From My Commonplace: Words Matter

" 'Good-b'ye, dear!  God bless you!'

The blessing was from a young child's lips, but it was the first that Oliver had ever heard invoked upon his head; and through the struggles and sufferings and troubles and changes, of his after life, he never one forgot it." (p.79)

 

"…the old lady, who had a shipwrecked grandson wandering barefoot in some distant part of the earth, took pity upon the poor orphan, and gave him what little she could afford – and more – with such kind and gentle words, and such tears of sympathy and compassion, that they sank deeper into Oliver's soul, than all the sufferings he had ever undergone." (p.82)

 

~Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist

 

I recently read Dicken's Oliver Twist, mostly because I'm trying to keep one step ahead of Michelle before she starts Year 5.  I found myself very moved by it, though – even though I picked it up to pre-read rather than as something for *me*.  It is gut-wrenching in places, and not all of the characters meet the same happy outcome as our little friend Oliver.   Even though Oliver walks through many harrowing, horrifying situations in his young life, he meets along the way those who have compassion on him.  Those who in some way – whether through their words or actions – bless him.  I can't help but wonder if that is what makes all the difference in his life.

 

This thought hit close to home for me because it has been a repeated theme this year – an idea that has continually come up.  I think it started back in February at a church leadership retreat, in which the speaker challenged us with the words of  1 Corinthians 14:3: "On the other hand, the one who prophesies speaks to people for their upbuilding and encouragement and consolation."   This work of prophecy – that is, speaking words of upbuilding, encouragement, and consolation – is for all of us.  Tearing down  is what comes naturally.  What if all of us were willing to ask the Lord to give us words of encouragement to speak to those around us?  What if as a parent, wife, and teacher I made it my goal to build others up – to bless others as I myself have been blessed?

 

I was reminded of it again at last month's AmblesideOnline conference – Lynn Bruce challenged us to remember that our children need to know that we are 'ever on their side'.  Our words, actions, and reactions towards our children need to communicate this.  We need to build them up, not tear them down.

 

And I am being reminded of it yet again as I read Charlotte Mason's second volume Parents and Children.  She emphasizes again and again the key responsibility of parents is to nourish our children on the ideas that will 'excite their appetencies' towards the good, true, and beautiful.  

 

Words matter.

 

Lord make me sensitive to your promptings, that I may bless, encourage, console, and build up those around me by the things that I do, the books that I offer,  and by the words that I speak.

 

 

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My Bookbag This Week:

Devotional: Galatians with the Paul for Everyone Commentary (NT Wright)

The Daily Office Lectionary Readings and Prayers from The Trinity Mission

 Theological: On The Incarnation (St. Athanasius, with introduction by CS Lewis)

AO Book Discussion Group: I Promessi Sposi (Manzoni)

Personal Choice: Parents and Children (Charlotte Mason)

Poetry: Collected Poems 1909-1962 (TS Eliot)

With my Hubby: Emma (Austen)

Family Read-Aloud Literature: Little Britches (Moody)

 

*I am also reading Charlotte Mason's Volume 6 for a local CM book club, but these meetings are infrequent, and it is my third – or fourth? – pass through it and so I just read the brief section assigned as our meetings come up.   

 

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From My Commonplace: To Navigate the Future

"In the convex driving-mirror she could see, dwindling rapidly, the patch of road where they had stood; and she wondered why it had never occurred to her before that you cannot successfully navigate the future unless you keep always framed beside it a small clear image of the past." (p.61)

 

~Jan Struther, Mrs Miniver

 

(This is a delightful little book of – essays? Vignettes? Snippets of life? – of an ordinary housewife in the days leading up to the outbreak of World War II in England.  I'm not sure I remember where or why I picked it up now, but it was a lovely book to read and a reminder to savor the ordinary things of marriage and family life. Recommended if you stumble across a copy somewhere.)

 

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My Bookbag This Week:

Devotional: Galatians with the Paul for Everyone Commentary (NT Wright)

The Daily Office Lectionary Readings and Prayers from The Trinity Mission

 Theological: On The Incarnation (St. Athanasius, with introduction by CS Lewis)

AO Book Discussion Group: I Promessi Sposi (Manzoni)

Personal Choice: Oliver Twist (Dickens - Pre-reading for Year 5)

Parents and Children (Charlotte Mason)

Poetry: Collected Poems 1909-1962 (TS Eliot)

With my Hubby: Emma (Austen)

Family Read-Aloud Literature: Little Britches (Moody)

 

*I am also reading Charlotte Mason's Volume 6 for a local CM book club, but these meetings are infrequent, and it is my third – or fourth? – pass through it and so I just read the brief section assigned as our meetings come up.   

 

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Summer Plans

I've been seeing a lot of 'summer plan' posts popping up in various places on the internet.   I thought it might be fun to chat about that over here in this space too.  We are actually still in school mode here at our house, and will be until mid-July, and then will be traveling on the West Coast later in the summer.   So really…we don't really have the leisure of a long, lazy summer here.  That said, we are still in need of a little refreshment to ease the monotony that can lead to burnout.  

 

I don't make super-ambitious reading goals anymore, although I always have a running list of books I want to read going in the back of my mind.  The only reading that I'm for sure going to do this summer is to keep up with the I Promessi Sposi discussion, because I'm co-leading it. (I'm also REALLY enjoying it, so no chore there.) I am also slowly reading Athansius' On the Incarnation as my theology pick at the moment, and would like to finish that this summer and move on to something else.  I'd also like to read Charlotte Mason's Volume 2, Parents and Children, which is one of the remaining two that I haven't read yet.  Truth be told, I will likely be reading novels and other lighter fare more than anything else this summer since I anticipate most of my reading time will either be at the pool while the kids swim or while traveling in the car which doesn't really lend itself to dense reading material.  So, we'll see how we go.

We had a very disrupted school year so are still in school mode until mid-July, like I said. We did 4-day weeks with a 5th day for co-op this past year, so we are keeping the 4-days schedule and plan to take that 5th day for a weekly field trip now that co-op is finished for the year. There are several museums that we'd like to visit, and I'd also like to take some longer, full-day type nature walks. I also set aside much of our normal morning basket fare and we will be doing Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, drawing, backyard-type nature study, and some hands-on things related to the topics in CM's Elementary Geography instead. Later in the summer we'll be travelling on the West Coast, mostly to visit family, but hopefully will get some good outings and nature journaling opportunities along the way. So really my 'summer enrichment' will be mostly things that I do WITH the kids. Shakespeare, drawing, nature walks, museums and afternoons by the pool are good for Mama too.

The one other thing that I'd really like to do is do some follow-up study and research after Dawn's Swedish Drill presentation at the Conference (and her recent Mason Jar podcast, and her series of guest posts over at Afterthoughts) and come up with a simple baby-steps plan towards being more intentional about physical fitness in our home after our travel break. So that's my 'something new' to learn about.

 

 

I'm also working towards better habits in the morning - we've been letting far too much of the morning slip away from us before getting going with our school work.  Currently, I'm in the brainstorming mode.  I'd love it if you'd share your morning routine with me in the comments - perhaps your routine will help me think outside the box for improvements I can make to ours.

And that's the plan. What about you?

From My Commonplace: Walking Around in Someone Else's Skin

" 'First of all,' he said, 'if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks.  You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view –'

 

'Sir?'

 

'- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.'"  (p.33)

 

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" 'Atticus, he was real nice…'

 

His hands were under my chin, pulling up the cover, tucking it around me.  'Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them.'" (p. 323)

 

~Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird

 

To Kill a Mockingbird was the book I took along with me on the plane for my recent trip to Texas for the AmblesideOnline Conference.  I had read it in high school (which honestly is longer ago than I really care to admit these days!) but not again since then.  I've been meaning to re-read it for a while, and I'm glad I finally did.  It is truly a powerful story, and sort of book-ended by the two quotes I've cited here, both conversations between Atticus Finch – a lawyer and true man of integrity in contrast to many in his small Southern community – and his daughter Scout.  Through the course of the novel, Scout watches her Father – and watches the reactions of the rest of the community around her – and learns some very important lessons about seeing people for who they really are and acting with integrity even in the face of opposition.  (I don't want to give away too much of the plot for those who may not have read it.  I highly recommend it if you haven't, or if – like me – you haven't since high school.  It's worth revisiting.)

 

One thing I sort of pondered as I read was just what it was that made Atticus stand out from so many others around him – what made him willing to go against the flow of his community and act according to his principles even though that meant acting in opposition to the deeply held ideals of most in his community.   One idea that struck me was the fact that Atticus Finch was a reader. And he shared that with his children.  Early on in the book there is an incident with Scout on her first day of school.  She gets in trouble with her teacher, who is annoyed that she has already learned how to read, a skill she picked up seamlessly from hours spent reading the paper in her Father's lap in the evenings.   The rest of the students in the class were non-readers, and even described as "immune to imaginative literature." (p.19).  Reading was not a part of their family culture or formative experiences.

 

During the Conference, one of the sessions was a panel of adult children of some of the members of the AmblesideOnline Advisory – the women who created the AO Curriculum.  These young women were raised on Charlotte Mason's ideas, great literature among them.  What did they gain from this upbringing?  One of the answers was as follows, paraphrased of course based on what I jotted down in my notes:
 

"I have the ability to look at things from more than one perspective, to have empathy and compassion, even for those I disagree with.  This is the gift of literature without comprehension questions.  It allows you to experience other things and to let those ideas simmer and stew without the need to form an immediate judgement."

 

It teaches you to walk around in other people's skin.

 

If nothing else, I hope and pray that this rich, literary education I am giving my children enables them to grow up to be people of integrity – people like Atticus Finch who are willing to stand strong in the face of an increasingly hostile culture.

 

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My Bookbag This Week:

Devotional: The Daily Office Lectionary Readings and Prayers from The Trinity Mission

 Theological: On The Incarnation (St. Athanasius, with introduction by CS Lewis)

AO Book Discussion Group: I Promessi Sposi (Manzoni)

Personal Choice: Mrs Miniver (Struthers)

Poetry: Collected Poems 1909-1962 (TS Eliot)

With my Hubby: Emma (Austen)

Family Read-Aloud Literature: Little Britches (Moody)

 

*I am also reading Charlotte Mason's Volume 6 for a local CM book club, but these meetings are infrequent, and it is my third – or fourth? – pass through it and so I just read the brief section assigned as our meetings come up.   

 

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What We've Been Up To...

So friends, I've been a bit AWOL in this space.  To say the month of May has been busy is an understatement!  I'm hoping to get back into a writing rhythm and get that Getting Started with Year One series wrapped up soon for the sake of those of you looking ahead towards the fall.   But in the meantime, I offer you a little glimpse into what we've been up to these days…

 

Out and About::

Last weekend, I had the wonderful privilege to attend the AmblesideOnline Conference, Deep in the Heart of AO, in Waxahachie, Texas.  What a joy that was!!  I have been actively involved in the AmblesideOnline Forum for several years, and met a good handful of those lovely online friends last summer at the AO Conference in Indiana.  It was a delight to see those dear people again, and to meet others for the first time.   It was like a little taste of what heaven might be like, and I don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that.

 

My Amazing Roomie and very dear friend Dawn

The AmblesideOnline Advisory and Auxiliary - they are the ones behind it all.  They are pretty amazing too.

Amy, Dawn, Brandy, and Me

Photo credits for all these conference photos to Dawn..or the people she handed her phone to. :D  The few I took didn't come out! :(

 

The Conference sessions were all wonderful too.  So much food for thought to chew on for the next long while…but at the same time things that I have put into practice in my home immediately too.  I'm not going to write about that today, nor am I planning a long-winded series (although Katie is!), but I'm sure that ideas I gleaned will be popping up here and there in my posts over the coming weeks and months.

 

In the Schoolroom::

We wrapped up our co-op year this past month, finishing with a presentation of the final death scene from Hamlet from the Shakespeare class.  Michelle only had one line, but she delivered it with clarity and confidence.  I was so very proud of her!  This class definitely ignited what I suspect will be a lifelong love for Shakespeare as well.  It was such a fantastic experience for her, as was teaching the third-fourth grade history/literature/art and music appreciation class was for me.   Sadly, due to distance, we won't be able to be a part of this same co-op again next fall, but have some new plans with church friends in the works for the fall.  We shall see how it all works out. 

 

Michelle and friends after Hamlet

 

In the meantime, we have started what I am calling our "Summer Term".  We have had extended breaks at odd times this year, so plan to continue schooling through mid-July.  Michelle and James just started Term 2 of their respective AO Years 4 and 2, and Elizabeth – who turned 6 in March – began Year 1 Term 1.  (My baby!  My last trip through Year 1!!  Sniff!!!)  Just to mix things up a little bit, I have set aside our regular Morning Basket fare (stay tuned for a post on our Summer Morning Basket plans soon!).  We are also planning to use that fifth day that was our co-op day for a weekly field trip.  There are a number of local museums we'd like to visit that we just haven't taken the time for, and weather permitting we'd like to get some full-day nature study outings in there too (preferably NOT when it is 100 degrees out, though!!)  And our community pool is opening next week if I'm not mistaken, so lots of afternoons at the pool are in our schedule too.  Hoping this will be a good mix of refreshment while still making forward progress on the academic front.

 

Creatively::

Pretty much limited to nature journaling and sketching with the kids, these days.  But that's happening pretty regularly because I tossed them in our morning basket…and that counts, right?

 

 

 

 

In the Kitchen::

So, a while back, I picked up Trina Holden's book Your Real Food Journey.  I am truly appreciating its accessibility and baby-steps approach.  I tried to get into the real food thing a few years ago, but that was when I still had babies and toddlers in the house, and we were in the process of moving internationally 4 times in 4 years.  Let's just say it was literally all I could do to get dinner on the table – any dinner.  I was not in the right season to be making dietary changes.  We just needed to eat – something.  Anything.  Anyhow, we are in a more settled place now and my children are older so we're revisiting this.  (Even though I have NO desire to be in the kitchen all the time.  I just don't.)  So, I have made a list of some of the baby steps that she suggests in the book and am slowly working through them – not adding another until the previous one becomes natural.   I started with replacing the fats I use in cooking (we pretty much only use olive oil, coconut oil, and butter now), and then tackled a better breakfast rotation.  We were resorting to cold cereal far too often.  I needed nourishing, simple options that lent themselves well to serve-yourself breakfasts because of various rising times in our family.  Next, will be improving the nutritional value of the snack options available in our house…

 

Not our house. ;)  But I love this photo so I threw it in anyhow.

 

Around the House::

We are LOVING our new house and making it a home.  LOVING IT.  But I have no pictures for you.  Maybe a tour of how we organize for homeschooling next time (we don't have a dedicated school area)?

 

What have you been up to?

From My Commonplace: A Hymn to God's Glory

"Newton's intent in all his work was to make men more pious and devout, more reverent in the face of God's creation.  His aim was not that men rise to their feet in freedom but that they fall to their knees in awe.  So for Newton himself, the answer to the question where does God fit into the universe? was plain.  God sat enthroned at the center of creation.  Newton had always known it; he had always seen his work as a hymn to God's glory, though one written in curves and equations rather than notes on a staff.  Now his dazzling success in the Principia provided still further evidence of the magnificence of God's design." p. 308

 

~Edward Dolnick, The Clockwork Universe

 

(Fascinating book, by the way.  I took AP Calculus in high school and even passed the AP test, but had no idea that calculus actually had a real purpose.  Or that it had been invented, kind of out of nowhere.  Sort of wild to think about.)

 

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My Bookbag This Week:

Devotional: The Daily Office Lectionary Readings and Prayers from The Trinity Mission

 The Rising: Living the Mysteries of Lent, Easter, and Pentecost (Wright)

Theological: On The Incarnation (St. Athanasius, with introduction by CS Lewis)

AO Book Discussion Group: I Promessi Sposi (Manzoni)

Personal Choice: The Story of King Arthur and His Knights (Pyle) – Pre-reading for AO Year 5

With my Hubby: Emma (Austen)

Family Read-Aloud Literature: Little Britches (Moody)

 

*I am also reading Charlotte Mason's Volume 6 for a local CM book club, but these meetings are infrequent and so I just read the brief section assigned as our meetings come up.   

 

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Getting Started with Ambleside Online Year One: The Booklist

Welcome back, friends.  Ready to jump in to our next installment?   Let's talk about all the delicious books, shall we?   (Happy sigh.)

 

 

Once again, I'm going to refer you over to the Year One page over on Ambleside Online's website.  Please open that page in another tab to refer to while we're chatting today…otherwise much of what I say probably won't make sense. J

 

What am I looking at?  Where should I start?

You will see two choices Year One Basic and Year One Detailed.   The Basic list is just what it suggests – the simplest form of the list, usually giving only the first/preferred option of book choices when there is more than one choice.  The Detailed list gives you various options in some cases, if you want to pick and choose.  There isn't a lot of difference between the two lists for Year One – the options come more into play in the upper years.  Select the list you prefer and click to open the booklist page.   The subjects covered by the booklist are Bible, history, biographies, geography, natural history/science, poetry, literature, and free reading.  You will notice a variety of clickable symbols next to each title in the booklist – there is a key at the top of the page to explain them.  Basically they are links to various sources where you can get each book in a variety of formats – print books, ebooks, and audio books.  There are also little numbers next to certain books, which link to the footnotes at the bottom of the page.  Please, please take the time to read through all of the footnotes!  

 

Do I need all of these books?

Yes, you really do need all the books. J  The only book that is really 'optional' in Year One is Trial and Triumph (be sure to read the notes and preview this book to see how you want to handle it.)  There are sometimes good reasons to substitute other books (certain history selections for non-American families, for example), and AO's format is flexible enough that it is possible to do this pretty easily.  However, I caution you against making substitutions, additions, and other changes unless it is absolutely necessary.  I swapped out and added in books when we first started AO, and I came to regret nearly every one of those changes.  We do AO pretty much as written now – moving some books around to group read-alouds as needed since I am juggling students in three different years, but still hitting them all eventually.   So…I suggest starting with the booklist as written, and go from there.  If you have questions or concerns about any of the books on the list, you can hop on over to the Forum and ask there or search for past discussions.

 

What format should I use – print or ebooks?  Do I need to purchase them, or can I use the library?

One of the beautiful things about AO is their vision to make a rich Charlotte Mason education available to everyone, regardless of location or budget.  As such, many – although not all – of the books they suggest are available online for free as ebooks.   This is a wonderful option for those who are on a very tight budget or who are overseas and have shipping restrictions.   We started out using as many Kindle books as we could because we were overseas at the time so shipping was an issue, and this worked just fine.  Now that we are settled in the US, we are slowly starting to collect print copies of the books and find that we greatly prefer that format.  So…my suggestion?  Purchase as many books in print versions as you can in your particular circumstances, and use ebooks for the rest.  If you check used bookstores, library sales, and online used book retailers, you can purchase many of the books very inexpensively.  When purchasing books, please consider purchasing them through the Amazon links on the Ambleside Online website.  These are affiliate links and will go towards supporting Ambleside Online, which is completely run by volunteers offering their experience, expertise, and time as a gift to the Charlotte Mason community.

 

As far as the library goes – most of these books are stretched out over the whole school year, and some of them across several school years.  So for the most part, the library won't be terribly practical.  The one exception would be the free reads, since these aren't scheduled – they are just offered as worthy "don't miss" selections to read as you wish outside of school time.  We have used them as family read alouds in the evening, audiobooks for long car trips, and personal free reading once the children were reading well enough.

 

What do I do with these books once we are ready to begin lessons?

Back on the curriculum page, you will find links to a 36 week schedule that tells you what chapters from which books to read each week of the school year.  There are charts available in a variety of formats, or you can make your own (which is what I do).  I wrote a post for Brandy over at Afterthoughts a couple of years ago on how I prep and teach a Charlotte Mason style lesson using a couple of Year One books as examples.  For the most part, it is as simple as "read and have the child narrate".   There are some cases where you may want to look up pictures or Youtube videos to get a visual image of something.  We keep maps handy to look up the places we read about in history or geography lessons, and begin a simple timeline.  But for the most part, it really isn't necessary or even desirable to add in a lot of 'extras'.  The ideas are in the books themselves, and we want to let the child form their own relationship with those ideas without throwing in a lot of things that get in the way.

 

For Year One, even for a child who is a strong reader, you can expect to be reading all of the child's school assignments out loud to them.  I suggest this even for strong readers because it is important for the child to have established the skill of narration before handing off school books to be read independently. 

 

That's all for today, folks!