As I have said before, I do not devote much attention to whatever fresh new hell has captured the imaginations of public educators. The quality of public education in this country - which was never impressive to begin with - has collapsed so spectacularly that it is safe to say educators will obsess over absolutely … Continue reading Social-emotional learning: the latest public school gimmick
Tag: Education
Postcards from La-La Land
The truth is rarely pure and never simple. Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest A few weeks ago, I saw a post on Facebook from Jamie Erickson's page "The Unlikely Homeschooler." It starts off with how she tried to read J.D. Salinger's classic novel The Catcher in the Rye, but quit after a single … Continue reading Postcards from La-La Land
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s obsession with homeschooling
Were all instructors like him, the world would soon be wise.Julian Hawthorne, son of Nathaniel Hawthorne, in his biography of his parents I suppose it is a strange fascination, but I have long been interested in what sort of education the great minds in western civilization received growing up. One thing folks with genius intellects … Continue reading Nathaniel Hawthorne’s obsession with homeschooling
A review of Tara Westover’s Educated (by a homeschooler)
On Saturday mornings, we drive our daughter down to Naples for fencing lessons. Although Naples is not far away geographically, it takes roughly 45 minutes each way to get there with stop-and-go brunch and farmer's market traffic. Then her fencing lessons usually run about two hours long. This ritual requires that I tow along a … Continue reading A review of Tara Westover’s Educated (by a homeschooler)
The “Two Americas” of school disruptions
This is a map of the school districts in the United States where kids have been forced out of the classroom. I think it does an excellent job of demonstrating how the coronavirus panic at this point only exists for a small constellation of urban intellectual/political bubbles. Many of these places have adopted policies that … Continue reading The “Two Americas” of school disruptions
The start of a new homeschooling year
Our daughter, Elise, will be 10 years old at the end of January, but last week began what we are calling 6th grade. I say "we are calling" it 6th grade because, in reality, she's already doing high school- and college-level work in most subjects. But the first question adults ask your child when they … Continue reading The start of a new homeschooling year
A politics and law homeschool curriculum for middle school-aged kids
As promised... Here is a curriculum for introducing middle school-aged kids to topics in law and politics. (I'm planning to work through this material with our daughter next year.) It starts off with a general overview of political systems and how they have evolved from ancient times. It then gets into a discussion of how … Continue reading A politics and law homeschool curriculum for middle school-aged kids
An economics and finance homeschool curriculum for middle school-aged kids
Photo by Ibrahim Boran As I have mentioned here before, I have worked in economics and finance for decades. I started off managing portfolios for high net worth investors, worked as a government economist, then managed a multibillion-dollar portfolio of government debt as the head of a government agency. My husband and I now own … Continue reading An economics and finance homeschool curriculum for middle school-aged kids
Education and school choice links, 8/5
Here in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis issued an executive order banning school districts from forcing children to wear masks. His EO referenced the state's Parents' Bill of Rights, which would allow the government to strip funding from schools that did not comply. Several districts announced yesterday that they would not comply. In response, the Florida … Continue reading Education and school choice links, 8/5
The art of reading homeschooling curriculum reviews
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio Parents who are new to homeschooling face a conundrum almost from the beginning: There are myriad curriculum options out there - many of which represent a significant financial investment - and almost none of the publishers allow you more than a brief product sample online. If you have a limited budget … Continue reading The art of reading homeschooling curriculum reviews
Days of Sunshine 