I'm a happily married stay at home, home schooling Mom of three gorgeous brainiac children...and I'm an Atheistic Pagan Rationalist! I've been married for 18 yrs and have been home schooling for 9yrs. My children are wonderfully social, highly functioning people.
16 yr old son - about to graduate with 8 math credits including Calculus, speaks 3 languages and had won several science awards.
11yr old daughter - just finished a college level ancient history course, speaks 3 languages and excels at writing and art.
26 month old daughter - knows ABC's (can identify them not just say them) can count to 10, knows shapes and colors, is beginning addition and subtraction and is learning Italian.
They all take music lessons and are involved in atheletics.
I believe the public schools are below standard and far too christianized.
So, does that surprise you?
2007-03-27 19:29:50 · 22 answers · asked by Medusa 5 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
I'm duly IMPRESSED! I was expecting many christians to be surprised. I feel that they often believe they have the monopoly on family values and home-schooling.
2007-03-27 19:56:08 · update #1
Atheletics for little ones......I highly recommend The Little Gym. They offer gymnastics and martial arts for children ages 4 months to 12 yrs. You can find them online, as they are a national chain. (Parents nights out are awesome)
2007-03-27 19:59:47 · update #2
there is pretty much no way that anybody could come out of a public school with that level of accomplishment. but there is no reason each and every one of our children can't accomplish incredible things. the primary purpose of public schools is to institutionalize children, to break them down, normalize feelings of helplessness and instill an incapacity to act or effect change, rank them against each other in an arbitrary and largely meaningless system, and to accustom them to mindlessly obey "authority". and all of this when they are in their most wonderful developmental years.
good for you for refusing to accept this terrible destiny which most people unreasonably feel is the best thing for kids. I hope that they also have the confidence to realize what an amazing gift you have given them and that they can do anything they want with their lives.
there should be more parents like you.
2007-03-27 19:38:43 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
what's surprising is that you seem to be saying that atheism is awesome by taking credit for your kids' successes.
Of course I don't think that was your intention though, and I'm just giving you a hard time for no good reason. The essence of your message, as far as I can gather, is that being an atheist doesn't make you stupid, illogical, unfaithful (in relationships), incompetent, or act as a social obstacle for your kids...and I must agree with you there.
On the matter of public schools...yeah, they are in rough shape. Private christian schools seem to do quite well though. I went to one from grades 1-7...skipped half of grade one actually and hopped straight into grade two. The education I got there was excellent. (Though I can't vouch for other christian schools...we learned extensively about evolution, and never even had the supposed conflict between creation and evolution even mentioned to us [though to this day I still see no conflict]).
...as a rationalist though, I'm sure you might be inclined to realize that from one, or even a few successes by one particular method it does not follow that it is necessarily better all around...only that it is best within the context of its established circumstances.
-Rob
2007-03-28 02:52:19 · answer #2 · answered by Rob S 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No... I can't say that I am surprised but I hope you realize that you, and to a lessor extent, your kids are the exception and not the rule.
Home schooling for most cases has not produced the level of education it was hoped it could produce for the children served by it - parents in general just aren't very good teachers when it comes to academia.
But "yes"... the standards of the public schools are set far to low and the achievement of students has proved to be lower yet for some locations. Home schooling unfortunately has done an equally poor job and it has not lived up to its expectations either.
The solution to delivering improved educations to our children certainly needs some serious thought. Better achievement and higher standards ought first to be recognized for their hand-in-hand characteristic and then employed appropriately. More school funding ought to be spread throughout the school systems and schools that show achievement ought to be rewarded with still higher funding for their jobs well done. Additional inovations need to be found to get our schools back on track - perhaps we ought to consider an approach of oughtrightly copying the school programs of other nations since a good number of them have shown far better results than we've been able to achieve in the US.
Home schooling ought to be abandon entirely - it's been a failed experiment overall.
As to your criticism that schools are "far too Christianized," I can't disagree with you; however, removing your children and yourself from the system has not helped the situation but rather it has acted in exactly the opposite way. Without you the percapita ratio swung even further toward Christian dominance, didn't it?
Get back in the box and make a difference.
(((( r u randy? ))))
.
POST SCRIPT to Like a r…: By not teaching the Bible... I think mom IS giving the kids their chance to decide. Your way is called "brain-washing" and it's a very immoral thing to do to anyone... where children are concerned, it's a down-right disgusting thing to do. You ought to be ashamed for suggesting such a selfish practice.
2007-03-28 03:11:28 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Yes it does considering that the Bible nor the owrd of God is allowed in any school unless you are in a christian home school. I am happy for you and your children that they are so bright that is wonderful and speaks well of you being able to school them. However it does not mean that without God they got this way. I do believe that the public schools are below standard and we need better education for all. You have the right to choose and have done so . That is your right and no one should put you down for it. Enjoy your children adn their success I think it is great.
2007-03-28 02:42:06 · answer #4 · answered by wolfy1 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'm inclined to think it's not the "chritianized" part of the public schools that's the problem. I homeschooled my son for 3 years and had a Christian based curriculum. When he went back to public school he was far ahead of all the other children in his class. Those who homeschool and do it properly give their children more one-on-one and hold them more accountable than the public schools do. That's just the nature of homeschooling, Christian or not.
But don't be fooled. Not every parent and child have the temperment to make homeschooling work.
2007-03-28 02:40:57 · answer #5 · answered by kaehya2003 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Many have different talents and its really nice to have special talents.
I was born to christian parents, but I always had confusions about God and whether God is there or not. So when I came into my teens, I was attracted to everything bad or not which are fun, crazy, love, etc. Whenever problems depress me, I tell to God cause I get to times when it becomes so diffcult to live.
Then after marraige, life was nice cause I have a very loving husband. Then too all my bad things which I learnt followed, I was not able to resist or stop.
As many of my petitions to God were answered I knew He was there. So I took baptism as said in bible. Then too my bad followed. Then I began to get punished for my wrong doings. I knew it was God then. And not able to bear the punishment I stopped all the things that I felt are wrong. And then just as in Bible I received Holy Spirit, it was all true, now I know it. And really God is there, He can hear anyone who call to Him earnestly and answer them. Though u r not in need to answer His call, if u have a need then only the creator can give it to His creation what others cannot.
2007-03-28 05:10:25 · answer #6 · answered by Brinda 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Good for you & your kids. You're teaching them many fine wordly subjects that will hopefully get them far in life. BUT you are giving them an education in temporeal assent only. The eternal is being ignored. Give as much study and research to the Buble as you do to math or history or foreign language. Let THEM decide about religion. Please don't force only your beliefs (or lack of) on them. Please don't let them see only one side of the coin. To do so would short change the total package. To gain only temporal assent, temporal knowledge and leave the eternal out would be a disservice, Public schools are too Christianized?? No prayer, no creation taught, no religion classes. I don't think that could be considered too much. I think the word :none" is a better fit Please, give them a chance at everything. Religion included..
2007-03-28 03:04:46 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
No. Why would this surprise me? Children in most non-Christian countries are learning at the same level. What surprises me is that we are as technologically advanced as we are with the deplorable job our public school system does.
2007-03-28 02:38:51 · answer #8 · answered by Wisdom in Faith 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'm supprised your 26 month old is in athletics. and the atheist pagan rationalist is all slightly contradicting by definition of the words and beliefs
2007-03-28 02:37:41 · answer #9 · answered by Ash 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Not at all...I have 3 kids in the public school system, and I went through it myself... they dont teach much, and the 1 on 1 that you provide cannot be matched!
Way to go Mom!!!!
2007-03-28 02:34:20 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋