Morning Time Moms

Documents and Speeches for Memorization

2013-02-01T09:46:00.002-08:00

Documents Memorized

The Declaration of Independence (Through “He has…”)

The Bill of Rights

Gettysburg Address

The War Inevitable by Patrick Henry

We Shall Fight by Winston Churchill

The Apostles Creed

The Nicene Creed

The Heidelberg Catechism Question 1

Contemplate by Sam Adams

These Are the Times that Try by Thomas Paine

States and Capitals

Planets

Presidents

Continents and Oceans Song

Heidelberg Catechism question #1 “What is your only comfort…?”

West Point Cadet’s Prayer

U.S. Oath of Citizenship

Term 1 Ambleside Selections 2012

2012-08-02T06:11:00.001-07:00

Term 1: August-November 2012

Composer Study:

Claude Debussy (1910)

Prelude to the Afternoon of the Faun

La Mer

Nocturnes for Orchestra

Suite Bergamasqe (includes Claire de Lune)

Children's Corner

Jeux ("Games"); a "danced poem" intended to accompany a ballet

Note: Where is The Girl with the Flaxen Hair? Look at Preludes

Artist:

Pierre-Auguste Renoir (French, 1841-1919)

1. La Grenouilliere, 1869

2. Les Grands Boulevards, 1875

3. La Loge, 1874

4. Girl with a Watering Can

Auguste Rodin (French, 1840-1917)

5. Monument to Balzac

6. The Thinker

Shakespeare: Henry VI, Part II and III

Plutarch: Solon

2011-2012 Ambleside Selections

2011-10-01T21:09:00.000-07:00

Ambleside Selections 2011-2012

Read Aloud Hopefuls:

Roll of Thunder Hear my Cry

Chopin By Opal Wheeler

In Search of the Source

Miracles of Maple Hill

Cheaper by the Dozen

Amos Fortune, Free Man

Little Britches

The Story of Albrecht Durer by Joyce McPherson

George Washington’s World

Freckles

Term 1:August-November

See Ambleside Online for original selections

I am using Spotify this year to make up my music lists

Music/composer:

Frederic Chopin (1840) (Romantic)
Listening selections for this term:
Op 09 no 2 Nocturne in E flat maj
Op 10 no 3 Etude in E-maj
Op 10 no 12 Revolutionary Etude in C minor
Op 21 Piano Concerto number 2 in f minor
Op 28 Preludes no's 15, 20 and either 16 or 17
Op 53 Polonaise in A flat, Heroic

Artist:

Albrecht Durer (1471-1528) Italian Renaissance

   1. The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, 1498, woodcut.
   2. Self-Portrait in a Fur Coat, 1500, lime panel, Pinakothek, Munich
   3. A Young Hare, 1502. Watercolour and gouache on paper. Vienna, Austria
   4. Altarpiece of the Rose Garlands, or here, 1506, oil on panel, Národní Galerie, Prague
   5. Praying Hands, 1508, brush and ink, Vienna
   6. The Knight, Death, and The Devil, or here, 1513-14, engraving

Shakespeare: Richard III

Plutarch: Lycurgus

Term 2: January-March

Music/ Composer:

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (early classical)
Listening selections for this term:
Eine Kleine Nacht Musik
Requiem [A Vocal work]
Symphony no. 41 in C major (Jupiter)
Sinfonia Concertante
Piano Concerto no. 21 in C major (K.467)

Artist:

Caravaggio (1571-1610) Italian Baroque

   1. Rest During the Flight into Egypt, or here, c.1595, Rome
   2. The Sacrifice of Isaac, 1598-1599. Oil on canvas. Princeton, NJ
   3. The Calling of St. Matthew, or here, 1599-1600 San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome
   4. The Conversion on the Way to Damascus, or here, 1600-1601 Rome
   5. Supper in Emmaus, or here, 1606. Oil on canvas, Milan
   6. The Adoration of the Shepherds, 1608-1609. Oil on canvas. Messina, Italy

Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing

Plutarch: Numas

Term 3:April-June

Music/Composer:

Felix Mendelssohn (1840) (Romantic)
Listening selections for this term:
Songs without words
Violin Concerto in E minor
Symphony no. 4 in A major (Italian) (4 weeks)
Octet in E-flat major
Fingal's Cave ("Hebrides") Overture

Artist:

Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863) Romantic self-portrait

   1. Liberty Leading the People, 1830, oil on canvas, Paris
      or, this more modest option, The Entry of the Crusaders into Constantinople, 1840, oil on canvas, Paris
   2. Portrait of Frederic Chopin, 1838, oil on canvas, Paris
   3. Hamlet and Horatio in the Graveyard, 1839. Oil on canvas. Louvre, Paris ("Alas, poor Yorick!")
   4. The Sultan of Morocco and his Entourage, 1845, oil on canvas, Toulouse
   5. Arab Horses Fighting in a Stable, 1860, oil on canvas, Paris
   6. The Lion Hunt, 1861. Oil on canvas. The Art Institute of Chicago

Shakespeare: The Merchant of Venice

Plutarch: Caesar

Morning Time September 2011

2011-09-07T11:22:00.000-07:00

Artist: Durer

We have been reading Joyce McPherson's excellent children's biography of Durer, Artist of the Reformation.

This week, Alex and Andrew each picked out 5 Durer works for their notebooks.

Here is one of Alex's picks:

Here is one of Andrew's pics:

I printed them from the Internet.

Composer: Chopin

As soon as we finish the Durer book we will begin Opal Wheeler's childhood biography of Chopin. In the meantime we just have a Chopin play list on Spotify.

Shakespeare: I have canceled, maybe, Richard III and we are trying to decide which play to do next.

Plutarch: Lycurgus This is turning out to be a relevant and interesting 'Life.' Lycurgus was called the Lawgiver of Sparta but it sounds like he was basically a Marxist or maybe I should say the Marx was a Lycurgusist. Much food for thought. I will not claim that the children love Plutarch, but it is really not something I would ever want to skip. We just read small sections at a time since the ideas are dense and we stop and discuss vocabulary frequently.

Mother Tongue II: The children are all doing separate grammar programs this year but I am continuing our oral working through this book. Some of you may have noticed that it is going on 3 years. Little drops of grammar make the mighty man. The reason this approach is valuable is something that I have just stumbled upon and has greatly encouraged me as a teacher. Between small amounts (Remember Charlotte Mason's short lessons?) of written grammar daily, Latin, oral discussion and written narrations corrected, each only a tiny bit at a time, a symbiosis is created which increases retention far beyond the use of any one method or workbook or text.

Bible: Right now we are reading with discussion through the Epistles. This is a departure from our usual readings of Proverbs but it is going very well.

Review this week: The 12 Tribes of Israel, Psalm 100, Phil 4:4-8, Psalm 104

Poetry: Just finished, finally, Sea Fever, a poem I highly recommend. Not sure what we are doing next. I want to concentrate on the Preamble to the Constitution for a while. We also are continuing to read through the poems in 101 Famous Poems. We read and discussed Hamlet's Soliloquy today.

Review this week: The Destruction of Sennacharib, A Little Brother Follows Me, Breathes by Walter Scott, King Alfred's War Song, Recessional by Rudyard Kipling.

Misc:Continuing through the Civics Question of the Day. There are all sorts of wonderful, easy to use Civics resources on the naturalization site. Today we discussed question 64: What special group advises the President? Answer: The Cabinet. I also moved on to questions 65 and asked, "Which President is called the 'Father of our Country'?" Alex, in spite of the fact that we are reading George Washington's World, said tentatively, "George W Bush?" and then quickly seeing my face, "God?"

Review: Preamble(Daily), Amendments 1-5 this week.

Reading Aloud:

George Washington's World by Genevieve Foster

The above mentions bio of Durer.

And we are finishing from last year and really loving, The Marsh King by Walter Hodges, a story of King Alfred, a book I highly recommend for boys. It is a bit slow going at first but it gets better.

We were working on our 13th school day of the year and we have completed 11 Morning Times. Yesterday we didn't even get started until 12:00 because of various interruptions.

Morning Time: March 2010

2010-02-26T09:03:00.000-08:00

                      MORNING TIME PLANS FOR :
                         Week 1 March 2010

Ambleside Selections:

Artist:

Raphael

                                         The School of Athens

Composer:
Grieg (Peer Gynt’s Suite)

Folk Song:
(We are completely behind on these this year.)

The Old Oaken Bucket

The Jam on Gerry’s Rock

Shakespeare:

Coriolanus

Plutarch:

Coriolanus

Grammar Time:

Mother Tongue II

Bible Time:

Prayer Requests

NT: Read and discuss Matthew

Review:

Books of the NT
Books of the OT
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Matthew 6:19-34
Deuteronomy 28:1-17

Read Aloud from Worldliness edited by CJ Mahaney

Hymn Singing:
New:
Jesus’ Name
(I am not related to these children in anyway but they do sound better tahn we do.)

Review:

Fairest Lord Jesus

Faithful Men Twila Paris

Oh, For a Thousand Tongues to Sing

Glorious is Thy Name

God Leads Us Along

Poetry:

Read and discuss one poem from 101 Famous Poems

New:
Breathes by Walter Scott

Breathes there the man, with soul so dead,
Who never to himself hath said,
This is my own, my native land!
Whose heart hath ne'er within him burn'd,
As home his footsteps he hath turn'd,
From wandering on a foreign strand!
If such there breathe, go, mark him well;
For him no Minstrel raptures swell;
High though his titles, proud his name,
Boundless his wealth as wish can claim;
Despite those titles, power, and pelf,
The wretch, concentred all in self,
Living, shall forfeit fair renown,
And, doubly dying, shall go down
To the vile dust, from whence he sprung,
Unwept, unhonour'd, and unsung.

Review:

St Crispin’s Day speech from Henry V:

I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General:

Horatius at the Bridge
( This is the first part of the poem, it may help with pronunciation although I am not convinced the guys pronunciation is right.) This poem is often taught abridged. Guess what? Why not just go for the whole thing??

The Second Coming Yeats:

Where the Boats Go RLS

DARK brown is the river.
Golden is the sand.
It flows along for ever,
With trees on either hand.

Green leaves a-floating,
Castles of the foam,
Boats of mine a-boating—
Where will all come home?

On goes the river
And out past the mill,
Away down the valley,
Away down the hill.

Away down the river,
A hundred miles or more,
Other little children
Shall bring my boats ashore

Misc. Memory:
Presidents Bee
Bill of Rights 4
Bill of Rights 5
Bill of Rights 6
Bill of Rights 7

Reading Aloud:

The Silver Chair

America Grows Up

The Light Beyond the Forest

Using MT to Promote Discussion

2010-02-26T07:23:00.001-08:00

Yesterday, very late, 10:45, I finally called everyone together for MT. We began with prayer concentrating on Nathaniel who is apprenticing in a nuclear plant this month.

Because Christopher, my senior, needs to get the show on the road, I decided to go straight to grammar after prayer. I pulled out my vintage Mother Tongue II and we discussed transitive and intransitive verbs. We orally analyzed several sentences together and then individually. Then I let Christopher leave to finish up That Hideous Strength by CS Lewis.

One of the reasons I skipped several items during the morning is that I had been away last week, and I just wanted to reassert things slowly. Therefore, we did not sing. We sound terrible, so it is always a temptation not to sing but I am determined that we WILL sing on most days. Today we will sing 2 songs. Yesterday's Coram Deo by Judy Rogers and today's Crown Him with Many Crowns.

Then I read EX 20:1-17 as our review passage. Plenty of fodder for the mill in that. We first discussed the idea of taking God's name in vain and how God will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name. We also discussed covetousness.

Then we headed over to review and relearn Gen 1:1-5.
Which reminded me of my Morning and Evening devotional so I pulled that out and read it. It was based on the verse Ezekial 34:26 "I will cause the shower to come down in his season: there shall be showers of blessing." I used this as a socratic jumping off spot and we defined the terms in the verse. Everyone participating. We defined Cause, Season, Showers and Blessings. In the end we concluded that since we are not God and cannot control the weather, it was a sin to complain about the weather but maybe not a sin to be disappointed in the weather. My real goal was to stop the baseball players in the family from being dramatic weather watchers for the next few months. Weather can wreck havoc on a baseball season and I just wanted to establish where it came from. By the way, Christopher was not far off reading and he participated in this discussion.

We then went on to read Worldliness edited by CJ Mahaney. We are on the end chapters on modesty so it is more pointed at Emily. Not too fun for her, so I make sure that I make connections to masculine modesty also.

I am continuing to read through 101 Famous Poems with the children. We discuss one poem a day and the poem we discussed yesterday was:

Abraham Lincoln Walks at Night (In Springfield, Illinois) by Vachel Lindsay

We are not huge Lincoln fans here so I wasn't sure how the poem would go over but it turned out to be an excellent poem in which to discuss modernity which is the time period my high school students are studying.

We concentrated on these three verses from the perspective of the time period the poem was written in which was 1914. Significant. We discussed Lincoln, the Civil War, the beginnings of WWI, The League of Nations and mostly all that was meant by :The Workers' Earth. We discussed 'The little man" the "working man" etc. We discussed socialism at great length noting that we know more about it now than they did in 1914. We were able to bring most of this discussion down to a simple concept that Alex could understand. We ended our discussion on the topic of self-government.

The sins of all the war-lords burn his heart.: He sees the dreadnaughts scouring every main.
He carries on his shawl-wrapped shoulders now: The bitterness, the folly and the pain.
He cannot rest until a spirit-dawn: Shall come:--the shining hope of Europe free:
The league of sober folk, the Workers' Earth,: Bringing long peace to Cornland, Alp and Sea.
It breaks his heart that kings must murder still,: That all his hours of travail here for men
Seem yet in vain. And who will bring white peace: That he may sleep upon his hill again?

At this point the remaining High-schoolers were dismissed, after I decided that we would not read Coriolanus in either Shakespeare or Plutarch during the morning.

Alex and Andrew and I continued reviewing All the World's a Stage and I had Alex act out the 7 seasons as we read. He balked at sighing like a lover.

We also reviewed Breathes by Walter Scott which we are relearning.

I reviewed the US Oath of Citizenship which they mostly know and told them to write it out for their narration for 2 days and then Friday I would test them on it by having them write it from memory.

We reviewed the 1st Amendment and discussed the 5 rights guaranteed by it. We also discussed the Constitution and what the Bill of Rights actually were. This came in handy as while we were reading aloud America Grows Up we learned about the 1st Continental Congress. We decided that it would be fun to visit Mount Vernon on our trip to Washington this summer.

We then went on to read aloud The Light Beyond the Forest which details the search for the Holy Grail.

America Grows Up which I already mentioned and:

The Silver Chair (Narnia) by CS Lewis

I hope you can see the richness of having these sorts of discussions every single day. The thing I absolutely love about it is that the younger students are being stretched while the older students are learning. I let all participate equally and of course, I draw out those who are quiet. We do laugh a lot and our family can be a bit brutal sometimes. We all love to hear what Alex, the youngest, has to say before any concept is defined. Andrew seems to have a better grasp of grammar than my high school students but then again he has had 3 years of Latin at a younger age. I say 3 years of Latin for Children but we only get through 2/3 of a book a year.

The one other beauty of this method is that it helps children learn how to make connections which is the heart of intuition.

As you can see, I did not let the schedule dictate the time. I dropped things off in order to fully grasp the moments that arose naturally. Finding this balance is often difficult. If you are the type that must get through the LIST then teach yourself to embrace the moments of discussion that arise. Don't ever rush those until they deteriorate into frivolity which they inevitably do. That is some part of the art of teaching, I think.

Morning Time November 2009

2009-11-17T08:46:00.000-08:00

Shakespeare:
Coriolanus
First up we are going to watch the BBC production which I ordered from Netflix.

Plutarch:
Aristides

Bible:
New:

Proverbs 15:31-33
Read one Daily Proverb with discussion
Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World
As you may have noticed I am reading this in tiny paragraph sections with lots of discussion.

Review:

Books of the NT

Books of the OT

Habakkuk 3:17-19

12 Tribes of Israel

List of Judges

Hymns:

New:

You are Holy (Prince of Peace)

Review:

Now Thank We All Our God

Come Ye Thankful People Come

Bringing in the Sheaves

We Gather Together

Poetry:
Read and discuss one poem a day from 101 Famous Poems

New:

Finishing up the poem from Cymbeline

Review:

Lullaby of an Infant chief

My Daily Creed

Courtesy for Church

In Flander’s Field

Stopping by the Woods on Snowy

Misc Memory:

New:

Oath of Citizenship:

"I hereby declare, on oath, that I absolutely and entirely renounce and abjure all allegiance and fidelity to any foreign prince, potentate, state, or sovereignty of whom or which I have heretofore been a subject or citizen; that I will support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I will bear arms on behalf of the United States when required by law; that I will perform noncombatant service in the Armed Forces of the United States when required by the law; that I will perform work of national importance under civilian direction when required by the law; and that I take this obligation freely without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; so help me God."

This is a great thing to memorize. The vocabulary alone is worth the effort and the sentence structure is evocative of a more beautiful time.

Review:

Presidents Bee

We Shall Fight

Apostle’s Creed

Continents and Oceans

Heidelberg Ques #1

Reading Aloud:

Mother Tongue II with all children

Little Boys:

We finished The Jungle Book and The Horse and His Boy.
I was going to move into The Silver Chair but decided we better read Alice in Wonderland and Through Looking Glass before the new movie comes out.

The Sword and the Circle: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table Fabulously written book, if a tiny bit blunt. Not for everyone but excellent all the same.
A History for Peter: America is born, America Grows Up, and America Moves Forward (3 volume set) (Some object to Johnson's editorial viewpoint. I just use his opinions as a way to open discussions with the boys.)

Things get tricky from here until January. The week before Thanksgiving is a hard week for me to stay on track. I consistently end up skipping MT during this week. The thing that keeps me going is knowing that we are going to be singing some of my favorite Thanksgiving hymns. I love Thanksgiving and this year it is going to be special with both grand-babies visiting.

Just think in two weeks our tree will be up and we will be reveling in the advent of Christ with Handel's Messiah.

Ambleside Selections for 2009-2010

2009-09-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

Ambleside Schedule 2009/2010

Term 1:

Artist:

Jan Van Eyck (1395-1441) Flemish Northern Renaissance (composer Saint-Saens and Berlioz, Early Romantic)

The Crucifixion and The Last Judgement are two of Van Eyck's most important and well-known works; however, they're gruesome, so alternatives have been suggested along with them.
1. The Crucifixion, 1425-30 OR Birth of John the Baptist, 1422
2. The Last Judgement, 1425-30 OR Madonna with Child Reading, 1433
3. Adoration of the Lamb (From the Ghent Altarpiece, 1425-30)
4. The Annunciation
5. Arnolfini Wedding, 1434
6. Man in a Red Turban, 1433

Composer:

Edvard Grieg (1890) & Jean Sibelius (nationalists)
Listening selections for this term:
Grieg Peer Gynt Suite no 1
Grieg Piano Concerto in A
Grieg Norwegian Dance no 2
Sibelius Finlandia
Sibelius Symphony 1 OR 2 (4 weeks)

Plutarch: Aristides/ Coriolanus
Shakespeare: Finish Cymbeline/ Coriolanus
Folk Song: The Old Oaken Bucket

Term 2:

Artist:
John Singer Sargeant (1856-1925) American

Composer:
Liszt, Romantic
Franz Liszt (1855) (Early Romantic)
Listening selections for this term:
Piano Concerto no 1
Hungarian Rhapsodies (esp no 2)
Les Preludes
Liebestraum for piano
Piano Sonata in B min
Mephisto Waltz

Plutarch: Cato the Censor
Shakespeare: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Folk Song: The Jam on Gerry's Rocks

Term 3:

Composer:
Maurice Ravel (1915) (Impressionist)
Listening selections for this term:
Daphne et Chloe - selections
Bolero
Mother Goose Suite
Pavane pour une infante dufunte
Piano Concerto in D for left hand
Rhapsody espagnole

Artist:
Claude Monet (1840-1926) French Impressionist

Plutarch: Romolus
Shakespeare: Titus Andronicus
Folk Song: Farewell to Nova Scotia, Land of the Silver Birch

Morning Time September 2009

2009-09-02T09:47:00.000-07:00

Artist:
Rembrandt's Self Portraits

Composer:
Bach's Mass in B Minor

Folk Song:
Working on incorporating these into our morning.

Shakespeare:
Cymbeline (Yes, leftover from last year)

Plutarch:
Aristides

Bible Time:
Proverb of the day
Psalm 100 (relearn)
Worldliness: Resisting the Seduction of a Fallen World

Review this week:
I John 4:1-11
Proverbs 4:10-17
Proverbs 20:11

Hymns:
Review:
Great is the Lord our God (Soldiers of Christ Arise tune)
Psalm 98 (Book of Psalms for Singing) This is one we actually sound halfway decent on.
I Love Thy Church, O Lord
O, Thou in Whose Presence
Let us With a Gladsome Mind

Poetry:
Read and discuss one poem a day from 101 Famous Poems

Learn Poem from Cymbeline

Fear no more the heat o' the sun;
Nor the furious winter's rages,
Thou thy worldly task hast done,
Home art gone, and ta'en thy wages;
Golden lads and girls all must,
As chimney sweepers come to dust.

Fear no more the frown of the great,
Thou art past the tyrant's stroke:
Care no more to clothe and eat;
To thee the reed is as the oak:
The sceptre, learning, physic, must
All follow this, and come to dust.

Fear no more the lightning-flash,
Nor the all-dread thunder-stone;
Fear not slander, censure rash;
Thou hast finished joy and moan;
All lovers young, all lovers must
Consign to thee, and come to dust.

No exorciser harm thee!
Nor no witchcraft charm thee!
Ghost unlaid forbear thee!
Nothing ill come near thee!
Quiet consummation have;
And renowned be thy grave!

William Shakespeare

Review:
The Gift by Christina Rossetti
Keep a' Goin'
Be Strong Babcock
Trees Kilmer
How Did you Die?

Miscellaneous Memory:

The US Oath of Citizenship

Review:
Ambleside Creed
Presidents Bee
West Point Cadet's Prayer
Apostle's Creed
Contemplate by Sam Adams

Reading Aloud:
Mother Tongue II with all children

Little Boys:
The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling (Don't let Disney rob you of this one.)
The Sword and the Circle: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table Fabulously written book, if a tiny bit blunt. Not for everyone but excellent all the same.
A History for Peter: America is born, America Grows Up, and America Moves Forward (3 volume set) (Some object to Johnson's editorial viewpoint. I just use his opinions as a way to open discussions with the boys.)

These 3 books are all so well-written that our reading time is a joy this year. For some reason this combination of books is one of the most successful combinations I have ever employed in Morning Time.

March 2009

2009-06-30T08:28:00.000-07:00

Morning Time Plans March 2009

Morning Time Plans October 2008

2009-06-30T08:00:00.000-07:00

Morning Time Plans for the Week Of October 2008

Morning Time Plans September 2008

2009-06-30T07:32:00.000-07:00

Artist:
Van Gogh

Composer:
Bach
Bach Cello Suites from eClassical

Folk Songs:
Follow the Drinking Gourd
An Emigrant's Daughter

Shakespeare:
Love's Labour's Lost
Here I will admit this least favorite play of many is one of my favorites. The word play is just jolly good fun.

Plutarch:
Camillus

Grammar Moment:
Mother Tongue II

Bible Time:
I am using a book that my friend Linda gave me called Suffer Little Children Book 3 by Gertrude Hoeksema. We go through one lesson a week. We were taking such a long time to get through OT, I thought it was high time we studied the life of Christ. I highly recommend this study.

We are still in Psalm 91 because basically after last March our life fell apart. We had company for over a month last spring with lots of family visits during school spring breaks. Then my mom had a brain aneurysm. The good news is that she is home and though recovering, alive and well.

Review:
Romans 6
Books of the Bible
Psalm 20
Psalm 23

Hymns:
Non Nobis Domine

Review:
Rock of Ages ( I wish people would quit messin' with this one. The original poetry was spot-on)
O, Sacred Head
Saviour Like a Shepherd Lead Us
Softly and Tenderly
Soldiers of Christ Arise

Poetry:
Finishing finally How Sweet the Moonlight and The Man that Hath no Music from The Merchant of Venice.

Review:
I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General Here is a clip of the song...we don't sing it....with Linda Ronstadt and Kevin Kline.
The 2nd Coming Yeats
Horatius at the Bridge. Good news: you can find this at Librivox which saves some breath.
To Be a Pilgrim. I may add this to our list to re-memorize. It is by John Bunyan and I like it!
Where the Boats Go. RLS

Misc Memory:
Presidents Biographies. From the back of The Buck Stops Here. One a day. We just did Abe Lincoln.

Review:
Presidents Bee
Bill of Rights #s 7,8,9,10
Gettysburg Address

Reading Aloud:

While we did finish about 20 books last year, you will be happy to see we really are going very slow through some of these.

English Literature for Boys and Girls. I hope to finish this one up soon. We are on Burns.

The Little History of the World. Also coming to a close.

The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. Probably shouldn't have started this last year but I didn't know how the year would end up. This book is on my top ten list.

The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by CS Lewis

Pilgrim Stories by Margaret Pumphrey

Andersen's Fairy Tales

Rod and Staff Manners 2nd Grade. I have this very, very old workbook from R&S and I just love it for teaching manners and hygiene. We discuss one page a week.

Morning Time Plans: January 2008

2008-09-19T14:01:00.035-07:00

MORNING TIME PLANS FOR
January 7, 2008

Artist:
Rembrandt
Composer:
Handel
The Water Music
Folk Song:
Arkansas Traveler
Shakespeare:
The Merchant of Venice
Plutarch:
Philopoemen

Prayer Request

Bible Time

The Book of Life
Daily Proverbs

To Learn:
Psalm 91

To Review:
Books of the OT
Lord’s Prayer
12 Tribes of Israel:
12 Apostles
John 1:1-14
Gen 1:1-5
Books of NT

Hymn Singing

To Learn:
In Christ Alone

To Review:
O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing
Glorious is Thy Name
God Leads us Along
O God our Help
Great is Thy Faithfulness

Poetry

To Learn:
Lake Isle of Innisfree
Cuddle Down

To Review:

Weathers

(I)

This is the weather the cuckoo likes,
And so do I;
When showers betumble the chestnut spikes,
And nestlings fly;
And the little brown nightingale bills his best,
And they sit outside at 'The Traveller's Rest,'
And maids come forth sprig-muslin drest,
And citizens dream of the south and west,
And so do I.

(II)

This is the weather the shepherd shuns,
And so do I;
When beeches drip in browns and duns,
And thresh and ply;
And hill-hid tides throb, throe on throe,
And meadow rivulets overflow,
And drops on gate bars hang in a row,
And rooks in families homeward go,
And so do I.

-- Thomas Hardy

Isn't that an awesome poem?

Where the Boats Go? RLS
The Second Coming Yeats
The Lamb Blake
Little Things "Little drops of water...."
The Charge of the Light Brigade Tennyson

Misc. Memory:
Read Amendments: 1-27 One a day
Preamble
Bill of Rights 1
Bill of Rights 2
Bill of Rights 3
Bill of Rights 4

Reading Aloud :

English Literature for Boys and Girls We are on this chapter and we don't read a whole chapter in a sitting.
Famous Men of the Middle Ages I have a vintage copy of this.
Dave Barry Slept Here OK, this is completely random but as I said before the children were picking this one up and reading it so I thought it would be safer to read out loud. It is very funny if you already have a working knowledge of American History. The language is pretty bad though, hence the reading aloud.
The Little History of the World

Fiction:
The Tale of Desperaux Recommend by dear friend Linda. Lots of fun. We have a little mouse in our family with big ears and big eyes, the runt of the litter: Alex.

Sentinel, City of Destiny by Landel Bilbrey. I am reading a review copy of the book and I must say that my 2 little boys, 9 & 6 are enthralled. It is somewhat along the lines of Pilgrim's Progress. We read the chapter slowly discussing as we go. Andrew and Alex are great little boys to discuss books with. They make random jumps of logic into subjects yet to be discovered by philosophers. This has made reading this book a lot of fun.

Ambleside Time:

Little Pilgrims Progress
Anderson’s Fairy Tales
Asking Father
Pilgrim Stories

Morning Time Plans: November 2007

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Artist:
Da Vinci

Composer:
Tchaikovsky
(Taking a break from Rimsky-Korsakov but continuing with a Russian and longing for a little
melody.)

Folk Song:
Go Get an Ax

Star of the County Down

Shakespeare:
Measure for Measure

Plutarch:
Philopoemen with Anne White's notes

Bible Time:
The Book of Life: David and Absalom
Proverbs: one daily
Bite-Sized Theology

Finish learning John 1:1-14

Review:
Micah 6:8
Lord's Prayer
Habakkuk 3:17-19
12 Tribes of Israel
List of Judges

Hymns:
Continue learning: In Christ Alone

Review:
We Gather Together
Tender Mercies
Arise, Arise
Come Ye Thankful People Come
Bringing in the Sheaves
Now Thank We All Our God

Poetry:
Begin learning: The Lake Isle of Innisfree
and Where the Boats go for the little guys

Review:
How Did you Die? Cooke
Opportunity by Sill
Casey at the Bat
Sail On by Miller

Misc Memory:
Finish learning the Preamble
Read through the 27 amendments to the Constitution one a day

Review:
Planets
State Capitals
We Shall Fight by Winston Churchill
The Apostles Creed
Continents and Oceans

Read Aloud:
English Literature for Boys and Girls. We are on Dryden this week.
Famous Men of the Middle Ages. We are on Robert the Bruce.
A Little History of the World. This book is growing on me after a bad start.
Just David. This is growing on me also. I hope we can finish it in the next couple of weeks.
The Magician's Nephew. Finish this week.
Dave Barry Slept Here (edited by me) They were all picking it up and reading it so I thought it would be safer if I read it out loud. It is a little confusing for Alex.

Ambleside Time:
Russian Fairy Tales
Little Pilgrim's Progress
Asking Father. I keep avoiding this one.
Pilgrim Stories by Pumphrey and old favorite revisited.
A Thanksgiving Story in Vermont by Jeff Barth

Morning Time Plans: October 2007

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MORNING TIME PLANS FOR
First Week of October 2007

Artist:
Da Vinci

Composer:
Rimsky-Korsakov

Folk Song:
Go get an Ax,
Star of the County Down

Shakespeare:
Measure for Measure

Plutarch:
Demetrius

Bible Time
The Book of Life ( KJV Bible readings with supplements, photographs, fine art and poetry)
Bitesize Theology by Peter Jeffery (Thank-you, Just Janet! This is the perfect MT complement, tiny chapters on theological topics.) I just added the Amazon link to this book.
Proverbs

To Relearn daily: John 1:1-14

For review one each day:
III John 1:4

Is 40:28-31

III John 1:4

Is 40:28-31

Jude 1:20-25

Hymn Singing:

Arise, Arise: last week sing daily

For Review:
Brethren we Have Me to Worship (Ok, I realized as we sang this today that I don't LIKE this song. Do you?)

Bringing in the Sheaves

Brother’s Keeper (old Promise Keepers chorus)

Christ the Lord is Risen Today

Come Thou Fount

Poetry:

The Second Coming, repeat daily

For Review:

Autumn Fires by Robert Louis Stevenson

In the other gardens
And all up the vale,
From the autumn bonfires
See the smoke trail!

Pleasant summer over
And all the summer flowers,
The red fire blazes,
The grey smoke towers.

Sing a song of seasons!
Something bright in all!
Flowers in the summer,
Fires in the fall!

The Statue of Liberty Emma Lazarus

The Boy we Want (From the Book of Virtues by William Bennett)

The Creation Cecil Frances Alexander

Obedience to Parents Issac Watts

Misc. Memory

Preamble, Daily

Contemplate Samuel Adams

Declaration of Independence

Bill of Rights #1
Bill of Rights #2
Bill of Rights #3

Civics Lesson

Reading Aloud:

English Lit for Boys and Girls

Famous Men of the Middle Ages

A Little History of the World I am not ready to recommend this book although it is highly thought of elsewhere.

Fiction:
Just David
The verdict is still out on this one.

Ambleside Time:
My Book House Vol 1 & 2
Russian Fairy Tales
Little Pilgrims Progress
Anderson’s Fairy Tales
Asking Father

Morning Time Plans: August 2007

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MORNING TIME PLANS
August 200

Artist:

Da Vinci

Composer:
Downloaded from Eclassical
Rimsky-Korsakov

The above is the exact file I downloaded. I plan to just have it playing every morning for a while, offer some introductory information and that is all for now. Later I will try to come back and discuss the selections more fully with the children.

Folk Song:
Go Get an Ax
Star of the County Down

Shakespeare:
King Henry VIII

If you are paying attention you may notice that this was our play from last term. For the sake of honesty let me now admit with 2 weddings and a husband working out of town and a few more things besides, there never really was a last term. It happens. All the more reason to make hay while the sun shines. Which reminds me, it is going to be in the 100's all this week. I am so thankful for air conditioning. If you walk outside your breath gets sucked away.

Plutarch:
Demetrius

Ambleside Online is my source for the above selections.

Prayer Request:

Bible:

The Book of Life
Continue from where we last left off. I just read a page or two a day.

Bitesized Theology Great for discussion.

I am adding back in the reading of one Proverb daily since I am not satisfied that my younger children have absorbed as many Proverbs as my older children.

Review M-F:

II Timothy 2:5

Psalm 139

Hebrews 11:1-6

Psalm 4:4-8

Psalm150

Hymn Singing

Note: As the year goes along I am going to switch gears on our hymn singing to incorporate our church bulletin. You know you are going to a good church when you put the bulletin in a binder every week.

New Song to Learn:
Tender Mercies

Songs to review: M-F

A Mighty Fortress

Alas and Did my Saviour Bleed

All Creatures of our God and King

All Glory Laud and Honor

All Hail the Power

Poetry:
The Second Coming Yeats

Review M-F:
Nobility

Solitude

Friends, Romans, Countrymen..

Awaken

The Fools Prayer

Misc. Memory

To re-learn:
The Nicene Creed

Review M-F:
Planets

Give me Liberty

President's Bee

President's Bee

Planets

Reading Aloud:

English Lit for Boys and Girls

Gombrich's A Little History of the World

Fiction:

The Rose of Paradise Howard Pyle This might possibly be the rarest book I own and it come highly recommended by the Bluedorns.

Ambleside Time:

Slow and steady wins the race. Yes, these are the same books we were reading last year.

*Viking Tales
*Poetry
*My Book House
*Little Pilgrim's Progress

I know I have many new readers and I always get lots of questions whenever I post one of these. I don't mind at all answering questions but there is already a vast amount of info in my archives about this subject. Much of this list will stay the same through the whole term but the review work changes each week.

Morning Time Plans: January 2007

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After vacations and holidays we are finally back in the swing of having our regular Morning Time. I am going to try to be a little more detailed in this post than usual because I am getting new readers lately and homeschooling moms are getting to be so young I can hardly imagine it. I will give you the plans we completed this week along with next weeks plans.

January 2007

Artist: John Constable. Ambleside Online is doing Turner but frankly I like Constable better. Also you will find his name sprinkled about in English murder mysteries. I am terribly excited about this term's artist. I am ready to sell my house and begin my walking tour of the British Isles.

Composer:
Schumann.
Carnaval can be downloaded free here and Scenes from Childhood for Piano here. These wonderful, free resources came through on the Ambleside Online email list which I rarely have time to read but consider a source of unending goodies.

Folk Song: Minstrel Boy which the boys are enjoying far more than An English Country Garden (my favorite) or Scarborough Fair. I bought the Homestead Picker's CD years ago. It greatly simplifies this subject.

Shakespeare: We will be reading Henry VIII this term if we ever finish our current Plutarch reading. I think we all enjoyed Richard III and his name has become a new byword in our house which according to Josephine Tey he doesn't deserve.

Plutarch: Antony. This is a long life and it is taking us a long time. I find I can only read 2 pages of Plutarch at a time. The good thing about Antony is that his life is very familiar to all of the children so they get more out of it.

Bible Time: Read-alouds: The Book of Life Vol 3: The Life of David.
Bitesize Theology a book recommended by Janet.

Passage to memorize: last week we worked on Psalm 100 and this week we will work on Eph 6:10-18. I have been plowing through new passages with my younger children but I finally had to realize I needed to start all over with this group as if they never learned our review passages because they never had. I really struggled with making this decision but I have conceded the point for all our of memory work.

Review: Psalm 100, Psalm 104, Psalm 100, Phil 4:4-8, Psalm 121.

Hymns: Gloria Patri last week. A Mighy Fortress this week.
Review: Psalm 148, Beneath the Blood-stained Lintel, Navy Hymn( Eternal Father Strong to Save), Great is the Lord our God.

Poetry: Andrew & Alex :Who Has Seen the Wind by Rosseti Emily: The Creation by Cecil Francis Alexander Benjamin: The Charge of the Light Brigade. Colloquy with everyone: The Ballad of the White Horse by Chesterton.

Misc. Memory: The Declaration of Independence. Read aloud: Civics lesson. I go over a couple of these questions each MT.

Review: Preamble, Comtemplate by Sam Adams, West Point Cadet's Creed, Bill of Rights.

Read Alouds:

English Literature for Boys and Girls. We are on the Shakespeare chapters. Wonderful.
The Story of the Middle Ages : Almost finished.
The Princess and Curdie

Ambleside Time with Alex and Andrew:

Viking Tales
My Book House: In the Nursery and My Storytime

1 Petersham book. This week The Story Book of Oil.
Little Pilgrim's Progress
Dinosaur book by ICR Since we returned from our break I can't find this book but I will! At Ambleside Time Alex and Andrew sit on the couch with me and our stack of books. They take turns picking out books and then narrating. This is usually the last thing on my to-do list everyday which means many days it gets skipped which is a shame since Alex benefits greatly from it.

Morning Time Plans: September 2006

2008-09-19T14:01:00.030-07:00

Late September Morning Time Week:

Artist:

Bruegel:

Composer:

Mozart

Bassoon Concerto in B Flat

Folk Song:

Cockles and Mussels

Shakespeare:

Richard III

Plutarch:

Antony

Bible:

New Memory:
Proverbs 20:3
" It is an honour for a man to cease from strife but every fool will be meddling"

Don't ask!

Review:
Psalm 90
Books of the Old Testament
I Corinthians 4:16-18
Psalm 24

Hymns:
Veni, Veni in Latin

Review:
Unbounded Grace
What a Friend We Have in Jesus
When I Survey (tune 1)
When I Survey (tune 2)
Whiter Than Snow

Poetry:

The Crisis Thomas Paine (not actually poetry)

Review:
Horatius at The Bridge
The Charge of the Light Brigade (Tennyson)
The Arrow and the Song ( Longfellow)
Crossing the Bar (Tennyson)
Pretty Good ( Osgood)

Misc. Memory:
The Declaration of Independence through the 1st, "He has...."
The list of Biblical Judges
Civics Questions

Review:
Presidents Bee
States and Capitals Bee
We Shall Fight (Winston Churchill)
The Apostles Creed

Reading Aloud:
English Literature for Boys and Girls
The Story of the Middle Ages
Famous Men of the Middle Ages
The Princess and the Goblin

Ambleside Time with the little boys:
Viking Tales
Poetry (My Book House Vol 1)
My Book House vol 2 Stories
The Great Dinosaur Mystery and the Bible

Girltime:
They Loved to Laugh

Morning Time Plans: August 2006

2008-09-19T14:01:00.029-07:00

ARTIST: John William Waterhouse

COMPOSER: Mozart all music files downloaded from eclassical.

Piano Concerto 20 (2 weeks)

Symphony 40 (4 weeks)

Quintet in A maj for clarinet (2 weeks)

Piano Sonata in A maj K.331 (2 weeks)

Concerto for bassoon and orchestra in B-flat major, K. 191 (the only bassoon concerto he wrote)

FOLKSONG: Cockles & Mussels

SHAKESPEARE: Richard III

PLUTARCH: Antony

PRAYERTIME:

BIBLE: Daily: The Book of Life Vol 4 The Nation of Israel, Psalm or Proverb, Psalm 90 Continued from last year ( I am just not happy with our recall on this one.), Books of the NT.

REVIEW: John 14:1-7, John 14:1-7, John 14:21, John 14:21, Psalm 20.

HYMNS: King Alfred's War Song music by Kemper Crabb, Arr by Greg Wilbur

REVIEW: O Sacred Head, Saviour Like a Shepherd Lead Us, Softly & Tenderly(Ok, I just threw this one away), Soldiers of Christ Arise, Sound the Battle Cry.

POETRY: No new poem yet.

REVIEW: Horatius at the Bridge (2x's this week.) I finally got smart and recorded this onto my computer so I wouldn't have to read it everyday. It takes 20 minutes to read. Opportunity by Edward Sill, Casey at the Bat, Pussywillow.

MEMORYWORK: List of Biblical Judges Cont.from last year, Relearn Declaration of Indepencence to "He has...", Begin learning:

"These are the times that try men's souls: The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it Now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict the more glorius the triumph."

Thomas Paine, The Crisis -- December 1776

REVIEW: Bill of Rights #1, #2, Preamble, Contemplate by Samuel Adams.

READING ALOUD:

MORNING TIME:

The Story of the Middle Ages by Samuel Harding

Famous Men of the Middle Ages ( My own antique copy)

The Princess and the Goblin by George Macdonald

English Literature for Boys and Girls

AMBLESIDE TIME:

Viking Tales

My Book House

Various nursery rhymes and poems

The Story of Science Fabre

GIRLTIME:

They Loved to Laugh by Kathryn Worth<

Morning Time Plans: February 2006

2008-09-19T14:01:00.028-07:00

Artist:
Vermeer ( I haven't done a thing about Vermeer yet this term except notice that the John Cleese Taming of the Shrew movie reminded me of a Vermeer.)

Composer:
Henry Purcell, Baroque:
(Same with Purcell as Vermeer, his music is not online at eclassical so I must order a cd.)

Folk Song:
English Country Garden

Shakespeare:
A Winter’s Tale

Plutarch:
Aemillus Paulus ( about 1/2 way finished with this.)

Prayer Requests

READ: Valley of Vision prayer daily

Pray for the Embree family in MD whose son Ethan appears to have drowned.

Bible Time
Psalm 90

Review:

Matthew 11:28-30
Matthew 16: 24-28
I Chron 4:9-10 ( Yes, the prayer of Jabez. Hey, it is in the bible and better to know it first hand than through a book.)
Books of OT

The Book Of Life: Judges

Hymn Singing

Psalm 48 (NEW)

Review:
Jesus Shall Reign
Joyful, Joyful
Just as I am
Lead On O King Eternal
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms

Poetry

Horatius at the Bridge

Review:
The Road Not Taken
Frost

The Pasture
Frost

The Village Blacksmith Longfellow

Paul Revere’s Ride
Longfellow

Requiem
RLS

Misc. Memory
Bill of Rights : All Week

Reading Aloud:

The Story of the Romans 2 chaps a day

English Lit for Boys and Girls

Fiction:

Hostage to Alexander
Hugenot Garden

Ambleside Time:

50 Famous Stories
( Finish this week)

Girltime:

Little Women ( Remember I plod.)

Morning Time Plans: January 2006

2008-09-19T14:01:00.027-07:00

Morning Time plans for a week in January 2006:

Artist:
Vermeer

Composer:
Henry Purcell
Baroque

Folk Song:
English Country Garden

Shakespeare:
A Winter’s Tale

Plutarch:
Aemillus Paulus

Bible Time:
Psalm 33
Book of Life
Proverbs
Books of OT ( for Bible Drill program at church)

Review:
(I have decided to take 2 or 3 days per review verses for better retention)

Dueteronomy 17:1-28
Matthew 5:3-16
Ruth 1:16 &17

Hymn Singing:

New: Any Suggestions?

Review:

O God our Help in Ages Past
Great is Thy Faithfulness
Hallelujah, What a Saviour
Higher Ground
Himself

Poetry

Horatius at the Bridge

Review:
Hamlet’s Soliloquy
History Poem
Noblitiy
Solitude
Marc Antony’s Speech

Misc. Memory:

Review:

We Shall Fight
The Apostles Creed
Continents and Oceans
Heidelberg Catechism 1
Ambleside Creed

Reading Aloud
The Story of the Romans
English Lit for Boys and Girls
Opal Wheeler Bio of Beethoven

Fiction:
Hostage to Alexander
Hugenot Garden

Ambleside Time:
The House at Pooh Corner (finished)
Now We are Six
50 Famous Stories

Girltime:
Little Women

Morning Time Plans: October 2005

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MORNING TIME PLANS FOR THE WEEK OF :
Begin: October 27

Artist/
Composer

Beethoven:
Piano music:
Emporer, Sonatas 8 & 14

Hudson River Valley Artists

Shakespeare:
Othello

Plutarch:
Timoleon

Folk Song:
The Outlandish Knight

Bible Time
Book of Life ( Joshua leading Israel into the promised land)

Psalm 33

Review:
Micah 6:8

Habakkuk 3:17-19

12 Tribes of Israel

Books of OT

Books of NT

Hymn Singing

Psalm 119X

(Begin practicing Latin Christmas songs)

Review:

Coram Deo

Count Your Blessings

Crown Him With Many Crowns

Dwelling in Beulah Land

Face to Face

Poetry:
Begin:
Horatius at the Bridge

Review:

The Destruction of Sennacharib

A Little Broher Follows Me

Breathes by Sir Walter Scott

King Alfred’s War Song

Recessional by Kipling

Misc. Memory:

Polite Moments Book 2 (Finish)

Review:
Amendment 2 & 3

Amendment 4 & 5

Amendment 6 & 7

Amendment 8 & 9

Amendment 10

Reading Aloud :

*The Story of the Romans

*English Literature for Boys and Girls ( I am loving this one!)

* Friendly Gables ( You were right, Jeannine, the kids insisted on moving on to this book.)

* SOTW

* A Child's geography

Ambleside Time Reading :

*50 Famous Stories
*The House at Pooh Corner
*Now We Are Six

Girltime:
*Little Women

Morning Time Plans: September 2005

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MORNING TIME PLANS FOR THE WEEK OF :
September 19

SUBJECT
Beethoven’s 5th Symphony ( last week)

Hudson River Valley Artists Thomas Cole Voyage of Life (4 Paintings)

Shakespeare: Othello

Plutarch: Timoleon

Folk Song: The Outlandish Knight

Bible Time: Psalm 33
Book of Life
Review:
Psalm 150
Hebrews 12: 1-7
Proverbs 4:20-27
I John 4:1-11
Proverbs 20:11

Hymn Singing: Psalm 119 X
Review:
America The Beautiful
And Can It Be
As The Deer
Be Still My Soul
Beneath the Cross

Poetry :
Gilbert & Sullivan: I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General
Review:
Crossing the Bar
The First Thanksgiving
Pretty Good
Mist and All
Mr Meant-To

Misc. Memory:
Polite Moments Book 2
Review:
Gettysburg Address
Give Me Liberty
Presidents
Planets
State & Capitals

Reading Aloud :

*The Story of the Romans

*English Literature for Boys and Girls

* The Story of Mankind ( Conquest part 2)

*The Wheel on the School

*SOTW

*A Child’s Geography

Ambleside Time Reading :

Trial and Triumph

50 Famous Stories

Winnnie the Pooh

Girltime:

Little Women

Morning Time Plans August 2005

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MORNING TIME PLANS FOR THE WEEK OF
August 15-19
SUBJECT MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY

Beethoven’s 5th Symphony ( 4 Weeks)

Hudson River Valley Artists

(Term 1)
Shakespeare: Much Ado About Nothing

Plutarch: Timoleon

Bible Time
Book of Life

Review:
I Cor 13

II Cor 4:16-18

Psalm 42

II Cor. 10:5

Psalm 100

Eph 6:10-18

Hymn Singing
More Secure is No one Ever
Tune: Children of the Heavenly Father

Review:

Psalm 148 & Psalm 46 C
Beneath the Blood-Stained Lintel
Navy Hymn
Great is the Lord Our God
Psalm 98

Poetry
Gilbert & Sullivan:I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major General
Review:

Keep a’ Goin’, The Gift

Be Strong

Trees

How Did You Die?

Opportunity

Misc. Memory
Polite Moments
Review:

Presidents
Planets
States
We Shall Fight Winston Churchill
The Apostle’s Creed

Reading Aloud
*Our Island Story( Finish this week) Then begin English Literature for Boys & Girls

*The Story of the Romans

* The Story of Mankind ( Conquest part 2)
* How’s Inky

*The Wheel on the School

*SOTW

Ambleside Time Reading :

Trial and Triumph

Tanglewood Tales

50 Famous Stories

Winnnie the Pooh

Girltime:

Little Women
Bible Study

(Please forgive the formating. I tried to copy/paste from my working sheet)

Books for Boys: The Middle Grades

2008-09-19T14:01:00.023-07:00

In the comments to the Boys Will Be Boys post there is some discussion on what are good books for boys.

Carmon warned against too much fantasy and science fiction. We do read both genres but carefully. Lloyd Alexander is a favorite around here although I must admit I have shied away from Madeleine L'Engle, I forget why.

The Deputy Headmistress and others suggested the new Dangerous Book for Boys along with Ernest Thomas Seton books most especially Two Little Savages.

Linda mentioned good biographies. When Timothy was 5 I began reading out loud "The Story Of" books. We had a blast reading about Dan Beard, Winston Churchill and others. These are not generally recommended for young boys and I suppose they are probably written with a 4-6th grader in mind but we both have good memories of those days.

Instead of listing all the wonderful books for boys we have found over the years, and I am sure I have written about this before, today I will just list a few of the authors or series we have enjoyed.

The Sugar Creek Gang, older edition. I highly recommend these books. They are quite compelling and enjoyable and their simple values are often a jolt to the modern reader. PLEASE avoid the updates. They lose all the charm of the originals.

Albert Terhune Payson
Walt Morey
Jim Kjelgaard
Jack O'Brien's Silver Chief books are among the best.
Walter Farley

The Great Brain series although I say this with some caution. The Great Brain in the hands of a middle school boy can create a monster.

The Ambleside Online lists are full of great books for boys. Most classics mentioned for this age group are there for a reason.

Howard Pyle, a not-to-be-missed author including Men of Iron.

I don't really own very many Christian fiction books for boys. I just can't get excited about those books where they have a famous missionary as part of some exciting plot. I may be wrong about that. We have enjoyed a few Robert Elmer books over the years and I mean that we really have enjoyed them. Maybe others can suggest recent Christian publishing successes. On the other hand almost anything from Inheritance Publications is great, especially their Scout series or their Meindert DeJong books.

We like GA Henty, not in large doses or the plots begin to muddle but he really is a great author for boys.

Years ago BJU Press put out several wonderful books that have become family favorites:
A Place for Peter and any books by Elizabeth Yates.
The Stolen Years by Gloria Repp
Zoli's Legacy and sequels,
In Search of Honor...to name a few.
I commend BJU Press on their great selection of repubs.

James Daughtery
Robert Lawson
Rosemary Sutcliff
Joseph Altsheler
Allen French....do not miss Allen French.
Stephen Meader..don't miss him either.

Black Fox of Lorne and many others by Marguerite de Angeli.

Christian Liberty Press is also a great place to look for manly books including Iron Scouts of the Conferderacy by Lee McGiffen. My boys have gone on to read more about John Singleton Mosby after reading Iron Scouts.

Reading aloud Childhood of Famous Americans is a great way to get boys interested in historical figures at a young age. Our favorites are Francis Marion, William Penn and Thomas Jackson.

And finally one more great publisher of books for boys: Bethlehem Books.

The problem with recommending books is the same now as it was in Solomon's time. Of the making of books there is no end. This is a sadly incomplete list which basically covers 3rd -7th grades. I am sure I haven't even scratched the surface but for those of you just hitting these years for the first time this should get you started.

I can already feel myself thumping my forehead because I forgot to mention a wonderful book.