fyi, the tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com link is actually not about this Monty Hall problem -- it really is a totally different 3-door puzzle. (A fun and intriguing one, but nonetheless not relevant here.)
I second Kathryn. I'm not familiar with either of the stores you used, but since online stores are such a nebulous concept, I think it's one of those places where you want to stick with the tried-and-true.
I order a fair amount of merchandise online - mostly tech-gear where it's hard to find the exact models I'm looking for locally.
It's worth a couple extra dollars to me to be sure that the company will accurately report its inventory, send me the right thing, and be there later if I have a warranty issue. Newegg is one of my staples, though I do use other places. I've heard about reliable discount stores online, but haven't used them myself. Dealing with bad customer service just isn't worth it to me.
If a site doesn't clearly spell out warranty, shipping, and return policies that you're happy with, it's probably not worth the savings.
The credit card address issue is a pain (particularly if you live somewhere temporary, like a college dorm) but I think it's a reasonable trade off for the security.
There are people who will try to extort money from friends using guilt or whatever other means - and often these investments or loans are clearly done only in the name of friendship. The person loaning the money knows the friend is going to use it on something questionable or on a scheme that may not entirely make sense, but still gives it anyways to maintain the friendship..
When it comes to friends, there are two types of lending. One is true lending - helping out with a down payment or large purchase or repair. The other is incidental lending - loaning money for a friend to buy lunch if they forget their wallet. In either case, a repeat borrower should be avoided.
In the true lending scenario, you should ALWAYS get an IOU (which is, in fact, a promissory note). If your friend is offended that you ask for this, this is your first red flag. You can find basic forms on the internet. If it's a large amount, it may be worth calling an attorney friend, if you have one. I am currently representing a client who loaned his friend of 20 years about $70K - the friendship is over and they are in Court.
On the other hand, I've never had a problem spotting a friend for a drink or food when we go out. Usually it works out in the end, with the friend paying for something along the way. (I have also, on rare occasions, asked an employee for a $1 to buy a soda, if I didn't have cash and paid it back immediately.) A good rule of thumb is that, if you feel uncomfortable when asked, don't do it.
I lived in Hawaii for 5.5 years before I moved to California, and shipping to there is more difficult. A lot of online stores add an extra surcharge. Usually I don't have problems with online ordering though. Just recently I ordered a chair online, and my mom ordered her bed online too. She calculated that she saved 500 dollars by buying it online.
I'll have to try the spinach idea--can't quite get my head around that one, plus my kids (and DH and I) all love spinach in almost any form, so it's not something we have to force.
Smoothies are a great way to get nutrition (esp calcium and protein) into teenagers, who hate to get up early, are almost never hungry for anything with protein (eggs, in particular) and are starving within an hour of eating. We buy those deep-discount over ripe bananas and peel and freeze them for smoothies. You can easily break the banana into chunks and add to the smoothie ingredients and it maintains a creamy, frozen, almost milkshake-like texture and consistency. Adding ice cubes is a guarantee of separation into a yucky aqueous layer and a clotted solids layer, which defeats the whole breakfast idea.
A typical smoothie (serves 2) will be:
1 cup of plain, nonfat yogurt
1-2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup orange juice (with lots of pulp)
fresh berries or mango cubes
1/2 cup low-fat milk
Whirl until smooth. Pour into two tall glasses and prop up teenagers to drink. This gets much-needed nutrients into growing girls (who for some reason won't normally just drink milk), and keeps them satisfied until lunchtime.
Another one that is nice for us dieting folks:
1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk
2 Tablespoons Ovaltine (malted if you like it)
1 frozen banana, broken into chunks.
This is like having a creamy chocolate milkshake, and also supplements calcium, protein, and potassium. You can get crazy and add powdered milk too, but it's not as cheap as it used to be.
Monty Hall was asked about the "Monty Hall" problem once. He pointed out that on the actual show once a contestant turned down a choice they were never offered it again -- so after choosing door 1, 2, or 3, they would never be asked if they wanted to switch to a door they turned down.
The puzzle's a classic, and sounds very much like the show, but it wouldn't actually happen on the show.
I completely agree with the previous poster - when people find out that a child is homeschooled, they immediately look at any fault or bad habit that the child might have and blame homeschooling as the reason the child is the way that they are, but if a kid is in public school and has the same bad habit then the school is never to blame. When a homeschooled kid is shy then homeschooling is always the "reason", and yet when a public/private schooled child is shy then it is just assumed that that is the kid's personality and the school isn't to blame. Homeschooled kid talks a lot? Blame the fact that they get one-on-one attention at home. Public school kid talks a lot? They are outgoing and just acting like a kid. Homeschooled kid seems anxious a lot? It is because they are homeschooled, but if a public school kid is anxious then it is just part of their personality.
Socialization isn't always a great thing you know. Go to a public school and ask the fat kid how fun it is to be teased all the time by a class of his peers. Ask the stutterers how they like being around a ton of kids every day who make fun them for something that they can't control. Ask the wallflowers who don't get asked to Prom how much they love the social aspects of public high school. Being forced to interact with a never changing group of kids isn't always a good thing. Being homeschooled and never leaving the house isn't a good thing either. You have to find what works for your kid.
I'd loaned money to a friend, who very quickly abandoned me altogether. Not only did they vilify me when I tried to ask for some back (supporting two people on one person's student loans is really tight, and I needed all I could get back), they managed to drive me away from our social group too.
In more recent times, I loaned virtual money to a friend in a game, and he just disappeared altogether. It was a risk I was willing to take - it was a lot of money, I suspected he might try something like that eventually, but now I don't have to wonder if he'll attempt to rip me off. Probably, he thinks he got away with it, and I'm better off without him anyway. Perhaps in some of the loan considerations, it's worth considering if the money given will 'get rid of' someone who you don't really need in your life again.
One time, I had had to call friends to ask for money. My then-boyfriend hared off to a remote town to hang out with a cousin and had no money to get back, and he'd already drained my bank account. I felt horrible having to ask my friends for help, and hadn't stayed in touch due to the shame - but I'd give a great deal now, to have them back. He can stay away though. :P
I just found most of what you said to be really, really hard! Like I said, certainly not a math whiz here. But it's a great lesson in lateral thinking.
You just took me back to my randomized algorithms class. That was the hardest class ever. To this day, I find probability and combinatorics to be really really hard, but the Monty Hall problem is really a classic simple tool that people can use in their daily lives.
I have found that buying online from existing B&M stores or from major web retailers is usually the best. I try to find sales combined with free shipping. Amazon is quickly becoming my favorite option to avoid stores.
I also know plenty of non-homeschooled people who have rough social skills exactly also because they are coddled at home and have a skewed sense of reality. These kids don't know how to problem solve or think for themselves because their family does everything for them and tells them what to think. Similarly, most schools teach conformity and uniformity, discouraging a sense of individual style or thought, and school playgrounds use peer pressure to form cliques and enforce the same kind of conformity within social groups. Social skills can be taught in a variety of ways, one of the most important and influential being right at home.
Be careful about closing credit cards, especially numbers of them at once. This affects your available credit amount and will cut it back noticably. If you are carrying balances on some cards, suddenly you are using a larger percentage of your available credit. It could have a detrimental effect on your credit score for a while. If you are planning to try to borrow money for something important soon, it could raise your interest rate. Be cautious.
Wow, thats amazing that you know where we wake up everyday....and trust me it ain't comfy. Thanks for assuming everyone else's life is as cushy as yours.
1 scoop of high quality protein powder (choc or vanilla), a bannana (must have)a squirt of Flax seed oil, a large scoop of homemade yogurt, a few strawberries, blueberries, mango or nothing, ice and then enhanced soy milk.
I don't even think about food until 2:00.
I like the easy blender clean up idea. I've thought about contacing my blender company and asking if I could purchase an additional blender glass.
I am just curious about your use of the printable coupons, I have been told at my local Safeways that they refuse to accept them. Has anyone else run into this problem?
This is a very timely post, for me! I'm off to Mexico next week to spend some time relaxing with family in a seaside village. Since I'm in debt-reduction mode, I'm a little nervous about how to continue to save money when I'm traveling. I'm a little afraid that being out of the country on my first 'real' vacation in years will inspire me to spend money (and put $$ back on the credit cards) that I normally wouldn't spend.
Great tips, and I'll definitely be considering these as I sip local beer on the beach next week!
First, because as others have said, this doesnt account for the many regressive taxes that we fund our government with. Gas tax, social security, etc. It also does not take into account the lower rate paid on investment income that makes up a majority of the super rich's income in this country. Also, using 10 people and saying one would pay $59 for $100 worth of beer is complete bullshit and way too simplistic, as no one in any income group pays anywhere NEAR 59% in income taxes- effective income tax rate, even for the wealthiest is closer to 25%. Effective, not marginal tax rates are what matters. Also, this example assumes government services are evenly divisible, that is just as all ten each get one beer, each benefit the same amount, then we all benefit the same amount from government. As we know, this is completely untrue, as the wealthy have more assets and propery to be protected and insured by the government. Our indivisible system of infrastructure and defense has benefited them more than others, etc. They have more of the very money that the government employs people to print and runs a central bank to supply. We do not all get the same results from the system like we do from drinking one beer. Also, the idea that the rich will move out of the country if we raise taxes on them is complete and utter bullshit.We have JOBS not BUSINESSES leaving the country through outsourcing- GM is still based here, so is HP and other outsourcers- they outsource to gain competitive advantage on LABOR costs, not taxes! No one moved out due to taxes when they were much higher in the 1950s, or recently when they were slightly higher in the 1990s. In fact, under Clinton, the economy boomed and the rich did better than they ever have before or since! If guy 10 wants to move out of the country, where the hell is he going to go in the industrialized world?? To western Europe? Forgot, much higher tax rates there, up to 50%, try again- flat tax havens of Costa Rica, Estonia, Albania, Chad, and all those other backward 3rd world countries?? Ok, guy 10, try and make as much money in those countries w/ a completely uneducated, unproductive workforce, no sound infrastructure, no technological development and pathetic levels of capital investment. Less productivity, less profit. If he wants to leave, more power to him, someone else will come in and replace him to satisfy the demand- that is the beauty of our free enteprise system. There is money to be made, so guys 8 and 9 will step up and gladly take it!! As for 10, good luck making less money and living in constant fear of a currency collapse, hyperinflation or a military coup! Ridiculous example.
Question,
I read in an earlier post this would be based on the 2006 return. We had twins that were born in Jan 2007. Does that mean my wife and I would not get $300 each for them???
Another place to look for homeschool resources is VegSource. Try http://www.vegsource.com/homeschool/ They have message boards and places for swapping resources.
Jeff N.: Homeschooling can be good or bad and can have good or bad results, just like anything else. I know many homeschooling families and most of the children turned out great and are doing well in life/careers. Some haven't done so well. Sometimes you get both results from the same family - one kid does great and the other kid doesn't. You're dealing with people here, not robots. The same input in two different people does not guarantee the same output. Personalities, personal ambitions, etc. all play in to it, too. There are plenty of public school (or private school) kids who got all the "socialization" you're talking about yet still work in low-paying, mediocre jobs their entire lives because they're not motivated enough or self-confident enough to look for a better job. I agree their there are some homeschooled kids that don't do well because they didn't have good opportunities for "life experience" when they were homeschooled, there are also plenty of public school kids that end up the same way.
My sister and I were both homeschooled and lack the "socialization" you mention. Instead of being stuck in a classroom with 29 other people the same age as we were, we were out dealing with older people, younger people, middle-aged people, and all the other ages in between. Believe me, we never lacked socialization. However, I'm not always comfortable in group situations. I suppose you could blame it on the homeschooling, but my sister doesn't have an issue being in groups of people. Perhaps it's just personality differences. I'm more of an introvert and she's more of an extrovert. We're both pretty successful in our careers - she's a dog trainer for a VERY well known dog trainer (her previous job was also with a very well known dog training place) and I'm the manager for an entire boarding kennel. We're both still in our early/mid twenties, too, so it's not as if we've finally gotten around this this at 35 years old.
We spent tons of time at the library, did lots of volunteering and job-shadowing, did hands-on projects, got together with other homeschoolers for "classes" and science projects and every other kind of project, researched, went to parks, and had pretty much everything turned into a learning experience.
For home-ec, my mom would have us cook a meal every so often (we had to do that before we "officially took" home-ec, too). She incorporated a recipe book in the curriculum: she bought us each a recipe book and told us we couldn't put a recipe in it until we had made it. I hated the project at the time. Absolutely hated it (I was not an indoors person - I wanted to be outside). Now I'm married and living on my (our) own and I love that cookbook. It's crammed with recipes, magazine cutouts, printed out recipes from online, and recipes scribbled on scrap paper. It was really a good project (even though I loathed it at the time).
Your comment made me laugh, ONLY because 22 is old enough to know plenty! Yes you may have seen home-schooled kids suffering from what I call the "bubble-effect" (i.e. lack of socialization skills...) They are out there, but let me tell you, it's getting better with each generation. It largely depends on the parents' view of the world and socialization.
My daughter is 9 and most of her friends are from the public school system. This is because most of MY friends don't homeschool their children. It's neither right nor wrong.. it just is. We try to teach our daughter that this country is great because of the freedoms it guarantees each family, and that our way is our way, it won't work for everyone.
That being said, social skills are a top priority. We don't overemphasize peer groups (we allow interaction among different age groups, within reason), but my daughter is involved in groups and clubs with others her own age across a broad spectrum of social categories. If we don't agree with something she is exposed to, we use it as a teachable moment, not a tool for condemnation.
One thing to remember, is that many homeschool THESE DAYS, with one main concern -- education. Some geographical areas lack school resources, some parents are really that equipped to teach, and others just want to be sure to get in all the extras that public schools won't be able to get in. We all have our reasons, but most of them are very pure in their intent.
One of the reasons we try to save on textbooks is that the social activities we are involved in can be very costly. Swimming lessons, gymnastics, 4-H, summer camps, field trips, etc are not cheap (regardless of where your kids goes to school.) Since we foot the bill of our own books, we try to save where we can.
22 and thinking... there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I was well on my way to starting a family at that age -- I'm only 29!
fyi, the tierneylab.blogs.nytimes.com link is actually not about this Monty Hall problem -- it really is a totally different 3-door puzzle. (A fun and intriguing one, but nonetheless not relevant here.)
I second Kathryn. I'm not familiar with either of the stores you used, but since online stores are such a nebulous concept, I think it's one of those places where you want to stick with the tried-and-true.
I order a fair amount of merchandise online - mostly tech-gear where it's hard to find the exact models I'm looking for locally.
It's worth a couple extra dollars to me to be sure that the company will accurately report its inventory, send me the right thing, and be there later if I have a warranty issue. Newegg is one of my staples, though I do use other places. I've heard about reliable discount stores online, but haven't used them myself. Dealing with bad customer service just isn't worth it to me.
If a site doesn't clearly spell out warranty, shipping, and return policies that you're happy with, it's probably not worth the savings.
The credit card address issue is a pain (particularly if you live somewhere temporary, like a college dorm) but I think it's a reasonable trade off for the security.
And dont you just love the line:
"Free shipping!!!!!!!except to Alaska and Hawaii
Then they charge you an arm and a leg, like say paying $17 for a light bulb which they will only send Fedex ground who doesn't deliver to PO boxes.
And I am not even going to go into the story about how it took my husband 2 months to get a camera delivered when it was supposed to take 5 days.
Sorry, but my addiction to subsistence overrides my addiction to saving.
There are people who will try to extort money from friends using guilt or whatever other means - and often these investments or loans are clearly done only in the name of friendship. The person loaning the money knows the friend is going to use it on something questionable or on a scheme that may not entirely make sense, but still gives it anyways to maintain the friendship..
All the videos are down...
When it comes to friends, there are two types of lending. One is true lending - helping out with a down payment or large purchase or repair. The other is incidental lending - loaning money for a friend to buy lunch if they forget their wallet. In either case, a repeat borrower should be avoided.
In the true lending scenario, you should ALWAYS get an IOU (which is, in fact, a promissory note). If your friend is offended that you ask for this, this is your first red flag. You can find basic forms on the internet. If it's a large amount, it may be worth calling an attorney friend, if you have one. I am currently representing a client who loaned his friend of 20 years about $70K - the friendship is over and they are in Court.
On the other hand, I've never had a problem spotting a friend for a drink or food when we go out. Usually it works out in the end, with the friend paying for something along the way. (I have also, on rare occasions, asked an employee for a $1 to buy a soda, if I didn't have cash and paid it back immediately.) A good rule of thumb is that, if you feel uncomfortable when asked, don't do it.
I lived in Hawaii for 5.5 years before I moved to California, and shipping to there is more difficult. A lot of online stores add an extra surcharge. Usually I don't have problems with online ordering though. Just recently I ordered a chair online, and my mom ordered her bed online too. She calculated that she saved 500 dollars by buying it online.
I'll have to try the spinach idea--can't quite get my head around that one, plus my kids (and DH and I) all love spinach in almost any form, so it's not something we have to force.
Smoothies are a great way to get nutrition (esp calcium and protein) into teenagers, who hate to get up early, are almost never hungry for anything with protein (eggs, in particular) and are starving within an hour of eating. We buy those deep-discount over ripe bananas and peel and freeze them for smoothies. You can easily break the banana into chunks and add to the smoothie ingredients and it maintains a creamy, frozen, almost milkshake-like texture and consistency. Adding ice cubes is a guarantee of separation into a yucky aqueous layer and a clotted solids layer, which defeats the whole breakfast idea.
A typical smoothie (serves 2) will be:
1 cup of plain, nonfat yogurt
1-2 frozen bananas
1/2 cup orange juice (with lots of pulp)
fresh berries or mango cubes
1/2 cup low-fat milk
Whirl until smooth. Pour into two tall glasses and prop up teenagers to drink. This gets much-needed nutrients into growing girls (who for some reason won't normally just drink milk), and keeps them satisfied until lunchtime.
Another one that is nice for us dieting folks:
1 cup plain yogurt
1/2 cup milk
2 Tablespoons Ovaltine (malted if you like it)
1 frozen banana, broken into chunks.
This is like having a creamy chocolate milkshake, and also supplements calcium, protein, and potassium. You can get crazy and add powdered milk too, but it's not as cheap as it used to be.
Monty Hall was asked about the "Monty Hall" problem once. He pointed out that on the actual show once a contestant turned down a choice they were never offered it again -- so after choosing door 1, 2, or 3, they would never be asked if they wanted to switch to a door they turned down.
The puzzle's a classic, and sounds very much like the show, but it wouldn't actually happen on the show.
I completely agree with the previous poster - when people find out that a child is homeschooled, they immediately look at any fault or bad habit that the child might have and blame homeschooling as the reason the child is the way that they are, but if a kid is in public school and has the same bad habit then the school is never to blame. When a homeschooled kid is shy then homeschooling is always the "reason", and yet when a public/private schooled child is shy then it is just assumed that that is the kid's personality and the school isn't to blame. Homeschooled kid talks a lot? Blame the fact that they get one-on-one attention at home. Public school kid talks a lot? They are outgoing and just acting like a kid. Homeschooled kid seems anxious a lot? It is because they are homeschooled, but if a public school kid is anxious then it is just part of their personality.
Socialization isn't always a great thing you know. Go to a public school and ask the fat kid how fun it is to be teased all the time by a class of his peers. Ask the stutterers how they like being around a ton of kids every day who make fun them for something that they can't control. Ask the wallflowers who don't get asked to Prom how much they love the social aspects of public high school. Being forced to interact with a never changing group of kids isn't always a good thing. Being homeschooled and never leaving the house isn't a good thing either. You have to find what works for your kid.
I'd loaned money to a friend, who very quickly abandoned me altogether. Not only did they vilify me when I tried to ask for some back (supporting two people on one person's student loans is really tight, and I needed all I could get back), they managed to drive me away from our social group too.
In more recent times, I loaned virtual money to a friend in a game, and he just disappeared altogether. It was a risk I was willing to take - it was a lot of money, I suspected he might try something like that eventually, but now I don't have to wonder if he'll attempt to rip me off. Probably, he thinks he got away with it, and I'm better off without him anyway. Perhaps in some of the loan considerations, it's worth considering if the money given will 'get rid of' someone who you don't really need in your life again.
One time, I had had to call friends to ask for money. My then-boyfriend hared off to a remote town to hang out with a cousin and had no money to get back, and he'd already drained my bank account. I felt horrible having to ask my friends for help, and hadn't stayed in touch due to the shame - but I'd give a great deal now, to have them back. He can stay away though. :P
I just found most of what you said to be really, really hard! Like I said, certainly not a math whiz here. But it's a great lesson in lateral thinking.
You just took me back to my randomized algorithms class. That was the hardest class ever. To this day, I find probability and combinatorics to be really really hard, but the Monty Hall problem is really a classic simple tool that people can use in their daily lives.
I have found that buying online from existing B&M stores or from major web retailers is usually the best. I try to find sales combined with free shipping. Amazon is quickly becoming my favorite option to avoid stores.
I also know plenty of non-homeschooled people who have rough social skills exactly also because they are coddled at home and have a skewed sense of reality. These kids don't know how to problem solve or think for themselves because their family does everything for them and tells them what to think. Similarly, most schools teach conformity and uniformity, discouraging a sense of individual style or thought, and school playgrounds use peer pressure to form cliques and enforce the same kind of conformity within social groups. Social skills can be taught in a variety of ways, one of the most important and influential being right at home.
Be careful about closing credit cards, especially numbers of them at once. This affects your available credit amount and will cut it back noticably. If you are carrying balances on some cards, suddenly you are using a larger percentage of your available credit. It could have a detrimental effect on your credit score for a while. If you are planning to try to borrow money for something important soon, it could raise your interest rate. Be cautious.
Wow, thats amazing that you know where we wake up everyday....and trust me it ain't comfy. Thanks for assuming everyone else's life is as cushy as yours.
Smoothies are also a great way to lose weight.
We we do here at my home is,
1 scoop of high quality protein powder (choc or vanilla), a bannana (must have)a squirt of Flax seed oil, a large scoop of homemade yogurt, a few strawberries, blueberries, mango or nothing, ice and then enhanced soy milk.
I don't even think about food until 2:00.
I like the easy blender clean up idea. I've thought about contacing my blender company and asking if I could purchase an additional blender glass.
Beignet
I am just curious about your use of the printable coupons, I have been told at my local Safeways that they refuse to accept them. Has anyone else run into this problem?
Barbara
This is a very timely post, for me! I'm off to Mexico next week to spend some time relaxing with family in a seaside village. Since I'm in debt-reduction mode, I'm a little nervous about how to continue to save money when I'm traveling. I'm a little afraid that being out of the country on my first 'real' vacation in years will inspire me to spend money (and put $$ back on the credit cards) that I normally wouldn't spend.
Great tips, and I'll definitely be considering these as I sip local beer on the beach next week!
First, because as others have said, this doesnt account for the many regressive taxes that we fund our government with. Gas tax, social security, etc. It also does not take into account the lower rate paid on investment income that makes up a majority of the super rich's income in this country. Also, using 10 people and saying one would pay $59 for $100 worth of beer is complete bullshit and way too simplistic, as no one in any income group pays anywhere NEAR 59% in income taxes- effective income tax rate, even for the wealthiest is closer to 25%. Effective, not marginal tax rates are what matters. Also, this example assumes government services are evenly divisible, that is just as all ten each get one beer, each benefit the same amount, then we all benefit the same amount from government. As we know, this is completely untrue, as the wealthy have more assets and propery to be protected and insured by the government. Our indivisible system of infrastructure and defense has benefited them more than others, etc. They have more of the very money that the government employs people to print and runs a central bank to supply. We do not all get the same results from the system like we do from drinking one beer. Also, the idea that the rich will move out of the country if we raise taxes on them is complete and utter bullshit.We have JOBS not BUSINESSES leaving the country through outsourcing- GM is still based here, so is HP and other outsourcers- they outsource to gain competitive advantage on LABOR costs, not taxes! No one moved out due to taxes when they were much higher in the 1950s, or recently when they were slightly higher in the 1990s. In fact, under Clinton, the economy boomed and the rich did better than they ever have before or since! If guy 10 wants to move out of the country, where the hell is he going to go in the industrialized world?? To western Europe? Forgot, much higher tax rates there, up to 50%, try again- flat tax havens of Costa Rica, Estonia, Albania, Chad, and all those other backward 3rd world countries?? Ok, guy 10, try and make as much money in those countries w/ a completely uneducated, unproductive workforce, no sound infrastructure, no technological development and pathetic levels of capital investment. Less productivity, less profit. If he wants to leave, more power to him, someone else will come in and replace him to satisfy the demand- that is the beauty of our free enteprise system. There is money to be made, so guys 8 and 9 will step up and gladly take it!! As for 10, good luck making less money and living in constant fear of a currency collapse, hyperinflation or a military coup! Ridiculous example.
Question,
I read in an earlier post this would be based on the 2006 return. We had twins that were born in Jan 2007. Does that mean my wife and I would not get $300 each for them???
Another place to look for homeschool resources is VegSource. Try http://www.vegsource.com/homeschool/ They have message boards and places for swapping resources.
Jeff N.: Homeschooling can be good or bad and can have good or bad results, just like anything else. I know many homeschooling families and most of the children turned out great and are doing well in life/careers. Some haven't done so well. Sometimes you get both results from the same family - one kid does great and the other kid doesn't. You're dealing with people here, not robots. The same input in two different people does not guarantee the same output. Personalities, personal ambitions, etc. all play in to it, too. There are plenty of public school (or private school) kids who got all the "socialization" you're talking about yet still work in low-paying, mediocre jobs their entire lives because they're not motivated enough or self-confident enough to look for a better job. I agree their there are some homeschooled kids that don't do well because they didn't have good opportunities for "life experience" when they were homeschooled, there are also plenty of public school kids that end up the same way.
My sister and I were both homeschooled and lack the "socialization" you mention. Instead of being stuck in a classroom with 29 other people the same age as we were, we were out dealing with older people, younger people, middle-aged people, and all the other ages in between. Believe me, we never lacked socialization. However, I'm not always comfortable in group situations. I suppose you could blame it on the homeschooling, but my sister doesn't have an issue being in groups of people. Perhaps it's just personality differences. I'm more of an introvert and she's more of an extrovert. We're both pretty successful in our careers - she's a dog trainer for a VERY well known dog trainer (her previous job was also with a very well known dog training place) and I'm the manager for an entire boarding kennel. We're both still in our early/mid twenties, too, so it's not as if we've finally gotten around this this at 35 years old.
We spent tons of time at the library, did lots of volunteering and job-shadowing, did hands-on projects, got together with other homeschoolers for "classes" and science projects and every other kind of project, researched, went to parks, and had pretty much everything turned into a learning experience.
For home-ec, my mom would have us cook a meal every so often (we had to do that before we "officially took" home-ec, too). She incorporated a recipe book in the curriculum: she bought us each a recipe book and told us we couldn't put a recipe in it until we had made it. I hated the project at the time. Absolutely hated it (I was not an indoors person - I wanted to be outside). Now I'm married and living on my (our) own and I love that cookbook. It's crammed with recipes, magazine cutouts, printed out recipes from online, and recipes scribbled on scrap paper. It was really a good project (even though I loathed it at the time).
Your comment made me laugh, ONLY because 22 is old enough to know plenty! Yes you may have seen home-schooled kids suffering from what I call the "bubble-effect" (i.e. lack of socialization skills...) They are out there, but let me tell you, it's getting better with each generation. It largely depends on the parents' view of the world and socialization.
My daughter is 9 and most of her friends are from the public school system. This is because most of MY friends don't homeschool their children. It's neither right nor wrong.. it just is. We try to teach our daughter that this country is great because of the freedoms it guarantees each family, and that our way is our way, it won't work for everyone.
That being said, social skills are a top priority. We don't overemphasize peer groups (we allow interaction among different age groups, within reason), but my daughter is involved in groups and clubs with others her own age across a broad spectrum of social categories. If we don't agree with something she is exposed to, we use it as a teachable moment, not a tool for condemnation.
One thing to remember, is that many homeschool THESE DAYS, with one main concern -- education. Some geographical areas lack school resources, some parents are really that equipped to teach, and others just want to be sure to get in all the extras that public schools won't be able to get in. We all have our reasons, but most of them are very pure in their intent.
One of the reasons we try to save on textbooks is that the social activities we are involved in can be very costly. Swimming lessons, gymnastics, 4-H, summer camps, field trips, etc are not cheap (regardless of where your kids goes to school.) Since we foot the bill of our own books, we try to save where we can.
22 and thinking... there's absolutely nothing wrong with that. I was well on my way to starting a family at that age -- I'm only 29!
Linsey