Homeschooling difficulties: Let me hear your experiences

Dear readers, I'd love some feedback. I'm writing an article for Backwoods Home Magazine on the subject of homeschooling difficulties. Originally I pitched just two notions (both parents working, and single parents), but then my editor came back with many more ideas. She suggested, "Both parents working, homesteading schedules, single parent, self-doubt, homeschooling kids with long age gaps, sibling conflicts, organizing curriculum, lack of motivation (on the kid part or parent part), etc. I’m sure there are a lot more."

So fill me in on what kinds of challenges you (or someone you know) has experienced while homeschooling – and, more important, how you/they overcame these difficulties.

Thank you!

Homeschool physics lesson

Saw this in a Backwoods Home Magazine email. Cracked me up.

Homeschooling supplies

 This made me laugh.

Sudden homeschoolers

With many states closing their schools over concerns with the coronavirus, many parents are being tasked to do something most have never considered: homeschooling their kids, at least temporarily.

It's one thing to start teaching your own children after much forethought and pre-planning. It's another thing entirely to suddenly become responsible for their education without preparation.

I've been asked to write an article on homeschooling children on a temporary basis. The article should be upbeat and positive. Since I can think of no finer resource than my dear readers, I thought I'd start by soliciting your advice and suggestions.

I'm working on the assumption most children will have lesson plans and books provided by the schools, so parents don't have to create these from scratch. Also, let's work on the assumption the parents have no interest in homeschooling on a permanent basis, but instead are just trying to cope with a temporary situation.

"Kids" can range from ages 4 through 18, so let's brainstorm for all age groups. Remember, parents are being dropped into this in the middle of things, so many are floundering around, figuring out what to do.

Some things to think about:

• Suggested online resources

• How to keep parents (usually mothers) from feeling overwhelmed

• Suggestions for games that teach (for various age levels)

• Suggestions for getting kids to see parents as teachers; how to become a teacher at home

I'm open to other subjects as well.

So let's hear 'em, folks -- give me your ideas for how "sudden homeschoolers" should handle things.

Poor brainwashed child

Now this is fascinating -- and very very sad.

A couple of years ago, I wrote a column for WND entitled Help! My 15-year-old daughter is having sex! It sparked a lively debate among readers, many of whom flatly disagreed with my stance and defended teen sex as normal and healthy.

Just this morning (I get notifications of such things) another comment was added to the column from a 15 year old girl as follows. Some horrific swear words were "bleeped out" (I get the unedited version). Before reading her comment, please read the column first to understand the context.

As a fifteen year old girl, who is a virgin, a straight A student, a feminist, and a liberal (things you obviously don't agree with) the first thing that came to my mind after reading this is what the ***.

Firstly, I would like to comment on the homeschooling/ private school section of this. Children put in private schools, especially religious ones, tend to have sex earlier and party harder because when you are put in a strict environment you tend to want to rebel. Children who are homeschooled, if they don't have enough extracurricular activities, are weirdos. Sorry, but people have to interact with other people their own age. A fifteen year old shouldn't be spending all her time with her parents. You need friends and interaction to be able to learn how to function in society and be able to create your own opinions and ways of thinking.

Next, lets talk about the slut shaming in this. Having sex, no matter your age, does not make you a whore, slut, bad person, or anything negative. Sex is a decision between two people and they can choose to do whatever makes them comfortable. You cannot speak for someone you have never met. You do not know why she chose to have sex and you can't say it was from pear pressure because you do not know. Maybe she felt ready and her boyfriend felt ready so they made the decision to have intercourse with each other. Maybe she thought it would make their relationship better. Maybe she was horny and decided to just go for it. You don't know and it's not your place to guess or to judge. You also cannot speak for this girl's mother when you talk about what you think her parenting style is. You have not met any of these people so you cannot speak about them or for them.

I will also talk about how you say staying married is important. Single parents can raise a child perfectly fine. A person doesn't need a mother and a father, they just need female and male role models. Staying married won't change how early someone has their sexual debut.

Now lets talk about contraceptives. These are so very important because whether you like it or not teenagers are having sex. In every generation in the past, present and future teenagers have always been and will always have sex. Contraceptives like condoms, the pill, IUDs, the shot, the patch, etc. reduce the chance of a person getting pregnant. This is important because sometimes people don't want a kid. Is that surprising to you? People are going to have sex no matter what so providing birth control is necessary to prevent teen pregnancy.

You also made a facetious comment about abortions. Any living creature has the right to decide what happens to THEIR body and who gets to "use it". This means no one gets to use their body without permission. That could be a man, a woman, or in the case of abortions a fetus. You are in control of your own body and no one gets to use it unless you say okay. So if someone decides to terminate a pregnancy because they don't want a child to grow inside them, that is their *** damn business and it should not concern you. I am not pro-abortion, I am pro-choice. Meaning that I believe no one else should have a say in what you decide.

To close my argument, although i have so much more to say about this, I'll talk about this comment, "Too often, modern parenting techniques are antithetical to the old-fashioned time-tested ways to raise children, complete with restrictions, religious values, discipline, repercussions, training and high expectations of moral behavior." The reason for modern parenting techniques instead of old-fashioned time-tested ways is that people evolve with the times. If we didn't we all would be sold into marriage, people would be stoned for committing crimes, and we would burn "witches" at the stake. Times change and so should parenting techniques. When your baby cries you probably shouldn't give it whiskey or wine because we now know that alcohol is bad for people, especially infants. Swaddling techniques have changed. Car seats have changed. Dietary habits for kids has changed. Disciplinary acts for teenagers has changed. Approaches to dealing with teenagers expressing their sexuality has changed because now we now better. Do we know everything? No. Is that okay? Yes. Should we be open to other opinions? Yeah. Should you realize that things change and thats okay? Yup. No matter what you tell your kids are they still going to make their own decisions? Yes because everyone is an individual and you have to realize that. Get with the times and open your *** damn eyes because sheltering your kids isn't going to help anyone.

To be quite truthful, I feel achingly sorry for this child. Liberals like to accuse conservatives of "brainwashing" their children to be good moral decent citizens. But can you honestly say this poor kid hasn't been brainwashed into liberalism? She parroted every talking point in the left-leaning spectrum without, I'm guessing, any true comprehension of how easy sex, easy contraceptives, and easy abortions can impact a young girl's life forever.

The progressive mindset that self-control must equal repression is a clear sign of this girl's immaturity. Hey, the sky's the limit, do whatever you feeeeeel like doing! Who cares what the consequences might be? If the 15-year-olds in question feel "ready" for sex, whoo-hoo! The kids are "horny" so they shouldn't bother their little heads about about self-control -- go for it! If the birth control fails, that's what abortions are for!

Thanks but no thanks. I'd rather have teens who are "weirdos" (her term) than teens like this young lady. I don't want to "get with the times" if the "times" produce fruit like this.

The beginning of a disturbing trend?

Here's a fascinating article I just saw: School officials trying to bully homeschooling parents to put their kids back in school. The article dubbed it "the beginning of a disturbing trend."

Apparently homeschooling parents in Ritchie County, West Virginia are being contacted by school districts who don't like the fact that so many children are not enrolled in public schools (thus costing the districts $12,000 per pupil of government funding).

So what's a desperate school district to do? "The county’s superintendent ordered a campaign designed to convince homeschooling parents to put their children back in the public schools."

And how does a school district "convince" parents they shouldn't homeschool? By harassment, intimidation, and quasi-stalking. HSLDA reported that one family "had gotten so many calls at their place of employment that their work supervisor was asking questions about the calls."

Yeah, real convincing technique, guys. Really illustrates how much you have the children's best interests at heart.

The article says, "[HSLDA staff attorney Michael] Donnelly points out that besides trying to use the judicial system to its advantage, the public school system is instigating battles with homeschool communities. He tells how officials are now maneuvering to deploy a combative strategy to instill fear in home educators so that they will surrender their children back to the schools."

As one commenter wrote,"Maybe homeschooling parents will send their children back to public schools when the public educational system gets back to the basics; when they stop indoctrinating the kids with socialism, globalism, multiculturalism, Islam, the homosexual activist agenda, dispensing ritalin and telling them what kids cannot eat for lunch. It wouldn't hurt to honor God in the classroom again either."

Homeschooling help

A reader named Ben left a comment that I wanted everyone to see and to which they can respond. Ben writes:

I really like your blog and your views on home schooling. My wife and I are really interested in home schooling our sons down here in Southern California but we're not sure where to start with choosing a curriculum, etc. Any resources or advice you or your other readers could give would be really appreciated. Thank you for all you do!

Ben, I would like to address your attention to two blog posts which you may find helpful:

Homeschooling on One Income

Our Homeschooling Resources

Be sure to read the comments, since that's where a lot of valuable reader input can be found.

And now, dear readers, without knowing the ages of Ben's sons (hopefully he'll chime in and let us know), let's give him a hand and offer him some general advice. The more homeschoolers, the merrier!

Homeschooling on one income

I just received a comment as follows:

"Patrice: Slightly off topic -- can a family of six homeschool with one parent staying home on a $35K a year income? Thank you for your reply."

Of course they can. However I'm having a busy streak at the moment (getting ready for the preparedness expo, expecting visitors, writing deadlines, etc.), so I'm going to open this up for discussion and invite readers to give their thoughts.

C'mon, folks, let's help her out. How best can a large single-income family homeschool on $35K a year?

Proud parents

Out of the blue I received a charming email from proud parents Billy and Marie, which I asked permission to share because it made me smile.
_______________________

Patrice:

First, my entire family thoroughly enjoys your WND articles, we read them every week.

Several weeks ago your article pertained to Home Schooling, we currently have three active students and my oldest daughter (20) finished up her High School curriculum when she was 16.

Please allow me to brag a little, my oldest daughter finished our program at 16, scored in the top 3% of the nation on her GED test, and worked a full time job as an Administrative / HR / Accounting Associate at the trucking company I worked at for 18-months.

She excelled and voluntarily departed to pursue her passion – writing. Last fall she self-published a book “Violet Eyes” under the name of Katharine Bond on Amazon.

The book she published is the first of a three volume series and while it’s not a “Best Seller” (YET), we are very proud of her and the limited feedback we’ve received is positive.

We could not imagine sending our children to Public School, we tried a Church School for my oldest when she was in 4th grade, not what we expected and resumed our Home School efforts in 5th Grade.

My daughter has excelled, we are not academic experts but my wife is committed and consistent and we use the best technology, curriculum, and instructional material we can and my wife approaches our Home School program as if it were a job (It is : - ))

Our home life and relationship with our children is enhanced by our Home School efforts and we will not have the issue facing us down the road of “wish I’d spent more time with my kids”.

When I set down to review their grades and home work; it’s a big deal for the kids and they receive the praise, coaching, and in some rare cases discipline necessary to keep them focused and productive.

In summary, anyone who does not Home School their family is missing out on the positive impact it can have on both children and parents.

Thank you for your continued efforts in promoting this outstanding practice.

Best Regards,
Billy & Maria

Homeschooling guidance

A reader named CB sent me the following question(s):

We have 2 daughters, ages 2 and 4, that we want to homeschool, but my wife occasionally has "those days" where the girls completely wear her and her patience thin and she severely doubts her ability to homeschool. It's not that the material will be over her head, but that the 24 hours a day with the girls without any breaks for sanity will drive her nuts. I've started trying to take the girls off her hands for at least 30 minutes every [evening] when I get home from work and for half a day every weekend. In the past I would come home and play with them in the house, but they could still run to her and bug and plead and cry. Now it's a complete removal from mama, outside with the chicks, or in the orchard. We still have a farm that has to be run and I have a full-time job in a mine so my time is limited, but like I said, I'm trying to releive some of that pressure. We've also talked about music lessons, paying a retired teacher for a couple of hours of school lessons once a week, year long zoo passes, weekly library trips, and other stuff to get them out of the house and get mama a break. My wife's other concern is that both of our mom's have told her that they couldn't have homeschooled their kids. They were both good moms when we were growing up, so now my wife rethinks homeschooling just because of that once in a while. Do you have any tips or hints that could help? What else can I do, on top of encouragement and releiving pressure, to help?

Second question is, have you looked at the Ron Paul Curriculum? http://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/

Since you have experience in the realm of homeschooling, teaching liberty, constitutionalism, etc., would you mind posting your thoughts on the Ron Paul Curriculum? Will/would you enroll your girls?

Thank you, CB

I thought this would be an excellent issue to open up for discussion since multiple heads are better than one. Here are some of my thoughts to get the discussion going.

CB, I believe your wife is in need of coping techniques rather than specifics on homeschooling. There isn't a mother alive who hasn't had "those days" (or weeks or months...) with young kids. You're to be commended for relieving your wife as often as you do.

I would urge her NOT to turn to media to calm kids down (television, videos, computers, iPads, whatever). While this may work in the short-term, it will backfire in the long run by producing zombie children, unable to function without multiple media access. Children need to be taught how to entertain themselves through reading, independent play, etc. This isn't always easy, but the benefits in the long run are tremendous. Obviously in the pre-reading stage, "reading" isn't an option; but make sure you have loads of picture books available, and model reading as something enjoyable. Along these lines, I would urge the adults in the home to turn off the %$@* television as well.

Young children are also in need of strict training. Not discipline, not punishment, but training. They need to be trained not to whine, cling, have tantrums, etc. The book To Train Up a Child is considered controversial in some circles because it advocates the use of a "rod," but it offers some superb insight on the issue of raising young children how to be self-controlled. Skip the "rod" part if you want to -- we did -- but I strongly recommend reading it for training techniques.

I have a blog post from two years ago called Beaten Into Submission that addresses in more depth the notion of training children. Please read it.

As far as Ron Paul's curriculum is concerned, I have never heard of it though it sounds intriguing. While slavishly following a set curriculum works for some people, I don't like the expense or limitation involved in such methods. We prefer to draw upon numerous sources for our material. However a curriculum does offer guidance and is an excellent way not to "forget" something important, so I have no quarrels with the idea.

Okay, now I would urge all readers to chime in and offer CB some help.

(By the way, CB, your website on chickens is wonderful and I would like permission to post the URL. May I?)

Bwahahahahaha -- here we go again

Sheesh. You'd think, after studies have proven them wrong again and again and again, that critics would drop the tiresome "socialization" charge when it comes to homeschooling.

I happened to catch an article entitled Interest in Homeschooling Surges which reported an increase in the number of people interested in homeschooling their children in the aftermath of the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shootings. This doesn't surprise me -- I'm certain there are many parents who feel concern every time they send their children off to gun-free zones each morning.

But true to form, someone couldn't stop herself from snarking on the same weary and incorrect theme about socialization. "Public private schools offer the socialization without trying so hard," said Nory Behana. Behana is a Lecturer in child and family development at San Diego State University. She said parents should think twice about homeschooling. Behana said a classroom environment provides key skills for life. "Your socialization with peers is one of the best ways you figure out how you relate to the world," said Behana. She said homeschooling can be effective as long as there is a social component.

Um, hello, how many homeschoolers are taped into a cardboard box in the basement after their school hours are over in order to keep them away from socializing in the (cough) real world? I wonder if Ms. Behana ever noticed how little publicly-schooled kids have time for real-life experiences when they're locked in a classroom with the other lab rats for seven or eight hours a day?

"Professional educators, who don't fully understand the many styles of homeschooling, often raise this issue," noted Isabel Shaw in Social Skills and Homeschooling: Myths and Facts. "They believe school is the only place children learn socialization skills... The socialization myth was born out of a misconception of what it's like to homeschool. Many educators and critics of homeschooling still believe homeschoolers hit the books at 9 a.m., work all day at their kitchen table till 3:00 p.m. or later, and spend their day isolated and alone."

Since homeschooling has a proven track record of academic superiority, this begs the question: is the sole and exclusive purpose of school "socialization"? If so, why is no one examine the quality of socialization in which children are immersed?

Apparently a staggering 92% of school superintendents "believe that home learners are emotionally unstable, deprived of proper social development and too judgmental of the world around them," according to a California study by researcher Dr. Brian Ray with the National Home Education Research Institute.

Emotionally unstable? Deprived of proper social development? Too judgmental? Oh please.

Sigh. Still an uphill battle. I'm just grateful our girls aren't involved in the "social development" experiments taking place in America's public schools.

Changing a lightbulb

Here's a little Monday morning humor a reader sent. How many homeschoolers does it take to change a lightbulb?

Sex education, home-style

Lately I’ve been following an online discussion between progressives and conservatives on the subject of abortions for teens. The argument of the progressives (besides the idea that abortion should be fully-funded and allowable at any time, for any reason) is that we need eternal sex education for our young people. “We need effective, very effective sex education at early ages mandatory for all,” wrote one woman. “Ask a lot of 14 to 16 year old (fertile) females what can cause pregnancy and you will get some bizarre answers. Free condoms and birth control pills, free use of RU 486 and effective sex education and that will nearly eliminate unwanted pregnancies.”

Putting aside the dangerous concept of mandatory progressive one-size-fits-all sex education for children starting at “early ages,” this comment got me thinking: Our daughters are 14 and 16, right in the “fertile” age group this woman mentions. And since they’re homeschooled, they’ve never had “sex education” per se. Certainly they’ve never learned the finer points of using condoms, birth control pills, RU 486, or other methods of controlling fertility. And needless to say they’ve never darkened the door of Planned Parenthood. (See how deprived our girls are?)

But since they were three years old and noticed the antics of Mr. Rooster with the hens, they’ve never been unclear about the connection between mating and babies.

In this information age, how on earth can any teen be ignorant about the connection between sex and pregnancy? While I agree there are some bizarre myths floating around on the issue of under what conditions a pregnancy can occur, I don’t know that anyone who has even the mildest connection with the Real World who cannot grasp the correlation that pregnancy is always caused by sex (in one form or another).

I don’t blame teen pregnancy on (just) ignorance; I blame teen pregnancy on a lack of self-control. For every teen who thinks, “It can’t happen to me” when faced with the possibility of an unwanted pregnancy after irresponsible sex, there are other teens who think, “I’d better not do this” before they have irresponsible sex, and then don’t have to worry about pregnancy at all. The former are NOT practicing self-control. The latter ARE.

As I see it, that’s one of the advantages of homeschooling. Nearly all homeschooling parents teach their children sex education by osmosis because they teach their children self-control. They generally teach their children right and wrong, rather than, “If it feels right, then do it.”

Without the constant exposure to a peer culture that encourages and rewards a lack of self-control ("Oooh, you stud! You scored last night!"), homeschooled kids tend to hang around both adults and other (homeschooled) peers who understand that self-control is one of the most critical qualities to acquire in order to live a decent life.

So what kind of sex education do homeschoolers receive? In all likelihood, homeschooled kids are going to see intimacy taking place within the proper context (i.e., two married and committed parents). They’ll also take note of the damage to individuals, families, and society when sex happens outside the proper context. They’ll learn that, while birth control has its place, its place is not unlimited and uncontrolled sex while single (especially while under age).

With all the discussions about what young people “should” be learning in sex education, a logical question to ask is: what’s more effective? Learning self-control and the proper time and place for intimacy (i.e. marriage) despite a body full of raging hormones? Or learning about all the tricks of the trade to have baby-free sex wherever and whenever they want?

Which options will promote happiness and stability on a long-term basis?

In short, I believe that learning true sex education (which includes self-control) would virtually eliminate the need for any of the services offered by places like Planned Parenthood.

But of course, this assumes that parents are stepping up to the plate and teaching their teens real sex education.

Your thoughts?

Love's labour's algebra

The girls were working on their schoolwork this morning. Older Daughter was reading Shakespeare (specifically, Love’s Labour’s Lost)...

...and Younger Daughter is just beginning Algebra I.

I was working a math problem with Younger Daughter when Older Daughter suddenly said, “You have no idea how hard it is to read Shakespeare when you’re talking math. This is what I just read: ‘If my observation, which very seldom lies, 6x + 1 is greater than -2x + 5, by the heart's still rhetoric disclosed with eyes, Deceive me not now, Navarre is infected…’”

Yeah, I could see how that would be confusing.

Random pix

Some random shots from the last couple of weeks:

I took the camera and hit our pasture one day, trying to take a photo suitable for the front cover of the quarterly magazine I edit for the Purebred Dexter Cattle Association. This is the photo I used (our cow Ruby).

My folks are up visiting (staying in Coeur d'Alene for a couple of months) and they came over for dinner one evening. Older Daughter snapped a pic of my dad chuckling over a comic book.

Chickens on tires.

The girls discussing something in the barn.

Bumper sticker we saw in Spokane.

Another chuckle:

Some serious "awwww."

Building a better mousetrap. Older Daughter had a mouse in her room. So one night she decided to build a mousetrap using some books stacked stair-step fashion, with bits of cheese leading up the stairs. At the top were two folded pieces of paper laid lightly over a can, with a piece of cheese in the center. The idea is the mouse would step onto the paper and fall into the can.

It worked!!

What I want to know is, how can a four-day trip result in two weeks' worth of laundry?

A chickaree (a type of squirrel) in our barn (blurry shot, sorry).

We have a robin nesting in the rafters of our barn. Usually it's swallows who like to nest in rafters, but this is definitely a robin.

This is Snap, our rooster.

We've been having fewer eggs in the chicken coop lately. This could explain why.

Tossing tires with Jack's wonderful wife, Natalie.

Jack and Natalie's youngest. Oh so cute!

I don't know my snakes. Anyone? Gopher? Rat snake?

Alert!

Older Daughter is gradually papering the back of her bedroom door with our weekly church bulletins. Not your typical teenage wallpaper.

Explaining the intricacies of geometry (in a very messy room).

Moonset at dawn (behind a cloud of steam).

Sunset.

Trained to identify resistors

If anyone -- anyone! -- has ever questioned the public school system, you must watch this video clip.

This clip features an interview with Charlotte Iserbyt, who served as senior policy adviser in the Office of Educational Research and Improvement (U.S. Dept of Ed) in the first Reagan administration. What she saw there caused her to become a whistleblower and ultimately to write the book The Deliberate Dumbing Down of America [full disclosure: haven't read it].

During interview, she relates how she had access to all the documents for the "restructuring" of not only American education, but global education. She was trained to "identify the resistors" (to the sex ed/drug ed/alcohol ed/suicide ed/death ed programs) and try and get them to join.

During some in-service training while on her local school board in Maine, she was given a thick manual called "Innovations to Education: A Change Agent's Guide" which gave specific and deliberate instructions on how to "con the Christians" and others who were upset with what the schools were trying to do, and how to "bring them over to your side."

All of this "change agent" training was (and still is) funded by the U.S. Office of Education, with funding starting in about the late 1960s. She described how "facilitators" would come to school districts to train teachers. And teachers throughout the years had to undergo constant training and re-training, along with sensitivity training to "break their values" so there is no right and no wrong.

Ms. Iserbyt mentions Dr. Benjamin Bloom, whom she describes as "the most important behavioral psychologist ever to live" after Pavlov and Skinner, as the one who implemented this system in the United States. She paraphrases his "blatant" beliefs: "The purpose of education is to change the thoughts, actions, and feelings of students" and how he defines good teaching as "challenging the students' fixed beliefs" in order to effect change. She describes how he could "take a student from here to there -- from a belief in God or his country or whatever to being an atheist and not believing in his country in one hour. They bring about the attitude and values change through the emotions of the child.

So what are your thoughts on this? Is Mr. Iserbyt a conspiracy nut or is she accurate in what she says she witnessed while in the Department of Education? Does anyone have any more information on this?

(Still no regrets that we chose to homeschool...)

Defusing a potential nightmare

I received a startling and somber email from a mother with a question about homeschooling. Not about the nuts and bolts of the subject, but rather how to handle her husband, who opposes homeschooling. I was at such a loss as to how to advise this dear lady that I thought I would open up the topic for discussion and ask folks to send in their recommendations. There is no doubt she's in a thorny situation and needs some advice. Many heads are better than one, so let's pitch in and give her some help.

She writes (edited slightly for clarity):

I want to thank you for all the wonderful information on homeschooling resources. I myself have just recently started homeschooling my four year old in preparation for kindergarten. In the process of me doing that this year my oldest daughter (7 yrs old) has been bullied relentlessly at the school I was to enroll our younger daughter into. Needless to say I have since found a online virtual school to help us with the materials that are needed to homeschool both my daughters next year.

I am up against my husband on this one for the homeschooling. He is pro-public school and doesn't want the girls to be "isolated," which there is no way since they are both involved in Girl Scouts. I am doing this all behind his back in order to protect my girls from injury at that horrible school again. He is one of those that has the mentality that its part of growing up to be picked on. Not when she comes home with a busted lip from a rock that was thrown at her and bruises from a child grabbing her.

Any suggestions on how to handle him and defuse a potential nightmare when he finds out???

I admit I gave a low whistle upon reading this. I've met people who are strong advocates of public schooling, but not at the risk of their own children.

So, dear readers, please help her out.

Parents can’t be trusted

Here's a portion of an article that came out of the Home School Legal Defense Association (of which we're long-standing members) concerning the death of a homeschooled child who suffered from severe cerebral palsy. Her death was in no way connected to her home education, except in the minds of those anxious to link homeschooling with child abuse in an attempt to discredit the entire movement (since, of course, we only homeschool to hide the bruises).

The last part of the article was so interesting and so well-expressed that I lifted it from their website. It verbalizes beautifully the disdain and downright hostility so many people have toward homeschoolers. From the article:
______________________________

Opponents of homeschooling frequently couch their objections under the guise of child protection to mask the real reason they dislike this form of education: They don’t like what many homeschoolers teach their kids. So they argue that children in homeschooling families are at risk because they are “off the grid” and not “in the community.” Studies by the federal government have shown, however, that only a minority of reports of child abuse and neglect come from educational professionals with most coming from other mandated reporters, neighbors and others. Different studies also show that homeschoolers are quite active in the community, participating in at least five regular activities outside of the home per child, on average.

Again, behind this failed argument lies the true reason would-be reformers target homeschoolers. They fear the influence homeschool parents have over their children, especially given the fact most of these parents wish to teach their faith and values—usually, Christian values.

For advocates of radical social change who often disdain traditional religious values as “intolerant” or “narrow-minded”—laws that grant homeschool freedom are simply “intolerable.” For these, parents can’t be trusted and only the government can and should be in control of educating children. This idea of total state control over education, of course, runs counter to the principles of limited and enumerated powers that our government is founded upon. What’s more, documents such as the UN Declaration of Human Rights recognize that parents have a prior right to choose what kind of education their children receive, including private education.

Unfortunately, there are some opponents of homeschooling who go so far as to favor the kind of educational totalitarianism that exist in states such as Germany and Sweden. There, parents who attempt to exercise their human right to teach their children as they see fit face real persecution. Attempts to spread the philosophy behind this oppression have even touched North America.

...The fact that homeschoolers are outside the “control” of the state frustrates people who have a different vision for society. So, whenever they can, they encourage more regulation...

Camping out for kindergarten

Here's an article that caught my eye a couple weeks ago: Parents Forced to Camp Out for Lincoln Kindergarten Spots.

The article detailed how "Dozens of parents in one Lincoln [Placer County, near Sacramento] community are being forced to camp out for three nights in hopes of getting their kids into a kindergarten class."

Apparently the area has experienced rapid growth in housing but not in schools, despite promises to build an additional elementary school. There are a limited number of slots for incoming children, so those slots are available on a fist-come-first-served basis.

Besides the misnomer "forced" (nobody is "forcing" these parents to do anything), I must question why so many people can't grasp the obvious: skip the school altogether. Keep the little tykes at home. Plenty of room at the kitchen table.

The virus of reason

Word has come out that GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum plans to homeschool his kids if he gets into the White House.

Make no mistake, I have no intention of voting for Rick Santorum; but I applaud his bravery in challenging the entrenched bureaucracy that is the public school system. It's rather nice to see a candidate stick his thumb in the eye of the NEA.

But it comes with a price, of course. Bill Maher went on a verbal bender about the alleged inferiority of homeschoolers in general and Santorum in particular. "He [Santorum] wants them [his kids] locked up in the Christian madrassa that is the family living room," snarks Maher, "not out in public where they could be infected by the virus of reason. If you're a kid and the only adults you've ever met are mom and dad, and then they're also the smartest adults you've met, why not keep it that way? Why mess up paradise with a lot knowledge? After all, a mind is a terrible thing to open." [italics added]

The only adults you've ever met are mom and dad? Oh please. Putting aside the fact that 71% of homeschooled kids are involved in a community service activity, how do you explain public school kids who are locked into a classroom of peers for eight hours a day, seeing few other adults but their own teachers?

It’s not that homeschoolers are ignorant, as Maher would like to claim. Endless studies (should Maher ever desire to open his closed mind and investigate) have proven that again and again.

What honks off people like Maher is not academics. Rather, it’s that homeschooled kids are out of reach of the progressive indoctrination endemic in public schools. They don't fall prey to the groupthink that progressives believe is the only acceptable way to raise children.

But Maher is by no means alone when it comes to blanket statements about homeschoolers. A quick survey of internet news articles about Santorum's comments provide a wealth of snarks from opponents who see homeschoolers as isolated hicks with the social skills of woodlice.

What Maher condemns as homeschoolers' opposition to the "virus of reason" is nothing more than a desire to provide our children with the intangible benefits of homeschooling. Academics are all fine and good and homeschooled kids have been whupping public school kids' fannies for years. But it's more than that. Homeschooling provides children with a work ethic, respect, politeness, high moral standards, and -- gasp -- the ability to think for themselves rather than be infected with the "virus" of groupthink by progressive standards.

As one commenter noted, "Simple -- he has no idea about how home schools are actually taught and what the curricula are. But other than utter ignorance of the subject, he is just fine."

Maher can lie all he wants about homeschoolers, but let's not forget one thing: Maher doesn’t have any kids. Just sayin’.