This week it got hot. Really, really hot. My kids wanted to play in the small pool we have but it kept losing water. We finally got all of the holes patched today, three altogether, but Friday was hot and water was needed. We don't have a sprinkler anymore; the old one broke and we just never replaced it. So, my kids came up with a plan. As you can see from the pictures below their imaginations are not only in tact but thriving. This solution to the lack of water was accomplished completely on their own, they tried a few things first before hitting the right combination to really have some fun but they were determined. They solved the issue of a constant and scattered spray, positioning it just right for maximum fun and the unexpected (for them at least) need to keep the tape as dry as possible so it would remain sticky. I don't know what I enjoyed more: their creativity, their perseverance, their teamwork or their giggles (well, okay giggles win every time but the others were running neck and neck). :-)






I think the most amazing thing about all of this is that somehow the state considers this activity less important than learning the multiplication tables or how to build a circuit. Don't get me wrong, math and science ARE important, just not MORE important than creativity. I can think of no other ability that is more needed in every aspect of life than the ability to be a creative problem solver. And yet this is overlooked in most school curriculums as well as the requirements for what constitutes important and required learning for homeschoolers. It simply doesn't fit into a "core" subject- which is how, according to state guidelines, the majority of our "school" time is supposed to be spent.

I looked up core: the basic or innermost part, the essence. The skills learned on a hot afternoon by working together toward a common goal are something that can just simply not be taught- it can only be learned through experience and reinforced by the pleasure gained from the fruits of those efforts. What could be more basic or essential than that?