Encouragement for the Beginning Reader: Splish the Frog

Meet us in Bliss Hollow where your child can escape for a visit with Splish the frog, his endearing family and homeschooling animal friends. Mama Frog shares her son's frustrations with wisdom and reassurance as she patiently guides Splish along a pathway of understanding and character building with a delightful, heartwarming story, where he finally learns that Mama was right-everyone learns and grows at his own pace—it takes time.

Any beginning reader or struggling-to-read child will relate to Splish, with all of his discouragements, frustrations, trial-and-errors and not trusting Mama that some day he will read.

One of a mother’s treasured gifts to her child—

helping him learn to read.

Learning to read is one of the most important parts of your young child’s home education. He has cuddled up on your lap and heard you read such lively stories to him over and over again. Together, you experience the world of imagination, information and exploration of God’s creation, through living books.

The late reading child wants so badly to decipher those magic, elusive letters on the page, and feels frustrated and discouraged because so many his age and younger can read and he can’t (often within the family). Many parents are tripping through this stressful situation looking for that hopeful day when everything will click. Be assured, it usually will—when they are ready. It is important to remember that they are all on a unique schedule when it comes to reading: God’s schedule.

Where was this book when my two middle boys were learning to read and on a very late schedule? It could have helped make an easier transition for them, that when they were ready it would happen. Of course they heard that from me, but this charming soft cover book encourages so sweetly. I think there are a lot of discouraged, late-reading kids out there that would love to hear this story.

And Then Mama Said . . .it Takes TIme to Learn to Read by Gena Suarez, is a brand new book available from The Old Schoolhouse Store. It comes with a free companion activity book too.

Blessed by an Education!

My life has been a whirlwind of activity the past month and it looks like its not going to slow down much, if at all!

It's so interesting and faith building to look back and see the hand of God in the circumstances surrounding your life. I have felt Him nudging me to write more and more and knew that He was going to use me somewhere down the line in that capacity. One thing has led to another and another and I found myself accepted into a special Marketing Class being offered by TOS (The Old Schoolhouse Magazine) of which I had recently begun a subscription. I was one of 30, chosen out of 125 for this amazing, educational, one month class.

Why was I interested in marketing, of all things? Well, we are a home business family that produces a bimonthly magazine where advertising is involved, and we are looking for new ways to promote ourselves. We also have web sites, my sons are interested in small business ventures, and hey, it's just become an interest so I thought, I can learn something worthwhile here. I was right.

I have been telling myself more and more, that when opportunity comes knocking, if you can, take advantage of it. I didn't want to miss out on this opportunity involving my favorite homeschool magazine with these 30+ friendly, awesome ladies from TOS and elsewhere. AND at the end of the class they offered several staff positions to ladies that had done especially well and successfully completed the class.

Guess what? I was one of those offered a position. Wow, I was almost in shock, but I knew God had called me into this and I shouldn't be surprised at what He can do through me. My new part time position is E-book Production Assistant, and I will work with the production of E-books that TOS produces, writing ads (sell sheets) and managing the E-books and I'm even contributing a chapter in their soon to be released new book To Market, To Market. (The publisher really liked my last written assignment and asked if I'd expand it for the book.) Getting compensated for writing is a dream come true. I pray that I can be a great team member and be used in a significant way in this new endeavor, and continue to be an encouragement to homeschoolers through TOS.

Our Homeschool Gazette Story (Newspapers and Reporters Unit Study)

One of the best unit studies we ever did resulted in a wonderful way of sharing what we were learning and writing with other homeschoolers around the world. This is taken from our web site Homeschool Gazette. We no longer accept submissions there, nor do we have a newsletter, but you'll find some creative ideas and encouraging information. ~Kathy

Since age seven, Josiah took off with reading. He loved 3-2-1 Contact, Ranger Rick, and Highlights magazines. His favorite was Reader's Digest, in which I had to rip out any unwanted articles that I preferred to hide from him. I so enjoyed seeing him curled up with a book, and hear him chuckle at something funny he had read.

Writing was a different story. He had a vivid imagination and could sometimes narrate his ideas, but he seemed to balk at attempts to write on his own, outside of simple thank you notes and short letters to grandma. I felt he needed a reason to write.

An inexpensive work book caught my attention in a homeschool catalog - Newspaper Reporters (an introduction to newspaper writing), published by Teacher Created Materials. At age nine, Josiah, and Gideon, seven, began a unit study on "Newspapers and Reporters". My idea was to study various aspects of good writing related to newspaper and magazine type articles, try writing their own similar articles using our word processor, culminating the study with a newsletter filled with their writings to share with family and friends. The boys thought it sounded like fun. It worked out to be one of the best ideas I've ever had!

Grandma sent a Sunday paper from Ocala, Florida. We lived in Washington state at the time and I wanted a different perspective on the news to study from. We used the workbook but only as a guide to meet our own desires and needs, feeling free to skip parts that we had no interest in (like writing sports stories) or that were redundant, unnecessary, or unappealing to the boys. It had some great ideas though that we had fun using.

Before long, the boys compiled articles, poems, ads, puzzles, cartoons, and a contest. Josiah wrote a humorous piece after reading the Dave Barry columns. He wrote a feature article on traveling through New York state, requiring research. Gideon dictated an intriguing work of prose about springtime. We studied layout, headlines, art, advertising, weather, proofreading, interviews, and editorials. Some of Josiah's work was half narrated, which helped ease his way into writing on his own.

At the time we were ready to embark on our own newsletter compilation, a real live computer had just arrived in our living room! The timing was perfect. Our study turned to computers and learning how to set up our newsletter using Publisher software. We turned out our first Homeschool Gazette soon afterward. The computer became an instant love, and Josiah absorbed knowledge incredibly, as if by osmosis. The newsletter turned out so nice, we all had the idea to continue it, making it a publication that our friends (most all homeschoolers) could participate in. [We published it faithfully for close to five years. Josiah designed and maintains this web site, and other homeschoolers from around the world are welcome to participate.] But best of all, Josiah is a writer, and an editor. When he gets an idea, he can whip out an article on the computer and he enjoys it.

During this particular time of study, we concentrated on writing and language arts. Only a smattering of math was accomplished apart from facts review. We read a lot together, and discussed what we liked about the articles we read and what we didn't like. I also participated by writing some of my own articles to share with the boys. It was a very enjoyable time for all of us. As a side note, I have heard home school moms say to me, "But you are so creative. I could never do what you do!" Perhaps they are afraid to try. We are ALL creative, and just need to act on our ideas. Relax, and let your God inspired creative ideas go wild...

P.S. Our boys are presently 22, 19, 16, & 13.

The Eruption

I want to share this poem because it has touched me so.

By Jen Abbas, an18-year-old child of divorce:

The Eruption

Divorce is like a trembling earthquake,
The world shakes, rumbling with rage,
And all the anger, guilt, and frustrations
That have been festering for so long
below the surface
Suddenly spew upward in an inferno of hate
or apathy.
At times the earth calms and you think the
turmoil is over,
Settled, stable, but then the cycle begins again,
Repeating, repeating, repeating.
You are weary, you want to rest,
And that is when you realize the shaking has
stopped,
But there is an eerie feeling lurking in the air.
You are hesitant to believe anything anymore,
You are so tired after struggling for so long,
And so you rest on the one solid patch of land,
Only to watch it split in two,
Two separate, distinct parts that will never
come together again.
Each new patch supports part of you,
And as you watch, they pull away.

Curiosita

"It had long since come to my attention that people of accomplishment rarely sat back and let things happen to them. They went out and happened to things." ~ Leonardo Da Vinci

From the category of famous people, the young man I am tutoring chose to compile a notebook on Leonardo Da Vinci . Good choice! We've studied him before, but can you ever stop studying Leonardo? I had never heard of Leonardo's horse ordeal until recent weeks. How did I miss that before? The Creative Thinker of All Time boasts of amazing accomplishments. He was an artist, architect, sculptor, inventor, engineer, and scientist. He was also an entertainer, musician, production designer and manager, writer, naturalist, scholar and philosopher. Has his understanding of the world opened doors of knowledge for us? From his exemplary life, we can see that Leonardo surely went out and happened to things!

Curiosita - An insatiably curious approach to life and an unrelenting quest for continuous learning, is the first of the seven Da Vincian Principles expounded upon in the book How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci by Michael J. Gelb. As a mother, I can visualize the natural curiosity and desires of my little boys to explore, taste and experience the fascinating world around them, and as a homeschooling mom, I'd never want to see this innate lust for learning end.

I have been researching Leonardo in my own curiosity quest. I've always liked to draw and I admire beautiful paintings and the artistic talents of others. I am a fan of museums and have seen many famous paintings in my lifetime. I'd like to think like Leonardo, and learn seven steps to genius every day as the title suggests (I'd like to try writing backwards, though I'll leave out dissecting bodies, thank you).

Mr. Gelb believes that our learning power can improve with age (I'd like to believe that). Couldn't I use this knowledge to pattern our own education? I wonder how far we are from Leonardo's methods? The Curiosita Self-Assessment checklist the book provides claims that your answers tell how well you are already using it and where to improve. Here's the list:

• I keep a journal or notebook to record my insights and questions.
• I take adequate time for contemplation and reflection.
• I am always learning something new.
• When I am faced with and important decision, I actively seek out different perspectives.
• I am a voracious reader.
• I learn from little children.
• I am skilled at identifying and solving problems.
• My friends would describe me as open-minded and curious.
• When I hear or read a new word or phrase, I look it up and make a note of it.
• I know a lot about other cultures and am always learning more.
• I know or am involved in learning a language other than my native one.
• I solicit feedback from my friends, relations, and colleagues.
• I love learning.

I can check yes by a number of these, but also would need much discipline in others. In light of the above and what I know about Leonardo, I see a correlation with Charlotte Mason's educational philosophy. Ms. Mason wrote "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life," and the CM school motto is "I Am, I Can, I Ought, I Will." She also said: "We trust much to good books - Once more, we know that there is a storehouse of thought wherein we may find all the great ideas that have moved the world." She encouraged keeping journals from an early age and the study of languages. Children were to be free in their play, letting them use their imaginations and providing time for their many self motivated projects, but parents were always present guiding lights. History (chronologically) and nature study were emphasized. Both Charlotte and Leonardo were advocates of virtue, including truth and beauty. Relating more specifically to children and curiosita Charlotte shares this:

"The idea that vivifies teaching. . . is that 'Education is a Science of Relations; by which phrase we mean that children come into the world with a natural [appetite] for, and affinity with, all the material of knowledge; for interest in the heroic past and in the age of myths; for a desire to know about everything that moves and lives; about strange places and strange peoples; for a wish to handle material and to make; a desire to run and ride and row and do whatever the law of gravitation permits. Therefore. . . we endeavor that he shall have relations of pleasure and intimacy established with as many possible of the interests proper to him; not learning a slight or incomplete smattering about this or that subject, but plunging into vital knowledge, with a great field before him which in all his life he will not be able to explore. In this conception we get that 'touch of emotion' which vivifies knowledge, for it is probably that we feel only as we are brought into our proper vital relations." ~ Charlotte Mason

Wow! Doesn't that sum it up? Curiosita is just the first of the Da Vincian Principles and is demonstrated by a continuous quest for learning . In that chapter the author lists a number of exercises one can do to improve your skills and apply this concept. He asks the question "What would you learn if you could learn anything at all?" Most of the people he asks answer with things that express an ideal or dream hobby, something they always wanted to do but never did, and I'm thinking to myself, I have a lot of those. Some I have touched on in the past but just failed to continue to make time for them. Mr. Gelb finds that people who pursue those hobbies passionately live richer, more fulfilling lives. And Charlotte Mason would agree. There are many hobby-like activities I'd love to pursue further, and I'd like for the boys to find new ways to enjoy life too. As a people, we have all kinds of excuses for not doing those things (I'm guilty), but as Leonardo would answer, "You can have no dominion greater or less than that over yourself." It's never too late!

Some other insights I found in these interesting exercises included the free writing technique that we have been employing at home (I've mentioned this in an earlier post). He calls it stream of consciousness writing but it's the same thing, where you write continuously, always keeping your pen moving, paying no attention to grammar or spelling etc. I liked this metaphor of the poet's motto: "Write drunk, revise sober." I'll have to remember it.

Leonardo kept a notebook with him wherever he went. I bought a nice leather journal for that purpose in the last few years, and though I did that for several months, I didn't continue to lug it around, but wrote in it at home. He used his notebooks (seven thousand pages still exist but authorities estimate it was twice as many) without organization, mixing all kinds of thoughts, letters, doodles and drawings, new vocabulary, plans, scientific treatises, questions and even copy work!

The Great Problem Solver was a man who asked many questions. He felt this was much more important than giving right answers. Quite the opposite of today's educational institutions. Finding and asking the right questions will lead you to the solutions. I think I need to re-emphasize this approach to our learning at home.

Leonardo taught himself Latin at age 42. Babies learn languages easily, but at any age this is a fun hobby and you can actually learn faster than a baby. We've dabbled in German in past years when one son had an interest and recently Jeremiah developed an interest in French. I picked up a freebie - a set of learning cassettes that we still have to delve into. I love language; the etymology of our own English leaves much to discover. Leonardo defined over nine thousand words in his journals.

Charlotte Mason had much to say about developing good habits. Leonardo was keen on observational and emotional intelligence, studying people and their habits, much as he also studied nature and animals. He majored in getting along with others! A required book for graduating in our homeschool is the favorite classic How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie.

I'm only in the beginning chapters of How to Think Like Leonardo but let me share briefly, the remaining seven principles:

Dimostrazione - A commitment to test knowledge through experience, persistence, and a willingness to learn from mistakes. Sensazione - The continual refinement of the senses, especially sight, as the means to enliven experience. Sfumato - A willingness to embrace ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty. Arte/Scienza - The devepment of the balance between science and art, logic and imagination. "Whole-brain" thinking. Corporalita - The cultivation of grace, ambidexterity, fitness, and poise. Connessione - A recognition of and appreciation for the interconnectedness of all things and phenomena. Systems thinking.

I'm looking forward to learning more from Master Da Vinci in these next chapters and modeling the Da Vinci lifestyle and information I am learning to my boys, applying more to our home schooling. To start, I have a nature watercolor painting and colored pencil drawing I could complete and possibly submit to the Boone County Fair this week. I'm also going to get out those French tapes. Having had Charlotte Mason as a mentor gently leads the way. Au revoir, or as Leonardo would say buona notte.

Featured Drawings: Leonardo's Christ Figure 1490 and Study of a Womb 1489 from his journals

A Job Well Done

"Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with thy might." -Ecclesiastes

The packed auditorium was buzzing with excitement as we sat among a few scattered parents and dozens of children of all sizes and ages. It was Jeremiah's turn to audition for his first full length play, Seussical the Musical. He had been given a page of script in which he had just a few minutes to review and then gave a "cold" reading. Pretty good.

We waited some more. Time to sing. Wait a minute, can Jeremiah sing? His chosen song was the humorous parody Cats in the Kettle sung to the tune of Cats in the Cradle as written by Weird Al (If you've never heard it, look it up on the web). The audience was tickled with his antics and his voice, and I think that's what won him the part of The Grinch. He also played a double role as the eagle.

Though on stage for most of the production, his speaking (and solo singing) parts were relatively small. He went to almost all of the practice days of which there were too many, often having to wait long periods for his turn to come up. He really gave his all to each of four performances.

Well the play has been long over for months now, but several lasting friendships resulted, and so many good things have transpired as part of that experience. (A dream of mine was for the boys to be able to participate in the realm of drama or perhaps speech in some way.)

A few weeks ago Jeremiah got notice in the mail that he was nominated for an award and to please come to the awards ceremony which was last Saturday night. We went not expecting anything but a good time, but we were pleasantly surprised. The very first award given was for "Outstanding Performance By a Supporting Actor in Children's Literature" (of which all nominations were from Seussical) and Jeremiah won! He went up on stage and received his award and said his thank-you.

This unexpected delight was recognition of a job well done that somebody(s) had noticed. It amazed us to think of the large cast of characters in the play and that he was chosen. A speaker for the Arts Council summed it up this way: "Their role may or may not have been a big one, but their performance was such that when you walked out the theater door, their character made a definite impact on you."

Congratulations again to Jeremiah for a job well done!

Taking Risks: Let's not be instant mashed potatoes

I am always doing that which I cannot do, in order that I may learn how to do it. ~Pablo Picasso

Recently I've been reading several books that have brought up the subject of risk taking. One is about quitting school and getting a real education, and the other is a Brave Writer publication on writing with kids (homeschoolers). I have been pondering this aspect in everything around me.

Take risks: if you win, you will be happy; if you lose, you will be wise. ~Author Unknown

I have tried to eliminate my negative attitude and I often encourage the boys to try new things; if you do nothing, you get nowhere. Yesterday I was telling Gideon, 19, who is enrolled in a special governor's entrepreneur class in college (there's big prize $ for one winning team): "This will be a rewarding learning experience. If you don't succeed in all the ways you want to this time, think of all you will learn in the process and can use for future endeavors. It's ALL a great learning adventure regardless." He knows this. Why risk? It's worth it.

I love to write and it's very therapeutic for me to do so. I like to share my delight of writing with my sons and it's important for me that they express themselves comfortably and skillfully in words. To be proficient at it though, takes courage to step out of your comfort zone and toy with words and expressions, enjoying the process and being unafraid to embrace the unknown and take some risks. I had not quite thought of writing that way before, but it seems true. You simply don't grow (or don't go) anywhere if you don't stretch yourself. Maybe it'll help me in my writing to think of it in this way. I've always enjoyed poetry but my simple attempts at writing it have felt like failures. Maybe I shouldn't give up so easily.

We've been doing some free writing exercises several times a week where you start with a subject and write nonstop for 5 to 10 minutes. You are not allowed to put your pen down. This helps to encourage those thoughts get down on paper regardless of spelling, grammar, or punctuation. What you do with it then is up to you. After many free writes your child could choose one and spiff it up. This week Benjamin wrote about "rutabagas." It seemed a silly topic and as he was writing, it started taking on the appearance of a rhyme. He was letting go and it was funny; a bit bizarre in a Dr. Seuss sort of way. But he took a risk and maybe he'll grow into liking poetry! Jeremiah took my suggestion and started his own blog featuring his superior photography. I'm not touching it with my teacher's pen; it's all his and I adore it!

We are always getting ready to live, but never living. ~Emerson

Grace Llewellyn says many typically schooled people fit the description: "Be all that you can be, according to somebody else." She claims that many hide from the chance to direct their own lives and minds-which is why a lot of them stay in safe jobs they detest all their lives and fantasize about the career risk they will take when the kids are grown, or when they retire. She continues: "Life is scary stuff, but it's real. Don't give in to fear, dance bravely and brightly. Learn to be a human bean and not instant mashed potatoes." I like that. She's a very brave writer!

A ship in harbor is safe - but that is not what ships are for. ~John A. Shedd

I started thinking about this in reference to my life. So many of my early years were spent in someone else's shadow. I was an introvert and shy. Pleasing someone else seemed to be my motto for much of my existence. I did take risks but they were often someone else's idea. Even though they were good things for me to have done and I learned much, they were not MY risks.

The gift of risk lies not in what you achieve, but in who you become by taking them.

Now in my old(ish) age, and with a bit more wisdom (I believe) I am searching for myself. Who am I? Or who could I still be? Have I really lived LIFE the way I was meant to live? I'm not going to ponder that one too much as I can't go back and change anything, but I want to be in charge of who I am today. I have ideas and choices to make and lessons to learn and things to do and see in my quaint, short life. What do I really want to do that I haven't done just yet? If I wanted to make a list I could and probably will in private. Then I'll ask myself, "What is within my reach, and does it matter?" I'd like to expand my mind a bit more, tap into my creative modalities and produce something great (artistic or written?) and certainly nurture my spirit to a new level. Hey, I want to leap small buildings and let those instant mashed potatoes rot!

ScienceDaily (Sep. 19, 2005) —

Tall people are more prepared to take risks than small people, women are more careful than men, and the willingness to take risks markedly decreases with age: these are the findings arrived at by researchers from the Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA), the University of Bonn and the German Institute for Economic Research (DIW) in Berlin. For their study they evaluated more than 20,000 interviews with people from all over Germany and additionally confirmed the findings by experiment. What is particularly striking is that people who enjoy taking risks are more content with their lives.

Our Family's Favorites & Worthwhile Reading List

The following list of books include some of our all time favorites and inspirational treats (in no particular order). Many have been delightful read-alouds, especially those at the top children's section. There are some genres I'm not including like much adult fiction and very young children's books, poetry, political or historical, though they'd have a place in my favorites also, and I'm sure I've left out a few that should have been included here. These are mainly from the gist of our normal life's reading. If you want to explore new horizons or have a life changing experience, check these out!


Children/Teens:

• Heidi by Johanna Spyri
• Little Britches, Father and I Were Ranchers by Ralph Moody (and others in the series)
• Sir Gibbie by George MacDonald
• A Hive of Busy Bees by Effie M. WIlliams
  
• Treasures of the Snow by Patricia St. James
• Mama's Bank Account by Kathryn Forbes
• Understood Betsy by Dorothy Canfield Fisher
• James Herriot's Treasury for Children by James Herriot
  
• Cheaper by the Dozen by Frank B. Gilbreth and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey
• Charlotte's Web by E. B. White
• The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi
• The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum
• Little Women by by Louisa May Alcott (also Little Men)
• The Swiss Family Robinson by Johann D. Wyss
• Black Beauty by Anna Sewell
• Far North by Will Hobbs
• Lost on a Mountain in Maine by Joseph Egan
• Pagoo by Holling C. Holling
  
• Minn of the Mississippi by Holling C. Holling
• Benjamin West and his cat Grimalkin by Marguerite Henry
  
• Leonardo Da Vinci (Childhood of World Figures) by George E. Stanley
• Painting America's Wildlife: John James Audubon by Janet Stevenson
• Seeing Fingers - the story of Louis Braille byEtta DeGering
  
• Little House in the Big Woods (and others in the series) by Laura Ingalls Wilder
• Caddie Woodlawn by Carol Brink
• Missionary Stories for Children
• Summer of the Monkeys by Wilson Rawls
• Nothing is Impossible: the Story of Beatrix Potter by Dorothy Aldis
  
• So Dear to My Heart by Sterling North
• Rascal by Sterling North
• Young Thomas Edison by Sterling North
• Holes by Louis Sachar
• The Giver by Lois Lowry
• The Saturdays (and others) by Elizabeth Enright
• The Merry Adventure's of Robin Hood by Howard Pyle
• The Great Fire by Jim Murphy
• An American Plague by Jim Murphy
• Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Latham
• The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Spear
• Hank the Cowdog (and many in the series) by John R. Erickson
• The Chronicles of Narnia (series) by C. S. Lewis
• Cricket in Times Square by George Selden
• There's an Owl in the Shower by Jean Craighead George
• My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George
• Door in the Wall by Marguerite de Angeli
• Homesick by Jean Fritz (and her many historical fiction biographies for children)
• The Great Brain by John D.l Fitzgerald (more in the series)
• The Borrowers by Mary Norton
• Golden Goblet by Eloise Jarvis McGraw
• The Ransom of Red Chief and other stories by O. Henry
• Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Gray
• Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
• Watership Down by Richard Adams
• Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter
• Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
• Hobbit by J. R. R. Tolkien
• The Wheel on the School by Meindert Dejong
• Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken
• Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
• All Creatures Great and Small and others by James Herriot
• One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich and others by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
• The Strange Lives of Familiar Insects by Edwin Way Teale
• Tesla: Man Out of Time by Margaret Cheney
• Scottish Chiefs by Jane Porter
• The Librarian Who Measured the Earth by Kathryn Lasky
• Archimedes & the Door of Science by Jeanne Bendick
• Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin
• Augustus Caesar's World by Genevieve Foster
• The World of William Penn by Genevieve Foster
• Material World by Peter Menzel (photographic journal)
• Honey For a Child's Heart by Gladys Hunt

Women's Interest:

• The Story of My Life by Helen Keller
• Mrs. Mike by Benedict and Nancy Freedman
• Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
• The Small Woman: The True Story of Gladys Aylward of China by Alan Burgess
  
• Honey For a Woman's Heart by Gladys Hunt
• I'm Going to be the Greatest Mom Ever by Terri Camp
• Fascinating Womanhood by Helen Andelin
• Created to Be His Helpmeet by Debi Pearl
• How to Become Your Husband's Best Friend by Gary Smalley
• Creative Counterpart by Linda Dillow
• The Fruit of Her Hands: Respect and the Christian Woman by Nancy Wilson
• Praise Her in the Gates: the Calling of Christian Motherhood by Nancy Wilson
• Intimate Issues by Linda Dillow and Lorraine Pintus
• Seasons of a Mother's Heart by Sally Clarkson
• Tilly by Frank E. Peretti
• Pro-Life Christians by Joe Gulotta

Educational:

• Ignite the Fire by Terri Camp
• The Holy Bible
• A Child's History of the World (also Art & Geography) by V. M. Hillyer
• The Way They Learn by Cynthia Tobias
• Teach Your Own by John Holt
• How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
• The Law by Frederick Bastiat
• Preparing for Adolescence by Dr. James Dobson
• The Well-Educated Mind by Susan Wise Bauer
• Literature Alive! by Cay A. Gibson
• The Moral Compass by William J. Bennett
• Letters to Jessica by Robert Bissett
  
• Square Foot Gardening by Mel Bartholomew
• The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz

Marriage/Family Helps:

• Jumping Ship by Michael Pearl
• Grace Walk by Steve McVey
• Shattered Dreams: God's Unexpected Pathway to Joy by Larry Crabb
• The Marriage Builder by Larry Crabb
• Wild at Heart: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul by John Eldredge
• Sheet Music by Kevin Leman
• Love is a Decision by Gary Smalley & John Trent
• The Blessing by Gary Smalley & John Trent
• His Needs, Her Needs - How to Build an Affair Proof Marriage by Willard F. Harley Jr.
• The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura Schlessinger
  
• Marriage Fitness by Mort Fertel

Health, Nutrition, Cooking:

• Inflammation Nation by Floyd H. Chilton
• What the Bible Says About Healthy Living by Rex Russell
• Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon
  
• God & Vitamins by Marjorie Holmes
• The Hallelujah Diet by George Malkmus

I love to get recommendations and always have a "to read" list going. Please share your favorites with us too!

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

What I'm Reading

I don't usually read much fiction for myself. The last book of fiction I read was the huge Echo in the Darkness by Francine Rivers, which was recommended to me. I mostly read it when it comes highly recommended which is what interested me in the book Honey for a Woman's Heart. I gave "Honey..." also to my mom as a gift and she has dissected it and is finding all sorts of great treasures as a result which we discuss together.

I still like to read kid's picture books. This week at the library I found Leonardo's Horse by a favorite children's author, Jean Fritz. I have a collection of hers but didn't even know about this particular book. Now I need to buy one for my own. I have read much fiction, especially historical fiction with the boys over so many years of homeschooling (my favorite activity!) but I tend to love what is true the most and that is what excites me - real stories of real heroes in real life!!

There's a slew of interesting books all beckoning me at once. Let's see what I am reading at this scene in my life...

• Honey For a Woman's Heart by Gladys Hunt
• Living Peacefully in a Stressful World by Ron Hutchcraft
• The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn
• The Bible Cure for Weight Loss & Muscle Gain by Don Colbert, M.D. (rereading)
• The Writer's Jungle by Julie Bogart
• Families Writing by Peter R. Stillman
• Home by Choice by Brenda Hunter, Ph.D.
• Caring Enough to Forgive; Caring Enough to Not Forgive by David Augsburger
• Write Upon My Heart : Cheerfulness by Keepers of the Faith Publishing
• The Raw Food Gourmet by Gabrielle Chavez
• Your Right to be Beautiful-the Miracle of Raw Foods by Tonya Zavasta (a bit at a time)
  
• Juices & Smoothies by Suzannah; Farrow, Joanna Olivier

With the Boys:

• It's a Jungle Out There! by Ron Snell
• Created for WORK - Practical Insights for Young Men by Bob Schultz
• Fearfully & Wonderfully Made - a Surgeon Looks at the Human & Spiritual Body by Dr. Paul Brand & Philip Yancey

A Most Precious Gift

Today I am just rejoicing in the goodness of God for his many blessings, which definitely includes my four amazing sons. The honor of having them all at home and being able to teach them by-my-side for all these years is astonishing. Who would have ever thought it possible?

I empathize with women who have infertility problems, as I have experienced a total of four early miscarriages. I wouldn't have had my Jeremiah if I hadn't lost one of those little ones when I did. Since I have four boys (and of course we'd have loved a girl in there somewhere) I often think of the babies we lost as my "girls." Everyone has a story and I want to share mine from my journal of eight years ago:

“Where's ours?” My husband looked at me with those sad eyes. “When will it be our turn?” Friends of ours, with a newborn, had just left our living room. I don't remember what my answer was to these recurring questions, but I felt numb.

When I was growing up, I entertained thoughts of being a mommy. I was one of six children, and it seemed the natural thing to have a household full of children. I often doted on my twin brothers, seven years younger, and played school with my younger sister. The most exciting thing in the world to me, would be to have a child of my own.

Years passed and a wonderful man came into my life and we married. I graduated college, and for our first few years together, I enjoyed my new roles as wife and Registered Nurse, but I knew we were missing something.

About our sixth year into marriage I was overjoyed to find out I was pregnant. I started writing a journal to the little one I'd never see or hold, as she was lost to us in her 11^th week. Not long afterward, this same scenario occurred again. My heart ached and I sobbed out with empty arms. I wondered if I might ever be able have a child. My prayers never ceased and resembled those that Hannah (from the Bible) must have prayed. I took comfort, that it was possible to conceive again. I relied on God's love and His plan for us.

In our eighth year, I was with child again. At exactly the fourth month, I felt the first fluttering movements stirring within me. I was sitting in a meeting at my job at the time, and I wanted to jump up and shout. I hid my secret (with a huge smile on my face) till the meeting was over. I knew my baby was alive – a most precious gift!

Josiah was born at home in the heat of Florida's July, 1986. Words cannot describe how we felt to be parents of our darling baby. I love to look at the photo of my husband's face holding his firstborn son, with tears streaming down his cheeks, and remembering the first prayer of thanksgiving that he offered up for him.

Fourteen years have passed, and when standing, my baby's eyes now smile down into mine. He has three younger brothers, all miracles to me. I've learned to trust God in all things in my life. I can see that His timing was perfect.

One of my favorite passages in the Bible is Psalm 139 and I read it often... “I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvelous are they works; and that my soul knoweth right well.”

We are blessed, indeed.

(Photos from top to bottom: Josiah at ten, Gideon at seven, Benjamin at four, Jeremiah at one; twelve years ago now. Josiah is presently 22)

Delighted to be Homeschooling

I retrieved a few old pals from last year and mixed in a few curious new friends from my overcrowded bookshelves, prioritized which subjects to study, thoughtfully listed some favorite want-to-read-alouds, bought some colorful notebooks and pens, found my surprise box of zoology microscope slides that I saved, and I'm rarin' to begin our adventure. I'm excited! Today was our first day to ease back into a homeschool schedule.

I say schedule even though we tend to be very flexible and relaxed. Everyone needs an agenda and I'd be lost without my weekly plan book where I write down every thing we do and plan future projects. I have a well intentioned but forgetful mind so I have to include safeguards here and there that help snap me back where I knew I wanted to be.

I love learning with the boys. It's a favorite activity! If you read this blog long enough you'll find me repeating those statements again and again. Is there anything better than relating to your child about something wonderful that God had made or revealed to you? This is what we deal with every day in our unique learning environment.

I'd love to say that my younger two boys are so independent in their learning, but they are probably pretty typical guys. They like critters, computer games, movies, playing chess, telling jokes and arm wrestling. They do each have their different interests, but they can use a good nudging and a lot of inspiration at times, and I do see time wasters flashing their lights in my direction a bit too often. We haven't "enjoyed" regular TV or even cable for twenty years, but the VCR and computer came into our lives early on. I can't go back and change those things but I feel happiest when schooling is in session.

Jeremiah, 13, also likes photography and I'm very impressed that he has pursued this interest somewhat this summer (the photos are his). I'm trying to figure out a way to have this be a part of his studies also, doing an insect/creature book or writing descriptions with scrapbook pages and to learn more about design and composition.

Benjamin, 16, has been working part time and that is a BIG change in his life where he is learning all manner of responsibility and work ethics. I am impressed with him also. A devotional book I plan to use is Bob Shultz's Created For WORK - Practical Insights for Young Men, and I'm sure Benjamin will have some first hand experiences to share with us. He's a wonderful reader with an auditory learning style and real living books continue to be the gist of our eclectic education. We don't typically use a formal subject textbook, but have found the Apologia sciences quite interesting. Ben will be doing the Exploring Creation with Biology and possibly getting together with a few other students for the experiment labs. I hope it works out.

Every year (for last 17 years) we've been doing things just a tad different. The boys change and I change. Subjects that do bear repeating can be done with a new twist to keep it interesting. I switched Jeremiah to a new math program just this morning. Book collecting has been a long term hobby which I love but I have found that having too many choices can make me crazy. It's better for me to select fewer options to focus on, but it's always nice to know my friends will be there for me.

I have many writing programs and seem to always be looking for the BEST. Probably any that I use would be fine. I am putting an emphasis on creative writing this year because it's a special interest of my own, I've been reading a lot and writing more myself, and think we need to share our loves & interests with our children. And I know that they have so much inside just waiting to be expressed in a creative writing sort of way. I continue to delight in seeing their written expressions (selves) come to life!

Recently on an email list the members were asked, "What books have most influenced your thinking with homeschooling?" I thought I would share my list here with some highlights I've uncovered that have helped me along our journey.

• The Relaxed Homeschool and The Joyful Homeschooler by Mary Hood, Ph.D.: So many new homeschoolers think their child has to cover every subject, complete every page in the book, and pass every test with A's - and they attempt to imitate with their children the education that they endured as a child. I found good, practical advice, tips for relaxing and trusting God, and following His individual plan for our family. Reading these were very encouraging to me that it was OK to be my flexible, creative self and apply it to my homeschool. It's also OK to follow a different format based on your child's individuality and needs. The multiplication tables don't have to be taught in third grade and there are going to be gaps in your students' education. I don't have to cover everything. Textbooks that try to cram so much in a small book don't do justice to the topics it shares. Reading a real book on a certain subject allows the child to really grasp a subject and internalize it for later use. I started thinking more along the lines of “What is God wanting us to learn and do?” and listening closely for His guidance.

• Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto: This past New York State Teacher of the Year showed me why typical, compulsory education is really anti-child education. He confirmed to me what I had already believed, though it was inspiring to hear it from a public educator who dared to radicalize the system and re-engage his students toward natural curiosity, independence, love of learning and community involvement. Each year I reassess if home schooling is the right choice for us at this time and in the back of my mind there is Mr. Gatto shaking his head at me and saying, "Your boys deserve the best you can give them. A collective institution that is designed to produce obediently functioning, intellectually dependent cogs, is contrary to the spirited, individualized expressions of learning that you can provide them at home in your care." I realized that imitating the public school system was out of the question and I appreciated the strong language, openness and kick in the head where I needed it!

• The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook by Dr. Raymond Moore: Pushing children (especially boys) too hard, too soon into formal learning is a “don't do”! They need those early years for exploration, play and natural growth to maturity. Since my two middle sons were very late readers I identified with this good wisdom. It didn't inhibit them in any way and in their own God given time frame, they caught up and advanced quickly. Homeschooling is more like a stress free family adventure built around your child's needs and interests. There are plenty of worthwhile creative endeavors like games, projects, crafts and work that young children should be involved in. There's a bounty of fabulous ideas, encouraging personal stories and support for everyone that loves the idea of family oriented education.

• The Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola: I own quite a number of books on the Charlotte Mason style of learning and I love them all. This is the one I refer back to the most, however. Ms. Mason's ideas for narration, copywork and dictation stood out for me to include in our education which I have delighted in and continue to use. Having the teacher mind that I do, I used to write up many of my own lessons similar to the ones in the Learning Language Arts Through Literature curriculum. This one book (along with use of a library) is the best and only book someone needs to have to homeschool effectively. Easy read, easy implementation and great results!

• Teach Your Own by John Holt: Here was an early private school educator and granddaddy homeschool guru who knows all about education and children. His friendly wisdom can persuade like no one else I've read. It's all packed in here. The chapter on dyslexia was an eye opener for me, and taught me that children with labels are smart indeed! Every parent is a facilitator and capable of teaching their own children and "watching the miracle of natural human development take off on its own." (quote from a fan)

I Love Scrapbooking!

There's something about those pretty papers, colorful stickers, amusing-photo-faces and all those sentimental memories that goes with them; then mix in creativity and a finished keepsake project. That is scrapbooking, and what fun it is!

Last month I did a 50th birthday memory album for my sister as a gift, and years ago I did a 5oth anniversary album for my parents. Though a lot of work went into them, they will be enjoyed for many, many years!

Each of my sons have used scrapbooking for homeschooling, to save favorite photos and journal about outings in a special notebook. I'd encourage every student to take the time and effort to do the same. Looking back years later, you'll envision the winding journey you took through childhood and treasure those captured moments through your unique pages.

Resting for years in boxes, in my closet, are dozens of envelopes filled with old photos just waiting on me to do something with them. I've done a little for myself here and there, but for me it's best to just make a whole day of scrapbooking (with the mess and all). I don't have a special table space that I can just leave everything out on day after day.

This summer I am helping our local homeschool group with a yearbook project and I found out about On-line Scrapbooking at ScrapbookFlair.com

It is so easy to use once you get the hang of it and you will have to download their free software to use the program. It enables you to make jpg's of your finished page and if you want you can print them or have photos made. There is also community sharing of scrapbooks if you want. It would be a wonderful way to share photos with relatives and friends! The photo above is really a minimally simple one I did at Scrapbookflair in minutes, of my four handsome sons. The one above that is one I did for our yearbook. Here's another:On-line creative scrapbooking is a lot of fun also, and you still get that finished product you are looking for. What I've shown here is just the basics, but the potential is wild. Check out that web site and you'll see.

Happy scrapbooking and have a great day....

Our Homeschool

I was asked to write a short paragraph on our homeschooling experience for the yearbook. I thought, "Me, only write one paragraph?" But I will share what I came up with:

We have always schooled at home and it is one of my favorite things to do! This is because I am very involved, I love learning along with my boys, and witnessing their growth and progress on a daily-monthly-yearly basis is such a blessing to me. Two of our four sons are graduated and in college and that leaves two teenagers. We are eclectic in that we utilize things from many different methods and styles. I have always loved learning together with book and unit studies, and we like to concentrate on history chronologically at this time. I have been inspired by Charlotte Mason and have benefited from researching into her methods. The main gist of our education revolves around reading great, inspiring, living books, many of which we read aloud together. I have found that sharing a great story and discussing it produces a special bonding between family members and gives insight into their character and thought processes. Independent learning is also very important, as I believe "what a child discovers for himself he is more apt to keep," allowing for creativity, individuality and responsibility to flourish. We are sincere in saying that homeschooling provides the best education for our children and we thank God for the honor and delight of teaching them at home.

Beautiful on Raw - Tonya Zavasta's Workshop & Green Pudding

Diseases are the price of ill pleasures.

This seems to be a good day to review and collect my thoughts on the Raw Foods Workshop I went to several weeks ago; I've got homemade cinnamon raisin bread in the oven. Well, let's just say I have my doubts about ever going all raw but the benefits are impressive, especially for those in need of physical healing (which really includes the majority of us).

Our family's health journey over the years has been a very gradual one, with each year doing something more healthful than the year before such as: Discontinuing the use of white sugar and artificial sweeteners, hydrogenated oils, msg products, soda pop (including diet soda) and high fructose corn syrup; Using Stevia and honey for a sweetener; Avoiding or limiting sweets; Reading labels; Not buying highly processed foods; Making more from scratch; Switching to all natural peanut butter and olive oil; Grinding my own wheat; Juicing carrots and fruits and vegetables; Growing our own vegetables; Drinking purified water; Limiting meats; and Eating more raw foods, etc.

Tonya Zavasta is 50 but looks 35. She has been eating ALL raw for the past 12 years, and claims she is perfectly healthy despite numerous hospitalizations for leg and hip surgeries to correct a physical deformity she was born with. These claims impressed me: no headaches in 12 years; no symptoms or signs of menopause yet; she wakes up euphoric every morning; perfect lab test results; and takes no supplements at all.

With youthful flair and mildly Russian accent, she energetically relayed humorous stories, emphatic quotes and a wealth of healthy information and tips that we could apply to our present lifestyles. One thing I will be eating is her Green Pudding recipe, as long as I can make it in my food processor, as my blender is not as powerful as a VitaMix which is preferred. Here it is, so yummy and healthy!!

Green Pudding

Fill bottom half of blender with greens like swiss chard. Add to this, cut up raw mango to fill the container. Blend till smooth. That's it!

It's a pudding consistency, made with no added water. A friend made it with several different greens from her garden and used banana, pineapple, and strawberries instead of the mango. She said it was delicious. Someone asked, "What about mixing fruits with vegetables?" Tonya's answer was that since the greens are not starchy vegetables it is OK to do so.

It was not so much a raw foods prep workshop as I had anticipated but I was encouraged by being there, which is really why I wanted to attend. One of the most impressive things she had to say was that her husband is an ordinary guy; he has not followed all raw like herself all these years and finds it very hard to do so. He was her helper that day and is a big (tall and wide) man. He pulled out his long tucked in belt that revealed his former larger size, relating to the 70 lbs he had lost in the past year. Another speaker may have been embarrassed by her nonconformist husband. She praised him and told us, "Why get rid of a perfectly good husband just because he doesn't see eye to eye or do everything like you do?" I decided I really liked her after that statement and realized they are like the rest of us - real people.

We sampled a number of raw foods but didn't see the preparation; I think the recipes were in her second book, but they were very tasty. One was this brownie like thing with a topping and would have been a good cupcake alternative. It's amazing what you can do with raw foods.

In another Cookin' in the Raw class I took one summer, we made spaghetti using raw zucchini that you put through a Spirooli that makes these awesome shaped noodles, and topped with a raw tomato sauce that was great. I think my boys would have to get used to it, but I LIKED it!

Tonya has astonishingly clear skin and bright eyes. She mentioned that the outer body reflects the inner body. The condition of our skin and clearness of our eyes and ability to function and even our mood tells a lot about our physical selves. Poor skin reflects organs struggling to do its job. It's hard to fake that facial glow that she says she can spot right away on a person who eats essentially raw. She's a perfect weight and proclaims that on raw the body will find its natural God designed size. Calorie restriction with optimal nutrition is what works, and eating raw fits the description well.

She also drinks no water, stating that she gets all the fluid she needs from her food and juice, but that when you don't eat all raw your body needs that hydration to compensate. She cautioned those that right away add a lot of raw to the diet and complain of gas and indegestion. What is happening, she says, is that the intestines are already in an acid state from past eating habits and when you introduce an abundance of alkaline foods you have a chemical reaction : gas and bloating. The digestive system is just too weak yet, and juicing is a great way to gradually add more raw.

Since my education as a nurse, I have always found the study of the human body intriguing and inspirationally marvelous. I am aware of it's healing potential and how extremely we have abused our bodies on the SAD diet (standard American diet). Tonya shared that eating the SAD diet makes for thick sticky blood, which is why anticoagulants are so often needed for heart patients. She says tests have proven that you can reverse this in three weeks as the body is very forgiving. From what I've learned, if we just give our body the nutrients it craves and take care of ourselves, it can reverse the illness toward renewed health.

I know of a local, elderly, diabetic gentleman that was so sick he was to have kidney dialysis. His wife searched and found the Hallelujah Diet After several months on this 85% raw and 15% cooked diet, he did not need dialysis and is doing well continuing this new eating routine. His doctor was amazed. It works!

Miss Tonya, who holds mathematics and engineering masters degrees is currently focusing on anti-aging research. Her book YOUR RIGHT TO BE BEAUTIFUL claims that everyone can be beautiful, and she does mean outside as well as inside (organs and all). We all have the potential to be strikingly beautiful, as God intended us to be, if we take responsibility for our own appearance and our health (including eating raw foods of course). You can see a photo of her and read her story at her website if you like:Beautiful on Raw

I'm going to finish reading her first book and use her vanilla scented natural facial cream and decide what additional changes I should make. There is much health related information out there and I'd encourage anyone to start digging. Another favorite place for health-wise Natural News is Mike Adams. Happy and healthy eating to all of us - and may you do something a little (or a lot) healthier this year than last.

Eating all raw is not for everyone - only the adventurous!
~ Tonya Zavasta