How long have I been doing this? You'd think there'd be an end to this insecurity, eh? But, no, after homeschooling for around eight years now, I still have those nasty, niggling doubts.
Today's uncertainty, courtesy of this article: Math.
First of all, what was wrong with Saxon? It was dry, sure, but it worked for the other two, they didn't care one way or another, did they? They were just happy it was secular and that every time the number two came up they didn't have to hear about Noah and his annoying animals again. You hated the endless repetition, 'the spiral approach' they call it, 'a publishing house money-maker' you called it, and were never averse to skipping levels like you did for the other two anyway. Plus wasn't this exactly what you found so sorely lacking in Elle's Queensland Maths program? A solid foundation, some sense of building on previous concepts, and all that? Sarabelle and Grice are doing fine with their advanced maths in public school so you must have done something right there. Why rock the boat? Beacuse Ms. Smartypants, you had to go and read something somewhere that convinced you hands-on would be a better way to really learn math instead of just mindlessly memorizing formulas, and so you had to go and switch to Math-U-See. Fine. Except that Elle thinks it's stupid. She doesn't want to use the blocks. You do, because you paid for them. And now they're telling us it's the abstract thinking that's more important in the grand scheme of things. Well, you sort of knew that too, but adding that tactile quality and applying lessons to real life seemed like a better way for young ones to learn, didn't it? You always thought that if you knew what to actually use sines and co-sines for in the real world it would have made a hell of a lot more sense. Ah, but she's not learning sines and co-sines yet, is she? She's still getting all her facts down and the article does admit that hands-on is useful for younger learners. You really didn't imagine her using those plastic bits for high school algebra, did you? Oh, heh, you bought the Completer set. Sucker. Did you ever see the need to calculate when the two trains were going to pass each other? Wouldn't it only really have been relevant if they were on the same track? And though you were the kind of student who couldn't get beyond the concept of an unknown -- "Why 'x'? Why 'y? Why not 'u' for 'unknown'? Why can't they pick different letters?! -- and would have probably benefitted from some work with manipulatives, we're not talking about you anymore, are we? So now you want to throw the whole Math-U-See out the window, better you should go sell it on a board somewhere, and start all over with good ol' Saxon? Except don't forget, genius, your Saxon 5/4 is in Florida. And don't you even dare think of ordering another Saxon Homeschool Kit just to expedite things either! Calm down, finish your first levels of Math-U-See and then pick up the 5/4. It'll be alright, one of the experts said so. Oh, and L, one more thing, quit listening to the experts, will ya?
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Tax Day
Generally I am the sort of person who upon receiving my W-2 or 1099 forms has her return in the mail to the IRS the very same day, so replying at such a late date to the Thinking Parents Wiki has me feeling like the time I sat in line in my car at the post office at 11:57 PM to personally hand my husband's return to the poor postal slob on duty that night. Yeah. I file separately. You can probably see why.
The short answer to the question is, yes, relative to the services we receive from the government we do pay too much in taxes.
We live in Florida. Aside from the sub-prime debacle and the general sluggish national real estate market, Florida has the added burden of sky high property taxes affecting real estate sales. Homestead exemptions reduce tax valuations on a primary residence by $25,000 (for typical owners) and lock in a low maximum 3% annual increase, which is wonderful if you've owned your home for years, but not so wonderful if you're buying these days. The exemption does not transfer over with the property to new owners so they get socked with taxes based on the new, much higher rates. That sure won't speed along any recovery.
Let's see, county taxes on my primary residence support roads, water, sewer, garbage collection, schools, emergency services, all average, nothing special.
But.
We also own another teeny house in the same county. It was our primary residence for years. It's on a boat-only island. There are no roads, water, sewer, garbage collection, schools, or emergency services. Sure, the Sheriff will show up sooner or later if there's a big problem, but if someone needs immediate medical attention, you had better hope you fueled up the boat and the weather holds. There are no county facilities for home owners to access the mainland, meaning we pay for boat slips at local (expensive) marinas over and above the taxes for non-existent services, where at least most of us can access dumpsters for trash disposal. Because this teeny house is waterfront, we pay the same amount in taxes as the bigger house on the dry lot. The county occasionally proposes special new taxes to help establish some of services that we already pay for and don't have out there. Luckily for us they're a rather backward lot.
On a federal level, we pay more for the option of filing married but separately and for not bothering with deductions. It's lazy. It's simple. It's our choice. We pay more than our fair share and we ask nothing in return.
But.
We are also permanent residents of Australia. We rent but do own some investment property that we pay local council rates on. It's inexpensive and a bargain for the infrastructure involved. On a federal level, tax laws in both countries have us paying income tax on any income earned in either country. Money we make in Australia gets taxed as income to us in Australia and in the US. Money made in the US gets taxed as income to us in the US and Australia. Even though we can only earn and live and spend in one country at a time. Fortunately, in one respect, we haven't made much money in Australia. The general income tax rate is around 30%, but with a little bit of legal wangling we can reduce it to nearly half that. Here though, we have free health care and that makes all the difference. Say what you will about socialized medicine (but maybe watch Sicko first), whatever we pay in taxes here is worth it. Three trips to the emergency room for kids' stitches and one overnight with follow-up testing for me in a two month stretch would have been a huge hit to us in the States, being self-employed and uninsured. But here? No charge. Just part of what every Australian is entitled to. What we pay here is very fair compared with the services we receive, if only the IRS didn't have its greedy mitts out too.
Happy April 15, everyone.
The short answer to the question is, yes, relative to the services we receive from the government we do pay too much in taxes.
We live in Florida. Aside from the sub-prime debacle and the general sluggish national real estate market, Florida has the added burden of sky high property taxes affecting real estate sales. Homestead exemptions reduce tax valuations on a primary residence by $25,000 (for typical owners) and lock in a low maximum 3% annual increase, which is wonderful if you've owned your home for years, but not so wonderful if you're buying these days. The exemption does not transfer over with the property to new owners so they get socked with taxes based on the new, much higher rates. That sure won't speed along any recovery.
Let's see, county taxes on my primary residence support roads, water, sewer, garbage collection, schools, emergency services, all average, nothing special.
But.
We also own another teeny house in the same county. It was our primary residence for years. It's on a boat-only island. There are no roads, water, sewer, garbage collection, schools, or emergency services. Sure, the Sheriff will show up sooner or later if there's a big problem, but if someone needs immediate medical attention, you had better hope you fueled up the boat and the weather holds. There are no county facilities for home owners to access the mainland, meaning we pay for boat slips at local (expensive) marinas over and above the taxes for non-existent services, where at least most of us can access dumpsters for trash disposal. Because this teeny house is waterfront, we pay the same amount in taxes as the bigger house on the dry lot. The county occasionally proposes special new taxes to help establish some of services that we already pay for and don't have out there. Luckily for us they're a rather backward lot.
On a federal level, we pay more for the option of filing married but separately and for not bothering with deductions. It's lazy. It's simple. It's our choice. We pay more than our fair share and we ask nothing in return.
But.
We are also permanent residents of Australia. We rent but do own some investment property that we pay local council rates on. It's inexpensive and a bargain for the infrastructure involved. On a federal level, tax laws in both countries have us paying income tax on any income earned in either country. Money we make in Australia gets taxed as income to us in Australia and in the US. Money made in the US gets taxed as income to us in the US and Australia. Even though we can only earn and live and spend in one country at a time. Fortunately, in one respect, we haven't made much money in Australia. The general income tax rate is around 30%, but with a little bit of legal wangling we can reduce it to nearly half that. Here though, we have free health care and that makes all the difference. Say what you will about socialized medicine (but maybe watch Sicko first), whatever we pay in taxes here is worth it. Three trips to the emergency room for kids' stitches and one overnight with follow-up testing for me in a two month stretch would have been a huge hit to us in the States, being self-employed and uninsured. But here? No charge. Just part of what every Australian is entitled to. What we pay here is very fair compared with the services we receive, if only the IRS didn't have its greedy mitts out too.
Happy April 15, everyone.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Never mind...
The 3, 5, 7, and 9 tests are mandatory for those attending public school and those homeschooling under the distance education program (because it's still government schooling, don't you know.) After reading and rereading and re-rereading the introductory information I have determined that for the remainder of us, the few, the proud, the minority writing our own programs, it's purely voluntary.
(photo from SNL Archives)
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Teaching to the Test
The letter came in the mail detailing the procedure for Elle's manadatory participation in the National Assessment Program - Literacy and Numeracy for Years 3, 5, 7, and 9. She will sit the test at the public school she briefly attended May 13, 14, and 15.
The information listed several websites for sample questions and instructions, so I took a look, because not much can make me as a home educator as anxious as the idea of standardized testing when we ourselves are not standardized, and I wanted to see if the material we have been covering matches what is on the exam.
Of course it doesn't.
The first day's work, Language Conventions, is comprised of 50 questions, half on grammar and punctuation, the other half on spelling. The grammar and punctuation part might be a bit of a challenge because we are not following the same scope and sequence, but nothing we can't brush up on. The spelling part? Gah. Elle is not a natural speller. I've only been lucky enough to have one of those so far, Sarabelle, who led me into a false sense of security that all children, or at least those of my genesis, would pick up spelling as readily as I did. Not to mention, should there be any on this test, I'm sure she will suffer for her Americanization of certain words. Instructions to identify the word "spelt" incorrectly may have her scratching her head. Next up is the writing test. Students have 35 minutes to compose a story on a given topic. If they can read her chicken scratch (we are working on penmanship though she constantly lapses back into a bizarre monkey-like grip, an on-going battle for the past three years) she might be alright except that telling her a topic to write on is to her mind less an instruction than a mere jumping-off point. Why do I have to write about my first day on Mars? Can my story be about a scary birthday present a little girl gets? What if her birthday party is on Mars? Or! I know, a story about Lulu flying a plane? No? But what if Lulu flies a plane to Mars? Where is the test for negotiation skills I wonder.
Teaching tips for instructors suggest, "Children can prepare for this kind of writing task by learning how to 'read like a writer'. During reading lessons, explore the stance writers take and the choices they make about subject matter and how it is organised. For example, they can identify how a textbook uses nominalisation." There are so many problems with those three brief sentences: Aside from British spellings and the obvious directive to teach to the test and the reliance on textbooks, there is the recommendation to help them identify nominalizations. Grammatical or lexical? Isn't this a bit arbitrary and advanced? Do you know what a nominalization is? Is there any indication that good writers should avoid them? Not on the one webpage, an amateurish uncredited page with a lesson on the water cycle, given as an example. It would have been interesting to see what the other two websites given as examples were all about, but both .edu sites (one Miami University in Ohio) were dead links.
The next day is a reading test, basic comprehension, 35-40 multiple choice and a few fill-in-the-blanks. The hardest part will be staying inside the lines filling in bubbles.
Finally, numeracy. Again with the different scope and sequence. I'll try to pass on a few tips for solving some of the problem types we haven't come to yet, try the sample test questions, yes, teach to the test in other words, but honestly, her best is good enough for me.
But here's the rub. Should she do her best and not come up to measurably approved standards, there is the implied threat that she could be forcibly returned to school. This doesn't concern me too much, because the time it takes to make things happen here is often protracted and nothing a legal advocate couldn't slow down even further, and by then we'd probably be back in Florida anyway, but what about the other unfortunate homeschoolers stuck in this situation?
And what about the kids regularly attending school who don't perform to the standards? What is their punishment?
The information listed several websites for sample questions and instructions, so I took a look, because not much can make me as a home educator as anxious as the idea of standardized testing when we ourselves are not standardized, and I wanted to see if the material we have been covering matches what is on the exam.
Of course it doesn't.
The first day's work, Language Conventions, is comprised of 50 questions, half on grammar and punctuation, the other half on spelling. The grammar and punctuation part might be a bit of a challenge because we are not following the same scope and sequence, but nothing we can't brush up on. The spelling part? Gah. Elle is not a natural speller. I've only been lucky enough to have one of those so far, Sarabelle, who led me into a false sense of security that all children, or at least those of my genesis, would pick up spelling as readily as I did. Not to mention, should there be any on this test, I'm sure she will suffer for her Americanization of certain words. Instructions to identify the word "spelt" incorrectly may have her scratching her head. Next up is the writing test. Students have 35 minutes to compose a story on a given topic. If they can read her chicken scratch (we are working on penmanship though she constantly lapses back into a bizarre monkey-like grip, an on-going battle for the past three years) she might be alright except that telling her a topic to write on is to her mind less an instruction than a mere jumping-off point. Why do I have to write about my first day on Mars? Can my story be about a scary birthday present a little girl gets? What if her birthday party is on Mars? Or! I know, a story about Lulu flying a plane? No? But what if Lulu flies a plane to Mars? Where is the test for negotiation skills I wonder.
Teaching tips for instructors suggest, "Children can prepare for this kind of writing task by learning how to 'read like a writer'. During reading lessons, explore the stance writers take and the choices they make about subject matter and how it is organised. For example, they can identify how a textbook uses nominalisation." There are so many problems with those three brief sentences: Aside from British spellings and the obvious directive to teach to the test and the reliance on textbooks, there is the recommendation to help them identify nominalizations. Grammatical or lexical? Isn't this a bit arbitrary and advanced? Do you know what a nominalization is? Is there any indication that good writers should avoid them? Not on the one webpage, an amateurish uncredited page with a lesson on the water cycle, given as an example. It would have been interesting to see what the other two websites given as examples were all about, but both .edu sites (one Miami University in Ohio) were dead links.
The next day is a reading test, basic comprehension, 35-40 multiple choice and a few fill-in-the-blanks. The hardest part will be staying inside the lines filling in bubbles.
Finally, numeracy. Again with the different scope and sequence. I'll try to pass on a few tips for solving some of the problem types we haven't come to yet, try the sample test questions, yes, teach to the test in other words, but honestly, her best is good enough for me.
But here's the rub. Should she do her best and not come up to measurably approved standards, there is the implied threat that she could be forcibly returned to school. This doesn't concern me too much, because the time it takes to make things happen here is often protracted and nothing a legal advocate couldn't slow down even further, and by then we'd probably be back in Florida anyway, but what about the other unfortunate homeschoolers stuck in this situation?
And what about the kids regularly attending school who don't perform to the standards? What is their punishment?
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