Why Learn with Living Books ?

Not that they breathe and move, of course, though I'd quite like a house full of that kind of living book. The kind that Charlotte Mason advocates; books whose prose and characters and narrative come alive for us as we read.

For me, it's because learning this way privileges the relationship between author and reader, unmediated by others. The student-reader can form her own responses and thoughts on the subject being explored.  Of course the author of a living book comes to her work  with her own biases ( and as more experienced readers, it's up to us to point these out to our children ) but at least the learning  conversation is a direct, authentic and individual one. A textbook approach, especially in the humanities, which seeks to disseminate 'required' information, can rarely achieve the same depth of relationship, though it may act adequately as a spine or guide to areas of knowledge.

I suppose it comes down to how you view education - as a relationship with knowledge or a conquering of it.

Middle School Monday - Shakespeare

This is the second year of our teen book club and we've just finished a term looking at King Lear. The girls and I explored general ideas, such as iambic pentameter, and ideas specific to the play; 'storm' in King Lear, 'despair and redemption'. I'll tell you a secret though...shhh...I cheated.  All my good ideas came from here.

The Folger Library has a huge number of lesson plans for each play and I think most could be adapted to work with a smaller family group or individual child; I adapted them to use with 8 girls.

The Folger Library also has a site for younger sibs here.

Check it out!

The Fearless Treasure

It's possible that Lucy loves history even more than me and that's saying something. Lately we've been having some very satisfying conversations about the Russian Revolution. A few years ago it was English history we were exploring and somehow, in my research,  I stumbled upon The Fearless Treasure by Noel Streatfield. Not an actual copy; just the mention. And a mention of it to my Dad turned into a copy sourced just for Lucy's reading pleasure.

We knew all about Noel Streatfield, she of Ballet Shoes, queen of the children-who-perform genre. This book however was a story of England. We made it Lucy's read-aloud and daily traveled back in time with six post-war children. Summoned from various schools and homes by the mysterious Mr Fosse, the children - three boys and three girls - come from a range of backgrounds. There's  Selina, from 'the finest girls' school in the country', the matter-of fact John who can make or mend, feisty Londoner Elizabeth, unloved and wealthy Robert, down-to - earth Yorkshire lass Grace and studious parson's son William.

The children are taken on a quest by Mr Fosse, back through England's history, from Britons to the Victorians and each child discovers along the way his or her own family heritage and use their knowledge, at the novel's conclusion, to compete against each other for a prize. Told as a narrative, The Fearless Treasure captures the flow of English history from ancient times onwards and explores the contributions made to English civilisation by the people and culture from each wave of invasion or settlement.

Black and white sketches by Dorothea Braby break up the text here and there but this history-story never really needs the pause. If read with a hyper-critical eye, an adult might take issue with an undertone of nationalism, made explicit in Fosse's toast at the book's end "to a proud and fearless England". Published in 1953, not a decade after WW2, I find this bias excusable to a certain extent - something I might mention to an older reader but wouldn't allow to diminish the value and pleasure of the book as a whole.

Highly recommended if you're in the mood for a treasure hunt of your own! It's OOP but available here and there.

For more lovely books -and really, who can resist! - visit Book Sharing Monday at Canadian Home Learning.

The Moon, Hidden.

I even wrote it on my calendar, to be sure we wouldn't forget to look.  The moon will be huge tonight, full and close. We've woken to rain, a grey sky, a good chance that tonight the moon will be hidden. The poets will have to do our looking for us.

Full Moon by Tu Fu

Above the tower -- a lone, twice-sized moon.
On the cold river passing night-filled homes,
It scatters restless gold across the waves.
On mats, it shines richer than silken gauze.

Empty peaks, silence: among sparse stars,
Not yet flawed, it drifts. Pine and cinnamon
Spreading in my old garden . . . All light,
All ten thousand miles at once in its light!

Didn't the Americans discover America ?

To avoid hearing this comment ( from a source who shall remain nameless! ) in my homeschool ever again, I've been reading this book to Snowy. Where do you think you're going, Christopher Columbus ? by Jean Fritz is a fairly entertaining read - plenty of humour for the young boy-student - but it also takes a nuanced look at the man himself in all his vanity, religiosity and determination. It places Columbus in the context of his times and represents the people of the "New World" with respect. It's a forthright book and I do admit to censoring the bit that explains how Isabella burnt 'heretics' at the stake and then had choir boys singing during the burning so she wouldn't have to hear the screams. A seven year old doesn't quite need that level of detail. However, we're getting a good sense of how much was left to learn about the world in 1492.

I'm also really happy with this little gem, The Adventure of Life by Jean-Benoit Durand. It's a translation from the French, published by Gecko Press in NZ. It's divided into three sections - how this planet and life on it began, the evolution of mammals through to the human race and a section about growth and death in humans and other forms of life. The information is clear and concise, nicely paced and in a narrative style, making it almost perfect for oral narration. It also has lively illustrations which keep Snowy amused as he learns. I'd really recommend this book for a 6-9 yr old age group.

Homeschool Blogs I Love

She makes me feel so much better.

Drat that Steiner brainwashing that makes me wring my hands every time this subject comes up. Now I have a new source of authority! And as a mark of gratitude, if she ever wants a jar of Vegemite, a packet of TimTams or a poetry recommendation, she can have it...

Middle School Monday - Something to Remember

All the chapters in our read-aloud, My Contract With Henry, begin with one of Thoreau's quotes. Today's struck me as something to remember, especially in the context of educating pre-teens and teens, in the midst of their tears, moods, silences, silliness, distance, sarcasm, confusion, moments of understanding and clarity and sudden sweetness.

To affect the quality of the day, that is the highest of arts.

So says Henry. Sometimes I lose that focus and become distracted, thinking about the quality of my children, their work, their approach to the world, their moods and troubles. When perhaps, to simply focus on the quality of the day - something, as a home educator I have a responsibility to do but also take great pleasure in doing and creating - should be taking precedence.

If I concentrate on the day - provide nourishing food, literature, art and music, interesting work, meaningful chores, thoughtful feedback and responses, opportunities to rest or to breath in fresh air, hugs - perhaps I can be a centre around which the children turn, the point that keeps them steady as they change and deal with change. An art indeed.

Poetry Friday - Two Poems

Autumn
There has  been no change
but I am no longer young.
Autumn wind blows and
I am disturbed as before.
- Princess Shikishi


All That Summer

All that summer I read German novels
and wrote letters that were never sent,
drank tea in cafes he had not discovered.
Somewhere on George Street, my Steppenwolf
lost its cover; I wept all afternoon
and most of the evening. I tried quoting Hesse
to a German tourist in Martin's Bar:
every created thing, even the simplest,
is already guilty, already multiple.
But he told me his English was not so good,
and in any case, he was an engineer.
December drove me mad. On alternate Sundays
I went to Mass, armed with an elderly bible.
When no-one was looking, I stole the candles.

All that summer I waged war against mosquitoes.
Once, he rang, and I invented a lover -
relieved, he told me about his. One lonely night
I crawled in through her bathroom window:
it's her or me, I said to him, and he chose her.
It was difficult to make a dignified retreat.

That summer I dyed my hair red
And ate nothing but maps of foreign cities,
covered Steppenwolf in pages ripped from Rilke.
That summer, I began to crave obscure Japanese poets.
One night, I dreamt Shikishi came to me.
"Autumn wind blows," she said,
And I am disturbed as before."

- mine, from The Long Drowning. And it isn't autobiographical!

Thoreau and Dickinson for the Younger Set

I like to keep it simple and explore many of the same topics with Snowy as with the girls. He's been listening in to My Contract With Henry but I've also got a picture book my Dad bought for the girls some time back to share with him.

I'd love to share an image of this book, but Blogger has gone crazy on me and won't allow me to show you!
It's The Trouble With Henry: A Tale of Walden Pond by Deborah O'Neal and Angela Westengard. It focuses on Henry's time at Walden Pond and his conflict with the townspeople over a proposed mill. The illustrations of the forest and pond - by S.D.Schindler - are gentle, calm and textured; those of the townspeople are busy and humourous.



I've another lovely little book to share with Snowy about Emily Dickinson. The Mouse of Amherst by Elizabeth Spires is a sweetly imaginative telling of the poet and her life. Narrated by Emmaline the mouse, this small story introduces the reader to Emily, her home and family and her poems. Charmingly, Emmaline is herself a poet, encouraged by her unlikely friendship with Emily. The text is illustrated with delicate and telling black and white sketches by Claire A. Nivola. It's a little masterpiece; appropriate when you consider its subject.

Middle School Monday - Learning about Thoreau

Our Ancient China studies fizzled this term and I know why. Instead of sticking with Charlotte Mason principles- living books, allowing the children to make their own connections - I bookmarked an impressive selection of resources and planned projects. I chose a read aloud on the basis of where it was set rather than how good it was. About the only thing that worked was a trip to the gallery to  see the Chinese Warriors. That, at least, left room for wonder and imagination.

So it's goodbye China, hello Henry! And this time, I'm doing it right.

We're reading some books. My Contract With Henry by Robin Vaupel is our new read-aloud. It's the story of a group of 9th grade outsiders who learn from each other and from the natural world around them when they are forced to work together on a Thoreau-inspired  'Experiment in Living'.

Then there's A Mind With Wings: The Story of Henry David Thoreau by Gerald and Loretta Hausman. The girls will take turns reading this Young Readers biography. Both these books were very kindly procured for us by my Dad, the inspiration for this unit in the first place!

Of course we'll be reading from Walden. Selected chapters only - there's no need to drown the girls in the pond...

Then, the lovely Robin Vaupel has kindly provided us with this.
Yes, a whole set of journal writing activities for middle-schoolers based on her own novel and on Thoreau's life and words. Oh, happy, happy me - free, organised and  meaningful ways to extend the reading we will have done. A record of learning! Of progress! And something the children will quite enjoy doing!

It seems to me that this will also be quite a good time to read some Emily Dickinson and have the girls memorise, write out or illustrate their favourite lines or poems.

The simplicity of this plan - besides being well-suited to its subject - leads to a kind of learning that is calm and has time to go deep. Unlike the dry and scattered unit that was China!

How Many SHS Members Does It Take to Eat a Pie?

Help yourself!!

Grammar Rap

Snowy and I came up with a little rhyme to help him remember some grammar. Not sure how I'll go indicating the rhythm of it in print, but I'll try!

A noun is the name of a person, place or thing.
A ver-er-erb....is a doing word!
An adjective describes.
An adverb (pause....) adds information.

He knows it off by heart now so if I ask him to give me a verb, for example, he can just think of the line and that acts as a little memory jogger. Hmmm. Maybe I need to record it instead. It sounds way cooler when we perform it. Or maybe that's just deluded - homeschool - mother talk!