This will be my 15th year of hs'ing, and I'm down to sons #3 and 4 (#1 is off to college soon and #2 will be doing grade 12 at a Christian school as the oldest did.) What to do with all the flotsam and jetsam of years of hs'ing four boys? No need to keep various consumable workbooks (spelling, vocab, etc) but what about all those binders full of their early writing efforts and later essays? (I do have some on computer, once they began to type, but far from all.) How about the assorted computer downloads and print-outs we used to enhance our book studies? What about the pages and pages of looseleaf with all their answers to math or science questions? What about the endless array of full to bursting index card boxes we used for vocab cards in various subject areas? Should I just toss all of this, in the realization that they will likely never look over this material again (if they ever did)? Just knowing that all of this mass of STUFF is lurking behind closed cupboard doors , in drawers, and in bins and binders is enough to drive me around the bend!

It's been too long since I read the CT to recall which ones would be appropriate and enjoyable for a high school British Lit survey course. If you had time to cover only 2 or 3, which would you pick? And any favourite translation/ version (it would be too challenging to ask the students to work through the original Middle English in the amount of time we will have.) Thanks.

I loved the A&E Pride and Prejudice, although maybe that's not the one you're referring to. Perhaps you're referring to the one with Keira Knightley? I much prefer the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice to the one with Keira Knightley. >>>Yes, that's the one I meant! 9Did not much care for the Keira Knightly version.) It's too long to show to my class, though : ) So should I show the old Greer Garson version? (Part of the idea behind our watching some film versions of the novels studied is too compare them with the original texts.) Just a few of my thoughts! I'm not sure if there's a film version of The Canterbury Tales, but I'd be interested to see if such a thing exists! >>>Haven't come across one, except for something called A Canterbury Tale which is some sort of modern-day murder mystery (I htink) with a bit of a Canterbury Tales reference. I do plan to get the Bagb performance of Beowulf--sounds great. With my older sons, we listened to Seamus Heaney reading his translation, but I'd love to hear the original Old English. Good luck, Stacey, and it's good to see you back!

Do you mean Kenneth Branagh? I haven't seen that one, which is supposedly the only film adaptation to cover the entire text of the play (long!). I do vaguely recall an Olivier Hamlet--is that one well regarded ?

Years ago, I used to watch lots of old b/w movies on TV Ontario. Never get around to that anymore!

I will be teaching a British Lit survey course this coming year, and would like to include some film adaptations of some of the novels. Please let me know what your favourite film versions are of the following novels (and why!) --Hamlet --Pride and Prejudice (I love the BBC mini-series form some years back, as well as the older film with Greer Garson; not as crazy about the latest version) --Frankenstein --Great Expectations Any film versions of the Canterbury Tales? Are there any decent adaptations of Beowulf? I've heard less than stellar reviews of the two films I know of. However, I did come across a bardic performance in Old English by Benjamin Bagby that sounds wonderful. Thanks.

Maybe I should try that approach. I love words too--love finding out about etymologies and origins. My kids think I'm nuts : )

I can't decide what, if anything, to use for spelling. My oldest son, now 19, never had a formal spelling lesson--he could look at a word and just remember it. The next two used Spelling Workout for a few years, then seemed able, again, to spell most anything. For all three of those sons, we movedon to vocabulary work (mostly Vocab for the High School Student/ for the College-Bound Student). Now I'm down to son #4. And I'm stumped! He will be going into grade 5 and although he reads quite a bit and even writes his own stories, he still makes many spelling errors. He used SW for a year or two and did fine with it, but did not much care for the format. Then I switched briefly to Spelling Power (which I had used for a bit with the older boys) and I recalled why I hadn't much cared for it--the randomness of the word lists (not much different from SW) along with lack of actual instruction about basic spelling rules/ generalities. I tried Natural Speller, which uses graded lists, as well, with somewhat the same problems--he would learn how to spell the words, but did not necessarily extend the "rules" learned to other similarly spelled words. I'm stumped. What I want is a spelling program which teaches the basic rules (eg, that the "shun" sound at the end of words is usually spelled "tion", etc), but which uses lists which don't seem so utterly random--and which does not include a lot of "busywork" exercises. I looked online at Rod and Staff's Spelling by Sound and Structure, but I'm still not sure if that's any different or better. Anyone have a favourite spelling program? Do we really need a "graded" one? Any advice?

This would be for a mixed group of kids, grades 4-7 . I had been thinking of doing the sandbox-marked-off-in-grids approach, but was thinking that could be problematic if the weather does not co-operate (and since we no longer use our sandbox, what would I do with all the sand afterwards?) Perhaps using separate cardboard boxes, as suggested, would be a better idea, and we could do it in the garage in case of bad weather; guess I would just have to dump the sand later. Thanks for the ideas of what to bury as well. I had been thinking of reading them Motel of the Mysteries (did that with my last group a few years ago),and then having them write up descriptions of the "artifacts" they found in that style (ie, totally missing the point!) Not sure yet if well do that or stick with a "realistic" interpretation. One more question: What's the best medium to use--sand, dirt (too dirty?) , or perhaps even that clumping cat litter (once it's wet)--or would that end up being too rock hard to use?

Has anyone done a pseudo-archaeology dig with your students while studying ancient history ? I'll be teaching a co-op class this coming year and would love to fit in something like this at the beginning, but I really do not want to do anything too complicated or too messy! Any suggestions? Thanks.

Thanks, Michelle; and thanks to everyone for the replies. I always tend to "overthink" these issues, but it's helpful to know what options are available.

Thanks--I was just wondering what the difference is between the larger volumes of British Lit (I and II) and the individual study units. Do the larger volumes cover all the same novels/ texts as the individual units, but in less depth?

...wiht both the original text and a modern translation (facing pages)?

There appear to be two volumes on British Literature (I and II), but each one then has links to other studies on individual works (Beowulf, Macbeth, etc). So what is in the actual Br Lit volumes? Do you need those as well as the individual studies to cover any of the given texts? Or do you purchase one or the other?

Thank you again--very helpful thoughts. I like your thematic approach to these works across time. Could I ask how old your son was when you covered all this? I recall reading The Pillars many years ago, but can't imagine handing that to my grade 10 son (lots of graphic, explicit scenes, if I recall correctly). I've been mulling over just where to start with British Lit, and am tempted to go back to Beowulf again. Here's what I'm tentatively thinking: --Beowulf --a bit of Chaucer (And some info about the development of the English language; when we did LL form LOTR, we took a class to watch an excerpt from The Story of English on British dialects. Sadly, our library no longer has these tapes. Wonder if I could find them on DVD?) --Shakespeare-maybe Hamlet (I like your idea of including R&G Are Dead) --not sure about Milton; I read PL in university and it was slow going even then. --some Austen--Emma? --Frankenstein (even though my oldest son detested it when he had to read it; I think it's great for study) --something by Dickens--was thinking of something not quite as challenging/ dark as Tale of Two Cities; maybe Great Expectations --possibly C. S. Lewis's Out of the Silent Planet --possibly P. D. James' The Children of Men --and some poetry sprinkled throughout the year (did you cover any of Shakespeare's sonnets?) Oh, but that still leaves out so much. Yet I have to consider the level/ abilities/ interests of the potential students too (including my son). Given this sort of list, would it be a good idea to get hold of Sonlight's Br. Lit guide for the sections on what I might cover?

Thanks for the input. I saw that you included Literary Lessons from the LOTR as only a part of your British Lit study. I taught from that curriculum a few year ago in a co-op class; I'm not sure the students could have gone through the program in less than a full academic year, given the various side units. . Is your son a voracious reader? I actually was considering trying to combine LL from LOTR in one semester (I know it is possible) with some more British Lit to round out the year, but that would involve cutting back to some extent on the side units. And frankly, I'm just not a die-hard Tolkien fan and am not really all that keen on going through LOTR again. Are you going to slot in the medieval and Renaissance lit during your LOTR study, or after? It's so hard to nail down what to cover--sigh. I wish I could compare all the curriculum guides out there, but who could afford that? : ) So many books, so little time.

I'm still trying to figure out whether or not to run a co-op class on British Lit for next year. Son #3 will be grade 10. He's a strong reader, but still not terribly analytical. So--a few questions: 1) Am I correct in thinking that LLATL Gold is meant as only a semester study? (I had previously thought it was a year-long study). Has anyone ever combined it with LLATL Gold American for a year-long study? Or would you just add a bit to LLATL Gold British for a one-year course? 2) And what about Sonlight? It seems to be very intense--we could never cover that much material in a year. But if you have used it, did you like it? How much were you able to cover? Are the notes helpful? Is the guide worth the cost? Would you recommend this program? 3) I know Hewitt offers several one -semester British Lit courses, but I'd have to buy several guides in order to pick and choose the novels/ plays to cover (I'm sure we don't want to spend an entire year, or even an entire semester, just on Shakespeare.) . I would appreciate any advice based on your experiences with different programs of study. Even with my own background in lit, I always feel overwhelmed regarding the possibilities for high school level lit courses. Of course, we could always "wing it", using SparkNotes or something--but I'd so much rather not have to track down all sorts of info myself this time around! Thanks.

Congratulations. They certainly are blessed to have someone of your vision and commitment. Hope all goes well.

When I said that the novels Heather suggested were not high school level material,I meant they are actually for a younger audience, not an older one. Meanwhile, the Canadian lit that one hears about through the media--Margaret Atwood et al--is for a more mature adult audience. Very hard to find anything in between.

...is what concerns me. I studied lit in university, including Canadian lit, and by that point I could deal with the darkness/ dreariness of most of the content. However, I was a girl very interested in language and literature; I'm now dealing with teenage boys who couldn't care less. I know that these sorts of novels exploring the female psyche, or the immigrant experience, or the ethnic immigrant black female psyche, or whatever, just will not crab their interest, and once again I will be faced with reactions of "booooring!" Of course, they could well find many "classics" boring too, but I think they have a better chance of relating to, say, Great Expectations in British lit, or Huckleberry Finn, or even Moby Dick, in American lit.

Thanks.... Could you tell me where you have purchased these texts? Do you buy directly from Houghton Mifflin, or find them used somewhere? I do have AMOAD, but I can't recall where I bought it.

The books Heather suggested (except the Moodie sisters) really are not high school level material--but much of Canadian lit which is used in high school classes is indeed grim, cynical, dark. That isn't to say grim, cynical, and dark books should never be read--after all Fahrenheit 451 and 1984 or staples on high school reading lists too. But it's the all too often sexually graphic language or scenes in these Canadian novels which troubles me as material for high school kids. They really are adult novels and most high school students are not yet at that stage when they can read such material in the right light. And--dare I confess it--I find too much Canadian fiction just plain dull : )

Hi Michele, So you would just start in with the questions, and wait till the students had finished the book to do most of the chart? From what I recall of the TTC seminar, all the story chart examples were done for short stories, not for novels, so I'm not sure what the procedure is "supposed" to be for longer works. Could I ask what material you covered using TTC?

Thanks for the thoughts. As you might notice from that list of 100, very few are actually fiction/ novels. Proud as I am to be a Canadian, I have to confess that I really do not like most Canadian lit. It really only "came of age" in the mid-20th C, and mostly in the secular/ feminist/ hetero- and homo-sexually graphic/ dark and despairing mode typical of modernist lit. Fifth Business by Davies might be a read, from what I recall; but I would have to reread in order to ensure that it's appropriate for teens. Atwood is often offered as "independent study" in grade 12, but popular as she is, I find that her books tend to be page-turners without anything much worthwhile on the next page : ) Black Robe by Moore (not sure if that was on the list) is a deeply moving story--we watched the film version last year as part of Canadian history, with two scenes quickly cut--but the novel,which I also read, contains highly graphic language --for valid reasons, but still not, I think, appropriate for teens. I was thinking of possibly including The Life of Pi, which I taught in a freshman university course a few years ago--postmodern and strangely compelling. But again, if I teach this as a course with other hs'ers involved, I would have to be *very* careful re my selections. Hence my preference to focus on "the classics"--not that they are all upbeat and cheery, but I think they are more "foundational" to subsequent lit, whether Canadian or other. Further, my plans are to cover lit for grades 10 and 11 (the next two years) with son #3; but then most likely he will head to school for grade 12, where there might be the option of covering some Canadian lit. We don't have much time left at home, and I do want to ensure that my son has read at least a few of the "greats", even if they are specifically British and American.

This is probably a silly question with a very obvious answer, but here goes anyhow: when using TTC with literature longer than a short story--ie, a novel, or even a play--which takes longer than a week to read, do you wait to fill in the "story chart" until your student has finished the entire text, or do you fill it in bit by bit? In other words, if you assign a novel and want to spend two (or more) class periods/ discussion times on it, and your student is only partway through the novel for the first class/ discussion, do you start filling in the story chart, or do you wait , and instead just begin using some of the socratic questions? It seems to me that the process works best when the story chart is filled in first, and then you start in on the specific questions...but that really only works well for a short story. If the student is reading a lengthy novel, do you begin discussing it before the student has finished the entire novel, or do you defer discussion time until the entire book has been read--so that you can fill in the chart completely before questions/ discussion? Just wondering how others have handled this!