My husband Jim and I have 5 children (yes, they are ALL ours) 4 of whom learn at home, one started high school in grade 9. We have come to believe learning is more effective when it is self-directed, and so we try our very best not to inflict uninvited teaching upon our children. They…
Recently OFTP received a letter which elicited a lot of response from the membership on the oftp email list. It is quite possible that the views expressed are common among people considering home education as a means of choosing something besides a problem-ridden public school system. The writer, more than likely not conversant with home…
Editor’s note: Patrick Farenga of Holt Associates/Growing Without Schooling, presented a speech at Pennsylvania State University’s Conference, “Education and Technology: Asking the Right Questions,” in October 1997. Here are excerpts from that speech. However, to me and many people, the effectiveness of homeschooling is not measured by school test scores. Among the many reasons for…
Basically, homeschooling refers to doing school at home. That is, reproducing the teaching methods of school, but doing it at home. Now, this can be done in many different ways along the scale between homeschooling and unschooling. Some people carry it to the extreme of setting the alarm and being at the kitchen table (or…
It is in fact nothing short of a miracle that the modern methods of instruction have not yet entirely strangled the holy curiosity of inquiry; for this delicate little plant, aside from stimulation, stands mainly in need of freedom; with out this it goes to wrack and ruin without fail. Albert Einstein His eyes…
In April 1996 the Education Policy Committee of the Leeds and Grenville County Board of Education proposed a Homeschooling Policy that would self-authorize the Board to require plans and evaluate instruction by parents. This policy was only slightly modified from the Board’s current policy, with which, for several years, most home-based educators in the United…
I have never in my adult life been treated as cruelly as I was for the 7 years of elementary school. If that was supposed to prepare me for “real life,” I guess I haven’t yet entered “real life.” Tia Leschke, homeschooling parent My objection to the social life of almost all schools is that…
“Questions and Answers” is a forum for OFTP members to inquire, share and learn together. We look forward to your input and experience as we put forward questions and answers from home-learning families across Ontario. Q: Help! Does anyone out there have experience with late readers? My daughter is seven and not reading well yet.…
In the March 5, 1997 issue of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, [United States] Secretary of Education Richard Riley is quoted as saying that he wants homeschooling representatives to attend a national forum to bring “the nation’s best teachers” together to address [the] country’s education challenges. The article states: “Home-school students score significantly higher on standardized…
