Aug. 27, 2012

Simplify: make easier, more understandable

By Luke
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He squinted over his glasses at the screen. 'Why is that text repeated?' he asked himself. 'Can't we say that just once instead of three times?' Dave, our graphic designer, was hard at work cleaning up the Payment Plans page to make it easier to understand. He simplified a ton of the text and made the Time Payment Calculator prettier. I'm pleased with the results:


Payment Plans

The effort required to simplify something is enormous. Often it's clear what the problem is, but the solution is out of reach. Consider your tax forms. It's pretty clear that they are confusing and messy. But I can't imagine the amount of work that would go into cleaning them up. Even if you do come up with a solution, the simplification isn't always easier understand. Have you seen the push button, receive bacon signs? How about the incredibly vague images highlighted on safenow.org?

The goal of simplifying is to make the tool easier to use and understand. And that was exactly what we attempted to do with the Instructor's Guides this year. Have you checked out the changes?


Instructor's Guide Improvements

If you have yet to order your homeschool curriculum (with the updated IGs), spread the cost of your investment over the next three months at no additional charge with Payment Plans. And please continue to send us feedback as you browse the website. I'd love to simplify it even more so it's easier to use and understand.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

P.S. Speaking of easy and understandable, have you shown some MathTacular clips to your children?

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Aug. 24, 2012

A Test of Your Mind Reading Ability

By Luke
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Once you know the secret, the game is easy. Try it yourself to see if you know the key:


If this is a stick, and this is a stick, is this a stick?

No.

Okay, listen:

If this is a stick, and this is a stick, is this a stick?

Yes.

The infuriating task of trying to find the pattern or detail that unlocks this mystery makes the game maddening. But once you know what to pay attention to, the pain is fun to pass along if you're in jr. high and high school. These pointless games make so much more sense in a world filled with tests that are sometimes constructed with similar ambiguity.

Consider the question posed on Catherine Johnson's blog (and adapted further here):


Which Best Represents 2/5ths?

Note: the real question is less ambiguous. But as one of the comments on Catherine's post points out: This isn't a math question, it's a "guess what the teacher means" question. This is a mind-reading problem.

Even in college, one of the "skills" I was urged to develop was the ability to predict what the teacher wanted. That, it turns out, is one of the biggest keys to getting a good grade. Thankfully, I was good at figuring out what was expected of me. And there's certainly something to be said for a willingness to jump through hoops and do what's required of you. Such talents are great for politics and jobs and such.

But poorly designed tests and assignments that measure your compliance rather than your knowledge or mastery are a tragic part of certain educational models. Far better to spend the time learning alongside your child. Homeschooling gives you daily insights into your student's comprehension and ability. You don't need flawed tests or mind-reading skills to know how much your student has learned.

Sonlight's Full-Grade Packages and Core programs don't come with tests. Your children won't have to uncover the mystery of ambiguous test questions. Instead, you and your students will read and discuss great literature, talk about big ideas, and learn together. You'll likely encounter standardized tests at some point. But, for now, you can focus on something more important: Loving to learn.

What's the most "guess what the teacher means" experience you've had?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

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Aug. 21, 2012

A Sweet Home

By Jonelle
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I love homes. I love looking at the way people choose to decorate. I love the different styles and colors, patterns, pictures, art, everything. I love it all.

I have a dear friend, Julie, from the south. She is one of the sweetest people I know. Whenever I go to her house I leave refreshed. It struck me, her house is definitely a place of peace, with extra sweetness splashed about. So, I’m giving you a glimpse of some of my favorite places.

The first thing you see when you walk in is this beautiful old bookcase, filled with a few treasures from their life and travels. The framed photo booth photos of Julie and her husband from when they were young makes me smile, it's so fun to see my friend at that different stage.

I feel like their front room is inviting and attractive. I like that it is lived in.

I grew up in a home with no photographs on the wall (I'm pretty sure that was my Mom's culture coming through). I never missed them, but I love this photo wall. It makes me want to print some photos and hang them up! *

In the kitchen area, Julie has several recipes that she was given, handwritten, by her grandmother. Instead of putting them in the recipe box, she framed them so everyone can see.  She also has a plain sheet of paper framed under glass that she uses to write notes or draw something fun. I think it's a great way to interact with her older boys.

In the dining room, one of my favorite things is her built in book shelves. I love how "effortless" everything arranged appears. I know that almost all things "effortless" are really lots of hard work, so I appreciate it even more.

The last idea  I plan to steal is to frame special notes. Similarly to the recipes, she has a letter written by her middle child, and a letter her grandmother wrote, both framed and arranged with more snap shots of her extended family. I think this is a great use for those notes that you don't want to just put in a file folder.

I would love to hear about how you display your "treasures" or why a certain home has left you with a sense of sweetness or peace.

Until next time!

Jonelle

*Speaking of photos, these were all shot on my phone, so please excuse the less than stellar quality!

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Aug. 17, 2012

What's the Deal with Sonlight's Language Arts?

By Luke
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I ran across a fascinating discussion about Sonlight's Language Arts on Facebook. The original poster said she felt Sonlight's Language Arts was "a bit weak and abstract." The comments that follow are very encouraging:

  • "Stick with it! You won't regret it."
  • "My family has ONLY used Sonlight. Here's a sample of my girls' work."
  • "My kids seem to do really well with Sonlight's writing."

Granted, there are less than stellar reviews as well. "Sonlight's LA is pure torture." "SL LA is truly awful!" "I think in theory Sonlight's LA works, I just don't like teaching it."

Talk about polarizing!

The theory behind Sonlight's Language Arts is very practical.

  • Listen to good writing
  • Look at good writing
  • Copy good writing
  • Then write on your own

The strong literature I grew up with highly influenced my prose. And reading/copying great writing is precisely what writing coach Daphne Gray-Grant recommends as well. Dr. Ruth Beechick originally alerted my mom to this natural approach to Language Arts.

But we decided to make our homeschool LA programs even better.


Language Arts Improvements

We re-evaluated every assignment in the Language Arts programs for Cores A through G. You now receive a better balance of grammar and creative writing assignments.

  • You'll find more grammar instruction in each Language Arts program.
    • You will use the copywork/dictation passage to introduce a specific grammar concept each week.
    • Your Instructor's Guide explains that concept and shows you how it works.
    • Your students will do engaging exercises to practice the concept.
  • We also re-evaluated every Creative Writing assignment, removed anything that could be considered "fluff" and rewrote many of the instructions to make sure you know exactly what to do.

Language Arts is now included in every Core program, but we kept the package prices competitive. We wanted to make sure you could check out the improvements and give your students an opportunity to learn how to write using this natural approach.

I know the year is just getting started. Have you had a chance to try out the new Sonlight® Language Arts programs? Are you (and your children) loving the improved LA?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

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Aug. 16, 2012

Run to win!

By Judy
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A precious, long-time friend of mine graduated into heaven this week. I kissed her good-bye Monday evening and a few hours later she stepped into the arms of her friend, Jesus.

As I chat with many, many homeschoolers this week ... anxious over curriculum choices for the coming year ... I keep thinking of Gayle's lasting legacy through homeschooling. While academics are definitely important, her greatest impact on her children's lives was the time she invested. Her daughters and son are growing into the young adults they are becoming in large part because of her consistent love and interest in who they are as individuals. The constant evidence of God's presence in her life was probably the single, greatest example she set for them.

So as you wrestle with handwriting and elective choices this week, don't lose sight of the impact you already have on your children's lives simply through investing time in educating them. The time spent together reading, your patience and understanding with difficult math problems, the hours you just listen and laugh ... these are the things that give your children endurance to run the race.

As I said of my friend this week ... she ran the race well (I Cor. 9:24-25) ... and she prepared her children to continue running even after she was gone. May we be encouraged to do the same for our "runners".

Still on the journey ...
~Judy Wnuk
Sonlight Customer Champion

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Aug. 15, 2012

Failure is Okay on the Road to Mastery

By Luke
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I really liked the video in Suji's post Learn. Fail. Repeat. Paul Anderson played video games in '80s. And now, as a teacher, he's learning to apply what he learned from games to his classroom.

I've written about gaming before (what we learn easily in games, the amount of time we spend in games, games and the future of education). But I wanted to write about this because Anderson has hit on two key lessons that are spot on:

1. Failure is okay. When I finally entered the official school system, I was horrified by grades. They were so counter-intuitive to how I had experienced learning to that point. My education was about mastering a task or a topic. The speed at which I progressed or how I fit into "standards" weren't even on my radar. I wanted (or needed) to learn; that was that. If I failed to properly cross-stitch, or didn't spell a word correctly, or smudged my drawing, or broke my computer code, or got a poor recording... oh well. The frustration was purely one of "wasted" time and a bruised ego. In high school--and again in college--suddenly I had to prove, right now and in a pre-defined way, how well I was doing. It didn't make sense. Much better is to look at learning as growing (leveling). Rather than losing points, you gain experience as you progress.

2. Mastery is the goal. The end game of education should be mastery. How well can we apply and use what we have learned? In video games, this achievement is clear because you've completed your objectives. The number of times you've failed doesn't matter. What matters is that you are now standing victorious. No one really cares about how fast you got there. I love that Anderson's colleague mentions shop classes: You learn skills and then apply them. This is the hope for every learning experience.

Three main lessons Anderson has learned: Kids need structure to keep moving forward... however unspecified that direction is. Kids need to be able to read... not just listen to a teacher give them information. Kids like interaction... interactive worksheets are not the future of education.

This fits perfectly with Sonlight. Your Instructor's Guide provides a flexible structure so you can move at your pace and where you need to go. You don't need tests because you know how well your student is progressing (though, they can be a nice way to get outside confirmation that you're doing well). There's nothing better for learning how to read than a literature-based program made of the best books available. And you and your child will absolutely interact as you discuss the stories you've read.

We can learn a lot about about education by looking at video games. The nice thing is that every time I do, Sonlight continues to dominate the scoreboard in the points that matter.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

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Aug. 14, 2012

How Do We Know What's True?

By Robert
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You're probably familiar with the encounter between Pilate and Jesus that ends with Pilate asking, "What is truth?" (John 18:38).

Although we don't know the tone in his voice when he asked the question, we do know that he didn't seem to linger for an answer (the passage continues, "After he had said this, he went back outside").

The truth question remains relevant to this day, but how do we know what's true? When we ask the question it's already charged with ideas. "How do we know" falls under the branch of philosophy known as epistemology, which addresses all sorts of questions about knowledge.

We might then ask, what is knowledge? Those who have studied the subject may quickly answer, knowledge is justified true belief. We don't have time or space here to offer an introductory course in epistemology, but we can offer some ideas for approaching the truth question.

If truth is what corresponds to reality, then it is to our benefit to understand ways of determining what actually does correspond to reality (what is true). When it comes to worldviews, for instance, there are many conflicting approaches to how people explain and interpret the world.

I'm reminded of a great quote in the C.S. Lewis novel That Hideous Strength. One character makes the remark, "I suppose there are two views about everything." A fellow named Hingest replies, "Eh? Two views? There are a dozen views about everything, until you know the answer. Then there's never more than one."

So how can we put ideas and claims about reality to the test? There are many methods we can employ, but I'll share just two here. (Those who wish to pursue further study of worldview tests can see chapter 2 of A World of Difference by Kenneth Samples and chapter 3 of Christian Apologetics by Douglas Groothuis.)

The coherence test asks whether or not a worldview is logically consistent. As Samples writes, "Truth will always be wholly consistent within itself, displaying internal logical harmony. The coherence test stresses the crucial unity and relatedness of all truth. Therefore any logical inconsistency in the basic elements of a worldview is a mark of essential error."

The coherence test, however, on its own is not enough to determine whether or not a worldview is wholly true. It may be internally consistent, but externally inconsistent with known facts of science, history, etc.

Another helpful test is the explanatory power and scope test. As Samples puts it, this test asks, "How well does a worldview explain the facts of reality ('power') and how wide is the range of the explanation ('scope')?" Any worldview contending for its position as the true worldview should explain reality in a manner that is convincing, broad in scope, profound, and viable.

How does all this relate to home education? Sonlight strives to present and explore various perspectives and viewpoints. We're not known for avoiding controversial issues or dogmatically indoctrinating children. Instead, we want to help parents raise children who think critically and are able to sift through various ideas and come to conclusions that offer the best explanation of reality.

What do you do to help your children know what's true?

Robert Velarde
Author/Educator/Philosopher

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