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Show B1 Wednesday, September 3, 2003 Vernal Express Community Calendar 3 September School begins at the kitchen table Parents, children grow from choice to home school Uintah Basin Energy Days. Deadline for RSVP for Daggett District Conservation Soil Conservation Tour, Saturday, Sept. 6, 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. RSVP Lesa Carol 3222, Asay, 435-78- 4 Gardiner. Registration for all classes at 6 the Powerhouse, p.m. For 1 1440. 78 information. Uintah School of Music and 8 Arts open enrollment. Sept. 2-a.m. to 5 p.m. For information 2 or call Angela, 2-- -- by Maureen Spencer Express Writer 5, A Vernal group of mothers and children met to talk about their experiences in the growing trend to teach school in their own homes. The women had shared details of successes and frustrations that they had experienced with children in the public school system. But, to the last woman, they unanimously agreed that the public educational system teachers had been caring, successful and hard working. Home teaching mother, Tiffney Doffelmire, who still works with the PTA in a public school, used the 789-835- 12:30. Alive After Five free public concerts, concessions at Cobble Rock Park, beginning at 6 p.m. Basin Symphony rehearsals, 7 p.m., Vernal Middle School Band Room. Jean Voyles, words most frequently heard, 789-286- first grade. Isamauree Andersonrpiays the old mouse in the home school night of drama, Who Will Bell the Cat" , an Aesops fable. rT , v Giovannis home school science fair project was learning about seeds ( kamberli Anderson, 8," has pushed her reading level two grades above her public grade. jumped a grade ahead at home school, and likes getting out lier each day. Its fun to see ear- the kids excited about learning, she says. When students are at home, mothers told me, they can push ahead faster and farther on their own, frequently advancing past public school grade levels. When the child is having problems in a subject, the work can slow down in that one students work until the subject is understood. Cindy Cingell no longer expects others to educate her children. I take full responsibility for their learning myself. ment to play in a school band. He likes not having to wait for other students, and to work at his own pace. imagination. Learning becomes an adventure, not something they have" to do, Dabra Anderson says. She also has observed that the excitement to learn then snowballs into other areas. Children will learn about something and begin wanting to know how that relates to other things. With home schooling, the directions can be changed when an interest emerges. Manwaring adds another element to the reasons she has her children being taught at home. I love my children so much, she says, that I want to have them with me. A murmer of agreement ripples around the circle. And then she introduces another aspect of home education as she explains that some of her children have chosen to attend public school for a year or more, and some have chosen to stay at home school. The decision is always the child's and they have always returned home. Others in the group say that some of their children are in public school for particular subjects that their children might want or need. Dual enrollment was a concept that surprised me. attends art classOne es, choir or drama at the Junior High for two hours a day. The schools test these students for placement so that they can round out their individual interests with public school attendance. Then the issue of homework emerges. Mothers agreed that to have their children away from home most of the day between school and travel time, only to spend evenings with homework, left no family time. Which brought up another interesting aspect of home schixd. Some families have children who like to regularly sleep in." Ollier children are so organized and corn- - keeping for honey. are other Boy Scouts and ways home schtxils broaden learn4-- H Adults pool talents and teach foreign languages, for all ages of students. Italian is a current interest for some of the students. A closing question brought a variety of answers. Just when, they were asked, with the deep level of commitment to their childs learning, do they have time for themselves. A few chuckled "never, which seemed to be a very normal answer for the mother of any group of four to six toddler to high schixil-age- d children. But again another surprise. One mother began by saying that she has plenty of time for herself. She found herself much more organi:xd. Another says that with the children at home they get up and start doing their chores. There are times when they are all reading together for an hour, Everything is quiet and she finds time that she can use however she wants. The children are through with their studies by early afteriuxm, she continued, and then play with their siblings and their friends, and there is more time for her to do whatever she needs or wants to do. A mother interjects that teaching her children to cook, clean and organize so that they can be self sustaining adults, is an important part of educating a child. The rewards of putting emphasis on this type of activity is that in addition to having more responsible children, she has much more free time herself. completed so he can spend more afternoon time to do what he enjoys. milled to the element of personal choice in home school, that they are up at 5 or 6 a.m. preparing for the studies of the day. The same work is required from each child, but there is freedom to choose when to do school. When the days work is completed the rest of the day is open for individual entertainment, with the acceptance of play as an important part of the learning and socializing experience. Many area home school families join for group activities through the school year. This month they will go to Clark Planetarium in Salt Lake City. They have gone cave exploring. They swim on Tuesdays. Fridays, they learn sports. This year there will be a choir to teach choral parts. Teen nights for those 12 and older are held. Frequent game activities and service projects are held. There is an annual history fair and a science fair. They hope to travel to Salt Lake City at the end of the sch(x)l year to visit the KSL studio. Cathedral of the Madeleine, and the state capitol. The students will attend a County Commission meeting, learn gardening skills and how to develop bee Another mother recalls the previous year when nearly two hours a day was spent on the road rides for children to school and added a couple of hours in the classrooms each week helping teachers. Compared to that rigorous schedule, home schooling is saving her time. The educational backgrounds of these women vary from high schixil graduates, to university education majors. Their husbands, who are a big part of their childrens education, also, share this diversity of education. According to a study produced by the U.S. Department of liducation, released the summer of 2001, d children had an average reading score of 87 percentile, while public schixil average reading scores were 61 percentile. The same study showed the average home school math percentile at 82, and the public school math percentile was 60. Other studies show that home schixjl students are outscoring public sclxxiled children on SATs and college entrance exams by 30 percentile points. The longer they have home schixiled, the higher they score. Home schixiled children are in an average of 5.1 more activities a week than their public schixiled peers. Considering the amount of commitment and dedication to the children at home that was seen in this group of Vernal parents, their closing comments deserve repeating. Home schooling is not for home-schoole- September He is now in third grade math and sixth grade reading. ing. 1 COPY 7. aiTKatMrsorrsnaciiff'ttOi m jeans and all. 0. September 4 Uintah Basin Energy Days. TOPS meets in Conference Room of Vernal City Building 1 1 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Gwen Peterson, Open House 11:30 to d, excellent teachers. They also ended the time together with one very sobering consideration-home schooling is not for everyone. So what is it that brings parents to the unique decision that their children will be better served remaining at home, with a parent teaching them the full range of educational subjects and without the social interaction of dozens of peers? The answers came throughout conversations, and were in ways special to each family, and yet resonant with threads of similarity. Parents felt that the individual needs of a child were not met within the existing educational framework, and the student was bored and frustrated with going to school. Others felt the change from neighborhood schools in the district prevents sibling and neighborhood long-terbonding friendships. Some parents found that the solution offered frequently was simply more homework to challenge a gifted student, and felt the additional homework was not a challenge but a punishmeftt , t Others had children with medical that could not be problems addressed or medicated on an as basis while at school, needed which necessitated parents to constantly be on call for a child to let them know they needed medication. Timidity of some children had caused them to not tell teachers when they needed a call for needed medication. Often, if one child had been brought home for home schooling, the siblings could see the bond developing between parent and the child and the advantages of being at home and requested to be permitted to join them at home school. Home schooling parents feel that learning is continual and that there are many ways to be learning, not just in the order of when and how the teacher directs things be learned. Susan Manwaring, a long-tim- e home school parent, shared the experience of one of her sons who became fascinated with Einstein. She says she had no knowledge about this intellectual legend, but she kept exposing her son to other sources and those who could help. She felt the same commitment if a 789-975- 781-287- 5 Free day at Vernal Landfill. Community dance at Golden Age Center, 155 South 100 West, 8:30 -- 10:30 every Friday night. All welcome. Kays Band provides the music. Closing date for Uintah School of Music and Arts open enrollment. 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. For infor2 or mation call Angela, 781-287- 789-975- 0. September 6 Free day at Vernal Landfill. Kings Peak Uintah District Cub Scout leaders pow-woKim Hicken 722 3430. Daggett Soil Conservation District Conservation Tour, 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. September 3-- 7 Classic Sheepdog Championship Trials. Regional LDS Womens Conference, Maeser Stake Center, 10 a.m.- - noon. Mary Ellen Edmonds and Sandra Rogers to Meeker speak. September 8 Have a heart Vernal community blood drive. Western Park 4 p.m. Photo ID required. 1 September 9 Ashley Valley Medical Center and Cancer Support Network present For Better Bone Health semre: inar Bones, Healthy Bone Metatasis, Osteoporosis, Breast Cancer, begins at noon. 62 West 200 North, white building north of hospital. Cindy Hancock ext. 287. Uintah Library, County Scrapbtxiking class with The Robins Nest. 6:30-- 8 p.m. New techniques and make and take." Vernal Area Chamber of 1 789-334- 2, Nikkis Commerce, noon, Restaurant. Speaker of the Utah State House of Representatives Marty Stevens. September 10 Ashley Valley Medical Center and Cancer Support Network present For Better Bone Health" seminar re: link between prostate cancer and bone health, Osteoporosis and bone metatasis. Begins at noon. 162 West 200 North, white building north of hospital. Cindy Hancock ext. 287. 789-334- 2, September 11 Kindergarten begins in Uintah School District. TOPS meets in Conference Room of Vernal City Building 1 1 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Gwen Peterson, Open house 11:30 to 789-835- 12:30. Basin Symphony rehearsal 7 p.m., Vernal Middle School Band Room. Jean Voyles, 789-286- To place items of public Interest on the Community Calendar mall to the Vernal Express, P.O. Box 1000, editor (S vimalxom, or call the Vernal Express at 789-351- 1. r m " 'T ' rT 'Til mTiiimwiliW' |