Noah Webster :
“In my view, the Christian religion is the most important and one of the first things in which all children, under a free government ought to be instructed...No truth is more evident to my mind than that the Christian religion must be the basis of any government intended to secure the rights and privileges of a free people.”
[Source: 1828, in the preface to his American Dictionary of the English Language]
“The Bible was America’s basic textbook in all fields.”
[Noah Webster. Our Christian Heritage p.5]
“Education is useless without the Bible”
[Noah Webster. Our Christian Heritage p.5 ]
Let it be impressed on your mind that God commands you to choose for rulers just men who will rule in the fear of God [Exodus 18:21]. . . . If the citizens neglect their duty and place unprincipled men in office, the government will soon be corrupted . . . If our government fails to secure public prosperity and happiness, it must be because the citizens neglect the Divine commands, and elect bad men to make and administer the laws. [Noah Webster, The History of the United States 1832, pp. 336-337, 49]
“All the miseries and evils which men suffer from vice, crime, ambition, injustice, oppression, slavery and war, proceed from their despising or neglecting the precepts contained in the Bible.” [Noah Webster. History. p. 339]
___________________________________
Benjamin Rush:
"Let the children who are sent to those schools be taught to read and write and above all, let both sexes be carefully instructed in the principles and obligations of the Christian religion. This is the most essential part of education”
Letters of Benjamin Rush, "To the citizens of Philadelphia: A Plan for Free Schools",
March 28, 1787
___________________________________
Thomas Paine:
“ It has been the error of the schools to teach astronomy, and all the other sciences, and subjects of natural philosophy, as accomplishments only; whereas they should be taught theologically, or with reference to the Being who is the author of them: for all the principles of science are of divine origin. Man cannot make, or invent, or contrive principles: he can only discover them; and he ought to look through the discovery to the Author.”
“ The evil that has resulted from the error of the schools, in teaching natural philosophy as an accomplishment only, has been that of generating in the pupils a species of atheism. Instead of looking through the works of creation to the Creator himself, they stop short, and employ the knowledge they acquire to create doubts of his existence. They labour with studied ingenuity to ascribe every thing they behold to innate properties of matter, and jump over all the rest by saying, that matter is eternal.” “The Existence of God--1810”
________________________________________
Jedediah Morse:
"To the kindly influence of Christianity we owe that degree of civil freedom, and political and social happiness which mankind now enjoys. . . . Whenever the pillars of Christianity shall be overthrown, our present republican forms of government, and all blessings which flow from them, must fall with them."
________________________________________
Samuel Johnston:
• “It is apprehended that Jews, Mahometans (Muslims), pagans, etc., may be elected to high offices under the government of the United States. Those who are Mahometans, or any others who are not professors of the Christian religion, can never be elected to the office of President or other high office, [unless] first the people of America lay aside the Christian religion altogether, it may happen. Should this unfortunately take place, the people will choose such men as think as they do themselves.
[Elliot’s Debates, Vol. IV, pp 198-199, Governor Samuel Johnston, July 30, 1788 at the
North Carolina Ratifying Convention]
_____________________________________________
Thomas Jefferson:
“God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are a gift from God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever.”
Vol. IV, p. 289. From Jefferson’s
Notes on the State of Virginia, Query XVIII, 1781.
_________________________________________________
Patrick Henry:
"This is all the inheritance I can give my dear family. The religion of Christ can give them one which will make them rich indeed.”
—The Last Will and Testament of Patrick Henry
“It cannot be emphasized too clearly and too often that this nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religion, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ. For this very reason, peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here.”
_____________________________________________
John Jay:
“ Providence has given to our people the choice of their rulers, and it is the duty, as well as the privilege and interest of our Christian nation to select and prefer Christians for their rulers.” Source: October 12, 1816. The Correspondence and Public Papers of John
Jay, Henry P. Johnston, ed., (New York: Burt Franklin, 1970), Vol. IV, p. 393.
“Whether our religion permits Christians to vote for infidel rulers is a question which merits more consideration than it seems yet to have generally received either from the clergy or the laity. It appears to me that what the prophet said to Jehoshaphat about his attachment to Ahab ["Shouldest thou help the ungodly and love them that hate the Lord?"
2 Chronicles 19:2] affords a salutary lesson.”
The Correspondence and Public Papers of John Jay, 1794-1826, Henry P. Johnston
Monday, October 8, 2007
Math
I have resigned myself to the fact that I am going to have to master the subject of math. Isn't that a horrible thing for a homeschool mom to say? I can hear the tongues starting to wag. "How can she think that she's qualified to teach her kids how to do math, if she isn't that good at it herself?"
Hello? I learned how to do math, I just didn't like it, except for some parts of it that were more interesting than others. I just don't rattle off every fact and figure when a math related question comes up in conversation, they make calculators for that sort of thing. I enjoy topics like History, English, Science, and topics that aren't so cut and dry . Stuff you can talk about.
Okay, math is not exactly my favorite subject, but I would like for my kids to enjoy it, so they don't loathe it the way I do. Perhaps loathe is too strong of a word?
I know how important it is so, I really want my kids to have a good solid foundation in math, so they won't have any doubts or trouble later.
We use a program called Math U See. I really like it and more importantly the kids really learn from it. It has DVD lessons, teacher book, student textbook and test book and of course manipulatives. The program is levelled, and does not spiral, like most other math programs. That means that they learn all of one area before they move on to the next. So in some grades they won't necessarily score as high on standardized tests because they have not been taught to the test. This program is for the benefit of the students mastery, not the testing community. I prefer to go with what works best for my kids.
Another thing I like about the program, is once the student knows it, you just move to the next lesson, you don't have to keep doing worksheet after worksheet, and bore the kid to tears.
I look for my Sarah and my Noah to whiz through this sort of program quickly. They are naturally good at math, and enjoy it. It has such a straight forward progression, it makes it easy to grasp and move on to the next concept.
It does require some parent preparation time, about 30 mins per lesson per kid. That can be time consuming. Especially if the kids progress quickly.
Math U See
Reviews of Math U See
Another family who loves MUS
Here is a great interactive site for learning factor trees:
http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_202_g_3_t_1.html
Hello? I learned how to do math, I just didn't like it, except for some parts of it that were more interesting than others. I just don't rattle off every fact and figure when a math related question comes up in conversation, they make calculators for that sort of thing. I enjoy topics like History, English, Science, and topics that aren't so cut and dry . Stuff you can talk about.
Okay, math is not exactly my favorite subject, but I would like for my kids to enjoy it, so they don't loathe it the way I do. Perhaps loathe is too strong of a word?
I know how important it is so, I really want my kids to have a good solid foundation in math, so they won't have any doubts or trouble later.
We use a program called Math U See. I really like it and more importantly the kids really learn from it. It has DVD lessons, teacher book, student textbook and test book and of course manipulatives. The program is levelled, and does not spiral, like most other math programs. That means that they learn all of one area before they move on to the next. So in some grades they won't necessarily score as high on standardized tests because they have not been taught to the test. This program is for the benefit of the students mastery, not the testing community. I prefer to go with what works best for my kids.
Another thing I like about the program, is once the student knows it, you just move to the next lesson, you don't have to keep doing worksheet after worksheet, and bore the kid to tears.
I look for my Sarah and my Noah to whiz through this sort of program quickly. They are naturally good at math, and enjoy it. It has such a straight forward progression, it makes it easy to grasp and move on to the next concept.
It does require some parent preparation time, about 30 mins per lesson per kid. That can be time consuming. Especially if the kids progress quickly.
Math U See
Reviews of Math U See
Another family who loves MUS
Here is a great interactive site for learning factor trees:
http://nlvm.usu.edu/en/nav/frames_asid_202_g_3_t_1.html
The heat is on . . .
Politics in my area are beginning to heat up. I encourage everyone to read up on the relevant issues and potential candidates. The upcomming elections are very very important. Just remember people died to secure our right to vote. We live in a free country for a reason. Freedom is not free. Voting in America is not only a privelage, it is a responsibility! Please excercise your right to vote.
Some people do go out and vote, but, I am amazed at the amount of uneducated voters we have going to the polls. There are people who simply vote for a name they think sounds familiar to them, and they don't really know what that person stands for at all. Half the time they don't even know what the responsibilities that peticular office is responsible for doing.
It is sad. We promote "democracy" in other countries, yet do we really practice what we preach?
Some people do go out and vote, but, I am amazed at the amount of uneducated voters we have going to the polls. There are people who simply vote for a name they think sounds familiar to them, and they don't really know what that person stands for at all. Half the time they don't even know what the responsibilities that peticular office is responsible for doing.
It is sad. We promote "democracy" in other countries, yet do we really practice what we preach?
Cats Cats and more Cats!!!
Why do cats repopulate so quickly? Did you ever wonder about this. Didn't Ancient Egypt love their felines, how did they control their cat population?
I have a little problem, I'm trying to avoidably have 3 outdoor cats neutered. But, they aren't feral or friendly, they are somewhere in the middle. I can't find a reasonably priced clinic that will allow us to bring them in. I cannot afford to pay a huge price for their neutering, but I want to get them taken care of, so we don't have more litters of kittens.
These cats are from a second litter of stray cats we are trying to keep up with.
Any suggestions?
I have a little problem, I'm trying to avoidably have 3 outdoor cats neutered. But, they aren't feral or friendly, they are somewhere in the middle. I can't find a reasonably priced clinic that will allow us to bring them in. I cannot afford to pay a huge price for their neutering, but I want to get them taken care of, so we don't have more litters of kittens.
These cats are from a second litter of stray cats we are trying to keep up with.
Any suggestions?
Saturday, October 6, 2007
National Education Association
A Direct Quote from the NEA:
'The National Education Association believes that home schooling programs based on parental choice cannot provide the student with a comprehensive education experience. When home schooling occurs, students enrolled must meet all state curricular requirements, including the taking and passing of assessments to ensure adequate academic progress. Home schooling should be limited to the children of the immediate family, with all expenses being borne by the parents/guardians. Instruction should be by persons who are licensed by the appropriate state education licensure agency, and a curriculum approved by the state department of education should be used. The Association also believes that home-schooled students should not participate in any extracurricular activities in the public schools. The Association further believes that local public school systems should have the authority to determine grade placement and/or credits earned toward graduation for students entering or re-entering the public school setting from a home school setting."
There are so many responses I have to this statement I don't even know where to begin.
First of all when did it become the right of everyone else to decide who is capable of educating someone elses children?
Why do people feel that they should have an input about how someone else educates their own children?
Doesn't this statement sound like a constitutional violation in so many ways?
Or is it just me?
Let's see what the NEA is about:
NEA delegates buckled down to the serious business of spelling out their political goals, many of which have nothing whatever to do with giving schoolchildren a better education.
The NEA demands a tax-supported single-payer health-care plan (socialized medicine) for all residents (a word artfully chosen to include illegal aliens). The NEA supports immigration "reform" that "includes [note: this is a change from last year's verb "may include"] a path to permanent residency, citizenship, or asylum" for illegal aliens.
For many years, and again this year, the NEA urged a national holiday honoring Cesar Chavez. The NEA must have forgotten that Chavez, a strident advocate for farm workers, vehemently opposed illegal immigration because he knew it depressed the wages of U.S. citizens and legal immigrants.
The NEA supports a beefed-up federal "hate crimes" law with heavier penalties. The NEA wants federal legislation to confer special rights on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression.
The NEA passed at least a dozen resolutions supporting the gay rights agenda in public schools. These cover employment, curricula, textbooks, resource and instructional materials, school activities, role models, and language (with frequent use of terms such as sexual orientation, gender identification, and homophobia).
The NEA enthusiastically supports all the goals of radical feminism, including abortion, the Equal Rights Amendment, school-based health clinics, wage control so the government can arbitrarily raise the pay of women but not men, the feminist pork called the Women's Educational Equity Act, and letting feminists rewrite textbooks to conform to feminist ideology.
The NEA supports statehood for the District of Columbia. The NEA supports affirmative action. The NEA calls for repeal of right-to-work laws, which allow teachers in some states to decline joining the NEA.
The NEA supports United Nations treaties, especially the UN Convention on Women, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Criminal Court. The NEA loves global education, which promotes world citizenship and taxing Americans to give away our wealth to other countries.
Another NEA favorite is environmental education, which teaches that human activity is generally harmful to the environment and population should be reduced.
Here are some of the things the NEA opposes: vouchers, tuition tax credits, all parental choice programs, making English our official language, the use of voter ID for elections, and the privatization of Social Security.
High on the list of NEA policies that actually relate to education is opposition to the testing of teachers as a criterion for job retention, promotion, tenure, or salary.
The NEA wants the right to teach schoolchildren about sex without any interference from parents, but on the other hand wants its pals in the bureaucracy to regulate all homeschooling taught by parents. The NEA opposes allowing homeschoolers to participate in any public school sports or extracurricular activities.
Two of the NEA's favorite words in its resolutions and policies are diversity (that means teaching that gay behavior is OK), and multiculturalism (that means stressing negative things about America and positive things about non-Christian cultures).
The exorbitant dues that teachers pay to the NEA enable its well-paid staff to lobby Congress and state legislatures in behalf of all these goals.
Wow, I think that gives us a good idea of what the NEA is actually trying to accomplish. Were again does education of children have come in to play?
Who actually has my families best interest in mind?
Not the NEA!!!
I feel sorry for the really good teachers we have who care about the difference they make in children's lives. I have met many many great teachers who have made a huge difference in the lives of so many children. It is shameful what this organization has become. We all should remember that this does not reflect the attitude of many individual teachers. Contintue to keep them in your prayers. I know I will.
'The National Education Association believes that home schooling programs based on parental choice cannot provide the student with a comprehensive education experience. When home schooling occurs, students enrolled must meet all state curricular requirements, including the taking and passing of assessments to ensure adequate academic progress. Home schooling should be limited to the children of the immediate family, with all expenses being borne by the parents/guardians. Instruction should be by persons who are licensed by the appropriate state education licensure agency, and a curriculum approved by the state department of education should be used. The Association also believes that home-schooled students should not participate in any extracurricular activities in the public schools. The Association further believes that local public school systems should have the authority to determine grade placement and/or credits earned toward graduation for students entering or re-entering the public school setting from a home school setting."
There are so many responses I have to this statement I don't even know where to begin.
First of all when did it become the right of everyone else to decide who is capable of educating someone elses children?
Why do people feel that they should have an input about how someone else educates their own children?
Doesn't this statement sound like a constitutional violation in so many ways?
Or is it just me?
Let's see what the NEA is about:
NEA delegates buckled down to the serious business of spelling out their political goals, many of which have nothing whatever to do with giving schoolchildren a better education.
The NEA demands a tax-supported single-payer health-care plan (socialized medicine) for all residents (a word artfully chosen to include illegal aliens). The NEA supports immigration "reform" that "includes [note: this is a change from last year's verb "may include"] a path to permanent residency, citizenship, or asylum" for illegal aliens.
For many years, and again this year, the NEA urged a national holiday honoring Cesar Chavez. The NEA must have forgotten that Chavez, a strident advocate for farm workers, vehemently opposed illegal immigration because he knew it depressed the wages of U.S. citizens and legal immigrants.
The NEA supports a beefed-up federal "hate crimes" law with heavier penalties. The NEA wants federal legislation to confer special rights on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity and expression.
The NEA passed at least a dozen resolutions supporting the gay rights agenda in public schools. These cover employment, curricula, textbooks, resource and instructional materials, school activities, role models, and language (with frequent use of terms such as sexual orientation, gender identification, and homophobia).
The NEA enthusiastically supports all the goals of radical feminism, including abortion, the Equal Rights Amendment, school-based health clinics, wage control so the government can arbitrarily raise the pay of women but not men, the feminist pork called the Women's Educational Equity Act, and letting feminists rewrite textbooks to conform to feminist ideology.
The NEA supports statehood for the District of Columbia. The NEA supports affirmative action. The NEA calls for repeal of right-to-work laws, which allow teachers in some states to decline joining the NEA.
The NEA supports United Nations treaties, especially the UN Convention on Women, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Criminal Court. The NEA loves global education, which promotes world citizenship and taxing Americans to give away our wealth to other countries.
Another NEA favorite is environmental education, which teaches that human activity is generally harmful to the environment and population should be reduced.
Here are some of the things the NEA opposes: vouchers, tuition tax credits, all parental choice programs, making English our official language, the use of voter ID for elections, and the privatization of Social Security.
High on the list of NEA policies that actually relate to education is opposition to the testing of teachers as a criterion for job retention, promotion, tenure, or salary.
The NEA wants the right to teach schoolchildren about sex without any interference from parents, but on the other hand wants its pals in the bureaucracy to regulate all homeschooling taught by parents. The NEA opposes allowing homeschoolers to participate in any public school sports or extracurricular activities.
Two of the NEA's favorite words in its resolutions and policies are diversity (that means teaching that gay behavior is OK), and multiculturalism (that means stressing negative things about America and positive things about non-Christian cultures).
The exorbitant dues that teachers pay to the NEA enable its well-paid staff to lobby Congress and state legislatures in behalf of all these goals.
Wow, I think that gives us a good idea of what the NEA is actually trying to accomplish. Were again does education of children have come in to play?
Who actually has my families best interest in mind?
Not the NEA!!!
I feel sorry for the really good teachers we have who care about the difference they make in children's lives. I have met many many great teachers who have made a huge difference in the lives of so many children. It is shameful what this organization has become. We all should remember that this does not reflect the attitude of many individual teachers. Contintue to keep them in your prayers. I know I will.
Friday, October 5, 2007
Huge clearance sale
Has anyone out there used Teacher Created Resources? I have used some of there stuff. They have a great clearnance "room."
Save up to 75% in our Clearance Corner!
Save up to 75% in our Clearance Corner!
Thursday, October 4, 2007
Constitutional Violations - Hello?
The installation of floor level sinks in various public facilities across The United States of America, a free country, that protects the freedom of it's people, to accommodate religious ceremonies was brought to my attention today.
I'm not exactly sure, but doesn't that cross a Constitutional boundary line? We aren't able to have any type of other religious paraphernalia for any other religion, why are we accommodating this particular population?
I am even more curious as to why there hasn't been more discussion about the topic. Or perhaps there has been and I have been busy. I am quite new to the whole blogging thing.
I don't think I would have thought much about it, except for years, there have been people throwing a hissy fit about the religion that this country was founded on until they had any and all reminders of it completely removed from the public eye. No one can say "Bless you" after a person sneezes without fear of being anti-tolerant. And now mainstream public facilities are making major renovations to accommodate a religious group. That is a violation of our, all of our Constitutional Rights. Or is it? Are these government buildings funded by taxpayer dollars? Or are these just employers who are accommodating their employees?
Just for debate purposes I always like to take a look at all different views.
I personally think the idea of bathing in public is ridiculous. Why can't they just use showers? Many truck stops and travel centers install showers and we don't really need to know what goes on in there. Why make it such an obvious accommodation to a select group of people? It's never been done before. Actually I thought it was policy not to accommodate any one particular religious group?
Private foot washing in bathrooms is not a custom that we are familiar with in America. It isn't that we are ignorant, it's just that there seems to be a much larger percentage of diverse religions than there was say 20 yrs ago. Foot washing has always existed in the Christian religion. Just not in public bathrooms. So has snake handling, but I don't think they would install cages to house off duty snakes.
Let's face it, this country is changing. Good, bad or ugly. And after all silence is acceptance. So many Christians stay silent, you know, so they don't not rock the boat. They refuse to stick together and stand up for what they believe in, so what can they expect? So many Christians don't even know what they are suppose to stand for, they fall for anything that sounds like it could be their religion, but they aren't really sure. (I should save that for another post)
The best you can do is know why you believe what you believe, don't be afraid to stand up for what you believe in and teach your children well. They will ultimately be the one's that have to suffer for the stupidity of the previous generations.
God help this country. As in, the God of Jacob, Isaac and Abraham.
I'm not exactly sure, but doesn't that cross a Constitutional boundary line? We aren't able to have any type of other religious paraphernalia for any other religion, why are we accommodating this particular population?
I am even more curious as to why there hasn't been more discussion about the topic. Or perhaps there has been and I have been busy. I am quite new to the whole blogging thing.
I don't think I would have thought much about it, except for years, there have been people throwing a hissy fit about the religion that this country was founded on until they had any and all reminders of it completely removed from the public eye. No one can say "Bless you" after a person sneezes without fear of being anti-tolerant. And now mainstream public facilities are making major renovations to accommodate a religious group. That is a violation of our, all of our Constitutional Rights. Or is it? Are these government buildings funded by taxpayer dollars? Or are these just employers who are accommodating their employees?
Just for debate purposes I always like to take a look at all different views.
I personally think the idea of bathing in public is ridiculous. Why can't they just use showers? Many truck stops and travel centers install showers and we don't really need to know what goes on in there. Why make it such an obvious accommodation to a select group of people? It's never been done before. Actually I thought it was policy not to accommodate any one particular religious group?
Private foot washing in bathrooms is not a custom that we are familiar with in America. It isn't that we are ignorant, it's just that there seems to be a much larger percentage of diverse religions than there was say 20 yrs ago. Foot washing has always existed in the Christian religion. Just not in public bathrooms. So has snake handling, but I don't think they would install cages to house off duty snakes.
Let's face it, this country is changing. Good, bad or ugly. And after all silence is acceptance. So many Christians stay silent, you know, so they don't not rock the boat. They refuse to stick together and stand up for what they believe in, so what can they expect? So many Christians don't even know what they are suppose to stand for, they fall for anything that sounds like it could be their religion, but they aren't really sure. (I should save that for another post)
The best you can do is know why you believe what you believe, don't be afraid to stand up for what you believe in and teach your children well. They will ultimately be the one's that have to suffer for the stupidity of the previous generations.
God help this country. As in, the God of Jacob, Isaac and Abraham.
College options for homeschoolers
I have been looking at the cost of college tuition for my oldest who is almost 12 yrs old. I can't believe how much the projected cost is suppose to be. We didn't even pay that much for our house. He better get busy and start studying for some AP courses.
I have heard of some dual credit high school /college programs. But, I don't personally know anyone who has experience with it.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
I have heard of some dual credit high school /college programs. But, I don't personally know anyone who has experience with it.
Any information would be greatly appreciated.
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