John Holt

I've read through Learning All the Time twice this week, and I think I harvested as much "magnesium" from his "seawater" the second time as the first.  There were many things I disagreed with, of course, but many more that struck a chord and have hopefully become enough a part of me to show up in my actions every day. 

Even my disagreements, as I've contemplated them more deeply, aren't as confidently felt as at first.  I have become aware that I've been unwittingly constructing "experiments" to test them.  My lab rats are, of course, my children, my husband, and myself.  My thoughts in this vein center around the acquisition of reading skills.  My children are learning to read, but am I aiding or impeding this process?  How much of a role does my phonics instruction play in their learning, and, more importantly, in their feelings about reading?  I obviously need to fine-tune all my instruction for my family, but can I really eliminate all instruction and replace it with co-exploration?  DeMille would say yes.  When it really comes down to it, my phonics work with the children is just that:  I'm not teaching them something I already know well, because most of the material we're learning I've never seen before.  I'm learning it as we go, and the children know this.  It's exciting and new information for me, and the children know this.  Sometimes I don't understand it, so I get frustrated, and the children know this as well.

All readings present me with challenges.  John Holt jolted me to the core when he discussed uninvited teaching and the inadvisability of correcting mistakes unasked.  This phrase, especially, described me so well, ". . . I don't like being around people who act and talk as if their mission in life were to educate me, whose relation to me is always that of a teacher to pupil."  That Jimminy Cricket part of me shouted out, "There are people in your life who feel that way about you!"  It was an exciting revelation for me, because it holds the solution to some prickly feelings I've had as late, not just with my children, and I see in it's remedy the improvement of many relationships.  I've already completely changed the way I process Daniel's daily read-alouds, and we had the most pleasant bedtime routine to date last night.  Ahhhh!  Relational and emotional progress.  (There was reading skill progress as well, but that was just icing on the cake.)

I'm so eager to internalize and act on this information.  All of it.  Even the parts I'm questioning.  I'm excited as well for our discussion tonight.  I wonder if you were stretched as much as I.  I wonder if you still feel the stretching going on.  How elastic do you think we all can be?  Are we ready for another mind-blowing book, or will we simply snap?  Maybe we need to introduce more gelatin, bubble gum, and taffy to our diets.  Caramel, anyone?  (Liz, that wasn't a hint.  Honestly.)

January Family Read-Aloud Classics Shared

The Classic Show-and-Tell topic for January was family read-alouds, those books that contributed most to our family cultures. 

Liz Olson shared Fairy Tales and Illustrated Bible Stories

Catherine Scott shared the Little House on the Prairie series by Wilder, Beatrix Potter's animal stories, The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnet, Teaching Your Children Values by Linda and Richard Eyre, and 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families by Covey.

Helen Sullivan shared the Chronicles of Narnia series by C.S. Lewis.  My notes were funny here, so add any others you brought if I missed them, ok Helen?

Amy Johnson shared We are in a Book and Elephant and Piggie by Mo Willems, The Circus Ship by Chris Van Dussen, The Little Mouse, the Red Ripe Strawberry, and the Big Hungry Bear  (By Don and Audrey Wood, I think), the Mercy Watson series by Kate DiCamillo, and The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden.

Many of mine were on the other lists, but I added the Childhood of Great Americans series, the Great Brain series by Fitzgerald, Created for Work by Bob Schultz, and the Little Britches series by Ralph Moody.

Someone (was it Lori) mentioned the Wizard of Oz and The Night Before Christmas.

So many good books, so little time. 

Feel free to add to this list, everybody, especially if I didn't catch something in my notes from the discussion or if you weren't able to be there that night.

November Math Classics Show-and-Tell

Some of the math favorites shared in November were. . . .

Websites:
kahnacademy.org
dreambox.com
aleks.com

Books:
The Man Who Counted
Mathematicians are People, Too
The Life of Fred Series

Curricula:
Singapore Math
Saxon Math
Math U See

Games:
The Saxon Math Manipulative Kit
The Farming Game
Meta-Forms
Mancala

Here are links to two of my family's favorite math classic videos.  Enjoy!
Jenny

http://www.khanacademy.org/math/vi-hart/v/doodling-in-math--spirals--fibonacci--and-being-a-plant--1-of-3

http://quietube4.com/v.php/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9MwNm0gXd8&feature=player_embedded%2522%25253

February 21, 2013 Email:

Dear Friends,

I apologize for the lack of communication regarding our education principles group this last month. Alex and I recently decided to put our house up for sale, which has thrown things into a bit of a dither. If you haven't checked the blog and are getting the book information in this email, there is still hope, because the book this month is very short.

At our last discussion we decided upon a change that is very exciting to me, especially with this possible move on the horizon. We will be taking turns acting as the discussion leader and host. This will involve choosing the book, leading the discussion, and arranging for the meeting venue (whether at your own home or at someone else's).

Our meeting this month is being spearheaded by Helen Sullivan, and she has included all the information on the sidebar of our blog.

I am so looking forward to talking with you next week. I really can't wait.

Sincerely,

Jenny