2/26/2007

Town Hall Meeting

Shawna has been interested in colonial and early America for quite some time and that interest has taken her in many directions. She was especially interested in learning how the original govenment was set up and what the different branches are responsible for. When I heard there was going to be a town hall meeting in our neighborhood with Congressman Stearns, the girls wanted to go, so Billy took them.

They both found it interesting and were glad they went. Jacqueline said that one woman asked about illegal immigrants and another man asked about taxes. Billy also asked the congressman for his opinion on the fair tax bill. Since then, many discussions have come from this one meeting, and I suspect, many more will follow. One of the things we talked about was Jacqueline's opinion of the woman asking about illegal immigrants. She felt the woman was racist and didn't want people of other skin colors in our country.

I love that my unschooled children viewed this as an opportunity to experience something new, much like our recent visit to the medieval faire. They felt no pressure to prove what they learned, there was no test to pass, no grade to get. They attended simply because they wanted to...because they're interested in the life around them and their place in it. :-)

2 comments:

Henry Cate said...

Good for you for exposing them to politics. It helps them become better citizens.

Every so often I’ll take my daughters to the City Council meetings. Normally they find it pretty boring. I let them bring books and stuff to keep them occupied.

Once there was an issue I felt strongly about. An older couple wanted to put up some siding on their house. The city planning commission had said no, it would have ruined the architectural integrity of the neighborhood. The city council allowed members of the audience to speak. I got up and said the couple should be allowed to modify the house, it was their house. The city council voted to let the couple put up the siding.

My daughters asked dozens of questions on the way home. Recently they’ve brought it back up, so I know it stuck.

Joanne said...

My daughters did the same thing, bringing books and stuff in case they got bored, but they were very interested in what was going on and never took their stuff out. Billy also takes them to our monthly neighborhood watch meeting. :-)