Saturday, October 18, 2014

Tokays and Animal Insights

I have a few posts to catch up on in this blog and was hoping no one would actually notice we were already in Bali thus giving me time to do a sneaky few days catch up.

Alas too much has happened already so excuse me in the future digressing back to past events, but there is so much to share right now!

Arriving back in Bali, we made our way to our little village and our delightful new home, we have rented a small but sweet little one bedroom cottage. Not quite bali style but more a mix of old fashioned English blended with tropical style. It is smaller than we expected, isn't it strange how something can be clearly depicted yet appears slightly different in person. We are quite in love with our little home.

As we arrive, the villages are filled with a huge ceremony causing major traffic jams with magnificently dressed women carrying huge offerings on their heads,the air is thick with the small of incense mixed with pandan and floral undertones.

We arrive to our small lane way and drag bags up over the narrow concrete pathway through the rice fields. Our outdoor bathroom is hot and damp and a quick dip in the pool in the moonlight is a perfect pick me up to the travel induced weariness.

We settle in under a huge netted bed and drift off to the sound of bamboo clanking in the gentle night breeze and the call of frogs and geckos in the distance.
Awakening at 5am (thanks very much Mr Rooster), we push open the shutters to another simply perfect day, my daughter comes racing in saying "I know it's early but you just have to see this".

We hurry to the lounge room and there is an enormous tokay (gecko like lizard) on the roof winking at her, it is one of the largest we have seen.

Well that is extremely good news, in Balinese mythology they believe that if a tokay visits you it is a sign that the spirit of the land welcomes you. If he arrives in your home on the first day, he is protecting you from burglars for the duration of your stay.

We thanked him and he immediately pooped on the floor, fantastic, another sure sign of blessings and welcome.
Stone Dragon / Lizards guard the Monkey Forest




Back to the bedroom, figuring we were already up now, we may as well welcome the day, the sun streams through the slits in the shutters as I stretch up and give a gentle push, they were stuck! A slightly firmer shove and splat, something heavy and slightly slimy lands on my shoulder (only a small squeal ensued before i composed myself). The hairs stood up on my arm as I very cautiously glanced across to see what was making up this rather heavy brooch on my shoulder - "please don't be anything hairy" ran through my mind.

Two large wide open eyes blinked at me and with their own silent squeal leapt off my shoulder as the (slightly smaller) tokay leapt on to the floor and hurridly hid behind a power point.

A long sigh gently released - wonderful, another blessing to delight in!

But the wildlife and visiting party was not to end there, opening the other window it took quite some coaxing to get the green tree frog to relinquish its hold on the inside window and relocate to the garden bed, along with a few scary looking but harmless spiders. All under the joyful eyes of the smaller lizards.

Our good luck was to continue as we were regaled with stories of the messages the visiting animals bring to us.

Apparently, if a gecko or tokay poops on you, it is good luck, much the same as in the western culture we believe it to be good luck if a new baby wees on you.

Another custom is to count the calls of the tokay / gecko or chikchak, similar to our game with flower petals of "he loves me, he loves me not", if you have a question you need to answer, you can repeatly say the 2 sides of it over and over and pay attention to which answer you are on when he stops his calling to receive your intuitive answer.

There are many other stories of these lovely lizards including them being known as "F**k off" as some believe this is the sound of their calling and I was told tales of how the Cambodians feared them in war times as this sound means the same as the word "suffocation" which in the dead of war torn nights was enough to instill fear in the hearts of the soldiers.

For us, the energy of these lovely lizards is one of great beauty and gentleness. Their large soft eyes gaze up at you with a softness of spirit that only some members of the animal world possess.

Later in the day, sitting on the balcony I was reading Balinese mythological stories to my daughter as a large lizard slithered out. I'm not sure what he is - he appears like a salamander or short snake with legs. He hid in the bushes and every time I began to read, he crept out into the sun and tilted his head to listen. When I stopped reading, he slithered back in, only venturing our again to hear the story as it continued. It was such a beautiful experience of being at one with the surroundings, the culture and the lovely animals that we currently share our home with.

Wednesday, October 8, 2014

How do I Home School, Is it Legal?

Excuse me digressing somewhat from a travel blog, however I have had many questions about home schooling and here's some information that may assist those people with their choices.

(*DISCLAIMER: Please note – this is my personal opinion only, some of it may be incorrect and it is what has worked for us, please check into whether the material is accurate for your area/situation and always check with authorities and others in your community as to the accuracy for you)


Lunch with the locals - Hello "Dot" (If he sat
down she shared his meal, so most were taken
standing) Camping and travelling
around Kangaroo Island
Sth Australia
I remember the daunting feeling when I first began our Home School journey and I was so grateful for other mothers who assisted me that I always thought I would do that if anybody else needed it.
*They refers to HS parents / carers.

Here's my personal thoughts (not professional) on Home Schooling in our location: 

There really is no body in Victoria that will tell you what or how to do anything with HS, it is the only state in Australia where we do not have officers and we are pretty much left to our own devices.

Under the new laws they do need to be registered with the VRQA  as homeschoolers - failure to do this can result in the newly implemented truancy fines of up to $45 per day. However in order to register (in Victoria) it is a simple form that you sign and that's pretty much it. You can then educate your child how you like.

There are many groups that will offer them other support including Facebook, HEN and the HEA and there is also a magazine called Otherways which can be helpful.

There are many websites which will be really helpful, but my biggest source of advice is actually Facebook and I am more than happy to provide the Group information if you want them from me (Scroll down for some groups).

Studying Gemmology and identifying gemstones
There is no set curriculum and rules to follow as there really are none in Victoria.

This can be good and bad, as you are pretty well left alone but also you do not have support if you require it.

If they are concerned about socialisation once they link in with home-school Groups there are at least 12 camps that children can go on each year and numerous meet ups and excursions.

For every homeschool family their journey is an intangible and fluid one.

Every time you think you have nailed down your curriculum and you know when you are going - something changes.

The biggest trap I fell into was thinking that I had to school at home rather than doing it completely differently.

I was inspired by John Holt:
“It is not the teacher's proper task to be constantly testing and checking the understanding of the learner. That's the learner's task, and only the learner can do it. The teacher's job is to answer questions when
learners ask them, or to try to help learners understand better when they ask for that help.” 
― John HoltHow Children Fail

In our personal situation, we are not trying to school at home, we are not trying to re-create a classroom within our home, rather we are trying to awaken a love of learning to inspire and to engage children to become motivated by what is around them, to ask their own questions, and in many ways gain their own education.
On Campfest with around 60 home school
children  and their parents
I see our role as one to nurture their interests, guide them along the way and allow them to blossom into the people they were destined to be.

The theory and the reality often get a little muddled with me personally. Why? Because I am a bit of a control freak and I worry whether things are in order, whether I've got it right.
Hence, generally I downloaded the Naplan and Acara Text papers at the beginning of each year and we spend the first day asking the children to answer all of these questions.
Usually by the end of this day we realize we are at least one year ahead of where they need to be age wise and that takes the pressure off needing to learn anything at all for the entire year.

It is pretty much the same story every year. Everyone will do this differently but for me it satisfies my need to be up to speed with the rest of the children of their age attending school. One day it is my aspiration, to let go of this need, I'll probably manage it by the time they are adults. *Sheesh*

I am constantly amazed how by not formally teaching these subjects, the children learn them all anyway.
As homeschool parents, you naturally incorporate education into almost everything you do - instead of just looking at a bird, you would work out what type of bird it was - that would lead to a discussion which might go into biology or genetic mutations or DNA  structures (depending on the age of the children).

Google becomes your friend and there are many documentaries that will fill the blanks in with what you do not know.
Gardening, Helping Out, Permaculture,
Building Rock Walls.Having Fun!

We often hook up an iPad to the television and watch You-tube to find out things that we are interested in.

Websites like KhanAcademy.org provide lesson plans if you prefer formal teaching but you do not want to do it yourself. They will even monitor where your child is up to and make suggestions based on their learning style for the next topic they are heading to. One of the best things is that the entire site is completely free.
We'll also utilise Edalive and many other software programs, including Rosetta Stone.

One of the most important aspects about homeschooling is that you are part of your children's lives, you are part of their education and you know what is going on with them. You will intrinsically know when one child is having difficulty with a certain area and you will naturally incorporate that into your day today life to support them and bring them up to speed.

Some schools will now consider partial enrollments and thus may suit for some families as a bit of the best of both worlds.

As per my blog post a few days ago with the Village School. 
It is certainly more challenging, making the choice to home school and to be responsible for every part of your child / childrens learning, but schools like the village school will assist in every part of home schooling if you are feeling uncertain of the entire responsibility Being on your shoulders 

With enrolling the children into a partial enrolment with the village school it will take that weight off your mind.

Learning about reptiles first hand. Yes, it's alive!
The village school is the only school I know (there may be many that I don’t know) that links 100% perfectly with homeschooling in a loving, supportive and nurturing environment. http://www.villageschool.vic.edu.au

I have recently had the privilege of teaching some of the children on a casual basis in gemmology at the village school.
I also teach in private schools and I am amazed that the children at the village school - even the little six year olds (that have not really been taught anything by the school) are so clever. I have found that the children at the village school are bright, they are present, they are attentive, they are interested and they have been taught how to think about the question that is being asked rather than what is just perceived as the correct answer.

I guess the thing to keep in mind with homeschooling is that it is changeable and you're not locked in and if at any given point it does not work for you you can always go back to school.

I hope some of this assists with your journey and your decisions.
You will encounter many new options along your way, you will most likely lose your way, hopefully you will easily find it again, you may lose your "mojo" (we've usually found this happens around August /September each year) but hang in there and it will all come together again. You will encounter the "socialisation" question - sometimes on a daily basis, you will have people telling you "ohhhh, isn't she clever, I've never known a child her age to be able to do percentages" when they overhear your child stating mathematics - percentages and fractions in departments stores with 35% off sales and in the same breath they may ask you "aren't you worried about their learning, how do you know she is up to speed with her peers".

You will most likely have the "in the zone days" sometimes in the same day as the "tear your hair out days"
But if you have made this decision to home school, you may reach out to the HS community and discover all manner of interesting new friends, you will hang in there, you will be dedicated to the best for your child and your family and you will blossom and flourish and best of all, you get to be part of it, you get to share the adventures, the discoveries and you get to spend time with these amazing little people that are intrinsically part of your life.

GROUPS: (you may need a "friend" to add you in to some of these)
These are the ones I belong to but there are probably many more :-)

www.facebook.com/renascent.home.school (all home school networking and events - this is MY page)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/227336584135550/ (Homeschool Australia Teen Chat)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1391286824465276/ (Homeschooling Educational Books Australia)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/334723039962837/ (Home School/Educational Supplies - Buy, Sell, Swap Australia)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/CampFest/ (Run by Jenny and Roman Domansky at their caravan park)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/379055948882815/ (Australian Teens Homeschooling Connection)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/143988099090079/ ( Homeschool Buy, Sell, Swap - Australia)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/121165911384094/ (Bali Unschool Adventure on Gili Air, May 2014)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/FOTR.Australia/ (Families on the Road- Travelling Australia)
https://www.facebook.com/educationideas?ref=br_rs (Great Reasons to Home School)

HEN

HEA
www.hea.edu.au/

VRQA
www.vrqa.vic.gov.au/

department of education
www.education.vic.gov.au/

www.distance.vic.edu.au/

Geology and rock formations
We, St Kilda Youth Service (SKYS), are specialists in engaging young people with complex needs through our young person centered approach. We're a proud innovative, entrepreneurial not-for-profit organisation. We offer specialised education, youth engagement, housing and social service programs. We also run two social enterprises which young people can gain the opportunity to be employed with; HEAT Catering (a catering enterprise) and Blue SKYS Media (a graphic design enterprise). Our social enterprises are providing long-term sustainability for our organisation.

My son studied via Distance Education with SKYS

Good Luck with your choices with your children, may they be school, home school, distance education, unschooling, world schooling and many more including a mixture of all. Trust yourself, trust your children and may your journey be a successful adventure.

Re-enacted Courtroom day with the Melbourne Gaol Program

Rare Chook Breeding Day
with the lovely Julie from www.countrychooks.com

Trees Adventures Challenge Course.
Yes as Home Schoolers, even the parents get to join in.



Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Home School - World School - School

Educating Your Children! It's such an important topic, mess it up and there's no going back.

No educational style is right for everyone and it becomes a uniquely individual choice as to what you do and how. For the most part in 1st world countries the standard choice is formal education, you spend a lot or a little time in choosing a school and that's pretty much it. Your decision is made, you interact and assist with the school as much or as little as you like and you can rest knowing that they are in charge of what is taking place in your childs education.

Creating Gemstone geodes from sugar and chocolate
When a parent chooses to home school / unschool / world school / (many other styles and titles exist): the decision can be a little more difficult as you become the person the education rests with. Some parents slip easily into this role, others (like me) stress over whether they are doing a good job or not. I found myself wondering at the end of almost every day if I had done well or not, the scary thing was the sense of not knowing until it was all over. Then when the child turns 18 or so, you get to look at them and think to yourself "Yes, I did well, that was a good choice" or "Oh well, guess I really messed that up - eek".
I found myself leaning towards the latter for a while in what I call my dark days.
Learning Gold panning with Gold Tours great organisers
(9 children and the families spent a great 2 days
in Victorian Gold fields - and yes, we all found gold)

Now this is a blog primarily about travel, rather than home schooling and there are many others dedicated to this choice and lifestyle so I won't fill the pages with this topic, however it IS a fundamental part of why we travel and therefore worth mentioning here.

Several years ago we had one of our children at a lovely private school, however life circumstances resulted in us temporarily removing her from school and whilst she loved it there, the moment she was removed she flourished. She was happier, more well rounded and chose to focus on topics that were exciting and relevant to her. We realised that as well as being $22,000 pa better off, we could tailor choices specifically to our children. We could hone in on the areas they needed some assistance with and really delight in the ones they excelled at and loved. For a while we attempted to create a mini classroom at home, we followed "school" time lines and curriculum and whilst we all "got there" it wasn't a true fit.

One day over a cup of tea (in our allocated break time), allowing the sun to wash over me, a realisation began to grow. Earlier that day I had received a call from the local public school telling me off for "jumping my son 2 year levels in 3 months". He had sat the Naplan test with them (yes, I was still very much in my 'control' phase of home schooling) and they were horrified to discover he was 3 years ahead of where he had been 3 months earlier. They asked me how many hours I was spending on home schooling and when I replied 9am - 3.30pm, they severely admonished me. Continuing on they asked me to think about the school day - I won't go into all the details here but suffice it to say it was equivalent to around 1 hour of one on one time per day, they strongly requested we pare our home schooling back to 1-2 hours per day.

Studying Chemistry & DNA with the assistance of jellybeans
Thinking back to this conversation, my idea grew, why hold children back from topics and adventures they love. Yet it was more than this; I considered how much I remembered of geography of locations, history and arts from what I learnt at school compared to how much I actually retained through travel. Travel incorporating guides, locations and stories, stories of the history of the past in those places, the architecture, the arts created there, walking the streets of Paris and reliving the cobbled laneways of yesteryear. There was no comparison.

Now I realise this is not the choice for everyone and it certainly takes some scrimping and saving for many families and some adjustments both financially, running your own business and lifestyle wise, but this was an adventure we were up for.

In our family, everyone is part of the decision making process, the children's thoughts and opinions are valued and part of almost every decision. They were called in to chat about this option and their faces lit up with a smile saying "lets do it".

We were soon to be working in China and realised we could purchase very cheap tickets to Paris from Guangzhou. We asked them to be involved in what we would share and as most home educating parents do, we incorporated all aspects of what we wanted to experience as part of their education in the preparation for this journey. They gravitated towards the French revolution, they loved the arts, the painters and the French History, we researched French foods and tried out new recipes, had trips to the movies to see Midnight in Paris. Famous writers jumped to life and they mapped out places they wanted to visit, train maps and accommodation. We found a lovely little home exchange where we swapped residences and booked an artists apartment near Montemartre for 2 weeks. They worked out currency exchange rates and budgets and whilst no "schooling" happened, I reflected that we were covering Arts, History, Geography, English Literature, Map reading, Maths, Home Economics, Human Sciences, Accounting and much more.

Unique Artpieces in the toilet of our apartment
Our days became relaxed, instead of studies, we watched Khan Academy, relaxed at the Movies and ate at restaurants; we had never been happier. One day whilst out, a lady sneered at my daughter and asked why she wasn't at school, she cheerily replied "Oh, we are home educated, so everything we do is really part of our learning". The lady looked down her nose at her and questioned "Is that so, well then what is 6 x 7"?

My daughter laughed and said "well that would be 42, however where it becomes a little trickier is when you need to convert that into Francs as you need to take into consideration the daily currency fluctuations and as we are mainly converting through US$ there's actually 3 currencies to work out. However, that's just maths, what I find far more interesting is how the financial crisis was probably the initial spark that set off the French revolution, isn't it fascinating to think about the gap between the wealthy and the poor in those days and how desperate the masses must have become. What are your thoughts on that topic"?

Feeling the language of love - padlocked together over rivers
I think she hurridly mumbled something about not being entirely sure and my daughter ended up sitting down and having quite the conversation with her about artists and Can Can dancers.

In that moment, I relaxed my views on creating a classroom, I deeply got it, the ideal of what education is, VS just allowing life to unfold and create a richness of experience.
Taking in the Unique Art in the streets

There is no doubt in my mind that if travel is at all possible for children, it gives them an amazing outlook on life, a deep richness of experience and an amazing sense of purpose within the world. Whenever we get the opportunity to travel these days and people ask us "What about school" we smile and reply "Oh we never let school get in the way of a good education".
Some family bonding over monuments