I Can Honestly Say I Have No 78s or 8 Track Tapes

It is easy to see a time when there is no need for shelf space as so much of our media shifts to digital form. My oldest two have their own iPods that they fill with music. Many movies and TV shows are now downloadable, so there is no need to buy a Blu-ray or DVD. It's near impossible to even find a VCR anywhere other than a thrift shop. It seemed like books were the only mainstay, and then along came the Nook and the Kindle, bringing Star Trek technology another step closer to reality. 

I don't want to sound like a Luddite, but I would hate to see the demise of the family bookshelf. I grew up in a house full of shelves. I'm sure being surrounded by books helped me to develop a love for reading. I don't know if the same would be true if I had grown up with a fully loaded e-reader. My mother adapted faster to the technology than I did. My sister and I bought her her first Nook for her 69th or 70th birthday. She recently upgraded to one of the newer models and gave me her old e-reader. My husband took to it faster than I did. I tried fiddling with the fonts, but I really can't pull myself into a story with it the way I can when I'm cuddled with a book. I do like it for playing audiobooks. I don't have an iPod, so I load my audiobooks onto the Nook and I can carry it room to room. Aside from accidentally hitting shuffle during a road trip, it has worked out well.

The nice thing about bookshelves is that they give me an unobtrusive way to get to know my friends and family. Browsing gives me something to do while they are off answering the phone or dealing with a child's needs. You can learn so much as you browse the shelves in someone's house. Some bookcases have interesting titles I haven't heard of among the jumble of books. Some shelves are so orderly you can tell the owner is very organized and neat. Some shelves are overstuffed with material. The books are in rows, two or three deep. This is a sign of a reader (or watcher, or listener) who can't bear to part with their stuff. Each has had some profound affect on their life or holds deep meaning for the owner. I like finding a book I've read, a CD of a favorite artist, or an obscure movie I thought no one else knew about on a friend's shelves. It connects me. It gives us something to talk about.

I know it would be better for our planet if we had less stuff. I know we can save a lot of trees if we use eBooks instead of print. I just need to move slowly into this new digital world. I'm not ready to part with my 45s and vinyls. Some of my audiocassettes still work and so does the old TV with the build in VCR.

And I need to finish reading the pile of books I've brought home from the library and the bookstores first.

Wonder ( an Author Meeting and Book Review)

On Monday I had the opportunity to meet R.J. Palacio, the author of Wonder, at my favorite bookshop, The Voracious Reader. The Voracious Reader was one of 40 sites selected to be a Children's Book Week host, and I found out this author would be at the store days after I read the book.

If you haven't read Wonder, I suggest putting it on your list. Have tissues ready for the last 100 pages because you cry a lot. Not only for sad parts, but for the incredibly uplifting ending. Wonder is a book about kindness, about choosing to be kind when it isn't easy, and you learn this through a story about a boy named August, who is born with extreme facial differences. The story is initially narrated by August and then through his sister and the various friends he makes during his first year in middle school after being homeschooled through fourth grade.

Ms. Palacio told how she came up with the story, when her boys were eleven and three. She had given her oldest money to buy them milkshakes and sat down outside the ice cream store with her three year old, who was in a stroller. At some point she realized that the little girl sitting next to her had a facial difference and she panicked, afraid that her young son might react in fear if he saw her, afraid that her oldest might say something when he came out (even though he should know better.), afraid because she didn't want to hurt the young girl's feelings. So she thought she might edge her young son away before anything happened. Of course, that was when all her fears happened at once. Her younger son noticed and started to scream and cry. Her oldest came out and as she tried to steer him away he asked why they had to leave so quickly. And then he lost his hold on the milkshakes and they spilled all over. In that moment, she heard the little girl's mother quietly tell her daughter and her sister(?) it was time to go. She was embarrassed and sad for the little girl and for her mother, who must face reactions like this a hundred times a day. She went home with the story beginning in her head and after hearing the song Wonder on the radio that night, she decided she would write a story about a child like the little girl.

I was especially struck by descriptions of the story's English teacher, Mr. Browne. He reminded me so much of my own favorite high school English teacher. My teacher also happened to have the name Mr. Browne. I told this to Ms. Palacio when I came up to have my book signed after her talk. It turns out we went to the same high school, five years before me! She did, indeed, model her character after our high school English teacher! Isn't that amazing? I hope she manages to contact him. He was one of those teachers that inspires, the kind of teacher I hope I am to my children.

Star Wars and Philosophy

We've been watching the Star Wars movies to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Star Wars. We started with the original three and then took a break because I wanted Marina to read Star Wars and Philosophy before we tackle Anakin's descent to the dark side. Marina has already finished the book. It took me a week to get through the first chapter on destiny vs. free will because I had to lie down every two pages. I heartily recommend the book to enhance the experience of the movies. I read most of it before Star Wars III: Return of the Sith came out and I had chills as Obi Wan yells at Anakin, "You were supposed to be the one!"

Anyway, Marina would shush us at times because we were interrupting her. "Shh! I'm reading about moral ambiguity! Shh! I'm reading about stoicism!" She read it in the car on the way to the baby shower and admitted that we could have taken her anywhere and she wouldn't have noticed. This is why she's somewhat directionally challenged. Too much reading in the car.

Incidentally, this is her second Pop Culture and Philosophy book. She's also read Harry Potter and Philosophy. I'm not crazy about all the titles in this series, but the ones that relate to books and movies we've read or seen have been useful. I take my inspirations where I find them and just "separate the wheat from the chaff."

Books I'm Reading

I was tagged by callmekate to tell about what I’m reading. I think she meant besides picture books. This was hard since I usually only have time for the comics page and the editorial letters of the newspaper. I like responding to editorial letters. I have a folder of newspaper clippings with my published letters and a news feature about a juggling club we used to run. If you would like to make sure you get your 15 minutes of fame, learn to juggle.

I did just finish a book about a month ago called The Tao of Pooh. I loved how Christ-like the taoist principles are. After I finished, I picked up The Adventures of Winnie the Pooh to read with Sierra. I could see how the author chose his examples for the book, but I could also see how it is very easy to interpret anything to your opinion if you pull it out of context. I could probably write my own book about opportunism in the Hundred Acre Wood.

I’m also slowly making my way through Body Clutter by Marla Cilley (the Flylady). I already knew many of the principles, having received her e-mail reminders for years, but I’m very impressed by the sections on learning about why we eat the way we do. I love watching my teachers grow in wisdom, and Marla has done a lot of growing over the four years I’ve read her morning musings. She is an incredible woman and I have a lot of respect for her, even if I have fallen off the Flywagon lately! (At least my laundry and sink are clean!)

My mouth waters for fantasy. I finished my friend Appleleaf’s trilogy Quenarden and I am glad I took the time to have them shipped from Australia. She is a wonderful storyteller. The story is gripping and I found myself moving quickly from one book to the next in anticipation. She’s promised a fourth book. I’m waiting. Note to Paula: I couldn't reach the link through your blog. You might want to check it.

Speaking of waiting, I’m also waiting for Harry Potter’s final book. I know many consider this a straightforward good vs. evil fantasy with a smattering of mystery, but I also saw many parallels with the rise of the Third Reich and Nazi Germany. These stories give me an impression of a second rising of the Nazis. You have the supposedly pureblood wizards who think they’re better than everyone. The muggles, who are the scapegoated Jews. I’m not sure what character Harry is, but Lord Voldemort is definitely Hitler. Everyone assumes Voldemort is dead and are taken completely off guard by his return (sorry if I’ve spoiled the book for anyone). His followers are in hiding. The only difference here is that the Death Eaters are the ones with the tatooed arms to remind them of the past. Makes you think, doesn’t it?

Tinkerbell is Obnoxious

My son just finished reading Peter Pan and listening to the book on tape of The Wind in the Willows. Being a very sensitive child, he really didn't care for Peter Pan. In particular, he didn't care for Tinkerbell. I don't think he even clapped to bring her back to life. "She's very obnoxious," was his exact phrase. Well, yeah, after all she did try numerous times to get rid of Wendy, so I guess premeditated attempted murder could qualify as obnoxious. The only character he liked to any extent was Slightly.

Just for fun, I had him compare Peter and Mr. Toad. We discussed their recklessness and their self-centered attitudes. Both characters tend to forget their lessons, which serves to keep them in the savage boy state. Both were very good at making up their own rules to justify their behavior and weren't above committing crimes to achieve their goals. It makes you wonder, why did Peter want a mother? I think he had the idea of mother confused with the idea of servant or nursemaid. In the end, my son preferred Mr. Toad, who finally came around, made his restitutions (albeit grudgingly) and decided to grow up.

I guess I should hold off on having him read The Lord of the Flies.

After Dinner Update: Apparently, everything got jumbled from my ear to my brain. Or maybe my son has Peter Pan memory loss. Or I shouldn't have tried to do a book discussion before he ate. At any rate, I've now been told that he likes Peter better because it would be cool live in Never Land (but he would like to grow up.)

Homeschool Resources Tag

Compliments of ComfyDenim

1. ONE HOMESCHOOL BOOK YOU HAVE ENJOYED

The Ultimate Book Of Homeschooling Ideas: 500+ Fun And Creative Learning Activities For Kids Ages 3-12 by Linda Dobson, and not just because I contributed ideas to it! It has a lot of ideas to think outside the textbook. Unfortunately, I seem to have misplaced my copy. Hmmm…I really need to keep track of material I lend out.

2. ONE RESOURCE YOU WOULDN'T BE WITHOUT

Can I name more than one? The Well-Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer. I use this as my outline for the school year and then diverge greatly from it, but I like the basic philosophy and the reading lists make me feel like I’m giving the kids something more substantial than the grade level reader and series books available.

I also highly recommend Spelling Power. Again, I don’t follow it exactly, but it has still improved my son’s spelling dramatically and it can be used up to grade 12. (My daughter tested out of it in seventh grade, but she’s a natural speller.)

3. ONE RESOURCE YOU WISH YOU HAD NEVER BOUGHT

Hooked on Phonics. I tried it with Marina and Chase because a neighbor gave it to me, gave it away, and then bought a newer edition for Sierra. The kids were never hooked. And I have to admit, after hearing the alphabet repeated for the 30^th time, I couldn’t motivate myself to encourage them to practice. If you want to go the phonics route, BOB books are much better.

4. ONE RESOURCE YOU ENJOYED LAST (This) YEAR

I like using Muzzy Spanish for language. I never became fluent in Spanish because I get hung up on syntax, having learned in the traditional “Here’s a list of vocabulary” method. I learned more Spanish being in Puerto Rico with my cousins. Having used Muzzy for a couple of years, I added Laugh ‘N’ Learn Spanish by Lynn Johnston and Brenda Wegmann. Comics are always a plus in our house, so we also use Nitty Gritty Grammar by Edith H. Fine and the Horrible Histories series. (Very hard to name just one resource.)

5. ONE RESOURCE YOU WILL BE USING NEXT YEAR

My mother. She retired last July so I expect I’ll be using her more often to help with math. I’ll also spend the summer reading Algebra Unplugged by Ken Amdahl and Jim Loats so I won’t feel quite so unprepared when Chase reaches higher math. I also might renew my subscription to Teach with Movies http://www.teachwithmovies.org/index.html I like to approach things in a multi media style.

6. ONE RESOURCE YOU WOULD LIKE TO BUY

Hard to say. Sometimes they find me. Since we buy from Amazon and Barnes and Noble.com, we get a list of recommended books because we bought this or that in the past. That was how I found Minimus and Fabulae Mirabiles (Fairy Tales in Latin) which was great, because they were finishing up Lingua Latin. A friend gave us our first Beethoven’s Wig CD, which is why my kids all hum classical music instead of pop.

7. ONE RESOURCE YOU WISH EXISTED

I agree with Comfy Denim. Osmosis would be great. Sierra learns this way to some extent. And has anyone figured out how to harness the time/space continuum so that I can have a few extra hours in the day?

Seriously, I would love to have unlimited access to all of the nature centers, parks and museums in the area. Not enough money for all those membership cards.

8. ONE HOMESCHOOLING CATALOG YOU ENJOY READING

I don’t read the catalogs too much, but Fun Books http://www.fun-books.com/ has been a great online catalog for me. I do like reading the Christmas catalog from Rainbow Resource (I have to know what I’m looking for to brave their telephone book size resource catalog).

9. ONE WEBSITE YOU USE REGULARLY
Aside from Homeschoolblogger? I like using Ebird http://ebird.org/content/index.html and the Old Farmer’s Almanac for Kids http://www.almanac4kids.com/ I told you, I can’t name just one. We’re all over the place.

10. TAG OTHER HOMESCHOOLERS

I would really like to hear from CarpeBanana and Aussie in America but only if they aren’t too busy. ;o)

Sorry I didn't have time to link everything. Have to finish inking my comics by Monday. (Just a couple more hours, that's all I ask!)

Letter Writing

Chase is walking on air today. Last September he wrote a letter to one of his favorite authors, Bruce Coville. This is the second year I've had them do this project. Last year he wrote to Joanna Cole, but he only received a form letter.
Today he got a response from the author. It was very nice, I don't think I've ever seen a longer reply to a fan letter. Mr. Coville even included a tip about a new book he's writing in "The Magic Shop" book series, which is my son's favorite. He thanked Chase for the pictures Chase had drawn and for letting him know how much Chase enjoyed "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher," a book that had taken him 13 rewrites! (I know that sentence was awkward. It's late, I'm tired.)
Last year Marina received a reply from Elizabeth Peters, author of the Amelia Peabody series. I think she answered mainly because Marina was such a young reader of this excellent mystery series.
Anyway, I encourage everyone to write to your favorite authors. There is a great resource at Kidsreads.com
Websites: The Official Bruce Coville Homepage
The Amelia Peabody Series, by Elizabeth Peters