December
2005
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RAGBRAI
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Native American field trip
At Toolesboro we toured the museum and watched a movie about archeology. Then we went outside in the yard where we played Native American games with homemade equipment. Some of the games were dart throwing, buffalo robe, a game with a small bone hoop tied to a stick where the hoop was flipped up and we attempted to catch the hoop with the end of the stock, and beaver lodge. This was like the modern day "pick up sticks" game, but played with just ordinary sticks dumped on the ground and you had to remove a stick without bothering the other sticks. The games we played at Toolesboro were great fun. When we were at the Mississippi Rover landing near Toolesboro we learned the history of Louisa County since the beginning of time and I found some bricks from the Burris City Hotel. Burris City was a town that is completely gone now, but was there. The flooding from the Mississippi and Iowa rivers in 1858 destroyed the town. The town was never rebuilt. We also did some archeology work. We had to find some "artifacts" that were buried in specific spots. We used a hand shovel and a brush to find them carefully. There were 3 squares boxed out and some of us were at each square. We had draw on a paper what we found where and then we had to decide as a small group what time frame our boxed square stuff came from and who used them. Then we went to Langwood and had lunch. After lunch we did more activities like the Native Americans would have done before the Europeans came to the area. One activity was cutting squash with a mollusk shell that was sharpened to use as a knife. We put the slices on a stick like a skewer. They would have been dried for use throughout the winter. Another activity was making rakes or hoes with a deer antler, scapula, sticks, and wet rawhide strips. The wet rawhide was used because when it dried, it would shrink and tighten the tool. Another activity was scraping hair off a deerskin with rocks that had a sharpened edge. Another activity was nuts. We used a flat rock and a pounding rock to break open hickory, white acorns, black walnuts, and chestnuts open. I didn't do that one because I didn't really want to eat nuts. The last activity center was grinding corn. There are two ways to grind corn. One was using hallowed log and a stick to smash the kernels inside the log. The other way was using rocks - a flat one and a small one. The small one was used to pound and twist the corn kernels on top of the flat one. Then the ground corn was used to cook with, depending on how fine the corn was ground.
After that we practiced throwing spears. We had a spear thrower we could
use made out of a stick with a branch that had grown off it. The little
branch was cut off about 1 or 2 inches from its start and sharpened a
little to form a hook. This hook was used to snuggle into the end of the
spear and then it would add power to the throwing. I didn't like using the
spear thrower. Ben H. was really good at throwing the spear and he
could throw it the longest distance. Kathy D. said that kids would be
experts with the spear by the age of 13 and going on war parties. At my
age, 10 or 11, they would be old enough to hunt on their own, but not old
enough to go on a war party. The kid would start learning very young by
playing dart games and would become better and get longer darts and spears
as they got older. Some tribes would let the girls learn to use weapons,
but other tribes would not let girls learn to use weapons. |
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My Summer By Savannah C. This summer I moved to Florence, Alabama. Two weeks after we moved we got a dog named Shelby and a cat named Larry. We lived right on the Tennessee River. The water was so clean and clear; they had a beach for people to go swimming. There was a park right on the Tennessee River that had the most beautiful waterfalls that flowed right into the river. There were tons of lizards that had a red head, a gray body, and a bright, glowing neon tail. And behind our house there was a pasture full of horses. My favorite horse was brown and named Gip. I used to walk in the pasture everyday. It was very hot so my parents ordered a pool for us to go swimming. So in the morning I went out and jumped into the pool, to wake myself up. Our neighbors were very nice; they had a girl my age so I wasn't bored all summer. In the fall we went to the public school. It was all right, but I still like home schooling better. The food there was disgusting, so I hardly ate anything. I went to the pep-rallies and the football games, which as really fun. After a while my parents told me that we were moving back to Iowa. But altogether it was a good experience. |
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Pioneers of Homeschooling By Dianna B Have you ever wondered what homeschooling was like for the Iowa pioneers? Not the pioneers who settled Iowa, but the homeschool pioneers!?!? On October 17,2005 I and a group of TEECH homeschooling mom's were privileged to meet Nancy Shuler and Pattie Rowe. It was truly a time of education and thought provoking ideas for me. An answered prayer that was a privilege for me. It opened my eyes to the Christian homeschooling movement, not the education movement. Education, according to Webster's Dictionary, "The development and trading of one's mind, character, skills, etc., esp. by formal schooling, teaching, training, 2. Knowledge ability, etc. thus developed. 3. a \ formal schooling at an institution of learning. 4. Systemic study of the methods and theories of teaching and learning. The definition of a Christian: 1. A person professing belief in Jesus as the Christ, or in the religion based on the teachings of Jesus. 2. A decent, respectable person. Adj. 1. of Jesus Christ or his teachings. 2. of or professing the religion based on these teachings. 3. having the qualities demonstrated and taught by Jesus Christ as love, kindness, humility, etc. 4. of or representation, Christians or Christianity. 5. humane, decent. Emotions flooded my heart and my mind both that night and with searching to find the formal meaning of education and Christianity. It is a contrast so different both in meaning and action. For Mrs. Shuler and Mrs. Rowe to care enough to speak to us about homeschooling history, much thanks. Praise God their families took God's prompting. Both of these women are ladies with gentle natures. They seemed in awe that they were chosen to bear so many burdens. They found that h was a journey, and that God was there through ft all. Mrs. Shuler spoke of the contrast of David in Psalm 3 when he fled from Absalom, his son, and how ft helped her. Please remember that homeschoolers lives in pioneer days were not an easy one. Please take time to read Psalm 3, Proverbs 3: 5-6, Proverbs 22:6, Proverbs 12:15, and Deuteronomy 6:7. They are verses Mrs. Shuler shared that blessed her and they will bless your family. Psalm 3 is especially important when you are in a battle and being attacked. Mr. and Mrs. Shuler in the 1980s felt homeschooling was the direction the Lord was leading them. Their children attended 2, 3, and 4th grades in the public school. They felt led to take them out of public school and homeschool them. They settled into their new "school" in September after being taken out of the public school. A few months later the superintendent was concerned that the Shuler children were violating the truancy law. He contacted them and wanted a visit, 30 minutes notice. Mrs. Shuler felt that shortness of notice was not appropriate and denied the visit. I feel the superintendent was not invited in the Shuler home and it is not polite to give 30 minute notice that he was coming to visit, especially due to his purpose. This denial started the wheels in motion for what happened next. The Shuler's used an educational group that is well known and used today. This group was to contact the school system with the requested paperwork, which they did, but the superintendent continued repeatedly to say the proper paperwork was not done. It was found out later he had been given the paperwork, but his name was misspelled, so he had been sent and received the proper paperwork. This lead to over a two year saga of conflict and testing. At first the district did grant permission for the Shuler's to homeschool. The school district was tolerant of it, but they kept asking for more and more information. Even when the Shuler's complied, the superintendent and district were not satisfied. Month by month the Lord unfolded events and people who helped with the battle; people who blessed the family and whom the Shuler's then and now are grateful and thankful for their assistance. February 16,1983 criminal chargers were filed stating the proper papers had not been delivered to the school administration. In March, the family moved to a larger house. The battle lines were drawn. The issues at hand became more serious and heated as the time progressed. April 20th official papers made this family have a true test of faith. Delivered to the family on April 21st by a Sheriff, the family received these charges. Mrs. Shuler thanked the Sheriff. Money was tight then. The penalty of these charges would be a $100.00 fine and/or 30 days jail sentence as a simple misdemeanor. This family was not criminal. Mrs. Shuler states, "I had not even had a parking ticket before this." Now they were facing criminal charges and the family needed legal counsel. Mrs. Shuler, at a church retreat had met a lawyer from Ames, IA. They contacted him and he was retained to defend them. It was not a free service. Thank the Lord we have Home School Legal Defense Association to be our lawyers. The cost then for the battle was $2,000.00, think what it would be today. Thank you HSLDA. April was a roller coaster ride for each day led to a blessing and a new challenge. April 26th a bond was needed to be posted to prevent them from going to jail. The cost was $137 per parent for a total of $275. It was an unsecured bond. Before it was a simple misdemeanor charge, but now with this bond it meant they could not flee alone or with their children, because the bond would be revoked. They would be put in jail for a year and $1000 fine. The attorneys talked. April 28th a Not Guilty plea was given June was the month set for trial by a jury. In June the attorneys continued to conversed. After this the trial by jury was changed from jury to trial by a judge on June 30th. The day before the trial the attorney from Ames who wasn't even a person they knew well came to stay at their home. It was important to get to know them and to save lodging cost. The night before the trial Psalm 3 comforted Nancy allowing her to sleep guiding her with the knowledge that God had his hand in this. She didn't understand the whys, hows, whos, but knew God was in control. The next day at the trial Mrs. Shuler said they walked in and saw faces they knew, but many faces they didn't know. Mrs. Shuler said it was homeschooling parents there to support them. They felt they truly were their friends. The Shuler's provided a meal in their home to thank the families that evening. The meal came from their gardens and livestock to feed the people. Very nutritious, tasty, good food cooked up by local friends for the travelers and friends, who supported them in the courtroom. At the trial Mrs. Patti Rowe was questioned. She was a teacher and friend of the family. Mrs. Rowe said she remembered two questions she was asked on the witness stand. Those two questions stuck in her mind as ones that did not seem to fit the charges. Mrs. Rowe at one time had tutored the Shuler children. Questions were: 1. What is involved in tutoring, and 2. How did the children get good nutritional information. Remember, the family had a huge garden and stock that fed lots of people that night. Nutrition was not a problem. Mrs. Rowe is a teacher who Homeschooled several of her children. She is a soft spoken Christian lady who is not a 'trouble maker', but a very supportive friend who is firm in her convictions. Mrs. Rowe and her family were thanked by Mrs. Shuler. We need to thank them for the blessing of being a mentor and a friend. July 3rd came. The Shuler's anniversary. A motion to dismiss the charges was filed, but still the battle continued. August 16th a motion was made and the Shuler's were found not guilty. This proved to be a false start as the battle was still raging for the school district. They were concerned and questioned if the Shuler's still retained an attorney. August 25,1983 Patti Rowe was needed to be a teacher for their family per the school. September 12,1983 again papers arrived. The children, it stated, were not enrolled in school. September 16th Code 299-4 was discussed by the attorneys at a school board meeting between the school and the Shuler's. Terms were worked out. September 20th there was another meeting. September 25th a letter was received from the school superintendent. October 2nd. The battle seemed stilled for now. As in the Bible, 1 Peter 5:8, "The devil is your enemy and he goes around like a roaring lion looking to devour you." Follows is my summary of the events that happened. It is now 20 years ago and this is history chronologically written as I felt I heard it. Does ft affect us now? Will it affect you personally? Can ft happen again? How do you feel about it? Do you believe it is true or is it a myth? Something that happened long ago and won't happen again? Are you an independent homeschoolers? Do you depend on God or the government? These families and others stood up for our legal right to homeschool It is now legal, because of Iowa Code annotates 299 A, 1-299A10 gives up these rights. Can we lose this privilege? Yes to each of the questions. It is not a question to take lightly. What will be modern homeschoolers be willing to forfeit in order to homeschool? How do we support our veteran and new homeschool families? Do we believe that this won't happen to us? Do we care? This is not a myth. These are real people. Reality then a possibility now, do you set enough precidents for others with what you share with the school systems? Do you belong to HSLDA or NICHE? 1 Peter 5:7, "Give all your worries to Him, because He cares for you." Pray for your families, veteran homeschoolers and new homeschoolers, who use God as their superintendent. Encourage each other. Thank those who pioneered the homeschool movement. Remember there were families who did go to jail. Remember the Taylor's from Mt. Pleasant? Both parents went to jail for our freedom to homeschool. Be proactive in your life, not reactive. Educate your children as Christians, not as educators. Remember the definitions? Are you an educator or Christian? Be an example to believers in words and in deeds. God bless the homeschooling pioneers, the generals in the battle. Thank you for supporting, sharing, and being Godly people who took up the call to do something no one else could do for us modern homeschoolers.
God Bless. |
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By Corliss B |
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Class By Nathan S This year our home school group held an art class. Our teacher was Rochelle S of Muscatine, Iowa. We learned about many different kinds of art and artists. One of the last artists we studied was M.C Escher. He drew his pictures with Great detail. But by using tricks of perspective, he would draw pictures of things that could never exist outside of a drawing. One picture he drew was of a building. The building, at first, looks like a normal building; but after looking at it a bit closer, you see that it could never exist. Another one of his famous pictures is of many sets of stairs going in many different directions. Some even look as if they are upside-down. If you looked at the top of the painting you would notice two men. Even though they are both moving right, one is moving up and one is moving down. This is very hard to picture in our mind, especially if you have not seen the picture. Another artist we studied was Grant Wood. We studied him very much, most likely, because he lived in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. His most famous painting is "American Gothic", which depicts a farmer holding a pitchfork, standing next to his wife, his farm and house in the background. In "American Gothic" his sister poses as the farmer's wife. She wasn't particularly happy with how she was drawn in "American Gothic", so she had Grant Wood draw another portrait of her holding a chick. Another painting he drew was of his mother holding a plant, appropriately named "Women Holding Plant". He also drew a self-portrait at one time. Grant Wood is also famous for his Iowa scenery paintings. Also, at the age of fourteen, Grant Wood won a Crayola Drawing Contest with of an oak leaf. We also learned about Salvador Dali. He was born in Figueras, Spain in 1904. He was one of the most famous and unusual artists of the twentieth century. He was a surrealist, which meant he drew weird things like dripping clocks. |
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What I learned in Art Class By Carissa S When I was at art class we learned about famous artists. We learned about boundaries, shading, perspective and color. Mrs. S was the art teacher for our home school art class. Grant Wood is one famous artist. He was born in Iowa in 1892. He died when he was fifty in 1942. He lived in Cedar Rapids most of his life. One of his first drawings was of a chicken. He loved top draw chickens. His most famous painting is American Gothic. I learned about drawing. Sometimes, when drawing, you need boundary lines. Boundary lines can be different. Sometimes they are smooth, rough or blurred. When drawing you use all kinds of shapes, colors-and shade. There are three main colors called primary colors. They are yellow, blue and red. With these colors you can make the secondary; orange, green and purple. You can make more colors by adding white and black for tints and hues. I like learning about art. I enjoy drawing, sculpting, origami, and paper cutting. This class was fun and helpful to me. |
