Growing Without Schooling 82

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Growing Without Schooling 82

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What if homeschoolers become lnterested ln somethlng that their parents don't know anyttring about? Will they ever be able to learn about it, or is their education limited to what their parents can teach them? Many people wonder about thls, among them

Mona Welner ls among those who wrlte for this lssue's Focus, '\Mhcn Parcnts Aren't FamillarWith a

Inside This Issue News & Reports p. 3-4 Homeschoolers in Israel and Spain, Homeschoolers

in

College

Are Ilomeschoolers Abandonlng Schools? p. 5-6

$fuestlonlng the Labels p.z-9 Further Challenges to Attentton Deficit Hyperactivity Dlsorder and Perceptual Handicaps

Challenges & Concerns p. 9-12 Privacy, I-oosenlng Up, School Decisions

Watchlng Chlldren Learn p. 13-14 Numbers, Spelltng, Grammar, Biologr

BookRevlews p. t5-18 FOCUS: When Parents Aren't Famlllar wlth a SubJect p. 19-22

Homeschoo[ng Slbltngs p. zs Hlstory \Flthout Tertbooks p. 24-26 Playtng on School Teams p.2T-2a

some homeschooltng parents.

For this issue's Focus. we asked several children and teenagers to write about what happened when they wanted to learn something that their parents dtdn't know much about. As so often happens, the young people explained reassuringly that what adults might have thought was a problem ls not a problem at all.

They wrote about tumlng to books and to other people as a matter of course. Sometimes their parents helped them flnd these sources of lnformatlon. Often they were able to do the searching themselves, so familiar were they with how one goes about finding out what one wants to know.

When people wonder whether homeschooled children will learn only what their parents know, they are thinlidng in terms of the old bottle metaphor of education: kids come down the assembly line and get filled up with the knowledge that their teachers are prepared to teach. Thtnldng in these terms, it makes sense to worry about the limitations of home educaflon. If chlldren are walting to be filled up with knowledge, and only one or two people are doing the pouring, the children will get only what those people happen to be able to pour. People who say, 'l never learned geometry because my school didn't teach it,' are thtnking of themselves as passive vessels in Just this way, asslgning the enttre responsibtlity to the one who was supposed to flll up the bottle. If no one poured geometry in, well, that's too bad, but there wasn't much the bottle could have done except roll on down the line.

The homeschoolers in this issue, on the other hand, talk about finding things oul looking for books, aslidng questions of people, signing up for specific classes - in other words, actively making an ellort to learn what they want to learn. The matter-of-fact way in whlch they talk about their methods makes me wonderwhy anyone even needs to ask how they can learn about what is not immediately available to them. Clearly they know how.

Sometimes the culture surrounding the particular interest suggests possible ways to pursue lt. Colin Ktng knew how to pursue his interest in stamp collecttng because he was familiar with the catalogs adult collectors used and the auctions they participated in. Amber Clifford got ideas about how to take her interest ln archaeologr further after hanglng around dlg sltes and getting to know the people who were doing what she wanted to do.

Of course, sometimes it takes a speclal effort to find a way to pursue something that is not immediately available. Some interests present a particular challenge and it ls not automatically clear how to flnd help. Sometlmes people ln this sltuation write to us at GWS, and we try to offer suggestlons. Sometlmes theyjust keep talking to everyone they know until an opportunity or a lead turns up. But it's worth noting that many of the lnterests that the kids wrote about in thls lssue wouldn't be easily pursued in school either - not every school offers cartooning, or ornithology, or archaeology, and especially not to the age groups that these kids would be in if they went to school. So in many ways they had to do what any young person would have to do to pursue such interests, while having the advantage of being confident, active learners who take such efforts for granted.

Susannah Sheffer

-

list: Renting our llst to a group does not mean that we support them or that they

The following organizadons have

In the shlpptng area

Offrce News & Announcements [SS:l In June, Pat Farenga gave workshops at the Clonlara Home-Based Educa-

tlon Program conference and (with Day

Farenga) at the Home School Associates of New England Conference. AIso ln June, a

crew from ABC televislon came to the olllce to Interview me briefly for a general story about homeschoollng. It was apparently alred as part of a Gd. Monthg America segment on June l7th, but I didn't see

lt.

Sarah-Kate Gtddings, the homeschooler whose photo'was on the cover of GWS #79, has begun coming into the ofllce once a week to help out and learn about howwe put out the magazine. She is an eager and capable worker, and is willing to ride the bus for an hour each way in order to get here. On her most recent trip to the oltce she brought another homeschooling friend, Jennle Curtis, who also worked hard all day. Jennie's mother, Buffu Curtis, had already done some volunteer work for us at home.

Every once ln a while we get a call from someone who ls trytng to oppose mandatory standardized tesung of homeschoolers on the dlstrict or state level. We always reGr such people to all the material about tesdng that we have published in GWS forJust this purpose, but lt takes time to look through lots of lssues and llnd the relerrant stories, and people who need to challenge testlng requlrâ‚Źments are often in a hurry. To make thlngs a bit easier, we've made a list of all the GWS stories about standardized tests that would be useful to anyone who needed to present a case against them. We list the lssue (going back about 25 lssues), the page number, the title of the story, and a brief sumrnary of it. It will still be up to you to copy or quote from the storles and compile them in whatever way makes sense ln your particular situatlon, but thts should make thatJob more manageable. To get a copy of the list, send us a SASE,

Holt Associates and Homeschool Associ,ates of New England have arranged fior a speclal Homeschoollng Outing at the Edavtlle Ratlroad In Carver, Mass. on August 24th. Homeschoolers can get l/3 oII the admlsslon price on thts day only by presenting a discount mupon that can be obtained from Holt Assoclates or FIANE fust send a SASE). Edavtlle Railroad has rides, antique train and car museums, a petting zoo, and boats, and this day will be a good opportunlty to meet other homeschoolers. We reallze that many of you will be getting thts issue of GWS Just days before the 24th, so we wtll also have discount coupons avallable at Edavtlle for you to pick up on the 24th.

rented our mailing ltst, or swapped matling lists with us, in tlte past year (some rented regional lists only): Home School Associates of New England, Frlends of Home Birth, Boston Museum of Science, leonardo Press, Heartleaf Catalog, HomeBased Education League ofParents, Boston Computer Societ5r (Soctal Impact Croup), Sudbury Valley School, IDEA Inc./ Provoking Thoughts Magazine, and True School. As you cErn see, most of these organizations are like-mtnded groups wlth which many people on our mailing list are already familiar. We have recelved several complaints about our having rented the list to True School, however, because of its assoclatlon with the Church of Scientolog5/. People wondered whether thls tmplied that we were affiliated with Sclentolog/, or vice-versa. It doesn't. We are not alfiliated with that organization, nor any of the others to which we have rented our list.

Some reminders about our mailing

support us (though thry have ofcourse paid us a few hundred dollars to rent the list).

We nener sell our list of GWS subscribers, but only those book customers and people requesflng information who have agreed to let us rent their names. If you don't want your name to be on this list, Just tell us. We do check the organlzation's proposed mailing piece before agreeing to rent the list, and in the future we will try to look at It even more carefully, but we can't promise to have done a thorough investiga-

tlon of the organlzation ltself. Please just throw out (or recycle) any unwanted mail

you may get. Even though unwanted mail can be trrttating, one way ln which you

may conslder lookcng at lt ls that allowing us to rent your narne is one very easy way ofsuppordng ourwork and helping us brtng in much-needed income. But again, if you don't want your name rented to others, Just let us know.

REWARD

to those who bring in new GWS subscribers!

We have known for a long time that GWS subscrtbers are some of the magazine's best promoters. You often tell us thatyou persuaded a friend to take out a subscription when she told you she was thinldng about homeschooling, or suggested that relatives subscribe so that they c.ould better understand your

family's choice.

Now we want to take advantage of our subscribers'ability to interest new people in the magazine, and at the same time glve you an extra lncentlve to make the effort to do this, by giving subscrlbers who bring in neur subscribers a gift certificate to our book and music catalog. Here's how it works: I . Think of someone you know who does not yet subscribe to GWS but who

might like to. Convince that person to take out a new subscription.

2. kt that person cut out the subscription form at the back of thls issue, including the part that has yourlabel pasted on it. Or photocopy the whole page.

Have the new subscriber send it to us, with his or her name and address written in the form, and $25 for a new lndividual subscrlption. Remind the new subscriber to check the box under your address label that lets us know that you are the one who encouraged this person to subscribe. (Iook at the form on the back page ofthls issue so you'll see clearly what we mean here.)

3. When we receive the form wlth your friend's payment, we will process the new subscrlption as usual, and send you a $5 gift certincate whlch you can apply to any order you place with John Holt's Book and Music Store or to your own subscription renewal. The results: we will have a new subscriber whom we rnight not otherwise have had: you wtll have a gift certlllcate and the knowledge that someone else is leaming about homeschooling and supporting our work.

Some questions you may have:

Can

I usc thig offer tf I gtve

a gift subscriptlon?

aomcone

No. It only applies to new subscribers who pay for their own subscriptions. You don't have to pay anything: all we want you to do is convince someone new to take

out his or her own subscripdon.

What

if I

pcreuade aomcone Lo reneu,t

What

lf I

persuade ceversl pcoplc

a

subecription?

We value renewals enormously, but this particular offer involves people who take out neur subscriptions only.

tlon?

to tale out a

Slroup cubscrip-

This offer only applies to people who take out individual subscriptions, at the regular $25lyear rate.

I recclve a $5 checl lnatead of a gift ccrtificatc? prohlbldve for us.

If one friend of nlnc gubecrlbee and I gct thc $5 gift certilicatc, It worth lt to mc to cncouragie anothcr &lcnd to do the aamc thlng?

Can

No. The cost of processtng the check would be

is

Yes. As long as your friends enclose or copy the lnformation on your label and claimyou as the one who convinced them to subscribe, we'll send you a $5 gift certilicate for each new subscrlber who is taldng out an Individual subscrlption at $25/year.

I already bave convinced geveral friends to subgcribc in the past.

Ie thig offer retroactive?

Sorry, but it only applies to new subscribers whom you bring in from now on.

We hope to keep the offer active indelinitely, though, and we have confidence that if you were able to bring in a new subscriber once, you wtll be able to do it again. We are very grateful to those ofyou who have done this in the past, and it's because of your efforts that we've decided to make this offer now.

Growing Wthout Schooling #82

News

& Reports

Homeschoolers Fayga Tannns

(I

in Israel

srae[ unltr's:

Ttre law tn Israel râ‚Źqulres schooltng from age 5 through 16, but lt has an exemptlon clause. The clause states stmply that the Mntster of Educatlon can exempt a chlld from school. There are no guldellnes as to requlrrements for exemptlon. When I called the Mtntstry to llnd out about previously or currently exempt chlldren, they had no ldeawhat I was talldng about and assurned that I \ras aslilng about a handtcapped chtld.

Thls wlnter I was supposed to have stgned up my daughter for klndeqgarten next fall. When I came to stgn up and told them I uranted an exemptlon, lt was as lf I had spoken ln an allen tongue. The reply was that there are no truant o{Ecers for klndergarten, only for llrst grade and up, and to please go away and not bother them tf I had no lntendon of stgnlng my daughter up at one ofthe Hndergartens in the city (we live in Jerusalem).

We will see what happens next yearl

...And

in

Spain

ElsoHaas, wla publtshd. c SparrJsh edtltonoJGWS and.E ulrllelng to

spred

Jolvt Holt's ldeas In Spalrl sent us arr Ergllsh tanslafron o.f a lettcr she rece&d.

Jrom a Span{sh Frrneschrr/;lng motler.

Elsa comrnents, "Appatently, sle had. nerrer b;fore leafi. oJ ang l&td, oJ Inter-

national ftonesclrolhg motnrnert

Just decld.ed on thelr own to do th!s,"

- tleg

We've been lfvhg tn thls town for a year, watthg for a house to be butlt ln

another town, also fn lthfs provtncel. The

town where we are now ls mostly a surnmer vacatlon place. There are three chlldren the age ofB. and L., and they go to school.

At llrst people asked us why our ctrlldren dtdn't go to school. We told them we were only gotng to be here a short tlme (although as lt turns outweVe been here longer than we expected) and that we would watt to send them to school unfll we move to the town where we're going to llve. Slnce then no one has satd anythtng else on the subJect - at least not to us.

The three children who go to school, as soon as the school bus brtngs them back, come runnlng to pl,aywtth B. and L. and stay untll ntghtttme. Thelr mother..s, meanwhfle, are usually ln a nearby bar plaldng cards.

The town we're planning to llve ln ls much smaller than thts one. In the wtnter there's onl5r one couple wlth hvo chlldren.

The older chlld goes to school. We've talked wlth them rnany Umes about the subJect of school and we have some oplnlons ln cornmon. They're walttng untll we go to llve there so we can do thtngs together with the four ctrildren. For e:<ample, a ceramics

workshop.

What ls a typtcal day llke for us? In the morntng rny husband M. goes to work on the house we're butldtng. He cpmes home and spends the afternoons wlth us.

Growlng Wtthout Schoollng #82

After eatlng breakfast, B. and L. go outslde to play wlth N. (a dog that llves with us).

After about a half an hour, they come back ln and we do "homework,' as they call tt.

Sometlmes I have to call them, because they try to get out of lt. We have school material for their age level (7 and 5). We work on lt for about two hours. Then they start drawing or help me a llttle with cleantng the house. About two days aweek we watch a documentar5r weVe taped about anlmals, nature, etc,, so we can learn somethlng new. ... Whtle I wash the lunch dlshes, they read (the younger one has learned to read almost excluslvely from her slster). I've noHced that I parttctpated more ln my older daughter's leamlng, whtle the younger one has leamed a lot from her sister. ... Some afternoons we go on a walk to the playground. Other aftemoons we go to the hills and take the opportunity to learn the name of some plant or animal. [.ast year we went horseback riding on Saturday mornings, We hope to start this aget'r 1n the sprint. Some afternoons we bake bread for the week. We used to make cheese from the milk of some goats we had. ... There's one very important thing: muslc. M. plays the guitar and a little of everythtng. He's going to teach us some of what he knows, so we'll spend a little time a couple of wenings wery week dolng something related to muslc - we already

llsten to it often.

... Sometimes we go into [the cityl to visit their grandparents and at the same time to have some contact with the city.

We'd like to offer the gtrls a wtde range of possibilides, so that they themselves can choose. We live in the c.ountry but wewant them to be familiar with the city, too, We're vegetarlans, but when they go into the ct$r to see their grandparents they know they can eat meat or flsh lf thev want. ...

Homeschoolers in College Shau.rn Kendrlck oJ Massachusetts wrote InGWS #75 abutler daughtcr Celia's admissbn to tte Rhde Island.

School oJ Desigrt Now Shau.rn turlles: Cella graduated on June lst from the Rhode Island School of Deslgp. She may have been the llrst homeschooled child to do so - at least she's the flrst ln recent memory. She was honored for her aca-

demlc achlevement and recelved râ&#x201A;Źcognttlon for the creative effort that went lnto

her senlor Illm proJect, an anlmated fllm Utled, "Fur and Feathers.'

Our second daughter, Anna, Just turned 18 in May. She dectded not to rlralt unfll the fall to start c-ollege, so she got her SATand GED taken care of, and was accepted at Rhode Island College where she ls majoring in theatre. At first Anna was self-conscious about having been homeschooled, and would tell anyone about lt whether or not they asked her about her backgSound. But the more shewas there, and the more obvlous it became that her

homeschoollng had prepared her for c.ollege, the lesg self-consclous she became.

She made qutte a few friends, worked hard at her studles, and dtdn't mlss a day of classes all semester. She made the Dean's Ltst wlth a 3.75 GPA and ts transferring lnto the Honors Program.

National Merit Scholar Ftom tlv 5/ 1 1 /91 Rutland W) Herald, sent ln by Debbte Kn{fin

...When lllltng out college and scholarship appltcaflons, Joshua Berger never, 6ter wrltes ln the name of a lrtglr school.

He lsn't a smart aleck. He's schooled at home.

But he ls srnart. He's awhlz at math and sclence, plays the gpitar, cawes wood, has a strong karate ldck. And this month, he was named one of the llve Vermont reciplents of a Nadonal Merit Scholarshlp. Wtnning the prestigious scholarship ls an achlerrement for any student, let alone one who has spent the past slx years leamtng sclence and social studies from hls mother and English, math, and l-atin

from hls f;ather. ...Lesson plans have been challenging - not only for the student, but even for a father employed as an Engftsh teacher.

Joshua presented a problem ln math and sclence: he grew lnto The Man Who Knew Too Much. As a result, he's taken some courses outslde of hls home, tncluding chemistry at Proctor Htgh School and calculus, physlcs, and French at Castleton State College.

...Throughout an intervlew, Berger replles to several questlons wlth the same answer. Is there tenslon because your parents are your teachers? Do you mlss having classmates? Is school at home confintng;?

"No,' he'll say. 'We're a very closekntt famtly." ...Berger wlll attend Dartmouth College thts fall wlth plans of majortng tn math or physlcs. "Ifs very small. Close to home. Ifs a good school," Unfll then, he'll continue to work part-time at the Rutland Free Ltbraqr, llsten to kd Zeppelin and other 'old stulf," accept congratuladons for the National Merlt Scholarship. ...

Colleges Want Homeschooled Applicants DanDtdsleg (OH) sent us th{s an$om Hills{l]rlo Cdlege:

nouncefiient

Hillsdale College ls interested ln GROWING WIHOUT SCHOOUNG #82. Vol. 14, No. 4. ISSN #O74$53O5. I\rblished bl-monthly

by Holt Assoctatcs. 2269 Massachusctts Ave. Cambrtdge MA02l4O. $25lyr. Date of lssue: August I, 1991. Second-cla.qs postage pald at Boston, MA. POSTMT{,STER: Scnd address changes to GWS, 2269 Massachusetts Ave. Cambridgc MA O2l4O.

ADVERISERS: Dcadllnes arc thc l5th of oddnumbcrcd months. Contact Patrlck Farenga for ratcs.

4 r€c€tvlng app[caflons from homeschooled students. A qualtty, personallzed educaflon recefired at home Is exctllent preparaflon for cpllege. At Htllsdale College thls type ofpreparatton has proven ttselfto be sucressful.

Homeschoolers enrolled at Hillsdale have experlenced sucoess tn both the classroom and tn college leadership poslflons, last year's freshman class tncluded four homeschooled students who were very actfue on campus. Next year's edltor of "The Collegtan,' Mlchlgan's oldest college newspaper, ls also a homeschooled student.

For hformaflon: Jackle Sulltvan, Assoc,late Dlrector of Admlsslon, Htllsdale College, 33 E College St, Htllsdale MI 49242t517-437-7341.

And a letter from Strlmer College (PO BoxASOO, Waukegan IL6O079: 7Oa-62384OO) says that 'Shlmer College condnues to be very lnterested ln r€cetvtng appltcatlons from homeschooled shrdents and

other students wtth non-tradltlonal backgrounds,.. Our admlsslons requlrements are fledble. We look for reasons to admlt a student, not r€asons to turn them down,' Shlmer ls a srnall ltberal arts college. and lt has an earf entrant proeFam for students who want to enter college after tenth or elwenth grade.

Local News For addresses oJ state

ondledl

oryanlzntbns, see GWS ll78 or our

ta neschailkrg nesoune Ust auaflo,He Jor $2.5O, (Adfuesses ojtlrese grcups cha nge oJterc b sure to rate the clunges tlvt lwn funprlntd ln the lssues sbtrc 1t78.)

Netg Les -

Ccrtlflcetlon No Longcr Rcqulred Iow* Iowa had been the only state sttl requtrtng homeschooltng pa.rents to

be cerHlled teachers, but a new law, which was passed on May 3, 1991, slg;ned on May 23, and went lnto elfect on July l, modtlles

thls requlremenL Acc€rdlng to a report

from Ed Dlckerson, the lobbylst for the Iowa Home Educatlon Assoclatlon, under the new law homeschoollng pa.rents can choose to have thetr ctrtldren take annual standardlzed achlevement tests and report the scores to the local school dtstrlct, OR to keep a Journal/portfollo whtch they submlt to a cerdlled teacher at the end of the year for enaluadon, OR to be 'under the supervtslon of a ltcensed practltloner' (1.e, certlfled teacher). When we spoke to Ed Dlckerson he explatned that'under the supeMslon of does not mean that the certtlled teacher must be present ln the home every day or actually dotng the lnstrucflon. Parents wlll have to give the teacher's name at the begtnntng of the year, but at thts potet lt doesn't look as though there are any speclflc requirements about how much or ln what way the Gacher needs to supeMse the farnfty. And parents who choose thts optlon don't need to keep a portfolto or have thelr chtldren take tests: the three opflons ltsted above are three separ:rate ways to fulffll the law.

Blll thrt Vould Rcqulrc Tcrtlng Ncw Jcrcy: Nancy Plent of the New

Jersey Unschoolers Network told us that a btll that would requtre homeschoolers to

take standardlzed tests was lntroduced lnto the educatlon commtttee of the Assembly on June lSth. The bill, #4936, was apparently tntroduccd by one member of the Assembly ln response to concems about an lndividual homeschooling famfly. At GWS's press tlme no hearlngs were scheduled and homeschoolers were wrlflng to thelr leglslators to explatn thelr obJectlons to tesflng. Nancy satd that the btll may very ltkely dle before golng any further, but homeschoolers are keeptng

watch.

Uectlng wlth Regcntl

New YorL: The June l99l issue of the Home Schoolers' Exchange newsletter reports that for the Ilrst time ln two and a halfyears the Board ofRegents reccived a

report on and discussed home educatlon, Seventeen homeschoolers met with the Regents on May 23 and heard the report that the Deputy Commissloner, Asslstant Commlssloner, and Program Manager for Home InstrucUon had prepared. The report mendoned threc lssues that needed to be addressed: that standardlzed tests were lnadequate for measurlng the success of home education programs; that current assessment measures for speclal needs homeschoolers are lnapproprlate; and that homeschoolers are excluded from servic€s that are available to school students.

HSE comments, 'Each Regentwho participated in the committee dlscussion spoke very posltively of their contacts with homeschoolers. In fact, much of the dlscussion centered on what schools could leam from home educators with respect to issues such as authenflc assessment, parent partlcipatlon In educatlon, and the nature oflearntng in general. At least at the state level, the attitude toward home educatlon appears to have tumed decrdedly toward cooperation and communlca-

tlon...'

Dlplomar for Homeschoolen

North Dakota: The Department of Public Instruction ls now authorlzed to issue a high school diploma to homeschoolers who demonstrate that they have met the requirements for graduation, according to the May l99l lssue of the North Dakota Home School Assoclatlon newsletter. The diploma must lndicate that the studentwas homeschooled, and the DPI may charge a fee for issulng lt.

ln Compuleory School Agle Penneylvanls: Homeschoollng

Cbange

parent Peter Bergson told us about a proposed bill that would lower the state's compulsory school age from 8 to 6 and lncrease lt at the other end from l7 to 18.

Peter sald that legislators have gotten more resistance to the proposal than they had anticlpated, so they are conslderlng holdtng hearings on the issue. At GWS's press time a meettng had been scheduled between the Secretary ofEducadon and anyone opposed to the proposal.

Calendar Sept. 9-13. l99l: Hulbert Outdoor Center program for homeschoolers aged 9l5 tn Fairlee, VT. For lnformatton: 8O2333-9840.

Seot. l3-15: Families Leamlng

Together Fall Gatherlng at Camp Gwynn Valley, near Brevard, NC. For lnformation: send SASE to Doug Woodward, 68 Lakey Creek Rd, Franklin Nc 28734.

Sept. 2l: Georgfans for Freedom tn Educatlon conference in Atlanta, Georgia.

Pat Farenga wtll be speaktng. For lnformaflon: I(athy Hatrer, 404-396-71A4.

Sept. 29: Semlnarby Raymond and Dorothy Moore at the Holldome in Lafayette, lA. For lnformadon: 318-334-

2812or98l-1276.

9CLl5: The Alltance for Parental Involvement tn &lucadon Famllles and IJarnfng Conference tn Albany, NY. Keynote speaker Pat Montgomery, workshops

by Susannah Shelfer. Workshops on home

educatlon, educatlonal enrlchment, alternative schools, more. Children's activities.

For information: AllPIE, PO Box 59, E Chatham NY I 2O6O;

5I

8-392-6900.

West Vlrginla Home &lucators Assoc. 5th annual conference at the Souls for Chrlst Church ln Hunflngton, WV. Guest Speaker John Taylor Gatto. For lnformaflon: WVHEA, PO Box 37O7, Charles-

@Ll2:

ton WV 25337-37O7t 304-733-4735.

Oct, 2*27 2 Natlonal Homeschool Assocladon 4th annual networlidng conference at Sacramento City College in Sacramento, C.{- For informaflon: NHA, PO Box 29O, Hartland MI 48353-O29O; 3 136s2-5208.

We are happy to print announcements of maJor homeschooling events, but we need plent5r of notlce. Deadline for GWS #83 (events ln November or later) is September lOth. Deadllne for GWS #84 (events tn January or later) ls November loth.

How to Find Out about Laws and Regulations Hcrc arc some ways you cm find out the lcgal sttuauon tn your statc. l) Look up the lawyoursclf, in a publlc libnry or law llbrary (courthousc, law school, ctc.) Laws anc lndexcd; try "school attendance'or 'cducatlon, compulsory.' Many statcs havc rcvi*d thcir homc cducatlon laws since 1982 so check the recent statutc changes. We have prfntcd or summarlzrd tltcsc new law ln our backlssues.

2) i{sk thc statc dcpartmcnt of educatlon for arr5r laws or regplatiorrs p€rtatnl4g to homeschoollng and/or starttng a prlvatc school. In some states thcrc are fcw regulatlons concernlng prtvatc schools and so you can call your home a school.

3) Contact state or local homeschoollng

groupe. Thts ltstwas last prlntcd ln Cws *78, and ls updatcd and sold separ:ately for $2.5O as part of our'Homeschoollng Rcsourcc List.' Some groupo havc prcparcd handbooks or guldeltnes on legal matters. Often. these groups can tcll you more about thc lcgal cllmate ln a state than an5ronc clsc can - whcther new leglslatlon ls pendtng, for cxample, and how the present law ls bcfng cnforccd.

4) Contact othcr famthes llstcd In our Dlrectory. Thls ts parttcularly uscful lfyou ltve ln a statc that leavcs homeschooltng declslons up to lndivtdual school dlstrlcts. When you contact thcsc familtes, hclp thcm by havlngldone some rcscarch on your own ffrst.

5) In gcncral. lt ls not wlsc to start by ashng your local school dlstrtct; they usually don't knorr thc law elther. Bctter to gpther the facts ftrst on your own.

Growtng Without Schooltng #82

Are Ilomeschoolers Abandoning Schools?

Involved with Public School Issues Flom Shart Heruy MN): In response to Krlsdna Felbeck's'Are We Abandontng Schools?' tn GWS #81, I

would say that there are many ways ln whlch homeschooling parents can "fulffll our obllga.don to the larger soclety, speclffcally to the publlc schools.' For me, It means attendfurg school board meetlngs, becorntng actfue ln school board elecHons, and worklngwtth a group of parents (mostly publtc school moms) for statewtde legtsLatton that would favor rmre parental

tnvohrcment ln the educadonal system at large (sometlmes bllls y/ould dlrectly alfect homeschoolers, sometlmes not). I am constdertng nolunteertng for one of many poslflons open on currlculum commlttees ln our school dlstrlct - commlttees made up ofparents, teachers. and admlnlstrators to revlew and recommend curriculum fux \rarious llelds of study. I tlnd tt ls very lmportant for me to kcep abreast of what ts gotng on ln tlre publtc school arena (lt's amaztng how homcschoolers can feel the 'trlckledown'efliects of what goes on there), and I rvould hope that my tnrmlrrcment may make those ln the publtc school system a llttle less paranold about homeschoollng ln general. On thewhole, I have found tt nrorthwhlle to become lnvolved wtth public schol lssues, and would enoourage any homeschooler lnterested te such actlvlUes

would dtctate)? I tend to Gel the answer ls no, At this point my chlldren are young and they really do need me. I haven't got acc.eptable childcare avallable to me, but there is that future looming ahead and I for one wlll try to do somethlng to improve the school system for my children, for all

chlldren.

Demonstrating an Alternative Ftom Dale Vostitsonos (GAJ:

If there ls lndeed an obllgadon on our parts to the publlc schools, I do not belleve that tt lies in volunteering our time or pardclpaflng ln school commlttees. If, as it appears, the school is providlng soclal and tntellectual outlets for the famtlv to the

I belleve that we are already fulfllltng our responslblllty to the publtc schools by

lllustratlng a vlable alternatlve to lts methods... We are llvtng an example of another vray of educatlon.

to do so.

Concerned about Children in School A rcoder

'.l'lrrl;tes:

I am very tnterested In what goes on ln the local schools. My chtldren have nerrer been and wtll probably never go. I have been ura4r about approachtng my local schools because they do not seem to be all

that homeschool-frlendly.

A.s

the dollars

shrtvel errery student becomes a greater Ilnanctal asset and I don't want to draw attentlon to myself. Also, I expect the attttude of "What are you dotng here when you don't thlnk we're good enough foryour ldd?' would come out from the local

prtnctpal.

There would be some truth to that. It urasn'tJust my ptrtlosophy of what educatlon should be that made us a homeschoolhg fantly. But I urould be at the school because I am concerned about what ts happentng to other chlldren tn thls world. how they are belng treated and how they have to spend thelr tlrne. I upuld be there because these chtldren wlll ulflmately grow uP to tnherit and poprrlals the world that wlll be my chlldren's, and lt ts these schooled students whom my chtldren will cpntend wtth daily throughout thelr adult llves. If we homeschoolers are tnrly dotng what we are dotng for the sake of our chlldren, then can there be one among us who feels we can allord not to be twolved wlth the schools tn some form (as our talents

Growlng Wthout Schoo[ng #82

seems that most people wtll only address a problem when tt has gone past the crlsls stage to tmpendtng doom. We ane here, taktng part ln the c-ommunlty, livlng an example of another way of educaflon, olfertng guldance and help, asldng to be consldered; we need do no more.

extent that the Felbecks are concemed about flnding suitable replacements, ongoing lnvolvement can probably be worked out wlth the school, by seeing to lt that homeschoolers are included in sports, music, library privileges, etc., and organizlng local homeschooling families into an acdve and reliable partner in helplng the school in return. For most of us, I believe that we are already fullilling our responslbility to the public school system by

tllustrating a viable alternatlve to lts methods, by fomenting reflectlon and dialogue, and by forcing the exarnlnadon of goals, standards, and accreditation.

Something to consider: since the Felbecks are so actlve and such a reltable prâ&#x201A;Źsence ln the classroom, other parents are mone easily able to excuse themselves from slmilar activities ("the Felbecks will be there, I'm sure - anyway, too many people would be too confusing - orcrowded - or whatever"). If the school and the classroom su{fer as a result of the Felbecks'absence, and other parents fatl to IIll the votd, one needs to ask how serlous they are about their children's educatlon, and why, tf they don't care enough, we should take up the slack. Many of us are out of the public schools preclsely because we have found that people do indeed get the school they want, and our requirements are dlfferent from other parents'. In some ways, although it is an ugly and destrucdve process, tt might prove better for the schools left behind to plummet into lost programs and fatltng standards, for lt

A Badly Designed Boat F-rom

Ardre a

Ro s e

ttbrg

(M E :

I want to respond to Krlstlna Felbeck's oonoem about abandonlng schools. I see tt as very llke approachtng a boat that, due to poor destgn and/or leadershlp, ts traveling around ln clrcles, golng nowhere. The people aboard are desperate, ofcourse, and obvlously need help. Do you get aboard, offer encouraglement, brlng supplles? Or do you say, 'Hey, maybe you oughta get off tbis boatl Can I help you?' Ifthose aboard refuse to get oI[, you can tell them you're wllling to help them dlsembark and llnd a new boat any tlme. But lt's clear you're helpfng no one tf you get on wlth them,

only helplng malntaln the lllusion that thls boat is indeed getting somewhere.

Thls ls the sltuatlon I feel we home-

schoolers are ln wlth regard to schools. I do not feel we should serve the schools, for they aren't golng anywhere, Just ln hopeless clrcles. But I do feel we all need to commlt ourselves to seMng children in some wEry. Many homeschooltng parents I know do thts, espectally when thelr ctrildren are past those consumtng beforechange-of-teeth years. One parent I know reads and wrttes and thlnks about homeschoolng - hts thoughts have been very helpful to me over the years - and also organlzes and supeMses a weekly lddsag;alnst-parents t-ball game. Another nurturlng, pailent soul spends hours on the phone - hours - wlth unccrtaln parents encouragfng them ln thelr trust of themselves and thelr children. For my part, I started a Brownle troop whtch wtll start tts thtrd year as a Junlor Glrl Scout troop this fall. My husband ls teachtng boatbuilding to a few of the brothers of the Girl Scouts while we meet.

The last tlme I was ln a school was a year or so ago, when the Brownles and I led a second gra.de class In games and songs that they ltked. I dtd not enJoy tt. Maybe it wasJust the dead acousUcs (all those absorbent c.etltng dles made lt terrtbly hard to stng) but I had the dellntte feellng of trylng to r,evlve a dead person - itwas very hard to get the second graders to show any enthuslasm. After that experlence, I made an lnner commltment to serving my communlt5r outslde lts lnsdtudons. No schools, hospttals, or nursing homes. I think tt ls posslble to serve tn other ways, though lt may take a llttle more research, I thlnk lt wlll ulttmately do much more good. To get back to the analogr, I think it's tlme to bulld new boats.

ISS:I lfs funny that Andrea uses the analogr of a boat thafs gotng nowhere, because thls ls almost tdentlcal to the analogr that John Holt uses ln a letter

1 WRITING STRANDS The hardestjob you have is teaching writing. Writing is seen as being so complicated that rhe critics of American schools maintain that teachers can't do it because they don't know

how.WRITING STRANDS was written to help homeschooling parents do what the public school cannot do.

If you er,

are not a trained writing teachif your children are sick of gram-

mar drills and workbooks, if you want them to leam to use their language effectively, you owe it to them to look at this complete language arts program.

Eight levels of writing were designed o teach specific skills in explanatory, crea[ive, argumentative and report witing. Each 90day level has listed objectives, models for the srudent to follow, prewriting experiences, and a day-by-day breakdown of each assignment. They produce essays, reporB or creative pieces.

READING STRANDS The other half of your chil&en's language arts program Eaches you, in one book, to help your children understand ( on their levels) what the fiction they read can mean to them. Yotu children need more than just reading experiences, more than just comprehension. Interpretative techniques are explained in a dialogue format so you can see a parenvteacher leading a student to understanding. A most complicated process made easy and fun to

school reformers seem to htm like people who are trytng to plug up the holes ln a lealry boat, and bail out the water. Obvlously thts seerns lrnportant, and our lncllnadon ls to help. But what tf the people keep worklng and worldng and the level of water ln the boat gets no lower?

What lf lt tums out that the whole deslg;n of the boat ls wrong? John sald that he felt he had to spend at least some of hls time thinktng about'what the destgn of a much less lealqr boat mtght be.' He wasn't exhorting everyone to turn thelr attention to new designs, but explalnlng why he felt the need to do that work.

It may be posslble for some people to do both - help batl out the water ln the leaky boat, and also work on deslgnlng a new boat. But to my mtnd lt's also qulte Justlffable to deflne one's work largely tn terms of thinking about and actually lmplementing the new destgn, knowlng that others are at the same flme helptng to ball out the old boat. We have to choose what work makes the most sense to us, and to work where we feel we can be most helpful. And as Andrea says, worlidng on the new boat is not simply a way of retreating from the old one. It can be a way of helping the people on it.

To put this ln terms of educatlon, |f we look only at schools, every .uisumpdon we make about education necessarily arlses out of school's framework and school's assumpdons. We look at a sltuatlon ln whtch chlldren are required to leam certaln things, for example, and from that lnfer that children won't learn unless required. But what if we deslgn things another way? Then what happens? This is what homeschoolers are findi:rg out. The

work of llnding it out ls important.

Kristina Felbeck said that she was concemed about Mthdrawing her own involvement in the local school when she withdrew her son. Some people flnd ways to help schools while homeschooling thetr own children. Shari Henry descrlbes several ways of becomtng lnvolved ln school politics and poltcy, for example, Some homeschoolers may flnd thls to be a good way of helptng and influenclng the

use.

TAPES

schools. Others may be more tnterested ln

Dave Marks has taped inuoductions to the assignments in levels 3 and 4 as an effective and fun way to start the exercises. A 45 minute workshop tape gives the research justi$ing this approach and discusses grammar and spelling drills and how !o help a "re-

worklng wtth schoolchlldren than tn

helping to set school policy. Quite a few homeschooling parents teach in schools, or work ln them in some other way. If Kristina finds the work of volunteerlng in the classroom interesting and satis$fing, but for whatever reasons wants to take her own son out of school, she nrtght llnd that It makes sense to condnue volunteerlng ln the classroom, or to volunteer there together with her son. Perhaps they could

luctant writef,."

This program is guaranteed to please and satisfy you or your money will be reftmded. Inquire:

both pardcipate ln an extra-currlcular acdvtt5r that would allow Krlstina to continue maklng her skills avallable. Or perhaps she wtll llnd that there are other

National Writing Institute 7946 Wright Rd.

Niles,MI49120 (6r6)-6w-s37s

) cr,!1'

wrltten tn 1973, one of my favorlte letters ln A Life Worth Ltuing. He wrltes that

ways to offer herself to those chlldren, outslde of school.

People who feel that by worlidng in a school they would be dotng the school's work more than thetr own mtght prefer to consider other ways of reaching children (or teachers). Here's an example from my Itfe: I'm going to oller a wrtting workshop to children at my local library tn the fall, and this will of course be available to

schoolchildren as well as to homeschoolers. I would rather olIer it at the library than fur the local school because I don't want to do the related schoolJobs that I would have to do tf I worked there: enforce c.ompulsory attendance, lssue requlred asstgnments, and gtve grades at the end.

Some people, to be sure, ftnd ways to work ln schools wlthout havtng to do these thfngs, or do them but try to outwetg;h them with the poslflve experienccs that may also occur, and under those clrcumstances conslder the trade-off worthwhtle. This ls somethlng we all have to decide for ourselves.

I sald that ln uslng the boat analogr John wasn't offerlng a mandate to everyone, but descrtbtng what he felt he had to do brr,ausehc belteved schooltng to be a lealry boat wtth a terrtbly poor deslgn.

People who don't see school that way won't see these optlons tn the same way, elther, and wtll naturally dellne their work and choose thetr prtortttes te a dillerent way. I tmagtrae that the boat analogr ls most helpful to people, ltke many homeschoolers, who already see school as John did. It may help some people clariS exactly how they do sec it.

Recently I spoke on the phone with a wonuur who wanted to do something to contrlbute to the education of the children in her town. Should she try to work ln a classroom? Start a school ofher own?

Nelther ofthese opHons was qulte what she wanted. 'Do you want to contribute to their educatlon tn general,' I asked, "Or spectflcally to thelr schoollng? Would you be wtlltng to work ln other ways?' She satd excttedly that other ways were what really interested her. We talked about libraries, museruns, corffnunlty c.enters, Scouts. If you have something to offer, there is more than one way to offer lt. I read in a recent lssue of Ttre Neur Yorker about a man who, on his own, has started a newspaper for whtch young people can wrlte, because budget cuts have ehmlnated many such opportunides tn the local schools. Once we put our mlnds to the questlon of how to help chtldren or oller them access to partrcular skllls or experiences, lt's easy to see that worklng ln schools lsn't the only way to do thls. For some of us, lt may not be the best way.

One advantage ofgetting to know schoolchildren outside of school, by the way, is that (ln my experienc.e) lt is often easler to help them deal wtth dtfficult aspects of school when you ale not seen as workingJor the school. The chtld doesn't have to worry that lf she conffdes ln you you'll get her ln trouble or lower her grade.

Of cpurse, some children llnd their school teachers to be wonderful sources ofsupport and lnsptratlon. But others may have a hard time trusttng someone who holds c.ertaln klnds of power over them. F\rrthermore, rnany children are so angry at school, and so alienated from what goes on there, that an adult will have a better chance of reachtng them under other circumstancâ&#x201A;Źs, I loeow these aren't easy issues. I would be lnterested to hear how Kristlna resolves the conlllct for herself, and to hear how others ofyou have chosen to help your local schools or the schoolchildren in your communit5r,

Growlng Wthout Schoollng #82

Questioning the Labels

Further challenges to Attentlon Deflclt Ilyperactlvlty Dlsorder and Perceptual Handlcaps

Experts are Divided Ftom a new fuk by Tlonas Annstorg calld. Awakentng Your Child's

Natural Genius (tatr,ler 1991):

The newest learnlng dlsease on the educatlonal scene ls somethlng called attendon dellctt hyperactMty dtsorder (ADHD). Characterlzed by a wtde range of s5rmptoms, tncludtng fldgetlng, dlstractl-

rnature. Although we agreed about the time to mature, we didn't foresee that thts would be the beginning of the 'I'm stupids.- No rnatter how hard we tried to reassure hlm of the positive reasons for repeating kindergarten, other children calling hlm "stupid' and 'flunker' carried more welght.

When Matt flnally entered {lrst gFade, he was ftne for the first few weeks. Howwer, by Thanksgtving hls unhapplness w€$ pronounced. He was angry, tearful,

billty, lmpulsMty, lnattentlveness, and

emotlonal, and figh$ng constantly with

lmpatlence, ADHD ls satd to alfect around 5 perc.ent of the schml population. Yet experts are sharply dfufded over the legttimacy of this new Label. Whtle the American Psychlatrlc Assocladon has included ADHD tn lts newly revtsed Dlo1grlosttc and. Statlstbal Matual oJ Mental Dlsor&rs, some researcliers are

Several thlngs happened to convlnce us that the problems were wlth the lnstltu-

not sure that hyperacdvlty and attendon deficits ln chlldren should be consldered abnormal behavlor. Diane McGuinness, professor of psychologr at the Unlverslty of South Florlda and author of When ChIMrcnDorr't l-errn, says that many of the behavlors attdbuted to attendon dlsorders are actually the normal behaviors of htgh\r actlve boys (the dtsorder ls satd to strike up to nlne times as many males as females). Ctttng studtes suggestlng that young boys like to change activities frequently ln the classroom, she also polnts to research showlng that when socalled hyperactlve children are allowed to regulate thelr own acdvides (something seldom allowed ln many classrooms), they

perform normally. Thus, attention dellcit hyperactlvtt5r dlsorder tn many cases nury be more a functlon of the envlronment and the expectatlons that adults have for ctrlldren's behavlor than a result of some lntrlnslc btologtcal problem.

"I'm Not Stupid Anymorett

IlndaJolnsonurcte tt the June 7997 lssne ojMentor, the newsletter oJ tle Hone Basd. Mrrcatlon Leog ue of Parents (Otn : When Matt was 5 years old, he wanted to go to school. We felt that slnce he was so posiflve about it and a brtght, outgoing ctrlld, he would be ffne. Within a couple of weeks we were rec€lvlng phone calls from the teacher tnforrnlng us that Matt was having trouble complettng worksheets,

would rather draw than wrlte, and, ln general, walr very easlly dlstracted. These problems contlnued up unHl Thanksgivtng, when we furformed the school that we were golng to remove trlm from school and gfirc trim another year at home to mature.

They convtnced us to switch teachers tnstead. We dld, and he ffntshed out the year ln a rtom that resembles a Montessorl school wtth an acc€ptlng, understandtng, and energetic teacher. By the end of that flrst year, she felt that another year in ldndergarten would glve hlm more tlme to

Growlng Wthout Schooltng #82

tlon, not the chlld. ...

Perhaps Matt was normal and school was the problem. his brother and sister. When we discussed thts with our pediatrician, she felt 95% sure he had'Attention Deliclt Disonder (ADD),"To be sure, she sentus homewlth the Connors rating scale - one for us and one for the teachers. [The Connors ratlng scale asks parents and teachers to rate how corunon various behaviors are to the child.l TWo weeks later, we were back in the oflice with a lirm diagnosis of ADD. We spent thirty minutes being counseled on life with an ADD child. which included beharrior modification and, of course, the drug Rltaltn. (It ts interesting that the Connors scale ls provtded to the doctors by the company that makes Ritalin.) Matt's prtmary teacher was very good about working with us on maklng hts life at school easier. He accomplished the same work, but ln a way that was litted to his leamtng style. The teacher also noticed and encouraged his drawing and storytelling abtltties.

The negative cornments by his classmates continued but didn't seem to bother him as much.

Matt's second grade teacher had an ADD child of her own. Rather than belng empathetic and working with Matt, she felt a great need to make him more responsible. We found out later that this is what she had been told was the greatest problem wtth her own son. We trted to tell her that Matt was a very responsible child at home and perhaps his problems were related to school. Thts had little effect, except to ctnvlnce her that ln addltion to Matt's belng irresponsible, he had emotional problems and we were overprotecflve parents.

Between October and December of that year, we went for family therapy because of the strain all this was putdng on famlly life. We were told that we were a stable.

well-functloning family, but Matt needed more attention and behav'lor modifica-

tion.

Several things then happened to c'onvince us that the problems were with the

lnsdtutlon, not the chlld. Matt's teachers gave stlckers for each week's completed asslgnments. Tttese were openly dtsplayed

ln the classroom, The chlldren who didn't have rnany stlckers were called "dumb,'

'flunker,' or 'stupld' by thetr

classmates.

Suggestlons about how tb,ts affected the chtldren and how to change thls system dld

not meet wlth enthuslastlc response. Also, chlldren wtth behavlor problems were threatened wtth not belng allowed to go on

the year\r overntght camPlng trlp. Instead of helptng, ttrts threat made the hds, tncludtng Matt, more anxlous, resulting in more behavlor problems.

We began to nodce that on days when Matt dtd not take his Ftitalin, he usually did better at school. The days he dld take lt were some of his worst. (We didn't give it to him on weekends.) We also notlced that Matt didn't feel he could control himself if he were not talrdng the Rttalin - he had become psychologfcally dependent on the medlcatlon. All of this conc.erned us and at the end of the year, we dectded to take hlm otr Rttaltn and to keep htm off lt.

The thlrd grade began hopefully. His two teachers had requested to have hlm in thelr class. Ttrey Glt that he was very brlght, had lots ofpotentlal, andJust had not been handled properly. Our hope lasted two weeks. Matt was once again unhappy, angry, and begtnning to hate learning. The teachers felt he wasn't c-omplettng PaPers because ofdlstraction and possibly learntng dtsabtlitles. Matt showed that he knew the material they were teachlng, but he couldn't see why he had to 0nlsh awhole worksheet tf he could correctly answer the ones he dtd. He was also betng plcked on a lot. But the teachers denled thls and sald rather lt was a case of hls betng the bully.

There were almost weekly phone calls about hls behavior. They pushed hard for hlm to be put back on the Ritalln, c.onvtnced tt would solve all hts problems. We were becomtng more convlnced that school was not the place for him.

After Halloween we declded to homeschool. We saw an lmmedlate improvement in all areas. In sptte of this, and after daily phone calls from school personnel, we declded to retum Matt to school and have hlm tested for learning disabilttles.

The school told us that even tf we declded to homeschool, knowing what dtsabtlitles he had would help us to help htm. Whtlewe ar*ralted the tesung lnJanuary, I went to the medtcal ltbrary and checked out several pediatrtc psychtatrtc textbooks. I

found a lot of lnformadon about learnlng

dtsabtlt$es and how to help the children cope wlth school work. The textbooks were very speci8c about dlagnostng a learntng disabilfty. I gathered all thls lnformadon and went to the teachers, thlnldng that we could put this lnformadon to work lmmediately. They told me to stop worr1ring about the situadon. Even lf I was right, they could not use .u-ry of the lnformatlon to help htm unfll after he had been evaluated.

Bastcally, I was told to stop lnterfering and

8 let them handle the sltuaflon.

We then began to redellne the problem.

I had noflced whtle rcsearchtng leamtng dtsabtltttes that a lot of what was labeled a leamtng dtsabilfty fur one text was noted as part ofthe norrnal, ongotng process of maturadon ln another text. Perhaps Matt was normal and school nras the problem.

The testtng found the same learntng dtsabtltiles as I had dtagnosed. They also lnformed us that Matfs an:det5r at school 'nras because he felt too safe at home (t?l), had lonr self-esteem arrd ADD, and was lrresponstble and a bully. They also felt that lf we would cooperate wlth them more, everyone umuld be better olf and all the problems would be rvorked out. We trled.

Datly rve lrept track of hls asslgnments, havlng hrlm complete at horne any he dld not llnlsh at school. We set ureekly and somedmes errcn datly goals wtth his teachere, lncludlng the one ln the resour€€ room. Often ure would find that the teachers forgot to and/or dldn't have tlme to follow up at school. Mutually set goals were often changed by the teachers from one tneeflng to the next wlthout consulting us, Mattwas never surewhatwas expected of lrtm. It also dtdn't seem to matter to the teachers that a worksheet that took htm 3G4O mtnutes at school could be completed ln 5-lO mlnutes at home, wlthout our

helptng htm. Hts complalnts (and bruises) regardtng bullles condnued and went unanswered by the teachers. They condnued to push for the Rltaltn and we refused.

By May, everyone was fmstrated and an€Fy. We took Matt to another psychologlst and were told he dtdn't have any

problems - learntng dlsablllfles or other klnds. He suggested that tf Matt had any problems, they mfght be related to the school envlronment and that Matt would probably beneftt from homeschoollng.

Our evolutlon to becomtlg a homeschoollng famlly was ffnally completed after three slgptllcant events. Flrst, my husband accompanted Matt on a one-week class carnpout. He got to see llrst-hand that much of what Matt had been telllng us about school was correct. He saw how a year of belng labeled 'learnlng dtsabled' and "ADD' had allected Matt's relafionshlps wtth hls teachers and classmates.

Thts tncluded betng blam€d as the aggressor ln sltuadons where he was clearly the vlctlm or defendtng trtmself. Hls poslUve acdons and cprrect answers were discounted. Other parents commented on these sltuatlons and also mentloned how poltte and responslble he was. At one polnt he garrc up golng on a htke to stay wlth a frlend who had hurt her ankle, even lendlng her trls sweatstrlrt.

Second, I met Feglgf, Nlstrlkawa and Terrt Endsley [coordtnators of HELPI at a meetlng of a home-btrth group. The thtngs they talked about and the books they recpmmended convlnced mewe were on the rtght track. Andrew and Klra Endsley were also at the meettng. They were wellspoken, poltte, and lntelltgent young adults - ercrythtngwe wanted for Matt and knew he could be, Thtrd was Mary hde's BIg B@k oJ Hone Leonlng. She states cuvtnctngly that homeschoolers don't need to worry about the dlltculfles of teachlng learntng dtsabled chlldren at home: leamtng dtsabtltttes don't really edst. They are

convenlent ptgeonholes and labels for normal. acdve children who don't conform to teachers' ldeas for behavlor and rigtdly delined grade levels.

We declded to give home learntng a one-ye:rr trial. During our llrst yeurr we have used the Konos curriculum and added math. Although we still use Konos for lts many wonderful learning suggesdons, we now follow John Holt's ideas on natural leaming. We make frequent trips to the library, where Matt and hls siblings are allowed to check out books and tapes on any subJect they choose and at any readtng level. Matt still does not enJoy wrtttng tn hls Journal every day (our only requlrement), but hts spelltng conUnues to lmprove, He is currently studytng oceanography and American history, especially

Ctvil War battles and modern rnilitary machlnery. He can tell you more about alrcraft, tanks, and ships than most adults we know. We know that his educadon ls more broad-based than before. He enJoys leamtng again and our whole family is a lot happier.

Best of all, he says, 'l'm not stupid

anymore,"

Sensible Letter Reversals ISS:I While browslng through ?he Catalq (edited by Kenneth

Whole Language

lois Bridges Bird, and Yetta M. Goodman, Santa Rosa, CA: American

S. Goodman,

School Publishers, l99l), I came across an essay by Yetta Goodman challenglng the

idea that reversals (writing a letter or word backwards) necessarily indicate a learntng

disability. Thts is important for homeschoolers to know, for two reasons: first,

because some parents worry when they see that a child has reversed letters or words, and lt would help to understand some senslble reasons why a chtld mtght do thts; second, because school olllcials who see a

sample of a homeschooled chlld's wrlttng that contalns reversals may try to persuade the family that thls ls evidence of a serious problem and that the chtld needs special help. I have wen heard of a superlntendent denying a family permlssion to homeschool because their child reversed some letters and the superintendent thought this meant she had a learning disabillty that the parents could not properly attend to at home. This was several years ago, and today there may be a greater understanding of these issues all around, but I think enough people still conslder reversals evidence of perceptual handlcaps that we should learn all we can about the phenomenon, and be able to present alternative explanations for it if we need to. Here is an excerpt from the essay by Yetta Goodman: Whenever I am shown a student's

rwersal, I usually can provide a ratlonale explalning the conceptuallzatlons that occurred during the producdon of the reversal. I received the followlng example from a pre-first-grade teacher ln Fresno, California. Andy topez, a six-year-old, came up to his teacher, Katie Udie, to get a response to hisJournal. As she looked at hls entry she noticed the right to left

dhecttonaltgr and the reversals tn both Maglbwer and his name. [The plcture

shows that Andy has wrltten hts name like thls: ANbY, and wrltten the word Mayflourcr, on the stde of a truck he has drawn, llke tlds: RFYAM the R reyersedl.

-wlth "Andy, whenyou Ms. Udte asked, wrote Mogflou.rer, where dtd you start?' He

explalned, 'I started Mogllouxr here' (pohtfng to the M on both the traller and

the truck body) 'and my oqrn name here" (potntrng to the A in Andy).

"Why dtd you wrlte your rranne starting here and gotng thts uzay' (potnttng to the A ln Andy and moving her flnger from left to rtghtJ, 'but Magflouer gotng thls way' (rnovlng her Bnger from rtght to left below

Maglloute)?

Andy replted, 'Well, you know Ms. Udie, when a tmck ls gohg down the road, you have to read lt thls way' (eyes/head

scanntng qutckly rtght to left). I wonder f creadve thinkers ltke Andv lnvented the way rcnatubmrlts present6d on emergency vehlcles or the way slgins are written on streets for drlvers to read as they approach Intersecdons. Regardless, what ls lmportant ts that Andy is not writing backward because he has a perceptual or cognitive dellctt. In fact, the opposlte ls true. Andy is using hts dweloptng perceptual and cognltlve strategles to make sense of the graphtc lnformatlon of the world and to work out conc€pts of dinectionalit5r. Conslder Andy's reversal of the d ln his name (whtch he can read regardless of lts orlentatlon), It ls posslble that Andy ls developtng a generallzatlon ttrat most English printed letters are made ln a left to right dlrectlon. Most capltal letters tend to be produced tn a left to right direction like the capttal letters B and D, But in thetr mlnuscule forms, b faces to the rtght while d faces to the left. Andy may have generallzed that all letters are made faclng to the with the d in his

i$l

#*..:erimented

The system of dtrectlonaltty ln Englsh nrrlttng ls not very old historically and has lts roots ln systerns oflanguages that were llrst wrttten from right to left; then for a tlme from rtght to left on one llne and left to right on the next line. It is tnteresttng to read about how, when, and why changes were made ln the directionaltty of wrtttng over the ccnturles and to reallze that the standardlzaflon of directlonaltt5r for the human race has been as c'omplicated and experlmental as lt ls for young children as they come to understand their own cultural wrltlng forms, kt's exarnine a few other examples of reversals and explore the children's tntellectual experimentation.

Barbara Flores's nlece, Melanle, wrote her a letter saylng that she had been sick and that her younger brother was crawllng all over the place. Melanie represented herself and her aunt liacing each other and verbally sharlng thelr love. As she wrote thelr speech with talktng balloons, she had to show the person factng to the left with the language cornlng out of the mouth backward, slnce the word Ihad to come Ilrst. ... Younger chlldren wlll often reverse letters lf they start wrtting on the righthand side ofthe paper.

One of my graduate students was |rrvtted to a parent-teacher c-onference to dlscuss the teacher's concerns with her sixyear-old daughter's reversals. The graduate student knew a good bit about ltterary

Growlng Wthout Schooltng #82

9 development ln young chlldren as well as about the hlatory of wrlttcn Engltsh. Stnce her daugfrterwas wattlng outstde, she called to her, showed her the $)Ttttng, and aslred why she had rercrsed specillc letters and underllned others. The slx-year-old responded: 'I knerv I rvouldn't have enough room to get tt all on the ltne, so I scrunched all the letters together but I wanted to show where thewords ended. If I could tum them around, I dtd but lf I couldn'L I Just put a

llne under the last letter.'

The slx-year-old's mother told the teacher that before Engltsh *'rttlng had

spaces between words, word endlngs werc

often shoum by underllnlng the last letter and that Hebrew has dlllerent forms of letters ln the endtng poslflons of words ttran those same letters fn tnfflal or medlal posldons. Her daughter dld not have a serlous problem, She uras experlmentlng wtth wrltten languageJust as soclety at large has e:rpertmented wtth wrttten language over centurles, Most r€e€arch on letter and word reversals has only e:camtned lnstances of reversals ln lsoliatlon: That ts, the wridng and readlng ofletters are presented out of tJre context of words, and the writlng and readlng of words are out of the c.ontext of a whole text. As soon as reversals are placed tn the Larger cpntext of wrltten language, dlllerent patterns appear. In the context of a story or a note, rerrersals ofa letter always constltute a small percentage of the

total trmes that a pardcular letter ls written. There ls 6ren a dlfferencc tn the percentage of renersals of a pardcular letter dependlng on whether lt occurs at the begtnnlng, tn the mtddle, or ln the flnal posldon of the uiord, tedlcatlng the strong lnfluenc.e context has on rerrerslng tendencles.

In readlng also, amount and type of rerrersals change drasdcally, dependtr:rg on the wrltten context. For example, chlldren who reverse nofor onln an tsolated ltst almost never read no for on ln a story where on occurs ln tts comrx)n poslfron tntroductng a preposltlonal phrase.

We can scare pa.rents lnto believing that thetr chtldren have scrlous problems.

We can crntteue to us€ unr€lated and perhaps dangerous remedles such as creeplng, walktng balance beams, tractng and eatlng Ietter forms, colored lenses, and so on. Or we can collaborate wtth chtldren, IInd out what they are dolng and why, and celebrate

thelr lntellectual abllltles as they erperl-

ment wlth wrltten lat g,r.g..

ISS:I We would love to hear simllar storles from GWS readers about sensible reasons for reverslng letters, but aword of caudon: lf your ctrild senses that you have been worrled about reversals, and you then ask why he or she made them ln a partlcuIar ptece of wrttlng, tt may bc dtlllcult for the quesdon to come across neutrally and thus for the chtld to feel crmfortable answ€rlng. It rrray help to say that you have heard about other chlldren's r€asons for rercrstng letters ln thelr work and you're

curlous to know lf your chlld had stmilar reasons. Some chlldren may enJoy heartng the btt of htstory of urrltten Engllsh that this arttcle descrlbes. Other helpful books: TIE lzonhg Mgsfl4rc, by Gerald Coles l#1152, $1O.95 + post.) and ourbooklet, EwryoneIsAHe(#26,8, $3.95 + post.).

Growlnt Wthout Schoollng #82

Challenges & Concerns Protecting Kids' Privacy Jacqtrc Willfarnson MN wrcte abolut GWS

#8t's Feus onfndhg prtvocg wltldn

the Jatnilg: [The boys have] concluded that prlvacy ts not an lssue wlth them. Fred and I

Ilnd that interestlng slnc€ we have been very sensltlve to thelr needs for aloneness and privary, often wondering lf we were tntmding too much.

I have been especially concerned about their rtghts to privacy slnce we keep portfollos. Now that I do wrltten evaluatlons for other homeschooling students ln

Virgtnta, our children's portfolios are

often passed around when I meet wtth support groups to dlscuss alternatives to testlng. The flrst year I dld thls, our chlldren got upset at the idea ofothers seetng less than perfect samples of their work.

Our solufion to this has been to have our children keep their own portfolios, putting what they choose in them. Now they often add notes at the top ofpages to explain why they have included each page. This lets them ferl OK about putdng in rough drafts full of misspellings and messy handwrlting, since the finished copies are there too.

Our focus then is on process rather than Just product, on learning rather than just subJect rrastery. In my evaluattons of other students, I try to keep my focus on prccess as I meet with the tndtvldual chlldren and as I write up the evaluaflons for the parents to send to the school superintendents, Rather than an lnvaslon of prlvacy, we are ftndtng the whole experience of keeptng portfollos and ofevaluatlons to be a wonderful sharlng of how we are learning.

Loosening Up Each Year La.urie Adans (PA) turites: We are flnishtng our third year of homeschooling, and making plans for our fourth. Whenwe started, we used acomplete pre-planned curriculum. Each year, we have loosened up more and more on the textbook grind. This cornlng year we will only use math textbooks, lnterspersed wtth a math trivial pursuit game (my seventh grader loves it - he can beat mel).

The pre-planned curriculum looked so attractive to us in the begtnntng as a way to put quality back into the kids'educatlon.

My husband and I went to htgh school in the '7Os, in the midst of "alternative studles' that were basically meanlngless.

Even before we had kids we thought we leamed more out of school - mostly through readlng, Foo bad that lesson escaped us for one and a halfyears whlle we used the currlculum wlth the lddsl) After a while the curriculum we were uslng Just bogged us down, strangled hobbles and

lnterests.

I really feel thls is a process, at least for us. At flrst it was tnconcelvable to me that the kids could learn without tests and grades. And slowly we have to let those things go. Maybe l'mJust a slow learner -

but I knowGWS has always had the.aswer to whatever questlon I am facing, Thanks to those who have gone before us,

When I read Laurte Huffrnan's letter, 'Stop Compartng," ln GWS #8O, I could llnally understand what she meant - we all have to make mtstakes ln thls homeschoolfurg prooess, and grow to where we

flnd what works for our famtly. I had only Just recently come to the reallzatlon that ttrls was true, In the beglnntng, I would've loved to be palred ollwtth som@ne experlenced, to tell me how to do thls. I thtnk that's why we chose a pre-planned currlculum. But the lessons we've learned by fatltng, changlng, and movlng on are so valuable. I know now we'll always have to do ttrts throughout our homeschoollng, and that's freedom. It's exciting. We ane dectdtngwhat's best for us - not a school board. or even a friend. I sdll ask a lot of quesdons ofothers, but not out ofpanlc, accrepttng every word as gospel. And lately quesdons have been dtrected myway, I guess because my klds are older (13, 12, and lO). The flrst tlme it happened, I was so surprised. I thought, "But I don't know what I'm doing - weJust take lt as it comesl'Then the woman who had asked the questlon satd, "Oh, you're unstructured,'and ldnd of dismissed me. Obviously I dldn't have the answers she was looktng for, and that made me feel better, I guess because I'm wtlltng to take responslbtltty for our declslons, but not for someone else's.

Ttrls year my l2-year-old daughter TIna had to take an achlevement test to comply wtth Pennsylvanla law. In discusstng it, she asked, "What's the worst I can do on thls test and sdll homeschool?'

(She's a lot like me - a perfectlonlst - and puts a lot ofadded pressure on herself.) I couldn't IInd any lmmedlate answers to that questlon, so I told her that, and said, 'l guess at least grade level.'She asked, "What happens to klds in school who do bad - do thelr parents have to homeschool?'We had a small chuckle at the thought of that, 'dl she found out that at most those ldds have to take remedial classes. Another lesson - llfe's not falr.

(She dtd qulte well on the test - above grade level on ever5rthlng. I hate those tests - as if our llfe's blood llows through their results.)

We've had a fulfilling year, and I'rr learned a lot. We even dabbled tn Shakespeare, and enJoyed tt. It has shown me how lacktng my education was. And I'm tmpressed wlth how diverse the kids' tnterests are, compared to mlne at thetr ages. I feel I sttll have lots to learn about the ktds - how I can help wtthout getttng tn the uray too much. But I am grateful for the opportunlt5r to be here vdth them, leamlng wtth them.

Today Susannah called Tlna to ask some questlons about the arUcle she had wrltten for Holt Associates' booklet on kids eamtng money. TIna was so exclted (and nervousl) that someone outslde the famtly would take her serlously, and be Interested ln how she dtd somethtng. She had written about selling staUonery, She is

lo a good

salesperson - she gets rtght out there and glves lt her all, and doesn't take reJectton personall5r. She errcn takes to the streets selltng old books, and crochet proJects, and pcople buy from her. She's sold plctures she's drawn, and she lsn't Mlchelangelol She Just has the knack for selling. I admtre her, becausc I cpuldn't sell to save my lfe. But she doesn't want to be a salesperson when she grows up. She says she wants to be elther a detectlrrc or a lauryer. Whatever, fm $ad for the chance to bewtth her growtng up, and to glve her the chance to dream dreams and to make them come trre. I thfnk school tends to squelch drearffr, and ts so good at puttlng ateryone tn ltttle cubbyholes. I don't remember havfng a drâ&#x201A;Źam gowlng up. In nlnth grade I had to choose between General, Buslness, and College tracks. I chose Buslness for lack ofanythtng better.

My rnafn goal was to get out of school, away from my parents, and partyl Of course my klds are on the threshold of that age of chotces, but I thtnk thtngs wtll be dtflerent for them, Just because they spend so little time wlth 'peers,"

Challenges of First Year Dorvlr'll Atlrl.n

WN

u;rltes:

Ttris ffrst year of homeschoollng for my chlldren has been a year ofsearchlng for trrth for me. Whtle the opportunity for self-dlrected leamlng was my motivatlon for keeplng the chtldren home ln the llrst place, my conlldence uras soon undermlned by nay-saylng fiends. 'You'd better really teach them,' admonlshed one. 'If they don t keep pace wtth thelr schoolmates they'll be dtsadvantaged tn Me," warned another. "If you don't maJce them learn, thcy won't do angthbg,' protested a thtrd, thls one a homeschoollng veteran of several years. An:det5l set Lr. So I made some attempts at structurtng the chlldren's learnlng. But as I pushed at them, I felt off-balance lnslde. My heart was saylng'back off,'but because opposltlon was comtng from people I thought htghly of, thelr audible volces tended to drown out my tnner one.

Stlll, when I found and read John Holt's works, I knew what he was sa5dng was tme. Careful analysls of past experlences of both my own educatlon and the earller development of my chlldren alllrmed that learntng ls best (or on$) accompltshed when lnldated and pursued by the learner. I lorew ln my heart that John Holt vras correct ln hls vlews that a "complete'educaflon could be garned ln such a rnanner, And I knew tt uras rigfrt to grant my chlldren the freedom to learn tn thls way.

And yet there seemed to be errldence to the contraql. I was told of 'unschoollng' fallures: young people wlthout basic ltvtng

stllls, wlthout the slmplest

knowlege,

passlonless and unprepared for lndependent Me. Whatwas gotng on?

Susannah SheIIer satd tt tn GWS #81: 'Self-dtrected learntng does not mean

leamtng ln a vacuum or leamlng without the lnvolvement of anyone else.'

I've wltnessed the outcome of that sort of self-dtrecdon tn the extreme as I've become acqualnted wlth the tudn girls a frtend recently brought back from

Romanla. In the vacuum of the orphanage they did little more than exlst for four years. kft to themselves they never leamed to walk or talk or play rvith erren the simplest of toys. They merely rocked from side to side day after day, grunflng and sucklng their fingers. (Fortunately, ln the loving care of my friend they are rapldly developing into smillng, playful 4

year olds.)

How enlightentng it has been to con-

trast the daily lives of these Romanlan

orphans to those of, say, the Wallace or Colfax children. What a difference ls made by the presence ofenthused and lovtng parents who embrace their roles as provlders of opportunities, holdtng open numerous doors so that their children may experience the richness of the world about

them.

I now have a clearer vision of my role

ln the self-directed education of my

children. It seems that what is wanted for the Job is a joyful worker and explorer who is eager to assist others in their works and explorations. "Access" has become a key word in my concepts-to-live-by vocabulary; "sense o[ wonder" a key phrase.

Living my own life richly and helping my children to do the same ls the homeschoollng approach I'm working with now.

And the happy side-effect is, I'm having the tlme of my life.

Trying Kindergarten Cerelle Simmons (TX writes:

Hunter attended a private kindergarten this semester - sort ofover our dead bodles. He had seemed desperately lonely

for other young children, particularly

other boys (boys are in pretty short supply around here). And he had been insisting for some time that it was all very well for hts older sisters Ariel and Laurel to homeschool, but HE wanted to go to school.

Over the Christmas holidays we chanced to meet the present kindergarten teacher at the tiny little school Ariel had attended when she was a kindergartener, She had loved that school (it was her only positive experience with formal education), and we began to toss around the ldea of enrolling Hunter mid-term. We liked the teacher, and she, in turn, was flattered that we would break with our unschooling tradltion by putting our son in her class.

She was very open to our educatlonal philosophy, and was wonderful with

Hunter.

Now that the semester's over, Tomas and I have mixed emotions about Hunter's experience. I think he really liked getting out lnto the world and meeting new people.

He loved his teacher unreservedly, and frequently said things like, "Mrs. Kos probably knows more about than you do, Mama, because she's 5O and you're only 381" According to Mrs. Kos, - Hunter's adjustment from home to classroom was remarkable, and although this school has a reputation for being academic, Hunter slid rtght into the curriculum Mthout so much as a hiccup.

On the other hand, the soclal paradise Hunter envisioned never materialized. He did fall madly in love with a young siren named Clalre, and lucktly for him lt was

fully requtted. But he dldn't get on all that vrcll wtth the other boys, and suffered through some teasing about hls long hair (he'd been growtng lt out all year so he could wear a pon5rtatl ltke hts father).

Thoughout January and February, Hunter kept saytng he wanted to go to lidndergarfgn agah next year. ("It's OK, I can do it," he would say. -Ihere are lots of ktds ln my cliass who are 6, so I can be tn that class nextyearwhen I'm 6.') But by the end of March he had changed hls mlnd. He began to tell weryone that he was gotng to go to school at home next year for ffrst grade. By the end of May, we were draggtng hlm out of bed on school mornlngs, and his attendance became lnconslstent.

On balanc.e, I thtnk we dtd the rrght thfng - Hunter gatned some control by chooslng hts path and making friends outslde hts famtly and netghborhood. But we regrettd the sacriflce of hls lnnocence.

An example: the flrst day that he wore a ponytail to school, the boys made fun of htm and sald he lmked like a gtrl.

Undaunted. he retumed to school the next day with a note in hts pocket. Proud and deflant, he had asked me to llx his ponytail again, and then he laboriously wrote on a piece of paper, "George Washington wore a ponytell, And so did Thomas Jefferson," He looked so determlned and confldent, I was optlmlstic enough to believe that he would be able to set all those ltttle boys straight wlth a history lesson. But he never wore hls ponytail to school again after that day, and he erren worried about his clothes from then on (he was afratd to wear overalls, for example). That loss of confldence in his right to be an individual greatly distressed his father and me, especially since our whole radonale in letting him go off to school was to protect that right fty

allowlng him to assert his tndividuality within thls homeschooling family).

Deciding Not to Go to School Daun Shuman (PN writes: I went to school through third grade, and have been homeschooled ever since. I decided not to go to school for ninth grade last fall after a lot of deliberation and

worrying.

I had applied to nine rnagnet schools

in Philadelphia, and was accepted at eight (the exc.eptlon w:ul one with speclal testlng that I couldn't take because I was traveling wtth my father in Europe and Afrtca). If I had been golng to school already, my cholce would have been the relatlvely slmple one of wldch school to go to next, Normal people have lt so easy, and so hard.

I know I am luclry to have parents who let me make some of the decislons that alfect my ltG, but responslbility is a hard thing to use wlsely.

I had, I thtnk, a tremendous amount of pressure on me to go to school, to be normal, to follow in the family footsteps. I did decide that if I did go to school it would be to my father's, uncle's, and grand-father's

alma mater. I thtnk, loolilng back, that that factor probably made things harder.

My father wanted me to go to school very, very much. My mother was telling me to make a declslon based on what I wanted. I

Growing Wthout Schooling #82

ll dldn't know then and I am not sure I know nour what I really wanted. I felt ltke the proverbtal ple wtth uray, u,ay too many Ilngers tn tt, espectally slncr almost erreryone I knew errcn slightly was givtng hls or her unsollclted oplnlon on the rnatter. I wanted to make a calm, ratlonal declslon and all I was dolngwas chaslng myself

ln llttle, ttght clrcles.

I llnally dectded by w"alklng my dog, because I felt I couldn t declde at home. I forced my mlnd to stop runntng ln clncles and came up wlth a declslon not to change my own status quo. The declslonwas mostly based on the thlngs about school that I d{drr'turant - thlrgs I remembered, and thlngs my frlends who go to school told me. I called up one frlend and asked herwhat she ltked best about school, and she satd, -The soctal Me.' It didn't seem urorth lt to me.

I felt that I really had cpme to a choice reasonably derrold of other people's wants.

No one ls an lsland. though. I know I chose well, but I don't knowwhether I chose correctly. I doubt anyone ever really does.

Iooktng back on thls year now (lsn't lt strange how the year, at least ln this big clty where I llve, starts tn September really truly and not tn Januaqfl ls lnteresttng. It has not been a good year. I really don't think that betng tn school would have made lt any better, Sometlmes growing up hurts. A loL I got pracflcally nothlng done undl January, and nelther I nor my mother are happy about that. T?rings have gotten a llttle better, althougfr we are in the mtddle of movlng. I have started playtng Suzuld vlolln agaln. Next year I want to

thtnk ambiUous. The problem is that

society hasn't got many places for 14 year olds who want to learn and do somethlng useful and travel. (For some reason, lots of people think that attending classes for six hours a day with a group of fellow experts ln adolescent angst is going to make me a

happily functioning member of soctety.) I would primarily be interested tn doing something scientific, especially with animals, but I am open to other suggestions. I don't have much scientiflc background beyond Nova specials and magazines (Natirrnal Geqraphio Natural Hbtory), but I have a lot of curiosity and have traveled with my father extensively. Most of all I want to do somethlng sttmulatlng.

Enough of sltttng in my room read-lngl Does anybody out there have any ldeas?

One last thing I would like to say ls that I don't think there ts anythlng wrong with choosing to go to high school. Everyone has to start maliing their own declsions some time. I thlnk I knew what I was choosing between. I think that what soclet5r

considers correct in this lnstance

would have been a mistake for me. I have friends, though, for whom it would be a mistake to homeschool. To each his or her

And Jrom Sarah-Kate clddlngs (MA):

A few months ago I was with friends

from my drama class while they talked excitedly about starting junior htgh next fall. I tuned out of the conversation until one of them asked me if I could go to Junior

htgh next year, too. I really like everyone in my class, and I thought lt would be fun to see them errery day. I thought, "Well, there's nothtng really stopping me from going if I want to, ls there?' My frtends started telllng me how much fun ltwould be to go htgh. to Junlor - We were gettng ready to perform The Wlzard oJ Oz tbat afternoon. While the audlencc arrlved and weryone got lnto make-up and costumes, I had ttme to think. 'What could I get out of publtc school?' I wondered. Well, maybe I would leam more, slnce lidds in school hou.te to leam whatever the school wants to teach.

Also I nras very lonely most of the flme and I wanted morâ&#x201A;Ź frlends. School always seemed ltke the natural place to go to be with frlends. It would gfve me something to do all day, too. Of course I could also see tJle drawbacks ofschool. I would have boring homework to do. I wouldn't be able to babystt for anyone during the day, whlch I normally do qulte often. Stlll, lt would probably be a lot of fun. The next thtng to do was to convlnce my parents.

Ftrst, thoug;h, I called my friend Sarah who goes to publlc Junior high school.

Sarah had been homeschooled undl the mtddle of 6th grade, but she sald that she liked Junior hlCh. A c,ouple of months before I started thtnlidng about school, she had invited me to come to the school for a day to see how much fun tt was. I had decided agalnst lt then. Now I called her and explained about maybe wanting to go to school next year. She said, "Well, I guess you want to come to school for a day now' I said yes I did, and we arranged a date for

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"Clonlara slresses nanipulative learrring trrols.rud real-lile experlences ln place o.f endless w0r.lboohery....You creale ygur olyn individualieed plugram wilh lhe help of the Clonlara curriculum.The Clonlara slaff ls avallable to angwer quosllone over lho phone or by mall. Any concorns famlller have whlch rolalo lo home oducailng can ba addrsssdd.

Clonlara oraduatâ&#x201A;Źs rocolvo our Drlvalo school dloloma and full lranecrlplr. tlonlara graduales have gone lo collegec ahd unlvereltlec, to mllltary sorvlco, to lhe nrlnlstry and lnlo lhe work force.

Clonlara atlends lo all of the admlnlolrallve dutles a3soclalad wllh homo oducallno wlth and for our en. rolloes. We know tho regulatlons In evory slalo and counlry, we handlo conlacts befireon school olflclals and our onrolloo$. That leaves paronls froe lo allend lo thelr home educatlng.

'Mary

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1289 Jewett

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Growtng Wthout Schooling #82

Learnins

Pat Montgomery, Ph.D. (313) 769-45r5

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t2 about tqrc weeks later.

For the next few days I talked to my parents about school. liey were both sire I wouldn't ltke tt. I had nerrer gone before, and theyrrcre shocked that I uras thtnktng about lt now. We dectded I would go to school for a day lf I ltked tt maybe I could

conslder golng ful-tbne.

In the meanflme, I urcnt to the GWS homeschoollng falr near Boston wtth my family. It gave me lots of new ldeas about opportunlfles for older homeschoolers. My dad and I talked about how I could trarcl to vtstt my horneschoollng frlends and penpals. That day I also bought a book called lhe Tenage Enbeprenetu's Gutde lavatl, here, #1518, $10.95 + post.l and Ibegan to think about starflng my own etalog buslness. I realfz.ed that tf I went to school I

wouldn't have tlme to do these thlngs.

The day came for me to vislt school, Sarah and her dad came to plck me up at 7:OO (l can't tell you what a ttme I had trying to get up at 6:OOl). Whtle we walted for her trst class, we walked outslde onto the blg front steps. A mass of 7th graders were standing there and more were unloadlng from the buses. I looked around and thought, 'Thts is the most lidds I've ener seen in one place beforel' Sarah's flrst class was science. I was able to slt at an empty desk and observe everything, but there wasn't much to observe. They were getilng ready for a test on the respiratory system, and the teacher had three points about tt that he Just kept repeating for 45 minutesl I had come to the class with high expectations, but I wasn't fvery thrilled when

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The next period (or mod, as they call ' was grm. Sarah had often sald she tt) didn't like rym, so I was a little btt arxious. I had been allowed to partictpate tf I brought a slgned note (which I dtd). That day they were starting a team obstacle course, and it was really a lot of fun. I asked Sarah afterwards about her not likireg grm and she responded simply, 'ThIs ts the first fun thlng we've done.'

The rest of the day I went to more of the basic classes - En$ish, math, history, etc. The only class I ergioyed was math.

Math is one of my favorite subJects, but I also liked the way the teacher taught lt. If someone gave a w't-ong answer he wouldn't say, 'WRONGI" He would say, "Okay, let's try lt that way.' He was also very nlce and friendly. While the other teachers sald "That's nice" or "Oh" when Sarah told them I homeschool, the math teacher was genuinely interested.

I realize now that even thoug;h I am usually good at remembering things, I don't remember any of the teachers' namesl Durtng the classes, I weighed the pros and cons of school. I met some ktds I ltked and some I didn't like. The math class was fun, but the science class was repetltious and boring. While the history teacher talked about hurricanes, I found myself gazing out the window wishing I could go outslde even though it was pourlng raln.

Gym was OK, but was that the only fun thing they had ever done? I thought to myself, "Why make kids go through thts? If I really wanted to leam about hurrlcanes or the resplratory system I c.ould go look tt up ln the encyclopedia, I could look up ln five mlnutes what the school taught ln a

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After I got home that afternoon I knerv wasn't gotng to go back to that school

agaln. But because I had put up such an

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argument with my parents I didn't tell anybody yet that I had decided not to go to school. Actually, after I got home I dtdn't tell anybody anything because I fell asleep.

By now I have resolved most of my problems that I had originally faced. I have gotten more into my catalog buslness and spend a lot of time on that. I declded that I don't need a lot of friends, Just a few good ones. Next fall I am planning to give myself a goal for schoolwork, and stlck with lt, I have also started going up to Boston every week to work wlth Susannah at the GWS olllce. I have discovered that for me, homeschooling is the rlght way to go.

[SS:l Some months ago Pamela Bronson (PA) wrote asktng for advlce about young chtldren who say they want to go to school. I replted wtth some ldeas about how to help a young chtld feel that homeschoollng ls an acceptable thtng to do, and how to counter all the pressure that can oome from well-meanlng frlends and nelghbors asldng, '\l/hat school wtll you be golng to?" Now Pamela wrltes:

Thanks so much for the helpful letter.

I followed your advlce and Sam's deslre for school has dtsappeared. I thfnk playtnC

regularly wlth other homeschooled ldds has helped. He's declded that homeschooltng ts a real, acreptable thlng.

Also, he took a weekly, one-hour danctng class for some weeks and seemed to enjoy lt very much, but then abruptly refused to go to the last one, and my husband satd I shouldn't make htm. Sam said the class was bortng. Whatever he meant by that, I ttrlnk the experlence helped htm see that he really wouldn't ltke a structured group expertencâ&#x201A;Ź llve mornlngs a week. He also attends Sunday School and has somedmes complained about that, though he mostly ltkes it and enJoyed havlng "home Sunday School" when he had chicken pox, He told mewhat songs hewanted and tnststed on a craft, and got dtsgusted when I had to stop and nurse.

He'll be 5 tn August and adults often ask htm tf he'll go to ldndergarten thts fall.

"I will never go there," he replles. I hasten to assure them that he lsn't maktng lt up.

Most are surprlsed that lfs legal, but many are actually positlve.

lVhy Get Out of Bed in the Morning ISS:] Bonnte Sellstrom wrote in the Junepuly Issue of the Northern Callfornia

Homeschool Associatlon Ner.us about appeartng on a televlsion talk show with her teenaged son Kevln. Descrtbtng the audlence's questlons, she sald, 'Quesdons asked ofKevtn centered on how he could get himself up ln the momlng tf he dtd not have to go to school, did he spend hts day in paJamas..,'We had a good laugh over this ln the offfce, but what underltes the questlon ls actuall5r tragtc, and a btg part of why some people don't understand home-

schoollng.

Bonnle wrltes that the televlston audlence 'conslsted of a good mlx of htgh school students from a local prtvate school and homeschool famtltes." Maybe this me.rns that the people who asked Kevtn those quesdons werc htgh school students, Or maybe they were adults. Elther way, ifs anazlngto me, and so sad, that these people could not lmaghe why a young person would get out of bed ln the mornlng tf he dtdn't harrc to go to school. It says so muchabout how these people feel about what gets them out of bed fur the mornlng obllgaHon or fear, rather than enthusiasm, curloslt5l, a deslre to get busy wlth the proJects of the day. Feeltng that they only get out ofbed because they have to, they can't lmaglne what would modvate Kevln to do lt, No wnnder self-dtrected learnlng is so dlfllcult for such people to understand.

Growlng Wthout Schooltng #82

I3

IVatching Children Learn Discovering Odd and Even Numbers More fiom Panela Bronson

[PAl.'

Four-year-old Sam hadn't played wtth cans for years, but watchlng baby Etlza try to stack them rekindled hls tnterest, One day he made one stack oftwo cans and another of four. then counted all the cans and announced, -TWo and four are stxl' Then he added one to the larger stack and dlscorrered that two and llve are seven. He added another - but mlscounted - and made the false dlscovery that tqro and six are also seven. I encouraged hlm to recount my only lnput ln thls process - and the secnnd ttme he got etghL A Gwweeks later he asked me tf eleven was a'matchtng number.' I supposed he was asktng lf tt had two digits allke, and satd yes. But after a whlle he lnformed me that lt wasn't, and lt developed that he meant somethlng llke an even number - one whlch ls the sum of two equal fmatching') addends. He thought a lot about'matchlng numbers' over the next few days, unprompted by anyone or anythlng except posslbly numbers on the large calendar and kltchen clock which fac.e

him as he eats.

He soon dlscovered that matching

numbers alternate wlth unmatchlng, or odd, numbers; as he put lt one tlme, "Matchtng numbers have a hole ln the middle.' I had my thfrty-Itrst birthday last month and Sambecame curlous about the number 3l (he can only actually count to l2). "What ls 3l?' he asked. I wasn't qulte sure how to answer, so I sald, 'It's 30 and l.

3O ts three IOs.' He nras unusually sllent for a wtrlle and then announced, '31 is an unmatchtng number.' I thlnk he deduced that 3O ts a matching number slnce it's a multtple of lO (he'd already figured out that I O ts rnatchlng) and that 3 I must be unmatchlng slnce lfs one more. I was impressed that, wtth llttle or no help, he could lhst lnvent the concepts of evenness and oddness, and then learn to decide whether a hlgher number than he can count ls erren or odd.

He recently asked, "Is thousand the last [t.e. htghest] number?'and seemed qulte surprlsed to learn that tt uras not and that there ls no 'last number.'

Interested in Spelling; Learning Math from Games JanHunt (ON wrltes: In the last feur months, Jason (lO) has taken a vlvld tnterest tn spelling, but with an lntdgufng hvtst. He asks lots of spelltng quesdons (at all tlmes of day, and not lirntted, as tt used to be, to those dmes when he ts u/rltlng somethlng). He'll ask me, 'How do you spell _? Ltke this...?'

I tell htm lf tt's rtght, and lf not, spell lt out for htm, and then he reacts. By thts I mean he shows enornrous satlsfacUon or

Gro$'tng Wtthout Schooltng #82

and tn the thtngs he reads has lncreased

disappointment - not related to whether he got tt right, but to whether it makes sense that this is the way people spelll To a word Ike 'bow' (curtsey) he'll get a very pleased smlle and say, 'OK, goodl" But to aword Itke "bough' he'll make a terrlble face and groan, and complaln about the Engltsh language. Mlsslng entirely ls any concern about whether he got tt right he obvtously doesn't even thlnk about that at all.

Perfectly sensible, but amazlng to me, after all those school spelllng bees I encoun-

tremendously (we've no.rer had any speciflc lessons on this). When another homeschooltng mother recently asked me if I had any ldeas on how to teach grammar, I answered, "Yes, through eavesdroppingl'

Skating, Volunteer \ilork Ruth Matdsky

writes:

Thls wlnter our farntly started lce skating again. I-ast year when Matthew was an tnfant I Just couldn't get us organ-

teredl A ctrtld who has never attended school can sure teach us a lot about the thtngs that can go wrong there.

I've becn meantng to wrtte about how

lzed to get to the rink ln the morning and

truthfully the older ldds weren't that enthuslasdc unless their frlends were there. But somethtng was different thls year. Both Sara (l l) and Jake (8) really got l.rto tt, and whlle they enJoyed lt when

Jason started learning the multiplicatton tables (when he was 7). It came about c-ompletely unlntendonally, ltke so much of his learnlng. We had bought one of the new safe dart board sets (soft, plasticttpped darts), and we all played a lot,

their frlends came, they were able to have a good ttme alone. And of course we're never really alone at the rtnk because there ls a wonderful group of dedtcated skaters who come reâ&#x201A;Źiularly. Most of them are senlor citizens. One man in partlcular has befriended Jacob and spent a lot of time with him teaching him to skate. The people there seem genulnely to enjoy talking to

following the regular dlrections for scoring that came with the set. This requlres addltion and/or muldplicadon, as scores are doubled or tripled in certain areas on the board, and then added on to other scores.

Within a few hours, Jason could add and multtply faster than we could, completely in his head. This is pretty typical of how he's learned other things, by playing games - like Milles Bomes (addition), Pictionary (drawing), Monopoly (finances), Scrabble (spelling), billtards (geometry), Mad Ltbs

my chlldren.

Iaura (5) attended a program called Bridgfng the Gap thls year. It's a playgroup that ts held ln a local convalescent home.

The tdea ls to have acflvitles where ttre oldsters can lnteract with the children. It sounds great, but in actualtty most of the old people never do much but stare offlnto space whlle the chtldren play. It mlght even be therapeudc for the patlents, but I'm not so sure what ktnd of lmpression is made on the chtldren about gettlng older. It was a dramatlc dllference to go to the skatlng rlnk and see people tn thelr sixdes and seventles actlve and skadng, OneT\:esday ln partlcular I remember when there were only about ten of us skatlng - our family and a few others. The queen ofthe rink that day was a woman who looked to be in her stxdes who was dotng all ktnds of fancy b:lcks. I was careful to polnt out to Laura that some of these people were the same age as the people in the convalescent home.

Sara and Jake are worklng in a

(parts of speech), etc. And I hate to admtt it,

but the flrst book he read cover to cover several times, too - was Ntterdo Secrets.

Learning Grammar by Eavesdropping Karen Raskur-Young oJ Callfornia urrdtes:

I've noticed before that my son Jeremy (almost 7) often learns through conversatlon - i.e. through spontaneous conversatlons, usually inittated by him, at the dinner table, in the bathtub, ln the car, in the grocery store - on a variet5r of topics

(Emancipatlon Proclamatlon, lrnmlgration, use of double negadves, role of the Vice President). l^ately, though, he's come up with another method: learning through

eavesdropping.

I've been tutoring a woman for a college CLEP examination in English Composition. Jeremy attended the first session (unwillingly) because my husband was unavailable to be with hlm that day.

As the woman and I worked, dlscussing grammar, spelling, and paragraph structure, Jeremy sat at a nearby desk, seemingly engrossed in an lnteresting book of mazes. Afterwards, though, he asked, 'What was that all about?'and wasn't satisfled until I'd explained all that we'd covered. That day, while reading aloud a letter someone had sent me, he polnted out several grammatical errors he nodced. Ever since, he's insisted on accompanying me to the tutorlng sesslons so he can listen (and sometimes $ggle at the funny things we say). His awareness of appropriate gramma.r ln his own wrltlng

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t4 frtend's garden thls surnmer. I am real glad about thts opporhrntty. Tfrey really seem to enJoy helptng other people wtthout necessarlbr gettlng pald for tt" and tn thls case I thtnk they wlll leam a lot about organlc gardentng. I keep ttrlnldng about what John Holt repeated orrer and over about klds u,antlng to partlclpate tn real urork. Sara rolunteered her flme tn the food co-op for a long tlme and her only pay was the knowledge that her famtly's work râ&#x201A;Źqulrernent was met. Hourcver, she enJoyed betng In the store so much that she worked rnany extra hours. Now, people are paytng her flve dollars an hour when they can't fulffll thetr work requlrrements. It's a wonderful part-dme Job for an I l-year-old glrl. She sets her own hours and works as much or as llttle as she wants to.

Learning Biology In

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GltrilS

*77, Susan Sh.flock (PN tdd

abutlaut

she

had.anangd.Jor

ler

old.er chlldren to unk utth aJanifu Jrlend. tulto ts a btology teocher, so tlrat tleg could. hane acress to la,b equlpment and. to tle lrbnd's btowbdge and, eryedence. The

anangemert was partlcriarlg approprlate Jor |4-gear-dd Anwda" Susan told us, fuauseAmatld,ahadbecr ne aware that

others her age wete stud"gtng btologg ad, to keep her optlons open bg luDtrg

utantd

eryderw

fnsome oJtle arcas thatorc trr,ful/ro//;g rqulred. oJ nlnth graders. We recenflg asked Amanda law the atrangenwrthodunrlced outotar tle course oJthe gear, and she

rcptl&

usually met once a week for an hour and a hal[, here at our house, We have a blologr textbook and teacher's gutde that another frlend gave us, butwe only used them as resources - to look thtngs up ln the glossary lf we needed to, or sometlmes to work ourway through chapters. We didn't go stralght through lt or feel that we had to We

do everythtng tn tt.

My slster Emtly, who was seventh grade age thls year, dectded to do this wtth me. Mom thought that even though we dldn't have to worry about tt betng requtred for her, she might like tt and anythfng that she mtght ptck up would Just be an extra beneflt for her. Also, I was happy to have someone to work with.

At the begtnntng of the year, Victoria, our frlend, gave us an overvlew ofwhat

btologr ls, and then she left us some cholces about what to focus on. Emily was really lnterested in dissectlng, for instance, so we spent a longer dme on that.

But Vlctorta usually came ln wlth a suggesdon ofwhat to do, and most ofthe tlme we went along with that. She brought along lots of materlals - some lab equlpment from the college near us, which she was allowed to borrow, and some c.ollegelevel tests and worksheets that we played around with Just for fun, We had a great time with that because the llrst week, we dtdn't reallze what level they were, and out of twenty questions about cells we loeew about flfteen to eighteen. Then Victorla asked us to guess what level we thought that test was. I guessed lt was for tenth grade and Emlly guessed lt was for htgh school seniors, but it turned out ltwas for college sophomores. We were really surprised. So we had a lot of funJust playing around with that, but we dtdn't do too much with worksheets or tests.

Sometimes Victoria would say to me, "Now, when you say you studted biologr, people might ask you about this term," and I would write that down, so I made sure I was plcking up the basic stuf in addition to just working in the areas that we felt like working in. A lot of the terms were totally new to me, but some of the stuffwas familiar. and I would realize that I had plcked it up when I worked at the nature center, or from somewhere else. We loved the new terms that were long and Just rolled offour tongues, and we would go around the house saying them.

Victoria got a catalog from the college and ordered some materials through lt. As I said, Emily turned out to be really interested in dissecting, so Vlctoria ordered not only the basic dlssecting kit but the fetal pig, which people usually do in advanced biology. We worked on that each week for several months - in the house, so Dad wasn't too pleased about the smelll We went on a great tour of the college lab and ended up borrowing a lot of equipment, but we were never able to arrange sitting in on a class. We're hoping we can get to do that in the fall. Vlctoria also borrowed equipment from a biologr teacher who was working with homeschoolers about an hour away from us, and she went to Edmund Scientillc Company and got two dissecting kits and a mlcroscope that was marked down a lot. We've kept those and we still use them. So it's

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really not that hard to get these materlals.

It's helpful to have someone who can show you how to use them, though.

I know that I would have been welclme toJotn a blologr class at the local hlgh school, and stnce I'm not techntcally ln any grade I mlght even have been able to Joln one that was for older ktds. But I thfxk one of the matn benellts of homeschooling really showed up ln the wEry we worked wlth Vlctorta. When Emtly and I were looktng at thtngs under mlcroscopes, Vlctoria kept Jumptng back and forth to help each one ofus, and she sald that ttwas wonderful becausâ&#x201A;Ź usually she has a cliass of twent5r-Ilve students, and they all want her help but she can only help each one ofthem onoe or hvlce durlng the class pertod. So I was grateful for that, and also for the fletdbtltty we had to Jump around ln the textbook and to spend a whole sesslon on one thlng lf we sald we dldn't understand

It. \t/e tnvtted a ftend who used to homeschool to Join us when we were dolng the dtssecttng, because Emily had told her about lt and she really wanted to come. She was able to get out of school for fourThursday mornlngs - her teacher sald it was a

great opportunl$r.

Taken Seriously Horse Business Lorabte Clar/r oJ

in

the

Pertcr.sglvanlrr

writes: Fliaine, now 18, has been busy ln the horse buslness ln various vrays. I may have told you she was gtvlng rtdtng lessons for god pay.SlnceJanuaqr she has been

taklng care of Mary Alice Dorrance Malone's (the Campell's Soup heiress) personal stable of beauttful, world-liamous, champlon horses. She got theJob by answerlng a small, nondescrlpt ad ln a horse publication. She was hired on the basls of a personal tnteMew and one or two letters of recommendation. Part of Ralne's dufles lnclude foal-watching, whlch ls helptng pregnant mares $ve btrth, The "helptng' several tlmes became a full responsfbtlfty, wtth Raine handling the whole birth procedure herself.

Over the years I worrted at tlmes that I dld not encourage Ralne to spend more .,-,r tlme on wrtting and less on horses.

1 tHowever, reccntly she wrote a letter (which I typed for her) to an elderly woman, Sally Swift, who is at the top of her fleld ln the world of Centered Riding. On the strength of thts letter, Sally recommended Raine to a riding teacher who trained Becky Hart and was largely responsible for Becky's wlnntng the Gold Medal at the World Champtonshtp Games ln Stockholm. So I guess my potret ts that lf Raine could write such a letter, statlng her achlevements and endeavors, that earned her such a high recommendatlon, then my worrles about her wrl$ng need not be too major any more, Sally started her letter to Ralne by saying, "Thanks very much for your great letter," whlch meant so much to me and I'm sure to Flalne - so much more than her early grade correspondence school teacher's negative comments across her flrst wrtflng attempts.

Gro$'lng Wthout Schooltng #82

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by Larry and Susan Kaseman #1564 $12.95 + post.

Taking Charge Through

Homesclnoling is about homeschmling as a way of taking action, both personally and through grassroots political activism. The Kasemans talk about how homeschooling can make ttrings betler for individual families azd how state organizations can work for better educational policy and legislation and Ey to help people understand that homeschooling is an acceptable altemative. The authors are well-qualified on both counts: they are parents of four homeschoolers, the oldest of whom was 18 when they wrote this book, and have been working with the Wisconsin Parents Association, an extremely effective grassroots organization, since 1984, when the state's very favorable homeschooling law was passed.

The part of the book that is addressed to new homeschoolers good is and useful even if it is not unlike many other such guides. Its discussion of common problems (the feeling that no one is learning anything, criticism from friends and relatives, parents' frustrations at not having time for themselves) will be very helpful, and not just to newcomers. The authors' ideas abut organizing space in the house to accomodate the family's needs and about ways of using community resources encourage a flexibility that will serve homeschoolers in all sorts of ways.

What makes ttris book special, though, is its extensive discussion of how homeschoolers can counter opposition and the importance of grassroots organizations in doing this. The Kasemans say that there are two ways to counter opposition: by winning support from the public and from policymakers by convincing them that homeschooling is a workable alternative, and by fighting legislative battles to prctect rights when absolutely necessary. They have a geat deal to say about both options, all based on experience. Instead of telling readers what to do, the Kasemans describe many possible responses to a given sinration and then help readers ttrink about which one would be most appropriate under various circumstances.

The Kasemans don't see homeschooling as isolated from society or education in general. They have a good section on how homeschoolers conribute to society and an interesting and potentially very useful list of current trends in education (i.e. schmling) that might be harmful to homeschoolers and, on the other hand, current trends tlnt homeschoolers should support

and can use to fteir advantlge. (We often print news about these trends - such as the increasing opposition to standardized tests -

in GWS.)

Finally,I think people involved with homeschooling organizations will find the Kasemans' suggestions about starting and maintaining a state organization extraordinarily helpful.

They include ideas about newsletters, conferences, handbooks, and strucnrring the organization in a way that lets all the members feel involved and needed. As I've said, the Wisconsin Parents Association has proven itself to be a very effective group, so the Kasemans know what they're talking about. We're lucky that they've taken the time to make their knowledge and Susannah Sheffer experience available to the rest of us.

-

The Home School Source Book

by Donn Reed #1560 $15 + post.

The Honu School Source Bookis Donn Reed's updated

HOME

scH0

and expanded edition

ofhis

popular The First Honu-School Catalog, which we sold for

years. In the Source Bookhe lists and describes an extraordinary array of books and materials on almost every subject you can think of: reading, writing, and spelling; history, biography, and geography; science; math; current events; government; literature; business and economics; music; languages; high school and college; support groups and organizations. Those are just somc of the categories, and every category is packed with listings and inroduced by an essay in which Donn offers his thoughts and experiences. He introduces the book with essays about his family's decision to homeschool, their efforts to get permission to do it, and some thoughts on the

SOUNEE

growth of the movement.

This is definitely Donn Reed's guide; the listings are annotated with his opinions, and we at Holt Associates don't always agree with them. But he is up front about ttris, and it doesn't detract from the quality of the book. Sometimes his opinions and comments are entertaining; sometimes they will encourage you to investigate something you might otherwise have passed over; sometimes they may confuse you by being

critical of something that another writer has recommended. But our John Holt's Book and Music Store catalogprobably does the same.The Home School Source Boot is a wonderful way to find out what's available and to get a good sense of one family's SS choices, approaches, and experiences at the same time.

-

John Holt's Book and Muslc Storc

2269 Massachusetts Ave.

Making Music for the ]oy of It

by Stephanie Judy #1568 $12.95 + post.

Stephanie Judy has written a very readable, inspiring, and practical book for the adult beginner and the amateur musician about how to enjoy making music.

Certainly many of the ideas and suggestions in this book will be aprplicable to children, but its main purpose is to let adults know it is fine, even FUN, to make music without expecting yourself to become a bright musical star. As the author points out in her introduction, some of fte people portrayed in this book as amateurs could easily make livings as professional musicians, but they prefer to make music for love and do other things for money. Being an amateur musician does not mean being an incompelent musician, and this book is filled with tips and insighs that can make you more competent and confident with your music. Several GWS sories are excerpted, as is a lot of John Holt's Never Too Late.T\atinformation should give you an idea of the flavor and attinrde that Stephanie Judy brings to making music. For inspiration alone this book is worth buying.

Like several other books published by Jeremy Tarcher Inc., it has excellent quotes in the margins of each page, from both famous musicians and "regular p@ple," making it a lot of fun to browse through.

The book is structured so you can pick and choose chapters that are appropriate 0o your level of musicianship. I found that I evennnlly read the whole book (not because I'm writing this review, by the way - I read the book almost a year ago!) because Stephanie Judy has some very interesting ways of looking at music and learning. For instance, her presentation of different ways of learning music, such as self+eaching versus taking lessons, provides some good guidelines and logic for choosing one or the other.

I enjoyed the book's very real, very personal stories about leaming and making music, and how the author integrates these specific stories ino discussions of larger musical issues. For instance, we read about various people's practice routines, and then Stephanie Judy suggests "seven general principles" for practice:

Cambrtdge, MA02l40

larly since rhythm is a difficult concept !o make clear in prose), solving musical problems such as playing fast passages, handling phrasing and dynamics, etc. Also covered in chapters by themselves are "Playing and Practicing with Others" and "Playing and Performing: Making Music for Others."

If you remember making music with wisful longing but can't make the time for it now in your adult life, this book can help you make music again, or give you the courage to take those lessons you thought you were too old for.

Pat Farenga

-

Children Facing Grief

by Janis Loomis Romond #1468 $2.95 + post.

5. Emphasize efficiency and effortlessness rather ttran spâ&#x201A;Źâ&#x201A;Źd.

6. Be fearless.

7. Be musical.

When our Anna died in 1985 at the age of 4, we were all devastated. It was a very difficult time and healing was slow.

We had supportive family, which helped; we had a wonderful network of friends and well-wishers, which helped even more; we heard from many GWS readen (thank you all - you know who you are), which made us feel that there were a lot of people we'd never met who cared. That was very special o us.

All of these people helped us to heal.

On several occasions, soon after the accident, we spoke with a small number of parents we had met in a wide variety of circumstances who had also had a child who had died. In most cases we hadn't known they had had that experience - it's generally not something that comes up in casual conversation.

But when they came to us and said they had had a similar experience, we were very moved. Actually, in those early days, it was like a kind of shock - we were seeing people who had gone through this same kind of thing, and tluy seemed like perfectly normal people. Maybe we also would survive Ods to be normal again. (Generally I avoid using the word "normal" when it comes to people - what does normal mean, anyway?

Well, in this case, normal had a very clear meaning for me: normal people eat; they even get hungry; they sleep; they can easily comprehend what people say to them; they don't have to strain to remember names and words; they don't fall apart at the drop of a hat (or the sight of a marigold).) It was a thought we clung to in that very difficult time. And it was true. We are now "normal." That loss has changed our lives in some major ways, but we function quite well; we have healed (with a bit of scarring, of course).

When Janis Loomis Romond's 7-year-old son Mark died, she and her husband received the same comfort we had from people with similar experiences. She came to realizn, though, that her 3-year-old son John had not had that very important contact with others. He didn't know any other children who had lost a sibling. (Certainly if the Romonds knew other parents, there were other children somewhere, but one does not always think clearly under stress.) So Janis decided to provide what she very rightly saw as a needed contact for bereaved children.

Children Facing Grief is a lovely little book of letters,

In addition, we are provided with specific techniques for leaming to read music and rhythms beaer (I found rtre parts about reading rhythms exceptionally clear and useful, particu-

from children to children. She interviewed surviving children whose siblings had died at various ages, in various circumstances. Each letter consists of only the child's words, put into a "Dear Friend" letter format to help speak more directly to the

l. Practice technique with awareness.

2. Work in pattems and contexts.

3. Avoid mindless repitition.

4. Play with a very steady rhythm, even

if it's

slow.

22

69 Massachusetts Ave.

John Holt'e Book and Muslc Storc

reader. It's a very effective style. There is a photogaph with each leser of all the children in the family (and sometimes parents), including the child who later died. I think the photos are a very important part of the book. They allow a more personal connection with each family. Our girls all love looking

atthe picnres.

Janis asked every child to speak about certain issues. In her long inEoduction she says, "During the interviews, tle children talked about what happened o their brother or sister and what the loss had been like for them. They shared what their feelings had been and how their feelings had changed over time. I asked them about what and who helped them survive, what hurt, what they missed about their brother or sister, what changes came into their lives as a result of their loss, how long it hurt, and what they would tell other children to expect." Of course every family and every child is different. That's something we all say all the time, but I have seldom seen it more clearly than in the letters from several children in the same family. It amazes me how different people's reactions are to the same situation. There are sometimes surprisingly large differences in the children's reactions and in the time it took them to heal and to understand and sort out their feelings.

So who am I recommending this book to? Certainly to families who have lost a child. It helps everyone to know that life can and will go on for them. It would make a very special gift to such a family. But I also think it could be very helpful to anyone who knows a family who has experienced a loss - and many people know such families. I think it could be especially helpful for children to know a little about what their friends might be feeling. In a more general sense, lhis book shows us just how much understanding and strength children have when faced with a crisis. And our curiosity about death and its ramifications is not necessarily morbid.

Children Facing Grtef can be used in several ways. For a recently bereaved child, just seeing the pholos of other children who have gone through the same thing might be enough. a b@f ggndgqsgtigl or elcggrtlftqln3lg11egor1wq r,4quld b9_

Maybe __

Cambrldge, MA02l40

suitable. Our Helen (7) listened very intently o the whole book and likes to have various parts read again. Greta (5) heard most of the book and liked iB she came up with some very in&eresting questions. A neighbor child (5) heard part of the book and found it too strong to hear very much at one time. (We can always tell when children have had enough because they intemrpt, start an unrelated conversation, wander away, etc. Then it's time to stop.) The book wasn't particularly sad for Helen or Greta. I wish I had had it several yqm ago. It might have helped them understand some of their feelings then. In any case, it has been nice for us to read

will like going back to it. isa serious book, and it may be sad for Facing Grief Children some people, but it's not pitiful or depressing. Many of the families are religious, which colors a lot of attitudes about death. Children have a great capacity to accept what life brings and to deal with it well if they are allowed o. Though a book is a secondary and supplemental experience, this is one which can help provide bereaved siblings wiilr contacts they might not othenvise have available. I hope a lot ofpeople can read and share this special Mary Van Doren little book.

We will only be able to sell Children Facing Grief until [note: October 3l , 199 1, so order it while you can.l together now, and I think they

World Map Pazzle 19"

x

27

ln" ,106

pieces.

#1574 $75 + post.

We are very much enjoying our large world puzzle. It's a lovely family activity. Greta (5) can do North and South America with a liule help; Helen (7) usually does Asia and some of Europe. Mark and I do Africa and help when needed. One of the especially nice features of this puzzle for us is 0tat when we do it we are all around it and can therefore get a realistic perspective.

It actually came as a shock to me when I first realized how narrow my view of ttre Earth was - Canada near the "top," _Aug{ia ngqg.![q "bo{ont." Of courylhegq a1g gggc!$3gtig

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reasons for this view of things, but when people have been far enough away from Earth !o see it as a planet, there is no "right

way up." (Neither arc there any boundaries.) Working with this puzzle is an exercise in perspective: yes, we live in different countries, but we do all live.here logetlrcr.

On a purely practical note, I found that storing this puzzle is quite easy in spite of its size. The pieces can be kept in a bag or a box and the frame can be sored on end in any convenient slot (like benveen the ironing board and the wall).

This puzzle has been a great addition to our resources. It's a beautiful, sturdy item a family can use to enjoy geography MVD cmperatively - or just to spend a rainy day.

-

And Dontt Forget...

These books have been in our catalog for a while but are just as

good now as when we added them:

College Admissions: A Guide for Homeschoolers

by Judy Gelner #1132 $7.95 + post.

Many homeschoolers who are considering college have already ordered this book and discovered how useful it is. But the book is a useful tool for families with younger children, and even for older homeschoolers who don't plan to go to college.

The special strength of the book is that it shows how the Gelner

family explained their very uncurricular, un-school-like homeschooling 0o college admissions officers, and without falsifying anything or compromising themselves showed that Kendall Gelner was a strong candidate, well prepared by his self-directed education. Homeschoolers in many situations - not just during the college application process - find that ttrey need to explain their non-traditional education and make the case for is advantages and srengths, and this book can be a big help in that regard. So even if you aren't thinking about college, think about reading Judy Gelner's book.

For Your Own Good

by Alice Miller #296 $9.95 + post.

This books show tlut how aduls treat children matters, not just o the children but to the adults they will become. Alice Miller shows how people who were physically or psychologically hurt as children, and were not allowed to tell anyone what happened (or were not believed when they tried to), are compelled to let others know what happened to them by repeating the same crimes as adults. Miller's argument does two things: (1) it reinforces our beliefs about the importance of taking children's feelings seriously and making an effort !o look at things from their perspective, and (2) it gives us a way to begin !o make sense of some of the most disturbing events in history (and to understand some of the crimes that are committed today, too). Miller's convincing analysis of Hitler's childhood doesn't excuse or apologize for the crimes he or his contemporaries committed, but it is the first plausible explanation we have seen of how such apparently incomprehensible things could have happened. Parents who are trying to discuss these events with their children - as some parents in recent issues of

Cambrldge, MA02l4O

GWS have wondered about how to do - may find some help in this book. And, too, many people trying to make peace with their own difficult childhoods have found Miller's work invaluable.

What Do You CareWhat Other People Think?

by Richard Feynman #3301 $9.95 + post.

Nobel hize-winning physicist Richard Feynman was interested in science early on, and his stories ofhow his father stimulated his son's thinking and shared his fascination with the world are essentially homeschooling stories. For example: We had the Encyclopedia Britannicc at home. When I was a small boy [my father] used to sit me on his lap and read to me from the Britannica. We would be reading, say, about dinosaurs.

It would be talking about the Tyrannosaurus rex, and it would say something like, "This dinosaur is twenty-five feet high and its head is six feet across."

My father would stop reading and say, "Now, let's see what that means. That would mean that if he stood in our front yard, he would be tall enough to put his head through our window up here." (We were on the second floor.) "But his head would be too wide to fit in the window." Everything he read to me he would translate as best he could into some reality.

It was very exciting and very, very interesting to think there were animals of such magnitude - and that they all died out, and nobody knew why. I wasn't frightened tlnt there would be one coming in my window as a consequence of this. But I leamed from my father o translate: everything I read I try to figure out what it really means, what it's really saying.

The most sriking thing about Feynman is how well he was able o retain that early fascination and enthusiasm. Parents could read parts of this book even to young children, or retell the stories after reading them themselves. One long section is about how Feynman figured out what caused the Challenger disaster, and it reads like a real-life, contemporary mystery.

GWS Back Issues, Indexes, and Binders BacL leguce: We stron$y urge you to get the back issues of GWS, espectally if you plan to begfn homeschooltng. Many of the artlcles are as useful and lmportant as when they were printed, and we do not plan to râ&#x201A;Źpeat the lnformation ln them. Very ltttle of the material tn GWS loses lts value over tlme, We can no longer aIlord to reprint early issues as stock runs out. We will photocopy them as needed, but the reproducflon ls not as good, so we advlse you to act now and order while the htgh-quality stock remains.

Rates: $l3O plus postage for a complete set. For any other combinatlon of back lssues, matled at one tlme to one address, the cost is $2 each plus $2 perorder.

Indcres to GWS (speciS ltem number): #38O Index to GWS # l-3O, $2.5O; #382 Index to #3 l-4O, $2; #384 Indexto #41-5O, $2; #385 Index to #51-60, $2: #381 Set ofall lndexes, $5.

Blndera are avallable wlth rods that hold GWS wlthout obscurlng any text. Gold letters on csver. #33O Btnderwtth 24 rods (holds GWS # l-24), $lO; #328 Binder wtth l8 rods {holds lS later lssues), $g.SO. #326 Set of 4 binders and 78 rods (holds GWS # I -78), 9SS. Add pacllag and dellvcry charge for all items (see previous page).

l9

FOCUS: When Parents Aren't Familiar What do honeschoolers do when they waat to pursuc an lnterest, or learn about sonethlng, and thelr parents don't know much about lt? We asked several young GWS readers to tell us what they have done ln thls sltuatlon.

Taking a Cartooning Class F}om Gq.lfrey Htu:ok (PN: For years I was lnterested ln cartoonlng. When I was really little I would read the Sunday comics and I d be lnterested ln how the lllustrators drenr them. I bought some books to use ln teaching myself to draw cartoons, and I went to cartooning exhibits at museums. After uslng the books for a while, I felt that I had reached a lerrel where I couldn't teach myself anythtng more. I felt that I needed some human lnstruction. My dad's a great cartoonlst, so I asked him lf he would help me out a little. He tried, but erren though he's a great cartoonlst, he can't really communicate it or get across how he does what he does. So that wasn't very helpful, even though he tded very hard and I really appreciated

hts elfort.

At that polnt I dectded I needed some outside lnstruction maybe I should take a class or somefhtng. It so happens that there's somethlng near us called the Malnline Center for the Arts, and they were havlng a cartooning class there, so I decided to go. I went to thelr sampler class, and lt was wonderful. They had a great teacher, and I learned a lot that I hadn't known about drawing.

The ktds were great, too. Even though they all went to school, they had taken the tlme and effort to go out of their way to learn about somethlng that they nranted to flnd out about, totally out of their own modvatlon. Sadly enough, this ls not such a common quality ln school klds. That really lmpressed me, and it made the class a gireat experlence. Now I'm gotng to thet full-time class.

Learning Knitting from Yanr Shop Owner Ftom Clahe HllI (ON:

I have always wanted to kntt. Unfortunately, my mother had never learned how to kntt, so we looked around and found some good books. Togetherwe leamed the baslcs. We dectded to knit a slmple garter stttch doll blanket for our flrst proJect. After that we began knlttlng washcloths, and I knltted some dny doll clothes. I dtdn't make any more progness unUl many years later.

My flrst lntroductton to better technlques was when my mother and I urcre trylng to teach a Sunday School class to knit. A lady olfered to come help us teach. She showed me a much easier way of knttttng and a better way to cast on.

One day m5r mothernodced a newyarn shop in town. She went ln and asked the owner lf she would be wtlltng to teach me in one of her classes. The lady offered to give me a private lesson, and my mother slgned me up. At my llrst class, the owner of the yarn shop showed me even better techntques than the lady at the church had shown me, She taught me how to do cables, colorweaving, and fancy stttches. Soon I was worklng on an elaborate sweater. I'm now on my second sweater, and I took a class where I leamed the dupllcate sdtch method of embellishing plain knitted garments, Ttre lady lets me come ln to the shop to kntt any time, and I

Growlng Wthout Schoollng #82

with a Subject

can get help when I need it.

Studying Archaeology F\om Am.tur Ct{ford

(MO):

I've been interested ln archaeolory since I was a ltttle girl. One of my favorite books was Davld Macaulay's Pyrantld Over the years I leaped from one subJect to another, espectally durtng my Iirst two years of homeschooling. (I began homeschooling at the beginntng of llfth grade, and lm 16 now). But no rnatter how many other subJects I was readtng about, I always went back to archaeolog/. Somehow I managed to choose a subJect my parents didn't

know much about.

In the beginnlng, archaeology was Just a casual lnterest. I read books by classic archaeologfsts, the dlsc.overers of Ktng Ttrt and Troy. l.ater I kept a scrapbook of all the newspaPer and magazine artlcles about archaeologr. It was durtng that dme that I saw my flrst lndiana Jones fllm. Even though the movles were overromantlcized, Indiana Jones lnspined me. I dove headlong into

archaeologr.

At that time I was livtng tn Lubbock, Texas. I began to study classical archaeologl in Europe and Asia heavily. I read volumes of mythologr, from Greek to American Indlan. I went dozens of times to the Te:<as Tech Unlverslty Museum, that had an endre hall devoted to the archaeologtcal htstory oflubbock. I also became on a first-name basts wlth the directors and workers at the Lubbock Lake Site, The Iake Site is an archaeological site, and I was there at wery fleld day talking and worklng.

I was able to do the reading and stud5rlng on my own, but my parents helped me lind the resource people that I needed and took me to the places that I needed to see. We're ln a town wlth a university, so when I was interested in fossils, my mother called the geologr department and got the professor to talk to me. I dldn't know how to go about {lndtng someone, and she did, so this is where she was really helpful to me.

It wasn't until last year that I became really interested ln United States archaeologl. Thatyear I wrote a Paper on the uses of neutron acdvatlon analysis (NAA), and one of the sections was on NAA's use ln archaeologr. I got on the mailing list at Kampsville Archaeologtcal Center, and I have kept in contact wlth the scientlsts I used as referenccs.

Since that tlme I have done a lot of things. Last year I submitted a grant proposal to the Nadonal Endowment for the Humanities for a paper on NAA uses ln archaeologr. The NEH has a Young Scholars Program for high school and college students, I needed an advisor, and found an anthropology professor whom my 4-H Ieader knew. I sent hlm a paper that I had wrltten, and he satd that on the basls of that he was wtlllng to take me on.

Ifyou get turned down by the NEH you can request a critlque and they wtll tell you what you can do to lmprove your proposal and resubmlt it. I got turned down but I'm golng to resubmit my proposal ln November. The dlrector of the NEH satd they were very interested in the fact that I was a homeschooler and wtlltng to put so much ttme lnto thls.

This past year I also vlsited the Etowah Mounds Archaeological Center in Georg;ia. There is a museum and three burial mounds there. I began heavy research lnto the archaeologlcal record of Missouri. Now I have a llst of sltes and museums to vislt ln the area, and I hope to go to an archaeologlcal camp thls fall. The only thing I need is someone interested ln archaeologr to write to, so drop me a llne. There's nothtng like havtng someone to discuss what you're leaming with. I plan to major ln archaeologr when I go to college.

20

Exploring Veterinary Medicine, Theater, Writing Flonr Jesslca Rtrrrs oJ Calt{oniaI am a htgh school graduate and am currently enrolled ln a Junlor college, but I ums homeschooled from fourth grade to tenth grade. At that drne I took a state exam and got my htgh school dlploma at age I 5. I am now 17.

As a homeschooler I uras alurays asked what I would do if my parents dtdn't know much about a certaln subJect or tf I wanted to do sorrrthlng extra-currlcular. I found that I would start to research a subJect at the ltbrary and my mom and dad and I would all end up learnlng a lot" I was lnterested ln the veterlnary fleld and wanted to see if it was up rny alâ&#x201A;Źy before really getdng serious about vet school, so I contacted my homeschoolfng group 'prtnctpal' (he's really more of a frlend). He told me of a free course through the local publtc school system called Regtonal Occupadonal kogram that had a flve-month veterlnar5r asstrstant course olfered. I enJoyed the class and made several frlends but dectded that I dtdn't really want to make that rqf career.

Also, I got lnvolved tn gettlng parts tn plays at the communit;r theater, I took a theater danc.e class, I got very lnterested ln playtnS ptano (for three years now), and I started writing music.

One teterestlng hobby I took up was pen-pals. I now spend ttne $'Tttlng to slx frlends whom IVe never met.

Another thtng my parents dldn't get lnvolved in or help a lot with ts a nenrsletter I put out every two months called Teens Edt$Ing Antmal Rights rEAR) News. It takes up a lot of time and I get lnforrnaflon for it from other anlmal rtglhts orglanizaUons, the lfbrary, people I meet, and thtngs I leamed ln the veterinary asslstlng class.

Wrtung poetry ts another thtng I do on my own, and I recently purchased a rhymlng dtc6ona4r to help me cheat lf I'm stumpedl So, my parents helped me wlth the baslcs like math, English, geography, readtng, etc., but I have found ways to get involved in rny lnterâ&#x201A;Źsts lf my par,ents can't help me.

Learning about Horses and Crocheting Ftotrt Jotdana Sadger (MI): I uranted to know more about horses and to leam to ride. [a.st sprlngurcnrcnt to get nranure for the garden, My mom had called about horse manure from an ad she found In the paper. My brother and slster and I went wtth her to get tt.

As urc shorcled the manure into the traller we talked with

Mrs. Gulsinger, the woman who had placed the ad. She told us about her horses, Before we left I asked tf I could come and learn to ride the horses ln exchange for cleanlng out the stalls. She satd I c.ould. Slncc then she has taught me how to rlde and care for horses.

I also wanted to learn how to crochet. My grandma showed me how to make a chaln and two sdtches. I used those stltches to make my own deslgns. I couldn't leam any more from my grandma because she lfircs too far anray.

Then I saw the fancy crocheted dresses that a woman named Mrs. Bouvier makes for baby dolls and real babtes. I saw them when I went wlth rrry mom to see her frtend Yolanda, Mrs. Bouvier's daughter. Mrs. Ebuvler taught me how to make a shell stltch and another sfltch I don't know the name of. She doesn't speak much Engltsh (she is from Ftance). I do not speak French so itwas klnd of harrd to understand her. She has ollered to teach me how to make baby dresses.

Using the Library Flom Rosal{nd

SIr4PlleA

MD):

My parents usually know anythlng that I want to know or am interested tn, but tf they don't know, I Just turn to the library.

There ls a big library near our house that has a computer that you can type ln the subJect you want to know about, and lt wlll ltst several books on the subJect, alongwtth their authors and other necessa4/ informadon that you need to llnd the book. Once I was very interested in hang gliders. IJust got Mom to take me to the library, and I used the computer to llnd several books on the subJect.

Neighbor Helps with Electronics Nathant Wllltamson

NN

wdtes:

Haveyou everwondered whatwas lnslde of aTV, or maybe your radio? Most ltkely you have. I know that I sure dtd. When I was 9, I was fond of taktng apart anythtng that ran offbatteries and trytng to put lt back together (though I was not normally successful). The slmple ldea that somethlng ran wlthout little Martlans runnlng anound Inslde lt making lt work was of great interest to my young mlnd.

Anyway, two years ago a m.rn moved to the land near us and Dad went up to say hl. It turned out that the ruln was an electronics wlzard. Things moved fast from that polnt on. One thtng led to another and soon our nelghbor had brought over some hlgh impedance speakers flike the ones used in phones) and had shown me how to make the simplest AM detector (r:adto). Soon after that, driving back home from my btrthday celebradon at 9:3O pm, I began reading a stmple electronlc 'how-to' book by the ltght of the FASTEN SEAT BELT glow ln our car. I-a.ter Joe, the friendly neighbor, brought over some phones for me to tear apart (I was getttng good at that) and showed me why some of it worked (there were not any Mardans). I must admtt, I was sdll most thoroug;hly confused. My tnterest quadrupled and I began vislUng the library on a regular basts. I began readtng book after book. Normally, I would check out flfteen Soo-page books and read two or three.

Still, my interest held through tt all and I tumed from one who would not read a nonllctton book for money to one who only read books on equaflons and theory, My frtends thought I was nuts.

Who would read books on math?t One year later, I'm not exaggerating when I say IVe read all the books about electronics in our live-branch library system.

Then slowly I began buying equlpment" I would go to auctions and buy huge old hunks of outdated equlpment that the Unlverslty of Vtrglnta had dectded to Junk for pennles, and then I'd rip them up $es tndeed I was getttng real good at this). Only this time, I salvaged what I thought useful. I'm sflll dolng the same thing now only I'm a llttle more ptcky. My "electronic area" now occuples one room, two tables, four shelves, two cablnets, and

Grourtng Wlthout Schoollng #82

2T

most of the floor (I'm not ttrat fond of cleaning up). I'm now butldtng and destgntng a ham radlo, and llntshlng a 2O-watt PA system. Joe ls very busy but does stop by occaslonally to give a helpful answer or some plece of electronlc treasure. Sometimes when I'm rcally shrck, I call hlm on the telephone. It's made a big dlfrerence havhg sotneone who can help troubleshoot with me and who really has an lnterest ln electronlcs.

I thlnk the most tmportant thlng (second to lnterest) ls to READ books, books, and yes, rnore books. Ifyou don't have sorneone to spend a lot of ume wlth you (most of us don't), then readfng ls sâ&#x201A;Źcond best along wlth dotng. So lf your mom and dad thtnk of equlpment as Marflan-operated, get a ltbrary card and try to flnd a helpful nelghbor.

Leanning to Sew: from a Homeschooling Group Member...

F}om Mona Webvr (NY): When I tumed 9, I wanted to sew, Nelther my mother nor my father could help me, because they dtdn't know how. Sure, Dad could sewon patches for hls pants, and Mom can sew up holes, but that's not what I meantl I ruanted to make clothes. So Mom and Dad hclped me Ilnd books, bought me material, and I began to sew At llrst I Just fooled arnund, sewlng a sklrt or two for my Barbie dolls. But then I started maklng head bands, etc.

I soon lost lnterest tn sewtng, but then my mom found that a woman ln our home educators group was very skillful at sewing, so I took lessons from her, and here I aml

...and from a Neighbor F}om

agreed to work wlth me. So I started to learn the btrds and thelr calls. We met together a few tlmes. Then we went on the May Bird Count together, whlch really got me lnto blrds.

One day my dad came back from a mornlng walk and sald, 'You know, that house down the road Is getflng all your blrds.' So the next day, I went with hlm on hts walk to see thls house, and I saw to my amazement a house wtth seven blrd Geders and btrds ever5rwhere. After a wtrlle, we met wlth our nelShbor and she showed us around her place. After she found out that I was interested tr btrds, she asked lf I could take care of her placc while she was gone, whtch mostly meant feedtng the btrds. I agreed.

After a whtle, I slowly lost rny tnterest tn btrds for about half I got really interested agaln and started trylng to learn thelr calls by ptcktng a btrd call that I dtd not know and stallidng towards tt wtth a blrd book ln one hand and binoculars in the other. Once I got close enough to tt, td try to tdendff it. After I tdenttlled tt, I would tr5r to memorlze tt. If I heard tt agaln, I would try to say the name of the btrd and tf I couldn't remember the name, I would get to go stalking again.

I also constantly look out my wtndow to watch the btrds. If I see a new blrd I qutckly get out my bird book and look through tt for the bird. If I cannot ltnd tt, I qutckly call up our nelghbor and tell her all about the btrd, and she usually can tell me what ktnd tt is. Nowthat I amvery lnterested tnbtrds, our nelghborhas glven a year, Then

me three blnd feeders, and encouraged me to go witll her to the Monticello btrd seed sale. I got 175 pounds of blrd seed wtth some

of the money I had eamed from taktng care of my neighbor's placc. Now my netghbor and I go on btrd walks together, and she is teachlng me blrd calls. I call her up a lot ashdng her questions and now she is giving me lots of plants that btrds ltke and taldng me on bird and flower trips on our btkes. So I thtnk that the Btrd Study merit badge really helped me get lnto blrds, and our neighbor has helped me sustaln my lnterest,

Meldg Tash (PN:

I declded I nranted to learn to sew, and my mom dldn't know much about lt. She had done It when she was younger, but she wasn't that lnterested ln tt anymore. She had a sewlng machlne, but lt's very compllcated and lsn't good for learnlng to sew.

My next door netghbor really ltkes to sew and does a lot of stuffwlth her hands, llke woodworktng and painting. She had been telltng me that she wanted to work wlth me on something. We dectded to get together for sewtng, and decided to sew a skirt first.

My nelghbor told my mom that lt rntght be nicc to find me a little sewtng machlne that I c-ould work with on my own, so my mom went to a garage sale and found a cute ltttle sewing machine and brought lt home. It turned out that the sewing machine that my mom got was an antlque. We were looking at the machine careful$ and all of a sudden we reallzed we had broken lt, Just by movlng lt around, We looked ln the owner's manual and it told us how to llx lt, so I also learned from dolng that.

Mearrwhile I had been learntng a lot at my nelghbor's house, and made the sktrL I really lke sewlng now. I've made things for rny hatr, and some doll clothes, worldng on my own machlne.

Studying Birds Flom Ryan Wtlllanson MN: It all began when I started to draw birds. I would run downstalrc after dotng my schoohvork and go to my closet where my art supplles urere set up. There I would draw blrds from my little Golden btrd book. Whenwe moved to Vtrginia, I got more interested tn blrds, notJust ln drawlng btrds but in btrds themselves.

So I made three bird feeders. TWo nwergot put up but the one that did ts sHll ln use. Ttren I got my dad to buy me some bird seed and I started feedlng the blrds. When the blrds came to the feeder, I would tdentE any that I dtd not know and wrtte tt down. Then when IJolned Boy Scouts, I got lnterested tn getting the Bird Study merlt badge, so Mom called up a frtend of ours who ts a naturalist and asked trtm tf he was qualllled and wtlltng to teach me. He

Growtng Wthout Schooltng #82

Stamp Collecting and Stamp Business F-tom CoIh KIng oJ Mtruesota:

I started collectlng stamps at the age of 4. I c.ollected everything from postage stamps to book club stamps, saving them in old shoe boxes, I am now 12 and would not be so lnterested ln stamps if my parents had not glven me their stamp collection.

They helped my lnterest get started, but when I got more serious about stamp collecting, they dtdn't know too much about lt. They made suggestions, but I learned most of what I know now by myself from readtng ardcles wrltten by stamp collectors ln philatellc newsletters and from readtng catalogues.

My parents suggested I get the Scott Publtshtng stamp catalogues. These give you the recent prlces for the htghest qualtty of all the stamps issued by all of the countrtes o[the world. These

22 catalogues are usd b5l ctllectors all over the world. While ordering them from the library I learned how to use the card catalog by

myself.

When I got the Scott catalogues I organlzed my collecdon accordtng to the Scott numberlng system, which ldentifles the stamps of the world, The Scott numberlng system helped me leam

my own flltng system.

Then I started rrry outn buslness. I specialize in buck and pheasant huntlng stamps and trout ffshtng stamps. I put want ads tn the local paper. Feoplc call me and I buy their stamps from them. I knew about the newspaper because I read lt every week. I sell my stamps to a dealer tn Mtnneapolts. My dealer sent me an aucUon catalog for stamps. I found a block of four 1984 unused buck hunttng stamps. I btd for tt at $35 and I got it.

I was spendlng so much of my money that my parents suggested making a budget It helped me understand the relationshtp betrveen my lncome and my expenses. It ls very hard to stay tn yourbudget. The ltttle I eam ls not enough for the stamps I want to buy. My parents sald that people always want to spend more than what they earn.

Easy to Find Help Ilom Astra Taglor (GN: When I need to Bnd out about somethlng or want to learn about somethlng that my parents don't know much about, I usually hrrn to the obvtous source of lnformation - a book my fanlly has or one at the local library.

I always sâ&#x201A;Źem to find everythtng I need from books. Sometlmes I do seek outslde help when my parents don't know much about somethlng, though. Recently I took a babysttting class. I regtstered and pald for lt myself. It was quite fun and I learned a lot, such as CPR and how to handle a lot of different situations. I thlnk taldng a class ls a great way to learn about something you cruldn't leam about otherwlse.

There's not really one thing I'm lnterested in that my parents aren't tnterested ln or don't know much about. I'm lnterested in a lot of thtngs, such as playlng ptano, wridng, and sometlmes even dolng home-schoolwork, That's all stull I learn about by myself, but my parents are always there for me to ask for help. There are

some things I'm leaming about that my parents don't know much about, though, llke antmal rtghts. Sometlmes I go to the library and get books out on that subJect and learn a lot.

If I was a ldd who was really lnterested tn somethtng my parents didn't know much about, lefs say sclence, I'd probably get a few books I had or else go to the llbrary and get some and read them. Then maybe I'd look and see lf there were any classes I could take. After that I'd probably try to talk to someone about sclence maybe a frtend who was a sclentlst. There's lots of ways to learn stulf even lf your parents don't know much about something. All you have to do ls put a ltttle more effort tnto llndtng some lnfor-

matlon.

ThoughLs

from a Parent

Flom Jacque Wilhotrtson MN: Although I was not homeschooled, by the tlme I was tn high school I had become passlonately tnterested tn the natural sclences. My parents introduced me to a research btologtst they knew. Dr. Harris literally took me under hls wlng, Inviting me to come to his lab whenever I could. I spent many Saturdays and school holidays ln hls lab or wtth htm tn the fleld. He lntroduced me to dissectlon, then gave me a quality mlcroscope and a formaldehyded pigeon to take home. As his ofllce was next door to the cadaver room where med students learned human anatomy, the tdea of dtssectlon seemed very lrnPortant to me. After months of it, I decided I was far more lnterested tn how livlng beings react than ln portng over a smelly dead antmal.

Dr. Harrls was tnvestlgattng genedcs, so he set me up wlth fruit flies. We'd discuss what I was curious about invesfigaflng but as I recall, I was the one who ultimately dectded what I was going to do. My research was not an extension of hls, but I deftnitely looked up to him for advice. As I got more lnterested, he spent time showing me how to do research tn the medlcal ltbrary, qulte different from loolidng up ardcles ln the Reader's Guide to Periodical Llterqtrrel He got permtsslon for me to use the library alone and to check out materlal. Inttially, my research was Just messing about with fruit flies and wridng down my observatlons.

I tried working wlth genetlcs. I recall betng awed when Dr. Harris showed me some of his work on the electron microscope and noted to me how it related to my research.

I worked two or three years with Dr. Harris. My research finally took some surprislng hvlsts, qdng tn wlth space experiments and in the end betng the basls for my belng a Westinghouse Science Talent Search seml-finalist.

What I IInd lnteresflng tn looklng back on thls experience is what effect it had on me. Did I become a sclentlst? No. I dropped out of biologl my llrst week of college because I saw its orientadon going in the direction of dissecdon, I'd leamed enough about myself during my experlence wtth Dr. Harrls to know that wasn't my way. I went lnto experlmental psychologr and from there lnto educatlon, whlch ls where I am today. From my tn-depth experience with Dr. Harris, I lorew myself well enough to sktp the casdng around stage ln college. Although I am not a research biologfst now, the sktlls I learned with Dr. Harrls have been very much a part of my life. I learned how to take an interest and explore it to the hilt, to observe, to ask for advtce, to dlscuss, and to use a library. My profession now of homeschooling our children and of testing and evaluating homeschoolers ln Vlrgtnta is fullllling because lt fully taxes those skllls I began learnlng when I worked with Dr. Harris.

Now when my children become interested ln somethlng, I urge them to go for it. By encouraging them to lmmerse themselves in an interâ&#x201A;Źst, I'm not expectlng them to begln a professlon early, but rather to make the most of thelr lnterests and let that lead where it will. Where it wlll lead ls not for us to knowyet, but the Prosess is a powerful experience.

Growing Wthout Schooltng #82

23

Homeschooling Siblings Busy Big Brother I\omJdy tuer

(BC):

same group?'and made me move. I didn't

understand why we couldn't sit together at the end. We were both going to the same place.

I am 13 and have two stblings. IVe homeschooled for as long as I can remember, nerrer havlng attended publtc school.

My two younger brothers, Robtur ( ) and Kyle (9 months), are very close to me. Robtn ls always begghg me to spend more tlme with hfrrl I probably spend about 2-4 hours a day readlng to htm, talking to htm, and playfng wtth hdm. Kyle has other ways of getttng me to pay attentlon to hdm, mainly whining, clapplng, and bouncfiag up and dorrrn. I usually spend l-2 hours a day playlng u/ith him, and 5 hours holding

I stopped going to preschool after a couple of months, and Willlam didn't go back to Kindergarten after Chrtstmas. We haven't been back to any school since then.

We don't have to do everything together as homeschoolers. When I Jotned the basketball team, William wasn't lnterested, even though we llke playlng basketball together at home, Even when we'rc at home together we might be readtng different books or doing dillerent math, but a lot of the historv and literature and science we all do togeiher, Ifs good to be

html Because I am homeschooled I am able to spend the Ume that I do wlth myyounger brothers. I'm sure that I ryouldn't be able to spend as much dme with them lf I went to school. Even though I only work five hours a day (three hours schoolwork, two hours chores), Robtn ts always c.omplalnlng, "Why does Jody have to do hts schooltng?'

Yesterday Robln told my mother,'Jody ls tm slck to do hts schoolworkl" I explained to htm that lf I was too slck for schoolwork, I would be too stck to play wtth hlm. He was outraged, to say the least.

Even thoug;h I'm avery busy big brother, I sdll have tlme to read my evergrowtng selectlon of science ftcHon books and support my chtef hobby, stamp collecttng. Robtur ts sure he'll be a starnp collector when he's 13. I am very thankful that I do homeschoollng. Otherwtse, being a responslble, caring, and lovtng big brother would be nearly tmposslble.

Mostly Get Nong F\om Sage Marth

(PED:

In my famtly there are llve boys and two gfrls. The oldest ls 29 and theyoungest is lO. Three of my brothers and my sister

don't Uve wlth us. Seamus ls the oldest at home. He is 15, ln grade lO. He started gotng to school tur grade 8. I think I get along wtth Seamus better than I do with Micah because Mtcah ts almost the same age alr me - I am 12 and he ls almost I l.

My frtends all thfnk thelr brothers and slsters are geeks, and norer hang out wtth them. They thtnk I'm crazy because I mostl5r get along wlth mtne.

I

know klds ln my nelghborhood who are hardly aware of thelr younger slbllngs because they llve ln such dlfferent worlds. able to talk about these things together.

If I went to school, it would really bother me to leave my 2-year-old brother Ian behind for so many hours during the day. He's so much fun,

Learning to Respect Young Children FJom William Yowtg (GA): Even though my brother Alec and I would be ln dillerent grades at school, we'd probably be pretty close. But I don't think it would be the same for my 2-year-old brother Ian. I know kids in my neighborhood who are hardly aware of their

started drawing all the time Just [ke us, and he's even made up characters ofhis own called 'Apple Man'and 'Cheese Man.'When we go out and do ttrings wtth our dad, Ian almost always comes; we don't thtnk of htm as 'the baby,' but rather as one ofthe guys.

Some frlends of my mother and father have c.ome over and not known how to teat a young child. First they make him the center of attenUon, then they don't want to pay any attentlon to htm. It's like they want to turn him on and olf. Young children shouldJust be able to be a normal part ofthe group.

Our next door neighbor was talking on the telephone when his youngest chtld, about the same age as lan, started to cry.

Without even asking her why, he Just stuck a paciller ln her mouth, and contlnued with his conversation. I think that's awful - treattng a child like a machine.

I thtnk my dme wlth lan, besides betng fun, has taught me to respect the lntelligence, sense of humor, and feelings of young chtldren. I thtnk a lot of grownups have never learned that lesson.

Doing Things Together FYom Angellque Zhvoskg:

My sister is 7. I'm 6. I listened to my slster read a library book and lt helped me to be able to read the book to my mama. My sister and I help each other butld thtngs.

We also help each other get on the pony.

We are Interested to lear more abp,ut the relattonshlps futunen honeschmltng siblings - atd, its OK to tell us tle negathrc slde oJ tltngs, too.

younger siblings because they live in such different worlds. You have to be around a baby a lot to understand the chtld's language, etc, Ian ls more than my baby brother.

He's my friend, because I spend more time with

him.

School Separated Them l\om Alec Yotutg (GA): When I was 3 years old I started going to preschool at the same school where my brother Wtlltam was golng to klndergarten. I remember wdktng wlth Wtlltam down the hall and gotng tnto the classroom wlth hlm. The teacher asked how old I was.

I satd I qras 3, and she told me I was ln the wrong place. I wanted to go wlth my brother. Later when we were waltlng for Mom to ptck us up I sat next to William, but a lady came up and asked, 'Are you ln the

Growlng Wthout Schoollng #82

If I went to school I'd probably get home while he was taking a nap, and when he got up I'd be out with my friends. If I went to school I might never take the time to be with Ian, because I wouldn't have had the time to seb how much fun he is, Alec and I draw all the time. Right now I'm working on a lot of cartoon-t5rpe characters, and Alec is drawing a lot of super-heroes. Ian has

l.Z<:r-,

%L

History Without Textbooks plgnning Tour at Historical Society Jason lrgral,am l?Wl urrltes:

Library. The Htstorical Society has a pass that I am using to research the material. I enJoy the college library's atmosphere, and

Abraham Ltncoln Famtly paper dolls, whlch have been loads of fun for T.J. to dress. He was fntrlgued by Mary Todd's

they have a lot of good books. [.ast week, I was tn the Rare Collectlons secdon, whlch ra almost a whole library ttself. I was uslng tire account book of a princeton farmer to frnd the types of crops, labor, and commerce that went on there. The book was two hundred years old' and to mv

dresaes. He was also glven a set ofcut-out Clvll War llgures, and because he's only 5, Just cutdng out the small people proved to be a task whlch demanded a blt of perslstencc. Our set of Llncoln Logs resurfaced

one of my hardest subJects \1 at3ravs beenwrtung' Because:{HJt":1d3,., t coyl$' That was unttl I, ]duttg bscaflre a vrolunteer at ute ftlnceton liT[T,r"t*.

Hrstorrcal soctety. r lltt r "t"tit r,""Jir,ilv? three rnontrrs ""*itii;lTJ.ftrilt leamtng aboyt"ri". t-rfstory' and I thought. *orkas *"y of I".*lng to wrlte. My worktng at the Htstortcal Soclety rntght be " a lot of writing, and requires

i6J*'

fun' lgclety fe.s1n tn.$e - t"ty "Plk at lhg photo archlrrce' t"lthg-fl]1^lt5ryPc new ptcturâ&#x201A;Źs lnto the archlves. Alter a whlle I stopped urorktng ln the archive"

n*1i:lilgf;n

i-1.", t;;;;; ilit.. ni"t 'y, ""i io"E'*v proJect, how to wrtte. I iam mottvated to learn li:"ttrr; time t spend researching in the ;; l3*ry'

and along wtth the agrtcultural

" d:!'.1#.*:?.::" il| tl3:flj*1y.:#:'ffiffi.'

n""'

and.began iarnhg on the hlstory of Princeton. Whtle t was :proJect' as well as how to write' rcadtng the tour g,rra" r"r..#ii"-", vrrtflng down any questlons or cpmments I had. When I urcnt orrerwhat I had r_ead-wtth FaSCinated by the Dlrrector of Educadon, Phtltp Hayden, I got up the oourage to tell htm *irr. id."r had concemlng the ulalhng tours. One of MoreJromshariHeruy (MN): them was to put together a tour that dealt wtth the hlstortcal aspects of ltfe in Prtnceton 9.rrr'g lh: lfk d -y td!a, and I am-now rcsearchlng *y pieoicupation with playing war. the matertal to put togetherJust such "o.r'"'1). (O hjs collect.a ,i irray of iiio"gt,

itg..

Abraham Lincoln

i

*1':: _T1:_T;I_. *-*'-?TH,:ff:S:lTlJ#0,

**

" "i"t flfXmj:ffi.':T,*'"X}lJ:Xiliil"i,," lryl"c..!"",.1" I'm !i*dp"." old Air Force parafrhernalia. looklng for ls not ln one-olry: to nrght, ti seems he will !f$l_ wtrlchmeansIhlvetoS.,,9!{1qqT: Fio-'tr.otning only change fl-rn oi. rnilitary untform to *:*"!l1q lnformadon' RtghJ n9w I-T another, and often I can no lo'nger resist what farmers ln the Prtnceton ittt tcrint, insisung that he flid someT"It* dotng durtng the dlfferent seasons. I *hi"g CfiJi" pi"y. fi,rf. f *iff pretend tour.

r have had a rot orrun p99arc! thls proJect. The tnformadon

started my-research tn thc_Hlstol:_al__ ;; hi-ve struck airy sort of balance "ot betwecn Soctety's_ltbrary, gotng-throug! blogr.a- . ,"y f.r"o"J-i""6mfort with war play- and phtes of Prtnceton restderrts, the freedom to exploL, lJ:,gy_!:rk" "tio.ili"g T.J. of the -surroundlng coundes, perlodicals, r-"$".1 and play unlnternrpt&, I have agrlcultural meeflng Jour.nal,l,,ne3rcqaRer beefr i*.a by his'stncertty of lnteMews, and other *lil|l"; "o-.*hlt interest in anything hahng to do wilh the Pl"-! ., book would have a ltttle blt of tnformatlon .y, incl;ding- impoiant rnilitary -iUt on what the farmlng-and farmers of the ngrrr.Jof tn. past ind present and events Prlnceton area were ukt:1-"^!Il{-Ll-18." sirrounding ih. *.r" ihemselves. to put together what a hnceton farmer

i?glc-lli _1"t0 n how the farnrcrs ryould-plow,a

,,,ai ute.-vet therewas

harvest corn. I had used,up_11"_* ld,pl.^, ilt,.l!|. my Soclety': books, so now I harrc- moved research to the Prlnceton Unlverslty

*-ffi ll;,.?l:*:ffiH:?5"T#' soldiei's hat he-found in'a hat shop. upon his new find, his grandpa (a

,-f

"eeing ti;gfiil Uig; t"'t.ii Jf r.;;"

g*;afath., iho

g.."t-

fought in the Civil War.

| "nd *. all laughed aihow odd that had Math, Science, Language Arts, | ""Hi.'.Hierest did not wane upon our

EdUCatiQnal SOftWafe Sclence & Nature books, kits, and.robotics

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return home. He began to spend hours c.olortng pictures tn his Civil War Uniforms coloring book, wanting to be exact in the colors he chose. We found ourselves ln

the library and bookstores going through varlous books on the Civil War and on Abraham Llncoln. As soon as we got home, we read D'Aulaire's Abraham ljncoln ln one sltting, and he was fasclnated wlth every detatl. Still not satislled, he checked

out Freedman's Uncola' A Plwtob@ra-

phy, and we read through that as well, We also added more colorlng books to our \ollecdon and came across a set of

enorrnous dresses and the fancy head-

and werc modeled lnto homes replicating the one llncoln may have lived ln. L{fe magazlne happened to run a speclal issue on Llncoln In February, and the check-out person at the grocery store was surprised at T.J,'s lnslstence on buylng it. He pored through lt for days, aslidng quesdons, câ&#x201A;Źpytng headtngs, and drawlng plctures based on the portratts. He experlenced a renewed lnterest ln clunting money by playing wtth all of hls colns wlth Lincoln's portratt on them. And how excited he was to get $5 on Valentlne's Day from his grandma, notJust for the amount but because he had yet another plcture of

Llncolnl

The most lnterestlng polnt of all this to me ls that, tn the mtdst ofT.J.'s eagerness to leam about Ltncoln, I bought a poster of the United States presidents and a book dtled The Buck Stops Here which, ln rhyme, presents all of the presidents, thlnldng I would teach T.J. about some more o[t]re presldents as long as he was lnterested ln one. Naturally, he quickly located Llncoln on the poster and llipped the pages ofthe book to get to the pages about Llncoln. I knew I was sttll growing lnto unschoollng when I had to resist the urge to help TJ. memorlze the rh5rme or encourage htm to look at the other pictures

more closely, For now, I'm qulte c-onfident that T.J. has a terrlflc grasp of many events surroundlng Llnc.oln's presidency and the Clvtl War. I'm also certaln he wlll retaln much of the lnformailon as he grows slnce he has learned by his own motlvation and lnterest. And, as for the other presidents, T.J. heard somethlng about a general named Eisenhower,..

.

Good Materials I*da

Hdzbauer (NY) wdtes:

My husband Kenny and I both had a set of Golden Book Encyclopedlas when we

were children. In those days, tt was available at supermarkets, a dlfferent volume each week or month, (Now tt ls available cheaply at yard or librar5r book sales.)

Although not an extenslve or thorough c,ollecflon of tnformatton, the set is com-

pletely chtld-frlendly: short entries wlth surprlsin$y good lnformatlon. Kenny and I both read the set as ldds, Kenny feigplng

lllness frequently to stay home from school to read. I know that I later was quite successful tn history because ofmy early studles ln the Golden Book.

Grac,e (9) disc.overed the set too. What she ltked at flrst was the entrles accompan5dng each new letter: the hlstory ofthat letter from cave-drawlng-type shapes to

Growlng Wthout Schooltng #82

25 the modernversion. One day she surprlsed me by buslly wrtflng a book on the hlstory of the alphabet. Thls tntercst led her to

books on anc'lent clvlllzadons, mythologr, the trlstory of vrrlttng etc. She has palnted ptctures wlth ground-up stone, built pyramlds out of blocks, and rnade Vlldng oostumea - all lnsplned orlglnally by a small encyclopedl,a entqr.

Wc also ltke old rcGrenc.e books that other people thlnk are outdated, llke school geography books, maps, almanacs.

You can learn qulte a lot about Amertca ln the Depresslon by readlng even the ads ln an old almanac; tn fact, you see a slde of average Me that htstory books rarely deplcL We also have serrcral school geographles from the ear\r l9th century, complete wlth hand-tlnted maps and dmdles by real ldds. Although that feature ls not a stde beneflt of errery old geography, the hlstory of natlonal borders and Amerlcan expanslon ls evldent. Also entdent ln some ts the Jtngotsm and preJudlce that ts the legacy our country tnhertted, something we

all need to understand,

History is about People

problems, their spirituality, their moral fiamework, etc. But I tell them primarlly because it interests me.

I occasionally find children's library books that appear to be interesdng and htstorically accurate. Sometlmes I ask the ldds if they want to check a book out, and they usually say no because there are other books that they want, Often I check it out anyway because Iam interested, and when I get tt home and start looking at lt, the klds gravitate over to see whafs so lnteresting. We have a good time with tt, and sometimes it leads to other topics. But I nerrr require any of this. I don't push them to read, or make them memorlze, or even force them to listen (when they have

Hlstory, see, ls Just people.

And people are fasclnatlng ' common people and monarchs, famous people and unknown people, people who move the world and peole who never move from home.

Janc Wllson (TN) urltes: When Ethan and Hannahwere about 7 and 4, we were drtving down the road talldng about the sltuadon tn England durtng the retgn of KtngJohn. How did we get to that? Well, one of the klds had asked about George Fox, the founder of the Rellgfous Soctety of Frlends (Quakers), of whlch we are members. In ansurcrtng that quesdon, I found that I had to back up and speak about vartous movements of the

Protestant Reformaflon, Marttn Luther, Henry VIII (tt's always dllllcult to denote the begtnntng and the endlng of a story trlstory llows from one thlng to another).

Then I had to leapfrog back to the early l20oswhen the Pope placed En$and under an tnterdtct and excommunicated King .Iohn (tt all llts lnto the Reformatlon, you know). And because I was telling this with all the solemnity of Kermlt the Frog râ&#x201A;Źportlng a fatry tale, the klds were laughtng and maldng snlde remarks and asHng me what happened next and - well, we werejust havlng such a good time. I reallzed that I was presentlng ldeas to the ldds th,at I hadn't even heard of 'dl I was almost grown - the flow of trlstory, the causes and elfects, the repercusslons - and that they were tuned tnto what I was saytng and were understandtng.

Htstory, see, lsJust people. And people are fasctnatlng - oornmon people and monarchs, famous people and unknown people, people who move the world and people who nerter move from home. I hear folks talldng about the grace and beauty of

matrematlcs; htstory, too, ts full of a rhythm and a flow, a natural current that ls alnrays movtng. So when I talk htstory to the ktds, lt doesn't lnvolve dates and places or borlng textbooks 0*, as a lover of htstory I wlll tell you that trlstory textbooks are borlng). It's about people. And I don't tell the ldds about these thtngs in order to teach them htstory. True, I want them to know about people - thelr lives, thelr chotces, thetr mtstakes, thelr

cut me short with, "Yeah, Mom, but I need

upsettlng eplsodes of history. Facts are facts, but they sttll have to be filtercd fn order to be approprtate for the age of the chtld. For example, when your 3 year old asks how the baby got tn Mommy's hrmmy, you don't shout the kid an x-rated movte.

You answer ln away that a 3 year old can

handle, Svlng only as much lnformatlon as the ktd asked for. You respect hls limtts.

Well. the Holocaust ls a fact. But erren though my klds are now lO and 13, I would not gfve them graphlc descrlptlons. It's quite enough to say that'horrlble thtngs' were done, wtthout being any more speclfic undl whatever age each tndtvtdual chtld ls ready to handle more (some 13 year olds might be ready, but I'm 42 and I Ond speclflcs of the Holocaust very dllllcult to handle).

One of the saddest thtngs l\re heard was from a lO-year-old gtrl who told me that her dad had started watchlng a documentalf sâ&#x201A;Źrles about the Nazls'concentrauon camps, created from lllms and ptctures taken at the dme. The gtrl had come lnto the room, watched for a moment, and then exclalmed ln horor and started to leave. Her father declared, 'Thls ls somethlng you have to know about,' and he forced her to slt there and watch tt. With a distressed look on her fac.e and actually wringtng her hands, the glrl told me, "I kept trying to think about butterllies and flowers and ratnbows so that I wouldn't see

to get back to my drawing," or some such). I

that stuff.'

don't require them to do history proJects, or write history papers, or answer hlstory questions. Why? Because they like hlstory

of lt. When my ldds were llttle and asked

and I don't want to cause them to hate lt the way most people do as a result of havtng lt shoved down their throats in school.

lfyou want some good history books, you can start with Marjorie Kahl Lawrence's This Is the Wag It Used to Be ttr

the EatIA .l9OOs [avail. here, #76O, $4.5O + post.l and Eleanor Pruitt Stewart's ktters oJ a Woman Homestead.er [also avail. here, #432, $7 .95 + post.I Thomas B. Costian's series on the Plantagenet kings of England is very well researched and very entertalning (it will tell you why the interdict was so

tmportant). Frederick kwls Allen has two

excellent books, Only Yesterday, written ln the thlrties about the roaring twenfles, and Stnce Yesterday, written tn 1939 about the Depression (a very interesting perspecUve).

Another that I discovered recently ls A Ntght to Remembrr by Walter l-ord; a htstory written in the l95os about the Titanic, chock-full of eyewitness accounts, maritime evidence, newspaper stories, even rumors, and it ls stirring and suspenseful.

There's also plenty of historical flction, like Gone With tlE Winrl that can glve an accurate picture of the tlmes, but there's also a lot ofJunk that passes as htstorical liction, so watch your step. For kids, the American Girls books from Pleasant Company present a good view of Itfe during dlfferent historical perlods. A fascinating catalog of historical items and reprinted books ls available from Amazon Vlnegar and Pickling Works Dry Goods, Davenport tA 52803 $ou have to pay for the catalog but it's worth it - to purchase, call l-8OO-798-7979).

Now. about the difllcult matter of what to tell kids about some of the more

Another aspect ofhtstory ls how to tell about preJudtce wtthout trnpardng any about World War lI, I slmpltlled the Aryan tdea, reductng tt to hatr color. The lidds realtzed that such an tdeawould spllt our immedtate famlly tnto acceptables and unacceptables. That was all tt took for them to see that anyJudgments based on looks were unfalr and very hurtful. They brought the subJect back up several tlmes, exclalmlng over how stupld such an ldea And when I told them about slavery in the Untted States, I dtdn't characterlze lt by sldn cnlor. I sald that most of the slaves had come from Afrlca or been of Afrlcan descent. The ktds dldn't know enough at the ttme to realze that that mlght mean

any physlcal characterlsflca - an lnteresttng approach that let them see the badness ofslavery, at an age-approprlate level, but dtd not ltmlt tt to something that happened to another group of people. My WASP chil-

rlG

.--..,

Pinewood School Brinqs Home Educotion lo Yo-u (303) 838-4416

Olivio C,

Lorio

Director

SCHOOL I

l2 Rood D Pine Colorodo 80470 Seruing Home Educotors Since l98l

A

Growlng Wtthout Schoollrxg #82 6rl ,J

26 dren felt it could have happened to them.

In addtflon, I dtdn't teach my ldds that there are dlllerent races. Unttl they were 8 or 9, they descrtbed people by how they looked, not by labels (at that age they ptcked up the labels - the soclally approved ones - from thelr frlends, so then I had to orplatn about race). They would say, 'rJyho ls that person wtth dark skln?' ln the sameway they'd say, "Who ts that person wtth blonde hatr?'Thts ls not to say that my ldds are free of preJudlce, but theA preJudlces have grown out of thetr experlences: they tend to be preJudtced agatnst school ldds, smokers, and warmongers, wen though they know and llke some folks tn each group.

Learning about Native Americans C-lollrlde

Hadden (Lffi wrltes:

Our coun$r falqgrounds hosts a Native Amerlcan posr-wonr annuall5l. Last sumner we attended lt for the ffrst tlme, as we are new to Utah. Although the turnout of onlookers was sparrie, our curiosit5r forc.ed us to take seats on the bleachers and munch NavaJo fry bread whlle we waited

for the Gstlvitles to begin. l'lee ffrst errent was a dnrmming competidon. Members from half a dozen tribes competed. About slx or elght people sat around a flat, wlde drum, all of them beattng tt tn unlson, and a few of them chanting. It was mesmerlzlng and sptrttually

upllfttng.

The next event caught us unawares.

Wlth the contlnued beattng of the drums, people began to enter the grassy ffeld

danclng ln native dress. They llltered tn

slowly, dancing in rhythm. I was overcome by the beauty and detail of the dress and we all watched with wonder whlle several hundred Native Americans from all over the country danced in tribal dress. We left ln silence, except for my 4-year-old son, who exclalmed that next year he was golng to brlng hls drum.

Experlences outside the classroom and banal texts help us to teach something that few, ifany, schools are equipped to teach. Knowledge of the facts of drummlng, who drums and why, is useless wlthout knowledge of the feelings that drummlng releases and the lightentng of one's splrlt that lt forces. Only in this way are we able to feel a ktnshlp with Native Amerlcan llfe, and, ultimately, a true part of the world around us.

[SS:l Connle's letter, and Jane Wilson's before lt, make me thfnk that tt would be lnteresting to hear from other readers about how homeschooled chlldren have been able to meet or get to know people from ethnic, raclal, or religfous backgrounds that differ from their own. We have heard homeschoollng criticlzed because school - at least in its tdealized form - is supposed to allow thls sort of

mingling and multicultural understanding. In fact school often fails at this, and there's a lot to say about why that's so, But I think it would be especially interesting and helpful if we could show that homeschoolers have opportunities to meet people from a variegr ofbackgrounds.

A lVider Range of Information Keuin Sellstrom oJ Cd(fornit wt'ltes:

llow Adults Learn: Forrning a Writing Group Elsa Haas wrttes

fiom Spaln:

The naflve-En$tsh-speakers-only writers' group I started by putting up a noflce ln an Engltsh bookshop now has six members, counting me. I was meetlng with one wollan only for about two months. The rest have been coming for about a month now. We meet once or tudce a week In somebody's apartrnent or ln a bar.

Most of us have read Wrltug Doun the Bones by Natalie Goldberg [avall. here, #1526, $9.95 + post.; revtewed tn GWS #781, whtch got me out of a three-year wrtteCs bloclc In the two months after reading the first chapter of the book, I handwrote 259 pages, some of it actually good, and enjoyed myself most of the time while dotng tt. IVe slowed down slnce then, and don't write every day or even everyweek, butwhen I do tt's much easier than it was in the past.

In the meetlngs we read aloud thlngs we've brought with us and ask for comments, or else we all do what Natalie Goldberg suggests in the book we dme ourselves for ten or twenty mlnutes of non-stop, no-crosslng-out writlng, then read what we've wrltten aloud ln turn wlthout making any cornments to each other, then wrlte agatn, and so on. The quality of what we write this way ls astoundtng, because we'rrc sllenced the lnner crttic by glving no voice to the crltlclsms or even compllments of the llsteners. When we do cornment on each othet's wrlttng, I don't thtnk we'ne very capable yet of being honest. There are too many vaâ&#x201A;Źlue gustrtngs of, 'Wow, I really loved thatl" But we're progresstng. F'tve of us are from the U.S, and one ls from England, and we've been here in Spain between one and thtrtSr years. Meeting in the bar is sometimes amusing, because the walters come up and Interrupt us to tease us, gawklng at us as we read aloud.

Because of this we usually meet ln an upstairs room that's empty of people,

Over the last two years I have heard rnany lnterâ&#x201A;Źsttng and outrageous historlcal f;acts from ktds attendtng publtc schools. I leamed from the cooperatlve ellort of three Boy Scouts attemptlng to advanc.e ln rank that. 'In 1620, Christopher Columbus salled the Mayflower into San Franclsco Bay, and clalmed the bay for Merdco,' From another teenager I heard that the hmous Purttan Pilgrlms "satled tnto New York Harbor from France because they wanted to earn more money," and when I asked what the Pilgrims did tmmedfately upon landlng, I learned that they "vtstted the Statue of Ltbert5r, and clfmbed to the top.'

Upon casually questtonlng a 15 year old about the famous traveler Marco Polo. I was astounded to hear htm reply, "Mark who?' After I slmply told him that Marco Polo was a famous traveler, he announced, 'Oh, he's the guy that flew amund the world tn an atrplane,' referrlng to the Voyageur lltght of several years ago.

As I was wrtttu4 thts, I reallzed that I had forgotten some of the hlstory surroundlng Marco Polo, and his travels, so I looked tt up ln the encyclopedia to refresh my memory, and learned more at the same time. A publtc school counterpart ln the same sltuatlon would not llkely have been able to get up from somethlng else when he felt like tt to study a subJect that lnterested htm. He would most likely have been told by a teacher that he c.ouldn't read about that now because that was not on the class schedule. He urould probably have been told that he could study tt durtng a free period or at home, by whtch tlme he might have forgotten about lt or his lnterest would have dwlndled or been ldlled by a disapprovtng teacher.

I feel that by betng allowed to study what I want to and when I want to I remember lt better than I would if I were betng forced to learn it or tf I had to learn it at the teacher's convenlence. I also feel that by reading and learning from encyclopedias, ltbrary books, and other informadon ln addltlon to textbooks, I am getting a wlder range of lnformaUon than I would by reading the public school textbmks alone - thtngs llke how to hatch goose eggs or what's wrong with and how do I ffx -y ham radio set.

I thtnk that homeschool ls a better environment for me to learn in than a public school classroom because of the freedom to learn at my convenlence and pace. I flnd no pmblems wlth socialization because I 'go to a dilferent school," but rather people seem to be all the more interested ln me and my'school.' I am involved in Boy Scouts and amateur radio, I work at the local gun club (where other kids are tnvolved, notJust adults), I am a student volunteer at the local high school for the mentally lmpalred (and have met other homeschool and htg;h school teenagers there), and I am involved ln homeschool organizadons. I don't think that I have any problems soctaliztng, as some people would expect, although some people thtnk that slnce I am homeschooled I have

two or three brains or the knowledge of Elnstetn. I don't. I am more like your average planet Earth kid who rldes a btcycle and reads books (as compared to

writing

them).

Growing Without Schooling #82

27

Playing on School Teams Anne Brcsnan (NY) urlles: Last sprlng Beth, a frtend of mlne who

tfl

goes to a parochlal school, asked me llked to nrn. She was tnvlttng me to Joln

her school's track program. -They take anybody,'she satd, The next day she brought rne a form to flll out and we had to enclose a check for $lO to coner the fees for the meets and awards, She brought lt to school, and through her I had Jotned the team. I have no ldeawhatwould have happened tfl had gone stralght to the school. Certalnly tt helped a great deal that I kne$' somebody who could arrange thtngs for me.

I had never consldered the sport

of

runntng before, and I was apprehenslve about lt because all the other lidds had been runntng for a lot longer than I had. Dad Jogs a lot. and once or hylce I went wlth hlrn StlU, I thought I was golng to be the worst one on the tearn We pracflced two evenings aweek. At the llrst pracilce I met the two coaches. "Hl, you must be Anne,' they satd. 'You go to publlc school, right?" 'No,' I satd. "I go to school at home.'The flrst explanatlon had passed; ltttle did I know the thousands of tlmes I would have to repeat that sentence.

The track pracdces were done ln a slap-dash mannen all ages were practiclng together around the l/4 mtle track. It wasn't as hard as I thought lt uras golng to be. I uras one of the few people who dldn't know how to nrn a relay race, but I learned it ln llrrc seconds from one of the coaches. and she left tt to me to derrelop my techntque. Early on ln the season I found that I could pretty well hold my own tn sprtnttng, but what I really enJoyed was dlstanc.e runnlng. It dtdn't take me long to realtze that I loved to run - not lust the old tuindin-your-halr' reason foi Ildng to run; I lfked ltJust because I was golng somewhere, and fast. Now, whenever I walk anywhere, I feel like runnlng. Even a car seems slow. People would drop away from me and start urallrdng, and tallung. Nobody ever ran alone. People wondered why I dtd.

Sometlmes theywould run with me and try to llgure out what I was dotng that I enJoyed so much. If they asked me a question I would answer tt, but I dldn't encnurage a

full-scale conversatlon that requtred stopptng and walldng. Most of the dme the quesflon uras, 'Why are you runntng?' Not the litnd of questlonyou e:gect to be asked when you're on a track team, but I soon found out that most of the lUds did not like to mn. I asked a Gwof themwhy they Jolned the team, and ttrey answered, 'Because my friends are here.' Probably only a couple of the ktds there actually qanted to be there, frlends or no frlends, Most of the lidds couldn't make it to the meets. Ttrey came to the pracdces to soclallze. I sttll don't know some of the

ldds very well; they knew me as, 'Anne Brosnan. The Glrl Who Is Ntce But Runs

Alone.' I voluntarlly apprentlced myself to one ofthe coaches. She seemed surprlsed, but $ad, and I helped 0ll out cards and keep ltttle klds ln order. She'd get dlstracted and I d have to remlnd her what she

Growlng Without Schooling #82

was doing, or run errands for her across the fleld. Little kids posed a problem to me.

My only sister is two years younger than me, and I often feel uncomfortable with any kid under 9 or lO. I watched the other girls being cutesy and picking the little klds up, talldng to them like they were dolls. I thought, "Do those little ldds really like that stufl?" Some of them did, and they sensed that I wasn't like that. I felt stupld bending down to their lerrel, talking to them like I myself was only 2. So I didn't. Some of them were really intrlgued by that and latched onto me. If we had a

'You go to publlc school,

rlght?"

t'No,"

I

sald. "I go to school at home." Llttle dtd I know the thousands of tlmes I would have to repeat that sentence. mission, like going to buy soda, we were all right. If I had to keep a little kid entertained, then we were in trouble. Most of the time they would end up hitting me. I used to wonder if they were trying to get me to talk: Itnally I flgured out they just wanted to be chased around the track.

I could tell they wanted to know what I was like ("Who is this kid? Why doesn't she think I'm cute?'). Some of the little boys and I had long conversations. They'd start offwtth, 'What school do you go to?' "l don't go to school."

"Why not?'

"'Cause. I don't want to, and my Mom doesn't want me to."

"Why not?" "'Cause. Would you rather be in school or out?" "l don't know." "ls your teacher nice?" Most of the time they'd say, "Yeah. And we got to have plzza for lunch today.'

"Oh. Was it good?"

"Yeah. Don't you like pizza?'

"Well, yes, but lt's ldnd of greasy.'

Then they would say, 'l hate New Kids on the Blockl'as a change ofsubJect, and I would say, "Me too." If I said this to an older kid, probably Beth would be there and she'd take over for me. "Anne likes opera-- Groan.

I got along with the older kids prettSr well. I was one of the lew girls who treated the boys like they were people instead of 'boys.' I was practically teaching myself to run since the coach was always too busy and the other girls would stand around ln groups and talk about school. I guess maybe the boys, like the little kids, wondered what kind of person I was and why I didn't stand around with the other girls. Of any of the kids on the track, the older boys knew the most about runnlng, and I leamed what I could from them.

The biggest thing I noticed about the kids was that they are incredibly afraid of

adults. I knew from before that they would always go tn groups of at least two whenever they dtd anythtng; nobody errer did anythfng alone. I thought thls was Just friendllness, camaraderle, lnterdependence. Thls hypothests dlsappeared when I saw ldds belng lncredtbly mean to each othea talldng about other people right and left. But I uras rtght about tnterdependence they need ea.h other to face things, mostly adults, At the track meets I would be asked to go with someone to the bathroom. Nlne tlmes out of ten I would be the one who found the bathroom, because they dtdn't want to ask an adult where tt was. We d be walking tourards a door tn the school, and I'd say, 'I'll go try that door, and you go ask that man ln the unlform lf he knows where the bathroom ls.' Some of the ktds would look down at the ground, somewould

shmg, somewould murmur, allwould say, 'I want to come with you,'or'You go ask the man.'So I would, but I would sttll be curious. If I asked why they dldn't want to do lt alone, they'd shrug and say, 'I don't know. Why are you makfng me?' Usually I wouldn't torture them like that I d do the

asldng lfthere was any asldng to be done.

I never said outright, 'Why are you afrald of adults?' Or were they really afratd? Most of the lidds didn't even know me very well when they asked me to help them flnd the bathroom or go wlth them to IInd out about thetr race. Those ktds had two dtflerent faces. Wlth chtldren thetr age they seem so touchy and snappy. When somethlng comes up where they have to go outslde that age group, and confront someone older than themselves, thelr faces become perplexed and afrald.

I Joined track agaln tn the fall. The slze of the team had dwlndled. Only three other gfrls and no boys were there ln the upper grades. I was the only one ln the eighth g:ade. It was hard for me that fall because more than ever I was pressured to stay wlth that group of girls. But in fact, I liked them. They weren't as 'ln' as the group of gtrls the sprtng before. When I told one of them I was a homeschooler actually, two others told hec they made it thetrJob to let werybody know - she thought everybody was playtng a Joke on her, The only way we convinccd her was by telltng her to ask the coach. The prâ&#x201A;Źsumptlon ln the World of Chtldren these days is that adults always tell the truth, and that thelr word ls law, so if you ask an adult a quesdon, thelr answer ls always the flnal

Justlflcatlon.

It sometlmes almost tore me tn half when the coach would beckon to us to come and start runnlng, or say, 'Come on glrls, quit yakktngl' I wanted to run, the other kids wanted me to stay and talk. 'Why do you like to run? How can you go so fasf?

Why do you run wlth your head thrown back ltke that? How many blasted laps have you done, anyway?'These kids would ask me rapid-flre questions like the world was comlng to an end and they only had flfteen minutes to ffnd out about me, The Ilrst quesflon, of course, was, "What school do you go to?'

'I don't. I teach myself at home.' They

2t3

would pause, gape, look at each other, look at me.

'Watt a mlnute. You teach voursell?"

'YeP.'

'How?' 'Well, you knowwhenyou read a booKlAnd at the end ofthe bookyou have leamed werythlng that uras wrttten lnstde? Well, that's how I teach myseU.' 'Geez, you're luclgr. How many books do you read?'

'I harrc read 1,263 as of October 1983."

'WAIT A MINUTEI I know voul Aren't you the glrl who read ltke a mlilton books and knows thr,ee languages and was born a

genlus?'

'Slow down. Where the heck dld vou

hear that?'

'Mrs. Glass.'

The stck truth of tt is, gosslp is deadly.

I had beconre so exaggerated at the end of the track season that I uras practtcally a legend. They eventually got me to stop

runntng and talk about mysef, and I didn't

urant to hurt thetr feelings or be classllled as a snob, or have people thtnk I was too stuck-up to talk to them. I never told a lle or exaggerated any fact about my life, but they took what they squeezed out of me and stretched lt further. The lrony oftt ts, tfl had only talked a blue streak llke they did and trted to dtspel some of the m5rths about myself, tt mfght have sllenced some of it.

Of course I cut down as many of the untruths as I could as soon as I heard them.

I only know Engltsh and Ptdgen English, and I was notborn a genlus. Howerrer, more myths sprung up. My nickname was not The Girl Who Runs Alone" anymore but 'Mrs. Braln.'Ttrey forgot what I told them about math, that I know very llttle, and I hate tt. They asked tf Mom made me learn tt and I sald no, she doesn't care. Then thev oohed, and satd, 'Oh, I wlsh your -orn *"! my mom. Is your mother a genlus too?"

"No, she's an arttst,' Squeals of dellght and rolllng eyes showed that I had scored another htt. "An artlstl What does your dad do? Is he a professor.?'

'No, he's a heltcopter pllot"' 'What ktnd of muslc do vou like?"Oh, classlcal, folk, ragfrme.'

More small screarns and stares.

Ttrlngs reatly begtn to get anno5dng when I stop runnlng and take offmy sweatshtrt and underneattr they gltmpse a T-shtrt wlth a portralt of Albert Etnsteln on the front (what was I thfnking? why dtd I put thts T-shlrt on ln the morntng?). 'Lookl She's urcartng an Elnsteln T-shirtt' Some klds on the other slde of the track hear the sounds of screamtng gtrls u/aftlng through the evenlng atr, and they thtnk, 'I guess that gtrl Anne ts telltng someone more of her llfe story.'Tumtng to thelr runnlng partner, they say, "Did you know that gfrl doesn't go to school?'

'Yeah, I heard.'

'And she hasn't watched televtston ln three monthsl' 'I haven't heard that one. Tell mel' The fall that I reJolrred track, I also Jolned the school's basketball team. I had .

nerrer had much of a chanc€ to play

basketball before, even though we had our own hoop tn the drtveuray, because tt's only abolrt 7 I /2 feet hlgh because of the way the roof ls slanted (the regular hetght ts lO feet). I found out that all the other ldds

were a lot better than me, and I had my work cut out for me lf I wanted to get

anywhere. I couldn't dribble with my left hand or dribble without looklng at the

ball.

The coaches were f;athers of two of the girls on the team. Even though they must have been used to these kids, they had trouble keepinE keeping them ln order. If they wanted to get them to pracuce somethlng speciflc like Jump shots, it would take about llve mlnutes to get everyone ready.

The coaches spent most of tJle time taUdng to themselves. I took this opportuntt5r to ask them quesdons or ask them to help me wlth somethlng I was having a problem with. At first they seemed a llttle annoyed, especially when I was slow at learnlng something, but linally I became a proJect of theirs. I asked for attention and they gave It to me, Soon I learned to dribble with my left hand and with my head up. I practtced whenever I got the chance. I even came to practlce early so I could get ln a few extra shots. Slowly, I leamed how to make the basketball go into the hoop almost every

time I threw lt.

I soon learned that basketball ls one of the most violent games I have ever played. Most of the time I was so confused and I hardly had any idea what I was supposed to be doing there on the grm floor. That was one of my stumbling blocks. I wanted to know what was going on, what the rules of the game were, and I wanted to know everything before I threw myself into the play. The coaches didn't seem to know what to do with me since I seemed to want to know so much before I did anythtng, and when wewould be ln the middle of awild and (what seemed to me) unruly game, they would yell out a command to me and expect me to perform it instantly. I wanted to know things and I would ask people and get a conflicting answer from everyone I asked. All this led me to believe thaf the other kids didn't know what they were doing elther, whlch was partially true. The only thlng was, they knew how to move with the game, how to be part of it, how to have fun. I wanted logic of some kind, and I couldn't get it from anybody. I went to the library and read all the books aboutbasketball, and I practlced by myself at home, only to go to the grm on Thursday night and llnd out that I couldn't put any ofwhat I had learned into acton because the game went too fast for me to think.

When we flrst started playtng against other teams we would always lose. The g;irls on our team were good basketball players individually, but the bottom line comes down to teamwork and strategr. The kids on our team were close friends and got along with each other, but that was probably adisadvantage, because then at practice they would be all friendly and nice and we would never get into any serious basketball playing or get any liind of strate$f going.

I finally learned to leave all logic behind and play the game of basketball like a mad fury. I had thought our team was violent, but then when I played against the other teams, I thought I was done for. The coach let me slt on the bench for a lot of the tlme, and I didn't care. I leamed the most watching the other players and cheering them on. People laughed at me because I

cheered so loud. If I dtdn't have a lot of 'oomph' on the grm floor, I could at least have some on the bench.

I got to where I began to loosen up and enJoy basketball more. People watched me and told me I was malidng progress. They sald I was getdng mor€ aggresslve, which Is somethlng I dtdn't think was good, but at least I wasn't that way when I wasn't playlng basketball. Tiee coaches began to let me pLay durtng the whole game because they knew I was havtng fun, and the more I pracflccd, the better I would become, 'Anne, you can really shootl How come you nerrer do lt tn the game?' theyd ask. They seemed to forget howbad I used to be. I had gone from not belng able to shoot at all to beating both the coaches at games of 'OLff,' whlch requlre shooting well lnstead ofshootlng fast or under pressur€, These lidds dtdn't see me as so much of a genlus or an Intellect as the lidds on the track had, but we did have some lnteresflng conversatlons. It turned out that a few of the }dds had wanted to become vegetarlans, and when I told them that I was one, they got lnterested .galn and went home to ask thelr parents tf they could become vegetarlans. "Ifs no use,'they told me. "My parents still won't let me.'When I Iirst decided to become vegetarlan, I didn't even ask my parents, IJust told them. They said

all right, eat what you want. Five or six months later they became vegetarians too.

But I dectded agalnst telling the other lidds to do it an5rway, because tt wouldn't be good to get other lidds'parents mad at me.

I have a tendenry to forget what grade I'm in. Usually when I'm asked I say I'm not ln one, and then we have deltghtful

conversatlons about lt. I remember when I was first on track I was ln seventh grade.

The other serrenth graders knew that I dtdn't r€ally belong anywhere, but tf I did, It would be with thern I knew that this was what lt was like ln schools the world over, that people were separated by grades, and that they dtdn't pay much attentlon to each other. I dtdn't knoqr that they were so cold, though. The ktds ln my grade would tell me, 'Don't go near so-and-so, she's mean, and she's in the etghth grade.'Wouldn't you know lt, so-and-so got to know me, and we became friends of a sort.

The next fall, I was in the etgfrth grade, and people who were my age dtdn't talk to seventh graders. I asked them, "Don't you remember what tt was llke when you were ln serrenth grade and you dtdn't ltke the etghth graders? Why don't you be nice to the seventh graders, nour?" They'd tell me that when they were in the seventh grade they hadn't cared tf the etghth graders paid attentlon to them or not, so why should they pay attention to seventh graders norf?

Sarah, my frlend from track, was on the basketball team, but we dtdn't talk to each otheras much as we had durlng track.

She would spend all her tlme wtth Katy, the other glrl ln seventh grade. One dme Katy didn't come to practice, and Sarah said she was glad. 'Why?' I asked. 'I thought you

liked Katyl'

'No,' she satd. 'She's Just the only gfrl from my grade here.'

'I'm not In a grade,' I satd.

'Anne,' she told me, 'Grow up.'

Whlch ts exactly the opposlte of what I needed to do so that she would ffnally take me seriously.

Growtng Wthout Schooling #82

29

Resources & Recommendations

subscrlpflon. pleasc rernlnd us lf1ou are tre the Dlrectory, so wc can change lt hcre, too.

Plcasc remembcr that wc can't control horr thc Dlrcctory ls r:sed; tfyou rccclve unwanted mall as a result ofbetng lfstcd. Just toss lt out.

Mechanical Materials

AI( Rfchard & Csrol DANOTr|EC (Xfmberly/82, Marnl/8s) 1453 Birchwood Dr. Falrbanks 9S7Og (changc)

Ftom Sharl HerW (MN): In response to Debbte Drlscoll's search for materlals and ldeas for her boys

flavtng Mechanlcal Work,' GWS #811, a good companlon to the Edmund Sclentillc Catalog ls one put out by Amerlcan Sclence & Surplus (formerly Jerryco Inc.). Tlee catalog ts SOc and the address ls 6O I Ltnden Pl, Evanston lL@rz02.

As far as permanent sorts of materlals, slmtlar to Lego or Construx but more advanced, perhaps Debbte mtght erplore Lego Technlc or Flschertechntk sets.

F'lschertechnlk offers baslc and adyanced sets whtch have narnes such as "Electromechanlcs,''Pneumatlcs,' and 'Robotlcs.'A good source for both l.ego Techntc and Flschertechnlk ts The Tlrnberdoodle, E 1610 Spenc.er Lake Rcl, Shelton WA 98584.

Science Materials F'tom Dale Vostltsanos (GA): As rcported ln the Summer l99l lssue of Skept{cal In4uber, a proGssor at New En$and College, Mlchael Wtrth, has deslgned and taught a course to 'reinterest students ln sclence and to overcome thelr antagonlsm... land tol thlnk more llke sclen$sts.' The course leads students through a comparlson of 'facts' and the evldence (or lack of evldencr) supportlng them, and teaches the necesslgr of leamtng and malntatntng a healthy skepdclsm. It also, apparently, reklndles the love of sclentlflc exploratlon that so frequently char:acterlzes young mtnds, only to be lost by adolescence. Mr. Wtrth has ollered to share hls syllabus wlth anyone lnterested.

For lnformadon: Mtchael Wtrth, Natural Sclencc Dlvlslon, New England College,

Hennlker NH 03242.

Slcept{cal htqulrer. by the way, is an excellent publcatlon for older homeschoolers wlth a sclentlllc or lnqulsitlve bent. The ardcles ln tt deal wtth many of the more fanresdc headllnes of the day that catch the tmaglna$on, often becomtng part of generdly accepted "truth," but that have not been e)camlned tn a systemaflc, open-mkrded way. It seeks to expose Itkely fraud or errors ln repordng and to educate the reader about whatwer may have a bearlng on the story. $25lyr from Box 229, Bullalo NY 142 l5-O229: I -8OO-

ffi4-

I6rO

G{YState 7 I 6-834 -3222).

Newsletters of Interest Two lnterestlng publtcaflons have come to ourattendon. One ls Tte Brabt Basd Educolton Ne frinr/rer, publlshed by the Insdtute for Lrarnlng and Teachlng (,149 Desnoyer, St.

Paul MN 55104-4915; 612-644-28o,5), whtch ls based on the tdeas of lrslle Hart (author of Hous tlv Brain Works) and talks about educatlonal reform ln ways that are ltkely to tnterest GWS

Growtng Without Schoollng #82

readers. SubscripHons are $15 ayear.

The other publication ls &llcailon In Focus, publlshed by Books for All Ttmes (PO Box 2, AlexandriaVA 22313:,7O3-54.AO457). This newsletter devoted an entire

lssue to homeschooling, and apparently looks at a variety of trends and lssues in educatlon. Subscrlptions are $18 for 6 issues; a complimentary lssue ls available

lfyou send a SASE.

JanHwt(ON asks:

l. IVe run into a dead end trying to locate out-of-print books by a favorite author (Dorothy Marino). Has anyone discovered good sources for out-of-prlnt children's books?

2. We have a Commodore &l computer, and would like to recommend this source for a broad range of new and used Commodore, Amlga, and IBM software: Software Support International, 27OO NE Andersen Rd, Suite A- lO, VancouverWA 9866 l.

Telephone orders: l-800-356-l 179. They also offer good technical support at 2O6695-9648.

I'd like to know of any other good sources for new or used Commodore software, Mary Maher, on our statf, recommertds orre source oJ out-ot-print brr,ks:

Boks, Mah

fil

oro

Dcbbfc & Robcrt ITIANSEN (lanl8(),Tyl€'./831 725 Rosc In. Los Altos 94024 oro !g[1 ROWEN (Amber/75, Olfvcr / 791 253 C^*ade Dr. Falrfax

94930

Software

OW

SON & Altson WOOD (Sophta/87. BcnJamin/9o)

2478 Walton Av, Ccntral Vallcy 96019

Out-of-Print Books;

C;orod,

CA North (rlpr 9,|OOO I up) - Rotrannc & Stcven BACI{MAN (Cayla/88) 39487 Gallaudct f,)r #135. Frcrnont 944i8... Mltch &Donna BRADLEY (Anvcn/87, Mtrabcl/8g) 2732 l<atrtrra Way, Mountaln Vlcw 9404O ... Davld ISNDER-

St, Meredllh NH

03253.

C'A. Aouth (zlpr to g{ooo) - Barbara & Alan ALWARD (Nlcky,/83. Suzannc/86) 356 Sants Bar Shrs Dr, Golcta 931 17 (Et ... 1yot6.1 & Ltnda BRAINERD lanry/e2l28t15 Verde Vlsta tlr, Santa Barbara 93 1 OS ... Alonna FARRAR, 454 Papaya St, Vlsta 92083-561 4 ..o Scott & Jan FLEETHAM l&algl ea, Chrlsdrra/87, Alo<ander/ 9l) 9128 Cokcr Rd. Sallnas 9390/ ooo $qsls KAUFMAN Uarrctt Lcnnon/82) 1885O Vista Del Cannon, Santa Clan 91321 -2296 ooo Dcbbte OI^SEN & Phtl MARINEZ (Cecella/86, Andreas/ 89) 23f Hillandalc Ct, Rlvcrsldc 925O7 (Il) ...

Rob€rt & Eltzabcth SOUZA (Jason/75, Jared/80, Jasmfn/82, Jf lllan / A4l 29f23 Mlchael Dr, Ncwbury Park 9f32O (I4

Cf & D,orrna McDONOUGH -Joscph (Matthcw/84) 154 Haverford St, Hamdcn O6517 (Dan/85, FL - Susic & Ken MICFIAEL Steve/87) 231I Cherrywood Ln, Orlando 328O3

(H) (Rlchard/82, Kate / GA - Dtck & Pam ROE 86. Emlly/881 22O Lamont DrApt C, D€catur 3OO3O

Additions to Directory Here are the additions and changes to the Dircctory that have comc in sincc the last issue.

Our completc l99l Directory was publishcd in GWS #78, and GWS #81 contains all the changes that came ln betwcen then and now.

Our Dircctory is not a llst of all subscrlbers, but only of those uho ask to be listed, so that other GWS readers, or other interestcd peoplc, may get ln touch with them. lf you would ltke to bc lncluded, please send the entry form or a 3x5 card (one family per cud). Please take carc to includc all thc information - last namc, full address, and so on. Tell ui ifyou would rather have your phone number and towrr listed instead of your mailing address (we don't have space to

list both).

If a Directory listing is followed by a (Hl, the family is willing to host GWS travclers who makc advance iururngenlents in writing.

If a name in a GWS story is followed by a state abbreviation in parentheses. that penon is ln the Directory (check here andin GWS *78 & #81). Wc are happy to forward mail to thosc whosc addresscs are not in thc Directory. tfyou want us to forward the letter wlthout reading it, mark the outside of the envelope with writeds name/description and the issuc number. lfyou want us to rcad the letter and then ficrward tt. please enclose anotler stamped cnvelope.

When you scnd us an address char4c for a

0{)

HI Dclaync & Danlel COATS lnftarry /77 BenJamin/8l, Molly/86) 8€tl C Plumerla Loop, Honolulu 96818 (change) 0I)

,

IL Amy BARTON (Rachel/74, Sarah l TT, I{annah/86) 4ll9 N Claremont, Chtcago 6O618 ooo f,h6nds QQBBEL (Shawn/8$ 3542 S Damcn Coach Housc, Chtcago 6()609... KaTcnHESTER {Marc/84, Alo</86) 4918 Noakley #1, Chtcago 60625 ... Kercn MUNDT (SonJa/74 2fi5 N Bemard, Chlcago 60817 ... Bctty WIIJ'ONG (Sarah/82, Ertca/87. Adrtcnnc/8g) 6155 N Moody, Chtcago 6oil6

Ut Scan Wolf HILL & Dcsiree POWERS (Anya/85,- Hcnry/8g) 42 Cold Brook Rd, Flampden o4444 (l(t

_) IJARN &

GROW wlth Real Tools for Children. Tooltng Around carrles a complete ltne of qualtty products slzed and wetghted for young chlldren. For

gsrdcnlng, carpcntry, and bclplng

rrould thc housc,

these functlonal

tools are thoughtfully selected for safety and ease of handling. FREE CAtrAI-OG. Toollng Around, PO Box 72OIOO, San Jose, CA95 I 72: 40A-286-97 70.

/.

>

30

ID

& Robyn Lt EDERf] (.tacob/8S.

-Mlke Bcr{amln/87, Abram/891 79Og D Rccd Mcadc 20755 (chaDgc)

C-t,

Fdt

IA-John & LlrdaAIlGO g.atkll?&, Chdstrnc/al. Mo[y/&j. Thavls I Al e77 *tort-,

Rd. Pocagsct 04559-&{{15 ffi o- Jlm & Krlstln LEWIS (Nrls & Erlk/86. Anna/891 7 Uly Fond Rd, W Bordod Of EES reo [,aua & hrctcr SilllITH {Cherlcs/83, l*l$ttonl A7, Cornclla/9O|

B€rkshfrc School. ShclBcld 01257

Il -Hollls BENNEIT& Rccmarlc BRENNAN-BENNETT (Ashley/87, Jason/88. baby/gl) 868ti Tamarack Dr, Brlgfton 4al l6 Hl oo .J".r*" ttcLEOD & Ign*ro VIUA [Matco/ Camlla/8a. Pabb/gl) 12291 Fagan Rd, Holly 4a442 E

OE

Ed & Car,ol TOFAI{I 6Jason/80,

-

Aaron/8u LEARNING AIl, WAYS, 7 Carryon Oaks Dr, Mcloud 74851 04 OR-Florcnoc & Gcorgc MUSSER 6my/86, Andy/88) 3fS E 5Or St, Narbcrg 97tS2 (changel oo Jeck & Ktt SIJGRUE Ertka/86. Chrts/881 FO Box 241, Ychats 97498

79.

PA-Jtm & Iaudc ADAIIIS (Iiom/?7,Ttt]E/ Blalr/80) f f2 Lynunod Dr *3. Edlnboro

16412 * Gtna IGLLOGG & Cldp HOLLISTER (Danlcl/61, Lucas/8s, Ulyl8? RD 3 Box 80.

Coh.snbta Crosa Rds I 69 I 4 (Itl ooo }{t6hs6l ft 116 SAIBER (Brcl/8s,

onbuag 16056

Iral8g)

FO Box 515, Sax-

[I)

IO -Ibrcn & Ftank ALPERT (Bctsy/87.

Alan/8g) f 2f 89 Oahrlldc Ct. Marylend Hclghts ${lQ{,tl ro f66 ft Sharon THOMPSON (Andrcw/ eg, Stdcn/86) RR 6 Box 314, Warrcnsburg

64093

& Crm HENDERSON -C$olyn (Wcndy/79, Narrcy/8a) lo7 Eckcrt St, Waltcrboro 29488 (El & Marylou MIIJ.ER (Chclsca/

&3, Jull,annc/85, Gavln/gOl RR I . Wcst Denvtllc

05873 (rll YA - Robcrt & f,)orothy GLANSIRACUSA fHcrschel/8l, Noah/84) l08l2 Vcrdc Vleta Dr, Faffia:( 22(XlO

ISI - Ituthhcn LOMUSCIO lMlchacl/64.

Rslph/851 2O6 Anchor Av, Bcachwood 08722

IfI - Rlchsrd & Ikrobrn WIISON EmtV/ 8i|. I&dna/8s, Ulyl87, I^aurcl/gOl GIORIETA FAI\,IILY EDLJCATORS, Stsr Rt I Box 4O4.

Glorlcta 87535 GII IIY

-

Mikc & Mary CIARKE [Ursda/a7,

Cora/89) 5619 6th Av #3L, Brooklyn ff22O (Hl o. llcnc HELLER & Wllllam ISABEUA {Robcrt/ 86) f 25WashfngtonPl *lD, NercYork l(X)14 oo

Cyndk IAWRENCE {Cassrdy/&3, Sharmon/8fl lSOxbolvDr, Oswego l3l26...Vlncc&Rcnec PENZAREUA (Brlana/86. Ashlcy/88| 5(X) Wcst End Av. Apt 6A, Ncry Yort 10024 ... Tammy WIIJIAIT{S tturyl&2, Ashlcy/85) 2615 CamdcnTabcrg Rd, Camdcn l3tll6

(l{atasha/ IfC - Cas€y & Mlltc BORO\illAK 84) Rt f2 Box 25OA-2,Wtoston-Sqlcm 271O7 oo Tlm & RttaJOYNER(Chrls/7s. &th/77l FO Box 3O2, 62O Starboard Dr. Avon 27915 (IIl oo Mlchacl & Wendy WEST &{aggtc I U , *anl 87 , Charlte/89) PO Box 1424, Crrdl€r 287f 5 (Andrerp/7s, OE - Dan & Tcrrl EItIDS[,gy KEelT5,l 13947 Fhrc Folnt Rd. Pcrrlnbqs a3551 G4 ... K*yo & p.grv MSHIKAWA (Ikrcn/84, Staccy/88) 946i1 Mtllcroft Rd. Perrysburg,L3551

(Hl

WA-Bah

& BallcyWHAnK)N 6utumn/

8f , eULn/87, Martah/g0l 3634 Woodlawn Av N, Scattlc 98103 0Il

99

Nancy & Davld IMHOFF

-

BITOEDOW (.lason/841

Cumbcrland tt829 (I4

-.rr";tf!. 'i5.

JG".-::: *l zz';-t?!rJ

,4,2-tg.rl-.F

T||AFIE ' )''+

Grades K-12 Since 1975

Integra tive Learning For hdy, Ittfrnd and Spirit Oak

Madow

MtmI

Post Office BoxT 12

Blacksburg,VA24063 (703) 73r-3263

?.;

ll65

Jeffery Blvd,

(Dcvln/ Yl -Davld & Rachcl GRAPENIIII|E 82. Erlc/84. wlll I 87, Jacrfr. | 9ll Rt I Box 4494 Maplc 5,{854 o. Ann & John HIPFENSTEEL (Wllltam/84, Margrcthc/E7.

ls"k/9o)

2499

Lakcshor,c Rd. Grafton 53024 (lD ooo gtoll ft ls!

RUSSEI.I. Uacquclnc | &, Matia I 841 22237'I]y!.

Rd 5f4A. Shcrvood Park

Curde: BC Sandy IGANE & Mtclucl MISKIN (!Icd/85,- Ntchol,asl8g) I l6i! Wclltngton Dr. N VanctuvcrVZ( fI3 (changcl (I4 oooJqgl tcs CARISON (Edmund/88) 2095 E

5l Av.VancouvcrvSP fWz -'\ othcr Locrtlonr

Creative Home Study

0lea/72,

Angcla/?6) 5436 Lce lllll Dr, Huntt4gtd 257Os 6. John & M.rtha MISHOE (Chrtstophcr/7o.

Brtsn/ 73, Matth ew | 7 4, J eatnlc I 7 6, *nlamln I 78, Nlchobs/80, Tony/88f 29 Roscmont Ct, Huntsngton 25705 (lI) o. Atnlc & Bcmlc SHEPARD (Andrew/84,Adam/86) FO Bo:( 1243.

Fctcr$trrg 26847 0O ... Mary & Man'

WARREN &

Dcbbtc & Frarrcts

DESMOUI IN (Stcphanc/e5, A[zccl861 I allcc Condorcct Apt 37 . 7720o Tuta, Frtacc oo Dcbble TREUS &Todd EGGER [{crle8, Teryn/ nl 624-2 Nakada, Toyoda-cho, lweta-gun, Shlzuoka-kcn..Irpra 743E ooo Channa & Barry VAI-IEN (Shmuel/87, Emy-Brlah,/891 12 Scett St. Ncw Plymouth.

GrorF

3o

E<lucadorr Othcrwlsc.36 Spa., Warks, uK CV3:,

Pen-Pals

Ifcr Zcelud

(changd

F)

rdd:

Wddflowcr Flomcschoolers. 4572 El Dorado Ct, Plcasanton 94566 415-462-9516 XE: Scbago Lakc Homcschmlcrs Support crp. RR 2 Box 54. Scbago l,alle (W)75 2O7-U2C'A':

436,8

IfI: Glorlcta Famlly Educators. Star Rt Box 4O4. Glorlcta 87535

I

Addrcr Ch.ngc.: OII: Homc Educadon Lcaguc ofParents.

Box 98. Fcrrysbuqg 43551 (formcrl5r Homc Educadon Lcaguc of Ferry$urg)

rhould

rrltc

to thorc lbtcd, Tobc llgtcd. ecrd namc, egc. addrcss. ard l-3 words on tntcrcsts. OWEN. 7g) W f lth St. Watcrloo lAfi7$2z Mlchellc (l3l mu-

8,G

Vf - Jccph

Out ldc olU.8.:

Xlnross Rd. Lcarnlngton ?EF; 0926 886826

Chll&lr rurr.g pcrpdr

8€i.

fif - Ihthy & Cralg RUNDE Matthcw/8ol 4945 37th Avc S. Mlnncapolts 55417

FI.. Florda Palcnt Educators Assoc. 2q)51 Qucsada Ave. Fort Charlottc 3tt952 XE: Matnc Homcschool Aseoclaflqt, FO Box 587, Unlty 04988{587 W.[t: Wcat Vlrglnla Homc Educators Aasoe.

FO Box 3707, CharkEton 26C57{37O7 Xetlonrl: Natbnal Honrcsclrcol Assocl& flon, FO Box 290, Hartland MI 4&35&0290: 313.

6{t2-5208

FC)

slc, r€adhg, Hcy Ehrdc; Vancsaa (l U art, muslc. computersi Jcnncttc (91 $rmnasucs, muslc, artt &nerda (61 ballet, sdckqs, mstl .a AIlAl,I. 2IX)l l3th Av, Miltor WA 9&9St: Emtly (13) bascball cards, sports. cxpbrkg: Naomt (l2l scwtag. rcadLrg. softball Joecph (l U sports. stamps. Jcts; Jcssc (81 footbsll, basketball, skattng oo WEST. PO Box 1424, Cardlcr NC 287f 5: Maggtc (61 art, anlmals. balhq Scan 141ptza,, nfnJa hrrtlcs. dogE o. Erln IAHRSON (lO) 5360 SI[f l9llnd. Aloha OR 97d)7; antmals, skaflng, rcading.a PlmN, 853 Ktngs Anns Dr, Va. Bcadr VA 23452: Robbtc (12) bulldlng. astronomy. comlcs; Bethany (10) darrc, anlmelE. arts & crafts ooo Qstlry MASON (f 2) 4530 Grtmm Rd, [laconta MN 55387: pcrr pals, antnals. mudc F. BUTIRAM.2I Hart Ln, Scwcll NJ O8O8O: Jana (9) nature. gmnastlcs. rcadtrg; Jultc (71 coktng" danclng, slrglng Jtnmy (4) bsscball, readlr4; supcrhcroca ooe,fu11y BRAINERD (8) 2835 Verdc Vleta Dr. Santa Barbara CA 9:ll05: cuper marlo, anlmals. honcback rldk41 ooo Brandqr SHEEHY (l2l 629 Ptpcr Dr, Madlson Wl 5371l; woodworldqg, spcts. dmms ooo l{ghndg BEIIIR (12) l8(X) WMarn St. Ephrata PA 17522: books. ttaturc. skafl4g.Emily FAIRBANKS (l2l 67126 l.acon Rd. f,]cnman lslard BC CanadaVOR ITO; balbt. musb, art.o Avtsr SFIEPPARI>SINGH (91 812 Llndcn Av. Eltzab€th NJ O7202; softball, dnrmmlr4g, nature or LOMUSCIO, 206 Arrchor Av, Bcachwood NJ 08722: Mlclracl (6) madc. naturc, papcrtrafts; Ralph (5) art. ntntcrrdo. blkcs... I.audc PARRISH (l2l Rt 2 bx74, Kcrdall wI 54638; horscs, rcadlng. wldhfc ... ATCHISON-NEVEL, 10395 I{E l2th Av, Miaml Shorcs FL 3313& 2669: Arlclla (12) wrl&rg" naturc, conscrrredon: Odon (f f) lcgos. enlrnalc, lrnrco6ng ooo RUSsiEtl- PO Box 66, ltftonYA22f}2O: Holb (r3) rcadLg. srt, babysltEng: Lynn (lO) rcadlng. hfetorn larra (61 gardcru, rcadlqg, drawlng: Emlly (6) catE, r€adlng. cbnatrucuon .o. MAHONEI. USDA-.APFII9IS. Amcrlcan EmbassyThc Haprrc, AFO llf OglS&7Oll (IIC fgffffRIlItD9: Bran (61 drawlng. buildlr{g, mtlttary; Fcnny (3f anlmals, dran'lng. silrrgrg lo 5666 LEVENTRY (5), Box 19l, Sr.unmcrtrlll PA 15958i readlqg. barblce, anlrnalE ro Jarrrtt Lcnrur KALJFMAN (9), l885OA Vlsta Dcl Cendr, Sente Clarlta CA 9l3ill-2296; rcadtng, gardcn ng. anlrnals oo Mcllssa MASON (f O 304 Usa Ih, Austln TX 787&l; lcc skadng, dogs, computcrs ooo JQHfrf$Qf{, 16765 Skyllnc Bhd. LoE Gatoc CA 95O3O: Aprll (14) rcadlrrg. wrlfttg. aports; Dalc (l ll sblnel, blkc rldiqg. horscel Kylc (8) norcle, karatc. outdoors Notc from Glorla Flarrleon. who b llstcd undcr loatosorl Eonc Educetlon on ow [st ofrcsourcc pcoplc: '\ilould thc lady who lfucs ln

or ncar Bo3torr and qrotc to mc plcasc srttc agaln? I'm sorry, but l\rc bst your addrcas."

Groudng

Wthout Schqollng #82

A,IJ-

Subscriptions

&

Renewals

equtpped, sleeps slx, amenitlcs. near attractlons.

Sprlng/Fall Spccial $385 weekly. 314-487-0184.

Femlllcr lrarnlng Togcthcr - new statewlde homeschool group, Contact DougWoodward, 68 Lakcy Creek, Franklin. NC 28734. 704-3696491.

Group Eubrcrlptlonr: V/c offer group subscrlpflons. ln whlch scvcral copies ofcach issue are mailed to one address. The prlce ls $18 p€r pcrson, and groups of 5 or more rccclvc the leadet's subsc:rlptton free (ln othcr words, a group ofS pays 4 x $18 and recclves 5 copics of each lssuel. Plcasc pay for group subscrtpuons wlth olc chcck. Plcase scrrd tn thc names and addresscs ofmembers ofour group sub, so that we can keep ln touch wlth them.

Forclgn p.lrmcntr must be elther money orders ln US funds or chccks drawn on US banks.

Wc can't alford to acccpt personal checks on Canadlan accounts, evcn lf they havc 'US funds' u/rltten on thern. We suggest that forelgn subscrlbcf,s use Mastcrcatd or Vlsa lf pos:ible.

SPINMNG TOP KIT: Make wooden sptming toP

wlth launcher. 6yrs +. $5.95 ppd. Morc ldts, Farnrly PasHmes Games, altematlve health products for famillcs. Catalog-$l,oo; BrochureI^SASE. TURTLE ISIAND/GWS, loor Mill St, Ely,

Start your child on successful experience-bascd learntng. Send $3.0O for guide on enhanclng preschoolers' rratural learning to: The Sharing Network. Box742, Polnt Roberta, WA 98281.

NV 89301. VISA IMC 7U2-249-69o9.

SAVE $$$ ON MORTENSEN MATH, 25% OF]F REGUI.AR PRICE. NOW AVAIIABIE GRADE LEVEL MANUAI^S K-6 ONLY $12.95 TOLL FREE CALL VISA/MC. FREE CATALOG CALL I-8OO.

Outsldc of North Amertca, add $ l5 per year for airmail (othcnrlsc, allow 2-3 months for surface rnail). Ask us about alr mail rates for group subs.

Addrcr Cheaglcr: If you'rc moving, lct us know your new address as soon as possible.

Pleasc enclos€ a rccent labcl (or copy ofonc). lssues mlssed because ofa change in addrcss (that wc weren't nodffed about) may be replaced for $2 each. Thc post officc dcstroys your mlssed issues and chargcs us a noUffcatron fee, so we can't alford to replace thcm without chargc.

Rcncselr: At thc bottom of the next page ls a form you can usc to renew your subscriptlon.

Plcasc hclp us by rcnewlnlg carly.

How can you tell when your subscriptlon explres? Look at thls samplc labcl:

APPLEII UgERs: uoMToR YoIrR CHIIJ)REN'3 UATH PROGRESS. One 5 l/4"

subjects taught Fom Preschool through High School. For a 2OO page catalog that contaim over 7OO educational pmgrams send $2 to DAVMAR 17939 Chatsworth #418F GH CA 91344.

dtsk contalns randomly gencratcd practlce problcms and tcsts on all mtddle school topics except gcomeEy. word problems. Rcsults stor€d on disk for parcnt monltorlng. Excellent for skill dcvclopmerrt, neinforccment. Comprehensive prcparation for sccondary math. Disk teacher crcatcd, cl,assroom rcflned, Disk, documentation - $65. Mike Collins, 17623 Countv Road 9, Avon MN 56310. 6r2-a45-2907.

UNION ACRES INTENTIONAL COIf,l[U.

LITTLE RED HOUESCHOOL. .ThC

338-9939.

EDUCATIONAL SOFIWARE designed to teach and hold the student intercst. Covers most

Tcrchcr'r Hclpcr.' Monthly newsletter full of

NITY - Beautiful mountain homesltes for sale near Smolgy Mountain Natlonal Park. Rt I Box 6lJ, Whittier, NC 28789. 7O4-497-49u.

FREE Sclencc Megezlnc loaded with expcrtrnents. TOPS ldeas, lO97O S Mulino Rd, Canby

I 83 Sl\{tollll

JIM AND MARY SI\,IITI{ Ol I I

boys and glrls world-wtdc pracflce thcse o<ercise and mardal dancc forms. Non-compeudve, noncombadvc. Achlcve fftness wlthout lnjury. 3,OOO years old proven method. No special equipment or unlforms, Can be practlced ln lMng room.

Tesdng and ranHng opoonal. Brochure wlth study gulde descrtb€s vldeo tapes and manuals: $2 (refundable) Edward Oren. Dlr., Sandhill Cranc School ofWu-Shul, Box 16O, Fall Rtver. CA 96028.

IIANDS-ON Lf$RMNc. Thc very best for homeschoolers in math, science, art, geography, wnting, reading, and more. Complete currlculum.

Free catalog. LEARNING AT HOIIIE, Box 27Ogrvs 82. Honaunau, HI 96726. 808-328-9669.

lndlvldr.l: $lt pct pcrron forgroup rube.

NY

WU€HUI Anclcnt P.E. Arts of Chtna: Mllllorrs of

Homeschool ballct classes taught by homeschool Mom in Spring, Tcxas. Mcmber Impcrlal Societ5r of Teachers of Dancing. 7 13-2AA-4O42.

Ncr rrtcr for cenedlea rubrcrlbcrt: $28lyt

PLAIT\I\/|LLE

oR97013.

I

SEARCHING FOR HELP

Thc number that ls underlined ln the examplc tclls thc numbcr of the ffnal lssue for the subscrlptlon. Thc Smiths' sub explres with lssue #8t|. the next lssuc. But lfwe were to receive their renewal bcforc we sent our llnal account charge to thc malltng house (Septernber 3O). they would qualifr for the frce bonus tssue.

Scc p. 2 for lnformadon about our lncentive for brlrtlng.tn new suhscrlbcrg.

Please - (l) hlt scparatc ltcms of business on scparatc shccts ofpapcr.

(2) Put your namc and addregs at the top of each lettcr,

Ifyou ask quesflons. enclose a selfaddress€d stamped envelopc.

(4) Tell us if tt's OK to publlsh your letter, and whether to us€ your rramc with the story. We edlt letters for spacc and clartty.

(3)

IN IIATII. ENG-

I

LISH, R"EADING OR GEOGRAPITY? VIEDO \

.

I

TUTOR has the answer. We offer hlgfi quallty, educational videotapes specializlng in thcse subject areas. Video Tutor tapes are used ln thousands ofhomes, schools and libraries nationwidc. Most tapes include companion workbook. Video Ti:tor cm also provlde vldeo- ;

ldeas, trlcks, methods professlorral educators usc to supplemcnt teaching of traditlonal subJects. Also covers many neglected but valuable non-tradltlonal ones such as embroldery, nah.rrc, ctc. Fricndly. helpful, wlth snurces, letters, homcschooltng reports: a reliable helper for $ I 5.OO a year. Quiet Corner Farm, RFD 2 Box lOl, Brlmflcld, MA OIOIO

Deadline for hollday season ads is September 15th.

\_ / l--exrnvlonnaloR DrREcroRY I Use

When You lVrite Us

this form to send us a new entry or a substantial address change to be run in the next lssue of GWS.

lavailable learrlt" (ftrst and last names): I

(only i Organlzation

if address ls same as farnily):

I I

(names/birthyears): i Children I

F\rll address (Street, City, State, Zip):

Declassified Ads Retcs: 7OalwDrd, $l /wordboldfacc. Please tcll thcsc folks you saw the ad tn cWS.

f'

mARTl,EAr: EOUEUADE UITAIC, ART, & XOVEUENT... bccausc homc !s wherc the th€ art is. is Frce catalog ofbooks. tapcs. and music. Heartleaf, Box 4O-A, Slocan Park. BC CANADA VOG 2EO. \

i -\./

-)

tapcs on a wtdc varicty of othcr subJccts. For frec catalog call l-8OO-445-8334 Ext. 4.

Sclcncc Enrlchmcnt - Aquatic ecologtst will providc technlquc and equlpmcnt for chernlcal/ blologlcal lakc studlcs. Can also asslst wlth modem clcctrordcs and AP chern/AP blo, Wlll travel througlrout U.S. and Canada. Slldtng scalc.

Mlke Clpolla 616-623-5661.

FITRIDADISNEY CONDO - 2 bdrm.2 bath. tully

$4.50.

16MAINST

/

recorded lnformatlon. 818-957-8243 e:<t. 3.

Subscrlpflons start wtth thc next issue publlshed. Our current ratcs arc $25 for 6 lssues, $45 for 12 lssucs, $60 fo,r l8 lssucs, GWS ls publlshcd cvcry othcr month. A slr4lc lssuc costs

123456

3l

. !y,s - rt,) t) "1 Ia_Stay home, make money. Over 2OO c.ompanies - need homeworkers lmmedlatelyt Complcte

--) Growlng Wthout Schooltng #82

Are you willing to host traveling GWS readers who make advance .urangements in writing? Yes _ No _

Are you in the l99l Directory (cWS #78) Yes _ No _ Or in the additions in this issue or in GWS #81? Yes No _ Ifthls is an address change, what was previous state?- _

)

New from Holt Associates!

w.. foundcd la lS77 by John Bolt.

Edltor - Susannah Sheller Publtsher - Patrlck Farenga Contrlbutlng! Edltor - Donna FUchoux Edltortal .{.sslstant - Mary Maher Edttortal Consultant - Nancy Wallace c'Wtl

Earnlng Our Own Moncy Homeschoolers 13 and Under Tell Their Storles #1578, $4.5O + shlpptng

OIIlce & Subscrlptlon Manager - Day Farenga

Book Shtppers/Receivers - Kathertne Doollttle, Gtnger Fltzslmmons, Janls Van Heukelom Offic'e Asslstants - knard Diggins, Mandy Maher, Mary Maher, Phoebe Wells

lllustrated TWenty-four homeschoolers, ranging in age from 7-13, write about how they have eamed money and why beIrg able to earn money is important to them.

This is our companlon to The Teenage Entrepreneut's Gutde, and is addressed dlrectly to young readers.

(Thfs booklet ts so new you won't flnd tt in our spring catalog.)

Holt Assoclates Board of Dlrectors: Patrtck Farenga (Corporate Presldent), Mary Maher, Tom Maher, Donna Richoux, Susannah Sheffer Advlsors to the Board: Ann Barr (Clerk), Mary Van Doren, Nancy Wallac.e

Eoneschooltng

ln the News

Copyright @ 199 I HoIt Associates, Inc. All rtghts reserved.

#1562, $6.95 + shtpping

Our Homesctwollng h ttw I985 Neu;s collection was so successful that we have prepared this new edition of some of the best articles on homeschooling that have appeared tn the popular press since then. These articles

are overwhelmtngly favorable to homeschooling,

and the collectlon can be a wonderful way to lntroduce frtends, relatlves, school offlcials, or legislators to the tdea. see page LZ ror shtpptng

I

ii 10

charges

lF

.

in +L-

I$

ii:

E

gF

lFn gs' tH6fr1 lB3fri

Ires; We are now offertng a speclal lncentlve to people who brlng i $ E ?f, gubscrlbers. ln

See page

new

2 for detalls.

i| I iir ^ J3H-qi 'E g ; il srrBscRrpTroN AtrD RENEWAL FORM Use thts form to begfn or renew a subscrlption to Growing Without Schooling. For renewals, p U E,

gEg

*rg qBB{ F}F gE "-

i*,P E@ i+ e>6 <o OE p5

tr0q o

X

[ 3e+

cltp thls cuP rorrn rn Lrus form ln lts enurery enflrety (so rnar that you rncruoe lnclude your acloress address label) raoeu ancr and sencr send rt it w[n wlth your gsp c :I !: check or money order ln US funds, or call 617-864-3lOO to subscribe or renew by Mastercard C A q' E or Vlsa- New subscrlbers, or those wlth a change of address, should llll out the form below,. F g g' 3 (For more detatls about subscrlptlons and renewals, see page 3 l.)

New

Subscrloflon Subscrlpflon

-Name:

Fienewal Gift subscription subscriotion to be sent to name Renewal

-

Address(change?Yes/No)

6 ffi ct,_^_ oE9f p P ee6

shown shown

9q6 *F'

-

l|

Ctty, State, Zlp or Postal Coa", I

| |

€q19 i$

lli

o Bl e'l P

cLa2 ;g tr{ H6 cL82 code?_ ggf l2lssues, $45 l8 tssues, $6O $25 A84 -6lssues, Group Sub: coples @ $18 each, for-a total of $- ( groups of 5 or more recelve leader's sub 3E 5 free.) Please send us thc names and addresses of other group members. t It ts OK to rent my name and address to other organizations: Yes- NoP

gfis

If change of address, what was old zip

crowlng Wthout Schooling #82

n3h