A Mind Full of Thoughts

Tonight my mind is not feeling creative in my usual artsy way. About this time for the last couple of nights my head has been full of designs for Christmas cards, invites, and more designs for my Etsy store. But not tonight....

Maybe because I am feeling a little under the weather, or because I am finding myself quickly coming to a crossroads with our children's educational choices, or because I have spent the last hour reading so many things that have gotten my mind whirling.

Did I mention that we have gotten rid of TV as a whole? Not even basic channels. Part of the reason was cost (why on earth would I pay $25 a month to watch a show that is only mediocre?) but the other reason was for not just our kids but our whole family. How can I tell my daughter that it isn't nice to sass us when she likes shows where the characters do the same thing? Or that everyone is beautiful in their own way with all the reality shows out there proclaiming that you have to fit impossible standards?

Tonight I read a blog entry here that opened my eyes to how I view my post-baby self and the possibilities to what can be. I can change how I look at tasks like running, cleaning, and my own self image. A great quote that I read tonight is: "We all choose our own pain, whether it is the pain of self discipline or the pain of regret."

I am taking that quote further than my own self by applying it to the crossroads with Gabby's schooling. I have had a very negative feeling about the school's program and her teacher from the start of the school year. From things like knowing that she will only get art 1/4 of the year to seeing papers come home with -3 written at the top for missing some tricky answers. (A picture of a hat was missed because the in looking for "c" words Gabby didn't realize that a hat is also called a cap") I don't think that it is acceptable for papers at such a young age to academics should be graded in the negative... what happened to asking, "I see that there is a picture here, what do you think this is called?" and seeing WHY she didn't circle that picture. We have been in school for less than three months and I have had more complaints about what is going on than I care to share.

So now I am thinking about alternatives to the norm of public schooling. Montessori schools, charter schools, home schools, unschooling... things that I once knew nothing about but are being examined thoroughly. Lucky for me I have a good friend who is a pro at this "not public schooling" thing....a friend I once thought was really radical and sometimes nutty (you know who you are darling!), but now is making prefect sense to me!! I am struggling with breaking free of the norms of society, thinking about critism from friends and family, and rationalizing that I need to do what is best for my kids.... I know I will get it together though.

I have no set path yet, but my mind is definitely off and running!!

Has it really been 5 days??

Sorry all! I try to post every or every other day, but with all the rainy weather and chaos in the house it just didn't happen. Have to start scheduling posts again I guess!

So I have been thinking a lot about different schools of education. I am really dissatisfied with the current state that public education is in, especially in Ohio, and have been doing lots of reading about alternatives to the norm. I had no idea that there were so many other parents out there like me who feel that public schools are killing children's imaginations with the emphasis on academics, that kids are being pushed to learn too much too fast, and that teachers are so sorely being punished with the No Child Left Behind laws. (To get the jist of this law in laymen's terms- go here!)

I hate how Kindergarteners are expected to come INTO school knowing so much, how society looks down on you if you choose not to send your child to preschool, and how play in school is going down the tubes along with sports and the arts.

I went to a Montessori school for K-1st grade, a magnet school for the gifted and talented (a performing arts school) for 5-9 grade, and public school in between. My education has been very unusual and I think that I benefited from that, especially by attending the arts school. And I want those same things for Gabby.

I noticed after re-reading a lot of my "lists" that I tend to gravitate toward Montessori and Waldorf blogs, and even borrow a lot of ideas from homeschooling blogs for activity ideas. I know that there is no way that I could homeschool, I am not organized enough to keep a strict schedule and I want socialization for Gabby, but it does have its appeal.

I feel that there are great things about both Montessori and Waldorf schools of thought and am going to try incorporating ideas from both in our house. One book that I am really interested in reading is Heaven on Earth: A Handbook for Parents of Young Children. And here are some other blogs that I read that are on board with alternative forms of education:

Sew Liberated
Uncommon Grace
My Montessori Journey

What are your thoughts? Do you know about or practice any other form of traditional education in your home?