by Laurie A. Couture

The natural state of adolescence is to be joyful, playful, social and connected to parents and community.

Read to Me

 by Jennifer Walker

The kids are still. They are silent. They are listening. They are beyond listening;

Co-Parenting and Co-Schooling:

by Michelle Barone

Homeschooling families have found many creative ways to co-parent and co-school.Zombie Invasion -

Yeah, It Could Happen

by Nina Jones

Being prepared is a state of mind, my 13 year old explained to me one day.Controlling Children’s Media Access:

Are Stereotypes and Prejudice Only Perpetuated in Media?

by Teresa Graham Brett

I slowly let go of controlling what Martel watched. More importantly, I started watching shows with him.Some Things I Need to Change in My Life

The Balance of Motherhood and Personhood:

by Tara Wagner

I struggled when I tried to release my own dreams and concentrate my creative energy on motherhood and partnership with my husband.

Columns

Unschooled Girl

by Kate Fridkis

There’s a lot involved in being a woman. I got to be a lot of things as a girl,

Let’s Create A Learning Society

by Patrick Farenga

  and soon we will hear anxious parents telling their children, “A college degree today is like a high-school diploma was in my day.

A Matter of Conscience – The Devil We Love

by Kelly Green

State-funded at-home schooling? No. I’ll come right out and say it. No. It isn’t worth it.Good Stuff – ZAP! Electricity for Kids

New writers, young writers, bold, risk-taking, fresh ideas, provocative and thoughtful discourse, radical and powerful support for the unlimited ways we homeschool our children, teens… and create vital and fully alive ways of living as families.

If you are a subscriber, you will be glad you are. If you’re not, it’s time! Subscribe Now!

The September – October 2012 front cover

Indefinable ‘employment scenarios’ ‘what do you do’ is changing. ( added by editor)

When I was a kid, well-meaning teachers, relatives, and crooning adults asked me what I was going to be when I grew up. This was irregardless of the fact that I didn’t even know who I was yet, much less whether any of the obvious choices–ballerina, concert pianist, writer–would fit, or even end up being possible. And so I gave many different answers, each sincere, each ignorant.

I want to be a vet,” I explained, until a 6-month internship at a veterinary clinic showed me how very unfit I was for the job.

“I am going to be an illustrator!” I answered, buoyed by the success of winning second prize in a national art competition. But my first critique group proved me wrong.

“I want to travel, and write about it!” The reality of life, sucking and pulling on me, and the near impossibility of escaping it in my current state, quickly changed my mind.

The ironic thing is, a decade later, travel, jobs, and school under my belt, married to my soul-mate, expecting a baby, pursuing a freelance writing and harp career, I still don’t know how to answer that damning question: “And what do you do?”Because I don’t fit into any of the categories. I don’t work a desk job, clocking in and out and shuffling piles of paperwork. Nor do I teach at a university, as I had thought I might. I’m not a vet, a ballerina, a famous musician, a travel-writer, or a bank teller.

In fact, I’ve got so many jobs I don’t know how to categorize my time. I clean houses once a week with my mother-in-law, yet I’m not a cleaning lady. I also work as a barista once a week, pulling shots, making turkey sandwiches, and deflecting asinine customers, and yet I am not pursuing a career in coffee. I keep our house relatively clean, make (usually) healthy meals for myself and my darling husband, and occasionally throw a load of laundry into the washer. I view my freelance writing as a job; so many queries sent a week, so many pages by this date, so much research accomplished by Tuesday. I treat my harp teaching and performing career the same way: one day I’ll update my website, the next schedule interviews with new students.

Time spent with my loved ones is even more important than these tasks, and when my husband is home I clear my schedule without a twinge of regret. Fluttering kicks in my belly remind me that before long, another supreme passion will be added, perhaps will supplant, the others. Motherhood.

And all of these “careers” make it very difficult to answer that seemingly innocuous question asked at every party, every introduction, and every social function. “And what do you do?”

I suspect I am not alone in my confused reaction to this question. Homeschool moms in particular can find this difficult to answer. Most people would be happy to class you and dismiss you. The fact that you don’t have an outside job can seem, to those who are entrenched within the small world of business, to negate you as a person. To suggest that perhaps you couldn’t make it in the “big world”, that you don’t have the skills or the talents, or the charisma to succeed. It’s easier to see you that way.

Because the truth is that if you were somehow able to communicate exactly what it is you do, there would be no way to box you in. Simple questions with simple answers do not apply to you. You transcend the petty career barriers.

You are a teacher, a creator, a nurturer, a leader, a disciplinarian, a diplomat, a talented chef, a decorator, a lover, a dedicated friend, and your talents and strengths and abilities go far beyond descriptions.

As I grapple with my always-changing role in life, as I contemplate becoming a mother, I honor you indefinable ones, you homeschooling mothers.

You are a wonderful example of living a life without limits, an exquisite demonstration of productivity and creativity under the craziest circumstances. Those of us fortunate enough to have been raised by one of you will always praise you.

For all you do and are, thank you.

Leave a comment for Emily below.

Published in the Volume 29 Number 3, May-June 2012 issue of Home Education Magazine.

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Lessons from the Sugarbush

“Does it hurt the tree?” my daughter asked with a worried tone as her brother drilled a hole into the old sugar maple.

“Not a bit,” I explained. “And it will heal right back up when we’re done, just like you heal up when you get a cut.”

Satisfied, she picked her hammer up off the snowy ground and tapped the spile, a little spout made of metal, into the sugar maple tree. Grandpa stood nearby ready to help.
“Look! It’s running out really fast!” my daughter shouted while her brothers craned to look over her shoulder and see the sap for themselves.

Years ago, my dad shared the same ritual with me and my siblings. As winter slowly turned to spring, we tapped the trees, collected the clear, sweet sap and boiled it down into syrup. For a special treat, we collected clean snow and poured boiling sap onto the snow to make a chewy candy. Decades before I was born, my father’s father did the same with his children. Hundreds of years before that our colonial ancestors taught their children and long before that our Native American ancestors invented the process. It’s a sweet North American tradition.

Being a homeschool mom, I naturally saw an opportunity for fun learning. Best of all, Grandpa was sharing the experience with the kids, which always makes any adventure, learning or otherwise, way more fun. Together, they talked about Grandpa’s childhood maple tapping days. Back in his day, they made their own spiles, which were whittled from sumac.

To read more of a Lessons From the Sugarbush subscribe to the digital edition of Home Education Magazine. (Please note May-June/12 is available in digital edition only. Print will be back with the September-October/12 issue.)

Socializing Remy

This year (as some of you, dear readers, are already well aware), we got a new puppy, a delightful Welsh terrier named Remy. We purchased him from a 13-year-old homeschooler in Kansas who is breeding Welsh terriers to pay for her college education. Since he is a terrier (easily misspelled but well characterized as “terror”) and thus having a strong mind of his own, we took special pains in socializing him.

So what did we do? Well, housebreaking him came first, which is a matter of training him to tell us when he needs to go. Then a few simple commands: “Come, Sit, Off, Down, Wait, No! Drop It.” (We are, of course, still working on those, and probably will be forever – he is, after all, a terrier, and while he may understand entirely, he has a mind of his own.) Not to chase automobiles. Then to stay off the furniture (we lessened our strictures around that once he stopped chewing – our furniture is perfectly suited for dogs.) Then we needed to acquaint him with the other pets, get him to stop jumping up every time Ugo the canary starts to sing, and teach him not to scratch at Echo the eight-year-old bunny’s cage. (Echo, by the way, thinks he is a dog; Remy is not convinced.) And then, when he gets his crazy puppy energy, to go outside to run it off! Digging is okay, just not in my flower garden.

Of course, that wasn’t enough.

To learn how Remy’s socialization contrasts with ‘School Socialization’ subscribe to Home Education Magazine. (Please note May-June/12 is available in digital edition only. Print will be back with the September-October/12 issue.)

Amateur Power: Citizen Science is Made for Beginners

When you tag a monarch butterfly, you have to take it slowly, work gently. My daughter moved in slow motion, completely focused, as she attached a tiny, adhesive circle to a monarch’s thin wing. During this moment she was participating in Monarch Watch, a citizen science program that aims to increase understanding of the monarch butterfly’s migration and habitat.

Citizen science projects are an ideal way for homeschoolers to learn about and take part in real science. Through these programs, individuals or families volunteer to monitor a specific occurrence or object – typically, one observes or measures a natural phenomenon. Participation requires no formal training, so it’s a perfect way for kids to do valuable, real scientific work.

To read more of a Citizen Science is Made for Beginners subscribe to the digital edition of Home Education Magazine. (Please note May-June/12 is available in digital edition only. Print will be back with the September-October/12 issue.)

All printed back issues are gone and we are moving forward with new formats for delivering the great information contained in our decades of circulated magazines. Demand for printed back issues has fallen and demand for electronic formats have risen.  We are currently exploring various avenues and selecting the best delivery method for homeschoolers. If you have a suggestion please feel free to voice it in the comments section below.

http://homeedmag.com/home-education-magazine/stop-student-loan-consolidation/

In keeping with the economic conditions in the world today we’re going to focus on this particular educational problem, college financing and student loans. Living with a $600 a month payment? Consolidation or outright government forgiveness is all a lot of college students can look forword to.

Let us know in the comments section how much your kids or your loans payments are.

Late Reader

We’re relaxed homeschoolers but I can’t relax about my son’s inability to read. He’s going to be 10 this winter. Yes, I’ve read to him since he was young. Yes, I’ve tried all sorts of methods. And yes, I continue to sit with him to write and sound out words. I not only worry about his learning but also his self-esteem now that his younger sister is reading easily. If parents of late readers have any suggestions, I’m open. Jennifer Y.

Your responses (in comments area below) must meet our deadline of December 15th. Please recognize that your submission may be edited for length or clarity and indicate how you prefer your question or answer signed. Answers can also be emailed via our contact form.