The Dark Side of Progress: Why We Want To Live Life Differently

I have friends, as I'm sure you do as well, that boycott Facebook in an attempt to protect their mental space from the negatively charged climate we are battling on a daily basis.  If you are tapped into early childhood education, you have heard the battle between higher test score advocates and the call for play-dominated education.  Are you struggling with chronic health problems?  There is a lot of discussion about the dangers of our modern agricultural approaches undermining the God-given nutrients and immunity my grandparents received from their food and microbiome.  While modern conveniences are amazing in their own right, there is troubling evidence that suggests a blind-following of current trends in the name of keeping up is rapidly eating away at our quality of life.

About a mile from our house, we have experienced an oil site construction that has finally come to its maintenance state.  It was only a matter of weeks when another began just down the way from it.  No one in the area has been pleased with it and my animal loving kids were disgusted at all the animal homes they were destroying (in the tree clearing) just for the sake of money!  I had to calm my little activists down and explain how we do benefit from the oil even if we don't like the process and location.  I'm not in denial about some real benefits of progress and technology advancements, but this current wave of technology and internet-dominated living comes with side effects we do not generally consider.

My upbringing was extremely health-conscious and certainly not the norm of my culture usually.  To her credit, my mom was advocating for health and wellness choices that would become mainstream years later.  So, I remember how certain the 'experts' were about the evils of butter and all manner of fats.  Turns out they were off-base and there are quite a few good fats that are vital for overall health.  Let's not even talk about the smoking and the tobacco industry.  My point is, just because something is new and popular never means it is safe, wise or a place to set up camp.

I always hated the 'back in the good old days' talks or the resistance of progress simply because it is new, but I'm starting to understand their motivation.  There are some things in this world that do not change and our incessant need to upgrade or revolutionize what already works is getting us into trouble in some cases.  Spending time outdoors in nature is good for you - mind, body and spirit.  Eating a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables is important for mind and body function.  Being creative and keeping a slow pace is a mandatory part of life in order to sustain the times of necessary work and fast pace.  These are things that do not change no matter how fast your computer is or what new gadget comes on the market.

It is clear that our mental and physical health as a country is failing.  From suicide to cancers to chronic illness - all of our technological advancements aren't enough to truly change the direction of our health nationally.  I am so thankful for surgeries and procedures being more precise and revolutionized in many areas.  Like the oil that is being harvested down the street, there are good, even life-saving elements that come from progress.  But my hope is that we don't walk into the future blindly as if there are never any dangerous costs or side effects from all this progress.   A big reason why we choose the lifestyle we do - homeschool, hiking, gardening, cooking, etc. - is to protect and preserve a healthy way of life for our children.  I cannot control what dangers may arise from modern advancements, but I can invest more heavily in the decidedly good parts of life in order to side step or in some cases prevent the negative fallout of our march to the more, the better and the new.  

STEM Activities: A Tied 2 Teaching Review

As a busy mom who can easily get stressed out, doing projects of any kind is something I have to work myself up for.  I know how fun they usually are for the kids and I also know how beneficial hands-on learning is, but interrupting the normal flow of things with something different is hard for me.  When we were given STEM Activities, Full Year of Challenges with Close Reading from Tied 2 Teaching, I was both reluctant and convicted to try them out.  My kids love and need to dig their hands into things for optimum learning and to work on their problem-solving skills so I knew how valuable these activities could be despite my resistance.

What We Received:

The STEM activities come in the form of digital downloads that include monthly/seasonal activities designed for 3rd-6th grade level students that would last you at least a year doing 4 activities a month.  Within each PDF project file is a QR code and link for the close reading passage, various pages for close reading questions, project analysis, and some examples of other kids' completed projects for ideas.  Most projects required normal craft or household supplies that you likely have or could easily get at the store.

How It Works:

For every project or challenge, there is a themed passage for the student to read and then a close-reading worksheet to fill out that asks them questions about the passage that often requires a closer look at the passage.   Then the student is to focus on the project through a series of worksheets that facilitate planning, problem solving and evaluating how it went once they are finished.

Activities We Completed:

What We Thought:

The intended grade level is 3rd-6th grade so my 1st grader is a bit under the age range, but she was actually a great side-kick for my 'tends to give up when the answer isn't readily apparent' 3rd grader.  Due to the large amount of reading and writing involved, I wouldn't recommend this for a younger student without older ones to guide or heavy parental involvement.  

Overall, the kids really enjoyed these projects.  Like I alluded to before, my son had a tendency to give up after his first idea would fail, but luckily his sister is built to keep going no matter what some days so they were a great team.  The reading and writing aspect was sometimes resisted by my son, but once he got going it was clear that the work helped him dig in better to the problem-solving at hand. They were always very proud of their final product which was fun for me to watch.

Since this is a digital product, we would be able to do any of the projects again at a later date.  Considering the open-ended nature of many of these, I think it would interesting and potentially really beneficial to have students do them again weeks or months later to find alternative solutions they hadn't thought of the last time.  This is a great way to work on problem-solving skills.

I really appreciated how the design of these projects mimic real life and real job situations.  Since my husband works as an engineer, he could identify to the kids all the elements of his own work in what they were doing.  It seemed to be one of the first times they seemed to conceptualize what 'real work' could look like beyond a mailman or garbage trucker driver. 

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There are a ton of activities so we certainly haven't gotten to them all yet!  Follow the link below to see what different projects some of the other families' tried!

Getting Your Hair Caught in the Vacuum

My hair is long enough that it reaches past my waistline.  It's more convenient to put it up in a bun when I'm exercising or doing housework, but sometimes I just forget to.  Yesterday, I forgot to.  Vacuuming is best done when J is awake, but that means he wants to be involved, which I love but can get complicated.  So, the faster I finish the task the better.  As I entered J's room, the vacuum started to sound different and like the careful household item owner that I am (or Mr. Butler has trained me to be) I stopped to make sure everything was okay.  In one quick motion of concern, I leaned down to look underneath and suddenly my hair fell in the same direction.  Before I knew what was happening my head was jerked toward the ground and my hair was being sucked into oblivion!

I recovered without a problem, but it was ridiculous and alarming all at the same time.  And life application came pouring into my brain.   Of course, there is the don't let your hair near the bottom of a vacuum lesson. Beyond that, perhaps this is how some people wind up in the proverbial ditch on the side of the road.  No bad intentions, no ill will.  Just low attention to detail, low caution and suddenly they are getting sucked up into something they never dreamed of.

How to keep your vacuum from sucking you up:

1) Remember the power it holds.  Because something is common to us, it's easy to forget the power it has to affect our lives.  Anything that we allow ourselves to get dependent on or familiar with can and will influence us.  Technology, friendships, even habits like diet and exercise.  Make sure we treat it with the respect it deserves.  It will change your life, just make sure that's a good thing.

2) For intended use only.  When we don't have what we want (companionship, confidence, motivation, etc.), it's easy to pretend to get it from somewhere else (food, spending $$, facebook, etc.).  Food is for health and sustainment.  Money allows the purchase of goods, not happiness! Make sure you are utilizing elements of your life for what they were intended.

3) It can happen to you! No one is immune to being careless and getting sucked up into a whirlwind of some kind.  Know your weakness and put in fences.  If you know you are a time waster and just got a new iPad, set time limits for yourself.  Do you eat when you get bored? Every time that tummy growls, drink a glass of water and do something on your to-do list first before taking a bite.

Nobody (that I know of or would claim to know) plans on getting their hair sucked up a vacuum.  Nobody plans to lose precious time and relationships over foolish choices.  But it happens to us all, all the time.  Take a little inventory today.  "Only YOU can prevent forest fires!" That pretty much applies to most everything else.

ABCs & Me

Sometimes people disagree about public vs homeschool, but as a parent, no matter what direction you go, you will still be teaching and guiding your child.  It's an awesome privilidge that can grow into a burden if we let it.  So, it's always nice to find something that is truly a helper and not just an occupier.  I try to limit the amount of screen time we get around our house, but I recently found something I love recommending to those with toddlers.  A good friend shared with me a great app, ABCs & Me for iPhone, iTouch and iPad "aimed at teaching small children skills they need for kindergarten."

ABCs & Me by 5pumpkins is essentially 6 fun flashcard sets (Letters, Numbers, On the Go, Colors, Shapes & Food) in English and Chinese.  I would LOVE a Spanish version, if anyone knows of one.  Each card can be clicked on to hear a corresponding audio, which my son loves! It's a great teaching tool and a great supplement when you need to focus on something else.

Do you have any really useful apps that help your children learn?  I'd love for you to share them!

TV-Free Summer

I've felt it coming on for a while, but every time I would be convicted to go TV-free, the Office had celebrity guests or another season finale would show up.  So, as of today June 1st, I am officially going TV-free for the rest of the summer.

I'm not a super TV junkie or anything (I don't even use a tv to watch 'tv' - hulu is awesome!), but I've found myself using it to relax, often while I eat.  And it just suddenly became a habit.  I would now like to break that habit by inserting a new one.  There are several books that I have struggled to finish or even start.  Mostly its because I feel like I could/should be doing something else if I'm taking the time to sit down and read. But that's really foolish when I take the time to watch anything on a regular basis.  I also really want Jude to see me read, especially in the summertime. Summer is about experiencing life for yourself, not watching actors pretend to experience life.

Some days it feels like my brain has shrunk 3 sizes as it is.  So, I'm going to do my best to boost my entire life (parenting, relationships, educating, spirituality, etc.) through boosting my reading. Do you have any recommendations of books I just HAVE to read?  I'm looking for a few more.  

Our Relationship with Technology

I've discovered a few new things that have gotten me thinking.  First, I just finished Brain Rules for Baby by John Medina.  I don't agree with his evolution bent, but his science and logic about development and parenting seems pretty sound.  Aside from the numerous evolution references (that don't really add or take away from his points), I highly recommend it as a great discussion on baby development and what that means for parents.  One section specifically discusses technology and how its use with children ages 2 and below actually hinders brain development.

I'm also reading (and have yet to finish) Boys Should Be Boys by Meg Meeker. Also a really good book with (so far) a biblical basis and really good perspective on boys and parenting.  One of her major points continually is that kids need time spent with their parents more than anything else.  They don't need stuff, or new this or that, but face time with you.  And now I'm to the technology part where she also discusses the damages of technology, specifically tv and video games.

Finally, I ran across that new talk show, 'The Talk' (which didn't seem half bad) and the most recent episode discussed the idea of technology (and our excessive use of it) stunting our ability to relate with others.  They referenced this brand new book The Winter of our Disconnect by Susan Mausart, which records how a family pulled the plug on technology (for something like 6 months!) and lived.  

Ok, so what?  Well, last night Randy and I sat down to eat dinner and watch some tv. Jude was in his bouncer that was angled toward us on the couch, but, as it turns out, he could cock his head and see the screen as well.  He's never been interested in the television until now.  So, with all of this information running through my head that seems to be hanging out in one area, I've started to consider my ways, if you will.  I'm certain that most people would conclude, "Everything in moderation" but moderate to who?  The norm these days is excess.  And I want better things than the norm, certainly, for Jude.  This beautiful smile deserves the best I can give him!

So, because of all this, I'm taking inventory of my relationship with technology and intend on making a few changes.  I don't believe cutting off ties is necessary or healthy for me right now.  Blogging and a few facebook updates a week connects me with people I would not otherwise.  However, television, video and movie watching (even if I'm doing something else at the same time) may decrease significantly. It's difficult to pray and meditate when there's rarely any silence.

So, what do you think? For or against? Any suggestions?