Some time ago I read an article in the NY Times about a man who defrauded investors of billions of dollars. Not really news these days, I guess. Seems like there's a lot of creative bookkeeping going on out there. It's an inventive way to [...]
*I’ve made no secret about the fact that we have a large family. I have a kid in every conceivable phase. No matter what you've heard to the contrary, this can get complicated. I’m as guilty as anybody for romanticizing it, as my cheerful approach [...]
First and foremost, even among "dyed in the wool" homeschoolers, there is widespread neglect of the Core Phase. I believe this is because of our tendency to identify so strongly with our label of "homeschoolers" that our family culture becomes defined by academic achievement. I [...]
I’ve been asked by a lot of people, “How do you homeschool when your life is in chaos?” Well first off, let’s be honest with each other. There are at least three types of chaos, and the How To is different for each one. [...]
I am an acorn full of potential, in need of nourishing with sun and soil and rain I sprout, upward and down I am a seedling surrounded by siblings sending shoots and roots I explore, grow and expand I am a sapling reaching for the [...]
Returning again to the discussion I had with a friend who runs a book discussion group. We agreed that we had both learned a great deal because of the courage of one woman to not walk in lock-step with the others in the group and [...]
Some of the important elements of undertaking the path of Leadership Education are Trust and Acknowledgment. Trust that the best way to inform your choices is principles Trust that principles lead to desired outcomes Trust that doing the right thing in this moment is enough [...]
I love poetry! It is so amazing to me the way that art so seemingly effortlessly communicates on so many levels, with precision, economy and beauty! When my family and I learn poetry together, several things take place...
I am a sort of “seat-of-the-pants” educator, who relies very heavily on subtle, sometimes unconsciously detected, cues to inform my approach in the classroom I just feel when they’re “getting it”, who’s not, and why not. I sometimes learn more from evaluating what I did—and why I must have felt it should be that way—then I ever do from trying to anticipate the need and plan for it. So, over time, I have collected a mass of data of “what I did”, and am starting to see some truly amazing patterns.
Language is not only the vehicle of our thought, but the substance of it. I believe that language is so intrinsic a process in our development of self, ideas, purposes, perceptions, etc., that whenever we undertake to truly embrace a new language (as opposed to just learning it in a rote fashion) we must do so by passing through the Phases in that language.
