Books, books, books

I was debating which blog to post this on, and decided since I have some readers who read only one or the other to put it on both.

One of the great things about being a homeschool mom is that reading books is part of my job. I have been able to revisit some of my favorites from childhood and young adulthood, as well as encountering many wonderful books for the first time as an adult.

I love book lists because they help jog my memory; they remind me of those books that I want to read or reread, or that the kids have not yet read. Tonight as I was catching up with things at Mere Comments, I came across this post. This is a nice book list and the comments have more suggestions.

What books do you think are necessities that didn't make this list? Any on the list you think don't belong? On my book list that I used for my children's literacy talks I included a list for preschool. What would you put on that?

What books do you think are necessary for basic cultural literacy?

Thinking bloggers

One of my fellow Hoosier homeschoolers has given me the nod as a blogger who makes her think. I really appreciate that, as well as the nice things she said about my beloved email list! (I didn't write the self-aggrandizing description on the list page.)

The rules of this are simple:

1. If, and only if, you get tagged, write a post with links to 5 blogs that make you think.
2. Link to this post so everyone can easily find the exact origin of the meme.
3. Optional: Proudly display the ‘Thinking Blogger Award’ with a link to the post that you wrote.

So, I need to find five blogs that make me think, who have not, as far as I know, already been named. (If they've already been named, but haven't displayed the button, maybe this will get them to do it.)

1. Susan's Pendulum. This one is easy. I wanted her to blog because I knew that she would have a lot to say. Whether it's about homeschooling, theology, or any of the multitude of jobs that she does at home, it's bound to be interesting and well-said.

2.thinking-out-loud. I'm sure that the only reason that Pastor Stuckwisch doesn't have one of these on his blog is that his blog is fairly new. This is my new can't-miss blog. His posts are always thought-provoking.

3. A Round Unvarnish'd Tale is another relatively new blog that I've come to enjoy, written by a fellow homeschool mom.

4. Barbara Frank is an experienced homeschooling mom who brings a lot of common sense to her posts and her resources.

5. Chaplain to the World is one of the blogs most likely to send me off to read something else. There are days that visiting his blog challenges my lazy mind to think.

Dangerous times

This is one of the most dangerous times of the year for a homeschooling mom who likes to shop. I got my Rainbow Resource Center catalog last week. Wow!

Not only does this thick catalog send me to the edge of a book-buying frenzy, it also never fails to make me feel completely inadequate because of all of the things that I'm not even trying to teach my kids!

Better than you

Back to Mrs. Teacher:

I have had responses to Mrs. Teacher running through my mind off and on for almost a month. Some of the things that she said gave me insight into reactions that I've gotten from people who were not as outspoken as she. Some of the things she said fall into the category of nutty.

I'm not even going to worry about the nutty, like us taking up room in a good school district. But I am sure that she is not alone in some of her thoughts.

Do I homeschool because I believe that my children are smarter than other children? Anyone who knows us or who has read my account of our beginning this adventure knows that that isn't the case. We began homeschooling because of the difficulties that our oldest son was having. We continued because we liked it.

Homeschooling is wonderful for kids who don't fit the mold. Bethany would have continued to thrive in school, as she did from the beginning, because she fit the mold. She is a girl. She read early. She had no trouble sitting still. She is a visual learner. She is compliant and wants to make people happy.

Boys automatically have one strike. And Patrick had more than that. He didn't fit the mold.

We homeschool because we want to do what we believe is best for our children, and we can. I believe that God has given me the job of being the mother of these four people, and it is up to me to decide how best to accomplish it given our abilities and resources. For us, homeschooling is a big part of raising our children and doing this job.

Does that mean, as Mrs. T. opined, that we "judge" parents who choose public schools for their children? No. Some of my best friends have their kids in school. (grin) Are there some homeschoolers who do judge other parents? I have no doubt, since there are some homeschoolers who judge other homeschoolers for not doing it "right." I believe that each family needs to decide, based on all of the variables that exist in their family, what is best for their children.

First Greek, now Latin

I am not in charge around here.

That isn't, I suppose, completely true, but my kids have always had a tremendous amount of input into what they learn. When our pastor started offering Greek for homeschoolers the boys all jumped at the opportunity. They have taken to it with varying levels of commitment and success, but have all learned quite a bit.

Now they want me to teach them Latin.

Latin.

I've always thought--theoretically--that learning Latin would be a good idea, but none of them have expressed an interest before and I, being somewhat lazy, didn't ever encourage the idea.

But they want Latin, so Latin they shall have. Now I just have to figure out how.

Have you heard of an alarm clock?

Of all of the ridiculous things Mrs. Teacher said, I think my favorite was that my kids won't be able to function in college or career because they aren't accustomed to getting up for school.

There are just so many problems with this statement. First, the assumption that it is necessary to get up early to succeed in college or career. If someone chooses to live the life of a night owl, it can be accommodated. I have one friend who has always worked second shift because it suits her body clock. Throughout college she never had a class before 11:00 a.m.

This doesn't mean that I will encourage my boys to take this path, but it is possible. (I guess I don't need to worry about my daughter, who is already in college successfully attending early classes and getting up for work in the mornings this summer.)

Although my boys don't need to get up for school each morning, they do frequently have places that they need to be. My 14 year old was in a choir for the last nine months. To participate he had to be at a school over 20 minutes away two or three mornings a week at 7:30. He set his own alarm clock to get up and ready. This same son wakes himself up on Sunday mornings to acolyte at 8:00 a.m. church, even though the rest of us wait until 9:15 to arrive. (Except for the unlucky parent who drives him!) The other two boys also have their Sunday acolyting duties and they are never late. They also frequently need to be at church for extra services and funerals. They haven't slept through one yet!

I guess my point is that all of us, whether we go to school or not, are capable of waking up in the morning for those things that are important to us. One of my sons woke up at 6:30 for months when he was younger because there was a cartoon on that he particularly wanted to see. And although I currently let my sons get plenty of sleep and don't worry much about when they get up, I have no doubt that someday they'll do just fine, whether it's getting to college classes, getting to the office, or walking down the stairs to start the coffee before the walk into their home office.

Because, in our homeschool, I've taught them how to use alarm clocks.

More misconceptions

Before I start talking about the misconceptions about homeschooling that I posted about last time, I have to add some more that I ran into today.

I go, once a month or so, to a place where I can prepare a number of meals for the month very quickly and reasonably-priced, while leaving the mess behind. This morning as I was paying for my session the very nice lady who owns the store asked if I had kids home from school yet. When I told her that we homeschool she said, "Oh, I could never be that disciplined. We have a hard time getting the homework done."

Later, two other women came in and as we were all assembling our meals and chatting about our families, the owner mentioned to them that I homeschool. "I could never do that. You must be so organized, " said one. "There would be blood all over our house. You must be so patient," added the other.

Those of you who know me well can get up off the floor and stop laughing now.

I bet that if you asked my friends and family members to list the top ten traits that I have, disciplined, organized, and patient wouldn't even show up. Disorganized and impatient would probably be near the top.

And yet we survive. We actually thrive.

I wish these mothers, good mothers who volunteer at school, have their kids' friends over, and are trying to hold together the family dinner time against all of the pressures of life, could see what homeschooling can do for family life. Of course getting homework done is a battle. They've been at school all day. They rightly think that eight hours should be enough! One of the moms today said something about her son's attitude. We have seen wonderful changes in the attitudes of kids who come home. She might be amazed at how much better she likes him after six months at home.

It is the second day out of school and at 10:30 this morning one of these children who was at home vegging in front of the TV was calling her mom saying that she's bored. The mom is trying to plan events to fill the summer with activity--camps, lessons, classes--to get the kids "out of the house." I wanted to say, "Just live." Cook together. Clean together. Do some crafty projects. Go to the park. Lay on a blanket in the backyard and watch the clouds.

Then you might get a glimpse of what it can really be like to be a homeschool mom.