Just reading vs. using literature guides

[mama26]

Please help!

 

My dd is 15 and a freshman in high school. She is a good reader and can tell you about the book she read and what happened. However, she has absolutely no abstract reasoning skills as to motives, underlying themes, allegory, etc. Therefore, literature guides are frustrating to her and to me.

 

Any suggestions on what I should do with her? Do I just let her read assigned books for the sheer pleasure of it or is there a curriculum that would work for her?

 

My thought was to just let her read, read, read.

 

Any thoughts anyone could give would be appreciated.

[Michelle in MO]

I think it would be good to do some literary analysis or study. A few thoughts that come to mind would be reading The Well-Educated Mind by SWB and following her suggestions for literary study. There are several on these high school boards who use that approach. I would try a search with the initials of the book---TWEM. Also, Omnibus is a program that is frequently mentioned, as well as Tapestry of Grace.

 

I wouldn't discount SparkNotes as a source, either. But, I think it's important to read the literature, then discuss what you've read, and then have your dc write an essay.

[Lori D.]

Perhaps going over a few literary element resources may help. First understanding what "tools" you are looking for in a text, and then how those "tools" of literary elements are working to support a theme may be very helpful. We really enjoyed Figuratively Speaking: Using Classic Literature to Teach 40 Literary Elements". See samples at: http://www.rainbowresource.com/search.php?sid=1237248871-1400771

 

 

Also possibly helpful would be to use a resource that teaches you what to look for, how to look for it, and what the deeper meanings in the literature. And I'd highly suggest you and your dd go through one (or more) of these *together*, so you can learn together, and then can discuss the literature together:

 

How To Read a Book (Adler)

http://www.rainbowresource.com/product/How+to+Read+a+Book/014902/1237248871-1400771

 

 

Teaching The Classics

http://www.centerforlit.com/

Overview program for teaching you how to draw students into meaningful literary discussions by enabling you to identify and discuss the important themes of any work of literature.

 

 

How to Read Literature Like a Professor: A Lively and Entertaining Guide to Reading Between the Lines (Foster)

http://www.amazon.com/How-Read-Literature-Like-Professor/dp/006000942X/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1237249065&sr=8-1

Gives you a lot of information about common symbols and their meanings in classic literature.

 

 

 

Finally, a gentle intro literature course, such as Lightning Literature & Composition, will guide you through what are some of the literary elements and how they are used in the works read for the course. I'd highly suggest going with Lightning Lit. 8 (designed as a full year grade 8 program, but we are using it very successfully this year with our 14-just-turned-15yo 9th grader) as a great introductory program, and gentle enough that you can easily be doing other reading and/or literature as well.

 

See more info and samples at: http://www.hewitthomeschooling.com/book/blight.asp

 

 

BEST of luck! And enjoy your literature journey together! Warmest regards, Lori D.

[Nan in Mass]

I think I might let her read, but meanwhile work on discussing literature with her. When my children have found a literary concept difficult, I've gone back to children's literature and used that to explain. My children happen to be very familiar with the Beatrix Potter books (Peter Rabbit, etc.), so if I wanted to explain motivations, for example, I would discuss the motivations of Mr. McGregor, Peter Rabbit, etc. Why is Mr. McGregor trying to catch Peter? Why does Peter's mother forbid him to go into the garden? Why does Peter go anyway? Fairy tales would work equally well. Why does Snow White's step mother want to kill her? Why do the dwarves like Snow White? I've also used Star Trek episodes. Using these is easier than using a long novel because you can give example after example in a row until the student understands and can do it for themselves.

 

You might find Reading Strands helpful, too. It is a short book (about 1/4" thick) that has a list of literary terms in the back with their definitions and lots of sample conversations discussing literature with different aged children. You wouldn't have to read the whole thing, either, just the bits that are the right level for your daughter.

 

The other thing that you might find useful is The Well Educated Mind. This is a big thick hardcover, but again, you don't need to read the whole thing. It has a few chapters at the beginning describing how to teach yourself literature (which you might be able to skip) and then the rest of the book is divided into genres - one section on autobiographies, one on poetry, one on novels, one on histories, one on plays, etc. Each section has a history of the genre (about 10 pages) and then general questions that help you to think about a work in that genre. (Then the rest is a summaries of suggested works - you can skip that part.) The questions are divided into three levels - grammar level (what happened in the book), logic level (what is the author's message), and rhetoric level (do you agree). I have found these questions to be much more successful with my children than many literature guide questions. They are sensible questions, not obscure ones that only appeal to literary fanatics who have lived a long time. They guide you gently and gradually into thinking about a book in a deeper way.

 

Hope this helps. If you are like me, you probably need a fairly easy solution, not one that requires reading tons first.

-Nan

Edited March 17, 2009 by Nan in Mass

[Michelle in AL]

I have both Teaching the Classics and Windows to the World by IEW. Both would be great in your situation, as they use short stories so the point of each literature element can be learned quickly.

 

Teaching the Classics is an easier level compared to Windows to the World. Teaching the Classics uses children's stories and Windows to the World uses more complex short stories and goes more in depth and covers more topics.

 

I like How to Read Literature Like a Professor too, it's much more entertaining than How to Read a Book.

[Pam L in Mid Tenn]

Reading a book and reading the Cliff Notes or Spark Notes alongside will help develop those skills. Some kids require some maturity before really "getting" it. Some probably really don't get deeper meanings until thier 20s!

 

Read the books and discuss the basic plots and characters. I would not worry too much about critical literary anaylsis... That is just my opinion... Lit Moms please don't blast me! :)

 

Edited to add: watch a tv show or movie and discuss plot, characters, allgegory, deeper meanings, etc. until you really understand what those terms mean. Then it will be easier to apply that knowledge to a short story, and then a novel.

Edited March 17, 2009 by Pam L in Mid Tenn
more information

[Cynde]

I think it would be wise to continue working on literary analysis. Our ds started college this year. He does a lot of literary analysis writing in this composition course. The teacher assumes that the students have a good basic understanding of literary terms and that this is not their first experience analyzing lit. The prof does not hold their hand. I think the ladies have already given you lots of good suggestions. We used many of the books they suggested. The only one I didn't see mentioned was Laurence Perrine's Literature: Structure, Sound, and Sense. We loved this! This is a textbook. See if you can find a copy at your library to look over. I don't think you need the newest edition of this book. Personally, I think the older ones are equally beneficial (but then again I have an older one). Good luck and don't give up!

[mama26]

I will be spending some serious computer time researching all of these options. Thanks again!!