Miss MacLeod’s Virtual Pub

I think that just having to ask myself that question lets me know I have a problem. Twitter was down for a brief period this afternoon. Sadly, the Pogo Games Mother’s Day events coincided with the planned outage. Even though I knew it was coming, I felt somewhat frantic. Like the power had gone out in the night. For the first time, I realized my true twitter dependency.

I use twitter for everything. Friends, professional colleagues, news. I have even resorted to tweeting my daughter to get her attention when she had headphones on and did not hear me knock on her door to let her know dinner was ready. I tweet to get opinions and reviews on software and other products before I buy them. I tweet during baseball games and rugby matches. I even admit to tweeting during American Idol.

Twitter has been the best thing to come along in years. Much better than instant messaging. Now with the addition of twibes, the like minded can gather in a virtual world that has no boundaries. In my genealogy twibe, we have members from all corners of the earth, limited only by time zones. I do also confess to staying up to late to communicate with genealogists from Australia. Twitter is just too good to give up.

So, back to the addiction problem - is it a problem? Have I ever missed work because of Twitter? No. Have I become disconnected from family and friends due to Twitter. No - the opposite - however one could argue that talking rather than tweeting when you are in the same house would be more appropriate behavior. Have I ever had trouble getting up in the morning after a night of heavy twittering? Yes. I admit to that one. Have I suffered physically because of Twitter? Perhaps. It is hard to tweet and exercise at the same time, but I do have skinny, well muscled fingers.

After analyzing the situation, I have decided to keep tweeting. I may even tweet more. I may even spend the evening designing a new Twitter background.

Oh, let’s face it. I am addicted, and I don’t care. I love Twitter, and nothing will stop my tweeting, even if I must tweet in secret. Just don’t tell anyone - especially about the American Idol bit!

Well, I am on my soapbox again. I has become extremely tedious for me to explain over and over to neighbours (and sometimes even family members) why I homeschool my children. If I just put my brief explanation here on the blog, next time someone asks I will simply refer them here. And that will make my life easier. If I ruffle any feathers, they can respond here, not in the middle of the supermarket, or in my driveway.

I teach my children at home because it works. Plain and simple. They are at a much higher level of education than their peers. They have individualized attention. They are never rushed to progress with a subject until they fully understand the concepts currently being studied. This is most important in math - in a traditional school, if you don’t fully comprehend multiplication, tough luck , the calender says it’s time for division, so sorry, you are moving on ready or not. This does not happen when you homeschool. The reverse is also true. The child is not sitting there bored out of his or her mind while waiting for all the other students to grasp a concept that they learned long ago. The state that I live in (Florida) is not exactly known for it’s stellar public schools. That alone is reason enough.

A child spends a lot of hours in school. A lot. A child is influenced by their environment. In my opinion, there has been a degradation of morals and safety as well as education. There are so many things going on in public schools these days that I do not approve of - too many things to list here. The public school in 2009 is an institution that I do not want to give my children over to. If they are attending the public schools, they will essentially become a product of what the schools are today. I know that having a good family life will make up for some of that, but if a child is in school more hours than at home with their family, they cannot help but be influenced by what they are exposed to at that school.

In response to those who ask who I am accountable to , I will let you know that everything is very regulated here in Florida. My children are registered with the Department of Education in my county, and their work is evaluated by a certified teacher. The evaluation is then reviewed by the local School Department. My curriculum must be reviewed and approved. I am not just willy nilly doing as I please, as some have suggested. But I have control over the environment that my children are exposed to. In my opinion , the core subjects are not enough for a well rounded education, and I am able to add subjects such as computer literacy and languages not offered in the public school.

In response to the accusation that a child being educated in the home is socially isolated - that is laughable. My children have plenty of friends and are very social, receiving invitations and spending time with friends just as much as any other children. They have not had a hard time adapting at all. I will admit that part of this may be due to the fact that there is a very large homeschooling population in our area, with a social network already in place.

Most importantly, how do I know this will work?? My oldest son is now grown. He probably will not like Mom bragging about him, but I can’t help it. My son started college during his last year of high school under a dual enrollment program. This is a wonderful thing - my other two children will be doing the same. Not to mention, free college tuition is nothing to sneeze at. Anyhow, he is is in the honors program, and will have an Associates Degree on June 24. Graduating with honors. Yes, I know I repeated honors. But to have such a high GPA, I must brag. My son will be attending a major university in the fall, entering as a Junior. And you know what? He is only 18 years old. If that isn’t proof positive that homeschooling works, what is? I started homeschooling when my son was flunking middle school. Look how far he has come. Yes, for sure, homeschooling does indeed work.

Off my soapbox, and feel free to leave comments , post in the forum, or send an email. All responses are welcome, and thank you for taking the time to read this - it could make a difference. Blessings, MM