Climate Change: The new excuse for a global one-child policy
...None will work unless a China one-child policy is imposed. Unfortunately, there are powerful opponents. Leaders of the world's big fundamentalist religions preach in favor of procreation and fiercely oppose birth control. And most political leaders in emerging economies perpetuate a disastrous Catch-22: Many children (i. e. sons) stave off hardship in the absence of a social safety net or economic development, which, in turn, prevents protections or development.
China has proven that birth restriction is smart policy. Its middle class grows, all its citizens have housing, health care, education and food, and the one out of five human beings who live there are not overpopulating the planet. Read more...
Duggars have 19th child!
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (AP) - An Arkansas couple featured on the reality TV show "18 Kids and Counting" now has 19.
Cable network TLC says 43-year-old Michelle Duggar gave birth to a 1-pound, 6-ounce daughter Thursday night during an emergency cesarean section. She had been due March 18.
TLC says the child is in stable condition in the neonatal intensive care unit for extended care at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences in Little Rock. Read more...
Petitions fight UK home school rules
Dozens of petitions against the Government's plans to bring in registration and monitoring for home-schooled children will be presented to Parliament.
The petitions, containing thousands of signatures, will be handed in by MPs from across the nation.
Under proposals outlined in the Government's home education review, published this summer, parents choosing home schooling will have a legal duty to register with their local council every year.
Councils could be given the right to refuse registration on safeguarding grounds, meaning parents could effectively be banned from home schooling their child if there are fears about the youngster's safety or the quality of their education. Read more...
Homeschooler escapes home to discover real world
A confused teen in ponytails and a pleated school uniform dashes out her front door to discover the strange new world hidden beyond her peephole.
She marvels at the clear blue sky and the sprawling green grass. She had only read about nature in books. She spots a strange contraption along the street and climbs clumsily into a parked car ordering it to move.
After all, Jamie-Grace Harper, 18, has led a sheltered life — she is an escapee from home school. At least, she plays one on TV. Read more...
Carnival of Homeschooling: Christmas Ornament Edition
Welcome to the Christmas Ornament Edition of the Carnival of Homeschooling. If you are new to ‘blog carnivals’, please read the link at the bottom of this post to find out more. This post has many links that take you off-site to other homeschool blogs where you can read their ’showcased’ article submission. If you would like to submit an article for a future carnival or host the carnival on your site, please see the bottom section to find out how. Each carnival writer has the option to put their compilation to a ‘theme’ if they so choose. I always do the themes. It’s a sickness. In the past I have done an Old West carnival, a Bee carnival (of course), an Autumn carnival, a Pregnancy & Child Development carnival, a Homeschool Memories carnival, and here at the post we did an Old Schoolhouse carnival way back when. We hope you will enjoy this ‘issue’ and click over to read the submissions for this week. Read more...
High Court to Hear Case of Girl Ordered Out of Homeschooling
The New Hampshire Supreme Court has agreed to take up the case of a Christian girl who was ordered out of homeschooling and into a public school.
"Courts can settle disputes, but they cannot legitimately order a child into a government-run school on the basis that her religious views need to be mixed with other views. That’s precisely what the lower court admitted it is doing in this case, and that’s where our concern lies,” said Alliance Defense Fund- allied attorney John Anthony Simmons of Hampton. Read more...
Calamity Jack
Calamity Jack is the hero of this engaging graphic novel. Born to "scheme", Jack sets his sights on what he wants and will go for it no matter what the consequences. Unfortunately it seems bad luck follows him. Good intentions he may have, but the end result is not always "ideal". Just like another Jack we've heard about, Calamity Jack buys some magic beans that lead him straight to some cranky giants. Read more...
Twinkle: Star of the Week
In this children's picture book, we meet Twinkle and her fellow star classmates. Yes, they are literal hot balls of gas and they have Ms. Sun as their teacher. When Ms. Sun announces to the class each of the stars will have a turn to be Star of the week, Twinkle had planned to share her favorite star song with the class. Wouldn't you know Blink had his turn before Twinkle and shared the exact same song! Now she has to go back to the drawing board and come up with something else to share. Read more...
The Periodic Table: Elements with Style
Do you find chemistry boring? Do you think that the Periodic Table is a strange kind of dining-room furniture, or that Molybdenum is a meaningless word that the smart kids use to confuse you? If so, The Periodic Table: Elements with Style is a perfect book for you. The book features brief descriptions of 54 of the chemical elements. Read more...
The School Story
Dream of writing a novel? 12-year-old Natalie does, and she goes beyond dreaming – she actually writes one. And, it's good. But the problem any new writer has is how to get it published? Her BFF Zoe and her English teacher Ms. Clayton team up with Natalie to help. Still, the biggest hill to cross is how to get the publisher to read it and not file it away in the "slush" pile. Natalie's mom works as an editor, so Natalie knows how the system works. Read more...
The Thing About Georgie
The thing about Georgie is it's a neat book that puts you in the shoes of Georgie, 10- year-old who's facing quite a few challenges at once. First, there are his physical challenges: he's a dwarf. Next, there is personal conflict. His best friend Andy is becoming buddies with another kid named Russ, and Georgie thinks he's sure to lose his friendship. There's also Jeanie Meanie, a girl who torments him with her sharp tongue and bully behaviors. And the biggest problem is his family. Read more...
The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg
It's the 1860's and Homer and his older brother Harold are orphans stuck with their mean guardian Squint, who neglects them by locking them in the barn and denying them proper nourishment. Then the old coot goes and illegally sells an underage Harold into the Union army. It's up to 12-year-old Homer to find Harold and rescue him from the war. On his journey many an adventure, some good, and some bad delay Homer. Read more...
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science
Phineas Gage, a 19th century railroad construction foreman, survived an accident that blew a 13-pound 3 foot 7inch iron rod through his cheek and out the top of his skull. He should have been dead, but rather he was able to walk, talk, and account his accident to others. His recovery was not unremarkable though, after battling infection and suffering from delirious spells, his convalescence would last several months. Yes, he survived a catastrophic injury, but Phineas would never be the same. Read more...
Raising Real Men: Surviving, Teaching, and Appreciating Boys
As a mom to three active boys, I'm always eager to read what others have to say about raising boys to be men. What better people to take advice from than Hal and Melanie Young, parents to 6 boys (and 2 girls). In their book, Raising Real men, they discuss the intricacies of bringing up boys within a biblical worldview. They address numerous issues, such as boys needing heroes to look up to, leadership, competitiveness, stewardship, manners, and much more. Read more...
Blizzard!
Having grown up in Upstate New York and now living in Western New York, I have grown accustomed to snow. Winters last sometimes 6 months here, and you learn to deal with it. But only a handful of times do I remember experiencing a true blizzard, the kind that closes shopping malls, grocery stores, and schools. In his riveting book, Blizzard, Jim Murphy tells of the infamous blizzard of 1888, where not only towns came to a standstill, but also 600+ people lost their lives. Read more...
When You Reach Me
Twelve-year-old Miranda is living in New York City with her mom, who has just learned she will be a contestant on the 20,000 Pyramid game show (book is set in the 70's). Excitement abounds and Miranda helps her mom prepare for the show with timed quizzes. Miranda is a latch key kid, and when she starts receiving some unusual notes from an unknown person she is intrigued, and a little spooked. Read more...
Frankie: The Walk 'n Roll Dog
In this touching story we meet Frankie, an adorable dachshund who suffered rear leg paralysis after a spinal cord injury. You might think her quality of life would be compromised with such a handicap, but shortly after her injury she became fitted with a harness with wheels, and regains her mobility. Her uplifting and true story is told by her human mom Barb, but it is Frankie's voice. Read more...
Pajama School: Stories From the Life of a Homeschool Graduate
As a homeschooling mom to three boys, Pajama School brought me both sighs of relief and smiles. The author's recollection of her homeschooling days gave me much needed encouragement. After all, don't we sometimes wonder if we are doing the right thing, educating our children at home? What about socialization, team sports, band, the "prom" and high school requirements? Are they missing out? Of course my answer to those questions is a big no, but every once in a while I wonder…. Read more...
Camp Club Girls and the Mystery at Discovery Lake
In The Mystery at Discovery lake, summer camp cabin-mates turned friends Elizabeth, Alexis, Sydney, Mackenzie and Kate team up to investigate first some strange howlings, and then some strange diggings at the adjacent golf course. One of the girls brought with her some neat gadgets such as a robot spy-cam, which proves useful to the novice detectives. When they are not sleuthing around, they are doing regular camp activities such as crafts, horseback riding, and learning Bible memory verses. Read more...
The Make Today Matter Makeover
I wish I were thinner. I need to get back to working out. I have a list of books I'd like to read. I want to break a bad habit. I must get more organized. Sound familiar? All of us have things in our life that we'd like to change. But where do we begin? How do we get from here to there? One resource that may help is the Make Today Matter Makeover: The 26 Best Ways to Recapture Daily Magic, Kick-start High-Energy Living, and Get the Most out of Life. Read more...
On the Edge with Coolhead Luke
Do you enjoy poetry? Then you should like this book. Mother and son team, in which author Jennifer White produced the poems and artist Colin White provided the illustrations, came out with Coolhead Luke and Other Stories in 2007. Cynthia Clarke said this about it on Home School Buzz. “In the introduction the author, Jennifer White, explains that her son’s pictures ‘had a story to tell’ so she found the words and the book was born. Read more...