Another NaBloPoMo question….
Valleygirl asks:
I can’t believe how much the blogosphere has made me think about homeschooling!!!  Every post I come across that give examples of how people handle it, I absolutely devour.  Like this one.  I’d be a little afraid though, that in my laziness, my kids would end up spending over a year getting through each year’s curriculum!  How do you stay on track?  Does the curriculum come with a recommended timetable?  Do your kids still have to write state-wide tests or something (I don’t know how it works down there!  Or up here, for that matter!!) to prove to the department of education that they’re indeed learning something basically on par with kids their age in public schools?

That was one of my fears when I started homeschooling….how would I stay organized enough to keep on track. I seriously could imagine a week month going by without doing any schoolwork at all! Luckily, we found a pretty organized curriculum. We use K12. The lesson plans and some lessons are online, the rest are in books that are included with the curriculum. It tracks your progress and calculates your end dates for each subject. You can even set how often you want to do a certain subject–maybe every other day, maybe every day.

I know there are a lot out there who prefer to put everything together on their own. They hunt down the perfect curriculum in each individual subject and piecemeal something together. Yeah, that’s great, but I know I would never get it all done. Or I’d forget something major and my kids would get to college having never heard of something important–like long division!

I know there are also lots out there who do something called “unschooling.” Basically the idea there is to just let the kids guide their own learning and then try to incorporate lessons based on their interests. So if the kid loves butterflies, then you figure out science lessons, history lessons, and math lessons all about butterflies. For composition, they write about butterflies. For spelling words, they learn lists of butterfly parts. Again, I’m not that organized to pull this off. Besides, how many lessons can I possibly create for Nick based on “video games?”

Each state here in the US has different rules about homeschooling. I’ve found HSLDA is a valuable resource for finding out what is required for each state. For the state of Ohio, there are only a few requirements. One, we have to notify the school district each year that we intend to homeschool, that we will complete 900 hours of schooling, and we have to agree to teaching certain subjects. And secondly we have to submit EITHER the results from a standardized test OR a statement from a certified teacher that the student is progressing at the appropriate level.

I think the saddest thing about it is that we don’t NEED 900 hours to cover everything. They may need 900 hours in the public school system in order to corral and teach 28 students in a class, but when you are working 1-on-1 with a student, you can get it done so much quicker.

I could probably write more about this, but I have to get off of the blog and do school with the kids. Another busy busy day at the theater for us, so we’re packing in school while we have a moment!

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The Lunapads contest has come to a close*. We have a winner!!

I had 90 entries in the contest for a Lunapads Intro Kit! I am overwhelmed at the number of people who took the time to look over Lunapads, contact me with two products recommended for teens, and then pick their favorite Lunapads fabric! Wow!

I used the random number picker found here to pick the winner and it came up with number 46.

Number 46 on my list is Erin H. from Tuscon, AZ!! Congratulations!! By the way, her favorite fabric is Pink Poodles! How stinkin’ cute is this fabric?

If you didn’t win but are still interested in trying out Lunapads, remember there are some coupon codes to save you some money.

For $5 off an order over $25, use coupon code pediascribe01

For $10 off an order over $60, use coupon code pediascribe02

Both coupon codes expire 1/31/08. They are case sensitive, so enter them exactly as shown.

And, for orders over $100, you get the added benefit of free shipping!!

Thanks to all who entered!! I had a great time sharing Lunapad-love!!

*Due to circumstances beyond my control, the contest did end 12 hours early. But that still left 31 days and 12 hours to enter, so I hope this didn’t inconvenience anyone.

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Must get questions answered before the end of NaBloPoMo. Must get questions answered before the end of NaBloPoMo. Ok, now I’m stressing I won’t get to all of your questions! So here’s another…..

Jen at Never a Dull Moment asks:
What are your favorite Disney sites/boards/etc.? I keep meaning to email you that, but figured it would be a good NaBloPoMo post.
I agree. Perfect NaBloPoMo post! Let’s see, all things Disney…..

I must tell you right off the bat, that Mike is my tour guide. He consults with the kids and me on where we want to eat and what we want to do, but then he makes the touring plan. He’ll map out which parks on which days, what restaurants to go to when, and which nights parades and fireworks will be run. Of course, the plan is always flexible (to a degree) but at least we have an idea of how to tackle 47 square miles of fun!

With that in mind, Mike is the one who consults websites for park hours, parade times, and ticket information. He uses Walt Disney World’s official website and also the DIS. He also will go to the Disney Vacation Club website to view point charts and resort information.

I, on the other hand, use websites that are less about planning the trip and more about networking. For example, up until recently, I was a very active member on the DIS Boards. My favorite threads on these message boards were the ones in which fellow cruise buddies met and socialized before cruising together. I met Mary, one of my loyal readers and frequent commenters, on the DIS in June of 2003. Since then we’ve cruised together several times and I’m sure our families will be lifelong friends. I guess I’m more about the socialization part of the trip than caring what time the nightly fireworks are!

I also have used the DVC website a good bit, mostly to pay off our loans and to refer friends to the program.

Other than that, we don’t really go to Disney sites. We’ve been to WDW enough that we really don’t need to consult the web for information. Before our recent Disneyland trip, we did use the official Disneyland site to get an overview of the place, but even then, other than park hours, restaurant reviews, and parade information, we just sort of winged it!

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Continuing with my NaBloPoMo question series, fiveberries in texas asks:
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?  I mean, except for Texas.

Well, apparently fiveberries doesn’t want me stalking her!

Hmmm, good question. Where would I live? I do like Ohio because of the definite change of seasons. And I’m relatively close to family. I know the state pretty well, so that’s always helpful in getting around. But Central Ohio has its downfalls. For one, we have a very long grey and cloudy season. October through April you can pretty much count on it being cloudy. Not just white, puffy, cumulous clouds. I’m talking thick, grey, stratus clouds. Mike and I think the official state cloud should be the stratus cloud.

It also doesn’t snow enough. It gets cold, but rarely snows enough to accumulate. It’s depressing when it’s 38 degrees and raining in December. And January. And February. And March. Here’s a shot of what my town looks like pretty much all winter:

Is it any wonder I have seasonal affective disorder?

Ok, this post is depressing me. Let me move on to answer the question. On a cruise we went to St. Lucia. That was an amazingly beautiful place! Sunny and warm year round. But alas, not by family, and on an island. That would bug me after awhile. Oh, and speaking of bugs, there are some nasty ones there! (Right, Mary?) Catching malaria isn’t on my list of “must-dos” before I turn 50, so I think I’ll pass on St. Lucia.

I’ve always wondered where the perfect place to live would be…..sunny, change of seasons, not too humid, close to family, close to Walt Disney World, no earthquakes, no hurricanes, no tornadoes, no frigid temperatures, no disease, no crime, perfect schools, etc etc. But alas, I don’t think that place actually exists.

So, for lack of a better answer, I’ll pick Coronado, CA. Having recently been there, it’s a beautiful place. The weather is lovely year round. The sun shines a lot. There is an absolutely charming downtown area where everything you could need would be in walking distance. The people are friendly. The views are gorgeous.

I’m sure it has its downfalls….for one, it’s on the opposite side of the country as my family. It is dangerously close to the recent wildfires. I don’t think it’s immune from earthquakes, or crime. And the housing market….oh my goodness! A million dollars for a small house? Yikes!

So in conclusion, I don’t think there is any ONE place on the face of this earth that has the perfect conditions.

Either that or I’m too picky.

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This week’s theme is “Hot.” It must be really hot here…

To see more Photo Hunt pictures, click here: PhotoHunt

Technorati Tags: photohunt

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