Although Epi Kardia doesn’t sell  math curricula, we have taught a lot of math over the years! Someone recently asked me what math curriculum I would recommend, and I hesitated answering because it seems as though there is a new program out every week! Whichever program you choose to use, here are a few ideas about  teaching math effectively, some living book recommendations on mathematical topics, as well as a few fantastic free resources you will not want to miss!

Charlotte Mason on Math

The practical value of arithmetic to persons in every class of life goes without remark. But the use of the study in practical life is the least of its uses. The chief value of arithmetic, like that of the higher mathematics, lies in the training it affords the reasoning powers, and in the habits of insight, readiness, accuracy, intellectual truthfulness it engenders.

Charlotte Mason advocated lots more talking about how we use arithmetic and math in our daily lives, rather than just making our students work endless problems. (Our modern equivalent to her slate is our worksheet.)  We must help our children connect arithmetic with real life situations. Cooking, measuring, telling time, traveling, buying groceries and even just cutting pizza are all routine activities perfect for incorporating ‘math’ conversations – and don’t forget to combine living books with your math study!

(Incidentally, my children have always had a miraculous ability with math when it comes to figuring out how to divide any dessert into an equal number of pieces so no one receives more than anyone else.)

Help Your Students See Math

We recommend a program that emphasizes mastery of concepts, beginning with manipulative use in the primary years for hands-on learning. It takes children a while to connect numbers with concepts. We know that the number 3 stands for three items, but young children need to learn this, and they aren’t all ready to grasp this concept at the same age.  Using buttons, toothpicks (be careful if you have littler ones around!), soup cans, M&Ms, blocks, or any other smaller objects can be extremely helpful in helping your child understand what numbers mean.  Especially as your child begins to learn arithmetic operations, it is very helpful to use manipulatives to illustrate problems. Continuing the use of manipulatives past the primary years is helpful for many students.

Another way to help your students see math is through making mini-books.  If you are not familiar with those, reading this post might help.  This photo on the right is a math fact mini-book we made.  These are ‘mini matchbooks’  in Dinah Zike-speak.    The math fact questions are on the outside and you lift the flap and look inside for the answer.

Making mini-books helps children with different learning styles as they are colorful, kinesthetic and provide a fun way to review.  My sweet friend Jimmie found this fantastic free resource: Dinah Zike’s Teaching Mathematics with Foldables. All of you Epi Kardia users have at least one Dinah Zike title in your library, I am sure, so you will be as delighted as I was to be able to download this 102 page tool for free!  Thank you, Jimmie!

One of the best things you can do for your children, especially if they tend to be more spatial in the way they learn, is to help them see the patterns in arithmetic.  One way to do this is encourage them to frequently count by twos, threes, fives, etc.  Additionally, using a one hundred number chart is very useful to help them identify number patterns.

As we approach the end of the school year and move into the summer, it is a beneficial time to review your math facts to get ready for next year.  Memorization of addition and subtraction facts by the end of 2nd grade promotes ease in dealing with 3rd grade concepts.  The same is true for memorization of multiplication and division facts by the end of 3rd grade in preparation for 4th – if your children are ready, of course. Gently practicing math facts throughout the summer is a helpful strategy for most elementary aged students!

Study Math through Living Books

Don’t forget to incorporate living books into your study of arithmetic and mathematics!  Reading about the real people behind the math helps bring it alive, as Charlotte Mason relates:

How interesting Arithmetic and Geometry might be if we gave a short history of their principal theorems, if the child were meant to be present at the labours of a Pythagoras, a Plato, a Euclid, or in modern times, of a Descartes, a Pascal, or a Leibnitz. Great theories instead of being lifeless and anonymous abstractions would become living human truths each with its own history like a statue by Michael Angelo or like a painting by Raphael.”

For the child that thinks she ‘hates’ math, letting her read as part of the math lesson might really help her learn to enjoy it more.  Here are some of our favorite living books with mathematical themes – check them out by clicking on the images.

Do you have any particular books that you would like to add that helped your students with understanding mathematical concepts?  If so, please leave the title(s) in our comments section below!  Thanks!

Blessings on your math studies!

An extensive knowledge of the exact meanings of English words accompanies outstanding success in this country more often than any other single characteristic we have been able to isolate and measure. —Research Scientist Johnson O’Connor

An extensive vocabulary is a valuable tool that will help your children in every arena of their lives: academically, vocationally and socially.  An excellent vocabulary will improve one’s ability to comprehend other’s ideas,  understand the ‘grammar’ of a field of study, and to better articulate one’s own thoughts, opinions and beliefs. In our family, the development of an excellent vocabulary is one of the benefits of a Charlotte Mason education that we have observed firsthand.

How is Vocabulary Developed?

Vocabulary is developed by immersing children in high quality literature – in other words -  living books.  Generally, it is not by vocabulary programs and workbooks. Although those have their place, nothing exposes children to a broad, varied vocabulary like reading exceptional books. Many exceptional books.

Even before children painstakingly learn to blend vowels and consonants, their minds should be stimulated by hearing top notch literature.  In fact, even Ms. Mason was amazed that young children were able not just to grasp, but truly enjoy books that were several ‘levels’ beyond their own.  Exposed frequently at an early age to living books resulted in children “acquiring a copious vocabulary,” according to Ms. Mason.

Do I Have to Stop and Look up Every Word I Don’t Know?

It seems logical to have children look up the words they don’t know, doesn’t it?  Surprisingly, Ms. Mason did not agree.  She felt as though it was demeaning to children even to offer explanations for words unless they asked.  She quite definitively proclaimed that explaining the words destroyed children’s interest in the story and ‘just flat annoyed’ them!  So how did she think they would learn words they didn’t know?  Charlotte felt that most of the time they had some idea of what a word meant by the context in which it was found.  She felt if children read broadly enough, they would encounter words in different contexts and eventually glean quite a competent understanding of them.

So How Do We Help Our Kids Add to Their Vocabulary?

There are a few things we can do to help our children learn new words:

1. Teach children to try and figure out new words by their context. Walk them through the process as you are reading to them if they ask about a word: What is the author talking about here? What do you think it could mean?  What other word might fit in that spot (based on the rest of the sentence)?
2. Model enthusiasm for learning new words by circling words during your own reading that you are going to look up later.  Add them to your ongoing word list.  Talk about them.  Practice using them in sentences.
3. Pick out vocabulary words from their history and science reading and have them learn the words at another time – not during their reading time.  Epi Kardia’s Daily Lesson Plans use this method.
4. For children third grade an up, have them start two lists in their language arts notebooks: one for Tired Words and one for WOW! Words. (For those of you who use Epi Kardia curriculum, those charts are in the Tools section of your Manuals.)

For example, Tired Words are words that are overused, nonexpressive and imprecise.  Words like good, bad, pretty, mad, great and nice are bland, boring and don’t convey much to your reader.  Help your children ‘collect’ more interesting words that will add zing to their writing.  On their WOW! Words chart they could add: virtuous, dreadful, gorgeous, furious, tremendous and mannerly. (Be sure to read their work aloud with the Tired words and then with the WOW! words — they will be amazed at the difference!) During their composition lessons, teach them to replace their Tired words with WOW! words. When you find an overused or nondescript word in their writing, it should be added to their Tired Words list, to be forever banned from appearing in their writing.  Have your children add to both lists regularly, and as you teach them to self-edit, have them eventually identify and replace any Tired words they find on their own without any help from you.

But most importantly, read, read, read!  If you do, you will be surprised at the words your children will learn and begin using in their conversation!  Have you not found that to be true in your own homeschool?

Happy reading!

Last time we discussed Nature study as perhaps the most obvious of Charlotte Mason’s suggested activities that utilizes many senses, hence appealing more to non-traditional learners. Of course, we are talking about being outside and actually observing nature first hand, rather than studying nature from books alone.  If you missed it, read that post here. Thankfully, Charlotte Mason’s educational methods dovetail with non-traditional learning in many other ways as well!

Train up a Child in the Way HE Should Go…

Many of the public school classrooms that most of us languished in only allowed for the traditional (auditory-sequential) learner to use her gifts. Hear a lecture, read a book, and then write a report on it.  Ho hum.

But if you have homeschooled for a while, you have probably noticed that all of your students do not learn in the same ways and they are not motivated by the same type of assignments. (Is that an understatement, or what?)  As we have mentioned before, as they become older, children begin to exhibit preferences for the way they like to learn.  Some like learning things out loud, perhaps to music, or maybe they like to discuss ideas orally.  There are others who need to read to learn, and are totally distracted by little brother’s humming and toe-tapping. Some think and remember best if information is presented in picture, chart or graph formats. Still others need to move around to maximize their learning.

Pay attention to these details and study your children in order to give them the opportunity to let them do their best work. Give them that opportunity by letting them use as many of their senses as possible, especially until you have identified which one they use the most.  Then maximize it by incorporating it into their assignments regularly.  They will be more engaged and cooperative when assigned work they enjoy and feel good about their ability to do!

Students Benefit by Hands on Learning

Activities that are hands on in nature generally benefit ALL types of learners, but especially those who are more ‘right-brained,’ which includes many non-traditional learners. So by giving your students the opportunity to do more hands on activities, you are maximizing all of your kids’ abilities to learn, but you are especially giving your non-traditional learners the chance to shine.  So continue to use those ‘living books’ in your schooling and have your students orally narrate.  But in addition, make sure students are not just reading and hearing; they also need to be seeing and doing.

For example:

• Have your students work on a project such as hooking a rug or dipping candles while you are reading to them about colonial times.

• Incorporate field trips into your school as often as possible – don’t just read about a farm, go visit one!  Let your students produce a photo essay of the trip instead of a written report.

• Let your children draw pictures while you are reading to them. Let your student narrate afterward, using his pictures.

• Create mini-books/lapbooks, Power-point presentations, or create video “TV commercials”  instead of writing traditional reports.

• Create African costumes and cook authentic African food while reading about Africa.

• Research and plan to have an evening of Olympic Games while reading about Ancient Greece.

Other Narration Ideas

As you know, one of those foundational beliefs of Ms. Mason’s was that information was not truly absorbed until it was reproduced in some way, usually through verbal narration.  But there are many ways to reproduce information.  I would not slight that method, however; especially if your children are younger and just starting out to ‘tell back’ that which they have read or have had read to them.  But as children become older, it is especially helpful for the non-traditional learner to be able to narrate in her own way, using her own natural bents.

• Let your very visual child actually take ‘notes’ in pictures while you are reading or teaching him.

• Allow more ‘hands on’ narration, in addition to the above suggestion, such as producing a dramatization, painting a picture, or creating a poem to ‘narrate’ what has been read.

Picture and Music Study

By their very nature, Picture and Music study appeal to the senses and should not be neglected. Some children are reached by art and/or music in a way that can’t be touched by reading.  Read about picture study here.  Books about period music and artists, as well as CD suggestions are included in every unit of our complete programs.

I’m so thankful that our kids have the opportunity to be taught the way that best suits them, rather than the way that best suits the school system!  If you have non-traditional learners at home, I would love to hear how YOU have incorporated Charlotte Mason’s methodology into your homeschool!   Please consider leaving a comment below.

Gratefully His,

Recent question: Can I homeschool my [non-traditional learners] Charlotte Mason style?

Answer: Of course!

As we discuss in our parent manual, parents teach and children learn in a variety of ways.  Some prefer to absorb information by what they see, for example, reading a book, watching a movie or viewing a live demonstration.  Some learn best by what they hear, such as when listening to a lecture, verbal instructions or an audio book. Some prefer to learn through what they do, or retain more by moving around as they are taking in information through another venue.  For example, making candles instead of reading about how they are made, or doing jumping jacks while practicing multiplication tables.   Most people utilize all of these learning methods to some degree, but  prefer one over the others.

Traditional school seems to be notoriously crafted to benefit the type of learners who like to sit still, learn things in a logical progression, and read about rather than experience what they are learning about, to the detriment of the others who don’t fit that mold! What a blessing it is that we are able to craft our learning opportunities to fit our children’s natural bents!

Charlotte Mason understood children. Many of her teaching methods and principles already incorporate a variety of learning methods.

Nature Study

Advocating as much time outside as possible, Ms. Mason suggested children experience nature first hand.

Children should be encouraged to watch, patiently and quietly, until they learn something of the habits and history of the bee, ant, wasp, spider, hairy caterpillar, dragon-fly, and whatever of larger growth comes in their way.

Rather than spending up to six hours outside every suitably-weathered day as Ms. Mason suggested, many homeschoolers satisfy their outdoor longings by taking at least one nature ‘walk’ per week, identifying and recording the different trees, flowers, insects and birds that come across their path.  (Some of our favorite books to use for these activities are below.)

Observing nature incorporates all the senses:  watching a bumblebee extract nectar from a flower while listening to its low buzz…feeling the gentle wind flow through your hair while listening to the leaves rustle…feeling the rough outer layer of a seashell and the smooth-as-glass inside, then holding it to your ear and listening to the ‘ocean’…

We help our children hone their powers of observation as they study their subjects, write about them and make detailed drawings in their nature notebooks, all while using visual, auditory and kinesthetic modes of learning.

Next week we will talk about other aspects of Charlotte Mason’s methods of learning in conjunction with learning styles.

Have a great week!

Warmly,

P.S.  These are some of our favorite books for aiding our nature studies. Check them out!
Handbook of Nature Study
Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America (Peterson Field Guide Series)
Peterson Field Guides; Rocks and Minerals
Peterson Field Guides; Wildflowers
Kaufman Field Guide to Butterflies of N.A.

P.P.S.  Read about one way to incorporate hands on (also known as tactile or kinesthetic) learning in this post called, Make a Lapbook!

Near the site of the original Charles Towne settlement

Named for King Charles II, Charleston was founded in 1670 at Albemarle Point, on the western bank of the Ashley River and was the first European settlement in the U.S. colonies.  Initially named Charles Towne, the settlement was later moved to its current location on the peninsula in 1680.  If you visit Charleston, make sure you plan a stop at the historical park at Charles Towne Landing.

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Nature Study

One of our favorite parts of following Charlotte Mason’s methods are beginning many of our days with Nature Study. Rather than Amber’s family going out to study nature, they conveniently had nature come to them when they found a snake in their basement!  Of course, they couldn’t let it go without studying it first… Nature Study — Snake! posted at The Mommy Earth.Barb loves the following quote about nature study from Charlotte Mason’s contemporary and friend,  Liberty H. Bailey. Barb-Harmony Art Mom presents The Threads of Nature Study posted at Handbook of Nature Study. Have you ever wanted to take a peek at other kids’ nature journals?  Jennifer includes some pictures of theirs along with some glorious fall color in her article, Our Tree Trip in Utah, posted at Living Charlotte Mason in California. Tammy presents a fascinating and informative article about an impromptu nature study that occurred recently at her house:  An Exciting New Find, posted at Adventures On Beck’s Bounty.

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Reproduction of English Settlers' Cabins at Charles Towne Landing

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Handicrafts

Ms. Mason advocated that children learn skills and abilities that would aid them in life and aid them in being productive.  In her schools she promoted handicrafts, not just arts and crafts. Sometimes moms are at a loss for handicraft ideas to do with their sons,  so here are some manly projects gleaned from Rebecca’s experiences as a Cub Scout leader:  Handicrafts for Boys posted at Little Homeschool on the Prairie.

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Charleston in the spring

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The Habit of Thinking

Children do not automatically do what is right – good habits must be painstakingly, regularly, consistently trained. Christin offers us a practical examples of how to do that in her insightful article,  The Habit of Thinking posted at Journey of Discovery.

Open in 2005, the Arthur Ravenel Bridge from Charleston to Mt. Pleasant has the longest single cable-stay bridge in North America.

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Forming a Relationship

It is natural that children, when exposed to great ideas from excellent living books, develop a relationship with what they are learning. Keri presents Forming a Relationship posted at Sunny Scholars.  Barb’s children certainly are forming a relationship with the characters as they study Les Miserables.  Read this excellent reflective piece on their literature study :  “An Appreciative Look or Comment” posted at Harmony Art Mom.  Although much broader than just this topic suggests, Bethany LeBedz presents Confessions of an Organized Homeschool Mom: The Tutor’s Private Coaching Session describing her wonderfully helpful magazines for rounding out a Charlotte Mason curriclum, posted at Confessions of an Organized Homeschool Mom.

Although Phyllis is just beginning her homeschooling years, she shares with us ‘what the beginning of a Charlotte Mason education looks like’ in her home as she shares A week in our school posted at Hunsucker’s Home from the Ukraine.

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These often photographed colorful row of houses on East Bay Street are affectionately known as ‘Rainbow Row.’  Although there are several explanations for these bright colors, many feel they originated from the colonial Caribbean, a regular port of call on trade voyages to Charleston.

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Copy Work

One of the basic tenets of a Charlotte Mason education is copy work. Cyndi Kinney posts an informative and helpful article on the benefits of copy work: Why Copywork? posted at Red Head Rambler.

During Colonial times the pineapple began to be used in the South as a symbol for the warm and welcome hospitality frequently found here.

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Picture Study

Like copy work, picture study is a hallmark of Ms. Mason’s education. Please read this for an introduction to picture study, and then read Brenda’s article, The Impressionists for Kids posted at The Tie That Binds Us for a wonderful example of putting it into practice.   If you have older children and would like to have them learn a more formal method of evaluating art, please read my article, Charlotte Mason Mondays: Picture Study for Older Students posted at Epi Kardia.

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This historic house of worship is also known as the French Huguenot  Church.  This Reformed church was founded about 1681 by French Huguenot refugees fleeing from religious persecution in France during the Protestant Reformation.

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Living Books

Here is an additional post written by Jeanne about reading aloud, called Again, with feeling posted on her beautiful blog, A peaceful day.

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No visit to Charleston would be complete without mentioning that the Civil War began right in our backyard with Confederate soldiers firing upon Fort Sumter, across Charleston Harbor, on April 12, 1861.  The Federal fort surrendered within a day and a half and would be occupied by Confederate forces for the next four years.

We hope you have enjoyed your Trip to Charleston as well as this edition of the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival!

Happy Homeschooling!

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Narrating is an art, like poetry-making or painting, because it is there, in every child’s mind, waiting to be discovered, and is not the result of any process of disciplinary education.

The foundation of a Charlotte Mason education is regular feeding upon superior, living books: books that endow children with excitement, with new ideas, heroic ideas, which shape their minds and expand their spirits.  As opposed to textbooks which contain compilations of dry facts, we want living books abounding with stories.  Both children and adults have trouble remembering lists of facts; but stories are memorable; they incite the imagination; they can be life-changing.

Charlotte does not stop at just reading the stories, however.  She believed that knowledge is not appropriated by the student until it is told back, or narrated.  Beginning with short snatches of captivating stories, teachers are to read a paragraph or so, once, and then have students narrate what they have heard.

Narration, according to Ms. Mason:

• is a natural ability inherent in children that is awakened by excellent literature
• engages children’s minds such that information they read is considered, meditated upon and then is given back with some of the children’s own thoughts (assimilation)
• helps students understand and retain information about which they read
• should be used as a primary method of learning across the subjects

When to Start

When the child is six, not earlier, let him narrate the fairy-tale which has been read to him, episode by episode, upon one hearing of each; the Bible tale read to him in the words of the Bible; the well-written animal story; or all about other lands from some such volume…

Ms. Mason believed that short narrations should start by age six, over lighter, but classic, short episodes of literature, including the Bible.  Perfect literature for this purpose would be the short episodes of Aesop’s Fables (Stories for Young Children).
Start with a paragraph at a time, and make sure to read through the selection consecutively.

The next day, before starting the next narration/lesson, engage your student in a brief chat about yesterday’s lesson, affording the student a short period of review.  She suggests a few anticipatory comments about today’s lesson as well, to encourage your child to be ready to eagerly listen to what will be forthcoming.

As students grow in practice and maturity, they may be able to begin to narrate a short chapter in a history or science book as they reach ages eight and nine. At that age, a few comments after the narration may be helpful to identify and emphasize the moral elements of the passage. In the case of history or science reading, perhaps a chart or diagram might be drawn on the board to identify or clarify the elements to remember from the passage or to illustrate a scientific principle covered.

If narration is a new activity in your home, it is important to allow for a learning curve.  It is not necessary for your child to narrate every passage that he reads or is read to him. Often it is preferable to read a chapter or two of a book before beginning narrations on it, to build interest and aid your student’s immersion into the story.  If your child does not want to narrate, well, we all have to do things we don’t want to do, right?  Stay positive, enthusiastic, encouraging, and keep them short. J

Do I Correct Faulty Information?

What do I do when my child narrates incorrectly?  This is a common question!  A few strategies for dealing with it are listed below.

• It is preferable not to interrupt a narration with corrections.
• Only after praising what was positive about a narration and after encouraging a child for his efforts, gently make necessary corrections.
• If you notice a repeated grammatical error, such as a double negative, incorrect subject-verb agreement, etc., make a note to cover that area later during a language arts lesson.
• If your student has many details to remember, such as difficult names, dates, or places, it may be helpful to put those items on a white board before the narration.

Other Forms of Narration

Fortunately, there are other forms of narration other than oral ones, although it is preferable to begin with oral narrations for the younger children. Although it is certainly admissible to have a younger student draw a picture illustrating what was just read rather than an oral recitation.

Another option, especially for the older student (10 or 11 on up) is to provide a written narration over what they have either had read to them or over what they have read independently.  Sometimes the easiest way to start written narrations is to have students not worry too much about grammar and punctuation until they have written down everything they remember. Then during their next day’s writing lesson they can go back and clean things up a little.

Children can narrate not only from books, they may also narrate over art work and music.  As with all narration, this may be either oral, written or in picture form.  Some ideas about picture study narration can be found here. Narration over music can be accomplished merely by playing a stirring piece of music and then asking your student to tell about what story they could imagine taking place in the music.  Equally, they could also be asked to draw a picture over what they heard in the music.

An added benefit of regular narration in those early years is that it helps order children’s minds and prepares them for formal composition lessons once they reach the appropriate age.  The more exposure they have to hear, read and narrate excellent children’s literature, the more prepared they will be when it becomes time for them to write.

Happy Narrating!

Blessings,

Picture Study for Older Students

Although not addressed directly in Charlotte Mason’s original Homeschooling Series, Picture Study is valuable for older students as well our younger ones.  Through consistent observation and enjoyment of a variety of artists’ work in the younger years, older students are ready to take on a little more detailed and guided study of art work.  Even if you have not been regular in your picture study, it is never too late to begin!

We organize our research of artists and their work chronologically according to which unit in history we are studying. Charlotte Mason suggests studying six or so works of one artist during a term, and although we usually recommend following that tried and true pattern with younger children, with older ones we sometimes study more than one artist at a time.  Charlotte’s primary goal was for students to experience art for themselves, not become experts on the artist or a particular piece of art. For older students, however, especially for students who are particularly interested in art, a more structured approach might be helpful.

If  picture study is a new addition to your academic education, take a look at last week’s post to help you begin.  If you have older children, say middle or high school students, a little guidance might be what you need to get started. (The following  is taken from our Middle School Lesson Plans.)

How to Critique and Write About Art

This method is simplified from Edmund Burke Feldman’s method of evaluating art, commonly known to the art world as Feldman’s Method of Critiquing Art. You may use this as a guide in having your students study and write about art.  Always remember you may tailor this to the level and interest of your students; you may want to choose just a few questions for your student to write about if it is the first time he has studied and/or written about artwork, or you may just use these questions as discussion prompts. If you decide to use this guide, it may help for you to talk through it a few times before you actually have your student create a written interpretation.  If you choose to have him write, have him respond in paragraph form in complete sentences.

We will work through this critique together using this painting by Diego Velázquez:

1.  List

State the name of the artist, the title of the piece, and, if you know it, its current location.

This is Diego Velázquez’ Equestrian Portrait of King Philip IV, currently located in the Museo del Prado, Madrid.

2.  Describe

Describe the work to someone as if the person you were talking to could not see it.  Stick to the facts, listing everything you see in the picture.

Answers will differ here—if your student is new to this, please be positive about his or her answers.  If needed, it is okay to ask questions to help him, such as, what do you notice about the background?  What is in the foreground of the painting?  What else do you notice in the painting other than the horse and rider?

Example:

In the center of this picture is a man on horseback.  They appear to be on a hill or on the side of a mountain, as you can see small trees in the background and one behind the man and horse. The man is dressed ornately and he is looking straight ahead; from the title of the painting he must be King Philip.  The horse looks strong and he is standing on his hind legs. There is not a lot of light in the picture; it looks as if it is very early morning or late afternoon – or perhaps it is an overcast day. On the left hand corner of the painting it looks as if there is a open piece of paper that had been folded in half.

3.  Note First Impression

What is your very first reaction to the piece?  (Note:  There are no right or wrong answers here!)

The king looks strong, serious and determined.

4.  Analyze the piece

Here you want to look at what the artist has done to achieve certain effects.  You could refer to your first impressions and try to figure out how the artwork caused you to have that reaction.  Possible questions:

• How are the elements of art (color, shape, line, texture, space) and the principles of design (balance, contrast, emphasis, movement/rhythm) used in this artwork?
  • Questions you might ask in discussion here to help your student include process this:
  • What colors did the artist use in this painting?
  • Did the artist use color to lead you to look at some particular object in the painting?
  • What do you notice about how the artist uses light in the picture?
  • Do you see any kind of movement in the picture?
  • What strong contrasts to you see in light and color in this picture?
• What do you notice about the artist’s choice of materials?
• What grabs your attention when you first look at the piece?

Example:

In this portrait of King Philip IV of Spain, King Philip on his horse is obviously the most important part of the painting because he is painted so largely and in the middle. The horse is moving; he is standing on his hind legs.  He looks spirited and powerful,  but the King on his back looks even more powerful than the horse.  The artist uses light to balance the king’s glistening armor with the horse’s glistening coat. King Philip looks very serious.

5. Interpret the piece

All art is about something. It may be about light, color, the subject matter, or even a political statement of some kind.  Some art is easy to figure out and some is more symbolic.

• What is the theme or subject of the work?
• What is the work about; what do you think it means?
• Why do you think the artist created this work?
• What do you think the artist’s worldview is? (this question may or may not be relevant to all of the artwork you evaluate…)

Example:

The King is painted high on a hill.  Everything else is literally beneath him. He is confidently looking straight ahead, in control of his powerful and spirited horse, ready for whatever is ahead of him.  His expression looks pensive and serious, rather than frivolous, for example—the kind of look you would want to see in your leader. (In fact, it was customary at this time to paint royals on horseback, which was a symbol of authority.) Perhaps the purpose of this painting was to help King Philip’s subjects to have confidence in him as a strong leader.

(By the way, the paper painted on the lower left would have been the place where Velázquez presumably had signed the painting.)

Helpful Resources

For some help in learning more about art, I recommend the Art for Children Series, by Ernest Raboff.  Although it is out of print, used copies are readily available from Amazon.com.  Each book offers full color, large scale copies of each author’s work, as well as interesting and pertinent facts about the life of the artist and background and study of each featured work.  I learned tons from these books.  (As every homeschool mom knows, the best way to learn about anything is to read a kid’s book about it, right?)

Albrecht Durer (The Art for Children Series)
Henri Matisse (The Art for Children)
Frederic Remington (The Art for Children Series)
Michelangelo Buonarroti (Art for Children)
Paul Gauguin (Art for Children Series)
Rembrandt (Art for Children)
Leonardo Da Vinci (Art for Children)

Have fun!

The Study of art is a taste at once engrossing and unselfish, which may be indulged without effort, and yet has the power of exciting the deepest emotions—a taste able to exercise and to gratify both the nobler and softer parts of our nature.  –Guizot

Just as we must provide ideas on which children’s minds are to feast through their reading of exceptional living books, we must also offer this opportunity through our students’ regular exposure to and study of excellent art work.

A hallmark of the Charlotte Mason methodology of teaching and learning is Picture Study. Recently I participated in a discussion with a homeschool mom about picture study and how to incorporate it on a regular basis into her homeschooling. Fortunately, Ms. Mason gave us a clear blueprint of how to systematically include picture study into our homeschooling efforts.

Charlotte Mason’s Suggestions for Picture Study

• Begin early. Age six, at the time of formal lessons in Charlotte’s day, is not too early to begin.

• Choose about six pictures of one artist to study each term. Rather than muddy children’s minds with continual but random art selections, Ms. Mason thought it beneficial to help her students get to know one artist at a time each term.

• Give your student time to experience a painting by keeping it on display for a week or two at a time. Give students time to connect with each work.

• Let your students quietly study the painting first, resisting the urge to discuss the artist’s background and your analysis of the piece. Give only the briefest amount of information necessary to enhance your students’ experience with the work before giving them a chance to connect with the picture and tell you about it. Give credence to all of their thoughts and opinions.

• Task your student with giving you an oral or written narration of the painting. Narrations consist of their response as you ask, “Describe the painting as you were talking to me on the phone and I couldn’t see it.” Younger students will be most comfortable with oral narrations, but older ones might provide either oral or written. Alternative assignment for a middle elementary + student who is familiar with oral narrations of art work:  Let the student study the picture for a time, then put it away.  Have your student narrate from memory.

• Have your students choose a favorite piece each term to imitate by drawing or painting. This an excellent way to incorporate those skills into your schooling.

With Epi Kardia curricula, we organize our studies chronologically beginning with Creation and ending with modern times, so we prefer to manage our study of art work and artists in the same manner, examining artists and their creations in light of the time periods they lived and worked.

An Example

Following is an example from Charlotte Mason’s Home Education of an oral narration given by a nine year old boy who had the opportunity of studying six of Jean-François Millet’s works during a twelve week school term. At the end of the twelve weeks, the children were asked to describe their favorite of the six paintings.  First, here is the painting, The Sower:

And this is the student’s narration:

‘I like The Sower the best.  The sower is sowing seeds and the picture is all dark except high on the right side where there’s a man plowing a field. While he’s plowing, the sower is sowing. He has a bag in his left hand and he’s sowing with his right hand. He’s wearing wooden clogs. It’s about six o’clock in the morning. You can see his head better than his legs and body because it’s against the light.’

Artists for Further Study

This list of artists include dates so you many organize your art study chronologically if you wish.

Giotto (1266-1377)

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Albrecht Durer (1471-1528)

Caravaggio (1571-1610)

Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640)

Diego Velazquez (1599-1660)

Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669)

Jean Francios Millet (1814-1875)

Claude Monet (1840-1926)

Pierre Auguste Renoir (1841-1919)

Mary Cassatt (1844-1926)

Frederic Remington (1861-1909)

Grandma Moses (1860-1961)

Don’t forget to add some modern and American painters – our favorites are Norman Rockwell and N.C. Wyeth.

To add to your enjoyment and appreciation of picture study, consider visiting your local art museum and those you may come in contact with while you are on vacation in other parts of the country (or the world).

If you have any particular tips on how YOU have  incorporated picture study into your homeschool, I am sure our readers would love to read about them!  Please comment!

If you would like to read about Picture Study with Older Students, please read this.

Enjoy!

We, believing that the normal child has powers of mind which fit him to deal with all knowledge proper to him, give him a full and generous curriculum, taking care only that all knowledge offered to him is vital, that is, that facts are not presented without their informing ideas. Out of this conception comes our principle that….’Education is the Science of Relations’; that is, a child has natural relations with a vast number of things and thoughts: so we train him upon physical exercises, nature lore, handicrafts, science and art, and upon many living books… (Emphasis mine)

One of Charlotte Mason’s most popular tenets is that children do not have a natural affinity for twaddle, which includes second rate, predictable stories, dry compilations of others’ ideas, and incomplete textbook summaries.  Just as it is our job as parents and teachers to feed our children’s bodies, it is our responsibility to nourish their minds with living ideas found in what Charlotte termed living books.

What Are Living Books?

Charlotte Mason described living books as bursting with vital, vivid ideas written by authors who are passionate, knowledgeable and obviously fascinated by their subjects.  These books have noble ideas and often heroic characters.  Facts are usually combined in these works with fiction, and by that I don’t mean “made-up” information, I mean, a story. What young reader’s attention is not captured by a fascinating story?  All the better when the story contains or is based upon factual information and is accompanied by detailed, accurate illustrations.

Along with a large segment of homeschooling parents today, Charlotte and many of her devotees believed that living books should have a preeminent place in children’s education.  Charlotte observed that children had a natural affinity for literature and were distinctly susceptible to picking up living ideas from well-written, living books.

Interestingly, she also thought that our place as teachers should be ‘second place’ to children experiencing a book themselves.  Not only with books, but we should take a back seat when children study nature, artwork and music, as well.  First, children are to interact, or develop a relationship with, the book, tree leaf, painting or sonata. Then, they are to narrate (we will deal more with this in a later post), or tell back, what they observed, learned or thought about the work. Only then may we discuss our thoughts with them on the subject.  Giving them time to reflect on the object before we add our two cents is certainly contrary to many classrooms wherein students are expected to listen all day to “pre-digested” information in the form of teacher’s lectures.

We remember what that is like, don’t we?

Not Only For English

Did Ms. Mason believe living books were useful just for literature studies?  Absolutely not! Living books are appropriate for most children’s subjects, and should be included in many areas, including history and science.

• History – Fortunately there are bountiful numbers of wonderful children’s books that are included in the historical literature genre.  Believe me; an exciting story based on accurate historical and cultural details will engage your child’s imagination like no history lecture ever could, and help your children learn and be able to recall many details about a culture or historical period. Our family often discusses favorite books that we read together as many as ten years ago! Now that is retention.   Some of our favorites are The Golden Goblet (Newbery Library, Puffin)
  Johnny Tremain and RIFLES FOR WATIE.

• Science – Often considered a science book, The Librarian Who Measured the Earth contains fascinating historical details and describes a higher level scientific/mathematical concept in language that can be understood by an elementary school student.  Like so many living books, this one can be considered as doing ‘double duty’ and can be used not only for science, but also for history, math or even geography.

• Fine Arts – Add well-written biographies of musicians, artists, books about the history of instruments or how they are created, or about how different cultures express themselves in fine arts.  Charlotte would probably have you expose your children to the literature, art or music prior to reading the book, though.

• Geography – Read stories that take place on the plains of Africa, in the rainforests of South America and the bleak tundra of the Antarctic and use maps, globes and other activities, after written and oral narrations, to fill out and solidify the knowledge gleaned. Reading about missionaries and about explorers are other ways to include living books in your geography studies.  Check out Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World: The Extraordinary True Story of the Shakleton Expeditionfor an exciting story about Antarctica!

If you haven’t already, whether you use a literature-based curriculum or not,  we recommend you making a large place in your school day for an abundance of whole, living books, as Charlotte Mason did with her students.  Time to put away the predictable series books, the teenage romances (please!) and the dry textbooks (unless they are used as references or to fill in here and there.)  Liven up your homeschool and give your children the gift of enjoying learning.

Read more about some of our favorite books, coming soon. 

Happy Reading!