19, never went to school....

[talesofhoffman]

My parents never sent me to school and kind of had an obscure "home-school" approach. There was never any set plan, grading system, etc. I remember learning the basics (how to read, how to write, addition, subtraction, multiplication, a little division) but there was never any assignments or schedule of any kind except for a short year with taekwondo class and the occasional piano teacher for about three years.

They were extremely busy with construction and I even helped them on their job-sites as they couldn't afford a baby sitter. For the most part, it was a loose leash. 

So now, I'm nineteen, and feel like I might be missing something. I don't know how government works, have very little knowledge of history (among many other subjects), and I'm dying to learn. 

Any advice or suggestions pertaining to online communities for helping my....ahem....communication skills? 

As for my life's ambitions, I want to be an artist. So a GED isn't really in my line of concern for now, as I've always been able to find someone willing to pay for my skills (no, not "tip jar performance" skills!!! ). 

I guess what I'm saying is, what's really ESSENTIAL to know? So that I don't come across as a complete fool in social situations?

[maize]

Good question!

 

Do you live near a good library? For most content subjects such as history, government, or science, the library would be a great place to start. Books like (...) for Dummies can give you a good basic overview. The Dictionary of Cultural Literacy is another good resource.

 

If you want to brush up on math skills, you could try something like Lial's Basic College Math, or maybe Khan Academy online.

 

I'm hoping some of those with more experience will step in and suggest writing and communication resources.

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

There is a great series "What Your ______________ Needs to Know." I'd skim through those for starters. There's also by the same author (I think) a book called Cultural Literacy, which should fill those gaps, including government knowledge.

[Jean in Newcastle]

For history I would get Susan Wise Bauer's books "History of the Ancient History" and "History of the Medieval History".  She hasn't come out with the next book in the series but I bet someone would have a good suggestion for an overview of more recent history.

 

 You come off as someone with a very good grasp of the basics of how to organize and present your thoughts in writing and I'm going to assume that would be the same in speaking.  It is ok to tell someone that you haven't heard of a certain book or artist or event and ask for information - or just google for information on it.  I do that all the time.  

[PollyOR]

Also, check your library for Teaching Company courses.  

[talesofhoffman]

Thank you, everyone, for the clear, concise replies!!! This is more than I need. Again, thanks a million!

[PeterPan]

Hi Hoffman, did they formally graduate you and give you a diploma?  Write a transcript?  If they did not, then I suggest you take this next year of self-study and  develop it into a transcript.  Many people in the arts end up wishing they had a BUSINESS degree.  You never know when you'll find yourself wishing you had that diploma or a GED a few years from now.  

 

I would hope that some of the things you did as life skills could transform into credits for your transcript and that with say a year of solid work you could be done and graduate yourself.  Things you should have that you may  not have:

 

-US history course--Do you prefer to read or watch videos?  

-government-again, any text would do

-english composition--roll your desire to work on speech skills into this

-math--work diligently for an hour a day and see how much you can get done.  Yes, the textbooks by Lial would be fabulous for this.  They're very affordable used on amazon.

-science--Google the Georgia PBS courses.  They have chemistry and physics available for free.  Watch them, work along on the provided pdf worksheets.  Free, done.

 

That's one path forward.  Two would be to use your community college.  Sometimes a GED will be discriminated against.  No matter what, make a path toward getting yourself a diploma or equivalent and the ability to go to college or a professional or technical school at some point.  MANY people realize later they need to go to college.  People in the arts often end up wanting a business degree to handle the business side of their art.  My uncle even ended up going back to engineering school when he was in his 40s, something NO ONE would have expected when he was 20.  So either do some work and make a diploma to graduate yourself or find another path forward so you have your options all through life.  There's no reason to do this study now and NOT turn it into a transcript.  Absolutely you can type it up yourself.  Think through what you did while helping your parents and give yourself credit for it.  It will take a bit of creativity on your part, but you can do it.  :) 

 

 

[Rosie_0801]

I think the best place to find more recent history is books written by foreign correspondents.

[MomatHWTK]

Try some of these:

 

https://www.coursera.org/course/thinkagain

https://www.coursera.org/course/lead-ei

https://www.coursera.org/course/publicspeak

https://www.coursera.org/course/composition

https://class.coursera.org/lyingcamera-001/class

https://www.coursera.org/course/conlaw

https://www.coursera.org/course/ancientgreeks

https://www.coursera.org/course/ecfoodandyou

https://www.coursera.org/course/introbiology

https://www.coursera.org/course/ucimicroeconomics

https://www.coursera.org/course/amnhearth

 

:)

[talesofhoffman]

Hi Hoffman, did they formally graduate you and give you a diploma?  Write a transcript?  If they did not, then I suggest you take this next year of self-study and  develop it into a transcript.  Many people in the arts end up wishing they had a BUSINESS degree.  You never know when you'll find yourself wishing you had that diploma or a GED a few years from now.  

 

I would hope that some of the things you did as life skills could transform into credits for your transcript and that with say a year of solid work you could be done and graduate yourself.  Things you should have that you may  not have:

 

-US history course--Do you prefer to read or watch videos?  

-government-again, any text would do

-english composition--roll your desire to work on speech skills into this

-math--work diligently for an hour a day and see how much you can get done.  Yes, the textbooks by Lial would be fabulous for this.  They're very affordable used on amazon.

-science--Google the Georgia PBS courses.  They have chemistry and physics available for free.  Watch them, work along on the provided pdf worksheets.  Free, done.

 

That's one path forward.  Two would be to use your community college.  Sometimes a GED will be discriminated against.  No matter what, make a path toward getting yourself a diploma or equivalent and the ability to go to college or a professional or technical school at some point.  MANY people realize later they need to go to college.  People in the arts often end up wanting a business degree to handle the business side of their art.  My uncle even ended up going back to engineering school when he was in his 40s, something NO ONE would have expected when he was 20.  So either do some work and make a diploma to graduate yourself or find another path forward so you have your options all through life.  There's no reason to do this study now and NOT turn it into a transcript.  Absolutely you can type it up yourself.  Think through what you did while helping your parents and give yourself credit for it.  It will take a bit of creativity on your part, but you can do it.   :)

Well, I had never even heard of a transcript, let alone typing one's own. Would that really count? 

As for a knowledge of business, that's another thing I forgot to mention and probably one of the most important life skills for someone in the arts which often gets neglected. 

"Art" is a very broad term....to be more specific, I've sold commissioned paintings but my main goal is to become a performing songwriter. Not just a musician...good luck bringing food to the table with that (Eric Clapton may sing the songs, but JJ Cale, who writes them, gets the royalties). I'm studying arranging and composition, and for the sake of lyric writing I study poetry. It's my belief that if I am ever to have any control over my career, a knowledge of the business would be indispensable. And, well, business in general is kind of necessary for survival. 

 

I'll look up those PBS courses, and the books by Lial, as well. I do prefer reading over videos.

I found this: http://education-portal.com/academy/course/college-composition-writing-course.html

I think that's going to be a big help for me. The website covers pretty much everything else, as well...guess I'll have to shop around. Move my own legs, in other words. 

 

Thank you so much for the detailed response! It really has cleared some of the fog. Time is precious; your generosity in that bank is overwhelming.

[talesofhoffman]

Try some of these:

 

https://www.coursera.org/course/thinkagain

https://www.coursera.org/course/lead-ei

https://www.coursera.org/course/publicspeak

https://www.coursera.org/course/composition

https://www.coursera.org/course/wh1300

https://www.coursera.org/course/conlaw

https://www.coursera.org/course/ancientgreeks

https://www.coursera.org/course/ecfoodandyou

https://www.coursera.org/course/introbiology

https://www.coursera.org/course/ucimicroeconomics

https://www.coursera.org/course/amnhearth

 

:)

WOW!!! Thanks! 

[creekland]

If it helps you realize you can do it, my grandmother never went to school past 4th grade as her family needed her income from working - yet she was one of the most educated ladies I knew and this was before the internet era.  She kept up by reading newspapers in depth and even doing things like crossword puzzles (with her dictionary within reach when needed).  She'd watch Documentaries when they had them on TV.  She'd listen when "more educated" people would talk.  She took it all in and knew more about most things than anyone else I knew.

 

You have the advantage of having the internet at your fingertips and several courses or books.  You can do it as long as you keep wanting to.  It's lack of desire that tends to make folks uneducated in the US today - whether they go to school or not.  Many who attend school cram for tests, then forget they ever "learned" anything (making it not real learning IMO).

[PeterPan]

Well, I had never even heard of a transcript, let alone typing one's own. Would that really count? 

As for a knowledge of business, that's another thing I forgot to mention and probably one of the most important life skills for someone in the arts which often gets neglected. 

"Art" is a very broad term....to be more specific, I've sold commissioned paintings but my main goal is to become a performing songwriter. Not just a musician...good luck bringing food to the table with that (Eric Clapton may sing the songs, but JJ Cale, who writes them, gets the royalties). I'm studying arranging and composition, and for the sake of lyric writing I study poetry. It's my belief that if I am ever to have any control over my career, a knowledge of the business would be indispensable. And, well, business in general is kind of necessary for survival. 

 

I'll look up those PBS courses, and the books by Lial, as well. I do prefer reading over videos.

I found this: http://education-portal.com/academy/course/college-composition-writing-course.html

I think that's going to be a big help for me. The website covers pretty much everything else, as well...guess I'll have to shop around. Move my own legs, in other words. 

 

Thank you so much for the detailed response! It really has cleared some of the fog. Time is precious; your generosity in that bank is overwhelming.

Well good!  Yes, I used to evaluate transcripts for a university, and I guarantee you a certain number of the homeschool transcripts were the kidding typing it up and the mom signing.  ;)  

 

Given your age, I would absolutely consider doing this.  Your parents should have, but that's water under the bridge.  So what you do is google and find your state graduation requirements.  That will give you a list of what is the norm for your area.  Then you decide whether you're going to mark credits or units.  Credits=material covered (1 math book =1 credit).  Units=time spent.  

 

In reality, most universities are asking for *units* and assume that credits and units roughly match.  When you have a very non-standard situation, you can use units to your advantage.  If you spent 120-180 hours on the thing, mark 1 unit.  60-ish hours=1/2 unit.  

 

So take your work for your parents.  Did you keep books?  Make a rough estimate on hours (VERY rough) and give your say 1 unit of accounting.  Or maybe you learned welding and laying block?  Put down 1 unit of shop.  Maybe you spent more time and learned more skills, so Shop 2.  See what I mean.  You DID stuff, and you can turn that into a transcript.  It's totally fair, totally appropriate.  Think about what you did and find the academic side of it.  You can spell and write cogently, so clearly you did SOMETHING the last 4 years.

 

Rough way to estimate?  If you did it 5 days a week for about an hour for a school year, that was 1 unit.  If you did it a couple days a week for a year, that was a 1/2 unit.  Did you do some reading on bodybuilding?  Lots of guys get into that or first aid training or other health topics.  Sounds like a 1/2 unit of health.  Maybe you did touch football or went bowling with friends every week?  That's your PE.  Find the credits in the things you were doing, put them on paper, codify this.  Don't be intimidated and don't miss up the chance to present accurately what you did or what you're ABOUT to do.

 

Once you have that information about what you did in the past, you're going to see your holes.  I know there are going to be some holes.  Deep breath.  That's where you make a reasonable plan and fill in what you can to see if you can make a passable transcript.  A lot of the stuff we just described was "non-academic" credit.  You want to end up with 14 units of "academic" units, if at all possible.  If it's not, it's not.  See what you've got, but don't blow off things that can work.  Did you have a thing for military history or watched a lot of History Channel?  Pull those hours together and see that interest for what it was, a study of something that you can put on a transcript.  Unschoolers do this ALL THE TIME.  Did you build anything with electronics or take apart stuff or have any science-y hobbies?  That's all academic stuff you can put on your transcript.  Push the envelope a bit.  Were you crazy into science fiction at one point?  Then take the hours you already put in, read a couple books on the science of science fiction (Star Trek, Star Wars, etc.) and you've got another unit.  And dude, that can be Lit, science, whichever, meaning it's academic!  

 

Now that you see those holes (and if I haven't overwhelmed you, sorry), then start thinking about how to funnel your efforts to get those 1s on the transcript in the most efficient way possible.  I'm all for continuing education, but you want that transcript and the numbers.  

 

Chemistry & Physics - Georgia Public Broadcasting  Watch these, do the activities, and mark down 1 beside chem, 1 beside physics.

 

http://www.learner.org/resources/series173.html  This has 15 hours of videos on civics/government, and it's free.  Watch them, then read several books on gov't topics, pick 2 topics to research more on and write essays on.  Mark 1/2 on your transcript.  If this class doesn't interest you, find another.  Anneberg (the site) just happens to be free and an awesome resource, with all kinds of things you might like.  Just make sure you're picking things that work toward your goal of completing a transcript with 14 academic units.

 

Btw, the music you do, definitely put on your transcript.  Art is separate, and you want to put that also.  If you did consumer math topics (checkbook balancing, car loans, whatever), you might like to either give yourself credit for that or get a book on the topic and test through it.  That's just bonus.  Consumer math usually goes non-academic, where other math courses (algebra, etc.) would get counted as academic.  

 

There are some online (free) video courses for US history that are tremendous, but you said you prefer reading.  For that, I'd just pick a textbook, work through it, watch some movies to go with the topics, mark 1.  If you want to push yourself to write an essay each semester (or half of the book) to go with it, then, ding ding, start tallying that work toward an english credit.  Pick a few books (3-4) to go along with your history reading, take the time to look up the books on an online notes good (schmoop, pinknotes, whatever, lots of free places, or just google the title with free guide), and dig into the book to understand the themes and why it's important.  You're mature enough to do this now on your own.  Tada, your english credit.  

 

See what I'm saying?  I know it's hack, but it's not un-legitimate.  It's a combo of putting in the work and recognizing the value of what you did in a non-standard experience.  It's not like you did NOTHING the last 4 years.  Start tallying up these experiences and see what you can get.  You can make the transcript yourself.  Lee Binz has tons of info on her site about how to make a transcript, how to handle non-standard situations, etc.  See what you can do with this.  Then your mom looks at it, dates and signs it, and you have a transcript.  That's all ANY homeschool transcript is.  Definitely do it and see what you'd have and how close you'd be.  I think in the long-run you'll be glad you did.

[PeterPan]

Btw, you know what's amazing about this Coursera stuff?  You get feedback and interaction!  They even do certificates of participation if you include the work.  That's a terrific way to go.  They'll have health topics, all sorts of things.  But don't chose blindly.  Think about your last 4 years, work on making a transcript, and see if you can funnel this into a diploma with a graduation date.  You deserve it.  :)

[Julie of KY]

Read, read, read. I wouldn't plan too far ahead, but I'd keep learning based on where my current learning takes me.

[3 Only Children]

I would learn basic world Geography and to start reading the Classics - two areas where I have self-educated myself over a number of years to fill in the gaps in my own education. 

 

The song writing sounds great!  Do you have any recommendations for getting started in that interest?

[Pen]

My parents never sent me to school and kind of had an obscure "home-school" approach. There was never any set plan, grading system, etc. I remember learning the basics (how to read, how to write, addition, subtraction, multiplication, a little division) but there was never any assignments or schedule of any kind except for a short year with taekwondo class and the occasional piano teacher for about three years.

They were extremely busy with construction and I even helped them on their job-sites as they couldn't afford a baby sitter. For the most part, it was a loose leash. 

So now, I'm nineteen, and feel like I might be missing something. I don't know how government works, have very little knowledge of history (among many other subjects), and I'm dying to learn. 

Any advice or suggestions pertaining to online communities for helping my....ahem....communication skills? 

As for my life's ambitions, I want to be an artist. So a GED isn't really in my line of concern for now, as I've always been able to find someone willing to pay for my skills (no, not "tip jar performance" skills!!! ). 

I guess what I'm saying is, what's really ESSENTIAL to know? So that I don't come across as a complete fool in social situations?

 

 

Your writing and questions so far make you appear better educated than many college students I know.  

 

In addition to other things suggested:  I did not notice anyone else mention KhanAcademy a free online source of much including some science, math, art history, etc.,

and in some communities retired businessmen donate time to helping people who want to set up a business learn how.  Since art and music are businesses, that would likely fit you.   I think the group may go under the acronym CORE for something or other retired executives.

 

Oliver Stone and an historian, whose name I cannot recall, have written a good book covering recent US history (liberal perspective, but helpful to get things missed by many other sources even if you are conservative).  And Natalie Angrier's The Canon would give a bit of an overview of a bunch of basic science subjects.  Both in fairly short volumes likely available through interlibrary loan if not at a local library to you, or not too expensive via Amazon etc.   I agree with the Susan Wise Bauer books for some world history--though it is much longer volumes than the two books I have just mentioned, and agree that a sense of geography is important to seem educated.  Some literature--Shakespeare, Dickens. Tolstoy, that sort of thing--would also be useful, and could be enjoyable when you have time for it..

 

A friend of mine from childhood self-educated his way into being a microsoft programmer and outstripped those of us who were more conventional.   And any number of artists and musicians have not had standard educational backgrounds.

 

And keep in mind that learning is lifelong.   Not just 19 year olds have gaps, so do 59 year olds and 90 year olds.

 

Good luck!

[Pegasus]

. 

Any advice or suggestions pertaining to online communities for helping my....ahem....communication skills? 

 

 

You can read; you can write; you have a desire to learn.  The only other piece you need is access to information.  Between the free public library and internet, you have more information than you could take in with a lifetime of study.  Get to work!

 

.

 

I guess what I'm saying is, what's really ESSENTIAL to know? So that I don't come across as a complete fool in social situations?

 

The key to social situations is to listen; people are invariably impressed with someone who really listens to them!  Besides that, social situations rarely get beyond the weather and news unless you know someone well.  Once someone knows you well, they will be much more forgiving of specific knowledge gaps.

[talesofhoffman]

I would learn basic world Geography and to start reading the Classics - two areas where I have self-educated myself over a number of years to fill in the gaps in my own education. 

 

The song writing sounds great!  Do you have any recommendations for getting started in that interest?

 

Thanks! I've already started reading Exploring Your World: The Adventure of Geography by Margery Dunn. I recently finished Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes (that was hard), part one and two, it was a blast; as for classics, does Mark Twain count? I've been wanting to read his work, as well as To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I'm going to forage into them regardless. I'll also Google classics and shop around a bit to add a couple "literary tourist attractions" to my reading itinerary. 

 

Songwriting recommendations....for just getting started, learning some basic piano really helps. I had a teacher for a couple years, but to be completely honest, she gave me instruction booklets, made assignments, and supervised my playing to make sure I was making progress. The Alfred Adult Basic Piano Courses are pretty easy to follow, and there's a lot of tutorials on YouTube as well. For music theory, the Berkeley 101 and book 2 are very clear and thorough, and then for lyrics, well, anybody can write lyrics with a rhyming dictionary but Pat Pattinson's master class is worth a watch.

And then there's Tom Bruner's Arranging For The Orchestra, but that's another story!

 

Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked, ha! Thanks for the advice, it's really helpful and motivates me to learn more.

[Greta Lea]

Some titles to pursue...Painless American Government, Are You A Liberal, Conservative or Confused?, Whatever Happened to Penny Candy? and Science Matters.  Also, like other's mentioned just read great literature. When something strikes you as interesting in a piece of literature, do some research on that topic.

[levelopourdeux]

I agree the Painless _____ are helpful, as are the books like Don't Know Much About (geography/history/etc.) If you wanted some higher level/more in depth things, saylor.org offers free college level courses that you can do by yourself without much prior knowledge about the subject.

[PeterPan]

Hoffman, now watch the movies of some of these books you're reading and compare/contrast the movie versions with the books!  There's a wonderful, wonderful movie version for Don Quixote.  It's Man of LaMancha, and well if you haven't heard the soundtrack, you've just about missed one of my favorite things.   :)   To Kill a Mockingbird of course has a great movie too.  They would do this kind of thing in an english class, reading the book, then watching the movie to compare.  You can also google for free guides to give you background on historical context, what the important themes were, etc.  What you're doing is FABULOUS, so keep doing it!   :)

 

PS.  Add Jane Eyre to your list if you haven't read it yet.  There are a whole bunch of movie versions, and well your life wouldn't be complete without watching at least one or two.  Some people think Yeats is the ultimate and unskippable, and well I say it's Jane Eyre.  The Timothy Dalton movie version is the best.  :D

[Pen]

PS   There is a series of books published by Oxford University Press which are called A Very Short Introduction [to whatever the subject is]   --the ones I have seen so far have been good and some cover subjects pertinent to understanding government.   Also sometimes books written for people from other countries explaining US government can actually be easier to follow than ones meant for US school children in my experience--the goal can be to be direct and to the point as an explanation, versus for some theoretical exam.  Some understanding of basic economics and finance could also be useful, maybe, and things like the Teaching CompanyGreat Courses if they are at a library near you, or Coursera courses, or KhanAcademy can help with that.   And for math some statistics as it impacts all sorts of decision making.

 

I love Mark Twain.   I'm about to embark on his  Roughing It.

 

And the Oliver Stone and whomever book I mentioned before--I am finding it really helps with putting current news into a different perspective than I had before.   Even events I was alive for and heard the news of the day for, I feel I understand way better now.   I especially loved the second half of the book.   It is supposed to be done as some movie form soonish too I guess.

[3 Only Children]

 

Thanks! I've already started reading Exploring Your World: The Adventure of Geography by Margery Dunn. I recently finished Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes (that was hard), part one and two, it was a blast; as for classics, does Mark Twain count? I've been wanting to read his work, as well as To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. I'm going to forage into them regardless. I'll also Google classics and shop around a bit to add a couple "literary tourist attractions" to my reading itinerary. 

 

Songwriting recommendations....for just getting started, learning some basic piano really helps. I had a teacher for a couple years, but to be completely honest, she gave me instruction booklets, made assignments, and supervised my playing to make sure I was making progress. The Alfred Adult Basic Piano Courses are pretty easy to follow, and there's a lot of tutorials on YouTube as well. For music theory, the Berkeley 101 and book 2 are very clear and thorough, and then for lyrics, well, anybody can write lyrics with a rhyming dictionary but Pat Pattinson's master class is worth a watch.

And then there's Tom Bruner's Arranging For The Orchestra, but that's another story!

 

Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked, ha! Thanks for the advice, it's really helpful and motivates me to learn more.

 

Mark Twain definitely counts!  There are so many wonderful books  to explore. 

One of my favorites was The Count of Monte Cristo.  After reading the first couple of paragraphs, I was blown away by his grasp of the English language.  Whenever I find a book like that, I try to slow down in my reading and let it soak in.  Not always easy to do but I guess I would just say to take your time and enjoy the books, there's no rush.

 

Thanks so much for the songwriting tips!   I liked the master class one especially.   I have said before that YouTube is an amazing place where you can learn almost anything and for free.  You have inspired me too. 

[katilac]

For history I would get Susan Wise Bauer's books "History of the Ancient History" and "History of the Medieval History".  She hasn't come out with the next book in the series but I bet someone would have a good suggestion for an overview of more recent history. <snip>

I wouldn't recommend this series for someone with a scanty history background. It would be a tough slog, and I think a broader overview would be much more helpful to begin with (both for one's general understanding, and in the context of 'knowing what most people know').

 

Coursera is a great, great resource. I've discovered that at least some of the courses are set up so that you have access to the resources well after the class ends, so, if you can't make the timing of a class work, you still might sign up for it and do it on your own later.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I wouldn't recommend this series for someone with a scanty history background. It would be a tough slog, and I think a broader overview would be much more helpful to begin with (both for one's general understanding, and in the context of 'knowing what most people know').

 

Coursera is a great, great resource. I've discovered that at least some of the courses are set up so that you have access to the resources well after the class ends, so, if you can't make the timing of a class work, you still might sign up for it and do it on your own later.

The OP just read "Don Quixote" and found it a blast, despite being hard.  I think she is selling herself (and her education) a bit short in that she is able to handle things at a fairly high level.  That said, I hope she looks at a number of resources and finds ones that speak best to her.  

[Matryoshka]

One of my favorites was The Count of Monte Cristo.  After reading the first couple of paragraphs, I was blown away by his grasp of the English language. 

 

Whose?  The translator's? Which translation did you read?

 

Interestingly, I recently was comparing translations of this book trying to figure out which one to recommend for my kids' book club - in researching this I read that most translations of this book were written during the Victorian era (when the original book was written) and the translations were heavily edited to take out s*x and drug use references not considered appropriate for the more prudish Brits.  And then I wondered if I gave them the full translation if it would still be appropriate for a kids' book club! :lol:

 

[talesofhoffman]

Mark Twain definitely counts!  There are so many wonderful books  to explore. 

One of my favorites was The Count of Monte Cristo.  After reading the first couple of paragraphs, I was blown away by his grasp of the English language.  Whenever I find a book like that, I try to slow down in my reading and let it soak in.  Not always easy to do but I guess I would just say to take your time and enjoy the books, there's no rush.

 

Thanks so much for the songwriting tips!   I liked the master class one especially.   I have said before that YouTube is an amazing place where you can learn almost anything and for free.  You have inspired me too. 

 

I researched "The Count of Monte Crisco" and it looks great. I will definitely read that. YouTube is quite amazing, that's where I found out Dr. John the Nightripper himself had a couple of blues piano course books. I love these in-depth studies by masters!

 

I wouldn't recommend this series for someone with a scanty history background. It would be a tough slog, and I think a broader overview would be much more helpful to begin with (both for one's general understanding, and in the context of 'knowing what most people know').

 

Coursera is a great, great resource. I've discovered that at least some of the courses are set up so that you have access to the resources well after the class ends, so, if you can't make the timing of a class work, you still might sign up for it and do it on your own later.

 

I signed up for Coursera! I really like their layout, it's not cluttered with adds and the video transcripts seem cohesively written. Thanks! As for the history, I think I'll go with both a broader overview and an in-depth perspective.

 

For history I would get Susan Wise Bauer's books "History of the Ancient History" and "History of the Medieval History".  She hasn't come out with the next book in the series but I bet someone would have a good suggestion for an overview of more recent history.

 

 You come off as someone with a very good grasp of the basics of how to organize and present your thoughts in writing and I'm going to assume that would be the same in speaking.  It is ok to tell someone that you haven't heard of a certain book or artist or event and ask for information - or just google for information on it.  I do that all the time.  

 

I'm going to go ahead and order both of those, they look really good. Right now I'm reading Will Durant's Our Oriental Heritage, it's the first volume in the eleven-volume set titled "The Story of Civilization". The nice thing with books is, you don't have to read them immediately! I like to have a few stashed away for "survival".

[3 Only Children]

Whose?  The translator's? Which translation did you read?

 

Interestingly, I recently was comparing translations of this book trying to figure out which one to recommend for my kids' book club - in researching this I read that most translations of this book were written during the Victorian era (when the original book was written) and the translations were heavily edited to take out s*x and drug use references not considered appropriate for the more prudish Brits.  And then I wondered if I gave them the full translation if it would still be appropriate for a kids' book club! :lol:

 

 I'm not sure of the translation but I remember the book cover looking like the one here..  http://talesuntangled.wordpress.com/2011/04/26/the-love-of-a-swashbuckling-tale/   (scroll down to see it).

At the bottom of the page are some reviews written by Teens if that helps with your book club.

  I would recommend reading just the first chapter if nothing else.  Some great themes for discussion in this book.

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

One of my favorites was The Count of Monte Cristo.  After reading the first couple of paragraphs, I was blown away by his grasp of the English language.  Whenever I find a book like that, I try to slow down in my reading and let it soak in.  Not always easy to do but I guess I would just say to take your time and enjoy the books, there's no rush.

 

Now imagine reading it in the original French  :-)

[3 Only Children]

Now imagine reading it in the original French  :-)

Wow, that would only happen in my imagination!

I'm sure it was beautiful though in its original language.

[Pen]

I wouldn't recommend this series for someone with a scanty history background. It would be a tough slog, and I think a broader overview would be much more helpful to begin with (both for one's general understanding, and in the context of 'knowing what most people know').

 

 

 

Her books are very readable for history books.  I don't know if it would be a tough slog or not for a start since for me it was not a starting place.   But maybe you would enjoy the 4 volumes meant for children first for a general overview.  

 

 I personally think more time spent on more recent and modern history is more helpful than a lot of time spent on the ancient parts--especially in terms of that most people you will meet most of the time are more likely to be discussing recent, present, and what to do for the future issues, rather more than they are discussing what happened in ancient Sumeria.    It would certainly be nice to not have someone say something like the name Julius Caesar and never have heard of it before.   But it might be more useful to have an idea of how things going on in Syria at the present moment got that way, and how that might compare to what has recently happened with other situations like Iraq or Afghanistan.

 

I similarly think in regard to science, that while it is good to know something about Copernicus and Galileo and Newton, it can be more helpful to know about issues like Genetic Engineering, global warming, nuclear issues, and even just what to eat for your health tonight at dinner.  These sites http://www.i-sis.org.uk/index.php and similar name but not related and I know less about it http://www.isis-online.org/  could be of interest to you in regard to science nexus to current issues--they give points to start on for more research.   A group of books by Joy Hakim on science history starting with one called Aristotle Leads the Way, I believe, could be helpful for a science nexus to history.

[Pen]

Maybe this thread on history would interest you, give you more ideas, links to primary source archives online, and so on:  http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/474422-teaching-what-really-happened-how-to-avoid-the-tyranny-of-textbooks-get-students-excited-about-doing-history/

[amy58103]

You could take a look at www.saylor.org.  I think they have something like 300 courses put together that cover a range of topics.  Its set up to mimic a brick-and-motor college education, but you can just work through courses you are interested.  Its all self-paced, and free :)

[Pen]

Is the above post spam?

[Jean in Newcastle]

Is the above post spam?

Yes.  

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

which above post? Maybe there was one that was removed, but the one from  amy58103 looks legit.

[Jean in Newcastle]

which above post? Maybe there was one that was removed, but the one from  amy58103 looks legit.

One that was removed.  It was one of those that had a random sentence copied from elsewhere with random smilies attached.  

[katilac]

You could take a look at www.saylor.org.  I think they have something like 300 courses put together that cover a range of topics.  Its set up to mimic a brick-and-motor college education, but you can just work through courses you are interested.  Its all self-paced, and free :)

Interesting! and I found this link:

 

http://moocnewsandreviews.com/credit-watch-saylor-org-courses-approved-for-credit-at-7-accredited-colleges/