Troy, New York

Having not had a chance to play with A ALL day on Sunday Little Prince was ecstatic to learn that the same day we were heading to Troy, A and M were also going to be running an errand there and we would be able to tag along with them. Where logistics are concerned I felt much more comfortable riding the road to Troy with A and M. There is safety in numbers when cycling, and when accompanied by an experienced local. M also provided us with a quick history and guide to the local scene in Troy.  The town is an old factory town from the days of the American Industrial Revolution and it is interesting to see that it is still broken up along similar wealth and status lines.

X’s to O’s

Troy is also home to an AMAZING vegan bakery called X’s  to O’s bakery where not only are sweet treats available (and with gluten-free options) but lunch items are too!  And I can not begin to tell you how truly amazing their food is.  But, I think my favorite exchange with one of the staff members came when I asked for my usual order (Little Prince knows this by heart now) which is a loose leaf chai tea with steamed almond milk.  In some shops this is a tea au lait.  In other places its something else.  And the reason I order this is because chai lattes are often pre-mixed with honey as a sweetener or sugar.  And, as a vegan, both are not acceptable.  But as a nutritionist and tea-lover these are also big no-nos.  Chai tea should bite, not be sour, but have a slight kick to it.  And the sugar added is often too much for me.

What made me laugh was that in the confusion of making the drink a supervisor came over to help and realized what I had ordered was a chai latte.  When I told her “yes, but I don’t want any sweetener.”  She looked at me with a horrified face, and exclaimed that other places put sweetener in a chai latte?!

Therefore, X’s to O’s, you will always have a soft spot in heart because not only did you carry the most amazing baked goods, savory and healthy foods, provided a whole smorgasbord of games for Little Prince but you clearly understand us crazy folks who feel there is an overabundance of sugar in our American diet!

Library

While more than 80% of our day occured at the bakery, Little Prince and I did also take time to check out Troy’s library (again, no pictures, sorry).  I was able to finish my thesis work and send it off to my adviser, now I just sit back and wait for comments! I also did a little work on the blog while Little Prince wrote in his log book and completed his school work for the day.  Once completed, he inquired of the librarian if he could also use a computer, turns out in Troy they require a child be 8 years old, so 7 and 3/4 just doesn’t cut it!

We didn’t stay much longer before heading off back to the bakery to grab dinner before they closed and then ate at waterfront park before meeting our host for the evening J, watching an episode of My Little Pony, reading a chapter from Dorothy and the Wizard, and falling fast asleep.  And it was a good thing to, because the next day we headed out on the Erie Canal!

Performances, languages, and homeschooling

One of my main reasons for choosing to homeschool is to give Little Prince the opportunity to experience the beauty of language, and the expansion of world view that comes from learning a language other that into which you were born.  And so, every Sunday morning this past year we have been rising with the sun to head out to Newton and attend Chinese classes with the Huaxin Chinese School, an extension of the Greater Boston Chinese Cultural Association.

LP is also a natural-born performer, so while school’s often have many showcases for kids to perform for their parents and prove that they really are learning something.  I see LP learning every day and there are not many outlets for this type of expression for him.  Which is why I was really looking forward to the Speech “contest” (for LP it was more recital) in early April.  And I know LP looked forward to it as well and as you can see, he had a LOT of fun with it:

LP’s performance at Chinese School 4/5/14

While he clearly enjoys performing he is very anti- “on-demand” as far as performing.  And be honest former (or current) language learners: how often do you have some witty comeback for the stranger/friend/family member who discovers you are learning/speak x language and wants you to say something in that language?  As LP’s homeschool coordinator I often feel on trial when people do this to him (mostly in language and math), and that should he fail to answer appropriately is a direct reflection on my supposed “inability” to properly educate my son.  However, my belief is that education, especially early education, should be child-centered.  That rather than worry so much about ensuring our 5-12 year old children are “ready” for college we – adults – should worry more about guiding them in their struggle to understand the world in which they exist.  And there are many, many, MANY different strategies to learning this.  Whether through structured lesson plans, or interest-led discussions that randomly crop up through out the day.  Children are constantly learning and that learning should be encouraged and painless.  Which is what I love about the Huaxin Chinese School’s philosophy: they are there for the child and to make learning fun.  They want their school to be a place that kids WANT to come to (especially early on a Sunday morning) and they know that there may be times a kid doesn’t want to get up, or just doesn’t want to do the homework and that is OK.

LP and I truly enjoyed our first year with Huaxin Chinese School, and if you are in the Boston area and interested in learning Chinese, I can not recommend this school highly enough.  They offered a great resource as far as learning and an outlet for LP to do what he does best: perform!  We are both sad to have had to cut our year short but will certainly be back to continue our lessons in the fall and are trying to spend some time each day speaking to one another and reviewing what we already now.  Did I mention that they offer concurrent adult classes?  No?  Well, they do.  And I think that is stupendous!