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Teaching the Classics - DVD's necessary?


Sunkirst
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:lurk5: I thought the RR descrition suggested you didn't, but that was for the worldview supplement dvd. I think?

 

Here's what RR says

 

"At times the lectures follow the workbook text almost word for word which, of course, prompts the question of whether you actually need to make the expensive purchase of the videos. Although the author says emphatically that both are important, I think almost anyone would benefit from picking up and using the workbook by itself. Nevertheless, the lectures repeatedly show you how to apply the workbook-described elements to literature. It’s a classic case of the advantages of multi-sensory learning along with the value of application and examples."

Edited by Blessedfamily
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You can go to centerforlit. com and go to the audiofiles section. There are two freebies there. Listen to those and they really give you a feel for the method. I also bought two of the $5 lectures and found them very helpful. I don't think I would have had the full flavor of the method w/ just the syllabus. That got me started. Then when a good used version came up for sale, I jumped on it. :001_smile: But I think listening to those freebies and the one or two $5 lectures would have been enough.

 

Capt_Uhura

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You can go to centerforlit. com and go to the audiofiles section. There are two freebies there. Listen to those and they really give you a feel for the method. I also bought two of the $5 lectures and found them very helpful. I don't think I would have had the full flavor of the method w/ just the syllabus. That got me started. Then when a good used version came up for sale, I jumped on it. But I think listening to those freebies and the one or two $5 lectures would have been enough.

 

Thanks Capt. This is a logical suggestion (sometimes I forget to think logically!)

 

Buying just the book is an affordable mid-year purchase - and since I'm more of a reader than a watcher, it's likely to give me what I need (I liked the syllabus sample). If it just doesn't work, then proceed to plan B (DVDs).

 

Thanks!

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THe ones I found helpful were "Literary Analysis from Seuss to Socrates" and "Asking the Right Questions" and "Henry Wadsworth Longfellow" and "Education, Freedom" - his reading of A Bargain for Francis was worth the $3 I paid.

 

I don't know what flavor of religion if any your follow but his is definitely a Christian viewpoint. I'm not Christian or religious for that matter but I'm always open to other viewpoints. One of the above started off with a lot of religious discussion but I was very happy I listened to the whole thing when he started the literary discussion.

 

Capt_Uhura

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Thanks Capt. This is a logical suggestion (sometimes I forget to think logically!)

 

Buying just the book is an affordable mid-year purchase - and since I'm more of a reader than a watcher, it's likely to give me what I need (I liked the syllabus sample). If it just doesn't work, then proceed to plan B (DVDs).

 

Thanks!

 

I'm glad you asked the question. Post back with an update of how it works out for you.

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I bought the DVDs and for me it was worth the cost. I've never been strong with lit analysis and having the DVDs helped me immensely. The syllabus alone would have simply confused me.

 

:iagree:

 

I watched the DVDs with a small group of hs moms several years ago. I still would love to get a copy of the DVDs for myself.

 

Otoh, many of the hs moms here have a natural talent for teaching in this manner, asking the "right" questions, and being well versed in lit analysis in general. They would not find this curriculum helpful, it would be basic for them.

 

However, I'm not one of those people. I am thankful for the syllabus, but I'd have been completely lost without the DVDs.

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HI, I wanted to report back after watching the DVDs of Teaching the Classics this Thanksgiving break. I definitely wouldn't get out of it what I have w/out watching the DVDS ...without a doubt. Now I'm sure there are many who would do just fine w/out watching the DVDs but for me, the DVDs are a must and I'm so happy I got them. I did check the boards everyday for about 6months for a used copy and finally got lucky. For example, there are several books discussed in the syllabus including questions specific to each of these stories. The answers and discussion of those questions are NOT in the syllabus. Now some of these are easy such as "Does the author use the words "like" or "as" in making comparisons between two or more dissimilar things?" Others such as the parallel between the family in Rikki-Tikki-Tavi moving from England to India and England taking over India and Rikki taking over the garden .... illustrating the importance of why the author chose that particular setting to tell this story.....I wouldn't have come up with that on my own. That is not in the syllabus. The question asked is "In what country or region does the story happen? how does this location contribute to the mood or atmosphere of the story?" and "Does the story happen in a particular year, era, or age of the world?" It's those more logic/rhetoric stage questions where I think watching the DVDs will really help me.

 

 

HTH,

Capt_Uhura

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Capt, thanks so much for taking the time to post back with this review. It's really making me think about my learning style, and how I want to spend my $.

Of course, my plans for literature study are totally last minute (we're doing AG, and after Christmas, ds will be done with grammar for the year. I want to make certain to have something to fill this void - too bad I didn't start thinking a bit sooner!)

 

I love to read, but I have never done much analysis. In fact, I'm rather clueless about double meanings and such. For me, the cigar is generally just a cigar... I would never think of the parallel described about Rikki-Tikki-Tavi. Probably the DVD's would be useful (and it sounds like the resale value would be high).

 

One more question; what source (if any) are you using to find out biographical information about authors you are studying?

 

Thanks again!

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Momma2Many,

 

I'm not certain on the recommended ages, although picture books are used as examples (because they are briefer and easier to explain, I'm sure).

Another resource for doing Socratic method for literature analysis called "Suppose the Wolf were an Octopus", can be used for kindergarten kids.

 

I'm guessing that one could start asking questions about read-aloud books at any age. I think I read that Teaching the Classics has graded the list of questions that it provides, so that you would know what to expect. I know that up until logic stage, we have just talked about books very informally.

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Another source for Socratic discussion is Reading Strands by the folks that publish Writing Strands. I own it and had read it but never put it to much use. Of course now having watched the Teaching the Classics DVDs, the Reading Strands will be much more of use. I don't have it in front of me right now but I think it's very similar to Teaching the Classics.

 

Teaching the Classics (Ttc) I think is from grammar stage through adult. In fact, I do recall he mentioned grammar, logic, and rhetoric stages and that even for high school kids, he starts with picture books. His reading of A Bargain for Francis is great and I've listened to it several times. :lol:

 

I haven't gotten as far as biographical information. I think he addresses this and mentions some sources. My first stop would probably be google/wikipedia.

 

I had a TtC-style discussion with my 6yr old after we read a Fox and Friends story. He quickly picked up on the fact that there were several conflicts and depending on which one we were talking about, the rising action and climax differed. I've also used these discussions to talk to my 9yr old about stories he is writing.

 

I'm starting with the literature guides that Adam Andrews has for sale on his site. We'll do The Story of Ferdinand, Cricket in Times Squares (we loved that book and it's time for me to read it w/ my 1st grader) and the other elementary book he has. That way I know it'll get done and it help me in developing my own.

 

Capt_Uhura

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  • 2 weeks later...

So, how do you actually use TTC as far as teaching? Do you use the list of questions with a book they have read in lieu of a literature study guide? I guess you would have to have read the book then also, correct? What age does this work best with?

 

I've never done any type of Socratic discussion before, but I am interested in learning about it.

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OH yes, Adam Andrews says you can't really discuss a book w/out having read it yourself! I am starting by doing the picture books from the downloads (A Bargain for Francis) and from the DVD (Rikki Tikki Tavi, Peter Rabbit) and move up from there. Also, on his website, there is a free pdf of a list of 4-5 books that he thinks are good for addressing each literary device (setting, theme, etc). We'll then move on to those. Now that I've internalized his method, however, I find myself doing it w/ anything we read. DS9 even applied it to a TV show. Bravewriter does a similar analysis of movies actually, now that I think about it. The picture books are easy b/c they are short. You do the chart together and then move DC to doing the chart on their own. AT the end of the syllabus, is a general guideline for using the program.

 

ONce I move beyond the books he's done in the DVD etc, I will pick a book, read it, then write down which questions I want to use for that book and my answer writing down examples from the book to support my answer. After DS reads the book, we'll work on the story chart and the questions. I'll move him to reading a book and doing his own chart and then us going over it together. Evenutally, I'll have him write a paragraph about some aspect of the book.

 

Capt_Uhura

Edited by Capt_Uhura
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