Mindblowing homeschool debate on About.com

I stumbled upon a homeschool war on About.com, which seems a bit uncharacteristic for the site, to begin with.  The "debate" between Jerry Webster and Kathy Ceceri (who unceremoniously replaced Beverly Hernandez some months ago), pits special education against homeschooling, which is a real shame because many families have found relief and safety for their special-ed children in homeschooling.

But perhaps, that is Mr. Webster's problem.  Maybe he feels disregarded by homeschoolers, a group that doesn't hang onto every word of his expertise.  Perhaps people who could take or leave his advice as it suits them are a bit full of themselves and need to be put in their place.  But it is not my place to try to see into the brain of Mr. Webster.  It is also not his place to try to peer into our brains and motivations either.

You can go ahead and read the blogs if you wish, but he has made it clear, that he has said his peice, and now wants us homeschoolers to "go away" now.  (Notice to Homeschoolers) Good luck with that! The thing I am having the most problem with is that he is whining about being  drawn into a debate by Kathy Ceceri.  Isn't that the adult equivalent of "she started it"?

Likewise, I'm not sure why Kathy entertained him.  Homeschoolers have been largely quiet in the homeschool debate for a while because most of us have realized that there is no point in arguing with a wall.  If someone has already decided that homeschooling is for crazies, not even the most intelligent, relaxed, thoughtful response is likely to change their minds.  In my experience, the only thing that will make a person change their mind about homeschooling is seeing a student be successful.  I.e. most of my biggest detractors when my kids were young, are now our biggest supporters.

So my final thought on this toxic online homeschool debate is to stop arguing, and keep homeschooling.  Prove the success by your actions, not by your words.  Let the detractors show their ignorance, and if you must write about education, or homeschooling, try to keep it positive.

Ideas for Summer themed unit studies

It's summer! If you want to keep homeschooling, but are getting some resistance, create a summer themed unit study. Ideas might include summer activities like hiking, swimming, and amusement parks. Making summer goodies like fruit salad (and learning all about the benefits of summer produce). Making ice-cream (That's chemistry centric) And lots of reading.. my favorite summer activity.

 To go along with your summer unit study, include the words introduced in this info graphic:

Dictionary.com Summer Words For the Summer Learning Lull infographic

Free Educational Games and activities

Prongo.com has lots of free games for children aged 3-12. You will find hungry cateplillar, 2 player math games, checkers, mazes and more. 

Message from prongo.com: "Making games is fun and challenging but making games where kids learn is rewarding. We at prongo.com are working on bringing the best educational games around. That's why we use the latest software and hardware. We provide educational games where kids can interact and learn. We work hard on providing a challenging game environment, because learning should be fun and when kids learn they succeed."

About Play Kids Games.com

"Play Kids Games.com is a site designed by parents of young kids. It is our intention is to provide a web site that parents and kids can use to learn basic skills while having fun. It is our goal to provide a safe place to learn computer skils, math skills, reading skills and problem solving skills in a context that is fun to use. "

The site features math, alphabet, vocabulary, memory games, geography puzzles and more.

funbrain by Leap Frog is a great website for math drills, vocabulary games, and tons of other educational and fun stuff. They even have a fun blog geared to kids of different ages that encourages kids to write.


This site has been around for quite some time, but since It was purchased by Leap Frog it has become more animated, fun, and interactive.


I am retiring my old free-home-ed blog or rather, consolodating the information into this blog.  These posts are from there. 

12 Words new words to teach your preschooler, and yourself too.

Whenever my aunties told me to get something done lickety-split, they meant to get it done fast.  Still, it's a funny sounding word that will get today's preschooler to wrinkle up their faces trying to figure out what you want them to lick.

This info graphic includes this word and more that will be fun to teach your preschooler.

12 words your pre-schooler will find hilarious and learn from infographic

Enjoy!