To those readers who do not know exactly what we are doing, let me give a little background. For the next three months or so, I am going to work with Dr. Christian Blum at the Universitat Politecnica de Catalunya (UPC) in Barcelona, Spain. I got the contact information for Dr. Blum about two years ago from a mutual colleague. Dr. Blum is a world-renowned expert in a special type of algorithm called Ant Colony Optimization (ACO). Dr. Blum has also been very helpful, congenial, and accomodating throughout the last two years as we have planned this sabbatical - we met last summer and he seems to always be cheerful.
As for Deborah and the family, they will be . . . learning. A few years ago, I remember telling my cousin that if our family ever went overseas we would only take Math and English for formal study and everything else would be "cultural". By that I mean whatever history that they learn will be based on whatever museum or public building they are in. Art, geography, foreign language, government, social studies will all be covered as we explore Barcelona and other parts of Europe. I do not know if seeing a museum full of Picasso or Salvador Dali paintings or going to the Louvre will awaken an interest in Art in the children, but it certainly will be more stimulating than seeing pictures on the Internet. I do not think they will have to look at a map later in life to know that Spain and France touch each other or that Spain borders the Mediterranean Sea or that it is a long plane trip from US to Europe. At the last minute, I have tried to add Science to the Math+English core subjects, but the children insist that the Science books are just too heavy to pack. Oh well - it looks like they will need to visit all 6 of the science/natural history museums that are in the Barcelona area.
But there is another type of learning that is even more important. It is my prayer that the children will be "world Christians" (not worldly Christians). I want them to have a sensitivity to people from other parts of the world. I want them to appreciate the many material benefits we have living in the US. I want them to be aware of needs outside of Murray, KY. I want them to know what "exchange rate" means if they work in a bank. (True story: the local bank could not tell what the exchange rate or fees would be if I used their check card overseas. Had to open an account at another bank to facilitate transactions in Europe.) I want them to be unafraid to be salt and light in places that are outside of their comfort zone.
As for Deborah and the family, they will be . . . learning. A few years ago, I remember telling my cousin that if our family ever went overseas we would only take Math and English for formal study and everything else would be "cultural". By that I mean whatever history that they learn will be based on whatever museum or public building they are in. Art, geography, foreign language, government, social studies will all be covered as we explore Barcelona and other parts of Europe. I do not know if seeing a museum full of Picasso or Salvador Dali paintings or going to the Louvre will awaken an interest in Art in the children, but it certainly will be more stimulating than seeing pictures on the Internet. I do not think they will have to look at a map later in life to know that Spain and France touch each other or that Spain borders the Mediterranean Sea or that it is a long plane trip from US to Europe. At the last minute, I have tried to add Science to the Math+English core subjects, but the children insist that the Science books are just too heavy to pack. Oh well - it looks like they will need to visit all 6 of the science/natural history museums that are in the Barcelona area.
But there is another type of learning that is even more important. It is my prayer that the children will be "world Christians" (not worldly Christians). I want them to have a sensitivity to people from other parts of the world. I want them to appreciate the many material benefits we have living in the US. I want them to be aware of needs outside of Murray, KY. I want them to know what "exchange rate" means if they work in a bank. (True story: the local bank could not tell what the exchange rate or fees would be if I used their check card overseas. Had to open an account at another bank to facilitate transactions in Europe.) I want them to be unafraid to be salt and light in places that are outside of their comfort zone.
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