Better Late Than Early, by Raymond Moore

Saturday  in mid-afternoon  Autodidact Governess

I’ve always wondered what exactly was better late than early. And how could I start homeschooling without reading one of the books that kick-started homeschooling as a movement? So, I finally borrowed this off my parents’ shelf and read it, as opposed to borrowing it and not reading it, which I’ve already done once or twice.

Apparently, what is better “late” rather than early is an institutional setting. Moore says it is better not to put your child in an institutional setting until your child is at least 8-10 years old (including day care, preschool, day school) — basically, in any setting with more than 5 kids per adult, which adult replaces parental supervision and authority (i.e. a parent [figure] of the child isn’t present; the child is dropped off). He uses brain, eye, hearing, and educational research to show that until the age of 8-10 children cannot handle the socialization of a large group of peers without the direction and guidance of a mother being present; if they do seem to adjust fine, they often transfer their allegiance from their mother to their teacher, or they simply develop anxieties that aren’t manifest or are seemingly unrelated. I don’t think he was saying that such children are ruined or damaged (necessarily, but certainly sometimes), merely that it is better not to put them in such situations.

Instead, he argues, the best place for children from birth to 8-10 is at home with mom, participating in regular life (family meals, conversation, and chores) and having lots of outside play time.

“Close work” — anything requiring focus of vision and attention — should be minimal if any is done at all until the age of 8-10, he claims. He admits that some children might teach themselves to read without formal instruction (which he does not even suggest parents do), and says that not more than 15-20 minutes of reading should be allowed, and no reading or writing or “close work” of any kind should be forced upon the child who resists. He says that children’s eyes are naturally far-sighted, and so focusing on close work is a strain to the eyes, whether it appears to be or not, and that too much of it will literally misshape the eyes and cause vision problems.

The second half of the book is parenting advice for children from birth to age 8-9, giving examples of activities and toys and chores that are good for each age and also explaining some development that can be expected. His emphasis is on nutrition and good eating habits, independent solitary play, no parental indulgence, but training in obedience and responsibility.

Once the child is 8 or 9, he explains, he should not be made to begin first grade with 6-year-olds, but he should be placed in third or fourth grade with his peers and given a little extra attention or tutoring (by parents, most likely) until he’s caught up, which should only take a few months. He will then be more likely to be a leader, as he has more self-confidence and self-control (which is more likely to develop at home than in a group setting, especially if the child is young within the group). So now he is mature enough to handle group pressure and competition, lack of personal attention and competition for the teacher’s attention and favor, and now has the ability to place others’ needs before his own or work out solutions creatively. Before he is ready for this, his interactions with peers, even a small group of peers, should be with a parent nearby to supervise and know what is going on so she can directly teach and train her child. A mother simply does not know what has happened at school (what was said and done between peers is more important, more shaping, and more uncontrollable than what the lessons were) and cannot help her child handle it well.

The book was written in 1975, on the cusp of Early Childhood Education (i.e. school starting before ages 7-9 as was typical before the 60s & 70s) programs. And, yes, of course Finnish experts were cited. :) Research, I’m sure, has progressed immensely, although as he points out, what is published and popularized is usually only what is in the best monetary interest of some group or other, and ECE is an easy sell to concerned parents and is a huge business — even moreso now. Still, with it’s age, I do wonder if more recent research still bears out his conclusions. I’m glad I read it, I’m glad it was a quick read, but I don’t think it’s actually going to change anything I do or think. Hans does read, but he generally doesn’t read for more than 10 minutes at a stretch anyway.

A little quick research shows the Moore Foundation is still alive and well, and Better Late Than Early is out of print, replaced by several other homeschool/family-focused books and School Can Wait II, the scholarly version of Better Late Than Early. In 1975, homeschooling was not yet a word, so it’s not mentioned at all in the book. However, now there is a “Moore Formula” for homeschooling explained on their website. Their “formula” seemed fairly unschoolish and child-centered, and it wasn’t clear that such approach ended when the child reached 8-10.

Coloring Books

Saturday  in mid-morning  Curator

I absolutely love the Dover coloring books. The line drawings are artistic and beautiful, and they have coloring books for every school subject, every time period, and almost every interest. The paper is heavy and the quality is excellent.

Amazon.com sells them with their 4-for-3 deal, making them about $3 each.

Ok, yes, I’m cheap. But even at $3 each I don’t want to hand over the book to my 4-year-old and say, “Consume away!” My plan was to copy the pages I wanted to use for school or for coloring time. Besides, then I can continue to collect new books rather than replacing consumed books. However, the copyright permissions in each book was not quite clear if this was permitted. The permissions granted were generous, but it didn’t clearly state that making continuous copies (for our own family use only) was ok. I read article after article online about copyright permissions, especially as pertained to homeschool education use and found the novel idea of simply asking for permission. I did so, via Dover’s website, and within an hour received an email back granting me permission “of course” to make copies for my family.

Dover coloring books will continue to be a staple added to our school order every year.

First Grade Lesson Planning

Tuesday  in mid-morning  Governess

A couple weeks ago I finally came up with a plan of attack for lesson planning. Yes, a plan for planning. I’m hopeless. I came up with what I wanted plotted out and what I could leave with “do the next thing” and how to know what books to have from the library when. I wanted to do all planning (book and lesson plotting, copying, printing, library haul, etc.) a term at a time. Several other ladies — ones I have never met — helped me come up with a lesson plan plan:

Brandy: Lesson Plans and Record Keeping
Kendra: School Planning
Ann: Planning Days
Lindafay: Year 1 - How We Fit It All In & For the Imperfect Folks
Angelina: Scheduling Our Weeks & Days

So — a la Brandy, I have paperwork that doubles as planning and record-keeping. A la Kendra, I do a slug all at once (but only for a 6 week term, not a whole year). Like Ann, I left room to make notes and adjustments and changes right on the print-out. Like Lindayfay’s, I have checkboxes for the subjects written out. And, as Angelina does, we don’t do everything everyday. I am doing it five days a week, but Wednesday is a light day so we can make it to play group easily, and all told the longest day should take 2 hours maximum to complete (I plan on utilizing timers), so we’re not spending all day with school anyway. Of course we have Morning Time a la Cindy, and 2/3 of the scheduled school could count as MT (art, reading, memory, all done as a group, i.e. with Jaeger, too). And, like myself, the plan is a detailed and aesthetically formatted document.

So, here is the page for week one:

My printed version has page numbers and book titles written in, but in pencil. So I can erase or redo so that the completed sheet is an accurate description of what actually happened, and not just what I hoped would happen. The spaces for each of the boys I can also use to take notes on attitude or problems or funny things, and I still have room in the boxes for the subject (or the back of the sheet) to take notes on something that did or didn’t work well or jot down ideas or follow-ups or other notes. I have a sheet for each week of the term, and they have their own clipboard.

I’m pretty pleased with how it came together. Of course, that’s probably because it’s sitting pretty on the clipboard not yet used.

Chai Latte

Thursday  just before lunchtime  Cook

Six months or so ago I found a recipe for chai tea concentrate on some random blog. It was one of those link trails and I can’t remember now who or where it was. But, I remember the basic how-to for the chai. I tried it during the cold months, heating the milk and having a hot chai latte (chai tea + milk). I just remembered it a week ago and tried it iced. It is very, very good. The same or better than what you can get at a coffee shop.

Instructions

Bring to a bare simmer a medium saucepan full of water. Turn off the heat, add six tea bags chai (Stash has several good options, but Good Earth’s vanilla chai is the best I’ve had so far.) and cover. Steep for 5 minutes (my last pot I forgot and it steeped 20 minutes; it was still good). Stir in 1/4 to 1/3 c. sugar (I tried it unsweetened, but the sugar really brings out the flavor. With 1/4 c. it is lightly sweet but not a dessert drink).

Concentrate can be stored in a jar in the fridge for a week or so. To serve hot, mix with milk and heat. To serve iced, mix with milk and add an ice cube or two (if both are straight from the fridge). I make my drink with a ratio of 3:1 or 4:1 tea:milk, but that’s because I like the spices and tea strong. :) 2:1 would probably be a more typical chai drink.

Personally, I think coffee is better the higher the fat content of the milk/cream (although, the higher the fat content, the less is required). However, I find non-fat milk does not make a chai taste thin as it does in a coffee latte. So after three cups of chai I’ve had no fat, only a little sugar, and a serving of dairy.

Les Mis‘ Philosophy

Saturday  in the early evening  Autodidact

Victor Hugo spends 1/3 of Les Mis with the plot, 1/3 with French history, and 1/3 with philosophical and political commentary. I suspected his position throughout the first half, but he came right out in the second half and claimed that universal suffrage — the end of revolution — will end war and political violence. Wow.

bewildering

Thursday  in the early evening  Lady of the House

Browsing for books on the library’s online catalog for our upcoming school term, I searched for “astronomy atlas.” “Do you mean ‘Western outlaws’?” queried the results page.

What?!

Traveling

Tuesday  in the early evening  Nursemaid

Hans, in his brusque voice: “Ok, Mom! We’re traveling to Bud Light!”

Mom, feigning ignorance: “Um, what’s Bud Light?”

Hans: “It’s that store [read: pub] we pass along our way.”

Mom: “Ah. No, that store sells Bud Light, but it’s not called Bud Light. Bud Light is a bad-tasting beer.”

Hans: “Oh,” returning to his brusque voice, “Ok, Jaeger! Time to go!”

House for Sale!

Tuesday  in the early morning  Lady of the House

Anyone want a cute, fixed-up Richland government house?

I am most pleased that the description for our property contains complete sentences, no all caps, and no excess exclamation points. This is rather exceptional in the world of realtor copy. But, we have a good Realtor(TM).

Come enjoy this centrally located home with its many updated amenities - Updated kitchen (cabinets, countertops, window, flooring, new stove and dishwasher), re-finished hardwood floors, updated bathrooms (shower, floors, vanity, windows), newly installed UGS (and sod and cultivated garden area), new retaining walls, new front door, new curtains, new washer and dryer, & more! Large room downstairs could be family room, or a huge 4th bedroom. Seller is also purchasing a 1 yr AHS Home Warranty for the buyer.

Now if someone would only call and come see it. But, there is no kind of motivation to clean house like having it on the market! I certainly learned a lot and developed better habits last time we sold a house.

An odd quirk

Monday  in the early afternoon  Nursemaid

Listening to audio books has helped Hans with his natural ability to copy accents and mannerisms of speech. He can do voices and mimic what he hears very well. And so I prefer professionally recorded audio books from the library over my own reading or Librivox. However, there’s been an unexpected consequence to listening to library CDs. Hans has taken his mimicry a bit too far.

Hans, reading Little House in the Big Woods: “Pa looked in the — IN THE — IN THE — IN THE — barrel.”

Yes, he’s mimicking the skipping of the CD.

Reason #42 To Keep Your House Clean & Organized

Sunday  around evening time  Lady of the House

You might decide to buy a house your friend tells you about, even though you weren’t planning on moving, and then have 36 hours before your Realtor(TM) comes over to take pictures of your house that will be used in its MLS listing.

Yeah.