Unschooling NYC

Mayor Bloomberg started his Spring cleaning by firing School Chancellor Cathleen Black, only three months after appointing her to the position.   To say that she was unpopular would be an understatement.   To say that I understand what she was expected to do (magically cure all of the NYC Public School ills in 90 days?) or why exactly she was so unpopular would be a gross overstatement.   It seems to me that being appointed School Chancellor of New York City is kind of like being appointed Admiral of the Death Star by Darth Vader.  You may think you’re doing everything you … Read more

Today we went to Discovery Times Square to see the Harry Potter exhibit.    The exhibit itself was fantastic, filled with actual props and costumes used throughout the series.    Even though you expect attention to detail when it come to films with as big a budget and following as these, it was still surprising to see the leather Quidditch gloves looking as though they had seen a lot of action on the pitch, and spell books filled cover to cover with writing and notations, even though only a page or two are visible in the film itself.

But the best part, … Read more

I subscribe to Lenore Skenazy’s Free Range Kids blog (and you can reach it too through my blogroll).   A few days ago she posted a letter she received entitled “You are a Horrible Mother” from someone who, as Lenore said, “Must’ve just stumbled across ‘Why I Let My 9 Year Old Ride the Subway Alone’.”

It had been a long time since I read that particular article, so I decided to re-visit it.   It is worth reading – maybe a few times just to make sure it sinks in.   The link to Lenore’s blog post is  http://freerangekids.wordpress.com/2008/04/06/why-i-let-my-9-year-old-ride-the-subway-alone/

But in case … Read more

“Think outside the box” is a phrase we have all heard.   It means to get creative, to approach something in a new and different way;  to not do what everyone else does.    High praise is showered on people who think outside the box.

As long as you don’t stay there too long or, heaven forbid, live your whole life that way!  Then you’re just weird.    Schoolchildren, for example, may be asked to ‘think outside the box’ when it comes to specific projects, but make no mistake, they are very much trained to live and learn inside the box.   Life and … Read more

Maya took her standardized tests today.    The anxiety level when she got to questions about which she was unsure was almost palpable.    My anxiety over her frustration mounted, and my school brain started screaming horrible things at me related to our perceived un-preparedness,  which only made matters worse.  (I did not relate those things to Maya, but I’m sure she felt my anxiety as well.)   Deep breaths were called for on my part, and a stern reminder to my brain that testing has nothing to do with life or success.

The thing is, I’m sure she did quite well on … Read more

Maya is officially in her 5th year of education, according to the NY Dept of Ed, and as such, is required to take a standardized test and turn in the results, either with our 3rd or 4th quarter report.   We received the test in the mail today, and I began perusing it to get a feel for what it includes.   Because this is our first time taking it, it includes a ‘placement test’ which she will take and  I will grade.   How she places will then determine which test, from the booklet we received,  she will take to send in … Read more

Tonight Maya is spending the night upstairs (on the 21st Floor) at her best friend Greta’s apartment.   We haven’t seen much of Greta lately, as she attends middle school and is usually inundated with homework.  Despite the vast differences in the way they are being educated, Maya and Greta remain fast friends.   The house is always full of laughter and giggles when they are together.   Greta got a new game today, so the girls will no doubt be up till all hours playing…

And then tomorrow, our friend Maya Sposito is coming here for an overnight, and Ben will be … Read more

This past Tuesday my friend Kristin was here with her kids, and we were looking through the selections offered in this month’s Crafters Choice catalogue.  (I’m one of those members who, after getting the initial offer of 5 books for 1, almost never orders anything else.)   In this month’s catalogue, Kristin spied an offer for a pie cookbook.   And then our conversation went something like this:

Kristin:  Yum!  This looks great. I love pies.  My Mom makes great pies.  I’ll bet your Mom does too, huh?

Me:  Uh, no.  My Mom is not a baker (this was said with a

… Read more

I am really tired of reading about school reform.  Not because schools don’t need reforming, but because the conversation never, EVER changes.    And neither do the schools.   As John Gatto says, schools are not failing – they are doing exactly what they were designed to do.  So get over it.  (He doesn’t say ‘get over it’.  That was me.)    I am also tired of the way people will do things like point to the length of the school year and say, “but in [fill in your chosen country here] they go to school for 30 more days each year.   And … Read more

Today we went to the Park Avenue Armory to see an exhibit I read about over the weekend.  It was called, “Infinite Variety:  Three Centuries of Red and White Quilts”.   The name cannot begin to describe the magnificence of the display.   All 650 quilts that were brilliantly hung and lit in the cavernous main room of the armory belong to one woman; Joanna Rose.   She does not like to be called a collector, but has amassed over 1000 red and white quilts that she stores in a large cedar lined room in the Manhattan apartment she shares with her husband.   … Read more