Food for Thought

 

Catching up with a few links and quotes from the past month or two…

::  Give Me Gratitude or Give Me Debt @ Momastery. [If you read nothing else from this quote and link list, read this one. Trust me.]

::  Mother as Student by Pam Barnhill @ Schole Sisters [Check out all the lovely articles on this fantastic new community!]

“The fact of the matter is that we are all at different stages of this journey towards the true, the good, and the beautiful. I have yet to make it to Augustine and Pieper — I’m still reading Lewis, Esolen, and Caldecott and that’s okay, because I am reading and learning. My journey has begun. We all bring different backgrounds, different expectations, and different educations. We also bring different experiences of classical education.”

::  Violinist Plays During Brain Surgery To Help Surgeons Find Exactly What’s Causing Tremor @ Elite Daily [Whoa, what an age we live in!]

::  2014 Conference Recordings are up at Society for Classical Learning if you need some fresh inspiration as you head into a new school year.

::  If you’re in the mood for a quiz, try these 10 world history questions.

::  The Most Trying Part of Living a Good Story by Jeff Goins

“Good stories involve conflict, which is just a nice word for pain. People don’t become heroes without sacrifice, and as creatures of comfort, this is the last thing we want to endure.”

::  Ask the Headhunter: The sign of ignorance all employers hold against you @ PBS

“What’s a discussion about language doing in Ask The Headhunter? Poor spelling, incorrect grammar, lousy writing and poor oral presentation are all signs of illiteracy. I don’t care what field you work in, how much you earn, or whether you’re a production worker or a vice president. The way you use language reveals who you are, how you think, and how you work. And that will affect your career profoundly. You can pretend otherwise, but you can also walk around buck-naked believing you’re invisible because you’ve got your eyes closed."

::  We Miserable Sinners @ Christianity Today

"Movies and TV shows built to transfer particular abstract ideas wind up fitting the story to the ideas, instead of letting the story and characters breathe and live like real people, who are messy and inconsistent and confusing. Like you. ...Like me...

"Humans actually are pretty good at figuring out if someone is telling them a story in order to talk us into believing they're right. We hate it. But we also like seeing the results of our ideologies played out on screen in ways that are favorable to us."

::  What Do the Arts Have to Do with Evangelism? @ The BioLogos Forum (video)

:: And God Rested @ Story Warren

“All I know for certain is that, if a limitless God can call something good and sit down and rest and enjoy his work, who are we to battle long past the end of our strength or obsess over trivialities or hover anxiously over what ought to be released and laid aside?”

On Math

::  25 Gifs That Teach You Math Concepts Better Than Your Teacher Did @ Distractify

::  Don’t Teach Math, Coach It @ New York Times 

“Baseball is a game. And math, for kids, is a game, too. Everything for them is a game. That’s the great thing about being a kid. In Little League, you play hard and you play to win, but it doesn’t actually matter who wins. And good coaches get this. They don’t get mad and they don’t throw you off the team. They don’t tell you that you stink at baseball, even if you do — they tell you what you need to do to get better, which everybody can do.”

::  Peek into brain shows how kids learn math skills @ Daily Mail

If your brain doesn't have to work as hard on simple maths, it has more working memory free to process the teacher's brand-new lesson on more complex math…'So learning your addition and multiplication tables and having them in rote memory helps.'

Birthdays and Boys and Summer Fun

I’m trying not to sweat the fact that I didn’t get Luke’s birthday pictures posted back at the end of May and that I didn’t take a single picture at Leif’s birthday party on Saturday. And that I have summer fun pictures that I haven’t yet posted. C’est la vie.

These boys were 2 years old and 6 months old when I started my blog. I still can’t fathom that.

 

Luke’s birthday kicks off our summer at the end of May, and Leif’s birthday wraps it up on August 18th. Somehow, I’m never ready for either birthday. Leif has gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to parties the past couple (or more?) years, so I wanted to do something fun for him this year. We had a big BBQ with friends, feasted at a build-your-own ice cream sundae bar, and watched an outdoor movie (The Lego Movie) from lawn chairs when it got dark. Lots of fun—no pictures.

I do have pictures of Luke’s birthday that I never posted, though, so maybe I’ll share those. We spent the evening in the garden at my parents’/sister’s house, playing games and making s’mores. I asked Luke what he wanted for dessert and he said rice krispie treats and red vines, so this was his cake.

My little boys are now 8, 10, and 12.

But there is never a dull day around here, as you well might imagine.

The Trivium: Instructions for Living a Life

 

The word trivium means, very simply, “three roads” or “three ways.”

[You probably already know that tri means “three” and via means “by way of.”]

 

In the context of Classical Education, the word trivium is often used in three different ways.

• As the first three of the seven liberal ARTS (or skills)
• As STAGES of childhood development
• As the STAGES of learning

 

:: Liberal Arts ~ Grammar, Dialectic, Rhetoric

The tradition of the seven liberal arts began with the Ancient Greeks and was further developed during the Middle Ages.

The trivium consists of the first three of the liberal arts—grammar, logic or dialectic, and rhetoric—which are linguistic. [The quadrivium consists of the remaining four mathematical or physical arts.]

What is an art?

Andrew Kern defines an art as a system of patterns, derived from experience by means of reason, a way of doing something governed by reason. An art in this context is a skill or formal subject of study.

‘According to Hugh of Saint Victor [during the Middle Ages], “Grammar is the knowledge of how to speak without error; dialectic is clear-sighted argument which separates the true from the false; rhetoric is the discipline of persuading to every suitable thing.”’ [from Beauty in the Word: Rethinking the Foundations of Education by Stratford Caldecott]

The arts of the trivium are systems of patterns, governed by reason, by which we speak well, think well, and communicate well.

The Ancient Greeks did not invent these patterns; they observed the systems by which human nature naturally used language well. The patterns are the tools by which we as humans perceive reality.

Why liberal?

The liberal arts were considered the essential skills of a free person (from the Latin liber which means “free”).

 

:: Stages of Development ~ Poll-parrot, Pert, Poetic

Dorothy Sayers, in her 1948 essay, The Lost Tools of Learning, asserts that the arts of the trivium correspond well to three stages of development in childhood and adolescence. 

“Looking back upon myself (since I am the child I know best and the only child I can pretend to know from inside) I recognise in myself three stages of development. These, in a rough-and-ready fashion, I will call the Poll-parrot, the Pert, and the Poetic—the latter coinciding, approximately, with the onset of puberty. The Poll-parrot stage is the one in which learning by heart is easy and, on the whole, pleasurable; whereas reasoning is difficult and, on the whole, little relished. At this age, one readily memorises the shapes and appearances of things; one likes to recite the number-plates of cars; one rejoices in the chanting of rhymes and the rumble and thunder of unintelligible polysyllables; one enjoys the mere accumulation of things. The Pert Age, which follows upon this (and, naturally, overlaps it to some extent) is only too familiar to all who have to do with children: it is characterised by contradicting, answering-back, liking to "catch people out" (especially one's elders) and in the propounding of conundrums (especially the kind with a nasty verbal catch in them). Its nuisance-value is extremely high. It usually sets in about the Lower Fourth. The Poetic Age is popularly known as the "difficult" age. It is self-centred; it yearns to express itself; it rather specialises in being misunderstood; it is restless and tries to achieve independence; and, with good luck and good guidance, it should show the beginnings of creativeness, a reaching-out towards a synthesis of what it already knows, and a deliberate eagerness to know and do some one thing in preference to all others. Now it seems to me that the lay-out of the Trivium adapts itself with a singular appropriateness to these three ages: Grammar to the Poll-parrot, Dialectic to the Pert, and Rhetoric to the Poetic age.”

 

:: Stages of Learning ~ Grammar, Dialectic, Rhetoric

When we learn a new subject or skill—French history, knitting, Hebrew, glass-blowing, linear algebra, or skin care—we must start at the beginning regardless of our age.

During the grammar stage of learning we gather the facts, vocabulary, definitions, stories, and basic knowledge of the subject. The logic or dialectic stage is when we begin to ask questions such as “why?” and “how?”, compare and contrast, find relationships between facts and ideas, and gain experience by trial and error. The rhetoric stage is the end result of our studies, when we integrate ideas, apply what we’ve learned, create original artifacts, and share with or teach others.

The stage of rhetoric is the culmination of study.

In The Office of Assertion, Scott Crider states, “Rhetoric is a productive art, the principled process of making a product.”

The Rhetoric Companion challenges us by asking, “What’s the point of ideas, if those ideas are never made flesh?”

 

The gift of the trivium is part of our essential human nature, given to us as souls made in the image of “I AM,” the Creator, the LOGOS.

We have been given the gift of language—of naming, of contemplating, of creating.

Psalm 33:6 “By the word (Logos) of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth.”

John 1:1 “In the beginning was the Word (Logos), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning.”

Merriam Webster defines logos as “the divine wisdom manifest in the creation, government, and redemption of the world.” The word logos comes from the Greek, meaning “speech, word, or reason.”

Genesis 1:27 “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”

Genesis 2:19 “Now the Lord God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name.”

And we have been given the gift of knowledge, understanding, and wisdom.

Proverbs 2:6 “For the Lord gives wisdom, and from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.”

 

:: Biblical Model ~ Knowledge, Understanding, Wisdom

How often have you read those three words together in the Bible?

Knowledge: the sum of what is known; the body of truth, information, and principles acquired by humankind

Understanding: the mental process of a person who understands; comprehension; personal interpretation

Wisdom: the ability or result of an ability to think and act utilizing knowledge, experience, understanding, common sense, and insight

 

Echoes of the Trivium

I have found the essence of the trivium echoed over and over again in the course of my reading and studies.

 

:: Body, Mind, Spirit

Using one’s senses [body] to observe the world around us.

Using one’s mind to process ideas.

Using one’s spirit to discern truth and apply it.

 

:: Presentation, Comparison, Incarnation

Andrew Kern applies the stages of learning to the microcosm of individual lessons with his “Liturgy of Learning.”

1. Invitation (the teacher determines student readiness)

2. Presentation (the teacher shows particular types or models such as various addition problems)

3. Comparison (the student imitates and then compares with the teacher’s model)

4. Definition/Expression (the student puts into own words what he or she has learned)

5. Embodiment/Incarnation (student embodies artifact, presents original or independent creation)

 

:: What, Why, Whether [Or Concepts, Reasoning, Judgments]

Peter Kreeft says, “Concepts tell us what. Reasoning tells us why. Judgments tell us whether.”

[I took those notes when watching a video of a lecture about judgments, and now I can’t locate it. You can read a shorter transcript of that lecture, Living Well On Earth and Entering Heaven: The Nineteen Types of Judgment by Peter Kreeft.]

Andrew Kern says that wisdom is the ability to make judgments, and we’re exploring the “whether” judgment with The Lost Tools of Writing.

“Who cares if Jane runs? I sure don’t. But everybody wants to know whether the ants should have fed the grasshopper, whether Caesar should have crossed the Rubicon, and whether Odysseus should have slaughtered the suitors. These things matter because they arouse the right questions. They help students clarify their thoughts about what is just and fair, what is wise and prudent, and what is noble and honorable.” ~Andrew Kern

 

:: Information, Imagination, Creation

From Imagionality: Understanding Your Child’s Imaginative Personality by Clay Clarkson @ Story Warren:

“Here’s a pattern from the Genesis creation account that I want to suggest: Information, Imagination, Creation. In other words, information feeds imagination which fuels creation. If our core personality is all about mentally processing information—how we gather it, and how we act on it—then God’s order of creation seems to suggest that imagination is not just a product of our mental processes, but rather an inherent capacity within us. Imagination stands apart from personality.”

 

:: Memory, Thought, Speech

Stratford Caldecott:

“The key for me was to discover that the three elements of the Trivium link us directly with three basic dimensions of our humanity. No wonder they are so fundamental in classical education! ...To become fully human we need to discover who we are (Memory), to engage in a continual search for truth (Thought), and to communicate with others (Speech)."

 

:: Input, Processing, Output

Who doesn’t deal with technology on a daily basis?

 

:: Tools, Skills, Creativity

What Does Creativity Have to Do With Classical Education? by Briana Elizabeth @ Sandbox to Socrates

“What I had given them was the scaffold to be creative. I taught them the skills (rhyme and meter) and gave them the tools (hearing poetry and a deep well of ideas).

“Now, how can I more purposely build a scaffold, and foster even deeper creativity? What kind of schoolwork is making the creativity for them, and what type of schoolwork is giving them the ability to create with the skills and tools they’ve learned? What type of schoolwork enables them to behold glory and represent that glory in their own medium?”

 

:: Knowledge, Comprehension, Evaluation

Blooms Taxonomy initially presented a framework of six categories of knowledge, skills, and abilities: Knowledge, Comprehension, Application, Analysis, Synthesis, and Evaluation. Knowledge and comprehension created the foundation, with evaluation being the highest level of ability. The framework has since been revised with the verbs Remember, Understand, Apply, Analyze, Evaluate, and Create. [The link shows what skills and abilities fall under each category.]

 

:: Reading, Reflection, Response, [Rest]

Lectio Divina is a traditional Benedictine practice of reading Scriptures.

“[T]he first stage is lectio (reading) where we read the Word of God, slowly and reflectively so that it sinks into us…

“The second stage is meditatio (reflection) where we think about the text we have chosen and ruminate upon it so that we take from it what God wants to give us.

“The third stage is oratio (response) where we leave our thinking aside and simply let our hearts speak to God. This response is inspired by our reflection on the Word of God.”

[“The final stage of Lectio Divina is contemplatio (rest) where we let go not only of our own ideas, plans and meditations but also of our holy words and thoughts. We simply rest in the Word of God.”]

 

:: Lectio, Meditatio, Compositi

The Liturgical Classroom and Virtue Formation by Jenny Rallens (video lecture)

 

:: Research, Record, Relate

Two Jobs All Our Kids Will Have by Jennifer Courtney @ Classical Conversations

“In order to become responsible voters, students must be trained to research, record, and relate. In other words, they must research issues in order to make informed voting decisions. They must be able to record their findings in an organized way in order to shape them into a logical argument. Finally, they must be able to relate their ideas to others in order to be leaders.

“In order to become effective ministers of the Gospel, our students must engage these same skills. They must search Scripture to refine answers to the questions of our times (research). They must memorize Scripture and form logical arguments in defense of their faith (record).  Finally, they must share The Truth with others (relate).”

 

:: Perceive, Pursue, Proclaim

The Classical Conversations Rhetoric Trivium Table defines rhetoric as “the use of knowledge and understanding to perceive wisdom, pursue virtue, and proclaim truth.”

 

:: Prepare, Practice, Pass it On

If you attended a Classical Conversations Parent Practicum this year, you very likely heard the trivium expressed in these words.

 

And, in closing, “Instructions for living a life” by American poet Mary Oliver:

 

“Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.”

 

I think that sums it up nicely.

 

Have you noticed echoes of the trivium in your life and studies?

Just Keep Swimming

We spent this past weekend at the Bend swim meet. It is an annual big event at a gorgeous park and facility. Most of the swim meet participants camp out in or near the park. This is the first year we’ve slept in tents rather than our trailer. Actually, it happens to be the first time our whole family has camped anywhere in a tent.

The first year we attended, when Lola was a year and a half, was a rough year. Last year was quite enjoyable despite the crazy storm that accosted us on our way over the pass and caused the pool to close several times over the course of the weekend. This year, well, not so fun.

A few things were easier: Lola is getting older and more independent. It was nice to have the tent and chairs near other friends and closer to the pool. The weather wasn’t hot. Leif is older and more independent. Levi and Luke don’t need quite as much parenting and micromanaging while swimming. The officials changed to a split format meet and only in the outdoor pool, so Russ wasn’t trying to swim indoors while the boys were swimming outdoors.

A few things were not so fun, but I’ll spare you the whiny details.

Lola and I spent the weekend together, just hanging out. Or, rather, waiting and waiting and waiting. It was torturous waiting for her chance to swim in the outdoor splash pool the second day. And then there was a major hysterical meltdown when it was time to get out (two minutes early because her mother was freezing cold and couldn’t stand another 120 seconds), and we endured the walk of shame all the way back to the tent.

I didn’t hang out much on deck due to limited space and I didn’t haul the camera around much, but I was able to watch each of the boys swim at least once and snap a couple pictures of Russ’s 100IM. His swim time has been almost non-existent in the past few months because of his work schedule and increased coaching duties, so he was brave to jump in and compete with all the young whippersnappers with endless energy. Ha!

In other news…

We’ve all been reading, reading, reading.

All four kids, hallelujah, spent three days at a VBS this week while I had a few moments alone, hallelujah. [Thank you, thank you, thank you, to Eastside for hosting 3 year olds as well as middle schoolers. I love you people.] It was my honest intention to get a bunch of stuff done, but I should have known better.

I spent some time Tuesday morning exercising my willingness to step outside my box and be brave (and waaaay out of my league).

An afternoon in a boat on the river with best friends was electrical-stormed-out Tuesday, so we just spent the time together eating pizza and chatting and playing and watching a movie.

We have Book Detectives this evening and a birthday party for Leif on Saturday.

One week left of summer, and then the rubber meets the road. I’m a little bit terrified. We’ve had such a lazy, oh, year (or 12), and I think this new schedule is going to be a shock to our systems (for at least two of us). We have only one week to ease into things.

Do you have any last hurrahs planned for the end of summer, or has your school year already begun?

Divinely Aware

[I need to find my happy place today. I’ve only been aware of the mess. mess. mess. mess. and dirt. and disobedience. and mess.]

Rivers Are Roads {On the Water}

We spent eight hours on the water with friends yesterday. They are so kind to invite us out on their boat. Lovely company. Lovely scenery.

[Oregon is spectacular, no?]

The day was oddly gray and hazy. It might have something to do with the wildfires south of us. The setting sun at the end of the day was a strange red ball on the horizon. The temperature was perfect, though!

We started out on the lake, and the kids took turns on the tube behind the boat [more about this in a minute]. Then we went (leisurely) up river as far as the boat could go. It was quiet and solitary—particularly since most of the kids were still on the tube behind the boat.

The sun came out as we left the boat to swim and explore. I so wish I could have had my camera when we came to a beautiful waterfall and rode tubes on the rapids. It was a good lesson (for me) in just being present in the moment and knowing that the beauty and adventure happened even if I didn’t get a picture of it.

The kids spent hours swimming. Luke in particular was a crazy man the whole day. I do not know how his body did not give out on him at some point between the tube acrobatics and swimming into the swift current at the rapids/falls.

And then this girl. She slays me.

She was an amazing sport. Fearless. Thrilled to be on an adventure. And game for anything.

After hours of river play, we headed back out to the lake and enjoyed more tubing. These children are not content with passive recreation. Must be creative and daring…

Lola jumped at the chance to ride the tube early in the day. I wondered how she would like it. It took about 2 seconds for her grin to spread. And another two seconds for her to be shouting, “faster!”

As the kids starting doing tricks around her, I said, “Give her a year and she’ll be doing tricks with the rest of them.” [short pause] “No, probably only an hour.”

Two minutes later…

She’s THREE, people.

Gray hair. Lamaze breathing.

But just in case that’s just too much awesomeness for y’all…

It took about 15 shots and great patience to get the sweet picture of her above, because every time I tried to take her picture she would face plant into the seat below and giggle uproariously.

She took a spill on the rapids (and off the tube) and didn’t think it was so funny. [She did go again after a bit when Brant promised he’d catch a fish for her and went down with her. Then she happily went a few more times.]

Luke was sitting still in the above picture because he was in trouble for practically letting his brother drown and then having a bad attitude about it.

Thanks to Emily for jumping in to save Lola the first time and Brant for jumping in to save Leif the second time.

Our Big-Picture Educational Scope and Sequence Integrated with Classical Conversations

Or “On Guinea Pigs” or even “I Might Get It Right By Child #4”

Take your pick. [grin]

I’ve been blogging about homeschooling for 7 1/2 years now, since my oldest turned 5. In all those years, you’ve read about what we want to do, what we are doing, what we did, what we didn’t do, what we wish we could find time and self-discipline to do. We started out using The Well-Trained Mind as our very general guide. Four years ago we switched things up a bit and started participating in a local Classical Conversations Community. Each year we’ve had to take things as they came depending on ages and stages of the kids.

The truth is, we just start from where we are, use what is available, and do the next thing. There is no benefit to regret or anxiety.

I recently posted extensive curricula lists as well as 5 different options for integrating The Story of the World with CC [Classical Conversations].

Some people love to read those type of posts, but all the options can be quite overwhelming. And sometimes it is very hard to see the forest for the trees.

As I’m making plans for this coming year, I need to see the forest.

The following is our family’s current, basic “ideal” recommendations and progression through the ages and stages. I hope some of my readers find it helpful!

The other thing to keep in mind is that most of our curriculum is used informally and most of it is buffet-style, soul-nourishing, delight-filled reading and watching and learning.

This year I have one child in each category! (K4, 3rd, 5th, and 7th)

Always and Everyone

Read good books about everything (spread the buffet!). Listen to quality music. Look at beautiful art. Savor lovely words and ideas. Spend time together. Ask good questions. Talk and have conversations about everything. Make the learning atmosphere inviting. Encourage curiosity. Exercise and breathe fresh air. Pay attention to the world around us!

A few posts for context:

Childhood Essentials (posted 6 years ago!)

Educational Goals

The Good Life

K4-K5 (Lola)

[CC only if older siblings are attending] [We are waiting until next year to enroll Lola. She doesn’t turn 4 until October.]

All About Reading/Spelling (10-20 minutes daily)
Phonics Readers by Nora Gaydos

Handwriting Without Tears (5-15 minutes daily)

Living Math and Manipulatives

Poetry and Songs (read. sing. learn by heart.)

Lots of Great Read-Aloud Picture Books

Children’s Bible (Sing the Word From A-Z Bible Verse Songs)

Play! Hands-on fun!

[Join older siblings when interested]

1st-3rd (Leif)

CC Foundations Cycles 1-3 (regardless of which cycle student begins with) (One morning each week, 24 weeks)

Review memory work (10-20 minutes daily, listen to CD in car, casual and joyful!)

Many High-Quality Picture Books, Simple Chapter Books, and Read-Alouds: non-fiction, literature (including myths, legends, and fairy tales), poetry, and historical fiction corresponding w/ CC topics in every subject and a 3-year history cycle (Ancients for cycle 1, Medieval/Renaissance for cycle 2, and American History/Modern World for cycle 3). (This does not have to be formal or scheduled work.)

Children’s Literature Read-Alouds (great for bedtime reading)

Memorize poetry (Robert Louis Stevenson, etc.) and Bible verses (Sing the Word or AWANAS) (15 minutes daily, listen to CDs in car)

All About Spelling, levels 2-4 (includes dictation) (15+ minutes, 2-4x weekly)

(More All About Reading? Student Reads Aloud/Independent Reading)

Handwriting Without Tears/Copywork (from poetry, literature, Bible, and/or memory work) (15 minutes daily)

(Narration or Primary Arts of Learning from IEW if you wish for more writing)

Life of Fred Math, Manipulatives, and Games (skip counting for CC and math facts drill) (casual and joyful!)
Teaching Textbooks level 3 beginning in 2nd grade (daily)

Map Drawing (2+x weekly)
Step-by-Step Drawing

Telling God's Story and the Children’s Illustrated Bible

Song School Latin (casual and joyful!)

MCT Language Arts series [begin reading all books (grammar, writing, vocabulary, poetry) together in 2nd grade (casual and joyful!), only do sentence analysis practice, use CC English Grammar memory work wording]

Choir (with music theory) or Piano

Sport or physical activity

[Optional: More science, fine arts, history projects, etc. at home if they are enjoyable]

4th-6th (Luke)

CC Foundations Cycles 1-3 (One morning each week, 24 weeks; review memory work at home)

Memory Work in Timeline, History, Science, Geography, English Grammar, Latin, and Math (Memory Master)
Public Speaking, Fine Arts, Science Projects

CC Essentials Cycles 1-3 (One afternoon each week, 24 weeks; complete grammar and writing assignments at home)

English Grammar, Writing (IEW history-themed for subject integration), Math Games

(Repeat) 3-Year History Cycle

Cycle 1: Ancient History (Creation - Fall of Rome, 450 A.D.)
Cycle 2: Medieval and Renaissance (450 A.D. - Age of Exploration, 1600 A.D.)
Cycle 3: American History and the Modern World (1600 A.D. - Present) [I will be posting a Modern World book list soon.]

Read The Story of the World Volumes 1-4; read many corresponding picture books and chapter books aloud or independently—non-fiction, literature (including myths, legends, and fairy tales), poetry, speeches, and historical fiction; create timeline notebook; and memorize corresponding poetry and speeches. Year-round! (This is a great time for corresponding movies/documentaries and field trips as well!)

3-Year Science Cycle (Real Science 4 Kids—just read through books or do labs/workbooks and fieldtrips if enjoyable or desired)

Cycle 1: Biology and Geology
Cycle 2: Astronomy and Physics
Cycle 3: (Human Body) and Chemistry

All About Spelling, levels 5-7

Prescripts Cursive and Drawing (may use when CC is not in session to maintain fine motor strength in hands)

Teaching Textbooks 5 and 6, Saxon 7/6
Life of Fred Math (read through Pre-Algebra)

Map Drawing
Step-by-Step Drawing

Bible (And memorize Bible passages with Sing the Word or AWANAS)

Latin (I like Prima Latina, Latina Christiana, and First Form Latin by Memoria Press, but they all use Ecclesiastical Latin pronunciation so your mileage may vary)

MCT Vocabulary and Poetry when Essentials is not in session (read through books together) and use Practice sentences for additional sentence analysis or diagramming

Choir (with music theory) or Instrument

Sport or physical activity

7th-8th (Levi)

CC Challenge A and B

[Henle Latin, Literature/The Lost Tools of Writing, Saxon Math, Geography and Mock Trial, Logic/Rhetoric, Science]

Music and Sport

[9th-12th]

CC Challenge I - IV (This is where I pray that we’ll have all Challenge levels available locally)

[Each Challenge level includes Math, Science “Research,” Latin, Literature and Composition, Logic/Rhetoric, and Debate.]

Music and Sport

[My children will have more say in their academics once they’ve completed 10th grade/Challenge II. They may opt out of CC and do a dual enrollment program through the Community College or something else. We’ll see when the time comes.]

 

I think that covers the basics. Any essentials that are missing? What changes would you make?

The Offense of Joy

Today I am guest posting at my dear friend Misha’s new blog, The Offense of Joy. I met Misha online several years ago, and she is a beautiful kindred spirit. She is artistic and passionate, and I’m thrilled that she is writing (publically) again!

My favorite two posts so far are Joy Is A Gift (What’s So Offensive About Joy? - Part One Of Six) and The Ring. Please go read Misha’s words. I hope they move you. [Leave a comment and let Misha know I sent you!]

You are also invited to read my post, A Surprise Party.

“I dreamed of children. Babies, yes, but mostly children. Children with names (oh, how I loved naming them) and personalities and passions.

I was a planner. A list-maker. So these children naturally showed up for years and years and years on reams of paper—perfectly plotted in journals or haphazardly doodled on church bulletins—with their sport, their instrument, their disposition, or whatever struck my imagination.

Sometimes there were six. Sometimes there were ten. Or even twelve. But never less than four…”

Head on over to read the rest (and say hello while you’re there!).

[ETA: There have been some questions about my depression story. Feel free to ask questions in the comments or email me, but I also shared some of the story here and here.]

 

To Taste at the Fountainhead

ChocLit Guild met in the garden yesterday evening to eat warm-from-the-oven blackberry cobbler and to discuss Till We Have Faces: A Myth Retold and The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis. As we talked about deep themes and beautiful ideas, this was our view. As darkness fell, we were surrounded by far-off flashes of lightning. Yes, God pulled out all the stops last night. After returning home, the storm drew near. The dark rooms flashed with bursts of light, and thunder cracked and boomed as the house shuddered. Then the torrential rain began as the electrical storm passed.

“For if we take the imagery of Scripture seriously, if we believe that God will one day give us the Morning Star and cause us to put on the splendour of the sun, then we may surmise that both the ancient myths and the modern poetry, so false as history, may be very near the truth as prophecy. At present we are on the outside of the world, the wrong side of the door. We discern the freshness and purity of morning, but they do not make us fresh and pure. We cannot mingle with the splendours we see. But all the leaves of the New Testament are rustling with the rumour that it will not always be so. Some day, God willing, we shall get in. When human souls have become as perfect in voluntary obedience as the inanimate creation is in its lifeless obedience, then they will put on its glory, or rather that greater glory of which Nature is only the first sketch.” ~C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory

Balm for the Soul

We spent our annual day in the mountains with family and life-long friends yesterday. It is a renewing of the spirit that I crave all year long. I had a huge grin on my face the whole drive up. The weather was gorgeous, the company lovely, and the water frigid (as usual).

Swimming, wading, jumping, floating, climbing, hiking, rock stacking and throwing, hot dog roasting, homemade goodies eating, chatting, reading, stick and rock collecting, exploring, fire building and poking, card playing, and basking in the sun.

There were more than twenty of us, and most everyone else is camping overnight for several nights.

It’s difficult to tell from this next picture, but that log is so high. Can you see Lola at the top? The girl is fearless. And crazy.

And so stinkin’ cute.

Russ had to work and coach (he works so hard and crazy hours!), but he surprised us by coming up for the last hour or two. We were all so happy to see him.

Twins. [I’m wondering when Leif is going to pass up Luke in size. Probably not long now.]

 

“Now the heart is so full that a drop overfills it…”