Rent a textbook, plant a tree!

I'm running around trying to find cheap textbooks for college, and Kevin came across the Chegg.com website. Book rental for the semester! Yay! So we rented a book for Max for the fall and here is the email we received:

Hello Max,

In case you didn't know, you are helping plant 1 tree(s) since you ordered 1 book(s) from Chegg.com!

Share with your friends on Facebook that you planted 1 tree(s).



Is that cool or what! Go ahead - feel good about helping the planet.

Every year, more than 20 million trees are cut to produce books. It gets worse. Only 50% of the tree is used in creating paper for your textbooks. Of course, we need books, so at a minimum, we need to plant what we take out - a little thank you to Mother Nature.

Even though publishers can produce multiple books with one tree, we will plant a tree for every rental since we have a lot of catching up to do. We are partnering with organizations in the US and across the world to have trees planted.

We make every attempt to source used books or books made from recycled paper for your rental to save the environment, while taking care they are in good condition for your use.

So, how cool is that?! Tree planting, recycling, learning, and saving the planet all at once. Yay Chegg! Go now, get your books, plant trees :)

Max is going to COLLEGE!

I'm just a little freaked out, but my baby (my 14 year old baby) is going to college! We've been in the process for about a month now, but he took his placement test on Tuesday. He got into First Year English Comp, so he will do the first semester in a 5 week summer session and the second semester in the 2nd 5 week summer session. We are so psyched! His goal is to finish his Algebra II here at home by the end of the summer, go take the Math placement test and hopefully place in Pre-Calculus and Physics for the Fall Semester.

He is going to slowly work his way up to a full credit load - maybe by Spring, maybe not. He's not the best with deadlines, so this will be a whole new way of thinking for him. Keep him in your thoughts!

My Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

Well, I finished the book last week. I've been so busy, this is the first chance I've had to sit down and write about it. I definitely think that was this was the best book from the fictional story perspective. It was very engaging and difficult to put down. The knowledge imparted however, was just as important as the other two. As a matter of fact, I would suggest that it is important to read them in the order they were written. It doesn't say that anywhere, that you should, but I think there is a natural progression of thoughts.

This book completes the equation of what has gone wrong with our society. Even as I type that, I know it conveys the wrong idea. It's difficult to say what the flavor of these books are because they really are so different from anything else. These were written to open your mind and help you see what our culture really looks like objectively. There are no answers here on how to fix it, just a history of how it got this way and where it's going if it doesn't change. And I think we all know that it's going to H-E-double hockey sticks in a handbasket.

My Ishmael focuses on the areas of business/capitalism and education of our young. Once the simple fact is laid out before you that if food weren't locked up, the world would be an entirely different place; you sort of shudder and say "Why didn't I realize that before?" Really, you must think about that - if food weren't locked up, would you work in a job you hate? would you be trudging through each day of your life? wouldn't your "hobby" actually become your life's work? Why is the food locked up? To benefit a few elite by getting what they want in exchange for the food so desperately needed by all. Sure, it started off small and has escalated into what it is today - 95% of the world's population dependent on commerce in order to live. I think this why Star Trek appeals to me so much. I watch every episode repeatedly, because I love to revel in the fantasy that human beings actually can elevate themselves to the point of eliminating money from the equation. There it is - a technologically advanced (warp drive capable) civilization that runs smoothly without currency. People excel in jobs they love because they are fulfilling their true calling in life and there is no stigma about some jobs being better than others - they are necessary and keep the wheels turning. And their food is given to them as they need it - no hoarding and no cost, freeing the mind to pursue its dreams instead of its survival.

The other topic is the education of our young. Everyone says that school systems need to be overhauled, no matter what country they're in - but the US in particular, definitely. As homeschoolers, we have already figured out that isn't the way to help children thrive. And private school is no better than public, simply more expensive. But here, in this book, homeschooling is also seen as an extension of a structured educational system if it is not unschooling. Four years ago, I would not have seen that as a true statement. These past few years of learning from my children about how they learn best, I have begun to see that unschooling really is the only way for children to learn well and permanently. And to let them learn what they are interested in - forcing boring subjects does not increase learning or make a person well-rounded. And really, why is "well-rounded" absolutely necessary? Look at the picture as a whole, every part of our knowledge will be passed down through generations by people who know it best to the people who want to know about it. Children only retain what's interesting to them, so why waste years trying to cram things in there that won't stick anyway.

The most important lessons learned from these books collectively is that there is no ONE right way to live for all people. This of course is completely contrary to central beliefs of technologically advanced, world power civilizations. I don't want to elaborate more here because I am trying to get you to read these books. You will learn so much more from them than from a summary by me. This shift in thinking can't come about by reading a summary - you have to have all the details, chew on it, swallow it, digest it - then you really know it and understand.

I really believe that if you have strong desire to change the world, you have to start here.

Chronological Schooling

Okay, this idea is from a while ago, but Kevin thought it was soo good that I should get it down. Originally this idea was kind of in the homeschooling context, but I now realize that it would work well in any educational setting. As a homeschooler, just know that I am anti-establishment for very many reasons which I'm sure we will get to eventually. Anyway....

Chronological education:

Wouldn't it make more sense to teach children chronologically. I mean take your 12 years of education, break them up into 4 year segments; then look at a time line of the history of the world and go! Each 4 years the same chronology is repeated but with more detail. Let's face it - a 1st grader can't study Ancient Greece the way a 5th or 9th grader can, so information needs to be revisited. The entire historical time line can be segmented into 4 parts - one to be covered each year. Through the study of that particular time segment, literature, art, science, vocabulary, and spelling can all be learned. Sort of a large ongoing unit study. Math skills would be taught separate from the unit study, but could be enhanced by historical math games to reinforce those new skills. So basically, the first time a child learns about Ancient Greece, s/he will learn about the time frame, contributions, geography, games, foods, recreation and stuff like that. When it is revisited 4 years later, mythology and folklore will be introduced, governmental structure, religious practices, cultural traditions, art, etc. and the 3rd and final time it is revisited, study the era through literature, art, science, government, wars, monarchies, moral and ethical dilemmas and so on.

It makes more sense to teach children all subjects at once through time. Currently a 5th grader might be learning about physical science, but reading "Goosebumps" and studying state history, doing fractions and percents, and probably isn't taking much in the way of art. So many different eras are represented at one time and for a child it makes more sense if it all fits into place and weaves in and on itself.

A logical approach if you think about it. I mean it's hard enough to keep a child engaged in an institutional setting- might as well make it relevant and meaningful. And for you homeschoolers, if you like the idea, you don't even have to spend tons of money on a program like KONOS if you don't have the resources. Use your public library! Get yourself a good history of the world, tape it to the wall, break it up onto four segments and spend a year teaching the first segment. The nice thing for multi-kid families is that you can all study the same era over the course of the year and just add more detail and self-study for the older ones. Less work for you my dear homeschooling parent! And with using the library, every thing is free, as long as it makes it back on time, and new resources, videos, etc. are coming out each year to further enhance your more detailed studies.

Just a thought :)