As we approach Independence Day, my mind turns to the idea of freedom. Freedom is a difficult word to define. Ask ten people what freedom is, and you will get at least ten different answers. There are at least that many definitions in the dictionary. The first five usages given in The American Heritage Dictionary […]
Declaring Independence
As the Fourth of July nears each year, I read the Declaration of Independence to remind me how life under a tyrant might be. This reading helps me appreciate how precious our Constitution and Bill of Rights are to my life. Thomas Jefferson, the author of the Declaration of Independence, thought and wrote extensively on […]
Three Levels Of Obedience
Sometimes when I am working on the computer I feel like a three-year-old. At least, I think I feel like a three-year-old. I try to do some function that I haven’t done in a while, and I look at the computer screen wondering how I did it. When I am utterly confused, I’ll phone one […]
Freedom Within Limits Of Responsibility
Freedom and responsibility are linked together. We are free to act when we have the right and also take responsibility. For example, in our society, we have the right to drive a car. We exercise this privilege to drive by taking the responsibility to learn how to drive, get a license, have a car and […]
Help Me Help Myself
Children from about age three are asking us to help them learn independence. Children want to learn how to do things on their own without adult supervision or permission. Even though at times we feel we have to help children constantly, in reality, children are asking us to help them help themselves. Much of what […]
Breaking Away
“The finest inheritance you can give a child is to allow it to make its own way, completely on its own two feet.” Isadora Duncan “Don’t kiss me or hug me in public, Mom,” your child says as he or she wipes off your kiss. Affection that was freely given and accepted becomes an embarrassment […]
Liberty, Freedom and Responsibility
“Freedom is not the last word. Freedom is only part of the story and half of the truth. Freedom is but the negative aspect of the whole phenomenon whose positive aspect is responsibleness. In fact, freedom is in danger of degenerating into mere arbitrariness unless it is lived in terms of responsibleness. That is why […]
Teaching the Three R’s
Reading. Writing. Arithmetic. These are the basic academic skills. There are also three R’s that are important to our leadership abilities–Respect, Responsibility and Resourcefulness. I would like to give credit to the person who initiated this phrase, but when I did a search for these 3 R’s on the educational research data base (ERIC), I […]