How to Use a McGuffey's--Part 3

Here are some more specifics about using the McGuffey's Readers. Buy it in PDF Format

First, let me say that there are as many ways to use the McGuffey readers as there are ways to use hamburger! We can take this versatile meat and make it into patties, or loaves or chop it up and add it to noodles or chips or even put it with gravy over potatoes!

Some folks use the McGuffey's as a read-aloud for inculcating solid moral values, including poetry that reinforces Biblical living. A mother could simply read a lesson aloud and then ask questions of her children, or help them memorize the poetry which is  meant to aid in living Biblical principles in everyday life.

Others use them as only a portion of a language arts program, assigning each child to read a lesson, then perhaps a quick oral narration to make sure the task has actually been carried out.

I have chosen to take full advantage of the readers. As I have read through the lessons, I have found them so rich that I didn't want to rush through them. There is so much to take advantage of in each--the vocabulary, spelling, grammar, besides the practical Biblical morality make them comprehensive for me.

These readers are not graded--that is, the number of the reader does not correspond to our current grade levels. This is one reason I so appreciate them. I can put my children wherever they need to be, at their different levels of competency. Each reader was meant to span more than one year, meaning that it is not strange that a child could begin in the middle of a book instead of at the beginning.

These materials were created for the one-room schoolhouse, for frontier and farming children who may not have entered into formal schooling until the ages of 12, or even 19 years of age! It is therefore very possible to use these for the "late bloomers" with great success.

I have assigned a different reader for each child (and made library-like book jackets for them from sheet protectors which I cut open and then folded and taped to fit). They keep these in their "learning satchels," which are actually bits and pieces of small luggage and huge purses that I have collected over the years, many with small pockets for stationery items, etc. With my number of children--seven currently in full learning mode, having two sets has been necessary. The readers are also sold separately, so duplicate copies could be obtained to use with children at the same level, or a single copy could be shared. my own children vary enough for me to be able to use just the two sets.

I take each reader and use the planner page I have created to write out the assignments for the specific lessons. I have created a menu of different options and ideas to choose from to simplify things, which you can find as a PDF and print out here.

As far as the Biblical connection goes, many times the verse will present itself to my mind, then I simply use my concordance and Bible cross-references to find it! But there are actually sites on the Net which locate verses on different topics, such as this topical Bible site.

There are times when a further connection will present itself, such as in the 2nd reader (original) which deals with lions. I felt it important to have my son, who is an artist and nature-lover, to draw a lion for me in his sketchbook. My oldest daughter (at home) is often presented with lessons which are not easily put into narration format, so I have been obliged to teach her a simple essay outline so that she can re-formulate the philosophical ideas presented as an original composition.

I have created a sample picture of what a "sticky note" assignment looks like. I have the children fasten these to their readers to use as a consumable check-list. Since I have a copy of the assignments in my home-school planner, none can claim they couldn't complete their assignments because their notes were lost--I can always write out new ones!

Of course, this method is only for those who are reading competently. The Primer and First Reader lessons are done differently. These require much more participation on my part. At the primer level, especially, a single lesson could take a few weeks, and of course there is little or no narration, and at first even the copy work is nill to none.

The blessing in all of this is that, except for a little bit of planning and follow-up (and the planning part gets easier as you get more used to it), the work is pretty much independent--making it easier for a mom of many to keep track of children that are on so many different levels. This keeps some challenged, others comfortable. My children really enjoy doing their lessons this way--they are independent and have a bit of freedom, but also have the accountability and direction they need. 

How to use a McGuffey's, Part 2

McGuffey's Pictorial Eclectic Primer

Some interesting questions have recently come up.

First, I would like to explain the differences between the two sets of McGuffey's reprints that are now available.

The first is the "original" readers published by Mott Media. Can I say that I love these? They are printed with a sturdy binding, and the pages are thick for longevity and practical everyday use.

I believe it is their simplicity that make these books so endearing. The Primer begins with fairly crude pictures to accompany some basic words that are familiar to young readers. I was put off at first because things were not arranged according to phonics rules, but rather go from the simple to the complex. After using them for a while, I see the genius in McGuffey's thinking. My daughter absolutely loved the lessons, since they didn't seem "dumb" to her. We went very slowly, repeating each portion multiple times over several weeks. The results were quite remarkable--as I now have an encouraged, excited reader/writer on my hands!

The other books are amazing to read as well. My eldest daughter went from barely reading to fluency using the first reader. Subjects covered vary--but they are never trivial or boring. The Professor chose primarily to wisely deal with matters of the heart and morality--even including a story with an orphaned babe being taken in by an old gentleman bachelor! There are lessons with warnings dealing with laziness and the dangers of strong drink as well.

The vocabulary words presented in the first two readers are helpful. Again, there is no particular rhyme or reason to their inclusion, on the surface, but if they are used in oral reading and spelling, along with some basic copy work and dictation, their usefulness soon becomes apparent. It is almost magical to witness how these materials communicate with young fertile minds. I found that the hard work of learning was actually being accomplished by my children, and I only had to present the lessons and enjoy the process as I witnessed the wonderful transformations.

The advanced readers are very challenging reading. All of the readers are extremely Evangelical in nature; confession of sin, salvation through Jesus Christ, etc. are marvelously emphasized. This is continued in the 3rd and 4th books of the series, with apologetics for the Holy Bible also included. My daughter is working diligently through these and finds them replete with nourishment for the mind and soul!

The guide written by Ruth Beechick was very helpful to me, although I found that I had to adjust many of her thoughts and ideas to fit my children and our particular educational circumstances. If I had followed her suggestions verbatim, I would have become quite frustrated.

The originals are the only ones that can actually be attributed to McGuffey directly. The later versions, and there were many, were revised by different people, even his brother had a hand in some revisions.

Which brings us to the second set of McGuffey readers in publication today. These are commonly called the "revised" set, originally edited in 1879-1881 (there were revisions as late as the early 20th Century, which are hardly recognizable as McGuffey's, but these are not currently in print, that I am aware of). I own two sets of these; one antique (actually printed in 1920), the other a more recent, and less refined, facsimile which I purchased new.

My antique set is so beautiful--the leather bindings are deeply engraved and detailed; the colors of the covers are darker and brighter. The text is slightly raised and one can see the fine lines of the illustrations, as opposed to the muddied ones in the facsimile. Needless to say, the children do not have access to these at all, although I keep them in a slipcover on my desk and refer to them when writing up my lessons.

The 1879 revised edition that was recently printed is the set that my children use. I love these also. It is true that these are the least directly Evangelistic, but they still contain references to God and have many passages from the Bible. The lessons are moral and very engaging--a refreshing change from the meager offerings of these modern times.

The Primer not only uses simplicity, but also helps present the principles of phonics. For instance, the first lessons deal with short "a" words, the next lessons introduce short "o", and so on. This may be somewhat easier for the 21st Century mind to deal with.

The illustrations throughout are delightful. I enjoy viewing them myself--so I know that my children take pleasure in them.

There are not any modern guides to these available, and I personally felt quite lost until I discovered The Eclectic Manual of Methods--this book explains not only how the revised readers were meant to be used, but the arithmetics, grammars, etc. You can download this from the link above, and it can even be printed up and comb-bound. The Ray's and McGuffey's helps I sell on my blog contain a few suggestions that I fashioned after the ideas found in this manual.

Excerpt of a McGuffey Illustration

Since I am working on the plans for my own young learners, I am currently compiling a general guide to using the McGuffey's series together in an eBook format. I have a few images and some helps in place--but I will include some scripture passage suggestions for the lessons--I hope you will pray for me so that I will be able to find the time to put these resources together for you all! I also have another blog that I am developing which I hope to gradually fill with anything and everything we find interesting that was published during or about the "McGuffey" era of our history, both, The Guide to McGuffey and the blog will be about education and life--McGuffey's World.

I am not sure which set of readers is the best--they both have their merits. I am glad I have both! As of this writing, one could secure the original set, with speller and the Beechick guide, for between $70 - $109 (per set), before taxes and shipping.

The 1879 revised set can be purchased for about $69.

Dollar Homeschool has done a great job compiling all of the McGuffey's Eclectic Series and putting them on CD. The cost, compared to purchasing the actual books, many of which can no longer be obtained or found, is economical (the readers, with speller and extra books, $39). But if one wants to print and bind their own books from the CD, the price becomes the same or much more.

I often find myself lost in these little books—I am so glad I get to do the lessons, too!

I would like to leave you with a quote spoken originally by Dr. David Swing of Chicago and published originally in the book, A History of the McGuffey Readers by Henry Hobart Vail.

Much as you may have studied the languages or the sciences, that which most affected you was the moral lessons in the series of McGuffey. And yet the reading class was filed out only once a day to read for a few moments, and then we were all sent to our seats to spend two hours in learning how to bound New Hampshire or Connecticut, or how long it would take a greyhound to overtake a fox or a hare if the spring of each was so and so, and the poor fugitive had such and such a start. That was perhaps well, but we have forgotten how to bound Connecticut, and how to solve the equation of the field and thicket; but up out of the far-off years come all the blessed lessons in virtue and righteousness which those reading books taught; and when we now remember, how even these moral memories have faded, I cannot but wish the teachers had made us bound the States less, and solve fewer puzzles in 'position' and the 'cube root' and made us commit to memory the whole series of the McGuffey Eclectic Readers. The memory that comes from these far-away pages is full of the best wisdom of time or the timeless land. In these books we were indeed led by a schoolmaster, from beautiful maxims for children up to the best thoughts of a long line of sages, and poets, and naturalists. There we all first learned the awful weakness of the duel that took away a Hamilton; there we saw the grandeur of the Blind Preacher of William Wirt; there we saw the emptiness of the ambition of Alexander, and there we heard even the infidel say, "Socrates died like a philosopher, but Jesus Christ like a God."

How to use a McGuffey's, Part 1

Illustration from 5th McGuffey's

Here is a question that I received recently from a reader regarding the use of McGuffey readers:

I wanted to know if you could give me some tips on how you use your McGuffey readers. I have a set of them but do not know how to use them with the kids. It seems like a silly question but I have read through them a bit and I am confused about what to do with them. I guess I need an instruction manual. I appreciate any help you can give. I hate to see them just sit on my shelf. I would like to use them with the kids this fall.

First, let me say that I totally understand how this reader feels. I can remember thinking these books were really nifty, but I had no idea as to how to use them. They were written in a time when the methods of learning were universal and understood. We have lost these principles as educational philosophies have changed over the years (and not for the better).

It is sort of like the 25-pound sack of flour sitting in my baking cupboard. It takes the application of a recipe and other ingredients to produce the desired outcome.

The ingredients required for a batch of first-rate language arts is as follows:

• Reading with narration (primarily oral, then written)
• Copy work
• Dictation
• Sentence creation
• Recitation
• Original composition

This is how I tackle each lesson:

1. I read it for myself.  This is my favorite part. I love the lessons--I learn new things and become encouraged and blessed--I can't wait to share with my children! In this way I am familiar with the content of each lesson so that I can bring out the finer points that may be missed, etc., such as the moral of the story, or even some historical facts that may be needed to gain a better understanding of what is being read. It also helps me when I am either hearing or reading the narrations I require. If time is short, and the child is not competent enough to write out the narration, it can be "cartooned" by splitting a page in equal portions and have the child draw out the events in the lesson in sequence, to be labeled later.

2. I choose a section for copy work. For the younger set, it may only include the vocabulary words and a short section--perhaps a sentence to begin with, then a paragraph. I write these out as an example so that they have something to follow. Poems are copied in their entirety. Older children may be required to copy much more. This is the method used continually--the immersion and familiarity gained through this practice helps imprint language on the minds of children. 

I also like to assign a portion of God's Word which applies to each lesson, lots of times scripture will come to my mind as I am reading, but I also use the concordance to look up appropriate passages. 

3. I choose sections for dictation, sometimes from the speller. This is how proper spelling, punctuation and grammar are reinforced. 

4. Often the poems or portions of the lesson are read aloud to all as a practice for public reading and speaking, and I am requiring that many parts, or all, of the poems be memorized. 

5. I have the child either read and spell the vocabulary words (using Charlotte Mason's suggestion of "imprinting" the words in the child's mind), or assign them to be used in original sentences.  

6. There are times when an original composition will be suggested by the lesson, especially in the more advanced readers (3rd and 4th in the original series--1849 Mott Media, 5th and 6th in the revised--1855 and above). 

The Manual of Methods is the place to go to understand more closely some of the intent of the authors. Here is also a link to my other blog, McGuffey's World, which contains quotes from 19th century sources speaking as to the importance of copy work.

This is an amazingly simple way to teach language arts, and is also so inexpensive!  All that is required is a few good copy books and pencils. 

1836 copy book

Of course, you could create copy work pages by using a school font and a word processor, to encourage better handwriting. 

Here is just a little example of what treasures there are to be found (from the revised, 1879, 2nd reader):

Beautiful faces are they that wear 

The light of a pleasant spirit there; 

Beautiful hands are they that do 

Deeds that are noble good and true; 

Beautiful feet are they that go 

Swiftly to lighten another's woe.

Brushing up on basic grammar helps me--I keep a secretary's guide or two around the house as an aid when I am stumped. We also spent some time together this last year in the Harvey's Grammars, which helped everyone quite a lot. 

It also helps to teach the children how to set up a page--noting the number of the lesson and the date across the top of the page, then skipping a line to begin the work. Also, to have rules about the writing assignments, such as to respect the margin lines, and to keep things neat--no stray marks or doodling, and complete erasure of all mistakes. 

As a mother of many children, these books have helped me to simplify instruction without compromising on content. 

Here is a link to the Manual of Methods, which helped explain a lot for me.

A Few Important Words About Copy-work

From the Indiana School Journal: Volume 30, page 685, c. 1885

I. General Aim.--The aim or purpose of language work is, in general terms, to train the mind. Specifically it is to give the pupil the power of thinking clearly upon any subject, and of expressing his thoughts in good English as he thinks them. It is also the aim to gain the pnwer of interpreting the written page as easily as the spoken language is interpreted.

II. Work Of First Year.--The work of the first year is to be done incidentally in connection with every lesson given. In the first place all errors in oral language should be corrected at the instant they are made if the aim of language work is to be realized. The corrections should be made at first by the teacher; because the pupils at this stage have not sufficient knowledge of language to enable th;m to know what expressions are erroneous and what correct. But the teacher should, during this year, lead them to form the habit of criticizing errors, and should require that all criticisms should be made by them to the extent that they are able, in accordance with the principles that the mind grows by self exercise. The regular and general lessons may be made an exercise-ground in language.

The pupil should be led to tell in good English what he knows about a subject, and then by judicious questioning be led to see more. The first aim in this kind of work, should be power to think and knowledge of the object; second, power in the use of language.

Constructive work in language should also be begun in the first year. It should, however, be very simple. The following is the order in which language studies come in the scale of difficulty: (considering language work as a whole, not merely the first year's work,) oral expression, copy-work, dictation, putting the thought of another in the pupil's own language, original composition. 

It will be seen from the above that copy-work is the simplest form of written language work. This should be done in the first year, first from black board, because it is easier to take it from the board free from all distracting associations than from the book. The work should be increased in difficulty by taking it finally from the book.

In the entire work of the first year the teacher should be content with a single expression for a single idea or thought, e.g., "The earth is round like a ball," is sufficient, although they might be taught it is spherical, globular, or an oblate spheroid. This is in accordance with the thought that it is the nature of mind in acquiring knowledge (1) observe a particular, (2) generalize, (3) compare, (4) many particulars, (5) classify, (6) name and define Student.

From The Theory of the School pg.280-281, Howard Sandison, 1886

In the light of these principles the stages in spelling are four.

1. Copy-work, the simplest form of spelling.

2. The reproduction, in dictation exercises, of words previously learned, a more difficult form of spelling.

3. The spelling of the necessary words when the thought is fixed upon the idea which is being expressed, a still more difficult work.

4. The analysis of difficult combinations with a statement of the reasons for their difficulty, a work the most complex of the four kinds.

A pupil should be required to copy accurately and readily before he is given the more difficult work of reproducing from memory. "That which we know thoroughly," was said by Jacotot, "contains the explanation of the unknown." "The end is in the beginning." 

Success in teaching spelling depends upon thoroughness. It is not the amount of time but the manner of doing it. The vague forms are to be made perfectly distinct forms to the eye by writing before passing to others.

"The end is in the beginning."

To develop power to reproduce from memory: After a word has been copied from the board, erase it, and have it reproduced from memory. Do the same with two words, three, a short sentence, etc. Regulate the work by the pupil's power to do it accurately. Train him to do exactly what he is asked to do.

When he can copy and reproduce readily and accurately, he is prepared for the spelling of words that are used to express his original thought, i.e., the words used in composition. 

During the time the pupil is acquiring facility in copying and reproducing, attention should be given to developing his powers of observation and description by lessons on color, form, animals, etc., and by inducing him to talk freely on all subjects that come within the range of his observation.

After a period of using words in the expression of original thought, the pupil is prepared for the fourth stage--the stage of difficult combinations.

The difficulty of English spelling arises from the variety of combinations employed to represent the elementary sounds. For example, the short sound of e may be represented in eleven different ways, as is shown by the words web, head, again, aesthetics, any, nonpareil, leopard, bury, friend, guess, says.

This difficulty is to be overcome by--

1. Concentrating the attention upon only such words as involve difficult combinations.

2. Mastering tables of equivalents for elementary sounds. For example:

The name sound of a is represented in twelve ways: In many words by a, as ale; by ai, as ail, and by ay, as bay. In a few words by ey, as they; ei. as veil; ea, as break; ua, as gauge; ao, as goal; aa, as Aaron; e and ee, as melee; aye, (meaning ever.)

3. Analysis with open book, in order that both the eye and the ear may be addressed. For example, the word police. The pupil pronounces and spells the word from the book, thus: "Po-lice, police; it is a difficult word because the name sound of e is represented by i, and not by one of the more frequent modes--e, ea, ee, ei, ie. There are twelve ways to represent this sound. The word is more difficult to spell, because the sound of 's' is represented by ce." 

The first stage occupies the first year; the second, the second year; the third, from the beginning of the third year to the end of the seventh year; and the fourth, the eighth year.

Mommy's Toolbox--Things to Consider When Turning the Corner in Your Home-schooling!

A major planning slump!

It's the beginning of a new year--a time when countless home-schooling mothers seem to experience a major planning slump in the months between Christmas and spring-time, especially with those mothers who are home-schooling for the very first time!

We may feel a bit unsure because:

• Our children are not cooperating.

• The curriculum we chose doesn't seem to be working.

• The relatives (and/or friends) are really negative.

• Our life and/or home is in such disarray that we can't get "school" done.

• We aren't sure we can handle 12 years of this!

• Financial circumstances are adding to the difficulty and pressure of the situation.

Here are some ideas that have helped me to get "over the hump" during the past 25 years. 

1. Don't give your children too much too soon. I read recently about a young mother who wanted to begin officially homeschooling her little girl before she had even reached the tender age of two-years-old! In my humble opinion, bright toddlers are like "little learning machines," they rarely lack the energy or enthusiasm necessary for discovering and enjoying new things!

The trick is to tap into their natural inclinations. A good initial step would be to keep a toddler's environment free from empty-brained "time wasters," such as the new gadgets for babies that are supposed to mimic iPhones, iPads, and the like. Small children will learn best in an environment that facilitates and encourages open-ended play, such as with blocks, dolls, a sand-box, Legos, etc. Fortunately, these types of play-areas and toys are easy to come by, and are not too expensive.

Three other important parts of a good preschool curriculum are: 1) responding in a warm and supportive manner to questions, 2) reading books aloud, and 3) including your child in day-to-day life experiences.

To many this is a natural part of the nurturing that is essential to teaching your children at home. 

What is next?

2. Don't be afraid to drop something that is either too advanced or too tedious. If your children don't like the curricula or methods that you are using that's one thing, it's another thing if you dread using them yourself! 

No matter how colorful, glossy or high-tech a program may seem, it could be the very worst thing for you and your family. 

The kind of learning that makes a lasting difference in a person's life is not the canned-type that must be driven by teachers and other authorities. Schools don't understand this, of course, and this is primarily why they are forced to use advertising gimmicks to keep the attention of students. This is the reason why much of the curriculum materials are so colorful and filled with graphics, but even the best window-dressing in the world will not hide the blandness that lurks beneath, and savvy young scholars can sniff out demagoguery a mile away!

The learning that sticks is so interesting on its own merits that your children won't have to be prodded to use it. You will quickly discover that your kids will sneak it into their bedrooms, and hide under their covers to read about it after bedtime. They will be so engaged with it that they will want to spend every waking hour in its pursuit because it is "delight-driven" learning. 

I know it is hard to give up on something that you have spent a lot of money for, and it is a bit hard on one's pride to admit to making a wrong choice, but the alternative is just too detrimental to consider not correcting the mistake! 

Do yourself and your kids a favor and let it go.

(We have chosen to use McGuffey's Readers, Ray's Arithmetics and Spencerian Penmanship, etc. because these cover the basic academic subjects and leave loads of room for other topical subject matter to be learned in more natural ways) 

3. Get some encouragement and moral support from someone who has been where you are now. Keep in mind that home-schooling is still counter-cultural today. When a parent chooses to educate their children at "home," there may be some folks who feel uncomfortable with your decision to do so. The grandparents are worried about how their grandchildren will get along in the world, both friends and some relatives may automatically assume that they are being judged by your unconventional choices, it's simply human nature.  

Be sure that you become grounded in your decision to home-school, so that you will be able to intelligently communicate the why's and wherefore's of what you believe. Have you ever noticed that those who are very confident hardly ever spend time defending themselves, while those who are secretly unsure are the ones who are the most vociferous and adamant? More often than not, they are, in reality, the ones that are filled with unfounded doubts and are easily influenced.

Why are you homeschooling? It is important for you to examine your true motives, because the foundations will determine whether you will be building your home-school with a "house of cards" or on "solid-rock." 

Read some good books, not only about how awful public schooling is, but also about how wonderful true learning can be, and even what true learning is. Take some notes, talk to some people, read some testimonies, make some friends; pray, pray, pray. It is likely that you will come out of such a time of soul-searching stronger than ever before, and you will be able to look past the voices that were once a torment and be able to show unconditional love to those people in spite of themselves! 

4. Get a handle on the small and disorganized things in your life. Are the children unruly?--take some time and energy to get them back into line. Is the current condition of your house in disarray--roll up your shirt-sleeves and get your house in order and then learn how to make it run more smoothly. Get the social media in your home under control, have some sort of routine in place, and become self-disciplined. You know, order adds to our lives, it doesn't detract. Good habits benefit us, but bad habits will enslave us. 

Just imagine how wonderful it would be to not have to waste hours searching for a pair of scissors, a pen, or a hammer when you are hanging a picture. It would be so great to know ahead of schedule what you are having for supper, or that your children will be wearing clean clothes. All of these things take planning and diligence, but having a place for everything and everything in its place will pay you back in dividends! 

5. Learn to take things one-day-at-a-time. In some ways, the choice to public school ones children can give a parent a lot of security; there is an expected course with an expected end, hopefully a college education and as a result a successful life (provided you agree with and are willing to submit your children to their agenda, curriculum, amoral approach and resulting statistical record of failure). 

We are not all the same!

But we human beings have a way of thwarting "the best laid plans." Try as we might, we simply can not squeeze every child into the same mold in the elusive hope that by so doing we will alleviate all of our problems! Students are often unwilling, or even unable, to follow the expected course. They don't always finish the reading assignment on time, or perhaps they can't grasp abstract mathematics, and sometimes may have difficulty concentrating, or get easily bored, and have behavior problems as a result. People are individuals and not machines; they are living and unique spirit-beings, and the God who is there and is in charge is not interested in factory-produced automatons.

Don't live in the future, but allow His plans to unfold before you. If you submit to His perfect will, live to please Him and teach your children to do the same, you will be amazed at how He will be able to work even the worst of things together for your good. (Romans 8:28) 

6. Tighten up, simplify, and learn to live a faithful and thankful, praise-filled life. Learn to make do with little, and God will make you worthy of much, either in this life or in the life which is to come! Money has been tight for us for most of our home-schooling experience. During our 30 years of marriage we have predominately lived from month-to-month, often having to rob Peter to pay Paul. I have had to learn to fix my own hair, give the boys haircuts, sew clothes, alter and repair second-hand clothing, make rice and beans a staple part of our diet, and drastically limit restaurant visits. Nevertheless, with this "deprivation" we have discovered the richness of a life of simplicity and thanksgiving, and the bounty of trusting a loving and merciful God who provides for all of our needs.

Above all, remember, walking in obedience to God is the best way to live a peaceful, and hope-filled life, because He holds our future and we can leave all the consequences up to Him.

When we walk with the Lord in the light of His Word,
What a glory He sheds on our way!

While we do His good will, He abides with us still,
And with all who will trust and obey.

Trust and obey, for there’s no other way
To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. 

Learning to write--homemade copywork

My little eager beaver!

My little five-year-old daughter is chomping at the bit to produce real words. She takes every opportunity to practice; she gives us papers, chalkboards, and magna-doodles filled with lines of letter-looking shapes in various sequences and asks us to "read" them for her.

Of course, most of these are unintelligible, but we do our best and try and read them aloud to her, sort of like interpreting a strange language.

But these hieroglyphics are serious business to her, and so we tend to them as being serious. They are her beginnings, and they should be encouraged.

I have seen this pattern over and over in my beginning readers. They are seeing that everyone who is grown-up (or is growing-up) is writing words, so they want to keep up!

I like to use the book Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons to tiny ones (while using the original McGuffey's primer, of course). The first 15 or so lessons in this text take a child from seeing words as blocks or blurs on a page to seeing them as sequences of sounds strung together. It also teaches them some very important reading skills--such as how to track words from left to right, and how to sound a word out slowly, then say it fast.

My children tend to lose interest if I go past the first part of the book--this is when the McGuffey's works can be used to their best benefit.

Along with initial reading and decoding, I like to take a small child's enthusiasm for writing and run with it. Of course, it is very important not to discourage all of the free-writing they do; even if they do not keep within lines or even make all the letters backwards! A blank page is the best canvas for their first artistic attempts at written language.

But there is a place for more structured study of letters. This is where their first copybooks come into play. I like to order mine from Sam's Club--the Roaring Spring brand that are lined for beginners (at this writing they were $1.16 a piece, shipping included!).

While skipping around the Net on different homeschooling blogs I stumbled across a method of creating copy pages for very young ones that I thought to be so simple, yet so ingenious! It involves the use of highlighters. I have since improved on the original idea and come up with a method that keeps my children on track. I use different colors for the "boundaries" of the pages--such as the space between lines, etc. I then use a different-colored highlighter for the letters and words themselves. I also put a dot with a regular pen at the point which a child should begin a letter (my children have all had a tendency to begin their letters at the bottom, instead of the top). A picture example follows:

I skipped a line on the 2nd page because of the scribbles of the 2-year-old trying to help! 

These pages take only a few short minutes to create, and yet I believe just the fact that I have done them myself makes them more valuable to my tiny one. There is a sort of emotional connection that happens with things done by hand, and small children need this--after all, they are just coming out from under our hearts into the wide world.

Finding McGuffey on Our Homeschool Journey—guest post

Today's post is written by a guest and "McGuffey veteran": 

In 2006 when my daughter Natalie was finishing up her Traditional Textbook kindergarten curriculum I began to look for other cheaper options for homeschooling. That year we combined a textbook phonics, language arts and math with the Five in  a Row book I found second hand. I just LOVED the literary education Natalie was getting. We had a blast reading great books, looking places up on our map, and doing crafts things to go along with it. Basically that year we did the workbooks, memorized some scripture and read! I look back fondly on that school year. The following year I looked into other high end curricula that followed the same literary bent. Since I couldn't afford that curriculum I began researching cheaper options. That's when I came across McGuffey's while researching Charlotte Mason. 

I loved the simple appeal of the books. Cute, moral stories with sweet pictures that weren't offensive to the intellect nor unappealing to the eye. That year we read them for fun! We ditched the textbook readers and just did McGuffey's with another workbook for phonics. I had discovered copy work by then so we alternated between a sentence or so of a McGuffey's lesson and the bible memory verses we were using. I did not know much about copy work at the time so I would pick a selection and write it out on paper making a space between lines for Natalie to copy underneath. I didn't pick out grammar or spelling nor did I do dictation. I just selected wonderful quotes, wrote them out and she copied.

A few years later when Natalie was in 2nd grade my son Logan began to use McGuffey much in the same way. We read them aloud, we read them silently, we read them for fun. We just enjoyed McGuffey! My son especially enjoyed the stories and often read them for fun.

This last school year a friend sent me a copy of Beechicks Parents Guide to the readers. I had read Beechick before and LOVED her ideas. Not being a teacher myself I had a hard time implementing them but for some reason this year it all clicked! So I began using McGuffey's again with my second son Benjamin. I'm still using other phonics and language arts programs at the moment but the more I get into McGuffey's with the help of Beechick, the more I understand how the Eclectic series really can replace your phonics, spelling, grammar and writing programs.

Usually what I do is sit down with my "student" and listen to them read or narrate what they have read. Natalie, age 9,  would be narrating at this point from the second reader. Logan (8) and Benjamin (5 and an early reader) reading aloud from the first and primer readers. As I sit down and before they begin reading I quickly glance at my Parent guide and discuss anything she mentions or that I see needs mentioning. Things like phonics rules, vocabulary or new punctuation. I write those things on the white board and we make a word list (either for new phonics rules or for vocabulary) to write in our notebooks later. I listen to the lesson or narration and then we discuss the moral or idea in the lesson. Then I will assign the white board work to be copied in their notebooks and will assign another task to go deeper for them.

For example lesson XI in the first reader is about boys flying a kite. Beechick suggests the word "rude" for vocabulary. I might point out the word rude and write it on the white board as we are reading. The end of the lesson McGuffey's draws your attention to "bad words" and how God doesn't want us to use "bad words". Then I might talk a little bit about words that aren't acceptable to use and why (also a Beechick suggestion). Then I might find a scripture that goes nicely (Romans 5:8 or one about the tongue) and we might write that on the board for copying. The assignment for the day would be looking up the word "rude" in the dictionary and copying the definition, then copying the Bible verse we found. Sometimes I will have Logan narrate to me his lesson and I would write it down for him. Then tomorrow we might orally test the vocabulary word, dictate the memory verse and then have Logan copy his own narration in his notebook. And maybe on the third day we might correct the dictation and rewrite it if need be. This way we only do one or two lessons a week leaving more time for leisure reading for fun, except Ben who needs daily instruction in reading as he is just in the decoding stage. Natalie's instruction might include some more intense writing and revision. Ben's might just include phonics and some copy work. Occasionally Beechick suggests some further study in a topic and I will include by utilizing the Internet.

McGuffey's readers are such a great resource. I cant imagine why they took them out of the schools. Except maybe that they take a wee bit more time to use then say a ready to go workbook. We like them and find them a very useful and frugal addition to our school.

About the author:

Vicki is Mother of 6, Wifey to 1, Daughter of the King, keeper of the Home, and all around frugalista! (not in that order). You really should pop over to her blog, 

Joy Homeliving, and read more!