the few that are printable in a family environment.
As amazed as some people can be that anybody would attempt homeschooling, I'm equally amazed at how few people realize that homeschooling was the norm in this country probably until about the beginning of the 20th century.
Remember those Founding Fathers who set up this formerly great country of ours? Homeschooled, nearly all of them.
Of course, I suspect parents back then generally felt more qualified to teach their children. By all accounts, even a simple farmer in Colonial times not only was literate, but was well-versed in history and probably could have debated circles around many of our modern politicians.
There is a long list of reasons why parents abandon our modern schools in favor of the burden of homeschooling. Most of them boil down to the central failure of our public school system to actually teach children fundamental skills and the schools' abandonment of common American history and culture in favor of "diversity" and special-interest indoctrination.
I don't know if my child can ever reach the intellectual heights of a John Adams or Thomas Jefferson, but I do want him to love his country, and I want him to be able to think logically and clearly (a rare ability these days), and I want him to understand his culture and what makes America special.
I've seen hopeful signs. After years of exclusive homeschooling, my child's taking a couple of classes at the local public school. He wanted to try his hand at a more structured environment (and get to use a real laboratory). By his and his teachers' accounts, on most days, he blows the non-homeschoolers out of the water.
He's still at the age where he parrots a lot of my opinions, but he's started asking his own questions and formulating his own ideas about things, and that's something for a parent to be proud of, too.
But it's a lot of work, this homeschooling. It's early mornings, long struggles with difficult homework, responsibility for challenging a budding mind. Sometimes it means sacrificing work or social opportunities to help forge your child's future.
Ultimately, the main reason any parent chooses to homeschool is because he loves his kids. And if that's extreme, well then, call us extremists.
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