narration

Narration ~ Discussion ~ Debate


Todays blast from the past was written in Jan, 2006. The daughter that I talk about is now 19 years old.

Narration and discussion have been a cornerstone of our family’s learning style and I just wanted to share something that happened the other day.

Miss A (14 yodd) came to me yesterday as she wanted to ‘discuss and debate’ some lyrics of an album that she wants to purchase. Miss A has learned that lyrics and a performer’s lifestyle are very important to me- I look at more than the genre of music.

As we sat and discussed the lyrics of some songs I asked her if we could read some hymns out loud, to which she happily agreed. The difference that she could see is that the hymns are straight out- one doesn’t have to ‘read between the lines’ in order to grasp what is being sung whereas her songs had a special meaning that could be ambiguous UNLESS you knew the story behind the songs. She then went on to research articles, interviews and quotes from the band, which proved to be very beneficial to both of us. (I can see that some songs are performance based, while others are more directly for worship – participatory, not performance)

Not only could this be documented as an academic lesson (worldview, research, debate, reasoning, etc) it was more a life lesson as well as relational building. It drew us closer together so that she continues to feel free to bring anything to me (her words). Throughout this she is learning how to apply God’s Word to her daily life! I’m seeing that she is allowing God’s Word to shape her worldview. Wahoo! is anything more exciting than that?

I’m convinced that the early years of narration, leading on to discussion has helped keep our lines of communication open and in turn, allowed her to verbalise her thoughts as she goes through a thinking process.

Just wanted to share this little happening with you all and encourage you to keep focusing on narration and discussion with your children.

Poetry using the Observation and Activity Sheets

Inkster_Definition_Observer

The past few posts have outlined how we gently and naturally enjoy poetry and learn about a variety of topics through it. Sometimes I might ask the boys to fill out a 5W and H sheet but usually it is just an informal process involving discussion. Below are some of the 5W’s and a H we’ve discussed, while enjoying The Man from Snowy River, using the 5W’s and a H Observation sheet, which you can download from the downloads page.

  • Who wrote the poem?
  • What can you tell me about A.B. Paterson?
  • On which Australian banknote would you find a picture of Mr. Paterson?
  • Do you know when this poem was written?
  • When do you think this even took place in Australia’s timeline?
  • Who is major character or who is the poem referring to?
  • What other people are mentioned?
  • What is the main event or events?
  • Tell me what you know about the bushmen. Describe them.
  • Where did this event take place? Describe the location and surroundings.
  • Along with the Poet Biographical Outline, I have the boys choose one or more activities from the Activity Sheets (also available from the downloads page) to complete.

I’ve found that using the Observation Sheet is a key element in the art of narration. Whilst the girls seemed to be able to narrate for days on end, the Observation Sheet has been invaluable for the boys. It helps them to look for the main points in a story, poem or movie. Whilst I certainly don’t like to reduce any art form or literary medium to a basic ‘who-why-what-when-where’ format, it is helpful for those who find a rich, literary style rather superfluous.

😉

HOWTA Book Study: Introduction

HOWTAIt’s HOWTA Book Study time.

Introduction

Who likes to cook? Prepare yummy nutritious meals for their family? Do you have a favourite cookbook? Are you the type who follows the recipe to the letter or do you like to add variation by supplementing or complementing the dish? Do you overly stress about meal planning? Do you even meal plan? How far in advance do you plan?

See, I reckon that we’d have many different responses here, based upon our different personalities and backgrounds. The HOW TA is similar in approach. Robin has recognised that we need to eat nutritiously! That we need to use some key ingredients, but that they may vary from time to time…but every recipe has a key ingredient that simply cannot be left out- the dish will not be right otherwise!

So we set about baking a cake. We assemble the flour, eggs, sugar, butter and choc chips. 😛 Then, we cream the butter and the sugar, add in the other ingredients and bake it in the oven. Next, we ice our cake with some fudge frosting cake, decorated with a few sliced strawberries on top, with a dollop of whipped cream. We try to exercise control as we have one moderate piece with a nice hot cup of tea. 😉

Here we have a basic recipe with ingredients, a method of preparation and an outcome.

Robin likens our endeavours of home education to this; we have the:

  • Ingredients ( Bible, books, video’s etc) and we have:
  • Certain methods ( 4 step method, copywork, narration, scrapbooking, literature based, etc) and we have:
  • A desired outcome (presentation and consumption of good ideas)

The HOWTA contains two main recipes. One is a recipe that we should consume on a daily basis and that is God’s Word. The second is a recipe for a unit study. Robin tells us that we are free to adapt this recipe to suit our family’s needs. Let’s dig in and have a closer overview of the Main Course eh?

The Main Course – the main dish/ingredient in our main course is the Bible.
Well, how many times have we said, “Well duh, of course!” and then continued on our merry way? Or am I the only one who has done that? 😳

HOW provides a Bible approach in the way of chronological readings along with various nutritious seasonings like Bible study tools. You need to work out the exact measurements for your own family though. That’s the beautiful thing about it! It isn’t purely a One Size Fits All meal. Have you ever eaten a pre-packed TV dinner? They’re okay when you’re in a pinch (they might serve a purpose) but ya can’t live off them regularly and expect to be healthy!

Okay, do we have any side dishes and side dish recipes? Of course- every good meal does! Ours include the study of history, science and life skills. Also included are living books, video’s, and the Internet. What about a sprinkling of geography, composition, religion, government, economics, and more? Sure thing! Robin tells us that all we need to complete our meal is a dish of maths, phonics, a foreign language and other electives.

Now, let’s move on to planning the meal! We have the recipes, we have the side dishes. We have the method of how to prepare it. Robin encourages us to NOT leave out the Essential Ingredient – the Bible. But this meal planning business? Well, the HOWTA even helps us with that. Four years worth of meal plans! Okay, a schedule or plan to cover 4 years worth of study. Then repeat that three times and you have 12 years worth of meal plans!

Robin tells us that if we use the HOW teaching approach we can use the recipes provided (the HOW unit studies available) or we can devise our own recipes by modifying the recipes. I’ve found it helpful to also use the method in other lessons.whether or not I’m using a HOW unit study or not.

The HOW Teaching Approach book is compiled into five sections.

1) Lessons from Exodus
2) Rethinking Education
3) HOW Methods
4) HOW Instructions
5) Resources

LINKS
Heart of Wisdom
Purchase the HOWTA book: buy the book and view many sample pages
HOW Teaching Approach: for articles and further reading.

Any comments or questions so far?

Updates: new downloadable freebies at Kerugma

Just a quick note to let readers know that I have added a few more downloadable freebies to the Kerugma site. You can find them at Kerugma, in the Download area, under Bible Study Resources.

Activity Sheets used in steps 3 and 4.

Observation Sheet : narration prompt, writing prompt or research aide

Lesson template: for devising your own lesson plans- based on Kerugma Bible studies

Idea Bookmark : for use with Kerugma Bible study

Vocabulary Worksheets

Outline of Author : Standard sheet for students to use when completing an Author Outline

Chapter Summary Form: this form can be used as a worksheet or simply as narration style prompts.

Book Report: We use these forms as part of our record keeping system.

Book Synopsis: slightly different to a book report. We use this form as well.

Attendance Sheet : Adaptable for any year

Australia, from the beginning: our course of study while reading the book by Eve Pownall. It is only a ‘bare bones’ framework but provides room for more.

What is Labour Day : worksheet for students to complete.

Kitchen Duties: see my blog post for details

Feel free to leave a comment in you have enjoyed the downloads, or if there is anything in particular that you’d like to see.

More coming as time permits…

Updated 19/07/2009

Dreamworld Narration

John has given me permission to share his narration of our trip to Dreamworld. At the time of writing, John was 12 years old and has had no to little formal writing instruction, although he is quite widely read for his age. I have left it complete with grammar and spelling errors but I have removed the names of the friends that accompanied us, for their privacy.

(Be warned…this is long although you won’t see me complain! 😉 He enjoys writing, which is good. It means I have something to work with. As yet, we have not gone over this writing and edited it…it was more of a freewrite than a formal exercise. He makes a common mistake, just like me, in that he changes tenses.)

DreamWorld
28th October, 2007.

Yesterday, the 28’th of October, 2007, we went to DreamWorld. Today, the 29’th, I’ll tell you about it.

We woke up, got ready, and piled the Esky into the car. We get in our seats. Dad turns the keys. The tension builds up! Dad turns the keys a bit more, and the car doesn’t start. So, Dad and Mum went to buy jumper leads. We rolled the Van down the driveway, then the Ford, and we connected the batteries together. Then, Dad turned on the car and it starts. Finally, after forty minutes, we start moving. We stopped of at a petrol station, fueled up, and set off again. We stopped at the Heston’s house, picked up Nathan and Lauren, and we set off for DreamWorld. The seating places were simple. Girls in the front-back, boys in the back-back. In a van, you have three sets of chairs. We call the front ones the “front”, the middle ones the “front-back”, and the back ones the “back-back”.

We got to DreamWorld uneventfully, and parked in a lone park somewhere near the gates. We got out, walked up to the gates and prepared ourselves for the lineup that was sure to come. And it did come. After fifteen minutes, we got into DreamWorld, and we split into three groups. ‘Master C’ , Mum and Dad together. ‘Miss A’ N and L together, and Beck and myself (that’s John, by the way) together. Beck and myself traveled to the Giant Drop, where we waited in-line for ten or so minutes before we got on. On the Giant Drop, you travel 120 metres at a slow rate, and then you wait for around two minutes. After those two minutes have past, hold on tight. You plummet to the ground super fast – fast enough to leave your stomach at the top, anyway – and scream till your mouth bursts from the pain of having it open to long. After falling for around thirty seconds, it suddenly slows down and then you’re at land again. You walk off feeling pale and scared, then you go toward a gift shop to see your silly picture of you holding on to the rails for dear life. Now that it is over, you laugh at your picture. You weren’t laughing when you came down, I would like to guess! At the gift shop, you can either print your photo or just look at the silly faces you and your chair mates were bound to make. This ride is fun when it’s over, fun while it is at the top, but not fun while going down. Going on this ride after lunch is a stupid idea, unless you like the taste of vomit.

The next ride Beck and myself went on was the Tower of Terror. I had my eyes closed the whole time on this ride, so I will not be able to explain much, but I’ll do my best. First, we walked through a skull door and into a airconditioned metalic room. Waiting inline wasn’t too bad with the airconditioner. When the line started moving a bit, we saw ourselves walking over a city (a city out of clay/cement, of course) on a small glass platform that looked like it would break any second. But hey, if it could hold the person infront of us (who was rather weight challenged), it could hold us. After walking over that, we found ourselves in a red “spooky” room. It wasn’t spooky, but that was the effect they were trying to get across. In here, the airconditioning ended. It was boiling in this room, and we couldn’t wait to get out of it. We were in there for over twenty minutes. That’s the thing with DreamWorld. More time inline than inride. Once we finally got out, we walked onto some red chairs, strapped ourselves in and then suddenly the cart we were in sped off at 160 kilometres per hour. After three or more painful seconds, you get to the rise. You start climbing up a tower almost thirty eight stories high. This was freaky. Actually, it wasn’t freaky for me, because I didn’t see a thing. Sorry I can’t explain better, but I just couldn’t open my eyes or take my hands of the bar to wave them in the air like the “idiots” on the side of me. I only thought them to be idiots because they were screaming in my ear louder than my sister, and she screams loud. Too loud, in my opinion. Anyone who goes to DreamWorld has to go on this ride. Also, if they could please send their picture to me, I would be happy. My picture wasn’t too happy, though. This is even worse than the Giant Drop.

After we went on that one, that freaky one, we traveled into the Wiggle World. Uhh…lets just say, we were out faster than the Giant Drop drops. I can still hear “potato salad! Yeah, potato salad!” in my ear. We found ourselves in the water area. Having no bathers, we walked out, but not before a ride on the Reef Diver. Beck and myself thought this would be a nice relaxing ride. Hah! Relaxing my…err, hat. We thought it would only spin around, like a merry go round. It didn’t, it span around peacfully then rised itself to almost the hight of a three story building. Here’s the description of it on DreamWorld’s website:

“Forget the flippers, you won’t need them on this giant vertical whirlpool of fun”

They really could have taken the time to get a better description for one of DreamWorld’s best rides.

After we went on that, we went to Mick Doohan’s (or something like that.) “moto-coaster“. Actually, we didn’t go on till over an hour of waiting inline. Ridiculous, to say the least. After our boring one hour of waiting inline, we finally got on. I had my leg in the wrong way, so the whole fifty seconds (you heard me right. One hour waiting for fifty seconds) was painful more than you could imagine. This ride was, I’m sorry to say, pathetic. Too slow, too painful, and not worth the wait. After this silly ride, we went back for lunch, and found everyone else there. We bought a Frozen Coke, and sat down. The frozen coke was nice after three or more merciless hours in the hot sun, but it was expensive in comparison with the MacDonald’s one.

After lunch Dad took all of us to the Tower of Terror. ‘Master C’ started crying and crying because he was scared of the ride, even though he went on it before. Finally we got him to go on it (he didn’t really have a choice) and again, I closed my eyes. If I ever go on that ride again, I will keep my eyes open, I promise! Then, I will give you a good description.
After that blood thrilling ride that almost made me vomit, Beck, L and myself went out together and we went on the Claw twice, then we went on the Reef Diver. The girls wanted to be by themselves, and I wanted to be by myself too. This time, it wasn’t as scary. Last time, Beck must has been rocking the carriage, because this time I was fine except Beck and L screaming in the carriges infront of me.

After that, we went into the Vortex, whereupon we found ‘Miss A’ and N inside. The Vortex span around rather fast, I don’t know how fast though. It span around so fast that you couldn’t remove your hand from the side of it, though I’m sure it was the shape as well. It was shaped like the classic “UFO” that aliens drive in sci-fi movies.

After that, we went on the Cyclone. “Cyclone is one of the tallest high-speed gravity roller coasters in the Southern Hemisphere.” is a good description for this ride. I had my eyes closed this whole ride, so I can’t exactly tell you what it was like, but I can tell you I had my head bashed around quite a bit especially on those 360 loops. got off this ride uneventfully, and the pictures the computer took had my eyes open! I must have blinked them open suddenly. If I can do the Cyclone, I can do anything!

After the Cyclone, we went on The Claw again. I should probably explain this ride, as it is one of the “thrill rides”, so I will go on about it now.The Claw is a 360 swinger and spinner that often swings you to over nine stories high, and pushes you around seventy-five km/h in ten or so blood curdling swings. This is not as bad as the Tower of Terror, and it is no where near as high, but it is still not one for after a meal.

After we went on The Claw for the last time, also the last time The Claw would go around that day, we went back to the center of DreamWorld. It was nearing five-o clock, so we headed for the car. We got to the car and drove to the H’s house. We dropped off N, and L came home with us.

Well, that’s about all that happened yesterday, and I hope people can understand my weird style of writing and spelling mistakes.

Here’s an overall summary:

I think DreamWorld was a fun experience, and I am glad that Dad took us there. Thanks, Dad! At the end of the day, we were all tired but content.

My favourite rides were the Tower of Terror, The Claw, and the Reef Diver. The Giant Drop comes close in fourth.

I liked the Tower of Terror for it’s blood thrilling, freaked out type of style. I liked the Claw for it’s swinging motion, that made me feel sick but freaked out when I looked down. I liked the Reef Diver for its very small line up and peaceful but “scary” ride. And it should be obvious why I liked the Giant Drop. If it’s not obvious, I like the Giant Drop for its adrenaline rushing, blood-pumping fall.

Freewriting: Bravewriter and Heart of Wisdom

Dreamworld Narration – 10yo

‘Master C’ has given me permission to share his first attempts at written narration. This is not a narration from a book but from an event. It is of a day that we went, as a family, to Dreamworld. I have left it complete with grammar and spelling errors but I have removed the names of the friends that accompanied us, for their privacy. ‘Master C’ had recently turned 10 at the time of writing.

DreamWorld
28th Oct 2007

Opens at 10:00 Am – Closes at 5:30 Pm

Yesterday we went to DreamWorld. We all got up and got ready we started to get in the car then someone left a door open. So the battery was flat. Dad and Mum had to go down to the shop to get Jumperleads. When they came back we reversed both cars down the driveway and put the cars in place. Dad soon got the car working so we started on our trip to the H’s. There we picked up N, and L and left for DreamWorld.

It took abuot half a hour to get there. When we did get there it took another fifteen minutes to get in the gates. Then when we got in we had a small talk then we split up. Dad and Mum came with me and John went with Beck and ‘Miss A’ went with N and L.

Dad and Mum and I went to the Goldrush Country. And we went to the Rapid Water ride. When we got on it went under a cave with plastic people inside it. Then it got up to the heavy waves and we all got a little bit wet, then it came to the end and we got off.

We kept walking and Mum was trying to find the log water ride and we found it. We waited in the big line and when we finally got on it stopped at a place for a while then it started going again. It went up a small ramp in a building and then fell in water and we got a bit wet then it went through a small cave then we looked up and we saw a rhino and then we got out of the cave and there was another cave with a sign at the entry. It said, Heavy Waters Ahead. “Watch out heavy waters are ahead” said Mum and there was a little wave and we were out of the cave and turning around into a big building that made us go up then down out of the building into the water and splash! all this water went on us and we got soaked. Then it turned and that was the end of the log water ride. So we kept walking we saw a cart type thing go past us and go on top of a tower so I said “Lets go on that ride” and then Mum said “No I dont want to go on that” Mum looked scared but Dad said “Lets go on it” while Mum was looking scared. So we were heading through Wiggle World and we walked under a tunnel and then walked up a ramp and saw a skull. We looked at the top and it said “TOT” meaning Tower of Terror so we walked in.

There was a huge line so we waited we got to a bridge type of thing with glass under us and under the bridge was a small model of a city with sounds of police sirens. We walked past the bridge and there was a staircase with a big line on it. We got up the staircase and to safety zone 3 and we saw a big door with sign one sign saying ‘front row’ and one saying ‘back row’ and another saying ‘third row’. The door opened after a while and we saw a car type of thing. We stepped on the third row of the car and put small seatbelts on. I saw a man walk to a small room. I saw him press a button and I saw a camrea flash and we started moving really fast. It kept going and went up a huge mountain type of thing then it fell back down to where we came from. We got our bags and went away down a elevator. Dad pretended the elevator was ment to be scarey so he screamed loudly. When the elevator got down we saw a shop. We went to the counter and looked at the photo`s.

So we went to the motocoster where there was a huge line. When we finally got there I wanted to go into the sidecar, Dad wanted to go to Pole Positoin (position). Mum wanted to sit in the middle so we all sat in the middle for Mum. When I put something down it got stuck on my leg and it hurt. I was screaming the whole race. we finally got off and we went to go for lunch.

We were waiting for ‘Miss A’ and Beck and L, N and John. They came. Mum and Dad went to go to the car for some rolls with chease. When we were done we went in a group to the Tower of Terror again. I was crying so much becase I didnt want to go again but Mum foreced me to. So I did and I didnt care. I had my eyes a little bit open. John had his eyes closed fully when we did the Tower of Terror. We looked at the Photo and it looked good so we bought the Photo. The Photo looked funny becase someone in the bottem left.

We walked to the Claw Thrill ride. Mum went on it and we took Photo`s on our camara while Mum was on the Claw. Next we went to the Cyclone but I didnt want to go on. I wanted Mum and Dad to go on but they did not want to go on without me. So we walked to the bumper cars. Mum kept bumping me while i was trying to go in a circle so i bashed Mum for to bumps.

Then we walked to the IMax Theater we watched a space station documentry.

About a space statoin.

Then we walked out to a chair and waited for John, L, N, ‘Miss A’ , and Beck to come. We talked for a while then we walked out of DreamWorld and got in the car and we drove back to the H`s house. We dropped off N but L stayed with us. And we drove back to our house with L. We got back and ate and stayed up for a little while then we got told to go to sleep.

My Favorite rides Are:
Tower of Terror
Motocoster
Rapid water ride

The rides i went on:
Tower of Terror
Motocoster
Rapid water ride
Log water ride
Bumper cars
The End

Activity Sheets Narration Freebie

I use a teaching method that I learnt from Heart of Wisdom called the 4mat system. I have modified it slightly to suit the needs of our family. I have found these steps to be very beneficial in not only our Bible study but when approaching all lessons.

I have created the anagram IDEA to help you remember the steps. (see the for a printable bookmark based on ‘IDEA’)

IDEA

  • I is for Introduce
  • D is for Digging Deeper
  • E is for Examine & Elaborate
  • A is for Apply to My Life

You can see more about this format of lessons over at the . However, I also wanted to mention the Activity Ideas that go along with steps 3 and 4. These are not all my own original ideas (is there really such a thing?) but I have complied the list. I have spent years gathering the various ideas and then compiled them into the four various activity types.

You’ll find many activities categorised within the following sections: Creative Drawing and Building Activities, Creative Drama Activities, Written Activities and Oral Activities. These Activity Ideas can be used with any learning activity and any subject. They can be as simple or as complex as you like! You might start to notice that your child has a particular bent for one type of activity and I have been asked if one should allow them to only choose the same activity each time. I will share what I have done with my children.

When my children were a little younger, I would encourage them toward choosing a variety of activities. This prevented them from only developing in certain areas an helped them to develop in a few areas. It’s like body building. When a child is young we don’t make them to 100’s of sit up’s each day in order to strengthen their abdominals. Rather we want them to play outside in a variety of activities which will strengthen the whole body.

Later though, as their interests and talents have presented themselves to me, I will allow them to narrow the choices a little. I have found that my older children do strongly desire one type of activity more so than anther and once they are older I believe this is important in allowing them to develop in the ways that God wants them to develop. But in the younger years, I try to aim for variation in order to expose them to more.

You can find the Activity Sheets for download on the (along with a few other freebies). If you use the Activity Sheets in any lessons (including your Bible times) please drop me a line and let me know.

Dealing with Shyness

I am naturally quite shy. Yes, it can quite hard to believe because I can be verbose when online. But I really am shy in real life. I find it very hard to go into groups of people or even to meet people one on one. But I force myself. I have taught myself over the years how to control my feelings of shyness, although it is still a natural tendency within me.

I noticed that one of my girls was very naturally ‘reserved’ as well. Different from shy in that she would talk to me a lot but was very reserved and never seemed to open up and just let herself have fun. She was always so serious. She still is, but she’s learning. I taught both my girls how to talk to people. I tried to teach them that it isn’t about themselves, but about others. Meeting the needs of others should be greater than serving our own needs. That young, reserved girl has now fully embraced that teaching and is now very sociable. She can be the life of the party and give speeches in front of large crowds, but she has learned that whilst she is capable fo doing so, it drains her and she needs some quiet time along in order to re energise.

Shyness as a Mask

Sometimes, shyness can be a mask of something else – sometimes it is talked about as low self esteem. And who I am to say any different? but I do know that shyness can also mask pride. Yes, pride. I don’t want to look silly or dumb. I don’t want anyone to think less of me. So rather than speak up and risk that, I keep quiet.

Shyness can also be selfishness. We can deny others knowledge, friendship, and the benefit of others knowing they’re not alone, but we need to go out of our comfort zone, to think of others and learn to live despite shyness. As a believer, I try to think ‘less of me, more about others‘.

Shyness can also mask fear, which shouldn’t be allowed to control me. With a good attitude, skills, practice and prayer I can learn to live with it.

There are probably more serious conditions that are related to mental illness and other serious disorders which all need to be considered, but those issues are beyond the scope of this post.

Four Keys to Training

Seeing an example can foster desire. Coupled with learning skills and practicing the art of communication are important keys when training our children to be social and effective communicators.

As parents, we can address the shyness by using all four keys. Be the example. Enjoy relating with people and let the children see us using relational skills. We can directly teach skills and have role play sessions in the safety of home, and then we can practice those skills and arts throughout the day with other people.

I found that having a few good friends and family members was beneficial. I spoke to them separately and solicited their help! I gave them cues or particular points of conversation so that they would be able to open a conversation with my children. This allowed my children to practice their skills in a safe and non threatening environment. I reciprocated with their kids as well.

Important Points:

  • eye contact
  • firm but gentle greeting
  • open ended questioning style of conversation
  • learn to read people- tone of voice, body language, etc
  • practice good body language (borrow a book from the library)
  • offer feedback to person’s responses (narration helps with understanding)
  • less of ‘me’ (or personal pronouns) and more about the other person
  • learn how to ask questions

I’ve found that the more general knowledge I have, the better conversationalist I can be. Even though I don’t know a lot about much I have learned how to ask questions. This in turn gets the other person talking about their interest, and I learn something, which in turns comes back full circle by making me a better communicator. So while it isn’t about being smart, it’s about the ‘other person’ and not myself.

I am not the only one who struggles with being shy. A lot of people do! And so I need to be gracious and accept others. If they’re not talking to me easily, it may not be because they hate me- they simply may not be great communicators themselves or having a bad day. This allows me to then focus on someone else other than myself.

Like any new skill or art, this needs practice. And room for failure. It’s to be expected. But in doing so, we learn more about ourselves and how we think, how we respond and how to improve.

I am still shy. I still need lots of quiet time so that I can be re-energised. But I have learned not to allow my shyness to control me or to rule me.

Whoever isolates himself seeks his own desire; he breaks out against all sound judgment.
~Proverbs 18:1

Work Smarter, Not Harder

In my early years of learning at home I worked pretty hard. I sorted curriculum, marked worksheets and workbooks and planned out each week’s work. A large part of my Sunday evening was spent in ‘teacher time’. I really enjoyed it…at the time. Once I realised that I could emulate school and do a fairly good job of it the novelty wore off, especially when I observed how well my children learned many things naturally, in their everyday environment.

Then came Testing Time! We tested by using oral narrations, as the children were still quite young and narration was our most frequently used method of learning and processing information. I was a little dismayed to find that while the girls were able to recall some of the information that had taken me some time to devise into a course of study, there was a lot that they simply didn’t retain! I was yet to learn (have understanding and wisdom, not just knowledge) that the early years of childhood and education are more about exposing children to great ideas, stimulating their minds, nourishing their heart and soul, forming good habits and developing daily disciples than sheer academics. 🙂

I think it all started when we went away on a holiday. We were exposing the children to a variety of experiences…we put stimulating ideas before them…we gave them nourishing thoughts to ponder, interesting things to do and see…and their learning took off, all of its own accord! They were growing, developing, learning (and enjoying it), and true education was happening yet it wasn’t laborious for me, nor for them! It wasn’t hard. I started to question the value of everything I had been doing. I was working pretty hard yet was beginning to sense that it wasn’t the most efficient way to work or learn.

I discovered that simply doing workbooks and reading lots of books is not enough life experience for my children to learn all that they have to learn – there has to be more. That ‘more’ has to be in the form of establishing relationships with others and with God. This enables them to have many experiences in which they can learn from. However, I also learned that I could spend hours reading a good book to the girls yet they wouldn’t only retain a marginal amount of it. How frustrating. Why did this happen? how could I maximise that proportion? I’ve found that by reading the books with them allows me to know what is going on so long after the book is finished, we can still talk about the book or movie. We can relate back to certain incidences and learn from that. If I’m not a part of that with them then that opportunity is limited. The key here is for me to be with the children. While it may seem the harder or longer road, it is actually the smarter, easier road.

The primary years are ones of collecting knowledge. I imagine it to be a smorgasboard where the children can sample a huge variety of foods, tasting each one a few times to see what really grabs them. I would have them sample the marinated mushrooms and picked octopus at least three times before they can declare that they don’t like them. But I’ll carefully observe them during this time…watching to see how they taste, what they naturally gravitate toward. This arms me with valuable information about each child. I take note of their individual likes and dislikes and I plan the meals accordingly. Naturally, I don’t cater to every whim and fancy. Some meals will still have picked octopus in them! It is good for them to learn character and good manners by eating something they don’t naturally like. Plus the slow and regular exposure to it may just help to form their taste buds and appetite. 😉 (but that’s a whole ‘nother post) How does one eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Even though my child may not be interested in nature study I will still want them to sample it. Even this sampling can have an effect upon their lives. But I don’t need to get caught up in it or feel guilty about not doing it if it is not pleasant to our palate. However, my time might be better served by focussing on the foods that they will eat. I can always disguise the octopus and mushrooms and hide them in another dish. 😉

There are times when we should require 100% of best effort from our students and other times when it is acceptable to ask for less, if they are sampling and deciding what next to focus upon. We need to teach our children how to give 100% and deliver good quality but we also need to teach them how to optimise their time and how to look for things that yield productivity.

What do you spend most of your time learning about? Is it working for you? What is most important to you as a homeschool mother? In your homeschool, what activities give you the greatest results? Do you need to re-prioritise and refocus your energies?

Charlotte Mason 1

There are now countless websites and blogs devoted to the teaching and philosophy of Charlotte Mason. Back in 200, when this article was first written, I intended for this to be brief. Considering the amount of information now available, this is now ridiculously brief. Rather than attempt to rewrite the article I’ll simply post some links to good websites.

So Can We Sum Up The Methods Briefly?

We are leading the children to self-education. The reading of the best books facilitates this. Instead of comprehension questions and workbooks, narration is used. Narration is a natural yet extremely powerful tool that we can use in all areas of learning. Very simply, it is the telling back of what they have read or of what has been a read-aloud. Through narration, we can also see what the child does know, not what the child does not know. Whilst narration can be easy, natural and free it is also a complex process of which is very valuable and important in later years.

There is a strong emphasis on “living books“. (A living book is the opposite of a textbook and workbook) Texts and encyclopedias are good and contain much valuable information, however they are only facts. Dry facts. Living books allow the readers to become a part of the book, enabling them to understand the story, time custom etc. more clearly. They are well written and what Charlotte Mason would say are “clothed in literary language“. Living books do not talk down to a child’s level or leave out odd and interesting vocabulary.

Short lessons, which take place in the morning, keep children stimulated and focussed.

Copywork begins with careful penmanship, learning to make the letters and numbers correctly, producing a few perfect examples rather than a page of work that becomes sloppy. Once the letters are learned, then simple words, then sentences, paragraphs, and so on can be done, according to the age and ability of the student.

Charlotte Mason strongly emphasised the formation of Habits. She wrote, “the habits of the child produce the character of the man . . .every day, every hour, the parents are either passively or actively forming those habits in their children upon which, more than upon anything else, future character and conduct depend.” Many, who have read Charlotte Mason’s Six Volume Series agree that one of her favorite analogies with regard to habits is that they are similar to tracks for a train. The same way that it is easier for the train to stay on the tracks than to leave them, so it is for the child to follow lines of habit carefully laid down than to run off these lines. Because habits are so powerful, she tried to emphasize to parents that it is our responsibility to lay down these tracks. Charlotte Mason considered habit a delight in itself, and the training in habits becomes a habit for the mother. The choice is ours, as Charlotte put it, “The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days; while she who lets their habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction with the children.”

I hope I have assisted you in becoming more familiar with the woman, Charlotte Mason and the methods that she espoused.

Recommended reading
“For The Children’s Sake” by Susan Schaeffer Mcaulay
“A Charlotte Mason Education” A how-to manual. By Catherine Levinson
“A Charlotte Mason Companion” by Karen Andreola
“Charlotte Mason Study Guide ” by Penny Gardner
“Charlotte Mason’s Original Homeschooling Series” by Charlotte Mason (six volume series)

Charlotte Mason series:
Part One: the woman and the philosophy,
Part Two (methods in brief),
Part Three (subject covered)

Charlotte Mason 3

Charlotte Mason Methods

originally written in 2000

Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education is becoming more popular as people realize what a simple, yet profound, method it is. Still, many home educators have never been introduced to Charlotte Mason’s ideas.

Who was Charlotte Mason? When did she live?
masonCharlotte Mason was born in England in 1842. Her parents mainly educated her while at home. She was orphaned at the age of sixteen. Miss Mason was an innovative educator who developed a unique approach to education. She believed that all children should have access to a broad, liberal education and to be allowed to reach their full potential. She started a teacher’s training college and many parents who educated their children at home flocked to her ideas. During her life she taught school, was a lecturer at a Teacher Training College, wrote many books and pamphlets, started a training school for governess’ which became Charlotte Mason College, became a popular public lecturer, established the Parents National Education Union (PNEU), and was Editor of it’s magazine, “Parent’s Review”. Charlotte Mason also taught parents, held retreats and classes on building the family. Charlotte Mason believed that all would benefit from a rich education and life. Her philosophy of education is designed for homes, private schools, and homeschools. Charlotte Mason had never claimed to have invented the methods that she put forth, rather she modified and combined them in a practical and intelligent way. Her methods include Narration and copywork, Nature Notebooks, Fine Arts, Languages, a Literature based curriculum instead of textbooks, and real-life applications. Charlotte Mason passed away in 1923 and was and is admired by many people. She was a Christian woman who dearly loved children and education.

What are the benefits of using her approach?
This is true learning. Children’s listening, attention, comprehension, retention, speaking, and writing skills all improve from using narration as a major part of education. It has been called a literature based approach and whilst this is an important aspect of the methods, it is definitely not limited. Most people find that they enjoy their homeschooling so much more since using Charlotte Mason’s methods. It can be inexpensive to use this method of schooling.

All one really needs to purchase is a language/phonics program and a Math book. Most that use this method buy lots of good literature, and in fact, have been known to be avid book collectors. But, you can get all resources from your local library. We enjoy the short lessons, which helps cut down on dawdling. The utilisation of “short lessons” helps prevent dawdling and encourages the student to have a focused attention span and sets good study habits. Families enjoy learning about real people in real places instead of dry, hard, cold facts. Science is a hands-on approach with lots of nature study. Fine literature, good art and music also are studied and enjoyed in this approach.

Another benefit is that each child is free to work at their own pace while still having a sense of achievement. No push to reach a particular *grade* or level. So this approach may be used with intermediate or advance learners or with slow or special needs children.

Charlotte Mason series:
Part One: the woman and the philosophy,
Part Two (methods in brief),
Part Three (subject covered)

Writing Lessons with the Boys

Charlotte Mason’s methods and other natural learning methods were wonderful with my girls for teaching them English skills. They both write quite well. Narration has formed the cornerstone or basis of their English lessons. However, the boys have an aversion to pencils and paper so writing has always been tedious and something down further on the ‘to-do’ list. I’ve been trying to focus on it a little more lately by using the 5W’s and an H and requiring more detailed narrations. It’s been like pulling teeth. So I did what I always do when I need to go back to the drawing board. I researched new curricula and/or methods. But nowadays, I am pretty particular as I have learned what I need, what the boys need, and what has most chance of success. A program could be the best program available, with all the bells and whistles available, but if it relies too heavily upon me, then it won’t get done. If it requires too much pencil work from the boys, then it won’t get done. If it is something that needs to be done every day, of every week, of every month of every year, then it won’t get done.

I was leaning heavily toward Institute for Excellence in Writing products as they have a dvd lesson which teaches directly to the student, yet also requires a little of me. The boys are achieving success using Math-U-See so I thought that something similar would be a hit. I received the program in the mail (Thanks Linda from Adnil) and spent some time looking over it. Wow, to say that I felt overwhelmed would be an understatement! However, I am trying to persevere with it.

Yesterday, the boys did the first lesson on outlining using key words. Today, the learned about writing a new paragraph from their keywords. I am allowing them to use the computer rather than handwriting their keywords and paragraph as getting the ideas and thoughts flowing is more important to me than using a pencil. I was very happy with their work today. Below is 10yo ‘Master C’ and 12yo John’s paragraphs. (I have their permission to share their work)

Sea Wasps
By ‘Master C’

Sea Wasps are the most venomous jellyfish with a poisoning ability greater then any snake. Sea Wasps search for shrimps on the beach. Sea Wasps have a deadly sting after humans get stung they only have seconds to stagger back to the beach. Sea Wasps are transparent and are difficult to see. Sea Wasps are not found in America and Europe but they are found in Australia. This blob of neurotoxin is quite capable of killing fifty or more people.

Sea Wasps
By John

The Sea Wasp is a venomous type of jellyfish, with poison stronger than that of a snake. While looking for food, it often floats into the shore of Australian beaches, causing danger to swimmers that swim along the beach. When a swimmer gets stung by one, the effect is deadly and gives them seconds to reach the beach. It is very transparent, making it difficult to see and making it harder to avoid. It is not found in anywhere in America or Europe, but makes its home around Australian beaches. It is quite capable of killing fifty or more people. Some may consider it the most dangerous creature alive.

Narration has always been a little more difficult for the boys and after years of persisting and encouraging I knew I needed to give them some key skills that narration could give them, but it wasn’t as they found it cumbersome and difficult. I’m hoping we’re on to a good thing here for the boys.

Using the 5W's and a H

Do you use the 5W’s and a H to teach your children? I do! I have found it beneficial in more than one way.

When the children were younger and narrating orally to me, the would sometimes forget, especially with some literary books that seem to waffle a bit and take time to get to the point. I started by telling them to remember as many nouns as they could.

Then I came across the idea of 5W’s and a H. It’s not a new idea at all…but it helps me to teach my children to research, to think logically and to organise their thoughts. I made a sheet which listed the W’s and a H and how it could relate to each and every chapter, book, story or movie. I also made a blank sheet so that the child can fill it in while reading. It can be used for all ages.

What are the 5W’s and a H?

Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?

I call it our Observation Sheet.

We have used these sheets for every subject, including Bible study. They can form as memory joggers or prompts when making a lapbook, writing an essay or a project. This sheet can easily be incorporated with other study skills such as mind-mapping. You can also use them as narration or writing prompts.

You can download a copy of the sheets below. Let me know if you use it, and if you find it beneficial.

Download link: Observation Sheet

Shakespeare Study, the HomeGrownKids Way

To study, or not to study Shakespeare: that is the question:

When I first read Charlotte Mason’s writings I was thoroughly blessed. The CM series gave me some valuable tools that I could use to enrich our home and family life. I had never read or viewed any Shakespeare play until about eight years ago! We didn’t read or study any when I was at school and I confess I thought it was very outdated. However, once I became a parent and desired that my children learn to speak well and appreciate books of a good literary standard I knew that at some point, I would like to introduce them to Shakespeare. When and how were what I didn’t know. But the CM series taught me how I could introduce my children to the world of Shakespeare.

The girls and I shared a few Shakespeare stories. First, we read the version by Arthur Mee, then the next week I’d read another story version by Charles and Mary Lamb and then Edith Nesbit but our favourite retellings are those by Leon Garfield.

I would have the girls write out a few paragraphs of the story for copy work. Then, I’d also have them write out a few selections from the play. We would use narration as well as paper cut out figures to keep the characters straight in our minds. Eventually, we would tackle the play in its entirety. Oh! the fun we would have by taking a part each and reciting in our most dramatic voices! 😀 We watched a few of the plays that have been made into good movies (but be very selective). Some of our favourites were with Kenneth Branagh and /or Emma Thompson.
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However, I have decided not to introduce my boys to Shakespeare at the same ages as the girls. I will at a later stage but not yet…I don’t think it is necessary. Why, I hear you ask? I’m happy to tell you why not…but before I do I would like to say that this is my conviction, this is something that I believe was right for our family and I wouldn’t like to tell anyone else what to do. Now having said that (my disclaimer) I would also say that I don’t believe your children will be missing out by not covering or learning of Shakespeare while in the primary years. There, I’ve said it! (I know there will be some that will disagree)

As I said, we read the story versions so that the girls would have an overview…a basic understanding of the plot. However, if we weren’t going to continue and read the original play I don’t see what value there was in starting to learn Shakspeare at such a young age. I do know that it felt good to be able to say to other homeshool mums, to non homeshcooling friends, that we were learning Shakespeare. Oh, some looked at us in admiration or with a stare of incredulity. Over time though, I was convicted of my motives. I was feeling homeschool pride! I felt that we were doing something that typical primary/middle schools didn’t cover- yet we could! Oh, to have the girls run around quoting a few lines of Shakespeare certainly did my homeschooling ego good. (I’m sure that none of the readers to this blog have ever felt such a thing as homeschool mama pride eh? 😉 ) Oi voi! God had other plans. He picked me up and gave me a solid talking to!

Shakespeare is fairly intense. The characters and the plot are complex. The original language certainly is beautiful and rich yet the story versions seemed so watered down. In fact, the story versions are almost twaddle, in my opinion. Twaddle that sees some characters blaspheme or joke about sin. As an adult or young adult, we can learn to discern these things. In fact, Shakespeare can be like a spotlight shining into our lives, revealing sin. Black is not always evil and white is not always pure with Shakespeare, which is how it is in real life but I wonder if it is too confusing for a younger child is who still in the process of learning basic Biblical doctrine.

I don’t want my young children hearing or learning about the racism and prejudice of the Jews. I want them to hear God’s side of the story first. I want them to learn about the history of Israel first. Of course, they will learn of bigotry and racism and hatred, but it won’t be dressed as humour or satire or with cynicism that can be difficult for a young child to discern. I firmly believe there is a time to teach Shakespeare. And the process is still the same: introduce via story versions, mind map the plot and characters, watch a good movie version and study the original play. I just don’t believe it is necessary with younger children. How much better to fill their young minds with Bible stories, stories of nature, stories of heroism, fairy tales, poems, stories that inspire? The time will come when they will need to know about Shakespeare and it is then that we, as parents, need to seize the moment and teach with discernment.

Yes, I have read all the benefits for reading Shakespeare. (Here and here are two well articulated arguments) My girls have already studied many of his plays. Yet I have chosen a different path for the boys (currently aged 10 and 12). Why? I think it is all part of an Identity Directed education…being able to tailor the curriculum…being Spirit Led in the education of each individual child. God knows these boys intimately. He knows the plans he has for them. So I seek Him for the educational direction of each child. This is how He is leading me with my boys. It may not be for you. It may be. What is important is that you, and me, individually seek God for direction of our family and homeschool, that we rely upon Him to meet the needs of our families.

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What do you think? Do you teach Shakespeare to your young children? If so, why? If you don’t, why not? I’d be interested in hearing your thoughts.

(No condemnation, I promise ;))

Does Your Child Read Aloud?

Is there any value in having children read aloud? As tedious as it may be, it has tremendous value! I love books! I love reading and I like reading aloud to the whole family. But what about having children read aloud to us?

Family reading

Having a child read aloud is recommended by teachers and experts (and deservedly so) as it has immense benefits such as:

  • diagnosing language and speaking problems,
  • building speaking skills,
  • developing hand/eye coordination between paragraph and page structure,
  • develops vocabulary,
  • stimulates the imagination,
  • encourages creativity with voice and, if practiced regularly, can help with self-confidence and esteem.

Whew! Reading aloud accomplishes an awful lot… so much for such a simple exercise. Exposure to good books will also assist later on in the years with creative writing and journal keeping. Some ideas for writing to read are to:

  • have the child write out your shopping list and then help you with the shopping,
  • read suitable sections of the newspaper with them,
  • create and maintain a journal with them – you write one day, they respond the next day. This provides them with positive feedback in a non-threatening way.

Start Early

While it’s never to late too start having your child read aloud, it’s never too early either! If you think about it, most parents naturally do it anyway. Think about reading those first baby picture books that have pictures of single words like Mum, Dad, house, ball, dog, etc. Parents point to the picture and say the word, hoping for some response from the baby. Then gradually the books change and start to include more Repetition and Rhyme. Small children love repetition and rhyme and it is really important to their development. They will enjoy memorising and anticipating what comes next in a favourite book.

I have my children read aloud when they are learning to read. It isn’t something that is burdensome, it’s quite natural. When I am reading their book or reader with them, I simply ‘buddy read‘ with them. I’ll read a paragraph and then I’ll ask them to read a short passage. if they stumble over a word then I will help them. The goal is to build confidence and develop skills and fluency not to major on every word or expect perfection. Over time, they are able to read larger and more complicated passages. This is fairly standard with new and developing readers. Sadly though, once a child is fairly fluent in reading, many parents stop requiring their child to read aloud. 🙁

Next we might read some short poems. Choose poems that tell a story, have rhyme and rhythm and paint a word picture. Your child will love them!

Then comes the short chapter books with simple sentences where we help our child to decode words and read entire short sentences. As they try to sometimes make mistakes, we are there to help them along the way:correcting mistakes and helping them deal with frustration and congratulating them when they get it right. Once the children are fluent and capable readers there is no read to have them stop. Simply choose harder books and challenge them! 🙂 You can move on to read difficult passages in the Bible using the King James version, unabridged classics, poetry and speeches.

Good Literature

Reading aloud fine works of literature (or fine speeches) is the basis for public speaking (oratory skills) and is especially good for older children and boys. My boys are verbal with each other but not necessarily with me and the rest of the family. They don’t give wonderfully verbose and detailed oral narrations yet I know that they have the knowledge so I require them to read aloud a fair bit- to each other, to me, to their sisters and we still buddy read. I have them read their Bible and poetry out loud.

I also use reading aloud as an elocution (pronunciation) lesson. My boys can tend to mumble so we need to continue to practice it. Plus, I’d like it to be a habit so that they will naturally read to their own children. So why stop it?

My boys do lots of their own reading as they are in the ‘building fluency‘ stage so their books are suited to their developmental stage. When choosing passages for them to read aloud, I try to make them according to their level and ability without being too hard, yet still challenging. I try to challenge my daughters though as they are capable of handling more.

I still have all my children read aloud! It is a skill that needs to be practiced. I find that if we’ve been busy (like moving house or holidays) and I haven’t read aloud even I stumble and sound ‘bitty’ for a few pages until I get back into it. However, I’m not super-mum so I won’t pretend that we do it every day. Like most things, there are times of focus and times when it goes on the back-burner.

Live It! Model It!

If we value books and reading then our children need to see it in practice. Why will they value reading if they never see us read? They may start to believe it is something that only children do, and in their desire for maturity, give it up!

  • Make sure your children see you reading a variety of writing.
  • Make sure that you read aloud a wide variety of literature to them (personally, I think the Bible is the best and most important).
  • As the children get older tell them why it is important for them to know how to read aloud well. Often older children respond well to knowing why they are required to do something- they’ll often give their best once they know what they’re doing it (part of assuming responsibility for their own education).
  • One way for older children to practice reading aloud with character and inflection in a non threatening way is to have them read good books to their younger siblings. Younger children will rarely complain about it and it is also a lovely sibling bonding time. This has worked well in our home.

I think the key is all about giving the children opportunity to practice something- achieve a good standard which will build their confidence, which has the roll on effect of continuing to build necessary skills.

Do your children read aloud? How is it in your family?

Feel free to share via posting a comment or writing on your own blog (just comment me and let me know you’ve posted so I can read your blog).

Training Children in Innocence or Ignorance?

girl-innocence

In my day-to-day world of homeschooling, I often have cause to remember why we chose to homeschool…what is it exactly we are trying to teach or instil to our children?

Are we raising our children to live in this world as productive members of the community where God has planted them or are we raising them for something else? Like you, John and I live in this world. We are not of this world but we do live in it. We are quite aware of the worldly and sinful acts that are committed each day. We are also aware that Christ died for us while we were sinners. What makes me different from the people down the street who are keeping us awake and having John stay up all night to ward off stray drunkards from relieving themselves on our car? Is it that we are better? More pure? Or is it simply that God revealed Himself to us, and revealed His love to us through Christ the Saviour and that we (after having that revealed to us and having our eyes opened) saw and believed the truths of the gospel? It is the latter.

Some people live in a way that separates them from the mainstream world and this might be right for them, but it isn’t our life, nor the way we believe God would have us live or raise our children. Therefore, if my children are going to go into the world as adults, then they will need to be educated/equipped with skills to handle it. So, as we walk down the road of life we have our children with us all of the time. This has seen them exposed to many, many things which would make some Christians shudder but it fits in with our deliberate and purposed training plan for our children. There are things that we discuss, read and watch that may not be ‘pure’ as such, but we find them to be a beneficial training aid which assists us to work toward our goal.

When it comes to literature, I have tried to either pre-read everything or I go on the advice and recommendations of trusted and respected friends and other parents of whom I know their worldview. This doesn’t always work though. I once took the advice of a friend and allowed ‘Miss A’ to read a book that went against my initial promptings but my friend felt it was suitable for her son and encouraged me to read (a whole ‘nother topic) Once ‘Miss A’ started narrating it to me, I was horrified! Shocked! It introduced concepts that we hadn’t discussed yet… I knew we would discuss them one day but I wanted to be the one to introduce her to those concepts, not a secular author and their worldview. Oh, a battle raged within my own self. Do I stop her reading the rest of the book, and possibly turn her heart against sharing with me or do I allow her to read it but spend a good deal of time in discussion? I chose to do the latter and we actually had some good conversations and many opportunities were raised for me to share our thoughts and views of the world. For me, narration is good but discussion is the best!

Raising children to be kids or adults? The end goal?

We are raising our children to become mature adults. Yet they will live in a time and era like has never been before. This new age of technology and progression opens a whole world of issues such has never occurred in history before. Our children have a task ahead of them that we cannot even begin to comprehend! Oh the strength needed, the responsibility…Whilst we wish to preserve our children’s innocence, this can often mean that they are grown to adulthood yet ignorant. I’m not convinced that this is the best way to raise a child who is required to live in the world. Boys need to develop in strength and character, firmness and masculinity…how do we work toward that? Some thing in life just happen! We can’t shield them from everything and sometimes literature (or well chosen television shows) can be a good way to introduce those hard or difficult concepts to a young person. (In fact, it is here that I may lose some readers)  Science fiction can be good for tackling these type of ethical, moral and social issues in an ‘otherworld‘ setting. Yes, in real life people are tortured, have their eyes gouged out; people do get raped and murdered, run over by cars, commit fornication, etc. (Goodness, I’d have to rip out quite a few pages in their Bible if I didn’t have them reading about the evil acts in the world) In our house, we don’t avoid talking about those things- we discuss them openly as then we are able to teach the children our values and God’s standards and thoughts about it all. But this is part of our ‘innocence not necessarily ignorance plan‘. Are we right? I don’t know. Time will tell. I might not see the fruits of my parenting until I see how my children parent their own children.

I have thought a lot over the last few months about the difference between ignorant and innocent. I will paraphrase but Webster defines ignorant as:

  • Destitute of knowledge; uninstructed or uninformed; untaught; unenlightened.

and it defines innocent as:

  • Free from guilt; not having done wrong or violated any law; not tainted with sin; pure; upright.

 

Offence or defence? Is there a balance?

As a softballer I use analogies that parallel with my sport. When I am coaching a team, it is important the team learns how to bat well and run the bases. This is our offensive game. We spend a lot of time training in this area. We also spend a lot of time in defense… practicing set strategic plays to defend the opposition’s offensive game. I also spend some time in watching and studying the opposing teams. Sometimes, I will send charters over to watch their games and chart the strong or influential players- looking for their strengths and weaknesses. This is an important part of my role as coach. It is necessary that I am aware of their style of play so that I can teach my own team in the ways of suitable defence. As a coach, I cannot afford to be ignorant of the tactics that the other team may use. On the other hand, I don’t need to over stress about them either. This could lead to our own team being ill prepared due to focussing on the other team rather than preparing ourselves offensively and defensively.

I guess it’s a little like that for me with parenting. My children will one day be Out There in the world, without me to help them or make decision for them. I don’t want them to be ill prepared…I want them to be equipped to stand firm in their beliefs and convictions. To do this, I think they need to be aware of the pitfalls and the subtleties of them, else it be easy for them to fall. However, I also want them to be free from the guilt of such things…I don’t desire that they engage in the sinful activities. This is the best way I can try to explain what I mean when I say that part of our parenting plan is to train in innocence not necessarily ignorance. We are raising our children to live in the world yet not be of the world.

Building immunity

I wonder if I can push the limits by talking about another (yet also imperfect) analogy. Knowing that our children will one day be Out There in the world, I also know that they will be exposed to chicken pox and other nasty infections. When they were little, I didn’t put them into a sterile, glass bubble to protect them from all possible infection. Instead, I allowed them to build immunities to low-level pathogens whilst in their environment. Sometimes, they got sick. (Most of my children have had chicken pox). However, by building up their immune system, when they are older and are confronted with more serious possible infections, they will be better prepared to defend themselves. If you know your children will be one day in the world, needing to make decisions for themselves, how are you inoculating them? Are your methods guiding them toward maturity and responsibility, so that they will be capable of making their own wise choices when bombarded by the ways of the world?

Having said all that, I am careful with what our children read and watch. I like to know the worldview or philosophy of the author (not that I have to agree but I need to know so that I can tackle it). I like to know the details of the book. From what position does the author write- for/against? If I’m in doubt, I will pre-read it. If I don’t get time, I’ll research it on the Internet. If I don’t get around to that, I will search the homeschool catalogues and ask on homeschool forums for a review. If I still come up empty-handed, I will err on the side of caution and put the book/movie on the back burner till later.

For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.
Romans 16:19

I do want to reiterate that we don’t blindly allow our children to watch, read, discuss or study sinful or worldly ideas. We are careful in what we choose to expose them to.

If we make every decision for our [older] children, then how is this training them to make wise choices? Sometimes, allowing a child to make a decision which may not be the best, yet in the loving guidance of the family home, can be turned around to achieve some benefit. It can also allow them to develop a sense of responsibility after all, they will not always be under our authority. Are we training them to always be under our authority or to one day be self governed? Some people say that experience is the best teacher. Well, whether or not that is true is beyond the scope of this post but I know I would rather my children learn responsibility in decisions and learn about the world through the controlled ways of literature in our home than by personal experience via immersion once they are adults. That is a rockier and longer path to travel.

If, after reading this, anyone has any questions, please ask me to clarify or send an email. I don’t want to think that I would be encouraging anyone to think that we are careless or thoughtless about our parenting approach.

As always, seek first the Kingdom of God.

innocence-boy

Learning with Different Ages and Levels 2

In the last post, I wrote about using unit studies in the homeschool. In this post (part 2), I want to write in a more practical way and show exactly how a unit study can be accomplished.

How can I plan a unit of study?
Let’s consider a unit on ‘Ancient Eygpt“, a unit that we spent several months on and thoroughly enjoyed. The older child could read a biography or (fictional) diary and then orally narrate to the rest of the family. Or, she could try a written narration or prepare a factual report on a character or event. The younger child could dress up and role play or act out a scene from a book. The family could make recipes or crafts, draw and diagram maps, watch videos and visit museums together. You may like to look at the diet of the people and subsequent problems (deficiency’s, illness etc), to the terrain and climate of lands explored, other cultures that influenced or impacted Ancient Egypt (now, there’s a long rabbit trail) and so on.

Some people say that this is too hotch potch for them and they would like a more chronological or systematic approach. Easy! You can study history chronologically and integrate your other subjects around that. Some people prefer to only use units for the Social Studies and keep Math?s and English (Language Arts) separate. This is fine too. Whatever works for your family.

Here are the subjects that I try to include when thinking of relating topics:

Bible, Literature, History, Science, Language or Vocabulary, Independent Reading (Fiction and non-fiction, biographies, diaries), Composition or various forms of Narration, Poetry, Copywork, Applied Math, Foreign Language (if at all applicable), Art Appreciation, Music Appreciation, Geography, Current Events, and craft or hands-on activities.

Maybe an example will help you too see what it can look like.

Ancient Egypt

Bible (Joseph & Moses),
Literature (Golden Goblet, Mara, Daughter of the Nile)
Poetry – Ozymandias
History (culture and times of Ancient Egyptians)
Narration of reading and other learning
Applied math– structure of pyramids
Foreign Language– (hieroglyphics) No, I’m not kidding
Art- Ancient Egyptian artwork and architecture-reading about it and trying it yourself
Music – instruments and celebrations
Geography– ancient – modern -drawing/tracing maps including landforms and landmarks.
Craft– dressing up, making Egyptian style sandals, Nile River models, model pyramids.

Now, if all this seems too complicated, let me assure you that it isn’t. Your local library should have plenty of books on these topics. Just have them in the lounge room and let the children peruse them and be prepared to go with their excitement! One thing I find that kills this excitement is a feeling or sense of “Quickly, let’s hurry up and finish this topic so that we can move on“. That sentiment is really like a wet blanket.

If you?re a beginner at incorporating subjects you could just try to start with a few simple ones. Choose a family read aloud to go along with your history study and look at a good book that relates to the artwork or architecture of the period. That’s it to start with, but I can fairly confidently assure you that it won’t end there. History and geography go well together and from there you can start to add in art, music and literature.

I hope this encourages other homeschooling families, to live and learn together.

Go to Part One | Part Two

Susan 2002

Appreciating Poetry

I didn’t grow up with a love of poetry…and to be perfectly honest I still don’t fully appreciate poetry, mainly because I don’t fully understand it. Nevertheless, I try to foster a love and appreciation of poetry in the hearts of my children as much of the Bible is poetical so I want them to desire to read these areas and not shy away from them.

courtesy of Diane Romanello

A few years ago, we started doing poetry appreciation using Charlotte Mason’s methods, which is to study one poet per term. I found that by reading all the poems aloud together over morning tea was enjoyable and enriching but this practice also depended upon me to do the work and as my girls got older I wanted them to be more independent so I started adding the poetry to their schedule but it never seemed to get done. Maybe this is because it is small and bite-sized that they’d leave it till later…but it didn’t get read at a rate that I was happy with. I think that every child should have heard the poetry of R.L. Stevenson and A.A. Milne.

Then, I printed out the *should-read* poetry list from Ambleside Online. The girls were supposed to read a poem a day (or so). I also requested that once a term they completed a Poet Biographical Sketch and one Poem Synopsis. (‘R’ didn’t complete all this yet she still likes and appreciates poetry)

poetrybookDo you ever get that feeling that you’re running out of time? Well, as silly as it is, I feel that way too at times. I found a good book called the The Walker Book of Classic Poetry and Poets. This book has a short biographical sketch on each poet and has a few notes on each selected poem, which I found very helpful in simply giving it to ‘Miss A’ and telling her to slowly work her way through it.

I also select and read aloud poetry that fits in with our learning whether it be a unit on ‘whales’, ‘Summer’, “Easter’, ‘flowers’, ‘family’, ‘Bilbo’s Song’ or an historical time period. We read Australian poets too- who doesn’t like A.B. Paterson? I have many pages printed and filed in binders and much poetry is included so that the children can freely choose to write for copywork. If I have selected poetry to go along with our theme, they will usually do that for copy work. I also might read these poems aloud a few times before asking the children to have a go and reading it aloud, teaching them to read with character and inflection.

We have also done a unit of work on poetry. Sometimes this has come up in their LLATL books and other times, I’ve devised a mini unit on it. What this means is that we work on a few poems for copy work and dictation, while discussing the structure and language of the poem. I have bought a few books of poetry which I will strew around the home. Occasionally, I will sit in the lounge room and read a few poems myself and if one takes my fancy I will share it with the children. There are some good downloadables from CurrClick

My oldest child is now starting to read Christian poetry and enjoys the Psalms more also. I used to struggle with reading the Psalms and thought they were a bit boring…but in the last 10 years, since I’ve been stimulating my literary appetite with more poetry, I find that I enjoy and relate to the Psalms more.

My goal is not that the children should know every major poet or every classic poem, rather that they have a love for the literary language and appreciate the rich beauty of imagery presented in the poems…that they would become accustomed to reading in this way and that this may lead to a desire and joy in reading the very best forms of literature.

I have tried to accomplish this goal by learning to appreciate poetry for myself…and by not making it a ‘subject’ that needs to be ticked off until the student is older. I don’t think it really matters how you read poetry…just enjoy it!

English Lessons HomeGrownKids Style

We still use a spelling list. (We like the lists from PocketBasics.com) I have found it easier for me to teach the various spelling rules when we have followed a list. I can easily review what rules I have and haven’t presented to the child…and set about continuing on with that. If I feel that a child does not grasp a particular spelling/grammar rule, then I will search for a passage or selection of work so that they can specifically write it out for copy work.

Copy work is preparation for dictation

The reason I have used a spelling list is also because I haven’t been as diligent with the practice of dictation as I would have liked, but that’s life eh! I do believe that the CM method of education is full and rich and thorough if adhered to…which is where I fall down.

The Lessons

We would do a passage for copy work on Day One. I read the passage aloud to the children once or twice. I would review any of the spelling and grammar rules that are applicable and I would then teach new concepts from the passage. I tell the child that they can spend time and take care with this selection as they will be writing it for dictation soon. I ask them to notice any words that they may need to spend time on or look up in the dictionary. I ask them to notice any grammar or punctuation rules, and we discuss it. If they haven’t noticed anything, then I jump in with my comments but I like to give them opportunity first. At the end of the lesson, I ask the child to read the passage aloud to me. (I think this is an important step) They also have to read (or listen to) good living books and then narrate to me. After a few days (depending on the passage I’ve selected) I will have the child write the selection from dictation. This is where they need to apply the habit of attention, else they will get spelling and punctuation incorrect.

Dictation Lesson

To start the dictation lesson, which may be on day 2, 3 or 4 (on this day, dictation REPLACES copy work and is not in addition to), I read the passage aloud to them. I’ll slowly read a phrase at a time as the child writes it on their paper. I try not to re-read any phrase as I’m trying to develop the habit of attention, requiring them to concentrate and use their memory…but I don’t let myself get hung up on it. My goal is to train them in the habit of attention, develop their ability to focus and recall, to have neat handwriting and develop their spelling, grammar and punctuation skills.

I think the basis of a CM English program is Copywork and then also Dictation, Narration, and good Living Books. Exposure to Great Ideas is a big part of this.

Tip

Another tip which I have found very useful is to have a double copy of a book that I’m reading aloud. As I’m reading it aloud, another child will have the second copy and be following me along. This helps them to SEE and HEAR the word so they hear the correct pronunciation and see the correct spelling in a very gentle way.

I also buddy read: where I will read a passage and then the child will read a passage. Having the child read aloud is very important as I can *hear* exactly where they are having difficulty and then I can help them straight away without needing to wait until the rule or concept arises in the textbook.

Focussed Seasons

We also have focused seasons which probably isn’t very CMish but it works well for us. By seasons I mean that we will have a period of time (could be weeks or months) where we will all learn and focus on grammar. We’ll do a course like Winston Grammar and we focus on it during our copy work times. We might put another topic or area on the backburner for awhile as we do this. Then, when I feel that we’ve done enough there for the time being, I’ll put grammar to the backburner and bring another area into focus. Some people can’t handle this way of doing things but it is the only way that I can manage.

I hope some of this has been helpful, if only in sparking some ideas.

There are a few links that you might like to read over:

AmblesideOnline Scope and Sequence for LA

LA with Penny Gardner

Copywork with the Parker’s

A Verbal Skill Breakthrough…

We’re having a breakthrough! Yes!!!!!

Both my boys are fairly quietly spoken and humble. They’re quietly confident in themselves with many things but they’ve been slow to learn to read. Patience and gentleness have been lessons the Lord has wanted to teach me.

I’ve been working with ‘Master C’ all week, listening to him read aloud to me. We buddy-read and then he narrates section by section and it’s working well. His narrations are picking up. But one thing that has bothered me for awhile now is his vocabulary and oratory skills. Oh, I know he has a vocabulary because when he thinks I’m not listening (and when he’s alone with his brother) he talks loudly and a lot, but as soon as I come near he goes very quiet and barely mumbles a word, much to my sadness.

Well, I’ve asked him to talk- I ask him questions and do all that I can to encourage it but to no avail, sadly.

Early on this week, I was teaching the boys how to read aloud and project their voice; not to mumble or to read into the book. I put my hand up in front of their face and encouraged them to try and make their voice hit my hand. They thought this was a great joke.

But…it has worked! And not just with reading aloud- it’s worked at the tea-table and in general conversation. Wow! I’m pretty chuffed, I can now hear them. Today, John was reading aloud from his Bible and he started to mumble again and ‘Master C’ (younger brother) loudly told him to ‘hit Mum’s hand with your voice – c’mon, it works”. Off he started reading aloud- clearly and concisely!

Again I’ve learnt, just a little consistency and a dash of encouragement, a tad of laughter or silliness, and a measure of patience has paid off…. Now, to keep it going.

Narration ~ Discussion ~ Debate

Narration and discussion have been a cornerstone of our family’s learning style and I just wanted to share something that happened the other day.

A (14 yodd) came to me yesterday as she wanted to ‘discuss and debate’ some lyrics of an album that she wants to purchase. A has learned that lyrics and a performer’s lifestyle are very important to me- I look at more than the genre of music.

As we sat and discussed the lyrics of some songs I asked her if we could read some hymns out loud, to which she happily agreed. The difference that she could see is that the hymns are straight out- one doesn’t have to ‘read between the lines’ in order to grasp what is being sung whereas her songs had a special meaning that could be ambiguous UNLESS you knew the story behind the songs. She then went on to research articles, interviews and quotes from the band, which proved to be very beneficial to both of us. (I can see that some songs are performance based, while others are more directly for worship – participatory, not performance)

Not only could this be documented as an academic lesson (worldview, research, debate, reasoning, etc) it was more a life lesson as well as relational building. It drew us closer together so that she continues to feel free to bring anything to me (her words). Throughout this she is learning how to apply God’s Word to her daily life! I’m seeing that she is allowing God’s Word to shape her worldview. Wahoo! is anything more exciting than that?

I’m convinced that the early years of narration, leading on to discussion has helped keep our lines of communication open and in turn, allowed her to verbalise her thoughts as she goes through a thinking process.

Just wanted to share this little happening with you all and encourage you to keep focusing on narration and discussion with your children.

Composition, the HomeGrownKids Way

chbiblestoriesWriting Strands, Write with the Best, Institute of Excellence in Writing…do we need a text or curricula in order to instill a love of writing in our children? Do we need to use it every week, every year? Surely there’s an easier way?

These are my thoughts (to date) that I’ve formulated over the last few years.

A lot of homeschool curricula available turns writing into a totally separate, and sometimes scary, subject, where one is asked to write on topics such as, “My Summer Holiday” or “A Pencil”. (And I’m not kidding!) When I was in grade school, at the beginning of each new school year, I was supposed to turn in a paper titled, “My Summer Holidays”. Well, I couldn’t even remember or talk about something so broad and vast, let alone write about it. Consequently, I was often told that I ‘couldn’t’ write. Many years later, I have found that this simply isn’t true! I know that now, but it has taken me years to realise that I love to write, when I have a topic that I’m interested in. I certainly do not want to burden my children with similar experiences. I write because I want to – I feel I have something to say (whether or not you agree with me, the point still stands eh?) A child has to want to write! A child must have something to write about! Most children love to talk, yet dry up when we put a pencil in their hand. My goal is to try and capture some enthusiasm for a topic and help them so that they can taste success and feel a sense of achievement at seeing their own real words in print.

I haven’t taught any formal writing skills in the home yet. I have embraced Charlotte Mason’s philosophy when she says that teachers shouldn’t burden students by drilling or repetitive exercises in writing or composition. Just because a child is in a certain grade or is a particular age has very little to do with ‘readiness’ or development. I don’t expect my children to just ‘be’ great writers…I do want to provide an atmosphere that will nourish their minds with ideas and vocabulary, provide generous exposure to great books and to be a good writing’ model, while offering encouragement to my own children. My goal is to have children who love to write and who are able to communicate their thoughts, feelings, convictions and beliefs so that readers will understand what they are saying. I would like my children to be able to communicate descriptively, persuasively and informatively. Volume One- Home Education by Charlotte Mason has examples of how not to teach composition. (p. 244-247)

I believe that oral narration is the beginning of composition! I don’t require any [creative or individual] writing until a child is somewhere between the ages of 10 and 12, depending on each child’s individual development. Nevertheless, the child is learning the basics of composition through the art of narrating. When they are ‘ready’ I start the transition from oral to written narration. By this time, they’ve heard copious amounts of quality vocabulary, punctuation, grammar and sentence structure by listening to good books being read aloud- either by a family member or books on tape. They have practiced these skills via copywork and dictation.

Narration is more intellectually powerful than any curricula and it is never too late to start! You can see the narration prompts (now called my Activity Sheets) and use them orally to encourage thinking and verbal skills. Even though we ‘can’ use a book to learn and practice many things, (narration, copywork, grammar, spelling, punctuation, etc) we can still have a holistic approach. I try not to compartmentalise English or Language Arts and composition is a part of this. It needn’t be broken down into indigestible pieces that the child isn’t able to use in his own real world. The effectiveness of this model follows in the literary steps of the great writers.

Language begins with imitation – from infancy onwards… imitating talk and then from good books written by great writers. There is nothing wrong or un-original in studying and copying the ‘greats’. This is the modeling process. It is this process that will give a child a wonderful, rich foundation in which he is free to develop his own literary style. (Karen Andreola talks of this in The Charlotte Mason Companion on p 144). As the budding writer continues this form of imitation, copying from many of the ‘greats’ then his own writing will be influenced and he will begin to develop his own original flair.

I’ve found that the early stage (aged approximately 6-10 years) is a time to focus on oral narration. In the later years is when I spend some time in the transition period from oral to written) and then later again I try to teach some further basic and helpful skills, such as note-taking, outlining, summarising, etc. In the last few years, we’ll be focusing more on essay and report writing. Marilyn Howshall has separated the development stages by calling them the following:

  • Collecting stage
  • Processing stage
  • Communicating stage

chbiblestoriesIn the Collecting Stage, we focus on copywork and oral narration. The children will copy and write thank you and birthday cards, letters to friends and relatives and do selections of copywork from our copywork binder. They start with a basic journal in which they record their chores and lessons completed, daily habits and the weather. They may progress to writings some of their thoughts. I’ve found that a scrapbook or notebook can be a wonderful way to simulate interest in recording and writing but I try to let the individual do this and not force it upon them. We try to do a little something each day that we do lessons. I will have the children give an oral narration from their lesson books which will be either the Bible, history, geography, nature study, science or literature (fables, poems, short stories, etc.) When I am scribing for them, I will have them narrate paragraph by paragraph. This collecting stage is where the child is collecting images, thoughts, ideas, vocabulary and knowledge. Miss Mason writes a section on composition and the younger child here in Volume 6, p.190

chbiblestoriesThe Processing Stage is often an area where some homeschoolers start to look for curricula as they feel a need for ‘structure’. But is it really necessary? I once thought so and went through a spending spree on writing curricula. Now though, I actually find it easier to transition from oral to written narration rather than scheduling in another workbook. I think this is the most exciting stage of all! Here’s how we’ve tried working within the transition stage. (transitioning from oral to written narration)

I explain to the child the what, how and why of what we’re trying to do- telling him that I’d like to see him try to put pen to paper. I might ask him to rewrite in his own words (narrate) a Bible passage, poem or fable. And of course, I try to offer lots of praise and encouragement!

On another day, we might try another way: I’ll have the child narrate to me as I scribe or type and then he will rewrite or copy it out from my copy. We may or may not edit this together. This is the child’s words- their own writing!

I’ll have the child narrate from such books as, Just So Stories, Parables of Jesus, or Aesop’s Fables as these are filled with metaphors (word pictures) which are wonderful for a child’s imagination and stimulating creativity, which in turn, is good for developing writing style.

Then, the child may try to put his thoughts or narration of the story on paper all by himself. It is during this, that I expect narrations to be short and disjointed but I try to be patient. This is comprehension and sequencing (processing, sorting) hard at work!

Also during the Processing Stage I’ve also found it very beneficial to have the children write as much as they can in a non-pressure, informal way – write down shopping lists, birthday cards, letters to friends and relatives. The reason that I have put the birthday cards and thank you’s here is that some of my children have put themselves under immense pressure with writing cards and such, thus ending in tears. In the earlier stage I have them write these things from copywork. I’ll write the appropriate greeting on paper and then copy it onto the card with my help. Also helpful has been a blog. Yes, each of my children have a blog. Receiving comments is a positive encouragement and the children just soak up that positive reinforcement. Again, this comes back to the principle of modeling. Our children will copy what they see as important to us. Do my children see me reading and writing?

After this is where I’ve had my child just write anything…just get the thoughts flowing onto the paper. I try to aim for writing like this three or four times a week. I’ve since learned that Julie from BraveWriter does this and has given it a name. She calls it Freewriting.

Also during this stage, I teach the child to use the various handbooks and guide that we have. This is part of handing their education over to them- it starts to become their education. Here, I also incorporate a few lessons from Write with the Best as well as I teach a basic unit on writing a project – (now called Observation Sheet) Often my children have enjoyed doing their project and having something nice to keep in their binder. I also start to teach basic outlining, project writing and mind-mapping which are a basis for good study skills.

It is also during this time, that I try to select a varied genre for copywork and books to read aloud. Who knows what may stimulate an interest? We may read a genre that we haven’t previously read yet but it will introduce the child to a different style and unusual vocabulary- all of which they can imitate and add to their writing foundation.

I will start dictation toward the latter part of this stage, as I sense the child is ready. We’ll try to do copywork twice a week and then I’ll dictate the same passage twice a week.

Written narration is a skill and it isn’t necessarily an easy one to master although it will come with practice. Sometimes this transition period can be hardest on the parent. Frustration could be an issue for both child and mother! I try to relax and remember that this journey is a marathon, not a sprint. When we’re working through a transition period, I try to scale down requirements in some other areas, allowing them to focus and really apply themselves without getting overwhelmed. Often I’ll require less in a subject that they continually struggle with. This is also an important step for me. I don’t need to be stressing over everything but I do want to be patient and encouraging during this time. I try to remember that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step I don’t want to be overly involved and correct every little error as I feel that may have a negative effect on the student. Nevertheless, there are some basics that I ask the children to keep an eye on:

  • Use complete sentences (I also remind them of this before an oral narration)
  • Use of capitals, full-stops, comma’s, etc.
  • Use of descriptive words.

I write these points in the front of their writing book so they can refer to it often and they use this to edit their work before submitting it to me. I also ask the child to read aloud to themselves before submitting their work. Often one of my children will pick up many errors (punctuation, grammar, spelling, word usage, sentence structure) when reading it aloud. They can edit their work before handing it to me. I don’t use a red pen or completely edit their work…it wouldn’t be THEIRS then, it would be mine! (Besides that, it can be pretty scary to throw your heart into something to have someone critique it…that can be difficult for authors and writers and we’re still trying to encourage our young ones at this stage). Sometimes, I will use a pen and often I will go through the most obvious ones (and the ones that they haven’t picked up when proof-reading) orally – teaching and explaining as I go. I have taught the girls to use a handbook for easy reference. (Learning Grammar through Writing by Sandra Bell)

chbiblestoriesThe Communicating Stage is actually where my eldest daughter is at present. What an interesting stage this is! She is fairly comfortable with putting he thoughts on paper. It’s now time for her to learn a few various forms of writing – argument, persuasive and reasoning forms of writing. I believe this can all be done across the curricula (or Key Learning Areas), although history is the subject that she favours writing about. We’re also reading about the History of Literature in our Arthur Mee Children’s Encyclopedia.

By this time, my girls have read and heard a great deal of vocabulary and so they seem to be fairly comfortable with using the medium of writing to convey their thoughts. Hopefully through minimal correction and involvement combined with the exposure to fine literature, writing with good language is not so daunting for my boys also.

At this stage copywork is optional but my eldest daughter has decided to continue with it, although not daily. as she can see how beneficial it is. Dictation is a tool that starts to take the place of copywork to a large degree.

While composition has largely come from the child’s literary readings, the narration/writing prompts are also a way to introduce a type of creative writing.

While a good amount of grammar is learned through this holistic approach, I also use Winston Grammar with my children. This program appeals to a range of learning styles and the reason that I like it is that I don’t have to teach grammar every day, week, month or year! It also doesn’t take a lot of preparation time.

Next on the list to learn is writing a business letter, expository and persuasive essays, speeches, and book reviews. I used to think that book and movie reviews were not difficult thereby being unnecessary to teach but, after reading various reviews at Amazon.com, I’m now convinced that it is a necessary skill. The method that I’ll use is still one of imitation and living books. Presently I require a minimum of one written page per day and 2 pages if it is typed on the computer. I’m also keeping an eye on each child and if I sense a keen interest or ability in language skills, we will be looking for a public speaking or debate group.

I’ve found that journaling has been useful also. At times I’ve had a child journal their thoughts from their Bible reading. This is reflective and shows that the child is growing in many areas. This type of journaling (along with some narration prompts) require the child to think deeply in order to express their thoughts and beliefs, which are being internalised throughout this whole process.

If at any stage I sense my child is not ready in any way I simply back off. I believe that encouragement, time, and exposure to good literature will help them to develop so that we can, one day, move ahead again. If one of my children should display a dislike of writing, possibly because of previous experiences and/or lack of confidence, they may benefit from revising Stage One but with different (higher level) reading matter such as, Parables of Nature, Pilgrim’s Progress, Guerber’s Histories, etc. I would then keep a note in my diary or planner of when we started the revision so that I could see the progress in three month’s time.

This is how composition currently is and has been approached in our home. Some days it feels like we’re stuck in Suesville and other days I’m amazed at the quality of writing my children produce. Throughout it all I keep telling myself that this is a process…a little here, a little there… through copywork, dictation, literature and narration.

Hope you find this helpful.

High School – Learner Permit

Inkster_Definition_Teach

We have one child entering the High School Years and so we have our “L” plates on. ‘A’ is, at present, 14years old; nearly 15. As we have moved from state to state in the last 4 years, we have come to see that she could be in either 9, 10 or 11 this year (2006). However, this doesn’t really apply to us as we don’t follow a school system and grades. With all of our children, there are some subjects that they would be ‘ahead’ of grade level and other subjects that they would be ‘behind’ in. Nevertheless, the children are progressing, and that is what is important to us. That and more importantly, relationships.

If you’re anything like me, you might feel a sense of fear at the mere thought of homeschooling through high school. We haven’t followed a ‘school system’ or guidelines for a few years now and I didn’t want to start now…so what to do? How to do it? Argh…I was starting to feel a little panicked about the upcoming High School years. I didn’t feel that I was at all qualified to teach some subjects, so how would I manage? What about the all important Higher School Certificate or HSC? What about exposure to all those ‘other’ subjects and experiences? Well, I did what I usually do when I need to learn something new- I read as much as I can…I talk to others who have been there…and I talk to those who are within the system.

 

 

What was I so panicked about high school? What is it that seems to suddenly change once a student hits Yr 9-10? I don’t think there is a sudden change at any particular age or grade. Rather, I think that there have been many changes taking place over the years as the child is going from absorbing information and processing it, to then learning how to effectively communicate their own thoughts, ideas and opinions. Actually, I’m learning that my children have a much better idea of what education is all about than what I do! I guess this is because I have been indoctrinated from my own experiences at school whereas my children are home-based-learners. They don’t have someone telling them that they MUST learn this right now…in this certain way. Actually, the more I read and learn about all this, the more I’m convinced that I’m now getting to the easier part. Well, maybe not easier but I don’t think it will be the fear factor that I first imagined.

In the earlier years we have tried to put a *feast* before our children, so that they could sample a variety of subjects. Even though, the children don’t hate a subject, we can soon see an area that they delight in learning more about. This is now the time that we encourage a slightly more formal study of that area while using that subject to teach more formal aspects of English. eg: essay writing, etc.

We believe that discipleship is still more important than academics during the high school years. Other aspects that I try to bear in mind is their character- without the habit of attention it can be difficult to apply oneself to any type of formal study. Can I use some lesson time to develop character trait and positive habits? Well, I do use copywork as handwriting practice but it is also an exercise in producing one’s best work. Dictation can be useful for developing the habit of attention, as can be narration. Maths lessons can be a way to reinforce diligence. As the higher school years approach I was able to look at my child and assess their weak areas. Yep, we all have them! I was able to research and discover the most efficient? resources that would enable my child to catch up to a level where we could easily then continue to plod along. Sometimes, we’ve put other studies on the back-burner while we focused our attention on building that particular skill or subject.

In our home so far, high school years are a time for us to really get close to the child – to encourage, guide and nurture and instruct…to disciple them…to encourage them to love God, develop good habits (self discipline) and to love to learn. We are still quite relaxed at home, even during these years. I still believe that children need lots of time- free, unstructured time for them to think- to think on ideas, to think upon things that interest them rather than fill their minds with too much knowledge. So far, this approach has led our 14year old daughter to be quite a deep thinker and she is quite self disciplined.

To me, it doesn’t matter how many books or courses the child/student has read, especially if their heart isn’t in it. It is less about curriculum or resources and more about relationships and the heart. My child has to come first, not what the world may or may not think of her. Sometimes, I’ve felt like I’ve pushed her a little or I plan a course of study that isn’t a good fit for her…and so, I’ve had to look at myself and truly examine my own motivation for this behaviour. Is it to impress the secular world? The homeschool community? Family? Friends? Me? But, is it for the child?

But what about the gaps?

What about ‘Gapitis‘? Surely I can’t teach my child everything he will need to know? That’s right, I can’t and I won’t. Gee, I’m still learning everyday, in different ways. I love learning and had to realise that not only that I won’t be able to teach and cover everything but that I don’t want to. I want my child to learn and experience things for themselves once they get older. I’ve done that too, and it’s exciting! I see myself less as a teacher and more as a facilitator of learning.
Well, these are my humble thoughts as we enter the Upper Years of homeschooling.