I have never taken credit for teaching my children to read. It’s just something they learned. We read aloud – a lot. Books were always available. But lessons? Nope. Debra over at From Skilled Hands pointed me to a great post at Psychology Today.
Here’s just a tidbit:
For children in standard schools, it is very important to learn to read on schedule, by the timetable dictated by the school. If you fall behind you will be unable to keep up with the rest of the curriculum and may be labeled as a “failure,” or as someone who should repeat a grade, or as a person with some sort of mental handicap…
…But the story is entirely different for unschooled children. They may learn to read at any time, with no apparent negative consequences.
Can you see that? Evan called it a “rainbow puddle” out over the ocean. It was raining out there, over the water, but sunny at the house. And yet, the rainbow didn’t quite have enough lift to get up off of the water. It was just beautiful.
Good heavens, have you read this book? It is the most wonderfully, beautifully written book about a horrific time in history. Set during World War II in Germany, this story is told from the perspective of death, focusing on one memorable young girl. I read it and absolutely loved it. But then Evan read it and said, “This is my new favorite book.” That’s right folks. Harry Potter and Percy Jackson are OUT; the Book Thief is IN. If you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend it.
Disclosure: I link to the Amazon page for the Book Thief for your convenience, using my Amazon affiliate code. If you buy the book, I might make a few cents. However, my *actual recommendation would be to save your cash and rent it at the library. I’m a cheapskate that way.
So, on Saturday we ventured out to the Cherry Blossom Festival. And I thought to myself, “Great! Finally, something moderately interesting to put up on my blog!” So I packed my camera, lots of water, and sunscreen and off we went. Our first stop was the farmer’s market where we picked up some fresh fruit and veggies. We tucked them into our ice chest with plans to pick up ice once we got to town.
We were shocked at the sheer volume of people at this event; people had come from all over the island to attend, causing lots of traffic congestion and parking problems. After driving in circles (correction: after Brad drove in circles through heavy traffic and unwary pedestrians and many, many panicked moments inside my head – did you catch that? Inside my head. Such restraint) we finally decided that I’d hop out of the car and grab a bag of ice at the store while the rest of my family continued circling. As I was waiting in line – bam! – there was my family. Hurray, they got a parking space! So we hoofed it out to the car, added ice to the ice chest and got on a shuttle to one of the destinations that were scattered throughout the town.
Oh, you know what’s coming, right? That camera? In the car. And here we are at a very packed event that requires shuttles and there is no way I’m getting back to the car any time soon to retrieve the camera.
If I had my camera, I would have taken photos of the Japanese Tea Ceremony we watched. That picture might have looked like this:
Except, of course, we were not outside. We were inside where in addition to the tea ceremony there was music. And a dancer who performed what is called a Mai dance. And this is where I’m so disappointed not to have a photograph to share because I can’t find one on the internet anywhere and this was something to see. The dancer wore a dress made of billowy white fabric and she spun around the room, swirling and dipping, all the while wearing a headdress with a long, narrow horn. I so wish I could find a picture. I can tell you that she did not look at all like this, which is what you might imagine when you hear “Japanese dancer.”
There was also plenty of entertainment, like music, martial arts demonstrations, and taiko drumming:
And we had the opportunity to peek in on a service at the Hongwanji Buddhist Temple. We had no idea what was happening, really, but it was interesting to see the inside of this temple. Here, of course, is a situation in which I would not have used my camera, even if I had it. The alter was golden. And I mean that literally. It was ornate and golden, something like this:
And that is the end of my Cherry Blossom Festival story.
The official 4th annual Not Back to School Days at Disneyland is set for Sept. 8-11, 2010 in Anaheim, California!
We would love to see you all this year – be sure to check out our new dedicated site for the event:
www.notbacktoschooldays.com
Lots of new Disney-led classes, tours, and new NBTSD activities have been added to help you really get the academic opportunities at the Disneyland Resort. And as always, our group park tickets are between 40-50% off the gate prices and come with educational classes taught right in the theme parks!
The most important things you can do to help:
SPREAD THE WORD – tell everyone you know about the trip, they can’t make a decision if they don’t have the information.
REGISTER QUICKLY – we expect that this year, even after adding new sessions, that the classes will fill up faster than before. Once a class is full, we cannot add you. Don’t miss out!
This is a full conference, with added academic guidance, so registration is required to take any classes or tours.
I just ran across an article on MSNBC, Why American consumers can’t add. It’s worth a read. It certainly inspires me to make sure my kids are covering the bases of the basics.
Check this out:
*Only 42 percent were able to pick out two items on a menu, add them, and calculate a tip.
*Only 1 in 5 could reliably calculate mortgage interest.
*1 in 5 could not calculate weekly salary when told an hourly pay rate.
*Half of 17 year olds couldn’t do enough math to work in an auto plant, according to President’s National Mathematics Advisory Panel.
The author even touches on the education and requirements of teachers in the public school system:
*In 18 U.S. states, not even one elementary math class is required for certification.
*Some teaching colleges allow admittance as long as students have math skills equal to their future students — that is, as long as they could pass a 5th grade math test.
*It’s possible in some states to pass the teacher certification exam (Praxis) without answering a single math question correctly.
As an eclectic home educator and book author living on the Big Island of Hawaii I'll ramble here about homeschooling, book publishing and island life. Pull up a beach chair, grab an umbrella drink and stay awhile.
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In addition to exploring Paradise and homeschooling my boys, I write. Click here if you need a freelancer for your publication or website!
