Here's some top carnival attractions:
- I'm most intrigued by The 2009 Mathematics Game at Let's Play Math. This would be a great challenge for your top students, or for yourself. It reminds me of a challenge a student gave me last year: use eight 8's to make 1000. I was stumped on that one for a while (if you figure it out, leave a comment!).
- Dawn at Day by Day Discoveries wonders if textbooks have any place in homeschooling. I hope she reads this: many of us on the other side believe most textbooks have no place in public schools! Throughout my teaching career, textbooks have done little more than take up space in the classroom. The last math text I used (Holt Algebra I) had great supplemental materials (student workbooks, graphic organizers and more) that I still include when I build custom materials. I just wish the books themselves were more useful!
- I guess I'm so fascinated by the idea of homeschooling because it speaks to so many of the issues that bug me about public schools. So much of what we teach and how we teach it is disconnected from the real world (by design). In addition, I often feel like my school is trying to fit some sort of stereotype of what charter schools are supposed to be, instead of really building things around the needs of our unique population. That's why Non-Traditional Learning: In Other Words, Homeschooling really got my attention--everything this family has built keeps their kids engaged and learning at all times.