Apologies, I’m struggling with getting video to load onto either you tube or vimeo, feeling just a bit frustrated! (I switched to Blogger which seems easier for videos; there is an action shot in the post below this.) So for a little intro… my name is Melissa Fisher. I live at a base of a small mountain in Maine, and enjoy making music, jewelry and paintings. In truth, I don’t do much creative work anymore. My real hobbies are taking classes at Wilkes and trying to repair my health. I had severe anemia which was messing with my blood pressure/ heart and it’s been a slow journey to recovery. Meanwhile, I am homeschooling 5 kids, ages 2-12. I’m what’s called an eclectic homeschooler, which means I use whatever works instead of sticking to one particular theory of education.

Starting out in this parenting journey, I had a background in Psychology (Bachelor’s from Loyola University Chicago), and some work experience in social work and education. This helped give me a basic understanding on typical child development, brain growth, emotional needs of children, etc. (I also had a very good understanding of trauma which I hope not to need as a parent). When I had my first child, it became clear by 18 months that he was not typical. At the time, he became extremely frustrated because he knew letters meant something but he didn’t know what.  He wanted to read, and was going to scream until he figured it out. I wasn’t quite sure what to do and wasn’t comfortable talking to other moms I knew as they spent much time comparing their children and could be hyper-sensitive. So, I followed his interest, got him a couple phonics videos, and by two he was reading.

He was reading, he also started writing letters (which also involved screaming until he figured it out), and taking care of him was intense. I craved support and started to look online to find it. One of the first (and still the best) websites you find when looking for information on gifted children is Hoagies. From there, I found the Gifted Homeschoolers Forum, which has a wonderful support group. When I really get stuck, I turn to them, and they have always been helpful. Around the same time, I picked up Genius Denied (Jan & Bob Davidson, 2004) in a bookstore and became aware or the work of the Davidson Institute. This book is fairly simple but it motivated me to make sure that my son’s educational needs were going to be met throughout his school years. The basic premise of the book is that when gifted children’s academic needs are not met, they suffer various negative consequences, including higher risk of depression (and suicide) and developing poor work habits (which meant they didn’t know how to deal with a real challenge when met later in life, as in a difficult course in college). The premise of the book range true for my experience, that of my friends, and family. Even when we had gone to “good” schools, when we weren’t challenged, we suffered, and often floundered in college. I want something different for my kids. Another book which is an interesting read about gifted kids, reflects the work of Miraca Gross (2004) in Australia, is: Exceptionally Gifted Children. This one is a bit refreshing for me because the cases presented are more extreme than what I am dealing with. Here is an article by the same author.

Beyond gifted education, I try to make a point to read and consider the work of a different educator each year. These include: The Well Trained Mind (2009) by Susan Bauer (important to the classical education movement), works by John Holt (unschooling, not really my thing), and The Original Homeschool Series by Charlotte Mason (fun, like having a conversation with your grandmother whom you might disagree with sometimes, but had better respect). This year I am hoping to incorporate ideas from the Big Picture Schools.

I also subscribe and unsubscribe to various blogs, etc. They can be fun, but can also suck up much time. I have several mainstream & tech ones that are related to my education at Wilkes, but some blogs I actually enjoy are: Math With Bad Drawings, Gas Station without Pumps, and for the crafty little kids: Wee Folk Art.

For our class, I am supposed to reflect on some of the challenges surrounding resources. One challenge is money. Once, I bought a science curriculum that was supposed to last two years and it only lasted a couple weeks. I have had to pace myself with books which I buy for both myself and my kids. Another is time. Spending too much time on the internet is not conducive to getting good education actually done. Another challenge is finding other people who want to do what my kids want to do. (Sometimes I succeed, sometimes not.) The last challenge is simply my lack of technical skills, which I’m hoping my time at Wilkes will help alleviate. It has definitely made me more confident that I can find what I need technically.

References

Bauer, S. & Bauer, J. (2009). The Well Trained Mind. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company.

Big Picture Schools [home page], retrieved from: http://www.bigpicture.orgDavidson, J., Davidson, B., & Vanderkam, L. (2004).

Genius Denied. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

Davidson Institute [home page], retrieved from: http://www.davidsongifted.org/

Gas Station without Pumps [home page], retrieved from: https://gasstationwithoutpumps.wordpress.com/

Gifted Homeschoolers Forum [home page], retrieved from: http://giftedhomeschoolers.org/

Gross, Miraca (2004). Exceptionally Gifted Children. London & New York: RoutlegeFalmer.

Gross, Miraca, “Exceptionally and Profoundly Gifted Students: An underserved population” accessed from Hoagies Education Page [web page] at:http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/underserved.htm

Hoagies [home page], retrieved from: http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/

Mason, Charlotte. The Original Homeschool Series can be accessed at: http://www.amblesideonline.org/CM/toc.html

Math With Bad Drawings [home page], retrieved from: http://mathwithbaddrawings.com/

Wee Folk Art [home page], retrieved from: http://weefolkart.com/