Self motivated

Indy had a playdate recently with one of her homeschoolers buddy. A girl age 9 , just a year older than her. They had a great time together.
They did all the "girl talks " and just being a girl at their age. Indy shared her diary , her first crush ( YES!! I KNOW!! HAHAHA) , and they were dancing in Indy's room with a door closed , and with blasting music of Taylor Swift, Justin bieber etc. A typical girls day !!! I love to see Indy had so much fun!!

Her friend, is home schooled for all of her live,never go to any formal school and somehow you can tell that she is a home schooler.^_^.
However, it is very impressive for me to see, that this young girl, learn Mandarin , on her own. She took her Mandarin book, and I saw her neat writing. Of course, I did ask her : is this your homework that your Chinese tutor gave you? Her answer surprise me the most : oh I dont have any Chinese tutor. My older sisters have but I dont. Those Chinese Characters I wrote it on my own. I just copied from a book, and learn by my self.
I was like " REALLY?? WOW!!!"

When we decided to homeschool our girl, our goal is not to make her the number 1  academically . But to have a different view on learning than most of the schooling children. I think to witness that , another homeschooler, at age 9, could be self motivated, it's something we want for our children. I don't see this often in any other children. Mostly. the parents need to nag, push to let them study, do their homework and so on.

I do hope , self motivated will be one of the skills my girls will have.

Have a great weekend.

XOXO
S.R

Disadvantages of Home Schooling

What are the disadvantages of home schooling?

Despite the many benefits of educating one's children at home, there are some disadvantages to home schooling. The most significant disadvantage is the amount of sacrifice it takes, physically, emotionally, and financially. Time is needed to prepare and teach lessons, organize outside activities and field trips, and schedule opportunities for the home schooled child to nurture his friendships and develop his interests. Home schooling parents do not have the luxury of having time for themselves while their children are at school. This almost-constant time together can at times seem suffocating, and may not work for some families.

Another disadvantage of home schooling is the cost. Parents who choose to home school, as opposed to free public schooling, are primarily responsible for purchasing the curriculum needed, which can cost, on average, approximately $400 per child each year. This includes costs for field trips, computer software, and materials for projects, as well as the many other resources available to parents. The cost is even higher for those families in which one parent has given up his or her full-time job to home school. For those families who had previously relied on two incomes, this can be a serious disadvantage.

In addition to the additional financial burden of home schooling, another disadvantage of home schooling involves the development of social skills. Most home schooling parents are glad to get their children out of the not-so-positive social environment of age-segregated classrooms, but this means that they are now responsible for the social development of their children. Social skills are learned through everyday interactions, such as trips to the supermarket, libraries, malls, parks, church, field trips, and visiting with neighbors. These ways alone are not completely sufficient for teaching a child proper social skills. All children need to learn how to have relationships with their peers, and home schoolers are sometimes at a disadvantage in this area because they do not have as many opportunities for forming friendships. This is not necessarily a problem for most families, but it takes more effort for home schooling parents to be diligent in making sure their children have ample opportunities to be with other children. Most communities today offer home school support groups within driving distance for almost all home schoolers; these groups usually schedule times weekly or monthly to get together for "park days," home school skate groups, and even gymnastics or swimming classes designed especially for home schoolers.

Many communities also offer co-ops for home schoolers, giving children the opportunity to learn from a variety of adults in addition to their parents. Sunday School, dance classes, 4-H clubs, sports teams, Scouts, and other organized activities like these offer children the time to learn side-by-side and socialize with other children. A disadvantage to this, however, is that some of these groups can be costly.

Because the majority of children attend public or private school, home schooled children might have the desire to start attending school. They may wonder what they are missing out on, especially if their parents don't take the time to make sure they are involved in outside activities. This is difficult for parents who are committed to home schooling and are convinced that this is God's plan for their family.

The most important factor in deciding whether or not to educate one's children at home is trusting in God's leading. Most home schooling parents find that the disadvantages of home schooling are somewhat insignificant in comparison to the benefits of raising and educating their own children. 

Taken from : all about parenting site

Advantages of Home Schooling

What are the advantages of home schooling?

It is reasonable to ask, given advances in education over the last century, what are the advantages of home schooling? What on the surface may look like an old-fashioned teaching method is increasing in popularity across the nation. Why is that? As it turns out, there are many good reasons for parents to home school their children, not the least of which is the fact that one-on-one tutoring has been widely recognized as the most effective method of education.

In a large classroom setting, even the best-trained teacher is incapable of giving the individual attention necessary to help each student excel. Parents are not only able to devote much more time to their children, but they also know their pupils on a personal level. They are able to tailor their curriculum and teaching styles in ways that are most conducive to their child's productivity. This individualized attention is one of the advantages of home schooling.

Because of the variety of curriculum choices available to home schoolers, parents have several options when it comes to the material used for instruction. Not only are they given the freedom to teach core subjects from a biblical perspective, but they can also incorporate their child's interests into the curriculum. Skills such as woodworking, cooking, managing money, and shopping for healthy food on a budget can be learned through real-life interactions and projects. The advantages of home schooling are both personal and practical.

The majority of time children spend in school is not spent focusing on academic subjects; it is spent waiting in lines, waiting for other students to be done with their work, waiting for the teacher to move on to another subject, waiting for recess, waiting for lunch. Home schoolers can cut out all of this unnecessary waiting, and get their work done within two or three hours. They can move at their own pace and still have time left over in the day to explore other interests.

Despite shorter schooling hours, home schoolers have consistently scored at or above average in virtually all subject areas on standardized tests. Studies have shown that children whose parents are directly involved in their education are more apt to excel in academics. Indeed, a home-schooled child is aware of the dedication of his parents to his educational success.

In addition to this, extended periods of time together strengthen family relationships, not only between the child and his parents, but also with his siblings. As they get to know each other, the family members form bonds that last a lifetime. Children tend to adopt the behaviors and values of those around whom they spend the majority of their time. Therefore, it stands to reason that home-schooled children are more likely than their classroom-schooled peers to value the views of their families over the views of their friends. They will find it easier to resist the pressure they get from their friends to break rules because they won't be spending hours of idle time together.

A home schooler's social experiences tend to be more positively influenced; they have the opportunity to spend time with children and adults of various ages, rather than thirty or more same-age peers.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of the many advantages of home schooling, but just because the benefits seem to outweigh the disadvantages does not mean that home schooling is for everyone.

There is more than one way for parents to educate their children; we should not assume that home schooling is right for every family in every situation. 

Taken from : all about parenting site


XOXO
S.R

Home Schooling life the first year

It's been just over a year since we moved to Shanghai. And that's means that I almost be a full time homeschool mom for a year! Wow.... I never thought I'm gonna make it . A lot of people commented to me : wow, you are great, you got  a lot of patience. Well .. the truth is I am not great and I am not patience at all :D
So how do I survive?

There was ups and downs just like any other thing ( like in LIFE?) and sometimes I felt lost and frustrated , and even thinking to give up. But again.. like in LIFE .. we need to find a good support system , positive surrounding and attitudes .

When I feel like I'm not up to it, I search the "sparks" back by reading a lot about home school, about curriculum, stories from other moms etc.

The other"most popular" comment is : how do you manage your time? Well , home schooling or  not, home maker or professional worker, we all need to have a good time management, don't you think? What also what I like to call " Self Discipline" . It is not easy to do, that is for sure. But I try my best to have a " reasonable " time management. I am not good to stick to  a schedule   ( just like  I m not good to commit my self to the gym) so I do the "give and take" not to strict but " do-able".

This year, Indy will use new curriculum, literature based ( some are online ) and I could get some of the literature books locally ( YAY!) . And I think this gonna be another great schooling year with a lots of ups and down ( hopefully more ups !). We are using Moving Beyond the Page.

And I think I m gonna buy this book ( a great review) , and it is not just for home schooling students ! ^ _^

Again..Happy New Year!

Another Project

While this  mini stationary station  can't be compare to school's or tuition center supplies, I think this is enough for our small family. The goal is to be able to have a group work with 6 kids without having to wait for turn for scissor, markers, crayon ,glue, tapes etc.

I always like to have my girl's friends over and for them to do some "project" or art n crafts time.  When I was young , I remember, I can always bring my friends home and do something in my parent's  tiny and messy house. My mom was always so friendly too with my friends. And that is something I'll always cherish until today. And I want my girls to remember me the same way. :)


To live in a house instead of an apartment sure will help a lot with out hospitality ability, but that doesn't only depends on the size of the house. We need to be more creative :)

Hey... it is another long weekend here in China ( 1st October is China National day) and we got our schedule ready!

XOXO

S.R

Education = Gardening

A great article for any parents. We should not just take care of the "plants" but also the soil and the environment. I like the way he said : the organic plants /garden may  grow slower but healthier while those who use chemical fertilizer and pesticide the plants could look better, greener , healthier but not good in  the long run!

Well ... happy reading, hope this will inspire you! :)

Organic Learning
Billy Greer

Unschooling is sometimes referred to as an "organic" approach to learning. Some people wonder about this application of the term and may think it refers to a "natural" approach as in organic gardening where artificial fertilizers and pesticides are not used. Actually, I believe the term refers more to a "holistic" approach in which the entire organism is considered and not just individual components. The same can be said for organic gardening; it just happens that this also tends to be a more natural approach. If you are new to unschooling, or have doubts about how it can really work, I can think of no better way to learn more than to try your hand at organic gardening. I find the similarities to be amazing and the results of both to be very rewarding.
Most people think of organic gardening as similar to regular gardening except that you don't use pesticides and you don't use fertilizers. People that try this approach frequently see their plants consumed by insects or wilting from lack of nourishment. They'll tell you that it sounds nice on paper but just doesn't work in real life. These are people who have seen and tried a few techniques from an organic approach but failed because they did not realize that an overall system is needed. You cannot expect success if you only adopt a few of the techniques.
Any experienced organic gardener will tell you that the key to success is to build a strong foundation, which means to take good care of the soil, not just the plants. Before you worry about growing healthy plants, you need to properly prepare the soil. There is no single way to do this because conditions vary from location to location, so first it is important to understand what you have. Go out and work with your soil. As you dig in it and feel it, you get a sense for whether it is hard and compacted or rich and loamy. By observing the types of plants already growing in the area you can also learn about the pH of the soil and mineral content. You can also buy kits that will help you determine what type of soil you have. Once you've done your homework, you can finally start doing some of the real work.
So, now you dig and loosen the soil and work in the compost, manure, limestone and other amendments that you have determined you need. It's not true that organic gardeners do not use fertilizers. They just don't use chemical fertilizers, so most of what you add will be more similar to what nature would add and will be slower to breakdown and slower to be absorbed by the plants than their chemical counterparts.
Now you've gotten your soil off to a good start, and you're ready to start planting. Your plants should be germinated in a very protected environment. The potting soil should be sterile. You carefully control the conditions to allow the plants to get a good, healthy start. Before you transplant them, you gradually expose them to outside conditions, giving them a chance to adapt. When they are ready, you put them in the soil you have prepared.
These plants have been given a good healthy start, and the soil has been well prepared. You will now find that they need less maintenance. They will grow deeper root systems and need less watering or fertilizing. Their health will make them more resistant to insects or weather. Their vigorous growth will crowd out weeds. Every year, as you nourish the soil, the plants will do better as they grow stronger, the roots spread deeper, and the soil continues to improve.
With a more conventional approach to gardening, you might get better results initially but not in the long run. Your neighbor uses a chemical fertilizer, and a few days later the plants are noticeably greener and growing faster. He waters them daily, and they stay green and lush even during the hottest days of summer. At the first sign of bugs, he breaks out the pesticides and sprays everything. That first year he may actually have bragging rights to the biggest and best looking vegetables. He constantly tends to the garden and seems to get great results. But if he continues gardening the same way for many years, he may start having problems. That rapid growth encouraged by his fertilizers may deplete the soil of necessary nutrients. Some are trace elements and things we don't really know about. Chemical fertilizers only provide the major elements required by the plants and do not replace many other nutrients. If overused, they can even leave behind mineral salts that can poison the soil.
The pesticides he has applied have successfully gotten rid of many pests, but have also killed lots of beneficial insects. Bacteria and other beneficial soil organisms may be killed. That means your neighbor has fewer earthworms working to improve his soil. Perhaps there are fewer bees or butterflies to help pollinate the plants. Fertilizer and pesticide runoff may also pollute nearby waters decreasing fish and frogs that would eat insects and their larvae.
Face it. Your neighbor has developed a system that may have gotten faster results initially, but requires constant attention and the application of expensive products. The plants are dependent on that attention and care, and are not capable of surviving well without it. Just look at what happens if he goes on vacation for a while, or moves away and someone with less time and money moves in to his house. The constant watering that produced such lush growth also produced shallow roots. Miss one watering during a hot spell and you can watch everything wither and die. The fertilizers can cause the problems mentioned earlier, but without them the soil cannot support the plants. Miss a couple of applications and the plants start to become sickly. This gardener has concentrated on raising plants instead of a garden.
On the other hand, you invested much more time and did more work initially with your organic garden. You focused on feeding the soil, not the plants. You made decisions based on the overall effect on the garden, not just the plants. Therefore, you did not indiscriminately apply pesticides to get rid of a few pesky insects. As a result, you had healthy soil bacteria and worms working to make your soil even better. Your garden may have gotten off to a slower start, but it improves every year. Since your plants were not artificially fed and watered constantly, they have developed deep root systems that help them find the nourishment they need. They are much more self sufficient and to not require constant care.
Thinking unschoolers do nothing with their kids is equivalent to thinking organic gardeners just throw a handful of seeds into the yard and expect a garden to grow. In actuality, both invest most of their effort into properly preparing the environment to encourage proper growth. If you worry that homeschooled kids are too protected and need to be exposed to the real world, would you also recommend transplanting tender seedlings to the garden before the last frost? Isn't it ironic that the plants that are the most carefully nurtured and protected initially before being gradually exposed to the outdoors tend to become the strongest, healthiest plants, while those that are thrust outdoors too soon often never recover?
Sometimes I see our home environment as the garden and our children as the plants; other times I see our children as the garden and knowledge as the plants. Each perspective has its merits. In either case, one of our goals is to produce self-sufficient learners with deep, strong roots to acquire their own knowledge and to provide a solid base for continued future growth.
Copyright 2003 Billy Greer

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Billy Greer and his wife, Nancy, are publishers of the FUN Books Catalog of books, games, and other materials to help parents in their efforts to produce life-long learners.
They also sponsor The Family Unschoolers Network, which provides support for unschooling, homeschooling, and self-directed learning.

Psalm 24

As for the first Bible memory verses this new year with Sonlight, here is what Indy can sing   ( from the CD : Sing the World, God our provider, Children's Scripture Songs from Harrow Family. A beautiful songs.)

First I thought : how can she manage to memorize all of this? Well ,never under estimate your child and the important is she memorized it with joy and pleasure and I don't even need to force her . ( Ma, today I haven't listen to the bible song yet! )YAY!

Psalm 24

Of David. A psalm.

 ¹ The earth is the LORD's, and fullness there of,
       the world, and those  who dwell there in ;  ² for he founded it upon the seas
       and established it upon the waters.
 ³ Who may ascend the hill of the LORD ?
       Who may stand in his holy place?
 ⁴ He who has clean hands and a pure heart,
       who does not lift up his soul to what it false
       or does not swear deceitfully. ^[a]
 5 He will receive blessing from the LORD
       and vindication from God of his Salvation.
 ⁶ Such is the generation of those who seek him,
       who seek your face, O God of Jacob. ^[b]
       Selah
 ⁷ Lift up your heads, O you gates;
       be lifted up, you ancient doors,
       that the King of glory may come in.
 ⁸ Who is this King of glory?
       The LORD strong and mighty,
       the LORD mighty in battle.
 ⁹ Lift up your heads, O you gates;
       lift them up, you ancient doors,
       that the King of glory may come in.
 ¹⁰ Who is he, this King of glory?
       The LORD Almighty—
       he is the King of glory.
       Selah

How to develop character in your children—and still get the laundry done...by Laura Lee Ellis

Found this in Sonlight website see the full article here , below I will post some of the highlight. As many of you know, Characters building is very important . As It also  help me to act more wisely for my children's sake. In this days I saw many adults made a doubtful choices in life, who doesn't dare to take risk or have the courage to stand up for themselves. I want my kids to start to practice to make a wise choice in life with all the consequences and responsibilities without any " cane spanking" needed ( imagine how to spank our 25 years old kid so he will to go to find job instead of just playing games or worst : gambling? Or will cane spanking works when a kid choose DRUGS ? I don't think Iron spanking will work either!)

Children is the mirror of their parents. Simplest example : how can you ask your kids to eat green veggie or not to be a picky eater while yourself  don't eat veggie and a picky eater yourself? Or ask your kids to eat healthy food while the parents binged on Chips and Coke on daily basis? Be real....

I just want to share this articles here by Laura Lee Ellis and hope you enjoy it!

You have a vision for the kind of people you want your children to become...but then life happens. Dinner must appear; the laundry pile grows; toddlers demand attention. How do you successfully instill character in your children as a natural part of your life?

Character is caught, not taught.

Your children are watching. Parents often underestimate the power of a living example. When you make right choices in front of your children and explain why you make certain choices, they are more likely to act in a similar way when they face difficult situations.

Thought-provoking literature and discussion make life-lessons memorable.

Conversations with your children form the foundation for their character. As a homeschool parent, you have a unique opportunity to experience life with your children and to spark discussion about topics that matter.
Books can serve as great conversation starters. Every good story has conflict—use the ethical dilemmas in good books to help your child learn how to make right choices.

Help your children experience character in context—a key aspect of life, not a chore to complete.

You can be sure your family will encounter countless opportunities to grow in character naturally as you read and talk about thought-provoking books. You don’t have to tack on a character-based checklist in addition to the studies you and your children already do. Be efficient!

Simple ideas you can try today to help your child develop character...

Talk with your children about the books you read.
Ask questions to help them think critically:

• What would you have done in this situation?
• What kind of consequences do you think could come with this character’s actions?
• How do you think this character showed bravery (or kindness, or honesty, etc.)?

Work together while you talk
My mom and I engaged in some of our best conversations while we dried dishes or weeded the flower bed. The work gave our hands something to do while our minds, mouths and hearts took over! Encourage your children to work alongside you. You’ll help them develop a good work ethic, and grow together through your discussions.

Affirm right choices
Do you find you focus only on the situations where your child disobeys? Be sure to affirm the right choices they make as well. When your children faithfully obey, let them know how proud you are. When they give you an honest answer when they’re in trouble, follow through on discipline, but reward their honesty. As a parent, you know your child best. Tailor your responses in a way that will help them grow.

Enjoy these days with your children and come and share in the Sonlight community.

Make the most of your own example, intentional discussions, great literature, and everyday experiences to help your children blossom into confident people of character. Feel free to explore Sonlight and find out more ways we seek to help you and your family grow and learn together.

Kindness counts!

If in the public/private school , there are moral or religion subject for the students to learn about being kind.

In the Sonlight curriculum for 2nd grader , we use the bookThe Aesop for children ( apart from the Bible) It has many wonderful classic stories and Indy is enjoying the stories a lot.

There are some of the  morals that we learnt:

Do not let anything turn you from your purpose( The wolf and the kid)
Foolish curiosity and vanity often lead to misfortune ( The tortoise and the ducks)
Do not tell others how to act unless you can set a good example( The young crab and his mother)
Do not attempt the impossible( The Frogs and the Ox)
It is one thing to say something should be done , but quite a different matter to do it ( Belling the cat)
Self help is the best help . Heaven helps those who help themselves ( Hercules and the wagoner)
Poverty with security is better than plenty in the midst of  fear and uncertainty ( The town mouse and the country mouse)
In unity is strength ( The bundle of sticks)
They complain most who suffer least ( The oxen and the wheels)
A kindness is never wasted ( The lion and the mouse)

It is most rewarding when I can spend time with my girls and learn those beautiful wisdom bits together , it reminds me of our adult life. Many adults and even my self , sometimes forget the most simple things.

We often choose to be nice to only certain people, to people who we like, and refused to be kind to those we don't like. But like it said :  A Kindness is never wasted. In the story the  mighty lion would never imagine that one day he will be saved by the tiny mouse !

And other books that we have read together is the Red Sails to Capri. It is a great classic book about the discovery of the Blue Grotto in Capri , Italy. What a coincidence that the first book we read from the curriculum was about Italy! The books tell the story of 4 men looking for : adventure, peace, beauty and knowledge.
And this , I agree. Life is adventure it self, but we must look the beauty in it , sometimes , it lays in front of our eyes but our heart is closed and can't see the beauty in life, and we must find peace and of course knowledge too.

Right now we are reading the second book on the list : The Ginger Pyes .
It remind Indy to Zeina and Bull. :) but she loves the story !

Have a great and healthy week !

Her "classroom"

 

We use our study room as her classroom , it is small, and filled with (soon to be here) my main PC, my dh' s books  , and alot of her books and Maya books and art n craft items too.

Picture 1 shows her books to study for today. It is mostly about 2 pages each book .

This week topic would be about : Abraham, Jacob, and Esau for bible reading.
History/Social Studies: Early civilization , Egypt, invention of writing, daily life, people of the Middle East. Geography : Egypt, Nile river, Indus river, Mesopotamia, Sumer, Iraq, and Omen.Scince: elephants, camels, kangaroos, bats,sloth and anteaters.
Language art : suffix, action words, similes and descriptions.

Picture 2 , showing her blank map and  markable map.
She knows where is Jakarta, Torino,  Kota Kinabalu, and Shanghai to began with .

Picture 3 : one of her favorite reading book : Titanic  lost and found.  ( I wish I read this one as a child so I will enjoy Di caprio more in the movie !! :P )

Have a active week a head and burn those "holiday" fat !! :P

What I 'd never imagine

What I'd never imagine or thought I would become is to be  a homeschool mom. I never see my self as person who can teach or have the patience to do so.

As people say sometimes to do something we need to be thrown to the situation where we do not have other option   but at the end we will benefit from that.

For example : 12 years ago if  I hadn't meet husband and married to him soon after, I wont be able to converse in Italian and because I want to communicate with my inlaws so I learn the language.And 8 years ago if I hadn't move to China, I will still can not speak or read some Mandarin. The situation forced me too. And I am glad that I learnt it. It is a valuable skill. And if I hadn't move to Sabah  I might not even started my online store.  And now if I hadn't move to China again,I wont get the kick to start to really home school Indy.

As I mentioned I took the sonlight core 1+2 for Indy. And we are just started. But it is a wonderfull experience for us. I mean US in the meaning of my husband, me , Indy and even Maya. For me and Indy we are learning a great deal about bible , history ( for the moment we are learning about stone age era, and the oldest town ever found ( Jericho), and soon we will learn about the first great civilitation and the mesopotamia), Geography , we are learning about continents and ocean, Indy can named all of it !!  And soon we will learn about Middle East,Science we are learning about apes, tigers , rhino, giraffes.
Even my husband is reading one of Indy's book the history . And Maya is also "learning" about South East Asia. She can sing : in south east asia there is malaysia, laos and burma.....and indonesia.... :) ok it is not all complete but she managed to name a few :)

We are learning a great deal together , and the priceless is the experience to learn as a family, Which I think is great.

Indy is also learning about language art, Math, and some other skills later on ( like being reporter, writer etc).

One of the book that I like is the window on the world. It tells about the other groups of people around the world. About homeless kids, gypsies, kids in Sunda, Kids in Iran etc. This is a great stuffs to learn, to be less selfish , to appreciate other race, other culture, other people. To teach them to be less ignorant ( I must admit I saw many ignorant adult that only know about them them them , their state, their city, their country but when they go out side they are just so blur and know nothing  and even some are ehm .....rather racist if I might say... they like to linked certain race to certain negative image, my own experience I heard one kid when being introduce to a lady from a country , the kid said oh my parents said the people from there are not nice  and like to steal !! OUCH.... )

Other good thing about homeschool is that Indy got free time to help me with the chores. And it is important to let them learn the basic skills even it looks so simple like: make her bed wash dishes, water the plant, feed the fish or manage her allowance. 

Also she has a lot of books to read in part of reading /language program,And Indy reading skills has improved a great deal. She can read real good. For some parents  it might be nothing, but for us, her improvement is really significant and make us proud.

One of the most important thing is that Indy asked me everyday can she read more books, doing more works on her science workbooks, and she even read bible on her own, and love to memorize the bible verses. All without being chased with cane or rotan!! Thanks God to that.... I do believe if she wants to learn it by her self she will excell in anything she learn.( this rules applies to anyone including adults!)

Anyway , this is just the beginning of a journey and I hope it will turn out well.I will update again about it . And I even have a crazy idea to homeschooled Maya when she will be six ! ahahah.... I got the books already , and will have the experience, and I know the kids are enjoying the process of learning as well as the materials.....so... why not?

Homeschool Chinese New Year Party

who said just because she is home schooled her social life will be boring? Thanks to the support group here, she is just have much active social life and celebration like other children in the public school. And yes even Maya is joining in!!

The group has arranged the party in the community center restaurant and we paid a small renting fee for the place , like MYR 7 per family! And each parents bring foods or drink, some volunteer for any CNY related activities and these moms are so creative. The children had a blast!

They got the sing a song activities in Chinese of course wtih the theme :TIGER! Since we are welcoming the ROARING animal. And there the hongbao games with the 12 Chinese animals zodiacs characters, making tiger mask, mandarin oranges finger painting, lantern making ( we all know that Chinese New Year is identical with lantern) , and the last but not least

  FIRECRACKERS!!!!

The food also consist some of the Chinese traditional food like dumplings, mandarin oranges, spring rolls etc

Sorry for the messy arrangement of the photos

GONG XI FA CAI!!! XIN NIAN KUAI LE!!!!

Sandra .... the one who homeschooled her girl?

Yes.... so I am back to the " expat" socialisation here. We got to known by names , husband' names or nationality,  by our living area or face features ( X the one with glasses, L the one that lives in PPP compound, K that married to the Japanese and so on)... but I think... now I will be known by Sandra the one that homeshooled her girl. ^_^

I see it as a positive sign. I knew that sometimes I am known by : S the Indonesian lady, S that married to the chef or to the Italian, or S that lives in bla bla bla..... and I just add one more title to  my self. And I think I like it ! ;)

So far, the reactions I got is turning to be positive. Some will asked me what is the schedule  or where do I get the curriculum from, and some said that is great because we can have vacation any time we want, no need to be fixed by the school holidays.

Some will be concern about the socialisation. But I said, in general case, HS kids won't have social problem, as they are easily adapted  to any situation and pretty easy to mix with children from different background and school. And also most of the HS kids will be more mature in the socialization because they spent more time with adults .

Indy is still at the very early stage, but so far, I've got a lot of compliments from people about her. Mostly are for her manners and independence, but also for her friendlines towards other kids. Her Mandarin tutor mentioned that she is very friendly and fun to be with and is a fast learner too. And she can concentrate during lesson compared to other kids ( that need to be reprimand every now and then to sit on the table to finish the workbook)

Even Maya got some compliments too because she behave good during Church service and during lunch :P

Adios for now

The Homeschooling life

I just started for 2 weeks. So I am the bean sprout ( Tao Ge so  and not Tao Ke so) , so tiny, weak, blur, not sure where to go, what to do..... and yet I enjoy it ( at least until now  haha) . I think with HS my life and Indy's life will be more " interesting" and unusual. And I still want to have my social life going on. So I will need to work on that.
I m not the most social person here, but I would love to meet a friend or two at least once a week over coffee or lunch, or do my nails ( oh I think I saw one nail saloon in my neighborhood so yipee to that)

Yesterday was the first HS meeting for my area of the town . There are 3 HS supporting group here. 2 on the other side of the city ( one is for younger kids and one is for older one) and there is one on my side of the city.  They are mostly Americans with one or 2 British families and one from New Zealand and Canada too.

They've been very welcoming and supporting . And I am sure I will have tons of questions to them.  Some are " veteran" in HS. They homeschooled since forever. And one mom homeschooled 5 kids ! YUP 5!!...

So that is inspiring to me . Very inspiring indeed! I was like a lazy potatoes comparing to them. They are the true super moms. I need to send Maya to pre school, so I can concentrate to HS Indy peacefully. But the good thing is that , well, I think they don't judge me for that. There are other moms too with same situation with me, and need to send the youngest one to pre school. I've been very honest to them and told them that two kids at home is too much for me at the moment, with the changes of everything and HS thing. I just couldn't handle that much at the moment, so the best solution is to send  Maya to preschool. And they said if that best for me than I should do that.No preaching.

The group meeting is once a month.2 hours. The first our is the parents section while the children will enjoy an hour of sport with a coach. Then the next hour  is for the kids' activities. Mainly they will have some theme . Like this time was "show and tell" where the children show an item or two, can be anything. Some show a new digital camera, their lego, buggy board, t-shirt, Indy show her telescope. The next meeting will be for Chinese New Year theme I guess.

The group main purpose is to give encouragement and support to HS parents . And also to share about where to buy things like books, art supplies, and also do co op for buying bulk for books,  and find contact and information about where to find certain activities ( piano lesson, mandarin class, art n craft etc). They will arrange field trips in Spring , parties, and other activities. I think it is great, to not to feel left out of social life just because they are homeschooled.

Oh and don't think that the HS moms have no life, They are still active in bible study, going to gym , doing grocerries and looking great. I wonder how will I do that ? hmm.......

And for Indy's age group, soon there will organize a weekly meeting based, to do some science project as group, or just outdoor activities, or even art and craft sessions. And all are based on parents contributions and ideas. We still need to talk and plan for this one. And Im thinking if I can find on how to make  stimulation of Volcano's erruption from used paper over the internet, that would be fun !! :)

Right now , we are a bit too late to join any class . But in March Indy would love to join some sport's group ( she got Trampoline and Multisports or Gymastic in her mind) , I offered her to join ballet class but she refused. I also asked her if she 'd like to join  Fine Art class or Design and Technology class, to my surprise she choose the design and tech over fine art! This will also start in March ( due to the CNY holiday and we were late to register so better to wait) . The class sound very interesting , they will make 2 projects on each term ( 8 weeks) and they will make Plane( that can fly I think) and Castle ( with tiny details like lights,crane, well etc) so actually it is Science based but in a fun way ! Sounds pretty fun to me!

Right now im still finding our way to do HS that will work best for me and Indy. Balancing time for fun ( and blogging and facebooking too) .

wis me lak

To learn is to change

We are finally in the new house, but our container is still in KK. The house is great, has plenty of storage and since this is a duplex unit, it has 2 floors, we are on the top floor of the building , the 11th floor, and the compound has about 25-30 towers.

It is not in the donwtown , can be considered as the suburb, some said to live in this are like not living in China at all, because we are in the new area. The house still feel " foreign " to me, as  I always need my old stuffs to make me feel at home. Right  now we are using new bedsheet, new plates, new glasses, new this and that. I will need my old bedsheet, old pillowcases, old plates, my old coffee cups ( that hosted many tea time in our home at KK and some of you drank many times from that cups!! :P )

Anyway... we are on "trial" day today, I started the first day of homeschooled Indy. I can't say It runs perfectly today. With new routine, new maid, new house, new place, plus Maya is home..
Everything is different.

But to learn is to change.. and I m willing to change my routine, and change my schedule. Maybe this is the opportunity for me to re discover something about my self that I didn't know before.I am not sure what I will achieve or when. But it is not only the mountain we will need to conquer but ourselves.

Part of that, I also found the school for Maya today. But will only start after Chinese New Year, it will be in Mandarin and no  English. :) I am not sure how she will cope, but I have faith in that wild spirited girl . :)

We have met some old friends, get in touch  by phone. And maybe we will meet one of the Shanghai homeschooler family this week . The girls had their first playdate here, and saw snow for the first time too.

Some how they still miss KK so very much , specially Maya, she still cry when she remember her Kakak Helen in KK. Poor girl and poor woman. They both cried so loud on the phone the other night. Their bonding is very tight and special, and I feel blessed to be able to witness such a great love from 2 strangers at the begining . It is great to know such a great love does exist!!And I will be forever grateful to my maid in KK for her amount of loves she give to my kids. And I will keep in touch with her no matter what.

In this foreign land some how people are more welcoming , at least in the beginning compare to the first time when we just arrived in KK.  No one cares, the company didn't even care or welcoming us. The only  family that made me feel welcome is Indy's best friend family from Burma. They helped and guide me from choosing school and hospital, where to buy some stuffs and all.But of course once I got to know more friends ( like you) I feel like at home and got some great tips about the city or where to shop!! :)

My husband  colleagues are nice enough to hosted a small but nice Christmas party to welcome us to Shanghai.
The thought it self is very heart warming.

That's it for today... I will try to upload photos for next update. Right now I am using my netbook and it is so slow....

Take care and HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010

LOVE from all of  us!!

"Spoon feeding" method??(edited)

Taken from Learning Beyond Schooling page , this morning I found this article:
Which related to my previous post "the cookie cutter"kids

UPSR shows only 5.7 pc of year sixers think critically


PUTRAJAYA, Nov 19 — The education ministry’s first Aptitude Test for Year Six students during their UPSR exams has shown that only 5.7 per cent (29,084 students) out of 509,885 pupils are skilled at problem solving and decision making, and only 34.34 per cent (175,101) in skilled thinking.


Education Director-General Tan Sri Alimuddin Mohd Dom This said today that this indicated that the children needed more training on problem-solving and decision-making.


Speaking at a press conference here today, he explained that the Aptitude Test was divided into two dimensions, namely Skilled Thinking and Problem Solving and Decision-Making .


Alimuddin said a student’s aptitude level was then categorised from Band One (lowest skilled) to Band Four (highest skilled).


The test results have found that when it comes to problem solving and decision making, the majority of Year Six students which is 47.71 per cent (243,258 students) remained in Band Two, followed by 28.24 per cent (143,971 students) in Band Three and 18.35 per cent (93,572 students) in Band One.


On the other hand, the majority of Skilled Thinking students lies in Band Three at 41.04 per cent (209,244 students), followed by 20.71 per cent (105,580 students) in Band Two and 3.91 per cent (19,960) in Band One.


The test also categorised a student’s interest into Academic, Technical and Vocational, Arts, Sports and Culture and Society, ranking them from One (primary interest) to Five (least interest).


There is a 39.31 per cent high tendency of candidates towards the academic, followed by technical and vocational (29.25 per cent), arts (19.26 per cent), culture and social (9.72 per cent) and sport (2.57 per cent). — Bernama




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Problem solving and decisions making skill is crucial for the children education. If they can do very well in math and english, but , in real life , they can't make  a simple decision on what to draw or what to extra class to choose from, those good grades won't help much.  Speaking of which, that is why I always try to ask my girls on the "most stupid" or most simple things like what do you want to drink? what do you want to do later?
what do you want to read? That doesn't mean I will or must give whatever they asked for. But it will make them use to " choices" and "option" in life. And how important is it to make a good option in real life as adult. So they don't often choose the wrong way. ( and trust me in decision making , forcing them with cane wont help but will make it worse! Try to use cane for teenager, what they will do behind the parents back are even more scary!)


Recently, when I browsed for apartments in Shanghai, I always involve the girls. I showed them the photos, make them excited , to " see" their new " house" . And I asked " which one do you like?" that doesn't mean we will choose what they like. But it is more into the involving part, to show them that their opinions ( as silly or small is it) count! And just to keep the conversation and make them speak up their opinion. Indy said she like those with the white sofa, and big windows and jacuzzi ( it is far beyond our budget!!!) but it is nice to "dig" her interest, and listen to her opinion. Maya just said : nice! nice! I like that, and that, that, and that. Got playground ah? :P


Same thing when I prepared their birthday party, I always asked and let them look at the picture of cakes,and asked : which one do you like? what kind of cake do you want to have? Cupcake or Cake? But they didn't always get what they want. We discussed , sometimes if  the cake is big and if we do not have enough guests then I suggest them to change to smaller version or other type. Normally they are ok with it. And this is also teach them to be able to discuss and compromise with others, to be able to accept other different opinion too. To learn that sometimes they can't just get thing they way they want.


Spoon feeding method is just like forcing a kid to eat and swallow whatever the teacher prepare without the right to know or ask what is in the spoon. And like if parents don't give the children a freedom to talk, and to share their opinion.  They are not trained to ask questions, or think outside the box , and be creative. Will this do any good for our children in the future? But we as parents still can do something with the way we educate our children at home. Allow them a bit of freedom to talk, to ask, to give opinion, make decision, to teach them that they have the options in life, teach them about  the responsibility and the consequences  of their acts.

The" cookie cutter" kid??

As we are busy packing ( kinda) and browsing the potential areas in Shanghai to live , contacting freight forwarder companies for more quotation to send all of our belongings to Shanghai. I am also busy searching for more information in the "homeschooling" part.

The cost of International school in China is unbelievable high ( talk about around USD 26k./year)  for primary/grade school. Not that we must enroll our girl to International School, her Mandarin is not that good to follow the local school, and the semi international or bi lingual are not cheap too!

And since we are moving in the middle of the school year in China, so we think, it is better to homeschool-ed Indy first. And yes, I am fortunate, that my dh is ( again) agree with this. He was clueless about  homeschool before. But I made him have a better view on this. And we even ordered the books and browsing the curriculum together. And he even want to know more about the progress chart or the daily study schedule for Indy , so just in case I am sick or not available , he can "teach" Indy too! ahaha.. good one!

As Cel recommend me and enlightened me with lots of homeschool stuffs, I am more sure that, we made a good decision to do this. More than that, in a forum I joined, I read many parents are concern about the general school quality . And not every family can afford to pay USD 26k per kid/year. ( and that doesn't mean your kid will get the "best" learning experience).

One sentence that struck me :
The typical Asian students are  the"sweet cookie cutter": They are good  in Math and Science, but lack in communicating and critical thinking . They are smart and hard working (thanks to tons of homeworks) but not particulatry creative or bold. 

This reminds me of my recent trip back to Jakarta. I saw so many " molded people ( adults)" . They are just bland, similar to one another, closed minded , the "stereo type " kind of people.

Actually, I am not in doubt  too,  Can I  really do homeschooling with my girl? am I going to be a great" teacher"?, do I have enough patience to do it ? how can I find the time? What about my social life? Will I be stuck with my children 24/7? How if I get tired? Will I be discipline enough? Will my kids listen to me?  And the list is keep going on and on...

Our short term goal is just to home school for temporary. If we think we can't do it, we will enroll her into a regular school next September. But if we are comfortable of doing it , then , finger crossed, we will keep it that way.

Another good point I read from the forum:
Who will read your primary/grades school report when you are applying job? really ,who cares about that?


Point taken. I must agree. I know primary is the based , the foundation . But which school are you going, how much you pay for it, wont affect much of your C.V when you will apply for your first job.

If we can home school for the primary years, then go into a good school for high school and college or university, I think that will work too!

And , those books in sonlight are just so tempting. I would love to read and learn about it again! Some of the books/subjects in history for 7-9 years old will include:

• Mesopotamia and the first city-states
• Egypt, Crete, the Jewish people and Canaan
• The Greeks, Mycenaeans, Trojans, and Spartans
• Rome and Assyria
• The rise of Islam

 I think the subjects are much more interesting than what the normal ( chinese in my case) school would have offer. They even got some classic story to read, while in government schools ( I am now talking about Indonesian, Malaysian , and Chinese schools)  I don't think to read some great classic books is on the curriculum list!

So , keep my finger crossed, and wish me luck. I think moving to Shanghai is the "kick" I need to finally home schooled our  7 years old!

How about the "isolated" and not being able to socialize concern over home schooling kids?

"....conventional schools offer "socialization" through peer pressure, the stress of choosing between popularity and academic performance, and excessive attention to appearance."

Rachel Gathercole (The Well-Adjusted Child: The Social Benefits of Homeschooling)


That gave me a encouragement too. Beside, there will be a wonderful support groups for homeschooling in Shanghai and there are tons of activities to join.  


I know the road we are going to take is not gonna be easy one. We might fail , we might succeed, there will be a lot if hiccups, we will face a lot of down hills, we must be ready for bumpy ride and stormy weather. But hey.. at least I have the guts to try... and the passion to support it.  What's about that for now? And the rest will follow ( hopefully ) ^_^


have a great weekend peeps!