Posted in home schooling
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Hands down, my favorite thing about homeschooling is reading aloud to my kids. There are a lot of people out there who are major supporters of this (I'm talking about reading aloud...not homeschooling), ranging from our First Lady, Laura Bush, to Oprah Winfrey and the reasons vary from person to person. My reasons are pretty simple... First, it is super easy to do. All you need is comfortable spot, a good book, and at least one kid, and wa-la!...you're doing it! Much, much easier than building an ant farm, or making a paper mache model of the Solar System or trying to find Dijibouti on the map (it's in Africa, by the way). Secondly, I enjoy it. I am an avid reader myself. I, like most public-schooled individuals, was deprived of a lot of the really great classic literature. I enjoyed reading at an early age, but when I went to the library it was usually to find the latest installment of the Sweet Valley High series...not The Witch of Blackbird Pond. As I have read to my children over the years, my heart has thrilled to discover all of that which I missed. As a teacher to my children, give me the choice between dictating a list of spelling words or reading a chapter from Doctor Doolittle, and I will pick the book everytime. Next, the kids enjoy it. I have never finished a math lesson with either kid and have them beg me to teach them just one more. However, I'm regularly assaulted when I attempt to put down our latest read-aloud because I feel an acute case of larangytis coming on. I have had Annaleigh offer to make me some hot tea in order to continue. Just this week she was able to manipulate me into finishing the last half of The Wolves of Willoughby Chase in one sitting. Actually it wasn't that difficult to twist my arm. I, myself, was dying to know if Miss Slighcarp was going to get caught in her evil plot. Finally, it is not just for entertainment...they are learning something. I do not agree with the statement, "It doesn't matter what they read, as long as they are reading." There is a lot of garbage out there, and I'm not just talking about inappropriate material. I'm talking about literature that is just useless. Charlotte Mason, a turn-of-the-century educator, called this type of print "twaddle," which I like. I have chosen to use Sonlight curriculum because it is literature-based and twaddle-free. There are some books that will just cause you to think, and those are the ones that I want to read to my children. I will never forget a few years ago when we were reading Johnny Tremain, and Annaleigh wanted to put duct tape around her fingers for the afternoon to see what it would be like to be Johnny, who had his fingers welded together in a silver-smithing accident. After reading Apple and the Arrow this year, Harrison went around for about a week with a bow and arrow strapped to his back, pretending to be William Tell. Somehow I just don't think a history text would spark those kinds of reactions. My favorite memory from grade school is my 4th grade teacher reading aloud a chapter everyday after lunch from Charlotte's Web. I can still remember burying my face into the lacquer of my desk so that no one would see me crying. One of my favorite memories of our family life is my mom reading Carolyn Haywood's Betsy series to me and my sister at night before we went to bed. One of my favorite memories as a young married couple is reading aloud from several different books to Damon (although, sadly, we don't do this much anymore because he always falls asleep). One of my favorite memories as a classroom teacher is the kids taking turns reading aloud Romeo and Juliet. And now, fittingly, one of my favorite memories of raising my children is sitting on our sofa, enjoying the pages of great book together. I guess it all comes down to this... One comfy, overstuffed denim sofa: $1,200 One paperback classic: $5.95 A cup of coffee, a Gatorade, a bottle of water, and two granola bars: oh, maybe 2 bucks or so, since it all came from Costco. Memories and knowledge to last a lifetime: PRICELESS |
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