Homeschool rant, testing, online class drama

Transcript with corrections:

Ok, so this is my 2nd homeschool video in as many days.  I'd like to promise that I'll do this daily because I really want to, but I'm not going to do that. 

If you see me looking off a lot, it is because my screen on my laptop is busted, and I use a monitor, and I like to look at myself.

So what I want to talk about today...

So, here is Atlanta, there's been this huge testing scandal, and a bunch of public elementary schools (and I'm not really in Atlanta, I am north east, so it's not exactly my school, but it's close enough for it

A bit of encouragement for homeschoolers

Be encouraged and don't second guess yourself. If you allow your homeschooled kid to be themselves, you will be very happy with the end results. Just hang in there, and teach them well, and provide opportunities for exploration. There will be rewards in the end.





Transcript:

HI, it's A. Hermitt and I wanted to give a little encouragement for homeschoolers. I know, from day one, when I began homeschooling, I was always worried. Just worried that I might not be doing the right thing.  Worried that I might not be giving my kids all that they need. Worried that someone was going to prove me wrong and show that I wasn't homeschooling (correctly).  Worried that the out come of our homeschooling was going to be less than what others around us were doing. 

This weekend really helped me to overcome that. Basically, just from the experience. I'm not saying that I won't continue to worry.  My son son is 17, he'll be starting college next fall, my daughter 15,

The Raw Truth About Homeschoolers

Just came across this awesome video about homeschoolers by a former homeschooler, now in college.
I don't know that I agree with all of it, but from her perspective what she is saying is true in her experience.

"We just want to be normal.  You can talk to us."

But please don't ask stupid questions. I hate that. FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE
MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

Getting Carried Away with AP?

 I have lots of public school kids in my family to compare with my own and for a while there I was pretty nervous about the sheer number of AP Classes these kids were taking, that mine weren't.  It seemed to me that my kids might be behind the ball and unable to compete for a place in a good college.

I can see now that the stress was unfounded because as homeschoolers there are ways to stand out

College is not the end goal of homeschooling

But it sure feels good when your kid gets accepted.

We will be touring a college this weekend to help make "the choice".  I feel like homeschooling has officially worked.  My son has acceptance letters and scholarship offers so that means we did a great job homeschooling... right?

Well, we did a good job academically, but getting into college does not mean we homeschooled well.

Homeschooling is about a lot more than education.  In my son's case, I was hoping to raise a well

The thought of a tech free education leaves me scratching my head

I spent most of the day hyperfocusing on the idea of a Waldorf education. I began when I woke up to a Today Show conversation about Silocon Valley parents using a school that shuns education, which is an oxymoron at best.

It sounded insane, and interesting at the same time, so I looked into it, and into it, and into it and decided that it is a lot like unschooling, except not at all... as it is too rigid.  Yes, rigid unschooling would be the best way for me to describe it.  Then there is the fact that it is linked to an occult like religion (in it's founding) and there are a lot of disgruntled ex-Waldorf families.

But that's beside the point.  I didn't have to research (though I did) to know what felt wrong at first glance.  The fact is that any movement, educational or otherwise that tries to eliminate an important segment of society (in this case technology) is just wrong.  Besides that, all the other stuff, like not reading or writing in the younger grades, and Legos being bad is just weird unsettling.
Also weird:

I don't see any math in this geometry presentation.
Meanwhile, many homeschoolers now ascribe to a Waldorf homeschool education.  Fortunately, most have adapted it to their own needs.


FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE

Sex ed becoming Mandatory in NY classrooms

First things first.

  With kids becoming less and less literate, why waste time on subjects parents should be teaching at home? Shouldn't they focus on reading and writing. Considering they are not teaching reading and writing well, how well are they going to teach sex ed. FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE