Great Books

We read a lot in our little school house. Our school day consists of reading at least 4 different living books. Living books in a nutshell are full of "beautiful expression", tales that are "well told", full of "worthy thoughts" and "inspiring ideas and pictures of life." The ideas of living books are "sparks of truth passed from a great thinker to another mind." We have learned about birds based on the Burgess Bird Book. We are learning history based on Our Island Story and A Child's History of the World. We are learning natural science based on the Burgess Animal Book. We have learned some geography from Paddle to the Sea. We are learning about salvation not just from the bible (which is great literature) but by reading Pilgrim's Progress as well. Charlotte Mason believed that we learn more by reading great literature than by memorizing facts from textbooks that can sometimes be very dry. Great literature can inspire great character in our children as well. This is just a very broad overview of her teaching philosophies that we use in our home. Her teaching philosophies are written in a six volume set and I am only on Volume One!! Because I LOVE to read, one of the best parts about the CM style of homeschooling is her passion for reading great literature. Not twaddle as she calls it. She believed that little minds are capable of so much. Most of the books we read were written at the turn of the century. The language can be difficult at times. But as the school days progress, I notice a rhythm in reading and an understanding of the language starting to dawn on not just the kids but me as well. We get it. We understand it. We are learning to appreciate it. I was prompted to write this post today because we just finished reading one great book The Lion's Paw and are reading another great book called Understood Betsy. The Lion's Paw is an adventure story that taught us about Florida geography, shells and boats. All of the kids loved it even the 3 year old. Understood Betsy is a book originally published in 1917 and it is a "warm and charming portrayal of life in the early 1900s" centered around a nine year old girl. Nature Girl and I both love this one so much we are thinking about naming baby number four Elizabeth Ann (if it is a girl :) who is the main character. I pray that for all the time we spend reading during the day that at least one of my children will develop a passion for reading great works of literature . . .