Miss Thistlebottom’s Hobgoblins: A Review

Posted on January 29, 2008 
Filed Under Evaluating Writing, Homeschool, Reviews, Teaching Writing | 1 Comment

I have a weakness for books with funny titles– especially if they are about writing, grammar, style, and usage. Miss Thistlebottom’s Hobgoblins: The Careful Writer’s Guide to the Taboos, Bugbears and Outmoded Rules of English Usage by Theodore M. Bernstein has finally made its way from my Amazon wish list to my desktop, and I’ve been enjoying it immensely.

Bernstein, a former editorial director of the New York Times Book Division, a 25-year journalism professor at Columbia’s School of Journalism, and consultant on usage for the Random House and American Heritage dictionaries, tackles some of the unfortunate strictures that have made writing more difficult than it needs to be. With delightful good humor, he routs “Syntax Scarecrows” and other distractions, while answering grammar, usage, and style questions you didn’t know you should be asking. Read more

Our Students Need to Write More

Posted on January 22, 2008 
Filed Under Homeschool, Observations, Penmanship, SAT Prep, Teaching Writing | 8 Comments

During the past decade, I’ve spent a fair amount of time evaluating student writing and teaching SAT prep essay workshops and online high school literature classes. I’ve had the chance to read hundreds of papers from students all over the country, and I’ve discovered one small key to success in writing: Write More...

That’s a directive that easily questioned– write more what? Words? Minutes? Pages? My response is simple– YES to all of the above. Students who write often, tend to write better and more easily than students who are rarely required to pick up a pen (or turn on the computer). Read more

High School Requirements: The Wrong Question?

Posted on January 15, 2008 
Filed Under Homeschool, Records & Transcripts | 2 Comments

As you consider whether or how to homeschool through high school, there are a few major questions that may crop up. One of the first questions I often hear is about “high school requirements.”

Parents wonder how many years of which subjects their student must take in order to graduate from high school, and that’s certainly an understandable question. However, there are reasons why it isn’t the most important question you need to ask. Read more

High School Transcripts- Frequently Asked Questions

Posted on January 8, 2008 
Filed Under Early College, Homeschool, Inspiration, Records & Transcripts | 7 Comments

Creating a high school transcript is easier than it looks, but there are a few questions that tend to recur like dandelions in springtime. The beginning of the spring semester seems a good time to review a couple of the questions that are most frequently asked.

The winner of the most FAQ (frequently asked question) contest would have to be some variation of the following:

Q- My 10-year-old is doing Saxon Calculus this year. Can we count it on his high school transcript? Read more

Family Travel on a Budget = Great Memories!

Posted on December 18, 2007 
Filed Under Inspiration, Travel | 4 Comments

I’ve been thinking of Paris in December– it’s almost inevitable if you’ve ever been there at that time. There’s no place quite like it, and the delight of walking miles through this compact, beautiful city is unsurpassed.

When we were there, we stayed less than a block from this sparkling intersection, and were less than two blocks from the Seine. We walked everywhere, warming our hands with hot chestnuts from the street vendors (the best ones were from the vendor by BHV on Rue Rivoli).

Parisians decorate lavishly for the holidays, as you can see in the photo, and it’s great fun to walk the streets after dark, visiting temporary outdoor ice rinks at the Eiffel tower and the Hotel de Ville. We enjoyed giant crepes from sidewalk vendors. Our favorites were slathered in butter and sugar, and rolled for easy eating. Quite delectable with a cup of hot chocolate from a cafe!

One of the most enjoyable things you can do with your teens is to take short trips. A brief trip to a very special place is a fun way to celebrate graduation or mark a life milestone, and it’s especially easy to do if you homeschool. Although travel can be expensive, there are things you can do to make it more budget-friendly. Read more

Charlotte Mason on the Folly of Teachers Who Talk Too Much

Posted on December 11, 2007 
Filed Under Homeschool | Leave a Comment

One of the things I most appreciate about Charlotte Mason is her deep understanding of how children learn. I well remember my own extreme boredom as teachers or other adults droned on and on about something I already understood. It’s something I’ve always tried not to do to my own sons, but I’ve found that it’s a great temptation;-).

I love this passage from A Philosophy of Education, pages 52-53 (in the context of a discussion of why children lose intellectual curiousity…):

“…the more the teacher works, the greater the incuria of the children, so the class is prodded with marks, the boys take places, the bogie of an oncoming examination is held before them. Some spasmodic effort is the result, but no vital response…

“I can touch here on no more than two potent means of creating incuria in a class. One is the talky-talky of the teacher. We all know how we are bored by the person in private life who explains and expounds. What reason have we to suppose that children are not equally bored? Read more

Review: Pick Two Deluxe- Is It the Perfect Game?

Posted on December 4, 2007 
Filed Under Homeschool, Reviews | 6 Comments

Be sure to visit the December sale on my audio workshops- Homeschooling Through High School: There’s Joy in the Journey and Teaching Language Arts the Easy, Natural Way! They are only $9.95 for the month of December.

As the year winds down, it’s time to start thinking of fun things to do during the semester break. How about a delightful game that almost anyone can learn and enjoy?

Our family enjoys playing games. When we get together with extended family or with friends, chances are that we’ll be sitting around the table with a board game or cards before the evening has ended. Our favorite games include Scattergories, TriBond, Cranium, Mille Borne, and a few others.

However, a new game has taken center stage since we first discovered it this summer. Pick Two Deluxe, billed as “The Definitive Crossword Game,” is fast, fun, and even educational (though many people don’t even realize they’re sharpening their brains as they play!). This super simple game comes with 240 letter tiles, a pencil, score pad, and a velvety bag for the tiles. (There a non-deluxe Pick Two, but it comes with fewer tiles, so you can’t play with as many people.) Read more

Gratefulnesse by George Herbert

Posted on November 20, 2007 
Filed Under Inspiration, Penmanship, Poetry, Teaching Literature | 3 Comments

GRATEFULNESSE

by George Herbert (1593- 1633)

Thou that hast giv’n so much to me,
Give one thing more, a grateful heart.
See how thy beggar works on thee
By art.

He makes thy gifts occasion more,
And says, If he in this be crossed,
All thou hast giv’n him heretofore
Is lost.

But thou didst reckon, when at first
Thy word our hearts and hands did crave,
What it would come to at the worst
To save.

Perpetual knockings at thy door,
Tears sullying thy transparent rooms,
Gift upon gift, much would have more,
And comes.

This not withstanding, thou wenst on,
And didst allow us all our noise:
Nay thou hast made a sigh and groan
Thy joys.

Not that thou hast not still above
Much better tunes, than groans can make;
But that these country-airs thy love
Did take.

Wherefore I cry, and cry again;
And in no quiet canst thou be,
Till I a thankful heart obtain
Of thee:

Not thankful, when it pleaseth me;
As if thy blessings had spare days:
But such a heart, whose pulse may be
Thy praise.

This lovely poem is one of my favorites, and I think often of the last stanza. I very much enjoy George Herbert’s way of visually and aurally emphasizing important elements in his poems.

In my beautiful old volume of Herbert’s poetry (left), a gift from my oldest son, the last line of each stanza is spaced flush right, so that it is emphasized. I tried very hard to make it appear this way in this post, but it didn’t cooperate, so you’ll just have to imagine it. Better yet, use the poem as copywork, and write it spaced this way, and both you and your students will have an increased appreciation of its beauty. Be sure to notice Herbert’s warm, intimate tone, as of a child speaking to a father.

With this, I wish you a joyous Thanksgiving!

Apprenticeships and Skilled Trades Offer an Alternative to College

Posted on November 13, 2007 
Filed Under College Alternatives, Home Business, Homeschool | 2 Comments

I often talk about college or entrepreneurial options for homeschool students because that is where most of my personal interest and experience lies. However, there are many other wonderful options to consider, including skilled work in hands-on fields such as construction, plumbing, manufacturing, and so on (often referred to as the trades).

I’m reminded of these opportunities now, as my third son, a kinesthetic learner who has always wanted to work in HVAC (heating and air conditioning), has just been accepted into a three-year paid apprenticeship in his chosen field. He found the opportunity in the classified ads of our local paper, but you can search online for similar programs. The application process was similar to a job application process, as he’s going to be working full-time while taking classes, so that at the end of the program, he will be a journeyman.

Remember tech school? Most high schools used to offer shop class, woodworking, machine shop, and other training for interesting blue-collar jobs. Now, with the current emphasis on college, many students aren’t even made aware of the opportunities that are available without a four-year degree. A skilled tradesman (tradesperson? whatever!) can often earn a yearly salary and benefits comparable to that of a college graduate. Read more

‘To Autumn’ by John Keats

Posted on November 7, 2007 
Filed Under Inspiration, Poetry | 1 Comment

Season of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eves run;
To bend with apples the moss’d cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease,
For Summer has o’er-brimm’d their clammy cells.

Who hath not seen thee oft amid thy store?
Sometimes whoever seeks abroad may find
Thee sitting careless on a granary floor,
Thy hair soft-lifted by the winnowing wind;
Or on a half-reap’d furrow sound asleep,
Drows’d with the fume of poppies, while thy hook
Spares the next swath and all its twined flowers:
And sometimes like a gleaner thou dost keep
Steady thy laden head across a brook;
Or by a cyder-press, with patient look,
Thou watchest the last oozings hours by hours.

Where are the songs of Spring? Ay, where are they?
Think not of them, thou hast thy music too,—
While barred clouds bloom the soft-dying day,
And touch the stubble plains with rosy hue;
Then in a wailful choir the small gnats mourn
Among the river sallows, borne aloft
Or sinking as the light wind lives or dies;
And full-grown lambs loud bleat from hilly bourn;
Hedge-crickets sing; and now with treble soft
The red-breast whistles from a garden-croft;
And gathering swallows twitter in the skies.

← Previous Page — Next Page →