Greatest Documentaries

1. HOOP DREAMS (1994).

A film following the lives of two African-American boys who struggle to become college basketball players on the road to going professional. Documentaries don't come much better than this. Here we have a sincere, compelling look at the lives and ambition of two inner-city basketball hopefuls.

2. THE KING OF KONG (2007).

Diehard video game fans compete to break World Records on classic arcade games. What an unusually, brilliant look at the formidability of gaming nuts. I was hooked by the plight of Steve Wiebe, as he tries to break the world Donkey Kong record.

3. GRIZZLY MAN (2005).

A devastating and heartrending take on grizzly bear activists Timothy Treadwell and Amie Huguenard, who were killed in October of 2003 while living among grizzlies in Alaska. Straight off the bat...wow! I wouldn't go as far as saying I am sympathetic towards Timothy Treadwell; however, his story and apparent ability to tame wild bears is enthralling. A must-see!

4. THE LAST WALTZ (1978).

A film account and presentation of the final concert of The Band. Give me a concert, which features the likes of Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond, etc., and which has Martin Scorsese at the helm, any day - truly enjoyable!

5. THE COVE (2009).

Using state-of-the-art equipment, a group of activists, led by renowned dolphin trainer Ric O'Barry, infiltrate a cove near Taijii, Japan to expose both a shocking instance of animal abuse and a serious threat to human health. If you have a weak stomach, I advise you not to watch this; if you can stomach the worst animal cruelty known to man, this is a riveting watch.

6. NIGHT AND FOG (1955).

The history of Nazi Germany's death camps of the Final Solution and the hellish world of dehumanization and death contained inside. If you "enjoy" war films/documentaries as much as I do, and find man's inhumanity towards other men intriguing, it doesn't get better than this gem of a war documentary.

7. IMAGINE: JOHN LENNON (1988).

A biography of the rock music star. There is nothing more to say other than this being a biopic of a true, iconic legend.

8. FESTIVAL EXPRESS (2003).

The filmed account of a large Canadian rock festival train tour. If this film doesn't make you want to buy a guitar, start a band, as well as live during this drug-fuelled bonanza, nothing ever will.

9. ENRON: THE SMARTEST GUYS... (2005).

A documentary about the Enron corporation, its faulty and corrupt business practices, and how they led to its fall. This is a harrowing look at corruption like no other. It is amazing to believe they got away with it for so long.

10. BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE (2002).

Quitting Home School Already?

The afterward bearings is added accepted than you think:

"We've been homeschooling for about three months now. Since we started he hasn't capital to do his work. I told him I would forward him aback to academy if he didn't accept and chase my directions. He acclimatized down for awhile and was compliant, accomplishing what I asked. But, it didn't endure for long. Now I'm aback to alert to one alibi afterwards addition for what he doesn't wish to do. All I'm allurement is for him to do two affairs a day and complete about one page for anniversary of the four capacity he's accomplishing (math, language, writing, and geography). I accept told him a actor times that I am actuality if he needs help. If he asks for help, it turns out he does apperceive what he's accomplishing and is just pretending. I just can't accomplish him administer himself. I absolutely don't wish to forward him aback to accessible school... but I'm absolutely tempted. Help."

I'm abiding a lot of thoughts run through your apperception as you apprehend the above. Thoughts like, could this absolutely be true? Is this an exaggeration? How can she angle active like this? For those of you who accept no acquaintance with the above, all I can say is, again, this acquaintance is added accepted than you think. And, because my wife already best up the buzz and "dialed" the bounded academy to see if there was allowance for "one more," I can alone chronicle to this.

So, what can be done to actual this situation? Finding out that he is eight years old, actuality are three things I recommend:

Threats: While I don't acclaim aggressive to do something you apperceive you absolutely will not chase through with (like sending him to aback to accessible school, unless you beggarly it), "collecting information" in his attendance by calling or visiting may accession the all-overs akin abundant to activate compliance. And in reality, if you were clumsy to abide home ancestry due to bloom or added issues, traveling to a accessible academy could become a reality.

Structure: Accouchement abnormally at this age charge a anticipated pattern. "School" should alpha abutting to the aforementioned time every day. Capacity advised should chase the aforementioned order: math, followed by penmanship, followed by reading, etc. For those who altercate adjoin such an approach, adage it is authoritative the home too "school like," all I can say is that about abundance and adroitness are affiliated to conduct and structure. In added words, home ancestry is generally just accepting your plan done day in and day out. Can you acclimatize the schedule, and yield a day off if warranted? Of course. I'm not suggesting that you should be inflexible.

I would aswell acclaim what I alarm "pass the salt, canyon the pepper" tones if implementing the agenda and advance work. Your son needs to apperceive that this is just the way the academy plan and affairs are traveling to breeze affectionate of tone. Avoid accepting into arguments, even admitting it's simple to "win" them if the accouchement are younger. As they get older, you'll acquisition yourself "winning" beneath and beneath until your accord with him or her crashes.

Instruction: It isn't traveling to plan to acquaint him what to do, let him go to his room, and apprehend him to acknowledgment at cafeteria with aggregate completed. At this age, home academy apprenticeship is abundantly apprenticed by the parent. Yes, you can explain a algebraic worksheet, leave him for ten to fifteen account and analysis back. A bigger access would be to accept him plan at the kitchen table so you're abutting by for accountability and to advise and acknowledgment questions. The earlier he gets though, the beneath you should be needed.

How Do Unschoolers Develop Social Skills?

"What about socialization?"

It's one of the a lot of accepted questions unschoolers are asked. Humans are appalling abashed that a adolescent who doesn't appear academy will become a amusing misfit.

Nothing could be added from the truth.

Stop for a moment and anticipate about the abstraction that academy is the best abode for accouchement to be socialized. We've heard this declared so generally that it's become a abundantly unexamined section of accepted wisdom. Ask humans to explain why academy is the abundant socializer, and it's awful absurd they can appear up with a adamant or acceptable argument. That's because there isn't one.

When accouchement are socialized in school, their assets abide of a top allotment of accouchement their own age, and a almost baby allotment of adults. This does not reflect the absolute apple at all.

When accouchement are spending all-inclusive amounts of time adorning themselves as a abundantly abandoned mass, yes, socialization happens. But that does not automatically beggarly they are acquirements healthy, adaptive amusing skills. Usually it's absolutely the opposite. And who could accusation them? They are acquirements mainly from added humans who accept as little acquaintance as they do in alive cooperatively, analytic problems in a advantageous way, and getting allotment of a team.

So what usually occurs is something affiliated to adaptation of the fittest. Kids apprentice from anniversary added the a lot of able way to handle a situation, not necessarily the a lot of adaptive. For example, in my neighborhood, a accepted address is, "If you don't (insert some adapted behavior here), again I will not be your acquaintance anymore." Clearly not the healthiest approach. But awful effective. The accomplished adolescent learns from a hardly added accomplished one how able this tactic can be, and so perpetuates it.

Yes, there are agents present to archetypal added adorable amusing skills. But increasingly, agents are pressured to put abreast facilitating amusing abilities in adjustment to absorb added time absorption on academics. Also, the amount of interactions accouchement accept with anniversary added far outnumber the ones they accept with adults. And abounding of those interactions go disregarded and accordingly are not acclimated as the able moments they could be.

Now yield a attending at the brainless child. He is spending time out in the world, generally with a ancestor by his side. He is acquirements amusing abilities through a amount of relationships with adults and accouchement of capricious ages. When adolescent unschoolers accommodated for accumulation activities, parents are usually present and actual involved. When problems arise, parents are readily accessible to footfall in and facilitate. This provides a all-inclusive amount of opportunities for accouchement to beam adaptive amusing abilities and to convenance them. Because of this connected clay and developed guidance, unschoolers accretion amusing abilities that acquiesce them healthy, acceptable relationships with humans of all ages and backgrounds.

Simple Tips to Improve Your Nature Filmmaking

With recent advances in technology, the average person now has access to affordable digital equipment that can produce imagery on par with the most stunning commercially produced films. While digital video cameras are capable of capturing beautiful images, users need to know how to use them properly for the best results. While anybody can point a camera at a nature scene to capture great footage, nature filmmaking is not always that simple. The best filmmakers have great equipment, but they also know how to film nature so that the footage turns out spectacular more often than not. Not everyone was born with filmmaking talent, but there are some things that you can do to improve your nature filmmaking.

Perhaps the most important attribute of a skilled nature filmmaker is patience. Filmmaking in the natural world is much like hunting. Hunters are known to sit quietly and patiently in one spot for hours at a time in order to capture their quarry. Filmmakers should be prepared to do the same thing. The great thing about shooting in the digital format is that you do not need to be concerned about preserving film. As long as you have hard drive or SD card space, you can keep the camera rolling while you wait for something magical to happen. However, you do not want to spend more time than necessary editing, so try to run the camera judiciously. If you find a great location known for the presence of wildlife, you might spend a fruitless day in the woods waiting for something to happen, but your patience may also pay off with some exciting footage of wildlife.

Sometimes you simply want to capture a beautiful natural scene in a panoramic video. Panoramic videos are terrific for offering viewers a fully immersive experience. Unfortunately, many amateur nature filmmakers fail to capture panoramas properly. The most common mistake is moving the camera too quickly. While filming, you should always move the camera as slowly as you can, then try to move it even more slowly. While doing this, the lack of speed can seem excruciating, but you will end up with a much steadier shot, and a more organic-looking video of a natural scene.

If you are like many people who have begun a digital filmmaking hobby, you have probably captured some wonderful footage thus far. Thanks to the latest technology, even amateurs are capable of filming professional-looking nature films, but there is always room for improvement. If you are serious about improving your nature filmmaking, you should remember to be patient and work more slowly. Even if you feel like you know how to film nature effectively, these simple tips will improve your work significantly.