Here’s my son, in a hotel room, practicing. I forgot the chair he usually sits on to play, and the only thing short enough for sitting was the toilet. It turns out that there are interesting acoustics in a bathroom, so it was fun to play in there. But you can be certain that it […]
What is up with people emailing me ideas for what I can do with my kids? I already have way too many ideas. For example, we were at the Guggenheim last month, honestly, my sons probably would have rather run around in Central Park. (They tried running in the Guggenheim, and believe me, it was a disaster.) The […]
One of the biggest gripes about US students is that they have no sense of geography. I have a six-year-old who knows every state by it’s shape, so I thought I’d tell you how he learned it: From video games. First, he was in the car one day searching for a new app on my […]
I am actually a very strong believer in public school. I believe we owe it to kids who are disadvantaged—in a whatever way that is—to help them get a good education and have a decent entry point into adulthood. I am also a strong believer that every kid can learn and every kid is smart […]
We went to visit my brother in New York City when his baby was born. My kids loved holding her. Finally. There’s been a lot of lead-up to this. For example, the last time we visited, as we were going up to the apartment, in the elevator, my six-year-old said, “If Aunt Kristen is pregnant, […]
[youtube_sc url=kl1ujzRidmU] The New York Times has decided to take up the cause of studying English in college. This discussion sounds similar to the discussion of whether we should legalize gay marriage. Generation Y is so overwhelmingly in favor of legalizing gay marriage that the debate is a waste of time. It’s opposed by conservative, […]
It’s too bad that I’ve starting reading a lot of parenting books because I get free business books in the mail every day, but I’m sick of them. I’ve been getting free business books in the mail every day for the last five years, and I shudder to think how many I’d get each day […]
I have come to enjoy when people ask me, “How is the homeschooling going?” I used to say, “Fine.” Now I don’t. Now I say, “We are not schooling. I decided that school is unnecessary and we are doing self-directed learning.” People say, “What is that?”
I rarely tout my teaching abilities as a reason that I am homeschooling, which is probably why I have a homeschool blog full of beach resort photos instead of teaching tips. However I do think I’m qualified to teach writing. I’ve taught writing at Brown, Boston University, and the University of Paris. And having been […]
Much of the disappointment in adult life comes from not understanding the inherent limitations of our Myers Briggs score. An ENFJ woman will never be okay with her work/life balance. And ISFJ man needs to marry a breadwinner. These are not things our parents warn us about. So by the time adult life comes, 98% […]