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Rot

Dec31

I found this quote serendipitously while looking for something totally different:

Gentlemen, you are now about to embark on a course of studies which will occupy you for two years. Together, they form a noble adventure. But I would like to remind you of an important point. Nothing that you will learn in the course of your studies will be of the slightest possible use to you in after life, save only this, that if you work hard and intelligently you should be able to detect when a man is talking rot, and that, in my view, is the main, if not the sole, purpose of education.
John Alexander Smith, Speech to Oxford University students, 1914

Yes. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, when I finish homeschooling eight children, each and every one of them were equipped with an excellent rot detector? I would be vindicated.

Boys’ Books

Dec21

I’m writing a new book(let) about books for boys. I remember learning a long time ago in library school, I think, that someone had done research and learned the not-so-surprising fact that whereas most girls were willing to read books with boys as the main character(s), most pre-teen and older boys were not interested in reading books in which a girl was the protagonist. This finding translates into lots of children’s books with either a boy as the main character or a group of friends, boys and girls, as the characters. I’m making up an annotated list of either 52 or 100 classic and modern books that appeal especially to boys ages 7-11. (That doesn’t mean the girls mightn’t enjoy many of these, too.) I’ve already taken a survey around here, and these are a couple of the books that will be on the list:

The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis Computer Guru Son, age 17, says this book and the series are the books that first come to mind when he thinks of his “childhood.” The main characters are four children, two boys and two girls, who travel into another place and time and experience an adventure to be envied by any red-blooded boy. Swords, battles, bravery, treachery, and the admonition “whatever happens, never forget to wipe your sword.”
Encyclopedia Brown, Boy Detective by Donald Sobol Encyclopedia, whose real name is Leroy, not only reads the encyclopedia, he also solves mysteries–everything from who swiped twenty-five cents to bank robberies and grand larceny. And you get a chance to solve the mystery in each chapter, too, before turning to the back of the book to find out whodunit.

Your turn. What are your boys’ favorite reads? Or what was your favorite when you were a kid of a boy?

What we’re reading . . .

Dec14

Dancer Daughter, Organizer Daughter, and I: Ann Rinaldi She writes great historical fiction, and each book has this warning on the back cover: “WARNING: This is a historical novel. Read at your own risk. The writer feels it necessary to alert you to the fact that you might enjoy it.” So far, I’ve read two of her books, and I’m impressed. The girls have read more, and they’re hooked.
Brown Bear Daughter: Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden. I read both when I was her age, and I can’t say it ruined my taste in literature. I really liked Trixie better than Nancy.
Karate Kid: Hardy Boys. He saw BB Daughter reading Nancy Drew and wanted something like it for boys.
Bee and Z-Baby: Madeline by Ludwig Bemelmans. They checked out about three or four Madeline books from the library. We like Madeline. “She was not afraid of mice–she loved winter, snow, and ice. To the tiger in the zoo, Madeline just said, “Pooh-pooh.” She’s definitely a positive role model–brave, bold, and adventurous.
I don’t know what Eldest Daughter and Computer Guru Son are reading. Eldest Daughter just finished her finals, so maybe she’ll have time for some reading. And Computer Guru Son is supposed to have read Huckleberry Finn by January, so he’d probably better be reading that.

Natalists?

Dec7

David Brooks calls us “natalists,” people who are having three, four and even more children.

All across the industrialized world, birthrates are falling – in Western Europe, in Canada and in many regions of the United States. People are marrying later and having fewer kids. But spread around this country, and concentrated in certain areas, the natalists defy these trends.

They are having three, four or more kids. Their personal identity is defined by parenthood. They are more spiritually, emotionally and physically invested in their homes than in any other sphere of life, having concluded that parenthood is the most enriching and elevating thing they can do. Very often they have sacrificed pleasures like sophisticated movies, restaurant dining and foreign travel, let alone competitive careers and disposable income, for the sake of their parental calling

And he says, “People who have enough kids for a basketball team are too busy to fight a culture war.” Not quite. I believe I am fighting a culture war every day as I raise my children. I am doing my dead level best to teach them to be “spiritually, emotionally and physically invested in their homes” and to “sacrifice pleasures” for the greater good of the kingdom of God. I pray for them, nurture them, teach them, and love them every single day, and this is how I “fight a culture war.” Culture is made up of people, and a Godly, Christlike culture is made up of people who are committed to living out the life of Christ in all areas of culture. Together we “natalists” can change the culture–peacefully, non-violently–but it’s a struggle nevertheless.

Abigail–A Father’s Joy

Dec6

I found a link to this story in the Houston Chronicle (thanks to Daryl Cobranchi at Homeschool and Other Stuff) about a young couple from Atascocita and their very special baby girl, Abigail. Abigail was born September 22, 2003 with a portion of her brain protruding from her skull; the condition is called encephalocele, and it’s fairly rare and usually fatal. The parents, Jonathan and Elizabeth Rugulieski, are both graduates of homeschools, and both exhibit a maturity not found in mnay couples twice their age.

The Ruguleiskis credit home-schooling for the maturity others see. Jonathan finished high school early and completed one semester at Kingwood College before Abigail’s birth; he hopes to return to college soon.
Elizabeth says spending so much time with her mother helped her to grow up. “My mom was like a best friend. Instead of her coming down to my level, I went up to her level.”

That’s where they came from. Then, there’s this quote that tells where the Ruguleiskis are now:

“He’s my best friend,” Elizabeth says of her husband.
Jonathan nods. “We believe there’s nothing we couldn’t handle together,” he says. “There were a lot of hard times, but it was very minor compared to the good times.”

Contests and Competitions

Nov20

it’s time for another edition of “Writing Contests and Competitions.” You can look at this previous post for more contests and competitions.

1. Hans Christian Andersen 2005 Essay Competition. April 5, 2005 is the 200th anniversary of Andersen’s birth. Students in grades 10-12 (ages 15-21) can participate in this essay contest. The topics are posted on the website, and although the first three categories are for Danish-speaking students, the fourth category is specifically for essays written in English from all over the world.
2. Scholastic Art and Writing Awards are given each year to students in grades 7-12 who are enrolled in public, private, or home schools in the U.S> or Canada. I loked at the artwork by some of the winners for 2004, and it’s really high quality. You’d have to be really talented and hard-working to win this contest. However, it’s definitely worth a try for some aspiring artists and writers.
3. Kaplan/Newsweek “My Turn Essay Competition: High school students write a personal essay demonstrating a “direct personal experience and observation with a fresh, original point of view.” The deadline is March 1, 2005, and the first prize is a $5000 scholarship. Go to the website for more details.

RSECVV

Nov15

I might as well admit it. If you’ve read this blog at all, you’ll guess my deep dark secret anyway: I am a Red State Evangelical Christian Values Voter. What’s more, I know a lot of RSECVV’s. I thought maybe it would be helpful to tell you about some of the RSECVV’s that I know. Exhibit 1:

My friends Marta and Steve have nine children. Five of the children are birth children, and four are adopted. Marta grew up Southern Baptist, graduated from college with a BS in education and taught for a while in public schools. Steve grew up Methodist, dropped all that religious stuff when he went to college, and eventually graduated with a degree in geology. He hated geology and the oil industry went bust, so he went back and got another degree in computer science. These are well educated people. They homeschool their nine children. One of their adopted children is biracial, and one is black (from Africa). Steve and Marta are pro-life, and they’ve demonstrated their convictions by adopting four older children who were considered unlikely to be adopted. They don’t own any guns, and they believe in protecting the environment. One of their daughters wants to become a park ranger or manager of a wildlife reserve. Marta was told, while pregnant, that her fourth child would be severely retarded and should be aborted. She and Steve refused to consider the idea, and their daughter was born healthy and and with normal intelligence. Marta and Steve are active in church and both believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to earth as God incarnate, died, and was resurrected from the dead. Marta stays at home to keep house and homeschool while Steve works at NASA. Their kids are involved in soccer, volleyball, basketball, and Boy Scouts.. Steve and Marta both supported Bush in the recent election because they believe that Bush represents their values and beliefs. They believe that marriage is a union beween one man and one woman. Thaey also believe that h0m0sexual behavior is wrong although they’ve know homosexuals before and have tried to counsel with and help them.

Are these people self-righteous, intolerant, ignorant, uneducated, uninformed, mislead, bigoted, religious zealots? Or are they admirable Christian parents?

Where We Were and What We Thought

Nov14

Engineer Husband and I went to the Texas Homeschool Coalition Leadership Conference in Marble Falls, Texas this weekend. It was great, made me think about our vision for homeschooling, and about a vision for future of the homeschooling. And I want to buy a building, a really big building, probably a school or a church, to start a Homeschool Support Center. I’m thinking of a library, classrooms, a science lab, a music room, a lounge, a gym, maybe even a used bookstore. I really believe such a center would be a ministry to the entire homeschool community in Houston. So I’m praying and dreaming and looking.

Another Homeschool Success Story

Oct23

We went tonight to see this young man in his new one man play, Nevermore, based on the life and writings of Edgar Allan Poe. The actor and playwright, Tim Evers, is a homeschooled senior in high school (or recent graduate), and he is quite talented. Unfortunately, the publicity for this play was somewhat lacking, and there weren’t very many people there tonight. I hope he will try again and get a bigger audience. The play included renditions of The Cask of Amontillado, The Fall of the House of Usher, The Tell-Tale Heart, and The Raven in addition to a portrayal of Poe’s mysterious death on October 7, 1849. Young Mr. Evers has written and performed three other one man plays: Mark Twain’s Anthology, The Gospel According to Mark Twain, and The Demons of Sherlock Holmes. Again, I was quite impressed. The play kept me shivering and quaking, and my nine year old, Brown Bear Daughter, who accompanied me was downright scared. She says she’ll have nightmares tonight–my mistake for bringing her, I suppose.

Essay Contests

Oct13

Since someone in my immediate family just received her prize for the Breakpoint essay contest in which she won third place (three books and a cash award), I thought I’d look around the web for essay contests that some of my students (or your students) might be interested in entering.

1. Jane Austen Society of North America 2005 Essay Contest: This one doesn’t have a scholarship or cash award, but you do get a free membership in JASNA for one year, free admission and room at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Milwaukee (October, 2005) or the equivalent cash award, public recognition at the 2005 AGM and on the JASNA web site, andon-line publication of the winning essay. It’s for students high school age through post-graduate. We are Jane Austen fans around here.
2. The National Society of the Sons of the American Revolution George S. and Stella M. Knight Essay Contest: The topic of the essay shall deal with an event, person, philosophy, or ideal associated with the American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence, or the framing of the United States Constitution. Contestants shall be in their junior or senior grade of study during the contest year. I’m going to strongly urge my AP US History students to enter this essay contest. The top three prizes are $3000, $2000, and $1000 respectively.
3. TextbookX.com Scholarship: An undergraduate or graduate student in the US must enter this contest online. The essay topic for this fall is: What role, if any, do the media play in shaping American political opinion? The deadline for this one is October 31st, but I think they run another contest in the spring.
4. Signet Classic Essay Contest: Five high school juniors or seniors can each win a $1,000 scholarship award to be used toward their higher education plus a Signet Classic library for their school. Students enter by writing an essay on one of four topics posed for this year’s competition book, The Prince and the Pauper by Charles Dickens.
5. John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Essay Contest: In less than 1,000 words, write an essay that is original, creative, and demonstrates an understanding of political courage as described by John F. Kennedy in Profiles in Courage. Use a variety of sources such as newspaper articles, books, and/or personal interviews to address one of the following two topics:
A current elected public official in the United States, who is acting courageously to address a political issue at the local, state, national, or international level OR
An elected public official in the United States since 1956 who has acted courageously to address a political issue at the local, state, national, or international level. THis is another contest that sounds tailor-made for my AP US History students; it’s for students in grades 9-12.

This is fun; I think I’ll look for some more another day. Please comment and tell me if you or your students plan to enter any of these contests, and especially tell me if anyone you know wins. I think the really attractive thing about these contests for homeschoolers is that they provide extra incentive to write something that will add to a student’s education and enrich his/her life. (Maybe even literally “enrich.”)