If you desire to use living books in your children’s education, but are not confident of your ability to discern which books are “living” and which are not, this episode contains the practical information you need. Criteria for determining if a book is living are described carefully, examples read, along with ways to identify and eliminate twaddle from your bookshelves.
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“[T]he boy who has not formed the habit of getting nourishment out of his books in school-days does not, afterwards, see the good of reading. He has not acquired, in an intellectual sense, the art of reading, so he cannot be said to have lost it; and he goes through life an imperfect person, with the best and most delightful of his powers latent or maimed.” (The Formation of Character, pg. 291)
“I am speaking now of his lesson-books, which are all too apt to be written in a style of insufferable twaddle, probably because they are written by persons who have never chanced to meet a child.” (Home Education, pg. 229)
“This sort of weak literature for the children, both in any story and lesson books, is the result of a reactionary process. Not so long ago the current impression was that the children had little understanding, but prodigious memory for facts; dates, numbers, rules, catechisms of knowledge, much information in small parcels, was supposed to be the fitting material for a child’s education. We have changed all that, and put into the children’s hands lesson-books with pretty pictures and easy talk, almost as good as story-books; but we do not see that, after all, we are but giving the same little pills of knowledge in the form of a weak and copious diluent. Teachers, and even parents, who are careful enough about their children’s diet, are so reckless as to the sort of mental aliment offered to them, that I am exceedingly anxious to secure consideration for this question, of the lessons and literature proper for the little people.” (Home Education, pgs. 176-77)
“[H]ungry souls clamouring for meat, and we choke them off, not by shutting up schools and colleges, but by offering matter which no living soul can digest. The complaints made by teachers and children of the monotony of the work in our schools is full of pathos and all credit to those teachers who cheer the weary path by entertaining devices. But mind does not live and grow upon entertainment; it requires its solid meals.” (Towards a Philosophy of Education, pg. 90)
“They must grow up upon the best. There must never be a period in their lives when they are allowed to read or listen to twaddle or reading-made-easy. There is never a time when they are unequal to worthy thoughts, well put; inspiring tales, well told.” (Parents and Children, pg. 263)
“A book may be long or short, old or new, easy or hard, written by a great man or a lesser man, and yet be the living book which finds its way to the mind of a young reader. The expert is not the person to choose; the children themselves are the experts in this case. A single page will elicit a verdict; but the unhappy thing is, this verdict is not betrayed; it is acted upon in the opening or closing of the door of the mind.” (School Education, pgs. 228-229)
“The ‘hundred best books for the schoolroom’ may be put down on a list, but not by me. I venture to propose one or two principles in the matter of school-books, and shall leave the far more difficult part, the application of those principles, to the reader. (School Education, pg. 177)
“So much for the right books; the right use of them is another matter. The children must enjoy the book.” (School Education, pg. 178)
“As for literature–to introduce children to literature is to install them in a very rich and glorious kingdom, to bring a continual holiday to their doors, to lay before them a feast exquisitely served. But they must learn to know literature by being familiar with it from the very first. A child’s intercourse must always be with good books, the best that we can find.” (Towards a Philosophy of Education, pg. 51)
If you would like to study along with us, here are some passages from The Home Education Series and other Parent’s Review articles that would be helpful for this episode’s topic. You may also read the series online here, or get the free Kindle version from Fisher Academy.
Home Education, Part V, Chapter VIII
School Education, Chapters XVI and XXI
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The blog post that Emily wrote explaining her “L-I-V-I-N-G” anagram for determining living books:
Wow! Great conversation yet again! 🙂 So many things stuck out to me! Your anagram so helpful, Emily. 🙂 I really love how you talked about there being living books in every age level. An example for me lately was, my 8 yo just finished an early reader A Nest for Wood Ducks by Evelyn Shaw. It was VERY simple, yet was narrative. I thought it was better than many of the current readers…it also was a natural science type book because we learned so much about wood ducks. Anyway… 😉 I have a hard time differentiating between simple and twaddly sometimes with early readers, if that makes sense?!
Also that just because a book isn't working now, to keep it in mind, because it might work later. Your point about the balance between sticking with things at times, yet being aware of things that just aren't working. I find a lot of of times, I would quit something TOO quickly, instead of working at it. I'm challenging myself that "I am, I can, I ought, I will" needs to happen at times with good books that I don't want to do the work with. Thank you for sharing about being careful with book lists. I wish I had learned this a bit sooner in my CM journey and I'm still working on it!
I would LOVE to hear more from you all maybe in the Q&A section or just sometime on children that struggle with reading. My 10 yo is at this place. What I LOVE about Charlotte Mason homeschooling is that he isn't labeled "behind" or "special education" but he can keep learning with me reading to him and with audio items. However, I would love to hear more wisdom on this and just your stories and experience with dyslexia etc.
Another question for whenever 😉 or never :P, but I was just wondering how you balance the book work that you want to get done with the masterly inactivity type things…if your child is outdoors building a WONDERFUL fort near a stream, do you stop him to come read your books and do his copywork etc? I'm struggling with discipline to a set time table so to speak. We are consistently moving FORWARD, but what about those life moments etc that come up? But I don't want to NOT finish books or not be consistent in copywork, math, reading instruction! Ugh. 🙂 I think this question has more to do with me and my bad 😉 habits of flying by the seat of my pants…anyway…hopefully, you get the essence of my question!
Ok. I'll stop blathering. 😛
I guess not. 😉 I just want you to know Nicole, I got the Geology book you mentioned last time and it looks FANTASTIC. Thanks! Science hasn't been my strong point and I look forward to learning more with the children. I don't have a TON of new titles to share because most of the new books I just go come from your recommendations! LOL! 😀 I'll keep thinking about that one!
Amy,
We are truly gratified that the podcasts are giving you so much to consider. Teaching certainly requires us to spin a lot of plates. Discipline for you is a key to keeping order, however; I assure you that those spontaneous events will happen even more if you set definite school times and stick to them, because the purpose of schedules is to allow more free time–and freedom. Learning which books are best is a matter of experience. Helping a struggling reader takes a lot of patience and persistence, here a little, there a little, but consistent effort and consistent progress. As soon as you can move away from "readers" into simple books, like Clyde Robert Bulla, for example, the better; once a child can read, she should read, even if progress through a book is a little slow at first. Many, many boys do not read well even until age 12, but you need to be diligent to work short lessons of reading into his day, every day. After six months of unpressured, but consistent effort, you might want to have some testing done and possibly seek out a specialist. I have a son with learning disabilities that have not been identified until age 16, though I knew there were struggles. I saw a huge step of progress by using Dianne Craft's exercises when he was 11. He just finished reading Pride and Prejudice and is tearing through Red Badge of Courage, however, and is reading better all the time, so don't think you have to panic by age 12 or spend oodles of money on expensive programs that may not work. The key is to find out what works for each child and not expect them to follow the same path as others. Nicole has a severely dyslexic child and has still seen progress, just not on a typical timetable. Phonics are not the key for many children and, in the end, we all read by visual recognition. Keep up the good work. A mother who pursues knowledge and has a heart for her children is guaranteed success. "Success" truly looks different in each person and is measured by delight and not objective standards, which is why living books are crucial.
-Liz
Great podcast, ladies! The part that really resonated with me was when you discussed how the author of a living book inspires the reader with his or her passion for the subject.
Here's a perfect example of this: when I was in my teens, I happened to pick up a copy of Henryk Sienkiewicz' With Fire and Sword from an obscure corner of a university library. I had no idea this was a famous novel and I certainly had zero interest in the history of Poland, Ukraine, or Lithuania, or about Cossacks, Turks, or Tartars. But Sienkiewicz' love for and understanding of his subject was inescapably contagious. I begged my parents to track down copies of these books for my Christmas present. I have reread them several times. And, years later, I am still learning more about the history and legends of this region.
Mason said it is how many orders of things that we care about that is important–well, that living book added at least one more order of things to my life's list! How could I not want to fill my children's hours with living books?
Ivy Mae,
I do not know those books that enthralled you as a teenager and will put that author on my list for 2016! Books certainly are the pleasure that never ends and when the author's heart is engaged, we get hooked. You are so right.
– Liz
There are so many great science books! I will warn you that there are a couple chapters just past the halfway point in that book that drag, but the last couple chapters pick right back up.
~Nicole
I loved this one! Emily's anagram is spot on. I am a little behind in my listening, but each new podcast is a delight.
Ruth
We appreciate this commendation from a long-time CM Mom and appreciator of living books.
– Liz
Thank you for the side by side example of a non-living book and a living book!! There are so many amazing living books out there, one of my favorites is "Girl of the Limberlost", after reading it, I wanted to learn every thing I could about moths and butterflies!
I had the same feeling after reading that book. That inspiration is one of the tests of whether a book is living, after all.
-Liz
Love this podcast! Thank you!! Question: How do you avoid the twaddle when you bring your four and five year old to the library frequently? They choose several books each every time we go, and although I often veto books that are completely pointless, as you said, 80% are twaddle and it would be hard to screen all of that, constantly telling them, "Not that one." Any thoughts?
I wonder if you could carry other life habits over into the area of reading. How do you select movies? Clothing? Activities? It is a sad commentary on our culture that the public library is no longer a safe place to find quality literature; however, this was also true in Mason's day. Many mothers I know make a trip to the library alone and select appropriate books and it is a festive event to bring them home to enjoy. My preference would be to collect savory books from former days and build a library of my own at home…but, this can be dangerous territory as I, once attempting that, now own over 20 thousand books.
-Liz
Hi Ladies, Thank you for this. I am struggling with my son wanting to read Magic School Bus and Magic Tree House books. He's almost ten. He often begins a living book and sometimes finishes it but sometimes he just picks up something else. He will often have three or four books going at the same time. He loves science encylopedias etc. Experiment books and arts and crafts. Things he (and thus we ) have to make. I almost dread taking him to the library at all but I feel like there has to be a way to teach him how to select good books. How do I do this? Thanks, Jennifer Swearingen
Jennifer,
I hope my brief answer does not symbolize simplicity. I know this struggle. My suggestions are that you 1) remove all twaddle from your home (Mason said a child should never be allowed any); 2) select excellent books from your library or lists of living books and make those the choices on your shelves (even if you go by yourself to the library); 3) read aloud to your son every day from an excellent living book (Little Britches, The House of Sixty Fathers, Men of Iron). Dabbling at reading is pretty common for boys, so don't expect his personal reading to alter overnight. Mason says the best way to change habits is to offer better options. There is nothing wrong with hands-on science, crafts. This is a both-and world for your son. Taste takes time, but you have a lot to do with what is offered. Just as you would not have him eat candy and chips only, you must offer savory dishes for his reading pleasure. Last, expel electronics from your home if you have not already done so.
-Liz
I have been thoroughly enjoying these podcasts! Thank you for a succint defintion of twaddle. I knew the character books that my children gravitate toward at the library are twaddle and I hate them, but I hadn’t thought of Magic School Bus that way because my children learn so much from them (though I dislike the sidebars!). We are in the midst of prepping our house to sell and now I’m encouraged to be careful which books are allowed back into the house once we settle in a new place! What an opportunity I have to clean house. 🙂 My husband and I have often said that if we don’t enjoy reading it to our children then we shouldn’t. Ha! I think we are on to something! One question that I do have: what living books would you recommend for an early reader instead of leveled readers or Bob books? Also, how do you discover the living books that your child might enjoy? I’ve never read The Girl of the Limberlost, but, after Nicole’s comment above regarding butterflies and moths, I know my daughter would love it! I want to find living books for my oldest that get him as excited as Magic School Bus about science topics, but I have no idea where to start looking! Thoughts? Thank you all again for these podcasts. I’m really learning so much. You all are restoring my desire to only give my children the lovely books. (I lost the resolve to hold fast to that desire somewhere along the way, probably when my children started getting obsessed with twaddle and I resigned to tolerating it temporarily until I could sneak it into a donation bin or return it the library). :/
Rachel,
The best way to engage your children is to teach them what they will ultimately most enjoy: read the best to them. They should also see you reading quality literature. You will find plenty of resources at http://www.livingbookslibrary.com, as well as more nature books at http://www.sabbathmoodhomeschool.com, and should probably investigate books about books, “Who Should We Then Read” by Jan Bloom (www.booksbloom.com), for example.
Liz