Kiddeaux Academy

COLLEGE ANNOUNCEMENT 📣 My ”final girl” is headed to Southern New Hampshire University this month and I could not be more proud of her👏🏾 And yes, she is attending the same school I currently attend for my Bachelor’s. Our journeys have always been unique… the adventure continues!
🎁 https://gl.me/u/HhsVSSDMjMPw

Good resources for any homeschool💎

Civilized.

Exactly!!

We are proud to support & promote this upcoming youth event in Dallas… it’s a holistic camp experience like none other… The 1st Annual ZHURIC PHELPS Summer Tip-off 🏀 Skills Camp at Hillcrest HS, July 1-2, for kids ages 5-17. Visit www.thuf.org today for more info and to register your Kiddeaux for a super fun & enriching weekend! You can also support this event with sponsorship & in-kind donations.

Our hearts break for all the families of these babies who now must plan their burials and live with this immeasurable grief beyond forever. So many things need to change in this country. Sooner than later. Comfort & strength to our humanity & democracy. For the 16 dead:
💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔💔

14 students, one teacher killed in Texas elementary school shooting An 18-year-old suspect was fatally wounded by responding law enforcers, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said.

💯🎯

How could you be FOR KIDS yet in favor of tests that crush their spirit? Why do we keep allowing our scholars to experience this, year-in and year-out? We differentiate learning, scaffold, offer choice, and let many students work at their own pace, yet our testing is standardized. How does this make sense? There has to be a better way! There must be another method that does more than line the pockets of non-educator test-makers and contribute to the PreK-to-Prison Pipeline. Kids don’t deserve this and their educators don’t either.

🚨NATIONWIDE 🚨We March this Saturday ✊🏾

This!! 🎯💯✊🏾👏🏾

Homeschooling on the rise as parents want more say on what their kids are learning WASHINGTON (TND) — Fifty percent of Americans feel parents don’t have enough say in the classroom, according to a new AP-NORC poll. As America remains divided over controversial curricula pertaining to race and s*xuality, about a quarter of Americans feel that teachers focus too much on....

But guess where these very necessary books are NOT BANNED?? Yup. At this homeschool. If you’re still in public schools, good luck. It’s getting really frightening out there😳📚🚫🔥✊🏾

We teach in truth at Kiddeaux Academy. This is one of many. ✊🏾💯

This week marks the 211th anniversary of The German Coast Rebellion. On January 8, 1811, enslaved men and women from St. Charles, St. John the Baptist, and St. James parishes rose up and walked downriver toward New Orleans. They were armed with few rifles, sabers, machetes, fire-hardened oak sticks, or simply with their tools. After killing two of their enslavers and causing considerable damage to the plantations where they were forced to labor, they participants were stopped only two days later after a battle against the local militia backed by Federal troops. The insurrection started on the property of Manuel Andry, then the head of the local militia of St. John parish. The 1811 revolt had several leaders from various origins, some of them born in Africa. The main leader was Charles Deslondes, a Mulatto born on the plantation of Widow Jean-Baptiste Deslondes.

The trial of the participants took place from January 13 to January 15. The judgments were rendered without appeal and death sentences were pronounced. The sentenced called for each of the captured to "immediately be delivered to be shot to death, each before the habitation to which he belonged; that the death penalty will be applied to them without torture but the heads of the executed will be cut and planted on poles at the place where each of the convicted was enslaved. " In New Orleans, the prisoners were held in jail on the lower level of the Cabildo and the trials were held on the second floor. Many death sentences were pronounced and the heads of the victims were severed and exposed on the lower gates of the city. This was the fate of those enslaved people whose only fault was their quest for freedom. Their goal was to capture New Orleans and free all the slaves. They knew they could not win and only death would be at the end of the journey. Although they did enjoy nothing but few precious hour of freedom, their action is comparable in its principle to that of the founding fathers who signed the Declaration of Independence knowing that they would be hanged if they lost the War of Independence. Visit the Whitney Plantation to learn more about the 1811 German Coast Uprising.

This is awesome!! Let’s do it. 🦋🦋🦋

Just sayin’… 💯

Happy day! As the week resets, let’s remember the basics… Asé. 🤗

Today’s verdict in the Rittenhouse trial provides more proof of the dual justice system in this land. It also creates more trauma.

Excellent snapshot of how TAXES function. Thanks to homeschool parent, Hannah McCrary (Melanin Homeschool Group), for sharing this. 💰💸🏦🏛

From Hifalutin Homeschooler 💯💯💯💯💯:

More is not always better, sometimes it's just more. More time wasted, more busy work, more self-aggrandizing fodder.
Often parents feel inadequate and incapable of homeschooling their kids. Why? Because the system unnecessarily and intentionally complicates education for this purpose. And to justify its bloated budget and power. "Leave it to the professionals" it says.
But homeschooling can do in a few hours what takes the system months or longer. Learning really is straightforward. Don't be intimidated. Your natural ability to teach your kids along with your will to succeed, and the simplicity to do so, cannot be reproduced in mass. And that is intimidating to the system.

MANDATORY RESOURCE: is a brilliant work of art and human discovery. What Ava DuVernay & Colin Kaepernick managed to convey resonates beyond sports or racial transgressions. Our 16-y/o homeschool learner watched all 6 episodes in 1 night and she loved it! We’re hoping for another season to tell the next chapter… 💯🖤

Stay tuned… 📖

EXACTLY WHY KIDDEAUX ACADEMY EXISTS!!! As for me and mine…

A Curriculum of Irrelevancy

Another ridiculous Zoom meeting with a school leader on the precipice of deciding no more classroom libraries because "some of the books might make kids question what their parents want them to know" has encouraged me to think that a Bloody Mary, made with tomato juice remember, is an important part of the food pyramid and I should partake right now. And doesn't vodka come from potatoes?

It has also made me so sad. We are so quickly moving down the path of sustaining a curriculum that is focused on the irrelevant ("Show three ways the author created tension in this short story."), as it guards white fragility and continues to deny a history that is a critical part in the country we are today.

Here is the conversation. All knew I was recording it. I promised not to mention school names, district names, size of district, or anything else thing else that could suggest a particular identity if I wrote about the conversation.

Principal: Dr. Beers, thank you for joining us. We've been asked to take a deep look at the books our high school social studies and ELA teachers have in their classrooms to make sure they present more than a single side of an issue. We had a concern raised by one parent because of a book her ninth grade daughter chose to read. This book was in her ELA classroom in a section marked "Autobiographies." Mrs. X, thank you for joining our call. Would you like to tell Dr. Beers what happened?

Mrs. X: Yes. Thank you. My ninth grade daughter is very sweet, very smart, actually an above-level reader. Her teacher has books in her classroom the students can choose to read. My daughter loves autobiographies and so she chose this book called Warriors Don't Cry. Do you know the book?

I told her I did. I refrained from saying that I met Melba Beals, the author, before I actually read Warriors Don't Cry and I sobbed while reading it. I'm no warrior. I didn't tell her I thought this autobiography of one of the Little Rock Nine to integrate their previously all white high school, should be required reading. I just said, "I have read it. Several times." She raised her eyebrows and went on.

Mrs X: Well, I didn't know she was reading it until one evening she read a part aloud to me and she was crying. She was crying! She said it made her sad to see what white people did to Black people and she wanted to know why white people were so mean and is that why when George Floyd got killed Black people were so angry. She said "it was like nothing had changed." The mother paused then went on: It was obvious that this book was making her feel bad for being white. No book should make a child feel bad for being white. Or, I guess, any other race. We didn't even discuss that George Floyd incident. It wasn't about us, so we didn't see any reason to discuss it. And here she was, thinking about it.

Principal: So, we have some new regulations here in [our state] that encourage having books that present the other side of a controversial issue in libraries, especially classroom libraries. We'd like your opinion on that.

At this point, I was wondering why I had agreed to be a part of this conversation, but I took a breath and began. "I think it is very simple. You have to define controversial. There is nothing controversial about what happened to Melba Beals and those other eight Black students. There is nothing to be controverted with her account - we know that because her account is documented by too many confirming stories and the white students who were the most consistently cruel to her have stepped forward, as adults, and recognized their abuse. There is no "good side" to the horrific year in her life and the abuses by many white people during this time of ending segregation in the South. If you want an example of a controversial subject that should show various positions, I suppose there is some controversy over whether people should eat a plant-based diet rather than a meat-based diet. In a health class I'd like to see students read about that issue from multiple doctors including heart specialists, environmentalists, farmers and ranchers, and nutritionists. But this book, this issue, these facts - I think you are asking the wrong question.

Principal: What's the right question?

Me: Mrs. X, what's your real concern?

Mrs. X: My daughter. She was upset. Books at school shouldn't upset anyone and certainly should not upset a young person just because she is white.

Me: Sounds to me as if your daughter has a huge heart.

Mrs. X: Well, yes. She does. Thank you.

Me: It's hard when our children begin to learn certain truths, isn't it? I bet your daughter cried a lot when she learned about Santa Claus.

Mrs. X (smiing): She did. And she said we could not tell her little [sibling] because she wanted that belief to continue.

Me: Yes. Sometimes we want some beliefs to continue. We don't want to know the truth. And sometimes the truth, when we learn it makes us cry. This is a far harder truth than Santa, isn't it. Learning this country's history is hard. I'm proud of her for feeling what Melba Beals was sharing. Have you started reading the book, Mrs. X? (She shakes her head no.) I think when you do - and I think you should - you will be proud of your daughter for crying and you will thank the teacher for having this book the classroom. Think of it this way: From your description, it sounds like she is smart enough to ask some really tough questions. Perhaps questions she hasn't considered before or things that haven't been discussed at home and maybe you aren't ready to discuss those issues. I don't blame you, they are hard ones.

Mrs. X (defensive): That's right. We don't sit around discussing how white people are bad. That's what you are suggesting, right? All white people are racist. Well, we don't believe that and I don't like my child, she's just in ninth grade, wondering that.

Me: Again, I'm deeply impressed with the questions your daughter was asking. I wonder if she'd be interested in reading more about racism and discovering what others have to say about systemic racism in the country. You know, Mrs. X, having compassion for what someone else experienced and trying to see how patterns of behavior have continued is important if we want those patterns to be interrupted. And this isn't about what I think or don't think. It is about the wonderful daughter you have who is thinking. You wouldn't want to discourage that.

Mrs. X: No, of course not. But she just doesn't need to be thinking about that. My word, that was in the previous century. My daughter is not a racist. I am not a racist. And I don't think we need our students reading things that make them feel bad for being who they are.

Me: Yes. I think a lot of people would agree. You know, for the longest time, no children's books had divorced parents in them. None. I wonder if the kids who sat in classrooms with divorced parents felt left out, unseen? I wonder if they felt bad. And for a long time, no books, or almost no books, featured children or teens who were any color other than white. I wonder how those kids felt? And for a long time, in books and on TV, the Indiginous People of this nation were portrayed as savages or simple minded or alcoholics. I wonder how those children felt. Books ought to make us feel something, and sometimes that feeling is regret; other times it is horror; others times it is courage; other times it is relief at finding someone who looks like we look. Your daughter found one of those books - a book that showed her someone, at her grade, living a very different ninth grade year, a horrific ninth grade year. And that hurt her heart. And that led to her questioning if we're treating one other justly now. And that's a great thing. I think you should be proud of her and should be thanking the teacher.

Mrs. X didn't say thank you, but she didn't say I was wrong. She said that she wasn't sure she had made her point exactly right but did see what I was saying. She said she would "certainly" be reading the book. I honestly don't know if that will make things better or not.

And then she left Zoom. And the principal said to me that this is happening almost daily now. "I don't know. Maybe the only way we can get covered what we need to teach for [our state] test is to take out books like this. I just don't know." I liked this principal. He was conflicted and willing to sit in that for a moment before rushing to a bad decision.

So, I'm mailing him a copy of Forged by Reading, which he has promised to read. I've sticky-noted the section I've pasted below which begins on page 30 of the book. I want him to seriously consider what happens when we begin removing books from shelves. What do we remove next? Who - or what - do we become?

From Forged by Reading (Beers and Probst)

Sailing into tomorrow may require us to rethink assumptions
and values so that we act differently in the future. There will
be implications and consequences for considering the new and
reconsidering what we have long thought. The only way to avoid the discomfort is to avoid the issues. If we can avoid talking about and reading about problematic matters, issues that might require us to rethink values and assumptions, then we won’t feel the discomfort that such difficult thought might entail.

If we banish from our minds, our libraries, and our classrooms any examination of politics, religion, race, environment, s*x, justice, and the like, we might protect ourselves from the possible discomfort we might experience. All we have to do is trivialize the curriculum to the point that few will be bothered by anything.

If we can make instruction completely insignificant, utterly irrelevant to anyone’s emotional and intellectual life, then absolutely no one should rise up to protest the threat we pose to treasured beliefs, valued affiliations, or well-established habits of thought and action. We can teach kids how viruses are different from bacteria but avoid discussing why the health care system better serves the wealthy than the poor. We can teach what events led up to World War II and which countries fought on which sides and the horrors of the N**i concentration camps but fail to mention our own concentration camps for American citizens of Japanese ancestry or consider why the 761st Tank Battalion or the 555th Parachute Battalion consisted solely of African American soldiers. We can give the facts of Brown v. Board of Education but never read what happened to the Little Rock Nine, never discuss how the integration of schools caused thousands of well-qualified Black teachers to lose their jobs because white parents refused to let their children be taught by a Black teacher.

We can teach the definitions of “preposition” and “conjunction.”
That will raise few hackles. “Onomatopoeia” and “zeugma” are
unlikely to drive marchers into the streets, even if we require
students to learn both definition and spelling. Better yet, we
can teach penmanship—that will threaten the values of neither
the conservatives nor the progressives, neither Republicans nor
Democrats, neither those drilling for oil nor the sailors on one of the Greenpeace ships.

Total irrelevancy, absolute insignificance, and unwavering stasis are effective strategies for avoiding the discomfort of thought and change.

***

We cannot, dear teachers, ever give in to the demands of irrelevancy. So, Mr. Principal, you must be brave. You must steer the ship into tomorrow. Your teachers will be there with you. And students, they may shudder at past injustices - long past and recent past - and I hope they do. If they don't, we are in more trouble than I thought.

I wish you all bravery. Stamina. And the knowledge that your hard work is the good work; the best work; the needed work. We need you.

Kylene Beers

Nina!! 🖤✊🏾

⭐OUT TODAY⭐ Nina: A Story of Nina Simone tells the story of little Eunice who grew up to become the acclaimed singer Nina Simone and her bold, defiant, and exultant legacy.

Here's the publisher's description:
Born Eunice Kathleen Waymon in small town North Carolina, Nina Simone was a musical child. She sang before she talked and learned to play piano at a very young age. With the support of her family and community, she received music lessons that introduced her to classical composers like Bach who remained with her and influenced her music throughout her life. She loved the way his music began softly and then tumbled to thunder, like her mother's preaching, and in much the same way as her career. During her first performances under the name of Nina Simone her voice was rich and sweet but as the Civil Rights Movement gained steam, Nina's voice soon became a thunderous roar as she raised her voice in powerful protest in the fight against racial inequality and discrimination.

JUST RELEASED TODAY - Recommended ages: 4-8 years.

This!! 💯

The People Remember tells the journey of African descendants in America by connecting their history to the seven principles of Kwanzaa.

This newly published gem is the debut picture book from award-winning, NY Times bestselling author Ibi Zoboi and is beautifully illustrated by New Yorker artist and rising star Loveis Wise.

Here's the publisher's description:
The People Remember tells the journey of African descendants in America by connecting their history to the seven principles of Kwanzaa. It begins in Africa, where people were taken from their homes and families. They spoke different languages and had different customs.

Yet they were bound and chained together and forced onto ships sailing into an unknown future. Ultimately, all these people had to learn one common language and create a culture that combined their memories of home with new traditions that enabled them to thrive in this new land.

Sumptuously illustrated, this is an important book to read as a family—a story young readers can visit over and over again to deepen their understanding of African American history in relation to their own lives and current social justice movements. This is a lyrical narrative that tells the story of survival, as well as the many moments of joy, celebration, and innovation of Black people in America (Rec. ages 4-8. Published 28, 2021)

🖤

It's Hoodoo Heritage Month and Root Magic is the perfect book for learning about the conjure magic that thrives in many communities today.

"I wanted to read a book that showed the original intent of conjure magic: Protection, fostering community, healing our bodies, our minds, and our hearts." Root Magic author Eden Royce couldn't find that book, SO SHE WROTE IT.

ROOT MAGIC is a middle grade historical fantasy set in 1960s South Carolina. The book is about twins learning rootwork and finding their place in the world. This tale is full of Gullah Geechee tradition and folklore and written by Gullah Geechee native Eden Royce.

Root Magic is a celebration of family, friendship, bravery, love, and Gullah Geechee culture for all of the world to see. (Rec ages 8-12 years)

Tickle-me Tuesday 🤣🤣🤣🤣 some days tho...💯

🚨🚨🚨 The attack on VOTING RIGHTS 🚨🚨🚨

Democrats Walk, Stop Texas GOP's Sweeping Voting Restrictions A restrictive voting bill in Texas that was on the verge of Republican Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk failed to pass Sunday night after Democrats walked out of the House chamber before a midnight deadline.