This blog is about Logan’s sixth grade year: learning about his country, about skateboarding, and about putting dreams into action. Please, buy our T-shirts and spread the word! This CBS interview tells the whole story. Thanks for visiting our site!
Logan and I walked around the French quarter today and were impressed by the unique architecture, historic atmosphere, and by the number of Saints jerseys we saw. There were a couple of Dallas Cowboy T-shirts, as well, but the “Who Dat” nation was on large display. This afternoon we lunched at the Parkway Bakery & Tavern, where we learned that Leidenheimer bread is a vital ingredient for an authentic Po Boy. Tonight, we watch the Saints vs. Cowboys game a few miles from the superdome for a true New Orleans experience!
We arrived last night and got an interesting lesson in recent American history. We’re staying in a house that had standing water a foot above floor level. Other homes were not so lucky. This interactive city map shows the sequence of events four years ago during hurricane Katrina.
After a week of rainy weather, all the local kids were crowding the gate, waiting for the skate park to open at three o’clock! There were still a lot of puddles, but that didn’t stop them.
Discussing this topic with folks lately, I realize that my thinking has shifted. My wife and both attended public school, and I know a lot of great teachers in the system (including all of Logan’s, last year), but I’m beginning to doubt the system itself. I’m realizing that “standardized” education doesn’t work for every kid, by definition. Yet, standards are what we reference when evaluating kids, teachers, principals, and schools.
Beyond the standard courses, we customize the school day for gifted students and special needs students, but only to a point. There are limitations to how much tailoring can be done to any uniform. For many students – the kids in the middle part of the bell curve - the system gives them what they need. But there are obviously kids who would benefit from an even more individualized program than is possible within the parameters of even a reasonably flexible system. I’m coming to grips with that.
There are public schools, private schools, charter schools, magnet schools, online schools (242 listed on this site), and homeschooling. I have no idea what shape Logan’s education will take next year. I just want to be sure it’s right for him.
Many thanks to Heather Biance for covering our story during our stay here! A link to the video clip will be posted here later today!
Logan is currently enrolled in an online Language Arts course (through VLACS), and his current topic is the monomyth. It was easy for him to think of modern examples, like Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and then it dawned on me: 50skatekid is a monomyth, too.
>>from the lesson materials:
You might not find all three stages in each story you read. However, in many stories, the character experiences the following:
- Separation – The hero leaves the everyday world, a place of security and ease.
- Initiation – The hero encounters experiences that test his or her ability and strength. As a result, the hero is often strengthened and matured.
- Return – The hero returns to the place of security and ease. He or she is often quite changed after experiencing the tests in stage two. The hero also bears a gift for his or her community.
We stopped at the in Gainesville Skatepark on our way from Orlando to Tallahassee on Sunday. We met some really great folks, who were throwing a birthday party and let Logan join right in! Then we arrived in Tallahassee to a delicious, homecooked meal and more new friends (thanks to couchsurfing.org). It was humbling to be treated with such kindness by total strangers. It may be a gross oversimplification, but there are really only two kinds of people in the world: selfish and unselfish. We’ve been very lucky to meet so many generous people on this trip.
