2011.2.14–2011.2.20

Ben

It was a pretty normal week for Ben, until yesterday (Saturday). We watched our friends’ kids for a few hours, and they clung to Ben. He was a really good sport, playing games with them and keeping them entertained, and we really appreciated it (especially, Amy, as I was out for a little while in the afternoon). We got him a sundae from McDonald’s to reward his helpfulness. He can be such a grownup sometimes.

Joshua

It was a typical week for Josh, too. Friday, though, Grandpa and Grandma Burr brought him a belated birthday gift: a set of puzzles. I think all of the boys are enjoying them. And on our Friday-night date, we picked up a little multiplication book to help him memorize his multiplication facts.

Joshua is a good, unique kid. He’s his own person, and happy to be that way. We were talking a bit about how he struggles memorizing his multiplication tables. It’s not ineptitude – he’s very capable of the task; it’s lack of interest. Rote memorization just doesn’t fit his creative mold. We both agreed, though, that we are perfectly satisfied if he’s not a math genius, because that’s simply not where is strengths are. He’s a writer, an artist, and a creator, and that makes us happy; more importantly, it makes him happy.

Joseph

It was also a typical week for Joseph. Most of the excitement for him (and the other boys) this week was focused on the “Impact Academy” at school. I mentioned last week that the school is becoming a science and technology magnet, sort of. We had a preview and an explanation of the changes on Wednesday night, and the boys were thrilled to go.

The school will focus their teaching next year on math and science, or – more generally – problem solving and critical thinking. Even English and Social Studies will dovetail with their activities in Math and Science. They have a new computer lab, and have redone several rooms to focus on scientific learning.

Much of the recent excitement centered on purchasing a skeleton, named Fred, for the school. The children contributed pocket change over the last several weeks, and the school purchased the skeleton a few bones at a time; this week, they completed their purchase. The boys were ecstatic.

I am happy the boys are enthused, but I don’t know how I feel about this focus on math and science. I love both, but I believe in a more rounded education at this stage. Looking at the world through the lenses of only science and math gives a warped perspective. Math and science can be beautiful, but in a crystalline way. I think children need to be exposed to the ethereal and warm through English and Social Studies, too.

At least, at home, we’re compensating. Bedtime stories have been an important part of the boys’ bedtime routines since they were babies. At first, we read to them individually, usually from books about letters of the alphabet, but now we read to them at once, usually from a longer, involved narrative. Right now, we’re reading Neil Gaiman’s Graveyard Book (which is excellent), and before that we read Mary Pope Osborne’s excellent two-volume retelling of Homer’s Odyssey. The boy’s loved the Odyssey, and constantly hark back to it in their creative play. Occasionally, one of them will grab one of the volumes to read in bed after we’ve sent them off. After we finish the Graveyard Book, we’ve got a retelling of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on queue; we’re hoping to introduce them gently to Shakespeare.

All in all, as uncertain as I am about the focus on math and science (to the possible detriment of other important subjects) at school, I am certain the boys will still get a well-rounded education. Amy and I have always believed that education is a shared responsibility between the school and the parents, and it works best when parents are involved. We’ll fill in the gaps.

Amy

I’ll let Amy speak for herself:

Oh, blargh. It's always so hard for me to remember what I've done in  a week. This week was a TAD more memorable, though, since I went all Apocalyptic on the boys' rooms. Came a day I just couldn't take it anymore, so up I went with some very large boxes and trash bags. Any toy that didn't already have a dedicated home went into a box. Seven very large boxes ended up in indefinite storage in the garage. One medium-sized box full of things I thought they might immediately miss is set aside. Should they ask about a toy, they can earn it back. However, in the several days since the apocalypse, only one - ONE - toy out of all that was asked about. And since it was Ben who asked, and Ben who was the first to thank me for having cleaned their rooms, he got it back that evening. I think for now they're just enjoying having lots of open space to play in.

Sunday night had some excitement in the form of me trying to accompany the stake choir rehearsal (our regular accompanist spaced and took her family to the visitor's center). Many laughs were had by all. :)

Teaching continues to go well. By next week I'll have 7 regular students each week. I have a few more in the wings who are looking for instruments or time or things like that. I never thought I'd love teaching so much, but I do.

Amy out!

 

Matt

As for me, school and work continue to take up most of my time. At school, I had an exam this week, which went well – I think. I’m taking algebra, and it has been really good to go back and revisit it after 17+ years. I use algebra regularly, but I haven’t studied it in some time; plus, there are facets that I don’t use regularly, that I never learned well, or that I have forgotten. It’s great to be learning it anew.

Most of my excitement is at work, though. I’ve been in a rotational position at work, essentially a 6-month contract on a team other than my own. It’s work in business intelligence development, and it’s been fun. I’ve always worked in operations – after the product has been developed and deployed, I support it. But my heart is in development, where I can create new things, so this has been a blast. They want me to stay, so they’ve opened up a full-time position. I still have to interview for it (tomorrow), but I expect to fly through the interviews, since I’m interviewing for what I am already doing. So, assuming there are no road blocks, I’ll move permanently into this role as a Program Manager. I’m excited.