Strollerderby : home schooling

Could This Five Year Old Be The Next Rachael Ray?

Brett Singer — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 20:00:00 GMT

First we had the nine year old who wrote a book. Now there's the five year old with his own cooking show.

Yes, it's on public access TV in Portland, Oregon. But it really is a cooking show. And he really cooks. Really.

According to The Oregonian, little Julian Kreusser makes up the recipes himself, and has been experimenting with food since he was just three years old. He even wrote the show's theme song on the piano. His dad, Ben Kreusser, works at the community TV station that airs the show; he runs the camera. Mom Kristen McKee directs. And two and a half year old sister Eva is in charge of lighting – "mostly turning them on and off."

If Julian were an automaton of Shirley Temple-like precision, it might be as nauseating as one of his lesser recipes ("Yummy Yummy Citrus Boys", the juice of clementines mixed with ginger bread). But Julian is pretty raw and unafraid to ask mom what something is. He even admits that Yummy Yummy Citrus Boys are "kind of yucky", although he liked them at first. So he gets points for honesty.

Here's a clip from the show, where Julian makes Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread:

There's another twist to the story – Julian is "unschooled", which The Oregonian says is describes as "a brand of home schooling that has the kids direct their learning. If Julian wants to learn how trees grow, he does. If he wants to learn which ingredients make the best cake, he does." Of course "learning how trees grow" wouldn't have the same quick payoff that cooking does, so I think Julian made the right choice.

And then there are the comments. Ah, the comments.

"Leo1234" is less than thrilled with the article, Julian, and his budding television career: " This kid is being pushed by his parents; I hope he survives his impending ego trips and posing for video cameras. Any kid with this kind of pushing can be a 'video chef.' GIVE US A BREAK!" A comment by " theromanump" must have been deleted but apparently he said something that caused "cjhutch" to write "I hope that you either do not have kids, or are at least more openminded than you appear… The kid can probably cook better than you can." "Leo1234" comes back with a response that starts out more measured ("A child often lacks the strength to hold heavier pots or dishes. A 'supervised' child - what does that mean in the TV studio's contract? Who sues who over injuries?") and then enters la-la land again ("Portland is getting stupid/er. You folks want a cute puppy under the Christmas tree, but don't want to think about ramifications.") He also seems not to be a fan of unschooling although it's not clear that he understands the term. (To be fair, I hadn't heard of it until I read this article.)

Apparently there are other unschoolers, at least in the Portland area; a couple of them chime in and defend Julian and his parents, who themselves weigh in on various matters. (Interestingly, the site where I originally found this story (Fox Dallas-Fort Worth) omits the unschooling angle.)

Whew! Come on, people! I'd be happy if I could just get my kid to EAT zucchini, much less cook it on a television show.

Source: oregonlive.com
Image: myfoxdfw.com

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Working Parents Smackdown Part 2 – Dads With Jobs vs Moms With Jobs

A Guy’s Take on Stay at Home Moms and Dads (Part 2: The Pros)

Cole Gamble — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 16:00:00 GMT

Alright, time to get to the good parts about becoming a stay-at-home mommy or daddy:

Childcare is Monstrously Expensive

Our childcare cost over $1,800 a month. For some folks, going to work and paying for child care is nearly a break even proposition. Essentially you work for the privilege to send your kids to childcare so you can work. When you do the numbers you need to consider whether the salary you draw makes it financially worthwhile. And I don't mean if your job pays $5 more a month than child care costs you should go to work. You shouldn't put kids in childcare unless the money you're going to make if significantly greater. Otherwise, why bother?

You are A Consistent Care Provider

At daycares and preschools, staff will come and go. Your child can get easily attached to a teacher and then-poof!-they're gone. You, on the other hand, will always be around (unless there is something you're not telling me). Having that safe sense of consistency helps create a nurturing environment for your kid.

You Won't Miss a "First"

One of the more depressing things about putting kids in childcare is you'll likely miss out on your kids' firsts. The first time your baby laughs. The first steps she takes a step. The first time she tells an off-color joke. There's a pretty decent chance you won't be around when these adorable moments happen.

You Find Work Stressful

There are parents who use staying at home as a good excuse to drop out of the rat race. If your job is making you miserable and you don't see any other opportunities that look better, staying at home can give you the sanity you desperately need.

Raising Your Child is More Fulfilling than Office Work

Once again, this is preferential. As I outlined in the cons section, some adults may feel a loss of satisfaction when they drop out of work. On the other hand, some adults find raising their kid far more gratifying than pushing paper.

And if you can afford it, you may find that staying home reduces your stress level. Many parents decide to stay home after trying unsatisfactorily to balance work and family. The long hours and the feeling of cutting too many corners results in feeling burned out. Staying home will give you more time to spend with your children, maintain your home, and help keep your family life running smoothly.

Epilogue: Nicole's Story

So how did my wife's stay-at-home mommying adventure go? In the end, Nicole discovered the stay-at-home mom thing wasn't for her. She grew too frustrated trying to work on the house or her resume with the kids bouncing off the walls. The kids' attitudes got out of whack as they were not getting the level of socialization, activity and learning they were accustomed to at school. So the kids went back to school and so did Nicole, she's now working on her Master's degree. Since leaving the stay-at-home life behind, Nicole found she actually gets more quality time with the kids because she's no longer as frustrated when she gets to devote a portion of her day to being an adult.

Choosing whether or not to stay at home with the kids is not a matter of how much you love your kids. It's a matter of what works best for your family. Every mother or father must make this choice at some point, and whatever choice you make will undoubtedly be made with what's best for the family in mind.

Go Back to Part 1: the Cons of Staying Home

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A Guy’s Take on Stay at Home Moms and Dads (Part 1: The Cons)

Cole Gamble — Thu, 04 Dec 2008 16:00:00 GMT

Recently my wife went back to school and finished up a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She was thrilled. I was thrilled. Even the damn pets were thrilled. The party, however, ended abruptly when Nicole realized she was, with her still hot from the oven degree in hand, entering the most hostile job market in generations. That’s when she introduced an intriguing proposition. “Hey, how about I keep the kids at home for awhile? If I can’t get a job now, I might as well take them out of child care and be a stay-at-home mom.” This was coming from a woman who started her college career on an education degree track, but then realized she didn’t like kids. This was different though. These were our kids, and your own kids are always infinitely lovelier than other peoples’ kids.

Throughout Nicole’s stay-at-home adventure, we’ve learned a lot about her personality, our kids’ personalities and the realities of staying at home with kids. Here are some of the lessons we learned, starting with the cons. In part two we’ll cover the pros and at the end I’ll let you in on what eventually happened to Nicole and how staying at home (I've heard SAH parent is the term for those in the know) has worked out for her.

The Cons:

Loneliness

Workplaces feed you daily social interaction with adults that we probably all take for granted. Once their daily routine revolves around the kid(s), many stay-at-home parents find themselves isolated. Some turn their child into their best friend, which at times puts the child in a peculiar situation as mommy or daddy gradually engages Jr. in too grown-up talk.

Loss of Identity via Loss of Career

I personally try not to define myself by my work (there are just too many more important aspects of personality), but I cannot deny all of us in the workplace to some degree merge our work into our self-esteem and identity. When you break that source of identity off, you can definitely feel that loss. People also crave the positive feedback one gets from the workplace and approbation is not something you usually get out of a screaming toddler or diaper full of crap.

Hard to Get Back to Work

Many parents find it’s tough to rejoin the job market after a sustained sabbatical.

You Can’t Provide the Activity and Socializing a Good Day Care/Preschool Can:

Hey, you’re a super stay-at-home parent. You go above and beyond the call of duty; you’re a total parenting rock star. Nonetheless, you still can’t compete with a child care program when it comes to activities and socializing. Good programs jam pack your child’s day with fun and educational projects. Also, you can’t underestimate the value of exposing your child to their peers on a daily basis. Interacting with other kids is essential for a child’s emotional and intellectual development. Yes, you can get them out of the house and around kids at the park, but you probably can’t offer them a whole class of kids working, playing and learning together every day.

Loss of Income

Yep, you do save money on child care when you keep the kids at home, but more likely than not that saved money isn’t as much as the income you lose by extracting yourself from work.

How About Losing 1 Million Dollars?

That's the amount economists say the stay-at-home parent who relinquishes a career may lose about $1 million over the years., when you factor in benefits and pensions. Yee-ouch!

Housework and Child Care Can Be Boring and Frustrating

Okay, hold your tomatoes, don’t throw them just yet. I’m not saying parenthood is boring, I’m just saying the diaper changing and tackling endless loads of laundry can be tedious and wearisome. A lot of this is about personality. I know women (and guys) who gain a great deal of satisfaction from mopping the floor and wiping noses. But just because other parents enjoy it doesn’t mean you must as well. You have to be honest with yourself.

Okay, enough doom and gloom. Let’s move on to the positives of staying home.

Click here for PART 2: The Pros.

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Banana Dildos and the 10 Worst Toys and Gifts This Christmas (part 1)

Gangsta’ Muppets: 12 of the Best Kids Show/Rap Mash-Ups

The Worst Baby Products Ever (Part I)

Desert Island Disks – Kid Music Edition

10 Things You May Not Know About Pregnancy (and might shock you)

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Bush Wants to Fund Religious Schools with Your Tax Money

Shannon LC Cate — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 13:30:00 GMT

The White House Domestic Policy Council issued a report last week, called “Preserving a Critical National Asset: America’s Disadvantaged Students and the Crisis in Faith-based Urban Schools” Among other things, the report calls for considerable increases of public funding to private, religiously affiliated schools through vouchers, tax credits and other forms of tax aid at both federal and state levels. it also recommends the establishment of religious charter schools.

Americans United for Separation of Church and State pointed out that such a move would require "rewriting the First Amendment."

I've said here before that I plan to home school my children, at least for a few years. I myself attended a private, religious school for twelve years. But at that time, my parents did not support early attempts at government funding of private education, in the form of tax credits. They knew that not only is such government support unconstitutional, but it would be unethical to pull their own support from universal public education when the vast majority of U.S. children need and use it.

Parents who make private choices to educate their children outside the public system are no less responsible for all children than are child-free people. High quality free education for all is our obligation in a democracy.