Good Morning!

Looking for a quick visual, virtual science lesson for today?

Did you ever have a chance to watch the fascinating, funny, and at times, heartbreaking film, March of the Penguins? This academy award winning documentary showed in detail the struggle for survival for Emperor penguins in the harsh Antarctic.

I was thrilled this morning to watch a BBC film hosted by British writer and film maker Terry Jones, who discovered a colony  of penguins who do not have to huddle together every harrowing winter just to survive.

Take a look at this amazing footage of this newly discovered colony of penguins.

Wasn’t that something?  Don’t miss this followup video, also by the BBC, which provides the real science lesson!

Enjoy your day!

PS  Credit to Robin Sampson for the idea!

Make a Middle Ages Dictionary!

Part 1

Learning a subject’s vocabulary is an essential part of learning about a subject.  This project will greatly enhance your student’s understanding of the Middle Ages and can be applied to many other time periods or topics as well.  There are many terms in Adam of the Road that relate to items or activities specific to the Middle Ages. Each time your student discovers a medieval term in his reading or vocabulary word lists, have him include it in his dictionary.  You might challenge him to find as many words as possible and offer a small incentive if he reaches a certain number of words. If you are teaching more than one student of similar ages/abilities, you might even have a contest for the most words included.

This project can be as simple or elaborate as you like. If you have a student who is adamantly not artsy craftsy, you may have him simply make this dictionary as a list on regular notebook paper and keep it in his history notebook.  OR, you may choose to have him incorporate art work, computer clip art, or even make a cover for it.  (See directions below in Part 2.)

Many of the time-specific words encountered in Adam of the Road and other Middle Ages reading can be found in a regular dictionary, but some of them require a little more research.  An online encyclopedia or the following links to online medieval glossaries may be helpful. Try here.

Note that we have not checked out every word in these glossaries and we always advise you to supervise your students on the Internet!

Your student may use lined or unlined paper for this project, or, if he can type, he may key in his words and definitions into a spreadsheet program where they then could easily be sorted into alphabetical order.  If that is not an issue or if your student would rather write, decide how you want to break up the alphabet—maybe two pages for A-C, D-F, etc. Notebook dividers or tabbed cardstock can be used to separate sections.  As your student completes his daily reading for this unit, have him keep an ongoing list of medieval terms and their definitions.

In the first chapter of Adam of the Road, many words are included describing monastic life including: nones, matins, prime, (times of prayer), abbot, and abbey. Also, if you are using Epi Kardia’s Middle Ages-1 Lesson Plans, have your student include words from his vocabulary list:  surcoat, mantle (clothing items), minstrel, heraldry…  There will be words throughout the book and other reading selections that could also be included in your student’s dictionary.

If your middle-schooler enjoys hands on projects, encourage him to make a more elaborate book. He may want to intersperse his book with drawings pertaining to the middle ages, such as:

• drawings of a knight, king, queen, monk, minstrel
• illustrations depicting scenes from Adam of the Road or other reading
• diagram of a castle
• illustration of some of the words included in his dictionary

After all the words have been added to the dictionary, it is time to make the cover!

Part 2

If you are choosing the the simple approach but want to have some kind of a cover, just use a 1/2 inch 3 ringed view binder and have your student decorate the cover insert with a drawing or computer clip art. Search for more clip art by using other terms such as knight, castle, monastery and medieval.

If your student would like to create a more involved cover for his dictionary, he could start with two thick pieces of stiff cardboard measuring about 9″ x 12″ and a piece of contact paper measuring 21 inches long by about 15″ wide.  (He will also need glue, two pieces of blank 8 1/2″ x 11″ white paper, a ruler, scissors and a stapler. If a heavy-duty stapler is needed, have your local Office Depot or Staples help with that part.)

1. Fold the contact paper in half loosely (before removing the backing!) to find the middle.
2. Open the paper again and lay it out lengthwise, with the colored/patterned side down.
3. Place the cardboard side by side on the wrong side of the contact paper, in a portrait (not landscape) fashion, allowing about a pencil width between the the pieces of cardboard.
4. The cardboard should have about an inch margin of contact paper above the top and about two inches on the bottom.  Trim the four corners of the contact paper to make neater corners once they are folded.
5. Remove the cardboard and carefully remove the backing of the contact paper.
6. Lay the contact paper out as before, with the right/patterned side down, and place the two pieces of cardboard evenly, side by side on top of the sticky side of the contact paper, with a pencil-width margin between the pieces.
7. Carefully and neatly fold the top and bottom margins of the contact paper over the cardboard. Start with the middle and work your way out to the sides.Carefully and neatly fold the side margins over the cardboard.
8. Glue a blank sheet of unlined white paper over the ends of the contact paper inside each side of the bookcover. (These are called endpapers.)
9. Take the stack of dictionary papers and make sure they are in order. Line up the stack, and place it in the middle of the book, centering it top and bottom with the cardboard pieces. Make sure the left margin of the stack is in contact with the center margin of the contact paper.
10. Close the book cover and staple at least three times down the length of the fold, making sure you are stapling all of the papers inside the book.
11. Decorate the cover of the book by writing a title in permanent ink and adding stickers or gluing on beads/yarn, etc.

Read about medieval books and look at some pictures here for inspiration!

Whether you use this lesson or not, we would love to see pictures of the books you make with your students!  Send them to dana@epikardia.com and we will post them!

Blessings on your school week!

The idea of writing about books is not new –remember those boring book reports (snore!) we had to write? However, writing a book review of a well-loved, exciting book in order to convince someone else to read it is much easier to sell and much more fun to write.  For some students, posting the review on Amazon.com afterward makes it even more enticing!  This lesson is excerpted from the Ancients unit of our Middle School-1 lesson plans but could be adapted for younger or older students:

(Note: for many students, especially younger ones, it is very helpful to talk through the answers to these questions ahead of time. Either the student and/or teacher may take notes for the student to use when actually writing the review.)

1.  The first paragraph should be an introductory paragraph, including the title of the book and the author’s name. This should be followed by a few overview sentences stating why another student would want to read the book.  (i.e., It was one of the most exciting stories…/…had one of my favorite characters/…had an inspirational ending/…was about my favorite subject or period of history, etc.)

2. The next paragraph should tell what the story is about and include the main conflict, or problem, of the story.  (An example from the book Hittite Warrior: A young Hittite, Uriah, makes a promise on his father’s death bed and has to travel alone to foreign lands in search of a man named Sisera, whom Uriah hopes will take him in.)

3.  In the following paragraph, your student should tell about his favorite parts of the book. A few incidents will be enough–caution him about writing down too many parts or going into too much detail here.

4.  The last paragraph should include the main message of the book and should restate what the book meant to him or what he learned from reading it. Your student may want to add one final statement about why someone else would want to read this book.

Additional points:

For more ideas about teaching writing, review our Reluctant Writer series.

Happy Writing!

Dana

Last week, Patti, of South Carolina, won the 40th anniversary edition of To Kill a Mockingbird in our Christmas Book Give Away! Thanks for commenting, Patti, and congratulations! This week, Beth looks at creative reading gift ideas for children of all ages! If you have a gift idea related to reading, please comment and let our other readers know about it. Just click on the link below and submit your comment at the end of the blog.

By commenting on this blog and joining our mailing list (from the right sidebar or on our website) you’ll automatically be entered in our Christmas Book Give Away. This week, we’ll draw a winner for Prayers for Homeschool Moms by Michelle Howe. It’s an awesome book to help you start the new year encouraged by the prayers and stories of fellow homeschool parents! 

 Remembering the reason for the season, in Christ,

Dana

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My son, John Paul, and I both woke up so excited this morning. He slept in, which was a real treat for him and I had several hours to myself, which was amazing for me. It’s the first day of our Christmas holiday! No school demands! What a blessing! As much as we really do love home schooling, when breaks arrive, we’re both always appreciative. With that in mind, it seemed like the perfect time for a blog about fun reading gift ideas.

I have always been thrilled about opening a book as a gift. However, although both of my children are avid readers, a book is rarely the first item on their wish lists. For many home school children, constantly exposed to great books throughout the year, a book gift may seem a little mundane. However, the gift of reading can often be paired with other gifts or presented in a whole new light, adding joy to an otherwise ordinary gift. Check out the following ideas for some creative "packaging" to stimulate the brain and bring some Christmas cheer.

 For the Very Young

 Bedtime Book Basket – Combine a few bedtime books; a new doll, stuffed animal, pillow or blanket with which to sleep; a nightlight; and brand new pajamas in a simple crate or basket. Your child can keep the basket beside his bed providing a fun ritual for bedtime. Put on his pj’s, select a book and snuggle up with Mom and Dad in preparation for sweet dreams. Some recommended bedtime books:

Good Night Moon by Margaret Wise Brown (my daughter, Ally’s, favorite as a toddler)

The Going to Bed Book by Sandra Boynton – this book comes in a fun lap size for a very reasonable price!

Poems and Prayers for the Very Young by Martha Alexander – an endearing first book of poetry.

All of God’s Creatures – Pair up a Noah’s Ark set with an awesome animal book. Both Play Mobile and Fisher Price make adorable Noah’s Ark sets, but for an even softer version, try the SS Noah Soft Sculpture Playset by Pockets of Learning. Not only are the characters soft and cuddly, they also can be easily stored and carried around without injury! While there are a multitude of animal books out there for youngsters, one that covers a lot of ground and can even alternate as a learning tool is My Big Animal Book by Roger Priddy. Simple rhymes and clear photographs make this an ideal attention getter for younger children.

Ages 4-8

Transportation – Start with a large vehicle, like a dump truck, and use it to hold fun, classic transportation books such as:

Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel by Virginia Lee Burton – this Caldecott winning book also comes with a CD making it perfect for taking along on holiday travels.

The Little Engine That Could by Watty Piper. There is also a game that compliments this book.

It’s All About Love! – some sweet books together with a giant floor puzzle say I love you at the holidays.

Because I Love You by Max Lucado – a precious story illustrating God’s love for us.

Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney – a simple story of love. You can also get the floor puzzle!

Ages 9-12

Culinary Craziness – This is the perfect age to really build interest in the culinary arts. Begin with a large mixing bowl and fill it with basic cooking gear, an apron, recipe cards, a grocery store gift card (how fun would it be to shop for your own recipes?) and an age appropriate cookbook (be sure to get spiral bound as they lay flat). Either of the following cookbooks would be ideal:

New Junior Cookbook by Better Homes and Gardens – if you have a diabetic in the family, this book even includes diabetic exchanges!

Cooking Rocks by Rachael Ray – fun and appealing, these 30 minutes meals are designed to be created by kids. She does a wonderful job of teaching basic cooking techniques in the process.

Teens

Ready, Set, Shoot! – pair up a beginning digital photography book with a reasonably priced digital camera and extra memory card. One book that will take your teen through the basics and beyond of digital photography is Digital Photography for Teens by Marc Campbell. I was impressed with the details and the fact that the author didn’t water anything down for teens while creating a book that would hold their interest.

There are probably dozens of ideas out there for incorporating books and other items to make fun Christmas gifts, but my time is running out. I need to get started on my own Christmas shopping! In the meantime, let me know about your ideas that combine reading and other activities to make awesome gifts. Just click on the link below and enter our next Christmas Book Give Away by leaving your creative ideas as a comment. If you are already a member of our mailing list, you could win Prayers for Homeschool Moms by Michelle Howe just for commenting!

 Enjoy your Christmas holidays!

In Him,

Beth

Congratulations to our first winner of the Epi Kardia Christmas Book Give Away, Kristin from North Carolina, who won the drawing for The Perfect Mix by Diane Phillips!  As well, for commenting on Our Favorite Christmas Books blog post and having her name drawn, Angie from Illinois won a hard back copy of the beautiful children’s book,Christmas Day in the Morning. Keep those comments coming! Besides entering you in the next drawing, they are a real blessing to us! Subscribe to our mailing list on the sidebar at right and make a comment on the blog by Saturday, November 29th to enter our this weeks’ drawing.  Read below to see the two books we are giving away this week!

Have a blessed Thanksgiving,

Dana

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Have you ever been to the library and noticed that some of the children’s books have medals embossed on the front covers? For those of you who don’t know, these books are award winners. The two most common awards for children’s books are the Newbery Medal, for excellent writing, and the Caldecott Medal, for outstanding illustrations.

The Newbery Medal was the first award for children’s literature in the world and is named after John Newbery, an 18th century book seller. The first medal was awarded in 1922 to Hendrik Willem van Loon for his book, The Story of Mankind. Today, the committee that awards the medal is made up of school and public librarians. According to the American Library Association (ALA), the goal of the award is "To encourage original creative work in the field of books for children. To emphasize to the public that contributions to the literature for children deserve similar recognition to poetry, plays, or novels. To give those librarians, who make it their life work to serve children’s reading interests, an opportunity to encourage good writing in this field."

The Caldecott Medal "shall be awarded to the artist of the most distinguished American Picture Book for Children published in the United States during the preceding year. The award shall go to the artist, who must be a citizen or resident of the United States, whether or not he be the author of the text. Any book published in the preceding year shall be eligible to be considered for either award or both awards" according to the ALA. Originally the Newbery committee also selected the Caldecott winners beginning in 1937, but for the 1980 medals, two separate committees were formed. The Caldecott Medal was created in honor of Randolph Caldecott, a 19th century children’s book illustrator and the engraving on the medal is taken from one of Caldecott’s books.Both medals designate honor books that didn’t win the actual award, but are considered honorable mentions.

While there isn’t room in a single blog to review all of the medal winners, I’ve selected some of our favorites, in hope of helping you narrow down your own selection. Award winning books make wonderful gifts and family keepsakes! As well, we use a large number of these books in Epi Kardia Curriculum, particularly the Newbery medal winners, in many different grade levels. So peruse our choices and let us know your favorites as well!

Newbery Medal

These books can all be found in various grade levels of Epi Kardia curriculum.

I, Juan de Pareja by Elizabeth Bordon de Trevino (1965) - This book, written in the form of an autobiography, portrays the interesting and intense story of a slave who becomes an artist. After a challenging start, Juan ends up working with Diego Velazquez, a favorite of the Spanish court under King Philip IV. The two become devoted friends allowing Juan an insider’s view of the life of this acclaimed artist. The dialogue and descriptive writing create an enjoyable and historical story.

Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (1990) – I will never forget listening to this book on tape with my daughter, Ally, while we were traveling. It was just the two of us and I had to pull my car over at one point because I was crying! Based on a true story, this is the account of one Danish family who took in the Jewish friend of their daughter and hid her until her family could escape from the Nazis. Lowry writes with such a poignant voice that you’re drawn into the true courage of the people during WWII who risked their lives for others. One of my favorite books of all time, I recommend it to anyone, especially those families with girls ages 8-12.

 The Bronze Bow (1962) and The Witch of Blackbird Pond (1959) by Elizabeth George Speare – These books are both featured in Epi Kardia curriculum, not only for their wonderful relevance to history, but also because of Speare’s tremendous writing ability. Her characters seem so real that you feel like you’ve made new friends and are sad to see them go when the books end. I remember reading The Bronze Bow to my daughter and three other young ladies that I helped home school. Each day, they would work so hard to get to reading time because they couldn’t wait to continue the story. Some days, I read aloud for more than an hour because they didn’t want me to stop. These are the books that help you instill a real love of literature in your children from the early years!

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes (1944) – Although not as ill-behaved, I do believe Johnny Tremain is as well known as Tom Sawyer! The story takes place during the American Revolution and you get to watch Johnny mature as he becomes more involved in the war effort. Boys love having a character their own age who chooses to be in the middle of the fray! Written during a time when children were still considered to be children, Forbes treats the time period and storyline with dignity while maintaining an exciting plot. Definitely in the top three works of fiction that every student should read by middle school.

Adam of the Road by Elizabeth Janet Gray (1943) – This entertaining story presents an historical picture not often seen in literature: the world of the traveling bards during the Middle Ages. With vivid characters and great descriptive adventure, this tale tracks an eleven-year-old boy who is kidnapped and must hunt for his father and his dog. Along the way, he learns many life lessons. Gray is sensitive in her content, but doesn’t let the fact that this is a children’s book slow the story down for a minute.

Rifles for Watie by Harold Keith (1958) – Horn Book magazine calls this novel "the best Civil War fiction for young people." It is certainly among the best! One of the unique qualities about this book is it’s presentation of both sides of the war. As well, it covers the Western campaign, which is not commonly the setting of Civil War novels. Stand Watie, the key historical figure in the novel, was the leader of the Cherokees and a brigadier general in the Confederate Army. Harold Keith, the author, grew up in Cherokee country and his obvious love for history became apparent when he interviewed over 20 Civil War veterans and spent five years writing this book. Boys and girls alike will appreciate the action and adventure! You will appreciate that your children are learning and enjoying it!

Carry On, Mr. Bowditch by Jean Lee Lamath (1956) – Nathaniel Bowditch, a true historical figure, created nautical navigation advancements that changed the sailing world. Written as a novel, the story of Nat’s life is fascinating to many children. Longing for the life of a sailor, but being physically too small, Nat found another way to dedicate himself to the high seas! The quality of writing and the historical accuracy make this a must have classic!

Caldecott Medal

Saint George and the Dragon written by Margaret Hodges and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman (1985) – Adapted from the much longer classic, The Faerie Queen, this is one of those wonderful books that introduces literature to younger children in a big way. Hyman’s award winning illustrations with vibrant colors and amazing details will keep even the brightest child interested! This is one of those books that children love to look at again and again.

Abraham Lincoln written and illustrated by Ingri and Edgar Parin D’Aulaire (1940) – Despite the fact that this book was written almost 70 years ago, the content is as relevant and easy to read today as ever. The D’Aulaires present a well rounded, unbiased version of Lincoln’s life with unique illustrations. They use the illustrations to tell the story as much as the words. As Lincoln grows in text, he does the same in art. As he ages in text, you begin to notice the changes in the artwork details. Oversized and larger than life, this book, as well as others written and illustrated by the D’Aulaires, will appeal to children from very young to older elementary.

Ox-Cart Man written by Donald Hall and illustrated by and illustrated by Barbara Cooney (1980) – The simplicity of the artwork in this book for young children seems rather old world today. I was shocked when I realized that it was a more modern Caldecott Medal winner! It presents an honest and picturesque representation of 19th century farm life in New England. The details make an excellent introduction to rural living for little ones. The text, although not actually poetry, flows as if it is.

Grandfather’s Journey written and illustrated by Allen Say (1994) – This beautifully illustrated version of an immigrant’s path to the United States is based on the author’s grandfather, who came from Japan. The sepia tones and muted coloring remind one of actual aged photographs. It is clear that Say loves both the land of his birth and the land of his adulthood. As with all excellent children’s books, his writing is simplistic and dramatic at the same time. This book makes a useful source for copy work with its direct prose.

The Glorious Flight written and illustrated by Alice and Martin Provensen (1984) – This enthralling story of Louis Bleriot, a Frenchman who built and flew a plane across the English Channel, provides children with the great adventures involved in the history of flight. Again, sepia toned illustrations tie the straightforward and specific text with the time period. The basic structure of the characters in the illustrations appeal to children as they seem almost child designed themselves. The blending of colors creates a realistic backdrop for an amazing historical event.

Rapunzel illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky (1998) – Zelinsky spent a great deal of time and energy researching the origins of this fable, so this retelling provides a very traditional perspective in the prose. Many modern retellings of fairy tales have a politically correct twist; not so with Zelinsky. Even with this excellent retelling, the artwork really steals the show. Rapunzel’s golden locks make every young lady (and maybe even her mother) long to grow their hair. The illustrations are mindful of classic Renaissance paintings with full expressions and rich colors. Even the lighting astounds the eye, seeming realistic. Beware! You may cry when Rapunzel’s glorious trendels are shorn, but don’t worry, the story ends as it should. 

 Related activity: There are a multitude of wonderful books, whether it’s the writing or the illustrations, that never receive an award. Have your children design medals to give to your favorite books. You could give medals for writing and illustrations, but other ideas may also come to mind including books that demonstrate Christ and friendship books. Let your children design the medals on paper then you can adhere the designs to foil covered cardboard circles. If you don’t want to stick the medals right on the book fronts, you can punch a hole in each medal and tie ribbon through it, then have your children use the medals as bookmarks. If your child writes a "book" of his own, it’s a great opportunity to encourage him and create a medal just for his book.  

For a complete listing of the Caldecott and Newbery Medals, you can visit the American Library Association (ALA) at www.ala.org.      

We’d love to hear about your favorite Caldecott and Newbery books. If you comment with a title, be sure to let us know why you or your child prefer that particular book. Remember, by commenting on this blog, you are automatically entered in the drawing for our next book give away. You need to comment by November 29th in order to enter the next drawing. The winner of that drawing will actually receive two Newbery Medal books: Johnny Tremain and Number the Stars!

Now it’s time to get a cup of hot tea, gather your children around and take off on your next reading adventure! God bless you and your family during this Thanksgiving holiday!

In Christ,

Beth

Some of my most precious Christmas memories revolve around books. Every year, my Mom would unpack her Reader’s Digest collection of Christmas stories and place it on the coffee table. Every year, I would pick up the heavy, hardbound anthology and read it as if I had never read it before. I also had a well worn copy of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and I don’t think a movie version was ever made that rivaled my imagination, which swirled with a combination of frightening images and tender vignettes as Scrooge learned to love and be loved. However, the hands down favorite for me was my father retelling of O. Henry’s The Gift of the Magi. My father is not a great lover of literature, being much more concerned with science and facts, but for some reason O. Henry’s irony held Dad captive. To this day, it is my favorite O.Henry story and I will never forget how romantic the couple’s sacrificial love seemed to me as an adolescent girl.

Imaginatively illustrated, simply written children’s picture books can create cherished family memories as well as prized gifts. If you’re looking for some new story treasures for your family, consider some of these favorites. You can purchase them from Amazon by simply clicking the links at the end of the blog:

• Shoemaker Martin written by Leo Tolstoy, illustrated by Bernadette Watts - This picture book actually became one of my favorites after I had my own children, even though it was originally written in the 1800s. The author, Tolstoy, also wrote the most acclaimed novel ever published, War and Peace, and yet, later in life became a Christian and wrote this beloved short story. With the focus on Christ, it’s an ideal story for Christmas although it’s not generally known as a holiday book. Tolstoy’s main point, as presented in this picture book, that Jesus reveals Himself through us in every day life isn’t overly challenging for a young child to understand and yet, it’s an excellent stepping stone for a mature discussion of how the things we do, as believers, affect everyone around us. The illustrations in this particular version are detailed and captivating while the text, translated from Russian, maintains its simplistic story telling quality.
•  The Gift of the Magi written by O. Henry – O. Henry is another one of those late 1800s story tellers, although he wrote mainly about American life. As I previously noted, this short story holds a special place in my childhood memories. We didn’t have the picture books, when I was a child, now available with their glorious original paintings. Both of the versions that I have read recently, one illustrated by Lisbeth Zwerger and the other by P.J. Lynch, are very comparable in their presentations. P.J. Lynch, one of my absolute favorite illustrators (you will see the name several times in this blog alone) and his soft, but realistic paintings almost tell the story on their own. It’s no wonder that Lynch is a two time winner of the prestigious Kate Greenaway award. Yet, Zwerger’s tender illustrations in this particular book actually seem to give off the romantic gaslight qualities of the time period in which the story was written. You’ll have to make the decision or better yet, buy them both!
• We Believe in Christmas written by Karen Kingsbury and illustrated by Daniel J. Brown - This modern picture is ideally suited for younger children. The text clearly expresses one family’s reasons for celebrating Christmas, rather than "the holiday season." The vivid illustrations with bright colors and a realistic presentation make it easy for younger children to understand. Related Christmas activity: Make a book with your children revealing why your family believes in Christmas. Focus on what your family does each holiday season and how your traditions relate to your family’s belief in Christ and celebrating His birth. It could be as simple as pages stapled together where you write main ideas on each page and your children illustrate them. For a more sophisticated project, an older child could design the book on the computer.
• The Christmas Miracle of Jonathon Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski and illustrated by P.J. Lynch – Along a similar, but less dark, story line as A Christmas Carol, this is the tale of a reclusive, yet talented, wood cutter who comes to life after being asked to create a Christmas nativity for a mom and her young son. One of my favorite qualities of this story is the flowing language that the author uses including when she describes Toomey, "He went about mumbling and grumbling, muttering and sputtering, grumping and griping." More creative phraseology occurs when Wojciechowski expresses, "He traveled until his tears stopped." As usual, Lynch’s illustrations bring life and feeling to the sentimental story with vibrant details including a wood tone shading to match the main character’s gifted profession.
• The Gift of the Christmas Cookie: Sharing the True Meaning of Jesus’ Birth written by Dandi Mackall and illustrated by Deborah Chabrian – In this story, a depression era mother shares a family tradition with her son, Jack. The tradition involves baking cookies and giving them to others to share the story of Christ. When Jack receives an angel cookie as his only Christmas gift, he decides to give it to a stranger and share what he believes. Illustrations of warm watercolors appropriately accompany this simple, but essential story and the author even includes a Christmas cookie recipe. Related Christmas activity: Make Christmas cookies of angels and other Christian symbols to take to a homeless shelter, children’s hospital, orphanage or other institution where children can enjoy them while you and your family share this sweet book. You could also leave your copy of the book for the children to read repeatedly.
• A Christmas Carol written by Charles Dickens and illustrated by P.J. Lynch – Yes, another book illustrated by Lynch!  I would recommend this book for older children due to the seriousness of some of the illustrations. Although the illustrations are darker in places than his other books, this particular story requires them at certain points to maintain the integrity of the original plot.
• Christmas Day in the Morning written by Pearl S. Buck and illustrated by Mark Buehner – Pearl S. Buck is best known as the author of the classic novel, The Good Earth. This is the first time this story has been published in picture book version since its original conception in 1055 as a short story. Its realistic human qualities feature a teenage boy suddenly discovering how much his father loves him. With that realization, the son works to come up with a gift that his father will truly appreciate. A tie in with the nativity moves this story from a simple feel good plot to the real reason behind Christmas. With sincere expression and homey illustrations, this book is sure to become an inspiration for many children to honor their parents in practical and helpful ways.                                                                                                                                                                                   

I hope that my reviews of these favorites provide you with a tool for choosing some new Christmas books for your family and save you some shopping time this holiday season. Our free book give away for this week is a hard cover version of Christmas Day in the Morning, valued at $16.99 retail. All you have to do is submit a comment on this blog by Sunday, November 23rd, and you will automatically be entered in a drawing for this free gift. If you have a favorite Christmas book, please include it in your comment to share with other families.

If you haven’t already subscribed to our mailing list, please click here and subscribe at the bottom of the page — and then continue reading and commenting between now and Christmas to get your name in all of the drawings for free books from Epi Kardia’s book give away…our gift to you this Christmas season!  And don’t forget that those who subscribe (or resubscribe) to our new list by Novermber 14th will be entered in the drawing for another new book: The Perfect Mix by Diane Phillips!

Happy reading and many blessings,

Beth

Beth and I have been working on a series of blogs about books.  The titles of the posts that will be published over the next few weeks are: Our Favorite Holiday Titles, Classics for All Ages, Just for Fun, Keeping it Educational, Award Winning Books, Poetic Gift Giving, and Adored Anthologies. Additionally, we will be having a drawing to give away at least one book each week until Christmas especially selected with you and your family in mind. We’ll be sending out a beautiful hardcover picture book, an instructional poetry anthology, a homeschool mom’s devotional, and more! Keep reading to see how to participate!

These posts will include timeless gift suggestions for specified ages, ideal travel books and even ideas for precious projects that could be made by your kids for their grandparents for Christmas.  If you missed them, check out our first two already-published holiday posts in the series:  Holiday Alert! http://www.epikardia.com/blog/175/holiday-alert/and How to Choose a Treasured Children’s Book http://www.epikardia.com/blog/132/how-to-choose-a-treasured-childrens-book/.

So, how can you participate in our book give away?  We are asking you to do two things:

1.  Join our mailing list.  As we are switching to another newsletter service, we will need you to resubscribe, even if you are already a member of our list. To subscribe go to http://www.epikardia.com/free_downloads.html and fill out your name and e-mail address. You will receive a verification e-mail in your inbox and you will need to click on the link to verify your subscription.  EXTRA BONUS:  If you subscribe or resubscribe by Friday, November 21st, you will be entered into a drawing for The Perfect Mix:  90 Gift Giving Ideas for Bread, Soup, Dessert and Other Home-made Mixes, by Diane Philips! (read more about this useful and timely book in this post!)

2.  After you have subscribed to our mailing list:  for each week you would like to be included in the drawing, please read the post here on our blog and make a comment . That’s all you have to do!  We will choose a random name from our subscribers who comment on the blog each week to receive a free book!  (We will contact you for your mailing address and will mail –or deliver if you’re local– at no cost to you!)

When you join our mailing list, you will also receive two helpful e-book resources for your poetry studies as our gift, A Child’s Garden of Verses, by Robert Louis Stevenson, and the beautifully illustrated The Children’s Own Longfellow, by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

We hope you will forward this post to your home schooling friends as well as any other homeschool loops to which you belong!

Join our new mailing list today and be looking for the titles of our first give-away this week!

We just finished our geometry lesson. I know…an auspicious way to start a blog, but it’s the truth. As John Paul sits here working on his math lesson, I suddenly realize that I only have three more first days of school with him! While that might be a relief to some moms, I want to cry. Where did the time go? How can he already be in high school? I am actually doing geometry with JP this year for two reasons: I didn’t like it in high school and didn’t retain any of the information, so I have to do it again in case he needs help with lessons and the writers of Teaching Textbooks note that it improves logical reasoning skills. Well, who couldn’t use more logical reasoning skills? Last year, JP did most of his school on his own, short of the writing class I taught, and I have a feeling that no matter what subjects he took this year, I would’ve found a way to do them with him. I think he senses my neediness because rather than running off to his desk, which is typical, he stayed at the table to work. Okay…he is listening to his IPOD, but still, it’s something.

Dana and I occasionally mention Epi Kardia projects and ideas that will be accomplished once our boys graduate. At the time, it sounds fun and exciting, but when it comes down to it, I have home schooled for so many years, I can’t imagine not spending summers planning and setting schedules for the coming school year. Warning to all of my friends who have younger children: I may be popping in to "help out" in a few years. 

I’ve heard many moms talk about special traditions for the first day or the first week of school and when my children were younger, we did plenty of fun stuff to get us psyched for the work to come. Now that it’s just JP and me, I realize that he sees the first day of school as an end to summer freedom and I see it as one more step to sending him off to college. Not very positive, huh? So, last night, after church, JP and I stopped by the grocery store because I told him he could choose any breakfast he wanted for day one of his freshman year. I was a little surprised when I heard the word "pizza" come out of his mouth. Really? Really. I was putting a pepperoni pizza in the oven at 8 am this morning.  It can’t be worse than sugar laden cereal, I guess, and he sure seemed to enjoy it.

Being home schoolers, we all tend to enjoy the first day of school in unique ways. Some moms go all out while others jump right into lessons. A few ideas that have been suggested in the past include:

• take photos of your children with "first day of school" and grade sign. One mom uses a "first day of not going to school" sign.
• new pajamas to hang out in all day.
• backpack filled with new school books and supplies.
• set up calendar, looking ahead at the new school year and all of the exciting service projects, field trips, etc. to come.
• holding school in a special location: at the beach, a park, etc.
• if your children haven’t applied for their own library cards, the first day of school may be a memorable time to let them do so. In some families, getting a library card is a "rite of passage" idea with the children having to reach a certain age or level of responsiblity.

I tend to be pragmatic. I made a schedule and I like to stay on it.  Many home schoolers are much more flexible. Whether you’re more like me or less anal, we’d love to hear your first day of school ideas! Do you have any special traditions? What are some of your most memorable first days of school? We’d love to hear from you and share your ideas with other families.

Whether you’re back to school yet or not, I’ve prayed for all who read this that God will bless your time with your children, bringing your families great blessings this year!

In Christ,

Beth

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Hey everyone!

Hope that your school year is finishing up nicely with lots of wonderful plans for the summer! As you may have noticed in the our latest newsletter, I had an article published in Seasons magazine last month. Thought I’d give you all an idea of what it included. If you’d like to read the article in its entirety, you can check out the Seasons website at www.ripe4harvest.com for their subscription information.

Many blessings,

Beth

Excerpt from Beyond the Textbook:

Some parents are intimidated by planning a unit study because they worry about getting it right or coming up with ideas.  Literature offers some natural leads for planning a unit study because so much of the material is built right into the book.  Using literature as the basis for your unit study also provides immediate structure.  It leads to not only the study of the content, but also to the elements of literature (plot, setting, characters, etc.), learning about the author, analyzing the theme(s), researching the time period of the setting or the when the book was written, vocabulary and more.  Literature is also an easy segue to oral presentations and narrations.

Shakespeare, often studied with older students, naturally lends to unit studies.  Although it is wise to be selective about the work you choose by this profound author as some of the mature themes should not be studied too early, one work that has much to offer is The Merchant of Venice. With any literature based unit study, you can develop components to be completed before, during and after the actual reading.  Some ideas that work well to do before reading include: 

·        Study the time period of Shakespeare (late 1500s – early 1600s, Elizabethan England)

·        Discuss anti-Semitism during Shakespeare’s time (could expand to examine other historical periods that reflect anti-Semitism),

·        Geography lesson about Venice (a financial capital during Elizabethan times),

·        Define “irony” in preparation for finding examples of it in the play as it is read

·        How to read a Shakespearean play for greater understanding (read it like poetry, to the punctuation symbol, not to the end of the sentence). 

I remember when my now college student, Ally, was in 4th grade and we had just begun home schooling.  Ally and I poured over curriculum and researched so many different approaches that I felt like I was back in school!  One of the things that caught my attention early on was the idea of incorporating fine arts education into home schooling.  Even though she had come from a private school, Ally didn’t have much of a fine arts education. She loved and still loves to paint and draw (a quality she received from my mother…definitely not me!).That was about as much fine art as we had in our home.  I had been teaching about eight years at that time and never considered fine arts in the classroom because there just wasn’t any time for it. However, with the whole new world of home schooling in front of us, leaving behind bells and lines and required curriculum, I felt a tremendous sense of freedom and decided, yes, we definitely needed fine arts in our studies. 

I began to educate myself by the most sensible way I knew at that point…going to the library.  I checked out books on artists from a variety of time periods, read books about how to evaluate art, discovered the great composers and brought home hoards of materials.  Although I never had a passion for the fine arts, I have always had a passion for learning, so began my art and music education. I tried to recall my college art appreciation class and only remembered my grade for the one major paper. 

Below are the major points that I learned through that process and over the years to come concerning fine arts in our home. 

1.  Each family should define "fine arts" in their own way. Some of the great blessings of home schooling are that you can put the emphasis where you choose and you can develop your schooling program around your family’s core beliefs and values without concern about what others are doing or think. Case in point, I don’t think Andy Warhol was much of an artist.  It’s not just that I don’t like his style, I just don’t see the great art potential in his work. There’s not much there to even analyze for me. However, I really love Norman Rockwell.  His ability to catch the human spirit in expression and activity totally blows me away. I can look at his work repeatedly and find new things to enjoy every time. Crazily enough, by the world’s standards Andy Warhol is an artist and Norman Rockwell is an illustrator (basically because his most popular work was on magazine covers). Now, you may strongly disagree.  You may have Campbell Soup renditions all over your house and spend hours each day delighted by their vibrant colors and realness. Or you may find Norman Rockwell bland and unoriginal because he chose real people as his subjects and really did do his best work for The Saturday Evening Post. That’s the beauty of it. Determining which art is fine for your family is your decision.

2. Just because they’re naked doesn’t mean they’re art. Artists have painted the human body in a variety of ways and sculpted them in even more variations. If nudity determines artistic credence, then you can find plenty of fine art in convenience store magazine racks. There is a major difference, although I have met "artists" who don’t agree, between admiring God’s handiwork in the beautiful creation of the human body and simply painting nude people because others will look at them.

3. Just because they’re naked doesn’t mean they’re not art. I am not legalistic about the presentation of the human body. I did not have a problem explaining Michelangelo’s David to my children. However, there have definitely been graphic paintings and provocative sculptures that I deemed inappropriate. Children are often fascinated by the human body and presenting it in a God created expression through art can be very healthy. Other presentations create pictures in their minds that are not easily removed.

4. Art and Music are excellent tools for teaching discernment. These are great areas for demonstrating the worldly vs. godly viewpoints. Art and Music with violent or graphic themes may still be considered art and music, but that does not mean they’re appropriate for a believer’s heart to embrace. Teaching our children from early on that ungodly examples exist in literature, fine art, movies etc. can only benefit them. I am amazed at how many parents allow their children to read poorly written books with negative, sometimes even anti-God themes, and rationalize it by saying "At least he’s reading". Whether we’re looking at art, listening to music, reading a book or watching a movie, none of those activities are valuable in themselves. What our mind and heart processes through the experience is the valuable component.

5. "Exposure" has not been proven a good teacher. I was a teacher when the government decided that exposing elementary age children to drugs and how those drugs affect people would prevent the children from using drugs later. The same decision was made about AIDs and safe sex. It didn’t take long to realize that simply exposing children to something isn’t quite the same as educating them.  As well, a child can be educated about many things without having to be exposed to them. Simply exposing your children to art and music, even the really good stuff, won’t necessarily do much.  Interaction and communication are better teachers.  Discussing why something is considered art or considered fine, leading your child to examine art and listen closely to music, and integrating fine arts with writing or other academic areas will all produce a higher quality of education than visiting a multitude of museums and simply showing them.

6. Go with your gut. If a work of art makes you feel uncomfortable or evokes negative emotions, go with your instincts and prayerfully consider whether it won’t cause the same emotional reaction for your child.

As parents and teachers, we have a tremendous responsibility to not only educate our children but also to train them to educate themselves. When we look at any component of their education, we want to make sure that their education has real value. Teaching or doing something because other families do or simply as a desire to instill as much knowledge as possible into our children will not produce the best results. As you decide what components are incorporated in your child’s education, don’t overlook the arts. However, remember that a Christ centered education means that all aspects of study relate back to God and His will.

If you’d like to view some fine arts options online, check out Epi Kardia’s resource links where you can visit The Louvre, take a virtual tour through the National Gallery of Art and more!  Just go to www.epikardia.com/links.htm .