it’s not about you

So we started homeschooling last week (actually, we started the week before because Mary Judah kept asking me if we could do “Spanish preschool” when her brother took his nap). I’ve had a couple of people ask what curriculum I’m using, so I thought I’d start off some homeschooling posting by listing that here.

Since I don’t really know what I’m doing in all of this, I searched out the requirements for kindergarten in California. The state requires six subjects be taught:

Language Arts (including reading/literature and writing/composition)
Math
Science
History/Geography/Social Studies
Physical Education
Arts (including visual art, music, theater and dance)

In addition to those subjects, we are also covering Spanish and Bible Studies. I’ll list what we’re doing for each subject in the above order. I’m also open to suggestions and advice regarding things to add/take away, advice, etc. I’m definitely going to use the curriculums I have for Language Arts and Math, at least through the semester, and if they don’t work after that, I’m open to looking at other things. But I hope they take.

For every subject, I’m relying on the Content Standards for Kindergarten by the California Department of Education and “What Your Kindergardener Needs to Know” in the Core Knowledge Series.

Language Arts:
I’m using “Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons.” This book is entirely scripted and teaches phonetically, as far as I can tell. I’m not well-versed in pedagogy, so I might get terms wrong here. I basically read through each lesson and she repeats after me and then has opportunity to practice writing. I bought an alphabet manuscript poster with all the uppercase and lowercase letters. Each letter has numbered arrows showing how to form the letters when writing.

The Need to Know book has lists of nursery rhymes, sayings, poems and books/stories that are common to kindergarten curriculums, so we’ll be sure to get through those. We’ll read children’s classics (Joshua recently finished Charlotte’s Web as their bedtime book and I want to start the Laura Ingalls Wilder set - any other suggestions?) and I let her check out up to 10 books of her choice from the library every time we go that we read to her and she looks at by herself.

We’re big readers in this house, so reading is a part of life. I go through two to three books a week since I’ve discovered the SF library system carries everything on my amazon.com list! Our kids love books. Killian even “reads” books.

I also bought Writing Essentials, and once we get her writing and penmanship skills down, we’ll start using some of the techniques in this. She’ll have a writing journal to write a little bit in every day. I’m pretty excited about this part. I see blogging in her future…

Math:
Math is the subject that scares me the most, but I’m discovering is a lot of fun. I’m using Saxon Math, level K. This is also scripted so I just read it to her. I didn’t know this at the time, but there is the Saxon teaching book, and then there’s a meeting book, and a student workbook (I think) and a whole manipulatives set you can order. I just have the main book. The first couple of lessons require pattern blocks, so I’m borrowing some from my friend Kim, Mary Judah’s preschool teacher. The next couple of lessons require teddy bear counters, and instead we’re using dried beans.

The curriculum has you use the meeting book as a calendar, which is the first half of every lesson. On Kim’s advice, before I even knew about the calendar aspect of the math curriculum, I bought a large blank desk calendar and we fill in the months and dates together (we did this last week for September) and use the calendar every day. Lacey, my sister-in-law, gave us this really cool wall hanging that has Velcro pieces for all the dates and the weather and things like that.

Kim also let me borrow “Family Math,” which is a great book with ideas for doing math with items you would naturally have and situations that are natural to a family environment. I’ve tabbed all the pages I think I might use. She also started getting an allowance last week. She gets $2.50 per week - 50 cents per year of age, and she has to save 10 percent and give or tithe 10 percent. She learned very quickly that there are no toys at Target that can be bought with two dollars.

Science:
For Science, both the Need to Know book and the content standards basically have a list of the things they need to learn. I wrote everything on a post-it note (for example, magnetism, three phases of water) and divided up the notes on my planning calendar (I bought an Office Max monthly planner) to even it out.

We’ll work in the garden and we’ll cook together and we’ll go on hikes and walks and to the beach and we’ll learn about things as they interest her (like the colony of bats that have taken up residence in the gap between our flats and the flats next door, or like butterflies or sharks). I also bought her a subscription to “My Big Backyard.”

History/Geography/Social Studies:
Again, I relied heavily on the Need to Know book and the content standards to tell me what we should be doing. I did the post-it note thing with this.

P.E.:
Really? My child is so active, I’m not even worried about this one. We usually go outside at least once a day - we have a backyard, a playground three blocks away, Golden Gate park HALF a block away; she has a bike, and we’ll go on the aforementioned walks and hikes and trips to the beach. This kid knows how to play. Her gross motor skills are great.

Oh, and she has swim class once a week. She got promoted to Level II last week. I’m very proud. I’d love to get her in ballet or gymnastics or something, but that’s going to have to wait.

Arts:
Mary Judah is really artsy - she even adds tails and curlicues to all her letters when she practices. We’ll do a lot of seasonal crafts and things related to things she’s doing in her other subjects. I have some ideas for painting themes and photo projects. We’ve always done of art around here, and we go to the museums as well.

We sing a lot and play lots of music around the house, so I’ll make sure we’re intentional about introducing her to anything else she needs. If she gets in a ballet class, that would also help with the dance aspect of arts. I’m not quite sure how to integrate theatre into her stuff, but I’m sure I’ll think of something.

Spanish:
Last year, Mary Judah went to a Spanish-immersion preschool and she is continuing to go one morning a week this year. Since I speak some Spanish, we reinforce this at home and she’s always asking me new words in Spanish.

Bible studies:
We’re following the lectionary and the liturgical calendar, and we do the daily reading every morning at breakfast. I’ve also noted several saints days and we’ll learn about those as they happen.

So far, I’m taking things slow while we transition, and am focusing the most on reading, writing, and math. I’m learning that if we don’t get her work done first thing in the morning, it’s really hard to do it after that. She’s prime for learning then, and if I wait and try to do it later, it’s much harder and takes longer to do the same amount of stuff.

So I’ve been asked by several people how I am doing.

I’m doing much better, thanks. This new chiropractic office I’ve been going to for the past few weeks seems to be helping a lot. The numbness/pain/tingling/pins-and-needles feelings in my arm are gone. My neck feels much better and my shoulder isn’t hurting as bad. I’m still a little frightened of doing something mundane and wrenching myself out again, but I’m feeling 95% better.

Joshua told me I was definitely feeling better because I’m not bursting into tears every 30 minutes.

My pubic bone still hurts quite a bit, which might be partly due to running on the Golden Gate Bridge yesterday hand-in-hand with Mary Judah. The chiropractic care seems to help with some maintenance, though. When I had gone without any for a couple of months, it got really bad, but now the pain is back to its regularly scheduled programming.

Most importantly, I feel like the chiropractors who are working on me now are empathetic and are listening to me and validating what I’m saying about what I’m going through. I’m not put through any guilt trips or implications that this pain is somehow my fault as if I’m not doing what I’m told. So I feel much more comfortable there. They also don’t pretend to have the magic touch and and expect that as soon as I’m adjusted, my pain will instantly disappear. They are also open and encouraging when I talk about other therapies I’m considering. They don’t get huffy and act like it’s a personal affront.

Woo-hoo!

So I also went to my primary care physician this morning, to talk to her about all this and see if she had any suggestions. I have the numbers of some physical therapists to check out and a prescription for some Vicodin (I think Mom called them “happy pills”), for when the pain gets bad. I can’t wait to get that filled.

In other news, the appeals court has officially reversed its earlier decision and has stated that parents DO have a right to homeschool their children in the state. Hopefully I will have a separate post up about that and maybe - MAYBE - that long ago promised series on what was wrong with the ruling.

If a 21-month-old drops four ounces of applesauce from a height of three-and-a-half-feet, and it splatters in an arc all over the floor, table, and wall, exactly how long will it take to clean up?

Mary Judah’s preschool went on a field trip to Harley Farms down in Pescadero today. I am EXHAUSTED. Tonight, I had a sub-committee meeting at my house for the church Steering Committee, and the last person just left five minutes ago.

Mary Judah was very excited about taking her camera to the goat farm this morning and the first thing she did when we got there was whip it out and take pictures. She took pictures the whole time we were there. When Joshua got home from work tonight, she showed him all the pictures from her camera. Somehow, Killian got ahold of it and started pushing buttons (Joshua just informed me that Mary judah handed Killian her camera). When Mary Judah went to show our friend Nick the photos she’d taken today, none of them appeared. Apparently, Killian had been deleting photos the entire time he was pushing buttons.

I feel like crying about it, and boy howdy, have we had enough of that around here. All of those photos she worked so hard to get - GONE. And I can’t pay six bucks and just go get another one. I feel SO BAD. She was so thrilled about her photos and now they’re GONE GONE GONE.

In other news, I’m teaching her that when she tells people, “My mom is going to homeschool me” she needs to add, “and we’re sticking it to the man.”

That’s my girl.

This past Friday morning, I woke up, got dressed and logged onto my computer to check my e-mail. While I waited for my e-mail to download, I began to get a cup of coffee together. My daily SFGate headline news e-mail popped out at me, with this article in the subject line:

“Homeschoolers’ setback sends shockwaves through the state.”

I hadn’t even finished the article before I had received two separate phone calls from people, each with a seemingly benign, “So, how are you?” that was actually loaded to find out whether or not I had seen the article yet.

I felt utterly and completely broad-sided. I actually told that to Robin when she called at 8:30, and I think I scared her at first, judging by her startled, “what?!?” in response. I had to clarify that I hadn’t been physically broad-sided - I had yet to leave the house, after all.

We haven’t said anything publicly yet about our decision regarding our kids’ education, though a lot of people already know. We have decided to homeschool Mary Judah during the next school year, which will be her kindergarten year. Beyond that, we aren’t making any commitments (though I have to say my stubborn side is leaning toward homeschooling just to stick it to that judge!). I have been doing a lot of research and studying and talking to people and praying and evaluating and trying to figure out what it is we’re supposed to do regarding her education and the choices we want to make as we raise her the type of opportunities we want her to have in life. Same goes for Killian, and that should go without speaking, though Mary Judah’s formal education is much more imminent.

I never in a million years thought I would ever homeschool, ever. I actually said to people, “I will never homeschool my children.” Of course, that was during those light and care-free days before morning sickness, and rotund bellies, and screaming in the middle of the night as I pushed a human being out of my own body.

Then I took one look at my daughter’s face, fell hopelessly in love with her, and the seeds were planted. What can I say? I couldn’t imagine ever being separated from her. As she’s grown and I’ve gotten to know her and helped to shape her into the person she is and will become, I’ve questioned my resolute decision not to homeschool. I started asking myself, why? Well, why not?

I began reading and researching and having come to grips with the misconceptions I’ve had, and through all of that, decided to go for it. This ruling that came down late last month has infuriated me. There are so many holes in it, it’s not even funny. From the education code, to what makes a private school, to religious reasons for homeschooling, to teaching credentials, to parental rights, to the real reason for compulsory education, there are just so many things wrong with it. And I’m going to talk about all of them. That’s right. Like you thought for a second I wouldn’t.

Here’s what happened in a nutshell. If I don’t have details as accurate as I think I do, I will most certainly go back and change them:

According to the ruling, the homeschooling parents of eight children were taken to court in a child welfare case. As the case progressed, the attorney for two of the children asked to court to direct the juvenile court to order the children to enroll and attend a public or private school. The parents asserted that they had a constitutional right to homeschool their children.

The ruling states that no, parents do not have a constitutional right to oversee their children’s education at home and that according to the education code, in this particular case, the parents were not following any of the provisions allowed to educate their children.

The court then asserts that homeschooling in general cannot fall under the private school allowance in the education code, and actually goes so far as to consider the process of parents who establish private schools in their homes as a means of following the law and then teaching their children at home to being a “ruse.”

The court also states that parents who wish to teach their children at home must hold a valid credential in the grade level being taught.

From the ruling:

It is clear to us that enrollment and attendance in a public full-time day school is required by California law for minor children unless (1) the child is enrolled in a private full-time day school and actually attends that private school, (2) the child is tutored by a person holding a valid state teaching credential for the grade being taught, or (3) one of the other few statutory exemptions to compulsory public school attendance applies to the child.

Exemptions to compulsory public school education are made for, among others, children who (1) attend a private full-time day school (§ 48222) or (2) are instructed by a tutor who holds a valid state teaching credential for the grade being taught (§ 48224).

Such representation does not constitute a statement that the Los Angeles Unified School District and the Los Angeles County Office of Education knowingly gave their stamp of approval to children being deprived of an education in a public or private full-time day school setting, or by a credentialed tutor, through the ruse of enrolling them in a private school and then letting them stay home and be taught by a non-credentialed parent.

One of the issues raised about the ruling by the Homeschool Legal Defense Association is that “the decision is categorical and was not written to be limited to just the facts of this case,” which means that if the Supreme Court ratifies this ruling, it can be applied to homeschoolers across the board, not just to the people involved in the case, resulting in a benchmark case to be able to prosecute homeschooling parents across the state. Lovely. Also keep in mind that, like it or not, California is a bellwether state and the decisions made here can have dramatic impacts reverberating across the country.

Where do things stand now? From what I understand, the parents are appealing to the state’s Supreme Court. The HSLDA is getting involved, along with other homeschooling organizations, on several fronts. The gubernator has said he will support homeschooling families and said that “if the courts don’t protect parents’ rights then, as elected officials, we will.” Several state legislators have promised to introduce legislation to protect homeschooling and the California Superintendent of Public Instruction, Jack O’Connell has said he believes homeschooling in still legal in the state.

The HSLDA also has a petition you can sign to ask the Supreme Court to depublish the ruling, which would prevent in from being used as a precedent and limit its scope to the particular case.

I’ll have another post tomorrow.

That if enough parents getting angry over Hannah Montana ticket scalping could bring about investigations and legal action, then parents getting angry over the courts taking away their right to homeschool without a teaching credential could bring about positive change as well.

I mean, come on. The Hannah Freaking Montana Bill? Actually, the “Freaking” part isn’t really a part of it. I added that myself. I think it sounds better.

I’m going to be doing a series of posts (rather than one LONG post) with my thoughts on the ruling handed down by a California appellate court late last month, now that my initial anger is out of the way, so for those of you who have told me you miss “hearing my voice” on the internet - this one’s for you. Okay, not really for you. But kind of.

I’ll be giving up my nightly hot bath to do this, just so you know I MEAN IT.

link

beautiful.