What We've Been Reading - February

Preschool - Second Grade Read Alouds

Annie and the Wild Animals by Jan Brett

Bible Stories for Little Children under the approbation of Cardinal McCloskey (excerpt here)

The Boy Who Loved to Draw: Benjamin West by Barbara Brenner
The children found Benjamin West's making of his homemade brush very funny.

Brigid's Cloak by Bryce Milligan

Catholic Children's Treasure Box Books by Maryknoll Sisters

A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Tasha Tudor

Henner's Lydia by Marguerite de Angeli

Miniature Stories of the Saints by Rev. Daniel A. Lord, SJ

Saint Bernadette by Fr. Gales

Trouble with Trolls by Jan Brett

and more...

Second Grade

Jenny's Birthday Book by Esther Averill

Pancakes Paris by Claire Huchet Bishop

Sam and the Firefly by P.D. Eastman

Small Pig by Arnold Lobel

The Truffle Pig by Claire Huchet Bishop

Fifth Grade

Emil and the Detectives by Erich Kastner

My children all decided to read this book after watching the old Disney movie. A couple of the children preferred the book. It is appropriate for younger readers too.

Henner's Lydia by Marguerite de Angeli

My daughter read this chapter book to her younger siblings.

Little House on the Prairie series by Laura Ingalls Wilder
It took a friend recommending these books to my daughter for her to decide to finally read all of them. Thanks to the Little House books, she is turning into a bookworm.

The Martha Years series (Little House in the Highlands, The Far Side of the Loch, Down to the Bonny Glen, and Beyond the Heather Hills) by Melissa Wiley
I hope that Harper Collins eventually comes to their senses and reprints these books with the original illustrations and in an unabridged format. Although we already own them in this form, I would like to buy three or four more unabridged sets of this series.

Little Vic by Doris Gates, illustrated by Kate Seredy

The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright

The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright

Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright

Spiderweb for Two: A Melendy Maze by Elizabeth Enright

Sixth Grade

Big Red by Jim Kjelaard
Anthony has read and reread this story over the years. I think that it is safe to say that it is one of his favorite books. We have an older version of this book.

Emil and the Detectives by Erich Kastner

The Fellowship of the Ring by J.R.R. Tolkien

The Pushcart War by Jean Merrill
Anthony couldn't wait for the audiobook to finish, so he decided to read the book.

Young Mac of Fort Vancouver by Mary Jane Carr

Eighth Grade

The Ark by Margot Benary-Isbert

The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright

Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright

Spiderweb for Two: A Melendy Maze by Elizabeth Enright

Lay Siege to Heaven by Louis de Wohl

Little Vic by Doris Gates, illustrated by Kate Seredy

The Song of Bernadette by Franz Werfel

The Wind Blows Free by Loula G. Erdman

The Yearling by Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings

Tenth Grade

Emil and the Detectives by Erich Kastner

Emma by Jane Austen

The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright

Then There Were Five by Elizabeth Enright

Spiderweb for Two: A Melendy Maze by Elizabeth Enright

Strawberry Girl by Lois Lenski

Me

Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux edited by John Clarke, OCD

Read Aloud

Bernadette: Our Lady's Little Servant by Hertha Pauli

The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton W. Burgess

Enid Blyton's Nature Lover's Book by Enid Blyton

I grew up reading some of Enid Blyton's  books. I am happy to be able to share her writings with my children. I originally intended to read this book to my younger children, but I noticed that a couple of the older children migrated to the room as I read. My children in preschool through sixth grade are enjoying listening to the story. My two eldest children read this and The Burgess Bird Book for Children a few years ago.

The Man Who Never Died: The Life and Adventures of St. Peter, the First Pope by Gerald T. Brennan

      

Audiobooks

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, read by Rob Inglis

The Pushcart War by Jean Merrill, read by Mark Hammer
We laughed out loud as we listened to Mark Hammer reading The Pushcart War. His narration of this great satire is absolutely delightful. One  of my children said, "It's worthwhile reading the book, but you have to listen to it too. The narrator makes it even funnier." Mr. Hammer does a wonderful job imitating the various dialects that one might have heard in New York in the 1960's (maybe even today). Check the book out to read it and see the illustrations. Check the audiobook out to hear this funny story come to life.

St. Edmund Campion Missal and Hymnal

Shh, please don't tell my husband, but I think that I just found what I want to give him for Easter.



More information about this missal/hymnal is available at Corpus Christi Watershed.

Preschool - Where to Begin

A couple of months ago, I received the following question from one of my husband's old friends:

I would like to begin some more formal homeschooling of Juliette, especially in her Catholic faith. Can you point me to a curriculum, or any specific books or resources that you would recommend for that age?

My slightly edited response follows:

Earlier this year, I shared what I am using with Elizabeth here.  Some of the materials are a little bit above her level, but I am using a few of the items with multiple children. When Elizabeth is older, I will most likely enroll her in Seton Home Study School.

Joan was ready to learn to read at 3 and I had more time, so I used a Montessori approach with her. Two books that I remember reading for guidance are Teaching Montessori in the Home: The Pre-School Years by Elizabeth Hainstock, Guiding Your Catholic Preschooler by Kathy Pierce and Lori Rowland, and Beginning at Home by Mary Perkins. The latter two books are about the Faith. 

A book that I have read and reread over the years is How to Raise Good Catholic Children by Mary Reed Newland (the original title of this book was We and Our Children: How to Make a Catholic Home). If you plan on assisting at the Latin Mass at any time, then I recommend getting a copy of We and Our Children; it is unedited and contains a section on the Latin Mass. The sacraments are discussed in light of the Tridentine Rite or Extraordinary Form too.

Anthony benefited from participating in a Catechesis of the Good Shepherd program taught in a friend’s home. If there is a CGS program near you, you might want to observe a class and possibly enroll Juliette.

As you know, the most important thing that you can do is take Juliette to Mass as often as possible. Daily Mass is not an option for us due to Mass times at NAM and distance, but we do try to go to Mass one extra day a week and it does make a difference in the children’s lives, not to mention mine. Hopefully, NAM’s Mass times will change when we get a permanent location.

It goes without saying that in addition to going to Mass whenever possible, reading to Juliette daily is important. There are a lot of good Catholic picture books available. I always check to see if the library has a title before considering whether or not to purchase it. Our library system carries a lot of Catholic books. Library sales can be a great place to buy books.

When Juliette is a little bit older, you might want to ask Julie T. about Mother of Divine Grace, another homeschool program.

Please excuse my rambling and any typos. I am responding with our youngest in my arms and Elizabeth waiting for me to read to her.

If you have any other questions, please don’t hesitate to ask.

May God bless your family!

Pre-Lent Daybook

Outside my window...
It is still dark, but I can hear planes flying over our house.

In the kitchen...
I am thinking about what I should make for dinner tonight.

I am listening to...
the sound of Kieran breathing as he lies next to me. I am so thankful to God for our little boy.

I will be wearing...
a skirt, sweater, black tights and shoes later today.

I am praying for...
Our pastor that he finds a permanent location for our parish, a location that will allow the parish to grow and that will ultimately serve to bring greater glory to God.

I am thankful...
Everyone is well again. We had a nasty flu bug go through our house and as usual most of us fell like dominoes. I was most worried about Kieran because he has coughed every single night (and during his daytime naps) since contracting the whooping cough last July.  The last thing that I felt he needed was a fever, vomiting, and .... Thankfully, Kieran is still nursing and weathered the flu fairly well. Hopefully, his cough will cease in the near future.

In the learning rooms...
Catherine is practicing for her piano adjudications.  Theresa is excited to almost be finished with her math for the year. I need to determine whether or not I should move her right into Saxon Math 7/6 or give her a long break from crunching numbers.  Brendan finished his science book and immediately asked, "What science can I do next?" He is asking for a microscope (suggestions are welcome) and various supplies to make another bug board.

Bernadette is drawing and drawing and drawing. When she was little, she used to finish pictures in her workbooks. If there was a picture of a car, she would draw a person sitting in the car. If there was a picture of a head, she would draw the body. If there was a picture of a horse, she would draw someone riding the horse. At times, I found it nerve-racking. I would think that she was working on her lesson and instead I would find that she had been completing what she saw as unfinished pictures. Now, she draws pictures on the back of her lesson plans, on newsprint, on whatever she can find. She has a couple of sketchbooks, but they aren't always close enough for her to draw what is in her mind. I cringe when I see one of her drawings ruined because it was done on a piece of scrap paper.

Patrick and Finnian continue to be very conscientious learners. They are a joy to teach.

At least once a day, I hear Elizabeth saying, "Do school with me." So, I pull from what we have to teach her. She is learning to read and enjoys coloring. I gave Elizabeth some beeswax crayons which seem to have motivated her to stop coloring everything pink or purple and to start using somewhat realistic colors. I like the rich colors of these crayons and their triangular shape. The shape of the crayons is helping me to gently show Elizabeth how to correctly hold crayons and pencils.

Living the Liturgical Year...
I read this excellent article. (Thank you, Kimberlee, for sharing it.) We are preparing for Lent. It is hard to believe that Ash Wednesday is next week. Our grapevine wreath and toothpicks are ready. I am trying to remember where I stored our Stations of the Cross. I was happy to see this family's sign. I hope that they don't mind, but I copied their sign and will be hanging it in our dining room this Lent. It can be found here if you want to do the same.

I am pondering...

these passages from We and Our Children: How to Make a Catholic Home:

We can give a child all other knowledge, an appetite for all other devotions, a familiarity with every other aspect of the Faith; still, if he does not have reverence and awe and finally impassioned love for the Mass, he is spiritually only half alive. It is probably one of the most intricate of all the lessons to teach, but it is the one he will thank us for the most, all the days of his life. (pp. 129-130)

There is a difference between an educated man and a knowledgeable man. The first knows why he is here and uses knowledge to discover his relation to God. The second does not know why he is here and uses knowledge as the end itself.  (p. 147)

I am reading...

Story of a Soul: The Autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux
This is the second time that I am reading this book. St. Therese of Lisieux was my paternal grandmother's favorite saint. She was also my mother-in-law's favorite.

Plans for the rest of the week...

• Mass
• I am hoping to spend a little time in the garden. I also need to get some gardening soil, so that I can start some seedlings indoors. I had intended to do this in January, but it never happened.

A picture thought...

Hobbit House

We threw a Hobbit party for one of our children. I was happy to be able to add Gandalf, Bilbo, and Thorin to the cake we made. The guests liked the invitation, going to see the movie, the decorations, the Hobbit meal (per the book's description), the games, and dancing to Hobbit music. I think that everyone had a great time.

The Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary

On Thursday, as I read to my children about Candlemas or the Purification from St. Catherine's Academy Gazette, I could not help but comment to them about the virtues of Mary and the virtue of humility. A couple of weeks ago, our pastor spoke about Our Blessed Mother in his Sunday sermon. On the Friday prior to that, he had spoken about the virtue of humility and about how all that we have and do comes from God. We are nothing. The instruction regarding the Purification complemented our pastor's sermons so well. If you have not read pages 9 and 10 of St. Catherine's Academy Gazette, I highly recommend that you do so. I wish that I could share my pastor's sermons with you too.

Happy Candlemas!

The Presentation of the Temple by Philippe de Champaigne

My Queen! My Mother!

I give thee all myself, and to show my devotion to thee,

I consecrate to thee my eyes, my ears, my mouth,

my heart, my entire self. 

Wherefore, O loving Mother, as I am thine own, keep me,

defend me, as thy property and possession.