Reading

I have been reading instead of blogging. I have a lot that I want to write about, but sometimes it's a little too laborious to write a post from my iPhone. I'm not complaining, I'm just sayin'.

I finished The Man Who Was Thursday. I thought it was fantastic. And fantastical. I would like to read more Chesterton in the future.

Joel and I both finished Brighty. It was very enjoyable. I loved the reaction if the librarian when we checked it out of the library, "Oh, I LOVE this book! I read this book over and over when I was a little girl! And now I have a donkey of my own!". I thought it was great for the boys to see the librarian get so excited about their books.

I recently subscribed to receive emails from the CiCLE Institute. The last email had a commentary on reading written by Andrew Kern. I thought I'd share it, as I found it profound.

On Reading
By Andrew Kern

Reading is an extraordinarily complicated intellectual act, which leads some people to think that it can only be taught by experts. In this it parallels, motherhood. However, both reading and motherhood are both too complex for experts for the simple reason that expertise implies that you have identified the way things work regardless of context.

The expert fails at both reading and motherhood because he looks in the wrong place. I will focus on reading. Reading has to do with the soul engaging and grasping the idea (logos) of a text, not remembering the content that embodies the idea. But because we are culturally opposed to the soul and to the logos, we focus our attention on very limited faculties like critical thinking and, to a much lesser extent, memory.

The goal of reading is apprehension. Beyond a few very general ideas, I’m not sure anybody has come close to comprehending how we go about apprehending when we read. I suspect that much of our reading instruction makes students to self-conscious to be conscious of the text.

That is why the best way to teach reading, after students have learned to decode, is by engaging in debates about the text read.

Sometimes, especially on a first read, the idea is better grasped (or maybe felt is a better word to use) through a quick read than through a close analysis. You don’t want to give premature attention to detail and comprehension. First, you simply want to encounter the text as what it is.

Apprehension comes later. I don’t think you can apprehend anything on a first read. The mind has too much work to do to grasp the idea embodied in a text in one or two reads, especially if the text is worth reading.

What to do then? Stop worrying about reading comprehension and attend instead to the point of the story or text. How do you do that? If it’s a story, discuss whether a character should have done something or what will be/are the consequences of a decision made. Then argue about it, using the text to answer the question. If it’s non-fiction, identify the point and discuss whether the author is right – or even comprehensible.

Then let the discussion go. You’ll find out something marvelous: reading is not eyes scanning symbols on a page, it is souls conversing over ideas.

So Sad

I have no pictures of the cake. None. Not one. I do have a video of us singing to Jack and him blowing out his candles, which I may be able to upload by some feat of technology other than this beloved phone.

So sorry. It was very cute.

G K Chesterton

I don't know why I always do this, but I always find about 3 books to bring home from the library and try to read them. When am I going to read these books??? My latest temptation was The Man Who was Thursday by GK Chesterton. I have never read Chesterton or even heard of him until about 5 or so years ago. But whenever I hear him spoken of, I feel as if I must go immediately and read something he has written. So while I was at the library on Saturday, I went perusing, and found two of his works, one of which was The Man Who was Thursday. It was thin, so I felt it was safe to check out.

I am halfway through already.

I have recommended it to none other than my FATHER. And it begins with a POEM.

I really wish this blogger app offered such options as italic and bold, because the all-caps just doesn't cut it.

In other news, James is finishing his ninth week of first grade. It is flying by! And Jack is turning 4 tomorrow! No! It cannot be true!!!

Cake pictures following the weekend.

Caramel Apples

My mom helped my boys make caramel apples last week, here are some pictures. They were delicious but we weren't completely satisfied with the caramel, so no recipe is included. But you can find one online and try it out yourself. It was very simple to do. Beware of extreme sugar high followed by EXTREME sugar low. :) Happy Fall, everybody!

Commitment

I am about half way through Parents and Children by Charlotte Mason. It has been just the right thing for me right now. With subjects such as "parents as inspirers" and "faith and duty", did I mention PARENTS AS INSPIRERS????!!!!! With such subjects discussed, it has been amazing. Really! It has brought so much focus and clarity to my thinking, with regards to education. It's just philosophy, philosophy, philosophy, and I love it. But then it's practical application after practical application. She speaks of the evidence with validates her philosophy to be true, and which I know to be true from my own experience, and which I see evidenced in my children.

I am attempting to retain as much as I can from what I'm reading. I'm not so great at narrating, though. I mean sure, I could narrate Pilgrim's Progress or Our Island Story or Pagoo, but we're talking about a completely different level here. The reason I know that I do do poorly at narrating CM is because I will try to tell Jason about something. Note the word "try". He answers with blank looks and answers such as, "ok, that's the most vague thing I've ever heard".

Sigh.

So I am committing right here, right now, to answer the questions in the appendix when I am finished reading Parents and Children. I mean answer the questions here on my blog. I have never gone through the appendices of CM's books because I was way too intimidated by the questions. But this will force me to clearly articulate what I have learned.

Current Books

I am reading five books right now. I think five is a good amount to keep going as I am not usually in the mood to read the same book night after night. Perhaps it's the Charlotte Mason mental feast thing rubbing off on me. Heh heh. Or maybe I don't see the need to discipline myself into finishing one book before beginning another. Whatever it is, that's just how it is with me right now. Along with CM's Volume 2, I am reading The Hidden Art of Homemaking by Edith Schaeffer, the Something or Other of Motherhood ... Meaning? Method? It's a Sally Clarkson book I have been reading bits of for months now. So those are the grown up books I'm reading. Definitely each of them need to be savored. I don't think any of them would benefit me at all if I just read them cover to cover. They require Thinking.

So now that Joel is beginning Ambleside Online Year 3, I am finally through the Year 1 free read list. Until now, I have read all the free reads aloud. But at the last visit to the Library I picked up Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry for Joel to read himself. I have him read two chapters a day (they are short chapters), at separate times. Since I have never read the book, I have been reading several chapters at night a few nights a week so I can stay ahead of him. It's a great book, and I'm glad I chose this one for him to read. I also checked out Five Children and It by Edith Nesbit. I plan to have Joel read it when he's done with Brighty. It Is a completely different flavor (from Brighty), and is quite delightful. It has longer chapters, and I am slowly working through them. I never thought I'd be staying up late reading children's books, but I am! Five Little Peppers and How They Grew is what I am reading to the boys at night, with Poems and Verses for Children interspersed. I am finding that reading children's literature while I have children is helping me. It reminds me of my own childhood, my own feelings as a child, and also to have more reasonable expectations of my children. To remember what's important.

Oh yeah, the Sally Clarkson book is The Mission of Motherhood.

Current Favorite Picture

Beautiful Weather

Right now I am working on a system of regular Bible reading, and regular Nature Study. I would love to do the Outdoor Hour Challenge. The only thing keeping me from being able to do it is the no Internet issue. I want to be able to go to the Library weekly -- ALONE -- with the laptop and get what I need to get, download what I need to download, etc., etc., etc. Again I say, I am working on a system. The key is not seeing all the things I cannot do right now and wishing I could be doing those things. It blinds one from seeing what one CAN be doing. If nothing else, we are spending more time outdoors.... The weather has been heavenly!

A New Beginning. Maybe.

After what seems ages of bemoaning the fact that I have no Internet, I finally had the thought that surely someone in this great Age of Blogging had come up with a way for those of us who have need to, to blog from their iDevice of choice. And they have. And there are options. Thankfully there is a free option among them!

Although I am quite aware that no one will probably read this as all have given up on this blog ever being updated, I do not great hopes of a large following. It is only the accountability of Cyberspace that I *keep telling myself* that I need. However, I don't always tell myself the truth (yes, I have been known to lie to myself) I may end up falling off the bandwagon again as we may find that this option is really not a viable one at this time. But let's not give up before we have begun. Again.

Nothing New Under the Sun

For those of us who dream of the Edwardian era in England with perambulators and personal maids and tea time and all those romantical things, it helps to hear that mothers during that era had at least one struggle in common with the modern day mother. Read on, gentle reader, with your best English accent....


Disobedience
by A. A. Milne

James James
Morrison Morrison
Weatherby George Dupree
Took great
Care of his Mother,
Though he was only three.
James James
Said to his Mother,
"Mother," he said, said he;
"You must never go down to the end of the town,
if you don't go down with me."

James James
Morrison's Mother
Put on a golden gown,
James James
Morrison's Mother
Drove to the end of the town.
James James
Morrison's Mother
Said to herself, said she:
"I can get right down to the end of the town and
be back in time for tea."

King John
Put up a notice
"LOST or STOLEN or STRAYED!
JAMES JAMES
MORRISON'S MOTHER
SEEMS TO HAVE BEEN MISLAID.
LAST SEEN
WANDERING VAGUELY:
QUITE OF HER OWN ACCORD,
SHE TRIED TO GET DOWN TO THE END OF THE TOWN -
FORTY SHILLINGS REWARD!"

James James
Morrison Morrison
(Commonly known as Jim)
Told his
Other relations
Not to go blaming him.
James James
Said to his Mother,
"Mother," he said, said he:
"You must never go down to the end of the town
without consulting me."

James James
Morrison's Mother
Hasn't been heard of since.
King John
Said he was sorry,
So did the Queen and Prince.
King John
(Somebody told me)
Said to a man he knew:
"If people go down to the end of the town, well,
what can anyone do?"

(Now then, very softly)

J. J.
M. M.
W. G. Du P.
Took great
C/o his M*****
Though he was only 3.
J. J.
Said to his M*****
"M*****," he said, said he:

"You-must-never-go-down-to-the-end-of-the-town-if-you-don't-go-down-with ME!"

1st Day of 1st Grade

Well, we survived, Joel and I. We survived our first day of First Grade (second go-round for me, obviously). Hhew, hhew, hhew.... It was pretty good. Of all the days to begin school on, I could have chosen better - far better, but hey, life is not going to stop just because school has started. We started off with the Aesop for Children. I was way impressed with Joel's narration. You could tell he was nervous about narrating because he used his pretend baby voice. The more he narrated, the less babyish he talked. After Aesop, Joel did his reading, then we did math. Parables from Nature was next and I was wondering what Joel was thinking of the story all the while. He asked about a zillion questions afterwards and seemed to really like the story. For writing I was anticipating a little resistance, so I asked Joel if he'd like to write out A. A. Milne's Bad Sir Brian Botany for his writing lesson, a little each day. He was SUPER excited, as that is his current favorite poem and has been for several months. So needless to say, the writing lesson today was great and his letters are looking very well. We began reading the Gospel of John for Bible.

So... that was today!

Along with playing at the nursing home, ironing day and group guitar lesson. Doesn't sound like much written down, but it was very much a full day.

Our New Place

Even though we are in a severe drought, we have seen three rainbows from our front porch. Thought I'd share a couple views.

These three views are of a single rainbow. We could see the entire thing, from where it touched down on one side to where it touched down on the other.

Favorite Quotes from Summer Reading

As I update the "what we're reading" list, I want to make note that we also read Charlotte's Web and Peter Pan this summer. Those were quite fun. I have favorite quotes from each....


from Charlotte's Web by E. B. White:

"How's Avery?" [Dr. Dorian] asked, opening his eyes wide.

"Oh, Avery," chuckled Mrs. Arable. "Avery is always fine. Of course, he gets into poison ivy and gets stung by wasps and bees and brings frogs and snakes home and breaks everything he lays his hands on. He's fine."

"Good!" said the doctor.

from Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie:

"Ah, old lady," Peter said aside to Wendy, warming himself by the fire and looking down at her as she sat turning a heel, "there is nothing more pleasant of an evening for you and me when the day's toil is over than to rest by the fire with the little ones near by."

"It is sweet, Peter, isn't it?" Wendy said, frightfully gratified. "Peter, I think Curly has your nose."

"Michael takes after you."

She went to him and put her hand on his shoulder.

"Dear Peter," she said, "with such a large family, of course, I have now passed my best, but you don't want to change me, do you?"

"No, Wendy."

Certainly he did not want a change, but he looked at her uncomfortably; blinking, you know, like one not sure whether he was awake or asleep.

"Peter, what is it?"

"I was just thinking," he said, a little scared. "It is only make-believe, isn't it, that I am their father?"

"Oh yes," Wendy said primly.

Quotes of the Day

James:

"Daddy, the sheep got bit by a dolphin, but I think she can fly still!"

Jason to Joel: "Stop eating your boogers! You flush those nasty things down the potty - don't eat them!"
Joel to Jason: "Are boogers waterproof??"

Yellow is the Sun

Math is fun! Especially when you pick your nose!

Sketching

One of my favorite things in homeschooling Joel is sketching. I had no idea it would be something that I would like so much. It is just incredible to see your child create something - it might not be a Michaelangelo creation, but it's your child's creation, and therefore that much more special. Joel has been sketching for Sketch Tuesday again, but his mother has been a little out of habit, shall we say, and has just now this week actually submitted a sketch. So to make up for it, I told Joel I'd put his sketches on my blog. That's still cool to him.

We'll go from newest to oldest....

This is his sketch of money. A $20 bill, $1 bill, and $5 bill.

I love this sketch. It is of the ant farm he got for his birthday. I think it's abstract. You can tell where the tunnels are by the changing direction of the pen strokes. Very cool!

This is a sketch of a scene from "The Big Red Barn" by Margaret Wise Brown. His assignment was to sketch a barnyard animal.

Here's his cowboy boot sketch.

These are my all time favorites! Winnie the Pooh characters and part of the 100 Acre Wood Map. I think A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard would be proud.

Verbage

Jack is talking up a storm, thanks to his not having the pacifier as much. He seems to be saying EVERYthing. I thought I'd make a list of them all in case I wanted to know later what he was saying at this age. Here we go....

Mama
Daddy (sounds like Gaggy)
Joel (sounds like Dole, and he calls both James and Joel this - but if you ask him where James or Joel is, he will point at the right person, he just calls them the same thing.)
Oma
Opa
PawPaw
JL
Please
Thank you
Baseball
Football
Trash
Horse (horses are his current favorite animal)
Woof (dogs are his second favorite animal, but just in pictures)
Thunder
Tractor
Trash Truck
Apple
Banana (nana)
Cheese
Juice
Up
No
NO
NNNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Book
Shoes
Baby
Nose (he is fascinated with noses)
Mouth
Hot
Cold
Chancho (yes, Chancho. As in Chancho, the little boy in Nacho Libre)
Boss
All done
More
Thank you
Sippy

I'll keep adding as I remember more and he says more.

Can you find the connection?

James has taken to calling the store Target, Guitarget.

Teetering on the edge of Cyberspace

I am now able to blog again. Yea! I have missed blogging ever so much, yet when we finally got back online I found that I had so many other things to fill my time that I had actually gotten used to not having the Internet. I was planning Joel's birthday party, handwriting invitations, reading the final book in the Mitford Series, trying to catch up on email, and getting bombarded on Facebook. I tell you, some people have real problems.

Highlights that occurred during the Cyber-sabbatical were:

Well ... that is to come. I'm a little brain dead after the "day of rest" that is never as restful as I think it was intended to be - I really don't know what those Isrealite women with three-year-olds did back in the day.

In other Teeth News...

I have to post (hahaha - I originally typed it up as "poast") about James' teeth. Probably no one but me cares about it, but, uh, yeah, this is my blog. Okay, just before his birthday, his bottom 2-year-old molars started coming in and last week his top ones started coming in. I am thrilled, as his chewing abilities will be much improved. Seriously, as a 2 and 3-year-old with his sort of appetite, more teeth is a big deal! As Robinson Crusoe would say, he is "very much disposed to eat".