Jennifer L.W. Fink provides readers with a look at her son’s last days of school and first days of homeschooling as she reveals the decision-making process facing those who are considering home education.

Nov. 16

I think we may homeschool. The final straw came at Nathan’s parent/teacher conference. When I asked this year’s Math goal, the teacher told me “adding and subtracting to 12.” Nathan’s been adding two-digit numbers and doing basic multiplication for over a year already. The teacher also told me that Nathan seems more mature than many of his classmates. But when I told Nathan - who’s struggled socially on the playground — that the other kids aren’t ready to play the way he does, he said, “They just don’t like me.” Only 6-years-old, he’s already completely internalized it: they reject me, so I must be bad.

I do not want to leave him in an environment that is not only is not a good fit, but that also causes him to doubt himself.

The rest of this article is available for free online from HEM here.

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Karen Hollis explains how her daughter copes with the writing challenges of dysgraphia by focusing on the sensory processes of writing, including the physical form and materials of writing, contrary to current educational trends which emphasize content, drafting, and revision.

To learn how she copes,  you can purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.

Carol Alexander describes how her family uses card playing as part of homeschooling, with the kids learning real academic skills while having fun playing games.

To read how they learn through car playing, you will want to  purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.

In their  November-December Taking Charge column, Larry and Susan Kaseman write about Keeping Homeschooling Nonpartisan.  They write:

Our quality of life as homeschoolers and the things we must do, can do, and cannot do on a daily basis are strongly influenced by our state’s homeschooling statutes and regulations. The more we can convince legislators to work with us regardless of their political party, the more likely we will be to have reasonable regulation that allows us to homeschool our children according to our principles and beliefs rather than state values and requirements. To keep homeschooling nonpartisan (that is, not associated with any one political party), we need to make sure that homeschoolers as a group do not provide legislators, the media, and the general public with a basis for thinking that homeschoolers are aligned primarily with either the Republican or Democratic party.

This column discusses why we should keep homeschooling nonpartisan, talking points we can use to gain support of both Democrats and Republicans (regardless of whether we ourselves are Democrats or Republicans), and what we can do to keep homeschooling nonpartisan.

The rest of this article is available for free online from HEM by clicking here.

You can also purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.

David H. Albert explains that Epigenetic research, still in its infancy, suggests it is nurture that may actually enhance genetic potential and its expression in this My Word! column.

To learn more about Olympic Epigenetics,  you can purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.

Karen Vogel tells how her kids find exotic interests to stimulate their learning despite living an unremarkable suburban lifestyle.  She writes:

I’ve read all those homeschooling books detailing the adventures of families who live on the road, performing musical concerts or selling some amazing product that they invented. I’ve read about the families who decide to go back to the land and learn how to survive on their own. Those stories make me wish my family lived somewhere more exciting, on a boat perhaps or a ranch or with a traveling carnival, or that we possessed some special talent that we could develop into a family business. But, to be honest, I don’t think we have what it takes. Let’s face it - my family considers it a test of survival if our air conditioning breaks down. And as far as becoming the next Von Trapp Family Singers, well, the less said about that, the better.

You can read the rest of this article from HEM here.

You can also purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.

In this Book Review Column, Jeanne reviews Kathleen Melin’s By Heart: A Mother’s Story of Children and Learning at Home

To read the review, you will need to purchase this issue (link is on the bottom left) or subscribe  to the magazine here.