Mom Is Teaching

I am not kidding you.  Taking  a trip away from family, husband and children is good for you.  But, when you’ve been gone as long as I have, you start to wish you were just home with your babies.  I can tell you one thing, when I finally get home, I will NOT be logging on for long periods of time for a few days because I WILL be smooching all over my family….the kids in particular.  Sorry husband and mother, I love you but my babies…oh my babies….I miss them so much.

With that, I think it might be time to find a better way to have some “time away from the family or to have some me-time without driving out of state and then flying 2 hours out, being gone for 10 days and then being stuck in an airport just wanting to see your kids.  Honestly, if my kids were here, I’d be fine but dadgumit, I miss my babies.

Anyway, here’s at least one thing I am going to participate in after I am home and well rested instead of leaving home for a long period of time.

If you have only 15 minutes, just make yourself your favorite drink (diets bedamned) and hide away and read a magazine.  Our bathroom has a revolving door on it…or I say it did have.  The kids were free to come in and out no matter5 who was in there and no matter what they were doing.  But, as they’ve aged, shutting the door has become more of an issue.  And, one I kind of like…oh well, everyone deserves some me-time, right?

I just came from one of the biggest blogging conferences of the year.  And, because of that, I learned more about myself than I did others I think.  But, what I’m wondering most of all is how in the world was I suppose to remember all those names?

When I taught school I had near 60 students at time on a regular basis.  I taught physical education and the children were only with me for 30 minutes at a time.  Sadly, the only children I knew were the ones who were misbehaving.  And, at the conference, the only names I remember were the ones of people I already knew basically. 

I mean, my two best pals were Kim and Beth and I couldn’t even call them by the right name half of the time.  I have determined the problem to be one of the following

1.  I don’t listen.

2.  I am too busy looking for someone else and I don’t pay close enough attention.

3.  I am planning what I will say next.

4.  I am planning my escape.

Now, I have to tell you, I saw absolutely no one that I was planning an escape from (as it is, it did happen in the airport with a non-speaking English man) and I know I was excited to talk to and see as many people as possible.  And the end result was that I ended up not remembering the names of very many new people that I met. 

It’s fairly common for folks to know one another only by their twitter name or the name of their blog but honestly, if I spent at least a half f an hour talking to someone, the least I could do was remember the name.  Right  Is that too much too ask?

Guest Post by Chynna Tamara Laird

CHYNNA TAMARA LAIRD is a psychology student, freelance writer and author living in Edmonton, Alberta with her three daughters [Jaimie (six), Jordhan (four), and baby Sophie (one)] and baby boy, Xander (two and a half). Her passion is helping children and families living with Sensory Processing Disorder and other special needs.

Much research conducted by leading child development experts suggests, and I completely agree, that children learn best when they’re moving and exploring. Unfortunately, most public school settings don’t provide children with enough opportunity for movement.

Yes, children get recess twice a day but this only offers fifteen minutes, twice a day—half-an hour in total—for fun, games and free play. Half-an hour out of their entire school day! And this can be a real problem for those students with specific disorders, such as ADHD or SPD, who have difficulty with sitting still for large blocks of time. Such students need that extra free play and fun time to release their pent up energy or stresses and get their brains and bodies more organized for learning.

Initially, this was a major issue I had when enrolling my daughter, Jaimie, in public school. Jaimie has SPD (Sensory Processing Disorder) and she functions best when she’s given extra opportunities throughout her day to move her muscles. Fortunately, Jaimie had a phenomenal Kindergarten teacher who shared my idea of teaching children through movement. And with leading children experts, such as Carol Stock Kranowitz and Dr. Stanley Greenspan, preaching about the importance of the same thing, how could we be wrong in our vision?

Still, not everyone shares this vision. And it can be a real struggle to make some educational professionals understand this idea. But if we teach them that little things worked into the regular curriculum can make a huge difference for these children in terms of learning, attention span and other focusing, perhaps they’ll agree.

The following are fantastic ways to work movement into a regular educational setting, whether children are learning at home or at public school:

Have sing-and-dance time. Jaimie’s teacher worked song with body motions into her learning carpet time. There are so many great tunes out there about everything you can imagine, so no matter what you’re teaching there should be a song you can work into the program. Then you simply create hand and body movements to go with it. Kids love music and interactive songs…work with that!

Plant a garden. This is fun and great exercise. Children love getting right in there digging, planting and, if you teach them the right ones to pull out, weeding. For those children in public school, see if the school can provide a small section of the school grounds to use as a place to learn about plants. If they can see how wonderfully children respond to nature, they’d most likely be open to the idea. For those of us with children at home, dedicate a portion of your garden to your little student’s learning. (If you live in an apartment or other rental location with no backyard—as we did for a couple of years—just use big pots or window gardens.) In expensive alternatives to planting pots can be plastic containers or coffee cans.

Have a run around time. If your child is only able to sit for a specific amount of time, make them a deal: “Get this writing/reading/printing assignment done, then you can have five or ten minutes to run around outside or in the gym (weather depending). For your child at home, you can use a funtime in the back yard, a game of catch or some other activity they love. Always use the activities they love—it’s a much greater incentive.

Stretch it out. Get the class to do stretching exercises or give them the chance to walk around the classroom or down the hall in between lessons. Of course this has to be done respectfully because children can’t be disturbing those students still in classrooms. At home, have a short “recess” or “gym time” but use a child’s yoga tape or simply stretch to music.

Provide special jobs. Children can help new students find their way to the classrooms, take messages or other items to the office, or do special jobs for the teacher—anything that can get them up and moving around for a few minutes. For the child learning at home, get them to do a household duty or a special job outside (eg: shoveling the sidewalk, raking, etc.) Most kids love to help out—just be sure to give them something age and ability appropriate.

Heavy lifting, dragging or pushing. Okay, we don’t expect them to be Arnold Schwartzenagger here. But it’s been shown that heavy lifting—carrying the milk jug for snack time, dragging the mats for floor time, carrying the tub of water for wash-up time, pushing a wheelbarrow, wall pushups or other such physically exerting activities—can be great “calm down” strategies.

These are just a few suggestions. I’m sure a lot of parents out there can think of other things that have worked with their own children. The entire focus of learning through movement is teaching children how to interact with their environments in a healthy, safe and fun way while learning something at the same time.

A good idea to keep in mind is that a lot of children with sensory issues or disorders such as ADHD or autism need a counteractive calming strategy to use after a stimulating one. This teaches appropriate self-regulation as well as learning when he or she needs a stimulating activity to get the sillies out or when a calmer activity to organize their little bodies would be more appropriate. This is especially important for children with SPD, ADHD, Asperger’s, Autism or other similar struggles.

Movement and play are so important to a child’s development. We need to ensure they get that time to explore, investigate and play. We did Play Therapy with Jaimie, which emphasizes giving children a required amount of free play each and every day. It also encourages parents to get right down there and play with their children.

Whatever activities you choose to do, it will make a world of difference in the long run…you’ll see!

___________________________

More about Chynna:

You’ll find her work in many online and in-print parenting, inspirational, Christian and writing publications in Canada, United States, Australia, and Britain. She’s most proud of her children’s picture book, I’m Not Weird, I Have SPD, which she wrote for Jaimie. In addition, she’ll have a memoir about raising a child with SPD out in August of 2009 and a reference book about the Sensory Diet coming January 2011.

Please visit Chynna’s website at www.lilywolfwords.ca to get a feel for her work and what inspires her.

I’m sure most of you have heard this more times than you care to admit but I did spend some time in the public schools as a teacher.  I taught K – 8 physical education, I taught seventh grade Life Science and eight grade Earth Science along with health and I have taught pre-school.  I’ve coached every age from 13 to 18 and I owned a daycare.  I don’t think it is too far fetched to say that education is in my blood, it’s what I do.  And…that’s what I want to do in the future. 

With that, I am about to try my hand at teaching adults.  I am composing my first e-book which revolves around blogging, learning to code using wordpress and learning to monetize your work.  Many people are amazed that this is even something that anyone would partake in but the fact is, conferences (like the one I just attended) are laden with adults begging for more and more information. 

And, with that, I am going to give this a trip.  It’s been something I’ve been thinking about for several months and I started composing some works to put together way back.  But, finally, someone who has the ability to motivate has convinced me that this is something I can do.  I am going to lend my hand at vlogging as well once I have put together a series of thoughtful words.  Trust me when I tell you that….thoughtful words aren’t as easy to string together as one might think when there is a camera in your face.

I’ve mentioned on more than one occasion that my oldest son “needs” the socialization that public school offers.  Having been one of those social types, I really believe that he will do much better in a setting where he has the opportunity to interact.  My younger son is not quite as social but he too will probably attend public school unless something happens to change my mind between now and then. 

However, as I spent the last week traveling, in the presence at one of 1500 people, mostly women and then some, I realized that I am not a crowd person.  I am very much a people person but as for the crowds and the hoopla, I much prefer small groups.  I’ve spent a lot of time and even more money wishing I was at various conferences, but the fact of the matter is, I really enjoy the small intimate ones over the big over the tip type meetings.

I found myself, on night one, enjoying the company of anywhere from 2 to 5 people and was more than remotely excited about the upcoming days events.  However, as I hit the crowds on Thursday morning, slowly became more aware of how much I’d rather just be in a room with less than 10 folks enjoying the conversation, learning about people and knowing who was who and a little about their families. 

On Thursday the event was narrowed to near 50 people but after that….the number of people involved grew in multiples of 100.  I know that sounds crazy but the fact of the matter is, I liked the time spent on Wednesday night with the little group.

So, now I question my thoughts that my son “needs” to be part of the social scene that public school offers.  I mean, you know, with that in mind, I really am concerned as to whether I am making the right decision.  Funny how I never questioned my parenting abilities when the kids were babies and people were worrying about breast milk or formula, this bed, that bed, this blanket, that blanket, no blanket at all, or whatever.  But now, now that we are talking about education, something I should be relatively familiar with, I feel so out of the loop.  I honestly just don’t know if I am doing this right.

I am preparing to go to Blogher.  And, so much prep time has been put into the parties, the clothes, the swag, how to get there, where to sleep, who to see..it has become so over-whelming that I find myself just wanting to say, ok never mind, I’m going with no plan at all.  I’m going and I’m just going to do whatever the person next to me is doing. 

Put honestly, I know that’s not reality either.  So, I figure I’ll write it all here, the post my stay up and it may not, you may see it one day and not the next, but the final line is, I am stressed.  Please realize that I am doing my best to cope with a tinge of humor here so don’t go getting offended and acting crazy because I really am about to write some crazy shit.

Ok, first and foremost, I have a to-do list a mile long.  But, that’s been the case for months on end now.  I catch myself repeating to my kids that “when I get finished with this…..we will play….” and that time never comes.  So, knowing that I am going to be gone away from my kids, my husband and my mother for a full week is hurting my heart.  It’s heavy.  I want to spend every minute between now and the time I leave with them.  I don’t want to worry about all this other stuff.  But, this other stuff?  The other stuff is the reason I am going to the conference in the first place.  So, I can’t just shove it aside. 

So, in order to cope, I’m making a list of things that need/must/will/might get done.  You may not be able to even understand what my little notations mean but I do and hopefully, if I can get it all out on paper, I’ll quit running the streets looking for Michael Jackson’s doctor and asking for some anesthesia.

So it started last night.  I had to pack up the clothes that I intend to wear next Thursday night through Monday.  I packed it in a box and I mailed it to the hotel in which I will be staying.  I also had to figure out what I was traveling in (has to be business casual simply due to the nature in which I acquired my ticket) and that meant shoes and night clothes, underclothes.  All that planning last night so I could mail via UPS to the hotel I am staying at from Thurs thru Monday. 

Now, I am packing a carry on bag with the clothes that I am wearing on Wed night to dinner and Thursday to the Ford Test Drive in a carry on bag because that night I will be staying at a different hotel. 

Are you following me?  So, I will drive to Atlanta on Monday or Tuesday, don’t know for sure yet, sleep and fly out of there.  The rest of this is just all mish mash of stuff I need/want to do and I am just not sure about how much time there will be….but here goes:

• Frigidaire has a team delivering my Washer and Dryer on Saturday.  That’s great, except my laundry room is disgusting and has to be cleaned up before any strangers get near this place.
• I am giving my old washer and dryer to a needy family and we have to get them out of the laundry room so that my cousin can pick them up and deliver them.
• Buy groceries so that my mom and husband and children won’t go hungry while I am gone.
• Organize my email account – right now I have 185 labels and it’s just mass chaos, need organization and structure to survive. 
• Group Blog – the launch day has come, Saturday, today, and it doesn’t appear that it is all well and good and ready.  I”m trying though
• My broken re-paired and not broken leg is giving me fits after being on it today, it puts me in fear of all the fun at Blogher
• I need to get the advertising up on the Group Blog site as well all of it’s subdomains
• I need to get the logo up on the main Group Blog  page and all the subdomains
• I need to put the logo on all the out-going newsletters
• I need to email the code for the button to all the authors
• I want to set up twitads on my twitted account
• I need to buy 2 bags of mixed chocolate bars
• I need to figure out if I am going to Atlanta on Monday or Tuesday and where I am sleeping when I do go. 
• I am getting a manicure & pedicure before I go and possibly a little tan.  Must do tan part on Monday so I can use discount code….so would like to keep on to Atlanta that day, but who knows.
• Email authors of Group Blog about various things like joining in the advertising campaign at Blogher
• Request suggestions from Group Blog authors about advertising stuff
• Figure out if I am staying in Atlanta on the 27th or if I am coming home (probably coming home because my gut hurts.already from missing them)
• Work on the blog that I have been assigned in my virtual assistants position, write posts, comment, work through commenting and bookmarking
• Make sure all the camera batteries are charged
• Make sure the phone battery is charged
• Make sure the Peek battery is charged
• Make sure the mp3 player is charged
• Make sure I pack all the chargers for these gadgets
• Make sure I get cables to hook gadgets to laptop
• Pack as efficiently as possible but be sure to include all cables, clothes, gadgets, etc.
• Write 3 articles for one of my paying blogs.
• Write 8 articles for another paying blog
• Write 13 articles for another paying blog
• Write 13 articles for another paying blog
• Write 7 articles for a semi-paying blog
• Write 3 articles for a semi-paying blog

Did I mention sleeping?  Or the actual drive to Atlanta or the actual flying time, or the obsessing over how to get from airport to hotel, or how to get from one hotel to the next, or how to get to the airport and be on a flight on Monday the 27th at an ungodly hour of 5:40, or the flight time back to Atlanta or the drive home from Atlanta or the missing of my babies omg did I tell you how much I miss my babes already?

Ok I know, I could have done some of this instead of making this horrible list but I didn’t.  I wrote the list.  I am about to do one thing on the list and then I am going to snuggle with my babies.  I’m making no promises how much will get done that doesn’t have to be done for me to actually survive because hello…eating and bathing aren’t on that list anywhere either, oooops!

How often are you gone from your children for extended periods of time?  I went to a couple of conferences earlier where I was gone for 3 and 4 days.  But, this upcoming week, I will be gone from Monday or Tuesday through the next Monday or Tuesday.  I’m going to Blogher which is Friday and Saturday, I’m doing a Ford Test Drive on Thursday and a Ford dinner on Wednesday night and sight-seeing through Chicago on Sunday.

Was that even something you could read?  Anyone with any sense would have written in consecutive days but hey, I never claimed to have any sense?  Anyway, my kids are going through a really tough patch.  They are agitating and aggravating.  They deal my mom misery when she has them alone.  When I step in, the two of us can tag team them and calm them down so we can deal with them.  But, when it is me alone, they put me over the edge and it takes my husband’s intervention to get them back under control. 

I know that I’ve been working A LOT lately and hope that once I return from Blogher and I will have more time.  That makes no sense I know but the fact is, I am going to drop a few projects that aren’t making much money in lieu of a couple of paying gigs.  I hope and please note the word hope, that this can free up some time for us. 

Having this cast on my foot since January has made it impossible for me to run and play with them and I had big plans of hitting the pool but couldn’t do that either.  So, what gives?   They know I am getting ready for a trip and my 4 year old doesn’t really do well when I am not around although he is getting better.  However, I suspect when I return home, they are going to be buck wild again just simply out of missing me.

I really am nervous about leaving them, my gut doesn’t even want to leave them.  I would give anything if they could go with  me.  And, with a little planning, they could have but it would have taken some planning months ago and I didn’t do it like I should have.  But, how will I go a full week without seeing my babies?  How will they make it without me?  Am I foolish to think they will even notice? 

I miss my babies just sitting here thinking about it.

Yes, my kids are aggravating and agitating to ne another on occasion but I am quick to tell peoplel (who usually notice it first) that my boys are extremely close to one another.  My husband and I are both only children so we don’t really understand the whole issue of Sibling-Love but we see it every day.

Yes, “he took my toy” or “he is looking at me” but more often than not, they are very very loving of one another.   my mother has taken to letting the boys spend the night with her one at a time with a few days in between.  And, which ever kid is at mom’s always calls before bedtime to tell the other child that they love them. 

Even when they come to get their PJ’s, they have to hug and kiss on one another as much or more than they do either Wayne or myself.  Imagine that? 

And, the one that is home always asks if he can call and tell the other one that it is bedtime and not to forget that they love him.  It’s absolutely heart wrenching and watching my kids grow up is so doggone painful for me. 

But the love these guys share is absolutely unimaginable to me.  Having nothing to use as a reference, my husband and I just look at one another and I see that the love in our eyes for one another, the love in our eyes for our children is quickly carrying over to the love our kids have for one another.  Sweet sweet boys.

I have talked  lot about the direction that I want this blog to go and I’ve been pretty clear that I hope to dissolve some of the barriers between homeschooling and public/private schools.  I mean, I now, I’m not wonder woman.  But, as a society, we have to learn to be clear about what we say and at the same time, make sure we are teaching our children the proper message.

Opinions are a matter of every day life.  But, it just as it is the responsibility of every one to education everyone, it’s absolutely imperative that we teach through our actions.  And, I’m going to play the devils advocate and say that those of us who send our kids to public schools cannot continue to speak evil of those who choose to homeschool and vice versus if we ever hope to bring down the barriers and teach our children that learning occurs where ever and when ever there is an opportunity. 

Can I get an agreement form anyone? 

This holds true with any issue where there are directly opposing views, but as a parent, your words and actions will teach your child(ren) more than anything you ever intend to teach them.

My husband and I have really obviously differences in our parenting styles and really even in our own methods and opinions on what is and is not acceptable.  I was a very very very strict teacher when I taught and I knew that I would absolutely be a strict parent.  I condemned people (at least under my breath) for allowing their children to misbehave in public places without repercussions.  I made fun of parents I saw begging their children to “please stop”  and “mommy said don’t do that”.

Now?  I  am that very parent.  My husband is strict and hard on my kids.  I have found a way to allow a lot of things just simply pass even when I shouldn’t I think. 

However, we are most definitely on the same page when it comes to teaching our children to respect the opinion of others. 

And you?

The following is a guest post by Ann Whitford Paul web-site www.annwhitfordpaul.net

You can find more about Ann on my Mom~E~Centric blog where she guest posted earlier this summer. 

**********

Reading to my children was my favorite activity of all.  I was never good about pretending to drink tea with their teddy bears or building with Legos.  But if any one of them asked for a book, I’d drop everything.  I loved sitting on a chair, or a bed, or stretched out of the floor so close that our skins touched and read together.  With the noise created by two sons and two daughters, it was great to have quiet focused time over a story.  Also, as a writer, it allowed me to do a little work at the same time.  I would pay attention to those things the writers did successfully and then later apply them to my own manuscripts.  An added plus is that I think it had a lot to do with all four children growing up to enjoy reading on their own.  To this day we are constantly sharing recommendations for books.  So the connection continues. 

And of course, studies show that children who are read to, and especially those who are read poetry, learn to read earlier than others who don’t. 

In that light I’ve recommended some new rhymed picture books to share with your children at http://www.kristinegeorge.com/kidspoetrybookstore.html/  Click on rhymed pictures books to see my favorites.

Other, non-rhyming picture books, to read together include:

NOT A BOX by Antoinette Portis about a bunny whose imagination turns a box into wonderful playthings.

THAT’S GOOD!  THAT’S BAD! by Margery Cuyler and pictures by David Catrow is a classic picture book full of lively language and great illustrations.  The repetition allows the pre-reader to feel like he’s really reading.

GO TO BED, MONSTER! By Natasha Wing and illustrated by Sylvie Kantorovitz is a relatively new book about a little girl who draws a monster who then refuses to do what she wants until she comes up with a novel suggestion.

OWL BABIES by Martin Waddell, illustrated by Patrick Benson is a book all children should know . . . especially if they are upset whenever you leave.

I also love Helen Ketteman’s retellings of familiar tales.  My favorite is BUBBA THE COWBOY PRINCE.  It’s illustrated by James Warhola and the language is beyond funny.

Now, we are giving away a copy of

WORD BUILDER

illustrated by Kurt Cyrus

TORTUGA IN TROUBLE

illustrated by Ethan Long

So, here’s the rules:

1.  Leave a comment on this post telling me your favorite children’s book.

2.  For extra entries, tweet this contest.  As long as you tweet the contest using @The_Jerri_Ann, you are free to word it any way you prefer.  You must return here with the link to your tweet though so I can enter you.

3.  The Contest will end on July 28th at midnight.  I will choose a winner using random.org at that time. 

Disclaimer: Mom is Teaching reviews and its author assume no liability for damages associated with any prizes awarded here or contents contained therein. Prizes lost in the mail or those not delivered by sponsors are not the responsibility of Mom is Teaching or its author. Prizes not claimed within two weeks of notification to the winner will have to be forfeited.

Entrants must be 18 years of age or older to enter, and entrants must follow state and local laws concerning sweepstakes.

Ok, so continuing right along where I left off, I’m sure that punch I pulled at the end was totally a surprise for most of you?  Am I right?

If you are a coach, you have to know you are a teacher.  You have more opportunities as an athletic coach to teach a child or a group of children about more things that just the sport at hand.  Without a doubt, baseball (softball for me) is about the laws of physics in a major way.  Kids can learn that from pitching, throwing, hitting and catching.  You all know that when you carry out the skills of the game, your body is turned, stretched and contorted in many ways. 

So, you, out there, coaching our youth, don’t forget to teach the kids to be good sports but don’t let those teaching moments that include academics.  Teach them why they have to move in a certain way to make a certain action.  Aha, an anatomy lesson is learned.  Teaching them how to watch a player and tell by their stance how they are going to swing a bat, or shoot a ball.  Teaching them that bat speed is the most important tool to hitting and teach them why.  Teach them pitching is the most technical lesson of physics, anatomy and more.

And, you know what, teach them the importance of listening.  I was talking with my cousin’s wife and she said that her son was pitching and he hurt his shoulder.  It wouldn’t get well and luckily they saw an orthopedic doctor and they followed her instructions.  Teach a child how to take care of themselves by doing what a doctor says to improve your health.  The ortho told them that his shoulder was NOT going to get well until he quit pitching.  And, he became an outfielder that day.  He tried to play shortstop but that involved quite a bit of throwing as well, so he now plays centerfield and first base. 

If children are taught all these great lessons as soon as they start participating in sports, many other life skills will fall into place.  Like what you ask?  Like dedication, understanding and empathy.  When my cousin’s son was still pitching he accidentally hit a batter and broke his nose.  His mother said he was heartbroken and made a friend with this kid because he was concerned for his health.

Ok, stepping down….maybe…

I feel the need to throw you for another loop.  I’ve talked mostly about baseball because that happens to be what I’m good at, but check this out…

I have talked many times about education in general.  I’ve mentioned by thoughts on homework, voiced my frustrations with reading and even take a long hard look at whether I will one day feel comfortable enough to homeschool my kids so we can travel alot.

But, I don’t think I’ve ever discussed teaching physical education other than to say that schools need true physical education classes and not recess.  The idea of recess is deceptive.  But, since I have the floor and I was confronted with an opportunity to teach tonight….I have to share.

I’ve made no bones about my insecurities about homeschooling.  But, I do have the ability to teach a lot of things…stay with me here.

When I taught physical education, my classes were organized, they involved fitness, they involved free play, they involved team games, individual games, recreational games and more.  I took my job seriously.  I also coached.  And I took that job serious as well.  And, since I was working mostly with girls in the 13 to 15 year old range, it was sometimes extremely challenging.

Tonight I received a compliment from a former athlete.  The compliment came via her parent but the mother told me that her daughter said she learned more about the game and more physical skills than any other coach they had ever played for. 

That made me smile because I truly gave my all when I coached and sometimes I didn’t feel like I was making any headway.  Anyway…my head swelled just a weeee bit.

So tonight I carried my kids to watch my cousin’s son who is 9 play in the state tournament.  And, I had the opportunity to exercise my brain on more than one occasion.  My cousin was working toward his degree in physical education and the fact that he asked my opinion was enough that it was amazing that my head even fit back in our car for the drive home. 

So, there, just so you all know that I m not a complete insecure nutjob trying to parent my kids.  But, don’t think I am one of the diehard coaches who believes in working small children to the core. But, if my children are going to participate in athletics, I want them to learn proper techniques in warming-up, as well as how to control their body so that un-necessary injuries do not occur.  And, I want them to learn to be good sports.  And, at 9, being a good sport is a big deal, running a close race with learning proper warm-up techniques and mastering skills properly. 

I have more but this is long and boring now.  I”ll talk about it again another day…just wanted to toot my own horn around here for a change.

And, for those of you who think that coaching is all about fitness, athletics, and physical skills….take a look at this physics lesson that any coach anywhere has the opportunity to teach to their athletes..

Ok, so back to where I was headed yesterday when I was led so seriously astray,  And honestly, I’ve had to think long and hard to remember what it was.  But, indeed, I do know now.

When we get the books that Walker cannot read well, he and I end up in a teary-eyed scuffle over me trying to teach him to sound out the words.  He will almost always burst into tears when I won’t tell him the word and sometimes he will even cry if I let Jace go ahead and pick out a book that he knows he can’t read completely.

And, my dad and I had those same verbal, teary-eyed scuffles when I would ask for his help.  Obviously I don’t remember to read but I do remember having tons of math issues.  I took every math offered at our school in 4 years.  That meant that for 3 years, I saw the same math teacher twice a day for a class.

But, if I made it home and couldn’t recall the way to do something, my dad and I would go in circles battling.  The first year that computer science was taught in our school system my dad taught it at his school.  I took it at my school.  It was the first time I ever had a C and the exchange between my dad and I over the difficulty of the class was unbelievable.

So, when Luke asked me why I thought I wasn’t cut out for homeschooling, I sited those tear-striken battles that we have regularly over simply learning to read.  So, I said all that to ask you, the readers these questions….

If you homeschool, do you routinely have these battles that end in heaps of tears on both the parent and the student?

If you don’t homeschool but you attempt your child in a subject that they are having difficulties with, does it end in 2 people in a heap on the floor crying?

Please tell me I am not the only one.  Luke asked me again why I thought I couldn’t homeschool and obviously a lot of reasons but I do have a plan.  I have lofty goals but if I can make them come true, I will most definitely be taking my kids on the road and homeschooling.

What exactly does that mean?  It means that if I can make enough money blogging, my husband can quit his job because he is making money consulting, then we will pull our kids out of school and travel.  The biggest part of my education that was poor was the things that I could have learned by seeing and touching instead of just reading about them in a book.

So, for all of you wondering if I have considered it?  Absolutely I have considered it.  Will it happen, hopefully within the next 5 years?  Is it something that I think is too lofty of  goal?  Yea maybe. 

And, then, I really worry about those combative study times like the ones we have now and the ones I grew up having with my father.

Does this happen to you?

See, neither of these two people are crying…humf

As I mentioned when I started this blog, I want it to move toward the idea of education and not just through homeschooling.  Children have life skills to learn as well.  So, with that, I remember what it was like when my dad would try to help me with my homework.  It was a full out argument every time.

And, this summer as I have tried to encourage my son to read (since that’s about all I can do in a non-weight bearing cast still) I’ve seen awesome improvement in his ability.  We have approximately 75 books and some of them he can read completely and others he knows there are a few words in the book he doesn’t now. 

He avoids picking those books but his 4.5 year old brother will pick them out.  And, when the three of us sit down for him to read the books, he gets terribly upset when he doesn’t know a word and I won’t tell him what it is.  I mean terribly upset = tears.

I’ve mentioned before that he is a very literal child in all areas (for example, mom what tine is ut, I say 2:15 and he says no, it’s 2:13) and phonetic learning simply been a disaster for him.  We are fortunate that he is gifted because most all schools teach children to read through phonics and he has simply been smart enough to memorize and pick up on words instead of falling behind.

And I wrote all that to tell you something that has nothing to do what I planned to tell you (I just had a good conversation with Luke about this today- so I wrote it). 

So, this will be continued tomorrow for the original idea.

As all of you homeschooling parents out there know, people who are ignorant to the world of homeschooling can and will say some of the stupid not so nice things about the practice.  And, Michael Jackson’s children were homeschooled, for those of you who could have missed that in all the hoopla.  And, the media continued to show some of their ignorance in this matter.

Feel free to correct me but it is my understanding that the Nanny was with the family for many years and that Michael enjoyed having his children with him.  He had them homeschooled for the same reason that he had them wear a mask and head coverings out in public.  His childhood was lost.  He made that clear on more than one occasion and he did everything possible to see that he children were able to be children for as long as possible.

Michael and his children have been photographed on many occasions and always, absolutely always the children behave exceptionally well.  Today, as the children attended a 2 hour plus memorial for their father, their behavior remained impeccable.  Michael and had shielded his children and I doubt that they had ever attended any memorial service never mind that they had a family service this morning.  Children just do not come equipped to deal with such.

So, with that, I draw my conclusion and one that is indeed just my opinion, but Michael Jackson’s children were more than respectful, they were very well behaved as they always have been in public.  Leaving one (me in particular) to the conclusion that this man indeed was doing something right as a father.

If you saw his daughter speak, she spoke unprompted and apparently on a last minute request.  And, without hesitation, she sad, “my daddy” in the way that only a daddy’s girl can.  She didn’t use any formal language of “my father” which might lead one to think that he was distant with his children.  No, indeed, I think Paris Jackson was right on when she said “my daddy was the best father anyone could…..” Yea, I’ve watched it at least 20 times and at that part I burst into tears and absolutely cannot fathom what it is like for a little 9 year old girl.  I was 19 when my father died.  I feel her pain.  I grieve with her and I pray for peace in her precious little heart.