Parenting or Politics?

In high school I was a rotary scholarship beneficiary; I went to rotary luncheons with my principal, attended leadership camps and retreats. I was a peer counselor, a trained listener looking out for the psychological well being of my fellow students; I went on to do the training of other nominated students and to speak at business luncheons for financial support of the counseling program. I served on LDS Seminary Council, organizing firesides and giving many talks in the congregations throughout my city.  I was outspoken in class discussions and with adults in all situations.  I was a writer, a speaker, and an A student.  I stood up and stood out.

After I graduated my parents would run into my high school principal and  teachers I'd had and these old mentors of mine would enthusiastically ask about me and what and how I was doing.  When my parents would tell them I'd dropped out of college and married and had a child, their enthusiasm waned dramatically and they expressed (some verbally, some non verbally) that it seemed such a waste. They were disappointed in me, as if I'd personally let them down.

Of course, none of them had ever asked me what I planned to be.  If they had, they'd have known that all I ever really wanted to be was a mother. They probably would have tried to persuade me to "aim higher." But I would have told them, in no uncertain terms, that motherhood is the highest aim there is.

Make no mistake, I have educated opinions and a driving force of principles.  I continue to learn and think and be outspoken. The current state of the Union and the world are so alarming I sometimes cannot sleep at night.  I have been asked, nay, begged to run for local elections.  But I am a mother to five children (a homeschooling mother at that) and I firmly believe in mothers being in the home and not so distracted with outside affairs as to neglect the family.  Still, I have considered what is expected of me as a citizen and how best to truly make a difference and "save the world."  Always, always, in prayer, my answer is to teach my children.

So it was with great applause that I read Holly Hamilton-Bleakly's articles on the merits of parenting over politics.  Give them a read.

Could Parenting Be More Important than Politics?

Is Parenting a Political Activity?

A More Perfect Union

A MUST WATCH in American History or Government studies is A More Perfect Union, an exceptional dramatization of the Constitutional Convention of 1787. It is so well done. (Today's Congress would do well to watch and learn.)  This may be viewed online or on television at times through BYU, PBS, and YouTube, but there is also an education package available for purchase. I cannot recommend this highly enough!

Music in Units--Part 2, Resources Galore

One of the biggest tragedies of public education these days is the continual reduction, if not outright elimination of, the arts.  Suits and Skirts decide students need more math and science and in the interest of time and money take away music and recess, the very things that would help students better understand math and science.  Psychology Today, in an article entitled "Einstein on Creative Thinking: Music and the Intuitive Art of Scientific Imagination" writes:

"For Einstein, insight did not come from logic or mathematics. It came, as it does for artists, from intuition and inspiration. As he told one friend, 'When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come close to the conclusion that the gift of imagination has meant more to me than any talent for absorbing absolute knowledge.' Elaborating, he added, 'All great achievements of science must start from intuitive knowledge. I believe in intuition and inspiration.... At times I feel certain I am right while not knowing the reason.' Thus, his famous statement that, for creative work in science, 'Imagination is more important than knowledge' (Calaprice, 2000, 22, 287, 10)."

In addition to being an amazing physicist, Einstein was also a violinist and pianist. It is well documented that in addition to just enjoying the heck out of music, he relied on it to help him think. Whenever he got stuck on something, he played music until the solution revealed itself.

I could go on and on about the merits of music and the arts, but this post is about resources and ideas for music in units.

Of course, you can straight up do a music unit study. You can do a unit on a specific composer, or on a musical period such as Baroque, Classical, Romantic.  You can do a comprehensive unit on the history of music, or the instruments of music, or a smaller unit on a musical genre like Jazz. There are so many publishers of ready-made music units, and great books on instruments and composers, etc., that it would take all day to point them out. One lesser known, but fabulous supplement to music unit studies is Patrick Kavanaugh's Spiritual Lives of the Great Composers.

In addition to materials by big publishers Dover, Bellerophon, Usborne, Teacher Created Materials, etc., there are single teachers creating and sharing or selling helpful materials or lesson plans. Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now has put together a ton of Montessori-Inspired Music Unit Studies. Julia Jooya has created many tools and mini music units.  Her (free) unit on Blues Music can be both a unit in itself, or a portion of the music part of an American history unit that covers some history, language arts, and music instruction.  It isn't hard to find unit study helps ON music.

What can get tricky is finding ways to incorporate music into unit studies of other topics, especially if they're science topics. Examples like Tom Lehrer's "The Elements Song" and James Fodor's "Periodic Table Song" and "The Atoms Family" song, sung to the tune of "The Addams Family," demonstrate the possibilities.  (As these three songs all use the tune from other more familiar songs, you and your children could take cue and try to write your own catchy science songs in the same way.)  I love the science songs and videos from They Might Be Giants like "The Bloodmobile."  (You can order CDs and DVDs of these as well, including ABC and 123 albums.)  

As my children's piano teacher, I've taken advantage of being free to kill two birds, so to speak. I like to use piano music to enhance geography and social studies with music books like: 

Around the World on 88 Keys

My First Book of Cowboy Songs

There are musical memorization tools, also, like Audio Memory's States and Capitals Songs, which gave my children a HUGE edge in a geography bee several years ago.  (My then three-year-old had more state capitals memorized than the rest of the participants two and three times her age because we listened to this on car rides.)

From "Wee Sing America" to "Wee Sing Around the World" to "Wee Sing Halloween," my young children and I have always appreciated Wee Sing CDs.  They have been staples in some of our units.

I've shared several resources here, but really they're just the tip of the iceberg. With the ease of an internet search, it isn't hard to find some way to include music into each and every unit.  So make sure you do!

Music in Units--Part 1, American Revolution

If buttercups buzz'd after the bee

If boats were on land, churches on sea

If ponies rode men and if grass ate the cows

And cats should be chased into holes by the mouse

If the mamas sold their babies

To the Gypsies for half a crown

If summer were spring

And the other way 'round

Then all the world would be upside down!

Generations of students have been taught that the British army played "The World Turned Upside Down" as they marched out of Yorktown, defeated.  It's charming, and completely apropos, that the most powerful military in the world, having just surrendered to the ragtag Colonials, would lament the wonder and imbalance of the situation with this very old song, but there is evidence to the contrary. Nevertheless, a unit on the American Revolution wouldn't be complete without referencing this piece of music.

The challenge--and fun--of any unit is trying to incorporate all subjects into the topic, including music.  Some units are more challenging than others to do this in, but there is always a way. 

One of the resources I've been using for music in this unit is The Patriotic Music Companion Fact Book. It is... interesting. There is certainly some musicality lacking in early pieces, but the history is great and the lyrics thoughtful. For each song, there is one page of history/background and then one page of melody and lyrics. This book includes the very first truly American patriotic music--songs I guarantee you've never heard of--as well as some old favorites.

Book of Facts and Music

On Memorial Day 2013 P3 and I had the fantastic opportunity to be at Colonial Williamsburg, listening to and following a parade of the CW Fife and Drum Core (as well as listening to a touching memorial service).  It's hard to describe what I felt, but fifes and drums sure get me choked up. On one of my trips to CW I picked up a couple of fifes for the kids to play with, as well as a great recording of fifes and drums.  I particularly like this recording because the first half of the CD is a song for each of the original 13 colonies, each specifically chosen because it represents something unique to that colony.  The CD also contains the Colonial Williamsburg Fife and Drum Core playing "The World Turned Upside Down."

Fifes and Drums Concert

Another suggestion:  make sure everyone can play "Yankee Doodle" on an instrument, weather it's the fife, the piano, or even a kazoo.  If you have talented musicians, see if they can make their own arrangements of some of these songs.

See post George vs. George for another way to add music into an American Revolution unit.

A Profusion of Praise for Liberty's Kids

In 2002 PBS began airing a fabulous historical fiction animated series called Liberty's Kids. My children, the oldest of whom were younger then than my youngest is now, and I really enjoyed it. Now, it's available to watch in many ways.  Youtube has LibertysKidsTV, and there are other sites that air it for free also. But Amazon has the entire series on DVD for just $5, and that's my favorite option because then I own it and don't have to worry about links coming and going or buffering, etc., and we can watch it without an internet connection. 

The purpose of the series is to teach the origins of the United States. It is very true to the people, places, and events of the American Revolution, with accuracy and detail. It champions liberty and courage. It also is captivating; my kids, ages 9 to 18, like watching it and they remember what they see. 

The only thing that constitutes fiction in this series are the characters who make up the kids of Liberty's Kids.  But these characters constitute the other valuable part of the series, which is to demonstrate good journalism and the importance of freedom of speech, and freedom of the press; these fictional youth write for Benjamin Franklin's The Pennsylvania Gazette and this allows them to meet the people and observe the events of the Revolution.  The series also champions truth.

Back when we watched this on PBS, we enjoyed all the games and side trivia that took the place of commercials during the programming. The DVDs do not have these, but you can find and enjoy them all on the Liberty's Kids website.

This series is so good, every home should own it and watch it. And at such an affordable price--it's almost free!--there's no excuse not to.  It explores all the ideas and sides and hard questions people faced then (and now) and it encourages people to observe, seek truth, and make their own choices.

Mom's Pick-me-up and Life Lessons in Baseball

Let me just admit right here and now--I am not Wonder Woman. And after spurts of trying to be, I can get down.  There is always at least once, if not twice, during the spring/summer seasons of baseball where I have a come apart over the insanity and constancy of everyone's schedules and I think I just can't keep up.  This year's "episode" happened last week.  I was trying to talk myself through it, and heard myself telling my children that I wanted them to each write an essay on the life lessons they've learned from baseball.  P2, 16 years old, was a little concerned over the ramifications.  He asked, "Does this mean that if our essays aren't good enough we have to stop playing baseball?" Well... (No, but a well thought out and written thesis on the virtues of baseball would certainly cheer me up.)

Due to... big surprise... everyone's baseball schedules, not all the essays are finished. But 11-year-old P4 got his done today and it was just what I needed to read.

Life Lessons Baseball Teaches Me

by P4

I started playing baseball because it looked like a fun sport. I still think it's fun, but I also realize the importance of the lessons I have learned in baseball. Some people think baseball is just hitting and catching the ball, but they don't realize what the game should teach them.

One of the lessons I've learned is teamwork. In baseball teamwork helps teams win. For example, when you're all contributing in the game, you win! That's called teamwork because everyone is trying to help each other. Everyone wants to win.

In life, teamwork gets things done. For example, when you're working out in the yard and you have a long job, it takes a long time to get it done if you're all by yourself. But if you don't have to do it alone and you both want to get it done, it goes faster.

Another lesson I've learned is about cheering. In baseball, cheering gives your teammates encouragement. For example, when you're up at bat and you don't hear anyone cheering for you, you sometimes feel nobody really cares about your at bat. But when you do hear people cheering you on, you feel you need to do something.

In life it is the same exact thing. When nobody is cheering you on, you sometimes think nobody cares. But when somebody is cheering you get encouragement.

I love playing baseball. I am glad it's teaching me life lessons.

P4 is in the center, being mobbed by his ecstatic teammates after he hit a walk-
off home run to win a tough and intense league championship game.

Fab Fourth Field Trip

If you live in Utah, or you'll be visiting relatives in Utah around Independence Day, here's a great educational way to celebrate (or take a field trip).

America's Freedom Festival at Provo presents Colonial Fest  July 3-5 and it gets bigger and better every year. (I have to interject here that Colonial Williamsburg in Virginia is one of my favorite places on the planet, so I do have a high standard. Colonial Fest is pretty well done considering that it's a temporary gig in tents in a park in Utah.) We went for the second time this year and found it much expanded from our previous visit a few years ago. It was a very engaging and appropriate way to spend time on Independence Day.

Here are some highlights.

We participated in a public debate between Loyalists and Patriots, adding our
own "Huzzah!" and "Fie!" when we agreed and disagreed. We also witnessed
a mock trial for hog stealing and learned a lot about colonial crime and punishment.

The kids attended the colonial "publick school."

P3 and his friend were recruited for a secret spy mission. This was exciting
because we'd just finished reading about Nathan Hale and all the espionage
of the American Revolution. 

They were sent all over the place, delivering a newspaper and secret
message from the printer to the baker...

...from the baker to Major Tallmage in the American Encampment with a message
hidden under a cookie, on to other people in other places.

For us, it was perfect timing, given that we're wrapping up our unit on the American Revolution. If you find yourself studying this part of history and unable to get to an original colony for a field trip, this is a decent substitution.

George vs. George

It's never a good idea to study just one side of history. In the first place, you're not getting the whole story. In the second, one purpose of studying history is so that we don't repeat its mistakes; human interactions are often as complex as the interacting characters and we cannot avoid their pitfalls if we don't get to know all the players.

A great activity for seeing relationships and listing similarities and differences between people (or events or works of literature, etc.) is to use a graphic organizer like a Venn diagram. There are all sorts of free printable versions, but if you want the activity without the paper trail, I found a dry erase version on clearance that I'm very happy with. 

You can see from the diagram above that George Washington and King George III actually had far more in common than not.  But the "not" made all the difference!  We did the diagram activity together while I read aloud George vs. George, then everyone was let loose to turn their diagram notes into a comparative essay.

Also with this lesson we sang "God Save the King" and "My Country 'Tis of Thee" and compared and contrasted them.

Another great book we added to this lesson was:

The Quill is Mightier than the Ballpoint

Every time I read the Declaration of Independence I get goosebumps--inside and out. I consider it scripture. It is one of the most beautiful and brilliant things ever written... and it was written with a quill pen.

When we began studying early American history and colonial times, my kids were ecstatic to see I had quill pens, ink powder, and 18th century writing paper. They asked to use it EVERY DAY.

I was saving it all for the day we talked about the Declaration, however.  It gave them something to look forward to. On the third of July I pulled it out. Interestingly, they liked writing with quill pens better than modern pens. P1 discovered that he had much better penmanship when using a quill. P2 said that he was going to sign his first baseball contract with a quill pen.

P3 used his quill to do a caricature of Thomas Jefferson, and a funny on dinner;
 it was Jefferson who introduced America to macaroni and cheese,
as well as ice cream, which he had while in France.

From the quill packaging:

"Nothing has so affected our lives as the quill pen. 'These are the times that try men's souls...' 'When in the course of human events...' 'We the People of the United States...'  Stirring words written by courageous, determined men with the one instrument that is mightier than the sword. Quill pens came into use as early as the seventh century and remained the writing instrument for most of the western world for over a thousand years.  This instrument was used to pen great works of literature, books, daily correspondence, and historical documents that changed the world, such as the Magna Carta, the Declaration of Independence, and our Constitution. The best pens were from the flight feathers of geese. The word pen comes from the Latin word 'penna' (feather). To cut the pens, a knife was needed, hence the word 'penknife.' Scribes and stationers carved, sharpened, and shaped the point (nib) for writing...hence the word 'stationery.' No two quills write alike because of the development of the shaft and the carving of the quill maker. Each pen is straight off the goose and is as unique as the writer in that no two are alike. Therefore it was and is today a tedious art to select, clean, prepare and trim each quill."

At first P1's quill wasn't writing well.
He turned his pocketknife into a penknife and got it working just write...er, right.

P2 was disgusted with everyone else's printing and diligent in writing his passage of the
Declaration of Independence in cursive.

This was schoolwork that everyone was happy to do!

Patriotic Songs... In Other Words

Just in time for Independence Day... A patriotic song title brain teaser!

Patriotic Songs - In Other Words

Give the worksheet to family/guests and see who can not only figure out the song title, but sing or hum the song as well.