Ok all, I think we should all force ourselves to use the blog...Alicia
says "easier" so I'm up for trying...
Sometime before Friday....everyone write on the blog an answer to the following question: this way we all have practice....
WHY AS A PARENT ARE YOU LOOKING FOR AN ALTERNATIVE TO PUBLIC SCHOOL? WHAT WAS YOUR WORST PUBLIC SCHOOL EXPERIENCE? WHAT WAS YOUR BEST?
Peace, love, joy, and purpose,
Emily
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6 comments:
Because I want my kids to like going to school and like learning. I also want an emphasis on developing the whole child. My public school was academically strong, but I didn't develop many areas outside of academics and band. I chose not too, and I probably should have, but it was either take art (music, etc) or don't. In my school, you took art if you thought you were an artist. You took music if you thought you were a good singer. My ideal of an alt school will incorporate the arts into academics (music, movement, etc.) so that the students can "discover" that they are ALL artistic, musical, and kinesthetic (etc). I also want an emphasis on the natural world. That was totally lacking in my education and leads to individuals who respect and borrow the earth responsibly.
Worst experience: being left out of group one day, after being the leader of the group the day before, after being left out the day before that, after being the leader the day before that, etc. etc. (4th grade)
Best experience: 4th year German play. Student directed (only four of us in the class) compilation of multiple fairytales translated into German. Performed by the four students; set created by the four students; costumes created by the students; great memories and collaboration created by the students. We bused elem kids in to watch. I need to get a copy of that production!
Alicia
Ok....I'm trying this...I want a school that promotes community, respect and family values....I feel like public schools are full of competition, consumerism, and too much focus on technology, and not enough on character. I also want to see more emphasis on understanding and appreciating the natural world, more involvement of the arts, language (foreign), and cooperation!
Worst experience: being left out most of elementary school! (Mind you in my graduating class of students from my elementary school, one is on death row, and a few others in jail for other crimes....) I was teased for so many reasons, and had horrible ITBS scores!
Best Experience: Junior High read aloud contest...I could shine, and was cool for it! Also, Mock Trial and Swing Choir...I finally met kids who were like me!
Ok...tested the blog...HOW DO I SPELL CHECK!!!!! Emily
I'm very proud of you for becoming a blogger, Emily!
HI you guys. You are all awesome, and I feel so fortunate to be able to listen to and be a part of this conversation.
I'll try to sum up some of my feelings about it all.
When Sophie was a wee baby, a number of people - strangers and friends alike - looked lovingly at her as we all do babies and said, wistfully, some version of this: "Enjoy her now while you have her, because when she turns 5 she's not yours anymore!"
Just a few years earlier I had been the youth counselor for a certain church in town to which some of my radical simple living friends belonged, and was confounded by both the bad behavior of these kids and the values they seemed to have that were so different from my friends, their parents. So when people made these comments about baby Sophie, I put the pieces together: these youth had spent most of their time in an environment that was dictated by the government, and what I was feeling about the values of our government (consumerism, competition, unhealthy hierarchies, and more) were not positive. at all.
One more thing that happened, which was the final straw in my decision to look into alternative education: Hannah and CArina, who had been our community's surrogate children for 5 years, went to school. The loss of them in our daily lives was profound, and I felt less whole for having no children to love or be inspired by. I came to the conclusion then that when youth are in our midst we are inspired to create better environments of all sorts, and when they are stuck away at school all day and we have no responsibility for them (the parents still do have some, but of a different kind) then we just work. And work. We need the children in our midst to inspire us to imagine a better world.
It's just so much more natural to have them around our communities, interacting with all ages! In human history, how long has it been that children were removed from everyday life like they are now? Only last 100 years, or less, right?
I found, through raising Sophie and Ida in the sometimes-awkward and challenging way of our homeschooling, that the children are empowered by seeing their parents work together to create something good for them. They are empowered by being able to make choices for themselves. When Sophie and Ida were in school for a semester, we were astounded by the system's lack of trust in children AND parents to know what's appropriate for that child. I could see how being in the system for a bunch of years could create docile and obedient people.
I know that there are exceptions to anything in whichever system, but in the end this is my thought: The public school system is broken, and the fixing up it needs is radical. When it finally begins, they will benefit greatly from the existence of proven alternate models. It is the responsibility of those of us with vision and energy to be creating those models now.
Enough for now. Thanks for reading.
Power to you all!
Liz
Wow Liz, could you be more inspiring! Thanks, Alicia
WOW you guys, I'm so glad you are pursuing this. I agree with everything I've read about your reasons for doing this.
My reasons for wanting an alternative were many, of course, but here are a few:
I wanted my kids to be kids, outside doing creative play without plastic and technology. I wanted them to follow their interests. I don't believe school developes responsibility when kids are told exactly what to do, when, how and when it's due-it's the opposite of responsibility. Free choice developes responsibility.
I wanted my kids raised in the community in a non-ageist setting. Also, in that community doing real things, not sitting at a desk while a teacher tries to describe to them how this is like the real world.
Environmental education happens the best outside. I truely hope when you find your spot it will be near a wild place.
Worst experience: when my son, Winter, got off the bus after his first day of Kindergarden sobbing because he wasn't allowed to check out a library book because he couldn't write his name
Best experience: Birgitta helping Chance transition into public last year. Public is not my choice and I see Chance doing his work as fast as he can with no thoughts of pride or learning. He actually cries because he has no time to read. It's hard to home school a 15 yr old boy who wants to be with his peers, and away from his mom.
This is my first blogging too, and I'm with you Em, where's the spellcheck?
RoJene
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