I've definitely maxed out on the homeschool conferences for now. Attending them was extremely helpful for me - so helpful that I don't need any more help for a while. I'm really starting to feel like I can do this.
As I mentioned, Susan Wise Bauer and her mother Jessie Wise spoke at the most recent conference. They are the co-authors of The Well Trained Mind: A Guide to Classical Education at Home. (I waited to buy it at the conference, thinking I'd get a discount. I did, but they still couldn't beat Amazon's price. Damn.) Susan Wise Bauer's keynote address was an inspiring and enjoyable talk about how parents can and should remain intellectuals. I attended 3 of Jessie Wise's presentations. She wasn't the greatest speaker, but I did enjoy her talk, "The Good Reader: Teaching Reading from Birth On." It was especially relevant because...
Samantha is ready to start learning to read!
We've started playing Starfall, a free online phonics game. (Thanks, Rational Jenn!) Sam can't work the mouse yet, so I do it for her. (Any recommendations for games to help her learn the mouse?) She started picking up the letter sounds quickly, and I can see the light bulb going on when the game puts letters together and sounds out the words. She loves it, and she's spending even more time "reading" her books lately. I'm sure we'll continue to use Starfall, but I want to be methodical about phonics so I'm quickly trying to find a more formal program to use with her. The first step is continuing to teach her all the letter sounds, but even there, if I hadn't had Starfall's help, I would have been telling her that "t" says "tuh" instead of just the first part of that sound, just the "t" part. I want to make sure I do this right.
Jessie Wise has a program called The Ordinary Parent's Guide to Teaching Reading. Based on her lecture and flipping through the book at the conference, it seems to be very well thought-out, but not very flexible. It gives a full script for the parent/teacher to follow. I suppose I could adjust it. It's also a very inexpensive option, so it's at the top of my list right now.
I also bought a used copy of The Writing Road to Reading, based on a recommendation for this "Spalding Method" of learning to read. It is a phonics-based program, but you do writing and spelling right along with the learning of the phonemes. I skimmed the book and the approach didn't appeal to me. I know Sam is not able to write letters yet; she just drew her first triangle a few days ago! However, I might use the instruction for writing the letters when the time comes later. It is very precise and the method is highly structured which I think is important.
I did a bit of research on the Internet but didn't see anything that struck me as better than the Ordinary Parents guide. Since we have Starfall for free, I'm not looking for a game-based program or any bells and whistles. I also don't clearly understand what Sam will be doing at Montessori in the fall. I know about the sandpaper letters, but I think she'll move quickly beyond that. If you have a suggestion for a good phonics program, please let me know.
Of course, the first thing I did after the conference was to start reading "The Well Trained Mind." I've only read the first few chapters but I know that I am going to use this book as my homeschooling bible. This is the structure that I've been looking for! Although I don't agree with all aspects of Classical Education, it does have the 2 most important elements at its core: hierarchy and a focus on teaching content (facts), especially in the early years.
It respects the hierarchy of knowledge by using history as a guide to the order of learning, which is what Lisa VanDamme does at her school (though probably not in the exact way outlined in WTM). Subjects are studied in historical order, but you spiral through history a few times during the 12 years, getting to deeper levels with each pass. So, for example, you would teach biology in grades 1, 5, and 9, each time presenting more advanced material. (If you're interested in this approach, I repeat my enthusiastic recommendation of Ms. VanDamme's lecture course, The Role of Hierarchy in Education.)
The focus on content comes from something called the Trivium, the ancient Greek method consisting of 3 stages of learning: grammar, dialectic, and rhetoric, which are geared to the abilities of the mind at that stage. The grammar stage emphasizes the memorization of facts, the dialectic stage teaches logic, and the rhetoric stage moves into argument, debate, and written expression.
I don't buy the sharp distinctions of the Trivium, but I do agree that students must first learn facts before they have any ability to analyze, let alone to express formal opinions. The most damning thing about standard schools is not their propaganda or lack of academic rigor, but the demented methodology that asks a 3nd grader to write an essay on his opinion of the United Nations. This emphasis on "self expression" is not just pointless; it teaches children that ideas have no connection to facts. Is it any surprise that college students seem to be a bunch of know-it-all know-nothings? That's exactly what we've asked them to be from grade 1.
So I do think the general course of Classical Education makes sense, but I would put it differently: First you must have data, then you must move to more abstract knowledge using reason, then you must learn how to work with those abstract ideas to come up with your own insights and learn how to apply all of this knowledge to further your own life. I probably won't keep the stages as distinct as would be done in true Classical Education, and I don't see "logic" and "rhetoric" as the ultimate focus of the later stages - just as added elements. I'm sure I'll incorporate all kinds of other ideas into my homeschooling as time goes on.
This last conference also cemented my intention to teach Samantha Latin starting in 4th grade or so. I don't plan to teach her any other foreign languages as part of her core education, though she could do that as extracurricular study. Adam and I are excited to learn Latin right along with Sam. We'll probably do that work in the evenings as a family. How great is that!
So, I feel like my new career as homeschooler has officially begun, and I'm much more excited about it than I ever thought I would be. Somehow, all my bouncing around in life has brought me to this fantastic place. I'm really not sure how that happened.
I'm so glad you wrote this post! I've just begun my homeschooling research and am so glad you mentioned some resources.
ReplyDeleteMy husband and I have talked about moving to CA in order for our son to attend the VanDamme Academy, but I'm not so sure that I am willing to move across the country. I'd like to implement Ms. VanDamme's ideas into a homeschooling program of my own. I agree with you, her lectures are very valuable!
I hope you'll keep posting about resources and what you learn. I'd love any suggestions and advice that you have to share.
PP: I plan to document a lot of my thoughts and decisions here, so stay tuned!
ReplyDeleteI also longed for Lisa VanDamme's curriculum, and I still do, but after immersing myself in the homeschooling world, I know that I can design something that works for us. I felt really lost until I saw how closely WTM correlates with Ms. VanDamme's ideas. I just know that those two sources will be enough to guide me.
One thing that I don't think is part of Classical Education but which I feel strongly about is Ms. VanDamme's policy of "testing" by essay for everything, including math. As soon as Sam can write at all, she will write essays. Also, since this is homeschool, a lot of the "testing" will just be oral examination, especially in the early years. I don't foresee much other testing at all.
I can feel your excitement. I totally agree that learning facts has to come before logic and argument. Dad might be worried that you are going to make Samantha an" intellectual". I think he doesn't believe being intellectual is the be-all end -all of knowing about matters. Your assessment of college graduates and the idea that views from the university are better than others helps to make him think so.
ReplyDeleteI am of the belief that Latin is not a spoken language. Because we had such a difficult time with spoken Spanish more than the written Spanish while in Mexico, I would argue that learning a second spoken language would be more beneficial. Maybe you could adopt a Chinese or Mexican family and you, as a family, learn their language and they yours instead of devoting time to the Latin. Your library might have a literacy program through which you could do so.
Interesting comments, Mom. I'm not sure what Dad means about me thinking views from the university are better than others. I certainly do not. I think most of the ideas coming from universities are crap. Maybe it wasn't clear that I said that college grads think they know everything, but really they know nothing. And the intellectuals coming out of graduate schools are the reason our educational system is as bad as it is. But that doesn't mean that education is worthless. Don't thow the baby out with the bathwater!
ReplyDeleteAs for Latin, we won't speak it. We want to learn it, and teach it to Sam, for 2 main reasons: 1) It's like learning math. It trains your mind to work in a logical, analytical way. It also requires attention to detail and precision. Not all subjects require this type of thinking. 2) It is a huge benefit for English spelling and vocabulary, as you probably know yourself. We'll probably only study it for 2-3 years.
Learning a second, spoken language is a good thing, but I don't consider it to be part of the core of a good education. Sam might do it on her own. I would love to learn Italian, but I don't see any point unless I can find a way to keep speaking it regularly, since if you don't use it, you lose it.
One thing to understand about homeschooling is that it doesn't take up an entire "school day" to learn everything I plan to teach. Sam will have loads more free time than most kids, to explore her individual interests, pursue "non-intellectual" activities, and learn about life skills and careers. In fact, I want to write more about the last point, so I'll expand on that in a separate post. Actually, I might have to include all of this in a new post. Thanks for the comments!
[...] Mossoff presents The Right Way to Begin posted at The Little Things, saying, “A chapter in my continuing journey towards [...]
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting this. I recently offered to help a family member teach one of her children to read. I've never done anything like that before, so I checked out some phonics DVDs from the library and started researching stuff online. The materials I got from the library were *woefully* inadequate, and my web search had been fruitless thus far. I decided to ask my buddy Mr. Google if he knew anything about "objectivism phonics teaching recommendation," and guess what came up at the top of the list? :D
ReplyDeleteAfter spending a half-hour checking out Starfall, I now have hope!
--Dan Edge
Dan, I think that might be my first real Google success story, so thanks! Since this post, we've continued to play Starfall almost every day, and Sam is making great progress. There are a few things that I feel I need to do to supplement what she gets from Starfall, like saying words and saying, "What is the first sound of this word? What letter makes that sound?" I'm currently reading Montessori Read and Write by Lynn Lawrence which seems to be filling in the gaps. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteI too use The Well Trained Mind as my homeschooling "bible". But before you fully embrace the book and it's ideologies, you might want to check out Lisa VanDammes article, "The False Promise of Classical Education". She doesn't exactly rip on the book but she's not full of warm fuzzies about it either. I'm currently re reading her "hierarchy" article and trying to grasp the fine points that differentiate TWTM approach and VanDamme's own.
ReplyDeleteConnie, Thanks! I have read that article and agree with Ms. VanDamme. The thing is, TWTM seems to have the framework closest to what I want to do, and I really need a starting point to build from. I'm actually in the middle of listening to Lisa VanDamme's lecture course on Motivation in Education, which makes it clear how different her approach is from Classical Education. I've learned a lot since I wrote this post, and I'm sure I'll learn a lot more as I go.
ReplyDelete