A Morining in the Bauer Home School
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I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
A Morning in the Bauer Home School
by Susan Wise Bauer
Classical education with four children aged 12, 10, 7, and 3.
5 AM I get up and go downstairs for coffee. Okay, I know this is revoltingly
early, but I’ve discovered that getting up early and finishing up my own
jobs allows me to lie on the sofa like a slug in the evenings after the
children go to bed. This fall, I’m teaching two classes at William & Mary,
so I have plenty of grading to do. This morning, I blow the grading off and
work on my newest writing project instead: W. W. Norton has asked me to
write a history of the world for grown-ups. The Assyrian Kings List is
remarkably hard to convert into stirring narrative.
7 AM Emily wails. I go into her room; she’s sitting up in bed clutching her
blanket. “I had a nightmare!” she screams when she sees me. “What was it?”
I
ask. “There was a dark dark CAVE!” Emily yells. “I was in a dark dark CAVE!”
“It was just pretend,” I say; this is my usual response, but she’s not
buying it today. “It was DARK!” she says, accusingly. So I turn on her lamp.
“Were you all alone in the cave?” I ask. “No,” she says, in a voice of
doom.
“ALL OF THE BROTHERS were there!” Hmm. I’m not sure whether that’s part of
the nightmare or not. I lay her down, change her diaper, and give her a
bottle (I know, three is too old for a bottle, but she’ll drink it and go
straight back to sleep).
7:30 AM Shower, dress, dry hair, put on shoes. This isn’t one of my William
& Mary days, so we have a lot of school to get through. My husband Peter
will take over at 3 PM to do math, geography, and handwriting; he’ll send
Daniel (7) over to see my mother for a reading lesson and he’ll supervise
some of the tasks that Christopher (12) and Ben (10)) can do on their own
(typing, Latin vocabulary cards, spelling worksheets).
8 PM I go get everyone up. Christopher is already up reading; he’s an early
riser and has already been out to do some of his chores. Ben is sound
asleep; he’s a late riser, and when I try to wake him up he curls into a
ball and puts his head under his knees. I get Emily and put her in his bed.
Daniel comes out of his room and stands in the middle of the floor. “Time to
get dressed,” I say. “I don’t have any clothes,” he says. I walk him back
to
his room, take out his clothes and put them in a stack on the floor. He
looks at them. “Oh,” he says. “Those clothes.”
8:10 Christopher is waiting by the door to go out. All three boys generally
take the dogs for a long walk before breakfast; we live on a farm, but since
it’s hunting season, we keep the dogs in their pen for most of the day. Ben
is dressing. Emily is in the middle of Ben’s bed making a stuffed animal
pyramid. Daniel comes out of his room with no clothes on and a Lego robot in
one hand. “Mom,” he says, “do you know why this guy is special?” “Get
DRESSED,” I say.
8:15 Ben and Christopher are standing by the door. Daniel hops out of his
room on one foot, wearing two socks and nothing else. “Mom!” he says. “If
people only had one leg, they would keep falling over!” “PANTS,” I say.
8:20 Daniel is wearing socks and pants and nothing else. I tell Christopher
and Ben to go out and start feeding the dogs while I dress Daniel.
8:30 I put Emily in her high chair with raisins and start on breakfast. By
the time the boys come back in, eggs and toast are ready. Daniel goes and
gets his two favorite Lego robots to keep him company. Ben and Christopher
ask if they can read at the table. “Yes,” I say, pleased to see this love
for words. They produce Bloom County and The Ultimate Guide to Spiderman:
His Life and Ways. Oh, well.
9 I clear the table and run the boys through their chores: Christopher
vacuums, Ben cleans up Emily’s room, Daniel sweeps down the steps. He’s
still sweeping by the time the older boys are done. I tell Christopher to
start on his Latin (we always do this first thing) and Ben to go do his
reading. Right now he’s reading all the way through the Little House on the
Prairie series. He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.
9:10 Christopher has forgotten all the Latin he ever knew.
9:15 I tell Christopher to go run around the house. He goes, sheepishly.
When he comes back in he says, “Sorry.” “Is your brain in gear?” I ask.
“Er,” he says, “mostly.”
9:20 Daniel is still sweeping the stairs. Christopher has forgotten what a
direct object is. I give Emily crayons and paper and trace her hands while I
make up about fifty short sentences with direct objects and make Christopher
identify them. “Okay, okay,” he says, after sentence forty-five. “I get it.”
9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher. He looks at the forms.
“You have to be kidding,” he says.
9:30 Ben emerges, having finished his chapter, and asks if he can practice
his piano. “What was your chapter about?” I say. “They went to a place and
did something,” he says. “Go back and read it again,” I say, “and tell me
where they went and what they did.”
9:40 Christopher has completed one of his five drill sentences. Daniel is
still sweeping the steps. Emily announces, “I have to go potty.” I take her
into the bathroom and sit beside her. Christopher yells, “Help!” “Try to do
it yourself,” I yell back. There is a long silence. When I come back to the
kitchen, he’s on Sentence 2.
9:50 Ben comes back out. “They went into town and sold WHEAT!” he says
triumphantly. “Good job,” I say. “Go practice your piano.” I look up the
stairs. Daniel is sitting on the fourth step, sweeping his head with the
brush. “STAIRS,” I say.
10 AM Daniel finishes the stairs. “Go get First Language Lessons,” I say.
Emily is now under the table tickling Christopher’s feet. “Mom,” Christopher
says, “I can’t think.” He is now on Sentence 3.” I say, “Emily, what are
you
doing?” “I loving Pipher,” Emily says.
10:15 Christopher finishes Sentence 5. “Okay,” I say. “Good job. That only
took you an hour and ten minutes. Can I give you a brain massage?” “I think
I need some sugar,” he says. I feed everyone cookies and send Christopher to
practice his trumpet. Emily is bored; I tell Ben to quit practicing his
piano and read her a book while I do Daniel’s grammar. Today, his lesson is
action verbs. We repeat, “A verb is a word that does an action, shows state
of being, links two words, or helps another verb” five times; then I read
action verbs while he acts them out. Ben and Emily abandon their book and
join in. Christopher appears. “I want to do it too,” he says. Soon they are
screaming, jumping, running, yelling, falling, wrestling, and singing all
over the house. I try, “Whisper! Sleep! Think!” These are much less popular
action verbs.
10:30 I send everyone outside while I drink a cup of coffee. Christopher
offers to push Emily on the swing. While they’re out I look at their school
lists; Christopher still has a massive amount of work to do this morning. I
go outside too, and Emily and I feed the dogs Milk-Bones through the fence
while the boys charge off into the distance.
11 AM I yell, “Time to come in!” Eventually the boys reappear. “Aw,”
Christopher says, “we were just getting going.” “What were you playing?” I
ask. “Space Age,” he says. “I’m a Space Age kitty!” Daniel announces.
Christopher says, “We had to have Space Age kitties in the game so Daniel
could play.” Then he stage-whispers, “Ben and I pretend he’s a Lizardman
General, but he thinks he’s a kitty."
11:10 Christopher goes back to his trumpet. I put Emily back in her chair
with her crayons. She’s not buying it. “Want to go show Grammy my shoes,”
she says. “Not right now,” I say. “Ben, go get your grammar.” “Want to show
Grammy my ballerina skirt,” she says. “Not right now,” I say. Small silence.
“Want to show Grammy my belly,” she suggests. “We’ll go see Grammy later,”
I
say. I put on her ballerina skirt and play “Hall of the Mountain King” on
the stereo while she and Daniel run around the room in circles. Meanwhile I
go through Ben’s grammar lesson with him; today he’s supposed to diagram
sentences from the Rod & Staff fifth-grade book. His grammar has improved
since we switched from the A Beka workbooks; he’s a very reluctant writer,
but for some reason copying out the exercises from the non-consumable Rod &
Staff book has proved easier for him than completing the workbook pages.
11:30 Christopher finishes his trumpet and comes back out. “Reading,” I
say.
“Yeah!” Christopher says and disappears again. He’s reading The Once and
Future King, and has announced that it is his VERY FAVORITE BOOK EVER. This
warms my heart. I adored this book when I was twelve.
11:40 Ben has done one of his eight sentences. I give him M&Ms. Sugar is a
vital component of the successful home school.
11:45 Emily falls over while skidding around a corner and starts to bellow.
I turn off the music, pick her up, and send Daniel to get his spelling book.
12 noon Ben has done two of his eight sentences. I set the buzzer and tell
him that if he’s not finished in ten minutes, I’ll give him eight more.
12:05 Ben has finished his grammar lesson. I tell him to play with Emily
until Dan’s spelling is finished.
12:20 Christopher’s finished reading. I don’t ask him questions about The
Once and Future King; I clearly remember this book taking me into a universe
so real that I didn’t want to talk about it. Instead I decide to do history
with everyone simultaneously. I give Emily the math pattern blocks, which
she pours on the floor and sits on. “These are my eggs,” she says. “I will
have a baby chicken. Can I go show Grammy my baby chicken?” “Later,” I say.
I tell the boys to get their colored pencils while I clear the table. We’re
still doing medieval-renaissance history, because (like a lot of other
people) we’re waiting on publication of Vol. 3 of The Story of the World. I
give all three boys the map of the Franks and have them color the three
separate territories while I read aloud. When I get to Clovis I give them
the coloring page of Clovis’s baptism. “Was he really a Christian?”
Christopher asks. “He promised to become a Christian before he even knew
what Christianity was all about,” I say. “Listen.” I reread the story of the
baptism. “What do you think?” I say. “Nope!” Ben says cheerfully. “We can’
t
know for sure,” I say, “but I think the chances are against it.” Daniel
says, “Look! He doesn’t have any clothes on in this picture!”
12:40 I put Ben in front of the Usborne Internet-Linked History Encyclopedia
and tell him to read the section on the Franks and write down the three most
important things he learns. When I get the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia
out, Christopher groans and says, “Do I have to outline today?” “You can do
a composition instead,” I say. “About what?” “Er,” I say, thinking. “Er,
how
about comparing Clovis to King Arthur?” “That’s a lot,” Christopher says,
dubiously. “You can type it,” I say, “and today you can make a list of
comparisons, and then actually finish the composition itself tomorrow.”
Christopher agrees and goes off to his room, where he has a computer (NOT
connected to the Internet). Daniel says, “Can I go play with Legos?” “Who
was the history lesson about?” I ask. “A guy without clothes,” he says.
Emily announces, “POTTY!” “Okay,” I say, “go play Legos.”
1 PM Lunch. Christopher has made a list of comparisons, Ben has written two
sentences. I tell him to write one more before he can eat. While everyone is
stuffing down PBJ and chips, I decide that our diet has too much sugar and
salt in it and bring out a bag of baby carrots. “Three for everyone!” I
announce. There; that’ll balance out their diets, right?
1:20 PM It’s rest time. Pete will be back soon to take over school at 3 PM.
Christopher hasn’t yet done his grammar or his writing. I pull out his Rod &
Staff book, review the lesson with him, and tell him to finish it along with
his Wordsmith lesson during rest time, before he does anything else. I’ll
check it when he’s finished. Christopher’s independence level (except for
Latin) has rocketed during this past year; I’m beginning to think that I
might actually survive middle school. I settle Emily down for her rest, send
Daniel to play with Legos (again) and sit down with Ben and his Prima
Latina. Today we’re doing new vocabulary words and new endings. We talk
about each word and I give him index cards to make new vocabulary flash
cards. “Finish them in your room,” I say, “and then you can listen to your
tape and play.” All of the boys are listening to books on tape during
naptime; Ben is listening to The Dragonslayers, Daniel to Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
’s Farm, and Christopher to Cheaper by the Dozen.
With everyone in his room, I sit down to take stock of the morning.
Christopher hasn’t done his logic; he has taken a scunner to Jim Nance,
unfortunately, and I’m about ready to pitch it and try something else. My
options are limited. Maybe I’ll do the Critical Thinking Press books with
him for a year and then try to find a tutor. I did Dan’s spelling and
grammar with him, but I didn’t get to copywork; my mother usually does some
handwriting with him after his afternooon reading lesson, though, so I’ll
ask her to fold copywork into her lesson. Although Daniel is seven, he’s a
young seven (his birthday is the last week of October), and we’re hovering
between first and second grade work with him. I see that Ben was supposed to
do typing this morning for me because it’s a heavy math day for Pete, but I
forgot. I draw an arrow on his chart over to Pete’s side of the chart and
write in, “Typing if you have time?” Just then Emily yells. I go in her
room. “I had a NIGHTMARE!” she bellows. “You weren’t asleep,” I tell her.
At
three, Emily doesn’t sleep any more during rest time; she plays with toys on
her floor. “There was a TALKING BEAN in my closet!” she announces. “It’s a
friendly bean,” I say. “It’s time to get up,” Emily says. “Not yet,” I
say.
“Yes, it is. I have to go see Grammy and tell her about the talking bean.”
“LATER,” I say. When I go back out I write on Pete’s side of the school
chart, “Take Emmy to see Grammy.” I go upstairs and prop my feet up. In a
few minutes I need to go work on the grading I blew off first thing this
morning. (Rest time comes first, though.)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
A Morning in the Bauer Home School
by Susan Wise Bauer
Classical education with four children aged 12, 10, 7, and 3.
5 AM I get up and go downstairs for coffee. Okay, I know this is revoltingly
early, but I’ve discovered that getting up early and finishing up my own
jobs allows me to lie on the sofa like a slug in the evenings after the
children go to bed. This fall, I’m teaching two classes at William & Mary,
so I have plenty of grading to do. This morning, I blow the grading off and
work on my newest writing project instead: W. W. Norton has asked me to
write a history of the world for grown-ups. The Assyrian Kings List is
remarkably hard to convert into stirring narrative.
7 AM Emily wails. I go into her room; she’s sitting up in bed clutching her
blanket. “I had a nightmare!” she screams when she sees me. “What was it?”
I
ask. “There was a dark dark CAVE!” Emily yells. “I was in a dark dark CAVE!”
“It was just pretend,” I say; this is my usual response, but she’s not
buying it today. “It was DARK!” she says, accusingly. So I turn on her lamp.
“Were you all alone in the cave?” I ask. “No,” she says, in a voice of
doom.
“ALL OF THE BROTHERS were there!” Hmm. I’m not sure whether that’s part of
the nightmare or not. I lay her down, change her diaper, and give her a
bottle (I know, three is too old for a bottle, but she’ll drink it and go
straight back to sleep).
7:30 AM Shower, dress, dry hair, put on shoes. This isn’t one of my William
& Mary days, so we have a lot of school to get through. My husband Peter
will take over at 3 PM to do math, geography, and handwriting; he’ll send
Daniel (7) over to see my mother for a reading lesson and he’ll supervise
some of the tasks that Christopher (12) and Ben (10)) can do on their own
(typing, Latin vocabulary cards, spelling worksheets).
8 PM I go get everyone up. Christopher is already up reading; he’s an early
riser and has already been out to do some of his chores. Ben is sound
asleep; he’s a late riser, and when I try to wake him up he curls into a
ball and puts his head under his knees. I get Emily and put her in his bed.
Daniel comes out of his room and stands in the middle of the floor. “Time to
get dressed,” I say. “I don’t have any clothes,” he says. I walk him back
to
his room, take out his clothes and put them in a stack on the floor. He
looks at them. “Oh,” he says. “Those clothes.”
8:10 Christopher is waiting by the door to go out. All three boys generally
take the dogs for a long walk before breakfast; we live on a farm, but since
it’s hunting season, we keep the dogs in their pen for most of the day. Ben
is dressing. Emily is in the middle of Ben’s bed making a stuffed animal
pyramid. Daniel comes out of his room with no clothes on and a Lego robot in
one hand. “Mom,” he says, “do you know why this guy is special?” “Get
DRESSED,” I say.
8:15 Ben and Christopher are standing by the door. Daniel hops out of his
room on one foot, wearing two socks and nothing else. “Mom!” he says. “If
people only had one leg, they would keep falling over!” “PANTS,” I say.
8:20 Daniel is wearing socks and pants and nothing else. I tell Christopher
and Ben to go out and start feeding the dogs while I dress Daniel.
8:30 I put Emily in her high chair with raisins and start on breakfast. By
the time the boys come back in, eggs and toast are ready. Daniel goes and
gets his two favorite Lego robots to keep him company. Ben and Christopher
ask if they can read at the table. “Yes,” I say, pleased to see this love
for words. They produce Bloom County and The Ultimate Guide to Spiderman:
His Life and Ways. Oh, well.
9 I clear the table and run the boys through their chores: Christopher
vacuums, Ben cleans up Emily’s room, Daniel sweeps down the steps. He’s
still sweeping by the time the older boys are done. I tell Christopher to
start on his Latin (we always do this first thing) and Ben to go do his
reading. Right now he’s reading all the way through the Little House on the
Prairie series. He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.
9:10 Christopher has forgotten all the Latin he ever knew.
9:15 I tell Christopher to go run around the house. He goes, sheepishly.
When he comes back in he says, “Sorry.” “Is your brain in gear?” I ask.
“Er,” he says, “mostly.”
9:20 Daniel is still sweeping the stairs. Christopher has forgotten what a
direct object is. I give Emily crayons and paper and trace her hands while I
make up about fifty short sentences with direct objects and make Christopher
identify them. “Okay, okay,” he says, after sentence forty-five. “I get it.”
9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher. He looks at the forms.
“You have to be kidding,” he says.
9:30 Ben emerges, having finished his chapter, and asks if he can practice
his piano. “What was your chapter about?” I say. “They went to a place and
did something,” he says. “Go back and read it again,” I say, “and tell me
where they went and what they did.”
9:40 Christopher has completed one of his five drill sentences. Daniel is
still sweeping the steps. Emily announces, “I have to go potty.” I take her
into the bathroom and sit beside her. Christopher yells, “Help!” “Try to do
it yourself,” I yell back. There is a long silence. When I come back to the
kitchen, he’s on Sentence 2.
9:50 Ben comes back out. “They went into town and sold WHEAT!” he says
triumphantly. “Good job,” I say. “Go practice your piano.” I look up the
stairs. Daniel is sitting on the fourth step, sweeping his head with the
brush. “STAIRS,” I say.
10 AM Daniel finishes the stairs. “Go get First Language Lessons,” I say.
Emily is now under the table tickling Christopher’s feet. “Mom,” Christopher
says, “I can’t think.” He is now on Sentence 3.” I say, “Emily, what are
you
doing?” “I loving Pipher,” Emily says.
10:15 Christopher finishes Sentence 5. “Okay,” I say. “Good job. That only
took you an hour and ten minutes. Can I give you a brain massage?” “I think
I need some sugar,” he says. I feed everyone cookies and send Christopher to
practice his trumpet. Emily is bored; I tell Ben to quit practicing his
piano and read her a book while I do Daniel’s grammar. Today, his lesson is
action verbs. We repeat, “A verb is a word that does an action, shows state
of being, links two words, or helps another verb” five times; then I read
action verbs while he acts them out. Ben and Emily abandon their book and
join in. Christopher appears. “I want to do it too,” he says. Soon they are
screaming, jumping, running, yelling, falling, wrestling, and singing all
over the house. I try, “Whisper! Sleep! Think!” These are much less popular
action verbs.
10:30 I send everyone outside while I drink a cup of coffee. Christopher
offers to push Emily on the swing. While they’re out I look at their school
lists; Christopher still has a massive amount of work to do this morning. I
go outside too, and Emily and I feed the dogs Milk-Bones through the fence
while the boys charge off into the distance.
11 AM I yell, “Time to come in!” Eventually the boys reappear. “Aw,”
Christopher says, “we were just getting going.” “What were you playing?” I
ask. “Space Age,” he says. “I’m a Space Age kitty!” Daniel announces.
Christopher says, “We had to have Space Age kitties in the game so Daniel
could play.” Then he stage-whispers, “Ben and I pretend he’s a Lizardman
General, but he thinks he’s a kitty."
11:10 Christopher goes back to his trumpet. I put Emily back in her chair
with her crayons. She’s not buying it. “Want to go show Grammy my shoes,”
she says. “Not right now,” I say. “Ben, go get your grammar.” “Want to show
Grammy my ballerina skirt,” she says. “Not right now,” I say. Small silence.
“Want to show Grammy my belly,” she suggests. “We’ll go see Grammy later,”
I
say. I put on her ballerina skirt and play “Hall of the Mountain King” on
the stereo while she and Daniel run around the room in circles. Meanwhile I
go through Ben’s grammar lesson with him; today he’s supposed to diagram
sentences from the Rod & Staff fifth-grade book. His grammar has improved
since we switched from the A Beka workbooks; he’s a very reluctant writer,
but for some reason copying out the exercises from the non-consumable Rod &
Staff book has proved easier for him than completing the workbook pages.
11:30 Christopher finishes his trumpet and comes back out. “Reading,” I
say.
“Yeah!” Christopher says and disappears again. He’s reading The Once and
Future King, and has announced that it is his VERY FAVORITE BOOK EVER. This
warms my heart. I adored this book when I was twelve.
11:40 Ben has done one of his eight sentences. I give him M&Ms. Sugar is a
vital component of the successful home school.
11:45 Emily falls over while skidding around a corner and starts to bellow.
I turn off the music, pick her up, and send Daniel to get his spelling book.
12 noon Ben has done two of his eight sentences. I set the buzzer and tell
him that if he’s not finished in ten minutes, I’ll give him eight more.
12:05 Ben has finished his grammar lesson. I tell him to play with Emily
until Dan’s spelling is finished.
12:20 Christopher’s finished reading. I don’t ask him questions about The
Once and Future King; I clearly remember this book taking me into a universe
so real that I didn’t want to talk about it. Instead I decide to do history
with everyone simultaneously. I give Emily the math pattern blocks, which
she pours on the floor and sits on. “These are my eggs,” she says. “I will
have a baby chicken. Can I go show Grammy my baby chicken?” “Later,” I say.
I tell the boys to get their colored pencils while I clear the table. We’re
still doing medieval-renaissance history, because (like a lot of other
people) we’re waiting on publication of Vol. 3 of The Story of the World. I
give all three boys the map of the Franks and have them color the three
separate territories while I read aloud. When I get to Clovis I give them
the coloring page of Clovis’s baptism. “Was he really a Christian?”
Christopher asks. “He promised to become a Christian before he even knew
what Christianity was all about,” I say. “Listen.” I reread the story of the
baptism. “What do you think?” I say. “Nope!” Ben says cheerfully. “We can’
t
know for sure,” I say, “but I think the chances are against it.” Daniel
says, “Look! He doesn’t have any clothes on in this picture!”
12:40 I put Ben in front of the Usborne Internet-Linked History Encyclopedia
and tell him to read the section on the Franks and write down the three most
important things he learns. When I get the Kingfisher History Encyclopedia
out, Christopher groans and says, “Do I have to outline today?” “You can do
a composition instead,” I say. “About what?” “Er,” I say, thinking. “Er,
how
about comparing Clovis to King Arthur?” “That’s a lot,” Christopher says,
dubiously. “You can type it,” I say, “and today you can make a list of
comparisons, and then actually finish the composition itself tomorrow.”
Christopher agrees and goes off to his room, where he has a computer (NOT
connected to the Internet). Daniel says, “Can I go play with Legos?” “Who
was the history lesson about?” I ask. “A guy without clothes,” he says.
Emily announces, “POTTY!” “Okay,” I say, “go play Legos.”
1 PM Lunch. Christopher has made a list of comparisons, Ben has written two
sentences. I tell him to write one more before he can eat. While everyone is
stuffing down PBJ and chips, I decide that our diet has too much sugar and
salt in it and bring out a bag of baby carrots. “Three for everyone!” I
announce. There; that’ll balance out their diets, right?
1:20 PM It’s rest time. Pete will be back soon to take over school at 3 PM.
Christopher hasn’t yet done his grammar or his writing. I pull out his Rod &
Staff book, review the lesson with him, and tell him to finish it along with
his Wordsmith lesson during rest time, before he does anything else. I’ll
check it when he’s finished. Christopher’s independence level (except for
Latin) has rocketed during this past year; I’m beginning to think that I
might actually survive middle school. I settle Emily down for her rest, send
Daniel to play with Legos (again) and sit down with Ben and his Prima
Latina. Today we’re doing new vocabulary words and new endings. We talk
about each word and I give him index cards to make new vocabulary flash
cards. “Finish them in your room,” I say, “and then you can listen to your
tape and play.” All of the boys are listening to books on tape during
naptime; Ben is listening to The Dragonslayers, Daniel to Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle
’s Farm, and Christopher to Cheaper by the Dozen.
With everyone in his room, I sit down to take stock of the morning.
Christopher hasn’t done his logic; he has taken a scunner to Jim Nance,
unfortunately, and I’m about ready to pitch it and try something else. My
options are limited. Maybe I’ll do the Critical Thinking Press books with
him for a year and then try to find a tutor. I did Dan’s spelling and
grammar with him, but I didn’t get to copywork; my mother usually does some
handwriting with him after his afternooon reading lesson, though, so I’ll
ask her to fold copywork into her lesson. Although Daniel is seven, he’s a
young seven (his birthday is the last week of October), and we’re hovering
between first and second grade work with him. I see that Ben was supposed to
do typing this morning for me because it’s a heavy math day for Pete, but I
forgot. I draw an arrow on his chart over to Pete’s side of the chart and
write in, “Typing if you have time?” Just then Emily yells. I go in her
room. “I had a NIGHTMARE!” she bellows. “You weren’t asleep,” I tell her.
At
three, Emily doesn’t sleep any more during rest time; she plays with toys on
her floor. “There was a TALKING BEAN in my closet!” she announces. “It’s a
friendly bean,” I say. “It’s time to get up,” Emily says. “Not yet,” I
say.
“Yes, it is. I have to go see Grammy and tell her about the talking bean.”
“LATER,” I say. When I go back out I write on Pete’s side of the school
chart, “Take Emmy to see Grammy.” I go upstairs and prop my feet up. In a
few minutes I need to go work on the grading I blew off first thing this
morning. (Rest time comes first, though.)
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Danielle Conger
Okay, I got to about 9:40 before I completely rebelled and refused to
read anymore about their horrid life. I don't even *want* to know what
happens next and how grueling the following hours must be. Argh! Thank
goodness I don't live in that house!
--Danielle
http://www.danielleconger.com/Homeschool/Welcomehome.html
kbcdlovejo@... wrote:
read anymore about their horrid life. I don't even *want* to know what
happens next and how grueling the following hours must be. Argh! Thank
goodness I don't live in that house!
--Danielle
http://www.danielleconger.com/Homeschool/Welcomehome.html
kbcdlovejo@... wrote:
>I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
>
>I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and disrespectful.
>
>But what do I know....
>
>~Kelly
>
>
>
>
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/7/2005 2:01:27 P.M. Mountain Standard Time,
kbcdlovejo@... writes:
7 AM Emily wails. I go into her room; she’s sitting up in bed clutching her
blanket. “I had a nightmare!” she screams when she sees me. “What was it?”
I
ask. “There was a dark dark CAVE!” Emily yells.
-----------------
I have this to say about that:
Holly, at 13, has never had a nightmare. I found that out the other night
when I had one, got up at 2:00 to roam the house and found her still awake.
She let me hang around in her room, tell her my dream, and play with her rats.
She asked me what a nightmare was.
And a few days before that she had asked me what "ashamed" meant.
Wow.
-=-“Mom,” he says, “do you know why this guy is special?” “Get
DRESSED,” I say.-=-
Well!
She never will know, and soon the remaining potential for specialness will
fade away with the other silliness of childhood.
-=-He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.-=-
Huh.
Farmer Boy was rather lame, if I recollect correctly.
Darned if my kids, who have never read it, have BROAD horizons, and not
little ones bounded by Latin flashcards.
Yet ten minutes ago, as I was microwaving the lunch I just finished, Holly
was asking me to definition of "giddy" and how to spell it, because she had
been IMing her friend in London who said "gitty" was a kind of alley. I made up
my definition and said I'd never looked it up, though, just learned it from
hearing it. Holly went and got the American Heritage (she had several
options, but went for that one) and looked it up. It had part of my definition
(the light-headedness) but not the sudden happiness. I said even if that's not
a primary definition, it's not a word to use about traumatic things or
death. There's a suggestion of joy in it.
Yesterday she and Kirby were talking about some spelling of some word and
she said it was from Greek because of the "ph."
-=9:10 Christopher has forgotten all the Latin he ever knew.-=-
It won't be the first time, I'm sure.
If he were learning which English words came from Latin and doing it just
for fun, as Holly does, he would not only remember all he had discovered, but be
eager to discover more.
-=- I make up about fifty short sentences with direct objects and make
Christopher
identify them. “Okay, okay,” he says, after sentence forty-five. “I get it.
”-=-
Probably next week he will have forgotten all the direct objects he ever
knew.
-=-“What was your chapter about?” I say. “They went to a place and
did something,” he says. “Go back and read it again,” I say, “and tell me
where they went and what they did.”
-=-
GRoSS!!! Practicing the piano has to be WAY better than reading a chapter
that wasn't worth a damn in the first place.
-=- “I think
I need some sugar,” he says. I feed everyone cookies -=-
I bet they needed protein and freedom.
-=-We repeat, “A verb is a word that does an action-=-
WHAT!? Verbs just lie there. They don't "do" actions.
-=- I tell Ben to quit practicing his
piano and read her a book while I do Daniel’s grammar.-=-
Evil non-music-loving woman.
-=-Soon they are
screaming, jumping, running, yelling, falling, wrestling, and singing all
over the house. I try, “Whisper! Sleep! Think!” These are much less popular
action verbs.
-=-
Maybe playing piano could've been one.
Maybe "choosing" or "resting" or "daydreaming."
-=- he’s a very reluctant writer,
but for some reason copying out the exercises from the non-consumable Rod &
Staff book -=-
I understand the term, but I hate the term "non-consumable" for books, as
they are neither eaten nor burned to ashes. But in the way that a person might
consume a book out of eager joyful non-stop reading, I suppose it makes
sense that they're non-consumable.
-=-11:40 Ben has done one of his eight sentences. I give him M&Ms. Sugar is
a
vital component of the successful home school.-=-
Holy shit.
Sugar will be a vital component of his life to come. When he has cleaned
the stairs or read or paid the bills or washed the car, he will reward himself.
-=-I’m beginning to think that I
might actually survive middle school.-=-
I bet she survived middle school YEARS ago.
I wonder if her children will survive.
Too bad she's more concerned about her own comfort and endurance.
-=-Christopher hasn’t done his logic;-=-
The parents haven't done THEIR logic.
-=-My options are limited.-=-
Bummer. And she's the one doing all the limiting.
Well that was sad but fun. Our lives in comparison to hers are great.
Holly had asked me to wake her up at 10:30 this morning, so I did. Marty
needed to go to the orthodontist for the big plan unveiling (they got his
photos and molds all out and showed us the deal, and I signed many papers). He
usually goes to work at 11:00, but came home and ate and then went. Holly
stayed to talk to her friend by IM (which is why she wanted to get up; they had
an appointment). Kirby came home. He is sleeping at the dojo while the
sensei is out of town. It's in a bad neighborhood, and he's watching movies at
night, teaching in the daytimes, and coming home to play Halo II or to go to
work otherwise.
"Doing nothing," perhaps the Bauer mom would say.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
kbcdlovejo@... writes:
7 AM Emily wails. I go into her room; she’s sitting up in bed clutching her
blanket. “I had a nightmare!” she screams when she sees me. “What was it?”
I
ask. “There was a dark dark CAVE!” Emily yells.
-----------------
I have this to say about that:
Holly, at 13, has never had a nightmare. I found that out the other night
when I had one, got up at 2:00 to roam the house and found her still awake.
She let me hang around in her room, tell her my dream, and play with her rats.
She asked me what a nightmare was.
And a few days before that she had asked me what "ashamed" meant.
Wow.
-=-“Mom,” he says, “do you know why this guy is special?” “Get
DRESSED,” I say.-=-
Well!
She never will know, and soon the remaining potential for specialness will
fade away with the other silliness of childhood.
-=-He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.-=-
Huh.
Farmer Boy was rather lame, if I recollect correctly.
Darned if my kids, who have never read it, have BROAD horizons, and not
little ones bounded by Latin flashcards.
Yet ten minutes ago, as I was microwaving the lunch I just finished, Holly
was asking me to definition of "giddy" and how to spell it, because she had
been IMing her friend in London who said "gitty" was a kind of alley. I made up
my definition and said I'd never looked it up, though, just learned it from
hearing it. Holly went and got the American Heritage (she had several
options, but went for that one) and looked it up. It had part of my definition
(the light-headedness) but not the sudden happiness. I said even if that's not
a primary definition, it's not a word to use about traumatic things or
death. There's a suggestion of joy in it.
Yesterday she and Kirby were talking about some spelling of some word and
she said it was from Greek because of the "ph."
-=9:10 Christopher has forgotten all the Latin he ever knew.-=-
It won't be the first time, I'm sure.
If he were learning which English words came from Latin and doing it just
for fun, as Holly does, he would not only remember all he had discovered, but be
eager to discover more.
-=- I make up about fifty short sentences with direct objects and make
Christopher
identify them. “Okay, okay,” he says, after sentence forty-five. “I get it.
”-=-
Probably next week he will have forgotten all the direct objects he ever
knew.
-=-“What was your chapter about?” I say. “They went to a place and
did something,” he says. “Go back and read it again,” I say, “and tell me
where they went and what they did.”
-=-
GRoSS!!! Practicing the piano has to be WAY better than reading a chapter
that wasn't worth a damn in the first place.
-=- “I think
I need some sugar,” he says. I feed everyone cookies -=-
I bet they needed protein and freedom.
-=-We repeat, “A verb is a word that does an action-=-
WHAT!? Verbs just lie there. They don't "do" actions.
-=- I tell Ben to quit practicing his
piano and read her a book while I do Daniel’s grammar.-=-
Evil non-music-loving woman.
-=-Soon they are
screaming, jumping, running, yelling, falling, wrestling, and singing all
over the house. I try, “Whisper! Sleep! Think!” These are much less popular
action verbs.
-=-
Maybe playing piano could've been one.
Maybe "choosing" or "resting" or "daydreaming."
-=- he’s a very reluctant writer,
but for some reason copying out the exercises from the non-consumable Rod &
Staff book -=-
I understand the term, but I hate the term "non-consumable" for books, as
they are neither eaten nor burned to ashes. But in the way that a person might
consume a book out of eager joyful non-stop reading, I suppose it makes
sense that they're non-consumable.
-=-11:40 Ben has done one of his eight sentences. I give him M&Ms. Sugar is
a
vital component of the successful home school.-=-
Holy shit.
Sugar will be a vital component of his life to come. When he has cleaned
the stairs or read or paid the bills or washed the car, he will reward himself.
-=-I’m beginning to think that I
might actually survive middle school.-=-
I bet she survived middle school YEARS ago.
I wonder if her children will survive.
Too bad she's more concerned about her own comfort and endurance.
-=-Christopher hasn’t done his logic;-=-
The parents haven't done THEIR logic.
-=-My options are limited.-=-
Bummer. And she's the one doing all the limiting.
Well that was sad but fun. Our lives in comparison to hers are great.
Holly had asked me to wake her up at 10:30 this morning, so I did. Marty
needed to go to the orthodontist for the big plan unveiling (they got his
photos and molds all out and showed us the deal, and I signed many papers). He
usually goes to work at 11:00, but came home and ate and then went. Holly
stayed to talk to her friend by IM (which is why she wanted to get up; they had
an appointment). Kirby came home. He is sleeping at the dojo while the
sensei is out of town. It's in a bad neighborhood, and he's watching movies at
night, teaching in the daytimes, and coming home to play Halo II or to go to
work otherwise.
"Doing nothing," perhaps the Bauer mom would say.
Sandra
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/7/2005 4:32:01 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
danielle.conger@... writes:
Okay, I got to about 9:40 before I completely rebelled and refused to
read anymore about their horrid life. I don't even *want* to know what
happens next and how grueling the following hours must be. Argh! Thank
goodness I don't live in that house!
_____________________
I absolutely could not finish reading this either. My sister who lives next
door has some of Susan Bauer's books. I know she is very structured with
their homeschooling lives. I shudder to think that even part of their day
looks like this.
Gail
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
danielle.conger@... writes:
Okay, I got to about 9:40 before I completely rebelled and refused to
read anymore about their horrid life. I don't even *want* to know what
happens next and how grueling the following hours must be. Argh! Thank
goodness I don't live in that house!
_____________________
I absolutely could not finish reading this either. My sister who lives next
door has some of Susan Bauer's books. I know she is very structured with
their homeschooling lives. I shudder to think that even part of their day
looks like this.
Gail
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Cally Brown
Kelly - what the **** are you doing reading stuff like this and passing
it on to us? I bet tomorrow morning there will be hundreds of
unschooling mothers waking screaming from nightmares: "I was trapped in
a cave with Susan Wise Bauer and a ravenging hoarde of Passive
Plueperfects!"
Have we all got the support we need when we wake from this nightmare?
Or will our partners and / or children just tell us, "Pull your self
together, it's only make believe. Get a grip. Suck on this bottle of
whisky and go back to sleep."
Mind you, I used to think that I pushed my eldest son too much when we
started homeschooling years ago - ha! Push! I don't know the meaning of
the word! What i now call homeschooling and pushing, I think this woman
would call neglect! let alone what she would thing of unschooling!
Cally
it on to us? I bet tomorrow morning there will be hundreds of
unschooling mothers waking screaming from nightmares: "I was trapped in
a cave with Susan Wise Bauer and a ravenging hoarde of Passive
Plueperfects!"
Have we all got the support we need when we wake from this nightmare?
Or will our partners and / or children just tell us, "Pull your self
together, it's only make believe. Get a grip. Suck on this bottle of
whisky and go back to sleep."
Mind you, I used to think that I pushed my eldest son too much when we
started homeschooling years ago - ha! Push! I don't know the meaning of
the word! What i now call homeschooling and pushing, I think this woman
would call neglect! let alone what she would thing of unschooling!
Cally
Seth W Bartels
you know a lot as far as i'm concerned! ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh!
i'm exhausted just from reading it!
the poor kids...
lisa
On Fri, 7 Jan 2005 15:59:27 EST kbcdlovejo@... writes:
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
i'm exhausted just from reading it!
the poor kids...
lisa
On Fri, 7 Jan 2005 15:59:27 EST kbcdlovejo@... writes:
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
AlysonRR
Ohhh, man. So much disrespect. And so much time wasted. I was
particularly struck by:
=-=-=-=9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher. He looks
at the forms. "You have to be kidding," he says." =-=-=-=
I had AP English and tested out of college English. I took college
honors English classes anyway because it was interesting. I wrote
numerous grade-A papers and a B.S. and M.S. thesis. I've published
articles in major scientific journals.
All this to preface and emphasize that I haven't got a freaking clue
what passive pluperfect is, nor did the lack of learning it (at 12,
even!) keep me from attaining all sorts of academic success. I'm
astounded that people actually think cramming this stuff into kids is
important. I bet they would think I'm the one who's missing out, too.
Argh. I wonder how many laps around the house that poor kid will have
to take in order to "remember" the nonsense he learned that day.
Alyson, who's going to go look up 'passive pluperfect' and see what
she's been missing all these years
-----Original Message-----
From: kbcdlovejo@... [mailto:kbcdlovejo@...]
Sent: Friday, January 07, 2005 3:59 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [UnschoolingDiscussion] A Morining in the Bauer Home School
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
particularly struck by:
=-=-=-=9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher. He looks
at the forms. "You have to be kidding," he says." =-=-=-=
I had AP English and tested out of college English. I took college
honors English classes anyway because it was interesting. I wrote
numerous grade-A papers and a B.S. and M.S. thesis. I've published
articles in major scientific journals.
All this to preface and emphasize that I haven't got a freaking clue
what passive pluperfect is, nor did the lack of learning it (at 12,
even!) keep me from attaining all sorts of academic success. I'm
astounded that people actually think cramming this stuff into kids is
important. I bet they would think I'm the one who's missing out, too.
Argh. I wonder how many laps around the house that poor kid will have
to take in order to "remember" the nonsense he learned that day.
Alyson, who's going to go look up 'passive pluperfect' and see what
she's been missing all these years
-----Original Message-----
From: kbcdlovejo@... [mailto:kbcdlovejo@...]
Sent: Friday, January 07, 2005 3:59 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [UnschoolingDiscussion] A Morining in the Bauer Home School
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
nellebelle
-=-He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.-=-
Huh.
Farmer Boy was rather lame, if I recollect correctly.>>>>>>>>
We recently re-read through the Little House series, mostly me reading aloud to the kids at bedtime. I had read it to them once before, about 6 years ago. I was amazed at how many details were different than I remembered. We all thought Ma was mean, but also discussed that the author focused on Laura and Pa, not really developing Ma as a character. About all she ever said was, "Oh Charles!" For awhile, any one of us saying that would make us all laugh.
When we got to Farmer Boy, the girls asked me to skip it. So I did.
Mary Ellen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to broaden
his little horizon.-=-
Huh.
Farmer Boy was rather lame, if I recollect correctly.>>>>>>>>
We recently re-read through the Little House series, mostly me reading aloud to the kids at bedtime. I had read it to them once before, about 6 years ago. I was amazed at how many details were different than I remembered. We all thought Ma was mean, but also discussed that the author focused on Laura and Pa, not really developing Ma as a character. About all she ever said was, "Oh Charles!" For awhile, any one of us saying that would make us all laugh.
When we got to Farmer Boy, the girls asked me to skip it. So I did.
Mary Ellen
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Faith Pickell
You should have seen the blog after Emily was born. Not pretty at all.
I tried this curriculum after pulling my then 10 yr old son out of
public school. It was a nightmare of course. Soooooo happy we
unschool now.
Faith
I tried this curriculum after pulling my then 10 yr old son out of
public school. It was a nightmare of course. Soooooo happy we
unschool now.
Faith
On Friday, January 7, 2005, at 02:59 PM, kbcdlovejo@... wrote:
>
> I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
>
> I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
> disrespectful.
>
> But what do I know....
>
> ~Kelly
>
>
>
> A Morning in the Bauer Home School
>
> by Susan Wise Bauer
>
> Classical education with four children aged 12, 10, 7, and 3.
>
> 5 AM I get up and go downstairs for coffee. Okay, I know this is
> revoltingly
> early, but I’ve discovered that getting up early and finishing up my
> own
> jobs allows me to lie on the sofa like a slug in the evenings after
> the
> children go to bed. This fall, I’m teaching two classes at William &
> Mary,
> so I have plenty of grading to do. This morning, I blow the grading
> off and
> work on my newest writing project instead: W. W. Norton has asked me
> to
> write a history of the world for grown-ups. The Assyrian Kings List is
> remarkably hard to convert into stirring narrative.
>
> 7 AM Emily wails. I go into her room; she’s sitting up in bed
> clutching her
> blanket. “I had a nightmare!” she screams when she sees me. “What was
> it?”
> I
> ask. “There was a dark dark CAVE!” Emily yells. “I was in a dark dark
> CAVE!”
> “It was just pretend,” I say; this is my usual response, but she’s not
> buying it today. “It was DARK!” she says, accusingly. So I turn on
> her lamp.
> “Were you all alone in the cave?” I ask. “No,” she says, in a voice of
> doom.
> “ALL OF THE BROTHERS were there!” Hmm. I’m not sure whether that’s
> part of
> the nightmare or not. I lay her down, change her diaper, and give her
> a
> bottle (I know, three is too old for a bottle, but she’ll drink it
> and go
> straight back to sleep).
>
> 7:30 AM Shower, dress, dry hair, put on shoes. This isn’t one of my
> William
> & Mary days, so we have a lot of school to get through. My husband
> Peter
> will take over at 3 PM to do math, geography, and handwriting; he’ll
> send
> Daniel (7) over to see my mother for a reading lesson and he’ll
> supervise
> some of the tasks that Christopher (12) and Ben (10)) can do on their
> own
> (typing, Latin vocabulary cards, spelling worksheets).
>
> 8 PM I go get everyone up. Christopher is already up reading; he’s an
> early
> riser and has already been out to do some of his chores. Ben is sound
> asleep; he’s a late riser, and when I try to wake him up he curls
> into a
> ball and puts his head under his knees. I get Emily and put her in
> his bed.
> Daniel comes out of his room and stands in the middle of the floor.
> “Time to
> get dressed,” I say. “I don’t have any clothes,” he says. I walk him
> back
> to
> his room, take out his clothes and put them in a stack on the floor.
> He
> looks at them. “Oh,” he says. “Those clothes.”
>
> 8:10 Christopher is waiting by the door to go out. All three boys
> generally
> take the dogs for a long walk before breakfast; we live on a farm,
> but since
> it’s hunting season, we keep the dogs in their pen for most of the
> day. Ben
> is dressing. Emily is in the middle of Ben’s bed making a stuffed
> animal
> pyramid. Daniel comes out of his room with no clothes on and a Lego
> robot in
> one hand. “Mom,” he says, “do you know why this guy is special?” “Get
> DRESSED,” I say.
>
> 8:15 Ben and Christopher are standing by the door. Daniel hops out of
> his
> room on one foot, wearing two socks and nothing else. “Mom!” he says.
> “If
> people only had one leg, they would keep falling over!” “PANTS,” I
> say.
>
> 8:20 Daniel is wearing socks and pants and nothing else. I tell
> Christopher
> and Ben to go out and start feeding the dogs while I dress Daniel.
>
> 8:30 I put Emily in her high chair with raisins and start on
> breakfast. By
> the time the boys come back in, eggs and toast are ready. Daniel goes
> and
> gets his two favorite Lego robots to keep him company. Ben and
> Christopher
> ask if they can read at the table. “Yes,” I say, pleased to see this
> love
> for words. They produce Bloom County and The Ultimate Guide to
> Spiderman:
> His Life and Ways. Oh, well.
>
> 9 I clear the table and run the boys through their chores: Christopher
> vacuums, Ben cleans up Emily’s room, Daniel sweeps down the steps.
> He’s
> still sweeping by the time the older boys are done. I tell
> Christopher to
> start on his Latin (we always do this first thing) and Ben to go do
> his
> reading. Right now he’s reading all the way through the Little House
> on the
> Prairie series. He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
> period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
> comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to
> broaden
> his little horizon.
>
> 9:10 Christopher has forgotten all the Latin he ever knew.
>
> 9:15 I tell Christopher to go run around the house. He goes,
> sheepishly.
> When he comes back in he says, “Sorry.” “Is your brain in gear?” I
> ask.
> “Er,” he says, “mostly.”
>
> 9:20 Daniel is still sweeping the stairs. Christopher has forgotten
> what a
> direct object is. I give Emily crayons and paper and trace her hands
> while I
> make up about fifty short sentences with direct objects and make
> Christopher
> identify them. “Okay, okay,” he says, after sentence forty-five. “I
> get it.”
>
> 9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher. He looks at the
> forms.
> “You have to be kidding,” he says.
>
> 9:30 Ben emerges, having finished his chapter, and asks if he can
> practice
> his piano. “What was your chapter about?” I say. “They went to a
> place and
> did something,” he says. “Go back and read it again,” I say, “and
> tell me
> where they went and what they did.”
>
> 9:40 Christopher has completed one of his five drill sentences.
> Daniel is
> still sweeping the steps. Emily announces, “I have to go potty.” I
> take her
> into the bathroom and sit beside her. Christopher yells, “Help!” “Try
> to do
> it yourself,” I yell back. There is a long silence. When I come back
> to the
> kitchen, he’s on Sentence 2.
>
> 9:50 Ben comes back out. “They went into town and sold WHEAT!” he says
> triumphantly. “Good job,” I say. “Go practice your piano.” I look up
> the
> stairs. Daniel is sitting on the fourth step, sweeping his head with
> the
> brush. “STAIRS,” I say.
>
> 10 AM Daniel finishes the stairs. “Go get First Language Lessons,” I
> say.
> Emily is now under the table tickling Christopher’s feet. “Mom,”
> Christopher
> says, “I can’t think.” He is now on Sentence 3.” I say, “Emily, what
> are
> you
> doing?” “I loving Pipher,” Emily says.
>
> 10:15 Christopher finishes Sentence 5. “Okay,” I say. “Good job. That
> only
> took you an hour and ten minutes. Can I give you a brain massage?” “I
> think
> I need some sugar,” he says. I feed everyone cookies and send
> Christopher to
> practice his trumpet. Emily is bored; I tell Ben to quit practicing
> his
> piano and read her a book while I do Daniel’s grammar. Today, his
> lesson is
> action verbs. We repeat, “A verb is a word that does an action, shows
> state
> of being, links two words, or helps another verb” five times; then I
> read
> action verbs while he acts them out. Ben and Emily abandon their book
> and
> join in. Christopher appears. “I want to do it too,” he says. Soon
> they are
> screaming, jumping, running, yelling, falling, wrestling, and singing
> all
> over the house. I try, “Whisper! Sleep! Think!” These are much less
> popular
> action verbs.
>
> 10:30 I send everyone outside while I drink a cup of coffee.
> Christopher
> offers to push Emily on the swing. While they’re out I look at their
> school
> lists; Christopher still has a massive amount of work to do this
> morning. I
> go outside too, and Emily and I feed the dogs Milk-Bones through the
> fence
> while the boys charge off into the distance.
>
> 11 AM I yell, “Time to come in!” Eventually the boys reappear. “Aw,”
> Christopher says, “we were just getting going.” “What were you
> playing?” I
> ask. “Space Age,” he says. “I’m a Space Age kitty!” Daniel announces.
> Christopher says, “We had to have Space Age kitties in the game so
> Daniel
> could play.” Then he stage-whispers, “Ben and I pretend he’s a
> Lizardman
> General, but he thinks he’s a kitty."
>
> 11:10 Christopher goes back to his trumpet. I put Emily back in her
> chair
> with her crayons. She’s not buying it. “Want to go show Grammy my
> shoes,”
> she says. “Not right now,” I say. “Ben, go get your grammar.” “Want
> to show
> Grammy my ballerina skirt,” she says. “Not right now,” I say. Small
> silence.
> “Want to show Grammy my belly,” she suggests. “We’ll go see Grammy
> later,”
> I
> say. I put on her ballerina skirt and play “Hall of the Mountain
> King” on
> the stereo while she and Daniel run around the room in circles.
> Meanwhile I
> go through Ben’s grammar lesson with him; today he’s supposed to
> diagram
> sentences from the Rod & Staff fifth-grade book. His grammar has
> improved
> since we switched from the A Beka workbooks; he’s a very reluctant
> writer,
> but for some reason copying out the exercises from the non-consumable
> Rod &
> Staff book has proved easier for him than completing the workbook
> pages.
>
> 11:30 Christopher finishes his trumpet and comes back out. “Reading,”
> I
> say.
> “Yeah!” Christopher says and disappears again. He’s reading The Once
> and
> Future King, and has announced that it is his VERY FAVORITE BOOK EVER.
> This
> warms my heart. I adored this book when I was twelve.
>
> 11:40 Ben has done one of his eight sentences. I give him M&Ms. Sugar
> is a
> vital component of the successful home school.
>
> 11:45 Emily falls over while skidding around a corner and starts to
> bellow.
> I turn off the music, pick her up, and send Daniel to get his
> spelling book.
>
> 12 noon Ben has done two of his eight sentences. I set the buzzer and
> tell
> him that if he’s not finished in ten minutes, I’ll give him eight
> more.
>
> 12:05 Ben has finished his grammar lesson. I tell him to play with
> Emily
> until Dan’s spelling is finished.
>
> 12:20 Christopher’s finished reading. I don’t ask him questions about
> The
> Once and Future King; I clearly remember this book taking me into a
> universe
> so real that I didn’t want to talk about it. Instead I decide to do
> history
> with everyone simultaneously. I give Emily the math pattern blocks,
> which
> she pours on the floor and sits on. “These are my eggs,” she says. “I
> will
> have a baby chicken. Can I go show Grammy my baby chicken?” “Later,” I
> say.
> I tell the boys to get their colored pencils while I clear the table.
> We’re
> still doing medieval-renaissance history, because (like a lot of other
> people) we’re waiting on publication of Vol. 3 of The Story of the
> World. I
> give all three boys the map of the Franks and have them color the
> three
> separate territories while I read aloud. When I get to Clovis I give
> them
> the coloring page of Clovis’s baptism. “Was he really a Christian?”
> Christopher asks. “He promised to become a Christian before he even
> knew
> what Christianity was all about,” I say. “Listen.” I reread the story
> of the
> baptism. “What do you think?” I say. “Nope!” Ben says cheerfully. “We
> can’
> t
> know for sure,” I say, “but I think the chances are against it.”
> Daniel
> says, “Look! He doesn’t have any clothes on in this picture!”
>
> 12:40 I put Ben in front of the Usborne Internet-Linked History
> Encyclopedia
> and tell him to read the section on the Franks and write down the
> three most
> important things he learns. When I get the Kingfisher History
> Encyclopedia
> out, Christopher groans and says, “Do I have to outline today?” “You
> can do
> a composition instead,” I say. “About what?” “Er,” I say, thinking.
> “Er,
> how
> about comparing Clovis to King Arthur?” “That’s a lot,” Christopher
> says,
> dubiously. “You can type it,” I say, “and today you can make a list of
> comparisons, and then actually finish the composition itself
> tomorrow.”
> Christopher agrees and goes off to his room, where he has a computer
> (NOT
> connected to the Internet). Daniel says, “Can I go play with Legos?”
> “Who
> was the history lesson about?” I ask. “A guy without clothes,” he
> says.
> Emily announces, “POTTY!” “Okay,” I say, “go play Legos.”
>
> 1 PM Lunch. Christopher has made a list of comparisons, Ben has
> written two
> sentences. I tell him to write one more before he can eat. While
> everyone is
> stuffing down PBJ and chips, I decide that our diet has too much sugar
> and
> salt in it and bring out a bag of baby carrots. “Three for everyone!”
> I
> announce. There; that’ll balance out their diets, right?
>
> 1:20 PM It’s rest time. Pete will be back soon to take over school at
> 3 PM.
> Christopher hasn’t yet done his grammar or his writing. I pull out his
> Rod &
> Staff book, review the lesson with him, and tell him to finish it
> along with
> his Wordsmith lesson during rest time, before he does anything else.
> I’ll
> check it when he’s finished. Christopher’s independence level (except
> for
> Latin) has rocketed during this past year; I’m beginning to think
> that I
> might actually survive middle school. I settle Emily down for her
> rest, send
> Daniel to play with Legos (again) and sit down with Ben and his Prima
> Latina. Today we’re doing new vocabulary words and new endings. We
> talk
> about each word and I give him index cards to make new vocabulary
> flash
> cards. “Finish them in your room,” I say, “and then you can listen to
> your
> tape and play.” All of the boys are listening to books on tape during
> naptime; Ben is listening to The Dragonslayers, Daniel to Mrs.
> Piggle-Wiggle
> ’s Farm, and Christopher to Cheaper by the Dozen.
>
> With everyone in his room, I sit down to take stock of the morning.
> Christopher hasn’t done his logic; he has taken a scunner to Jim
> Nance,
> unfortunately, and I’m about ready to pitch it and try something
> else. My
> options are limited. Maybe I’ll do the Critical Thinking Press books
> with
> him for a year and then try to find a tutor. I did Dan’s spelling and
> grammar with him, but I didn’t get to copywork; my mother usually
> does some
> handwriting with him after his afternooon reading lesson, though, so
> I’ll
> ask her to fold copywork into her lesson. Although Daniel is seven,
> he’s a
> young seven (his birthday is the last week of October), and we’re
> hovering
> between first and second grade work with him. I see that Ben was
> supposed to
> do typing this morning for me because it’s a heavy math day for Pete,
> but I
> forgot. I draw an arrow on his chart over to Pete’s side of the chart
> and
> write in, “Typing if you have time?” Just then Emily yells. I go in
> her
> room. “I had a NIGHTMARE!” she bellows. “You weren’t asleep,” I tell
> her.
> At
> three, Emily doesn’t sleep any more during rest time; she plays with
> toys on
> her floor. “There was a TALKING BEAN in my closet!” she announces.
> “It’s a
> friendly bean,” I say. “It’s time to get up,” Emily says. “Not yet,” I
> say.
> “Yes, it is. I have to go see Grammy and tell her about the talking
> bean.”
> “LATER,” I say. When I go back out I write on Pete’s side of the
> school
> chart, “Take Emmy to see Grammy.” I go upstairs and prop my feet up.
> In a
> few minutes I need to go work on the grading I blew off first thing
> this
> morning. (Rest time comes first, though.)
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
> "List Posting Policies" are provided in the files area of this group.
>
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> http://www.unschooling.com
> Yahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
julie w
AlysonRR wrote:
author of not only homeschooling books and a college prof) is writing to
a legion of homeschooling Moms who are looking to emulate her. These
folks really think that all this is necessary for homeschooling. I mean
even if you are not an unschooler this is overkill on the school, those
kids would have more "me" time at school.
She has to keep her true-belivers happy and needs to be seen doing all
the things she and her mother say are necessary in "The Well Trained
Mind" to produce a homeschool adult with, well a "Well Trained Mind". I
mean if she's not doing it all, why should they, and then it would come
down to why should they buy her book or attend her talks and that is
money outa the pocket....her pocket.
~gah~
I don't know why she and her kids have not had strokes yet.
Julie W in AR
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> All this to preface and emphasize that I haven't got a freaking clueWe all have to remember that Ms. Bauer (who is quite "accomplished", an
> what passive pluperfect is, nor did the lack of learning it (at 12,
> even!) keep me from attaining all sorts of academic success. I'm
> astounded that people actually think cramming this stuff into kids is
> important.
author of not only homeschooling books and a college prof) is writing to
a legion of homeschooling Moms who are looking to emulate her. These
folks really think that all this is necessary for homeschooling. I mean
even if you are not an unschooler this is overkill on the school, those
kids would have more "me" time at school.
She has to keep her true-belivers happy and needs to be seen doing all
the things she and her mother say are necessary in "The Well Trained
Mind" to produce a homeschool adult with, well a "Well Trained Mind". I
mean if she's not doing it all, why should they, and then it would come
down to why should they buy her book or attend her talks and that is
money outa the pocket....her pocket.
~gah~
I don't know why she and her kids have not had strokes yet.
Julie W in AR
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MomtoLJ
SandraDodd@... wrote:
taught her lucid dreaming to deal with her dream issues.
Joylyn
> Holly, at 13, has never had a nightmare. I found that out the otherLexie has had many nightmares, and she has always slept with me. I
> night
> when I had one, got up at 2:00 to roam the house and found her still
> awake.
> She let me hang around in her room, tell her my dream, and play with
> her rats.
> She asked me what a nightmare was.
taught her lucid dreaming to deal with her dream issues.
Joylyn
>[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
MomtoLJ
AlysonRR wrote:
passive pluperfect is. I could probably figure it out, it sounds
familar, as in I probably went over it, but necessary for life, I think not.
Joylyn
>I have a degree in English, and teach English and I have no clue what a
> Ohhh, man. So much disrespect. And so much time wasted. I was
> particularly struck by:
>
> =-=-=-=9:25 I explain the passive pluperfect to Christopher.
passive pluperfect is. I could probably figure it out, it sounds
familar, as in I probably went over it, but necessary for life, I think not.
Joylyn
MomtoLJ
Farmer boy was lame, but the rest of the little house books are great, I
especially like the ones with Laura and Amanzo "dating" and Laura as a
teacher... Of course, I haven't read them for years...
Joylyn
nellebelle wrote:
especially like the ones with Laura and Amanzo "dating" and Laura as a
teacher... Of course, I haven't read them for years...
Joylyn
nellebelle wrote:
> -=-He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
> comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to
> broaden
> his little horizon.-=-
>
> Huh.
> Farmer Boy was rather lame, if I recollect correctly.>>>>>>>>
>
> We recently re-read through the Little House series, mostly me reading
> aloud to the kids at bedtime. I had read it to them once before,
> about 6 years ago. I was amazed at how many details were different
> than I remembered. We all thought Ma was mean, but also discussed
> that the author focused on Laura and Pa, not really developing Ma as a
> character. About all she ever said was, "Oh Charles!" For awhile,
> any one of us saying that would make us all laugh.
>
> When we got to Farmer Boy, the girls asked me to skip it. So I did.
>
> Mary Ellen
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
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Sylvia Toyama
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and disrespectful.
*****
Those poor children! Especially Daniel -- an hour sweeping the stairs!? I want to rescue him and tell him that at my house he could frolic naked on the unswept stair all day.
She witholds food until Ben's work is done, and threatens to assign more work if the work already given isn't done? And all those one word commands yelled at the children. In her own word, not once did she say a kind word to any of those children in 5 hrs time. Not one I love you, no praise for work well done. Just 'have you done that yet -- okay, here's more to do'
Just think -- all the schoolwork started at 8 am and will continue for who knows how long once her husband gets home at 3pm.
Sylvia
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[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and disrespectful.
*****
Those poor children! Especially Daniel -- an hour sweeping the stairs!? I want to rescue him and tell him that at my house he could frolic naked on the unswept stair all day.
She witholds food until Ben's work is done, and threatens to assign more work if the work already given isn't done? And all those one word commands yelled at the children. In her own word, not once did she say a kind word to any of those children in 5 hrs time. Not one I love you, no praise for work well done. Just 'have you done that yet -- okay, here's more to do'
Just think -- all the schoolwork started at 8 am and will continue for who knows how long once her husband gets home at 3pm.
Sylvia
---------------------------------
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All your favorites on one personal page � Try My Yahoo!
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[email protected]
In a message dated 1/7/2005 10:13:52 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,
joylyn1@... writes:
Lexie has had many nightmares, and she has always slept with me. I
taught her lucid dreaming to deal with her dream issues.
I just recently learned about lucid dreaming. Brenna did a workshop at Not
Back to School Camp on Dreams this past October. One of the things I learned
from her after she came home from camp was lucid dreaming. Very cool.
I love unschooling. I've learned so much!!
Gail
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
joylyn1@... writes:
Lexie has had many nightmares, and she has always slept with me. I
taught her lucid dreaming to deal with her dream issues.
I just recently learned about lucid dreaming. Brenna did a workshop at Not
Back to School Camp on Dreams this past October. One of the things I learned
from her after she came home from camp was lucid dreaming. Very cool.
I love unschooling. I've learned so much!!
Gail
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
Julie
*** I have a degree in English, and teach English and I have no clue what a
passive pluperfect is. I could probably figure it out, it sounds
familar, as in I probably went over it, but necessary for life, I think
not.***
It sounds like some kind of hemarrhoid <g> Probably just as irritating too!
Julie
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passive pluperfect is. I could probably figure it out, it sounds
familar, as in I probably went over it, but necessary for life, I think
not.***
It sounds like some kind of hemarrhoid <g> Probably just as irritating too!
Julie
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Julie
-=-He’s up to Farmer Boy; this has nothing to do with the
period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to
broaden
his little horizon.-=-
How condescending!!
As for broadening horizons, my boys' horizons are broader, their games and
stories so much more imaginative since I stopped limiting them to books like
the Little House series and let them read whatever they wanted to whether it
be Zombie Bums from Uranus, Pokemon books or the Chronicles of Narnia.
I think her horizons need to broadened.
Julie
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period of history we’re learning, but Ben is going through a
comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best to
broaden
his little horizon.-=-
How condescending!!
As for broadening horizons, my boys' horizons are broader, their games and
stories so much more imaginative since I stopped limiting them to books like
the Little House series and let them read whatever they wanted to whether it
be Zombie Bums from Uranus, Pokemon books or the Chronicles of Narnia.
I think her horizons need to broadened.
Julie
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Julie
I think it was meant to be cute and funny.
I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
Those sweet kids.All those beautiful, memorable moments that could have
been and never will.
It made me think about something Sandra says on the Peaceful Parenting tape
(I think) about wasting our relationship on what they do with their
toothbrush between times. Those words have really stuck in my mind and have
helped me stop saying unneccessary controlling stuff. I just breathe and
remind myself it's not that important.
When I look back over the past year, I'm so thankful that we have had time
to hug and share jokes and eat chocolate cake for breakfast if we want. A
couple of days ago, Mia (5) and Jacob (8) were playing with these little sea
creatures from their Christmas crackers. They filled an empty container with
water and played on the table for a little while then asked for something
bigger. So I got them a tub which they filled and played with on the floor
for an hour, collecting all sorts of stuff to make a mini ocean. That tub
became too small so I found them a really big one and they collected rocks
from outside and turned it into a lake for their creatures and their
dinosaurs. At 2pm (some hours later) they realized they hadn't eaten lunch
so I made them something to eat. They had such a great time together.
Just an ordinary day really but after reading that, it's sounding pretty
special.
Julie
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I found it sad and depressing----not to mention untrusting and
disrespectful.
But what do I know....
~Kelly
Those sweet kids.All those beautiful, memorable moments that could have
been and never will.
It made me think about something Sandra says on the Peaceful Parenting tape
(I think) about wasting our relationship on what they do with their
toothbrush between times. Those words have really stuck in my mind and have
helped me stop saying unneccessary controlling stuff. I just breathe and
remind myself it's not that important.
When I look back over the past year, I'm so thankful that we have had time
to hug and share jokes and eat chocolate cake for breakfast if we want. A
couple of days ago, Mia (5) and Jacob (8) were playing with these little sea
creatures from their Christmas crackers. They filled an empty container with
water and played on the table for a little while then asked for something
bigger. So I got them a tub which they filled and played with on the floor
for an hour, collecting all sorts of stuff to make a mini ocean. That tub
became too small so I found them a really big one and they collected rocks
from outside and turned it into a lake for their creatures and their
dinosaurs. At 2pm (some hours later) they realized they hadn't eaten lunch
so I made them something to eat. They had such a great time together.
Just an ordinary day really but after reading that, it's sounding pretty
special.
Julie
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julie w
> comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so I’m doing my best toNow I'm writing:
> broaden
> his little horizon.-=-
> Julie Wrote:
> How condescending!!
UGH!
I missed that bit.
I hate that oh so snotty tone that some folks get when they discuss such
lowly things as comics or Harry Potter.
Within the comic genre new myths are created everyday, old Gods
resurected and another hero is sent on yet another quest. Superheros
inspire and the good guys do win. Comics run from funny to inspiring to
horror to disqusting. Now I perfer my comics to be darker and with more
complex charecters like John Constaintine, Swamp Thing, Wolverine or The
Sandman. A touch of the supernaturel is really great. magic is good....
Why do folks think that because there is art along with the words
(Sequential art as Will Eisner, who died last week, named it) it is
somehow a lesser form of storytelling? "From Hell" even had footnotes,
for heavens sake.....
Of course some of it sucks but there is a ton of books out there that
suck so bad (Farmer Boy, anyone? Boring...There are better books out
there that describe that time and life) and they don't even have cool
art to help you make it through.
Right now my ds (who is 12, hates reading and might read on a early
third grade level) is beginning to work though (his own idea) the whole
75 issues of The Sandman.
Of course I'm reading it with him because: A. it is a comic for adults
and will need my explinations and to feed him words and B. God I just
love these!
I'm sure I've mentioned before what a total Neil Gaiman fangirl I am.
The man is a writing God.
Within this story arc he will encounter: Loki, Thor, Marco Polo, G.K.
Chesterton (of course as a man and land mass), The Godess Bast,
Shakesphere (along with his son, wife and daughter) The Hectate (Madien,
Mother, Crone among other incarnations), Lucifer, Orpheus and Eurydice,
Hades and Persephone, Eve, Cain and Able, Muses, The Emporer of the
United States, The Furies, Auberon and Titania...well you get the idea.
But with all that and the tangents we can go off on, people like Ms.
Bauer would look down on that as time not well spent.
Luckily her opinion is not one I care about.
That is we'll do it after we play HeroScape again.
Cool game.
Fun Times.
Julie W in AR
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Nisha
--- In [email protected], "AlysonRR"
<AlysonRR@c...> wrote:
even pleasant...
http://www.susanwisebauer.com/
nisha
<AlysonRR@c...> wrote:
>ANd evidently she is some kind of "expert"? She looks normal and
> Ohhh, man. So much disrespect. And so much time wasted. I was
> particularly struck by:
>
even pleasant...
http://www.susanwisebauer.com/
nisha
queenjane555
>my
> > comic-book-and-Star-Wars-junior-novel stage, so Iâm doing
>>best to broaden his little horizon.-=-Sometimes its not a stage...one of my brothers has been into comics
since he was little, he has thousands of them, and still collects
them (he's 34). Everytime i drive him to the comic shop, there are
only adults in there, never kids. And there is a HUGE online comic-
fan community, with people who have alot of knowledge of the genre.
His love of comics led him to Old Time Radio, and he's even
corresponded with people who've written books on the subject. One of
his major projects is collecting old radio shows onto disc(MP3? i
dunno), and he lately has been buying original art from one of his
favorite comic artists. He posted somewhere (a msg board i think)
something about one comic, questioning whether the penciller was one
guy or another, and the artist actually emailed him to discuss it.
Pretty cool. I think most people dont know that very often, with a
comic, one person does the story, another the lettering, another the
artwork, etc. There is SO much information in that one "little
phase" of comics.
How different this mother is from me, who actually encourages
Seamus' comic reading (i was hoping he might get more into reading
by reading Sonic the Hedgehog comics, and he did, for awhile), is
willing to buy him any comic he wants, and my brother will often
pull out issues with interesting stories, and read them out loud to
my son. Very happy, very positive, lots of learning.
Katherine
Dawn Adams
Now I perfer my comics to be darker and with more
genre. Chris Claremont's work on X-Men, Louise Simonson on Thor was great,
Anne...Anne something on Daredevil and gosh, go dig up old copies of
Strikeforce Morituri (Can you tell I was a Marvel fan?). It's funny how the
Greek, Norse, etc myths are revered but we can't recognize the modern
equivilent to those sagas in our own culture. For some a really beautiful
example of how good an ordinary comic can be pick up Astonishing X-men. I
haven't bought a comic book in ages (no one seems to sell them but the comic
stores anymore!) but keep up to date with Wizard and recently dug up all my
old books (Alpha Flight - Canada's own team and proud to have had the first
mainstream gay hero). But Astonishing X-Men (Joss Whedon of Buffy fame is
writing this title) is going to lure me out I think.
Dawn (in NS)
> complex charecters like John Constaintine, Swamp Thing, Wolverine or TheI was a superhero freak myself - and there's some brilliant stuff in the
> Sandman. A touch of the supernaturel is really great. magic is good....
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
genre. Chris Claremont's work on X-Men, Louise Simonson on Thor was great,
Anne...Anne something on Daredevil and gosh, go dig up old copies of
Strikeforce Morituri (Can you tell I was a Marvel fan?). It's funny how the
Greek, Norse, etc myths are revered but we can't recognize the modern
equivilent to those sagas in our own culture. For some a really beautiful
example of how good an ordinary comic can be pick up Astonishing X-men. I
haven't bought a comic book in ages (no one seems to sell them but the comic
stores anymore!) but keep up to date with Wizard and recently dug up all my
old books (Alpha Flight - Canada's own team and proud to have had the first
mainstream gay hero). But Astonishing X-Men (Joss Whedon of Buffy fame is
writing this title) is going to lure me out I think.
Dawn (in NS)
Ren Allen
The recent post about comic books and such, made me remember one of my
most prized possessions.:)
My David Mack comic books! Yes, I still adore comic books, but these
particular ones are absolutely beautiful. His art is not typical for a
comic book, but more collage style, with incredible drawings swirled
through.
They aren't laid out in typical format either. The story lines are
very Japanese influenced. His "Alchemy" series are the ones I've been
collecting, you can also get some of the older ones in book form.
Some of you folks that love art and have thought comics where
inferior, should really take a look at these. They're amazing.
Here's an interview with him and a few shots of the
art.http://www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com/features/107352351149206.htm
David Mack quote:
~I don't have a style. I never have. If someone looks at one thing I
did and decides to call that particular piece 'my style,' that is
between them and reality.~
-- David Mack (May 31, 2001)
Ren
learninginfreedom.com
most prized possessions.:)
My David Mack comic books! Yes, I still adore comic books, but these
particular ones are absolutely beautiful. His art is not typical for a
comic book, but more collage style, with incredible drawings swirled
through.
They aren't laid out in typical format either. The story lines are
very Japanese influenced. His "Alchemy" series are the ones I've been
collecting, you can also get some of the older ones in book form.
Some of you folks that love art and have thought comics where
inferior, should really take a look at these. They're amazing.
Here's an interview with him and a few shots of the
art.http://www.silverbulletcomicbooks.com/features/107352351149206.htm
David Mack quote:
~I don't have a style. I never have. If someone looks at one thing I
did and decides to call that particular piece 'my style,' that is
between them and reality.~
-- David Mack (May 31, 2001)
Ren
learninginfreedom.com
elainegh8
One of my favourite books is a comic/graphic novel. It's called V for
Vendetta by Alan Moore.
http://www.shadowgalaxy.net/Vendetta/
Btw it is very adult themed.
BWs Elaine
Vendetta by Alan Moore.
http://www.shadowgalaxy.net/Vendetta/
Btw it is very adult themed.
BWs Elaine
> The recent post about comic books and such, made me remember one ofmy
> most prized possessions.:)
> My David Mack comic books! Yes, I still adore comic books, but these
> particular ones are absolutely beautiful.
Betsy Hill
** One of my favourite books is a comic/graphic novel. It's called V for
Vendetta by Alan Moore.**
This is the cover story in the Entertainment Weekly that came in the
mail yesterday. Look for Natalie Portman on the cover. (And for any of
you that have seen pictures of Ms. Portman looking like she had her head
shaved recently, this is why.)
It sounds like this graphic novel (and now movie) is very political.
Betsy
Vendetta by Alan Moore.**
This is the cover story in the Entertainment Weekly that came in the
mail yesterday. Look for Natalie Portman on the cover. (And for any of
you that have seen pictures of Ms. Portman looking like she had her head
shaved recently, this is why.)
It sounds like this graphic novel (and now movie) is very political.
Betsy
elainegh8
Hi, thanks Betsy
I don't know who Natalie Portman is, I'm assuming
she's an actress? I should've said I'm in the UK, not sure if we get
Entertainment weekly here. I'm from the same region (The Midlands) as
Alan Moore (author of V for Vendetta), he's just a bit further south
than me.
BWs Elaine
I don't know who Natalie Portman is, I'm assuming
she's an actress? I should've said I'm in the UK, not sure if we get
Entertainment weekly here. I'm from the same region (The Midlands) as
Alan Moore (author of V for Vendetta), he's just a bit further south
than me.
BWs Elaine
>for
> ** One of my favourite books is a comic/graphic novel. It's called V
> Vendetta by Alan Moore.**any of
>
> This is the cover story in the Entertainment Weekly that came in the
> mail yesterday. Look for Natalie Portman on the cover. (And for
> you that have seen pictures of Ms. Portman looking like she had herhead
> shaved recently, this is why.)
>
> It sounds like this graphic novel (and now movie) is very political.
>
> Betsy
>