Christmas time is when most families follow some type of tradition. However, 'traditions' are increasingly viewed with skepticism by the mainstream media. The nuclear family is often portrayed simply as a 'campaign of indoctrination by big business and religious conservatives' and any sociology textbook will describe the traditional family as merely an 'idealized concept'. Yet … [Read more...] about Family Traditions: Why baking cookies, snowy walks, and read-alouds matter

"One book that you must most definitely read is 'The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer" was the recommendation I received over a decade ago on a playground as we started on our homeschooling journey. Susan Wise Bauer is regarded by many as the queen bee of homeschooling and 'The Well-Trained Mind' serves as a de facto bible for classically-minded home educators. Susan Wise … [Read more...] about Rethinking School – Susan Wise Bauer – Part I

Please note: this post is the continuation of ‘Weapons of Mass Instruction – Part 2’. The posts are part of my homeschool radio segments on the Richard Syrett Show on Nov. 1st, Nov 8th, and Nov 15th, and Nov 22nd, 2022 (starting generally at around min. 30 to 33) which you can listen to here. Since the beginning of mass schooling, people were generally led to believe that … [Read more...] about Weapons of Mass Instruction – Part 3

Please note: this post is the continuation of 'Weapons of Mass Instruction - Part 1'. The posts are part of my homeschool radio segments on the Richard Syrett Show on Nov. 1st, Nov 8th, and Nov 15th, 2022 which you can listen to here. One can get utterly absorbed in John Taylor Gatto's writings, and some, such as his Underground History of American Education, can seem like … [Read more...] about Weapons of Mass Instruction – Part 2

“Whatever an education is, it should make you a unique individual, not a conformist; it should furnish you with an original spirit with which to tackle the big challenges; it should allow you to find values which will be your roadmap through life; it should make you spiritually rich, a person who loves whatever you are doing, wherever you are, whomever you are with; it should … [Read more...] about Weapons of Mass Instruction – Part 1