Wow that's harsh Mom2Bee.

Yeah, I know. But in my area, Santa is taken to the extremes and its quite insane. On more than one occassion, K and 1st grade teachers have been fired from their jobs for telling their students the Truth about Santa Claus. I have no problem teaching my kids the origins of the Myth and a respect for the values and such of the Holiday Spirit but I'll be darned if I allow anyone to try and dupe them into anything.

Tolerance is one thing, Peer Pressure is another. I'm not Christian and a good portion of my immediate family isn't either but we've always been tolerant and even went to Christmas get togethers with the extended-family and I remember how my adult relatives would interrogate me and my siblings  and Parents when I was young (4, 5,6, 7, 8, 9.) years old on how and why we didn't "do" Santa. and "didn't we feel deprived?" and "Its so much fun" were there 2 favorite lines. I remember one year my aunt screaming at my dad about he was a jerk because their mom had done Santa for them and my father reminded his sister that when SHE revealed the truth of Christmas to him at about 7 or 8, he was devastated. Not that Santa wasn't real, but that their mom had lied to him, on numerous occassions. He'd fought other boys on the playground for calling his mother a liar, because in his mind, his Momma would NEVER lie to him.

Every year, the adults would have some debate going about why were my parents depriving me of the once-in a lifetime chance to be fooled and duped by society. It was a yearly thing and my parents just stuck to their guns but I always felt ridiculous defending our choices/lifestyle against adults. I never spoiled Santa or any of their other lies for their little kids, why did they have to bother me and mine?

I was talking about it once and someone said they could understand firing a Teacher over outing-Santa, "Wouldn't you be mad if someone told your kids The Quran wasn't real?" (I'm Muslim) and I said yes, but I actually BELIEVE in it, I dont intend to lie or cover up anything as ridiculous as Santa.

Santa isn't a religious fixture, he's a fictional-cultural one. and its well known that he's a fraud. Its fine to play Santa with your kids if thats what you want to do, but I dont intend for my kids to take the crap that I did. So long as adults can exercise some common decency about Santa around me and my kids then I will be happy to do the same, but I wont hobble my kids ability or right to defend themselves.

And I'm not going to groom my kids from jump to cave to peer pressure. "Everyone's Doing It" just doesn't fly for me. It never has, and I hope that it never will. If my kids are ever confronted with ProSanta Hostility, I want them to have the means and the might to defend themselves. Period.

In my area and in my (extended) family Santa is too freakin ridiculous to be tolerated by yours truly.

Wow, what a story. I would still say that even if someone is hostile towards you about your beliefs, what's the point in being hostile or defensive back? Say "That's our decision" with a big smile and leave it at that. Seems like a waste of time to argue with anyone that takes the belief in Santa Claus to the extreme.

My aunt said that she asked my grandmother if Santa Claus was real. She would always say, "If you believe in him, you might get something." A great way of not lying but leaving them open to believe in the unseen. I take it to the most extreme in my family. My boys just could care less about Santa Claus. So I am not going to make it important when it isn't.

I do tell my boys about Saint Nicholas. He was real. He was a giving man that personified what Christmas is all about.

Sorry your family is that way. Thanks for sharing. It does make your comments more understandable.

I agree...that is harsh.  We don't elaborate on Santa. Family members will ask my 5 yr old what Santa is going to bring him and he just goes, "Huh?" I know we're going to have to address it further soon. I don't feel comfortable lying about any of the childhood traditions like Santa Claus, Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy. I hope that I will be able to explain it in a way that encourages my children to be respectful of others while still holding true to what they believe.

Love it!

We use www.homeschooladvantage.com My kids are very skilled with the computer so they answer multiple choice, fill in the blank, true/false about all the different subjects. The program repeats the facts at certain intervals with increasing distance to help retain the knowledge.

This is the first week we've done flash cards. I am trying to figure out how to keep old flashcards fresh with spaced repetition.

I am a homeschool mom of my children and my brother's children. I have one 2nd grader, 3 1st graders, 1 3 yr old and a 7 month old baby. I started the older four on Homeschool Advantage. It uses active recall and spaced repetition to help them learn facts from Geography, History, Math, Spanish, Spelling, Science and Social Studies. We love it! I got to researching the science behind active recall and spaced repetition and stumbled on Right Brain Kids. Then I looked at Doman and Shichida and well here I am.

I have started making slideshows for the children. They are enjoying them. I have about 20 weeks worth of ideas. Since I see so much about retiring old cards, does anyone used spaced repetition with their flash cards? If so, what kind of schedule do you use? And how do you stay organized with the slideshows?

Love it! Thanks for sharing!

Sounds like a bit of jealousy. Try to come up with a small bit of time several times a month to spend with just her doing something she enjoys. I know it's hard. I have three but that one-on-one time is so important.

I have had great success with the "I was caught doing good" coins from Oriental Trading. I keep them in my pocket and give them out when the children pick up after themselves, do a chore, are especially kind to one another, finish their schoolwork before their time is up, etc. I have a chart of rewards that they can get with varying amount of coins. It's great motivation. I have my three plus my brother's three so I normally have 6 children under the age of 8. I have to be super creative to maintain order.

I like Dr. James Dobson's book "Dare to Discipline." I am not opposed to spanking but I believe they should be a very rare occurrence. I always try to explain why they can or cannot do something. However, when I tell them to do something or not do something and they stomp their foot and say no in defiance, that warrants a spanking. Not because I'm big and they're little. Not because I'm right and they're wrong. But because I am here to protect them and if they are not in the habit of immediately obeying, at some point, they may be in danger and not move immediately when I say to get out of the way of that danger. Disobedience has the potential for grave consequences. They should understand to move first. Ask questions later.

For sleeping, my oldest has autism. He has never slept well. We give him a small dose of Melatonin before he goes to bed. That's better than the prescription that the pediatrician gave him. They need sleep to learn well so this works well for us.

Good luck and I hope things get better.
Christy

I was looking at programs like Tweedlewink and wondering how I could afford it. I tested Inspiration out and wondered if I just couldn't make some myself. I've been using Open Office Impress. My kids love it.

I am so thrilled to find like-minded parents to swap ideas with.

Greetings from Mississippi,
Christy