In honor of Edgar Allen Poe (and his poem The Raven) and in memory of the crickets that like to appear in my home every year (a moment of silence for them, please), around this time:
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A Poem “The Cricket”
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Category Archives: home
10 Reasons Why We Home School
Upon revealing that my wife and I home school our children, we find ourselves in heavy crossfire with an emphasis on us doing wrong by our kids. It’s interesting that the harshest attacks come from (1) single people, (2) childless people, (3) old people who grew up during an age where schools were still good, or (4) people who sent their kids to private school (be it Christian or a Yeshiva). I’ve also entertained some minor attacks from public school teachers, mostly in regard to my pride: how dare I think I can do their professionally trained job (that’s another topic though).
So I decided to do a list of ten reasons why we home school. You’ll notice certain things about this list compared to my other two lists. The five stupid reasons to opt out of home schooling dealt with the storm of stupid attacks I’ve had to weather; the five wrongheaded reasons to home school dealt with what I’ve heard some people say to justify their homeschooling: but these ten reasons are totally personal. They’re Our reasons for home schooling Our children in light of Our situation. Here’s the list:
5 Initially Wrongheaded (But Potentially Contextually Understandable) Reasons to Home School
I was planning to post this after my 10 reasons to home school, and even after my 5 stupid reasons to opt out of home school in favor of public school, but I faced another problem.
What if home schooling parents started offering their opinions of what they thought were good reasons to opt out of public school and then my post came out listing their reasons as wrongheaded? That would be highly suspect and embarrassing!
My second problem is that some of these comments make a lot of sense in the right context. Their initial problem is that they take a wrong view of education but, based on the right context, these reasons are sometimes justifiable.
Therefore, here are five wrongheaded yet potentially contextually understandable and justifiable reasons to home (instead of public) school your children:
5 Stupid Reasons Not To Home School (and Do Public School Instead)
In defensive discussions justifying my parental rights and educational choices for my children, I often find myself repeating my lists of reasons. I have 10 solid reasons why we home-school, which I was going to post today, but then I had an internal struggle.
What if people (as they sometimes do) started offering some responses which tied into some incomprehensibly stupid reasons to opt out of home-schooling and send my kids to school? I mean, they’d see this post and think I was spring boarding off of their incomprehensibly stupid comments. I am therefore ethically required to post this first!
My second struggle is that this post can only exist if people understand my number one reason for home-schooling: I can’t afford private school. I really can’t. I’m trying to save for retirement and the college education of three kids; it’s impossible to pay private school tuition right now.
With conscience assuaged, and the number one reason listed to my reader (that’s you), all struggles are rested. I can unapologetically offer five undeniably and incomprehensibly stupid reasons to opt-out of home school and send kids to school:
The Kaijo
Normally I’m tired when waking up 4:30am, but not that Sunday. I was excited about the passage I was preaching on. Normally, I don
Drawing Conclusions
I didn’t get a cavity until I was off my parent
Joe’s Corner
I love home remodeling although thus far I don’t have any concept of how to do it. I mean, I have the concepts in my head but I’m sure if I put my mind to it, and if my wife (maybe foolishly) supports such an outlandish endeavor, I can (probably) do all right with it.
But my buddy Joe has gall, support and the know-how to tackle just about any project even if on the outset he doesn’t have all the details: this dude is the man. Here
The Delivery
He’d gotten out too late; it was dark. Directions were easy when based on major landmarks but there was no way possible to see the sign names on these poorly lit rural roads.
The Nothing
A few nights ago, when it was so windy the moon was under covers, I took out the trash way too late. Hating winter’s chill I ran out and pushed the huge trash can up to the sidewalk then stopped. Across the street, behind the row of houses, I usually can see the farm land and beyond. Even on moonless nights there’s a sort of arcane ambience that allows me to see at least the form of the land if not details. But on that night all I could see was a solid wall of blackness from which came a screaming wind that forced the trees to tremble in its wake. I was afraid.
It was a strange fear because it wasn’t my normal phobia of acts of God (like tornadoes) but this completely irrational terror that was tingling up my toes across my skin and near the back of my ears. The Blackness was, to my mind, too concealing…too occult…holding the land hostage and threatening to overwhelm that small row of homes and my own as well.
As I trotted back inside, embarrassed at my speed, I was grateful that the blackness did not extend overhead and out to the back of my home
Wondering In A Wintered Land
Folk down here have been growing crazy with the impending snowstorm. Down at the grocery store the guy over the counter gave me a toothless grin thanking the good lawd for the stawuhm about tah hit, since he hadn’t seen eight inches uf suh’now in he didn’t know how long.
I thought he said eighteen but no, he said eight. I silently scoffed knowing how harsh the snowstorms were in New York but I also felt a tinge of fear since they’re not very good with snow clearing around these parts. Two inches of snow here means accidents but in NYC it means attach the plows to the garbage trucks and pour chemicals everywhere.
I must say the snow looked great outside, about four and a half inches canvassing my third of an acre plot. With a happy sigh I decided to go out and clear the driveway and stairs since I knew there would be sleet and ice later.
Two hours later I realized how annoying it is to shovel that much driveway space and after looking back and seeing it all covered again with another inch I decided to give up and go inside; I had enough of the eight inches uf suh’now.
Update,8:50 AM: 4 inches were added overnight. ::sobs::
Update, 9:54 AM: managed to shovel out my stairs and an entrance to one garage and have not gotten to the driveway yet. Apparently it also rained/sleeted last night and now it’s doing it again. Lovely.