I'm wondering what the reaction is to the following proposition and why. Proposition: It is possible to teach all the grammar a child needs by only teaching them Latin grammar. Agree? Disagree? Why?

In addition to all of the differences mentioned above, copywork typically takes the content of the model greatly into consideration. In other words, we copy only the best because they are serving as a model of excellent structure and beauty all at the same time.

We've used it for 3 kids so far and plan on using it for the younger two. The text hasn't seemed to bother them.

I would encourage you to go ahead and correct the mistakes especially since it is so short. Then have him make a "golden copy" - something he can be proud of. I think he did real well. Very nice narration.

I have only used his overview material, i.e. the material that is not aimed at a particular book but one that teaches a person how to approach any piece of literature. I think his material some of the best I've seen because it will train the teacher to think independently of others to evaluate the literature *on its own terms*. It doesn't tell you what to think. Based on my experience with his basic material I would heartily encourage you to go ahead and purchase the Treasure Island material.

The best way to get rid of or control twaddle, in the long run, is to get rid of it in our own lives. Generally, what we love they will too. Please don't think that I'm saying that you, HopeistheWord, watch or use twaddle. Not at all; I'm just laying down what I think is a sound principle that generally works in the long run. This principle works for everything we do in education. If I want my children to love Homer's *Iliad* then I should too. If I don't, then I should take advantage of that too: tell that I don't love the *Iliad* but ought to. if I want my child to be patient as they do their copy work then, by all means, do copy work with the child and show them how much you enjoy it. And if we don't then we know where our growth needs to happen! Also, what might be more important than the existence of twaddle in our homes is the manner in which we treat or discuss it when it shows up in our presence. I hope my considerations are helpful. It's been helpful to think about this topic.

You've asked an excellent question and thanks for putting your plans so transparently on the table. If you wouldn't mind, though, could you briefly specify your objectives for writing? In my mind, the only way to know whether something is overkill is to measure the approach against the goal. I'll look forward to hearing from you.

We require everything to be written in cursive starting in 3rd grade. This is the expectation, mind you, not necessarily what the child always does or enjoys. It takes couple of years for them to really feel comfortable doing this and I'm ok with that. If they forget to write in cursive or don't form their letters to the best of their ability then recopying is required. The reason I do this, however, is more important than the cursive writing itself as it serves as my motivation to set these somewhat high standards. Besides the many practical benefits already mentioned in previous posts I believe that cursive it simply more beautiful, even when the letters aren't formed that well. Cursive, by its very nature, is more artful and appealing. I do a lot of copy work and progymnasmata exercises along with my children and students and I find that I think differently when I write cursive versus printing. I take more pleasure in making it beautiful so I enjoy thinking about what I'm writing even more. This may sound sentimental (and it probably is) but, well, it helps me write better. I'm also more apt to make my cursive look better than my printing because, with work, the result will be more artful and appealing. I want my children to also be captivated by cursive's beauty. Beauty is one of the reasons that I'm educating my children.

I love irony. Especially when it applies to me. I said in my first post, "The grammatical structures of these older writers is better and more complex than contemporary versions..." Well, my grammatical structure is certainly lacking in this sentence. The verb should be plural, i.e. "are". Cheers!

You are welcome, Mountain Mama! By the way, Wikipedia does a good job with Aesop's fables. One can go there and simply type in the name of the fable and get several versions.

I just found a small document that includes a supply list and a list of student "roles" for the human computer. I made the summary from the professor's description of the human computer. I'd be glad to also make this available to anyone who wants it.

The "Alice" program mentioned above looks very interesting. In my day there was nothing of the sort. Has anyone out there used Alice extensively?

Hello. I'm a homeschool dad and a teacher at a classical academy. But I also have a degree in computer science and so I've given a lot of thought in this realm of education and computers. I too was consumed with the desire to program computers at an age similar to your son. Last year I gave a somewhat elaborate speech on the nature of computers and how they work. It was entitled "Can computers think?". In the talk I constructed what I called a "Human Computer" using paper, cardboard, and a table. It was highly interactive and helped the students really understand a computer from the inside out because they get to "act out" a computer. Each student is assigned to be a different internal component of the machine. But, rather than trying to explain it all I've included a link to the professor from whom I originally got the idea. His web page, by the way, is fantastic and he has lots of thought provoking essays about the education of children and computer/tv media. Here's the link: http://www.ime.usp.br/~vwsetzer/paper-comp.html I tried to attach a copy of my speech that accompanied the Human Computer but, alas, it was too big. The speech would help your student think through some critical worldview and philosophical questions regarding computers. If anyone is interested in this just email me. In it, I give some instructions for different levels of students at the beginning, hence the notes at the top of the document. The talk was well received. Junior high and older students enjoyed it the most. To answer your general question, though, I would recommend your son first learning the BASIC computer language. It is available for just about any machine and operating system (Windows, mac, etc.) BASIC has constructs in it that will allow them to play around with video components and graphics and it is easy to (Basic!) to learn. There are also a lot of readily available books on the language. If your son is a self-starter at all he shouldn't have any difficult getting going. Let me know if I can be of any more assistance.

Hello. The sample that you quoted was from the Jacobs' 1894 translation of Aesop's fable "The Lion and the Shepherd". In my opinion the Jacobs' translation is going to be generally superior to most modern versions. But my judgment is formed , perhaps, from a differing set of objectives. This version is more difficult than many modern translations but I have found that students, over the long haul (6 months or so) get used to the language difference provided that the teacher helps the students wrestle through the language. The grammatical structures of these older writers is better and more complex than contemporary versions and they tend to communicate sentiment better. But, it will take work to unravel some sentences and their meaning; but that's what education is all about. It is a golden opportunity to help the students wrestle through something difficult. And if a student truly is struggling too much with a particular text then it may be that he isn't ready for that level of instruction. That's one of the things I love about homeschooling - I don't have to feel shackled to my student being in a "certain grade". One other very important thing. I have found that an oral retelling of a tale before they read any text helps. Having the student follow that with their own oral retelling helps even more.

8 years old is still quite young. It seems to me, from listening to your descriptions of her, that she's doing the sort of things that normal, well adjusted kids do: play acting, telling stories, etc. Her world is oral, make-believe, and imaginative. In those regards, all sounds well. So, my opinion is, don't sweat it too much. Keep filling her tank with lots of poetry, oral recitations, stories, fairy tales, and the like. Keep giving her as much writing as you can and, over the years, keep ratcheting it up. When you do assign her writing I would suggest a lot of copy work at first as it forces attention to detail which can be learned at these early ages but is harder later on. The mechanics of writing can, however, be learned in later years. When you're ready to ratchet beyond copy work give her something that cuts with her imaginative grain like fables and rewriting fairy stories and myths; and have her orally retell them all before she begins writing. Orally retelling is very important and often neglected (and that will fit right in with her bent). Keep going, don't give up, and be satisfied with little positive steps! I hope all goes well for you.