Living Books

"Living Books" are the best books for literature study. This term is usually attributed to the educational pioneer Charlotte Mason. I feel that quality literature is essential for a great education. Several homeschool curriculum programs, including Sonlight, Winter Promise, and Ambleside, use living books as a core ~ but you can certainly develop your own list.

When I started teaching school, I felt compelled to read classic literature to my class. I felt that much of what my students were being asked to read (and listen to) was paraphrased or simplified. Unfortunately, the 10-15 minutes after lunch was the only chance for me to attempt to expose them to what I thought were great books.

When I started homeschooling, I knew that reading classic literature and other great books would be high on my priority list. We read aloud alot when my children were young and before long, they had their nose in a book almost all the time. Fortunately, they learn alot through their reading. I don't know if it's because they were "wired" that way or if it's because we spent so much time reading.

One thing I think is important about reading any good literature is to continue to read aloud even when your kids are older. Right brain learners especially enjoy this because it frees their left brain of the decoding task and allows the right hemisphere of their brain to put extra effort into making a mental picture of the story. Both of my children say that reading a book (or having one read to them) creates a movie in their head. That is definately a right brain trait, because I can't even imagine what that would be like! Even in middle school, I still read aloud daily and plan to continue through high school. You may already know that kids can comprehend books that are much to difficult for them to read on their own. Reading quality literature aloud is a great way to expand vocabulary.

Colleen Manning has written a great article about Charlotte Mason's view of books that you can read here.

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