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NMMountainMom
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| Posted: Jan 07 2011 at 1:26pm | IP Logged
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I do love CM philosophy, however, lately I've been wondering if its really good to have so many books going at once. I like to really concentrate on one book at a time. Is it different for children? Thoughts?
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Grace&Chaos
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| Posted: Jan 07 2011 at 1:48pm | IP Logged
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I like your question. We just started a very much CM style of learning and found that my girls have several books going at once. I think it bothered me more than them at first, but I started doing the same and found that I can pick right where I left off in any book I've got going.
The girls each have a basket where they keep their current book reads and I'd say book markers have become a staple around here. They each have about 4 to 5 going at once. (history, natural science, science biography/topic, Shakespeare/poetry, literature and an optional fun read) (we're just talking living books, I'm not including any text book style materials in my list)
Come to think of it so do my boys. I have a basket for them that are read alouds and I currently have Winnie the Pooh, Hans Christian Anderson, Real Mother Goose and Tomei DePaola's Bible Stories. We read a couple of pages per week in each. Their attention span is still low but I haven't seen a problem with remembering the previous reading session.
I'll be looking forward to some more wisdom from others on this topic and Ms. Mason's thoughts  .
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folklaur
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This is something I struggle with too. It is also a major reason I don't use Sonlight anymore.
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Jan 15 2011 at 10:04pm | IP Logged
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NMMountainMom wrote:
| I do love CM philosophy, however, lately I've been wondering if its really good to have so many books going at once. I like to really concentrate on one book at a time. Is it different for children? Thoughts? |
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I'm trying to fit this in quickly before the boards close.
Briefly, I think it can be good, but CM's methods call for a slow, methodical, consistent pace through a liberal (wide and generous) curriculum, so you'd need to consider the breadth of books in light of that.
A 5th grader won't be reading from as many books as a 10th grader might be.
Additionally, students in CM's schools might work their way slowly through a book over a year or even two. Her students were exposed to a variety and this allowed them exposure to that "wide and generous" school of thought that provided a liberal education.
Personally, my kids enjoy reading from a variety of books all at once. They aren't confused or befuddled by the number of books, and our ongoing narration/discussion keeps me involved as well, so I enjoy it too. I also see, especially in my older students, how they begin to cross-connect when reading multiple books.
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NMMountainMom
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| Posted: Jan 19 2011 at 10:52am | IP Logged
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Thanks for the replies. I think the other issue I'm having with my 7 year old in particular is that he is NOT an auditory learner. He remembers what he reads independently well, but when I read aloud he doesn't seem to process it. I have decided to decrease the number of books we have going at once so that he is not overwhelmed. The 13 year old, however, doesn't seem to have a problem with reading several books at once. I think he appreciates the variety.
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Mackfam
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| Posted: Jan 19 2011 at 3:07pm | IP Logged
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NMMountainMom wrote:
Thanks for the replies. I think the other issue I'm having with my 7 year old in particular is that he is NOT an auditory learner. He remembers what he reads independently well, but when I read aloud he doesn't seem to process it. I have decided to decrease the number of books we have going at once so that he is not overwhelmed. The 13 year old, however, doesn't seem to have a problem with reading several books at once. I think he appreciates the variety.
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There seem to be a lot of non-auditory threads going on right now. You might find some good ideas here - Narration- Non/Auditory.
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Jen Mackintosh
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Lisbet
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Mackfam wrote:
| I also see, especially in my older students, how they begin to cross-connect when reading multiple books. |
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I LOVE this!! Especially when the children are reading books that cross-connect with books their siblings are reading and the discussions that result! We've experienced a lot of this lately. LOVE!
Personally, I can't juggle more than one book at once assimilate what I read, but I do juggle my own reading along with keeping up with the many books my (many!) children are reading...
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cheesehead mom
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One problem I run into is it takes forever for my 9th grader to finish books when he is reading multiple books daily--a problem if you are using the library and the books become due!
Laura
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| Posted: Jan 27 2011 at 6:13am | IP Logged
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I answered so hastily in my first post, I wanted to come back and speak a little more to the benefits of reading across a wide and generous curriculum.
NMMountainMom wrote:
| I do love CM philosophy, however, lately I've been wondering if its really good to have so many books going at once. I like to really concentrate on one book at a time. Is it different for children? Thoughts? |
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I have several books that my 9th grader is savoring, a little at a time, throughout this entire year. I've seen some wonderful benefits of that!
One of these year-long-to-be-savored books she is reading is The Invention of Clouds by Richard Hamblyn, a very intriguing biography (and a little meteorological science) of Luke Howard, a 19th century man that first classified clouds. Some books would become dry and weighty reading through it chapter after chapter in a day, or over a week. Focusing on that book alone in a curriculum could be dull and lifeless. Not every book is like that - some are quite delicious, and the slow and careful reading assignments are there to help the child not gluttonously consume its pages. In reading once and narrating, the story takes shape on the pages and in their minds eye - it's about savoring!
Back to the book...my dd began The Invention of Clouds back in July and is still consistently working her way through it. This term she's also reading Emma by Jane Austen. She uncovered one of those cross-connections we're so fond of and conveyed it during a narration- Mr. Howard, the subject of the biography she's been slowly and consistently savoring, apparently met Ms. Jane Austen herself. My daughter was very intrigued with the possibility of the brief meeting, and the impact that might have had on Ms. Austen's writing (for it seems that after their meeting Ms. Austen wrote more of "the weather" in her novels). It inspired my dd to write a delightful fictional account of how she imagined the meeting to take place between these two figures.
Additionally, through her narrations of The Invention of Clouds, she recalled certain names of literary figures she noted were common with other names (that she found to be unusual) from another piece of literature she read at the beginning of the year, The Ballad of the White Horse. It's always interesting to me when she narrates and cross-connects, or draws parallels to other pieces of literature.
All this -- the cross-connection, the familiarity with the figures, the setting, the culture of the 19th century, as well as the relaxed time to write her inspired vision of a brief meeting between a scientist and a literary figure she enjoys -- all come from the delightful, relaxed pace of reading across a wide and generous curriculum that this type of education affords a child.
A couple of keys to this approach working rather than feeling like a rushed jaunt past a gazillion different books:
** Slow, consistent pace - in the example above of The Invention of Clouds, my dd has been reading 6 pages, twice a week (this varies a bit from term to term). Some books she moves through more quickly, completing in a term.
** NARRATION is the KEY! She won't remember the story, nor will she have related to it, her own experiences and observations, without narrating.
** The connections must be hers to uncover. I don't provide a list or briefing of how and why all these books, their characters, and the cultures at large might be related. I simply choose living books from a period of history for her to read. She discovers the rest through the relationships she makes in her reading.
cheesehead mom wrote:
One problem I run into is it takes forever for my 9th grader to finish books when he is reading multiple books daily--a problem if you are using the library and the books become due!
Laura |
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That IS tough, especially if you're borrowing from the library and would like your child to slowly savor a book (or group of books) for an entire year.
I think the challenge you speak of, Laura, does come into play a good bit with older students reading a variety of books that are meatier and longer. I also see it coming in to play with read-alouds that are meatier and usually longer chapter books that are best savored a little at a time. I find that picture books, which I do read to all of my students, even my high schooler, are wonderful for borrowing and returning in a timely manner...but longer, meatier reads need to be available much longer so that one doesn't feel rushed to complete them.
I have to confess, we don't have a good library system here, therefore, our selection of books comes from our home library, half of which I was blessed to "inherit" from my mom when she finished homeschooling, and the other half I just slowly build one term at a time. I'm hopeful that those that make regular use of their fantastic library systems might have some ideas for you!!
I certainly don't want to encourage you to step outside of your family budget, and I know that some budgets can be SUPER tight! I tend to purchase books in increments, making use of very inexpensive used books I find at thrift stores, library discard sales, and used book websites online.
- I come up with an exhaustive booklist for the entire year, for each student at the beginning of the year.
- When planning I first make use of the books already on my shelves. Since I'm very scrutinizing and careful in my book acquisitions, those books in our home library are tried and true - classics, true living books. This means they work well across the board. This also means that generally, other than a few simple additions, most book purchases will be for the oldest student. It helps to think of it that way rather than thinking that you have to buy all those books for every.single.child.
- In looking at my booklist, I begin to break it down based on
- books that will be read slowly across the year
- those that will be read in a single term
- I come up with a purchasing plan for books based on my booklists. By being frugal with my dollar and finding good used sources, I can usually acquire books needed in a timely way, and this allows me to purchase those books that will be read for the year at the outset of the year, and stagger the rest of my purchases if that is needed by our budget.
Had some other ideas for building a home library in a frugal way....
- Start a local book-swap -- free books only. You'd be amazed how many gems you can pick up this way. Just provide your driveway on a nice-ish day of the year and ask everyone to bring extra books they no longer need/want on their shelves in boxes. Set the boxes out. You might even set out a small table with coffee and tea and cookies - and voila! Book exchange! I did this at our annual All Saints Party this past year. It was a huge hit, and I found some wonderful treasures.
- Local libraries have book discard sales and these often contain amazing books for a dime or a quarter. Local thrift stores and flea markets can be great resources as well. By far, my best resource is making use of online sources to purchase inexpensive used books.
- Borrowing could be a good option if you have other families willing. Our local group does this via our yahoo group - folks just request particular titles.
I have no idea if you were looking for some ideas on this, Laura, but I thought I'd throw some out since I've heard people ask about that before.
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Jen Mackintosh
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Wildflowers and Marbles
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Bridget
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I have found that my olders, maybe 10 and up, can juggle multiple books and make connections. The younger ones do better, retain more, when we do one book at a time. So for example, I don't have a science and saint book going at the same time. We'll finish one before starting the other. The only exception is daily Bible reading.
Wow, Jen's post above has so much helpful info, it should be made a sticky somewhere!
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4Real Forums : Philosophy of Education
Topic: Too many books at once?
