August 2023 Book Reports

The Netanyahus: An Account of a Minor and Ultimately Even Negligible Episode in the History of a Very Famous Family by Joshua Cohen - I read this book along with a podcast about it. The podcasters thought it was hilarious. It did have some humorous moments, but I didn't enjoy it as much as I'd hoped. (library copy)

Poverty, By America by Matthew Desmond - link to my post (purchased copy)

Jataka Tales by Ellen C. Babbitt - This is a book of tales from India that are scheduled in Mater Amabilis Level 3 Year 2 (seventh grade). I have the Yesterday's Classics edition which is a nice paperback copy with black silhouette illustrations. Overall, Second Son and I enjoyed this book of tales. I'm very pleased we added Tales to the Level 3 and Level 4 syllabi. (purchased copy)

Works of Mercy by Sally Thomas - link to my post (purchased copy)

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links.

July 2023 Book Reports

Into the Deep: An Unlikely Catholic Conversion by Abigail Rine Favale - I first read Favale's newer book, The Genesis of Gender. I bought this book and read it quickly when I thought I would be able to hear her speak at a conference. Sadly that didn't work out, but the book was worth reading. It's the heart-wrenching story of Favale's conversion. She was raised evangelical, discarded that belief for postmodern feminism and intellectualism, but surprised herself by converting to Roman Catholicism. Favale writes with skill and humility of her failings and yearnings. Anyone who has struggled with balancing feminism and faith may find her book illuminating. (purchased copy)

How to Attack Debt, Build Savings, and Change the World through Generosity by Amanda and Jonathan Teixeira - link to my post (purchased copy)

Jane Austen's Genius Guide to Life: On Love, Friendship, and Becoming the Person God Created You to Be by Haley Stewart - This is a perfect book for anyone who loves Jane Austen. It discusses each of Austen's main books (Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Mansfield Park, Sense and Sensibility, Northanger Abbey, and Persuasion) with a focus on a virtue. I read it on my own, but it would be fun to do with a book club. It would also make an excellent companion for a teenager reading all of Austen's novels. It does have spoilers, so I recommend reading the Austen novel before the corresponding chapter. (received as a gift)

Follow the Rabbit-Proof Fence by Doris Pilkington (Nugi Garimara) - This is an excellent book for the Mater Amabilis high school geography course that includes Australia. It is based on the true story of three sisters who escape from the government to return to their Aboriginal family. The events are sometimes heart-breaking and frightening, but it provides insight into a world my children have never known. (received from a member of PaperbackSwap.com)

Tales of Japan: Traditional Stories of Monsters and Magic illustrated by Kotaro Chiba - This book is part of a series of Tales from Chronicle Books. The book is a lovely hardcover with dramatic illustrations. It is recommended in the Mater Amabilis curriculum for Level 3 Year 2 (seventh grade). It is indeed a book full of monsters and magic, and some of the stories would be frightening for young or sensitive readers. Second Son did just fine with them; in fact, he enjoyed them. I don't know enough about Japanese tales to say if they are good choices but the sources in the back do seem to be Japanese. (purchased used)

Losing Our Dignity: How Secularized Medicine Is Undermining Fundamental Human Equality by Charles Camosy - link to my post (purchased copy)

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links.

Tale of the Noongahburrahs: Australian Legendary Tales

Australian Legendary Tales 

Folk-lore of the Noongahburrahs, as told to the Picaninnies, collected by Mrs. K. Langloh Parker, with an introduction by Andrew Lang

This book is one of the first collections of tales of First Australians after colonization by Europeans. The stories are generally short, but rich in story and vocabulary. There's an indispensable glossary in the back. The excellent illustrations are those of an Aboriginal artist.

A few years ago, the moderators of Mater Amabilis added folk tales to the Level 3 syllabus, where they had been conspicuously absent. We chose this book for one of the Level 3 Year 2 books (seventh grade). They are probably below reading level for most seventh graders, but the content of the stories is often violent and graphic (though such things are not unusual for real fairy and folk tales), so they are a good fit for that age. (It will also line up with most students as they near the European discovery of Australia in A Book of Discovery.)

Though these tales seem different from ones from European countries and our own American cultural heritage, it is interesting to discover similarities. It's one of the aspects of our inclusion of tales from many cultures I appreciate.

I received nothing in exchange for this post. I purchased this book directly from the publisher. Links in this post are not affiliate links.

September 2022 Book Reports

Talking Leaves by Joseph Bruchac - link to my post (library copy)

The Foundations of Western Civilization by Thomas F. X. Noble (Great Courses audiobook) - This is one of the honors selections for high school history in the Mater Amabilis plans for Level 5 and Level 6. It provides an overview of the history of Europe from the flourishing of Mesopotamia through the beginning of the modern world. (The history plans then introduce a few other audiobooks for more recent history.) I listened to these lectures relatively slowly alongside my student and enjoyed them. (purchased audiobook)

Works of Mercy by Sally Thomas - link to my post (purchased copy)

Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe - I didn't assign this book to my older three kids, but decided to assign it to my youngest in Level 3 for one of his classic books. (We recommend three a year in Level 3.) Most of the book was rather slow, compared to more modern books, but there was value in reading it. (copy received from another member of PaperBackSwap.com)

Herodotus and the Road to History by Jeanne Bendick - I read this aloud to my kids back in 2016. I never assigned it for independent reading, so I read it aloud once more for the benefit of my youngers. (purchased copy)

Post Captain by Patrick O'Brien - This is the second in the Captain Aubrey series, which begins with Master and Commander. Sometimes I think I miss half of what goes on in these novels, but I love them. They're exciting and funny, though certainly not for young ears. (copy received from another member of PaperBackSwap.com)

Noise: A Flaw in Human Judgment by Daniel Kahneman, Olivier Sibony, and Cass R. Sunstein - This book points out all the ways our judgment is flawed, and not just for the kinds of biases you anticipate. Despite finding it a bit repetitive at times, I am glad I listened to it and definitely think about how my current state of mind or circumstances can make a difference in how I'm making decisions. It's a worthwhile book to check out. (purchased audiobook)

The Pink Motel by Carol Ryrie Brink - This book by the author of Caddie Woodlawn was recently republished. I saw it shared on Facebook and asked our local library to buy a copy, which they did! It's a fun little story with a fair bit of excitement and adventure, parents who are a bit flakey, and kids who discover all the answers. There is a black character depicted in a way that is friendly, but not up to modern standards. The publishers have a little explanation and warning in the publisher's note before the story. I enjoyed this little book and encouraged my younger kids to read it on their own. (library copy)

Walking the Nile by Levinson Wood - Mr. Wood wrote this book about his attempt to walk the length of the Nile from its source to the Mediterranean Sea. His struggles with the weather, the terrain, and the people remind the reader that traveling in Africa still presents difficulties to the earliest European explorers. It's riveting. At first I was considering including it in the geography supplemental reading for my high school students, but by the end I decided the violence and griefs were a little too real. There is also a documentary, but I haven't watched it. (library copy)

Two Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare (No Fear Shakespeare edition) - I read this ahead of the school year because I decided to assign it to my younger daughter (eighth grade, Level 4). It was a nice change from our usual selections. (purchased copy)

Grace Can Lead Us Home: A Christian Call to End Homelessness by Kevin Nye - link to my post (library copy)

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon, Bookshop, and PaperBackSwap are affiliate links.

August 2022 Book Reports

 

River of the Gods: Genius, Courage, and Betrayal in the Search for the Source of the Nile by Candace Millard - link to my post (purchased copy)

The Skeptic's Guide to American History by Mark A. Stoler (Great Courses) - This is one of the honors selections for high school history in the Mater Amabilis lesson plans. It's a good kind of myth-busters course, with plenty of context and background in each lecture. It's a 24 lecture course that is assigned over a couple of years (interspersed with lectures on British history and world history). I wouldn't use it instead of our textbook (Land of Hope), but it's a useful supplement if you have a student eager and willing for an honors course. (It's not really harder than the other resources we use. It's honors because it's more.) (published audiobook)

Nordic Gods and Heroes by Padraic Colum - This is one of the books of myths and legends added recently to Mater Amabilis's Level 3 lesson plans. This particular edition has the same style of illustrations by Willy Pogany as Colum's The Children's Homer, one of my favorites. In this book, Colum introduces children to the tales of Loki, Thor, and other Norse myths, names many might already find familiar from a series of recent movies. Thoroughly enjoyable. (purchased copy)

Searching for and Maintaining Peace: A Small Treatise on Peace of Heart by Father Jacques Philippe - link to my post (received as a gift from my son)

Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links. I have received nothing in exchange for this post.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links.

July 2022 Book Reports

Kristin Lavransdatter (The Wreath, The Wife, and The Cross) by Sigrid Undset, translated by Tiina Nunnally - link to my post (purchased copy)

The Genesis of Gender: A Christian Theory by Abigail Favale - link to my post (purchased copy)

One Thousand and One Arabian Nights by Geraldine McCaughrean - I wanted a substitute for a Robin Hood book in Level 3 of Mater Amabilis for Second Son, because he had read that one the year before. I found this one adaptation suggested on a number of websites and checked it out. I haven't read the original Arabian Nights, but this one is entertaining and suitable for children, if you can get past the slaughtering of so many wives before he gets to the storyteller. My son and I both enjoyed these stories. It was pretty easy for him to read and narrate a chapter at a time. (I read a library copy, but purchased one for my son.)

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links.

A Chapter Book on Sequoyah: Talking Leaves

Talking Leaves

by Joseph Bruchac

I was chatting in one of my Facebook groups about how much I love James Rumford's picture book Sequoyah: The Cherokee Man Who Gave His People Writing when someone told me I should read Talking Leaves. (The group is Living Books for All Peoples, and I have learned a tremendous amount there; I highly recommend it.)

The book is written from the perspective of Sequoyah's teenage son. When Sequoyah returns to Uwohali's village, they had been separated for many years. Before long, Sequoyah's papers and scratchings bring him under suspicion for witchcraft, a dangerous charge within the community. Uwohali is drawn to his father, but is wary of the peculiar symbols. 

Uwohali's relationships with family members are important aspects to the story. I love when stories are woven around such strong bonds.

That brings a smile to my mother's face, in spite of her concern. If you want to make your mother happy, tell her that you like the food she has made for you. (p. 102)

The book shows how Sequoyah convinces his family and a few key people that the Cherokee can benefit from the power of the written language, just as white people do. Then, they must convince the village.

Joseph Bruchac is an author I trust to portray Native American characters and communities with accuracy and compassion. Not only is this a wonderful book of family and the astounding creation of a syllabary for the Cherokee language, but it reveals the world of the Cherokee at the time of Sequoyah in a valuable way.

It's a chapter book written at a late elementary or middle school reading level, a good choice for independent reading. I plan to assign it to my youngest, Second Son (sixth grade, Level 3 Year 1), as he studies American history this year.

There are some violent scenes (especially when Sequoyah describes a battle) and quite a bit of tension. If you have a sensitive child, you may want to pre-read or read aloud so you can adjust if necessary.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links. I borrowed this book from our library, but then found a copy at a recent library sale.

Truth for a Modern World: Lights in a Dark Town

Lights in a Dark Town: A Story about John Henry Newman
by Meriol Trevor

This is a delightful novel of mid-1800s Birmingham, England, where Emmeline and her mother become friends with Father John Henry Newman. Through conversations and experiences shared with Father, Emmeline and her friends encounter the theological arguments and actions Newman recognized as the response to the modern world.

"The present critics of Christianity are not stupid, and what clever men argue today, ordinary men accept the day after. Especially as people increasingly judge everything by what they think is scientific reasoning. They look at the world and find no evidence for a loving Creator. Indeed, they have some justification, for the world as we see it can be interpreted in various ways."

"But doesn't that mean the atheists are right?" Emmeline said, puzzled. 

Father Newman smiled. "No, why should it? Christianity is not a deduction from the world we see. It's a history--almost a drama--about a person. We accept, we obey Him. And we find He is true." (pp. 225-226)

He concludes: 

"There are many other important things to do and say, but this seems to me the most fundamental, for in the end it is the idea people have of the world and their place in it which affects everything they do." (p. 226)

Second Daughter (Level 3 Year 2, seventh grade) read this book near the end of her world history for the year. I think it's written at a level good for a fifth to eighth grade student to read independently, but it would be appropriate for all ages as a read-aloud. I love St. John Henry Newman and am very pleased I had a reason to buy this book for our home library.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. I purchased this book new. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.

Playing at Math: Multiplication and Fractions

Multiplication and Fractions: Math Games for Tough Topics

(Math You Can Play)

by Denise Gaskins

I have to interrupt my little written narrations of reading over the past year or so to tell you about this great book of math games. I've written about a few of Denise Gaskins's books before: Let's Play Math and the combo book Counting and Number Bonds and Addition and Subtraction. This is another games book, but for older students.

My kids almost all struggled more with math as soon as we encountered multiplication and fractions. For the most part, they understood the concepts, but remembering all the multiplication facts was difficult. For fractions, it was recognizing the ones that were the same when they were simplified or had different denominators.

For my younger kids, I scheduled a games day when we'd just play the next game in this book. Some games were more fun than others, but with a loop (going back to the beginning when we finished the book), we got lots of practice with different facts and they knew their favorite games would come around again. I appreciated how the games depended almost entirely on things we had at home (like regular decks of playing cards) or free materials Denise Gaskins offers on her site if you purchase the book. There are also variations for most of the games to make them easier or more difficult.

The information she provides before the games and when introducing each one is really helpful for parents who are trying to understand how their children are thinking and guide the children to consider how all the multiplication problems and fractions are inter-related. The games give lots of practice with the facts themselves, which helps kids remember them, but they are designed to also encourage kids to explore how numbers are related to each other.

Some kids really thrive with games, and many children simply need a solid dose of math facts practice every day. This book was one tool in our homeschool to ensure we were getting some practice in.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.

An Illustrated History of the Pilgrims: The Mayflower

The Mayflower: The Perilous Voyage that Changed the World

by Libby Romero

illustrated by Olga Baumert

This is a lovely new book on the Pilgrims made with the collaboration of Plimoth Plantation. The illustrations are beautiful, depicting details about life on board the Mayflower and on land in vibrant colors. Native Americans are portrayed with dignity. Some acts of the Pilgrims, like confiscating corn they found in empty villages, is described. They later make restitution by paying for the supplies.

It's more than a picture book, so you would have to read it aloud to younger children. A Level 2 or Level 3 student would be able to read it independently and narrate it.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop are affiliate links.

Science through Space: Voyager's Greatest Hits

Voyager's Greatest Hits: The Epic Trek to Interstellar Space

by Alexandra Siy

This is a fascinating book describing the Voyagers, their creation, and their discoveries. It has lovely photographs to inspire and solid diagrams to illuminate scientific principles. The author explores the process of the mathematical equations to identify that a time when such a project could succeed in visiting multiple planets of the solar system, the development of the technology to build the Voyagers, amazing pictures sent back, and some of the questions scientists were able to answer using the data. There are also some interesting questions we have now because of what we learned!

One of the things I noticed was the relatively high number of female scientists mentioned in the text, especially as the data from Voyagers came back over the years. I believe the author must have done so on purpose, though she doesn't say so explicitly (and the book is the better for it).

It does mention the Galileo affair in the usual sense:

In 1632 Galileo was arrested by the Roman Catholic Church and locked up for the rest of his life. His crime? Refusing to take back his statement that Earth and the other planets revolve around the Sun.

So one more opportunity to remind our students there was a little more to the story. 

I intend to assign this book in Level 3 (6th grade) in our astronomy unit (after Our Universe and The Stars). The chapters are short so an advanced reader can probably read more than one in a day and cover the book in a week with narrations. It would be an excellent book for strewing, too, if you had the kind of student who would pick it up and read it on their own.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links. 

A Study of Virtues: How to Be a Hero

How to be a Hero: Train with the Saints

by Julia Harrell

I bought this book as a baptismal anniversary gift. It's a book in three parts, each one devoted to cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance), theological virtues (faith, hope, love), and "Little" virtues (humility, obedience, patience, gentleness). Each chapter first defines the virtue, tells the story of a saint who exemplifies the virtue, includes a short prayer, and some leading questions encouraging the reader to grow in that virtue.

The saints are a good mix of familiar and less common ones: Pope St. John Paul II but also St. Charbel Markhlouf, for example. 

There were two points I noted that might need discussion. In the story for fortitude and Saints Peter yu Tae-chol and Agatha Yi, I would have appreciated, for this age, an explicit statement in the text that turning yourself in during a persecution is not necessary; that God wants us to live. Later, in the chapter on love, Bl. Chiara Badano visits a friend with chicken pox when everyone else stays away because they are afraid to catch the disease. A year ago, I wouldn't have noticed it, but in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, I think you might want to mention that it is also sometimes an act of charity to act to limit the spread of disease. Those are good opportunities for discussions, though.

The chapter on Bl. Dina Belanger was one of my favorites, one I think particularly suited to children. Her obedience to her spiritual director and her parents in the timing of her entrance to religious life is rewarded with a glimpse of the way God can work in our lives.

The description recommends it for children aged 9 to 11. That seems about right to me. I've added it to my son's list for spiritual reading this year; he's 10. It's an excellent book on the virtues, though it does seem a little bland sometimes compared to some of the more beautiful older books we have read. I'm not replacing anything in our lessons, just adding this as an option for him to take to adoration and read silently before Jesus in the Eucharist.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. I purchased this book new. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.

Seventh Grade Science: More Fleisher and TOPScience Analysis, Oxidation, and Electricity (Seventh Grade)

Mater Amabilis™ Level 3 Year 2 science is a continuation of the physics and chemistry in Year 1.

The study includes two books by Paul Fleisher: Matter and Energy: Principles of Matter and Thermodynamics (Bookshop or Amazon) and Waves: Principles of Light, Electricity and Magnetism (Bookshop or Amazon). These two books are as wonderful as the sixth grade ones by Fleisher. Even better, Living Book Press has reprinted all of the Secrets of the Universe books with revisions by the author and the original illustrations. This is one of the few instances where it's worth it to find a new copy.

First Son identified sugar with a burning test

The third book scheduled for the year is The Mystery of the Periodic Table by Benjamin D. Wiker (Amazon). I love this book. It covers some pretty difficult scientific topics in an engaging way. Describing phlogiston ("the element that wasn't") in a way middle school students can understand is impressive.

Essential to the course of study in seventh grade are the activity cards from TOPScience: #10 Analysis, #11 Oxidation, and #32 Electricity. I love these cards! With a box of materials, most of the activities can be done with limited input from parents, though I always stay near-by, especially when flames are involved.

The cards are available as books, but I think the PDF files are the best value. The purchaser has permission to print cards for every student and you can just open the file and print when you have another student in seventh grade without holding a book open over your printer for every page.

You can also purchase kits from TOPS with everything you need for the set. (Choose the starter kit in the dropdown on the order page for the book.) I bought the kits for all three sets when First Son was a seventh grader and they made everything really easy, though most people probably have everything they need for electricity. For First Daughter, I ordered just a few things to refill our kits. You can see the complete lists on the TOPS website so you know exactly what you need and what's included when you buy the kit.

Every activity card has an "answer" card that includes not only the answers, but explanations that actually helped as I talked with my students about the activities.

First Son's alcohol fire

The one and only problem I had with the TOPS cards in seventh grade was the instruction to make limewater using garden lime. I bought garden lime and tried twice to make limewater. Kansas Dad tried to make limewater. We just couldn't get it to work. So we skipped all the limewater activities with First Son. I later found instructions at Home Science Tools using actual calcium hydroxide that work perfectly, so that's what we did for First Daughter last year. (I bought the calcium hydroxide at Home Science Tools.)

The Mater Amabilis™ site contains a schedule of lessons for the year that we followed almost exactly. Activities from the TOPS cards and readings are intermingled so well you might even think the TOPS cards were designed for the Mater Amabilis™ books.

The only difference I made was to combine some of the activity cards for Electricity (which is the easiest set, a nice way to end the year) so that we had time to do some of the reading and activities on electricity from Simple Machines and Fantastic Physics (Wildflowers and Marbles). We do most of that study in fifth grade, but it turned out to be a bit too long for my students, so I moved some of the electricity, magnetism, and computing to seventh and eighth grades.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links. Links to TOPScience, Home Science Tools, Living Book Press, and other sites are not affiliate links.

A Master Lesson Plan for the Geography Coloring Book with Mater Amabilis™

As I was wrapping up our Mater Amabilis™ Level 1A year and organizing the Level 2 plans for Second Son, my youngest, I realized that over the years I have assigned different maps for the same book and the same maps for different books in The Geography Coloring Book. Because I love things to be nice and orderly, I decided to spend a little time creating a coherent set of master plans for The Geography Coloring Book aligned with the geography books for Mater Amabilis™ in Level 1A Year 2 (third grade), Level 2 (fourth and fifth grades), and Level 3 (sixth and seventh grades).

Just a friendly reminder: The Geography Coloring Book is not an essential tool for studying geography. I might even argue it's not the best tool for studying geography within the Charlotte Mason method. It is, however, an easy resource. The student colors the assignments independently, then can show the map work while narrating. Something similar would be asking the child to trace the country borders, rivers, and seas, but I found my kids tended to skip that part if I wasn't sitting next to them. I also personally love coloring maps, so in the usual fashion, I like assigning my children work I enjoy.

Moment of truth: These plans will not be used with any of my children in their entirety. They are plans for a hypothetical child who would start 1A Year 2 next year. These plans would allow for a student to use the same coloring book for the five years without duplicating the maps. (A few years allow options for different books, so there may be one or two countries or activities that appear more than once, but I really tried to avoid duplication.) At the end of five years, there are still plenty of maps left to color if you have a student who enjoys it.

If you are interested in a nice neat printable version of these, I intend to share a link in the Mater Amabilis™ Facebook group.

Level 1A Year 2 Geography and Earth Studies: People & Places
Mapping Lessons for Asia

Post on the Books We Read

Level 1A Year 2 Geography and Earth Studies: Extreme Environments

Map Assignments (for 52 Days by Camel, Jungle Islands, and By Truck to the North)

Level 2 Years 1 and 2 Geography and Earth Studies: American Geography
Mapping Lessons for the Holling C. Holling books (Paddle-to-the-Sea, Seabird, Tree in the Trail, and Minn of the Mississippi)

Level 2 Year 1 Geography and Earth Studies: People and Places

Mapping Lesson for the Americas

Post on the Books for Second Son

Post on the Books for First Son

Level 2 Year 2 Geography and Earth Studies: People & Places

Mapping Lessons for Africa

Post on Some of the Africa Books

Level 3 Year 1 Geography and Earth Studies: Travel

Book of Marvels: The Occident

Level 3 Year 2 Geography and Earth Studies: Travel

Book of Marvels: The Orient

Please do not copy and share these elsewhere, but instead share by linking to this post or to the Facebook group.

Links to Bookshop are affiliate links. You can also find The Geography Coloring Book at Amazon (affiliate link).

A Challenging but Worthwhile History: This Country of Ours

This Country of Ours

by H. E. Marshall

This Country of Ours is the first option on the Mater Amabilis™ Level 1B syllabus for History, the first year in a three year course of study that continues through Level 1A (first grade through third grade). I started to read it aloud to First Son when he was in first grade and...it was a bit of a disaster. A lot of reasons for our struggles were at play: First Son was not a strong narrator. I was new at homeschooling and at narration myself. I had an exhausting two-year-old. I also had a demanding infant. The book was published in 1917 and is written with an attitude toward Native Americans we now recognize as racist, though it was not intended as such, but I was uncomfortable dealing with that attitude as we read. This Country of Ours is a challenging text, and the early chapters are in some ways the most difficult. 

We had barely scratched the surface when I decided to switch to Stories of Great Americans for Little Americans by Edward Eggleston, one of the suggested alternatives. This was a much better book for First Son at that age and for me, too. 

There are a lot of discussions in the Mater Amabilis™ Facebook group about This Country of Ours and the American history options in Levels 1-3. I heard stories from other families that loved the book and from those that used it in later years. So a couple of years ago, I decided to revisit it. First Daughter and Second Daughter have read the whole book. Second Son just started it in Level 1A Year 2 (third grade).

One of the aspects of the book I really wanted to address was the change in attitude toward Native Americans between Marshall's time and our own. I also wanted to give my readers a more concrete grasp of where these events were taking place. So I wrote a study guide, one that could be printed with a little introduction to each chapter saying everything I would say if I were sitting down to read it aloud to them. I included some maps to study before and as they read. As the girls used the study guide, I fixed errors and expanded it. Over the past few weeks, I added a list of people for each chapter. (My children explained they were having trouble telling people apart, especially in remembering which country or army someone represented.)

Over the past three years, I have read This Country of Ours two or three times, and I have come to love it. The people described are real, with their faults and virtues. The stories are exhilarating, and yet encourage further study. The language is full of rich descriptions. As a teacher of children at multiple levels, I can see myriad connections with This Country of Ours and other books in the Mater Amabilis™ syllabi like A Book of Discovery. These are not explicit, as they would be in a series that referred to early books or chapters, but are there because they exist in reality.

Though I address Native Americans in the study guide, I found a book for Second Son to read from before he started This Country of Ours and to intersperse in his readings to give a completely different perspective on events concerning Native Americans. First People: An Illustrated History of American Indians by David C. King seems to be an even-handed description of life before Europeans arrived and the consequences that followed interactions between Europeans and Native Americans.

Second Son was nine years old before he even started third grade and is a fantastic reader and narrator, so he could handle a little more difficulty than just This Country of Ours. Even so, I let him tell me if I'd assigned too much. If he wanted to only read half a chapter, I let him. Because I knew he was such a strong reader, I knew he'd be able to handle adding First People in addition to This Country of Ours.

I encourage all Mater Amabilis™ families to explore the many different ways to teach American history in Levels 1-3. The website has many options and the Facebook group has lots of people willing to share their own experiences. Here are just a few ideas:

• Read This Country of Ours over three years starting in Level 1B as on the original Mater Amabilis™ syllabus (first, second, and third grades). Use the study guide and read aloud to your student. Divide the early chapters into as many readings as you need so your student doesn't get overwhelmed.
• Read This Country of Ours over three years starting in Level 1A Year 2 and going through both years of Level 2, as Second Son will, with readings from First People interspersed (third, fourth, and fifth grades). Or spread This Country of Ours over these three years but without any reading from First People.
• Read This Country of Ours over two years in Level 2, as Second Daughter did, using the study guide (fourth and fifth grades). (She did not read First People.)
• Read This Country of Ours over two years in Level 3, as First Daughter did, with First People as an independent reading book (sixth and seventh grades). 

As you can see, my own four children have each read (or not read) This Country of Ours on a different schedule.

The study guide I wrote is available in the Mater Amabilis™ Facebook group for families to download and print or to use on a tablet and would be appropriate for reading aloud with children in Levels 1B and up, or printing for children to use independently in Levels 2 or 3. I hope it provides some support for families who might otherwise hesitate to use This Country of Ours.

Incorporating First People with This Country of Ours (perhaps most appropriate for Levels 2 or 3)

Start the year with First People. For This Country of Ours, read about a chapter a day (perhaps increasing to two chapters nearing the end of the third year as the chapters get shorter). Some of the First People readings might need to be broken up as well, depending on your student.

• First People
• Introduction pp. 6-11
• Chapter 1: The Beginning pp. 15-19 (The Ice Age and the Land Bridge, Adapting to the Environment)
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 28-33 (The Mound-Building Cultures, Monk's Mound)
• This Country of Ours (TCOO)
• Chapters 1-12
• First People
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 68-71 (The Southeast, The Cherokee)
• Chapter 3: First Encounters with Europeans pp. 75-77 (Europeans Explore the Southeast)
• Chapter 4: The European Impact pp. 88-89 (Changes in the East)
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Nation pp. 118-119 (The Virginia Frontier)
• TCOO
• Chapters 13-21
• First People
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 60-67 (The Northeast Woodlands, The Iroquois, The Ojibwe)
• Chapter 3: First Encounters with Europeans pp. 78-79 (First Meetings in the Northeast)
• TCOO
• Chapters 22-31
• First People
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 120-121 (The Conflict in New England)
• TCOO
• Chapters 32-49
• First People
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 122-123 (The Conflict Moves West)
• TCOO
• Chapters 50-66
• First People
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 42-46 (The Great Plains, The Sioux: Before European Contact, Made from Bison)
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Culture pp. 48-51 (The Plateau, The Great Basin)
• Chapter 4:  The European Impact pp. 94-98 (Changes on the Plains, The Sioux: After European Contact, Weapons of the Plains)
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 54-59 (The Pacific Northwest, The Haida: Before European Conflict, Totem Poles)
• Chapter 3: First Encounters with Europeans pp. 84-85 (Encounters on the West Coast)
• Chapter 4: The European Impact pp. 108-113 (Changes in the Northwest, The Haida: After European Contact, The Kwakwaka'wakw)
• TCOO 

• Chapters 67-72
• First People
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 126-131 (Last Conflicts in the East, Write it in Cherokee, The Trail Where They Cried)
• TCOO
• Chapters 73-74
• First People
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 124-125 (Other Indian Struggles to Survive)
• TCOO
• Chapter 75
• First People
• Chapter 3: First Encounters with Europeans pp. 80-82 (The Spanish in the Southwest)
• Chapter 4: The European Impact pp. 100-107 (Changes in the Southwest, The Navajo: After European Contact, The Apache)
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 134-135 (Indian Losses in the Southwest)
• TCOO
• Chapter 76
• First People
• Chapter 2: The Emergence of Indian Cultures pp. 52-53 (California)
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 132-133 (The Impact of New Developments)
• TCOO
• Chapters 77-91
• First People
• Chapter 5: The Contest for a Continent pp. 136-143 (War for the Great Plains, What's in a Headdress?, Final Victories, Final Defeats)
• TCOO
• Chapters 92-99
• First People (spread over many days)
• Chapter 6: The Struggle to Survive
• Chapter 7: A People's Revival

Second Son also read some of the supplemental reading during his independent reading time over the course of the year.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links. I have also often purchased books directly from Yesterday's Classics because their reprints are consistently good and the myriad of options on bookseller sites are often impossible to evaluate before purchasing.

2015-2016 Fairy Tales

I decided in 2015-2016 to take a break in the beginning of the year from the Flower Fairy Tale Books collected by Andrew Lang. I believe I started with the theme of "beautiful versions of fairy tales I happened to find at our library" and ended with a book on our shelf.

For whatever reason, we struggled to read fairy tales every week during that school year; perhaps I just scheduled too many outside activities. Here are the few we did read.

In 2015-2016, First Son was in sixth grade, First Daughter was in third grade, Second Daughter was in first grade, and Second Son was still a preschooler.

Aladdin and the Enchanted Lamp retold by Philip Pullman with gorgeous illustrations by Sophy Williams - I selected this book from our library because I loved the illustrations so much. There are lots of versions of the tale of Aladdin, but I do think this is one of the better ones. We enjoyed it, reading it over a few weeks rather than all at once. It's longer than a standard picture book.

Merlin and the Making of the King by Margaret Hodges with illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman - This is another one where there are lots of versions, but I tend to love everything by Margaret Hodges and especially with illustrations by Trina Schart Hyman. The stories retold by Hodges tend to be ambiguous in the more mature scenes but without just glossing over immoral behavior, so you may want to pre-read anything from her books. I don't have this book on my shelves, either, so I can't quickly skim it to highlight anything particular in this one. I split this one into multiple readings as well. You would want to spend at least a week on each of the four stories.

Melisande by E. Nesbit, illustrated by P. J. Lynch - This is a fun fairy tale with a twist from Nesbit, one of my favorite authors.

The Book of Saints and Heroes by Andrew and Lenora Lang

I have received nothing for this post. Other than the last book by Lang, these were all books I checked out from our library. Links to Amazon and Bookshop are affiliate links.

2015-2016 Memory Work: Sixth Grade, Third Grade, First Grade

This is just a quick post to share the kinds of poems and verses the kids memorized in their respective grades. I remember early on I would have trouble discerning which options were too difficult.

Now, in 2020, I have a big binder of poetry and prayers for them to look through and choose their own. (That's the reward they get when they memorize something - something else to memorize!) I generally choose the Scripture verses unless a child specifically asks for something. They come from readings we've done, catechism books, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, or just verses I happened to like.

I've written before about how we practice our memory work.

First Son's Sixth Grade Memory Work

Poetry

• Paul Revere's Ride by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow - This took him more than a year to memorize, but he learned the whole thing. He was able to immediately notice that our favorite picture book version is missing a verse (for no explicable reason) and, four years later, can still recite it from memory.

Memory Verses

• James 1:19-20
• 1 Peter 5:7
• Daniel 3:26-27 - First Son picked these verses.

First Daughter's Third Grade Memory Work

First Daughter loves memory work. She practices multiple times a week, even on days she doesn't work with me.

Poetry

• Yellow Butter by Mary Ann Hoberman from Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart
• Bird Talk by Aileen Fisher from Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart
• The Little Elf by John Kendrick Bangs from Poems to Learn by Heart
• Dad's cell phone number
• Anima Christi
• Catch a Little Rhyme by Eve Merriam from Poems to Learn by Heart
• I Heard a Bird Sing by Oliver Herferd from Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart
• The Kitten by William Wordsworth from Primary Language Lessons

Memory Verses

• 1 John 4:18-19
• Hebrews 13:16
• Isaiah 40:31
• 1 Peter 5:7

Second Daughter's First Grade Memory Work

Poetry

• Toad by the Road by Joanne Ryder from Forget-Me-Nots: Poems to Learn by Heart
• Catch a Little Rhyme by Eve Merriam from Poems to Learn by Heart
• her birthdate and birth city
• Prayer After Meals
• The Bluebird by Emily Huntington Miller from Primary Language Lessons

Memory Verses

• Jeremiah 31:25
• Psalm 31:24
• John 6:35

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. All links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links.

2015-2016 Family Read Aloud List

It's make-up work time on the blog, I guess. I never posted our family read alouds for 2015-2016. That school year I had a sixth grader, third grader, first grader, and a preschooler.

Many of these can be found in the literature recommendation on the Mater Amabilis™ site.

Easter, 2016

The Complete Tales of Peter Rabbit and Other Tales by Beatrix Potter - Our edition is out of print, but this is a complete one. My sentimental favorite is a set of miniature original tales Kansas Dad bought at Oxford when he was there for a conference and I was home with lots of little ones.

The Father Brown Reader II: More Stories from Chesterton adapted by Nancy Carpentier Brown - The second volume is more serious than the first in that in contains stories of murders rather than just thefts. Additionally, there is a suicide. A few times, too, I had to walk my eight year old through the conclusion as often it is not explicitly written out.

The Animal Family by Randall Jarrell, decorations by Maurice Sendak

Francie on the Run and Pegeen by Hilda van Stockum - These are the second and third books in the Bantry Bay series and are fantastic. The publisher has frequent sales and many other wonderful books.

The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi

The Big Alfie and Annie Rose Storybook by Shirley Hughes - My two youngest (seven and five when we read it) loved these sweet stories of Alfie and Annie Rose just living life. I loved the wedding story that showed a black couple getting married with Alfie as the ring bearer. There's no mention of race in the text, just the illustrations depicting different races celebrating family life together.

The Story of the Treasure Seekers by E. Nesbit

Brighty of the Grand Canyon by Marguerite Henry - We finished this book just in time to leave on a cross-country camping trip that included the Grand Canyon. The children loved the book and were thrilled to talk about it all over again when we were visiting the park.

Audiobooks

As You Wish: Inconceivable Tales from the Making of The Princess Bride by Cary Elwes - We listened to this audiobook from the library (read by Cary Elwes!) and loved it so much, I bought it on Audible during a recent sale. If you love The Princess Bride, you will love this book, though you may want to pre-listen to it.

D'Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths - This is a wonderful book, of course, but it's also a very enjoyable audiobook. Even Kansas Dad appreciated it.

A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett

The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden

Chitty Chitty Bang Bang by Ian Fleming - This is a really fun story!

We also listened to the Series of Unfortunate Events books, but I didn't think they were that great.

I have received nothing in exchange for this post. All links to Bookshop and Amazon are affiliate links. Most of these were probably library copies, but it was so long ago I can't remember!

What We Believe and Why: The Creed in Slow Motion (and exam questions)

The Creed in Slow Motion

by Ronald Knox

During World War II, Ronald Knox was a chaplain for a girls' school. He developed a series of conferences (lectures) on the Creed for their benefit. After the war, he revised them and published them in this book.

Knox simply explains the meaning of the Creed, revealing to young people a depth to their faith but in a conversational manner.

This book appears on the Mater Amabilis™ high school plans as Spiritual Reading for Religious Education in Level 5 Year 1 (ninth grade).  My son read it last year as a ninth grader, but one of the other mothers said she had used it for confirmation preparation. So this year, I've assigned it to my seventh grade daughter as she prepares for Confirmation. One week in, she said she already likes it because "it's like he's talking to me."

To believe a thing, in any sense worth the name, means something much more than merely not denying it. It means focusing your mind on it, letting it haunt your imagination, caring, and caring desperately, whether it is true or not.  

In the course of his lectures, Knox addresses many of the familiar questions raised by middle school and high school students.

When we say that God is Almighty, we mean that he can do anything which is not against reason. God couldn't create two equal-sized things one of which was larger than the other. But that isn't to say that he is being hampered by something outside himself. The laws of reason are part of the truth, and the truth is part of himself, or rather is himself; God is truth.

At the same time, he speaks eloquently of the profound truths of our faith.

No, there is no really satisfactory account of why Creation ever happened. We know that it did, because here we are. But the most the theologians can tell us is that it is the nature of goodness to diffuse itself, so that God uses Creation as a kind of reservoir for the overflow of his inexhaustible love.  

He writes on the working of the Holy Spirit in the writing of Scripture.

The Psalms weren't written to teach us lessons in geography; they were poetry, and the person who wrote that verse was just talking in the ordinary language of his time. So you can't be certain that every word of the Old Testament is literally true. But you can be certain that the theology of the Old Testament, once you have understood it properly and made allowances for the Hebrew way of saying things, must be true; because when it was written the Holy Spirit was at work to see that the thing got done right.

He also provides commonsense advice for young people. When talking about the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he explains that although the Holy Spirit sometimes intervenes miraculously, providing a clear message of a vocation or speaking directly, those experiences are rare. Most of the time, we pray for guidance and then talk with parents, counselors, and teachers, all of whom give us advice. Then we consider the arguments for or against a decision. The Holy Spirit is acting within us the entire time, helping us use wisdom and discretion to make the choice.

Often, he exhorts the young women to strive for holiness in their own lives and their own relationships.

I mean that we should be really generous in our love of God, really honest in our ambition to follow Jesus Christ. What holds up the conversion of  England, I always think, is not so much the wickedness of a few Catholics, as the dreadful ordinariness of most Catholics.

There are Editor's Notes referenced by endnotes in the text that provide definitions for English or out-dated terms as well as historical notes (on "The Crusade of Rescue," for example) and a note on the 2007 Vatican advisory document on unbaptized infants.

Below are the exam questions I used with my ninth grader last year. Right now I anticipate using the same ones with my seventh grader. If she struggles too much, I'll adjust them for my younger children (both of whom will also be confirmed in seventh grade). These would all be answered with a paragraph or a short essay...or, in the case of my oldest, a sentence or two.

Quiz #1 (chapters I – IV)

1. What does Ronald Knox say about the words “I believe” (credo) in the Creed?
2. What does it mean to call God the “First Cause?”
3. Ronald Knox says, “The laws of reason are part of the truth, and the truth is part of himself, or rather is himself; God is truth.” What do you think about that?
4. According to Ronald Knox, why does God, our “Father Almighty,” allow suffering?
5. In the Creed, we say God is the “Maker of Heaven and Earth.” Why do you think he created the universe?
6. Share something you particularly remember from the first four chapters of The Creed in Slow Motion.

Quiz #2 (chapters V-VII)

1. What does Ronald Knox say about the words “Jesus Christ” in the Creed?
2. Ronald Knox writes that “theologians will tell you that the greatness of an offence is measured by the dignity of the person against whom the offence is committed; whereas when it comes to making reparation for an offence the greatness of the reparation is measured by the dignity of the person who is making it.” What does that mean for the atonement of mankind’s sin against God?
3. We say “Our Lord” in the Creed because He is our master and we belong to Him. What do you think that means?

Quiz #3 (chapters VIII-XVI)

1. According to Ronald Knox, what can the Virgin birth tell us about marriage?
2. What does Christ’s sufferings (hunger, exhaustion, pain) tell us about suffering today? What about our own suffering?
3. Why is Pontius Pilate named in the Creed?
4. Why did our Lord want to be buried in the earth?
5. How does the sacrament of baptism remind us of the Resurrection?
6. Ronald Knox tells of a priest whose favorite mystery is that of the Ascension “because it was the only one which made you think how nice it was for our Lord, instead of thinking how nice it was for us.” How are other mysteries nice for us? Why is this one so joyful for our Lord?
7. What happens at the Last Judgment?

Quiz #4 (chapters XVII-XVIII)

1. What do we mean when we say the Bible is “inspired?”
2. What are some of the ways the Holy Spirit was at work before Jesus came?
3. What happened at Pentecost?
4. What is the difference between the extraordinary and the ordinary operations of the Holy Spirit?
5. How can the Holy Spirit guide us when we have a decision to make?

Quiz #5 (chapters XIX-XXII)

1. What does it mean to say the Catholic Church is “holy?”
2. What is the “Church?”
3. How is the Catholic Church “Catholic” (meaning universal)?
4. What does it mean to say that the Catholic Church is “apostolic?”

Quiz #6 (chapters XXIII-XXVII)

1. What is the communion of saints?
2. How is the sacrament of communion a sacrament of union within the Church?
3. How is the forgiveness of sins one of the great mysteries of our faith?
4. What is the resurrection of the body?

I have received nothing in exchange for this post, which contains only my honest opinions. Links to Amazon are affiliate links.

Egypt for Level 1 and Level 2: The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt and The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone

The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt (Landmark Books)

by Elizabeth Payne

Though we've studied ancient Egypt before, we managed to miss this book that is recommended both by RC History for Connecting with History Volume 1 (for the logic level, but I'm using it with my Level 2 student as well as my Level 3 student) and Mater Amabilis™ Level 1A Year 2 (which would be third grade, though my third grader is not reading it as we're only spending a few weeks on ancient Egypt).

I finished The History of Ancient Egypt shortly before reading this Landmark book and was pleased that I found no important discrepancies. This book brings ancient Egypt to life for young readers. There are many photographs and helpful maps. The writing is inviting and entertaining as well as informative, as I have found with many of the Landmark Books. This is a nice complement to the Usborne ancient history books with lots of vibrant color pictures and diagrams but limited text.

The Mater Amabilis™ schedule for Level 1A recommends just a few pages each reading, but I have my Level 2 Year 2 student reading longer sections. I expect both my daughters to enjoy this book.

The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone: Key to Ancient Egypt

by James Cross Giblin

This book is found on the list for Connecting with History as well. I am asking only my Level 3 student (currently in seventh grade) to read it. It's a deeper presentation of the struggle to decipher and understand the writing on the Rosetta Stone. I love how it includes many engravings by Denon of Napoleon's Egyptian expedition. Although the deciphering was difficult, it is explained simply enough for a young reader. There are many clear diagrams of the hieroglyphs which allow the reader to understand the connections more easily.  I think my fifth grader could read it, though I have only put it on her independent (optional) reading list rather than asking for steady reading and narrations. There are many

I have received nothing in exchange for this post, which includes only my honest opinions. I bought these books used many years ago. Links to RC History above are affiliate links. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt and The Riddle of the Rosetta Stone are also available at Amazon (affiliate links).