Leisure and Education in America

George Roche had a powerful influence in my life and in the life of the institution he lead for 28 years.

It was not until after I had completed my Hillsdale career that I felt the need to study his book, Education in America.

My copy is autographed - To Dana - who knows that a better way exists to educate our young - George Roche.

First published in 1969 and acquired by me in 1977, I didnt re-read it until 1990, when we began making serious choices for the schooling of our four charges. I bring it to your attention today because I continue to enjoy this topic and think his book sheds bright light on the questions arising from my current book club.

Cindy, at Dominion Family, is a fun mother of nine who thinks. I like her blog posts because she has knack for illustrating problems and providing a friendly forum for discussions. Currently the term *classical* is bothering her, especially as it applies to education.

That's why I went to my shelf in search of Dr Roche's excellent volume. He TWICE references the esteemed Josef Pieper, whose book Leisure: The Basis of Culture is our book club selection.

Because I think most readers skip/skim through lengthy quotes, I'm going to post links only to these two references. The first is from Roche's chapter three entitled *Scientism and the Collapse of Standards*. The second is from chapter eight, *Multiversity*.

In the comment section of Cindy's query about the definition of *classical* education, I noted that discernment is required. We must be ever vigilant of the words used by those we trust.

While many parents complained about attending Parents Nights (at our children's schools) and listening to the same old rhetoric, I did not. Not only was I there to show my support, but also I was making sure that those in charge were staying true to stated vision (definitions) that we had used to make our school choices.

In conclusion, without a link, the last two paragraphs of Dr Roche's Education in America, entitled *Ultimate Solutions*.

Educational reform must begin with parents as individuals, with the recognition that better upbringing for their children lies in their hands, not in the hands of the state. If and when enough parents begin living their lives self-responsibly and apply such principles to their children who are an extension of self, a new educational day will have dawned. The answer, then is not to "throw the rascals out," substituting good men for bad in the political control of collectivized education. Instead, let each act in his own small orbit, with his own children, with those who he influences directly. If one's example and understanding are of high enough quality, the education pciture will begin to change no matter what course politicalized education might take.

Those who effect great revolutions are always small in number. Such people need not wait to become a majority. No one else can do the job except those who understand what needs to be done. The disruptive influence of political centralization in education will continue until it has been overshadowed and rendered meaningless by a moral force of sufficient intensity, a force generated by individuals who understand what is at stake and who serve notice by their own example that a better way exists to educate our young.


If you're reading this, then that means you're already overshadowing and on the path to rendering meaningless statist education.

We are a moral force of sufficient intensity.

Dont lose heart!

Homeschooling Meme

5) One resource you would like to buy

A car!

Just when I think I cant respond to all the questions, an answer comes to mind. And I read in the answers of someone else where the response to this question was *a swimming pool!* That qualifies as PE, a bone fide subject to study. And if a swim team is organized, all the better :) So, that's why I think my answer of *a car* works. I will need a car soon. Not today. Maybe in 2007.

From my point of view transportation is essential part of homeschooling. Olga has served us well. That's the name of our 1993 Chevrolet Surburban with an odometer reading of 383,000 miles. She has served us so faithfully on our drive to and from school. 30-35 miles one ways adds up. Yup, we drive a lot. And there's probably more driving in the future, because we're not yet finished educating our charges.

Care to share what you drive?

Homeschooling Meme

6) One resource you wish existed

Reduced income/property taxes.

For example, if there were fewer programs which needed to be funded, then we citizens wouldnt need to pay so much in taxes. Right?!

Specifically, I am talking about abolishing both the federal and state departments of education for the express purpose of returning this God-given responsibility to parents of the children. This would mean that parents would retain more of the fruits of their labors. Hopefully this way, these parents would be able to exercise more control over the schooling of their own children.

So often I am misunderstood by others when it is discovered that I am not a proponent of public education. If asked, I reference Samuel Blumenfeld's fine volume, Is Public Education Necessary? Just the preface to the book is chock full of good information, and I quote from page "x":

Out of this labor (research for the book) came some fascinating discoveries:
1) that American intellectual history is inseparable from its religious history
2) that public education was never needed
3) that literacy in America was higher before compulsory public education
4) that socialists, who were very active in the public school movement, began operating …in America as early as 1829
5) that philosophy is more powerful than economics
6) that religion, in the long run, is more powerful than philosophy

I can always wish :)

Homeschooling Meme cont'd

4) One resource you enjoyed last year.

Participation in the production of a play, musical, or choral concert. Just last year, the musical was Camelot. There were at least three major choral concerts, but my favorite is the annual Lessons and Carols. I guess one understands that my children are the participants and DH and I are the spectators :)

As early as kindergarten, our children have been involved in productions. You know, those large group activities that require extra rehearsals, more cooperation, and intense pressures (stage gitters). I think it has been good training as well as fun. Participation continued through middle-and-high-school-aged years on into college. Currently, DD#4 is auditioning for jazz vocalist at her high school.

No doubt there are lots of stories to tell. There's certainly enough mementos (read packrat) for at least four scrapbooks. Here's a link to one online photo. DD#3and #4 are the only girls in this picture of the knighting of Sir Lancelot.

Thinking back on it, I have no trouble conjuring up memories. One occurred when I was in the fourth grade; and we worked together with the fifth graders to produce a variety show entitled *There's No Business like Show Business" I learned to dance The Charleston and wore a flapper dress. I had fun.

Homeschooling Meme

3) One resource I wish I hadnt bought

Artes Latinae, which is reviewed at this webpage.

At this point I could wax poetically about the merits of learning Latin, but I will spare you, dear reader, for the moment.

Addendum: In answer to Donna's question about whether our girls studied Latin at their Christian school? The answer is YES! The teaching of Latin was/is a very high priority on our list of criteria, when we were evaluating schools. In the case of this particular curriculum, the school used it for a couple of years and changed to something more traditional.

Vital Resource

One resource I would not be without.

The preached Word of God

The Bible is the first resource, which should go without saying. But because I believe that the majority of homeschoolers in the US do not base the education of their young on these holy writings, I mention it. And so, coupled with the actual written Word, I would be deficient in my preparation for teaching, if I were not hearing each week the preached Word of God. The two resources (Bible reading/study and preaching) go hand in hand.

In our family it is a top priority to be present on Sundays in congregational worship, where we are fed a feast of nutrionally-sound manna, not milky but meaty. Furthermore, this bread is not like the common white bread made from ingredients where many of the nutrients have been stripped, but an whole wheat variety full of living ingredients.

How does that translate into the ordinary homeschooling day/week. Up front, it calls for going to bed earlier on Saturdays! But also, when I am ordering the activities of the day/week, each day we prepare a little bit for Sunday. It can be as easy as reviewing applications from the sermon at Sunday dinner or singing the hymns together around the piano in the living room. Or the task can be even more concrete, like getting our clothes washed, dried, and pressed BEFORE Saturday, in order to make Sunday mornings somewhat less stressful.

The Sabbath is the highlight of the week: the most important event around which all other events revolve. There is no other more important day. It is vital to successful homeschooling.

Homeschooling Resources

After my introduction to this questionnaire on 8/30/06, I'm now ready to answer the first question.

Name one book/resource which you enjoy/recommend.

Since I don't fall into the popularly accepted definition of homeschooler, my answers will won't either. Therefore, I take the liberty of naming five books! (tee hee) The following list contains the titles of some of my favorite authors to whom I have referred consistently and deliberately over the past twenty years.

Education in America by George Roche
One by One by George Roche
Is Public Education Necessary by Samuel Blumenfeld
Back to the Blackboard by Jay Adams
Essays on Christian Education by Cornelius Van Til
Ending the Homework Hassle by John Rosemond
Philosophy of Christian Education by Paul Kienel, editor

Stay tuned for the rest of my long, drawn-out answers to the following of the quetions:

2) One resource you would not be without.
3) One resource you wish you'd never bought.
4) One resource you enjoyed last year.
5) One resource you would like to buy.
6) One resource you wish existed.

Homeschooling

*The practice of teaching one's children at home* All parents do it. That's not only my opinion, but also a dictionary definition. There is lots of teaching going on in our home. And so, that's why I consider myself a homeschooler.

Shedding a little more light on the issue, some of us teach our children at home exclusively and some send their children to boarding school, stretching the definition of *at home* to its thinnest. Even the families who teach mainly at home usually contract for some services within their communities in the same way that the family who contracts with the boarding school is outsourcing most of their teaching efforts.

For example, if a family is involved with a homeschool group or if they consolidate their efforts and one parent teaches a group science class, some services are outsourced. Consider that the practice of enrolling one's children in recreational activities (physical education) through local associations is also contracting for services. Even using one's public library is, in a sense, contracting for outside services.

And so, in our family, we chose to contract for some of the teaching efforts by sending our children to a private, Christian school. Although we highly regard our responsibility before God to teach our children (Deut 6), we chose to delegate a portion of this responsibility to some Christian helpers for a part of the day.

We never lost sight of our duty before God to bring up our charges in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Here's a link to a speech I gave several times. We continue to have the utmost regard for the Lord's Will and the vision He has helped us to have for their roles as Christian women of the 21st century.

With that explanation, now I will attempt to answer a questionnaire about which homeschooling books/resources I found most valuable or invaluable.

Homeschooling Meme

Dana/Dana (Okay, I'm (that's Ruthanne)breaking the rules here because Dana is not a homeschooler. However, she is very homeschool-friendly and loves life and learning. I really like Dana and would love to hear her thoughts on worthy educational resources.)

As you see I've been *tagged* And while there is no pressure to participate, I think I will. Actually I was thinking about these questions BEFORE I was tagged. And I started an answer....

So, in order to finish, I will break down the answers to one per day. Otherwise, the thought of putting all these ideas in one entry seems to keep me from completing the task.

That's the ticket...break it down into *doable* portions.

How to say no

In a light-hearted way, I might say that I learned this tactic from my father…who does have a reputation for bringing up the opposite side of an argument for the sake of discussion. Can you say "devil's advocate?" Or it might be a gene he passed on. But, in reality, there is great comfort in his ability to assess a situation accurately and advise prudently, even if it means telling a child, a spouse, or a colleague "no." The current jingle or ad campaign *just say no* is farcical to me because rarely can one say "NO" one time (against taking drugs, drinking/driving, whatever) and have it suffice or protect. One must be able to say no over and over again. Repeatedly we are faced with situations in which we must resist evil and do the right thing. This means learning how to say no (or voting against.)  Heaven help those who don’t ask or seek counsel and proceed based on thinking that "the counselor will just say no" or say to oneself, "I'll go ahead; it's easier to ask forgiveness afterwards." Thank God I have a father who has the strength of character to say no, not in a knee-jerk, tyrannical fashion, but after careful contemplation with Biblical resolve to conserve his faith, family, and society.

He's a conservative.

How not to start a sentence with why

This is a pretty simple instruction, but something I have had to work on. Thank goodness for parents who will tell children over and over again the same principle in an effort to mold their behaviors into well-rounded, Godly grown-ups. So, that's basically what this admonition is about. My father (and my mother) cautioned me against using why when asking my children why they did something. It just encourages the youngster to make up something. So, rephrase the question in an effort to zero in on the issue. It also keeps me from sounding like I'm giving someone the third degree, too.

Note to self: file under parenting, when you finally figure out how to categorize your posts :)

How to watch TV

With your eyes closed; yes, really! Turn on the TV, and I fall asleep! Must be genetic because that's one of the memories I have…..asleep in his reclining chair, after a long, hard day's work with the TV on. I would come downstairs about 11:30 pm for a study break. Never irritated at being awakened, he'd answer any and all questions I had, we'd visit for a bit while watching Johnny Carson's monologue, and then I'd head back to the books.
But seriously speaking, while the TV might be turned onto a golf game (insert sport of the season)or an old war movie, my father, the multi-tasker is always doing something else: reading the newspaper, a book, his Bible, some newsletter; participating in a teleconference, preparing a talk, or perhaps napping. So, what did I learn from my father about television? Use discretion when choosing what you watch. Televisions are not inherently bad, the way guns are not inherently wicked…..it's the way people choose to use them that makes them conduits of evil.

How to eat eggs

Each and every morning my father rises early and eats breakfast. He thinks it's the most important meal of the day. Furthermore, he thinks that there is no better breakfast than one with eggs! First, he has a piece of fruit (half a grapefruit in winter, one quarter of a cantaloupe in summer.) Then he eats two fried eggs, two pieces of toast, a small glass of milk, and a cup of coffee. Once upon a time, bacon was on his plate, but I think that's been gone for thirty years or more. As a youngster, eggs were not my favorite food. I think I gagged on them unless I had a piece of toast. It didn't really matter. That's what was served for breakfast and that is what I ate :) That's how I learned to eat eggs...by my father's example.

Eggs have gotten some bad press lately, but I maintain that they are the perfect breakfast food. They are considered a perfect protein, one which contains the eight essential amino acids. Once those are present, our body can manufacture the other 14, which helps to optimize overall metabolism. Hence, I continued my father's example by serving my children eggs for breakfast. I told them it was brain food. And remember, teachers can always tell which children have eaten a good breakfast.

Here's a fine *egg* poem by Bunyan for your morning devotion.

Choral Music

Daddy sang in his high school choral group at Woodlawn High School in Birmingham, AL. They were called The Warblers or The Minstrels. In addition, he seems to have sung with a barbershop-type quartet as well. For a while he sang with our church's choir. He always has good stories to tell about practices, performances, and reunions as far as singing goes. Furthermore, he is always willing to attend one of my daughter's choral concerts even if it's a distance away. It just makes for good discussions and connections between generations. This afternoon after Sunday dinner, we listened to Promised Land, a CD of spirituals sung by All Saints Church Choir. He knew all the songs, especially Ain-a That Good News. If you click on the link, scroll down to find the audio files. There are two choices. Listen to both :)

Five Things My Father Taught Me

1) How to say *no*.
2) How to watch TV.
3) How to eat eggs.
4) How to avoid starting a sentence with *why*.
5) How to appreciate choral music.

Stay tuned for the stories.

MD

My Daddy


When Daddy signs his name
He always writes *M.D.*
That's so people all will know
That he belongs to me.
For *M.D.* means *My Daddy*
Or something just the same.
And that is why he always
Puts these letters on his name.
Some letters on his name are small,
But these are not you see.
He always makes them big like that
Because He's proud of me.

Karen Weihs

WDJ Pastel Portrait

Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee. Ex20:12

Image Credit

Weight Watching

Another thing my mother taught me: counting calories and making wise, nutritional choices. I reckon I will struggle forever with my weight. Well, maybe not in heaven, because in my resurrected body, I expect to be 5'4" 120# and resemble myself at age 21 :)

I have the most success with my weight when I am watching it carefully. I have been way up and way down, so I have a few opinions about this topic. Key ingredients are 1)keeping a food diary 2)drinking 60 oz water daily 3)regular exercise and 4)the right attitude.

It's the last one that intrigues me, because I KNOW that I can be putting into effect the first three modifications, and yet not achieve. It's that intangible *attitude* that catches me off balance. In fact, I will even venture to postulate that the first three behaviors account for only 50% of the equation, granting a whopping 50% to the most difficult area to control: what's going on in my head (thoughts). In a subconscious way these brainwaves impact hormones, enzymes, metabolism, and digestion. Fascinating!

See ya after my walk.

How to use a blackboard

This is the final post in a series detailing a few things my mother taught me.

There were six of us born in the span of six and one half years, so there was a lot for my mother to keep up with. Besides being very organized, she knew that communication was a key ingredient. Enter the blackboard. Yup. Big black slate with white chalk hung boldly in our breakfast room. I'm guessing it was 4'x 5'. Wish I had a picture. Note to self: FIND a picture :)

The rest is very simple. On the left hand side she wrote everyone's names in a vertical column. Just after your name, there might be a message, an assignment, or *SEE ME* (that meant you were in trouble) I only remember writing on the board with permission and the main thing I was supposed to record was my whereabouts!! We lived in a neighborhood of 75 plus children

Here's an example of what might have been written on it in 1970:

Daddy (Imperial Potentate)
Moma -
Bert - Randy's playing stratomatic football
Dana - Winters back by 5
Noel - Godwins home by 6
Amanda - Michelle's
Grey - backyard
Will - backyard

The blackboard was retired in 1995, after thirty years of faithful service.

How to make a Southern Belle Costume

Mrs. Schaeffer says From my own experience of sewing, making my own and the children's clothing, I would say that nothing gives one the possiblity of 'fitting in' with a wide variety of people like being able to say "I made it myself."

This entry makes up part four of the stories explaining what my mother taught me as queried by Donna in a Friday Five.

The short answer is that she taught me how to sew. She taught by example, by assisting, by providing lessons, and by encouraging.

Once upon a time a college-aged daughter needed a costume for a skit. The skit was set in the ante-bellum South. This is where my memory gets a little fuzzy because the college was in Michigan (what do *they* know about the South?) and I cant remember the songs or story lines, but suffice it to say that it was for a rush party. I wish I had a picture for my dear readers.

My mother tore apart one of her *old* party gowns which we used as pattern pieces for my costume. The dress turned out well. Not only did I wear it for the skit, but I also wore it to a costume party on my first *real* date with my now DH. My daughters played dress-up with it later.

While sewing is not one of my favorite tasks (frequently I have to rip out a seam), I am accomplished at it, having made anything from a lined bathing suit to a french machine-sewn cotton bastiste little girl's dress complete with inlaid lace bow. In my party days, I made all my evening dresses. I found a certain pattern which was flattering on me and then made it with four different fabrics: red velvet, white, floral and plaid.

Am I passing this talent on to my own daughters? Well, maybe...maybe not. They all have sewing boxes complete with their own sets of Gingher scissors. And I have made with each individually a sundress, which we wore for a family photo. They all can hem a dress and sew on a button. They havent had lessons, but there is still time for that, as they are young :) And, I'm only a phone call away.

Do you own a sewing machine?