BrianAndPamela.com

Everyone has some topic in their life where they can carry on both sides of the conversation.  It's that thing where someone finds out something about you and then the next five minutes of conversation follows pretty much the same path every single time.

For me, that conversation usually happens when people find out that Pamela homeschools our kids.  At some point, the same question always comes up.  Oh they phrase it differently sometimes, "How do you account for socialization?" or "Are you concerned about what they are missing?" or other less direct phrases.  What they are really asking is, "Aren't you concerned your kids are going to turn out to be socially inept freaks who have no clue about the real world?"  At which point I feel like shouting, "Have you seen public schools these days?  Aren't you worried that the kids there are going to turn into materialistic under-educated peer mentality zombies?"  But most of the time I just smile and say, "Not at all." 

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Classes for the first year of the Grace Homeschool Support Group finished their first semester with acclaim from teachers, students and parents.  It's hard to believe that one semester and a month long holiday have passed.  On Monday, classes will resume and continue until April with options including Apologia Science, Veritas Press history, American Sign Language, studio art, and more.  Jack and Abby finished one semester of first aid and that time slot will switch to cooking for the remainder of the year.  They each also have a science class and then sewing and art respectively.  There are even classes for Pre-K.  Josh and a few other tykes have fun and games, music and dance and a craft hour.

In December, the children were given the opportunity to party together, play games with their classmates and participate in a small assembly.  Talents ranged from piano, violin and voice to recitations of poetry and the kings of England.  Each child had an opportunity in this safe environment to share without fear of rejection and enjoy the honest praise of their parents and peers.  What joy to know we're developing valuable skills and at the same time, continuing the greenhouse environment for fostering their young faith. 

 It is a privilege to homeschool.  Thanks so much to all the members who make it possible.  I'm looking forward to 2007-2008 already!  Grace Church has done the homeschooling community in Fredericksburg a great service by providing access to their great classrooms and cafe one afternoon a week.  As a parent and teacher, I'm thrilled to be a part of this venture, and can't wait to see it grow. 

Boy meets girl. Boy gets girl. Girl starts thinking big picture….Honey? Can we have kids now? The thought of babies to snuggle, toddlers to chase with their sticky kisses and gooey fingers, teaching them to walk and say,'Daddy', is all very sweet and hazy. Heaven. (more…)

Live! from Nkorho Pan, South Africa! It's WATERING HOLE LIVE! Here's a live high quality feed from a camera in South Africa. We've checked in a few times and seen antelope, rabbits, and heard LOTS of other things. There's a live operator 24/7 that zooms in on interesting things. Don't miss this one if you've got a good connection! Clicky!

Add me to the list of people opposed to eBay’s ban on Teachers Edition Textbooks. Short version of the story is that eBay, responding to pressure from “parents, educators and publishers” (more on that in a moment) has banned the auction or sale of Teachers Edition (TE) Textbooks and other curriculum and materials that are intended to only be used by “professional teachers.” Given that many homeschooling parents rely on the TEs for sample lesson plans and other material and that purchasing these books from publishers can cost a great deal, and most homeschoolers are very budget conscious (shouldn’t they be? they are paying for everyone else’s kids to go to school plus their own but don’t get me started…) the secondary market for homeschool curriculum is very active.

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