This blog is broken. In fact, the problem has persisted for well over a week now. Yet here I am, writing yet another post, and ignoring the problem.

What problem?

My blog header problem. Currently, you can't click on the header to get back to the full post listing. Worse yet, the header is the exact same image as Sonlight's homepage. I really need to update to header to more accurately express that this is not Sonlight's website but rather a blog where I muse about Sonlight and homeschooling.

In 2006, Seth Godin gave a talk about broken things and the inspiration for the website This Is Broken. Mr. Godin discusses 7 reasons why something could be broken:

1. Not my job
2. Selfish jerks
3. The world changed
4. I didn't know
5. I'm not a fish
6. Contradictions
7. Broken on purpose

I think Seth Godin is really smart guy. His blog shows up now and again in my Other Posts of Note. And I'm very grateful that he takes time in his talk to offer the caveat that there are many other reasons why something could be broken. I'll share one:

Priorities.

It's fun to laugh at humorous signs. But that really doesn't explain why so many business have broken things for you to trip over. One major reason you bump into so many broken experiences is because the business has other priorities at the moment.

This isn't because you don't matter to them. It's just that with the limited time and resources we all have, we must choose what to focus on.

The same is true of your homeschool. That's why I really appreciated Grateful for Grace's "The Best Homeschool Curriculum" post. You don't have time to do everything, so you must stick with what you can do. You must prioritize your options and spend your time the best you can.

Wondering if Sonlight is the best homeschool curriculum for your family? If you haven't yet, I recommend you take a few minutes to read 27 Reasons NOT to Buy Sonlight.

For now, my blog header remains broken. That's because I'm focusing on fixing other things at the moment. What have you had to set aside for a while because of other priorities?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

P.S. The header problem can also be found on the Box Day blog.

Every choice we make effectively eliminates all other options for that moment. By reading this sentence you have chosen to not do something else. For instance, in the time it takes to read this you could wash a cup, put away a stack of plates, hug a child/spouse, water a plant, open/close a window, read a paragraph written by a more talented writer, do a push-up (or three), rest your eyes, say a prayer, pull something out of the freezer for dinner...

Before we go on, allow me to say how glad I am that you're spending these moments with me. <smile>

This confinement by choice boggles my mind when I think about homeschool curriculum and education in general. Where in the world do you start with education? The reality of "knowledge gaps" opens before me like the vastness of space. And then I remember: This is about life-long learning. This is about learning how to learn what you need to know in a given situation. This is about the joy of always learning more.

On the other hand, majoring in the universe isn't really an option. And so we must settle on one choice at a time.

As someone whose job involves helping make your choices easier, I ran into a problem today: How do I get you the information you need in the quickest way possible?

Actually, that's not a new problem. I just bumped into a new form of the problem. The more options you have, the more variables are involved. The more variables, the more information there is to explain the differences. The more information, the harder it is to fit it all into a single space. So what goes where? Using what little I know, I choose: This information should be here, that information accessible there.

Is that the right choice?

I don't know yet.

Time will hopefully reveal the optimal layout as I listen to feedback, consider other options and monitor--as best I can--what is proving helpful and what is not.

You have limited time. You have big decision to make in that time. And as much as I try to help, there's always some option I didn't anticipate. And so, if you can't decide on a Sonlight program, chat with a Sonlight Advisor. Worried the choice you've made isn't the right one for your family? You are covered with Sonlight's unmatched one-year Love to Learn Guarantee. You have options before and after you make your choice.

I don't have Advisors, but I do have really smart co-workers. I don't have a Guarantee, but I do have grace when things aren't quite right.

When you feel overwhelmed with choices, what do you do? Have you ever had to handle the panic of option overload? What information have you focused on recently to help you make a difficult decision?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

Sonlight's Instructor's Guides have been updated for the new year. Unfortunately, I forgot to copy a few key elements to the new website. That's why the 3-week Samples weren't working properly until today.

Sorry about that.

The good news is that now you can get the first 3 weeks of any IG for free. You can see for yourself how the notes, schedule and other resources packed into your IG will help you in your homeschool.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester

NB: As of posting, the new High School IGs aren't ready yet. Buf if you request a 3-week sample now, we'll let you know when they are available for download.

[NB: This post has been modified from original publication. I have attempted to remove all offensive terms. All comments remain.]

That's the mantra I've been repeating here.

Choosing a Sonlight program can be incredibly difficult. You can choose everything from a one-package-with-all-subjects-included all the way down to just buy-only-the-titles-you-need. That makes for a lot of options. As you know, we've been working on improving choosing. We want selecting your homeschool curriculum to be exciting not daunting; fun not grueling.

But with the Core level changes (from numbers to letters) and the addition of Multi-Subject Pacakges (not to mention the general craziness of our annual season launch), it's been a tad maddening. We need to try to figure out all the possible combinations of programs, what goes with what, and where you would expect to find them. Plus, if you have Core A with Grade 2 Readers... which Language Arts do you need to be shown? Why, 2LG, of course. But if you wanted the Grade K Readers, then you would need KLP.

This kind of craziness leads to some fun chat messages. I received the following from Mike while he was trying to debug the Chooser:

so on fir st ig la 1 klg?

<smile>

Good times. But the answer is "no."

Speaking of brains: This delightful site alerts us to misconceptions we have about ourselves. By the end of each post you will discover what the truth is. You will also discover how your self-delusion "keeps you sane."

If you're feeling a little crazy, take a few minutes to learn something new about yourself. And think about all the people who have suffered brain pain so you don't have to, like the friendly guy behind youarenotsosmart.com who takes the time to help me understand just how much craziness I have. <smile>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Empty Nester