NHEG - EDGuide - MAY- JUNE 2020

New Heights Educational Group

EDguide

issue 5-6

may - june 2020

“The first day of spring is one thing, and the

first spring day is another. The difference

between them is sometimes as great as a

month. “

Henry Van Dyke

New Heights Educational Group

Educational Resources to Help Reach Your Goals

Inside Contents

• CLT Practice Test

• Closing the Gap in U.S. Education

• How Micro-School Networks Expand Learning Options

• Introducing Jessica Rodgers

• Education in the News

Photo by Anthony Delanoix on Unsplash

Photo by Roberto Nickson on Unsplash

contents

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thought for the month

magazine editorial team

new heights show on education

clt news

press release

closing the gap in u.s. education

“we” should not regulate homeschooling

the dangers of early school enrollment

how micro-school networks expand learning

new volunteers

volunteers of the month

anniversaries

calendar and birthdays

introducing jessica rodgers

nheg groups

fun corner

kelly bear activities

nheg website membership

president’s volunteer service award

apology & correction

missing children

education in the news

new review

nheg affiliates & partners

www.NewHeightsEducation.org


editorial team

Pamela Clark

Editor in Chief

THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH

May we treasure each other more, spend

more time with families and saying I love

you to those we care about.

Sincerely,

Pamela Clark

Marina Klimi

Tyler Maxey-Billings (filling in for marina klimi)

Production Manager

kristen congedo

Proofreader/Editor

Frani Wyner

Assistant Virtual Development Director of Photography

anthony delanoix

roberto nickson

Toa Heftiba

jessica lewis

annie spratt

edvin johansson

irina iriser

rene deanda

marcus spiske

Photography

4 NHEG Magazine | May - June 2020 May - June 2020 | NHEG Magazine 5


















clt news

18 NHEG Magazine | May - June 2020

1

2

3

The CLT Sample Test

The Classic Learning Test (CLT) is an alternative to the ACT and SAT. The test is traditional in focus, but the test-taking platform is

distinctly modern. With a simple registration process, same-day results, and free score sharing, it has never been easier to apply

to college! Check out a full CLT practice test for free at www.cltexam.com/practice-home

Passage 1 is adapted from Helen Zimmern’s translation of Beyond Good and Evil by Friedrich Nietzsche, first published in 1886.

Passage 2 is adapted from John F. Kennedy’s commencement address at Yale University, given on June 11, 1962.

Passage 1

The Will to Truth, which is to tempt us to many a

hazardous enterprise, what questions has this Will to

Truth not laid before us! What strange, perplexing,

questionable questions! Is it any wonder if we at last

grow distrustful, lose patience, and turn impatiently

away? That this Sphinx teaches us at last to ask

questions ourselves? Who is it really that puts questions

to us here? What really is this “Will to Truth” in us?

Granted that we want the truth: Why not rather

untruth? And uncertainty? Even ignorance?

Having kept a sharp eye on philosophers and having

read between their lines long enough, I now say to

myself that the greater part of conscious thinking must

be counted among the instinctive functions, and it is

so even in the case of philosophical thinking; one has

here to learn anew, as one learned anew about heredity

and “innateness.” The greater part of the conscious

thinking of a philosopher is secretly influenced by his

instincts, and forced into definite channels. And behind

all logic and its seeming sovereignty of movement, there

are valuations, or to speak more plainly, physiological

demands, for the maintenance of a definite mode of life.

The falseness of an opinion is not for us any objection to

it: it is here, perhaps, that our new language sounds most

strangely. The question is, how far an opinion is lifefurthering,

life-preserving, species-preserving, perhaps

species-rearing, and we are fundamentally inclined to

maintain that the falsest opinions (to which the synthetic

judgments a priori belong), are the most indispensable

to us. Without a recognition of logical fictions, without

a comparison of reality with the purely imagined world

of the absolute and immutable, without a constant

counterfeiting of the world by means of numbers, man

could not live—the renunciation of false opinions would

be a renunciation of life, a negation of life. To recognize

untruth as a condition of life; that is certainly to impugn

the traditional ideas of value in a dangerous manner,

and a philosophy which ventures to do so, has thereby

alone placed itself beyond good and evil.

1. The author of Passage 1 argues that distinguishing

between truth and untruth is

A) impractical, given that many untruths have a special

utility in life.

B) imperative, since men are not able to achieve morality

without wisdom.

C) inconceivable, as philosophy has proven the impossibility

of discerning truth.

D) intolerable, as it leads men towards false conceptions of

good and evil.

2. Which lines in Passage 1 best support the answer to

the previous question?

A) Paragraph 1, Sentence 2 (“What strange . . . questions”)

B) Paragraph 2, Sentence 2 (“The greater . . . channels”)

C) Paragraph 2, Sentence 3 (“And behind . . . life”)

D) Paragraph 3, Sentence 2 (“The question . . . us”)

3. As used in Paragraph 2, Sentence 1, of Passage 1,

“counted among” most closely means

A) written down before

B) considered part of

C) regarded as encompassing

D) esteemed greater than

4. Over the course of Passage 2, the author moves from a

A) vague to detailed history of an institution.

B) targeted to generalized argument about a concept.

C) narrow to broad analysis of subjects.

D) general to specific discussion of topics.

5. Which of the following does the author of Passage 2

identify as the enemy of truth?

A) Lies

B) Religion

C) Myth

D) Instinct

1

2

3

4

Passage 2

As every past generation has had to disenthrall itself

from an inheritance of truisms and stereotypes, so

in our time we must move on from the reassuring

repetition of stale phrases to a new, difficult, but

essential confrontation with reality. For the great enemy

of truth is very often not the lie—deliberate, contrived

and dishonest—but the myth: persistent, persuasive,

and unrealistic. Too often we hold fast to the clichés of

our forebears. We subject all facts to a prefabricated

set of interpretations. We enjoy the comfort of opinion

without the discomfort of thought.

Mythology distracts us everywhere, in government as

in business, in politics as in economics, in foreign affairs

as in domestic affairs. But today I want to particularly

consider the myth and reality in our national economy.

In recent months many have come to feel, as I do, that

the dialogue between the parties—between business and

government, between the government and the public—

is clogged by illusion and platitude and fails to reflect the

true realities of contemporary American society.

I speak of these matters here because of the self-evident

truth that a great university is always enlisted against

the spread of illusion and on the side of reality. No one

has said it more clearly than your President Griswold:

“Liberal learning is both a safeguard against false ideas

of freedom and a source of true ones.” Your role as

university men, whatever your calling, will be to increase

each new generation’s grasp of its duties.

There are three great areas of our domestic affairs in

which, today, there is a danger that illusion may prevent

effective action. They are, first, the question of the size

and the shape of government’s responsibilities; second,

the question of public fiscal policy; and third, the matter

of confidence, business confidence, or public confidence,

or simply confidence in America.

Answer Key:

1) A 2)D 3) B 4) D 5) C 6) C 7) B 8) A 9) A 10) C

6. The author of Passage 2 most likely sees universities as

A) institutions that safeguard the nation’s myths and

stories of origin.

B) supporters of liberal learning that questions

established truths.

C) allies in the fight to promote truth in the face of

falsehood and myth.

D) advocates of the national duties and obligations of

each man and woman.

7. Which of the following best describes the different

ways that the authors of Passage 1 and 2 view truth?

A) The author of Passage 1 sees truth as a worthy, immortal

pursuit, while the author of Passage 2 views truth as

only one part of the larger process of myth-making.

B) The author of Passage 1 sees truth as ultimately less

important than the function of opinions, while the

author of Passage 2 views truth as something that must

be defended against encroachments of myths

C) The author of Passage 1 sees truth as something that

can be distorted in pursuit of a particular purpose, while

the author of Passage 2 views truth as something that

informs purpose.

D) The author of Passage 1 sees truth as a safeguard

against the spread of illusion, while the author of

Passage 2 sees truth as part of the instinctive functions

within men and women.

8. How might the author of Passage 1 respond to the

author of Passage 2’s claim that “mythology distracts

us everywhere, in government as in business, in

politics as in economics, in foreign affairs as in

domestic affairs?”

A) Mythology could be beneficial so long as it

contributes to the general welfare and preservation of

the human species.

B) Mythology is just another side of truth, and so should

be championed rather than battled against.

C) Business, politics, and economics are so far removed

from the realm of truth that it is pointless to engage

with them.

D) Distractions from truth are inevitable, but universities

and wise teachers can help center thought on

national policies.

9. logic : instinct ::

A) hatred : fear

B) happiness : joy

C) truth : myth

D) error : philosophy

10. Stereotypes : university ::

A) education : mythology

B) reality : illusion

C) disease : immunologists

D) lawyers : teachers






THANK YOU!

NHEG appreciates the recent First Federal Bank of the

Midwest donation of $100 for our online learning platform.

Pamela Clark, Founder/Director, stated, “We appreciate First

Federal Bank’s continued support and donation. Thank you,

First Federal Bank.”







TM

NHEG PRESS RELEASE

Photo by Marcus Spiske on Unsplash

4/3/2020

The New Heights Educational Group (NHEG)

recognizes Anusha Nemali, who has been promoted to

Lead HR Coordinator. She has been a valued member

of our team since October 2019. Congrats, Anusha!

Founder/Director of NHEG Pamela Clark, stated,

“Anusha Nemali excels at all tasks given to her and has

an excellent work ethic. The care she gives to those

around her is appreciated. She has more than earned

this lead role. Great job, Anusha!”

TM



Closing the Choice Gap In

U.S. Education

By Kerry McDonald

Entrepreneurs will be the ones to successfully create and scale

affordable alternatives to conventional K-12 schooling, closing the

choice gap.


We hear a lot about education achievement gaps, learning gaps

and opportunity gaps between different groups of students,

typically based on socioeconomic status, race or ethnicity. Generally

speaking, the achievement gap describes persistent differences

in academic proficiency. The learning gap reveals discrepancies

between what children are expected to know at a certain stage and

what they actually know. And the opportunity gap explains how

differences in resources, backgrounds, and circumstances can lead

to different outcomes, such as college attainment rates. These are

all important gaps to consider and strive to close, but one glaring

gap is missing: the choice gap.

Photo by Toa Heftiba on Unsplash

The Choice Gap

The reality is that many families have limited choices about where

and how to educate their children. They may not like their assigned

district school, but homeschooling may be undesirable or unrealistic

and private school is often too expensive or unavailable. In some

states, lower-and middle-income families may be able to take

advantage of emerging education choice mechanisms, such as

education savings accounts and tax-credit scholarship programs,

that give them access to funds to use for private education

options, but for many lower- and middle-income families, private

alternatives are out of reach.

The choice gap is particularly clear and concerning when surveys

show that selecting private options is the preferred choice for many

parents. According to EdChoice’s 2019 Schooling in America Survey:

More than four out of five students attend a public district

school, but less than half of public school teachers and less

than a third of current school parents would prefer to send their

children to a district school.




For Shaylanna Hendricks Graham, the lack of private options for

her two children, ages seven and five, is frustrating. I wrote about

Graham in my book Unschooled where she described why she and

her husband made the decision not to enroll their children in school

and to homeschool them instead. “There is a clear disadvantage

for children of color and it can be damaging emotionally and

psychologically for many children of color,” Graham explained.

We wanted to shelter our children from having that experience

in school. We also wanted to make sure that they learned the

true history and origin of our ancestors and the great impact

that our African ancestors had in the history of the world.

She added:

Schools systematically treat our brown children as if they

are less-than and less deserving than the rest and it is our

intention that our brown children have a much more positive life

experience.

I recently checked in with Graham, who lives in Boston. She said

that homeschooling has become challenging, particularly as she tries

to meet her children’s varying needs and give them enough social

and academic enrichment, while also running a small consulting

business. This reflects a wider trend among homeschooling families.

The recent EdChoice survey mentioned above found overall

satisfaction with homeschooling decreased by 10 percent since last

year. After looking into local private school options with price-tags

of over $35,000 a year, the couple realized that was more than they

could pay, especially for two children.

Entrepreneurs Creating New Alternatives

Ideally, says Graham, she would prefer a more affordable, private

hybrid homeschool program or micro-school that would allow her to

continue the homeschooling lifestyle that she and her husband

cherish, while also offering consistent, high-quality opportunities for

her children to play and learn outside the home.

A model that allows for drop-off, offers enriching classes or

opportunities for development in areas, as well as the freedom

for the children to choose how they want to spend their day,

would be a dream come true,

Graham says. “We would be happy to pay $7,000 for a program like

this,” she adds.

Low-cost micro-schools, hybrid homeschooling programs and other

affordable private options would help to close the choice gap.

Tuition that is a fraction of the cost of a traditional private school in

a given location would expand choices for many parents and kids.

Education choice programs and similar public policy efforts can

also help to narrow the choice gap for lower- and middle-income

families, but entrepreneurs are showing that they can accelerate the

process.

Acton Academy has been expanding its low-cost private education

model nationwide, with classes occurring in homes and other

intimate settings to simulate the multi-age, “one-room schoolhouse”

atmosphere. Prenda is a rapidly-growing network of micro-schools

in Arizona that also runs on a hybrid model and costs families about

$5,000 per year.

While policymakers may continue to make headway with education

choice programs, entrepreneurs will be the ones to successfully

create and scale affordable alternatives to conventional K-12

schooling, closing the choice gap and perhaps the others as well.

If you are interested in learning more about a large-scale

entrepreneurial project I am currently working on to fill this choice

gap, please reach out.

• • • • •





“We” Should Not Regulate

Homeschooling

By Kerry McDonald

Modern homeschooling encompasses an array of different educational

philosophies and practices, from school-at-home methods to

unschooling to hybrid homeschooling.

The desire to control other people’s ideas and behaviors,

particularly when they challenge widely-held beliefs and customs,

is one of human nature’s most nefarious tendencies. Socrates was

sentenced to death for stepping out of line; Galileo almost was.

But such extreme examples are outnumbered by the many more

common, pernicious acts of trying to control people by limiting their

individual freedom and autonomy. Sometimes these acts target

individuals who dare to be different, but often they target entire

groups who simply live differently. On both the political right and

left, efforts to control others emerge in different flavors of limiting

freedom—often with “safety” as the rationale. Whether it’s calls for

Muslim registries or homeschool registries, fear of freedom is the

common denominator.

A recent example of this was an NPR story that aired last week with

the headline, “How Should We Regulate Homeschooling?” Short

answer: “We” shouldn’t.

Learning Outside of Schools Is Safe

The episode recycled common claims in favor of increased

government control of homeschooling, citing rare instances in

which a child could be abused or neglected through homeschooling

because of a lack of government oversight. Of course, this concern

ignores the rampant abuse children experience by school teachers

and staff people in government schools across the country.

Photo by Jessica Lewis on Unsplash

Just last month, for example, two public school teachers in

California pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a student, a public

school teacher in New Mexico was convicted of sexually assaulting

a second grader after already being convicted of sexually assaulting

two fourth graders, two public school employees in Virginia were

charged with abusing six, nonverbal special needs students, and

the San Diego Unified School District in California is being sued

because one of its teachers pleaded guilty to repeated sexual abuse

and intimidation of a student.




Child abuse is horrific, regardless of where it takes place; but the

idea that government officials, who can’t prevent widespread abuse

from occurring in public schools, should regulate homeschooling

is misguided. Many parents choose to homeschool because they

believe that learning outside of schooling provides a safer, more

nurturing, and more academically rigorous educational environment

for their children. The top motivator of homeschooling families,

according to the most recent data from the US Department of

Education, is “concern about the environment of other schools.”

Being regulated by the flawed government institution you are

fleeing is statism at its worst.

homeschooling. This diversity of philosophy and practice is a feature

to be celebrated, not a failing to be regulated.

The collective “we” should not exert control over individual freedom

or try to dominate difference. “We” should just leave everyone

alone.

• • • • •

Homeschooling Is Growing

Brian Ray, Ph.D., director of the National Home Education Research

Institute, offered strong counterpoints in the otherwise lopsided

NPR interview, reminding listeners that homeschooling is a form of

private education that should be exempt from government control

and offering favorable data on the wellbeing, achievement, and

outcomes of homeschooled students.

Homeschooling continues to be a popular option for an

increasingly diverse group of families. As its numbers swell to

nearly two million US children, the homeschooling population is

growing demographically, geographically, socioeconomically, and

ideologically heterogeneous. Homeschooling families often reject

the standardized, one-size-fits-all curriculum frameworks and

pedagogy of public schools and instead customize an educational

approach that works best for their child and family.

With its expansion from the margins to the mainstream over

the past several decades, and the abundance of homeschooling

resources and tools now available, modern homeschooling

encompasses an array of different educational philosophies and

practices, from school-at-home methods to unschooling to hybrid



Harvard Study Shows the

Dangers of Early School

Enrollment

By Kerry McDonald

Are ADHD rates rising because we send children to school at younger

ages?


Every parent knows the difference a year makes in the development

and maturity of a young child. A one-year-old is barely walking while

a two-year-old gleefully sprints away from you. A four-year-old is

always moving, always imagining, always asking why, while a fiveyear-old

may start to sit and listen for longer stretches.

Growing Expectations vs. Human Behavior

Children haven’t changed, but our expectations of their behavior

have. In just one generation, children are going to school at younger

and younger ages, and are spending more time in school than ever

before. They are increasingly required to learn academic content at

an early age that may be well above their developmental capability.

In 1998, 31 percent of teachers expected children to learn to read

in kindergarten. In 2010, 80 percent of teachers expected this.

Now, children are expected to read in kindergarten and to become

proficient readers soon after, despite research showing that pushing

early literacy can do more harm than good.

In their report Reading in Kindergarten: Little to Gain and Much to

Lose education professor Nancy Carlsson-Paige and her colleagues

warn about the hazards of early reading instruction. They write,

Photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash

When children have educational experiences that are not

geared to their developmental level or in tune with their learning

needs and cultures, it can cause them great harm, including

feelings of inadequacy, anxiety and confusion.




Hate The Player, Love the Game

Instead of recognizing that schooling is the problem, we blame the

kids. Today, children who are not reading by a contrived endpoint

are regularly labeled with a reading delay and prescribed various

interventions to help them catch up to the pack. In school, all

must be the same. If they are not listening to the teacher, and

are spending too much time daydreaming or squirming in their

seats, young children often earn an attention-deficit/hyperactivity

disorder (ADHD) label and, with striking frequency, are administered

potent psychotropic medications.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports

that approximately 11 percent of children ages four to seventeen

have been diagnosed with ADHD, and that number increased 42

percent from 2003-2004 to 2011-2012, with a majority of those

diagnosed placed on medication. Perhaps more troubling, one-third

of these diagnoses occur in children under age six.

It should be no surprise that as we place young children in artificial

learning environments, separated from their family for long lengths

of time, and expect them to comply with a standardized, test-driven

curriculum, it will be too much for many of them.

New findings by Harvard Medical School researchers confirm that

it’s not the children who are failing, it’s the schools we place them

in too early. These researchers discovered that children who start

school as among the youngest in their grade have a much greater

likelihood of getting an ADHD diagnosis than older children in their

grade. In fact, for the U.S. states studied with a September 1st

enrollment cut-off date, children born in August were 30 percent

more likely to be diagnosed with ADHD than their older peers.

The study’s lead researcher at Harvard, Timothy Layton, concludes:

“Our findings suggest the possibility that large numbers of kids

are being overdiagnosed and overtreated for ADHD because

they happen to be relatively immature compared to their older

classmates in the early years of elementary school.”

This Should Come as No Surprise

Parents don’t need Harvard researchers to tell them that a child

who just turned five is quite different developmentally from a child

who is about to turn six. Instead, parents need to be empowered to

challenge government schooling motives and mandates, and to optout.

As universal government preschool programs gain traction, delaying

schooling or opting out entirely can be increasingly difficult for

parents. Iowa, for example, recently lowered its compulsory

schooling age to four-year-olds enrolled in a government preschool

program.

As New York City expands its universal pre-K program to all of

the city’s three-year-olds, will compulsory schooling laws for

preschoolers follow? On Monday, the New York City Department

of Education issued a white paper detailing a “birth-to-five system

of early care and education,” granting more power to government

officials to direct early childhood learning and development.

As schooling becomes more rigid and consumes more of childhood,

it is causing increasing harm to children. Many of them are unable

to meet unrealistic academic and behavioral expectations at such

a young age, and they are being labeled with and medicated for

delays and disorders that often only exist within a schooled context.

Parents should push back against this alarming trend by holding

onto their kids longer or opting out of forced schooling altogether.

• • • • •



How Micro-School

Networks Expand

Learning Options

By Kerry McDonald

A blend between homeschooling and private schooling, micro-schools

retain the curriculum freedom and schedule flexibility characteristic of

homeschooling.

Photo by Edvin Johansson on Unsplash


Technology has the potential to decentralize K-12 education and

make it more learner-directed, upending a top-down system in favor

of individual autonomy and self-determination. But the technology

can’t do this alone. It requires a learning environment that fosters

creativity and curiosity, using digital platforms and supportive

adults to facilitate exploration and discovery. The entrepreneurial

educators at Prenda, an Arizona-based network of micro-schools,

think they have uncovered the right mix of powerful technology

and warm, nurturing learning spaces that could help to transform

education.

Like many education innovations, Prenda began with a parent who

was looking for something better for his child. A graduate of the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Kelly Smith sold his software

company in 2013 and moved back to his hometown of Mesa,

Arizona, where he began hosting weekly, after school computer

coding clubs for his eight-year-old son and other children at the

local public library. The enthusiasm for these clubs swelled, and

before long Smith was supporting code clubs in libraries across the

country, reaching over 10,000 children in 30 states. “The energy of

these code clubs was astonishing,” Smith recalls.

Smith estimates that he personally worked with about 2,000

children during his time of running the code clubs and he was

increasingly fascinated by his observations about how people learn.

“Learning is a very different thing when a human being wants to

learn something than when a human being doesn’t want to learn

something,” says Smith.

I would watch these kids come to the club complaining about

how much they hated school and how they were bad at math

and then I would see them figure something out in computer

programming that was much harder than anything their teacher

would ask them to do.




He began to see the importance of free will and choice in learning.

Smith continues:

My experience and my kids’ experience in traditional education

is that it was things done to you against your will. You may do

fine, some kids do fine, but you’re not really going to learn unless

you choose to learn. There is this agency, this humanity, at the

bottom of it. It may sound fluffy but it’s a profound insight.

The Micro-School Movement

Smith started to wonder what would happen if school were like his

coding clubs, fostering agency and eagerness for learning, without

coercion. In January 2018, he launched Prenda to create the type

of school he envisioned. Prenda is part of the larger micro-school

movement, an educational shift occurring over the past decade

in which entrepreneurs and parents create intimate, mixed-age

learning spaces, often in homes or local organizations.

A blend between homeschooling and private schooling, microschools

retain the curriculum freedom and schedule flexibility

characteristic of homeschooling, while relying on paid teachers to

facilitate the classroom experience. Micro-schools are typically a

fraction of the cost of a private school and educate no more than

10 to 15 students at a time. Prenda, for example, caps enrollment

at about 10 students per classroom with one teacher, or “guide” as

they call them, and costs $5,000 per child per year.

Prenda began in Smith’s home with seven children spanning

kindergarten to eighth grade, with a focus on self-directed learning

tied to mastery in core academic subjects. As the children’s

excitement for learning grew and more parents became interested

in Prenda, Smith built an integrated software platform to support

and scale his emerging model. The software emphasizes three

broad, daily categories of interaction and introspection: Conquer,

Collaborate and Create. In Conquer mode, the learners set daily

goals for mastery in basic skills, such as reading, writing, math, and

other core subjects.

The students use various online learning programs, including Khan

Academy, No Red Ink and Mystery Science to build competency,

and the Prenda software helps to track their progress against their

personal goals. In Create mode, the learners work on individual

projects, while Collaborate mode emphasizes group projects,

Socratic group discussions, and critical thinking and reasoning

skills in core subject areas. The Prenda software buttresses these

activities by offering resources and a structured framework for the

guides, as well as tools and transparency for students and parents.

Today, Prenda micro-schools operate in 80 locations throughout

Arizona, serving about 550 children. Smith expects to expand

Prenda beyond the state, and double its enrollment, within the

next year. He attributes Prenda’s massive growth over the past

few months to the rising number of parents who are looking for

alternatives to conventional schooling. Smith says:

It turns out that there are a lot of parents who are asking: Is the

traditional approach to education going to do it for my child?

Maybe their kid is doing fine, getting good grades, but in their

eyes parents see the love of learning draining out of them.

Most of these parents are not interested in full-time homeschooling

or some other unconventional path, says Smith, but the Prenda

micro-school model offers the best of schooling and homeschooling.

According to Smith:

I think the real reason we have been able to scale so quickly

is that we are able to offer something that parents have been

looking for.




Prenda San Carlos School

Some of those parents include members of the San Carlos Apache

Indian Reservation in Arizona. Located in a rural section of the state,

the education options available to the children on the reservation

are limited. The reservation’s public schools consistently receive

“F” ratings with the Arizona Department of Education, and student

proficiency scores are strikingly poor, despite annual per-pupil

spending of nearly $17,000 in 2018, or about 70 percent more

funding per pupil than Arizona’s average of $9,900.

Two private, religious schools on the reservation provide alternative

options for some Apache children, but most families have no

choice but to send their children to the failing public schools or

leave the reservation. For Jeremiah Cota, a tribal member, this was

unacceptable. In August he helped to launch two Prenda classrooms

on the San Carlos reservation using borrowed church space. The

school currently serves 22 students, with the goal of expanding to

meet mounting parent demand.

Cota, who grew up on an Arizona Apache reservation, says that

many parents in tribal communities are frustrated by their limited

options. At an information session he hosted at the San Carlos

reservation before opening Prenda, more than 200 parents showed

up, concerned mostly about ongoing bullying and safety issues in

the public schools. They were also frustrated by a lack of academic

rigor and a curriculum that lacked cultural relevancy. “Parents

thought their only other option was to send their children off the

reservation, but we can do this here in our community,” says Cota.

We can have ownership. We can have a world-class education

that’s culturally appropriate, that’s within our own context.

The flexibility of the Prenda model allows for both academic rigor

and a culturally appropriate education. For example, daily individual

and group projects at the Prenda San Carlos School involve

bringing in guest speakers from the reservation or doing handson

exploration of the tribal lands. “We are very connected to our

land, our wildlife, and we want to continue to teach children how to

preserve and protect our land,” says Cota.

Prenda’s accessibility and expansion have been abetted by Arizona’s

robust climate of education choice. For instance, many of the

children participating in the Prenda San Carlos School use funds

available to them through Arizona’s Empowerment Scholarship

Account, an education savings account (ESA) available to many

tribal members, as well as other eligible children throughout the

state. For Prenda students who are not eligible for an ESA in

Arizona, they are able to access Prenda through the state’s Sequoia

Charter School network, which supports hybrid learning models.

“Arizona is leading the way in school choice and charter schools,”

explains Cota. “It’s crucial we keep this going. Without this

flexibility, we couldn’t do this.” He is optimistic about the growth

and replicability of the Prenda model to serve many more

students, including those who have historically had limited access

to education choices. “It gives hope and empowerment to these

communities,” says Cota.

• • • • •

Kerry McDonald is a Senior Education Fellow at FEE and

author of Unschooled: Raising Curious, Well-Educated Children

Outside the Conventional Classroom (Chicago Review Press,

2019). She is also an adjunct scholar at The Cato Institute and

a regular Forbes contributor. Kerry has a B.A. in economics

from Bowdoin College and an M.Ed. in education policy from

Harvard University. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts with

her husband and four children. You can sign up for her weekly

newsletter on parenting and education here.




New Volunteers

Volunteers of the Month

Chinmay Arvind - 4/3/2020

Science and Math (Calculus) Tutor

Ming Wei Chong - 4/14/20

Adult Advisory Group

Veronica Felipe - 4/2/2020

Reading Tutor

Morris Frimpong - 3/30/2020

Photographer and Graphic Design

Aayush Gauba - 3/3/20

Document Builder/Editor

Ruzzel Solayao - 4/2/2020

Video Editor

Jin Young Yoo - 4/3/2020

Korean and Math Tutor

Tanner Yurchuck - 4/3/2020

Cartoonist and Comic Colorist

Michael Anderson

Enjoli Baker

Alain Philippe Binyet Bi Mbog

Katie Buchhop

Khrista-Cheryl Cendana

Kristen Congedo

Frank Decapio

Morris Frimpong

Aayush Gauba

Erika Hanson

Padmapriya (Priya) Kedharnath

Marina Klimi

Janene Kling

Tyler Maxey-Billings

Nayana Mogre

Anusha Nemali

Lakshmi Padmanabhan

Bruno Moses Patrick

Jessica Rodgers

LaSaundra Scott

Leah Sedy

Daniela Silva

Jakki Taylor

Buffie Williams

Sheila Wright

Jin Young Yoo

Ming Wei Chong

Chinmay Arvind

Leo Lin

Ruzzel Solayao

Rachel Jean Fay

Jane Wen




Anniversaries

MAY

Leah Sedy May 4 (2 Years)

Sapna Shukla May 16

Katie Gerken Buchhop May 28 (5 Years)

Jyoti Dave May 29

Jane Wen May 29

JUNE

New Heights Educational Group - 14 years old!!

Founding Member Pamela Clark - 14 Years

Founding Member Margaret Spangler - 14 years

Happy Anniversary to all those that have

reached a milestone this year!

Amita Gomez - June 5

Tyler Maxey-Billings - June 18 (2 years)

Kristen Congedo - June 21 (2 years)

Enjoli Baker - June 23 (4 years)


May 7

Photo by Irina Iriser on Unsplash

May

June

Happy Birthday!

Kathryne Spangler

Savleen Grewal

Peter Gordon

Jyoti Dave

Laksmi Padmanabhan

Te’Asha Walton

Anusha Nemali

Georgia Woodbine

May 3

May 7

May 13

May 24

May 28

May 29

May 30

May 30

Happy Birthday!

Willow Wood

Evan Duncan

Rachel Fay

Geetha Lingasamy

Jason Newcomb

Tammy Barham

Jin Young Yoo

June 3

June 12

June 13

June 18

June 20

June 20

June 24







TM


build a mexican noise maker

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo with this simple percussion instrument!

What You Need:

• 2 Paper Plates

• Acrylic Paint

• Paint Brush

• Construction Paper

• Safety Scissors

• Tissue Paper

• Markers and/or Glitter Glue

• Glue

• Dried Beans or Rice

Instructions:

1. Apply a coat of paint to the bottom sides of each paper plate.

2. Cut square sheets of construction paper the same width as the plates.

3. Overlap the construction paper to create an 8-pointed star and glue them

together.

4. Cut the tissue paper into strips 1 inch wide and 4 inches long.

5. Glue the strips of tissue paper around the edges of the paper star.

Birds usually take a few days to locate new food.

6. Apply glue to the inner rim of one plate and attach it to the paper star.

7. Fill the second plate with some beans or rice.

8. Apply glue to the inner rim of the second plate and stick the unattached side of the

star to the plate.

9. Allow to dry completely, and have fun!

www.booksbythebushel.com


Free Literacy Activities

Download as many as you like!

Join our e-newsletter to receive more FREE

classroom activity ideas!

www.booksbythebushel.com/free-literacy-activities

make homemade zip-lock lemonade

Enjoy the taste of summer while conducting a basic science experiment!

What you need:

• Zip-Lock Bags

• Lemons

• Water

• Sugar

• Ice (optional)

• Straws

FREE activities and worksheets!

www.booksbythebushel.com/free-literacy-activities

Monthly Theme Calendars

Community Helpers

Curious George Activities

Farm Activities

Reading Activities

Social Emotional activities

Kindergarten Readiness

Misc. Activities

Nature Activities

Social Emotional Activities

seasonal activities

weather activites

Instructions:

1. Cut a lemon into quarters and remove any seeds.

2. Place one quarter into a zip-lock bag.

3. Add 1/2 cup of water.

4. Add approximately 1 teaspoon of sugar.

5. Securely close the bag.

6. Mix the contents of the bag for about 30 seconds, squeezing the lemons gently.

7. Open a small section of the bag and insert a straw. If desired. add a few ice cubes.

8. Enjoy!

www.booksbythebushel.com

May - June 2020 | NHEG Magazine 61



Kelly Bear Personal Safety

By Leah Davies, M.Ed.

Encouraging Thoughts

By Leah Davies, M.Ed.

Encouragement means to stimulate initiative and positive actions. Teachers, counselors, and

parents are asked to encourage children to do their best by acknowledging their efforts and

strengths. However, when children do not feel good about themselves or their situation, they

need to be reminded of ways they can encourage themselves and each other.

Ask your students for examples of thoughts that help them feel better when they are unhappy.

Explain that helpful thoughts are called positive “self-talk” and that adults often use this as a way

to cope with their problems. List the children’s ideas on the board.

Some examples are:

I am a good person no matter what anyone does or says.

It is okay to make mistakes because everyone does.

I do not give up; I keep trying.

I think about what is good in my life.

Everyone feels good and bad, now and then.

I can do it!

Money cannot buy happiness.

How I act is more important than how I look.

I am lovable.

When I smile, I feel better.

I can do many things well.

I cannot control what grown-ups do.

I am unique, one of a kind.

When I feel sad, I think of things I like about myself.

Each new day brings a chance to do better.

I think about my choices and then choose what is best for me.

I will change what I can and accept what I cannot change.

I treat others the way I want to be treated.

I cannot change my family; I can only change myself.

What I learn today will help me in the future.

After making an extensive list, have the children choose a sentence that is meaningful to them.

Ask the students to make a picture or poster featuring their saying complete with illustrations.

Have them prominently sign their creation. Then divide into small groups or pairs and have the

children discuss their work. Caution the students to be respectful of each other’s ideas. Display

the results in the classroom or in the hall to challenge ALL children to use positive “self-talk” that

will encourage them to do their best.

Name ______________________________________________________________________

Circle your answer.

1. A man you do not know wants to give you $5.00. Will you take the money?

Yes

2. A person dressed up like a clown offers to give you a ride home. Will you go?

Yes

3. If you are alone with your friend’s dad and he wants to kiss you, will you let him?

Yes

4. If a lady you do not know asks you to help her find a lost puppy, will you go with her?

Yes

5. A teenager you don’t know asks you to come in his or her house to play games. Will you go?

Yes

PRINT THE PAGE. THEN DO THE ACTIVITIES.

Since Kelly Bear wants you to be safe, he says:

“When in doubt about what to do, NEVER go with or take things from a bigger person you do not

know. Instead say, ‘I’ll have to ask first,’ and then ask your parent.”

“If someone bothers you by touching the areas where your bathing suit covers, you need to say,

‘NO! LEAVE ME ALONE!’ Then get away and tell someone.”

Yes_______

No

No

No

No

No

Has anyone ever bothered you that way?

No_______

If you answered “yes,” it was NOT YOUR FAULT! The bigger person is to blame, so tell an adult you

trust.




nheg website membership

gain access to the full services of the nheg

website with these membership levels

learn more

LEVEL

Standard NHEG Member

PRICE

Free

here!

Student

$10 for 6 months

TM

Teacher

$35 for 6 monhs




Do you want an uplifting and inspirational

story for the holiday?

Check out Unpredictable: The walk in and

out of darkness

https://unpredictablethewalk.weebly.com/




u.s. president’s volunteer

service award

Apology & Correction

The President’s Volunteer Service Award recognizes and celebrates Americans who make a

positive impact to not only their community but the country as a whole.

Photo by René DeAnda on Unsplash

The President’s Volunteer Service Award is the premier volunteer awards program, encouraging

United States citizens or lawfully admitted permanent residents of the United States

through presidential recognition to live a life of service.

New Heights Educational Group (NHEG) is an official certifying organization for The President’s

Volunteer Service Award. We encourage all volunteers to create an account and

begin tracking their service hours.

Please contact us at info@newheightseducation.org or by phone at 419.786.0247 for a verification

form, and log your hours by creating a profile on the President’s Volunteer Service

Award website using the Record of Service Key: TTG-43498 , to identify New Heights Educational

Group as your institution.

“From the world of imagination” was accidently shared

in the March/April edition of the magazine as an article

written by Khrista-Cheryl Cendana. This is incorrect. The

author of “From the world of imagination” is Daniela

Silva dos Santos..

The article can be retrieved here:

https://www.NewHeightsEducation.org/educationalarticles/from-the-world-of-imagination-a-day-in-thepark-with-preschool-students/

Your recognition inspires others to take positive action to change the world!

Learn more at https://www.presidentialserviceawards.org/




missing children

help bring me home

anyone with information should contact:

Franklin county sheriff’s office (Ohio) 1-614-525-3333

don’t hesitate!



National Education News

HSLDA Releases ‘Quick Start’ Guide

to Homeschool in Light of COVID-19

globenewswire

PURCELLVILLE, Va.— The Home School Legal Defense Association is a

nonprofit organization, and for over 37 years has led the homeschooling

movement to make homeschooling possible and to protect the rights of

Americans to homeschool in all 50 states and territories. The emergence of

COVID-19 in Washington State is already closing schools, and more cases of

the virus are continuing to be identified in the United States.

“We are deeply saddened by the recent news of the deaths from COVID-19,”

said HSLDA president Mike Smith.

As school officials and parents look for the best way to protect children’s

health, many learning options are readily available. Education is not

necessarily limited to traditional classrooms—and homeschooling can be a

great alternative.

“For those Americans needing to transition to educating their children at

home, we created a Quick Start guide to homeschooling that will help you get

started right away,” said Mike Smith.

Homeschooling allows learning to happen in a variety of settings and ways.

Many kids thrive when their curriculum is customized to their strengths and

needs—and when they are equipped to explore their passions and talents, at

their own pace.

The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) released a report in

October 2019 that says home education has become an increasingly popular

choice in America, with more families homeschooling than ever before.

Between 1999 and 2016, the number of homeschool families nearly doubled,

from 850,000 students to 1.7 million.


“Homeschooling allows parents to mentor their children to become caring,

responsible adults who give back to their community and their world,”

Smith said. “Kids who have experienced bullying or other types of trauma

often thrive when they are given the freedom to learn in a safe, loving

environment.”

HSLDA’s attorneys help parents, school officials, and legislators understand

sometimes complex state homeschooling laws. Our educational consultants

customize guidance for parents on questions from special needs to creating

high school transcripts for college. HSLDA Online Academy offers live,

interactive subject courses for grades 7–12 from math to writing and

even coding. For homeschoolers in need, HSLDA offers grants to purchase

curriculum and other educational materials.

HSLDA makes homeschooling possible by protecting homeschooling families

and equipping them to provide the best educational experience for their

children. We have been trusted since 1983 to care for homeschooling families

as we safeguard their freedom and secure the future of home education.

http://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2020/03/03/1994542/0/en/HSLDA-Releases-

Quick-Start-Guide-to-Homeschool-in-Light-of-COVID-19.html

National Education News

COVID-19 Leaves Kids in Education

home school legal defense association

With most schools across the nation closed in order to help keep students

and staff safe from the novel coronavirus, parents are already facing difficult

decisions about their children’s education. Now we’re hearing that officials in

some areas are trying to forbid the one choice that may do families the most

good: transitioning to full-time homeschooling.

In Florida, Amber had considered homeschooling her kids beginning in the fall

but decided to accelerate those plans when schools began to shift to online

instruction in mid-March due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

She knew that her children would not do well with online learning. So Amber

notified the Palm Beach County School District that she was establishing a




home education program and planned to start teaching her two children using

more traditional textbooks and curriculum materials.

When she didn’t hear anything from her local school officials, Amber sent a

follow-up email to the home education contact a week later, thanking several

teachers and asking for confirmation that her home education notice was

received. Amber understood that everyone was probably still scrambling

to adjust to the coronavirus crisis, so she was pleasantly surprised to get a

response a short time later.

Unfortunately, the message was really just the first in a series of bureaucratic

roadblocks.

At-home Enrichment

The home education contact informed Amber that teachers would begin

rolling out programs for all public school students soon, but that this delay

did not prevent parents “from providing enrichment for your children.” Amber

was encouraged to “give [the] school the opportunity to provide education for

[her] family.”

After Amber replied that she was really going to be homeschooling her

children and that she had no intention of doing virtual school, the school

official confirmed that the notice of intent had been received. The official

added that while the district staff couldn’t process Amber’s home education

notification until her children were withdrawn from their previous school,

“[we] are working as quickly as possible to assist students and families.”

However, Amber was appalled by the email she received the next morning.

The home education contact stated that “according to upper leadership,

all students will stay with current Palm Beach County Schools until further

notice, according to the Enrollment and Withdrawal Procedures for the Virtual

Continuity Support Plan.”

“My jaw dropped,” Amber said. “I realized they were trying to tell me that my

children would not be withdrawn, and that I couldn’t homeschool.”

Keeping Kids Enrolled

Amber’s experience is not isolated. Willamette Connections Academy, an

online public school in Oregon, recently posted a message on its website

declaring “the Oregon Department of Education has advised that no students

are able to withdraw or enroll in any schools during the school closure.”

The message cited a recent executive order by Governor Kate Brown, an

order which we believe the Willamette Connections Academy misinterpreted.

What the governor actually did was to freeze the enrollment status of all

public schools for funding purposes. The order does not legally prevent

parents from pulling their children out of a public school and homeschooling

them.

Regardless, HSLDA will continue to support the legal right of parents to

withdraw their children from public school in order to begin homeschooling.

Though this right is precious at all times, it is especially important during

crises that parents remain empowered to do what is best for their kids.

That’s why we were so prompt in helping Amber.

She realized the message from public school officials wasn’t right, so she

immediately enlisted the help of a local homeschool support group. Having

already joined HSLDA, she also reached out to us.

Sending a Message

As soon as I got the information from Amber, I contacted Palm Beach County.

I requested that public school officials send us their Virtual Continuity

Support Plan and their justification for denying a the fundamental right of

parents to educate their children. I made it clear that there was no legal

authority for the district to make such a declaration.

Florida Parent Educators Association (FPEA) and Cheryl with Palm Beach

County (PBC) Homeschoolers, Inc. also sent information to Palm Beach

County, pointing out that public school officials could not prevent parents

from withdrawing their children and homeschooling them.

After learning from an online homeschool forum that several other parents

had encountered this problem, Cheryl told me: “I strongly believe that parents

should have the right to choose something other than the public school’s

program, especially when that program isn’t working well for their children.




Schools shouldn’t be able to hold students hostage.”

After FPEA, PBC Homeschoolers, and Home School Legal Defense

Association all contacted Palm Beach County Public Schools, Amber received

yet another email from the home education contact, stating that “upper

leadership” had been contacted again for further clarification on when

her children would be removed from the attendance roster. Several other

families in Palm Beach County, who had also made the decision to begin

homeschooling because of the schools shutting down, received similar emails.

I expect Palm Beach County to withdraw all these home education students

as promptly as possible in the current crisis—certainly no later than the date

schools return from their extended closure due to COVID-19.

We will continue to work with state and local leaders to ensure that no public

school officials attempt to prevent anyone from homeschooling, especially in

times of crisis.

thomas j. schmidt, esq.

https://hslda.org/post/covid-19-leaves-kids-in-education-limbo

New Review

rating: 5 stars

LaSaundra - Volunteer 03/07/2020

I enjoyed serving the NHEG as their HR Coordinator. The team was

friendly and highly patient during my learning curve. It was also

great to meet other potential volunteers during the onboarding

process. I’d definitely recommend NHEG to any volunteer looking to

gain experience all while making a difference. :)



NHEG couldn’t provide the support and educational needs of the children and adults without the support of our many affiliates and partners across the country. We

would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge and thank everyone for their support. NHEG is reliant on corporate support in many ways. Strategic partners provide

cash, goods in kind and pro-bono contributions both for service provision and in support of fundraising efforts. Below you can see all the businesses and organizations

that have supported NHEG and our mission to provide educational support to adults and children in Ohio.




New Heights Educational Group, Inc.

14735 Power Dam Road, Defiance, Ohio 43512

+1.419.786.0247

NewHeightsEducation@yahoo.com


NHEG - EDGuide - MAY- JUNE 2020

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