Growing Without Schooling 51

GROWING

wrTlr0ur SCHOOLING

51 got word Ehat Ehe first child of Pat and Day Farenga was born last nighE (Vay 27 ) : a girl Ehey are naming Lauren PaEricia. We are happy to hear Ehat moEher and child are doing welI. We are looking forward with Pleasure Eo new helpers in the office' Susannah Sheffer wilI be joining our scaff in June, wiEh Ehe parficular goals of working on GWS and organizing John HoIt's papers. She just graduated from SwarEhmore CoIlege where she was also ediEing Ehe eastern Pennsylvania homeschooL newsLetter PENCIL. AIso in June, we expecE the arrival of Elsa Haas, a college studenE who offered to work here as a volunteer for Ehe summer. Elsa has arranged Eo sEay with GWS reader Maryann Mclntyre and family.

In ApriL Patricia Lines, a Iawyer with the U.S, Dept ' ot Education, phoned to inviEe a represenEative from HoIE AssociaEes Eo attend a homeschooling session at a WashingEon, D.C. conference on public and private schooL relationships. This was an ouEgrowth of Chuck O'Malley's "coffee klaEches" Ehat John HoLt had attended once or twice. So I went down for the day, and after the meeEing sPent the evening $rith Theo Giesy and her daughters Susan and Anita. (On chree occasions now, Ehe Giesys have come to Boston and heLped in the office.)

PaE Lines is doing some good work in trying Eo make homeschooLing a betEerknown alEernaEive.

Gi fced Ch i ldren's Monthlv gave usa@6issue, and the November Country JollrnaL should have an articTe--6i--fi6frE1s-dFooling (and GWS) by Becky Rupp.

FurEhermore, the alumni magazine of Bryn Mawr published a homeschooLing arEicle wriEEen by GWS reader Nicky Hardenbergh, and Valerie Vaughan has iusE toLd us that her alumni magaiine, Vassar Quarre-ify, is Paying her for an-?iEftTd-6Fl?E-iill appear in November. We encourage any and all of you to think of wriEing abouE homeschooJ:ing for other magazines, large and small - we couLd never afford Eo buy Ehis kind of good publiciEY. Fairly ofEen, we get calls asking if people can order our caEalog iEems over the phone and pay wirh a credit card. After severaL monEhs of searching, Pat Farenga thinks he's found a reasonable way to arrange this. Look for Ehis service later in Ehe year.

We were saddened Eo hear of the death of homeschooling ParenE Ann Levine of Upton, MA. You may have noticed her ad in Ehe IasE issue, about finding heLp to continue homeschooling her 6-year-old twins. At thaE time, she knew her cancer was Eerminal, but hoped she might have a year left to her. In Ehe notice in We jusE

the BosEon Globe, her family was kind enough co piin-E-a request that donaEions in her memory be made to GWS' which has indeed generated some response, Missouri is Ehe second state Ehis year Eo pass a homeschooLing law - deEails inside. Missouri homeschoolers fought Long and hard to get a bilL wiEh no regulation, and aLmost succeeded:-the new 1aw allows for opEionaL regisEration of home schooLs, and no tescrng.

--- Donna Richoux "HOMESCHOOLING IN THE NEWS" Jon and Wendy WarEes sold 62

cooies of our new booklet HOMESCHOOLING IN THE f985 NEWS at the Washing-

ton Home School Convention May 3.

This atEracEive 40-page publication consiscs of actual reprinEs of many articles about homeschooling, and features names thac will be familiar Eo GWS readers - Joyce Kinmont' Kate Kerman, Theo Giesy, Nancy tlallace' John and Peggy McMahon, Mario Pagnoni, Grant CoLfax, John HoIt, and more. We even include Ehe photos Ehat ran with Ehe articLes. The thoughtfuL and open-minded Eone of Ehe wriEing makes this a great gifE for skeptics. And conErary io what some of our publiciEY said, none of these articLes have been quoEdd-or reprinEed in GWS, so all of you have iome good reading to look forward to.

To order, send us $2.50 Per copy, plus posEage ($I.20 for L, 2, or 3 copies; 4 or more, 401 each) HOW MANY HOMESCHOOLERS?

At Ehe U.S. Dept. of Educa-

Eion conference in Washington ' D.C. Aoril 29. several state educaEion o'ffi"irls who work with homeschooLers sooke for a few minutes abouE the

siEuation in their sEates.

Barbara Mertens of the Education

Dept, of the srate of Washington said

that 1500 homeschool studenEs had registered in her state since the recenE law was passed. Although Ehe educators had opposed che bill when iE was being considered, she said, once it became Iaw the agency was ursed Eo work with homeschoolers and scFools, spr-a"I@ information about the legal changes.

Marie DeLla BeLLa of Ehe StaEe Dept, of Education in Hartford' CT said thac in comparison, ConnecEicut had a smalL number of homeschool sEudents in approved programs: Il8. She also said she saw a large Eurnover among these familiesi over a 3-year oeriod iE seemed to her thaE abouE iralf of the families were no longer homeschooLing.

=

"Friendly Lawyer" Waltham,

Gene

M talks with

Burkart of GWS. Page 8.

"It's very flexible," she said.

"One of the greaEest advanEages is thaE the child is on a one-Eo-one basis" with his or her teacher.

She said that most PeoPle who chose Eo teach their children aE home weren't upset with Ehe public schools as much as they just wanted to be more flexible or Ehat Ehev had special needs. . .

IDR:] And I recentLy taLked with reporter Pat Il I ich ( I probabLy don'c have that speLled right) of the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-SenEinel, who was wriEing a scor/-Z-66It-E6fr6schooLing. She said she had Learned that L267 homeschooL students were registered under the new Florida 1aw, and another 400 or 500 were registered through privaEe schools.

MOM LEARNS A LESSON FROM ILLNESS

Kathv McAlpine (TN) writes:

...My son Nathaniel (8) and I last SepEember, after a triaL run during the summer months . l^le sEarted out in real Ly high began homeschooLing

^^ tsL-j r 1 ^r F^ be liberaEed xcdr ! 5u from public school that hle imagined I drew uP a we could do evervthinq. detarled curriculum pran, wnrcn I've since come to reaLi.ze was absurdly over-ambitious. But there we were.

Than

c"drtanl

v

Fara

nrr'l lari

l-hp

rug out from under me; I learned I needed major surgery. The operation S I NSI DE - Sci enti st : vaid:--Z ---Terti f i cate : 2 --- Donating JH books: 3 --- Tapes/b1 ind: 3 --- Local news (TX, tnV): 4 --- Court news (ND,

lll-iAT'

The Orleans, VT ChronicLe, 186: ...CharloEte VioIette, execuEive secretary for Ehe VermonE Department diviof Education' s homeschooling sion, said Monday that- many more people in VermonE are choosing homeschooling Ehan ten years ago. Ten years ago 40 or 50 people taught Eheir children aE home, she said, and this year there are 175.

AlEhough several peoPle have chosen homeschooling over the public schools beause of religious convicEions, Ms. VioLette said t.haE she wouldn't say Ehat the majoriEy chose it for that reason.

3

126

FL, KS,0H):5 --- Calendar:6 --- Calvert:6

--- School age: 6 --- Research: 6-7 --- Lawyer:8 --- Te.achers/families: l0 --- Neighbors: ll ---.Travel network: 1 l --- Single parents: ll --- Kids working: l2-'l3 --- Home business: l2 --- Young reporters: l2 --- JH/teacher role: 13 --- Life at home: l3 --- Richman/ process: l4 --- Teen's interests: 14 --- Giesy /dependence: I 9 --- Bi kes/Europe: 9 Baruch/tolerance: l9 --- M0 law: 20 --- Miss'ing kids: 2l --- Queries: 2l --- Slow reader home alone: 22 --- Correcting mistakes: 22 --JH/tension bljndness: 23 --- Fami.ly newsletter: 23 --- t4aking books: 24 --- Reading: 24 --- Foreign language:25 --- Rocks:26 --Puzz1es: 26 --- Freebies: 26 --- Songs: 27 1

L

had no idea what a "whuDDin" but he knew iE was something bad. ) My explanaEion Eo the policeman , that my son was homeschooled, caomad nrafrv mus t hrrro ecry susprcrous -JSplcrous and slipthere I was, in my bathrobe ar pers, at it rwo in the afternoon.

recovery Look a couple of months. I'm a singLe parenc, so there was no

was,

rhe rhnrroht nf hi q onino h:ck in school, though, and we decided we'd

WeLl, it came to nothing, and by the next day Nathaniel and I were laughing abouE it. Still, ic's not an avnorianna Itd cqra _ t_o rePear. so

other adult to help out, excepE for a who cared for NaLhaniel during friend L^^^i F^l TL ^F^., rnere wenc my caremy nosplLar sLay. -.. fully pLanned curriculum; NathanieL was lefE to his own devices much of the time. Neither of us couLd stand i,,JusL

F

F^,,-h LUu6"

i F

we could.

--d dL'u

^,,F

oot 5e!

hrr uJ

rho LilL

hoci vLJL

got by just fine. Nathaniel read for his usual 2-3 hours a day, watched pubLic TV, nrr.finod hic rrinl in rrn orrrndc fn the corner sEore (handling money, groWel1, guess what?

.af\/ !er)

I i crc rrJLr

an;

arron

We

^^,,^^-LUuPUrr5

,,i wrL'lFL

aplomb). and learned the muLtiplication tables from some cassetEe taDes

I'd made for him. I couldn't drivb for six weeks, and we missed our cus,,i^iFF^ FL^ I ik-^-., ^-l ^^: Lw,,'d!y rlurdry ence museum. Although I ofcen feLt (I tired and frustrated wanted Eo be aLl betEer immediateLv). it was hearEEiTng co waEdh-NiEhEiTei actually blossom under the extra responsibiLiF' Ly,

H^ ,rc

ts^^l/

.,,^h

^ri.lp P!!u!

in !,,

halnino

with househoLd tasks, showed such tenderness and sensiEivitv Eoward me. and developed an indepindence I hadn't known he had in him, I'd hardly recommend having an l-^--i-^

iorri€ia

^n6rari avnari6h^6

l-.',F

i F L

*nrso,!j/ 11.,

r-"dhF Ldu6rrL

n^

something important. I Learned - ",c because I had to learn - co Erust. mv own child E-n-d my own instincts, to sEop being so uptight about curricula and "basic skills" and other peopl e's

expectations. It was a real turning point for boEh of us.

And whaE changes we've been through since chen! In Ehe beginning, Nathaniel couldnrE function nithout workbooksi we've now abandoned Ehem as hopelessly boring. In first grade h^e^1" ircf rrorr hic '.i-^rinrin^ 'llroPllLlL!l'}3wd5UdlEIy year he's taughE hi mIegi bIe; this col

f

nrrrcirra

rnd

hi.

h--i'.'-if

in^

i.

beautiful.

He has recenEly resumed wriEing poetry, which herd abandoned in

rpcnnnce

r^

a

roa.6ar

urhn

omnhr-

sized "creative expression" with alI the iron joylessness that term implies. An exciting project for both nf ,re fhi hrc hoan rn in-rlonfh sEudy of ancient history. We use a couple of high school Eextbooks as chronological guides, then supplement with Iibrary books, National Geographics, maps, and everything else we can find. We plan to spend the whoLe summer reading about ancienE Greece rrq,,n6r_har^'l l\l-Fh^hi^1 ,,h^r^ rh6 -r JuPc!-'rL!v stage, finds Odysseus as enLhralling r^rninnf rh^.o Qat"+l-.' ^.v toon characEers ) .

Best of all, he is himself .d-in |, o5d ' --,,-1. sPurr^! him fn cnhnnl

home

F,,ll Fh^ ^l.l c;;;ET;-"..1 ^f rF L^^ r^1,^^ almncr a va^t F^t Ld^Yrr d!,,rvrL 06t rha oFfonrc n€ nrrhl ia ^\'6r hhr r Faal 1 ike we're finally

free.

By Ehe way, lve had an encounter with Ehe police, amusing in reErospecE but not so funny at the Eime.

It was during my iLLness, and Ird

sent NaEhaniel to the sEore for a few groceries. To my horror, both he and his bike arrived home (sans qroceri^^\ i^ ^^F-^t ^^LighEs and -... radio going, the whole scary bit.

EvidenEly someone at the store, seeing Nathaniel ouE of school, had called the cops. EiEher nobody ever boEhered to ask NaEhaniel for an explanaE i on, or didn I t be I ieve h im, or maybe he was just Eoo terrified at Ehac point to speak. I do know chat the cop told him, all the way home, about the "whuppin" he was probably going to get when he goE there. (NaEh-

anie

L

Nathaniel just doesn'C go off on his

during schooL hours. It's its|dreo end - ninnr I'd just as soon noc jeopardize our homeschooL staEus or Dut mv child through throush anocher anorher coiTronta coiTrontacion witrh the Iaw... fsee "Preventing Truancy own anymore ^

A---

h,,F

Harrassmenc,"

CWS

#50.

]

HOMESCHOOLER BECOMES SCI ENTIST

article on homeschooLing in the Minneapolis Star and Tribune, 4127 /86:.

From an

by George Monaghan,

...John M. Dolan, a phi losophy nrntoccnr suLdt

rha IIni\roreitrr ^r Li-,,iF^ a^comrfio rrrs wrrE

dLru ^-i

af

Minnalirro

in a turn-of-Ehe-century house off Lake of Ehe IsLes. Years ago he read and reread HOW CHILDREN FAIL by John Holt, who argued that aImosl every child goes inEo schooL smarter and more curious Ehan when he comes out, unless he is very lucky.

...His son, Sean, was 14

when

Dolan urged him noE Eo go to junior hj^h

rr-ril

-^h^^l

rhon

hic

J

narfnr_ t.

PL

I

mance in grade schooL had been unimnrcqqirrp

af

hpcf,

Hp.lidnrf

oar

hiq

work in on Lime, teachers complained, He didn'E DarticiDaEe in cLass.

DoLan'and hi3 son worked out

university professor in socioLogy.

And Garth, 10, has a deep interest in ceramics and painCing. "l Ehink Ehey're very bright and very motivated, bu! I donrt think Ehey' re parEicularly.gitted," Micki Colfax said vesterdav of her sons.

A Harvard spokeswoman, Margery Heffron, said accepting someone who was taught at home isn't unique, "but itts unusuaL. t' ALI four boys have been virEualLy self-educated, Mrs. Colfax said in an inCerview beEween goaE-keeping chores at their ranctr.

Mountain School is Lhe famiLycoined name for the informal school and that's how i!'s registered wiCh the state t.o alLow homeschooLing, "There really isn't any format Eo it," said Mrs. Colfax, a former tt^fFor Fnnl i -h F6^^hd, rho hnrrc learn to read and write and do maEh rrn

tn

nrp-aloahra

much on their

lhorrrra

nralrv

own.rl

The do-it-yourseLf schooling

-f -+?^A

1 ? ,,^.-LJ yedL s

--^ dtiu

r.'han wilurr

iho

Frmi

l.r

moved here to creaEe a homestead.

Frmilrr

momharc

c,'nn^rf

fh6n-

selves by growing their own food, breeding prize-winning goats and operaEing a bed-and-breakfast inn.

MotivaEing Ehe boys to teach themselves has never been a problem because "what Ehey're doing here is

very real,rr said Mrs. CoLfax.

"For i nsEance, " she said, "chey buiIE their ov,/n sheds to house their animals. That means designing and consEructing, and you have Eo know not onLy carpentry bul maEh, And they puE in Ehe plumbing, laid Ehe Eiles and did the elecLrical sysEem for Ehe L^l L-^^l.F^^r ll --l

a

curriculum for home study: reading, writing, and arithmeEic, making potEery. The boy got into physics and mathemaEics. WiEhin months he was Learning the eLemenEs of differential calculus, DoLan said, and aL I5 was taking math courses at the University of Minnesota. By f6 he was doing math research with a team at MassachusetEs InsEitute of Technology (MIT). Now, at 23, he is a research scientist at Ehe Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory in New York, on leave from MIT. He never graduated from grade school. junior high, high school, or college.

Yet, Dolan said, Ehere was no evidence in Seanrs schooL records of remarkabLe abilities, specificaLly

HOMESCHOOL COUNTS FOR CERTIFICATE

Muriel PaLko (MI): .. .A few years ago I wroEe asking about t-eacher certification. In order to mai nEain my cerEi fication, I had to be abLe Uo prove I had three years of Eeaching experience in-E-Eubllc or prlvace school. I got my eIemenrar\/ .otr; F;.aro F^t rho n',rnnco of homeschooLing my son, so I have never taught in any school. I Eaught my own son and, oE[ and on, supervised the education of oEher homeschoolers. I did not exDect three years of this kind of "teaching experTh^ r.^i i L'i rh rac^o.r t^ c.i6n^^ icncc" fo he accFnl-abLe to the univerhe said, Ehat "a kid who works at sity where I got my degree. T expecthome has a potential to do remarkable ed a fLat-out denial. or aE LeasE a things, maybe not in mathemaEics and loE of investigaEion inEo my homecompuEers, but in cther chings..." school Lng arrangemenE. So I was very happy and very surprised when the university notified me that my application had been accepANOTHER COLFAX GOES TO HARVARD ted and the state \,rouLd be sendine me l^le Eold the sEory of Grant my Michigan Continuing CertificaEE in Colfax in "HomeschoolLr Goes to a macEer of weeks. I suppose Ehey Harvard," cWS #35 & 36 (and also a really didnrt know whaE else to do. repr i nE we selL separately ) , Here' s After aLL, according Eo the local the Iatest development, as reporEed superintendenE, I am my sonts Eeacher in an AP story, 4128186: and I am doing an acceptable job.

I donrt knolv if the university BOONVILLE, Calif. - ...Two gradu- automatically accepued my appLication ates of David and Micki CoLfaxrs or if my leCEer arguing my poinE had home-based school for their four sons an infLuence on their decision. I have won scholarshios to Harvard Unipointed out Ehat I goE my Eeaching vers r ry. cerEificate in the first olace in This pasE weekend, Drew Colfax, order Eo satisfy Ehe Iocai super's 18, decided Eo accepE an offer from request Ehal homeschooLed children Harvard and turned down Ehose from have a cerEified teacher. Now thaE YaLe and Princeton, he said yesterday. I 'm experi enced i n Eeach ing homeDrew will join his 2L-year-old schooLers, it would be ironic (and hr^Fhar avant .h^n.rc nro-mod cfrrdrr rrv'rv! unfair) to deny me the opporEuniEy to , u!drrL, dent at Harvard. continue Eo do so, for lack of I'experDrew's younger brother Reed, 16, ience.'r I also indicaced thaE I felt is rrmathematically precocious rrl my inEensive one-on-one teachine aaanrAi u! nc €arlhor F^.-.r u lvil,'L r deev! rr5 rn fhai"ei<perience would be of great vafue r " dLL

From

lJ,

GROWING |^J]THOUT SCHOOLiNG

#5I

3

were I ever to teach in a regular school.

If there are any other homeschooLing teachers out there who need credic for their Eeaching experience, I hope they, too, have no hassles.

Now Ehat I know I am stiLl certified, you can puc me on your ljst of "Teachers wiLLing to help" ' . .

FRIENDLY DISTRICT IN MINN.

the MINNESOTA HOME SCHOOL newsletter' 4/86 ...Rosemary Nelson of WoodburY, MN recenEly moved to Minnesota from Des Moines, IA. In 1983, she approached the elementary superintendenE of the school system about homeschooling her kindergarten age child.

The man was interested. He had heard rumors of people keeping their children home, but the Nelsons were Ehe first famiLy to inform him of their pLans. Mrs. Nelson advised him Eo read books by John Holc and Dr. Moore.

In August Ehe school sysEem hired a Eeacher for the express purpose of assisting homeschool famiLies. The NeLsons put Ehe news on Ehe grapevine and by September there were 15 homeschool children to assisE. The following year (85-86) lhere were 45 children wanring Ehe services and the schooL hired 3 teachers, Next year there will be 60 students learning at home and the school wilL hire an additionaL ceacher.

This cooperacion r,riEh the schooL system has worked out very weII because it is an OPTION' The farniLies who take advanEage of Ehe teachers may or may not use the school curricuLum. The sEudents may or may noE use oEher services at the schooL, such as music, gym, art, etc. There are fami1i^^ i.--', v! ^iF.,.,L^;^r Ly L uJ< drt/ r lI FL^ Ltlc u I les ^F the services provided by the school. arrangeEverybody is happy with Ehis ment. The children get the freedom to From

NETIdORK

:

homeschoolers and libraries of each oEher. PeopIe are Iinding Ehat librar-

ies are ofEen willing co order requested books and pay for Ehem out of cheir own budgets; she says the JanesviLle Library has been particu-

Larly responsive in this regard. And one of the Madison branch libraries has offered space to homeschoolers for educational get-EogeEhers.

Candace said Ehat several Iibrarians commenEed on whac a nice touch the bookolates are (pictured in GI',IS #50). Reirember EhaE ire will send Ehese free Eo anyone running one of these sEate campaigns, or on requesE if you buy TEACH YOUR OWN, HOW CHILDREN LEARN, or HOW CHILDREN FAIL from us (oEherwise, 50( each). - DR

comet

has s6ia-ei-d we need-E6 clear out. the remaining copies of this excellent

booklet. So we're offering a special deaL: only $L each, plus 251 posLage.

And if you order in quanEiEy, we'Il even waive the posEage. SEill a chance to find answers to Ehose ques-

tions you have!

John Holt ObiEuary - We have pa s ced-TE6-f6i!--T6?TE and phoEos that appeared in Ehe New York Times and Boston GLobe, as well as TTiiE-rE "Milestone"--iGtTce, onEo a sin[I6 sheeE. ReprinEs are L0( each (SASE required if you are not ordering other materiaL from us).

John Used Stories - I asked in cWS #50--1--nt6frE-?Emembe red see ing che "Bridges of Konigsberg" story in one of John HoLt's books. David Kramer of CaLifornia did - it's in INSTEAD OF EDUCATION, p. 89. Also, Ehe Heseners of Home Education magazine tound a passage ln {-napcer o or FREEDOM AND BEYOND that is very much Like Ehe "OnIy Interested in Hot Rods'r sEory of GWS #50.

Homeschooled GeolosisE is ReaL lrsqrrrt orrn lha narpntc ool- l-he qrrnnorf Areaffi thoughE Ehe Wyoming geologisE David they need, the Eeachers geE a chance Eo use Lheir expertise, and the admin- Love (GWS #50) was a characEer in a noveL. Not sol John McPhee is a do some administrating... istrators \.{riter of non-f iction. - DR DONATING JOHN HOLT BOOKS

Here's Ehe latest news from the campaigns Eo donaEe John HoIt's books Eo Libraries.

Candace Syman Degler o.[ Oregon says she and Sheri Clemen got

requests fron 28 libraries for free copies of TEACH YOUR OWN, in response

Eo Ehe noEice Ehey wroEe for Ehe Oregon StaEe Libraryrs newsletter. In April, the two sent L00 leEters to homeschooLers requesting donaEions of

48.72 ner.onw fo fill Chese requests. AE press time, Candace says they have filled 12 of the 28 requests, and a Little money is stiLl coming in. Perhaps some GI,JS readers in nl-hpr nlaces can send donaEions Co help them filL Ehe resE? Candace's address ts 16409 VaIIey View Dr' Cheshire OR 97419; phone 503-998-2115.

Donna Mahr of Wisconsin (608835-3436) says that half a dozen libraries in towns surrounding Madison resoonded to the notice in a regionai library newsleEter. In both Oregon and Wisconsin, Ehe simPlest arransement seems to be for the libraiy Eo order Ehe book from Ehe publisher, with Che homeschoolers giving the money to Ehe library either before or after the order. n^--an i nforpcli no --"- y J th-F uurrila rd side effec! has been a general raising of Ehe leveL of awareness of GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

you guidelines on how best to make a Eape (for example, readers sometimes

foigeE Eo announce quotation marks) and will keep track of who tapes what. She can reimburse you for the

cost of the blank Eape.

Naomi says t.haE in general there is a dearEh of alternative publications for bLind people. You wouLd be doing her (and perhaps other blind peopLe) a great service, allowing her access to Ehe suPport and encouragement Eha! many of you have said you find in these pages. - DR WHAT VOLUNTEERS COULD DO

NOTES

Mr. Halley's Cgmet - The

read in fuLl, while oEhers are sumarized or merely Iisted.

Any volunEeer readers should caIL Naomi Rice aE 503-287-1828. It is OK to call coLlecE' She will give

TAPING GWS FOR BLIND PERSON

I have been in Eouch with Naomi Rice, a politicaLly active blind woman in Oregon who is very interested in John Holtrs books and the issues of aLternaEive education, children's rights, homeschooling for disabled children, and the damage done Education." bv ' "SDecial ilowever, Naomi has only been able Eo read a couple of issues of GWS because it is hard for her to find readers.

I asked, "[,JouId iE help if someone were to read aloud arEicles from GWS onto a casseEte EaPe and send iE Eo you?"

She agreed with relief and excitement. Furthermore, she said, if we arranged such an ongoing service, she could make sure we were Iisted along with other periodicals thaE provide srrch fanes for the bLind. She felt sure thit other blind people would be interesEed in our work. ea ie rhoro anrr rpndor wifh a t-rntr rFcordcr and a few hours Eo spare who would be willing Eo do chis? lf there's more Ehan one, you could work on various back issues.

IE looks as if there is more material in a single issue of GWS than wiLl fit on a 60-minute cassetce. Perhaps some articles could be

More ideas of ways that voLunteers could help us: TRANSCRIBE TAPES - We have a dozen or so cassetEe tapes here in the office, tapes of John's taLks, radio interviews, etc. We need EYPisEs Eo transcribe these. A 60-minuEe tape is often about 20 Pages of

cyping.

OTHER TAPES

- FurEhermore,

do

any of you have tapes You made when John spoke in your area? What we would really Like is a Een!!4P!:en :..^F r^6rP ^c oI

FL^+

Lalier LnaL F^^^

i F -.^.. yuu Ju5L uvrt uuL lr

h,'F

have the Eime, you could still

L

send coPY it and

us Ehe Eape and we could arrange for someone else to transcribe it.

PHOTOS - We have surPrisinglY few good photos of John' Do you have any you couLd give us? PLease mark info on Ehe back such as occasion, names, date, etc.

SEND US NEWS - There are over a dozen staEes where we hardly hear any news abouE homeschooLing, either from an individual or an organizacion' Such staEes are: Delaware, Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Norch Carolina, North Dakota, Rhode Island, SouEh CaroLina, Tennessee, Wyoming. There are other states, like Iowa and Ohio, where we donrt hear as much news as werd like. Please' keep us informed - dontt assume someone will do lhis.

LIBRARY WORK - Sometimes we need someEhing looked up in a IibrarY, such as whecher a book is in Print, or the biographical sketch of a famous homeschooLer. It would be great to know. of one or two PeoPle who would be willing to do a little of Ehis work now and then.

UPDATE 'IINSTEAD OF EDUCATION'' APPENDIX - This book may soon get reprinted (we're working on iE) and uE 5^ood Eo have the MUt IL Wuuru ' '^ appendix updated. Many of Ehe books lisEed musE be out of Print, and I know most of lhe organizations have di sbanded.

DO INTERVIEWS

- OEher readers

can follow the exampLe of

SandY

Kendall, who interviewed a "friendly school officiaL" in GWS #50 and a "friendlv lawver" in this issue. Once you have'a goird idea for a subject, GR0WING l^,ITHOUT SCHOOLING

#51, Vo]. 9 No. 3. bi-monthly by Holt

ISSN #0745-5305. Published

MA 02'l.l6.

Associates, 729 Boylston St, Boston '1986. Second$20lyr. Date of Issue, June. I, class postage paid at Boston MA. P0STMASTER: Send

Boylston

St,

address changes

Boston

to

G}iS, 729

MA 02'l16.

Deadlines are the lsth of oddnumbered months. Christmas Shopping Ads due (GliS Sept. 15 #53). Contact Patrick Farenga.

ADVERTISERS:

L

you need to do a little preparing and arranging, do the interview, and Cype it up (double-space) afEerwards. We would clear the final version of the story with the subject before printing. A good format for some stories.

REPRESENT US AT CONVENTIONS _ Every few weeks now, we gef an invitation Eo exhibiC at another homeschooling fair or conference. Sometimes we can think of a GWS reader in the area who mighE run a table for us, but not always. If you hear of a such an event, why noE write us and offer to do an exhibit? Although the best we have done in these events is break even ( after paying exhibiLor's fees ) , we generalLy feel that Ehese are worthwhile for us. - DR

Legal opinion from Ehe Texas Legislative Council said the board did not have the power to wriEe a definition. ...The resolution approved SaEurday contained guideLines EhaE school may follow in deEermining districEs may districEs deEerminins whaE constituEes a privaEe schooL ,,rhila

thorr

if

ins

f6y

fhp

Iaoi<-

office as law and send leEters to all Exemption K schooLs (since he can't distinguish homeschools) telLing homeschooLs Eo go to Eheir Local boards.

Obviously we will fight this as hard as possible. Our district, for example, says there is NO homeschooling in f hi q .61rnf w Far CraAo ,R nr rhnrra that my children had to take standardized tests four Eimes a year,..

lature to act.

IDR: These optional guidelines say thaE a private schooL is either one that thaE is accredited by a recognized agency,. or complies with ParE of Deirdrers letter to local fire and saniEation codes, has McNee L : wriEten regular plan a of instruction and annualLy gives studenEs a nalion,..I was shocked Ehis mornine Eo aI sEandardi zed achievement test. ] learn in Ehe Charleston Gazette EEaE Board members Geraldine Miller you bel ieve "pE?Eits:-ie-TilTi[ to of Dallas and Volly BasEine of Houshide the fact that they want to teach ton argued against adopCing the guide- their children at home" by applying lines. Miller said the suidelines for alternative school staEus under will be considered an iiformal rule Exemption K,..

4OOO PROTEST TEXAS PROPOSAL and urged the board to do nothing There is no need to hide this Vicki Denni s senE this arEicle until the Legislature gives iE direcfacC because neither ExemDEion K nor from the Austin American-State sman, tion, state Iaw on privaEe, parochial, or 4/LL/86: BasEine said, "I believe we church schools makes any reference Eo should simply tuck our tails on Ehis whether the schooL is taughE at home ...Most of Ehe estimated 4.000 one and say we were wrong" Eo have or abroad, whether the teacher is Ehe people,.. began arriving ac the LBJ raised the issue. "We have nothins to parent, wheEher the studenEs are the Library complex at daybreak to oppose do wiEh privaEe schools," he saidl teacher's children, or any orher qualEhe rules being considered by the ...But Jack Strong, a board memification.,.

State Board of Education [cWS #50]. ber from Longview and author of the I can find nowhere in the WV ProCesters attended a raIIv. car- resoluEion, said the board's credibilCode that you have authority Eo deny ried pickeE signs, sang hymns and ity with school officials would be Exemption K status to any school. decried government inEervention in shaken if the board took no action...

Rather the requirements of Ehe law their Iives before going inEo the seem limited Co the schoolrs ooerator nearrng. providing a 'rnoEice of intent to operBecause the LBJ Library audiCorate, name and address of school, and TROUBLE IN WEST VIRGINIA ium seats onLy L,000, the crowd name of the schooLrs chief administrajammed the building halls and lobbies From Deirdre Purdy (ALTERNATIVES tor. rl and spilled into the parking lot.

IN EDUCATION, Rt 3 Box 305, Chloe WV ...WV Code l8-28-1 to 18-28-6 Those inside listened to speakers' 25235) : concLudes: rrNo private, parochial, or comments piped lhrough a speaker syschurch school... which complies with tem into the halls, ,..Unhappy developmenEs on the the requiremenEs of this aiticle . ..The initial proposal considWV legal scene... Since L983, Wesf shall b'e subject to any oEher proviered by the l5-member board IasE Virginia has had a power.lul freedom sion of law relaLing to educaEion month recommended that privaEe of educalion law, Exemption K Eo Ehe excepE requirements of law respecting schools meet standards such as hiring Compulsory Education Laws, which fire, safety, sanitatjon, and immunionly college-educated teachers, fo1-- allowed formation of a schooL with zation. " Lowing staEe-prescribed curricula and minimal oversight by the staEe. The ...[,Je are proud Eo be an Exempoperating in buildings that meeE main requirement is administration of tion K school, operating under one of local fire and safety codes. standardized tests once a year. the finest of West Virninia's laws. ..,Jack Strong,- chairman of the Apparently, State SuperintendenE tle whoLly agree with WV Code 18-28-I, education board's student committee, Thomas McNeel received notification which begins: "In confcirmity with Ehe suggested an alEernative that would of Exemption K school formation from constitution of Ehe UniEed States and require unaccredited private schools someone who made it clear Ehey were of West Virginia, it is Ehe public Eo have students perform satisfactorihomeschooling, Asking for a ruling poLicy of the State in matEers of eduLy on nationaL standardized achievefrom the AEtorney General's office, caEion that no human authoritv shall. ment Eests, follow course goals simiMcNeel received a letter from Deoutv i n any case \arhatever, conErol or lar to Ehose of accrediEed Drivate AtEorney Ceneral Marianne Hoover, interfere with the riehEs of conscischools and meet IocaL fire'and safestating that homeschools should oper- ence or wiEh religiou; liberty..."

Ey codes. ate under Exemption B, which places We do not "claim to be a The only current state regulasuch schools under the oversighE of schoolrtt hre are a school, operaEing Eions of private schools is a require- county school boards... This nas a under Exemption K... ment Ehat Ehey teach a course in good shocking bLow to many people. citizenship. SchooL district offiDespite Ewo requests, I have not cials have Eold the Texas Education received a copy of this letter from OTHER LOCAL NEWS Agency Ehat they need a more explicit the AtEorney Generalrs office. Howdefinition of a orivate school if ever, I spoke to Hoover who basically For addresses of homeschool they are to enfoice the state aEEenargued that since there was a law organizations, see GWS #48, or our j6^ yFFarr;no .^h^^1 dironrl\r dance law.

-r ,J r^ Lv DeiluuLrrrt6 dL "Homeschooling Resource List," $L. .,.SErong said no politicians home, those schooling at home should Again we would like to Ehank have called him in support of the pro- ha a nrro rarl hrr i I those groups fhat send us newsletposal, although he has heard from We immediately sent a leEter Eo ters. IE's an easy way Eo share your dozens who oooose it.

Dr. McNeel outlining what we see to news, problems, and ideas with the He sajd,-"No one is trying to be the extremely strong protections rest of us. puLl any sneakies," and added that he of the law. The relevant sections of CALIFORNIA: The May Home Educaand the education agency never imagEhe law are: WV Code L8-8-l (the Comtlon Magazlne ran an Ltem whlch read ined the kind of public interest the pulsory School AEEendance law), parin iEs enEiretv. "CALIFORNIA - School proposal would arouse. He invited ticularly Exemptions B and K, and districts are ipparently warning homeseveraL speakers to meet wiEh him to r8-28-l Eo 18-28-6. If all of rhis schooling families that onLy persons Ery to draft compromi se Language for concerns you, and you have not done certified under the private tutor the law... so before, you should go to your staEute may fi I I out privaEe schooL local library. ask for the WV Code, affidavit forms. Uncertified home Iook up these sections, read them, educators who fill out the forms can The same paper, fwo days later: and make cooies. be charged with violating the compulsory attendance law.r' I have asked -.-:CoFfes of letters should go ...The State Board of Education to AtEorney General Charlie Brown, the Hegeners for the source of this voted l2-2 Saturday to urge the Texas and Deputy AEEy. Gen. Marianne Hoover statement, as none of the active Cali(Office of the AG, State Capitol, LegislaEure Eo either define a "prifornia homeschoolers I reached by vate school" or give the board the CharLesEown t^lv 25305 ) as well as to press Eime knew anything about this.

Dovrer to do so. the StaEe Superintendentr s office. . .

Jane Williams called the StaEe DeDt. The hoard drnnnpd a nlan i^ At this Doint. McNeel insists he of Ed. official who currently hanilles define private schools iEself after a will foLLow the leiter from the AGrs homeschooling, Dr. Fred Fernandez, GROWING t,llTHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

5

and he knew noEhing eicher. John

Boston sent us a copy of the state

law regarding private schooL affidavits, and iE clearly has no such requirement.

GEORGIA: From Georsians for Freedom ifr-EdilEdt ion, 47Sfi-'TEE-TeorETi DeDa;t-meft=T-E-ducat ion has accumulaceb a large number of complainEs from school superinEendents and visiting Eeachers concerning lack of compliance by parents with one or more of Ehe requirements for home study programs... Towards Ehe end of che I986 Legislative session, Senator FosEer told some of our lobbyists Ehat because of che many families who are reporting aEcendance buE are noE really teaching their children, Ehe suoerintendenEs and oEhers have documented Ehe DrobLems and will be acEively woiking to change the compulsory attendance law to make the paraccountable. ents more rr...We must put togecher our own set of records and documentaEion; then when Ehe educaEion departmenE gets ready to present Eheir acEual number of complaints, we can whip ouE a professional file of reports by parenEs - showing that Ehe number of problems is very small in comparison f^

rho

laroo

t:

le

nF

onnd

rpnorfq

Ehat we will have gaEhered.'l HAWAII: Eleanor Ortiz of Kauai says Efiet-E bill now before the legisLaEure would alLow parents wiEhout a college degree to teach Eheir own chi ldren.

IOWA: A Missouri reader senE this 5?Ticle from the Des Moines Resister. 4/4/86: "Iowa lawmakers +' wTTf-drop the issue of homeschooling for this year and will conduct a study instead... The SenaEe had aooroved a bill that neither senators no? home-schooling backers Liked. The Iowa House Education Committee passed an amended version of that biLl thac called for home teachers to consuLE wich certified Eeachers, . . " MARYLAND: Manfred Smith of the MARYLEND--trOME EDUCATION ASSOCIATION reporEs that Ehe favorable home education biLl faiLed in the last hours of Ehe IegislaEive session. AfEer passing the fuIL House, and the SenaEe Economic and EnvironmenEal Affairs committee, it was amended heavily on Ehe SenaEe floor, and Ehen Eime ran out. Manfred says that homeschoolers hope Eo meeE with the Stace SuperintendenE and work on modi fying the

by*laws.

NEW YORK:

Seth RockmulLer

schoolers Exchange that the oltlce oI Ene sEaEe IducaEion DepartmenE EhaE is responsible for providing informaEion about homeschooling has been changed. The person now Eo contact is Carl Friedman of the Attendance Unit, Rm 362, Ed. Bldg. Annex, ALbany NY 12234; phone 5L8-47 4-6943 .

OREGON: Jane Jovce sent a clipping Trom the Oregonian that said Rep. Bruce Hugo, R-Scappoose, was offended by the low sEandard (l5th Dercentile) Ehat the staEe set as the minimum Eo show 'rsatisfacEory educaEional progress" for homeschoolers.

He said he regreEEed that his commiEtee had passed the homeschooling law in iEs present form and promised to work for a revised law in 1987, VERMONT: Patti Smith writes, "FirsEl-I would like to add a bit about the Forum in Randolf thaE was held in October Ehat was conducEed by Ehe Depr. of Education Icws #50]. of' Ehe 55 folks presenE, there were about five Dept. of Ed. folks, only I superintendent, and Ehe rest were reoortT-Tn-EFe

Home

homeschoolers. The superintendent GROWING l^l]THOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

Supreme CourE afflrmed che convlcclon of Ehe parenEs (the PaEzerg, Larsen!, Reimches, and Lunds) on charges of violating Ehe compulsory school

came prepared with a Z-page ouEline on 'why he objected Eo homeschooling' EhaE he passed out Eo folks as they came into Ehe audiEorium, At the end aEtendance laws. AE present, North of our meeting he sEood to comment: Dakota only allows parents wlth teachhe learned a lot about homeschooling, ing certificaces co educate thelr what it is, and who is homeschooling' children ac home. that his negative opinions changed' What is inceresting about the and chat he wished Darents aE his PTA ruling is EhaE Che courE seriousLy meetings were half bs enthusiastic as considered the parenEs' argument Ehat Ehe homeschooling parents are. the cerEification requirement "The biLL thaE was passed by the inf ringes unconsE ituEionally upon House Education CommitEee is now their religious beliefs' Buc in the dead. However, some folks, home sEudy end, it concluded Ehat a requirement parents and Dept. of Ed. people, are for a Eeacher's certificate is ttamong meeEing the end of May to deEermine wheEher or not a new bill will begin." the Ieast oersonally inErusive methods now availabLe to sa-Cisfy Ehe sEaters WASHINGTON: From Wendy Wartes: prime inEeresE in seeing that its "Our WEsFTngt6n Homeschool- ConvenEion children are taught by capable was a tremendous success, May 3rd. persons . " I,000 homeschool parents, Ewo state The familiesr attorneys filed an legislators, and several school administrators attended, One of the legis"Appellant's Petition for Re-Hearingr'r poinEing out EhaE "least inlaEors and several educators commenEtrusiverr is not the same as trleast ed that it was a wonderfuL experience restrictiver" which is supposed to be Eo meet so many educaEion-oriented the standard. Also, since honeschooland caring parents. The day included ine families are inviEing che legisa very good curricuLum fair, and 40 lature Eo adopE alEernatives to the lvorkshops on a wide varieEy of copics. Our main guest speaker, Donna Eeaching cerEif icaEion requirement, such alternatives could noc ProPerly Collett, from Arlington, WA, spoke be cal,led "intrusive." The lawyers abouE her homeschooLing exPeriences are considering taking the appeal Eo wiEh her now teen-aged sons. She the supreme court. received a standing ovation at her conc lus

ion

!

"It was mosE gratifying to see An undated UPI sEorv from so many homeschoolers feeling confiTallahassee, FL: dent enough in our newly-won legal F^ -FF^-i .hrro rnd I oern 5LdLUs , . . In a victory for the "home from each oEher. I doubt Ehe convencion could have succeeded so well had school" movement, an appeal court Wednesday overruled a Bardford CounEy iE noE been for a genuine Pulling iudge- who declared four children togeEher of many diverse homeschoolitards of the sEaEe because Eheir paring organizations... Debra Stewart fTom FAMILY CENTERED LEARNING ALTERNA- enEs chose to teach Ehem aE home.

The lst DisErict Court of ApPeal TIVES flew back from Utah where she is caring for her critically ill moth- refused lawyer Robert Edewaard the er, to lead two workshops... The sup- ruling he sought on whether the U.S. ConstiEuEion guarantees parents porting groups voted unanimously to right Eo Eeach their children at leave money in Ehe bank for an even home, A chree-judge panel of the Iarger convention in the spring of court based iEs ruling on staEe lal^ts 1987 in the SeatEle area," on home schools. !,IISCONSIN: From the WISCONSIN The appeal judges said the origiPARENTS-FSSOCTATToN newslett er, 3 I 86 ; nal judge ignored 1984 laws Ehat say "The Cashton public school board school officials musE meeE with paradopEed a resolution in November 1985 concerning students in home-based pri- ents before bringing truancy charges.

They also noEed the LegislaEure sPecivate educational programs. In Feb' fically auEhorized home schools lasE 1986, Ehe Sparta school board considyear. The new law, approved for a ered a proposal that is modeled nearly word for word on the CashEon reso- two-year trial period, allows home education as long as public school Lution." One of Ehe clauses says a officials are noEified of che stuhomeschooled student \,nho wishes co dentsr progress. enroll in public school may not be Edewaard said Ehe constituEional placed higher than 9Eh grade. The WPA issues the case raises mighE scill be newsLeEter wonders whether, to be answered if the Legislature a1lows fair, this same policy will apply Eo Che home school law to exDire in all transfer students, from other 1987. . . oublic and Drivate schools? WPA warns homeschoolers to "take diplomatic and consEructive action to ensure that unreasonable policies are noc established in your communiEy.r' - DR THE BEST ARGUMENT I

FOR

COURT NEWS

Rev. ClinEon Birst of the DAKOTA HOME SCHOOL ASSOCIATION

NORTH

sent

the t\ro recent State Supreme CourE rulings mentioned in GWS #50, along v,/ith a copy of the proposed homeschool Legislarion.

The case that was decided in favor of the homeschoolers, James Twomey v. F.S., G.S., and C.Sll--G'as + @y.rhe chiLdren had been declared "unruly" in juveniLe courE; the N,D. Supreme CourE said Ehat was inappropriate because the children had been complying wiEh their parents' wishes, noE actins in defiance of them.

In the other case. the N.D.

HOMESCHOOLING IS

WELL-EDUCATED HOMESCHOOLERS. Games designed to tnnke

learning fun

for the whole fumily!

SEND FI)R A FREE INtr1ORMATION PICXTCE ASSOC!|frES, PO, DOX 2r2, flEl4' IiOPE, PA ltvJt

sL.L.

The 3/86 EDUCATION

KANSANS FOR ALTERNATIVE

newsleEter reports a

home-

school vicEory, at least for the

first

round:

may be purchased by Marylanders who

...GIen and Peggy Hardon went Eo courE Ehe middle of January. Their superintendent had begun to inquire about their plans last summer, before the school year had even started. He inforned them EhaE they could noE homeschool and that it was ilLeeal in Kansas. The school year began, Ehe superintendent meC with the Hardons, filled out a report, and affer a dr^-r

A^-1

was seE.

ur ^f

ti---1 rrlrdtsrrrrts,i--

d^

ts-: ^1 LrLdr

A^F^ udLe

After hearing the prosecution's side.and onLy parr of rhe defense,

Ehe judge ruled that they were indeed a Drivate school. The sEate had failed to show that the Hard.onsl school did not meet the recuirements q

year ago, CaIverE ended its prior policy of withholding macerials in situations where Local board approvaL had noE been obtained. Now materials

check a box on the CaLvert Application Forn stating they believe they have complied wiEh aECendance laws, OR wish to use the materiais for

enrichment, OR have some other reason for studying at home... The Application simply contains a bold print statemenC that parenCs teaching aE rrshould

check sEate aEtendence laws and be in comoliance. ". . , Is this chanse true elseIDR: where in the U.S.?] home

/-oMpULSoRyScHooLAGE

NEWS

PhiL and Lee Gonet wrote in

Ehe

May ALABAMA HOME EDUCATORS newsLeEter:

..,0n Friday, April 26... there a bill pending in the House (HB 260) aimed at lowerine the age ac which children are REOUIRED to aEtend school. A similar bilL had passed the Senate.

And I heard Michael Farris, pres..,A series of phone calls were idCNE O[ ThE HOME SCHOOL LEGAL made by a coupLe of local homeschoolDEFENSE ASSOCIATION, make an interesters Eo their representaEives on Sâ&#x201A;Źturing point aE the Washington D.C. con- day and Sunday. This revealed that ference Apri.L 29. In the SchmidL case most of our elected officiaLs evidentHSLDA is bringing before Eh-6-TFTo ly don't read the bills they voLe on, state supreme court, Ehey argue that as rras Ehe case wiEh the two local public school districts should not Senators, neither of whom had read have the power to approve and reguthe bilL, but BOTH of whom had voted Iate private - i.e., home - educafor passage tion, as Ehey have a financial stake ...It soon became obvious thaE in the ouEcome of Eheir decisions. the biLl had been misrepresented in Farris ciEed the U,S. Suoreme Court the commLEtee hearings as being aimed Case Tumey v. Ohio (273 US 5lO, 1927) at allowing six year oLds to go to in which the court ruled that a town school (this is currently the case) mayor could not arrest, try, and .[ine rather than serving Eo require the bootleggers, because he was directly aLtendance of rhosE chilcl?Ei:-tnrhen enriching the coffers of Ehe town he Representatives SEarr. Hooper and governed and was Eherefore not an McKee realized thaE they had been misimparE i aI judge. It wiIl be i nteresEled by the Dept. of Education in this ing to see how a courE interprets matEer, they agreed to objecE to the this argument, - DR bill.., Since this was the Last day of the regular session the biLl died, and wili have to be brorrqhf rrn in both chambers again to get passed...

CALENDAR Everv leqislafor we Ealked Eo Two special evenEs repLace Ehe from alL areas of the State (with cne usual 2nd ihurs. HoIr Oo6i-E6il3e: excepEion of one) said Ehey voted for Thurs. Julv I7. t9tl6: HoIE Ehe biLl because Ehey Ehev didnrt kno\t know .# Assoc.

Open House.-618--TM. Wendy there was any oppositi6h-!--OiEE--6ilr Baruch will teach baskeE-making for represenCaEives repre represencaEr-ves s enCaE ive s knew parents were conDarents were aIl ages. Call first so we'll have cerned, they listened and agreed and enough supplies (437-f550). supported our views, BuE we came danSaE. Aus. 9: Homeschoolers gerousLy close to a six year oLd man,............'...',.+ Picnic, Lars Anderson Park, Brookline datory attendance law, MA. Sponsored by Holt Associates. ll Who was that one exception? Roy AM. Bring Lunch. For info contact Johnson from Tuscaloosa. He was office, 6L7-437-1550, or send SASE. already aware of Ehe issue because Aug. 22-24: Clonlara Jamboree the Tuscaloosa support group, headed -,,+ Home tor Schoolers. Hovt Center. E.

by Barbara Brasfield, invited him to Mich. U., Ypsilanti MI: Contact Cionspeak at one of their home meeEings Lara School , L289 JeweEt, Ann Arbor and the homeschoolers \rere able to MI 48I04; 3L3-769-45L1. \/oicp fhoir nnini 6rri\, .hil.iWe wilL be happy to run notices hood educaEion. He listened.., of major homeschooLing evenfs, but we need plenty of notice. Deadline for GWS #52 (events in September & later) From the April SOUTH DAKOTA HOME is July 15. Deadline lor GIJS #53 SCHOOL ASSOCIATION newsletter (events in Nov. & later) is Seot, 15. .,.Less Rensink iust haDpened to be in Pierre Iin febrrlary] aird CALVERT RELAXES POLICY learned through hi s Representative, Ray Fidler wroEe in the MARYLAND Gary Bender, that the education bilI, HOME EDUCATION ASSOCIATION newsHB 1296, was soon to be in commitEee Ietter, Spring 86: and we would have opportunity to :mcnd i1- pqno.iellrr in rpoar.le l^ Unknown Eo many Maryland homethe lowering of the school entrance schoolers, the CALVERT SCHOOL of Bal- a8e. timore quietly changed its policy After successfully amending Ehe regarding nhat statements must be bill so the enErance age was back to 1/ ,,^ 1^^*-^r made by homeschooling parenEs concernwE !tsdr rrtsu FL^F LrrdL FL u,re bill supposed, ing local schooL board approval ly made kindergarten mandatory for before obEaining Calvert's home the child as well as Ehe districE. instructional maEerials. Nearly one The biLl was definitely unclear on fnr

nrirrrfo

<ahanl

The State has decided to aooeal the decision to Ehe Kansas Court of Appeals. . .

was

!

:

this maEter... We then had to DroDose another amendmenE Eo cause kindergarten to again be optional for Ehe "

child. Dr, James Hansen (State School Superintendent ) and several oEhers tried Eo block our efforts but the Lord saw us Chrough again and $re succeeded. HB 1296 successfullv oassed both houses and has now been bisned

by Gov. JankLow...

L DR: I Ihree oEher sEaEes where educators have recentlv nronoqcri

lowering che mandatoi;'.!;;5i";;. "r" North Carolina, Arizona, and Arkansas.

On the other hand, Illinois is gradually RAISINC the age for kinder-

Sarten entrance; eventually, an enrollee wiII have to be 5-when school starts instead of the presen!

4 years, 8 monEhs. From the Chlcago NorEhwestside Press, 4 /2/86 :

...For the 1986-87 schooL vear. children wi I I be el igibLe to enter kindergarten if they are 5 years old

by Nov. I, f986, instead of the previous Dec. I cutoff daEe. The cutoff date was chanped in compliance with the Education-ReEorm Act passed by Ehe General Assembly Iast year. The date will be moved up Eo Oct. L for the 1987-88 school year and ro Sept . I for rhe 1988-89 school year.

According to the StaEe Board of Education, the change was made because of evidence Ehat older chiLdren are more successruI In scnool.., IDR: I Raymond Moore rnade a nice analogy on the subjecE, quoted by

Molly Farrington in Ehe Connecticut homeschooling newsletter Hearth Notes. To say thaE Head SE-a-F-rs experience rnith poor children means that all children should starE school earIier, is "Iike saying, if you can hel n a chi ld* hw frlrino him nFF th'"" "j coLd streeC and housing him in a vnarm tent, then r,Jarm tents ihouLd be provided for a1I children - when obviously most chil?Iren already have even more secure housing."

RESEARCH ON HOMESCHOOLING

Here are reports of research

on

homeschooling thlc we have received

over the last several months.

Remem-

ber that we have a reprint on the subject which we offer for l0f (SASE required if you are noE ordering oEher maEerials from us).

Before Washington State passed iEs present homeschool Iaw, it briefIy oFEered a I'piloE program" in whjch sEudenEs could register with one of two private schools, FAMILY CENTERED LEARNING ALTERNATIVES (FCLA) or the CENTER FOR CHRISTIAN SCHOOL SERVICES (CCSS). Brian Ray wriEes in his newsletter Home School Researcher (OSU Sci. Ed@7331; 503-754-4L51 or 838-1248) : n,,,i6- +L^ c1I1 of 1985, the State of WashingCon Superintendent of PubLic InstrucEion made availabLe a report ent i t I ed "washington sEate ' s Experimental Programs Using Ehe ParenE as TuEor Under the Supervision of a WashingEon StaEe Certifjed Teacher I984-85.rr The information in Ehis article comes from thaE reDorE. . ..A core group of I00 sEudents were identified as havinq been in the experimentaL program froi the pretesting Ehrough the spring of 1985.

This core of sEudents were DosEtesced in April of 1985. Srinford GROWING t^lITHOUT SCHOOLING

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A: There is considerabLe anecdoinq a score on such a test "seLforron cilliar rhrn nel'lino tal evidence (case histories) in the ^^iao^tt'ic homeschooling literature thaE homethe score on an IQ Eest "intelLisence." And what are unschooled child- schoolers do weLI. But it is in the nature of such things thaE good case ien suooosed to make of such items as hisEories are IikeIy to be reported and in Ehe majority of cases were "My clissmates make fun of me" or "I and bad ones won't be. AnecdoEal eviweLl above Ehe national average... hate school'r? NeverEheLess, Wesley dence has shown that homeschooling The median scores in Language/EngLish Taylor feLt that this was the best can work but it does not give informafor most grades fell beEween the insErument for the purpose, as iE is second and third quartiLes (above wideLy used and accepted among psycho- Eion--a6out how often it works.

ThFrc ;TA-;;;T-studies that show average)... In nach, Ehe median score I ogical and educational c i rcIes, and that tutoring is more effective Ehan for grades 2, 4, 6, and 7 for boEh that the results would be usefuL, the conventionaL classroom. There is l^locl orr ro.onrl rr i ccrrpd a 2-naoo sites feIL at or above the nationaL no reasonable debate on this. Howaveraqe. while the math scores for summary of his findings, and says ever, mosc of these studies relate to & FCLA), 5 that a complete copy of the study sradei i tccss), 3 (ccss tutoring by a "qualified" teacher.

(330 pages) wilL soon be avaiLabLe in fCCSS A FCLA) and 8 (FCLA) [elI below ParenE luEoring (homeschooling) is Ehe national average. In summary, the book form from University Microfilms generaLly regarded as a very dif[ermajority of the scores were average, Internationaf, 300 N Zeeb Rd, Ann ent question because of concerns or above average, in reading, langArbor MI 48106. abouE the "qualificaEions" of Ehe uage and math.

Amone hi s concLusi ons: parenE. Thc rcnorf emnhasizes that fewer The self conceDt las measured h., rhi c cnal o I nf rha' hnmpcehnnl i no StatisticaL studies of homeEhan 100 sEudents in each grade LeveI school students do exist but Ehere Iowers Ehe reljabi I icy ot Ehe data. higher chi Idren was signiIicanrly Mncr af tho or:de cemnleq are noE many. (I am alwaYs Looking c ont a ined than Ehat of the conventionally fewer Ehan L6. . , schooLed popuLation. Half of the home- for more if you know of any. ) While almost aLl such studies show homeschooLed sc6red aE or above the 9LsE rrlncnFer qc col f-.nn.anr narnanfi I a schoolers do better Ehan average, few have involved a good sampling. For Jon Wartes (WA) writes, "Here is is a refLecEor of socialization, it exampLe, if only 5O% of a group of some information on a L984 study of would appear that few homeschooling homeschoolers provide test informahomeschoolers in Alaska - this is a children are socially deprived.

Eion and the average score is high' different sEudy than Ehe 1981-82 CriEics of the home school shouLd not it is very reasonable to wonder if report mentioned in GWS #44." urge seLf-concept and socializaEion the low scorers were Less likely Eo The report was prepared by the rationaLes. These factors apparently submit their resuLts. If Ehey had parstate correspondence school, CENTRALfavor home schoolers over the conventicipafed, the average score would be IZED CORRESPONDENCE STUDY, Pouch GA, tionaLly schooled population. " lower. The foremosE challenge to homeJuneau AK 998lli 907-465-2835. From facEors of gender, number - The i-^l^nr'la nF zoci;anno school researchers on Ehis Eopic is -ikl the cover lelEer titled "Summary of r!u!rL't3r u, ^l to obtain a good sampling! It.is not SRA TesEing for CenEralized Correspon- prior convenEional school ing, educaeasy. dence SEudy, ApriL/May 1984": tional leveI of homeschool oDerators, _ Las L'( a homeschool _ q. wd5r'It,BLU,' ^. r.r^^L .. .A total of 53"L of the sEunificantly reLated Eo the seLfing law. Why do we need to Prove dents enrolled in CCS during ApriI concepE of homeschooling children. anyth ing ?

1984 were tesced. 40% of the studencs - The best predictive modeL of A: tJhat the legislature creates enrolLed are reflected in the sel E-concept in homeschooling chi 1dthe legislature can change. I have attached comDosite daEa. ren is related to Iower grade equivavirtualLy no reason Eo believe that .,.The differences between the lence, higher years of homeschooLing, major changes are contemplaEed by anyscores of studenEs tested on siLe and higher socioeconomic staEus, higher one. However, minor adjustmenEs are those Eested aE home may be due to number of homeschooling chiLdren in rne IDesE way Co prellKeIy 1n Llme. TL^ comfortable home setfollowing: the and higher beginning the family, tsi--. c^-:r:^-iP.. !L) vent unwarranted changes is to have ^F home Eeacher/ v! rd"'r!rdr Lrr16' school age. the best informaEion. A study such as proccor; group EesE scores increase John Wesley Taylor can be h^.^F 4,,this could be very heLpful. ^F when given on an individual basis... u! vurreached at Andrews U., ucPL, I do have one potentiaL concern.

Program Evaluation: In reviewing riculum & Inscruction, Berrien Spgs It is logical Eo expect (and this the test daEa one will note rhat even MI 49104; 6L6-47L-3514. research can help verify) that homein the limited sample (227.) using schoolers who do welL are more likely only studenEs tested onsite, overall to conEinue homeschooling and those theqc srudenrs nerformed wel I above RESEARCH NEED FOR THE who do poorly are, as a group, more average, 9 of the 12 grades feLl likely to discontinue. Some school From Jon Wartes, 16109 NE 169th above Ehe 75th percentiLe in reading' superinEendents will probabLy start 8 oF 12 grades falling above che 60Eh Pl, Woodinville WA 98072: keeping documentation on returning percentile in language, 9 of the 12 homeschoolers. How Ehese former home...AEEached are explanatory grades falling above 60th percentile schoolers wi11, as a group, compare materiaLs regarding a homeschooL in math. rocoqreh nr^ iF.f Trl l ha condrrcl-inq wiEh Eheir conventionalLy educated When one includes the Itested-] peers is yet Eo be seen. If it turns the summer of '86 and '87. Irve at-home sEudents, Eheir composite out thaE there is a problem, iE could always felt that information breeds test scores are even higher... become the basis for Ehem to ask for acceDEance and svstematic studies are Summary: For mosE groups who some change in law. But note Ehat Ehe the best kind of information. were tesEed during Ehe sPring of superintendenEs wiIL noE be sampling When I showed Ehe drafts to my 1984, their performance indicates a significant porEion of homeschoolown superintendent (Northshore School Ehat the CCS curriculum does a good i^h f6..hino fha fect-< .nncenl-q ers (those who don't enter PubLic District), he became so interesEed ^f school,) Because Ehis project EhaE he donaEed the printing! and skilLs Ehat are tesEed on the SRA attempEs to sample the whole range of ,,.If homeschoolers in other Achievement Test. . . homeschoolers, it will provide more states wouLd Like Eo uEilize Ehe compLete information. cuestionnaire and oEher rnaEerials dhat Richard WheeLer and I developed IDR: ] The third study reflecEs for this project and conducE a siminot academic achievemenE, but the Q: If my child scored low lon a standardized testl and I respond to lar study of their own, they would be issues of socializaEion and selfEhis project by filling out an answer most welcome to do so... concept. In January, 1986, John Wessheet, won'E I be hurEing homeschoolLey TayLor of Andrews University, MI ers by lowering Ehe average scores in senE a questionnaire and a psychologiEhe results? cal test to a random selection of subIDR: elong with the four-page A. Two comments: questionnaire, answer sheet, "Project scribers to GWS and to the Moores' I ) I c may Lower the average Descriptionr" and instructions Eo Parent Educator and FamiLy Report. We scores sIighEly buE it i s sEi 1I prelocal coordinators who are helping Eo do not release our marrrng rl sc Eo ferable to respond. The reason reothers, but we agreed to do the mail- conduct the study, Jon also senE a lates Eo the suspicion that low scorsheet he wrote called "Questions and ing here if we were reimbursed for ers wiLL be less LikeLy to respond Answers About the Project." Some alI costs. than high scorers. If your child interesting excerpEs : l The'rPiers-Harris ChiLdren's scored aE the I07.iIe but you do not Self-ConcepE Scale" consists of 8O respond, the hard line critic mighC ...Q: I have heard that there is Yes/No statements such asrrl am a a lot of documentation that homeassume that the child was at the happy person," "It is hard for me to schoolers do well. Whv do more 5"Ai,Le. make friends," "I am ofEen sad," eEc. 2) We genuinely need information re s earch ?

Personally, it seems to me that call-

Achievement TesEs were used.

TesEing was done in three subjecE areas: reading, Ianguage/English, and math/mathematics. The median reading scores were above average

GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING

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abouc low scorers. I have been personaLly impressed by some parents who choose homeschooling because Eheir

child has a handicai or other ditficulEy and Ehe child- is being better servbd by Ehe 1:I raETo. Reilember also that (by definicion) 23% of all public and private schooL students score at or below the 237.i1e. It shouLd be expected that some homeschoolers ( including handicapped ones) will aIso...

TALK WITH FRIENDLY LAWYER

Sandy Kendall recently talked with Gene Burkart, an attorney near Boston who has successfullv heLoed numerous homeschoolers in the list five years.

Below is part of the conver-

saEion.

SANDY KENDALL:

Do you have

constant stream of homeschooLing cases, or one a year, or,..?

a

GENE BURKART: Ir fluctuaCes. I've been doing them for five years now, and right now I have fhe most cases I've ever had. I have three active cases and anoEher that's somewhaE dormanE and looks pretty good that it wonrt become a problem. Two are very, very active; we're in Ehe middle of things. I always seem to have aE Least one, of some sort. And Irve gotEen a number of calls on and off, which can be handled iust in a

phone conversation.

, SK: At GWS, when people call up and say theyrre moving here or theywant to start homeschooling in MassachusetEs, we always EelI them yes, itls legal, if you gec prior approval. Do you think a Large number o.[ cases indicates thaE the laws, or the

Iegality, is in quesEion? Or is it special circumstances Ehat make them have to come to court?

GB: l,ielL, itrs more an indication of the kind of school district Eheyrre in and what kind of superinEendent is there, and Ehe school commiEtee. The Law in MassachuseEEs is pretty broad. IE's subjecE to inEerpreCation, and I think a lot of school disEricts and srrneri nfendFnfs are unfamiliar with th;'i;;l-i";;;;; generally they're used Co having a lot of conErol over Ehe students and people, and often-times Ehey conduct themselves in that fashion with parencs. They have a loc oF expecEations of what Ehe parenEs should do, and donrt like it when thev don't have Ehat kind of conErol. if'ey are people who've gravitated to the position Ehey are in because of ceitain qualities. One is, they're admini straLors, people who like to exercise a loE of control over a lot of people. They have skills for that. So thaE's one of the probLems. I might get. a jaded view of what school administrators are like because I see. more or less.

Ehe probLems, Some people have suggested to me Chat it isnrt so jaded!

SK: Is there anv kind o-[ trend in Ehe cases?

GB: One of the mosE frequent problems I've seen in cases is where Ehe parents don't have college degrees, or experience in teaching, That often-Eimes reaLlv is a oroblem

for superintendents, because'Chey feel unless you've had che speciilized training, how can you teach children? This one assistant super-

intendenE Irve been battling hras saying that he does noL believe in generalists: you don'E go to a general practitioner for brain surgery, and Ehat for seventh graders you need specialisEs in all different subjects. So thatrs Ehe mentality you're dealing with. When I was in si:vbnth grade we wenE to a Catholic school with nuns who taughE fifEy kids everything, and our standardized Cests were probably higher Ehan the average now, and r^re hrere averaqe kids. So that comes up a lot, aSort the qualifications of parenEs. Testing is a frequenE issue. Horit are they going to Eest? It seems Chat schools ofcen like a lot of EesEs. especially on someLhing they're unfamiliar wiE wiEh. I'd say those are the two main issues thaE I've I've had to t deal with.

SK: Have things changed since you began at all? Perchemlides has pretty much been thE--Ei-i-da-icll hasn' t it?

tinue. Or, they could appeal iE, and they could geE a brand new hearing before a districE court iurv session.

They couLd sEring this or]C -for a long Eime.

still

SK: And, meanwhile, they can

teach at

home?

cB: The judge has no authority order Ehem to send the child co school. Therers no restrainins order por,rer. So that mucks everychiig up.

This one case I have - the judge Ehought Ehe whole Ehing was ridiculous and wanted us to work iE out. and we're Erying Eo, but it doesnit look like \de can. So we'lI eo back into court, buE the long and the short of iE is they've been ouc for a year. We'I1 have the girl testedl I'm sure she'll do okay. So now we'll say, "Here's the proof. Forget about whatrs right, and regulaEions and all thaE. The fact is, shers learned.,' In another case they brought truancy complainEs against the mother, and when the school learned thaE GB: Yes, there haven'E been any the judge couldnrt order Ehe child new reported decisions thaE I know back to school, they brought a civil of, The judge who wroEe that decision suit to Che superior courE asking for was a superior court judge aE that resEraining orders. This is the first Eime. That's noE an appeals court or time I've been in a superior court on Ehe supreme judicial court, which Ehis kind of civil acEion. ThaE's the hear cases where there is an aooealakind of action we would ordinarilv ble issue of law, and are looklit co bring, saying th-a-E the superinEendenc F^!ur preceqerlL. ^-^^^r^rn any case, a super_ unconsEitutionally denied Ehe applicaior court decision does not have the tion, and therefore, Judge, .I want precedent-setting weight of Ehese you to restrain Ehem from any prosecuhigher courts. However, because Judge Eion, and order Ehem co alloi.r i t. So Greaney is so highly respecEed, and theyrve taken the action from there. iE's such a well-wriEcen decision, Thatrs a little different. nationally known, it has had a lot of So, the first kind of legal influence. The DeDartment of Educaaction is the criminal charge against tion of MassachusbEts has adopted it the parent for failing to sAnd ahe in its guidelines, But whaE has hapchild: Erdenty dollar fine and the pened is hers become an appeeT; co;rt right Lo a trial de novo, a brand new judge, and I believe he's'the Chief trial , if you're Fo-ii-d-luilry. The Justice of the appeals court, so I'm other two are a Little more scary. sure if any home education case were The second form of Iesal action Eo go up on appeal, they would probab- is Care and Protection, whlch is the ly assign it to him for writing the child abuse staEute. That is extreme. opinion and certainly they're going They would have Eo say the parent $ras to pay a lot of deference to what he unfit, failing to provide for the wrote in Perchemlides. necessary educaEional needs of the child. I don't think schools really SK: Are your clients usually opt for Chat one in most cases. defendanEs or plainEiffs?

GB: So far Irve only handled

Eo

How come?

defendants. It's an inteiesEing quesEion of strategy. One is Ehe matCer

GB: Well, because therers a heavy burden of proof. Yourre asking of cost. To bring an action is Ehe court to take custodv awav fromwell, I've been Ehinking it's more Ehe parenE. Now, Ehe corit colld give cosEIy Ehan to defend Ehese acEions, legal cusEody to the state and give but perhaps Irm wrong. However, the physical custody Eo the parents and risk in being a plaintif.[ and bringorder Ehem to put the child in ing a LawsuiE is EhaE you could lose. school. BuE iE's a very serious matAnd the issue would be decided right ter, and for a normal homeschooling there and Ehen. situation, schools are reluctant to The advantage of allo\ring them bring it, and judges would be unhappy to take acEion againsE you is Chat with schools for bringing it. And thb Ehere are no real good statutes which issue becomes wheEher the child is address Ehe issue of parenEs who've being educaEed, noC whether they folappLied for home educicion, who've lowed Ehe correcE procedures, not had it rejected, who Ehen continue Eo vrhether they even submitted a plan to do home education. There are Ehree the superintendent. It's just - is he ways Ehey can go abouE bringing learning, right now. So ii's a very action againsE Ehe parents. And none defendable case, if they were to do of Ehem were reaLly designed Eo address Ehis kind of issue.

Then Ehe third way is Child in Say you go into Ehe district Need of Services, Ehe CHINS peEition, court - itrs the lower court - on a which is a juvenile petition ordinarcriminal complaint for truancy as a ily brought when the parent can'C conparent failing to send Che child to trol a child. The parents go inCo Ehe school . The mosE Ehe irrclpe can dn i n court and ask for assistance - "The this case is make u $io-?i";:"tilIc;. child is in need of services of the itl And iE's only one fine. Ic's not sEate." They can bring ChaE, buE per day, Some judges will threaEen there are technical problems. parents who are unrepresented that Chey'IL order $20 per day, buE EhaC's Has ChaE ever been done? noE right. The sEaEute is clear. No jail term. No probation. Just $20.

Yes. I defended one CHINS 5o, they can pby it and then jusc con- case. they donrt go Ehe CHINS GROWING I^IITHOUT SCHOOLING

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route too often either, because

you

can also try Lhe issue of wheEher the chiLd is being educated. Why they Like Ehe criminal charge is because they think EhaE they don't have Eo Ery thaE issue. The staEuEe says you're in school or you have approval not to be, and if you don't do either, Ehen you are liabLe as criminal.

But Irve been able to argue that

rights are where constitutional | i -,,^l,,^J

f h-ts ,LIoLooyrvPLr

this.

dof

anca

l_n

SK: Are there arguments or pasE

cases that you use a lot in defending your cLients?

GB: WeLl, the district

court

judges are not Ehat familiar with the righE Eo home education, So itrs noE so much getting inEo fhe refinements ^F UL

Fh^ LIIg

1^'.'.

its

nr

lacc

lallino

them know about the Perchemlides case. And there are Ei6-Fla-3G?EEiseEEs cases, one goes back Eo 1906, I believe, and the other is 1950, that

I think can be read to support a defense. Where you can show that consfituEional rights have been violarF.l- rhe corrrf can lisEen Eo Ehem on tsL-t

i ccl,6

rni

find

iho

.arc^n t ovrt Pc

n^f rrvL

guilty, where he does find that the superintendenE acted improperly. I haven't had a judge rule on that yeE. SK: In your cases, or others you know of, who usuaLly wins? Do the homeschoolers come out ahead?

GB: Yes. I haven'E had to try to compLetion any of these, yet. other Ehan Jackie Fickett's. The others we were able Eo negotiaEe. Once we got into court, the judge showed his displeasure at having aLl of us there, so r,Je worked something out. I have two right now which probably wiII have Eo be decided by a judge.

However, I'm reiLly-impressed wilh jusE how paEience and persists6n^a

^n

lho

^.ri

nF

rho

naronic

to always achieve good resuLts. I've talked with people who came to my office who I couldn't represent because I djdn't have the time, it was too far away, whatever, and they handled iE Ehemselves. I wondered how well they would do, because the cases Ehemselves weren't thaE great, But Later I heard that they did okay. So, I Ehink because Ehere are no clearcut guideLines for Ehe court to folLow, or sanctions, that the judge if he geEs a sense EhaE Ehese parents are sincere, theyrre not wacky, and rho .hi ld i c dnino nroflw ual I - i c not going to hurt them.

SK: If a case went on appeal, hieher than Perchemlides, how do you Ehrnk tney mrgnt cnange rEi GB: They couLd Eighten PerchemIides some, make the requiremenEs a fitEfe more defined. They could describe in more specific Ianguage whaE'rcompetency of Ehe parenEs to Eeach'r means, in Language which gives the superintendents more authority to determine that. And Ehey couLd make it harder for the parents. I can see something Like Ehat.

SK: Is it likeLy chere will be any legislaEion made - not through the courts?

GB: I don'E know. I could see it at some poinE, schools starEjng Eo complain enough thaE they lobby for a change in the law. And then hopefully Ehere will be enough homeschoolers in seems

/

e

vv4!.5

Massachusetts and enough suPPort chat GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING

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we could exert lobbying pressure. IE seemed thaE that one experience, wiEh Lowering the mandatory school age, worked ieaL welI ICWS #42]. People reallv resoonded. I saw some of the LeEte?s.

That's one thing I've Ealked Eo briefly about; sEarEing Eo form some sErength in MassachuseEts, because Ehat day wiLl have Eo come' because Ehe law has a loL of cracks in it. It doesn't really address Ehe situaEion head-on, buE by borrowing old staEuEes which kind of peripheraLly deal wich it. If a sEatuEe was drafted \,rell, it could really benefit Ehe homeschool movement; take it out of the hands of superinEendenEs, Put it in a revievJ board, say, of peopLe who undersEand homeschooling, who are philosophically, maybe not in agreement, but are open-minded, not hostile, Because as long as itrs in Ehe hands of superintendents, Ehey can, i F rhcvrrc clcver and think like lawyers or judges, taLk and wriEe in a very unbiased manner, but really from the beginning, be very hosEile Eo it'

Donna

see Ehrough Che morâ&#x201A;Ź conventlonel edu-

cational philosophy. They're all frorn differenE backgrounds, all levels of educaEion and what-not., ThaE's encouraging Co see. There's real clearheaded Ehinking abouE learnlng, whlch can onLy increase.

SK: When people are refused of Eheir own educaEional background, how do you convince someone that this person is smart enoughr or this person has experience in life? because

much

GB: Well, you need an experc. of la$r Eoday is battling

So

exDerts. ThaE's what I look for: to

someone who has a lot of experience in education, as much as I can, who can say thaE Ehey believe thaE Ehis person is quaLified. One family was ouiEe friendlv htith a nun htho was

get

priniipal of a grlde school and had something Iike EwenEy years experience, three masEers degrees, and actually Cutored her son and worked with Ehe mother, and is familiar with the family. So she is wonderfully qualified, NeverEheless, they Eurned SK: What do you suppose Eheir us down. They had made up Eheir moEives are? Just vJancing control? Or minds. So Ehe quesEion there is, are do you Ehink it's because some we going to bring a new suiE? ThaE's schools get money, federal aid, for an example of what we come up against' The "FriendLy Professionalrr secthe number of kids they have? tion in Gt^lS is really helpful . I CB: Oh. I think itrs rnore that would encourage it. The more you can it jusE cuEs against their profession- Iearn of these people, the beEEer. al bias or identificaEion; their They are really a Eerrific resource. self-idenEification as professionals.

SK: You said most of your cases SK: Do you have ideas of how peo- don't come !o trial? ple could strengEhen themseLves?

GB: Yes, until this year where GB: I know of some groups in dif- out of four cases I've had, two will (nrrfh (hnrp foronr rrorc I iLo iho definiteLy have Eo go before a judge, around Plymoufh, where a group gets and possibly a Ehird. I don't know if together regularly; about ten or Ewen- that's any indication of a trend or just coincidence. tv families. CaDe Cod seems to have several enclavei of people. ThaE's so valuabLe in Eerms of getting approSK: Have you had any cases you vaL, maintaining approval, and even found most inueresting, or Ehat stand jusE gecting the daily support in out among your homeschooLing cases? handling kids at home and doing home educaEion. Having other families you GB: WeIl, Jackie Fickett's was can get cogether wiEh, or to have really a dramaEic case IGWS #44]. She some time away from the kids. has an autisEic child. So we really Susan Ott and Terry Birch in faced a tough argumenE that she was WaterEown, who are homeschooling not qualified, and that only very (they were our experts with Jackie specialized people were qualified Eo Fickett's case), have been Iooking educate and 'rtreatil her son - within people unfortunaEely for in the areal an instituLional setting, $rith a multi-disciplinary team approach, all they couLdn't find anybody in Waterto\rn. For awhiLe they were going out Ehi s kind of sEuff, where they can break things down into I don't know Eo Somerville, buE driving back and how many parts. It was really a forEh was just too much of a problem. strugg Ie .

I guess the way to do it would We were in the lobby one day, we be Eo sEarc to hold some kind of Li^i^^i^ \)r a conference were in one corner and the state and o^ ur6 PrsLr!e or something, in Ehe greater BosCon the school department and the May area, I think GWS could maybe soLicit InstituEe for AuEisEic and DevelopinformaEion from people who have mencaLlv Delaved Children were in Ehe started groups or are inEeresEed in other corner.-They were all men, alL groups in differenE areas, Erying Eo in Ehree-piece suits, a1I very much link them up somehow. But homeschoolinto Eheir careers , proIessionals. ers, I think, generally mighE have a And over in our end was a woman from tendency to be somewhat selfJackiers parishl another woman, Lisa conEained and closed off. The more Boken, who formed her own school in Ehey can form links with other peothe area - who I'd helped do Ehat nlo fho efr^noar ih, and who was helping Jackiel and Susan -..3y are.

OEt, who was homeschooling herself, SK: WhaE do you see for Ehe and who was advised against getEing fuEure of homeschooling, in general, involved with this case because iE from your experience? Do you feel it might affecE her career as a psycholowiLL increase, decrease, come more gist. She had never testified in int.o favor with schools? courE before. Clearly, a group of peopLe who had different motivations and GB: IE's hard for me to say, buE vaLues in life than the insEituEions :,.^F DuuJsrL!vc!/' i,,^r ., r r E Seems that I and the orofessionals. It was kind of JurL ^.,L:^^F have more casesi people are doing it a sEruggie beEween a community of somF snrt-. neonlp. versus these insEimore, Those who I've talked with, who wanE Eo do it or are doing iE, seem tutions which want.ed to take this philosophy to readiLy undersEand the chiLd within itself. behind home educaEion. IE makes a lot of sense to them, and they can really SK: Does the state jusE assign

t0

state lawyers to a case like that?

Whors there when you say the "state?" cB: In this case Ehey did file a Care and Protection, and the schooL discrict hired their own Lawvers. however the state DeDarEmenE of SociaI Services has a lawyer involved. Ordinarily Ehey're the ones who bring Care and Protection cases, child abuse, Then the judge assigns an attorney for the child, too.

SK: So you were assigned it?

CB: WeIl, T got assigned to represent Jackie. She had aLready been assigned counsel about a year

before. This time she asked the judge if I could represenE her, and he assigned me to it.

SK: Nowadays, what comes to mind in thinking of courC cases are these Liability suiEs you hear so much abouE, where tons of money goes back anri fnrfh hrrr ho ro rhora I c ror I I rr not any money changing hands...

GB: No! (Laughs) SK: Are law firms or attorneys irrsf neid hrr rhpir .lionfe nr dn tha people who lose have to pay court costs, or how does thaE work out?

GB: It depends on Ehe particular Iaw firm. MosE of them charse an hourly rate in cases tike this.-They try and give some estimate of just how many hours will be involved on a case. Or, if it Looks likely that ifrs irrsf eoinq ro he a one shoC deal, one day at court and that will be it, they might give one particular fee for the whole Ehins.

I havenrE had thaE much contacE with other lawyers \.dho do home educa.-i ri R,,i f harr c66m f ^ ha -'^',-^ ^n enthusiastic. There are some reaL sisnificant consEi Eutional issues involved, so theyrre willing to put in a lot of time and noE really biIl for iE, or work without the expecEaEion of being paid. As lawyers get on in ihair naroorc rhorrrro lacc .-.i less inclined to do that kind of sLuff. They forget how much fun it can be! You reaLLy lose that. But for people who do need a lawyer, and sometimes you do, shop around a lot, because Ehere is a wide ranee of fees Iawyers charge. Younger 1awlers are more inclined Eo be Iess exoensive: Ehey might put in more work, really get involved.

You definitely want someone who firmly believes in the cause. Makes all the difference in the world. I think most DeoDLe have a real reverence for education and schools, attorneys too. So they may think that what yourre doing is permissable under the constiEution, everybody has their rights, but basically disagree with you. That wiLl show in how Ehey act r.riEb the judge.

SK: Do you have any other generaI advice for people coming againsE intransigent school committees or superintendents

?

GB: WeIl, one Ehjng is very interesting, A lot of people I've talked to - jusc because of their onn exDerience with schools - are intimidated by school officiaLs. So the first thing is co recognize that most of us are likely to feel intimidated.

Number Ewo, be firm wich them a loE of peopLe are, itrs greaE to see Ehis. AsserE your righEs, don't back down. Insist on points. And then

you can negotiate down. But aC Least initially, uncil iC seems the options - F^n | |

-^ )u

^^^, 6uuu,

h^ uE

F i -!r!'il.

n i,,^ u!vc

.,^,,yuur-

self room in which Eo neeotiate.

R*ihrt i- PEvPrc ^^^^l^ frOm the COmmun-

ity to back you up if you can. If

you

know a school commiEtee oerson. if you know a teacher, city'councillors,

anyone you can have support you, so that Chey know thaE theyrre deaLing with someone who isnrt alone in the community, and oEher people wilI be

talking about their decision.

Then just the persistence. To continue with it. That really pays off. The judges have a Lot more weighEy concerns; Ehere are always a lot of hassles and they don't necessarily want fo deal with this, - SK: Do you have children of your own,

GB: Yes, One is 15 months and the oEher's 4 monEhs. I watch how they learn, and so much of what John HoIt says is true. I have an urge at tines fo teach theml itrs almost uncontroLlable. When my oldest was i r "^sf rrrool i no ln I aarn r^ ^--,.,1 just so painful to \ratch him - I did Ehis, my wife did Ehis, my moEher did it - we would crawl in front of him to show him, you know? It's silly! He didnrt know what we were doing, Obviously, he would have learned Eo crawl wlthout us doing any teaching. To see aLl the liveliness and eagerness, how much they try and care - mistakes mean nothing

!

SK: I'm sure other parents wil I relate to thatl Do you have any other comments or anything Chat you think is important?

GB: Two things. One is that I really think the home education movei s nrohnhl rr fho mn<f c i on i Ii.rnf movemenL for social chanee I see right now in this countrt. I firmly believe that. So I think that what peopLe are doing is Eerribly imporCant. Second thing is, I Ehink the more people can expand it so it's not just the home, but other people, others who are doing home education, relaElves, or whaEever, Ehe more iE r.dilL strengthen the movement and enhance the learning environment for children, and for adults too. menf

TEACHERS WORK WITH FAMILIES

More from Muriel Palko (MI): . . In Ehe Dast

three or four

years I have not rr9L orrry onLv homeschooled nomescnooLeo my son, simon, but was the'rcover" certified Leacher Leache for lots of oEher homeschoolers... At first it was only Ewo

kids, then four, then seven. ...I started becoming increasingI y uneasy as Ehe monChs and years went by because some families did not seem to be providing even a stimulating environment for their kids.

There were certain familv and Dersonal problems that prevented the"parents from being very actively involved wiEh their kids, I guess, In any case, I couldn't geE any kind of feedback from the Darents as Eo whaE Ehe kids vrere doing. I felt that the parents should have some very basic records of the kids' work, ideas someEhing. There was Ehis very casual EttTcude-about everyEhing. Ali I wanted vtas to know what the kids were doing, how well they were doing it, etc. I didnrt want to interfere in the homeschooLing style Ehey had adoDEed. I felt Ehat-I was Lhe one

the school sysEem would question regarding the homeschoolers' academic

who

life.

I was Ehe one who was account-

abLe. I was the one who puE herself on the Iine for these parents. And as

a homeschooling parenL I had my own homeschooling arrangement to protect ...And also, I really was concerned

about Ehese kids.

But these parenEs were my friends and I loved them. It was very difficulE to get them to take me seriously as a teacher. JusE as I was abouE to telL Ehem Ehat I reaLly could no longer "cover" for them unLess I had more cooDeracion. these

families told me that they feit homeschooling just wasnrt worklng for them. These kids aLl went back to oubi ic school s. Some of Ehe kids besAed | ^-i LU BU udcK, Th^ rnc railtl ly pfobLemS nave been resolved. And from alL reports, Ehe kids are happy in school. So I guess when homeschooling jusE doesn't \,nork, Ehe parents or kids themselves do come to that realization. SchooL nfFinialc

raqllv ,ruriJ

n^ts

noarl

r.'^"r' wvrr)

th-r LildL

there are families homeschooLing unsuccessfullv. Thev don'C seem to last long.

One of the oEher families for whom I "covered" decided they were no longer able to meet their son's academic needs, now that he was older. I had a new baby who requi red gobs of nurEuring and didnrt feel I could handle working with any more homeschoolers Ehan my own. We surprised ourselves by deciding to hire someone to work wiEh our kids - someone \rhose philosophy of educaEion was similar to ours. [,Je f ound Ehat certain someone, who promptly quit her subsEiEute teaching job in order to work in the "job of her dreams."

Just as we, as homeschoolers, have gone Lhrough changes in our styLe of horneschooLinB, sor too, has rrenhnnl It nrrr

whinh

r"ro nrmarl

an inrrr-

ner Tutorial Center. For one thing, F-_.1 -- L^r - '. fferenE idea of ^^^L rd'r'!ry EdL" whac STC should be. One family wanted it to be simply a place where Ehe kids could do the academic r{ork they

would ordinarily do at home, without the disEracEions of home. Another L'rnfa/l

fh6

CTa

f^

nrotfl'

m,rch

faLo

over academics in a sEructured way.

One family \das primarily interested in the social life of the Center, and

wanted the kids to have a sood time

with some organized, super;ised activities, As it is now, the STC meeEs Fh-^^sE udyr i^,,tshroo hnrrrc J Pcr nar /r., ual r LL" ^^PEr week, three weeks per month, with some of the summer and some of Ehe u/inter oft. I E is quiCe strucEured, but very flexible.

The kids each have their own ttworkshoptt Eo complece each week. They can take Cheir time or do if \zp?w nrricLlrr.

Tha kids work On math, spelling, grammar, etc. They also do units in Social Studies and Science. The DarenEs and kids have a loE of input into the curriculum.

They just finished sEudying piraEes, which led to a sEudy of ships. Now they are studying the Revolutionary War, wiEh emphasis on how and why wars start. Of course, there are no grade differentiaEions, Eests, marks, busywork or any of that nonsense. We also arrange for peopLe in the community to teach classes to Ehe kids in art or music or whatever. Some classes are scheduled at a time when regular school kids can also come.

We are fortunate to have an ideal place for the Center. A relative of one of che homeschooling families recently came inEo a very large sum of money. The cottage she iniEially planned to build turned iflEo a GRO}IING WITHOUT SCHOOLING #5I

t.l

,.iFL wrLL, d^ rdrSE '^--^

ruutsE

room for the

"school" on one side, wi Eh separate entry and wood stove, and loEs of windows overlooking the meadow and woods, The kids Love this place parE1.,

haar"<o

iI

ic

roaII\/

ihoirq

Thaw

helped design and make the desks and organize (and re-organize) the room.

Tharo

ero L '

norcnnol Psr Jvrrur

r^,,^h^-

6r,arU svs, )/-

where. They chose fabric and

sewed

their own chair cushions. They put designs aLL over their desktops ( t'/haE Ehe heck, chey can be sanded to look cLean again). Their art work ls aII over the pLace.

Most imporlantly o[ aL1 , the kids reatly do enjoy learning at the Center. When Ehings go wrong it is cuickLv taken care of beEween teacher, parents, and student. I have found Ehat Ehe number of sEudents reaLIy has I ittle beari ng on the success of the Center. Simon was jusE as happy Lo go when there were only two kids as when Ehere were seven. RighE now Ehere are four. It is very much like a family.

I guess what we are doing is part-time alternative school, parttime homeschooling. Because our "teacher," Sharon Jordan, is so committed to STC, she accepls minimal Davment when fhat is all we can manag6. ffte way it works out is - the

more studenEs, Ehe more she geEs paid

in a1I, buE the less each family has SomeEimes one lamily pays more or less than oEhers simply because they have more or less money.

We all feel Ehis is onLy fair. Sharon also accepts a barter arrangement from famiLies. . .

Lo pay.

NETWORK FOR NEIGHBORS GWS reader Lauren McELroy ( 3543 E Bellevue, Tucson AZ 87516) has starEed a neEwork called MAKING CONTACT whose purpose is to llnk up

like to live near-each other. rrThere are Lhings thaE are reaIIy di[[icul E to do as a single famiLy," she says, "when you don't have contacE with other homeschoolers in your daily life. " Lauren has run ads in Ehe last Ewo issues of CWS, asking EhaE interesced parties send an SASE. To those who inquired, she sent her Ehoughts on the possible goals and meEhods for such a network, as welI as her own dreams o-[ creating someEhing simiLar Eo the "Peckham experiment,rr the neighborhood resource center described in INSTEAD 0F EDUCATION. wish tor" she wrote, "If they ttFrmi I iac r^oalhar .An rrn For ^nan boEh adults and children, vistas of experience which seem to be vanishing from American daily life. I'm thinking, for example, of the freedom and confidence of being abLe to EraveL 'on one's own steam,' raEher than by car or bus. Of being able to easily go from one's home to a friend's house. . . to Ehe familv workplace. . . to that special fort Iying hidden in a siLent gLade. The freedom of knowing EhaE each member of Ehe family i s safe and welcome in many other places besides his or her own home. Living near each oEher, families can together purchase, and have daily access to, a wider array of tools, books and pLay equipment than one family alone might be able Eo,.. Families can also give each other the gift of being able Eo observe and interacc with friends engaged in many differenE kinds of meaningfuL and enjoyable work, and who are knowledgeable about homeschooLine famiLies who wouLd

GROW]NG WITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

and interested in many different kinds of acEivities, . .rl Lauren suggesEed that each famiIy write a letter introducing themseLves and send iE to one person, who wouLd then Xerox and mail aLl the leEcers to the others. This job as "hub" couLd rotate among the various families as they continue Eo correspond. EvenEuaLly, families with similar vaLues and goals could meet.

In Aoril. Lauren said that so far five FamiLies had comitted themselves Eo keeping the network going, offering to do various aspect-s o[ the iob. The first packet of leEEers from 6ach family had'been maiLed, She hopes the network wiLl also advertise in MoLhering, MoEher Earth News, and Comfr'unlTlGi sin:?EipEidT ng t he nnmbEr of DeooLe who hear and read about MAKII{G CONfnCf wilL expand everyone's chances of connecEing wiEh the rieht families.rr - DR

The children (8 and 1I) have proven themselves quiEe capable of feeding themselves and managing welL with-

out my constant presence, both lasE summer when I did some part-Eime work and this last week when they had spring break. I am a certified ele-. mentary school teacher with about I% years experience. This makes me feel a bit less concerned abouE public opinion in our case, but cerEainly not more qualified. ..,My daughter is very recepEive to the homeschool idea, and probably needs no atEenEion about her studies' except perhaps in the area of math usage (and eating a fairly decent Iunch). My son, on the other hand, has some hesitations and fears. He just can'E quite believe that this couLd be legal. This morning he was asking what home school would be Like. (He seems to want a curriculum suide.) I said it would be an awful Iot like Last week (spring break). He said, "But we didn't do anyEhing lasE week." I asked him it he read anyGWSTRAVELDIRECTORY I thing IasE week' Yes. Did he cook anything?_.Yes._Did. he.care _for any aniDick GaILien sent a copy of the mals? Yes. Did he look for HaLley's new GWS TRAVEL DIRECTORY, wirich Lists comeE? Yes. Did he enjoy his field over 60 families who wouid Like to triP? What field trip? The ones to host visitors. For a coDV. send $2 two different lakes. Oh - yeah-.-He pLus a Long doubLe-scami6d SASE Eo appears _to have been.pretty wellirim at Rt 7, Winona MN 55987. educated in the pubLic schooLs (four If you wouLd like to be Listed to in npyt wpar'q Trevel Direcforv- send i^years)r about Ehe "way it F^spozed lrave aDe." I EnlnK ne s gorn8 Lo L^"^ him your name. address. names and ba11. Hers a fantastic speller,. birthdates of children, phone, interDuzzle-solver, joke-telLer' readert esFs. asnirafions- o..rrnari.ns nrehistory and Lrivia buff and a great Ferences, eEc. and Sentle caretaker. He's getting to Dick writes. be a PreEcy good cook, too. He sort of regreEs the idea of my not being ...In Ehe few Letters that I here for several hours a day, and yet have read from this Travel Directory' L think he Iooks forward to some unI've goEten a compleEely different precedented freedoms"' and m;re personaL^1ook into their Lives than from GWS. It is interestintha n"mhar Fh.ts.ro cfri.f vaoaAnd from Karen Turner' PO Box Caiians; and encouraging, Che numbEr ^ 942' Gua IaIa CA 95445: who do not wanE smoking"in cheir homes. One immediaEely starts to ...1 have a job cleaning vaca^-inr da ^i^F,iF6 ^e rhisg people and Pd!,,L tion homes a few hours ' 9ty' My twoirow they'Live. sons (ages.10 & 8) have Ehe option of ..,U.til now we have thoughE of the Travel Directory only in tErms of coming wiEh me or staying home.

They're very independenE and.get family traveL, since mosl have only .,^,,-- -hirif6rdts's also rhjnk o'f along very well together, and I'm phone car I f"'v ' At so, I drive i;"i'fi ;:jil:'!'i''-Iir"ei."p.""i ir"y- ajusc"a school bus (of aLl thingsl.) for Ub carryin! cling teens. They "o.ria bags.-ThE occasional field Crips and the childtenCE, food, and-sleeping mosC lhey Should need'is"a sEower and ren can come with me. I am a_ spinner, fimp t-o iuiqir^ Tf vou could share one weaver' and raise angora rabbits, so we have a bit of income there also. meaL with them it i^tould be a generI'm having some probLems, howous, memorable experience. Unfess you ,""ily wanEed them to sEay Iong, one ever, the main one being thaE tl. __ children have been fairly turned off night-camped in your yard-woula be from learning anyEhing academic afEer en6ugh. Ii Chese'were my kids visiEbeing forced into it for so long. I ing lour home I would hope that you know I have to be really patienE and woild poliUely make sure'they didn't use real life learning siEuaEions as overstly theii welcome; that you much as possible. would tell them if cheir behavior I wouLd love Eo hear from anyone wasn't proper, and send them on their out there. We need friends... if Ehey were in any way i.*Lailteiy ,.^..

L^tsL^-^^-^

CUISE}IAIRE

FROM SINGLE PARENTS

From Texas:

begin our firsE day of homeschooling. My husband lefE home almosE Ewo years ago.,. I am a parE-time-out-of-Ehe-home working person, blessed hrith an ancient interesc . ..Tomorrow we

rate, Iow-paymenE house, and will be away five hours a day while the children manage the house, garden, two dogs and Ewo parakeeEs. I also have home business and some suPport-cype donaEions from my husband (and will save a heap on EuiEion and gasoline costs involved wiEh the private school

)

.

RODS

'YISUALIZE--}IOT JUST IiEIIORIZE ! !.

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addition, subtraction, multiplication, di vi si on, fracti ons, factors, al gebra and more--a useful tool for years. l,lATHEl'IATICS l.'IADE l'lEAl{I}IGFUL i ncl udes: r-T55-=6Tft FliStT-i6ir5* plastic sorting tray * 80 pages rith conplete instructions * 50 topic/actiYity cards Al I for only $21.95 + $3.00 P/H l,lA State residenTS-?diI 7% tax olease. l,lri te today for our FREE catal og containing tools for teaching parents.

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GUARAIITEED !

!'

12

IDR: J GWS reader Joseph Ciano (Rt 5 Box 120, Ava MO 65608) is sEarEing a HOME EDUCATORS SINGLE PARENT NETWORK for rrsharing the triaLs and Eribulations of single parenEing/ homeschooling." He wriEes, rrAnyone wishing to communicate nith other single parents should maiL a SASE to me with a brief description of seIf, Iifestyle, interests, etc. These will be compiled and then mailed out.

Please include $1 for typing, ll ^ ^^,,i

^+

-^

HIRED

11

^

For Ehose three weeks I ran the

shop

compIeEely, 9: 30-5: 30, six days a week. During thaE time I helped one woman selecE yarn for patEerned srnreaters for her Cwins. and measured a

for a sweater. I was very proud projects turned out weil.

The following January, right at my l2Eh birthday, my mother sold the shop. While she had it, I had loved working in it and had earned enough money Eo make a good starE toward my firsE year of college... woman

when both

,tor r"r"r"lolo

-YEAR-OLD HELPER

Though housework is stil1 pretty overwhelming for me, de-junking, as I

mentioned in GWS #50, helps, and almost by mistake Irve come across

a

real gold mine: a motherrs helper.

This is someEhing I had thought about in the past but had never done anything abouE. Rrr nhrnno T..,,_, maf a very eager 1l-year-oId girl who Iives nearby.

Today was her first day here. In five hours, Amy vacuumed, washed dishes (Ehree Eimes), folded Iaundry ( Ewi ce ) , made granoLa, he Iped put Ehings away, and played rrith HeLen (2k\. t was able to do severaL loads of laundry and hang chem ouE, sweep and wash the kiEcher .r ^^laundry, and do ".r; We;;;i;"5;i";-;;t this issue of GWS. both sEoooed working as necessary Eo be vriEh'Ehe children, buE Greta (3 mos.) was mostly happy Co waEch, and HeLen was Ehrilled to have a new friend around.

Amy knows we canrE afford to pay her very much, but is very excited to be earning gl'per hourl-Ttth the good sEarE we got Eoday Irm hoping I won't need her too often, but she's always welcome Eo come and play with Ehe children. --- MARY VAN DOREN

o, MOTHER AND (RI 6 Box 249-E, Roanoke VA 24014; send $2 for 4O-page CHILD RUBBER STAMPS

catalog

)

:

...We are truly a family

business - I mostly run it, buE my husband Kevin cuts the wood and does the book-keeping; Jenny (9) trims rubber and puts in on a cushion - we use a double-sided peel-off sticky cushion so ther.e's no harmful fumes from gluing. Rachel (6) and Aaron

(almosE 3) are ardent stamDers - aLL of our ink pads are non-toiic and safe for children.

Homeschooling a family and running an at-home business can sometimes be chaotic, sometimes difficult, but loEs of fun and the kids are learning a lot here with our work via Ehe stamo business.

LIwE

1-,,-h rduSrr

rh^F LrrdL

Tannv JLUrr)

!ric

fha L'rE

nnlrr urr!)

one drawing a paycheck from MOTHER AND CHILD. I,Jerre sEilI operating Eoo much in the red for Ken or me to get paid - but we pay Jenny 5C per piece to trim the rubber and put it on the

cushion and Ehen Erim Che cushion.

She worked Iong and hard Eo learn fo do Ehis and does as well as I can.

She keeps all her own records about how many pieces she's done and what

we ohre her, and I write her a check

which she cashes aE the bank. Lots of

FAMILY BUSINESSES

Theo Giesy (VA) writes:

...When I was 4. mv moEher opened a yarn shop. i giew up there T sncnt

mocl-

nf

m\/

limo

ihara

av.anr

for school hours.

I remember helping with inventory from Ehe very beginning. At first my brother and I sorted Ehe kniEEjng books, counEed them, and told our parenEs how many of each kind, its title, volume number, and price, LaEer I learned Eo do the whole job including filLing out the forms. So I could continue even when my mother Eook a break (youEhful enthusiasm! ).

I learned to kniE at the beginning and by the time I was 8, I could follow patEerns and make doll clothes. I taught my Brownie troop to kniE. As I grew up I heLped more in the shop insEead of just being there.

Since I was very fond of small children, one of the first Ehings I did hras occupy the small children while their moEhers shopped. As I became familiar wiLh Ehe- ilifferenf kinds of yarn, Eheir uses and prices, I could begin to r^rait on customers. By the Eime I nas 10, I was my motherrs choice Eo leave in the shop when she had to be away. At this time the shop was in our home. If my faEher was not aE home, an older girl would be hired so I would noE be alone, buE I was chieEly responsible for Ehe shop.

The lasE summer Mother owned the shop, she had bursitis in her right shoulder. For three weeks she had a body cast to immobilize the arm and she was under medication for Dain.

good lessons here.,.

A number of homeschooling famiI ies have bought our unmounted alphabets and had great fun mounting and using them. InsEructions for mounting

than Ehev could use for friends famlly.

ru^.. r,,e)

r^..^ ,,dvE u^:. ,'o- cheir

and

stationery

on sale it [nearby malls].., Audrey made a drawing of a threshing machine that was reprinted

in a special noEecard for the SEeam ...One of Trevorrs early award winners was the sketch of an ice casELe Chat vron firsE orize for his age category at Ehe Sf. Paul Winter Carnival. That design is featured in one of the popular notecard sets produced and sold by TAKA EnEerpri-zes, Another favorite notecard is a drawing of a moEher and baby panda bear that v/as done bv Audrev. It r^ron honorable menEion in-Ranger Rick. a children' s magazine ptrETTsEed-T!- the National Wildlife Association.

Another award for most creative coloring of a circus clown won Audrey a set of World Book Encvclooedias. a--^1 f-^: ^^A -,-,g ^ Brandt view TAKA EnEerprizes as a Logical extension of the homeschooLing they pracEice with Eheir children.

"We try to give Ehe kids handson experience in Ehis liEEle family businessr" Craig said. rrWe guide Ehem - but they have Eo do the hrork.rl ...Carol, as Ehe teacher in Ehe home school, serves as the manager.

Trevor qualifies as president of the company. And Audrey, who keeps Ehe accounts, is the secretary-treasurer.

The oEher two childrbn. Kevin and Amy, are making their conEribuCions already in designs and drawings. ...The youngsEers have boughE clothes, personal iEems, sports equipment and a bicycle from the business revenues. They have even extended a loan to their dad (rnrith interesE. of course)...

Threshers Reunion at Rollag, Minn.

CHILDREN'S EXPRESS: YOUNG REPORTERS

I was excited to learn recenEly nalists called CHILDRENTS EXPRESS (20 Charles SE, New York NY L0OI4; 212620-0098). Perhaps vou have seen one are listed in the catalos... of irs columns in your local newspaper, for the stories thaE kids write for Ehis news service are carThe business coLumnist of a ried over Ehe hrires to manv Darts of Minnesota nevrspaper wrote about this the country. homeschooling family: NoE only is iE wonderful that children 13 and under have this oDDorFOUR YOUNGSTERS RUN STATIONERY Eunity to write for real newspapeii, BUSINESS AT HOME IN MOORHEAD - A busi- but I am also impressed by the subness that has its foundation in youth- jects of their stories: serious ful esprit de corps is TAKA Enterrrchildrents issuesrr such as poverty, prizes, a staEionery business owned abuses of the juvenile justice sysand operated by the Brandt children tem, children in refugee camps, runof 1909 8th SE. S. in Moorhead. aways, stresses on families, peer The four chiLdren of Crais and pressure - as welL as|taduLt issuesrl Carol Brandt have an expanding dissuch as toxic wastes and interviews play of sEaEionery incLuding notewith major political figures and cards, note pads and greeting cards celebrities. that Ehey have been selling primarily l,Jhen I sarnr the recommendation of through craft sales.

CHILDRENTS EXPRESS in Frances Moore The name, TAKA, is taken from Lappe's new book I^IHAT TO DO AFTER YOU the first initials of Che names of TURN OFF THE TV (which hre are adding the children, Trevor (8), Audrey (7), Eo our catalog), I contacted the headKevin (5) and Amy (2), who are Ehe quarters in New York. Some facEs from spirit, the creativity, and the prothe liEerature they sent: ducEion force.

- Reporters, 13 and under, work call it EnEerprizes spelled 'rWe in teams led by assistant ediEors who with a 2," said Trevor, "because we are 14-18 yeari old.

ENTER contesEs and win PRIZES.TI CHILDREN'S EXPRESS primarily Trevor and Audrey started enEer- uses -a sysEem of oral journalism: ing coLoring and drar^ring contests a Eaped interviews as well as dialogues couple of years ago, and won ribbons among children. and cash prizes.

- C.E. has seven bureaus, in Then Kinko's Copies in Moorhead Alameda, CAl Salem, MA; Newark, NJ; gave Ehe Brandts some free copies of New York City; and Australia, New their winning art in a commercial pro- Zealand, and Japan. moEion. That inspired Ehe family to - The organization first gained launch a family business because Ehey wide public attention when it scooped had more notecards and greeting cards the world press on CarEerrs choice of about an organization of young jourl

GROIdING I.IITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

t3

as the Eeacher is concerned... tribuced someEhing worEhr^7hile, plus JH: Yes. she gecs to be around Ehe books EhaE cratic Nacional Convention in 1976.

Q: ...And if Ehat's crue, aren't I phoned Che headquarEers to ask she loves.

Che sEudencs possibly vlcclms of Chls?

Gina (10) is doing a work study how interesEed children could become JH: They're vicEims anyway. I at a vecerinary clinic wich a v/oman involved wiEh CHILDREN'S EXPRESS. I mean, Ehe commission says Ehey're doctor. IE's very enjoyabLe for Gina was told: victims. No, all your experlmencs because she gets to be around horses If Ehere [s a bureau in your arenrE going Eo work. The exPerlments and dogs and is learning much abouE area, you go through Ehe esEablished they do now don'E work. Only Ehe cheir care, and exactly nhat a veterEraining process. AII reporters and exp6rimenEs now aren't bein! done by inarian does. She also gets Eo clean teen editors work as voLunEeers. buE people who are in Ehe classroom' lookcages out, which isn'E much fun, If Ehere is no bureau in your ttpress Club," r^i6 Fhe ing at Ehese people, but by some chardefinitely part of Ehe job and very arsdr yvu eorr Jv!r, Lr acEer 500 or 1,000 or 2,000 miles helpfuL. I gather chaE ac present this means away, very often somebody who never you would get the bimonthly newsleEwas in a classroom. All life is an ter and could write stories for that, experiment in a very real sense of I donrt know if any stories from THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER the word. Teaching is, in that sense' "Press Club" members have gone onto a profoundly experimental acEivity.

In 1983, WBOS-Radio ln BosEon the wire service.

But Ehe only experimenEs that If you want to starE a local bur- interviewed John Holt abouE the reDorE "A Nation At Risk" which was will ever improve education are exPereau, you need to find a sponsor isiued by the National Commission on iments done by teachers in Eheir own usualLy a Local newspaper who agrees Excellence in Education. From Ehe classrooms. . . to print the columns, provides office tape of Ehe show, Eranscribed by GWS space, a bureau director, and secrevoLunEeer Gayla Groom-Slatton: Earial help.

We plan to subscribe Eo C.E.'s LIFE AT HOME Q. If you feeL, as you seem to, bimonEhly newsleEter ($8 for people From Jill Boone (CA): under 18, $10 for aduLEs) and I recom- that Eeachers are onLy a segment of the educational process, how impormend Ehat anv of vou who are con. . . I especially loved the artitanc are teachers and what makes a cerned with children's writins and good teacher? cLe in GWS #50 on I'Alternative Currichildren's rights do the samel JH: Good. Very important quesculum." I had fallen into the trap of Also, C.E. wiLl send for free tion, which the commission almost (donations appreciated) a copy of THE feeting we never do enough, Chat we certainly did not ask, The mosE impor- LeE possible learning areas slide by' MEDIA AND CHILDREN'S ISSUES. a 48tant person in the Iearning process and that I miss whole areas of educapage report on a conference they held is the learner. The next mosE importion, The alternative curriculum arEilast year which brought cogether tant is the teacher... The teacher ehi ldron ronnrlprq An.l eynorl< in cle out into focus for me Ehe real does noE fill up botEles - iErs much inEe;esEs. I find Ehac I ofEen feel such areas as hunger, day care, and more like gardening. You don'E grow that I should puE more importance on juveni le justice. We reprint their plants by going out wiEh Scotch tape planning activities and studies, mostreport on "Missing Children" elseand sticking leaves onto the sEems, ly when I work mosc - I work abouE where in Ehis issue. I was shocked by The plant grows. BuE the gardener 40-50 hours a monEh doing billing for the stories Eold aE the conference a smalL local business, and I have a about children Locked and badly treat- creates as far as she or he can the condiEions for growth - in che case small graphics arE business doing ed in institutions even though they of pLants, soil, ferEiLizer, acidiEy, ads, etc. Since boEh of these work on had broken no laws; I didn't know FL^ts FL:-:^ simple eEc. lE's with shade, waEer, deadlines, they often get done first. ^^,+ L ur ^a 1,,r,'B ^Fi1l ! 6u1,,5 -^i^^v,,r planEs. tliEh children, iE's more comIn Ehe past, C.E. sEories were plicaEed. WhaE Ehe Eeacher does - and carried by the U.P.I. wire service, fhe Darents aC home - is to create an but thaE may soon change. If you enviionment, which is in part physiwould Iike your local paper to print caL - there are books, records and CHILDREN'S EXPRESS coLumns, Ehe burMEMORIAL PROGRAM AVAILABLE F^^lin n'rt am^LdPcr t --l ^-d eau advises you to write to the newsAt our request, Sherrie Lee of cionaL, spirituaL, moral, inEellecpaper editor.

HOMESTEADERS NEWS (NY) ICIECTEd EhiS tual, in which growth can occur. Now We hear so littLe about "chiLdquote for the back cover of the Prothac's a very subtle, very difficult, ren's rights" these days. I guess iE very inceresting task. Nobody in any sram that was distribuced aE John makes sense Ehat Ehe most active and iloLE's memorial service. She did a school of education thaE I've ever longest running such organization I beautiful iob. We have about 150 heard of would describe it that way. have heard about in years, has found coDies still on hand, which we will Itrs an extremeLy important task. a formaE thaE harnesses Ehe energy send for $l each. Actual dimensions It's noc whaE most teachers Ehink and directness of children. - DR are 51" x 82" - it would look nice on theyrre supposed to be doing - which is, as I say, fiLling Ehe bottles a waLl. The fronE cover has a PhoEo an importanE Eask in itself. of John HolE. and inside is the order but iE's LEARNING THROUGH VOLUNTEER WORK Ir i-rs h,, tsriui.l cnl it ic of the speakers and musicians, Plus rL uy not easy. the word's to "Simple Gif Es ,rr which cerEainly From Annick Sternberg of Mlami: was sung at the service.

Q: So where can teachers learn to teach? ..,We found out through the JH: By teaching. Where do you Museum of Science's newsLetter that ?'\lhar s lovelu ahoutchildren learn to swim? In Ehe water. Schools volunteers were very much in demand.

J I went with Nicolas (6Lt to a meeting of educaEion, I promise you, wouLd ts dut*eJ can maho surh ayroducAaru like places where you'd spend four and offered his inEeresE Eo help any years sEudying courses on hydraulics way possible. We lrere welcomed and a such a bq dzal, outof evqvthinn J " \ and Ehe theory of swimming and so sEaff member took NicoLas in her forth, and Ehen they'd say finally, ornodu:g... departmenE and took the time co "Okay, we've EaughE you how to swim, inscruct him and show him the room, I rwver wanl to be whte I cannot see tt. where his job is Eo encourage the oth- now herets a pooL, or herets a lake.t' You learn to Eeach by teaching. er chiLdren co Eouch and open Ehe -4ll hat enrrgJ and fool.6hnr$, I never had any educational training, drawers and give them some information if needed, He loves his responsi- IuckiIy. I say "luckiLy" because I all dwt curws$, lwsttorc, al*u went into the classroom kno\ring that biliEy and iE turned out to be a I know and therefore didnrt anything, all tlwse fizrce passtoru, tncoraofulo sorrows, sDecial time he has with his father. realizing that if I wanted to learn They take Eime to pLay in the Museum immod.rratc ioys, something, I'd betEer keep my eyes as well. . .

J'and ears open and Ehink about whaE I to man| a' ruLi'&rlco to be end,ured. snm was seeing and hearing. The only way you learn about Eeaching is to do it And Liska JeweII wroEe in Ehe tf rut a disease to be cured.. and to see which of your inpuEs inEo Alaska Home Path newsleEEer, 4186: Ehis environment produce heLpful 'Io results and which don't, and maybe to . . . Jackie ( ll ) goes to the with ocher cl' talk about your probLems PaImer Public Library on Wednesdays teachers and say, ttHow are you making for about 3 hours and volunEeers and That kind structure would out?rr of a helps with whatever they have Ehat help teachers get beUEer. needs doing - from filing needs co JolnS{olr you talking about Aren't various clerical tasks. She comes Q: @dtiwttuLatn bBdEd/it6 IoE doing a of experimenting far as home tired but happy that she has con-

Mondale as vice president at the Demo-

GROWING I,IITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

't4

Iove to help me seal and Lick the envelopes, or hang out and draw with me when I am working on graphics.

Sometimes they take any scraps and make their own ads or DicEures.

Cristie (7L) Loveb the cheaEer and is in her sixth play. She has Iearned so much from this - the background of Ehe play. of course, but a lso s inging, act i ng, composure , how Eo do an important job... She does nosfl v adrrl t fhearer instead of chiLdren's'theaEer, and I highly recommend that. The roLe modeLs are more weLlbehaved. more is expected from her, and she has made many inEeresting friends - both adulr and children.

Tha ^na ahildronrc nlocha did uroni rrorv wol l rq i ts urc a onnd ornrrn oF

kids. But I heard a loE more sass backstage and the cast party cuLminaced in a food fighL. I find that she is made to feel more important and more grovrn-up in an aduLt CheaEer group even though she may have a smaLler parE. The only drawback I have seen from al I Lhe performing is rhar shF has to kecn a late schedule for Lhe rehearsaLs and performances and it does Eake something out of her. T beeF up her vitamins and Lry Co cut back on other commiEments when she is in a show with a long run. h-^r. lMnctlw T harra f n hnrr -,,-^rF udu^ 'r'y5cI Like piano from pushing other things, or vioLin. The inEerest always comes back after the show is done.) tle play a loL of games - any kindl I find Ehat there is a lot learned that way. One of the favorites is Trivia. Recently, I \ras very surprised with whaL they knew abouE bees, something we hadn'E studied at aLl. It led to some questions I couldn't answer or find the answer l^^41 l^ ihan f^. iri. ry f^ Lu d^ ruLd! dPrdr/' ^^i^,,, and then to pictures and poems ("The workers chew the nectar/And make it into honey./The beekeeper spins iE ouE/And seLLs it to make money." Cristie. ) It's times like that when I feeL homeschooLing is working beautifully.

PauL (6) and I do noE spend a Lot of time "in schooL," but he has Learned to read and do Lots of math anyway. His real love is drawing and building and T encourage him by giving him locs of time...

From Steven HarweLl of Texas:

.,.I

lL years old and I starEed homeschooLing Last November, I first sEarted having problems wiEh school in second grade. They said I I had to had learning disabilities.

Eake Ritalin two times a dav. Bv tski-i I h.i n^ rino in dn rnrruv oilJ u 5L -r-r6 L'r| thing but schoolwork, By fourth grade, I dreaded going Eo schooL. I was feeling very depressed. In fifth grade, it was absolutely miserable.

Every day T stayed after school , and when I got home I was too tired to do anythingr and I stilL had to do nome\,{orK. About the middle of Ehe year, we found out about homeschooling...

Since we've been doing iE, school hasn't been such a drag. I don't have Eo be rushed with my work and I can ask cuesEions, I also have Eime to do othet things besides studying. I have time to go outside more. I am also -": :aY lessons. . .

L!d-5!rdr Ld^rLrfi 6ur am

L

His mofhcr

Gave adds:

...Within two weeks of withdrawing him from public school, all the nervous habits and tics he had devel-

oped completely disappeared! He is enjoying reading much more. He seems Eo learn so much more ouicklv - I think Ehe lack of anxiety anb nervous-

ness has freed up a great deal of -^-F

^l

crrcr

6y

.,.I was afraid I would become more over-Drotective with Steven at home, but it seems Eo have had the opposite effect. Now Ehat i see just how capabLe he acEuaLly is, iE is easier for me to treE him Ery Ehings on his own, This has been great for his self-esEeem and deveLopment of independence. Overall, hers much happier and calmer...

THE PROCESS BEHIND ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Susan Richman (PA) wriEes:

...I think someEimes parenEs who feel disheartened to read abouE kids doing all sorts of wonderful things "alL on their own" at home mav reallv be askine to know how the whole interTL^., ^^F ^--^-^L^.,+ L wdrrL LU -^., -Jur know process the of how che kid got ., +to the Doint where he could do some astonishing thing "aLl on his own.rt And I lhink in mosE cases there is a long process behind good accompliShments. Maybe parenEs just canrE Iind i r hal nfrrl fn haer nnl,, ^h^,,r ^-i I'producEs." l,Jhat we really wanE !o know is the first inkLings of inEerthe the sLow beginnings, amounr est, of time and growing that a final accomolishment embodies.

For me to tell people EhaE Jesse (8) can wjre up speakers on his own. or rewire lamps, doesn't real)y mean anything unless they know the conEext ^. Li ^ r ^---:-^ ^rntext that in our case certainly involved me a lot.

I was invoLved noc so much aiteacher (I knew little more about electricity Ehan Jesse did in the beginning), but -'re, [.,Je were jointly inEerested in aII our eLecEricity il6rk, and our inEeresE got Howard involved also, and he Eook Ehe work much farEher than-Tesse or I would have on our own.

We began scrounging for simple books on eLectriciEy, began actual experimenEs with static, buLbs, batteries, wires, and magnets. It vnas these simpLe experiments which gave me the courage to rewire Iy first TEmp three years ago.

Jesse didn't jusE "aLl on his r ^i.nf

uu"rE uP ,,i FL ^ ,rhnl o aoonAa af ^^6^ ,,^

city work and play has a long history to it and has just gradually grown and grown, quite naEurally iErs seemed. It's iust what we do around here aE Eimes.

Just one more note about electrinirrr rnr] c Fraa uL --^.rEdL ,.,i,^ wr!s ^F Er to experiment with, Check your LocaL phone company and ask them for some pieces of wire Ehat Ehey are throwing away. If brave, ask if you can peek in their dumpster. The kids and I were astonished to see five huee bins tulI of wire and cables and ocdasionE-ISarEs of old Dhones and connectors and sr,ritches. I at f irst thoughE the wire would orobabLv be sent on to a h,,F,,^ rorvrlor fhrt.^h^^veUPPE !

- all were told that, no, it was all to be thrown out. We graEefuLly packed our litELe car to the brim. The bright coLored. verv flexible wire encased in larger cables is also great fun Eo make wire scuLpEure and wild jewelry and gizmos and whaE-nots. And it's jusE as good as whaE stores sell (raEher exoensivelv) as "be11 wire" for simple- battery- experiments, We also got rolls and rolls of heavier black wire (iE is what Jesse used to sEring up his speakers), and alL in all just felt like we had run into treasure, Mavbe a homeschooling group r

r

fpl ev

onhnnpLre

^+ --.r drN ^^r. !!. c :he kjds could v,

uu'r'Pdrry

drru

u

!eHrrv

r

have some wire afterwards.

,

,

GEARED TO TEEN'S INTERESTS

Susan Feliciano

I,JTITES:

..,What prompted my getting behind the tvDewriter was the article in GWS #50 ei-rtitfed "only rnEerested In HoE Rods," drawn from some of John Holtrs writings. tJhat Lhat article did for me was remarkable. We have Ewo small girls, 6% and 31, whom we home school, but we are also acquiring, by adopEion, two teen-age boys, ages 13 and 15. The younger son is all for homeschooling, since his transfer to a ne\d school sysEem vrhen he came to our home caused him to starE fajl ing in many of his previously favorite subjects. But his oLder broEher, Tracy, who acEualIy haEes schooL, stated he would noE be homeschooled because he did not want his new mother pushing "all that junk" on him, and besides, he wanted to be able

fo

qo Fo fhp

Droms,

Fortunately, I happened to read "Only InteresEed In Hot Rods" as soon as I received GWS #50. I thought the parE about kids forgetting how to Love learning fitted Tracy, so I shared the whole article with him, His attitude now is that if homeschooling can be geared to his inter-

things he wanted to do with eLectricity and seE abour doing them with no input from us. As he wasn't reading during our first electricity binge, I was the vehicle f or him to sather ne{.{ information aboul the subje-t, I €^"n.i tha h^^l,c 1 roaA rhom a 1 n,r..l rhan ho ic urillino tn oi\rp if A I mused aloud about parts I didnrt un- ocfc derstand, I took him to the hardware shoC. store for a special trip to buy I myself did some growing upon FLi^ l^^i^{^T L^!'^ -1^^ needed suppLies, I was ready to heLp d^1.,^.,rwdy J him set up experiments that would beLieved i n chi 1d-1 ed Iearning, but have been too hard for him to do on was afraid to Ery it on my adopted his own. I was excited about our grow- sons, Ehinking they would noE have ing knowLedge and understanding. the background Eo accept Ehis kind of Now, if Jesse suddenly began a challenge. BuE after reading Ehis playing experc basebaLl (he stilL article, and perusing the rest o.[ the calls footballs baseballs and vice issue, I know thaE my Eears are versa, sports not being a big inEerungrounoeo. €--il"l ar cninnino fioJP y t t vL I had Tracy make a list of a ^-F ^€ ^"rrfewil Ehings he was interested in, ure eighEs on the ice (we do have a farm pond that is probably perfect which included welding and agriculfor skating but I havenrt seE skaEe tural mechanics. We will start there. in years, nor Jiking blade Eo it 10 These are two highly technical subget if my feet cold in winter), or jecEs, and his mach and science to he suddenly began playing tuba or rid- grades in the past have not been very ing horses or any number of things good, although he has a real interest that we jusE don't do yet - weII, in physics. I am hoping that by that would be magic and I'd be as approaching Chese areas through his astonished as anvone. But his electriCONTINUED ON PAGE 19 GROWING l.llTHOUT SCHOOLING #5'I

JOHN HOLT'S BOOK AND MUSIC STORE SUMMER READING SELECTIONS print, ldecided to add hem to ourcatialog.

What really makes these books so special, aside from

the beautiful paper, printing, and binding, is

the

illustrations, originally painted in oil, by Wyeth himself. I have always liked Andrew Wyeth's work, and it has been phenomenally successful, but for me his father is a more powerful and original painter. When, as a boy, I looked for the first time at his illustrations, it was not out of interest in them as paintings, but only to get an inkling of what the book was about, and it only took about two or three of them to make me feel that I just had to read the book. Today I would and will be happy to get these books just for the paintings. I have recently read that in his life he did more

than 4000 paintings;

I would love

someday

to see an

exhibit of the originals.

Most

of

Wyeth's paintings would be considered

realistic, though highly romantic. They are full of action and danger, or the promise of them. ln ROBINSON CRUSOE

the paintings are more about the island itself. The ways in which Wyeth conveys the remoteness and strangeness of this landscape are very far from realistic; his clouds don't look like'real'clouds at all, more like clouds in adream, and

of Crusoe's isolation and loneliness. The last picture in the book, a very moving depiction of Crusoe's rescue, is also an astounding study of sky and clouds, and of sunlight and shadow on water. And the story itself, as I have said, is a well-deserved classic, wonderful for reading aloud, and not to be missed.

-John Holt in GROWING WTTHOUT SCHOOLING #45. they convey very powerfully the feeling

ROBINSON CRUSOE,

by

Daniel Defoe. Color

plates by N.C. Wyeh. (Hardbound, $17.95 + postage).

Everyone knows what this story is about - a man cast

ashore on a deserted island, and how he survives there for twenty-eight years. What I have to confess is that until I read it for this review, I had never read the book, thinking - wrongly - that a story of one man alone on an island could

not be very interesting. Well,

it is interesting, and

beautifully told. I would think it would be fascinating to many children of around ten or so, who, living in busy crowded worlds as they do, tend to love stories about aloneness and wildness, as much as they need and yearn for stories about true courage, resourcefulness, and heroism. How sadly and dangerously deprived are all those children who, asked to name their heroes, can think of nothing but pop entertainers.

Why, after all these years, did I decide to read it? The reason is that when I was a boy this was one of a series of children's classics published by Scribners and illustrated by

the great painter and illustrator N.C. Wyeth (whose son Andrew and grandson Jamie were both to be famous painters - and were both homeschooled). These were some of the most beautiful children's books ever published; a child who took one of these from its wrappings at Christmas knew that she or he had acquired a real treasure, and I have often wished that I could have all

my old copies, which like so many of the things of I heard

childhood disappeared over the years. So when

that Scribners wâ&#x201A;Źls bringing many of these books back into

MYSTERY AND ADVENTURE ALL SAIL SET, Armstrong Sperry. #47. A young boy helps build and rig the great clipper ship 'Flying Cloud,' and sails on her record-breaking maiden voyage. $8.95.

BEARS, PIRATES, AND SILVER LACE, Anne Fisher. #42. Delightful stories and legends, written for younger readers and taken from the earliest days of California history. A fascinating look at a little-known part of American life.$5.95.

THE BLACK ARROW, Robert Louis Stevenson. #14.

Great adventure set in England during the Wars of he Boses, about a young man who escapes and later overcomes his sworn enemies, and rescues his true love. $1.95.

CADDIE WOODLAWN, Carol Brink. True adventures of aboid, red-haired pioneergirl in 1864Wisconsin - some funny, some dangerous, some touching. $3.95.

CAPTAINS COURAGEOUS, Rudyard Kipling. #21 . A spoiled boy learns on asmallfishing schooner how satisfying it is to join adulb doing hard, dangerous, useful,

skilledwork.$1.5 The number after the author refers to the issue of GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING h was reviewed in.

729 Boy'ston St. Boston MA 02116

John Holt's Book and Muslc Store

THE COMPLETE FATTIER BROWN, G.K. Chesterton. #35._All the Fr.

Brom stories, he fiamous English

detective/priest, under one cover. Exciting, amusing, and instructive mysteries for children and adutts. $A.gS.

EMIL AND THE DETECTIVES, Erich Kasher. #20. A country boy chases after an adult thief and is hetped by city kids. A clever, light-hearted story written and set in Germany in 1920. $2.00

boab, some on shore, of a resourcefuland imaginative group of English cfrildren.

SWALLOWSAND AMAZONS SWALLOWDALE WINTER HOLIDAY WE DIDNTMEANTOGOTOSEA

.PIGEON POST .SECRETWATER .PICTSAND

I,|ARTYRS

HARRIET THE SPY, Louise FiEhugh. #13. Engaging story of an inquisitive child who grows up in a modern big city and writes down everything she sees. $Z.SS.

THE HOBBII, J.R.R. Tolkien. #13. A reluctiant Bilbo Baggins seF out after adragon's teasure. Enchanting introduction toTolkien's Middle Earh. $3.95.

$3.9s 93.s0 f,3.95

$3.s0 $4.2s $3.s0 sit.95

HUMOR AMERICAN TONGUE AND CTIEEK, Quinn.#42.

This witty book lets the hot air out of our self-styled

AMER]CANTONGUE

defendec of 'good' English grammarand leb us knowwhat

TH E INCREDIBLE JOURNEY, Shei|a Burnford. tr28. A cat, a young Labrador retriever, and an old bullterriertravel hundreds of miles to join human friends. The dangerous trip

grammar really is. $5.95.

is notonly exciting butcompletely believable. $2.50.

A riobusspoof of garden catalogs. Complete with order forms, guarantees, discount policies and notaword of itis serious. $4.95.

BUMPEE GARDENING CATALOG, Ken Lawless. #38.

JUST SO STORIES, Rudyard Kipling.#18.'Howtte Elephant Got His Trunk,' "How the Leopard Got His Spob,' and many otherfables set in the desert, sea, and jungle.

Wonderfu

I

read-aloud book. $.95

THE MERRY ADVENTURES OF ROBIN HOOD,

THE PENGUIN STEPHEN

Howard fole. #1 5. The best account of tre famous legends, from Robin Hood turning outlaw to his gallantdeah in Little John's arms. Pyle's own illustrations. $5.00.

LEACOCK, #41 . A wondertul collection of many of the funniest pieces by this Canadian professorwho is one of the

NATIONAL VELVET, Enid Bagnold. #15. Beautifulstory about a family in a small English village, and freir youngest daughter who risks her life to ride in a big race. A great novel for allages, and not justthosewho love horses. $2.50.

OTTO OF THE SILVER HAND, Pyle. #14. A gentle boy grows up among warring robber barons in this great Middle Ages adventure. $4.50.

THE PHANTOM TOLLBOOTH, Norton Juster. #30. A boy finds himself in a magic world of words, puns, and double meanings, and meets the Whether Man, Faintly Macabre, and many others. A modern'Alice.'$2.95.

THE SECRET OF NIMH, RobertO'Brien.#36. Mrs. Frisby, a mouse, seeks the help of super-intelligent rats to save her children. $2.25.

STALKY & CO., Rudyard Kipling. #35. A great comic novel about three independent and resourceful boys making endless trouble in a British military school.$3.95.

STICKEEN, John Muir. #42, True story of the life-anddeath adventure of a man (Muir himself) and a small dog czught in a blizzard on the top of a great glacier. $3.95.

TREASURE ISLAND, Stevenson.

#1 3, 45. Classic adventures of pirates and buried treasure. This special edition features fullcolor plates by N.C.Wyeth. Hardcover. $18.95.

New Books by Arthur Ransome New to ourcatalog that is;they were written over 50 years ago! lmported from England and reviewed in this issue, ') round out this captivating series abouttre self-created adventures, some in sail these 3 new titles (marked by

finestcomicwriters of this or any ohercentury.$g.gS. THE POCKET BOOK OF OGDEN NASH,#4s.A collection of his funniest and bâ&#x201A;Źst poems. Far{ehhed rhymes, outageous rhyhms. $3.95.

THINK GOOD THOUGHTS ABOUT A PUSSYCAT, George Booth. #37. A collection of cartoons, mostfrom THE NEW YORKER. The characters and situations make you laugh no matter how often you reacl it. $5.95.

WELL, THERE S YOUR PROBLEM, E. Korben.#33.

One of our favorite carbonisF. Lovely mix of the genfly satirical & fi e absurd. For an older audience. $3.95.

A ZOO lN MY LUGGAGE,GeraldDurrell.#15.True story of a calam ito us trip into remote West Africa to collect rare birds and animals. Funny and exciting. $3.95.

NOVELS AJ. WENTWORTH, 8.A.,

H.F. Ellis. #29. The hilarious misadventures of awell-meaning but bumbling British schoolmaster. One of he funniestbookswe have ever read. $4.25.

THE AUTOBIOGRAHY OF MISS JANE PTTTMAN, Ernest Gaines. #13. Life of a memorable black woman in Louisiana, from Emancipation to Civil Rights days. History made human. $2.95.

BACHELOR OF ARTS, R.K. Narayan. #42. A collegeage lndian leams aboutlife in colonial India. By India'sfinest writer. $3.95.

THE BRTDGE OF SAN LUIS REY,ThOTNIONWIdET.

St. Boston MA 02116

Send order to:

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Shipvia: US mail (see below) _UPS (see left)

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Postage charge: For 1,2, or 3 books or tapes: $1.50; .50 per additional item. Records: $1 for 1; add .50 per additional record. OVERSEAS SURFACE MAIL: 1,2, or 3 items, $2.00; 4 or more, $1.00 per item. Please send money in US FUNDS or checks drawnon a US bank.

Outside the US, UPS only delivers to Ontario and will not deliver to a PO box. #29. Poetic, beautiful short novel aboutthe interwoven liws of a group of people in 18th-century Peru. An American classic. $2.95.

ERLAND, Charlotte Perkins Gilman. #22. A fantasy about a hidden world populated entirely by women.

Amusing, interesting utopia. Written in 1 91 5 by a feminist, it is thought-provoking and years ahead of its time. $3.95.

H

A HIGH WND lN JAMAICA, Richard Hughes.#36.

Children captured by pirates - exciting, and one of the

greatstudies of he minds and hearb of young children. $2.s5.

THE LEOPARD, Giuseppe de Lampedusa. #42. One of thegreatcomic novels of this century, the story of a 19th century Sicilian nobleman, written by a 20th century Sicilian forhis own amusement, and only discovered after his death. A classic. $6.95.

MANY DIMENSIONS, Charles Williams. #31 . A fantasy set in the 1930's. An ancient relic gives the power to travel through time and space, and profoundly changes many lives. $4.95.

SWAMI AND FRIENDS, R.K. Narayan.#37. Funny episodes about a child in lndia during the 30's. Like TOM SAWYER, sureto makeyou laugh. $6.95.

TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, HarperLee.#18.Two children, growing up with their lawyerfather in a small Southern town, encounter prejudice, hatred, and injustice.

One of he most moving American novels. $3.50.

VERY FAR AWAY FROM ANYWHERE ELSE, Ursula K. Leguin. #20. A Fen-ager, tom between being 'normal'orbeing himself, falls in lovewith atalented, selfpossessed musician. $2.25.

HOME AND GARDEN DRiVE lT TILL 1T DROPS, Joe Troise. #39. Thafs one piece of advbe fiis mechanic aives. How to own and run a car with

he

least possible fouUe and expense.

$6.e5.

FOUR SEASON GARDENING. BACK IN PRINT. Norm and Sheny Lee. #44. The shortest, simplest, most

Amount

5% Sales Tar (MA residents only

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NEW NOVELS BY GEORGE DENNISON LUISA DOMIC Afamilyin ruralMaine befriends a South American refugee en route to Canada.

How the parents, their young children, and friends unite to aid tris victim of Chile's Fascist coup is awonderfully wrought tale about famil ies, fellowsh ip and our capacities for creating idylls and horrors. Hardcover. $14.e5

SHAWNO Dogs have inspired many

finebooK, buthis isthe finest and truest. Reading about Shawno and the

countryfamilyand community he lives in adds new meaning to the phrase, "lts a dog's life.'This short book has the weight and resonance of a large novel.

Hardcover. $10.95.

George Dennison is the author of a distinguinshed book on his experiences as a teacher in an experimental school for the underprivledged of Manhattan, THE LIVES OF CHILDREN. In addition to the above he has written a collection of short stories, OILERS AND SWEEPERS. He lives in rural Mainewith his wife and hree children. practical manual about intensive raised-becl gardening weVe seen. You can harvest 2 dozen crops in January, even in the north. $2.00.

GARRETT WADE TOOL CATALOG. #22. The lovely illustrations & photos in his fatcatalog are like those in expensive art books. A pleasure to look through, besides having much good info on using tools. $3.00.

GUIDE TO HOME ENERGY, MoherEarth News.#18.

Valuable articles on biogas plants, woodstoves, trees, solar & wind energy, etc. Incredible bargain. $3.95.

NOMADIC R RNITURE, J. Hennessey & V. Papanek. #30. Pictures and plans of many kinds of fumiture hatare easy and cheap to build, and easy to take apart and take with you if you have tc move. $9.95.

SPACES FOR CHILDREN, PeterBergson.#47. How

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Holt AssocialEs 729 Bovlston St.

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Page 4

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SANDTIOUIY: Archltectural marvels you can bulld at the beach. ConnieSimo, Kappy Wells, Malcolm Wells. $4.95 + postage. Much more than a how-to instruction book, though here are examples for you to follow, this book helps you to u nlod yo u r creative abi lities throu gh sal lpting (oh, all right, playing) wih sand. Written in collaboration by asculptor, aphotographer, and an architactto provide you wih clear, useful information for making the sand casdes of your dreams.

HOME AND GARDEN (Continued from page 3) to build play areas with multiple levels, fapdoors, ladders & more. You don"t have to be a pro - kids will love'em.

$5.00

SQUARE-FOOT GARDENING, Mel Bartholomew.

#41.8y following this very simple method, anyone with a 414'space, even

in

the house (under lights) or on a roof

or patio, can have a productive garden. $1 1 .95.

WHOLE FOODS FORTHE WHOLE FAMILY, Robertia Joh nson. #44. 900 recipes contributed by La Leche League members from all over fie world. Simple and time-saving family meals foranyone interested in whole foods cooking. $10.95.

WORMS EAT MY GARBAGE, Mary Rpp"16of.#40.

Tells how you can use worms to eat your organ ic gabage and convert it into he most fertile of all growing mediums.

$6'e5'

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BEST LOVED SONGS OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE, Denis Agay. #30. Nearly 200 famouS ballads, spirituals, folk and show tunes, with piano accompaniment and guitar chords. Wonderfulcollection. $1 1 .95 THE SINGING BEE, JaneHart, d.#47.125of the best-known children's songs: lullabies, finger plays, circle games, nursery rhymes, you name it. Easy piano & guitar anangemenb. Nice pictures Qn every page. Hardcover. $16.50

EXPLORE AND EXPERIMENT THE AMATEUR NATURALISTS HANDBOOK, Vinson Brown. #33. An expanded and revised classic.

Make fre outdoors your classroom! $9.95.

CASTLE, D. Macaulay. #14. Beautifully illustrated book

about how medievalcastles were built, lirred in, and defended. $6.95

A FIELD GUIDE TO DINOSAURS,DavidLambert. #36. More information than you would believe possible about hundreds of dinosaurs. THE book to tum to. Many drawings. $8.95.

KON-T|K|, Thor Heyerdahl. #16. Exciting, fascinating, and funny story of how (and why)six men sailed across he Pacific on a small balsa raft. A great true adventure. $3.95.

PHYSICS EXPERIMENTS FOR CHILDREN, Muriel Mandell. #15. Many simple experiments about air, wabr, heat,light, sound, eb, using @mmon household objecb. $2.75.

POWERS OFTEN - On the Relatlve Slzes of Thlngs ln the Unlverse, Phil& Phylis Monison. #37.

The most interesting, imaginative, far-reaching, mindstretchi n g boo k o n science we harre seen. G reat co or photos. $19.95.

I

A SAND COUNTY ALMANAC, Aldo Leopold.#32. A naturalists diary - a plea to cherish the wildlife around us, on which we alldepend. A classic of ecology. $2.75.

SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS YOU CAN EAT, ViCKi Cobb. #26. Learn aboutcrystals, colloids, microbes, and more by cooking real food. Easy directions, @mmon ingredients. $4.95.

SPOTTER'S HANDBOOK: Flowers, Trees, & Blrds of North Amerlca, MichaelRuggedo.#33. ldentiff hewildlife in your neighborhood and on trips witl

fris colorful pocket-size guide - a natural introduction to science. $3.95.

THE STARS, H.A. Rey.#38. Published in 1952, ithas been in printeversinâ&#x201A;Ź, and deservesto be. Informative, friendly, and very understandable, astronomy is made accessible to all. $8.95.

'19

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 14

wilL slide @e into a beEEer undersEanding of these ^.,Lr^^F^ ^^^l^-i^ JUU IELLJ. He would Like to so to vocational school, but it anyoie knows of a way fo receive welder certification or agri cuLturaL mechanics training through an apprenCice program in the sEate of Tennessee, we would be interested in learning abouE this...

GROWING UP INDEPENDENT

In

#49, T.H. said she didn't to respond to charges that homeschooling would cause her and her children Eo become abnormallv deoendent on one another. She asked to hear from parents of older homeschoolers about this. From Theo Giesy (VA): I also had to deal with comments about dependence... I have four chiLdren: Danile (2I ), Darrin ( I9), Susan (17), and AniEa (13). We have been homeschooling entirely for eight years, with periods off and on before Ehat... We are a verv close familv and were involved in the same activits,, r^oafhor a Ly Ih.ll^F) \ ud!rsL ru ws wE!L rvSLLrru! u / -^ great deal. Many people, incLuding a woman who described herself as having "exDertise in earlv childhood" warned me thac I was keeping them home because I had an unhealthv dependence on them and Ehac they needed to Iearn to be independent of me. l,ihat has actually happened is EhaE when DaniLe was I7t2, she was dancing in Williamsburg, aLmost 40 miles away. So she got an aparLment there with another girL. We helped her move and heLped her financially until she came to us shortly after she was 18 and said that she couLd manage on her own... Someone asked didn't I miss her terribly. Her quesEion made it sound as if I should.

No, I really didnrt. She hadn't left the face of the earEh, Each of us knows the other is there if needed. I probably see her around once a month and taLk to her on the phone more often, Now she is dancing in a group Ehat performs around here 2 to 4 times a monEh, so she often spends the nighE. The close feeLing remains even Ehough we are both busy and don't actuaLly spend a lot of time Eogether,..

When Darrin vlas L7>2, he went to Antioch ColLege in YeLlow Springs, Ohio. Because of the distance. we do not have that feeling Ehat we can get together if we want to. We see each oEher less ofEen. But we talk frequently (about once a week). There is the same Feeling of closeness, even though we are farther apart.

Susan has spenE Ehe Last two summers away from home, one at a dance camp, Ehe oCher visiting friends.

AlL four are indeoendent. reliahla Frrll nF Thorr cra "^--^. ".;". valued employees whenever Ehey work and dependable at whaEever Ehey do.

Comments 619tr! wnrrr chi Idran u""o*i"l" i.i;";;;;-.i-;.,-" i"-iiii lous. They don't become dependent, ""_ they sEarE ouE dependent on you and grow in independence... Most parents who choose Eo give their children Ehe option of homeschooling reaIIy Iike their children, they enjoy being wiCh Ehem and doing things with Ehem. They consider them worthwhile oeoole, That atEitude builds che self-con'fidence to do Ehings which buiLds competence.

That leads Eo the real independence which we aLl wanE for our children.

And with Ehe true closeness and bond of friendship and trust, Ehey can GWS

know how

GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOLING #5'I

move oni y

out into the world knowins EhaE physical di sEance separaE-s Ehem

from you. . ..Those comrnents about deoendence are related Eo Ehe ones (which I also heard) about hoLding the baby. rr I f r!

yuu "^"

h^ L

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tho

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never let you puL him down. YourlL -^^i

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"'y about my 4-month-old son. My son was one of the mosE independent Z-year-

olds I rchave ever seen. La Leche rrlâ&#x201A;Ź I oaotto ancr.ror i < .,n" hchrr tha baby, you won'E have to baby Ehe man." Build a stronp secure base and the independence will follow, and build a strong secure relaEionship and distance wiLl not harm it.., FAMILY BICYCLES THROUGH EUROPE

Vicki Holmes of Florida: . ..We sDent Ehree months in EuroDe with ouE 9-vear-old son last fall. This was not your usual Europe LU k.^1.^--1. h1' uJ v.il LaLL duu udu^PdL^ vr uJ ?6nF.1 ^-i ^r ' e'rLor car, iE was purely vacaEioning by leg power, It was somewhere in the planning stage thaE we decided to Eour by bicycle.

We boughE 15-speed mounfain bikes in the States and dressed them ouc with panniers (saddle bags), front and rear. Our inEenEion was to tenl-camp Ehroughout our trip, so we packed everyChing we EhoughE we might need for the months ahead. Our bikes and panniers were flown over as luggage with us.

Now, we are noE accomplished bicyclists and had never done a bike From

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seriously and regularly Ehan eiEher or my son, but never any overnight rides. So this was a big, wild adventure for all of us.

We spent months rrpsyching ourselves up,r' saving money and making plans. This was spring of 1985, and we were Living in Austin, Texas.

Eamon was atEending the WaLdorf School, third grade. In dreaming about this Erip, schooling was a big consideration; but somehow we all felt confident in choosins Co learn in a differenL way. We igiored the weIL-intentioned warnings of frlends, relatives, and educaEors. Eamonrs teacher considered him to be "weak" in cerCain areas of his grade leveI, and so he had strong reservations about our breaking his environmental continuity. But I asked him if there would ever be a sood time for this kind ot experience during a school year and he honestLy said thac he telt not.

Bv Spniemhpr 1 5 1985 we were as ready as we would ever be; we were nff fn qoo Frrrnna ,e LrrEdP!y -^ uJ ^-r ^L^^^1.. drru ds informaLly as possible. Family togetherness and challenge was our moEivation and Drioritv.

In the begihning, school was not paramount on our minds. Adjustments Eo language, our new bicycles, and the culEure, occupied and stimulated our attention. But by October we began Eo Ery some regular daily aEtempEs at "learning." IE was soon evidenE how difficulc we can make our daily lives. It was hard Eo fit "schooling" inEo our unscheduled schedule. I realized that I had a certain amount of guilt, anxiousness, and frusEraEion about takinc on fhis burden of responsibili;t';;-";;";h:; It didn't take Long for me co see EhaE I was a victim of the rrtrained teacher teaches bestil menEality. All the fanEasies I had had about homeschooling Eamon were haunting me. I my maCe

felt that everything thaE didn't go smooEhly and ideally was my faulC. I was concerned about him falline behind and feeling thaE Ehis world be a reflection of our decision to take him ouc of school. I worked with this attitude of mine a LoE durine che F,i fLi-^^ L^F r nrngs goL ^^F Lrrp. ^ DeLEer. We made some time each morninq for Eamon's reading aloud and maEhl Ha

kpnf

e

inrrrnal

nf

pwnarioncoc

hiq

and he improved tremendousLy in the

spelling of words. Our "school envia sLeeping bag and tent, flashLight and candle Lantern. At night there was always a conEinuing story that we read aloud, one or cwo chapEers, more if we were at an exciEing parE. This was one of the neaEest things we did.

Eamon learned more abour life than he did about books, though. He learned Eo push his body further when it wanted fo stop, Eo pack and unpack his meticulousLy stuffed panniers (to make things fic), to wash his clothes in icy cold water when iE was 40 deqrees orll-side- fo sew his own torn clothes, rake a bucket bath inside rho f6-f anA malzo _ a PLzza ]n a campfire. We aLl had to learn Eo make-do with almost no water Deriodicallv at night when we camped ln the woodi far from people and water sources. We Iearned to cooperaEe wiEh each oEher, to disagree openLy, to depend on each other to pull his/her own weighE. Each day was a new one : a moment to moment changing. Never knowing \,Jhat kind of a situation we wouLd end up in each nighE kept us from living so much in the future. Life was ronmenE" was

hrcin

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-

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a,,vIiil-

I

By December we were heading back

to the U,S. - a number of months earlier Ehan we had planned, Southern Europe was experiencing an unusually cold Nov.-Dec., and we couLd never seem Eo outrun it, no matter how far south we traveled.

We had come to see Eurooean counEryside, but iE Eurned out that the scenery wasn't the really important thing vre saw. We saw ourselves as a family unit, Learning and growing together - we couLd have been anyvJnere.

Our adventure was no qLorious escape from the huscling w5rld. We brought many of the same problems with us that we deaLt with at home.

We "roughed it'r in a way that very few people would have put up wiEh, but we mosE aLways loved it.

Now we are making our home in FIorida. i.le live out in the counEry and have a family beekeeping business. We are homeschooling Eamon for the remainder of Ehe schooL year, and now plan to continue when he returns Ehis fall. I am letEing go of my paranoia of "doing things \'rrong. " SlowLy we are learning to accept our three very differenE personalities and I see growEh and change.

.

.

LEGAL TOLERANCE

From Wendy Baruch (cWS

#49, 50): JusE a few weeks after I spoke with Shanefs teacher on the phone (about his unusually long absence), we got a truancy noEice in Ehe mail.

I had Eold her on Ehe Dhone thaE rre were homeschooling, but as it is with Ehese Ehings, considering us truant was the only thing Ehey knew how to do. I decided that talkine to them about homeschooling wasn'E enough anymore. I wrote a Letter to the AssisEant SuperinEendanE announcing Ehat we v,/ere homeschooling and asking him

20

to help me find ouE how we couLd get permission to do this. I look back on this now and I'm Laughing aE my -

innocence? ignorance? arrogance? Irm noE sure which.

I hand delivered this leEter to him the same day thaL I received the truancy notice. Our meeting hras very

brief. Regardless of our inEention to

homeschool, Shane had to be in an approved school until our home plan was considered valid. The AssistanE Superintendant feLt obliged Eo remind

me of Ehis every time we meE each other all through the negotiating. IE seemed for a while that because I was breaking the law, they werenrt going to take me seriously. They played a kind of dodge ball with me, shuffling me from one person Eo the next because no one knew how to Drocess mv request. I had a loE of patience forthis because Ird worked in qovernment before. I knew what they weie going through. There were no rnagic forms for them to fill out for me. No orocess to punch me through. They hid to stop and think. If yourve ever had a desk job, iE hras like EhaE project that doesnrt fit your normal routine, Ehe one you just keep putting off.

Thatrs whaE they did, they kepE puEEing me oft. AII they could deal with was our Eruancy, The weird Ehing is thaE I am convinced that had I keoE Shane in school while trying to gec approval it would never have happened. Having him in school when both of us wanted him at home would have rendered us powerless. It would have been like acknowledging that the schools had control over Shane's life, noE me.

They would have tried to Calk us out of iE had we not made the conviction and followed through wiCh it. Irve laEer found out about at leasE Ewo cases here in Massachusetts where this very Ehing happened. The lawabiding parent was talked out of it, with changes in the child's classes or curriculum.

I was being very courteously sEubborn and eventually found myself waiting outside the Cruant officer's door. We rdere very nervous. I had brought books and pens and paper to keep us occupied during Ehe long waiting period. Friends of ours who were also honeschooling had an appointmenE just before us. The officer musE have been prepared for our story from his meeting wich them, as he seemed very recepEive right from the start.

Shane and I sat down in his office and I gave him a copy of Che letter I had given Ehe Assistant Superintendant. He read the letEer and said herd heard of homeschooline even before today. He said he was very fond of the idea and looked upon us automatically as responsible parents. He truly felt that a truancy order was out of place and did nothing to enforce it. Though he did say, "Please keep me posted on Ehe process of your approval." He basically refused to treaE us Like criminals, which is what I believe the rest of Ehe sysEem was expecEing him to do.

As he was escorting us out Ehe door, my head was swimming with all that had happened. It was too easy.

Half in this world, half in another I heard him say something to Shane like "You better be good in your homeschool.tr Typical admonishing cones, buE Shane was quick Eo reply, "Yeah, maybe if Irm bad my Mom will send me back Eo public school,r' Everyone in Ehe office including the truanE officer sEarted Iaughing. The analogy between bad kids who are normally suspended and senc home, and

it was reversed in our case. iust This release of pressure gave me a boost and I went back into our approval negoLiaEions with renewed vigor. The next letter I submiEted Iisted five requesEs that i had in order to prepare an adequate curriculum. I want to auote them here because togeEher ihey make an inEeresting staEement, L) a copy of the entire elementary schooL curriculum; 2) minimum learning requiremenEs hor,,/

busEed them aE Ehe seams

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3) copies of

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instrucEion

programs thaE have already been

approved I 4) how many hours

a day the schools provide tuEoring for a child aE home wiEh an extended illness; 5) a descrinrion of Ehe action taken when a studenC does noE meet the minimum learning requirements.

This was modeled directLy after Ehe KinmonEs' leEcer Eo schoois on page 111 of TEACH YOUR OWN. The informaEion hras very neccessary to my preparing a good curriculum. AIso and maybe more imporEanEly is Ehe statement that Ehese demands make EoeeEher, Because there is no universiLly sEandard curriculum, no minimum leirning requirements, and noching thaE a pubLic school Eeacher can do (short of crying) rarhen their studenEs aren'E learning. By asking for these minimums and standards and repercussions.

I was telling them thaE I was prepared co do Ehe job of Eeaching my child aE home at least as effectiveLy as they. I knew Ehat Shane would be learning much beEter aE home, but I didn'E wanE Eo spend my enEire Life proving it Eo Ehe authoritiesl I wanEed minimum interference.

It took two and a half months for them co answer my request. ActualIy Ehe only requesE Lhey'tried Eo answer was Ehe one about a copy of Ehe entire elemenEary school curriculum.

We received a leEter Chat maEerials had been gathered for our review and would we please schedule a Eime Eo meeE wiEh Ehe AssisEant Superintendant to look them over. There were some scoDe and sequence charEs in Math and- English ihat realLy were helpful, buE Ehe rest of iC I feLE had been gaEhered Eo impress or overwhelm me. There was LitELe concrete subsEance to it. The only science curriculum informaEion I could set was a sales ad for the new (noE yeE i. effecE) science program. Stience has always been a scrong direction for Shane so this was discouraging. I definitely left Ehat office feeling the realities of the educaEional system. Looking at Ehe Ianguage of ali those documenEs I simolv saw how schooLs are so bogglei by bureaucracy and methodologies iE's a wonder any simple learning happens at aLl in a large school system.

The curriculum I wrote after this session was not extravapan!. I wanted to be sure and ouElin6 something I knew I could follow. I didn't want a lot of d,iscipline for me or Shane, I wanEed his learning Eo occur more naturally. I wasnrE afraid of structure, I just didnrt want to be chained to it.

For six months I lived under the assumption thaE they approved of our study ouEline. Then one morning in November of 1983 (a year after I had Eaken Shane ouE of school) a ooliceman knocked on our door and hinded me a summons. I was compLetely floored.

They had never responded to my curriculum report until Ehis.

I wroce a very strong letter to the Assistant SuperinEendant about their lack of repty t.o my curriculum

and received the response that

Ehey

had replied - in June. For some reaEon Uhere was no registered receipt

to show for this letter as there had been for all oEhers, No matter.

I read the letter that I suDposedly was mailed in June and I got very sick. IE contained statements likerrOur general assessment is that the description in no way represents a planned or organized program of educational experiences.rr It was very definite, degrading and expressed no avenues of recourse. They demanded that Shane be put back in school, and Ehey had initiaEed the truancy process again. This Eime our favorite truancy officer had mysteriously disappeared (he probably quit) and we were to appear directly before a judge.

For the firsE Eime I feLt friehtened. My husband (Shane's adopted father) Eolerated and tried to suDporE me in my homeschooling work wiCh Shane, but he wasn't sErong enough to face a court battle. I knew I needed help. Shane had been home for a year now and there vras no r^ray we could live honestly and leE him go back to school. Eugene BurkharE, Ehe "friendly lawyer" feaEured in Ehis issue, was a _big parE of turning our _case arouno.

ITo

BE CONTINUED.]

MISSOURI'S NEW HOMESCHOOL LAW

Frank and Carol Ratliff sent this copy of the newly-passed Missouri home-school law: Be iE enacted by the General

of the SCaEe of Missouri as follows: ...167.031. l. Every parent, guardian or oEher person in this staEe having charge, control or cusEody of a child not enrolled in a pubIic, private, parochiaL or parish school and between Ehe ages of 7 and l6 years is responsible for enrolling the child in a program of academic instruction which complies with subsecEion 2 of Ehis secEion. A parent, guardian or other person in this staEe having charge, control, or custody of a child beEween the ages of 7 and 16 years of age shall cause the chiLd to aEEend regularly some pubIic, private, parochial, parish, or home school not less Ehan Ehe enEire school term of the school which the child attends. . .

2. (I) As used in sections 167.031 to L67.O7L, a "home school" is a school, whether incorporated or unincorporated, that: (a) has as its primary purpose the provision of private or rpl i oi ous-based inscrucEion; (b) enrolls DuDils between the ages of 7 and 16 yeirs, of which no more Ehan four are unrelated by affinity or consanguinity Co the third oegree; ano (c) does noE charge or receive consideration in the form of tuition, fees, or other remuneration in a genuine and fair exchange for provision of instruction.

(2) As evidence Ehat a child is receiving regular insEruction, the parent shall (a) maintain Ehe following records: (l) a plan book, diary, or other wriEten record indicaEing subjects AssembLy

GROWING l.llTHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

2l

taughE and activities

engaged in; and (2) a portfoLio of sarnples of work; academic and the child's (3) a record of evaluations of Ehe child's academic progress; or (4) oEher writEen, or credible evidence equivalent to subdivisions (f), (2), and (3); and (b) offer at leasE one Ehousand hours of insEruction, at leasE six hundred hours of which will be in reading, language arts, maEhematics, social sEudies and science or academic courses that are related Eo the aforementioned subjecE areas and consonanE with the pupilrs age and abiliEy. AE least four hundred of che six hundred hours shall occur at rhe reguIar home school location. ...5. The producEion by a parent of a daily log showing Ehat a home school has a course of instruction which saEisfies Ehe requiremenEs of Ehis section shall be a defense Eo any prosecution under Ehis secEion and to any charge or action for educational neglect brought pursuanE to chapter 210, RSMo. 167.O4L. For the purpose of minimizing unnecessary investigations due to reporEs of Eruancy, each parenE, guardian, or oEher person responsible for che child who causes his child to acEend regularly a home school may provide Eo Ehe recorder of deeds of the counEy where the child LegaLly resides, or Eo Ehe chief school officer of the oublic school distri ct where the chi id legally resides, a signed, written declarat.ion of enroLlment stating their inEenE for the child Eo aEEend a home schooL within thirEy days afEer Ehe esEablishment of fhe home schooL and

by SepEember first annually thereafter. The name and age of each child aErending the home school, the address and Eelephone number of the home school, the name of each person teaching in the home school, and Ehe name, address and signature of each person making the decLaraEion of enroLLment shalL be included in said notice. A declaration of enrollmenE Eo provide a home school shaLl not be cause to invesfigate violaEions of section 167.031. The recorder of deeds may charge a service cosE of not more than one doLLar for each notice filed.

167 .O71, , . .2. Each aEEendance officer... shall refer all cases involving an aLleged violation of section I67.031"... involving a privare, parochiaL, parish or home school to the prosecuEing aEEorney of the counEy wherein the child Iegally resides. . .

2lO.16l. ...This act shall be in fulL force and effect from and afEer its passage and approval.

"M ISSING CHILDREN' EXAGGERATED

IDR: ] over the lasE Ewo years, "missing chiLdren" have been featured heavily in Ehe news. For example, parents have been advised to fingerprinE

their children in case chey are kidnapped. It has seemed Eo me EhaE Ehe

media was creating a lot of fear and even oanic. And how was all this

going co affecr Jur attempts Eo \tin

more indeoer -ence for chiLdren?

How

EEi-you thrnk of "encouraging access

co the real lrorldil if you're afraid co let your kids out of sight?

I was pleased and not realLy sur-

prised to see a Page I story in the Boston Globe some time back Ehat disputed Ehe common figures about missing children, saying Ehe EruEh rras a tiny fracEion of what was being GROI,IING vlITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

spread around. I mislaid Ehose fig-

ures aE Ehe time, buE came across them again in THE MEDIA AND CHILDREN|S ISSUES, the reporc of a November '85 conference of reDorters and experEs EhaE was sponsorld by CHILDREN'S EXPRESS (see sEory elsenhere

Ehis issue). From the report: DIANA GRIECO (Denver

PosE): ...I

trying Eo find 6ft-6&Tany missing children there were... I called the NaEional Center for Missing and Exploited Children, and several missing children's groups in Colorado, New York, and California. And every figure I goc $ras differenE from Ehe other figures. Some of them ranged as high as 1.5 million missing children.

And Eo 50,00 children abducted by sErangers, to 8-10,000 children abducted and Ehen found murdered and mutilaEed. ,..So we ran a 3-part series in Ehe Denver PosE called, "The Truth AbouE-Xis-in-f-Thildren. rr. . . What we found is that when you're talking about a large group of missing children, 1,5 million or 50,000, chaE in Ehe majoriEy of Ehose cases, abouE 95%, we're Ealking abouE runaways. Or rrEhrowawavs' Labandoned childrenj. ,..Atout 5% are children caughE in parenEal custody disputes. Children who have been awarded, or are about to be awarded, Eo one parent and the other parenE kidnaps Ehem, because they want Ehe child for Ehemselves. 0r out of spiEe Eowards Eheir ex-sPouse.

We already have 1007.. The remaining small percentage of cases are whaE we EradiEionally Ehink of as missing children. Children who have been abducted by an unknown person, who disappeared mysEeriously.

IErs noE the stranger in the playground or Ehe school yard that we have to worry abouE, Mosc of Ehe problem is reaLLy coming from Ehe family, and from the home. When you see Ehem on a posEer in a grocery store, iE doesn't say, "These children have been abducted by one of their parent s . " In Ehe Post series we said that we beLieve theE-that means kidnapping by strangers are less than a thousand per year. My personal opinion, from talking Eo Iaw enforcement agencies all over the country and from whaE I see in Ehe FBI compuEer, is that it's realLy less Ehan 200. The FBI, in 1984, had 67 cases of what Ehey believed were actual kidnappings of juveniles.

LOUIS MccAGG (Child Find): l,lhen I took on the role of Director of CHILD FIND. I inheriEed the sEaEisEics that you've menEioned. After about six monEhs, I began to revise our figures. In fact, we now say thaE we believe that there are somewhere in Ehe neighborhood of five to six hundred - thaE's for a year - stranger abducEions in Ehis counEry. I don't think that any group or any person meanE to start a sorE of paranoia or fear in this counEry.., was

WILLIAM TREANOR (American YouEh

Center): I would disagree with the reDorEer from the Denver PosE on the number ot kids who arE--?iiEiEys. I'd say iE's probabLy more like 987.. ...To argue EhaE a milLion-anda-half Ichildien] are missing every year, and some stories go on Eo say that fhe majority of Ehem are never found, would mean Ehat one child out of every classroom in the United StaEes would be gone at the end of the year. Simply vanished.

Then 1o and behold! Along canc a broad range of people selllng varlout producEs to Ehe generaL publlc.

So

you had fingerprinting kits runnlng as high as $75. You had Ehe teeth implants. You had $1.29 beepers. You had children's safety klts, wlth flares and bandaids, and a whole

range of silly

producEs, norEhless to

prevenE a child from being abducted by a sEranger. . . .Herers anoEher flgure Ehat has been bandied about in the press, that has senE chills down the spines of many, many American parents and children. The figure mosE ofEen clced is 4000-5000 unidentified dead bodies of children every year. Well, the American College of PaEhologiscs jusE completed a scudy. They surveyed PaEh-

ologisEs in areas covering roughly

100 million Americans, and they found out in 1983 that Ehere were 68 bodies of unidentified juveniles - children in Ehis country, dead from all causes, fire, flood, whatever. The pathologisEs said that they could only have idenEified two addiEional children if they had had fingerprints. ...The "missing childrenrr are social welfare problem of the ideal r80's.

Ehe Because you have a problem and a clienf Ehat are missing. You can't feed them, you canit shelter Ehem, you can't counsel them, you don't have Eo hrorry about Che condiEions in the detenEion center, anyEhing else. The kid is gone. And so we can all focus our aEEention on che kid we can'E find. BUE aE the same ti,ne, 25% of che children in this counEry live in poverEy. And we can find them.

I think that politicians like the missing kids issue, and che American family liberals like it because iE means Ehere should be more social welfare spending. The press, particularly local television, loved the story because it was a real tear jerker. You could do iE night after nighE; it was a real- cheap story Eo cover. The Er{ro groups EhaE had Ehe real story were Ehe service providers for runaways, and the police. And they were, for some reason, pushed

aside.

...The frightening thing abouE this missing kids issue is, you're to be looking ac $7 to $10 million a year, at leasE, in Federal money being pumped inEo the system.

To keep hyping Ehe numbers. To keep the milk carcons and everything going. And Ehis, in one or Ehro years, has institucionalized itself, It has a bureaucratic life of its own.., now going

QUERIES

Here are more quescions we hope some of you will respond to. We will forward all answers Eo Ehose who asked Ehe questions, and we pJ-an to

print the most interesEing replies: ...I would like Eo know how oEher older moms coDe. I am 42 with a very energetTc (and delightful) 5-year-old son... I find that I simply don'E have Ehe energy to do housework and errands and also give Jason the amounE of aEEention I would like Co give him... Is iE my age? (Is iE his?) Are aIl Ehose oEher homeschooling parents 22? Are they more effiabout nature, ecology, adventurc, languagc, history, math, space, world problems & morc.

ALL

AGES

- ALL

SITUATIONS

New, expanded cataloS,

25C

Pastimes(GS),Perth,Ontario.Canrda K7HtC6

aa

cient? Do Ehey not sleep? How do they do iE? IErs taken me six monEhs Eo get Ehis lecter written. - J.H. .,.Do you have any information about lhe differences in "accredited" and "non-accredited'r schools? I feel EhaE accrediEation is noE essenEial, buE I donrt know how to back uD

EhaE

belief when I discuss Ehe maEEer $7iEh oEhers. - G,W. ...We generaLly agree thaE real learning can only occur as Ehere is readiness for iE and that basically life itself is a rich source of Learning... YeE, Ehe oId fears constantly are popping up... The children in GIdS all seem to be success stories.

Hasn't anyone out there ever struggLed? If so, how? WhaE helped? - P.B. IDR: Also, a couple of parents have asked Eo hear abouE Ehe homeschoolins of + onlv children. DarEicuIarly In rural areas,l SLOW READER HOME ALONE

a reader: Aoril '85: ...Her Eeacher no$/ feels chac Ffary (8) should be making more progress with reading and EhaE she might have a reading disabilicy.

She would like me Eo seek testing and special help for her... I am hesitant about tesEing parEicularly since my daughter's reading performance seems to vary over short periods of time, She seems tense or intense when she reads aloud. She reads aE abouE a first grade level and is making slow progress, and aE Ehis time seems more motivaEed. She now reads signs, can 1abe1s, and package direcEions.

Before she seemed Eo have litt.le incerest. In other ways she seems to have good intelligence and seems to be doing sacisfactory work in maEh...

Feb. '86: ...The informaEion you sent il23-GiE6fraging and caused me- Eo reevaluate lrhat rnras happening, and articles in GWS abouE late readers were also encouraging... I didntE have her tesEed and I explained to Ehe teacher that although I sEill wasn't posiEive, I didnrt think Mary had a problem, only a 1oE of circumscances making her tense. ...During the summer I Eabled Ehe whole ching, feeling a vacation might ease her Eension, Then fall was upon me and I realized I needed to figure something ouE.,. A friend not Eoo far away offered Eo keep Mary while I worked, and I wroce to SANTA FE COMMUNITY SCHOOL (NM) co enroll her, and we started in Erying Eo do home schooL. With them you make your own curriculum and send Ehem records of the time spenE on different subjeccs . I E \^ras the mosE f reedom I could offer her and sEill feel a little back-up if I had trouble with Ehe school district. SFCS aLso sends to Ehe school for her records, which I Ehink makes Ehe schooL district think she has moved. I've run inCo teachers who know us and ask quesEions on rare occasions, so I like to be able to say I've enrolled her in a home scnool program.

Shortly after we starEed Ehis system, Mary told me she would rather sEay home by herself Ehen with my friend, so with a lot of worry on my part we decided to give it a try. We Live out in Ehe woods buE do have a close neighbor. That has continued Eo be her preference and I've gouEen used to it some, alEhough I still From

worry not only abouE accidents but about someone finding ouE she is home alone. She is only nine buE is Eall and couLd oass for older. There is the risk of being molesEed, but in general I feel preEty safe as our home is somehrhaE secluded, More I v,rorry EhaE someone might reporE me

for child neglect, A couple more years and I guess Ehat won'E be such

a Dossibilitv. I Ehink we will do a little more role-playing about whac Eo do if someone comes to the door.

I only work Ehree days a week and for Ehe firsc three months Eried to devoEe lots of energy to schooling the other days, but as I organized my records it didnrt seem like very much. I had her read to me a lot and work wiEh Cuisenaire rods and workbooks. I tried to leave suggesEions of chings for her Eo do while I was gone. She got lonesome some whiLe I was gone and worried if I was late, until we figured ouE a sysEem of her going Eo the neighbors where I could call, as we have no phone.

Since mid-December I've been laid off, and after Ehe hoLidays Irve had Erouble geEting her going again.

We sEiLl read a loE (me Co her).

RecenEly we finished LITTLE WOMEN and CLAN OF THE CAVE BEARS, and I've read a loE of historical biographies. I'm afraid our newly acquired TV is parE of the problem, although she has never been much interesEed in conventional schoolwork.

Her reading progresses buE it seems slow... She sEill laDses inEo asking for words she's been reading for a Long Eime. Before Christmas she starced a biography writEen for probably 3rd or 4th grade LeveL. Ic was very difficulE. She read it aloud and I heLoed with Ehe words she didn'E know.-She got quiEe a ways chrough iE, Ehen wanEed to finish it by herself. She finally did... I know she would like Eo be able to read as I do ln her T rrv f^ find inlprpefino Ehings at her level, but for some reason Eheyrre noE inEeresEing enough. Irve tried Eo explain Irve been reading for many years and I wasn'E as good when I started - I still have troubLe wiEh words, don'E know how to Dronounce some and dontt know the meaning of others. Maybe chat iusE makes iE seem all the more imoos5ible. ' She dislikes being correcEed and I sometimes wonder how one can make any rapid progress unless one can use criEicism. Recently she wroce a long piece in a journal - someEhing her lasE teacher started buE she almost never hrriEes in it. It was soelLed phoneEically mosEIy and I coirLd make most of iE ouE, but she didn't want me to make spelling corrections, and I wonder if it dampened her spiriEs EhaE I q/anted Eo. ...AnoEher concern that has been intensified by our non-schooling sysEem is social contacE. For a child who was already shy, it might noE be good to spend so much time alone and Ehen mosE of the rest of her time wiEh onLy one oEher person. Before Christmas I Eried Eo see EhaE she spent at lease part of every weekend wiEh a girl her age who lives abouc a mile from here. WhaE Irve noticed is her confidence seems Eo have increased and she seems less shy. I remember shortly after she starEed aE Ehe litEle privaEe school, we were shopping and ran into her kindergarten Eeacher and she wouldn'E anshrer a direcE question. This year \te ran inEo her again and Mary noE only answered quesEions, buE offered information... She is Eaking a ceramics

class in town, and enjoys iE a lot.

I feel Irm part of an experiment and I'm concerned abouE where iE will

go, but public schooL really doesnrE seem to be for us. Happiness is an important part of life Eoo...

DOESN'T CORRECT SPELLING

Elizabeth Swift wroce: ...Gabriel (7) is finaLly getting freed up enough to wriEe without asking me how Eo spell every word. He was such a perfectionisE about spelling, EhaE Ehe GNYS AT WORK style of learning just didnrt work. Finally he writes independently, aE least some of che time. Yourd beEter believe I dontE correcE ttsedtt or ttbatl.tt His spelling improves all Ehe time, even though I don'E correct it in wriEten hrorK . . .

MARKING ERRORS DOESN'T HELP

An AssociaEed Press storv bv Sue

Cross:

BOI^ILING GREEN, OH... The English teacher's sidekick, the red pen that circles every spare comma, nixes extra nouns and changes "aintt" to "are notrrr is reEarding childrenrs ability to wriEe, says educaEion professor RoberE L. Hillerich.

The Bowling Green SEate University professor and auEhor of several textbooks believes overzealous "redpenning" has creaEed a generaEion of non-writers. In his laEesE book, TEACHING CHILDREN TO I,iRITE, K_8, Hillerich Eells Eeachers that grammar has become an abused and over-used course of study, and Ehe Less elemenEary sEudents are exposed Eo its formaliEies , the beEEer EheytLl r^rrite.

"I cannot find a research sEudv Ehat says if you mark Ehe errors on children's papers Ehey will do befEer," Hillerich said. 'rThe findings are consistenE that chiLdren who r,,/rite and don'E get correcEions will write more, Ehey enjoy writing more, and chey express more creaEive ideas."

Hillerich says wriCing notes on sEudent papers and teaching granrnar in day-Eo-day lessons are beneficial, but that Eoo much emphasis on vJriting mechanics kills young studenEs' ambitions Co wriEe. One study Ehat has influenced the teaching of English and which backs his views is an assessmenE of wriEing sponsored nationwide by Uhe U.S. Department of Education, Hillerich said. The third assessment, in a representaEive sample of sEudents nationwide, was completed in the earLy 1980rs.

In use of grammar, the Eests found EhaE "above average" writing by third-graders had more errors in comma usage than Ehe ttaverage" papers, which in turn had more grammatical errors Ehan Ehe papers judged pooresE based on criteria such as sentence sErucEure, organization and word choice.

In oEher words, Etre besE writers had the poorest granunar.

"AE eighth grade level, Ehe above-average chemes were mechanically perfect. The only problem is they rdere wriEEen in shorE, simple sentences with common, everyday wordsr" Hillerich said.

"The studenEs learned Lhac if they used a common word insEead of the more appropriaEe one, and used shorE, simple sentences, they got a betEer grade and Eheir paper didn't GROl,lING |^lITHOUT SCHOOLING #5'I

23 T did nni hlaclz nrrt'hrrr like iE had a hemor- rha nnrae it was as if I could not see them. rhage from a red pencil.r' They were bLurred, as if my eyes were Hillerich concecies ic is diffirefusing to focus. They aLso seemed cult for teachers to ieE Eheir red non. rlrrr ln ol.lor f a..;,orc f irml rr to be moving about on che page. But above all else, they made ne feel believe in their use. Younser ceachthat I was seeing something I had ers are likely to teach the way they never seen before! never heard of or themselves viere taugirt and conceneven imagined. Those bLack and white trate on error-hunting. marks in fronE of me were comoLeEelv AIso, teachers wlro apply his disconnected from aII mv orerious methods must be ready Eo explain experience. The word "disbonnected" their use to parents, who ofcen believe a teacher isn't doing the job' fits closely; I felE as if I were one oI those oId-fashioned EeLephone if errors are noc marked, he said. switchboards from which an angry operParents are right to beLieve in aimator has suddenLv ouLled out all the ing for good grammar, but often don't reaLtze that focusing on it in elemen- plugs.

These sensations were beyond aLl Eary school is Largely fuEiIe. words unpleasanE and terrifying. I He believes Eoo many Eeachers could stand iE no more Ehan a second would correct a child who answers a .

FL^T +^^1, FL^ f 1.,+^ ^,,^., L"< !!uLc dwdy question in the classroom using the rrain't.rr from my lips and Eurned abruptly away word The correction belitfrom the music. My teacher undersEood Eles the content of the child's that I had been driven ( or had answer and discourages che child from offering ansbers and rjsking chasE.ise- fallen) over the edge of something.

He let me rest, tried Eo help me ment in Ehe future. relax, and afEer a whiLe we wenE on "What we need Eo do is acceot at a s lo\,Jer pace . I wrote about the the language the child brings to experience in my book HOW CHILDREN school and encourage the use, then in FAIL. Since then, quiEe a few promiddle schooL offer alEernatives," fessional musicians have told me that said Hillerich. they have had exactly the same experiAwareness of Ianguage's social ence, at a lesson or rehearsal, workimportance Cevelops in the teenage .,^^-1 i l.^ FL^-1,.1 F^ ine on a ditficrrlr nLece under a bul^-! yEd!r drru LD, rLuLrErrLs ^F.,,1^-tsLrrErr Iying teacher or conducEor, I began model their language after that of ,,h-F r -^,,r Faal <,,2o nf t rharr aAmiro Lw rurPELL rulL va ^a^h]d that the trouble some children have h,,^+ ^7i i n reeri i no i c nerrcad uy r'ryrLsrLrrvL h., r -^ts ous diseases or derangemenEs in their FEAR LEADS TO'BLINDNESS' nervous systems, which it is now the fashion to caII "Iearning disabiliIn READING WITHOUT NONSENSE, a ties" or "minimal brain dysfuncbook we are aclding Eo our catalog, uuL uy JusL ''-- :his kind of Frank Smith Ealks about "functional reaction to fear and Eension, in blindness" in children struggling to learn to read; this reminded Mary Van short, not by "word bLindness" so nuch as fear blindness.

Doren of the following section of Somd-f6ars later George Dennison NEVER TOO LATE by John Holt: in his extraordinarilv orofound and moving book THE LIVES-OF CHILDREN . . . I began taking fluEe Iessons ,,-I ^-^ I ^^^ gave this descripEion of a tweLve^-l uuL -., L^^*ts dBdrrrr L,.F "ry year-old in ic... I was too Eired Eo praccice "nonreader": IIrrLErr i.f^urol in m.,-^l wrar, I Lv eh:1 lonoF ,"yDsr! F r u! ^* rr., F^,.L^r r When I .used to sit beside Jose L!rLrLo!a) was doing.

I ,.,iFk end uarnh him ctr:ro^1innlavcri mosflv for rpiaxation, This w!L" u65r!r,6 ^-ihF P' ' "L,,^-l^ T,,^L., ^l ^1,,^..^ ^F-..^1. alwdyJDLIuU^u) was pleasant, buc did noE lead Eo the fact EhaE he had such diffimuch progress. My teacher was discourculty in even seeing them. I knew aged. In one lesson he said to me 1 rom meolcal reporEs Enac nrs eyes despa i ri ngIy, "You Con'E change i " A were all right, IE was clear Ehat teacher mvseif. I know how he felt. his ohvsical difficulties were the During one o[ my lessons I had a sign-oi a terribLe conflicc. On the most strange, frightening, and reveaLone hand he did not want to see the ing experience. The lesson was in Ehe words, did not want td-focus his late afEernoon. I had had a bad daY eyes on them, bend his head to in class, lolLowed by a commitEee Fh^L^li LiL^-l i- rr ^l ^^^ ^^l meeting full of biEEer and angry arguPrdLst On the other hand he wanced to ment. I was late in leaving, ran into learn to read again, and so he heavy traffic, and arrived laEe for forced himself to Derform these my lesson, with no chance to warm up. actions. But che cbnflict was visiMy teacher had also had a trying day, ble. It was as if a barrier of and was not his usual eood-humored smoked glass had been interposed and paEienE self. He EoLd me Eo play between himself and the words: he the piece I was supposed fo have moved his head here and there, worked on, and was exasperated to squinted, widened his eyes, passed find that I had made so litcIe prohis hand across his forehead. The sress since Ehe lasE Iesson. As teachbarrier, of course, consisEed of 6rs Eoo ofEen do, he decided EhaE by the chronic emotions I have aLready golly he was going to make me learn mentioned: resentment, shame, that piece whether I wanted to or self-conEempt, etc. . . noE, and began Eo Ery by brute will power to force me Eo play iE aE Ehe Clearly Jose was suffering from proper speed. I began Eo make misF^1.^^. r.,^-F^' Lithe same problem. ^-i ^^1.

LV JLVP As I said earlier, I am playing Eo let me take iE slower, buE was these days in an amateur orchestra, afraid Eo.,. A pressure began to players much better Ehan I am. with build up inside my head; it felt Much of what v,/e play, \,re play aE ready to bursE. Some kind of noise, leasE Evrice as fast as I couLd. even ocher Ehan my own miserabLe playing, with practice. What I am slowly learnwas in my ears. ing to do is Eo connect the notes Suddenly someching popped loose played by Ehe other cellists wiEh Ehe in mv mind. and the \.{ritEen music writEen noEes in my parE, so that befo?e me lost all meanine. All meaning. It is hard to descriSe dhE exper- when slower notes come along, I can join in. But this puEs me under great ience, which Lasted only a second or tension; it is harder to follow all Er.ro. Strictly speaking, I could see

come back Looking

r

GROIIING iJITHOUT SCHOOLING #5I

those noEes EhaE I cannot Dlav than it wouLd be Eo play them, and-aC Ehe

end of a rehearsal I am more tired

than my fellow ceLlists. As I struggle to keep my place, voices argue in my mind. One says, "Ah, the hell with this, what's Ehe use, you canrE play Lhis stuff, IrhaE are you doing here, anyway." My eyes want to slip a little ouE of focus, Eo skim over the notes wiEhouE really trying Eo see Ehem. AnoEher voice says, "Come on, don't give up, hang in there, Look aE those notes, don't leE Ehem slide by, grab hold of Ehem.ir And week by week iI 6u! oor ^F L^-^"-^ u I i rr'i a hoffar ' there ^and grabbing hold of Ehem, which is why I play with that orchestra. All the while, I have to struggle against the very feeLings Dennison wrote abouE - resentment, shame, and self-contempt. How come Ehose people can read that music and play it so fast? What's Ehe macEer \rith me.

EhaE I can'E?...

FAMILY NEWSLETTER-ON COMPUTER

From

Mikell Billoki

(Ont):

. . . rr

-^-ii 4il1 ^-

fha

firer

issue of our family newsletter. Irve read abouE other families doing this in CWS and always EhoughE it was a great idea.

I'm a journalist by education and worked as a reporter for several small newspapers before I began my family. I still keep my pencil sharp by doing freelance wriEing (without. pay) for the various organizations (La Leche League, environmenEal, etc.) EhaE I am involved wiEh. So the idea of publishing my own newspaper was very appealing. Lloyd, my husF--F--., y Lurrs hanrt c.\,c i rrc 1 i lzo vuilu, rq)J ^^-^ true for me to be able to sign my name as EdiEor! ...One idea Ehaf I am DarticularIy drawn to is that parenEs should invoLve EhemseLves in things that are interesting Eo them and simply Iet Eheir children parEicipaEe as Ehey want and are able to. I like this idea because it frees rne from constantly trying to think up "educational" things for my kids Eo do - which they generally resist or tire of quickly any$/ay. And it fulfills a desire I have to be doing and learning in my daily life... I donrt have Eo teach Ehem how to cook or abouC organic gardening, If they hang around long enough in Ehe kitchen or garden, chey are bound Eo pick it up on their orvn. IE jusE takes a liEtle encouragemenE and paEience, but mosLLy just enjoying their company.

And so it is with v,/ricing and communication. I'd reaLly like to see my children Learn these skills but my past experiences have shown me that I donrt get results by trying to structure a lesson - no matter how subtle.

I couldn't see them taking me up on any suggestion to sEart their own newsleEEer so I decided to do it on my own and for me. If they get inEerested at some p6Tnt I'11 be delighted, buE even if they don't, Ehis is an exciEing and fun project in its own righE. Itrs also been made easier and more inEeresEing for me since I purchased a compuEer program called rrTHE NEI^ISROOM" by Springboard software company. VJe have quite a library of "educational'r programs for our children some good, some mediocre - but this is one of Ehe best I've ever seen or heard about. Itrs simple enough for children brho can read and write to use on Eheir own and iErs sophisEicaE-

24

ed enough for many aduLt applications. In fact, itrs subtiELed "for journalists of alI ages."

I like programs thaf make good use of a computer's unique abiLities.

So many do chings that paper and pen could do as well. The Newsroom Duts the computer to work simplifying the many small Easks involved in editing a newspaper - word processing, art work, and layout, for example. lt only took me about 6 to 8 hours to completely finish my first newsLetter (two pages). This incLuded all the Eime it took co read the manual as I wenE along and learning Eo use the various components of the program.

Now that Irve done it once, the next one should be much faster. The finished product is quite professional, with several styles of type and the inclusion of lots of art work.

As I went abouE putcing it together, I asked the kids for ideas for arEicles and I interviewed Ehem for some of the stories and cuoted 'asked Ehem in Ehe arEicIes. I al so Ehem if theyrd like Eo contribuEe a reguLar column !o Ehe newsletter and Benjamin (9) said he would do a book review (his passion is reading) and Noah (almosE 7) is going to review movies. I made it verv easv for them Eo make these contribution3 by doing all the typing and Layout and design for their coLumns. They just dictated Eheir reviews to me so they didnrt have to worry abouE spelling and such. They were quite proud to see rhoir hrr-linoc in rh6 finichod nrnducE. Noah, who loves using Ehe compuEer, watched me cLoseLy most of the Eime I was working on this, so he picked up quite a biE of the rrhowto's." He also provided feedback on my choice of graphics, I mailed our newsletter to many of our friends and relatives who live far away and we also gave them Eo friends in our area. The kids gave coDies Eo several of their friends and the response \ras very encouraging, I asked (in the newsleEEer) for contributions from our readers and already Ewo of their sLighEly oLder friends have asked if Ehey can write regu)ar columns on subjecEs they are inEeresEed in. This has added a new dimension to the interesE our children have in the newsletter already, as thev are alwavs more enthusiastic about things when it involves their friends, . .

to Ehe children. Before she reads Ehe story, the class discusses the ti tl e, the author and the copyright and predicEs what Ehe story will be about rrom page ro page. ...The children read to each other Ehe books they have written and need Little encouragemenE Eo share Ehem with visitors.

Billy Wingo couldn't waiE to explain Ehat he's wriEten Ewo books. "I realLy like to wriEe," he said. BiIlyrs book is about playing outside on the playground, monsEers and whales. ...Many of the children wrote about ChrisEmas, Eheir families, flowers, Ehrowing snowballs and their friends. As a hard rain fell outside Ehe classroom window, Waddell suggested Ehe rain would be a good subject for Ehem Eo write about. Soon the youngsters started taking their completed papers to a box set aside for oublication.

The tirsE books Ehe chiLdren did were made of construcEion paper. The ones they are now completing are hardback, with bright cloth jackets. "The children realLv resDect these books.

When they read-them, they say iE's a real book," Waddell said. ..."When Ehe firsE five books came ouE, Ehe class went crazy. They all wanEed to publish books." she said. In order to make the hardback books, Waddell had to work around the clock. rrThis time, I've asked the parents for Eheir help.",..

PUT YOURSELF IN PRINT

luK: J l rouno rnls quore rrom Pete Seeger in an oId alternative educaEion newsletter: . ..Whenever

NDERGARTENERS MAKE BOOKS The

12/15/85:

Nashville Tennessean.

- Few authors are Rrrl- F\rprw nne of the 26 studenEs in JilI Waddeil's kindergarten cLass ac Lakeside Park Elementary School can make that claim. t^lhen Ehe school year opened, the children started writing books of their own. Some have even done t\to books and are eager to do more.

Putfing togeEher the books is part of Waddell's meEhod of Eeaching reading known as "the whole Ianguage approach." This meEhod teaches children to learn to read by allowing a natural development of reading skiIIs. ...Waddell says about half of her students know the consonanE sounds when they starE kindergarten.

"Kids can compose stories when Ehey know six Eo eight consonanE soundsr'l sne saro. ...Every school day, Waddell reads Ehree pieces of real literature HENDERSONVILLE

published aE age five.

who

by mimeographing a half-tone or a fine pattern over the whole page.

CollaEe Ehe pages; staple them together; nolr you have a book. Put a price on it. Then mail or give away free copies. Analyze the reaction to Ehem.

KI

I meet a writer

complains of not being able Eo geE published, I teLl him or her Eo Locate a mimeograph machine somewhere and become expert at using it.

Learn how to lay out a page tastefully, with proper borders.

Check out some offices and businesses where you can scrounge free paper - aE least paper that has only been orinEed on one side. You can make the used side less disEraccing

T,.,^-ts,,

^i^hts.,^?rq)car

J

aon q6v

I

miman_

graphed I00 copies of a banjo instrucEion manual. Three years later we ran otf 500 more copies. Three years later we pasted up a dummy copy and had 2000 copies run off by photooffset. Three years Later we had to

get 9000 more printed. By now iE has sold several hundred Ehousand cooies and puE our kids Ehrough college.

The proper use of cechnology cal I s For fi exi bi I i tv. There is a Eime for mass producEion, a Eime for small-scale production. . .

A READING SYSTEM THATWORKS

From Karen Jackson (FL):

..,For several years in addiEion to homeschooling my children and a few others, I have tucored reading.

The children have been from Drivate schools that push reading at- an early age (and some obviously aren't ready) and children from oubLic schools who have been labeled L.D.. emotionallv L--1,'^^^^^i

I use a readinp method I discovered while working is a librarian at an instiEuEion for the mentally reEarded. Dr. Renee Fuller developed

Ehe

Ball-stick-Bird

reading system

"for-TE6EE-T66-??E-ready oi not, in Ehe age range from 3 to infinity. iE is a phoneEic reading series with mar-

velous science ficcion stories interesEing to boEh adulcs and children.

She builds Ehe p)oE on the cliff-

hanger straEegy - if you want Eo find

out whaE happens to Ehe hero, you learn a new sound. The sysEem has worked with every child I have ever dealE with. They enjoy iE so much they ask for more when it is time to sCop. The books come in Ewo series of 5 for about $40 each. They can be obtained from Dr. Fuller, PO Box 592, Stony Brook NY 11790.

Our local school svstem re iecEed the idea of these books-, as hav6 oEher systems, for being too simpLe. All I know is that they work, the children enjoy Ehem and by the end of che series they can read the newspaper.

The topics covered in Ehe sEories include ecoLogy, the history of alphabets, and overpopulation. The stories are non-vioLent, the good guys always win, and Ehe bad guys learn Eo "improve Eheir image.r' Although there seems to be much disagreement about wheEher phonetics or look-see is the I'besEil method to teach reading, I feel there is more than one approach to any problem, a number of which can be successful. . .

Ball-Stick-Bird has been oarEicularlv helpful to Ehe kids who are being pushed too hard... Once I get Ehem through the series, they ace Lhe standardized fests while Eheir classmates are stiII languishing with blends, short and long vowels, eEc., and still do noE get to read books. They go back to school reading real books iuch as LITTLE HOUSE ON THtr-PRETNTT. You don't need any training Co use these books, There are teachersl manuals included, but mostly iErs iust common sense. Mv children Iearned from them several years ago hrrl- ql-iII nielr fham rrn frnm fimp in Eime to enjoy the stories again...

COMPARES READING & FOR. LANGUAGES From Valerie Vaughan

...When I was 10, my family to Norway and I was enrolled in

moved

Norwegian school with an agreement betlreen my parents and Ehe teachers that no English was to be spoken to me. IE Eook me three months to learn to speak Norwegian coherently with my schoolmaEes. By 6 monEhs I could read the language; after one year I was writing iE and being misEaken for a

native Norwegian. During my second year I started to dream in Norwegian and forgeE my English (I only spoke iE with my parents, who weren't around much). I spent Ehe following year traveling throughout Europe and learning to speak any language I came across on a "survival level.tt I could pick up languages easily, yet never did t have iny-lessons in iron[frtTEtion, grammar, or phonics.

When I returned to the U.S, at age 14, I was excited abouE taking foreign languages in school. My European experiences had Erained me to feeL a Language. Luckjly my high FcFooI Soanish (AND Latinll teichers believed- in doing a lot of speaking, so I performed well under EhaE famiIiar meEhod. When I goE to college and took Gernan, I was appalled to GROWING |^lITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

25

find thac rrForeign Language Lab" (where one went to listen to and speak with tape recordings) was NOT REQUIRED, only recommended; and I found myself almosE alone in the lab at nighE, earphones on my head, learning to feel when to use a masculine, teminine, or neuEer article, eEc. In grad school I Eook some French and IEalian, and discovered the teachers and sEudents struggling wiEh RULES of grammar or pronunciation, insEead of speaking/ I istening/ f ee L ing.

ANYWAY - here I am now, helping Gabriel (8) learn to read and soell his own language, and coming up6n aLI this-TOoPlA-ab5ui phonics. FrankIy, I just donrt geE it. Why Ery to memorize absEract rules and all their excepCions (i before e, except afCer c,..) when by pure exposure Eo seeing, hearing, and speaking words, one can Iook at rrbeLeiveil and ttrecievett and see EhaE something's wrong? Isn't it more economical for one's menEal energies Eo simply learn a word raEher than memorize Ehe ruLe, Ehe exceptions, and then the very word iEseLf? ...I'm sure someone has alreadv made Ehe analogy, buE isn'E the phonl ics concept like Erying Eo Eeach a baby to talk by giving it rules of pronunciation?

I did Ery phonics wiEh my son (just s6--Ee wouid be familiar-with it when he got EesEed at school), buE he jusE goc confused, explaining to me that anrrahhrrsound seemed Eo indicaEe an A (as it does in waLl, buE not in LoE). He also coLd-iE-he would like co--IEarn more Spanish. which he knows is more phoneEically consistenE than English. Maybe when he's older, werll Ery the English phonics again, approaching iE Like good scienEisEs:

expression e,/e use all of Che time, He is also consEantly saying ba-ba and

it seems EhaE EhaE is his wav of saving 'tTu vois" IYou see], which is father says constantly when shornring him Ehings.

.

.

1986: ...I don't know if we've learnE?f?nything new or useful about

bilingual development in children, but will describe our experiences for you: . I speak only English to Pascal (2!) whiie my husband speaks only French to him. If he combines the Ianguages in Ehe same sencence, we try to remember to correct him. If hers talking Eo me, I repeaE the entlre sentence in Enelish to him. He speaks mostly English-as he passes Ehe day with me and English-speaking neighbors. However, he appears to have a complete undersCanding of French. No matter what my husband says to him in French, we get the correct response, alEhough iErs usually in English. It will be in French if he has passed several days where he was mainly interacting wich his father.

He has sCarted Eorrtranslaterl for us. If he is explaining something to me in French and he senses that I donrt undersEand, he will unconsciously switch Eo English, or perhaps use another French Dhrase. Itrs obvious Ehat should we move Eo France, he will be able Eo switch to French as his main language fairly easily.

His French prandmother (who speaks no English) and uncle are coming for a month-long visit in June, and we are anxious to see how Pascal will speak Co Ehem, especially since I, too, will be speaking in French aLl day. ...He sometimes only knows words in one language, Iike che words for Eools (hammer, screwdriver) that he learned from his faEher. That will cause some problems, buE again, noE many, as he can always resort Eo describing v,/hat something does Eo get the word he wanEs. Example - yesterday he asked me Eo find-his mignet (in French) and I didnrt knov/ the French word for magnet. He described iE as something thaE sEicks and we eventuaLly understood one another..,

uage.

I can'E wrile ac thls polnt lhat

he has made Ehe blg dlscovery 8nd noe speaks both languages fluencly. l{hat has changed is my own attltudb. I have been able to relax enough to see EhaE despiEe pronunclaElon, grarmar,

and vocabulary mixing, hls overall communication improves each week.

SenEences are more complete, storles are longer, and he can make hls desires quite clear. In other words,

his language skills as such seem not to be bothered by language mixlng.

Irm confidenE Ehat his EngLish will be fine later, and he will have an easy Cime of learning Swedish if/when we reEurn.., JOHN HOLTON FOREIGN LANGUAGES

Some Ehoughts from John Holt on learning foreign languages, First, from Ehe WBOS inEerview in 1983: Q. Does it alarm you thaE the report ("A NaEion Ac Riskrr) described EhaE not one state has any kind of requiremenEs for foreign language?

JH: Not aE all. The whole foreign language thing in schools is a big shuck from the word go. If you want kids Eo learn foreign languages, send them Eo places where Ehey speak those Languages. I Eaught for a while at a privaEe school here in Boston, a privaEe secondary school, very good one, small, lots of money, very, very brighE kids, very capable teachers.

We had a French teacher there, a native-born French riroman, an exEremely competenE woman. She liked the kids, Ehe kids liked her, she had all the laEest jazz: Langwage labs, OBSERVE FIRST, DISCOVER LAWS AFTERaudio-visual maEerials, all Ehe WARDS. . . latesE techniques. She wrote a report I was so glad I insisEed on waiEto Ehe head of the school. She said. ing till he was 72 Eo start his read"Children Eake French in this schooi ing. Before that age, reading was a for four years, and Ehese are very mystery to him and he would geE so brighc kids with all Ehe best, and frustrated wiEh it. Then suddenlv. he they don't learn as much French as jusE sEarted doing it, and now hb' theyrd learn if Ehey spent three EATS books. . . months in the country.rl Q: How are Ehey going co do Ehat? I mean, in a rich pri-vate school I can understand. but what RAISING KIDS BILINGUALLY about in a public schooi in the UniFrom Julie Stiller (CA): ted States?

JH: What's Ehe point of teaching 1984: .,.My husband is French iE? If you're living in a part of the And from our colleaeue Ross and sF-6Eks exceilent English. I am country r4rhere there are - this is CampbeI l , now in Sweden 6cttdyi.tg American, my English is greag but my true in many parts of the country (14 fiddle music: French is limiEed. We want Pascal let us say Spanish-speaking groups, months) to be able to speak both langor here IEalian, you know you've got ...Before we came to Sweden and ua8es.

Iots of people in Boston who speak for the f irst f ew months we r4'ere The best soluEion seems Co be to IEalian if you wanE kids to learn here, I was very concerned about keep- Italian, - send Chem down Eo Ehe North speak onLy French in the home since ing Elglish and Swedish clearly separ- End and let them talk to people who Pascal will pick up English from aIL ated for Aragorn (2). He was just of the people on Ehe outside, but... speak Italian. beginning to put two and three EngI make mistakes in French and do noE But generally speaking, human Iish words togeEher and we didnrt have a big vocabulary, although I beings learn whaE they have a need want him to get confused wiEh Swedish have no problem making myself underfor, whaE Ehey feel a need for. Werre sEood. Another alternaEive, recommend- alEhough we wanted him Eo learn it noE good at leaiiiig stuff because also. At first Aragorn would distinged by friends in a similar situaEion, somebody says, "Hey, someday you may is that I wouLd speak to Pascal only gish Swedish words by calling Ehem in English, my hulband to him onTl-Tn "funny" - the funnv i^rord for-chair is French, and that Pascal would EEVd to "sEol;" etc. I was-glad thaE he could ...offering more t'or home schooling keep respond Eo each of us appropriaEeLy. them separate, and we conEinued families euery month. to speak only one language aE a time But then whaE do I do if he asks for with him. something in French? Say, "Use EngAs he learned more words and, Iish, please?" And whaE do we do in l-hF nrpqpn.p .F A rhird norcnn? nr most importantly, more types of SubscribeToday words, the free mixing started. He as a third alternaEive, we can go on lYear02lssued $20.00 mighc use Swedish pronunciaEion on as we are - sometimes using English, Current Issue $Z.OO English words, English suffixes on sometimes French and sometimes a comSwedish words, as well as just pickbination ( in the same senEence ) . . . ing from his Ewo vocabularies Uo make Pascal is now producing long phrases. This worried me, since I strings of sounds that resemble sencould imagine coming back to CaliforEences and conversation, Several days nia next summer and realizing Ehat ago he discovered how Eo roll his not only had Aragorn failed to learn Eongue and loves it. It seems like a second language but also had disruphis firsC real, word (realLv a senEed the foundation for his first lanstence) is "Ca y estr' IThatis iE], an

c^tf DUCATTO

GROl.lING WiTHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

^TAGAZTNEffi3ffiffi

LO

need iE, someday iE may come in handy.rr When lne see a connection between real life and this stuff thac we need to learn, Ehen we're good at Learning.

And from a 1968 paper based on

questions asked by Eeachers:

Q. If learning is best when one why has foreign language Learning been emphasized aE the early primary stage for toEal conEact with rhp fnrpion l.norrp?

JH: For two reasons. The first is the assumption thac since children learn their own Language best when young, they will learn foreign Languages in school best when young. The assumotion is false. The chiLd learning his own language has a hundred practical reasons for Learning; a child Learning a foreign language in school has no pracEical reason for Learning it. The second reason is, quite frankly, thaE the modern language lobby is powerful in education these days. It has been abLe Eo create a situation in which schools and teachers feel they have to teach foreign languages early, whether they hrant to or not, and whether or not this leads to any useful or lasting needs it,

resulEs.

.

.

THE APPEAL OF OFFICE SUPPLIES ,..Something my daughter enjoys

thaE Itve never seen mentioned for ore-schoolers: A olastic stencil of a simple alphabet and numbers L through 0. It came from the stationery department of a discount store and cost

to use ui f h ^ masking Eape and slide a piece of I assume office oaoer under it.., luipfy sEores carry them in more si2!s, buE r thoughc che 1tr" letters were a nice size for her. - AN less Ehan $2. i i

L'a

rr^a uqHe

i ie

!

When she wanEs f

har

.lpqk

and to soell in order Eo write stor-

ies about She-Ra's love lifel ..,She now reads books in hisâ&#x201A;Ź^61 i Fft freLJ, nl arrc f ho rri nl i - 'wrLLr 'i Fh !cs!1116' PLala ^rv draws every-day evenEs for her Japanese pen-pal who does noE speak English, and wriEes every day in her diary. . .

And from Dawn Izon of New York:

...Teaching Ryan (8) has been lesson to me, or should I say, an

unschooLing for not respond well to the basic orthodox method. So I have Learned to be easy and mellow. In order to cover the things needed Eo satisFy state

regulations, we do iE Ryan's I'ray.

We needed Eo cover writing a letter, so Ryan wrote a letter Eo his most favorite person in the world Michael Jackson. We need to do reading, so we do - he reads everylhing he can f ind on MichaeL Jackson. [,le needed to study map skilLs, so we do. mapping ouE where Michael Jackson is touring from week to week, how long it takes him to traveL from his home, what Eime he arrives if he Leaves the different time zones, etc, When we learned he was going co Cairo, Egypt, for severaL concerts in front of the Sphinx - well, that opens a whole new world of study possibiLities. Right noln we are trying to concentraEe on \rriting an essay. IrLl bet you'11 never guess who Ryan's going Eo write the essay on...

P.S. - Ryan read this Letter and hrc donirlori t hrr i f rrnl dn nrinl f hi he will be very exciEed .and send a ts^ hic

lrrrnrifp

nare^n

c

lorrasq

who) wi th another I etter. . . The possi-

bilities

are endLess.

,..A tip for GWS readers: For a couple of dol lars you can buy these nifty stick-em LetEers on pages (made

by LETRA-SET). I got mine at an office suppLy sEore Ehat was closing out. There are about 250 vinyl letters on each sheet' My 3-year-old spent Ehe whole Eime I was wriEing this leEEer sticking MOM on my forehead and LENA on hers. - A NEW YORK READER

.,.One day we visited an entomoL-

ogist who helped us idenEify an insect. While \^re were in his office, John (6) sootted his circular Rolodex file and I-exolained what it was for.

He thought he- wanted to be an entomologist when he grew up in order Eo have one of Ehose file wheelsl When we saw how excited he was by the idea of one of these files we bought him one. We suggested he could file any word and definition on it. He loved Ehis idea! He wiII do a few at a Eime and then go on Eo other Ehings. SUSAN STICKNEY

LEARNING THROUGH POP CULTURE

From IsabeLLe TorroeLIa:

...On "quality learning materiaLrr: My daughter (8) has been motivated to read thanks Eo PeoDle magazine, Eo Learn the violifr-Efi6fiks to Elvis Presley - I told her a guitar was too big for her age: - to draw thanks Eo Barbie Doll coloring books,

Theo Dawson in 0ntario wrote: .^l

...hlhen Jessica was 7, she began I anf

nahhl acJ Pq UU I L

f r^-

rh^

i-i

r,-,.,-.,

This was at first simolv a search for Drettv stones. Then she'became increasingLy curious about Ehe sEones and began to learn the names of difEerenE Eypes. She began to caEegorize and sort Ehe stones into types, relative value, size, etc.

At this point, she decided Eo sEart a business selLing her rocks' A rock Eumbler bought at a garage sale was used to polish the finesc specimens and price Eags were Put on each ecp carron oF sorEed sLones, Prices range from 5d to 25e with fossils and polished rocks at Ehe top of the range and Iess interesEing rocks at the bottom. Her earnings were from $2 to $4 per week. Shortly after saLes began, she sEarted Eo oi\/p nrrl ra.oinl-s and fo keen an record of saIes. She intermittent reinvesEed her profits into the business, buying rock samples and saving for rock polishing compound. Her ability to count money and make change improved daily. The project prompted tri --l

6c r^ ih6 FL^ lik-^-., rrurar

mrrcarrm y.

a. i oncF

ch^nc

She began- to organi ze her friends into a club called "Kids At Work." One aspect of rhe club was Ehat the members take one another's goods on consignment. Each Saturday the club met to aEEend her gym cLass and exchange business noLes, aIl very informally. She organized a group of 7-lO

L r rrrE,

nhildrpn r^i-uurrrE

cinola-handedlv

^l

I

^t

Fh^ Ltrs

[DR: ] I was pleased to see this noEe from PaEEi SmiEh (VT), as I had not heard of any ptzzLe magazine for

children since DELL PUZZLES (GWS #19) discontinued Eheirs: . . . Several monEhs ago, JenniLIe (8) was eiven a ChiLdren's Fun Puzzles maeazi-ne, Ic Eas aTl-srcrG-f puzzles including mazes, word finds, crossword puzzles, secreE codes, riddLes, even work done by kids ^^^a-i^^^11., F^ -^^|I Lv rPq

.^

Iannil la alrordrr lnrroc fhimaoazino Lrrrr ^"zzla PuaaaL

gets finished in 3-5 days, sometimes.

Ti nnlrr a\tar\r m^nrh ^^mac ^rrr ^thar unfortunately. It is puE out by OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS, I2O1 E 57Th St, NY NY f0022. They also have oEher magazines, one being Teen Word Find, one Jennille wouLd like t6-EeEEhat ' ,,^,,1, t greaLry ^*^-+ Improve any Loo, irLF wouru .,^^.h,,1--,, rhnrroh T hrrronrf ^killrlooked very closely to see wheEher it wouLd be too overwheLming for her.

Childrenrs Fun PuzzLes can be found@some departmenE, grocery, or drug stores.

We now geE a subscription, 6 issues F^r

AN INTEREST IN ROCKS

r^

PUZZLES FOR KIDS

qq

qhnrrr

Tharo

rhnrrt

RO nrooc

in

each issue. Once Jennille and Eli (6) are done wiEh it, Ash (4) and Averi

l-dn

INDIANA READER

Jessicars interest in birds, of all, rocks, stimulated her desire Eo read on her o\^/n. . . I oooh-ooohed the rocks as a when shb first began the projecE. Now I sEop aE her display reguLarly and grub about on Ehe ground with her. Memories of my own "rockhound" days have come back and an oLd in!erest has been rekindLed...

mushrooms, and mosE

a

me, because Ryan does

.^n\,

numbers. They ranged in age from 3 Eo l0 and thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

yrlvrrt ^h^ni-d

each -nl

pLanning without assistance. She used her own phone book to record friendsl

(2) color in iE. lt is helping ELi Eo hir rnn ic ch,rnonin^ r'r r cyc5r6LrL. orru pLrrrrrS ^,,^-i^hF Our neighbor hated spelling bu! now her mom buys Ehe magazine, because it has caused the daughter to do her spel Iing eagerly. Some other subjecEs are involved and soon we are onEo another topic because of iE. You can see this magazine has become part of our homeschooling materiaLs!... cnall lJ JpL

FREEBIES MAGMINE

Freebies

(PO Box 20283, SanEa

BarbaFi-CAT3-1 20 ; subscr i pt i on $6,97/6 iss.) is a small bi-monEhIy

magazine of about 30 pages that

offers new products and catalogs for f raa nr Fnru nnci,op enrl hand I ino charge of 50e Eo $1; a few are $2, In the May/June 1986 issue, Ehere are fourteen categories, includ-

ino I{id Srrrff Trarral Craftq Homp Carden, Parents, and Teachers. Each nF ciw roLESu!J ^-ts^-^*,' ^rF^--

&

free offers.

For example, the AMERICAN FEDERATION FOR THE BLIND will send a free BrailLe alphabeE and number card with a brieF explanation of its use, plus : hi cfnrrr nf Rrr i I I a I rn nrdor canrl a postcard to AFB Library, 15 W 16th St, New York NY 10011). Other inEeresting offers, scattered among the duller caEalogs, bookLeEs, and saml,ip F^ dLtaLy.v nloc innlrrda iocr rr'lruu y!!J, ^n^1,,-^ ' drinking waEer ($f.95), plastic puzzLes ($L), and a pattern to knit or crochet a hammock (50@).

My Mandy (10) was very excited about some of Ehe o.[[ers, especialLy a 15" cold-nlafed cobra link necklacel a Iiquid crysEal necklace Ehat reflecLs vour moodsl an offer for five different packeEs of seeds, GROI^]ING t^]ITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

27

incLuding marigolds, pole lima beans, radi shes, sunflowers, and tomatoes,

pLus a 4-page idea folder; and

a

sheet of "rainbow stickers." These four offers are availabLe for $1 each.

The magazine is fun, and one I think would be especialLy enjoyed by chi ldrent al though i t ' s jusL as much

fun for grownups. Mandy has already insj sted thaE I ent-er a subscripci on in her name.

PS - We just got the gold neckLace - itrs beautiful: I never expected it to be so Lovely; itrs not a piece of junk at all. - MARY MAHER SINGING WITH CHILDREN

From Gayla Groom-SLatton (OR):

,,.YesEerday Cord (3) asked me to sing him every song I knew' I starEed with some old Beatles Eunes' and he listened raptly. He was so i nEerested, much-66?E-i nteresCed than in such songs as "[^lillougby \^laLLaby Woo" or "Baby Bumblebee" or any kids' song thac he knows (some of wFTch I Lik6 a fair amountl ). He wanted to know who wrote each song and why they wrote it and whaE it was all about.

In the song 'rMichelle," he thought it was reaLIy funny that. even Lhough aL the beginning of the song all the guy could say in French was "ma beLle''' by the end of Ehe song he couLd saY, "...son! les mots qui vont Eres bien ensembLe." He Ehought it was neat that the guy learned so much French so fasE. Dain, our 9-month-old, has aLways been very tuned in to music.

I get a kick out of humming Mozart to him. He Laughs when I dum-de-dum the high notes and cries when I do che Iow notes. He doesn'E get a bit more fun ouE of "kid songs" or "baby songs." Rather than "Rock-a-bye, Baby" he'd much rather hear me croon, "NevertheLess - I'm in Love with you. . .

From SEephanie Judy (BC):

,.,My daughter Tessa and I sing together, from song books, at the piano, several times a day for LO-30 minutes at a time - usually whenever she asks to. I only suggest it when it's what I reaLly want to do at Ehe momenE - same for her' We also sing at other times - in the car, around the house, working outside - we Live in an on-golng opera, as a maEEer of From my observations of her and other kids in singing situations. T Ehink you have to read kids' reactions closely, and noL jump Eo conclusions. I have seen kids slumPed in thei r chai rs, pass i ve and bored, rhoir

hrndc

hoino

elnnned

for

them

bv

mother or Eeacher, in what is suPposed to be an "educational" and buoyanc act ivi Ey. I have a I so seen my daughter siL sEilI and alert, waLching my hands pLay and mY LiPs make the words and I can EeIl by her Posture and expression Ehat she is i ntensel y involved in what is happening. It's hard to explain. I am definitely not performing For her. T guess it's most like reading her a storY. I remember singing "Toodala" fhF Firsr sone in Rrrth Crawford Seeger's book AMERICAN FOLK SONGS FOR CHILDREN (Doubleday) - for Tessa severaL times when she was about 18-24 months old, Then, for some reason, I just d i dn' t sing Lhat song dL'y

r"u,

AFF6F

n^f

harrino

if

fnr

over six months. she sang it in the GROl,lING t^llTH0UT SCH00LING #5.l

car - with gusEo. wiEh the right tune and words.

I have never "taught" her a song. I have sung many songs she has chosen - her choice is usually based on the picture accomPanying the song (songs withouE picEures never get chosen) - while she has listened.

AfEer one, chree, five, ten singings (all her choice) she begins to join in sornehow - singing, claPPing, moving, making uP new words. Then I foIlow her.

I somecimes do a new song when it is my turn to choose' Sometimes she later chooses Ehac song to hear again - somecimes not. If I like the song, I'm always free to choose it again when it's my turn. I would saY she never acEively di sLikes any song - she jusE likes some better Ehan otners., .

How sad Ehat so manY kids todaY know aLL the lyrics to a cereal commercial jingle but have never heard London Bridge or LoobY-Loo or PoP Goes the Weasel. Think iE doesn't happen? I've EaughE piano to kids who did not know and had never heard E6ese rcngs.

Shipley (CA): ,..GradualLy over Ehe LasE Year, we have been instructing BiIIY (aLmost 3) in che proper use of Ehe stereo cassette pLayer. He has gone from pushing Rewind when he wanted to hear a pre-seE cut' Eo Powering uP the receiver and cape deck, selecting a tape (including deciding which side to play). rewinding i I necessary. and pushing Play. He puts the tapes back in fheir DroDer taoe boxes and repLaces them in Ehe taPe rack when he is through. The system isn't perfect - I have had to re-record half a in dozen tapes, but thaE was mostlY the beginning. Billy takes his abiliEy co work che stereo seriously - it ia his responsibiliCy and his right and he is as carefuL as he can be.

His choice oI IisEeninffiateriaL varies wiEh time and temPerament: there are days when aII we hear are musicals (BRIGADOON, MUSIC MAN, FIDDLER ON THE ROOF); other Eimes ic will be a mixture of jazz' folk and classical (Glenn MiLLer Eo Rachmaninov via The Irish Roversl); and Ehen there are the days he wants to hear stories and poetry...

An off-shoot of these intel:esLs From ElLen

Books: Suzuki Philosophy- and

is an avid interest in singing: BilIy can and will learn anv song, oFten after jusc one hearli! (alihough his usual paEtern is to have us sing it over and over without a break until he is satisfied he hgs ic!). He knows dozens: "Singing in the Rain," "Casey would waltz with Ehe sErawberrY bLond," "Maresy-doats," "The DeserE Song," "The Battle of New OrLeans" ("r; 1814 we took a LittLe trip...rr), rrBarLey Mow," "The Unicorn," and "scarborough Fair" being among his Iavorites. He knows a lew pre-school songs ("Five r')LiEtle monkeys sitting in I cree. . . , but he rareIY sings Ehem. Another example where people don't take children's abiLities seriousLy - it takes the same effort to learn a kiddie song or a real song, and the GTTer is io much-rn-67e enjoyabLe Ehan the former...

NEW BOOKS AVAILABLE HERE

SANDTIQUITY by Connie Simo' Kappy-TeTTs- and Mllcolm WeLls ( $4.95

). Some books immediately caII ' post co us, i ns i st i ng that we stoP out everything and take a Peek inside.

SANDTIQUITY is one of these grabbers.

When iE first arrived in our house, hidden in a pile of other books' it was the one book each of the children (and both parents, too) greeted with a "Hey! Look at this" comment' the nnp rhpv rook off in a corner for a few quiet minutes of perusal.

SANDTIQUITY appeals Eo anY of us who have ever loved messing around with sand. In the book, which is FilIed wi th more pi cfures Ehan print, the authors display the archiEectural marveLs they created on a beach pyramids, amphi EheaEers, mountain vi I tages. dams, or flighEs of fancY that never existed anywhere. And, by taking you through the stages of Eheir construction, they show how you, too. can build these Ehings. No evnensive eorrinment is used here Eo '' -l-_r"-__shape Ehese wonders - oniy materiaLs found on any beach (or around most houses) like a bit of wood for a straighr-edge or a popsicle sEick.

You will find a Lot of reaL learnins about historicaL architecture in-this book. PeopIe who have buiLt a ziggurat out .of sand wiLl know what one looks like and perhaps will want to investigate further. Who first built them? Where were they built?

Pcdagogy.

Prrenting. Music Rcading. Music Thcory. Books on Cassettcs. Spccial Brxrks li)r Childrcn.

SUZUKI PIAGE

Records, Cassettes, and Compact l)iscs:

,.,

Suzuki Pieccs. Clarsic Works. Hallnrark Rclssucs. Play Along. Acconrpaninrcntr.

.

Variable Pitch Thpe Recorders: Scvcral Modcls.

Sheet Music: Piano. Violin. Violu. Ccllo. Bass.

Flute. Harp. Fiddle. String Orchcstr.,.

Accessories: Metnrnontcs. funing Frlks. Rosin.

Polish. Strings and Shouldcr Pads.

\4olins: High Quality lnstrumenl\ fronr

r,/16

to Full

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o .

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i

Rrblications

ffi.

Achievement Shirts. hsters, Tote Bags. and Musical Boutique ltems.

Ask for a Free Calalos:

28

BuE SANDTIQUITY is not whose goal is to enabLe you

ing sLedge made by Dick in WINTER HOLIDAYS. And although neiEher Maggie nor Dan memorized their mulEiplication tables as I had hoped they would Eical to Ehose pictured, Its m6sc Iast winter, Ehey both memorized semiimportanE quality is thaE it encourphore positions and the Morse code ages you, by demonstraEing a few simand used Ehem to communicaCe vJith ple techniques, Eo go out and create each oEher around the farmstead. your ohrn masterpieces, whether they "One also has a choice of identiare inspired by something you have fying wiEh the Amazons r,rho like Eo seen, by Ehe way the sand has been make up adventures and carry them piled up, or simply by your own imagi- ouE, or the Swallows who Eend to make nation. --- MADALENE MURPHY situations for Ehemselves Ehat become adventures. My own children are definiEely Swallows, buE it has helped [Mary Van Doren adds: ] I was as exciEed abouc this beautiful book as them Eo accepE people who are Like Madalene and her family. I read it the Amazons because Nancy and Peggy just as "sand box season" started are such good old chaps! It also does here in Ehe Boston area and I was one good to see Dorothea and Dick eager Eo try it-ouE. And I can do itl start ouE as tag alongs because So can HeLen (22). I have sometimes they've joined the group laEer, seemfound that when people say, "Anybody ing more bookish and less adventurcan do iE," I can't. (The authors of ous, and then grow to be very importhis book are a sculptor, an architant members of the exoeditions. In Eect, and a phoEographer, and I discussing this wiEh the children didnrE quite trust them at first. ) when we've finished a couple of chapHowever, this book has really ters in the evening, they seemed to inspired our sand play, be very happy that Dick and Dorothea UnfortunaEely, I don'E have as had made their mark and were very much time for sand as Helen does. BuE aware that the imDlicaEion was that she loves it and doesn'C need me to Ehere is somethin! worthwhile in help - she builds things now wiEh everyone if Ehey jusE get in the sand, in addfTfon to pouring, scoopproper place to leE it show, ing, mixing, etc, All we have to do "Ransomers attenEion Eo the is pack Ehe damp sand and carve it deEaiI of the parEs of Che sailing we use a roof piece from Lincoln logs boaE, the look of the discant mounEo carve with. tains, or the supper laid ouC by Susan and Peggy is very valuable PIGEON POST (94.25 + post), also. He doesn'E just go for Ehe big SECRETWtrTET-T3;45). THE PICTS AND dramatic happenings buE concentrates THE--ffiR'IYR-S-( 3. e5 ) , btT?r-6ur on details thaE cause one to lisEen Ransome. This letEer from Pennv carefully and thus become totally Barker (OH) Iast year reminded-us immersed in the seELing he has crethat iE $/as Eime Lo add more of this ated. His drawings have also inBriEish series Eo our caEalog: trigued the children and I'11 often find one or another of Ehem wiEh his "AfEer reading Ehe four or five book during Ehe day jusE poring over Arthur Ransome books vou sell. and Ehe ink skeEches. I think thev like being compLetely captivated by Ehem, Ehem because Ehey are detaileil and I had a friend in England send me the yet simple - they are also very exactrest of the series. Everv one of mv ly a sketch of someEhing he has wriEchildren love these sEories which is Cen abouE - a compleEe harmony of unusual because they usually do not auEhor and illustrator in Ehat they Like fiction. But the stories of the are one. The sketches Look as thoueh Swallows and Amazons are so comoleEeyou could do Ehem yourself if you Iy plausible Ehat. everyone from- the 7 Eried - my children love chac, Ehrough the 17-year-old love them and 'rThere is always Ehe understandwe are on our second reading of many ing when you've finished one of and our third reading of some.

Ransome's advenEures , EhaE honesty, 'rI am raEher selecEive about the courage and doing are r,rhaE make Life LiEeraEure I read to Ehem as I want good and worthvrhile. I love reading a Ehe books I read to be more chan book with these kind of values to my enterEainment - I rdant Ehem Co uplift children. Thank you for inEroducing and support high values as well is Ehem to me.rl give pleasure. And because I read to the children at bedtime (convenientlvJust a few notes Eo add about they all share one large bedroom) T Ehe new Eitles. In PICEON POST, Ehe need a story adventurous enough Eo children work long and hard searching get Ehem to bed and yet cozy enough for gold; in SECRET tlATER, Ehey camp to help them drift off to an easy on an island in a Eidal area and sleep. The Ransome books do all of explore aII Ehe surrounding inlets; this. The English in them is beautiand in THE PICTS AND THE MARTYRS. mv ful and thus they are a joy Eo read favoriEe. Dick and DoroEhea Iive aloud. There is a warmth among the secretly in a hut near Nancy and siblings in the books thaC makes them Peggy's house, hiding from Ehe dreadwonderfuL to be with. and vet there ed Great Aunt. is enough scampiness from Roger, If you are not yet familiar with enough emotionalism from Titty, Ehis delighEful series, a EreaE is in enough bossiness from Susan and store for you. See Ehe cenEer catalog enough doubEs in John in times of secEion of Ehis issue for the earlier peril, to make Chem all real. I also books in Ehe series. One lasE CiD; I love Ehe way all of the characters, have always found the very first- chapJohn, Susan, TiCCy, Roger, Bridget, Eer of the firsE book (SWALLOWS AND Nancy, Peggy, Dot and Dick are accept- AMAZONS) to be hard Eo read - Chapter ed for Ehemselves in the group. Just 2 is where the good stuff begins! - DR when you think thac Peggy is really a bit of a klutz with not much to WHAT TO DO AFTER YOU TURN OFF offer, she becomes Ehe only one who THET@95 really knows how to make netting for + posCage). This is a book on how to an imoortanE adventure. use 'rfamily Eime.'r IE is a compendium i'My children have been very chock fuIL of 200 suggested leisure inspired by these books... Their time activities, mosEly indoors, buE attempE aE making a huge sail for noE all. IE is also abouE Ehe hopefultheir wagon was inspired by the sailness of children and about adulE a manual to pro-

duce in any sandbox, or on any teach, Einy pyramids or cliff-dweLlings iden-

enjoyment of children. The book can

rekindle or sErengEhen Bhe knack of living wiEh children thaE we all fl.nd alive and well in our favorlEe Gl{S accounE s .

The spirit of chis book is one of fantasy and invenEion. So many of the games nere invenEed by the writers, and che variacions invlte furEher variation, fanEasy, and invention. Did you ever walk wlth a peanut on a knife and an orange beEween your legs? Or did you ever think of Mississippi as Miss his hippie? Did you ever think of making up a treasure hunt with picture clues for young children? There are imaginative games children play like itYikes, alligatorsrr and playing dentisE, wtth some helpful props.

There is a long chapter on living with toddlers and a chapter on everyday living that includes descriptions of going Eo r,vork lvith parents, as well as a dinner conversation game. There are chapters on whaE children especially like to do, such as boisterous play, and preEend and dress-up games. There is a chapter on learning about oEher countries, and learning about our changing world, wich a list of books for children, There is not one recipe for play dough in this book or directions on hor,,/ Eo make masks out of paper bags, though you could probably find Ehem in a book listed in the bibliography of the Art chapter. There are chapters on arE, music and writing. Each chapter has a bibliography listing about three more books on Ehe subiect.

The way Eo find what you wani in thls book is to concenErate on one of the chapters, or to look through the index where most of the brief tiEles are self-evidenE, and oEhers will be once you have read the book. Another h'ay Eo go through the book is Eo make use of the three clear logos printed next Eo the descripEion of each activity. They indicate if an acEivity is suitable for the whole fanily, good for children alone, for small children and Eoddlers, or for a combination of these.

The book is amply illustraEed with line drawings made by th'o boys, 13 and 15. One picture is of a girl swinging far and wide on a chinning bar, a delightful, self-explanatory picture. Other drawings are intricate and become ever more fascinating as you read the games and activiEies thaE explain them.

WHAT TO DO AFTER YOU TURN OFF THE TV was writcen to Dreserve memories of playing, and writEen also as a living work Eo be added to and changed.. The games of many families are included in Ehe book. The firsE and last chaDters discuss what is harmful about television, vriEh references to books on the subject, and quotations from young people who were part of a project in a ConnecticuE town to turn off television for a

month.

Frances Moore Lappe, a gifted writer, is a co-founder of Ehe Institute for Food and DevelopmenE Policy, author of DIET FOR A SMALL PLANET. and co-author of FOOD FIRST. The work of the InsEitute shows, with conEinuous research, that people have the ability to solve their problems on Eheir o$rn, the first problem being to have enough to eat. The way Eo "helpr" even in this counEry, is !o end intervention and obstrucEion. The erosion of democracy in this country is subtle, and part of if is the pervasiveness of TV thaE Eakes our family time, and part of it is too much teaching or inappropriate schooling GROWING WITHOUT SCHOOL]NG #5'I

29

Ehat can rob young people of their curiosity, individuaLiEy, and self-

something Chey read is to

say, rrDid made sense

READING WITHOUT NONSENSE is clearly one of those books that is confidence. --- MABEL DENNIS0N crammed wiEh ideas. And it is very carefully written, clear and inEerestREADING WITHOUT NONSENSE by something specific in a text, why noE ing aLl the way through. Frank SmiEh Frank@his is tell Ehem exactly what they're Lookhas a lot of imporEanE things to say, a book abou! reading which I think is ing for? On many comprehension tesEs, and he has tried to make sure that extremely important for homeschooLthe "rightrranshrers have to fit a par- anyone who sEarts reading this book As I it., ers. see Ehere are three will finish it. - MVD ticular interpretaEion of the Eexts. major vJays we can use the informaAnd as we all know from experience, tion: working with schooLs, becoming we can often find somethine new or beEEer readers ourselves, and helping different in a Eext when wE re-read CATALOG INFORMATION our children learn Eo read. The basic it, even jf it is already very [amiidea of this whole book is that child- Liar to us, The oEher oroblem wiEh For a copy of our catalog, send a SASE. ren (or anyone) Iearning Eo read festing comprehension is anxiety.

0n request, we will photocopy and mail should never be made Eo do or read l.lhen we know we have to f ind somethe Gl^lS review of any iten in our catalog. anyLhing that doesn'E make sense to thinp - but are not told what - or if Send 250 each, plus a S.A.S.E. them. Frank Smith does noL Ealk abouE we know werll have to face some of t.le will pay $2 in credit for used copies (in good condition) of John Ho1t's WHAT D0 I how to teach reading, bilt-rather those quesEions about the main idea Fi+t^ about the nature of reading - the pro- or ProPer LrLle oI ^c ^ DO I4ONDAY? a EexE, we can cess, the skills invoLved. There is a freeze. l,le get so anxious that we loE of nonsense in most reading become funcEionaLLy bLind. Smith instrucLion, according to Smith; some gives a very clear explanation of how ADDITION TO SPEAKER BUREAU of chese hindrances are phonics, com- and why functional blindess and prehension Eesting, memorization, JANE JOYCE tunneL vision occur. reading by Letters or words, reading Learning Eo read by sEudying IeE- ---53ilBarbara Dr. Grants Pass 0R 97526. slowLy, and concentraEing on trivial 503-476-5686. ters first is doing it Ehe hard way. problems like dyslexia and Letter Founder/Director (since'82) of THE Smith shows us that it is easier Eo reversal. know what a letEer is when it is in a LEARNING C0NNECTI0N, a private school without At home we can leE our chiLdren word and that it easier to know what walls (K-college) for 0regon families. learn to read without Eeachins them Developer/consultant to seven other schoolsa word is when it is in a sentence. bad habiEs, without making it-diffiWe almost never read to find a word, without-wal ls in 0R and ID. cult or impossible, without nonsense. and when we do, we skip all the stuff Single parent, .l4, self-employed, with homeMany school systems, though, may want that isnrt what werre lookinp for. born daughter, and son,'11. homeschooling parents to use Eheir Experienced in dealing with legal/adminiUsually we read for meaning, except materi aIs and methods. Quocing-EETs strative hassles; taught in public and private maybe in a reading cf536T-Reading' book could very well heLp parenEs con- meaningless lists of words or trying schools (K-co11ege) in several states; "unvince the schools Ehat things can be schooling" for 8+ years, to figure out phonics - and Ehen not done differently. Frank SmiEh Ts a Free-lance non-f icti on, poetry writer, quite knowing what Eo do with it n^4-i6idao<ntts haln m"^h Thd very well known writer and his books songrvriter, homebirth teacher, natural health are used in many, many schools of edu- aIL-importanE, whether ia.lerre reading & childrearing teacher, counse'lor. t^L^1 cation. He is one of the school's bie- d- >Lvp -i^-F^^ Radical homelearning philosophy: individrr5,,, d^ pdL^dEE ^^^t.^^^ ,duEr, d rrEwsgest reading experts. There's no real paper or a texEbook. ualized "curriculum" based on the student's son for homeschoolers not to use him, interests/desires and developed according to Along with meaning, Smith disEoo. fam'ily's resources and beliefs; dangers of cusses making mistakes, [,le all make SmiEh goes EhoroughLy into whaE testing misEakes when we read. Usuallv thev too early; experiential vs. theoretihappens in the brain, the eyes, memca1 learning; importance of "boredom," quietdon't make any difference in underory, Ianguage, and comprehension as ness, pri vacy; recovery from "school i ng"; standing a text. This Leaves us with the basis of understanding reading, proper jurisdiction of family vs. statet intera question - when we read 'rJohnny Reading does not require special told merr instead of rrJohnnv said." is action vs. "socialization." skills, he says. By the time we learn that a mistake? This ouesEion comes Fees: $500 per day for workshop "The Eo read, we have developed alL the up a lot in school because many begin- Inner Game of Learning" (tjtle of my forthcom'ing book), plus travel expenses for the 3 of skills necessary for reading. And a ning readers are judged on the way Lot of those skills are Drettv imthey read aloud, even though reading us (Greyhound in 0R; airfare elsewhere). I pressive, even though we'take them aloud incLudes a 1o! of skilLs oEher enioy work'ing ad-lib from questions written on for granEed, Iike recognizing people 3x5 cards from the audience and/or event cothan reading, which makes iE hard to or speaking a Ianguage. These things begin wiEh, I think few teachers ordjnator. Most up-to-date on 0R 1aw, but I'said!rl are noE easy. Children spend a lot of would accept "told me" for aware of application of principies elsewhere.

Eime on these skills, and they do There is obviously reaL comprehension very well - they need these things to there, buE reading instruction so make sense of Eheir worLd. Smith says often gets side-Eracked and emphaIDR: ] l,le have decided to discontinue that our whote life consisEs of makprinting further "Additions to SptaFeTl-fn sizes words (or LeEters) instead of ing sense of our world, fitting meaning.

GWS. Our research so far shows that the rethings in, experimenting, questionAs Irm sure youtve noticed, sults of such listings do not justify the ing. When we read we are constantly there is much in this book that fits amount of space they take up. However, we will questioning. But we can't come up John HolErs ideas abouE children, continue to keep track in this office of peowith any questions if a text doesn't p'le willing to speak, so feel free to send us learning, and reading. Smith also maKe sense. info to keep on fi1e, or to call us if you are talks about ceaching in a way thaE Reading should be made easy, not looking for a speaker. sounds very familiar to many of us (or hard he, Eoo, believes that instrucEion "challenging," as many people put it). Yet there should be no of reading, in Ehis case - cannoE be fear Ehat a child wilL aLways read improved by teachers in schools untiL WANT ADS only very simpLe EexEs. They wiII they are allowed Eo Eeach in the way read whaE they need, what makes sense they feel is best, unEil they are Rates for ads: $5 per line (up to 47 spaces). ro them. As Smith says, children (and given freedom from administrative dic- Please tell these folks you saw the ad in GWS. aIl of us, I think) geE bored for Ewo tafes about materials and methods. He reasons - tbey already know what they feeLs if teachers are toLd about the LIVING HERITAGE ACADEMY: K-'l2 Teach your child are reading/doing, or it doesn't make nature of reading, they will be able at home. Diagnost'ica1 1y prescribed, self consense. People don'E Like to be bored. to use that information and follow tained, self instructional, continuous progress tJe aLl may need some-E6wn timerr some- their own instincts about how thinss curriculum, high achievernent results, permanent times - this is discussed in WHAT TO could be done in the classroom. Unior- records kept, diploma issued, low tuitjon rates DO WHEN YOU TURN OFF THE TV - buE if EunateLy, thaE's not Likely Eo happen. LIVING HERITAGE ACADEMY-GWS P.0. Box .l438. we are realLy bored, we move on.

There is also a chaoter abouE Lewisville, Texas 75067 Children don't need to be Dushed to the use and mis-use of comouters in go on - Ehey do i E when they are HOl.l T0 GET STARTED in homeschooling, estimated reading insCrucEion. ready. And only they know when they I aLso mentioned Chat Ehis book costs, use of computers & legal issues. A11 are ready. could make a better reader of anvone are discussed in new booklet--Education at Home This Ieads me to rrhat Smith says who reads it. I know ic helped 16. tt A Parent' s Guj de. 0ver 70 pgs , j l l us . To order about reading comprehension. The moit can help free us of some of those bad send $9.95 postpaid to Alternative Education foolish ching we can do is test read- habiEs schools taughE us. Smith feeLs Sources, P0 Box 172-A, Unionville, IN 47468 ing comprehension. For one Ehing, Ehat the reason some children get to only Ehe reader can reaLly know if he high school noE being able to read is CERTIFICATED TUTOR I.IANTED IN HOMER,AK,I986/87. understands something. The best way Ehat Ehey have learned too well what EXPERIENCTD WITH AGES 5.7. MUST BE FLEXIBLE, Eo find out if someone undersEands (Continued on Paqe 32) reading Eeachers have cEd!E-t---EFem. GROWING t^lITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

you understand iE?rr If it to them in some way, the answer will be yes. If we want someone to find

30

Sacramento 95823 --- Rose & Daniel 6RIMM Clark/8], Seth/84) 631 High 5t #1, Anderson AODITIONSTODIRECTORY luendy/77, Si11y/79, Therese/82, Danny/84) 27 46012 --- Tom & Andrea OAVIDSoN (Tornmy/75, l,lawona 5t, San Francisco 94127 --- Laura & this is a SUI4|4ARY 0F ADDITIoNS AND Andrew/76) P0 Box 726. Chesterton 46304-0726 Mlchael GRtiND (Leslie/75, Daniel/80) VANCE --- Diana & Joseph LEHR iPatrick/80, Nicholas/ CHANGES that have come in since the last ACADEI4Y, 24071 Carmelita Dr, Hayward 94541 --- 82) 818 I,/ l'1ain St, Danville 46122 --- Rick & CoMPLETE 0irectory was printed jn Glils #48. our Directory is not a list of all sub- Carol HEl,llTT (f4arguerite/79) 2955 Kilkare Rd, Cindy l'lARQUIS (Justin/81, Andrew/84) 3717 U.S. scribers, but only of ttr6;e who ask to be list- Sunol 94586 --- James & Noel KLoPFTNSTEIN 52 N, t{est Lafayette 47906 --- Richard & ed, so that other GNS readeril-6i-dfhEFTiltEi: (Nejl/79, Zoel84) 325 Lakechime Dr, Sunnyvale Sandra I4ERRI0N (Robert/77, Rebecca/74) 223 S C3ted people, may get in touch with them. If 94089 --- Ron & Linda MAHER (Danielle/79, Rd 300E, Danville 46122 --- Barbara & Larell you would like to be included, please send the Caleb,/83) 3761 Roeding Rd, Ceres 95307 --- Bob PALI'IER (Jason/78, Kendra/7g, Jeremy/8], entry form in this issue or a separate 3x5 & Dawna IVIARTIN (Tara/77) P0 Box 49], Somerset Richard/84) I,{ABASH VALLEY H0I'1[SCH00LERS ASSoC, card or postcard (only one fanily per card).

95684 --- llelissa & Kevin MCD0NNELL (Sean/83, RR 53 Box 260, Terre Haute 47805 --- David & Note we are now printing birthyears of Coilin/85) 501 l'1t. View Av, Petaluma 94952 --- Luella PoRTER (l4eredith/80, Clint/82) RR I Box Jack & Lana I"IITCHELL (SariAnn/7s, Jonathan/76) 227, Wilkinson 46186 --- Angie & Ron SCHlt4lTT children, not ages, lf we made a m-ifaf*hen (Jacob/84) 1255 Yankeetown Rd, Boonville 47601 converting your child's age to bjrthyear, 8418 Jasper Ct, Stockton 95210 --- Brant & please let us know.

Laura NEAL (ltlelanie/75, l4aral ie/77) 735 --- Tom E Lynn IJEISS (Kurt/79, Cory/83, Kelly/ Please tell us if you would rather have Clinton Dr, Stockton 95210 --- Joan & Nick 85) 14300 Browning Rd, Evansvil'le 47711 --your phone number and town listed instead of a PASCH (Lauren/80) 410 Lancaster }Jay, Redwood Gail & Cindi l,1lLC0X-CLYDEN (Stacie/72, Sara/ nailing address.

City 94062 --- Libbey PATTERSoN, NoRTHERN 78, Joshua/8o, Whitney/84) RR 4 Box 339, If a nane in a GltJS story is followed by CALIFoRNIA SUPPoRT GROUP,2410 Jefferson Av, Veedersburg 47987 an abbreviation in parentheses, that person is Berkeley 94703 --- Sharon & Steve PLYLER lA - Doug & Janine CALSBEEK, Box 185, in the Directory. lJe are happy to forward mail (Jeremi/80, Jennah/83) 2]441 Bertram Rd, San orange-Tity 51041 --- Phillip & Colleen HENRY to those whose addresses are not in the Direc- Jose 95120 --- Tim & Susan SANoERS (Amy/77, (Mo1ly/77, Gretchen/79, Forrest/84) Box 180, Rebecca/7g, Ivlaria/82, Joanna/8s) 2730 condring l,]hittemore 50598 --- Evelyn HILL, I0l,lA H0I1E tory; mark the outside of the envelope with Rd, Ceres 95307 --- Fred & Susan SHUPP name/descriptionl-lftre, and page number.

EDUCAToRs,2406 Woodland #4, Des Moines 50312 (Rebecca/79, Heather/83, Gabriel/85) 16495 l,{hen you send an address change for a KS - Kirk & Laura HAYDEN (Jennifer/81, subscription, please remind us if you are in Burl Ln, occidental 95465 --- Neil & Ronnie Julie,â&#x201A;Ź5) 637 Park Rd, Rose Hill 67133 --the Directory, so we can change it here, too. SlI'lON-I,]ESTREICH (Ariel/81, Leah/85) 14440 David & Leslie LeR0Y (Katje/82) Rt 4, Great Esterlee Dr, Saratoga 95070 --- l4ary & John Bend 67530 --- Barbara l'IlCHENER (Galen/77, AK - Glenn & Iljchelle EDWARDS (Ira/75, SII40NITCH (Erin/Bl, John/83) 362 Arroyo liay, Arthur/84) RD l, Perry 66073 --NathanzT, 0ren//8, Elijah/80, Gabriel/82, Sonoma 95476 Kathy & Don STANNARD-FRIEL KY - Elaine DIGGES & Terry ELLIoTT (Sean/77, Jessie/82) 255 Connecticut St, San (Nathan/81, Lark/85) Rt 2, l4unfordvi'lle 42765 Glory/84) P0 Box l4B, Palmer 99645 --- Rex & Lyndell G00LSBY (Bridget/79, Sean/8], Curtis/ Francisco 94107 --- Roy & Susan TANIGUCHI --- Gary & Diann FOSTER (Patrick/71, Patricia/ 82, Ryan/85) P0 Box 56847, North Pole 99705 (Sa1Jy/83) 9391 Florin Rd, Sacramento 95829 73, Philip/77, Penni/Bl, Psamantha/82) 1161 AL - Tom & Cindi RIDER, ALABAMA CITIZENS --- l'4ichael & Pamela THoMAS (Jereny/78, Lone Valley Rd, Cmpbellsville 42718 --- l'1ark FoR HoffE EDUCATI0N, 400 Hill Crest Dr, opelika Julian/Bl, Sean/83, l'4aryLizabeth/85) 37 Rose & Cathy MoRGAN (Andrew/78, Adil/8o, Gage/85) 36801 Ln, Redding 96003 --- Karen TURNER (Raman/75, Rt I Box 96C, Dover 41034 --- Bill & Libbie M - Sandra HoUSE, ARIZ0NA FAI'llLIES FoR Drisan,/78) P0 Box 942, Gualala 95445 --- Jay & I40RLEY (Betsy/77, Robbie/80) 3522 Greentree H0l,4E EDUCATI0N, 2l0l l,l Paradise Dr, Phoenix Judy l,lATsoN (Joseph/75, Benjamin/76) SKYToP, Rd, Lexington 4O5OZ --- i,tarianne PETERS0N (Tim 85029 --- Henry l'1ILLER, G.A.T.E. School, 1725 23883 Broken Bit Rd, Sonora 95370 --- Jon & Still/70) 251 S Hite #2, Louisville 40206 --N Date #43, t'lesa 85201 --- Douglas & Ruth Sandi WEAVER (Paul/80, Crystal,/83) l4l6 Tanya & Tom PoTTER (Trinity,/73, Iodd/14, Iela/ RABIN (Janet/82) 5650 E 6th St, Tucson B57ll Ballena Pl, f"lodesto 95355 76) 315 Park view Dr, Louisville 40223 --- Linda & Allan RIEKEN (Forest/78, Echo/8o, C0 - HoME EDUCAToRS RESoURCE EXCHANGE LA - Edwin & Pat BERCIER (Eddie/69, Ariel,/84) 8231 E Plaza Av. Scottsdale 85253- (HERE);-P0 Box 13038, Aurora BO0l3 --- Ben & ChristjG/72, Suzanne/74, llary/77, Catherjne/ 7349 --- Ben TRUoI (Philip/78, Catherine/80, l'leidi Kll'4BELL \sari/75, Ben/77, Dana/80) 3501 79, Anthony/B?, Theresa/85) P0 Box 23, Rayne Nicholas/82, John/84) 6,l4 S El Dorado, f4esa Lancaster, Fort Collins 80525 --- David LARUE 70578 85202 & Suzanne |/{oLFRAI4 (Justin/79) 8275 King St, l'lE - 0regg & Katie BULL0CK (Nathaniel/ t,lestminster 80030 --- Kim & Mary ORR (Nathan, 76, Iar/78, !/hitney-Leigh/Bl ) 390 Shaker Rd, CA, south (Zips to 94000) - Kathleen & Matthew BoYD (Annaliese/i8, Joby/8o) 10315 Bethany, Noah, Rachel ) 4750 Chaparral Rd, Gray 04039 --- Patricia & l4ark SENI0R (Dana/ llarcus Av, luiunga 91042 --- Tony & l4errie Colorado Springs BO9l7 --- Bess & Richard SERR Bl, Evan/85) Rt I Box 233, West Newfield 80YD (Laura/78) 163 Ramona Dr, San Luis obispo (Benjamin/74, Arbrey/78) 122 Stagecoach Trail, 04095 --- Beth illLDl'lAN-EVANs, P0 Box 475, 93401 --- Jeff & Beth BRANDT (Joel/74, Kirstin Elixabeth 80107 --- Steve & Barbara SI4ITH Topsham 04086 (Ben/80, Emilie/81, Abigail/85) 1325 Hartford /77) 720 O'ld Farm Rd, Thousand oaks 91360 --lvlD - Linda G00DI4AN, 12825 Jingle Ln, CHRISTIAN H0t4E EDUCAT0RS 0F CALIF0RNIA, P0 Box Dr, Boulder 80303 --- Al len & Cheryl WALZ Sjlver-spring 20906 --- Douglas & Sharron 28644, Santa Ana 92799-8644 --- Sharon CHUNG (Theron/82, Calvin/86) P0 Box 1255, Pagosa f100DY (Nathan/76, Bethany/79, Anna/79, (Kevin/67, Tanya/69, Alicia/71) 20121 N New Springs 81147 --- Maureen l,JlLL|4AN (Justin/81 ) Jonathan/84) phone 301-759-9258, Cumberland Britain Ln, Huntington Beach 92646 --ll0l Colorado Av, Glenwood Springs Bl601 21502 --- Craig & Sandi RoBERTS (Erin/76, Dominique & Jonathan COLBERT (Devan/83) 443 S 0E - DELAIIARE H0l4E EDUCATI0N ASS0CIA- Shawn/78, Brian/8], Tdra/83, Kevin/85) Rt 2 Cochran #104, Los Angeles 90036 --- Raoul & TI0N, F0 Box 55, Dover 19903 --- Dawn I1LL0UGH- 8ox 586, Knoxville 21758 I'largarete deGAST0N (Pathricia/76, Eric/78) BY & Drew KNoX (Brie/8o, Adam/85) 2410 RambleMA - Charles & Betty BURGER (Susan/83, 13574 Road 35, Madera 93638 --- Phil & Cindi wood Dr, l,{ilmington l9Bl0 CharleVS5) 3l Kirk St, Housatonic 01236 --DENNIS (Phillip,/73, lvlerrick/77) ]655 Campbell DC - HOME SCHooL LEGAL DEFENSE ASSoC, P0 Peter & Beth FURTH (Salim/82, Ke2'iah/85) 3 Francis Rd, fiellesley 02]Bl --- l'1ary & Jeff Av, Thousand oaks 91360 --- Jeff & Jane DUNHA|4 Box 2091, i,{ashington 20013 (i4ichael,/73, A11a /14, Joshua/78, Matthew/81, FL - Bert & Lucy CoLLINS (Sonny/79) Rt I GRAY (Christopher/78, Joshua/80) l5 Reynolds Av, Natick 01760 --- David & Rachel GUIDETTI Tara/83, Autumn/85) 20162 Gilbert Dr, Canyon Box 50, Hilliard 32A46 --- Carey & l'4elody Country 91351 --- Jim & cindy GILBERT (Jacob/ CooPER (Aaron/80, crystal,/83) 5407 Seminole lEnily/77, David/80) l67 Piper Rd, N Spring82) 6605 Tanglewood Rd, San Dieqo 92111 --Av, Tampa 33604 --- Larry & Sue D0LAI40RE field 01089 --- Lucia & Thomas JENKINS (Kate/84, Jaclyn/B2J 2224 Red Ember Rd, 0viedo (Taylor/80, Kyle/82, Alexis/84) l6 Hawthorne Sylvia HARE, ABILITIES RESEARCH, 55723 Tanaqer St, flakefield 01880 --- Kathy & Garth JoHNS0N Rd, Yucca Valley 92284 --- Harry 8 Helena 32765 --- Jaclie & Stan DoUGLAS (Sarah/75, (Valerie/80, Carolyn/82) 7l School St, ShrewsHARRISoN (l4ichael/65, Naomi/70, Ian/131 320 i,{ Ian/80) 9704 Hidden 0ak Cir, Tampa 33612 --Garfield Av, Giendale 91204 --- Luana & Gary Fay FARLEY & John KUHN (Heather/79) 'l707 King bury 01545 --- Steve & Jean J0HNSoN (Alden/80, Ryan/82, Evan/85) 72 Prospect St, Greenfield H0LZER (llJilliam/83) 18527 Edgebrook Ln, St, Jacksonville 32204 --- Ed & lvlarianne 01301 --- clive & Glenda KNOIILES (Andrea/75, Huntington Beach 92648 --- David & carol JoHNSON (Tim/73, Robert/77, Rose,/81 ) 8704 Adam/76, l'lichael/84) 26 Sudbury Rd, Stow 01775 KRAJCAR (Timothy/82) lBSl Arroyo Dr, Riverside l4anchester Ct, Tallahassee 32301 --- Nancy --- Joseph & Ina LeVANGIE (Daniel/76, Joshua/ 92506 --- Earbara LAWSoN, l{INDSoNG tlFESCH00L, KIGER, EdD (Katherine/69) 1604 Sunside Sq, 79, Joseph/82, Jesse/85) P0 Box 274, Rush Rd, 424 N Anaheim Blvd, #101, Anaheim 92805 --0rlando 32807 --- Ken & Ginny I'4ILLETT lendell 01379 --- Nancy & l,4ichael LoPIN (Naomi Dale E Agnes LEISTIC0 (James/73, Laurene/77, (Kristine/77) 2260 University Blvd N #95-0, Jacksonviile 3ZZll --- Charlotte & Marvjn /75, Jonah/la, Aaron/Bl ) 26 Lombard St, Newton Susan/79) 313 Somerset Pl. Lomooc 93436 --THIEN (Heather/73, Scott/74, Sean/76) CoUNTRY 02158 --- Donna & Gary 50L0f,l0N (Jarod/74, Cathy LEVESQUE, ABILITIES RESEARCH AS50C., ltlEADol,/ DAY 5CH00L, 12201 0ld Kjngs Rd, Jackson- Lonny-Seth/78) 526 Country Iay, Scituate 02066 2650 !J lrojan Pl, Anahein 92804 --- Kolina ville 32219 --- Roger & Cindi TRUNK (Dorian/ --- Lynn I Charles S0NNIER {Evel83) 48 Fox 5t, MacRuRY & Patrick Ai4PE {Me9an/82, Shane/85) 73, 0arius/Bl, Orion/83) P0 Box 208, San Mateo llorcester 01610 --- Dave & Nancy ToHLER (l'1ae 894 Durkin 5t, Camarillo 930'10 --- Sharon & l'lartin NELSoN {sarah/79, Virginia/Bl) 331 32088 --- Erica & Jeff lIEIDENHAI4ER (Emily/BZ, Star/Bl, Nathan/82) 30 Grinell 5t, Greenfield Angeles, Camp Pendleton 92055 --- Dale & Pam Joel,/83, David/85) RAINBoW SCHooL, 5334 56th 01301 --- Greg & Jan VERRIL (Faith & Leah/76, Av N, St Petersburg 33709 Heath,/8o) 26 Pierce St, Greenfield 01301 o|,lENS (Kari/70, llichael/78, Kati/80) 973 f4l - Jan & Ray BEi4BEN-|'4EYER (Travis/83) Lacrange, Newbury Park 91320 --- Lorinda GA - tben & Pam BURNS (Gre9/75, Andrea/ SEVENANS (l{es/71, Joey/78, Katie/79) 1857 El 77, IilTary/80) 5lB James Av, l,,laynesboro 450 Strgeon Bay Trail, Levering 49755 --Cajon Ln, Ramona 92065 --- Ted & Linda SUTToN 30830-1535 --- Libby & Jerry PERCIFELD (Lara/ Douglas & Jani BoND lAnanda/11, Tim/80, Andrew (Alex/8]) P0 Box 1525, Running Springs 92382 79, Leif/83) 457 Lakeshore Dr NE, Atlanta 30307 /8l,0livia/B4) 16502 Blackstone, Detroit --- SYCAI'1oRE TREE SCH00L, 2179 l'1eyer Pl, Costa HI - Art & Leslie HICKS (3 boys) 1653 C 48219 --- Preston & Teresa CoLE (Triston/76, lyler/18, Trevon/8o, Tianne/83) Rt I Box 255, Mesa 92627 --- Bruce & Deborah ULLI1AN (Shannor loth Av; Honolulu 96816 ,/79, Ursula/81 ) 8l Teasdale St, Thousand 0aks ID - Bennett & l4olty BROWN, l0AH0 HOME l'4ancelona 49659 --- Scott & Susan EVANS (Luke/ 11, lesse/79, l"largafet/82) 10755 Hibner Rd, EDUCATURS, 3125 Black Hills, Boise 83709 --91360 --- Scott & Anne I,{EINERT, Villa Narcissa, 100 Vanderlip Dr, Portuguese Bend Jay & Sandy G00DENoUGH (Jeremy/67, Dana/73, Hartland 48029 --- Bruce & f4achelle FAILoR Paul/77) Box 68, Garden Valley 83622 --- l'4ark (Samuel/Bl, Tamara/82) 2797 Dalton, Ann Arbor 90274 --- Peter & Ilary WOLK (Rebeaca,/76, Deborah/78) 15929 Del Prado Dr, Hacienda & Alice GRANNIS, H0l'1E EDUCAToRS 0F IDAHo, 3618 48104 --- Carolyn & Daniel H0BBS (14isty/78, Heights 91745 --- Dave & Hanni W00LSEY (Nancy/ Pine Hill Dr, Coeur-d'Alene B3Bl4 --- David & Skyler,/80, Reilly/83, Devon/85) P0 Box 387, 74) EUCKINGHAI4 SCH00L, 17800 Hatton St, Reseda Barbara sToUTNER (Soren/78, Camilla/80, Thora/' Enpire 49630 --- Jack & Ilary SHARRY (Jessica/ 91335 82, t4ary/84) P0 Box 293, Coeur d'Alene 83814 75, Gabriel/8o) 45310 Byrne Dr, Northville --- TEXTB0oKS FoR PARENTS, Box 209, Kendrick 48167 CA, North (Zips 94000 & up) - Zarifah MN - CATH0LIC H0l1E SCHooL NEWSLETTER, AIRD E-TTei-5pfIN,202 i4iramar, San Rafael 83537 94901 --- Dan & Payce BLOi4QUIST (Scott/73, IL - Jim & Rainie DALLAVIS (Carmen/78, 688 llth'Av Nll, New Brighton 55112 --- Stephen i4ichelle/77, Steve/81) phone 408-378-6280, ColleeiT82, Holly/83) 1824 Grant, Springfield ColilDER & Kathryn GRAFSGAARD (Seth/79, Charlie/ Canpbell --- Ann & Peter BoDINE-B0NYHARD 62703 --- Tom I Lynne DAVIS (Erin/73, Eddie/ 82) 559 Harrison St, Anoka 55303 --- Lowell E (Jonathan/74, Karina/75, David,r79) 12840 Audrey DITTBTRNER (Forest/79, Selena/82) Rt l, 77, Leslie,/81) 42835 N Crawford Rd, Antioch Stevens Ct, San I'tartin 95046 --- Jill & Greq 60002 --- ltlark & Joy KAISER,702 E znd South Box 43, Parkers Prairie 56361 --- FARGoM00RHEAD H0|I1ESCH0OL ASS0CIATI0N, 1909 8th St B00NE (Cristie/78, Paul/80, Curtis/83) 3806St, Carlinville 62626 --- Chris & Linda S, Moorhead 56560 --- Dick & Nadine GALLIEN, KYZIVAT (i4ike/i7, Tomny/80, Katie/85) 531 Ross Rd, Palo Alto 94303 --- Don & Kelley BRANDEAU (Jacquelyn/78) 1005 Lakedale lilay, McKee St, Batavia 60510 --- Nancy LEt (Cooper/ GHS TRAVET NET|,I0RK, Rt 2, Hinona 55987 --LEARNING CoNNECTIoNS, 23330 Paris Av, Scandia Sunnyvale 94089 --- Janet BRENDLINGER, l49l !] 82) 1834 N l4aud, Chicago 60614 --- Ronald 55073 --- Jeff & Julie I4ELBERG (Noah/78, LYI4AN & Diane l40HR (Paul/82) Rt I Box 200, Stadium Dr, Stockton 95204 --- Katherine CARIN0 (i4urali/73, Vrindavana/74, Manjari/78) Golconda 62938 --- T'imothy & Deborah lvlARTIN, Jonathan/80, Christopher/82, Jacob/84) 9930 Kumquat, Coon Rapids 55433 --- l,{ayne & Debra 1249 8th Av, San Francisco 94122 --- CTNTER 2923 N 71st St, t{oodnidge 60517 --- Duane & FoR EDUCATIoNAT cUIDANCE, P0 Box 445, N San Shirley SANDQUIST (Eric/66, Delbert/68, Jeremy NEUR01H (Jessica/Bl, Scott/82) 519 lllinona St, Juan 95960 --- Axel & ltlartha de La SoUJEoLE /72, tason/73) 826 Chelsea, New Lenox 60451 Northfield 55057 --- Carol & Sohail UPPAL (Bram/82) 5154 Lincoln Dr, Edlna 55436 --(Raphael/82, Dominique/84) 305 Briarwood Dr, --- Jeri SISS0N, ILLIN0IS CHRISTIAN HoIYE llatsonville 95076 --- Gina DiLE0NARDo & Brian EDUCAToRS, P0 Box 261, Zion 60099 --- Marybeth Rick & Becky NIRKKALA (Amy/74, Ann/77) oxford Hills #26, Cannon Falls 55009 PAISLEY (Eliot/83) 1822 8th Av #3, San & George STRACK (George/75, lvlatthew/77) 619 l'1S - l4ary SCHICK (l'latthew,/76) 503!

Francisco 94122 --- Jean & Ruth ENER0 Lawndale, Woodstock 60098 --- Steve & Bonnie (Nicholas/79, David/82, A'lexander/85) 929 Mamie,-Tattiesburg 39401 VERHUTST (tori/83) l2l vJalnut Valley Dr, I40 - Carol BRotlN {Joshua/77, Anna,/80, chardonnay llay, i4odesto 95351 --- Pam & Craiq Springfield 62707 --- llarilyn & Matthew |lloJDAK Zacharf/83) LITTLE PINEY SCH00L, Rt I Box 20, GING0LD (iere'miah/76, Serena/78) SIERRA HoME: (Jeno778, Brian/80, Ben/82, Jessica/84) 912 Newburg 65550 --- llene & James BURGENER SCHooLERS, P0 Box 74, t'lidpines 95345 --- t4ary Dekalb Av, Sycamore 60178 (Candia/76, Celestia/78, Harmony/7g, lsaac/B2, & David GRIFFITH (Katie/84) 4092 Savannah Ln, IN - Bob E Shannon BUEHLTR (Drew/79,

Jaime/86) Rt

2,

Raymond BURLE

---

Newburg 65550

Jean

&

lR-J./72, Edeard/14, Patrick/76)

l82l Eln Tree Dr, St. Charles 63303 --- Mel & Lila JENKINS (Lydia/79, wyatt/81, Rana/84) HC 76, Box 2720, Pittsburg 657?4 --- Mark & Jonna (Grant/80, Benjamin/83, Christopher & Becky Thatcher, St. Charles & Jo-Ellen MCD0NALD (Allison/

KRUEGER

2l --- Bill

Timothy/85) 63303

6510 l4organ Ford Rd, St. Louis 63116 --- Dale & Guyn PREST0N (Hannah/7g, Nahum/Bl, Elias/83, Jacob/85) 3230 S Ninth St, St. Louis 63118 --- Panela & Robert SEID

81, Erjr/84)

(Anisa/74) 821 S Kimbrough, Springfield 65806 --- Beth & Tim STACHII{ (scott/77, Christian/ 79, Meg/Bl, Elizabeth/84) 2221 Coulter Ct,

Illentzville l',lT

-

63385

David & Beth BR0I{N (Jereny/78,

Eleano780, Esther/84) 333 Colleqe Av, Sp.29,

Kalispell

---

H0i4ESCHO0LERS 0F I40NTANA, 5910,] oebbie KERSTEN, I4oNTANA H0i4ESCH00LERS ASSoC NEWSLETTER. P0 Box

Box 40,

59901

Billings

---

59102 --- Robin LANDoN (Esrael/78, Genevieve/Bl ) P0 Box 882, Corwin Spgs 59021 --- Hol ly l'4IKITA (Cory/74, Josie/ 83) P0 Box 157. Fortine 59918 --- Charles &

23352,

Billings

Emjly RINGER (ulillow/76, Leb/79, Iahnina/BZ) Box 75, Joliet 59041

NE.

LINCOLN EDUCATED AT RESIDENCE NE]7741 E Avon Ln, Lincoln 68505

I,J0RK (LEARN)

Gary & Ann DANKW0RTH (girl/83, boy/ 84) 1027 Spencer St, carson City 89701 --Kathleen & Doug HoFF (Justin/83) l7 50 Patterson Pl, Sparks 894.]3 --- Hot{E SCH00LS UNITED - VTGAS VALLEY, P0 Box 268ll Las Vegas NV

-

89l 26

NH - Sally & christopher Ei4BER (l'lerlyn/ 80) 73-Ieverett St. Keene 03431 --- Bill FARKAS,

A CHILDREN.S HOUSE, 3] FTanKI

Keene 0343]

--- Allen

in 5t,

& Susan HILLI',IAN

(Allen/

61, Erika/70, Andrew/76, Suzanne/77, Anthony/ 80, Alycia/83) 66 Lincoln St, Laconia 03246 --- Laurie & Ken HUFFI'IAN (Jacquie/69, Angie/ 70, Alex/82j 28 I'4illbrook Dr, lvlilford 03055 --- Betty !{ETI10RE & Terry DEIIPSEY (Harlan & Virgil/82) 3 Kirk St, Nashua 03060 NJ

-

CREATIVE LEARNING I'IAGAZINE. PO BoX Debra

957, hFTghtstown 08562 --- Robert &

{Andrea/75, Jason/79, Benjamin/83) Box 144, Heislerville 08324 --- Whitney & Cheryl NEl,{EY (l'lichael/77, Elisa/79, Jennifer/81 ) 6 Colleoe Rd. Princeton 08540 --- Jane & Hank RoBERiS (Jacob/81, l'lary/85) 4 Grand Av, RutherHAMBY

ford

07070

Nl"l - l,]ill & Thea HoFFMAN (Brian/7g) 3347 Shadows l,/ay, Las Cruces 88001 --l"like & Nancy SEDILLo {Stacey/80) ll05 N Hal l, Farmington 87401 --- Larry SII,4PS0N, NElll l'lEXIC0 CHRISTIAN H0ME EDUCATI0N,74l7 Santa Fe Trail Nw, Albuquerque 47120 --- Linda VELARDE & Grove BURNETT (Cisco/80, i4aya/84) Rt I Box 9-A, Glorieta 87535 --- Al & Louise !.lILLIAi,IS (Evan/83) 77 La Paloma. Los Alamos 87544 NY - Jody BRoHN & Jim SUTLIFF (Cory/78, Casey,60, Jennie/85) 122 Elm St, N Syracuse

l4ajestlc

1321?

..-

CENTRAL NEII YORK HOI"IISCHOOLERS, SidE

---

Dan & Bambi CoRNETT (Shannon/76,

I Spqs, BecLer Rd, Skaneateles 13152 --Diane h-Peter cHoDAN (Anneke/7i) R0 +l Box 462. Rome 13440 --- Dale & Susie CLAIR (Joshua/81, Sarah/83, Ryan/B5) 78 sibley Rd, RD #2, Honeoye Falls 14472 --- Joy & Paul CoHEN (l4ichael/83) 83 Amherst St, Brooklyn Hi I

11235

l4elissa/78) 230 Cass Hill. Candor 13743 --lvlichael FEINBERG, NEli Y0RK STATE HolvlESCfto0LERS, Rt I Box I, Ghent 12075 --- t'lary & christian FoKINE (Daniel,/81 ) shelter Island 11964 --- Paula & Bob GAUS (Tin/77, Ilischa/80) 119 cook Av, Jamestown 1470] --- Kathleen GoRDINIER & Peter DIVEN (l4ischa/81, Toran/83) 8963 [ayne Ctr, Rose Rd, Lyons 14489 --Richard GREEN, HoME SCH00L ENCoURAGER, 55 Gifford Av, Poughkeepsie 12601 --- Jill & Jeff HERBST (Johnny/78, Jeffrey/84) 42A Shore Rd, Babylon 11702 --- Barry & Martha LASH (Rachel/

80,

Hannah,/Bl) RD

I, Alfred Station

14803

L.E.A.H., c/o Grimes, 2806 l'lidland Av, Syracuse 13205-1922 --- Lou I Val LtVY

---

(Jasmine/80, Rachael/82, Joshua/84) 86 Ellis LUCE (Tara/71, Jeffory/73, Joshua/77) 4328 Witherden Rd, l4arion 14505 --- Amy & David I'4ANTELLS (Sarah/ 83) 275 Yarmouth Rd. Rochester 14610 --- Phil & Kathy NEETZ (Joshua/78, Caleb/80, Naomi/84) ll67 E g8th 5t, Brooklyn 11236 --- l'4alcolm & Sylvia PHILLIPS (James/76, Brian/79, llicah/85) RD 3 Box 233A. New Berlin 13411 --- Ivan & Kathy PURDY (Teman/80, Erend/81, Arlan/83, Talitha/85) P0 Box 264, l,lhitney Point l3862 --- Barbara RAI4EE {Neal/67, Adam/69, Nathan/ 73) Anerican Embassy (PoL) APo 09862 ---

Av, Northport ll768 --- Theresa

ROCHESTER

AREA HOI4ESCHOOLING

Hill Terrace, Henrietta Tersh

RoNALDS

ASSOCIATION, 25

14467

---

(Reid/75, Roy/83)

cENTER BooKSToRE, 207

S i4ain

5t,

t'larian

&

LEARNING

Canandaigua

14424 --- Rich & Brenda SAI,4I'1ARC0 (Karan/81, David/84) 421 Armstrong Av, Staten lsland '10308 --- Astrid sToLZER,335 Croton Dan Rd, 0ssining'10562 --- Alice & t'lichel THol''lAS (Gurion/79. Micheline,/80) 3 Hawthorn Rd, Larchmont 10538 --- susannah & Doug !]HITE (Jennifer /74, Sara/75, Caleb/83) WESTERN NY H0I'1ESCH00LING NETW0RK, 85 Albany st, Buffalo 14213 NC - Nord CASEY E Larry BENNETT (llatthew /82, l'4Tchael/84) 2801 Shaftsbury St, Durham 21'104 --- Rick & Lori HAYES (Jesse/80) B42l Stafford l4ill Rd,oak Ridge 27310 --- oeborah J0NE5 & Fran EDGERToN (Caitl in/80, Zachary/84) 3232 Lee Rd, Clayton 27520 --- Richard l'1AILI4AN & Judy SIDDEN (Seth/Bl) 2l0l N Lake Shore Dr, Chapel Hill 27514 --- Stephen & Nancy PoCKLINGToN

(Alethea/83) Rt I Box 667,

Franklinville

27248

---

Richard & l'lalinda

(Harriet/62, Mir i an/1 2, 525 Circle Dr, Burlington 27215

UHITELAli

Andrew/75

)

GROWING I,{ITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5I

1006 3iA 0H

St

-

Sr,l, I4andan ND

58554

Richard & Penny

BARKER

Bl, Alexander/B4) P0 Box 128, wake 23176 --{Britton/68, Terry & Kim GRo0TERS (Erianne/85) P0 Box 60,

KELLY

& Rei

Anagance

MaqqieZ3,Daniel/74,8en/76,Jonah/78)Rt3'Montva,le24l22---Ed9arH0|.ARD(Isaac/80'

l4iiiersburq 44654 --- Howard & Deborah 80NtM Benjamin/82, Rachel/83) Rt 3 Box 456, Abingdon land Heights 44118 --- creg & Linda BRUNET 73) 1862 Post oak Trail, Reston 22091 --- Mich-

NS

IJRIGHT

---

(Reed/8o, Adrian/83) RRz, ST0RE, 207 S I'lain l'lary & Paul iRIGHT (Frances/77, 716-394-8798 ---

st, Canandaigua NY 14424; FELICIAN0, 232 N 'qanuel Linda JoilES, 3301 Hemtock, Tenple TX 76504;

EGBERS

Candy BALLARD (Shane/83) RR

(Eli/82)

Box 122,

Arichat

l,

BoE lA0

---

Madison

lll

vis. impair.

53705; elem,

Peter&kath1eenF0TIs(Jonathan/78,Emi1y/83)Brieanna/85)34Z5chelseaDr,woodbridge2219269)BoxB2,|4abouB0ElX0--.Les]ie&DeiterSt,Le 6360verbrookDr,Columbus43214---Diane&---cathy&FredYERS 3015 Fajrmont St, Falls Church 22042 --- Randy Xavier t.lniv, Antigonish BzG lC0 --- Sian & {change) Carl JAHNES {Megan/78, Benjamin/81, Jeffrey/ & l4ary I.JASHINGToN {Charlie/80, Missy/81, l4'jles Hugh l4cLEAN (willow/84) RR 2, Heatherton BoH 83) 3970 pert Hjll Rd, Hopewell 43146 --lR0 --- Stan & Christine MoELLER (Luke/7o, /84) Rt I Box 265-A, Axton 24054 I'larcia I4ANTEL. CHRISTIAN H0t4E EDUCAToRS 0F

* ,**,# i,353i!i,i^'ii"i,:'ti:;:f

fliii;,??,'83';"i"!lll f;illl,-;;,1)":ll'i,0"

JanRUD0ELL(Erin/82)3085|laynesville-GeneE5andiHALL(Kyle/8'

lSsll'1ll' Ti3'l1l'a"li'il8llll','8iii{'il,?3h

?l::{':i'

pEN PALSWANTED

JamestownRd,Xenia45385..-!illiamRUFFIN'MonroeAvsE,Renton98058---Joel&MargieB2G2L6-.-Gail&l4arkRU8ENsTtIN(l,{jl1/73'name,i.!f--6-diliE-

0rrville 44567 CHRISTIAN PARENTS EDUCATI0N ASS0C,

Mohican Av,

3]0 81ue-

bonnet Dr, Fjndlay 45840 0K - Richard & Laura CHURCHILL

(Sarah/

--- Don & Jude MINIKEN (Joshua Antigonish B2G zKB 85009: Raymond (7) bikes, cats, Legos; Valerie oNT - Dora FoRCE, A H0l4E SCHooLERS NEHS- (4) Cdbbage-Patch baby-dolls --- Rachel BAUER Ananda/1l, Joseph/78, Sarah/84) Rt 3 Box (6) 3635 S wollmer Rd, Greenfield lll 53228; LETTER;768 Butler St, l,loodstock N4S 3B2 ----- Natalie & Einer

Snohomish 98290

/73,

1272A, Hoquiam 98550

l63SDunkycreekDr'catoosa74ol5.23l3---RosieMURPHY|Andre|/77,|!1adrona/80)0d

B4)4l465Haivard,F-6,Tul5a74l35..--sTEvEN50NEPaulM0LNAR(Sarin/78)ll3llH0..-JimE!Jendyl'cNALLY ippe,/82) Box 210, Mindemoya PoP lS0 --- Burt & Havillah Rt, Tonasket 98855 Dennis & Susan LAFFIN {Greg/78, Brian/79,

09034-0005: Justine (13) reading, writing,

---Douglas&PatriciaLAl,lsoN(crispin/79,305,chToe25235...|\4aggiELLI0TT&i]son 0R-steve&KayG000sELL(Kinberly/74,lndiant,4i1ls24949..-H0|4EscH00LERNEWs-P0PlE0--.Laura&Keth 971'15

/79, Hwy

---

Kathy

James/80,

HoLLoWAY

(Tiel/81)

Box

372,

Phil

SUITER, WEST VIRGINIA HoME

EDUCAToRS 77, Iao/79)

RR

I, }Jilno

KOJ 2N0

--- Marga

1878 Greensprings II - David E Earbara EAUER (Rachel/80, 80) 20 Paperbirch 0r, Don Mills M3C 2E7 Gary & Regina KE0WN HichalTgl) 3635 5 l,1ollmer Rd, Greenfield 53228 QUE - Andre & Marie B0URqUE (Caroline/

August/82)

66, Ashland 91520 ---

--- Lynn & Gordon i4ENNENGA (Kate/ RR I 8ox B9A, Barneveld 53507 --- Mary Ellen Montreal H4A 2Vl 78,Andrew/83)950N'l0akdel]P],corva11isc0LE,F.l.s.H.(FAl'4lLIEsINScH00LsATH0ME),s-Randy 9733o--.Garth&PatPUTNAl.4(David/68,4639conestogaTrail,cottageGrove53527---78,Nat/8]) llales Av, Saskatoon

S7K

3E5

writing ---

HENRY,

skating, Barbies, painting; Gretchen (6) swinming, dolls, rollerskating --- HALL, RD 4 Box flowers, writing;

Creek 97457

PA - James & Lauiie ADAI4S \Ion/77, Ilna/ 79, Bld-r/8o) 123 UJater St, Apt 25E, Edinboro Baird St, Green Bay 54301 --- Don & oenise 16412 --- Eric & Debbye CoUGHENoUR \Brian/l1, HoDGES (Lucas/75, lvlaia/79, Hadley/83) P0 Box

Erownies, Cabbage-Patch,

Emry

gymnastics, drawing

I

---

(4) sports, treats,

Shannon MCKAIG

(10)

Rt

Box 239, Forsyth 140 65653; stamps, horses,

Teqan/80,

l6634---nnnEPatD0DGE(Aaron/73,Mellisa/(Vaiena/76'Ja.ob/79,Apri]/8l,clemet784)Rtaffc/o_2 75,Louis/7B,Jo/Bt)RD2,Edinborol64l2---lBoXl67,Kiel53042-]-A]ison&Davidi4cKEE ralee/84)countryNLotD22,RDl,NorthamptonPl,i4adison53705---carenRU8IN&Jack|oycu1]en' 79,Bl)RD4Box259,Duncansvi]1e|6635---Av,App]eton549]4.--D.Mohammed&TayyibahApoo]45i'0axaca,0aXaca Nathaniel/84) 6755 Glenloch St, Philadelphia 85) 18150 Bonnie Ln, B.ookfield 53005 --- Tom de Allende GTo, l'4exico 37700 --- Roger BULLoCK ing, fishing 19135 --- Joy & Fred i4ARLEY (Rachel/75, Amanda & Gretchen SPICER (Jacob/70, Seth/73, Jessica/ & Jane ELlZABETHJfleaT6g, Sam/7i, Jarnie/83) l5A Neptune Av, Beach Haven, Auckland l0 New /75) l4ahoninq l4anor A-2, Punxsutawney 15767 74, Isaac,/78, Vern/80, Esau/Bl) Hwy 82 E, Zealand --- Stephen & Betsie IIEIL (HescheTz6, HOWTOGETSTARTED --- Frank & freredith PARENTE (Daniel78o, Jos- Hauston 53948 nelde778, Jordan/8|, Simone/83) San Juan de eph/82, tsther/85) lol E l2th Av, Homestead Here are sore ways you can find out the Limay, Estell Nicaragua --- llike DeB0H, PANAMA CANADA lbl20:-- Nan & Dave P0RTERFIELD (Link/73, - Eonnie BRooKS llara/1l) 12227.144 SUPPoRT GR0UP,-7Sc-T6fl578, APO l.liami 34OOl legal situation in vour state.

Sean/74) Box 556, Harnony 16037 --- Glenn & (Ft I ) Look up the law yourself, in a public (children/80, --Amador, Panama) Betty & Lee MAINPRIZE 83, 85) 310 Av, Edn-onton T5X 3M3 Rebecca PRoUDFooT .1660'l library or law library (courthouse, law (Dylan/75) PO Box 580, Claresholm ToL 0TO ----- Ron & Kathryn liii-nu, nltoonu -ALTA (Siri/7g, school, etc') Laws are indexed; try "school Kim,/83) 10935ntifens-(trity/te, Thonas/8o) 813 Aylesbury Sandy & Hal PAULSoN attendance" or "education, compulsory." 16 122 St, Edmonton T5I1 0A7 Di, tancaster'17501 --- Katherine & I4ark AOOITIONSTORESOURCES srrttscH{cnr.istoptrer/79,|'4argaret/82,Lucy/84) since 1982 (seven of them in'1985), so check et/76,-Tharla/79) 4-1322 Pheasant Ln, Victoria - -- These people have experience in the 56 liarden Rd, Doylestofln 08901 --- Cliff &

with others: sumarized these new laws in our back issues.

10394 Shaw St, !4ission V2V 4H9 --- Terry Blindness: Naomi RICE, 3205 NE 64th' 2) Ask the state Department of Education FAUBERT (Jody/77, Gen Del, Lund VoN 260 --2iHrirli.r'u"izso'Joshua/81,stephanie/84,TiaGR0Vt(H;ather/75,Noah/7B)BoXzll,sooke eeniamin/85)52lNBeavâ&#x201A;Źr5t,Yoikl7404UoslN0.--AleX&JuanitaHAD0AD(Nicole/78,AlisonPARRA,zacateros77-5,5anMigrT -Rl.Gerry&JackBARRY(John/80,Janes/Tacy/80)RR7DuncanV9L4w4.--VictoriaAllende,GT0,l'1eXico37700---si$.']*-!3:34::somestate5(particulary

Eurleioh/8]. Noah/84) Eear Honey Farms, 237'1 llest B6st Rd, Bath 18014 --- Elmer & Ginnie

TN - Joyce DICKERMAN & Art STEi,{ART 9706-t08th Av, Fort St John VIJ 2R2 --- Etta & NETW0RK, Rt 5 Box 120, Ava M0 55608 ($l + SASE) schools and so you can call your home a school.

If you are concerned about revealing {Joelle/79, eiron/83) Rt 5 Box 219, Speas Rd, t'1att I4ARTINELLI (Steven/7o, Bruce/7]) quatsino Certified Teachers willing to help home- your nane and address to the state, do this itinton gZitO --- l,lanuel & Susan FELICIANo LTSTN, i,{inter Harbour VoN 310 --- Ron E Maurir"iivzzo,scott/72'Anita/79,DeLena/82)232eenPARrER(A]lison,/83,Kjmber]y/8l)462sch!9]er@through'afriend, fuJ-ungaTA 91042; elem &-chi'ld devel. --3) Contact state or.local homeschooling fl fuline,qv, oak Riige 37830 --- cordon & Mary Church St, Comox V9N 5G8 --- Lois R0Y, 49614;616-889-5920; K-6 --- ltluriel PALKo,203 also keep the list updated and sell it separSt, Vancouver V5V 4J5 Oneeoa Av. Erwin 37650 --- Gary & Barbara NB - Jane ADNER & Joe WAUGH (Robin/80, N Harrison, Ludington t4l 49431i 616-843-4611; ately for $i as part of our "Honeschooling NICHdLS0N'(Nathan/76, Travis/79, Adam/82, tuke/85) 3916 Canbridge Av, Nashvil le 37205 --- Lee & Kelly PIEPI,4EIER lAlison/72, Irev/17, Aaron/80) 59 N Dixie, Cookeville 38501 --courtney 5c0l I & Patrici a STREE' tCel a/8] ,

, I

!::'::(Pl3ll,i'll'!iiii',?i;,i)i':'::::*,i3li'

Rt 4,riJaddell Hollow Rd, Franklin 37064-9433

-

Kathy

I ,|

E"vrRY FORM FoR DIRECTORY tt yOU WOUId like tO be inClUded in the DifeCtofy and have nor yet told us, send in this form, 0r use a postcard of -' 3x5 card (only one family per card).

I

AdUltS:

(Erin/8r)

& Mark HELLER 4330 B6'-ren, Hichita Falls 76308 --- Pdt & Rita Tx

BERRY

eiln,iliimtlil;rdilt"Lli{'1,,3,11"*$n0,,

(iuntei--r,lest/77, Erika-dest/85) onrQue eirruo iHILo pntvlrr siaool, po Box 832, Bel lvi I le

ltqte ---

Bonnie DETil.lEN, FAl4lLY-H0i4E EDUCAToRS 0F DALLAS, P0 Box 280584, Dallas 75228 --- Gail & Jack HoGAN (Josh/75, L;ie/78) Ri I 8ox 704. HemDhill 75948 --- Summer MILToN, Rt 4 Box 175, Fredericksburg 78624 --- Tom &

I

I Iffil:i y3lll'-19"$!lll'33,l,rlil';i'il'3';*' ASS0CIATI0N, Star Rt 8ox 87, Anthony :-sszt (Charlie/72, SCHooLERS

UT

orsanization (only if address is

same as

family):

,

-

I

Brad & Lee ALLRED

Darrin774, vlendy/77, Spencer/78, Penn/83) oak Dr, Brigham City 84302

--- Yolandd

1037

(Adam/73. ADril/75, Jason/77) 4150 N 3500 H, ogden 84404 --- Karl & Betty

Chi

ldren, NamesrBirthyears:

I

BREIDENBAUGH

(Lisa/78, Erik/80, Andrea/82, Glenn/

PEARS0N

84) lA-3 S wymount, Provo Martha

l'IcSHERRY

(Frank/76, carolyn/78, Elena/

Box 340 Hil'lvief, Rd, Richmond 05477 r.rounr cARt'lEL ACADEMY, RD I Box 1737, r,,{aterville 05492 --- David & E'lizabeth S}JIFT

8t) --:

RD

I

|

84604

VT - Stephen & Roberta HISLoP (Tinothy/ 79) Po-Tox 308, Randolph 05060 --- Joseph &

|

Address:

I

(Gabriel/78, Abigail/82) Box l6l, Pittsford

05763

VA - Ann & Ton BR0!iN (Todd/7s, t4eris/78) Box 452; Lottsburg 22511 --- CLEARINGHoUSE 0N EDUCAT10NAL CH0ICE, 161l N Kent St #805, Arlington 22209 --- Stanley & Kathleen DoLJRIs GROIIING }lITHOUT SCHOOLING

#5]

|

I

No Have been in Directory before: Yes If this is address change, what wits previous state:

-

-

-

5L

Resource List." Some groups have prepared handbooks or guidelines on'lega1 matters.

4) Contact other families listed in our Directory. However, they may suggest you do some of the above steps yourself.

5) In general,'it is not rvise to start

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VT Iand w/ compatible Homeschooling's not difficult here. Work possible. Patti P0 Box 7 Charlotte, VT 05445 We'd

rates are for subscribers only; non-subscribers pay $3.50 pei-Tsnre.

Binders now available with rods that wifhout obscuring any text. Gold letters on cover. Binder can hold cllls #l-24 ($]0) or l8 later issues ($9.50). Soeciai: 3 binders

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