On finishing computer games …
Why is it always such an anticlimax to complete a computer game? We completed DK Jungle Beat this afternoon, (well, I did, but the children were cheering me on), but other than a couple more gold medals, a really terrible looking but easy to defeat baddy, and some amusing animations during the credits, it was a let-down. Don’t know what I expected, really. Anyway, that game is on the swap list now, for anyone with a bongo controller 
Education … erm, well, Josiah went to Start Right where he had the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, with appropriate number seven related activities. He pulled the ‘I want to come home with you’ stunt when I dropped him off again today, which he never does for Steve … hmmm. Came home saying he’d enjoyed it despite all the fiasco.
Anna and Abbie both did some workbook stuff (maths and handwriting for Abbie, maths and english for Anna) this morning, while I typed up some minutes from a meeting I went to last week – oh, the luxury of a laptop! I sent Anna off to google for vowels and consonants when she declared that she didn’t know what they were – I’m sure she did really, but anyway, she managed to find out, finish her workbook page, and get involved in an online game of chess with another home educated friend all at the same time! She went off to school for lunch and the afternoon’s dance and drama lesson, Steve brought Josiah home and stayed for lunch, and the rest of the afternoon has been spent on games of one sort or another.
Now, I have a confession to make. Not quite sure how my number got passed along, but last week I was contacted by a journalist, and we agreed to have a reporter round tomorrow who is doing an article on home education for one of the national papers. A photographer is coming too … argh. Anyway, they’ve said they want pictures of the children ‘working’ so the kids and I have been thinking about ways we can portray ‘work’ without having to agree to the preconception that learning = sitting down and writing. Anna suggested the computer (surprise surprise!), and other ideas so far have included science kit activities, geomags and hama – possibly geomag platonic solids are more visually impressive than hama bead designs … any other ideas, anyone? I don’t have any more details than that at the moment so don’t ask, I’ll let you know as soon as I know anything else about the article.
Off out for dinner at a friend’s house tonight which should be lovely, so I’m off to do bathtime and bedtime with my lovely children 
February 28th, 2005 at 17:44
The fact you have said ‘one of the national papers’ clearly means it is the Daily Mail. If it is, my opinion of you will at least halve.
February 28th, 2005 at 17:53
could you do some baking? (might be stressful), something crafty?
February 28th, 2005 at 18:15
It IS the Mail, isn’t it. Oh, Sarah………,{shakes head in a “more hurt that angry” sort of way} How about something with the body – I always bring out a half size skeleton on these occasions.
February 28th, 2005 at 18:32
I so knew I shouldn’t say anything.
February 28th, 2005 at 18:43
What is the problem with the Daily Mail? I don’t read any papers at all so I *really* don’t know why this one would cause everyone so much stress? Please enlighten me.
February 28th, 2005 at 19:05
giggle……
February 28th, 2005 at 19:13
do that great balloon lung thing – i really like your pictures of it! yep to geomag panels. get in your timeline thing as well, as nice visually.
not a mail girl, but i had a bit on searbelts in the sun years ago.
perhaps hide the bongos?? yep to computers.
February 28th, 2005 at 19:23
My main reason is that I think the paper is obsessed with irresponsible scaremongering to fit it’s political views rather than publishing facts and more objective comment. Basically all the problems of society are based on 1) asylum seekers, 2) the demise of victorian values 3) political correctness and 4) the EU.
These are typical and real headlines from the last year:
Murder by playstation (ban this sick filth)
Is abortion the new pill?
Don’t we want to punsish criminals anymore?
Why bother dialing 999?
Abortion: just have it done at your GP’s surgery.
A gypsy camp in every town
A phone mast by every school
MArch of the gypsy camps
Why we should be free to kill a burglar.
February 28th, 2005 at 19:37
….and just to clarify…..my views are generally liberal socialist, the complete opposite to the Mail but that isn’t where my objections lie. I wouldn’t criticise a paper just because it’s angle is the opposite of mine (I’d happily read the Telegraph / Times ).
One of my old school friends (a liveral) is now a science correspondent for the Daily Mail…..he had to write things like this:
http://tinyurl.com/6ml4u
Simple scaremongering.
Funny, just did a search for Tim (he is now Press Officer at Nottingham University), I guess it all got too much for him, lol.
February 28th, 2005 at 19:41
Ugh, will be seriously disappointed if it *is* the Mail.
And sod ‘working’, I’d hide all the books in the loft and tell the kids to play as much xbox and gamecube as possible
Tell them the bongos are essential for your current music project.
February 28th, 2005 at 19:43
Steve, it doesn’t cause *everyone* stress. I know that June reads it….and I am not sure she has victorian values…..but I can imagine her ranting about asylum-seekers
(don’t know why though).
February 28th, 2005 at 20:16
Max (who seems to think much like Chris) says “oh no….”
Personally i don’t think it matters, they can all like you, they can all stuff you :~) Let’s hope they like you :~D
February 28th, 2005 at 20:18
Well at least it isnt The Sun
February 28th, 2005 at 20:20
I prefer the Sun to the DM actually.
Well what I thinks certainly doesn’t matter
And it’s not about the HE article (it may well be fantastic), it is the fact it is in a paper that treats Maxine Carr as if she is satan reincarnated.
February 28th, 2005 at 20:32
Well, the Sun I can at least have some respect for, they aren’t trying to be something they’re not. Doesn’t matter what they say, whether they’re positive or negative, I have no respect for anything they write, and so HE being condemned or condoned by the DM is equally worthless in my eyes. Sorry Sar. Hope it goes well for you though.
February 28th, 2005 at 20:34
It is a crappy rag but that doesn’t mean it’s readership should be deprived of a peep at home ed Clarke family style! Although the fact that it’s the DM might tempt me to be a bit…erm…unconventional in what I show and cause a little debate!
Good luck- you are fast becoming the public face of HE!!
February 28th, 2005 at 20:34
I *bet* it’s in the womens’ section……kids being the responsibility of the mothers in a proper family.
February 28th, 2005 at 20:36
“It is a crappy rag but that doesn’t mean it’s readership should be deprived of a peep at home ed Clarke family style! ”
Yes it does! They’re not ^(&^(*(ing worthy!
February 28th, 2005 at 20:38
ahem…..apart from June…..
I hear the ‘Voice of Freedom’ are looking for a HE family too
February 28th, 2005 at 21:02
It doesn’t really matter what you say, they’ll print what they like anyway, and if the pictures don’t fit with the angle they want, they won’t use them.
February 28th, 2005 at 21:27
Have no opinion on the paper really – I rarely read any as they all seem to have an agenda other than reporting news.
Why are YOU doing it Sarah? (and I ask that in a totally innocent not trying to catch you out or judge you way – just honestly interested)
February 28th, 2005 at 21:39
What’s pinging?
February 28th, 2005 at 21:47
Daily Mail Island … if it is the DM we’ll have to get MIL to save us the article. They sum up DM values nicely.
February 28th, 2005 at 22:32
LOL @ Layla’s MIL
February 28th, 2005 at 23:14
If it is the Mail the angle will be something like “why can’t schools do it this well”. Chris, for once, I agree with everything you say about the Mail. I would add a number 5 to your list of the evils of society: schools. They all teach children the first 4 are good and go on to teach them to steal cars, take drugs and swear at people, undoing all the good work parents do.
Ken Livingstone has a point.
February 28th, 2005 at 23:29
My mother reads the DM.
While I don’t have the courage to invite a journo into the house (not least as I’d be afraid they’d wander into the dining room and never be seen again!), I do respect you for having the guts to do it. And if it makes my mother think twice about it all, I’ll be very grateful!
pinging is usually shouting at someone via IM Heather.
February 28th, 2005 at 23:30
Ignore them Sarah, every woman deserves a daily male.
February 28th, 2005 at 23:58
Thanks for that, Tim
March 1st, 2005 at 14:05
so……what’s IM????
March 1st, 2005 at 16:02
well – how did it go???
March 1st, 2005 at 17:09
Heather – Instant Messaging
Nic – fine thanks, but I don’t think I’m going to tell any of you when it’s going in.
Today’s excitement is finding out where in Exeter I can pick up wireless connections for the laptop – so far I found one in the HE group hut, now I’m sitting outside cello lessons and seem to have a pretty good one … I’m going to have to take it everywhere now just to test it in all the different places I go!
March 1st, 2005 at 17:28
How do you pay for these connections, or are they insecure?
March 1st, 2005 at 17:35
Oh you can tell me, i wasn’t rude! I mean i was rude on Max’s behalf but not personally :~D
March 1st, 2005 at 17:39
very insecure, I suspect.
March 1st, 2005 at 17:46
Ah, so you are stealing bandwith.
March 1st, 2005 at 17:55
Will you be using your real name? If so I shall get MIL to look out for it for me and save it! I read the Mail when DH rescues it from the train but not reliably anymore, for some reason he always picks the Star or Sun up in preference… can’t think why
March 1st, 2005 at 18:07
i also wasnn’t rude!! you can do a password protect for us!
March 1st, 2005 at 18:46
Think the chances of it sneaking past here are terribly small, I still recall them cutting out the snippet from the DM that proved real nappies were bad for the environment (um, really?)
How did the kids take to it all?
March 1st, 2005 at 18:56
They’re fairly used to it, after the different life experience, so they quite enjoyed themselves I think. Photographer took pics of geomags and hama! Doubt they will use all of them though … did have to laugh when they asked me if I had anything smarter than jeans to wear (erm, yes, I always dress up to educate my children – NOT!), but as I genuinely don’t, that was easily answered!
The woman was really lovely, so that left me relatively confident that the article itself will be fine. She also interviewed another family, plus a couple of people at our HE group this afternoon, so it’s not only us, iyswim. And I don’t know yet when it will be in, anyway.
March 1st, 2005 at 20:19
Your so much more tolerant than me
If they had suggested I smarten up I think they would have been asked to leave…..I think I would have been slightly worried that they were wishing to present their particular *image* of HE to their readers, iyswim. Then again out of the context of the actual interactions it is difficult to comment. So is it going to be in Femail?
I am not sure anyone was actually rude, were they?
March 1st, 2005 at 20:36
Rude? About the DM, perhaps – though *I* would argue I was being fair and honest
Wasn’t rude about you! Though I am of course disappointed that you have no standards and have become a meeja whore 
And of course the woman was lovely, she’s trying to get as much out of you as possible! Hardly likely to be antagonistic, that’s not going to let her gather enough info for her article. (Or get you to provide enough material for her to stitch you up in …)
As for the “smarter clothes” request … no, I wouldn’t have been laughing either.
Anyway, if *you* were happy about your decision to do it, why then want to hide away the results?
March 1st, 2005 at 20:58
what was the hook of the article – do you know?
and was the woman called Louise? if so then i know the other family she interviewed!
March 1st, 2005 at 22:43
i used to have to read the DM as it was the only readable one i could manage without a table… now everyone very thoughtfully makes their papers “Merry-sized”!!!
March 1st, 2005 at 22:48
‘Influx of immigrants to schools forces white middle-class to seek alternative education whilst Brown raises taxes, EU bans sausages and property prices plummet.’