Will Smith Homeschools

Did you know this? I didn’t until I read it over at the Just Enough Blog Will Smith Is Starting a (Homeschool Co-Op?) School.  Then I found out more when I read the Reader’s Digest article that was posted in the comments section of that blog (Will Smith Interview).  Now I have always been a big fan of Will Smith’s.  I admired him when he was a rapper for not getting sucked into Gangsta Rap when it became popular and trying to keep his music more family friendly.  I’ve thought about how dedicated he has to be to reinvent himself into an actor.  Back when he did it, there really wasn’t anyone else transcending all those genres.  It’s been uplifting how he’s stayed out of the paparazzi media storm and protected his family as well.  And I’ve been impressed how he and Jada almost always make their outings a family affair.  They really are trying to raise their kids (i.e. not handing the responsibility over to someone else.)  But now I find out that I have something in common with him – I homeschool as well.  I also found out that we share similar education philosophies.  I call it my “Teach the basics, teach them how to learn, teach them a love of learning and the rest will follow” philosophy.  We learn about reading, writing, and math in our school, and, yes, we take some test/quizzes on these topics because I expect him to learn these really well.  We touch on topics of social studies, science, health, etc. but I never require him to remember everything about those topics.  If he needs the information again, I’m teaching him how to look information up in books, encyclopedias and on the Internet.  I totally agree that you don’t need to know the date of the Boston Tea Party.  I don’t know it (though I’m sure I was required to learn it at various times during my school years), but I do know a variety of different ways that I could look it up if I ever needed or wanted that information.  Now I’m not sure about teaching Plato’s Republic and Aristotle’s Politics yet because I’m just getting Tyler to read books that don’t have pictures in them, but they are interesting books to read.

Now that I’ve basked in the celebrity shadow for a few moments, I’ll update you on our stuff.  Tyler finished the Magic Tree House #2 book yesterday.  I can’t tell you how happy it makes me to walk into a room and be told we can’t start other school stuff yet because he’s reading.  And that he’s reading at times other than when I tell him he must read something.  I’m sure the tides will change and there will still be days where he doesn’t want to read, but I am going to enjoy these days where he just sits down and reads by himself.

I’m signing him up for his next art class today.  He’s decided that he wants to do the Family Fun class.  This class is a mixed media class, but with an adult present.  The adults get to do the projects as well.  We haven’t gotten a response on whether it has to be the same adult every class (in this case he has decided it will be me) or if we can send a different adult to various classes so that Dad and Grandparents can attend with him as well (this is what he really wants to happen.), so we’ll just have to wait and see.

We are also headed to the library today.  Yes, we are going to the main library because the branch library out by us just doesn’t have enough stuff for Tyler (this he told me).  I can understand this.  When we lived in Denver and could just walk a few blocks to take the 16th Street Mall Shuttle and then walk a few more blocks, we almost always went to the main library.  The children’s section of the Denver library was probably as big as the whole first floor of the main library (of which the children’s section is only about a fourth of it) where we are now (yes, bigger than the little branch library by us.)  So I guess he got spoiled (I know I did.)  It was also nice that the Denver library had audiobooks, ebooks (my preference) and movies all available for download right from their website, so we didn’t have to go to the library sometimes.  So he has requested that we frequent the main library so he can find the things he’s interested it.  Again, basking in the glow that my son wants to go to the library on a weekly basis and that he is interested in what is there, I’ll take him to the main library.