The Magnifying Glassby Walter de la Mare
With this round glassI can make Magic talk –A myriad shells showIn a scrap of chalk;
Of but an inch of mossA forest — flowers and trees;A drop of waterLike hive of bees.
I lie in wait and watchHow the deft spider jetsThe woven web-silkFrom his spinnerets;
The tigerish claws he has!And [...]

I’m sending you off to see Carlotta

Just as I was forwarding Carlotta the two emails my father had sent me this morning with the two recent articles from The Spectator on home education — with a “have you seen this??!!” — she was writing a post about them.
I will likely be posting my own two cents, but until I do, and [...]

Poetry Friday: Remembering Eiluned Lewis

We Who Were Bornby Eiluned Lewis (1900-1979)
We who were bornIn country placesFar from citiesAnd shifting faces,We have a birthrightNo man can sell,And a secret joyNo man can tell.
For we are kindredTo lordly things:
The wild duck’s flightAnd the white owl’s wings,The pike and the salmon,The bull and the horse,The curlew’s cryAnd the smell of gorse.
Pride of [...]

Deadline coming up for the Early Autumn Field Day

A reminder from Dawn at By Sun and Candlelight that the deadline for the Early Autumn Field Day is at the end of the day next Monday, September 25th. The Field Day will go up on Wednesday, the 27th. For all the details, read Dawn’s latest post.
The weather is just fallish enough — considerably cooler [...]

Turn on, tune in, drop out

Frankie at Kitchen Table Learners is hot on the trail of a crackpot scheme, involving a number of blogs, not all of them related to homeschooling.* We’ve run afoul of some prankster who appears to have confused Jesus with Ken Kesey.
Word to the wise — don’t forget the all-important “s” in “blogSpot” if you want [...]

More news from across the pond: Lynne Truss on "Why arnt childrun being tort how 2 rite?"

My father was darling enough to send me this morning Lynne Truss’s latest article from The Telegraph.
The actual headline, “Why arnt childrun…”, is rather misleading since the article deals not with spelling — which isn’t taught anymore either, at least here in Canada — but with the mechanics of writing. I would have subtitled my [...]

Wait a minute, Mr. Postman…

Particularly in light of this past week’s tragic event in Canada, I was quite interested to read this letter sent to The Daily Telegraph, from children’s author Philip Pullman, UK children’s laureate Jacqueline Wilson, and more than 100 other concerned citizens [all emphases mine, all mine]:
As professionals and academics from a range of backgrounds, we [...]

Poetry Friday II: Poetry for Children

Thanks to the recent Autumn Clean Up by Kelly at Big A little a, I discovered a terrific new blog, Poetry for Children — where every day is Friday! — and a new book, both from Sylvia Vardell about poetry for (and with) children.
The blog is about “finding and sharing poetry with young people”, and [...]

Poetry Friday I: My Prairies

My Prairiesby Hamlin Garland (1860-1940)
I love my prairies, they are mineFrom zenith to horizon line,Clipping a world of sky and sodLike the bended arm and wrist of God.
I love their grasses. The skiesAre larger, and my restless eyesFasten on more of earth and airThan seashore furnishes anywhere.
I love the hazel thickets; and the breeze,The never [...]

Celebrating the right to read and the joy of reading

Jennifer Armstrong, author of the new The American Story, was kind enough to send me an email with the artwork for this year’s Banned Books Week poster, because as it turns out it’s an illustration by Roger Roth from the new book, selected by the American Booksellers Foundation for Freedom of Expression for the [...]

Manhattan lullaby

Manhattan Lullabyby Rachel Field (1894-1942)
(for Richard — one day old)
Now lighted windows climb the dark,The streets are dim with snow,Like tireless beetles, amber-eyedThe creeping taxis go.Cars roar through caverns made of steel,Shrill sounds the siren horn,And people dance and die and wed –And boys like you are born.

"Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain!"

Earlier in the week, Susan at Chicken Spaghetti had a great Wish List post, a round-up of fun books, movies, and CDs from other blogs. I’m pleased that Susan likes the sound (no pun intended) of the audio CD of The Little History of the World and the Building Big DVD I wrote about recently, [...]

Reading your way through American history with picture books

Kids’ author and home educating dad Chris Barton (husband to Redneck Mother, too) the other day posted his most recent American history picture book reading list for children, for 1925-1975, along with — and this is the very, very good part — all of the previous lists and their wrap-ups, from Prehistory-1621 (list and wrap-up) [...]

Poetry Friday: Harvest edition

For Tom, our captain during the swinging change of days
Fatherby Frances Frost (1905-1959)
My father’s face is brown with sun,His body is tall and limber.His hands are gentle with beast or childAnd strong as hardwood timber.
My father’s eyes are the colors of the sky,Clear blue or gray as rain:They change with the swinging change of daysWhile [...]

Eminently suitable

I don’t know what JoVE thinks yet about The Voice since she’s still travelling, but our complete unabridged audio CD edition of Sir Ernst Gombrich’s Little History of the World just arrived, and I’m thrilled to find that The Voice of Ralph Cosham is just right, which isn’t always the case with [...]

Combine time

It’s combine time now. [Updated to add: When I first posted this earlier in the evening, I was just recovering from the suppertime whirlwind that was my kitchen, complete with grain moisture reader on the kitchen table, and the rosy moon wasn't up yet. Then I realized, after we've been gazing at it all week [...]

Timely thought for a new school year

“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his graspOr what’s a heaven for?”from Andrea del Sarto, 1855, by Robert Browning
True for Renaissance masters and especially for children.
Reminded by The Ode Less Travelled: Unlocking the Poet Within by the marvellous Stephen Fry. Thanks, Pop.

Back-to-school goodie bags

I have to admit that while I can’t stand the provincial public school system, I love the idea of school. In fact, I think I wrote recently that one of the reasons we pulled Laura out to homeschool is that Tom and I each loved school so much (I used to cry on the last [...]

Since Saturday

Finally made it to Staples on Saturday for our fun school supplies, mostly for Davy, who is overjoyed about starting first grade: oversize (5″x8″) index cards with primary ruling for beginning writers; Laurentien’s new best quality “Studio” colored pencils (not as pricey as Prismacolor Juniors which are more than Davy needs right now, but better [...]

Still here but busy with harvest and back to school,

or, more appropriately, back to the kitchen table and extracurricular activities like piano lessons (with an exciting new teacher), etc.
Today the field trip is to the corrals, to watch Dad and his hired man move the secondhand grain bins — needed for the new harvest — from their old home to their new one. Requires [...]