January 26, 2011
Homeschooling ~ Really? Beth Baldino is taking it On.
Advantages of Homeschooling
For the last five months, with the help of my partner and support of my ex-husband, we’ve been homeschooling our 8 and 10-year-old children and taking advantage of the many advantages of this approach. The kids were previously attending a very good private school with a devoted and hard-working staff, so it wasn’t as if we were dissatisfied with their efforts. I do feel, however, that I am able to give them more personalized attention tailored to their specific needs than a teacher who is managing a larger group and working within the constraints of a set curriculum. Being able to focus on the children’s specific needs within each subject and provide the individual coaching they require throughout the process allows them to progress at their own pace. As such, they don’t need to spend their “after-school” hours in tutoring for extra support or doing additional homework to ensure they master the skills. This allows the children more opportunity to pursue their own interests, and we still have enough time most days to prepare and enjoy homemade meals together, an activity that is important to me.
The Benefits of Managing your own Schedule
I really appreciate the flexibility this approach allows us. We can stay up late one night watching an educational DVD, engrossed in a compelling book, or enjoying a musical or theatre performance and know that we can adjust our schedule the next day to make up for the lost sleep. We can take advantage of opportunities to visit museums and various exhibits when they aren’t crowded and vacation when it is most affordable, convenient, and again, least crowded. And we’re able to take extended trips to places we visit because we can bring our work along and study wherever we are (as we’re currently doing in Florida, where my parents live).
The World is our School
I like being able to expose my children to real-life learning opportunities on a regular basis. When I need to take them along to the bank, for example, we end up talking about budgeting and managing money and how checking and saving accounts work. We inevitably have the most interesting conversations when the children’s interest is piqued by an experience that allows them to see the practical impact of how the world operates. It isn’t that we couldn’t talk about these things when they were in school, but there does seem to be much more time and energy for it now. As we run two businesses from our home, the children get intimate daily exposure to our working lives as well, which has prompted them to initiate projects that have turned into great educational opportunities. For example, when my partner, a professional photographer, was gearing up for holiday sales of his work last year, the children were inspired to set up a “store” for their own artwork. This activity led to numerous discussions about all aspects of the entrepreneurial process and resulted in my son selling one of his drawings to someone who attended one of our business events.
I don’t know how long we’ll continue homeschooling, because we will ultimately do what’s best for the children from year to year, but it’s truly been an education for all of us.
Beth has her Masters in Social work and is a Certified Holistic Counselor in addition to being a Mom. She is proactive in her community, environment and forward thinking in her parenting style. You can reach Beth at beth@consciouswellness.net or www.counsciouswellness.net.Feedback
Would you homeschool?
January 12, 2011
The Amazing Impact of Music on Growing Up
by Tricia Gruswitz
I am a parent, maybe like you, cherishing the moments that my kids are still young and obsessing over making the right decisions for them while I still have some say. Our plan is for them to become young adults who succeed at everything- math, language, science, arts, social skills, teamwork, emotional handling, self-esteem, discipline, drive, and on and on. How do we help make all that happen? Dare I say… music lessons!
Music and Life
I know from the hundreds of students I’ve watched grow and through my own personal experiences that studying music can dramatically affect the path a person chooses in all parts of life. A child taking music lessons develops self-discipline and drive with a practice regimen and short and long-term goals. Adding private lessons on top of school lessons turns your child’s favorite class into the place where they are the star student, encouraging confidence that spreads into everything they do. Hard work turns into acceptance in state and regional ensembles – an ideal way to spend after-school time. Plus, when my kids reach the age when their friends have a bigger influence than I do, I will be grateful that they are in the company of other music kids, stereotyped to have all the qualities I listed above. College acceptances and scholarships soon follow. A whopping 66% of music majors who apply to medical school are admitted – the highest percentage of any group – surpassing even pre-med and science. Musical kids frequently amaze us.
Most likely, you are the parent of a musical child. You already know all of the invaluable benefits of music. You are raising doctors, writers, scholars, composers, performers, and presidents, and music professionals like myself are grateful to take a meaningful part in this.
Tricia Gruswitz is the strings and piano teacher and owner of the Olive Tree Music Studio in Andover, Morristown, Montclair and Flemington, NJ. She has over ten years of experience in developing musician’s confidence, and challenging them to reach and achieve high goals in music and life. Trish and her network of music educators are happily accepting new students. Contact her at tricia@olivetreemusicstudio.com
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