Nov. 30, 2011

Technology and Translation

By Luke
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Jesus's ministry benefited from the "social network" of His day: The Roman roads. Never before in history--I'm told--was it so easy to travel. And with this ease, information could spread quickly.

How much more true is this today!

You may have already heard about the 1,000 people who "crowdsourced" Scripture translation. Isn't it fantastic that people from all over the globe can connect on the internet to translate the Bible?

I was reminded of the amazing potential to reach millions of people from all walks of life when YouTube announced, for example, that a video shot in Brooklyn has been viewed more than 40 million times. Two hundred thousand of the views came from Brazil; that many also came from Russia. 1 out of 100 people in the Philippines have seen that video. As they say on the blog, "One of the great joys of a global platform is finding out that people from afar can relate, connect, and appreciate your videos."

But this goes way beyond videos. The internet allows us to chat with people in other countries. We can catch glimpses of the lives of friends we've never met via blogs. We can encourage one another and spur each other on to do good works. We can pray, share, praise, cry, and minister to one another sitting in front of our computers in our PJs.

It boggles my mind.

This morning, as we gathered for prayer, we got to read about Bible translation work in Central Asia ...yet another example of technology aiding translation.

Would you pray for us--here at Sonlight--that God would give us wisdom as we continue to consider all the ways we can serve you over the internet? Would you pray for the missions agencies we support, that they would know how to make the most of the tools available to them? And would you share what ministries, blogs, and tools you find most encouraging and exciting so we can celebrate the continuation of the spread of the Gospel together?

Thanks so much!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

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Nov. 29, 2011

You Can Lead a Horse to Water

By Luke
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...but you can't make it successful.

Education, much like a stream or body of water, holds vast potential. You can go anywhere with it, do anything, gain much power and understanding. But this potential isn't the issue.

We are.

The question is: What will we do with the education before us? Compulsory education has proved again and again that forcing kids to sit in class does little to educate or motivate them. They have to "own" their learning. Their parents have to "own" it as well. Teachers can inspire--absolutely--but they can't force a kid to retain or apply knowledge. So, like the proverbial horse by the water, education is not the filling of a bucket, but giving a thirst.

Homeschooling develops this kind of thirst. Great books open our minds to the wide world out there. The freedom to explore our interests allows us to find joy in our work. The more open nature of literature gives us a chance to think and explore ideas typically predigested in textbooks. The opportunity to filter experiences and history through more than a limited naturalistic view of the world allows us to see more meaning. In short, learning on our own enables us to create an educational experience that encourages us to take responsibility and make the most of the time we have been given... not merely wait for a bell to ring.

I got excited about homeschooling yet again this morning when I read a post about the dwindling power of a college degree. We've seen the lackluster value of college degrees in those who occupied city parks for the past couple of months. This potential shift away from college reminded me of a post I read a while back that suggested investing in a business start up instead of college may be a better deal.

Not that I'm against college. I met my best friend and wife at my university. I had a great time. My college years were very influential. But they were also expensive. And, perhaps, the water trough you pay to visit isn't worth the expense if you're longing for fresh spring water in the mountains.

Do you find your homeschool curriculum gives you and your children a thirst for learning? Have any thoughts about the "dwindling power" of a degree?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

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Nov. 24, 2011

On Potatoes and Pilgrims - Thanksgiving Reflections

By Sarita
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As I remember the roots of Thanksgiving Day, I'm humbled. We base it on the day of thanksgiving the Pilgrims enjoyed. To put their thanksgiving into perspective, remember that they did not come off of an easy year:

    potato harvest from my garden
    What am I grateful for? Among other things (see the list below), a garden.
  • Their trip from England to the New Land had been delayed several times. Can you imagine the packing and unpacking involved? How unnerving and daunting for moms to provide for their families after having sold and/or packed all their possessions;
  • They had spent nine weeks crossing the ocean through storms in a very small vessel (think of sea sickness, cramped conditions, homesickness)
  • They landed in an unexpected place in a land with no access to man-made resources and unfamiliar plants to grow and eat (imagine if something broke and had to be replaced—this was not possible);
  • They often feared for their lives from unfriendly Indians (they built stockades and kept watch, never certain what would happen);
  • Out of the 102 people that sailed, 47 people died that first year. Hardly a family would have been untouched by death. They certainly struggled with doubts about whether they made the right choice (e.g., My husband/child/brother would still be alive if we had stayed in Europe).

This group of people gathered to give thanks to God for his care and his provision!

In light of this example, I offer the following list as a starting point of my own thanksgiving to God. I plan to not repeat any thanks from my thanksgiving list last year merely because it encourages me to reflect more deeply. So here is my list, in no particular order:

  • Books: They provide a chance to learn and expand the mind; I'm thankful for a chance to read daily.
  • Godly friends: I'm grateful for the opportunity to meet weekly with a precious sister who has wrestled for two years with incredible health issues and great pain. To hear her testimony of God's goodness and see her cling to Him is good for the soul.
    • potato harvest from my garden
    I am exceedingly grateful for my daughter Jonelle's healthy pregnancy so far. Here we are on a walk with Natalia this summer.
  • Work: I know many who think of work as a negative. But I believe we are created for work (of various kinds – from employment to cooking and laundry), and that's why we get satisfaction from it. I am grateful that work is fulfilling even when it's hard.
  • Healthy Pregnancy: My daughter Jonelle will deliver by C-section on December 9. After two life-threatening pregnancies, I'm grateful for a scheduled C-section and the promise of new life. We're anxiously looking forward to a brother or sister for Natalia.
  • Thrilling results from Sonlighters' generosity last year on behalf of the needy: Last fall Sonlight families and their friends raised $157,000. As this money was doubled through a matching gift, Sonlighters sent 314,000 children in India to Bible Club. Many of these children have reportedly become believers, and I look forward to meeting some of them in heaven. I love that so many Sonlight students and families experienced the joy of giving. I heard stories of children giving up birthday presents and working hard to raise money. I think the joy that came from that must have been great.
  • Bird watching: Now that the frost has put my flowers to bed, I fill my bird feeder and enjoy watching the antics of my feathered friends—finches, chickadees, mourning doves, woodpeckers, nuthatches (one of my favorites) and more. Fun!
  • New crop: John and I planted potatoes this year. We planted one pound and figure we harvested at least twenty pounds. What a tasty increase!
  • Two 90-year-old parents: John's dad turned 90 this year, as did my mom. John's siblings and their spouses, his dad and his wife (John's mom died many years ago) and any grandchildren nearby met in Colorado for a family reunion. Since the family is normally quite scattered over the globe, we enjoyed seeing one another to catch up and share meals.
  • Homeschoolers (this one bears repeating from last year's list)—people who choose to not put their children on a school bus but rather invest in their children during the day at home—may your reward be great!

I would be interested in hearing your list. What are you thankful for?

Blessings,
Sarita

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Nov. 23, 2011

Science and Conspiracies

By Luke
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To start: I love science. It is fascinating and fantastic.

While clearing my RSS feed this morning, I came across Seth Godin's post about conspiracy theories. He contrasted conspiracies and science, saying, "as soon as anything appears to disprove part of the theory, the theory changes." Which is an excellent summary of the power behind scientific exploration: When something fails to work, we take another look at it. Science is "falsifiable"--testable--because it is based on observable phenomenon and hypotheses.

But Godin isn't talking about scientific theories and ideas. He is talking about conspiracies, and how they are typically un-falsifiable. Godin's point is a fair observation... he just presented it poorly. Which brings up one of my "conspiracy theories" (observations) regarding science: Scientific data and ideas are too often presented rather poorly to the general public... me.

The most recent example of this is the video Let's Talk About Evolution. I agree with much of what is presented. I raise an eyebrow, however, at the extremely vague nature of the video. I get that it was created by letting female scientists express their own opinions. Cool. But let me ask you: Can you tell when this video is talking about modification over time via natural selection, descent with modification via DNA recombination, modification via gene mutation, speciation, common descent, or abiogenesis?

I'm no scientist, but I'm pretty confident all of those are rather different areas of study. Granted, they all tie to this grand experiment, but the distinction between them has yet to be made clear in anything I've read or heard from those who promote teaching "evolution" in the classroom. My opinion: To properly teach about this important scientific idea, we must clearly distinguish between these elements.

So where does that leave me?

  1. Happy that "despite" my strong Young Earth Creationist upbringing I'm still thrilled to learn about this subject from all angles.
  2. Grateful that Sonlight's Science laid a solid foundation for my continued scientific education with it's heavy focus on hands-on science programs and challenges to think critically.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

P.S. To be fair, I looked up some negative reviews of Evolution: The Grand Experiment, and there are several critiques of this work as being outdated and misrepresenting vital information. That could easily be true. Granted, the books they suggest have similar accusations leveled against them. And so it comes around again: Learning about evolution is important, but what and how we learn about it is just as important.

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Nov. 22, 2011

Traditions and Non-Traditions

By Karla
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As the holidays are approaching again, I've been thinking about family traditions. Maybe your family has traditions that are as set-in-stone as the "laws of the Medes and Persians, which altereth not." In my family, though, our traditions are always evolving, depending on the the situation each year. Some years we are privileged to get together with extended family. Other years we are by ourselves. Also, traditions that were important when our children were very small no longer apply now that the children are older.

I remember the first year I was away from home at college, my parents invited my future husband home with me for Thanksgiving. I told my mother to be sure and bake lots of pies because I had told my boyfriend how we always had many different kinds of pie at Thanksgiving. Mother laughed. Turns out we had only done that one other time (the previous year), but in my mind it was a tradition. She obligingly baked lots of pies that year, and she still does when we have the rare opportunity to have an extended family Thanksgiving dinner-- though, due to distance, those times have been few and far between in recent years.

Yesterday we were discussing plans for Thanksgiving with the children. It looks like this will be one of those years when we will be by ourselves. We were making plans to fix a nice dinner, and talking about other things we would like to do that day to celebrate. My youngest daughter had an idea: "Daddy could play 'Turkey in the Straw' on the piano after dinner!" (My husband is not a pianist. "Turkey in the Straw" is one of two songs he knows how to play.)

I wondered why she came up with that idea, but then I got a sneaking suspicion. "Is 'Turkey in the Straw' a Thanksgiving song?" I inquired.

"Well, duh!" she said. "It's about a turkey!"

There ya go. I think we have a new tradition that will be fun to explain in years to come when the grandchildren come along!

I've discovered that the most important tradition is that we remain flexible and just enjoy each other, regardless of who or what that might include.

What unique holiday traditions (or non-traditions) does your family have?

Counting my blessings!
~Karla Cook
Lifelong Learner

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Nov. 18, 2011

Conflict: The Lifeblood of Drama

By Luke
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...and perhaps the motivation to read.

Growing up, I had no idea that lame books existed in the world. My steady diet of Sonlight titles left me with the impression that books were great. Sure, there were some I didn't care for as much. But overall? Books contained characters I loved doing meaningful things in exciting and interesting places. They overcame obstacles and enemies, persevered through hardship, and made the world a better place. I found myself cheering often.

I was completely unaware of the large swath of literature that contains no such depth.

So when I read accounts like this, I'm thankful for the background in literature my mom gave me. Though, I must say, I found much of the literature in high school AP English to be... well... less than impressive when compared to what I read growing up. If there is a drawback to reading all the great books in Sonlight's homeschool curriculum, it's that you see more clearly where other titles fall short. Which could be problematic if you're asked to give your opinion on a "classic" bit of English history.

For young children, Barney may be just the thing. But the older you get, the more important conflict becomes. Real conflict. The kind of edge-of-your-seat excitement that keeps you invested in a story. The kind of suspense that makes you beg for one more chapter! The kind of events that inspire you to take a stand.

Part of the reason Sonlight books are so exciting is because there are so many biographies. We get to witness things God has done and marvel at how He brings His followers through intense situations.

What are your favorite stories? Do they have conflict?

Looking for a book that will make you cheer? Check out The Great and Terrible Quest.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

Word of the Day
Fecundity: fertility; the capacity of abundant production, especially of offspring

Brought to you by Karen Campbell

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Nov. 17, 2011

Let 'em eat ... pie!

By Judy
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For one of my students, learning fractions was as natural as breathing. For another, it took some doing, but the concept was finally grasped. However, for one of my students, the concept of fractions was so much Greek, or Hebrew, or Mandarin Chinese. There was no rhyme or reason and we just couldn't seem to master the idea.

I recalled our struggles with fractions again a week or so ago as I talked with a young mom who could not seem to grasp how fractions worked herself, let alone teach them to her young son. I suggested she bake a pie!

Sometimes teaching fractions, or any other math concept, is as "simple" as getting it off the page and into your hands. Math manipulatives are great for "handling" math, but not always necessary. If you don't want to invest the money in a manipulatives kit, or need to master fractions *today*, and can't wait for a kit to arrive, you need only go as far as your kitchen.

Blueberry Pie is a favorite around our house, but you can substitute apple or cherry or any other pie that has a top crust. The crust isn't crucial to teaching how fractions work, but it does make it easier to visualize the "parts" of the whole. Once your pie is baked, explain that the finished pie is the whole. Cut the pie exactly in half. Ask your student how many halves make up the whole. Now cut the pie into fourths (aka quarters). Ask your student how many fourths make up the whole. Finally, cut your pie into eighths. Ask your student how many eights make up the whole. Simple? Yes. Fundamental? Definitely. But this basic understanding is crucial to moving ahead with fractions.

Now you can head in so many different directions. Demonstrate to your student how money is very much like fractions. Lay a dollar bill (the whole) on the kitchen counter next to the pie. Next place four quarters (fourths) next to the dollar bill. Spread a sheet of waxed paper or a paper towel on the counter next to the money and the pie. Measure out a cup (the whole) on the paper. Next measure out a quarter cup (fourths) of flour, four times, next to the whole cup. Be sure to point out how the "parts" are the same as the "whole".

The best part is yet to come! Grab a couple of plates and ask your student to serve each of you an eighth of the blueberry pie apiece. After you've enjoyed the pie (even better warm, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!), ask your student how many eighths are left. Take a look at the pie and point out that the empty space left by the two slices (eighths) you've just enjoyed, are equal to one-fourth of the whole pie. Be sure to speak in "fraction language" (i.e. fourths, eighths, etc...) so your student equates the term with what they see.

You've now laid the ground work for not only understanding the basics of fractions, but also adding and subtracting fractions. And it didn't require a piece of paper, a pencil, or even a calculator! However, when you're ready to put your fractions on paper, do a rough sketch of your blueberry pie up in the corner ... then begin with writing 1 (whole), 1/4 (fourths) and 1/8 (eighths). Have your student "cut" the pie and shade in the appropriate fractions as you write them on the paper.

The next time you work on fractions, use soft, flour tortillas, or one of those large candy bars that are scored in 10 or 12 blocks. You can also cut "pies" out of construction paper simply by tracing around a large dinner plate. And if you want to "watch" someone have great fun with fractions, check out our Mathtacular 3 DVD. Justin is a pro at making any math concept fun and easy to learn.

So when it comes time to teach fractions ... tell your kids you're going to teach them math in the kitchen. The fun of creating a pie and enjoying the "fruits" of your labor is a much better way to learn fractions than stressing over a math workbook. And it leaves a lasting mental connection between fractions and parts and pieces of a delicious blueberry pie.

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

PS ... This is the perfect time of year to order a math manipulatives kit or one of our Mathtacular DVDs ... they're all part of our Christmas Sale!

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