The Return

My wife should be home in about an hour after spending a couple weeks with her family. And I was reminded of just how hard it is to motivate yourself when there's no one else home.

I envy that aspect of your life: A house full of young-uns.

No, I don't envy the sleep deprivation, changing the sheets after an accident, naughty behavior, or any of the other problematic things that come with children. But the same is true of the things I didn't miss while Brittany was gone: I could come home whenever I wanted from work, I could chat with Jason when he got home and not worry about neglecting my wife, I could eat all the frozen wheat-free cookie dough...

But the blessings, the many, many blessings far outweigh any negatives.

Thus, as I make the drive to the airport tonight, I'll be longing for the day when we'll be driving home from the airport with our kids in the car with us...

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Are You Smarter Than A...

I happened across a post today which asked if I were smarter than a fourth-grader.

I took the short linked math test and did just fine.

<phew>

But the title got me thinking, 'What's with our obsession with being as smart as someone who should be less educated than us? What's the fascination with discovering that you've forgotten a lot of facts and figures? And what difference does it really make if we no longer recall these details?'

See, even if I couldn't answer most of the geography questions on a fourth-grade test--and that is highly likely--would that mean that I'm not as smart as a fourth-grader? Is that the definition of smart: To be able to regurgitate information on demand?

No.

And perhaps this is one reason so many people are afraid to homeschool. "I could never do that," they tell themselves. "I don't remember half of what I learned in school." And so they dismiss homeschooling simply because they couldn't locate Tanzania if given a blank globe.

While general knowledge and an accumulation of facts and figures could certainly aid you as you learn together with your students, that is not what makes one smart. In fact, given internet access, a computer could find every single one of those facts and figures and do the calculations too. No, intelligence has much more to with your ability to use what you have been given, grasp what is presented, and then move beyond that. And you... you can do that.

And you know what?

"What, Luke?"

Even if you've forgotten everything, homeschooling lets you learn it all again. And that is a beautiful thing. People tell us over and over again:

I was a _insert_subject_here_ major in college, and I was shocked at how much I learned this year!

And I'm personally looking forward to re-reading all those great books we read as a family while using Sonlight.

But homeschooling with Sonlight is much more than just reading great books. Homeschooling with Sonlight is about sparking (or rekindling) the love of learning that sticks with you for life.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

The Fog of Sleep

The fog of sleep evaporated quickly as the sunlight hit his eyes.

Punchy. Just the way I like a story to open. Good thing I wrote it <smile>.


But this morning the fog of sleep clung to me like a soaked wool sweater that had been wrapped with duct tape. My alarm clock had disrupted one of my REM cycles, and that is as close to waking up "on the wrong side of the bed" as you can get. So, really, they should have phrased it "waking up in the middle of a REM cycle" ...but they didn't ask me.

To make matters worse, I didn't have a pretty face to wake up to either. And Brittany is still out of town.

For as much as I love pattern, consistency, routine, it sure gets disrupted a lot. And it's not just me. I read a post this morning from someone who had one of those days and ended up calling it quits on schooling by noon.

Thankfully, homeschooling lets us do that.

Remember, as Judy and Kelly have said often: Your schedule is a tool, not a taskmaster. And homeschooling gives you the opportunity to adjust your schedule to fit your current situation.

Next time you feel like smashing your alarm for disrupting your REM cycle, remember that it too is a tool and the fog of sleep will eventually evaporate. That's not to say a shower or cup of coffee wouldn't help it dissipate faster...

And as the fog lifts, may you have a great day learning and growing with your children!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Lessons from the Set

Prior to shooting we had spent a considerable amount of time preparing. All of that work culminated in a 71 page document. Each page had a separate scene on it so we could quickly reschedule or remove something if it wasn't working for us. This proved to be a huge time saver and made the project possible.

We had thought things through before hand so all that remained was the doing.

That is precisely what Sonlight does for you.

Every single Instructor's Guide is just like the document I created for shooting: It's a flexible schedule, notes, resource, and guide for your entire school year. Something not working for you? No problem. Move on. Got through that book faster than you expected? Great! Here's what you can do next. Want to only school four days a week instead of five? Easy, just turn the page...

Sonlight's IGs do the work for you so you get to the fun part of reading and learning with your kids.

And me? I got to spend a few days with Kelly and Judy. These ladies are two of our fantastic bunch of Sonlight Consultants: Sonlight veterans who are there to help you at your local conventions.


Kelly and Judy

Could we have completed the project without all that prep-work?

Nope.

At least, not in the time we had. It was much nicer to invest in the work before we started.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Working Late

I worked rather late tonight because... well... I'm super excited. I also needed to get a quick overview completed before the morning because that is our absolutely last opportunity to shoot for this project.


Exciting

Have a good night everyone. And I'll see you all again sometime soon. I'm a few thousand posts behind, but I'll catch up.

...someday.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Stills from Today's Shoot

We are still on schedule!

That's pretty impressive since we mostly just took the 71 pages of material we needed to cover and divided it into sections for our various days. Production is often as precise as licking your finger and guessing which way the wind is blowing <smile>.

So things are going well.

Here are a couple snapshots I grabbed from around the set after we warped for today:


A Mess of Equipment and Cords


Some Books...


Our Glamorous and Cozy Location

Ah, the life of media production.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Family Dinner

I don't remember if Dr. Sax talked about eating together as a family in his book Why Gender Matters, but even if he didn't the book is still a must read and the idea is still a good one: Eat meals together as a family. Doing so helps develop your children positively and offers another opportunity for bonding as a family.

This evening, after we finished shooting the scenes we needed for the day, I had the opportunity to go over to my folks' place and have dinner. Brittany is out of town for a while, and so I've got a lot more flexibility at the moment (which is a very good thing because I'm working a lot of hours this week).

Over dinner we were all chatting and it was fun to "catch up" on certain areas of our lives... even though I see my parents every Sunday for lunch.

So, if you haven't had a family dinner recently--even if your kids are out of the house and in their own (like me)--it can be a very encouraging and fun time. I recommend it!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

P.S. Brittany is out of town spending time with her family. Her dad is having surgery tomorrow and your thoughts and prayers are most welcome. Also, continued prayer for our project is also greatly appreciated. Thanks so much, friends!

The Leap

...into the Void

I'm not going to be around much here on the blogosphere this week.

"Why," you ask?

Because of a project.

That means I'm not likely to get to emails, blog posts, Facebook or even home in time for dinner. Well, that last part isn't entirely accurate. Right now dinner time is about 10pm each night, and I should be home by then.

I'm sorry that I won't be around here much. I'll try to keep you updated on how the project is goin' and watch his color TV^*.

But I will say: Most of my projects feel like a leap into the void:


Cannonball

And this is no exception.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

^*This song is not illustrative of the kind of project I am doing.

The Testing of Your Emails

There's a nice little verse in the Bible that reminds us that the testing of your faith ultimately leads to more maturity and less lacking.

But testing emails we plan to send out to large groups of people is proving to be testing my patience at the moment. Not because it's hard, but because the system isn't working. Well, it's half working, which makes me even more confused and less certain as to what I should be doing.

<grr>

I guess it's time for my technology caveat:

I do love me some technology ...when it works

Hopefully the weekend will give the system the time it needs to think about what its done and decide to shape up <smile>.

And may the tests you face ultimately lead to more maturity and less lacking in your life as well. Take a deep breath, and carry on!

<long breath in>

<hold it>

<and out...>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Forty-Five Bucks

Lots¹ of meetings today that required more brain-power than my current glucose levels can replenish.

So instead of an incredible and insightful post on the wonders of homeschooling with Sonlight's incredibly wonderful homeschool curriculum, I'll just give you this gem I found on Sonlight's website the other day²:


$45 value for only $53.75!

Maybe this is why people get the incorrect impression that Sonlight is so expensive... <laughing>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

¹Okay, okay, I only had two meetings.
²I fixed the issue after I took a screen shot.

Is It All About Electronics?

That question came to mind a few days ago as I thought about my post on learning in a virtual world. Are we really headed to a world where analog books are replaced with digital games and sound bytes?

For as much as I love technology--and I do love me some technology--I don't think we're going to replace books.

Or, at least, we shouldn't.

Perhaps digital ink will one day take over physical ink on paper. But that's merely one more shift away from the hand written works of the first publications on papyrus and clay. The book will still exist even if it is no longer bound to paper.

So, no: The future of education should not be all about electronic games.

Excellent literature should be.

And the whole book, too. None of that Cliff's Wiki Google Notes madness for us! There is much to be said for the beauty of good writing and how that enriches our learning. And much of that benefit is lost in truncation.

Will games become part of learning?

I think there is good reason to think that they should.

But for Sonlight families, books will always play a major role in the education of our children and enjoyment of our families.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

P.S. If you haven't signed up to be part of the OneVerse project yet, you need to by tomorrow for the full benefit. Get involved now!

A Project

What is Luke up to?

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Recycle, Reuse, Read

I'm not exactly the go greener type.

I believe in recycling and making do with older stuff, like my ratty tennies that I wear until they fall off my feet--much to my wife's chagrin. I plant trees in my backyard and we grow squash quite successfully. But "going green" feels political, and I don't like politics. But care for this little blue ball on which we live? Save some money? Be good to others? Absolutely.

And that's why I'm so excited about one of my birthday presents from my wife: A titanium spork.


Spork

I got to use it for the first time today at lunch, and it works like a charm.

That's why I'm going to share with you how Sonlight is like my spork.

Just as I can now reuse my spork every day instead of getting out a new plastic one, every single Sonlight curriculum package is reusable with multiple children. Not only can you use Sonlight with multiple children in a single year, but you can also reuse the program years later with another child who wasn't ready for it when you first purchased it.

That's the beauty of Sonlight's Cores: You can reuse--and thereby recycle--your school materials. How do we do it?

Read.

Wonderful books, lesson plans, extra notes, a complete (yet flexible) schedule...

Perhaps it's time to trade in the plastic forks of education--worksheets--for the titanium sporks of Sonlight. And if you don't "go green" for yourself, think of the children! <smile>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Everything I Needed to Know...

I learned in the World of Warcraft

My mom recently said something interesting about the future of education. While watching the new Star Trek film, she noticed Spock was standing in front of a large glass screen with formulas all over it. "It looked cool," she admitted, "but how is it any different from a worksheet? Are fancier/electronic worksheets all we have to look forward to? I don't think so."

I'm part of a team here at Sonlight trying to figure out what the future of education should be (and I don't think it should be more busy work). My wife and I chat about it now and again. She's really big into the virtual worlds/gaming side of life. She also has a degree in education and teaches classes in Second Life. So her thoughts are really valuable. She said to me this morning, "It's hard to see how the current educational model will ever be toppled. And can we really learn in a completely virtual world?"

"Sure," I said. "Absolutely. Just look at World of Warcraft." Those who play will consistently, and excitedly, share what they've learned about:

• Geography: My best friend knows more about the continents and locations of WoW than he does our world. Of course, for huge as WoW is, it's smaller than this world.
• History: One of our friends can tell you the back story of any object, character, place, or event that you encounter.
• Religion/Philosophy/Politics: My friends could tell you all about the motivations for the different factions, what they believe and why, and how that is affecting the current political tensions in the world.
• Math: The "stats" system in WoW (how much this cloak will protect you from an ice breathing dragon) is a complex set of variables and definitions that rival any Algebra problem I've encountered.
• Reading: Comprehension skills are necessary to understand a quest objective and where you need to go.
• Writing/typing: If you hope to ever get help, you must be able to clearly communicate your requests or directions to your team members.
• Coordinates/maps: While not built into the game, you can easily add a coordinate grid. Plus, you must become familiar with navigating a map if you hope to get anywhere in the game.
• Science: Within the professions you can learn, you will quickly discover how things interact and what is required to produce your desired result: Smelting tin, for example.
• Working in Groups: While you can play the game by yourself, if you hope to accomplish major tasks you must learn to work together.
• Management Skills: Leading a group or a guild requires you to practice and hone your management abilities far better, I would argue, than a seminar because this involves real people with real backgrounds, feelings, desires and ambitions.
• Literature: Okay, so it's not War and Peace. Of course, I've never read War and Peace. But the quest text is often a story of loss, opportunity, revenge, need, or love.
• Craft Time: The gaming community is filled with people who pour hundreds of hours into making fan art (movies, pictures, costumes, stories) and custom content (like The Sims), and WoW is no exception. It's insane, really.
• Programing: You learn simple coding as you make macros that make your virtual life easier.
• But what about Socialization? Yep. You have that as well. And it's "good" socialization too because you are interacting with people of all ages from all walks of life from all over the globe.

And there's more.

"So what," you ask? "That stuff doesn't matter. It's all fake."

That's true. But it's not pointless. Here is a model that makes learning fun, natural, and desirable. It inspires and engrosses. And while not for everyone, even learning fake languages like Tolkien's Elvish or Klingon are wonderful ways to expand your understanding of linguistics. And fiction, as Sonlight consistently demonstrates, is a fantastic way to learn about our world.

Does this mean Warcraft is the future of education?

Probably not. But the virtual world opens many doors in ways that move us way beyond a fancy, electronic worksheet or digital ink book.

And an online learning opportunity may soon make homeschooling a norm.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

What's My Age Again?

Yesterday I mentioned that I would be turning a year older. My coworkers wanted to know how old I would be.

"28," I told them without a moment's hesitation.

"Wow, I'm just a little older than you," Bo said.

Barbara asked, "So you were born in '81?"

"No," I replied. "I was born in 1982."

"Then... how can you be 28?" They wanted to know.

"Umm..."

<cough>

The good news: They saved a year of my life yesterday.

What does that have to do with Sonlight or homeschooling?

Nothing really.^*

But if I said anything more, I think you'd forget it as you typed out a Happy Birthday comment. And I wouldn't want to distract you from wishing me a happy birthday, now would I? <laughing>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

^*Except, perhaps, that if you take a break from math studies for more than 7 years you may loose your ability to properly sequence stuff.

Teaching Other People's Children

We were part of a homeschooling co-op group for a year or two back in the day. We did arts and crafts and other things that groups of kids do. My sister created a clay penguin which caused some hubbub when it appeared on page 5 of Sonlight's 2008 catalog and people couldn't tell what it was.


Clay Penguin

Me?

I tried to make an eagle and was horribly frustrated when I couldn't pull it off using nothing more than a coat hanger and toothpicks to fashion the clay.

I've always been an overachiever with perfectionists tendencies. ...not an ideal combination for things like art.

And how do you console a child who has bitten off way more than he can chew and yet is devastated that his work of art isn't turning out anything like the picture and is in tears because the clay isn't doing what he wants?

I don't know because I was inconsolable at the time.

And while I haven't had to deal with someone else's inconsolable child yet, there have been times when I've wondered what I should do. Prime example:

We were talking about sin in Sunday School and I asked the kids to list off a few. The typical ones showed up: Lying, murder, stealing. I tried to make it a little more personal by reminding them that disobeying their parents or being mean to their sibling were also sins. After the lesson, one of the girls came up and told me she had thought of another sin and asked if she could write it down on the whiteboard. I let her, and she put down "drinking."

Okay... that's up for debate, but getting drunk is something we should avoid, so I let is stand. And if her parents have told her that drinking is a sin, I'm not going to disparage them.

But after class, another girl quietly approached me. She looked forlorn and distraught. In a quiet voice she asked, "May I erase that?"

My guess? At least one of her parents enjoys an alcoholic beverage now and again. Perhaps one of them even gets drunk. But whatever the case, this hit far too close to home. What's more: It wasn't helping anything.

I encouraged her to erase the offending item and watched with a twinge of pain as she vigorously removed the word.

I don't remember if she had tears in her eyes at the time. But I do now.

Homeschooling gives us an incredible opportunity to teach our children. But I'm also thankful for the opportunities to teach other people's kids because it reminds me of how many different backgrounds, perspectives and experiences we come from. It reminds me to be more cautious in my judgments, careful in my statements, and thankful that I will--by God's grace--have children of my own soon.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Monday on Tuesday

Sometimes after a long weekend I am reminded of Bill Cosby's skit on drinking. Unfortunately, the clip doesn't have the last bit about coming back on Monday and saying, "I'm so glad I'm back to work; I'm no good on my own."

Me? I'm just fine on my own and had a rather productive three days. But with long weekends, even without copious amounts of alcohol, the re-entry can be difficult. I think it's the build up of an extra day's worth of work that you need to cram into fewer hours.

This is a Monday on Tuesday.

So today's post is for all of you who did school yesterday despite the holiday.

And for those of you who, like me, took yesterday off: Hang in there! Friday comes on Thursday this week.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Popular Posts

The really great bloggers get hundreds of comments on every post they write. Insights, wisdom and praise gush forth from their rapt¹ audience.

I am not a really great blogger.

But every once in a while a post of mine will be flooded with responses. Yesterday's was one such post.

Just about everyone wanted to talk about the birds and bees. Which surprised me, but it shouldn't 've. Because while I know what's going on in the back of my mind when I write something, no one else does. And so my friends read my post and thought, 'Luke needs some advice on telling someone about babies!' Or, perhaps, what I wrote reminded you of something from your past that you decided to share.

Which is great.

But I actually included the birds and bees bit because I thought it was an easily recognizable situation that could introduce the idea of full disclosure. And I was thinking about full disclosure because of the next bit of information we'll be sending out about the OneVerse project.

All that to say: I was amused at how a post that was, in my mind, about something else entirely, ended up being the hottest post of the week. And along with a smile, I also got to feel like a pretty good blogger for a day despite my struggle to communicate clearly. <smile>

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

1. Now I'm confused: Is it rapt or wrapt?

The Ethics of Full Disclosure

...the birds and the bees

I never asked my parents where babies came from.

Somehow, before I ever realized this was a question worth considering, I had heard something from a friend that--while utterly confusing and ultimately completely incorrect--provided the answer.

Thus, I have no history to draw upon if my children were ever to ask me. But my plan is to calmly, oh, so very calmly, explain the process as scientifically and accurately as possible (while dropping enough subtle hints as to the appropriate and most beneficial social situations in which this is recommended to make a lasting impression). But I can't give them all the details. Full disclosure is simply not possible. Nor, I think, advised.

But I like giving tons of information, especially if it's a topic I'm interested in. I love laying it all out and explaining everything. In short, short and simple answers are simply too short and simply boring.

Full disclosure is impossible, however. There's just too much information, too much knowledge, too many competing views, too many options. Couple that with a desire to encourage people to act upon what they've learned, and you end up with a rather jumbled mess.

Yesterday I read a web guru who stated, emphatically, that in order to be considered an expert you must give simplistic, emphatic answers to questions. The masses, he assured me, only want simplistic. If you're too nuanced nobody'll care. You'll never reach widespread fame if you dabble in the grays. Black and white is the secret to success.


I don't think I believe him.


Now, in the interest of full disclosure, I will tell you now that I'm not going to fully disclose anything in this post.

Rather, I'll tell you that we're planning on disclosing more about the Sonlight | OneVerse project soon.

So sign up and tell your friends!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

P.S. I realize that I didn't really mention ethics in this post. I was thinking about it so I left the title as is. Plus, it's cool. If you wanted an ethics talk, share your thoughts below and we'll get a conversation going. But this post is long as it is...

P.P.S. If you don't like my word plays, please let me know. I've been told that such things can be annoying and unhelpful, rather than fun and enjoyable. What say you?

What Went Wrong Wednesday

Today, while enjoyable, was riddled and ridden with problems.

First, we found out that there was some... well... rather inappropriate content connected with one of our pages. Thankfully, that turned out to be a quick fix. But while it was there it was incredibly ironic. And funny and horrible ...all at the same time. Thank you to the customer who brought this issue to our attention!

Speaking of which, if you find something on the site that isn't quite right, please let us know by clicking on the What Bugs You? Bug on Sonlight's site to give your feedback.

Second, our web store ...er... server thingy has been acting up all day.

Then, in the middle of wresting with that--on top of our normal day-to-day activities--the power went out.

That left us standing around and chatting until our computers and phones came back online and we could get back to work. It is amazing how much we rely on computers (and therefore, electricity) these days. While we waited, I snapped a few pictures of people chatting. It's a good sign that we all get a long so well:


Some Marketing Peoples


Three Product Development Ladies

I didn't get pictures of everyone, but I thought I'd share a couple.

It looks like we've been able to resolve the issues now. Which is good. You never feel quite as productive when you're mostly just putting out fires all day.

It was a good day, just a lot of things went wrong.

Some days are just like that.

If you had such a day, I hope it all worked out by the end. And if not, may you get plenty of sleep tonight so you can tackle tomorrow with gusto!

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

Reading, Listening, Learning

I've mentioned this many times before: I struggled with reading growing up. In fact, I've much improved since college. And that's likely why, as I've written about before, I have a love for audio books.

My love for listening to books probably also harkens back to Sonlight's Read-Alouds which were foundational to my education.

Thus, I was very interested in Jerri Ann's post about reading to her son. I've seen similar questions on Sonlight's Facebook page as well: What if my child doesn't want to read and would rather I read out loud?

Me?

I tell 'em: Do it! Read to your children! Especially if they struggle with the mechanics of reading, as I did. There is plenty of time--even after college--to develop the skills necessary to find pleasure in reading to yourself.

Literacy is important. Being able to read is essential. But does that mean that we must love the act of letting our eyes flow over the page? Is that the important element of books? Is that the goal of learning?

No.

The power of books are the stories and the worlds they contain. And Sonlight's books, in particular, allow us to experience history in a powerful and memorable way. And listening is just as effective a way of learning as reading to yourself. And there is little better than spending time together listening to the same story that mom or dad is reading.

 ~Luke Holzmann
Filmmaker, Writer, Expectant Father

P.S. We tried to fix an area of confusion on our site earlier today and probably just confused more people until we figured out what was wrong. But such is the life of web content <smile>. Had you visited select pages on Sonlight's website today you would have encountered this:

Limited Voting Quantities

Which reminds me: Don't forget to vote for the Sonlight catalog cover.