Yesterday I was at church and having a discussion with someone who was serving with me.

We were talking about my son playing clarinet in the local high school band. One of the benefits of homeschooling in Arizona is that homeschooled students are able to join the local school sports teams and band.

As I was speaking with another volunteer, I was lamenting that when I was in school, we could actually start playing an instrument in 4th grade, and even our elementary school had a marching band. I played the bass drum which was really cool because our teacher had taken the basket off of a shopping card and had someone make a mount for the drum. All I had to do was push and keep the beat! It was awesome! It was also one of the few things I enjoyed when I was in school. At least in elementary school.

My fellow churchgoer shared that the charter school his children went to required everyone to learn an instrument in 6th and 7th grade! Sounds good, right? Wrong!

We unschool around here for a reason. Most people don't retain information that they aren't really interested in. It's why we believe 100% in self-directed education and why my company is called Like What You Learn Academy.

So why was it wrong to make EVERY child learn an instrument? What was shared with me was that his child is a gifted violinist who thoroughly enjoyed playing. But there were many kids who didn't enjoy playing and would ruin it for those who did!

And of course those who didn't enjoy it were punished and made to feel there was something wrong with them for not wanting to and not doing as they were told.

This idea that everyone should learn/know certain things really bothers me. I always knew and make the argument that what we choose to study is what we will remember, but hearing this other effect of forced education was eye opening.

We hear all the time things like, "every child should know how to code!" Why? We need division of labor! That's how societies work!

Next time you hear someone suggest, "all kids should learn (insert topic/subject)" take a minute to think about what that really means.

It's that time of the week! It's MAKER Monday! Every week, we'll share things about things we or others have made, interesting artistic creations, fun new knowledge, education in the maker community, and leave you with a weekly challenge!

Monday Maker Magic:

I've been BUSY this week! I had several handyman jobs that were keeping me from making as many things as I would have liked to have made and exploring things I would like to have explored.

That said, there is always something to like and share.

Have you ever heard of kismet? Like, sometimes things are just meant to be.

I have a confession to make. I have a Twitter/X addiction (I have a hard time calling it X).

Just now, I was procrastinating and opened Twitter, knowing I shouldn't, but ended up with the best thing I could have discovered for this section this week.

Let me start by saying that I dislike the vast majority of politicians. But there are a couple that I actually admire, and one in particular, I greatly admire. Thomas Massie.

He is not only politically like-minded (libertarian, non-interventionist, fiscally conservative, constitutionalist), he's an engineer and a maker!

20 years ago, one of my favorite shows on The Discovery Channel was Junkyard Wars. Did you know he was on an episode of Junkyard Wars? I just learned this a few months ago! If you're interested, here you go!​

When I opened Twitter a few minutes ago, he popped up at the top of my feed with this tweet and the picture below. Man I love this guy. I often see him posting about fixing things on his farm in Kentucky. If I didn't love Arizona so much I would consider Kentucky just so I could be represented by him and Rand Paul.

Artistry in Action (Artist Spotlight):

I love YouTube. When it first came out I didn't really get it, but I love what it's become.

When I have a few minutes, and I take time to sit down and watch something, I open YouTube.

I think the thing I like more than anything is that I can see something through in as much time as I want. And often, it might just be 5-7 minutes.

For me, the perfect 5-7 minutes is often music related.

I like a wide variety of music. I love ska, bluegrass, rock, Disney, it just depends on my mood. This last week has been about ska, but something else that has been coming up in my recommendations is OK Go.​

They don't put anything out very often, but when they do, it is usually one of the most creative videos I've ever seen.

They use elaborate setups to time the music perfectly. One of my favorites was when they made and filmed a series of actions and explosions that took 4.2 seconds, then slowed down the footage and synced it with the music. It's called The One Moment and you can watch it here.​

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Knowledge Nuggets:

I said earlier that I love ska and have been listening to ska on YouTube lately. And of course you can't love ska and not love reggae.

One of my favorite albums I came across in my 20s was a reggae/ska album from Desmond Dekker and The Specials. It's fantastic and something I enjoy when I want a pick me up. Other than Disney music of course.

Anywhoooo, tomorrow is Bob Marley's birthday! I accidentally typed that mirthday and just corrected it, but now I want to make mirthdays a thing!

If you're feeling irie, or need to get irie, put on some Bob Marley and enjoy the day!

Education Exchange:

This past week I have been seeing the same thing over and over in one of the homeschooling groups I am a member of.

It is always something along the lines of, "how do you handle a teenager who is talking back?"

I won't go on too much about this and instead will let the screenshot speak for itself.

I absolutely loved this approach and am going to work on incorporating it into our home.

Rise to the Challenge (Weekly Challenge):

The last few weeks I have presented a math challenge and I'm not sure about it or how it's going. Rather than come up with my own challenges right now, I'm going to share some from a few websites I visit regularly. Printables and Instructables.

This one in particular is a must share! Instructables is having a Books and Bookshleves challenge!

There are few things better than books. Especially used books. My two favorite scents in the world are used bookstores and orange blossoms. Growing up in Phoenix there were orange groves everywhere and IYKYK. I have some ideas.

Thank you Reader for joining us this week on our making journey! If you have anything to add or you want to share what you've been working on, please don't hesitate to respond!

Please share this with your friends and help us grow our maker community! If you haven't already, like our Facebook Page and join our Facebook group, Homeschool Makers and 3D Printing Enthusiasts!​

Now get out there and create something amazing!