What a brilliant man! Sir Ken Robinson

Have just watched this video on TED.com. It is not the first time either, but he had me laughing out loud again! As a home educator someone who has rejected our existing school system in favour of an unschooled approach, I guess it is not surprising, but I do love to have my own gut feelings articulated occasionally by someone I can recognise as knowing what he is talking about. Someone who has an education, and all those qualifications to prove it.... Well if that proves anything at all of course.

I just wish that some of those 4 million people who watched his previous video were the people in this country responsible for our current schooling system. People who might have the ability if they had the will however to not just reform the system but take it apart and rebuild it. If only....

Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! | Video on TED.com

For anyone who has not seen or heard of Sir Ken Robinson before, here is his previous talk, inspirational and again funny.

Ken Robinson says schools kill creativity | Video on TED.com

I have read only read one of his books but I can thoroughly recommend it. The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything

...there are a few more of Sir Ken's books here:

School is prison

Have just read a blog article, that just hit me head on. It is not often that I read an article that so completely takes the words right out of my mouth, but this one does.

....so I am sharing it;

“Why Don’t Students Like School?” Well, Duhhhh…

Children don't like school because they love freedom.

Sometimes It's Peaceful: Stress testing the Badman report: points arising: Legal

Sometimes It's Peaceful: Stress testing the Badman report: points arising: Legal

Catch Up....

Not sure really where I have been for the last few months, in my head perhaps. Well I am emerging again.

Book selling is very slow, due to the slow down of the economy. Have now moved on to decluttering the house, so anything that is not nailed down, is in danger of being listed on ebaY on a 99p auction. Watch out kids! Have sold masses of stuff so far. Toby is paying off some of his recent holiday costs with his share, costs from when he went to watch the World Ice Skating Championships in LA. He came back fit and motivated and raring to go. Kevin is using the money from his sales to buy a new Apple Mac to get back to his IT studies. Sales from my share were used to by my husband a birthday present for his 40th Birthday. Yes he is now 40! Can he still pass for 'in his 20's?' Probably unfortunately, and we are not talking about when my next 'round' birthday is!

I am now back to looking for a house for us to buy. Much too early really, as I am still expecting the market to crash again later in the year, but well, we need a home and stability for our family, and maybe, that is more important than getting value for money. I must admit that I find it hard to deal with that one, having spent a lifetime making my limited amount of money go as far as I can make it. Houses do seem to be selling very quickly right now, if they are sensibly priced, and unfortunately there are still too few of those, masses still hanging around with a 100k price tag over value!

The biggest catch up of all right now, is my endeavour to get right up to date with all the recent writing on home schooling. This of course has been a fast increasing movement in recent years as many more people fed up with the education system in this country have been removing their children from school and teaching them themselves. Well the government is catching up and trying to strangle it as they have the existing schooled system. I am currently half way through the 'Review of Elective Home Education in England' report by Graham Badman, will no doubt comment further when I have finished it. http://publications.everychildmatters.gov.uk/eOrderingDownload/HC-610_Home-ed.PDF

Will report back on this last subject when I have been able to digest more info. But for a taster, here is some interesting info. http://www.pjrothermel.com/