Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts

Friday, May 27, 2016

7 Quick Takes Friday

1.

I greatly enjoyed attending the local IHM homeschooling conference at Belmont Abbey last weekend. The talks were inspiring, the book-shopping was a delight as always, and I got to socialize with various friends, including dinner out with one friend on Friday night and lunch out with two other friends on Saturday.


When I took only the baby on Friday, it was tough because he's too old and active to be happy in a stroller or on my back for long. Come Saturday, I got the bright idea to take along Thomas' Second Mommy, as we call Mary (7). She kept him company, fed him bits of food, helped him with his sippy cup, and generally smiled at him so I could catch a couple of talks.


Simultaneously, she devoured a book!

2.

Family Books of the Week (in progress or completed)


3.

Outdoor Occupation . . .

John finally convinced his siblings to play football with him! Yay!

Football, moments before Mary got injured
Margaret (5) is so proud that she can now hang from the trapeze without hands.


Josey swinging

One of the nests at our music teachers' home is now home to baby birds. Bird Watch continues for the second nest full of eggs.

Baby birds, upper right
Drum roll please . . . The rope swing is back!


This week, a tree man came to remove dead limbs, so we were able to hire him to re-hang the rope which we had had to remove months ago after it had frayed due to years of good use.






4.

Thomas (10) months is so close to walking. All this week, he has been standing more and more, up to twenty seconds. Now when I set him on the ground, instead of him going straight into a sitting position, he stiffens his legs and has met set him down into the standing position.


Clapping at his own accomplishment


Naked because he threw up in the car when Mama hadn't packed an extra outfit

5.

Moments in Music . . . 

Competition season is over! Did you hear me?

COMPETITION SEASON IS OVER!

Until November, that is.

So, we enjoyed one week of "light" practice and at this week's lesson, began choosing new songs off of the coming year's competition lists. Did you hear me? NEW SONGS!

Oh, it is so good to hear strains of new songs in the house. The goal for each of the 'big' kids is to pick three songs for NCMTA, one concerto, two for Federation, and along the way four more that can be used to round out having ten pieces for Guild.

So far . . .


  • Margaret is finishing up "Chimichanga Cha Cha."
  • John is starting Sontaine (in C Major) by Johann Andre.
  • Mary is starting Prelude in b minor by Alexander Morovsky and Invention 8 by J.S. Bach. And in violin, Mary is learning Suzuki's Minuet No. 2.


A hold

During her reading lesson one day, Margaret (5) encountered a dash, which indicates a pause. She looked at it and said out loud, "Hold." I asked her what she had said.

"Hold. That means hold."

Indeed, in music theory, that does mean hold! Sweet girl learning to read music and to read English simultaneously . . . I was able to show her that a dash indicates a 'hold' of silence, like a hold of a note in music.

6.

Meals of the Week

  • Saturday
    • Chicken Parmesan(from Pasta and Provisions)
    • Chicken patty sandwiches for picky children
  • Sunday
    • Mesquite BBQ Pork Tenderloin (thanks, Aldi's)
    • Corn on the cob
  • Monday
    • Leftovers
  • Tuesday
    • Turkey breast (thanks, Aldi's)--some kids made this into sandwiches for dinner
    • Roasted corn (frozen)
    • Rice
    • Garlic bread
  • Wednesday
  • Thursday
    • Smoked sausages in hot dog buns
    • Mac & cheese
    • Fries
  • Friday
    • Eggplant Parmesan (pre-made frozen)

7.

Points about Prayer . . . 

Below is the best picture one can get when one asks Margaret (being all sweet and smiley) for a picture showing her using the rosary flip photos. Ah well . . .

Margaret is not one to pose for a photo.

Nonetheless . . . last week, Margaret (5) graduated to joining the big kids praying the rosary with Daddy! For years, we had prayed together as a family . . . slogging, miserably, angrily, with so many punishments because tiny toddlers and preschoolers cannot pray five decades of a rosary or even be quiet. I no longer feel at all qualified to give advice about praying the rosary except to say somehow, Just Do It!

Anyway, for better or worse, who knows, in the last year, Daddy began praying rosary with the older children while I keep the three youngest occupied away from them (while I'm doing bedtime routine). The rosary has become quiet, peaceful, and lovely because of this change. Last week, Margaret wanted to join her Daddy and she didn't just start in gradually but suddenly can manage all five decades! Each day in the morning, she has been asking me what the mysteries are going to be that night, so we get the first one all ready on the artwork flip chart. She has been leading many decades with her siblings! It is just a delight to see this 'graduation' up to a new level.



This week I gathered my scattered holy reading books into a tiny basket I had on hand to make them neater and make my short time more focused and efficient. I write in my morning prayer journal and do my holy reading while I drink my coffee first thing in the morning, and I can give that only 15 to 20 minutes time.

I write 'only' but I realize that that might seem like an grand stretch of time to other mothers in other seasons of life even more limited than is mine. Of course, it is to be remembered that even for me, right now, some children are always awake with me. I might be reading while I listen to children chatter over cereal, or I get interrupted due to a fight breaking out ("I have more milk in my cereal bowl than you do! Ha ha!", or someone is asking me where the such-and-such is located.
  • Prayer Journal (5 minutes)
  • "The Holy Mass" by Dom Gueranger (written in the 1800s): At 193 tiny pages, my goal is to read this over the course of one year. Since my participation in Mass is really just a focus on keeping my loud baby quiet, I am attempting to (re)learn more about the Mass outside of Mass. (2-5 minutes)
  • "The American Martyrology" Compiled by Holweck and Salvucci (2015): I picked up this interesting book at the homeschooling conference. Each day of the year offers a tiny paragraph on martyrs of North America. One reads the paragraph, and then one can say four sentences that are the rubrics to pray daily for the intercession of a blessed or saint, or a different sentence to pray that a servant be counted among the saints. (1 minute)
  • "Guidance to Heaven" by Cardinal Giovanni Bona:  Written in the 1600s, the words sound entirely fresh and applicable to today's world. For example, I took solace and humor in a paragraph I read on anger:
"If a good man ought to be angry at every evil deed, his whole life would be spent in anger and indignation. For in what moment will he not see things worthy of reprehension? His powers would fail him if he were angry as often as there was cause for it. Being gentle and mild towards the sinner, he will cherish the same affection towards him as the physician does to a patient affected with delirium."
Excellent advice. Now for the humor, read it through the eyes of the parent (the 'good man') thinking of her brood of children ('sinners' and 'patients with delirium'). (I give myself about 5 minutes of this, but enjoy it so much I could just keep reading and reading.) 


First fifteen minutes of the day

For more 7 Quick Takes Friday, check out This Ain't the Lyceum.

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Friday, May 6, 2016

7 Quick Takes Friday

1.

I have a lot less to be anxious about now that Mary's First Holy Communion weekend is concluded. Onward and upward! We're back to the regular and blessedly calm grind around here. I truly feel blessed to be so intimately involved in the children's education and spiritual lives.

2.

I discovered this week that I can give my 9-year-old at least a short grocery list, ask him to place the order while I'm bustling about doing other tasks, and then come back merely to review and confirm the order. This is very exciting for me!

John ordering my groceries
3.

Scenes from school . . . 


Margaret using her new copywork book

More than a year ago, the two drawer pulls on the large drawer full of an extensive collection of puzzles broke off. We recently put on new drawer pulls, thus freeing the puzzles imprisoned so long in the dark. Margaret (5) really doesn't remember our ever owning puzzles, so she is having the most delightful time completing them all. It turns out she is particularly good at doing puzzles! She looks less at color, more at the shape of the pieces.

Sisters making a puzzle


4.

Children's Books of the Week (in progress or completed)*

* A feature I would love to make regular here at 7 Quick Takes Friday.

5.

This has been a week of church events!

Last Sunday was Mary's First Holy Communion, then Wednesday was the Mary Crowning.

Thursday brought an exquisite Ascension Mass at night--and Margaret was old enough to join her Daddy and stay awake! The Ascension Mass presented really special music by the Carolina Catholic Chorale and Orchestra singing Antonio Caldara's Mass in A. "This will be a rare treat as Caldara's music is not in print and is the first time it will be sung in centuries--right here at St. Ann's (Thanks Father Reid!). The music was re-created by Carolina Catholic Chorale director Tom Savoy . . ."



Then Friday brings two outings, first for the 7:00 a.m. First Friday Mass and then for the 7:00 p.m. Mass and celebration for the parish altar boys. Whew!


6.

I'm in the midst of reading again "Holiness for Housewives and Other Working Women" by Dom. Hubert van Zeller. It is so good, I can't recommend it highly enough!



I really had time to read all the books I've read on marriage and parenting before my oldest child turned five, so it's been years since I've devoted much time to that kind of reading. Now when I go back, the books have richer meaning for me because I'm actually in the trenches now.

7.

Speaking of being in the trenches, I'm in water up to my neck helping the children in their music education right now. We're T minus six days till the Guild audition. John and Mary will each be playing ten memorized piano pieces with the accompanying scales and cadence chords in the matching key signatures. They still have to memorize the names of the composers and matching key signatures so that they can respond instantly if the judge says, "Play the scale for the Bach piece." (Which is the Bach piece? And what is its key signature?)

Also, they're both getting ready to graduate a level in piano and violin within the next few months, so Music Theory studies will resume in earnest, having been set aside for Technique studies during competition season. I'm busy printing out books of worksheets so we can do daily work in this area, as they need to pass their exams with Superior ratings to graduate upward. All of this practice and study requires a lot of investment of Mama's time.

And then--a big party hosted by their studio!

Meanwhile, they all have a recital Saturday night, John and Mary playing all ten of their Guild pieces, and Margaret (5) playing her first recital ever! She is an absolute ball of nerves, so we'll see if she can pull this thing off.

Mary (7) coaching Margaret (5) for her recital

For more 7 Quick Takes Friday, check out This Ain't the Lyceum.

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Friday, April 8, 2016

7 Quick Takes Friday

1.

After living in this home for eight years, my husband and I switched sides of the dual-sink bathroom. I don't know when we'll be accustomed to this!

2.

Scenes from school . . .



Joseph coloring his "I Love Mary" book


Reading lesson

Margaret (newly 5) finished the first volume of stories in All About Reading Level 1: go, Margaret, go!

3.



Mary made Margaret a certificate of accomplishment for reading.

















4.

Current Lauer Family Reading:

  • Mama reading aloud in the mornings for family holy reading: part of a chapter of "Under Angel Wings: The Autobiography of Sister Maria Antonia."
  • Mama reading aloud during school for History: two chapters of "Big John's Secret"
  • Mama reading aloud in the evenings to Margaret: one chapter of "Little House in the Big Woods"
  • Mama reading aloud some days, but not all, to everyone for fun: one or two chapters of "Redwall"
  • Mama reading aloud at nap time and bedtime to Joseph: at least one picture book each
  • John reading nightly for literature: one chapter of "King Arthur"
  • John reading nightly for fun: at least one chapter of "The Mad Scientists' Club" (four-book volume)
  • Mary reading nightly for fun: at least one chapter of "Pippi Longstocking" (three-book volume)
  • Mama reading nightly for pleasure: as many chapters as possible of "Emily of New Moon" before I fall asleep and the book falls out of my hand and thumps to the floor.

A lot of things I "don't have time for." Reading isn't one of them. There are priorities and there are priorities, right?

5.

Thomas the Troublemaker!

Baby Thomas is so mobile now and yearning to walk that we've reached the stage where I feel it is basically impossible to teach while he is on the loose. He races around the room dumping books off shelves, tearing them, eating non-food items, tumbling over bins of craft supplies, standing up at table edges and sweeping his hands along to toss any papers to the ground, turning trash cans topsy turvy, and turning the printer on and off again endlessly.

'Look, I can break Mama's printer!'

We are at the stage when I need to assign a 'minder' to this little fella at all times. This means I have to invent anew how to do school because I like to work with one child with the other child does independent work, then switch back and forth. Now I have to assign John or Mary to play with Thomas while I teach the other child, and then at some point have them each do their independent work.

It seems like "the way school works" only lasts a few weeks around here before I need to adjust it.

Thomas using the grocery cart as a walker while Mary tends to him

Thomas (8 months): You know you're from a large family when . . . 


6.

Miscellaneous Moments . . .

Do you think Joseph loves swim class?

Nighttime root beer floats after the Annunciation Mass at Pike's

Modern American Artwork, or the result of a nine-year-old boy having a good idea because he 'wanted to see what would happen'? You decide.

Modern American Artwork?


7.

During music lessons, I took the children not in lessons at that moment on walks through the neighborhood and along a nature trail in the delightful, crisp spring weather. I'd load up some children, walk for 25 minutes, return to exchange children, go walking again . . .

Vultures

We saw about five vultures swirling and ten more on the ground eating something they found to be delicious.






For more 7 Quick Takes Fridays, check out This Ain't the Lyceum.

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Monday, March 28, 2016

Recommendations for Faith Formation

For far too long, I've let "perfection be the enemy of the good" in preventing me from publishing this post because it wasn't perfect yet. Now I offer it to you as-is.


This blog post is in response to an email I received a couple of months ago from a homeschooling mother:


"Dear Katherine, 
What do you use for catechism and faith formation?"


I answer the question from the perspective of an adult convert with a preference toward the traditional Latin Mass (Extraordinary Form) who has been a parent for only nine years.

While "faith formation" seems to me a rather modern term used in parishes to describe their children's catechism classes on Sundays, it is an excellent description for forming the faith of our children, as opposed to the intellectual learning of catechesis. These are two practices which are each needed, a hand and glove together.

Faith Formation

I think that faith formation deserves its own blog post and one which I'm even less qualified to write. In short, the longer I parent, the more I think that forming the faith requires leadership of the father, modeling of both parents, and living the faith day in and day out. I don't recommend any particular device to memorize prayers; instead, I recommend praying as a family in a routine way throughout every day, morning, mid-day, and evening, if possible. I think the best way to learn about the Mass is to attend Mass frequently. I can't emphasize enough the importance of the father's own religious practices: his attendance at Mass, not just Sundays but holy days of obligation and mid-week Masses when possible; his leading of prayers (morning offerings, holy rosary, act of contrition); his frequenting of Confession; his reading of spiritual reading for his own growth. On one hand, a mother's hand is the hand that rocks the cradle and rules the world, but on the other hand, societal studies and my personal experience show that a father's religious practices have the more profound impact on children (who grow into adults).

Catechism

I prefer catechisms that require voice-to-ear teaching, leading to meaningful conversations, not books of busywork that include drawing pictures, word searches, and dot-to-dots. 

I cobble together my children's catechism program and can only speak so far to what I've done through grade 3.


Each year, my catechetical formula has been to have the children read through:
  • Scripture daily,
  • one formal catechism book, 
  • one book teaching the (old) Mass, 
  • and various saint books. 

Preschool


In preschool (ages 3-4), I like to go through the "Catholic Children's Treasure Box" series of books (TAN Publishers, originally published 1958) as a catechism.


I also like to go through "Leading the Little Ones to Mary" (originally published 1959), which is a de Montfort consecration to the Blessed Mother written for the littlest ones. It was originally intended for somewhat older children, but the language is so babyish to our adulterated modern children that I think kids older than preschool or Kindergarten would eschew it.


For Scripture, I have the children flip through little Bibles, a favorite being the "Lift-the-Flap Bible" (by Sally Lloyd Jones, Fun Studio Books, originally published 2000).

Kindergarten


In Kindergarten, I go through "Chats with God's Little Ones" (Our Lady of Victory School), which is actually a First Holy Communion catechism and I find so excellent for little ones and which uses the Socratic method.

Another one I used in past Kindergartens was "Illustrated Catechism for Little Children" (Angelus Press, originally published 1943), and, while I may not use it in its entirety again, it is worth having for the gorgeous illustration explaining grace.



Starting in Kindergarten, I want the children hearing or reading a Bible story, daily if possible, from "The Golden Children's Bible" (originally published 1965).


First Holy Communion Year (First Grade)


A book for parents that is useful, slim, and worth reading anew each year one has a child preparing for First Holy Communion is "The Children's Charter: Talks with Parents and Teachers on the Preparation of the Young for Holy Communion" by Mother Mary Loyola (St. Augustine Press, originally published 1911)




During the First Holy Communion year (which, for our first two children, has been first grade), I've read through with them "The New Saint Joseph First Communion Catechism" (Catholic Book Publishing Co., originally published 1963) and "Guidebook for Confession for Children" (by Beatriz B. Brillantes, Sinag-Tala Publishers, Inc., originally published 1987). Both are slim books, more properly booklets, which take maybe half the year to go through if one is going at a slow pace. So, after I finish those basics, I just keep on keepin' on with other catechisms to fill the year.



 "Know Your Mass" (Angelus Press, originally published 1954) is the first book on the Mass I have the child read. While written in comic book, it is worthy of an adult reading, and it was, in fact, the first book I was given to read by a traditionalist priest so I could understand the Mass.


I want the children to finish "The Golden Children's Bible" in first grade. My first grader already finished it, so she is now reading daily "Jesus of Nazareth: The Story of His Life Written for Children" by Mother Mary Loyola (St. Augustine Press, originally published 1907).

Second grade


 "Learning to Follow the Mass: An Extraordinary Missal for the Extraordinary Form" (St. Augustine Academy Press) is the book I have assigned to my (only) second grader so far.


For John's second grade year, I had him read the "Catechism for Children" (Angelus Press), which is a very fat catechism book which can cover second through fifth grade. The questions in each lesson are marked with little icons to indicate which grade should be working on which questions. It contains excellent information, but is certainly dry, with no illustrations. I probably won't use this again, instead switching to the simplicity of The Baltimore Catechism.

In second grade, John was done reading the Golden Children's Bible, so for his daily Scripture reading he read "The Holy Gospels of St. Luke and St. John" (Sacred Art series, originally published 2014).

Third grade


 "The Mass for Boys and Girls" (Angelus Press, originally published 1948) is the book on the Mass I assigned for third grade.

For daily Scripture reading, my particular third grader requested to start reading the daily Mass readings (commons and propers), so I figured that was a fine practice I would let him pursue. He uses any one of our old Mass missals, such as the 1962 missal from Angelus press.

Other catechisms I own, love, and plan to employ for future grades are:




 "My Catholic Faith" (Sarto House, originally published 1954)



 "First Confession" by Mother Mary Loyola (St. Augustine Academy Press, originally published 1902)--this was written when children receiving First Confession were older than 8, so I hope to assign this in third or fourth grade.

Books on the Mass I intend to assign, but haven't yet reached those grades:


 "The Mass Explained to Children" by Maria Montessori (Roman Catholic Books, originally published 1932)



 "Treasure and Tradition: The Ultimate Guide to the Latin Mass" (St. Augustine Academy Press)



Books on Saints


Meanwhile, through all the years, we are reading many books on saints. Frankly, from my perspective, I think we could learn how to be excellent Christians and get ourselves to heaven if we lived on a steady literary diet of hagiographies, even if we didn't have formal catechesis. I don't use a formal program for reading lives of the saints and long ago gave up trying to coordinate reading the book right around the saint's feast day.


For our history program (Connecting with History), we are assigned to read nearly daily saint stories from the "Once Upon a Time Saints" (originally published 1996) series of books.



I have very much enjoyed the "Encounter the Saints" series by Pauline Press, which I can hand off to my first and third graders and which they read within the week.


I have enjoyed as read-alouds (because they are longer) the Mary Fabyan Windeatt books by TAN Publishers and the Vision Book series published by Ignatius Press (various authors).



Collections of Holy Catholic Stories

I find it so useful to have collections of lovely Catholic stories which teach catechism through modeling. I have these scattered around the house in our favorite sit-down-and-read spots, and I read them at random times, not on a schedule.

"Angel Food for Boys and Girls" (Neumann Press, originally published 1950)
"Catholic Stories for Boys and Girls" (Sophia Institute Press, originally published 1957)
"Their Hearts Are His Garden" (Neumann Press, originally published 1940)


***Special note regarding the Baltimore Catechism (No. 2, TAN Publishers). My friend J------- told me a few months ago about her very easy catechism system, and I have begun using it. She has her children who can read independently read one lesson from the Baltimore No. 2 daily, reading it over and over until the child believes it is memorized. Then the child comes to her when he feels ready to be tested. She does not require every Q-and-A memorized or memorized verbatim, but she does a spot check and looks for important phrasing memorized. Also, on Sundays, as the family drives the 45 minutes to church, they play the Baltimore Catechism on CD (not even coordinated to whatever the kids are reading that week, all of which might be different), and they pause the CD to talk about how each Q-and-A might apply to our lives in real ways. They have a meaningful conversation.

I had been applying this for about half a year. I found that my first grader was too often skipping reading her Baltimore Catechism during holy reading in the morning, while the third grader was doing well. And way too often during our drive to Mass, we were not discussing the Catechism. So, I switched recently to reviewing our Baltimore Catechism as a family during our Morning Basket Time That said, I still LOVE certain catechisms below and don't necessarily want to abandon all of them for the Baltimore memorization. ***
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