I began my quest for an education after I graduated from college in 2003. Even, though I had the paper that claimed I was educated, I knew that I was not. My plan was to go to graduate school and there get my education. Luckily two months before I was to start at ISU I found out I was pregnant with my first child. Nevertheless I was confident I could do it on my own, get an education I mean. I already had the books for my first semester so I read them. After a few weeks I realized there were too many holes in my education to really learn from them, so I switched to reading classic fiction, which I already knew I was good at. Two years after that I found a book that outlines how to give a classical education to children. This was exactly what I wanted for myself as well. I thought about just going through the whole program myself, but it seemed to daunting. About a year later I was introduced to TJEd and felt that this was the answer to my dillema concerning the acquisition of an education. I saw a way to get a classical education, but also a way to overcome the fear and anxiety I had about myself. I was excited.
The more I learned about the phases of learning, the more I realized I was still on the edge of Core Phase and LOL. It took me a while, but I finally decided to go with it. I studied my Core book and I tried many different things. I finally came back to my two true loves, reading and sewing. I spent more than two years trying out scholar activities. The best thing I did was join a scholar type discussion group and a classic fiction book club. I learned some from the readings, but more importantly I learned how to really read and discipline. I learned that I was capable of doing hard things and eventually I began to change from the readings.
Last Spring I set out to practice scholar phase. I picked six books that were things I thought I should learn and studied every day. I set up a schedule and made myself stick to it. I even made myself takes notes. At first the notes didn't help so I changed to written narrations Charlotte Mason style. Wow! Did that change my reading and writing. I began to pay attention more and to formulate my narrations as I read. My writing improved as well, my ideas began to come together on paper in a more cohesive way, not to mention faster.
Then I signed up for the Shakespeare class at Abigail Adam's Academy. This was my hardest “project” yet. I had not really read much Shakespeare and what I did I certainly didn't understand very well. It was hard, but now I am finished reading the third play, Henry V, and I loved it. Shakespeare is not hard anymore.
I feel like I am really ready for the next step in my scholar phase. My previous Core Phase issues seem to be manageable, my LOL issues don't seem to be a bother any more, and my scholar skills are improving every day. I am looking forward to a quiet, secluded winter so I can study with minimal interruptions.
14 November 2010
20 October 2010
Do one thing every day that scares you. -Eleanor Roosevelt
I have been working on educating myself for a while now and have studied many great books, learned a lot, and changed quite a bit. The problem is that I now feel that I have not been going far enough. I have not been doing very much writing, OK I have been doing next to no writing. Lately I have been feeling the pull of the pen, yet I hesitate and avoid it. I take notes on what I read and rewrite things that don't make sense to me in my own words, but I do not do much by way of complete sentences or paragraphs. This has to change.
I have spent some time the last week pondering my aversion to writing. I was a successful writer in college. My professors loved the papers I wrote. I even had no problem writing six or seven 15-20 page papers each semester for one class, I usually had five or six classes per semester. The conclusion I came to is complicated, simple. I was good at school. I felt educated because I had a degree and studied so many hours and so many books that I can't even count them, yet when I started to study for myself a few years ago I realized that I was wrong. I was neither good at studying or educated. I wasn't even that smart. For a long time I felt nothing but frustration at my education. I didn't like this at all. I have come a long way. I don't feel educated or smart, although I am better at studying. I am worried that I am not as good at writing at I thought. I may find myself a failure in this as well.
Some things that I have learned about failure are first that it stinks. It is hard, it is embarrassing, and it makes me cry. Next, that it is inevitable. Third that the only real failure is the failure to try. My fear of failure has kept me from doing many things that I may have enjoyed. More importantly it has kept me from learning lessons that may have strengthened me.
I have on occasion failed, OK I fail all the time. Last week I thought about my failures. I let myself really feel the failures and many time I cried. What I found, though, was that it was not as bad looking back as I thought it was at the time. I realized one thing about all my failures were me always ending up on my knees and then always getting back up again. I could not have made it if not for prayer and my Savior, but miraculously I made it. Each time, big or small, I got back up stronger and more determined than before. I have learned that failure is nothing to be scared of, it is something we should embrace, experience fully, and then move on. That is why the Lord has made it possible to repent, each time we do it is like starting over.
I am now repenting of my failure to write. I will not be afraid of being bad at writing. I will take each criticism and use it to make myself that much better. I will even write some things without worrying about proper form or criticism. Now I just need to find someone who will really critique me. I pulled out a new composition notebook. I am going to decorate it tonight with my girls because I like pretty things and will start writing now.
12 September 2010
Why I think I Should Study Shakespeare
Who would want to study Shakespeare? That is the question that I have been asked many times over the last month and a half. My response is always, “Who wouldn't want to study Shakespeare?” Despite answer I understand where they are coming from. I have not always seen the importance of studying anything at all, let alone Shakespeare, but I have changed my thoughts. I believe that everyone should and can study Shakespeare. In this essay I am only going into the reasons why I believe that I should study Shakespeare. There may be as many reasons as there are people I am, but these are the ones personal to me.
The first that I will write about is new to me. I learned it last week during my first class on Shakespeare. That is that some of our modern words were words that Shakespeare made up to fit into his plays. The English Language is bigger and more complex by over 1000 words because of the things that he wrote. Learning this made me think about how my vocabulary grows. Without hearing language that is unfamiliar to me or more complex than I am used to it will always stay the same. Reading and watching Shakespeare will definitely stretch my vocabulary.
Shakespeare is a part of our modern culture whether we recognize it or not. The basic skeletons of many of Shakespeare's plays are found throughout our culture. Many of the movies produced and stories written today are in some way or another a telling of one of his stories. Studying Shakespeare will give me the ability to recognize this and know more about what I am seeing or reading than I otherwise would have been. There are also many phrases we use today that we may or may not know come from Shakespeare. The phrase, “It's Greek to me,” is a quote from Shakespeare, so is “all the world's a stage.” There are many, many other phrases we use all the time not knowing we are actually quoting the most influential English writer of all time. Knowing this may not only be helpful, but is also amusing.
While reading any literature, but Shakespeare in particular, I can learn about human relations. I can objectively look at how characters interact with each other, as well as see how they handle different situations. I can then truthfully ponder how I would have acted in the situations and how I would have liked to have handled it different than them or even change my behavior to be more in line with theirs. The point is that I don't have to experience all situations to learn the lessons.
Probably the most appealing reason of all of these to me is that I get insight into Elizabethan culture. I can see how people actually lived, thought, and acted. I will be introduced to many customs that were common then, but not so anymore. I can likewise learn about the traditions that they held dear. Another important aspect of this is learning that the people of that time were really not so different from those alive today than I thought. They loved, worried, made mistakes, and were heroic just like people today.
A final reason that I have decided to study Shakespeare is that it is entertaining. What better way to learn language, grammar, social studies, history and character study than by reading things that along with teaching make me laugh, cry, or even get angry, in short stir my emotions.
The first that I will write about is new to me. I learned it last week during my first class on Shakespeare. That is that some of our modern words were words that Shakespeare made up to fit into his plays. The English Language is bigger and more complex by over 1000 words because of the things that he wrote. Learning this made me think about how my vocabulary grows. Without hearing language that is unfamiliar to me or more complex than I am used to it will always stay the same. Reading and watching Shakespeare will definitely stretch my vocabulary.
Shakespeare is a part of our modern culture whether we recognize it or not. The basic skeletons of many of Shakespeare's plays are found throughout our culture. Many of the movies produced and stories written today are in some way or another a telling of one of his stories. Studying Shakespeare will give me the ability to recognize this and know more about what I am seeing or reading than I otherwise would have been. There are also many phrases we use today that we may or may not know come from Shakespeare. The phrase, “It's Greek to me,” is a quote from Shakespeare, so is “all the world's a stage.” There are many, many other phrases we use all the time not knowing we are actually quoting the most influential English writer of all time. Knowing this may not only be helpful, but is also amusing.
While reading any literature, but Shakespeare in particular, I can learn about human relations. I can objectively look at how characters interact with each other, as well as see how they handle different situations. I can then truthfully ponder how I would have acted in the situations and how I would have liked to have handled it different than them or even change my behavior to be more in line with theirs. The point is that I don't have to experience all situations to learn the lessons.
Probably the most appealing reason of all of these to me is that I get insight into Elizabethan culture. I can see how people actually lived, thought, and acted. I will be introduced to many customs that were common then, but not so anymore. I can likewise learn about the traditions that they held dear. Another important aspect of this is learning that the people of that time were really not so different from those alive today than I thought. They loved, worried, made mistakes, and were heroic just like people today.
A final reason that I have decided to study Shakespeare is that it is entertaining. What better way to learn language, grammar, social studies, history and character study than by reading things that along with teaching make me laugh, cry, or even get angry, in short stir my emotions.
08 June 2010
8 June 2010
The Fourth Turning:
Times can be thought of as chaotic, circular, or linear. The ancients thought of time as chaotic, no rhyme nor reason; time came to be thought of as circular when the ancients linked natural cycles. Seasons repeat, the sun comes up goes down and then comes up again. Linear came to be during the middle ages when Christianity pulled hard away from Paganism. Americans view time as linear. I have always thought of time as circular. I love how God has made seasons for us. Even down to a day. I am so grateful some days that the sun went down and I get to start over the next day.
Circular time is usually divided into two or four sections. The Etruscans first came up the with idea the the Romans called the saeculum, meaning a long life, or approximately 100 years. The saeculum is divided into four seasons of life, birth, maturation, middle age, and death. These coincide with Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. They are each approximately 20-25 years in length and separate generations. The ideas of each generation change, but cycle back through after four generations.
How to read a book
The rules for reading fiction are different but coincide with the rules for reading non fiction. They will help us learn from the book by helping us have the experience the author wants us to. The part I didn't understand very well, was the criticism part. We can't agree or disagree, we either like or dislike a work of fiction, but we have to go beyond like or dislike and why. We have to "objectify your reaction by pointing to those things in the book that are good and bad and why."
The BOM
I read about Enos. I admire his so much. He is an example of saying so much in a short amount of space. His love for the Nephites and the Lamanites is admirable. I do find myself praying for those I love, but rarely pray for those I don't know and/or are my enemies.
The Lost Memoirs....
Jane, her sister Cassandra, and her mother are left destitute after her father dies. They move from brother's house to brother's house until her brother Frank asks them to live with him and his new wife and share expenses. Frank has announced that he and his wife are moving and it was not said, but seemed clear that the family needed some privacy.
Times can be thought of as chaotic, circular, or linear. The ancients thought of time as chaotic, no rhyme nor reason; time came to be thought of as circular when the ancients linked natural cycles. Seasons repeat, the sun comes up goes down and then comes up again. Linear came to be during the middle ages when Christianity pulled hard away from Paganism. Americans view time as linear. I have always thought of time as circular. I love how God has made seasons for us. Even down to a day. I am so grateful some days that the sun went down and I get to start over the next day.
Circular time is usually divided into two or four sections. The Etruscans first came up the with idea the the Romans called the saeculum, meaning a long life, or approximately 100 years. The saeculum is divided into four seasons of life, birth, maturation, middle age, and death. These coincide with Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter. They are each approximately 20-25 years in length and separate generations. The ideas of each generation change, but cycle back through after four generations.
How to read a book
The rules for reading fiction are different but coincide with the rules for reading non fiction. They will help us learn from the book by helping us have the experience the author wants us to. The part I didn't understand very well, was the criticism part. We can't agree or disagree, we either like or dislike a work of fiction, but we have to go beyond like or dislike and why. We have to "objectify your reaction by pointing to those things in the book that are good and bad and why."
The BOM
I read about Enos. I admire his so much. He is an example of saying so much in a short amount of space. His love for the Nephites and the Lamanites is admirable. I do find myself praying for those I love, but rarely pray for those I don't know and/or are my enemies.
The Lost Memoirs....
Jane, her sister Cassandra, and her mother are left destitute after her father dies. They move from brother's house to brother's house until her brother Frank asks them to live with him and his new wife and share expenses. Frank has announced that he and his wife are moving and it was not said, but seemed clear that the family needed some privacy.
04 June 2010
Back in the Saddle
I am going to start using this blog more. I am going to use it as a sort of commonplace blog. I will keep a record of what I study during the day. I just finished several books and am still working on a few. Here is a list:
A Farewell to Arms by Hemingway (20 pages left)
How to Read a Book (much more complicated than I thought)
The Fourth Turning
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen (love her)
And as always:
A Farewell to Arms by Hemingway (20 pages left)
How to Read a Book (much more complicated than I thought)
The Fourth Turning
The Lost Memoirs of Jane Austen (love her)
And as always:
The Scriptures
Charlotte Mason Series
Leadership Education: The Phases of Learning
Today:
A Farewell to Arms:
I do not like this book. I think that the protagonist and his lover are two of the most selfish and cowardly people I have read about. I may just have them wrong, but I don't see much that can be called redeeming. I only have 20 pages left and can't wait for them to be over. Catharine is getting ready to have her baby and they move closer to a hospital. They spent some sickeningly loving months in the mountains and now that spring is here they are getting to where it is cleaner and safer for her to have her baby.
How to Read a Book:
The focus today was on how to use a dictionary and encyclopedia. Both are to be used sparingly and only after you have done the necessary work to understand what the author is trying to say. Adler suggests that we should read both of these reference books for pleasure. I do like to look at the dictionary every now and then, but I do not usually do that with an encyclopedia. This was a short day because I was just finishing up a chapter that I started yesterday.
Book of Mormon:
I read most of Jacob 5 today. This is the parable of the olive tree. This is not one of the most interesting parts of the BOM. I was also distracted by Abby, she wanted me to take lots of breaks to read her stories. She loved the books so much that she saved them in her "tubby" for later.
That was all that I got to today because we spent most of the day wild flower hunting at Big Hollow. We found lots and lots of them.
08 September 2009
New outlook
I have had a difficult summer. This pregnancy has been so hard on me, I do not' want to go into all of the details, because I have been dwelling on them too much lately. I am finally feeling well enough to focus on studying again. I finished some things that I started in the beginning of summer, but did not get to and now am ready to get started on new projects. For a while, I thought that I was just not ready for a scholar type education. I spent some more time early this spring just trying things out in a LOL style. I now feel restless with this style of learning anymore. I still feel like I do not want to do all of the things that make a student a scholar, such as writing everyday, but know that I have to and even want to see if I can over come this feeling and challenge myself.
Here are the concerns that I have that are causing me anxiety. First, I am still unsure of my "scholar abilities". Second, I feel that I am so far behind where I should be at this point. I also wonder if I have enough time to make it worthwhile. Something that has surprised me is that I am not a good writer. In college, I was good at writing. I wrote all the time and my professors loved and praised my writing. Now that I do not have a "topic" to write about, I have no idea what to write or how to do it. I sit down to write and my mind wanders. This is the part of scholar phase that I am struggling with the most.
I have been mostly reading classic fiction books because I have always loved fiction. Looking back over the books I have read I realize that they have made a difference in my life. I am a better person for reading them and understand myself better. I have really appreciated the group that I go to at Nicholeen's house. I have really benefited from the things that we have read and the discussions also. I do not know if I would have read many of them on my own. I want to venture into other genres myself but do not know how to do it.
This does not mean that I am giving up on my hand work. Iforgot how relaxing and rewarding that it. Now that it will be getting cooler I can work more on quilting and things to stay warm.
Here are the concerns that I have that are causing me anxiety. First, I am still unsure of my "scholar abilities". Second, I feel that I am so far behind where I should be at this point. I also wonder if I have enough time to make it worthwhile. Something that has surprised me is that I am not a good writer. In college, I was good at writing. I wrote all the time and my professors loved and praised my writing. Now that I do not have a "topic" to write about, I have no idea what to write or how to do it. I sit down to write and my mind wanders. This is the part of scholar phase that I am struggling with the most.
I have been mostly reading classic fiction books because I have always loved fiction. Looking back over the books I have read I realize that they have made a difference in my life. I am a better person for reading them and understand myself better. I have really appreciated the group that I go to at Nicholeen's house. I have really benefited from the things that we have read and the discussions also. I do not know if I would have read many of them on my own. I want to venture into other genres myself but do not know how to do it.
This does not mean that I am giving up on my hand work. Iforgot how relaxing and rewarding that it. Now that it will be getting cooler I can work more on quilting and things to stay warm.
08 August 2009
The Princess Academy
Donna Goff started The Princess Academy in response to concerns she had about her youngest daughter. She wanted a way for her to learn about true womanhood and believed other mothers wanted the same for their daughters. She wondered if those mothers didn't know how to begin. From this she created a primer for mothers called The Princess Academy and The Hope Chest Journey Rediscovering the Lost Arts of Godly Womanhood (A Primer for Mothers).
She not only included mothers and daughters, but also single women and those that do have have any daughters. These women are those who are "seeking Th refinement of Godly womanhood through developing in beauty and grace from the inside out," (from page 1 of the Primer).
The program consists of several types of groups, called Princess Circles, to help with the journey and make friends. The first is Little Princesses for girls age six through nine and their mothers. The next is called Princess Academy, this is for young ladies age ten through thirteen and their mothers. Maidens consist of girls age fourteen to eighteen and their mothers. Another circle is called Prairie Princesses. These are women and mothers and daughters of any age who focus on provident living skills. The Art of Queenship is a group for adult women single or married.
These groups are meant to teach girls as well as their mothers about how beautiful it is to be a woman, especially when we embrace our divine rolls as princesses of our Heavenly King. They will learn the are of Home Making and not the falsehood of homemaking. They will be better prepared to be a help meet to their husbands and have the know how to make their homes happy.
I love the idea of this. I was ill-prepared to be a wife when I got married and not prepared to be a mother when I had my first child. I do not want my girls to have to learn the skills necessary to be successful women the way I did, it was long and sometimes painful, and still on going.
She not only included mothers and daughters, but also single women and those that do have have any daughters. These women are those who are "seeking Th refinement of Godly womanhood through developing in beauty and grace from the inside out," (from page 1 of the Primer).
The program consists of several types of groups, called Princess Circles, to help with the journey and make friends. The first is Little Princesses for girls age six through nine and their mothers. The next is called Princess Academy, this is for young ladies age ten through thirteen and their mothers. Maidens consist of girls age fourteen to eighteen and their mothers. Another circle is called Prairie Princesses. These are women and mothers and daughters of any age who focus on provident living skills. The Art of Queenship is a group for adult women single or married.
These groups are meant to teach girls as well as their mothers about how beautiful it is to be a woman, especially when we embrace our divine rolls as princesses of our Heavenly King. They will learn the are of Home Making and not the falsehood of homemaking. They will be better prepared to be a help meet to their husbands and have the know how to make their homes happy.
I love the idea of this. I was ill-prepared to be a wife when I got married and not prepared to be a mother when I had my first child. I do not want my girls to have to learn the skills necessary to be successful women the way I did, it was long and sometimes painful, and still on going.
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