Meet Barbie Rivera

We were lucky to catch up with Barbie Rivera recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Barbie, so excited to talk about all sorts of important topics with you today. The first one we want to jump into is about being the only one in the room – for some that’s being the only person of color or the only non-native English speaker or the only non-MBA, etc Can you talk to us about how you have managed to be successful even when you were the only one in the room that looked like you?

I had no choice. It was either I submit to the false idea that my six-year-old was “mentally handicapped” and in need of psychotropic medication–mostly likely for life–OR I would take matters into my own hands and do something effective.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My story is simple. I am an artist and have been drawing since I was three. By the time I was 10, I knew that when I grew up I wanted a large family (at least 8 children), I wanted to be known for my art, and somehow, I wanted to do something meaningful.

Here I am now, I am twice divorced, have 4 adult children, I remain artistic–but not at all how I envisioned, and I feel I am doing something meaningful on a daily basis.

In many ways, my drawings and paintings from my teenage years, were better than what I produce now. I was not a typical teenager–I liked to read just as much as I liked to go to movies. This left me time to devote myself to a painting or drawing. I’d spend days or weeks on a piece, bring a vision to life. Sometimes this process was exhilarating, and sometimes it was stressful. I’d dive into a piece, and as I was young, without financial obligations or adult problems, I had plenty of time immerse myself into the creative process.

I have been fortunate to have a few “lightbulb” moments in my life, where I am bugged about something, stuck, mentally blocked, and then some other viewpoint presents itself, and I end up changing my mind, thus finding a good solution to my “unresolvable problem.”

By the time I was 27 I had four children and little time (or mental stamina) to throw myself into painting much of anything. I recall folding clothes in my tiny apartment with my kids aged 7 months to 6 years playing on the floor together. I went into my closet to hang a dress and glanced at my tiny suitcase full of art supplies, gathering dust, and had the sad thought that it would be years before I could paint again. A sad, spiritually depressing moment. Then, before the closet door even closed behind me-it occurred to me that “art” was not limited to paintbrushes and canvas. “Art” was ALIVE. It was creativity, and I had four little ones to create with and create for. And for me, there was nothing more artistic than being a mother and raising my kids.

This “lightbulb moment” came at the right time as my oldest was struggling in school. (He went from an “extroverted and active” little boy, to an easily upset, subdued child.) School had shut him up and shut him down. Despite the fact that he was extremely well mannered, calm, well-behaved, and could speak two languages, I was told he could not learn. He was “mentally handicapped.” He was destined to struggle. He was in need of mind-altering drugs.
In my son’s case, the school was definitely the problem. He was expected to do three hours of homework a day. He was expected to write book reports before he could read. Math was a mishmash of skills that had no logical progression. The school’s only option for my son was medication. Not tutoring. Not a smaller class. They wanted him drugged. This simply just was not an option. Subjecting my six-year-old to psychological evaluations was not an option.

Even though I had no idea of where to start or what to do, I decided I was going to homeschool. I would expand my “artistic” skills beyond paper and pen, and I was going to create a school for my son, his friends, and my younger children. I would teach my son what the certified “so-called” experts deemed impossible. And that is what I did. I knew he could learn without being poisoned with drugs. And learn he did.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

I have now been educating children for 33 years. My homeschool activity expanded to the point I had 20 children coming to house for classes. A parent decided to put up $125K to cover permits and renovations to move the homeschool activity into a local storefront, thus becoming a private K-12 school. The school has been an active non-profit since 1996.

I think the three most impactful qualities were 1) I became a single-mother early on. Sole supporter of my children. My educational career succeeded because there was no other option. I could not afford private school, and had permanently cut ties with public schooling after they nearly ruined my son. Plus, I had other families depending on me to educate their children after they had negative experiences with learning labels and medication. I had (and still do) have a lot of people depending on me.

2) Being naturally artistic and creative helped. I learned how to teach math, reading and so on, in a way that engaged my students. I got them involved. I got them engaged.

3) In terms of making day-to-day education a joy (not a chore) I owe all credit to a study skills book called “Learning How to Learn” based on the works of L. Ron Hubbard. The first page of the book states something along the lines of, “You can learn anything you want to learn.” This statement alone was completely contrary to what my son’s teacher and school thought.

The book covered focusing on mastery and real-life application vs teaching to pass a test, where the student is graded on how well he or she can robotically spit information out. (Another point I agreed with.) In my opinion, the most important thing covered in The Learning How to Learn book was the importance of understanding the meaning of words. I used this daily. My children grew up able to define words and able to demonstrate things they learned. They were not hammered to “memorize” information; I wanted them to know it AND apply what they were learning to real-life situations.

We’d use air-dry clay to make the Great Wall of China, I’d trace around their bodies on large rolls of paper and they’d glue cutouts of their internal organs, reading was brought to life with kids taking turns making sound-effects. And each subject would begin with going over meanings of words. Geography comes from Geo (earth) and Graphy (to write or draw). Geography involves drawing maps and knowing locations. Whereas “photography” comes from Photo (light), so photography is “drawing with light.” Which is why lighting is vital to a photographer. The children I homeschooled learned to bake, they managed their own money-one nine-year-old interested in electronics had a business where he’d fix broken hair dryers or radios, charging $5 plus parts. He used his grammar skills to make fliers and invoices. This boy is now 40 and has his own tech company.

My advice to anyone on the fence about homeschooling (or even becoming a parent) is don’t wait until you figure it all out. I am in my 60s and I am still learning. Take action. Also do not wait for your child to become miserable. My advice to avoid traditional schooling at all costs and jump straight into homeschooling. I would have lost my son had I listened to the prescription-pushing school system. One does not have to experience a shark bite to know that jumping in a pool of sharks probably isn’t a good idea.

What is the number one obstacle or challenge you are currently facing and what are you doing to try to resolve or overcome this challenge?

The biggest obstacle I faced when I was just starting out homeschooling, and that remains a problem in present time are the garbage textbooks that are being used in both public and private schools. The subjects have been altered, and twisted and in my opinion, deliberately made confusing. When I hear a parent say that they cannot help their eight-year-old with homework. I do not find this funny. I find it alarming. In less than a generation, our subjects have been polluted (for lack of a better word) and made almost unrecognizable. It is no wonder that the test scores of American students are the lowest in history.

Factor in that the major textbook companies are in bed with the pharmaceutical companies and it is no wonder the data is so confusing–confused kids are easier to label and drug.

Finding sane textbooks and lesson plans is an issue. I have had many fellow educators and homeschoolers voice their frustration at finding workable texts to teach from.

For this, I do have a solution. The solution will cost millions of dollars, that I do not currently have, but for this, I too, have a solution.

Fact: In 1913 the United States ranked #1 in the world with 97% of Americans considered literate. Then entered the psychologists and psychiatrists, with their diagnoses, pills, multiple choice standards, and test-driven methods, and education went to hell. In 2022, the U.S. Department of Education reported that more than half of Americans between the ages of 16 and 74 read at or below a sixth-grade level. This is 54 percent or roughly 130 million Americans who lack the basic skills of reading.

The solution: I have in my possession over 450 textbooks from the late 1880s to the early 1900s (what was in use when America ranked #1). I have readers, phonics, spelling, English, math, civics, art, manners, and etiquette books and lesson plans from kindergarten to 8th grade. My solution is to bring these textbooks back to life, thus restoring literacy to America. I want to personally write the textbooks, answer keys and teacher guide for each subject. I will include the definition of words and talking points (just like I have successfully done for the last 33 years).

Again, this is a multimillion dollar endeavor. Funding will come in one of two ways: a rich person with a vision steps up to finance this. or I become a best-selling author, and fund it myself. Last year I published my first book, Enough Is Enough! Exposing the Education System After Their Failed Attempt to Label and Drug My Son. This book is a blend of facts and stories from being on the frontlines of educational suppression for over 33 years. The book has a 5-star rating on Amazon. Writing textbooks and lesson plans is what I want to do with the rest of my life. And I can think of nothing more creative than putting together a series of math books, for example, that take a child from counting frogs to algebra, mastering each step, without losing a love of numbers.

There are details to work out, such as turning my school functions over, and purchasing a building so the school can expand, but I envision myself directing a team of four or five creative geniuses to create effective, engaging, aesthetic materials, that can be used by homeschoolers or by mainstream schools-should they ever decide to actually educate children instead of medicate them.

I think these textbooks would have a positive impact on the teaching profession as well. There are a lot of certified educators who want to impact children but are restricted within a system that has long since abandoned the beauty and fun of truly learning. I’d like to see more professional teachers love their job.

The other obstacle is marketing the book and my mission, as I have no budget to do so. One of my sons (a huge fan of the heavy metal group Iron Maiden) says that Iron Maiden is known for tremendous success without any mainstream commercial support. He is confident my book could do the same. Maybe I should invest in a few skulls and buy a guitar.
In the meantime, I invite you to check out my website: barbierivera.com. New subscribers receive a six chapter preview of “Enough Is Enough!.” Word of mouth is my current campaign. I hope to gather many voices.

Contact Info:

• Website: barbierivera.com helpmiami.org