Note: This week I will be working with some friends to start making several thousand pages of curriculum available to home schoolers. I believe this can be done for the cost of a single textbook.
I had the opportunity to homeschool my two youngest children (boy/girl twins) from 8th grade though high school. It was a super refresher for me. We used Harold Jacobs’ algebra and geometry texts. I’d be interested to read your review of them. We actually enjoyed math! In my experience science subjects, such as chemistry and physics as taught in high school are way too theoretical without enough emphasis on the day to day applicability of the content. The same can be said of math and other subjects.
Jacobs' geometry was the standard ten axioms and express proofs on two column system. Modern editions contain the same author name and title but significantly less content. Never saw the algebra book.
There is a serious need for a basic series from algebra through pre calc for high school that matches the 1962-1965 Dolciani Structure and Method books. Modern versions of Dolciani do not compare. Find the 1962 or 1965 and see the difference.
While I am very pleased with many AoPS books, the two algebra books lack a lot in brevity and clarity. The order of concepts presented is infuriating. The intermediate book is too dreary and has too much overlap with the pre calc. They are excellent for problems, but not for basic scaffolder instruction for above average students with average teachers that could propel students to mastery.
I am not generally a fan of two column proofs except as a vlbrief instruction, but in a program where there is then time to point out, "This is just a diagram. We do write out sentences in mathematics."
You are so spot on about the math, especially Algebra and Geometry and Science. Without practical application they made absolutely no sense to me in HS. I was a very good student except for these subjects. Practically failed Physical Science which today I understand. Algebra was like Greek, still is. But finally got Geometry when learning angles and planes in beauty school to cut hair. I remember 2 teachers in particular, they just didn't know how to teach it in any other way that made sense. 👍
Bravo for you! I'm not a parent nor a homeschooler, but agree w your take on education (I'm old enough to remember when John Taylor Gatto was first popular). BTW, I keep getting the wacky idea that you & Eric Weinstein should do something together - he says much the same as you about math education, and as a neurodivergent who turned out to be a math genius, I appreciate what he says abt how people like me, who wanted to be a scientist but had lousy high school math teachers who taught me to avoid math & assume I am just a dummy, are much too common & don't have to be. (If you already know him, you're on it) I wish I could locate a home parent collective in my area - I'd be happy to substitute and assist in any way I could, rather than subbing in a conventional Montessori school, where still the emphasis is on obedience.
Just search for homeschool and your state or possibly city. There are various networks. Unfortunately FB is one of the most popular networking platforms for homeschoolers. You can also tap into the homeschooler network by asking around in any local organization against masking, lockdowns, or pretty much any of our people calling BS on the pandemic. We tend to not trust schools. I am sure you would be appreciated.
I also worked in Montessori for a time and was actually surprised by the authority structure, but even more surprised by the way creativity was stifled.
I would be wildly interested in this. I've got some time before my kids will need it, but that gives me time to reeducate myself. Finding a high-quality curriculum has been a daunting task, to say the least.
Yes, but look all the good things that the thousands of taxes that exist today gives us: militarization of the police, bombing the entire world, price controls on everything, extreme licensing coercion, general demoralization of the populus, perennial crisis, sexual slavery and the political corruption associated with it, dioxins and PCBs, the fentanyl crisis, eugenics, sexual perverts doing bizarre dance moves to entertain toddlers while the petite bourgeois parents nod approvingly and say "so brave! so much justice!"
Without taxation of everything, even of taxes, corporatism would be impossible, because big corps depend on corporate welfare and protection from competition. This truth is denied by most leftists/liberals/porgressives/conservatives/religionists/rightists.
So, yes, our world would probably be better without that sdomasochistic ritual.
I am of the persuasion that this moral disaster can be changed with education, in the mid and long term.
*petite bourgeoisie means their self-love has been crushed and ground to a fine dust, and now are heavily traumatized people who live pretending they are not suffering.
My point is not that centralized taxation and spending is a good model of governance governance needs to be relocalized to a great degree. I'm agnostic about towns having little taxation pools for community projects. When you look people in the eye everyday, there is less chance of scamming them, and it's up to a community to decide if there are collective action problems to solve.
I'm going to make a comment that will sound defeatist, but it offers a solution.
Co-ops would be forced to include political propaganda. The authorities will allow the tax slaves to educate their prole only if they repeat the same structure of abuse that is present in public schools. No one can escape the politicization of everything.
Perhaps security would be the only advantage: no school buses, no cars, no drugs, better food, no witchcraft books like Carrie, and kids learn to only shoot at targets in the range and nowhere else... all the normal stuff.
Possible solutions are to ignore the bullshit orders to serve propaganda, risking an assault; Or developing an underground unschooling system, where the political rules are only obeyed on the surface. This comes with the risk of having all the kids growing up semi-paranoid revolutionaries. Although a couple or more of generations of little Jeffersons would be a very good outcome.
The real solution is national divorce, because that would liberate future generations of the burden of American eco-fascism, which is composed of many parts and one of them is the idea that schooling is necessary, and only the State is legitimized to educate. That idea is central to millions of "leftists" in the West, and yet they think they are not-fascists.
I think James Lindsey is right that school choice is a Trojan horse. First it will be the health clinics at schools because hey you took the $ and then they'll come after the home schoolers. I don't think national divorce is a solution and it would not be peaceful.
Plus national divorce is the idea of an acolyte of president warp speed. What could possibly go wrong?
Btw the "James Lindsay school choice Trojan horse" lookup is extraordinarily productive... Found a ten minute video week well worth the time... Thank you!
My point is that parents need to know that bad things will happen wether they oppose their masters or they choose to be eternal door mats. It is better to go against the grain in education.
If they play smart they will find ways to prevent the bad things or to reduce the harm. We are in a demented world where the lazy suffer the most.
Oh I agree. When I asked the kindergarten teacher for my dev delayed son how I could help him over the summer and she recommended medication we started homeschooling.
1000 likes. We homeschool 6 for $1800.00/year total (for core curriculum not counting music/sports/field trips etc.) we have a student/teacher ratio of 1-1/2 to 6 (lol) and see good results with our one-on-one tutoring methods. I know a lot of public student $$$ goes into infrastructure, but still, quality education could be had for much less if parents were paid to do it.
However, I’m so leery of govt $$ because strings are always attached. We almost joined an online charter school which had available tax money and would have covered a lot of our costs, but I didn’t have a good feeling about it. Sure enough a few years later the govt started mandating all kind of things for the students to continue getting the govt money. Glad we never joined.
First of all, good job giving your children a good education and not delegating it to some monopolized bureaucracy.
Second, try reframing your perspective on "government money". It is actually your money, and the money of your neighbors, taken under the guise of "the greater good" by force.
All revolutions, in this case the revolution to improve the education and development of the next generations, has to start with a few brave souls willing to step out of line. Government run "public" schools are paid by their daily attendance. If more families would pull their children from these indoctrination centers for a few weeks (or more), the system would falter and the message might actually be heard.
On my property taxes only about 700.00 goes towards the public schools. I wouldn’t mind that back. I’m just know that any involvement with the government (including education tax exemptions) will lead to it demanding oversight and proof the education is happening. Not that I blame the gov per se. I can see taxpayers not wanting education money going to deadbeat parents who have zero interest in providing an education, but claim homeschooling to get some “free” money. Anything the gov is involved in it has a duty to regulate and prevent fraud. They just seem to do a horrible job outside the local level.
I homeschooled in Florida for 16 years. we were required by the state to show progress each year, which is more than is demanded of government schools. A yearly assessment is a fair exchange for freedom to educate our children as we see fit. I only know of one family that was really slacking, and the state gives them one year to get the kids up to grade level, or they are required to reenroll in school. Each state has different requirements, but most have similar laws.
Keep in mind that none of that money is the government's. It is all money taken from tax payers like you and me. While is it relatively easy to determine what portion of your property tax bill goes to Ed., it is nearly impossible to decipher how much of your State and Federal income tax bill, percentage of your sales tax bill, percentage of your excise fee bills, (etc., ad nauseum) go to the dysfunctional public school systems. Billions of federal dollars are handed out each year to make school districts compliant with their agendas.
The discussion shouldn't be about getting something 'from' the gov't, but rather either the soft approach of getting 'our' money back, or better yet, stopping the stupidity of a federal Dept of (re)Education by simply not having it or not funding it. While the local level "education" agencies aren't much better, they are somewhat more controllable, assuming we get off our collective backsides and show up to the meetings.
Local is definitely the solution and homeschooling parents can’t forget they still have a say, because they pay taxes. Best case scenario is gov out of schooling altogether and local community solutions for kids that need an education their parent/s can’t provide.
It is all of our money and does not belong to parents in any preference. Especially now that there are now obergefell couples dressed up in parentface. Let the rebates come through the attrition of public schools via Exodus to homeschooling.
All true, but there are many battles to be fought in this war, before we start divvying up the spoils. The first steps are non compliance and rejection of the bureaucratic norms.
Heck, as a grandparent who homeschooled grandkids, I have to say, those were some of the best years of my life! Field trips, beach when others were tied up in school, museums, reading aloud all sorts of classic age appropriate literature….what a great time! Time with my grandkids, yes!
Remember how the museums opened wide up for thorough caption reading at 1p when the school field trips left? School kids cannot have gotten much out of the conveyor belts they rode through the museum.
Yes, and imagine what parents could do, freed from the politics and propaganda, using those resources to genuinely inform, educate and uplift their children. We need to take all this back.
I homeschooled for 7 years. Here is a breakdown 40% were former lawyers, doctors and career professionals, 40% were former teachers. I think the former teachers ratio says a lot. It means they saw behind the curtain and knew the importance of not turning over their education to the system. Random note: a majority of them had IT husbands.
They were all FASCINATING people with many interests and were strong and ethically minded.
It was very rare that I met someone that society would caricaturize : a dumb backwards mom that doesn't let their kids look out the windows. Honestly I may have met one or two. And that was it. All the kids were very socialized. They were able to talk to adults because we lived life in the real world, going to the store together, the post office. the church and they talked to kids outside of their age group. People always remarked how unusual it was for kids to talk with adults without animosity or timidness. Homeschoolers are part of co-ops, fields trips, church groups and more. They actually get more real socialization than public school kids.
During this journey of the last 3 years, I question many ways the culture has painted people. Anti-vaxxers were dumb blond vegetarians former actress types. I now see, that was intentional so that you wouldn't actually listen to their argument.
Now, I public school now for various reasons . In the beginning, my kids come home and at least were very aware of the indoctrination they were putting out there, and we would laugh about it, the obviousness of it all.
If you want your kids to be brave, independent and critical thinkers.
Homeschool. It's worth every inconvenience or missed luxury item.
I don't have kids and am not having kids. I recently have some weird gratitude for people having kids. Must be because I am close to 50! And I would love to be part of a community of people raising kids with intention! And it used to be some crazy number of people raised a child, like 5. We had multigenerational homes, and small k it communities where people communally spent time. Now, we have isolation. That's the true pandemic. I was talking with a patient who did this "I was raised in poverty (he now lives in a upper middle class life). I can recall when we didn't have power or it was cold out, my mom turned on the over and all 13 of us slept in the kitchen. We played games (not electronic!). It was the best.". As I listened, I pined for that sort of closeness that this current living lacks.
Yes. Our little parent run private school in Ontario has been challenged with the social crisis and taken over by the radical left covid heavies that used public health authorities to push the agenda . It’s been around for 30 years . Passing the school to another generation of parents while maintaining the ethos . Eventually , with the crisis the elder families and teachers of the school got pushed out by this new group that has little respect for the ethos or history of the school and instead want it to be what they thought and envisioned it to be . And kind of corporate with lack of transparency and inclusion despite outwardly left washing their actions . I see I am being triggered here .
The point is our family
Can not afford to pay a gentrified vision nor be complicit in such a lack of integrity . So we now are looking to put our energy to the alternatives .
This in part Mathew is how this idea I referred to came up around how to organize labor exchange through a platform.
I think educating our own children is much like the issues of using technology to distract children for busy parents . When we spend the time necessary from the get go , raising children gets easier , not harder . When we put it off and use things to distract them then the entire family falls behind and becomes difficult to catch up. So, if we spend the time to educate out children and commit to it , it gets easier and we have agency in directing the world
Not sending our children back to this school will save us $18,000. And each day is a 2 hour time loss. As it’s 1/2 hour drive . The 6 hours of in school time can be better managed around the farm day . When working with other parents and sharing in activities lessons and child care I think our children can have a robust educational life while being connected and involved in community
That we can be spending this much per child, not getting one-on-one tutoring, and are only getting the dismal results we are getting, screams of insanity. Yet we'll continue on...
It’s never a good idea to take money from the government, homeschoolers have avoided this idea for years because it allows the government to have a say in what you do then.
Trojan horse. If we let the government give us money, then we let the government tell us what to do. Homeschooling is an excellent idea. Unfortunately, nothing the government touches stays excellent. And yes, once parents start getting money the government will start to direct how and what they teach.
Since homeschooling frees a family from dependence on "good schools" they can move to locations with low property taxes. I am all for eliminating property taxes altogether, but I don't see that happening. School expenses, and schools themselves, are a metastasized cancer that is killing our country.
The Trojan horse was delivered in the 1800s. The goal is to show one step away as a Pareto improvement, which is separate from the further question of cutting off amd reorganizing the financial connections. I'm all for relocalizing governance outside of the Constitutionally federal authorities.
Low property taxes suggests locations Blackrock, Vanguard, Warren Buffett, and the rest of the QE crowd have bought up. Read Henry George's "Progress and Poverty". The Homestead Act was a partial attempt at limiting the amount of land a single family could own. If a few oligarchical companies can own unlimited land, eliminating property taxes altogether will merely metastasize the process, as it would necessarily eliminate holding costs. Quit exempting NGOs, governments, military, schools, churches, etc. from property taxes. Perhaps allowing people to work off their property taxes with untaxed work on road crews or the like would alleviate the financial burden of property tax on family homesteads.
A lovely thought, but just that. There isn’t a legislative body anywhere in the US that would vote to permit such a thing. Not that they should have any say in the matter, but they do.
Currently, there is a movement where the money follows the student. Bills have been passed in numerous states, with more heading toward votes. It's something, at least.
It’s certainly something I hope becomes law in as many states as possible. My cynicism comes from living in NJ as long as I have, nothing seems to change. Throwing good money after bad is the state motto.
“Santa Clara County Office of Education spends $121,722 per student each year. It has an annual revenue of $285,668,000. Overall, the district spends an unspecified amount on instruction, an unspecified amount on support services and an unspecified amount on other expenses.”
How much does California spend on education per student?
The total overall funding (federal, state, and local) for all TK–12 education programs is $128.6 billion, with a per-pupil spending rate of $22,893 in 2022–23.
Yep. Santa Clara County is the heart of Silicon Valley, so not surprised the numbers are much higher than average here. Still; it’s pretty staggering. (I live in Santa Clara county.)
That would be great. Too bad John Taylor Gatto passed away. He would’ve been also someone to talk with about education, and how to achieve the exact opposite of this Prussian education system our beloved globalists bestowed on us in their endless “love and generosity.”
It’s another perfect example of reality/outcome being the inverse of ‘their’ stated goals/intentions.
Honestly, this is yet another issue our ‘NoVirus’ brothers and sisters, have recognized way before us, and have already made some significant changes and advancements.
They are focusing a little more on an ‘ancestral’ model (keeping the kids near the tribe, and emphasizing on everyday skills and community involvement) for lack of better terms...
Whereas Gray’s focus, I believe, is the child’s imagination and creativity.... I am fairly sure he’s a Waldorf proponent, maybe Montessori as well.
My mom is a Montessori teacher. There’s no doubt that kids who go to a school in which the Montessori system is *fully implemented,* are so much more well-adjusted and capable than PS.
I personally think we should form kibbutz like communities, which are fully self-sustaining, and kids should learn and participate in building themselves a home. I think communities should be based on 1 AirCrete Dome/per person. And if they build their own as a ‘high school project’ we can at least guarantee they will never be homeless, no matter what happens...
Sorry this was a rant. I really hope to see this conversation b/w yourself and Gray
Note: This week I will be working with some friends to start making several thousand pages of curriculum available to home schoolers. I believe this can be done for the cost of a single textbook.
I had the opportunity to homeschool my two youngest children (boy/girl twins) from 8th grade though high school. It was a super refresher for me. We used Harold Jacobs’ algebra and geometry texts. I’d be interested to read your review of them. We actually enjoyed math! In my experience science subjects, such as chemistry and physics as taught in high school are way too theoretical without enough emphasis on the day to day applicability of the content. The same can be said of math and other subjects.
My review: Never seen them.
Jacobs' geometry was the standard ten axioms and express proofs on two column system. Modern editions contain the same author name and title but significantly less content. Never saw the algebra book.
There is a serious need for a basic series from algebra through pre calc for high school that matches the 1962-1965 Dolciani Structure and Method books. Modern versions of Dolciani do not compare. Find the 1962 or 1965 and see the difference.
While I am very pleased with many AoPS books, the two algebra books lack a lot in brevity and clarity. The order of concepts presented is infuriating. The intermediate book is too dreary and has too much overlap with the pre calc. They are excellent for problems, but not for basic scaffolder instruction for above average students with average teachers that could propel students to mastery.
I am not generally a fan of two column proofs except as a vlbrief instruction, but in a program where there is then time to point out, "This is just a diagram. We do write out sentences in mathematics."
They are now homeschooling their children.
You are so spot on about the math, especially Algebra and Geometry and Science. Without practical application they made absolutely no sense to me in HS. I was a very good student except for these subjects. Practically failed Physical Science which today I understand. Algebra was like Greek, still is. But finally got Geometry when learning angles and planes in beauty school to cut hair. I remember 2 teachers in particular, they just didn't know how to teach it in any other way that made sense. 👍
Bravo for you! I'm not a parent nor a homeschooler, but agree w your take on education (I'm old enough to remember when John Taylor Gatto was first popular). BTW, I keep getting the wacky idea that you & Eric Weinstein should do something together - he says much the same as you about math education, and as a neurodivergent who turned out to be a math genius, I appreciate what he says abt how people like me, who wanted to be a scientist but had lousy high school math teachers who taught me to avoid math & assume I am just a dummy, are much too common & don't have to be. (If you already know him, you're on it) I wish I could locate a home parent collective in my area - I'd be happy to substitute and assist in any way I could, rather than subbing in a conventional Montessori school, where still the emphasis is on obedience.
Just search for homeschool and your state or possibly city. There are various networks. Unfortunately FB is one of the most popular networking platforms for homeschoolers. You can also tap into the homeschooler network by asking around in any local organization against masking, lockdowns, or pretty much any of our people calling BS on the pandemic. We tend to not trust schools. I am sure you would be appreciated.
I also worked in Montessori for a time and was actually surprised by the authority structure, but even more surprised by the way creativity was stifled.
Thank you! I will try to help this be available in the homeschooling communities that I am a part of.
Decentralize everything. School, government. currency, medicine, and science.
https://joshketry.substack.com/p/lets-build-a-4th-branch-of-government
I would be wildly interested in this. I've got some time before my kids will need it, but that gives me time to reeducate myself. Finding a high-quality curriculum has been a daunting task, to say the least.
What is Z library please? And PDF drive?
Forgive my naivety.
Is z library back? I thought it had been taken down.
You just showed me something very useful that I did not know. Thank you!
I've been saying this for years!
Taxation is social engineering theft and is used to dumb down via "education" more at indoctrination centers.
Create local school co-ops -- the quality of learning will be far superior.
It's like Little House on the Prairie where communities take back control of their education, or local crowdsourcing.
Ok anyone who uses a Little House on the Prairie reference is my kinda person!
Did you ever read Farmer Boy or the Long Winter? Those were great stories of apprenticeship and true grit.
No but I’ll check them out. Thanks!
Direct taxation isn't needed, they could use excise taxes, or just print the money. Taxation is a humiliation and submission ritual.
Yes, but look all the good things that the thousands of taxes that exist today gives us: militarization of the police, bombing the entire world, price controls on everything, extreme licensing coercion, general demoralization of the populus, perennial crisis, sexual slavery and the political corruption associated with it, dioxins and PCBs, the fentanyl crisis, eugenics, sexual perverts doing bizarre dance moves to entertain toddlers while the petite bourgeois parents nod approvingly and say "so brave! so much justice!"
Without taxation of everything, even of taxes, corporatism would be impossible, because big corps depend on corporate welfare and protection from competition. This truth is denied by most leftists/liberals/porgressives/conservatives/religionists/rightists.
So, yes, our world would probably be better without that sdomasochistic ritual.
I am of the persuasion that this moral disaster can be changed with education, in the mid and long term.
*petite bourgeoisie means their self-love has been crushed and ground to a fine dust, and now are heavily traumatized people who live pretending they are not suffering.
My point is not that centralized taxation and spending is a good model of governance governance needs to be relocalized to a great degree. I'm agnostic about towns having little taxation pools for community projects. When you look people in the eye everyday, there is less chance of scamming them, and it's up to a community to decide if there are collective action problems to solve.
In a humoristic way, I can sum it up thusly:
Bring back tar and feathers!
It is good to be reminded periodically of the benefits of taxation.
I'm going to make a comment that will sound defeatist, but it offers a solution.
Co-ops would be forced to include political propaganda. The authorities will allow the tax slaves to educate their prole only if they repeat the same structure of abuse that is present in public schools. No one can escape the politicization of everything.
Perhaps security would be the only advantage: no school buses, no cars, no drugs, better food, no witchcraft books like Carrie, and kids learn to only shoot at targets in the range and nowhere else... all the normal stuff.
Possible solutions are to ignore the bullshit orders to serve propaganda, risking an assault; Or developing an underground unschooling system, where the political rules are only obeyed on the surface. This comes with the risk of having all the kids growing up semi-paranoid revolutionaries. Although a couple or more of generations of little Jeffersons would be a very good outcome.
The real solution is national divorce, because that would liberate future generations of the burden of American eco-fascism, which is composed of many parts and one of them is the idea that schooling is necessary, and only the State is legitimized to educate. That idea is central to millions of "leftists" in the West, and yet they think they are not-fascists.
I think James Lindsey is right that school choice is a Trojan horse. First it will be the health clinics at schools because hey you took the $ and then they'll come after the home schoolers. I don't think national divorce is a solution and it would not be peaceful.
National divorce today, national divorce tomorrow, National divorce always!
Beware Geeks bearing grifts.
School choice is not a solution, is only one big step to a slightly better situation.
In the end, parents must stop allowing their enemies to educate their children.
At least that has to be learned from the current situation.
Turns out your great grand parents were right all along! Sugar, TV and public schools are bad for you!
Plus national divorce is the idea of an acolyte of president warp speed. What could possibly go wrong?
Btw the "James Lindsay school choice Trojan horse" lookup is extraordinarily productive... Found a ten minute video week well worth the time... Thank you!
Michael Malice (1976,) infamous USSR-born American Anarchist, invented the "national divorce" idea in 2015.
All the great ideas come from anarchists.
Yeah they would tax it to death and mandate stuff that parents don't want!
My point is that parents need to know that bad things will happen wether they oppose their masters or they choose to be eternal door mats. It is better to go against the grain in education.
If they play smart they will find ways to prevent the bad things or to reduce the harm. We are in a demented world where the lazy suffer the most.
Oh I agree. When I asked the kindergarten teacher for my dev delayed son how I could help him over the summer and she recommended medication we started homeschooling.
👍
1000 likes. We homeschool 6 for $1800.00/year total (for core curriculum not counting music/sports/field trips etc.) we have a student/teacher ratio of 1-1/2 to 6 (lol) and see good results with our one-on-one tutoring methods. I know a lot of public student $$$ goes into infrastructure, but still, quality education could be had for much less if parents were paid to do it.
However, I’m so leery of govt $$ because strings are always attached. We almost joined an online charter school which had available tax money and would have covered a lot of our costs, but I didn’t have a good feeling about it. Sure enough a few years later the govt started mandating all kind of things for the students to continue getting the govt money. Glad we never joined.
First of all, good job giving your children a good education and not delegating it to some monopolized bureaucracy.
Second, try reframing your perspective on "government money". It is actually your money, and the money of your neighbors, taken under the guise of "the greater good" by force.
All revolutions, in this case the revolution to improve the education and development of the next generations, has to start with a few brave souls willing to step out of line. Government run "public" schools are paid by their daily attendance. If more families would pull their children from these indoctrination centers for a few weeks (or more), the system would falter and the message might actually be heard.
On my property taxes only about 700.00 goes towards the public schools. I wouldn’t mind that back. I’m just know that any involvement with the government (including education tax exemptions) will lead to it demanding oversight and proof the education is happening. Not that I blame the gov per se. I can see taxpayers not wanting education money going to deadbeat parents who have zero interest in providing an education, but claim homeschooling to get some “free” money. Anything the gov is involved in it has a duty to regulate and prevent fraud. They just seem to do a horrible job outside the local level.
I homeschooled in Florida for 16 years. we were required by the state to show progress each year, which is more than is demanded of government schools. A yearly assessment is a fair exchange for freedom to educate our children as we see fit. I only know of one family that was really slacking, and the state gives them one year to get the kids up to grade level, or they are required to reenroll in school. Each state has different requirements, but most have similar laws.
Keep in mind that none of that money is the government's. It is all money taken from tax payers like you and me. While is it relatively easy to determine what portion of your property tax bill goes to Ed., it is nearly impossible to decipher how much of your State and Federal income tax bill, percentage of your sales tax bill, percentage of your excise fee bills, (etc., ad nauseum) go to the dysfunctional public school systems. Billions of federal dollars are handed out each year to make school districts compliant with their agendas.
The discussion shouldn't be about getting something 'from' the gov't, but rather either the soft approach of getting 'our' money back, or better yet, stopping the stupidity of a federal Dept of (re)Education by simply not having it or not funding it. While the local level "education" agencies aren't much better, they are somewhat more controllable, assuming we get off our collective backsides and show up to the meetings.
Local is definitely the solution and homeschooling parents can’t forget they still have a say, because they pay taxes. Best case scenario is gov out of schooling altogether and local community solutions for kids that need an education their parent/s can’t provide.
It is all of our money and does not belong to parents in any preference. Especially now that there are now obergefell couples dressed up in parentface. Let the rebates come through the attrition of public schools via Exodus to homeschooling.
All true, but there are many battles to be fought in this war, before we start divvying up the spoils. The first steps are non compliance and rejection of the bureaucratic norms.
Heck, as a grandparent who homeschooled grandkids, I have to say, those were some of the best years of my life! Field trips, beach when others were tied up in school, museums, reading aloud all sorts of classic age appropriate literature….what a great time! Time with my grandkids, yes!
Sounds like a great experience.
Hello from a fellow "emerita"!
Remember how the museums opened wide up for thorough caption reading at 1p when the school field trips left? School kids cannot have gotten much out of the conveyor belts they rode through the museum.
Yes, and imagine what parents could do, freed from the politics and propaganda, using those resources to genuinely inform, educate and uplift their children. We need to take all this back.
I homeschooled for 7 years. Here is a breakdown 40% were former lawyers, doctors and career professionals, 40% were former teachers. I think the former teachers ratio says a lot. It means they saw behind the curtain and knew the importance of not turning over their education to the system. Random note: a majority of them had IT husbands.
They were all FASCINATING people with many interests and were strong and ethically minded.
It was very rare that I met someone that society would caricaturize : a dumb backwards mom that doesn't let their kids look out the windows. Honestly I may have met one or two. And that was it. All the kids were very socialized. They were able to talk to adults because we lived life in the real world, going to the store together, the post office. the church and they talked to kids outside of their age group. People always remarked how unusual it was for kids to talk with adults without animosity or timidness. Homeschoolers are part of co-ops, fields trips, church groups and more. They actually get more real socialization than public school kids.
During this journey of the last 3 years, I question many ways the culture has painted people. Anti-vaxxers were dumb blond vegetarians former actress types. I now see, that was intentional so that you wouldn't actually listen to their argument.
Now, I public school now for various reasons . In the beginning, my kids come home and at least were very aware of the indoctrination they were putting out there, and we would laugh about it, the obviousness of it all.
If you want your kids to be brave, independent and critical thinkers.
Homeschool. It's worth every inconvenience or missed luxury item.
Amen, amen, and amen. I wish I could go back and do it again. It was the best education I ever received. The kids learned a lot, too. ;)
I’M IN!
I was lucky to be able to home school all 4 of our kids.
It paid huge dividends forward into their futures.
Mathew, I wish I had known about you 20 years ago!😁
I don't have kids and am not having kids. I recently have some weird gratitude for people having kids. Must be because I am close to 50! And I would love to be part of a community of people raising kids with intention! And it used to be some crazy number of people raised a child, like 5. We had multigenerational homes, and small k it communities where people communally spent time. Now, we have isolation. That's the true pandemic. I was talking with a patient who did this "I was raised in poverty (he now lives in a upper middle class life). I can recall when we didn't have power or it was cold out, my mom turned on the over and all 13 of us slept in the kitchen. We played games (not electronic!). It was the best.". As I listened, I pined for that sort of closeness that this current living lacks.
Yes. Our little parent run private school in Ontario has been challenged with the social crisis and taken over by the radical left covid heavies that used public health authorities to push the agenda . It’s been around for 30 years . Passing the school to another generation of parents while maintaining the ethos . Eventually , with the crisis the elder families and teachers of the school got pushed out by this new group that has little respect for the ethos or history of the school and instead want it to be what they thought and envisioned it to be . And kind of corporate with lack of transparency and inclusion despite outwardly left washing their actions . I see I am being triggered here .
The point is our family
Can not afford to pay a gentrified vision nor be complicit in such a lack of integrity . So we now are looking to put our energy to the alternatives .
This in part Mathew is how this idea I referred to came up around how to organize labor exchange through a platform.
I think educating our own children is much like the issues of using technology to distract children for busy parents . When we spend the time necessary from the get go , raising children gets easier , not harder . When we put it off and use things to distract them then the entire family falls behind and becomes difficult to catch up. So, if we spend the time to educate out children and commit to it , it gets easier and we have agency in directing the world
Not sending our children back to this school will save us $18,000. And each day is a 2 hour time loss. As it’s 1/2 hour drive . The 6 hours of in school time can be better managed around the farm day . When working with other parents and sharing in activities lessons and child care I think our children can have a robust educational life while being connected and involved in community
That we can be spending this much per child, not getting one-on-one tutoring, and are only getting the dismal results we are getting, screams of insanity. Yet we'll continue on...
It’s never a good idea to take money from the government, homeschoolers have avoided this idea for years because it allows the government to have a say in what you do then.
Trojan horse. If we let the government give us money, then we let the government tell us what to do. Homeschooling is an excellent idea. Unfortunately, nothing the government touches stays excellent. And yes, once parents start getting money the government will start to direct how and what they teach.
Since homeschooling frees a family from dependence on "good schools" they can move to locations with low property taxes. I am all for eliminating property taxes altogether, but I don't see that happening. School expenses, and schools themselves, are a metastasized cancer that is killing our country.
The Trojan horse was delivered in the 1800s. The goal is to show one step away as a Pareto improvement, which is separate from the further question of cutting off amd reorganizing the financial connections. I'm all for relocalizing governance outside of the Constitutionally federal authorities.
Low property taxes suggests locations Blackrock, Vanguard, Warren Buffett, and the rest of the QE crowd have bought up. Read Henry George's "Progress and Poverty". The Homestead Act was a partial attempt at limiting the amount of land a single family could own. If a few oligarchical companies can own unlimited land, eliminating property taxes altogether will merely metastasize the process, as it would necessarily eliminate holding costs. Quit exempting NGOs, governments, military, schools, churches, etc. from property taxes. Perhaps allowing people to work off their property taxes with untaxed work on road crews or the like would alleviate the financial burden of property tax on family homesteads.
As a SAHM of preschoolers who makes $0 I approve
A lovely thought, but just that. There isn’t a legislative body anywhere in the US that would vote to permit such a thing. Not that they should have any say in the matter, but they do.
Currently, there is a movement where the money follows the student. Bills have been passed in numerous states, with more heading toward votes. It's something, at least.
It’s certainly something I hope becomes law in as many states as possible. My cynicism comes from living in NJ as long as I have, nothing seems to change. Throwing good money after bad is the state motto.
Things are just going to have to change. Especially as more parents opt to home school. Many legislators will be looking for other jobs as well.
“Santa Clara County Office of Education spends $121,722 per student each year. It has an annual revenue of $285,668,000. Overall, the district spends an unspecified amount on instruction, an unspecified amount on support services and an unspecified amount on other expenses.”
https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/california/districts/santa-clara-county-office-of-education-108319
Hi Elizabeth, I found this on google-
How much does California spend on education per student?
The total overall funding (federal, state, and local) for all TK–12 education programs is $128.6 billion, with a per-pupil spending rate of $22,893 in 2022–23.
Sep 29, 2022
Yep. Santa Clara County is the heart of Silicon Valley, so not surprised the numbers are much higher than average here. Still; it’s pretty staggering. (I live in Santa Clara county.)
Are you familiar with Peter Gray?
He’s a real educator and education expert in my opinion.
I think you will find this interesting, maybe even useful.
https://youtu.be/AQLkKKERWsI
Much love, as always
I have some of his books on my recommendation list.
https://www.campfire.wiki/doku.php?id=rounding_the_earth:book_recommendations#education
I'd like to get him on RTE sometime.
That would be great. Too bad John Taylor Gatto passed away. He would’ve been also someone to talk with about education, and how to achieve the exact opposite of this Prussian education system our beloved globalists bestowed on us in their endless “love and generosity.”
It’s another perfect example of reality/outcome being the inverse of ‘their’ stated goals/intentions.
Honestly, this is yet another issue our ‘NoVirus’ brothers and sisters, have recognized way before us, and have already made some significant changes and advancements.
They are focusing a little more on an ‘ancestral’ model (keeping the kids near the tribe, and emphasizing on everyday skills and community involvement) for lack of better terms...
Whereas Gray’s focus, I believe, is the child’s imagination and creativity.... I am fairly sure he’s a Waldorf proponent, maybe Montessori as well.
My mom is a Montessori teacher. There’s no doubt that kids who go to a school in which the Montessori system is *fully implemented,* are so much more well-adjusted and capable than PS.
I personally think we should form kibbutz like communities, which are fully self-sustaining, and kids should learn and participate in building themselves a home. I think communities should be based on 1 AirCrete Dome/per person. And if they build their own as a ‘high school project’ we can at least guarantee they will never be homeless, no matter what happens...
Sorry this was a rant. I really hope to see this conversation b/w yourself and Gray