.t Wlr'cltrN(; Club and more meetings were planned. We worked on codes and handwriting analysis. The last nreering
of the season was a lear-jerker- firr rne. I had talked withJerry Mintz (of the Alternative Education Resource Organization, 417 Roslyn Rcl, Roslyn Hts NY 11577) at a recenr conf'crence and he mentioned he had made a videotape of an easy way to learn Morse code. He sent it on to me and we used it in our last meeting. It uses good visual and some auditory cues with which to remember dits ancl dahs. We were all amazed and intpressed with ourselves that we srrddenly krrew the whole Morse code in an l.rotrr. The learning experience was uniqucly homeschooling-ish as I learned it alongside them, and we t-edid sonre of the clues to suit ourselves when we didn'r like the clues rhe rape gave us.
The tape also
uses two horneschoolers
about the same age
as
our youltg
detectives and we observed thenr
learning, forgetting, trying again- it made it very accessible to everyone.
The tears? Two chilclren, brother and sister, gave nte a present at the beginning of the nieht of this last nreeting. It w:rs a pvtz.le they hacl made, and we started assenrbling it as parents arrived to pick their children up. After I put my children to bed (including Lauren who was high as a kite and wanted to write a Morse code
banner all around her room) I sat down to finish my puzzle. I was s<t touched as I put pieces together and saw that it had faces made fiorn thtrmbprints and a message in Morse code. I decoded it pretry quickly with my new knowledge: "Thank you, Day. Love Rachel and Danrry." A tear rarr clown my check. I love being a honreschooling family.
A Typical Day Jay Heartlrcnuood (Albetta) copy
ofthefirst grade program
for hn lorul school board.
7'lte
sent us a
she
urote up
progam
giaes a good picture of Logan's home.schooling W, so ue are excerptingfrorn it lrcre. Jay notes: "Wen the school board ret:enlly
forms similar lo the ones Lirula Wyait descibed in GWS #98 (ashingfor prcgrant sent
inforntation uith subjects taughl hours of instruction, texls used, etc.), I simltly sent another ropy of this progrant uith 20
a
note
()rrr.nnr..N l,t:,qnu
*
tltat I coukl update it uith ninor clmnges if th,q harl a legitimatc need. I sr:rappcd. tluir f;nns. That ua.s i!. I senn lo be dcaling tttil.lt rcasonaltle people herc, artrl I apltreciale lhat o, ktt. We lnne open. (((:ess lo !h( local uillage school and its Jacilities; rtlier uisiting tlwre for open house (in hon.or of
edttcation ueeh), Logtn i.s con.sidc.nng altending n plrysiral educnlion rla.ss ottt.c n zueeh).
"
From.l ay's uri tten de s c,rilt li on o f Lctga,n\ prograrn (follouing i section, on, Phiktsophy and Metlnds) :
Logan does so nrany things in a week that it would be burdensome to list thenr all, or to read tltern all. [,ach day is different from all others. ancl each week is something beyond thc week before, so it is hard to say rvhat is typical. I made notes one day of Logan's activities; it was, I slrppose, as typical a day as any. I will recorcl it here.
Afier brezrkfast Logalt r.vatched sonre of Barnbi, and plaved rvith his baby ltrothe r-, Caspian, with blankcts over the furniture to lnake r.oonls ()r
"burrows." The he rode Iris bike to the store , aloue, witlr lhr-ce rk>llirr.s. I lc brotrght bzrck bananirs irnd rnilk, irrr<l
32 cents change. We cotrnted the moltey and discussed the process ol' rnaking change. Then he spent soule time examining a captive grasstropper. After that he clid several mazes ancl "dot-to-dots" in a workbook, ancl wrote a story to go with a pictrrre in a book. Then lre constructc(l a srnall lrook witlr paper ancl staples and clrew a lvonderfrrl picture r>f :r tree with rn:trry tin1, anirnals, sun, rnoolr, lake ancl trircls on
the cover. I{e nracle tornat() sr.ruo {ol. Irrnch, witlr rny lrelp. He rrserl a nretal "poker" to rnake a hole in a plastic lirl, stuck n stick in, and hvirlecl it to rnake it "fly." He ptrr a srnall red plastic calr on lris nose to be a clown, tlren on Iris I-read to be a police czrr light, as he r.arr around making siren noises. Later he went insect hunting otrtside. At sonre
point we looked thrcltrgl-r the classifiecl
in the newspaper ancl discussecl prices and merits of various vans zrrrcl RVs. At grandnta's he discoverecl, observed, ancl discussed a rnini plague of baby grasshoppers. He rveltt swilnads
nring. [{e watched a National G,eographic video abotrt the Arnazon. He
rescue<l a cllaeonlly {iorn a spi<ler r.velr ancl macle a honte firr-lrinr. AIter
sunlnler ht: obserlcrl thc rlr.auonlly in ltis nt'rv lrornt'.'l lrcrr rv<.\v(,nt l() lt neiglrbor's place arr<l lrir.ecl sorneorre: to nlorv our lawn. Tlrerr rve r,vcnt f<tr.it rvalk arrrl lookr:cl at thc srrrnrner gardens, y:rrcls, ancl trecs. Latcr, alie l. sonte w:lter play with ltottles ancl bo:rts in the trrb, rve rrsed arr inrlex irr ir book
of insects ancl researched clr.aeonflies. Therr we reacl lWtntis a lJird?irnd rlicl verbal rnath. (We often get carrie<l arvay with this, arrcl corrnt into the
night.) Altltotrglr I irrrr keclrirrp orrr. prograln relatir.'ely trnstnrctrIr<:d f<lr the rcasons gir.'t:n Icar.licr.] , I tlo Iravc sorne idca of wlrat Logar.r is likely,
t<r
aclrievc tlris ycar. ill tel.lils ol r.ca<liiltr. writing, rrra(ltt'rnatics, tlte sr.it,nces, tlrc social sttrdies, and the arts. Reacling
-
We will continue wirh
an organic nrixture of rne rc:rding to Irinr anrl, prohallly. Logarr <loirrg iots of'soun<ling orrt and wor.d r.ec<tgnitiorr atrcl, eradtrally, as he bcconres reacly, lrc rvill rkr rrror'<'oI lris r.r':rrlirrl{ l() llr(,. Log:rrr is rrol orre ol tlrosc clriklr.err to tcach Irirnsclf'to rcitrl at an ear.ly auc. Altlrorrglr lre <.arr qtritc c:rsily sotrrr<l out snrall easy worcls, arrrl recogrrizr: sorne lirrniliar ()ltes, hc finrls it vcry tilirrg to rearl rltore tlnn :r li,w wor.cls :rt a tinre. It rerrrinds rne of'rvlren lre was learning to walk. At nine rnonths he walked fiom the living roorn, throtrglr the dining roorn ancl the kitchen, all
tlre way to th<-. ltathroortr, btrt it took a phenorrrenal arnotrnt of concclrtratiol.r ancl effirrt. It rvas.just too ltarrl. He Jrrove<l to lrirnsclf that Ire cotrld clo it, arrd therr he <liclrr't try it agairr firr irnother six rnontlrs. At fifteerr llrontlls he r.valke<l easily and steadily. I don't knorv tlrat Logarr will read easilv arrrl steadily while he is six years old, t>r even seven, but I do krrow that. lre will sooner or later. We rrray be altle tcr ln:rke goocl use of sonre e:rsy reading books, iurd Logan rnay enjoy the Sul livan Research Progrzrnrmecl Reacling Workbooks that I plan t<r orcler.
Writing - I-ogan has enjoyed rvriting "l;ooks," stories, p()enrs, songs, a journal, and letters, zrrrcl I expect he will cont-irrtre lo tlo so. I want to ordcr a book cziled'l'lrc Kid's Gttide h Social Actiort, because Logan is very aware of'
Gnou'lNt; Wlruour St:rroor.rN<; #104 o Apn./Mat, l99Ir