Learning that Lasts
With all the talk of kids and early learning it’s a relief to find out, in my mid-thirties, that learning doesn’t end when we reach the end of school. Â In fact, I would be willing to bet that I’ve learned more in my years out of school, than in my desk wearing knee high socks.
As an adult and homeschool mama, learning again through a child’s eyes, I’ve discovered, among many other things, that:
– I can paint
– I enjoy hiking in the woods
– I can be good at math
– I love learning about birds
– Great children’s book are still great when the reader is no longer a child
– And history is one of my favorite subjects (this one makes my husband particularly excited)
I hope my kids actually learn plenty during their school years, but I also hope they get these joyful moments of discovery for the rest of their lives.
I overheard this quote last night as my husband watched a documentary about the historian, David McCullough. He’s speaking about my epiphany with history (even if he didn’t know it at the time).
“History is not about dates, and quotes, and obscure provisos. History is about life, about change, about consequences, cause and effect. It’s about the mystery of human nature, the mystery of time. And it isn’t just about politics, and the military, and social issues, which is almost always the way it’s taught. It’s about music, and poetry, and drama, and science, and medicine, and money, and love.”
On the Bright Side: A Few Good Reads
It’s one of those weeks when the best laid plans have been made, but there’s a cry or wail and a sour face at almost every turn.
So here’s a whole post full of complaints….
Wait a second, I already know this homeschool path is lined with little stones that trip me up and some big ole’ rocks that causes  a full-tilt, ungraceful stumble.  At the same time that I’m falling to my knees, I’m  finding plenty of treasures along the trail.
So instead of a list of our challenges this week, here’s a list of the books that have brought us together.
Johnny Tremain Esther Forbes
We have about three weeks left in our journey through the Revolutionary War, led by TruthQuest’s American History for Young People (Year 1) as our guide. Â To much anticipation, we began Johnny Tremain this week. Â Right away his saucy, prideful character grabbed the kids attention and they all grinned nervously as the author foreshadowed that “pride cometh before the fall”. Â I didn’t read this book as a child and what a gem! Â When I first read it to myself last year I asked a friend, just like a child, “Is he a real person?” Unfortunately he’s not, but he’ll live in our imaginations for the rest of the week.
The Little Maid Series by Alice Turner Curtis
I stumbled upon the Little Maid of Mohawk Valley, a nice hard-bound, slightly-tattered edition and then realized from looking through our TruthQuest guide, this is an entire series based on actual events of young girls who played a role in history during the Colonial period. Â I can’t speak to the entire series yet, but the one we read was full of spunky girl adventure and detailed, historical background to boot. Â There is an edition of this series that includes a paper doll and dress attached to the cover flaps. Â What a great gift for a girl. Â We’ll be reading The Little Maid of Ticonderoga next.
Wilderness Wife by Etta DeGering
Have you ever thought of what it was like to be the wife of Daniel Boone, the great wilderness man of the late 1700’s? Â She bore him ten children, spent large chunks of time raising thier family while he was off making new roads, and had several children killed or kidnapped by the Native Americans. Â But still she told him to go, sensing his need to explore and be free. Â My 8 year old is reading this for a report on Boone’s family and she can’t put it down once her school time is over.
The Return of the Twelves by Pauline Clark
A treasure I found at the thriftstore, this is story inspired by the actual soldiers played with by the Bronte Family. As young children they wrote a history for their toy soldiers and published it. Â This author took the soldiers and their history and brought them to live in an attic and be discovered by a English boy one hundred years later. Â Only Max knows the secret, that these soldiers are actually alive. Â Very adventurous, a good read aloud (or independent reading) for a boy especially. Â This book has a similar spirit of The Indian and the Cupboard (different armor, similar idea that toys have a secret life), but this book was written first. Â I also found a picture book, entitled The Brontes by Catherine Brighton, at the used book store, that highlights the childhood of the children, including the wooden soldiers.
A Journey through the Bible by David C Cook
I picked this up at a curriculum sale last spring. Â It gives historical and geographical information that correlates to the main stories of the Bible, includes diagrams and photographs. Â We started The Story Bible by Catherine Vos again, and this has been a good companion, a way to support the events of the Bible as real history, not just a bedtime story.
Can I hear a hurrah for thrift stores and used book stores? Hurrah!
Learning Near a Big City
I grew up in a city but my heart belonged to the beach on the edge of the city.
I moved to another city for college and another city for marriage and it’s no New York, but it’s a great city and we love it.
One of our favorite questions to ask each other is “Do you want to live in the city or the country?”
None of us can answer with a distinct yes or no.
I love the idea of wide open spaces for my children to roam, of a slower life, of a closer relationship with nature.
I also love my library, my coffee shop, a short drive to the grocery store, and a life without wildlife that gets too friendly.
No matter how we might answer the question in the hypothetical, our trip to Chicago this past week had me mentally planning school as if all of the great places we visited were just around the corner.
First we visited Oak Park, and took a walk around the neighborhood, picking out our “new” house. Â A lot of the houses looked prime for secret crawl spaces and hidden rooms. Â The neighborhood is also home to the studio of Frank Lloyd Wright and many houses designed by him can be found nearby. Â We dragged our hot and sweaty selves into our friend’s favorite bookstore. Â I’ve always dreamed of walking from our house to a coffee shop, park, and library. Â (That’s one point for the city side of the question).
For the rest of the week we parked ourselves in Batavia, an hour out of Chicago and surrounded by great little towns and more than we could do in our short time (add 4 kids and two tired parents).
We were all impressed with the Dupage Children’s Museum. Â If you’ve been to a children’s museum, you tasted a piece of this three story exploratorium. Â Famous art lined the walls with correalating activities in color, sound, and structure. Â In my head I planned our return trips. Â First we’d study color and shadows and head back to that section next time. Â Then we’d study construction, a unit on wood and tools and head back to the construction exhibit. Â Then we’d come back and just explore the section with giant tools to build marble runs. If we lived there.
The next day we took the train to the Field Museum.
The Museum blew us all away and we didn’t even get to see two of the exhibits because there is so much to see. Oh my, the Underground Adventure where you get to see what’s under the soil as if you’re the size of an ant. Our six year old still sincerely believes he was shrunk to half and inch for thirty minutes of his life!
The egyptians, the native americans, the dinosaurs, the animals, oh my.
My favorite area was the section on North American Birds. Â Every single bird was represented. Birds we had only read about and now we got to examine them up close. Â I wanted to get sketch books and come back-every week! Â If we lived there.
And finally we visited the Aboretium. Â If you’re familiar with Nashville, this was like Cheekwood hiked up three levels. Â An amazing children’s section designed to get kids close to nature. Â A garden maze, and miles of trails. Â My friend asked me, “If you were a member here, how many times would you visit in the year?” Â Twice a month, or even better yet, once a week and that would be school for the day.
We’re not pulling up roots and moving out of Nashville, but I do wish we could pull up Nashville and move it atleast four hours closer to Chicago.
An Assortment of Audio Treasures
“Mommy, can you put it on now?” one child asks before we even get the coats, the hats, and the littlest one all out the door.
“Just a minute, I can’t even think about that yet.” I answer as I grab the toddler running by without her shoes.
“I already got it ready!” the eight year old yells from the back as I dump the diaper bag on the seat beside me in the van.
“Just let me get going,” I growl.
“Don’t ask again,” the ten year old whispers to everybody. Finally, we’re on the interstate, my swirling thoughts settling like the snow that was here last week.
I reach for the button and I hear, “She’s doing it. Â She’s putting it on.”
And the story begins. Â Most assuredly, it was one of these:
Radios Dramas by Focus on the Family Radio Theater
Once my eldest began listening to this series, she’s never again been satisfied with one person narrating a book on cd. For the past few years, these have been the main request for her Christmas list. Thoughtful story selection, great acting and writing, and a dramatic sound and musical score blended together into a compelling story. We have the entire Narnia Series(listened to repeatedly both in the car and at home) and The Secret Garden. We’ve listened to Squanto and hope to add it to our collection soon. On Christmas Day, Anne of Green Gables and George MacDonald’s At The Back of the Northwind will find a new audience.
These volumes are a great way to dive into history as a family.  There a many, many volumes and they’re told in a dramatic format like the Focus on the Family series.  We’ve entered the life of slave with Sojourner Truth, grown up with Eleanor Roosevelt, and journeyed to a famous hymn with John Newtown.  Though these don’t match the top notch quality of the Focus on the Family Series, they’ve still engaged our whole family.  They have another series that chronicles the life of Jesus. My only word of caution is that occasionally one of the historical stories will include content  a bit questionable for our younger kids.  I’ve found that this series is a mixed bag, we find a volume in which every story is great and appropriate and then with another we might skip a few stories and I might silently wish the acting was a little better.  We have not found these are the library, but you can buy them online and look for good deals at your local homeschool convention.
Classical Kids
We don’t own these cd’s but they’ve always been on my “To Purhchase” list. Â Dramatic, well-written, musically inspired stories about great composers. Â We just finished Mozart’s Magnficient Journey this morning on the way home. Â I didn’t let them bring it inside this week to listen, because I didn’t want to miss any of the story. Â If only they would make more of these.
And finally, Seeds Family Worship:
Okay, so these cd’s are not story collections, they are a collection of even more important words. Â I can’t help but mention these Bible verses put to music, delightfully not dumbed down either in words or music, for the whole family. Â Many times these verses have stirred in my heart at just the right moment. Seeds in my heart. Â There are six volumes and they are all available for listening free online OR, if you purchase the a cd, you get a second cd free to give away. Â Seeds of Courage and Seeds of Encouragement are two of our favorites.
Making Peace with History
Like most homeschool moms at the end of the year I find myself itching to jump into the Land of Possibility for next fall, rather than wringing out the last official school days of this year. I’d rather imagine the potential for great learning moments and Google the books we’ve yet to purchase than attend to the  task of keeping everyone’s spirits up for the home stretch.  As I  race to used curriculum sales and imagine the perfect planning weekend away with friends, I’m surprised to find that the subject I’m most excited about is History.
Let me give you my own history with History. I remember thick textbooks with timelines and pictures that seemed completely unrelated to me. Late night sweat sessions as I tried to absorb enough facts to pass the multiple choice test the next day. It didn’t bother me that I didn’t care about the subject and by college I fully committed to naptime during my summer class on the Middle East. I secretly prided myself on being a “here and now” kind of girl, a time that was obviously more relevant than anything previous. Even learning the background of my major, theater, fell flat against the passion of being onstage in the moment.
Who knew I would marry a man who, if he had been a history teacher, would have regularly donned a revolutionary war costume and staged mock battles on the playground?  Did we discuss the compatibility of a husband who watches documentaries as a way to relax after a long day and a wife who thought their only use might be post-traumatic therapy from high school history class?  Don’t even get me started on how we both felt about museums full of artifacts.  I remember one particular conversation (one sided, that is) as I read my novel and he read his non-fiction, when I realized he’d been silent and staring at me expectantly for several moments, and I hastily responded, “All I heard was pirates, pirates, pirates.”
Fast forward to the realization that instructing our children at home would mean, that’s right, teaching the darned subject. Yawn, boring, why not pass it over to my husband? And that’s what we did some years when we weren’t squeezing it into a unit study which made it a bit more palatable.
Why then as I think about next year, do I find my heart beating a bit quicker as I look through my great finds for our coming year of American History? I think it started with the excitement of my children who have caught their father’s enthusiasm. No one told them that loving other time periods is nerdy or boring, so instead they travel (with playmobiles or costumes) regularly to 17 and 1800’s. Secondly, those documentaries have started to woo me in the same way that my husband has absorbed my love of brownie batter (granted, his obsession is probably healthier than what I gave to him). I sat late into the night with him catching the final discs of John Adams with Paul Giamatti. (yes, I know it’s not a documentary, but close).
All of the above, combined with some great books over our 5 years of home learning, has finally lifted the veil on history, allowed it to shed it’s bad reputation, and showed it’s true nature: stories. Story after story with characters made even more intriguing by the fact that their feet tread this earth at one time.
Story is something I already love, passionately. You mean I get to share stories, go on adventures, and even discover the existence of a woman flier during the time of Amelia Earhart with my exact same name?
That’s what I want to be, a teacher of stories already told and a conjurer of stories yet to be written.
(Please don’t tell my husband because this is a slippery slope I walk. Â There was the documentary last week on a frozen baby mammoth that made me want to reconsider my tender feelings toward history, and I’d still rather make art than walk through floor after floor of of african masks and fertile god statues.)
What We’ve Been Up to
We’ve finally picked up speed after the Christmas Break. Â Keeping our fingers crossed that Spring will come soon, we are-
-Continuing our Indian Studies
-Beginning our first Artist Study of the Year with Picasso
-Finding rhythm and adding cohesiveness to our day with “Square Time”(as named by our 4 year old and inspired by this great ebook on homeschooling multiple children with Circle Time)
-and preparing stories for the PBS Story Contest.
Evan-Moor History Pockets, A Review
Each of our three school-aged children has expressed an interest in Indians. Following their interest, we set aside plans to finish Story of the World 1, and instead started a journey through the tribes of North America.
To help us explore, I purchased an Evan Moor product for the first time. Â I’ve heard such positive reviews about their products from the ladies over at Homeschool Share for years. Â Last week we started the Evan Moor History Pockets for Native Americans, grades 1-3. Â I bought the ebook version so that I can print off only what we actually use.
I’ve enjoyed everything about this purchase. Â I can’t say that about too many products out there, I usually spend half my time thinking of how to fill holes.
There are two activities per tribe and they are easy to accomplish but still fun.
Nez Perce Decorations for the Appaloosa Horses
Character Qualities of Chief Joseph from the Nez Perce Indians
Tlingit Potlatch Masks
A map of the tribes along with picture cards to create a Native American dictionary are included.
My 4 1/2, 7, and 9 year old have all been engaged in this unit, an unexpected bonus for me.
With the Evan Moore pockets, the only extra resource I recommend is the library. Â But even if you don’t have that, a short booklet is included for each tribe(it’s helpful and will do the trick, but it’s not like having some great pictures and read-alouds.) Â I’ll continue to update the book list at the end up this post, as we continue through the tribes.
I truly haven’t looked for other supplements, though a few have walked into my email via rss feeds, like this igloo below. Â And the new information we’ve been learning has inspired lots of creative play. Â Think Inuit animals bundled in baby sister’s winter clothes and tied onto a ladder as a sleigh.
Note: I purchased this product for our family homeschool, I received no money to review this product.
Suggested Booklist
The Inuits
Call me Ahnighito by Pam Conrad
The Year of Miss Agnes by Kirkpatrick Hill(CB)
The Three Snow Bears by Jan Brett
The Tlingit
The Tlingit by Raymond Bial
The Frog Princess Tlingit Legend from Alaska by Eric A Kimmel
Nez Perce
Thunder Rolling in the Mountians by Scott O’Dell(CB)*
The Nez Perce by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve
Chief Joseph Boy of the Nez Perce’ by Olive W. Burt(CB)*
The Nez Perce by Sharlene and Ted  Nelson
The Maidu
Home to Medicine Mountain by Chiori Santiago
Other Indian Read-Alouds
Caddy Woodlawn(CB)
Tree in the Trail by Holling C. Holling
Pocahontas by Ingri and Edgar Parin d’Aulaire
CB-Chapter Book
*This book was checked out by our family, by we didn’t get a chance to read it.