Reply to LC

Thanks for the comments.

Ethan was born in Korea and lived there until March 2015 when we relocated back to Vancouver.

He attended preschool and kindergarten there at a community school. The school was run by parents who hired and managed the four teachers. Parents were also responsible for maintaining the school.

Children attend that school from about age 4-7, as there are 4 classrooms. The oldest kids are in kindergarten.

The two families we met up with on the trip were families from the school. We’ve known them since Ethan was 5.

The school year in Korea starts in March and ends in February. When we moved back to Vancouver, he had just finished kindergarten. So when we came back, he had “missed” more than half of Grade 1.

We decided to keep him home until the fall because we didn’t know where we would be living, so he skipped Grade 1 and went directly into Grade 2.

He enjoyed school here but recently told us he was bored. He also didn’t like how much writing there was since he didn’t practice writing in English at all. Speaking, reading and listening were fine, but writing was a challenge.

He took ELL classes and by the end of Grade 3 had caught up to his grade level.

LC Response

• December 3 – San Diego
  • We drove from Phoenix to San Diego to meet Ethan’s old schoolmates from Korea.

When was he in Korea? Which grades did he attend there, I am just curious. How does he feel about school in Korea and then in Canada and now unschooling?  

• At a local playground in Phoenix, Ethan was playing soccer with his old schoolmate when another boy wanted to join them. They all ended up playing together. Ethan has always easily played with other children, but the experience of meeting new kids in the many places we visited has helped him improve his social skills.

He has definitely been able to practice engaging with new people and peers on his big trip.

• In San Diego, there were many sea lions on the beach and Ethan was able to see them up close. He has only seen them from afar, so this was a great chance to see them within a few feet from him. Of course, we were careful not to get too close.

They are quite large and so interesting to observe. When I lived in San Francisco I could hear them barking down at Fisherman’s Wharf from my apartment. I remember on a road trip down the coast of California we visited a beach with hundreds of elephant seals. They are massive especially the males. I saw my first ever Hawaiian monk seal. She was pulled up on a beach and was resting there for several days. I was so excited to see her as they are rare and endangered. It was difficult to get a good angle for the photo of her:

http://mentalfloss.com/article/73596/14-huge-facts-about-elephant-seals

Elephant Seal

Though they travel farther than any known mammal, the males still manage to keep on the girth: They outweighing their female companions by up to ten times

Name: Northern Elephant Seal (Mirounga angustirostris), Southern Elephant Seal (Mirounga leonine)

Length: Up to 6,2 metres

Weight: Up to 4,000 kg

Location: Northern – West coast of North America, offshore islands, Southern – Antarctic and sub-Antarctic waters

Conservation status: Least Concern

Diet: Squid, fish, sharks, rays, ratfish, molluscs, crustaceans, krill, algae

Appearance: Black or reddish-brown

How do Elephant Seals hunt?

The Northern Elephant Seals are nocturnal hunters, diving between 300 and 800 metres. Males tend to hunt along the continental shelf, foraging on the ocean’s floor, while females hunt more in the open ocean. Not having echolocation, seals have to use sight (perhaps added by the luminous nature of some of their prey) and their vibrissae (whiskers) to sense nearby movement. Males return to the same areas every year to hunt, while females are more random. Southern Elephant Seals dive from 400 to 1,000 metres for up to 20 minutes at time. The deepest recorded dive doubled the average, going to a little over 2,100 metres. To stay underwater for so long they have to exhale before diving to get the gases out of their bodies or they would suffer from the bends, the same fate awaiting divers who ignore the effect of water pressure on the gases in their bodies.

To maintain oxygen levels, the Elephant Seals have a tremendous amount of blood to store the oxygen in hemoglobin, as well as storing it in their muscles. The seals in fact have twice the volume of blood of land mammals of the same size, and the blood contains 50% more hemoglobin. They also slow their heartbeats from the usual 50-120 beats a minute to 5-15 beats, and they restrict their blood flow to the most vital organs, all of which allows them to greatly slow their oxygen consumption.

How to tell the difference between a seal and a sea lion:

OCEAN CURRENTS

How to Tell the Difference Between a Seal and a Sea Lion

•  

They’re two of the ocean’s most recognizable—and adorable—residents. But can you tell seals and sea lions apart?

Let’s start with the basics. Seals and sea lions are both in the suborder pinnipedia, a group of fin-footed mammals that also includes walruses. All pinnipeds have broad torsos and narrow hips that help them remain streamlined underwater. You can find pinnipeds all over the world, from walruses in the chilly Arctic to Hawaiian monk seals in the balmy Pacific.

But here is where the differences begin to arise. Although the term “seal” can technically apply to the 32 species we refer to as seals and as sea lions, the family Otariidae includes fur seals and sea lions, where family Phicodae includes “true” seals. Yes, it’s confusing.

The easiest way to tell them apart is to look at the ears. True seals have ear holes, where sea lions have small flaps covering their ears.

You can also look at their feet. Seals have short, stubby front feet and generally scoot along land on their bellies. Sea lions, on the other hand, have elongated front flippers that help propel them through the water and allow them to “walk” on land. If you look closely, you’ll also be able to see the different in their claws: seals have long claws and fur on their front flippers, while sea lions’ front flippers have short claws and are covered in skin.

Still having trouble telling them apart? Check out their behavior. Seals are more solitary and spend most of their time alone in the water, only coming ashore to mate. On the flip side, sea lions are a rowdy bunch. They can gather in rambunctious groups called rafts or herds of up to 1,500 animals. And they are loud: where seals make soft grunts, sea lions have sharp barks to communicate.

There you go! The next time you’re faced with an unidentified pinniped, you’ll be able to tell exactly which kind it is.

• We also met two more of Ethan’s old schoolmates from Korea in San Diego, so it was good for Ethan to reconnect with more friends.
• December 4 – Disney California Adventure Park
  • We woke up at 6am to drive to Disney because we needed gas and wanted to get an early start on the day. Going to an amusement park is a learning experience for Ethan because when we’ve been to the PNE here in Vancouver, Ethan was so excited that he was running around everywhere and we couldn’t keep track of where he was. So for Disney, he knew that he had to be more aware of his surroundings and where we were. We stayed until the park closed at 9pm and ended up having a blast.

A full day indeed! What were his favorite parts of the park? Does he enjoy rides like roller coasters or did he go to some shows?

• Ethan receives an allowance and has enjoyed visiting the gift shops at the various museums, and also wanted to go to the Disney store. However, we want him to think carefully about why he wants something before making a purchase. Dong Eun and I are trying to teach him about consumerism and living a simpler, minimalist lifestyle. He has been slowly learning to choose something that he really wants, that has a purpose and is good quality. We don’t tell him something he wants is good, bad or a waste of money. We try to ask him questions about why he wants something and for what purpose. Asking questions is the best way to promote and explore his own thinking and process. You also get a lot of information as to how and why he is making his choices. When i am making purchases I often ask myself how much will I use it? Do I love it? Does it fit or will it last?

• If he feels that he still wants the item, we don’t stop him from buying it. For example, in New York City he bought a mini Rubik’s Cube because he loves Rubik’s Cubes and he doesn’t have a mini cube. At the Disney Store, he got a good luck charm and those were the only two things he bought during the trip. It’s a challenge to avoid the impulse purchases, but we hope he is learning to be more conscientious when it comes to spending. Not having a TV probably helps, as he isn’t constantly exposed to TV commercials.

This is a great infographic for helping frame and develop critical thinking skills. Making wise consumer choices is a part of that as well as discussing more difficult ethical questions:

• December 5 – Oregon & Home
  • After leaving Anaheim, we pretty much drove non-stop on the I-5. This was going to be a challenge for Ethan because it meant longer drives than usual. But he was excited about going home, so he was completely fine. He kept busy with re-reading Harry Potter and a book about interpreting your dreams.

Dream interpretation is so interesting. Does Ethan tend to have vivid dreams or remember them?

• December 6 to 9 – Big Clean Up & Learning at Home Again
  • We arrived home Thursday at 1:30am and after getting some sleep, we started cleaning up and putting things away from the trip. We also took the opportunity to clear out things from our home that we don’t need. Ethan helped and also got rid of some old items he no longer uses.

Welcome home!!

• The bigger challenge has been getting Ethan back into learning at home. We’ve set out learning goals and have been reviewing curriculum requirements. We’d like him to work on his writing and to practice math daily. We plan to visit Science World on a regular basis because they have a Maker area where kids can build things.

Yes it may be a bit of a transition time to find a rhythm again now that you are back home.

• We’d also like to connect with like-minded home learners in our area to possibly set up learning groups. We have found this more difficult than expected because we have, so far, only met one other family who is not homeschooling for secular reasons. But I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before we’ll find other families with similar learning goals and interests.

Sometimes Self Design offers homeschooler events especially in the Vancouver area. The weekly bulletin that they email out  is a great place to see these. I will also make a listing in the SD consultant discussion group and see if there are other groups or families in the area who would like to connect.

Getting back into the swing of things

Since arriving home last week Wednesday, we’ve had a slight transition period, as it’s been slightly odd to be home and trying to re-establish a routine. But we’re getting there and so is Ethan. He was somewhat reluctant to work on academics in a more scheduled way, which is totally understandable since we were quite unstructured while on the road.

Baby steps or dive right in?

If we just took it easy and slowly worked our way back, who knows how long it would take? I think Dong Eun recognized this immediately, so she got Ethan to jump right back into things the day after we came home. 

New toy roller coaster

My friend Charles in Washington, DC gave Ethan a beautiful wooden roller coaster set, which Ethan said was exactly what he wanted. Ethan was very excited to put it together and try it out because he loves using his marbles and building roller coasters. Thanks, Charles and Dena!

Getting ready for Christmas

Coming back in December, Ethan has been excited about Christmas. I think he was a bit worried that we wouldn’t be back in time.

So we started getting ready and talked about a Christmas tree. Our condo doesn’t allow live trees and we don’t want a fake one, so we decided to be crafty and make something. Ethan started doing some research on YouTube and found an origami Christmas tree how-to video.

After he got the hang of how to fold the tree, he asked us to help him fold more sections and taught us how to fold. That’s something very valuable, being able to teach other people what you’ve learned.

And then finally, we had a tree! We’ll make more and might even make a larger version.

We also put up some lights that Ethan used to use as night lights under his bed. Ethan then found a place to display the tree.

Visualizing the trip

The next task was something fun and creative that Ethan enjoyed… Taking all the memorabilia from the road trip and putting it on display. This turned out to be a great way for us to visualize what we did and it reminded us of all the great memories we had.

Drawing in 3D

From Christmas origami to travel mementos and finally, drawing 3D shapes, these are some of the many unschooling moments we experience on any given day. Not sure how it happened, but Ethan found some tutorials on how to draw 3D shapes and wanted to practice.

So, even if we had wanted to ease back into things, Ethan was ready to get right back at it. The learning may not always take traditional forms, but the learning opportunities are always present.

Observation for learning December 3-9, 2017

Here is a summary of Week 15.

• December 3 – San Diego
  • We drove from Phoenix to San Diego to meet Ethan’s old schoolmates from Korea.
  •  At a local playground in Phoenix, Ethan was playing soccer with his old schoolmate when another boy wanted to join them. They all ended up playing together. Ethan has always easily played with other children, but the experience of meeting new kids in the many places we visited has helped him improve his social skills.
  • In San Diego, there were many sea lions on the beach and Ethan was able to see them up close. He has only seen them from afar, so this was a great chance to see them within a few feet from him. Of course, we were careful not to get too close.
  • We also met two more of Ethan’s old schoolmates from Korea in San Diego, so it was good for Ethan to reconnect with more friends.

• December 4 – Disney California Adventure Park
  • We woke up at 6am to drive to Disney because we needed gas and wanted to get an early start on the day. Going to an amusement park is a learning experience for Ethan because when we’ve been to the PNE here in Vancouver, Ethan was so excited that he was running around everywhere and we couldn’t keep track of where he was. So for Disney, he knew that he had to be more aware of his surroundings and where we were. We stayed until the park closed at 9pm and ended up having a blast.
  • Ethan receives an allowance and has enjoyed visiting the gift shops at the various museums, and also wanted to go to the Disney store. However, we want him to think carefully about why he wants something before making a purchase. Dong Eun and I are trying to teach him about consumerism and living a simpler, minimalist lifestyle. He has been slowly learning to choose something that he really wants, that has a purpose and is good quality. We don’t tell him something he wants is good, bad or a waste of money. We try to ask him questions about why he wants something and for what purpose. If he feels that he still wants the item, we don’t stop him from buying it. For example, in New York City he bought a mini Rubik’s Cube because he loves Rubik’s Cubes and he doesn’t have a mini cube. At the Disney Store, he got a good luck charm and those were the only two things he bought during the trip. It’s a challenge to avoid the impulse purchases, but we hope he is learning to be more conscientious when it comes to spending. Not having a TV probably helps, as he isn’t constantly exposed to TV commercials.
• December 5 – Oregon & Home
  • After leaving Anaheim, we pretty much drove non-stop on the I-5. This was going to be a challenge for Ethan because it meant longer drives than usual. But he was excited about going home, so he was completely fine. He kept busy with re-reading Harry Potter and a book about interpreting your dreams.
• December 6 to 9 – Big Clean Up & Learning at Home Again
  • We arrived home Thursday at 1:30am and after getting some sleep, we started cleaning up and putting things away from the trip. We also took the opportunity to clear out things from our home that we don’t need. Ethan helped and also got rid of some old items he no longer uses.
  • The bigger challenge has been getting Ethan back into learning at home. We’ve set out learning goals and have been reviewing curriculum requirements. We’d like him to work on his writing and to practice math daily. We plan to visit Science World on a regular basis because they have a Maker area where kids can build things. 
  • We’d also like to connect with like-minded home learners in our area to possibly set up learning groups. We have found this more difficult than expected because we have, so far, only met one other family who is not homeschooling for secular reasons. But I’m sure it’s just a matter of time before we’ll find other families with similar learning goals and interests.