Adventures in Home Learning: Episode 21 - IHIPs and Internet Access

 

Internet Access for Home Schooling and Home Learning

As we approach home schooling and learning at home, my family is very fortunate to have high speed cable internet on our hill. (That happened just a few weeks ago.) Of course, last week I was thinking, what happens if it gets knocked out by a storm? Next day, it happened. I’m happy to report that our local cable company was here the day after and fixed it by 10 am in the morning, even though there was widespread problems in the area.

But what about people who need Internet and don’t have that option at home? We’ve been talking about that at our library and what we can do to help. A couple of our staff had written a grant to get more wifi hotspots to give/lend out but the grant didn’t come through. The hotspots themselves aren’t too expensive, but there is a monthly service contract through Verizon that may be cost prohibitive for some. Still, it’s something to consider.

Several years ago our library received a grant to set up wifi at the town halls in our service area. We know the town halls have kept the wifi working in at least a couple locations, and probably all. People can pull into the parking lot to use it. You might check with the town hall, and/or library, where you live to see if that’s an option to use.

Our library provides free wifi 24 hours a day from our parking lot too, so check with your local library. Because of the high speed wifi, we are also going to be a spot lots of students will be using for an alternate location for schooling.

The Kids on Track Steuben program is coordinating an effort (“Virtual School Attendance in Community Based Settings”) to help address the urgent needs to (1) support student attendance at virtual classes on days when they are off-site from their schools, and to (2) support parents with child supervision during the school day. They will be working with us and also churches, halls and other facilities that can help meet to meet this need.

Margie Lawlor is the Director of Resilient Children & Families Community Based Services and Kids On Track Steuben in Steuben County, New York and can be reached at Lawlorm@proactioninc.org, Phone 607-776-2125 x312.

So, we may have to get creative, but there are ways to get Internet access if we search. Many fast food restaurants like Dunkin Donuts and McDonalds provide some limited service to customers if you only need occasional service.

 

The IHIP (Individualized Home Instruction Plan)

If you’re going for home schooling, it’s definitely time to write that Individualized Home Instruction Plan. If you need some help, here is are a few resources on doing that.

1.     How To Create a Great IHIP In NY— https://www.nyhomeschoolhelp.com/ramblings/how-to-create-a-great-ihip-in-ny

2.     IHIP Worksheet from Broome Tioga Boces https://www.btboces.org/Downloads/Grades%20k-6.pdf

3.     Grace Collaborative Guide to IHIP  https://graceroc.com/easy-guide-to-nys-homeschool-paperwork/

4.     Regulatory and Informational Manual for Home Education in New York State:  Helpful Suggestions and Sample Forms — Individual Home Instruction Plan “IHIP” K, 1-12 - https://www.leah.org/resources/regulatory-manual/

5.     Home School Academy LEAH: New York State Required Paperwork – Samples for different grade levels - https://www.homeschool-life.com/2421/custom/74302

6.     New York State Education Department: Home Instruction Questions and Answers — Individualized Home Instruction Plan (IHIP) - http://www.nysed.gov/nonpublic-schools/home-instruction-questions-and-answers#Individualized

Image: Internet by Nick Youngson CC BY-SA 3.0 Alpha Stock Images Creative Commons License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/legalcode

Book Review: Motherducking Magic by Michelle Fox

 

Motherducking Magic

by Michelle Fox

I first heard about this series recently in a paranormal reading page on Facebook. Someone raised the question of what tropes in the genre had begun to bother us? I said, the fact that everyone has to be a big badass – a fantastic fighter or awesome magic user. They all have these exceptional skills, they just aren’t recognized.

A couple people chimed in with series that they claimed did not follow this trope and they loved them anyway. I immediately went and bought the first book in each series.

Motherducking Magic (Bad Magic Bounty Hunter Series) was the first book I chose to read. I finished it and promptly bought the next book. I’m halfway through the second.

They are very, very funny.

Now, to be clear, the main witch, Sylvie Orion, is a very, very good bounty hunter. The problem is she’s a very, very bad witch. There’s no juice to her juju. And when you’re a witch without magic, you are an outsider looking in on society. It’s like people think it will catch, like you might drain their magic away. No one wanted to be her friend in school, she didn’t get invited to anything or asked out, ever.

The first case we’re introduced to Sylvie on is trying to bring in one of her former classmates, one of the “mean girls” from high school – Lydia Pettie. She’s one of those people who doesn’t believe the rules apply to her. She’s above them. Well, when we first meet her, she’s sitting on a ten-foot high metal shelving unit in a warehouse. She’s actually filming the situation for social media.

“Hey everyone, remember Sylvie Orion? She sucks just as much as ever. Let’s teach her not to cross her betters.” She pulled a wand out of her cleavage, and sill holding the phone in one hand, she began an incantation.

Sylvia soon finds herself embroiled in an even bigger pile of doggie doo-doo. One of her bounties skipped out on his appointed court time and she has to get him back, or she loses major bucks.

Seems like anything that can go wrong, does go wrong, with Sylvie, but we love her anyway. She has a good sense of humor, and she keeps on trucking.

I enjoyed how the story incorporated magical explanations into everyday items and uses of phrases. (There’s a reason why she says “Motherducking” and those little blue pills we hear about aren’t just pharmaceuticals.)

It reminds me a bit of a cross between Kim Harrison’s Hollows series with its magical urban setting full of witches, vampires, and shifters, and the movie Ella Enchanted, with the mean girls and the sense of humor. A perfect combination to me.

There’s lots of fun sexual tension but no seriously graphic sex scenes.

The bounty who skipped, a shifter named Sheridan, turns out to play a much bigger role in the stories than I would have guessed. I can’t help but wonder if that isn’t because the author didn’t know when she started writing either? She says in some comments at the end of the book that she likes her stories to grow organically. Maybe we can be surprised because she was surprised and didn’t inadvertently telegraph the intent.

Whatever the reason, I’m finding the series surprising, fun, and funny. I hope she’ll be writing more.

Home Learning: Episode 20

 

This past week brought a lot of uncertainty and concern about what the coming school year would look like to a head.

 I started seeing family and friends posting about what their school districts were going to offer for schooling and the decisions to be made. I hadn’t heard anything from our school district so I went to their web site to look for information. Nothing under “News.” I finally found it under “Covid-19 Information.”

 Apparently, our local school district had made their decision about what they would be offering in terms of instruction about a week before. They posted it on their web site but didn’t send a robo-call or anything to let people know. (It also had a copy of a letter going out by mail, but I still haven’t received it.)

 The plan gave three options – all the students return, just with masks on and more cleaning, students are split into two groups with half week virtual and half week in person instructions, or full virtual school. These appeared to be options for the school, not the parents.

 I called the district secretary the next day and asked about virtual learning.

 Frankly I was worried but prepared to choose to homeschool. I had done the research to find out about lesson plans available online and modules of learning we could subscribe to.

 She said there was a board meeting that night and she would get back to me within a week.

 On Monday I got the call that we could enroll our daughter in virtual learning through the school district. I am very glad. I know it means more work for the teachers, but I really believe it will be safer for them, and the other students who go to school in person, if those of us who can, keep our children home and join them virtually.

 For parents who feel it is time to move to homeschooling, my library will be offering an information session with parents who have already taken this route.

 Homeschool 101 – Exploring The Options

08/24/2020 @ 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm

Join Danielle Peters and Saunseray Benjamin, local homeschool leaders, to learn more about private homeschooling in NY. Learn tips on navigating the regulations, finding your styles & choosing curriculum, scheduling your day, tapping into homeschool organizations & resources. Discuss your questions and concerns in this informal session with time for Q & A. This presentation will be geared towards teaching children ages 4 – 13. This will be a live presentation through the Zoom platform. Please RSVP using the form below to receive the Zoom sign-in link. https://www.ssclibrary.org/activities/homeschool-101/

 I will continue to share my experiences with home learning through this blog as we take this journey, and also offer any links to resources that I come across. I hope they will be of use.

 I confess I hadn’t even thought about looking to podcasts for information about home schooling. They just aren’t my go to. Then a fellow librarian shared this one – The Unrefined Curriculum Guide.

 https://www.homeschoolunrefined.com/ltw

 That inspired me to look around and, lo and behold, I found this curated list of podcasts from The Home School Mom!

https://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/best-parenting-homeschooling-podcasts/

That should keep you busy for a bit. J

 

Book Review: Mycroft Holmes by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse

 

Mycroft Holmes

by Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Anna Waterhouse

I have been thoroughly enjoying this series, though I started with the second book (Mycroft and Sherlock) because that was what was available at the time in our library’s ebook catalog. Then I went back to this book as the first. I’m looking forward to the third, but already sad that there are only three.

This first book features the character of Mycroft Holmes, slightly older brother to Sherlock Holmes. He has Sherlock’s profound abilities of observation and deduction but also a shrewd ability at politics and working with people. I confess I prefer Mycroft to Sherlock.

Mycroft’s friend, Cyrus Douglas, is also an incredibly sympathetic character. His age and gravitas make a perfect foil to Mycroft’s youthful impetuosity.

I like Huan as well, but the character is not as fully realized as the others. (I can’t help picturing the actor Dwayne Johnson when the authors mention his ready smile and yet his ability to sternly mother hen Mycroft into letting an acupuncturist see to his toes.)

As the story opens, we find Mycroft on a youthful jaunt to “influence” a rowing competition he has bet on. It’s not just about betting though, he is working hard to earn, and win, the money he needs to set up a home for his fiancé, Georgiana – a paragon of virtue, according to Mycroft.

Things deteriorate from there, and rather quickly. Though slavery has been abolished in England, this is still the late 1800’s and a black man such as Cyrus, traveling as an equal with a white man like Mycroft, is not acceptable to a portion of the public, especially drunken louts whose rowing team just lost.

Cyrus Douglas quick intelligence is called into action then Mycroft’s powers of observation and deduction as the two men escape the small mob. However, this is just a forerunner of the difficulty the two will find themselves in soon. A letter brings Cyrus bad news of events where he grew up. Surprisingly, it is where Georgiana grew up as well, and the news causes her to bolt for home.

Mycroft is determined to follow and Cyrus to go with him. Once aboard ship, though, there is no sign of Georgiana. Instead the duo are plagued by attacks. Will they survive the journey and what mystery awaits them in Trinidad?

The books are a fascinating combination of cerebral mystery, action, and history while holding a breadth of situation and emotion that plumbs the depths of what man does to his fellow man. I heartily recommend them.

Home Learning: Episode 19 - Advice from a Veteran Home Schooling Mom

One of our library staff, Maryalice, along with her husband, home schooled both of their daughters from kindergarten through high school so I asked her for some advice for parents considering home schooling this year. Apparently this is not the first time she has been asked, because she came back with a plethora of information! Here is what she had to say —

Regarding parental confidence (the biggest factor in a successful experience):

·        Be aware that this adjustment to new routines may take a week or two (or three).

·        Learning happens all the time, not just from educational materials. [However] Beware of using every moment as a “teachable moment.”  Kids get tired of this, and they see right through us.  Better to get in the habit of just talking and listening. 

·        You do not need to replicate the classroom setting at home.  This is your unique family; you have the flexibility to try new things and decide what works.

·        Involve your family in the planning and activity of your home and school. Everyone will benefit from investing themselves in the process (and you will be less likely to burn out). Help your child to discover his or her passions and then find ways to explore them. 

·        Perfection of technique and style is not required.  Loving attention means more than technical perfection.   

·        Patient and compassionate acknowledgement of each person’s feelings as valid is sometimes all that is needed to get through difficult times.  Try this line when someone is struggling, “I have confidence in your ability to figure this out.”  And then give them the space to do it.

·        Trust yourself.  You know your family better than anyone else. Have confidence in your own ability to figure this out.  You can do it.  It may, however, require some changes in the ways that you have been interacting.  You’re all in this together now in a very tangible, daily way. 

·        Perfection is not required.  You don’t have to know everything.  Learn to figure things out together and to draw on your community resources to go further (library, family, friends, online classes, community members, etc.).  Or let them figure it out and then teach you.  (Teaching is a great way to become aware of what you know and what you thought you knew but didn’t.)

·        Think about your goals for your child: academic, social, physical, intellectual, artistic, spiritual, etc.  When all is said and done, what do you want them to come away with?   Plan your curriculum activities with these goals in mind. 

·        Engage the student in as much of the process as possible – the planning, the choice of curriculum, the daily routine, the reporting.  They will learn much more than academics in this process.  They will learn about research and criteria for decision making.  They will learn to ask questions and how to find the answers.  They will learn how to handle things that don’t turn out quite the way that was planned.  We learn the most when we are a stakeholder in the process and the outcome.  

·        Include an evaluation for the student to complete. How did this year go?  What worked? What didn’t?  What to keep and what to change?  Ultimately, you make the decisions, but their input can help.  And save you time and money; curriculum materials that appeal to you may not appeal to them.

·        Know that there will be days that go very, very smoothly.  And there will be days when things just go haywire.  Life happens.  Let them see how you handle adverse conditions; give them the tools to handle adversity. Tomorrow will be better. 

Regarding socialization:

·        Each child is unique.  Each year is unique. 

·        This is a dance.   Learn to dance together.  

·        Treat each other with respect.  Yes, the parent is the responsible authority, but the child/student is the person who is the biggest part of the process.  Mutual respect goes a long way. 

·        If you are able, as a family, to get along with each other on a daily basis as well as actually enjoying each other’s company, then your children will be able – most likely - to get along with others.  Yes, children need to spend time around other children.  But, most of the people that we deal with on a daily basis are adults. 

The process for the school district:

Though the details of some of the requirements may have changed, the basic ones are probably the same. There is usually one person within the district office who handles home schooling documentation.  Call to find out and get the process started.

·        File a letter of intent to home school.

·        The school sends back information about requirements.

·        Create and submit an IHIP (Individualized Home Instruction Plan), including projected dates of submission of quarterly reports.  

·        There is a requirement for an annual assessment to be filed with the fourth quarterly report. 

My understanding is that the role of the school district is to assess compliance with state requirements and to compile your documentation.  It is not their role to evaluate your choices. 

Two of my favorite books to recommend -   

Homeschooling for Excellence by David Colfax (1988). 

THE COLFAXES DIDN'T START TEACHING THEIR BOYS AT HOME TO GET THEM INTO HARVARD - BUT THAT'S WHAT HOMESCHOOLING ACCOMPLISHED!

For over fifteen years, David and Micki Colfax educated their children at home. They don't think of themselves as pioneers, though that's what they became.

Better Than School: One Family’s Declaration of Independence by Nancy Wallace (1983)

The author explains why her children are taught at home and not sent to school, discusses the educational requirements they had to meet, and indicates the advantages and disadvantages of home teaching

Some curriculum programs:

·        Homeschool Curriculum Reviews: https://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/homeschool-curriculum-reviews/

·        Many curriculum materials have a strong Christian orientation.

·        If you are more of a hands-on, ecologically oriented family, consider Oak Meadow: https://www.oakmeadow.com/  “Experiential education for curious and creative learners”

·        Historical fiction is a great way to engage with history and can spark further exploration.

·        One can choose to follow a curriculum package, word for word, or to be eclectic and include materials from multiple curriculum providers. 

·        In the elementary years, we used the cultural literacy series by E.D. Hirsch, What Your X Grader Needs to Know for core knowledge plus a set of workbooks for math and for English.  For high school we used Oak Meadow.  Many home schoolers take classes at a community college during their senior year. 

Resources:

Free home school resources:

·        Check with your local library about informal home school support groups.  We started a group with two other families that grew to over 20.  It’s reassuring and supportive for parents and children to connect with others who home school. 

·        If I were homeschooling today, I think I’d be taking advantage of [public library databases such as] Mango, Learning Express, and Lynda.com.  If I had older kids, Gale Opposing Viewpoints in Context would be really useful, too.

·        https://www.thoughtco.com/free-homeschool-resources-4151635

·        https://www.learningliftoff.com/20-best-homeschooling-websites-and-learning-resources/

·        Preschool through 12^th grade curriculum overview (what to cover when)

·        https://www.time4learning.com/education/curriculum_overview.shtml

Support Organizations

·        Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA): https://hslda.org/

o   Details specific to NY State: https://hslda.org/legal/new-york

 

·        LEAH (Loving Education at Home) is a Christian organization with a network of homeschooling families to support and encourage you during every step of your homeschooling journey.

o   https://www.leah.org/

o   NYS LEAH  (local chapter) PO Box 634, Elmira, NY 14902     (1-866-960-9440)

Book Review: A Merric's Tale by Margs Murray

A Merric’s Tale

by Margs Murray

I picked up this book because the author grew up in the area I now live in. I was quite amused to find that she had used place names from this area for both characters and places in the book. It’s a silly little thing but it made me smile, and they were well chosen, not forced into the story. You won’t notice if you don’t already know the names.

I did not have a sense of what it was about other than some sort of fantasy and I thought it was a YA book. I was right, and yet I was elated with the combination of elements that she brought to play in the story.

It is a really fascinating YA read. There’s an Alice in Wonderland surreal feeling but at the same time the main character, Waverly, is dealing with the very real and gritty, heartbreak of dementia. Her grandmother claims to be the “Princess and Royal Heiress to the Kingdom of America.” The diagnosis is Alzheimer’s, but Waverly thinks there is something more going on.

Great-uncle Bollard arrives and offers Waverly a position with his company. Waverly hopes that he might be able to offer some insight into her grandmother’s condition, or some special doctors. Just the same, she decides not to go. Her parents forbid it. And yet, in the course of a few minutes, everything changes and she is gone.

The ensuing setting calls to mind Alice in Wonderland for me. It is incredibly surreal. Darker elements take hold and we begin to get the sense that perhaps Great-uncle Bollard isn’t as altruistic as he would have Waverly believe. What does he really want from her?

Great-uncle Bollard’s mansion is full of the pageantry and excesses of the royalty in the 1600s. A sense of horror grows as Waverly finds out the truth and sets out to escape her Great-uncle’s clutches. The second half of the book is highly reminiscent of thrillers about evading Germans in France during World War II. However, Waverly is not alone and a romance begins, aided by circumstances and proximity. But is it one-sided?

There were some formatting issues, an extra line between paragraphs in some parts of the book, and a single tab indent on some paragraphs while others had a double tab. It was slightly distracting but not enough to pull from my enjoyment of the book. If you can ignore that, it's a captivating read. In fact, as the book went on, I felt myself trying to read faster and faster, willing to stay up late to get to the end.

Unfortunately, knowing some people who get very angry at cliffhangers, I do have to warn that there is one here. Something good happens, then something bad happens, and quite suddenly it’s the end of the book! I admit that I was slightly annoyed.

Here's hoping the second book is in production. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, and can't wait for the next.

Home Learning: Episode 18

Home Learning: Episode 18

Hi Folks –

I apologize for the lack of post last week – the munchkin and I were down with the stomach flu. We are on the road to recovery now. (FYI, good probiotics are essential after situations like that, and can sometimes head it off, if it’s just a regular stomach bug.)

So, I’ve been thinking a lot about whether to send my daughter to public school this year if they don’t provide an online option in my district. I’ve started exploring the options.

There’s homeschooling and then there’s online school, at home. I was assuming that the latter would require a little less oversight from my husband and me. However, as I did some searching I found that t They also seem to assume that “Mom” has lots of time to be “coach” and take the child out to the park and to museums. Plus, there’s the financial aspect, it’s not cheap, whether you’re paying for a course, or for a year worth of tuition.

I’m getting to the point where I have to consider home schooling without knowing what my school district has planned for this school year yet. If I’m going to do that, I need to prepare. My homeschooling friends have talked about ordering their workbooks months ago because they were worried about companies running out of supplies.

My husband and I both work full-time, mostly at home these days, but I am out at work, conducting programs online, or working at home a large part of the day. I would need time to teach the concepts, have her practice, and test her on it. (Not to mention the fact that she has never responded well to Mom teaching her things. She learns better for other people.)

If you’re considering homeschooling, here are some links to resources to help you consider the time expenditure and what you would need to do to prepare. It’s doable, as I’ve seen from so many friends, but you need to be prepared.

Regulations concerning homeschooling in NYS - http://www.p12.nysed.gov/part100/pages/10010.html#b

Guides to Homeschooling in more plain English

https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/new-york/laws-requirements.html

https://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/homeschooling-in-new-york/

https://www.movingbeyondthepage.com/how-to-homeschool-in-your-state/homeschooling-in-new-york/

Managing the Minions with Michelle – Facebook page on mothering, homeschooling, and writing with a mother of 10 who has been homeschooling for 26 years.