Laurie Bluedorn's Blog, page 5

How to dull and chloroform a child’s reasoning abilities

When Less Is More: The Case for Teaching Less Math in School

In an experiment, children who were taught less learned more.

by Peter Gray Ph.D.

“In 1929, the superintendent of schools in Ithaca, New York, sent out a challenge to his colleagues in other cities. “What,” he asked, “can we drop from the elementary school curriculum?” He complained that over the years new subjects were continuously being added and nothing was being subtracted, with the result that the school day was packed with too many subjects and there was little time to reflect seriously on anything. This was back in the days when people believed that children shouldn’t have to spend all of their time at school work — that they needed some time to play, to do chores at home, and to be with their families — so there was reason back then to believe that whenever something new is added to the curriculum something else should be dropped.

One of the recipients of this challenge was L. P. Benezet, superintendent of schools in Manchester, New Hampshire, who responded with this outrageous proposal: We should drop arithmetic! Benezet went on to argue that the time spent on arithmetic in the early grades was wasted effort, or worse. In fact, he wrote: “For some years I had noted that the effect of the early introduction of arithmetic had been to dull and almost chloroform the child’s reasoning facilities [sic? faculties].” All that drill, he claimed, had divorced the whole realm of numbers and arithmetic, in the children’s minds, from common sense, with the result that they could do the calculations as taught to them, but didn’t understand what they were doing and couldn’t apply the calculations to real life problems. He believed that if arithmetic were not taught until later on — preferably not until seventh grade — the kids would learn it with far less effort and greater understanding….”

Read the rest of the article here.

How would you answer this?

Do you read things aloud to your kids that you and they think are just “ok”? Or do you stop books in the middle if you aren’t feeling it? I want reading aloud to be our primary source of learning, but then get stuck in making sure we are doing the “subjects” and sometimes we end up reading stuff we don’t like as much. Should I just let this go and read what we want? All that we read is high quality literature (fiction, historical fiction, etc). We tend to not like “nature books” or plain history books as much as fiction.

If a book was tedious to me, then I quit reading it unless the kids really wanted me to continue.

Earlier is not better by Sue VanHattum

9. Earlier is not better.

The schools are pushing academics earlier and earlier. That’s not a good idea. If young people learn to read when they’re ready for it, they enjoy reading. They read more and more; they get better and better at it; reading serves them well. The same can happen with math. Daniel Greenberg, working at a Sudbury school (democratic schools, where kids do not have enforced lessons) taught a group of 9 to 12 year olds all of arithmetic in 20 hours. They were ready and eager, and that’s all it took.

In 1929, L.P. Benezet, superintendent of schools in Manchester, New Hampshire, believed that waiting until later would help children learn math more effectively. The experiment he conducted, waiting until 5th or 6th grade to offer formal arithmetic lessons, was very successful. (His report was published in the Journal of the NEA. Although some people disagree about the success of this experiment, there is nothing published which contradicts his evidence. I’d like to find more information about how this project ended.).

Read the rest of this article here.

Photo of the Day

Three of my four daughters — missing Desi.

Left to right — Johannah Stanford, Ava West, Helena Auberg

Don’t forget about free Amazon Kindle today — Ancient History from Primary Sources

Ancient History from Primary Sources: A Literary Timeline

by Harvey and Laurie Bluedorn

This illustrated reference book guides the student on a selective timeline tour through ancient history, outlining the major events and personalities and noting the primary literary sources from which these things are known. Covers the period from the creation of the world to A.D. 476. Each event or person in history is accompanied by suggested readings from various ancient sources, leading you through the maze of ancient literature. The classical literature we cite is suitable for students ages twelve and up — some suitable for younger students.  222 pages

The Kindle version is FREE for 2 days — October 2-3.

Download your free copy here.

Here is the special offer:

On October 2-3 (these two days only) the Kindle version of Ancient History from Primary Sources: A Literary Timeline will be free. In addition, if you download the Kindle version sometime during the two day period and write an Amazon review, we’ll send you one of the following ebooks from the Trivium Pursuit catalog (in PDF format). You can choose one of these six ebooks:

Ancient Literature — Significant Excerpts From the Books of Classical Authors Which You Can Use to Supplement Your History Curriculum

Volume One — Julius Caesar

Volume Two — Alexander the Great

Volume Three — Augustus, Jesus Christ, and Tiberius

Volume Four — Ancient Egypt

Volume Five — Caligula, Claudius, and Paul

Volume Six — Nero, Paul, and the Destruction of Jerusalem

After you download Ancient History from Primary Sources: A Literary Timeline and post your review on Amazon here, send an email to bluedorn @ triviumpursuit.com with the title of the ebook you would like.

Three categories of ancient literature and how to decide what to read

Three categories of ancient literature:

1. Authors who are useful (but should be pre-read)

Generally speaking, the more useful works are found in the categories of history, geography, biography, oratory, rhetoric, logic, grammar, science, medicine, mathematics, architecture, military, agriculture, and fables. We recommend that they be pre-read by parents. Remember, all of these works are written from a pagan worldview, so none of them can be considered truly “neutral.”

–Historians, Geographers, & Biographers

Ammianus

Appian of Alexandria

Aristotle

Arrian

Augustus

Dio Cassius

Diodorus Siculus

Diogenes Laertius

Dionysius of Halicarnassus

Eusebius

Eutropius

Herodian

Herodotus

Josephus

Julian the Apostate

Julius Caesar

Justin

Livy

Lucan

Nepos

Nicolaus of Damascus

Pausanias

Philo

Plutarch

Polybius

Priscus

Quintus Curtius

Sallust

Socrates Scholasticus

Sozomen

Strabo

Suetonius

Tacitus

Theodoret

Theodosius II

Thucydides

Velleius

Xenophon

–Orators

Aeschines

Antiphon

Cicero

Demosthenes

Dio Chrysostom

Isocrates

Lysias

Pericles (included in Thucydides)

Pliny the Younger

–Rhetoricians, Logicians, & Grammarians

Aristotle

Cicero

Dionysius of Halicarnassus

Gellius

Quintilian

Varro

–Scientists, Physicians, Mathematicians, Architects, Military, & Agriculture

Aristarchus

Aristotle

Archimedes

Cato the Elder

Celsus

Eratosthenes

Euclid

Frontinus

Galen

Hippocrates

Nicomachus of Gerasa

Pliny the Elder

Varro

Vegetius

Vitruvius

–Fables

Aesop

Avianus

2. Authors for mature christians

After they are firmly grounded in Christian philosophy and theology, more mature Christians may read the philosophers and the Christian apologists. Remember, there is nothing truly neutral about the philosophers, and even the Christian apologists have many unbiblical ideas in their thinking.

–Philosophers

Anaxagorus

Anaximander

Aristotle

Cicero – Stoic

Epictetus – Stoic

Epicurus – founder of Epicurean school

Lucretius – Epicurean

Marcus Aurelius – Stoic

Philo – Jewish

Plato

Pyrrho – founder of Skeptic school

Pythagoras

Seneca – Stoic

Socrates (found in Plato and Xenophon)

Thales – first philosopher

Xenophon – follower of Socrates

Zeno – founder of Stoic school

–Christian apologists (Some of these writings may be appropriate for younger students, but many of these writings are philosophical in nature.)

Ambrose

Aristides

Athanasius

Augustine

Clement of Alexandria

Clement of Rome

Commodianus

Cyprian

Ignatius

Irenaeus

Jerome

John Chrysostom

Justin Martyr

Lactantius

Origen

Prudentius

Salvian

Tertullian

Theodore

3. Authors with much questionable and graphic content

With few exceptions, the poets, satirists, tragedians, and comedians wrote questionable and graphic content which is simply inappropriate. Mature adults who have a special purpose may find a need to handle this material, but put on the chore boots first, and take a thorough

shower after you’re finished.

–Poets and Satirists (Some exceptions: The political poetry of Solon and Tyrtaeus is useful. Virgil’s Georgics may be useful. Lucian’s Life of Peregrinus is useful.)

Catullus

Hesiod

Homer

Horace

Juvenal

Lucian of Samosata

Lucilius

Martial

Menander

Ovid

Pindar

Sappho

Solon

Theocritus

Tyrtaeus

Virgil

–Tragedians and Comedians (Exception: The historical play The Persians by Aeschylus may be useful.)

Accius

Aeschylus

Aristophanes

Ennius

Euripides

Pacuvius

Plautus

Seneca

Sophocles

Terence

A few general comments on authors and literature:

Many persons begin in classical literature with the fables of Aesop (Greek) and Avianus (Latin). These are suitable for all ages, young and old.

Some literature suitable for ages ten and up:

Caesar – Gallic War and Civil War

Josephus – War of the Jews

Xenophon – Anabasis

Some literature suitable for ages twelve and up:

Ammianus – The History

Appian of Alexandria – The Roman History

Arrian – Anabasis of Alexander

Cato the Elder – On Agriculture

Eusebius – The History of the Church

Gellius – Attic Nights

Herodotus – The History of the Persian Wars

Julian the Apostate – Letters

Livy – The Early History of Rome

Pliny the Elder – Natural History

Plutarch – Lives

Quintus Curtius – History of Alexander

Socrates Scholasticus – History of the Church

The works of Xenophon are a mixed bag. Some are appropriate for even a ten-year-old (Anabasis), while others are quite inappropriate (Symposium). On the Deaths of the Persecutors, by the Christian apologist Lactantius, is more historical than philosophical, and may be read profitably by students age twelve and up. Most of Herodotus may be fine to read for students age twelve and up, but the very beginning and other short sections of Book 1 may be skipped because of content. Aristotle’s historical work (The Athenian Constitution) and his works on natural history (History of Animals, On the Parts of Animals, etc.) may be valuable for students age twelve and up, while his works on logic (Categories, Prior Analytics, etc.) and physics (Physics, On the Heavens, etc.) are better suited for rhetoric-level students. We suggest that Aristotle’s philosophical works (Metaphysics, Politics, Nicomachean Ethics) be reserved for mature Christians with a good foundation in theology and with sharpened analytical and critical skills. Cicero is listed among orators, rhetoricians, and philosophers, but his letters provide us with much valuable historical information, so he could also be listed under historians. Most of Cicero’s works are appropriate for students age twelve and up, except perhaps his Stoic philosophical works (On the State, On the Supreme Good and Evil, etc.), which could be left for the mature Christian. The mythological works and love poetry (works of Homer, Sappho, Ovid, Martial, Juvenal etc.) have a great reputation with the world, and that is one very strong reason for the Christian to handle them with utmost caution. There is no question that Hesiod and Homer are fundamental to understanding Greek culture, but that is no justification for sacrificing the tender conscience of a child to their fantasies, brutalities, and perversions. Historical poetry and plays (The Persians by Aeschylus, the political poetry of Solon) can be read by ages twelve and up.

Ancient History — Using Primary Sources

Sample pages from Ancient History from Primary Sources: A Literary Timeline

This book will be free on Amazon Kindle October 2-3.

Using primary sources whenever practical is a hallmark of classical education

Review of our book Ancient History from Primary Sources: A Literary Timeline by Cathy Duffy

“Long-time advocates of classical education, the Bluedorns have come up with a way to make classical education less costly in terms of both time and money. Using primary sources whenever practical is a hallmark of classical education, but generally that means many trips to the library, searching for out-of-print books, hunting on the internet, and otherwise going to a good deal of trouble to get the resources. And once you’ve found a resource, what do you do with it? Do you have your child read the entire book? How can you know which parts are valuable and which would be better skipped?…”

Read the rest of the review here.

The Old Gumbie Cat by T. S. Eliot

The Old Gumbie Cat

by T. S. Eliot (1939)

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;

Her coat is of the tabby kind, with tiger stripes and leopard spots.

All day she sits upon the stair or on the steps or on the mat:

She sits and sits and sits and sits—and that’s what makes a Gumbie Cat!

But when the day’s hustle and bustle is done,

Then the Gumbie Cat’s work is but hardly begun.

And when all the family’s in bed and asleep,

She tucks up her skirts to the basement to creep.

She is deeply concerned with the ways of the mice—

Their behaviour’s not good and their manners not nice;

So when she has got them lined up on the matting,

She teaches them music, crocheting and tatting.

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;

Her equal would be hard to find, she likes the warm and sunny spots.

All day she sits beside the hearth or on the bed or on my hat:

She sits and sits and sits and sits—and that’s what makes a Gumbie Cat!

But when the day’s hustle and bustle is done,

Then the Gumbie Cat’s work is but hardly begun.

As she finds that the mice will not ever keep quiet,

She is sure it is due to irregular diet

And believing that nothing is done without trying,

She sets right to work with her baking and frying.

She makes them a mouse-cake of bread and dried peas,

And a beautiful fry of lean bacon and cheese.

I have a Gumbie Cat in mind, her name is Jennyanydots;

The curtain-cord she likes to wind, and tie it into sailor-knots.

She sits upon the window-sill, or anything that’s smooth and flat:

She sits and sits and sits and sits—and that’s what makes a Gumbie Cat!

But when the day’s hustle and bustle is done,

Then the Gumbie Cat’s work is but hardly begun.

She thinks that the cockroaches just need employment

To prevent them from idle and wanton destroyment.

So she’s formed, from that lot of disorderly louts,

A troop of well-disciplined helpful boy-scouts,

With a purpose in life and a good deed to do—

And she’s even created a Beetles’ Tattoo.

So for Old Gumbie Cats let us now give three cheers—

On whom well-ordered households depend, it appears.

James 4:1-10 The Cause and Cure of Conflict among Brethren

Dear Mr. Bluedorn,

Would you mind giving me a literal translation of James 4:5. I am reading it from two different languages and they simply say different things. Gracias! Carolina

XT (XT = eXegetical Translation, 2000 etc.)

1 What {is} the cause of {hostile} conflicts and {contentious} disputes among you? {It is, is it} not, from this cause: from those pleasures [/cravings] of yours, which serve as soldiers [/wage war] among your members.

2 You are {always} strongly desiring, and yet you are never possessing; you are {always, speaking spiritually,} committing murder and coveting, and yet you are never able to obtain {your pleasures}; you are {always contentiously} disputing and having {hostile} conflicts. You are never possessing because of your never {rightly} making a {spiritual} claim [/petitioning {prayer}].

3 You are {always formally} making a claim, and yet you are never {actually} taking possession {of the thing claimed}, because you are {always} making the claim with wrong {motives, namely:} that you may freely spend [/consume] {the thing claimed} on your pleasures.

4 {O you} adulterers and adulteresses {speaking spiritually}! You do know, {do you} not, that friendliness with [/active fondness toward] the world is enmity with [/active hostility toward] God? So then, whoever may prefer [/choose] to be a {fond} friend of the world, he {thereby} makes himself a {hostile} enemy of God.

5 Or are you {in the habit of} thinking that the Scripture is {recurrently} saying {this} for no {effective} purpose: {that} the spirit {— the inner personality —} which He has caused to dwell in us is {continually} yearning toward envy [/resentfulness].

6 Yet He does grant a superior [/greater] grace. For this reason He says, “God arrays Himself in battle against [/opposes] {those who are} proud [/haughty /arrogant], but He grants grace to {those who are} lowly [/humble /unpretentious].” [Proverbs 3:34]

7 So then, put yourselves in submission under God: take a stand against [/resist] the devil, {for only} then will he flee for safety from you;

8 draw close to God, {for only} then will He draw close to you; {outwardly} cleanse {your} hands, {O you} sinners, and {inwardly} purify {your} hearts, {O you who are, practically speaking} between two opinions;

9 lament, and mourn, and weep aloud, let your laughter be changed into mourning, and your joy into shame [/dejection /horror];

10 cause yourselves to be humbled in the sight of the Lord, {for only} then shall He lift you up [/exalt you].

Read the rest of the article here.