From Junie B. Jones to Edward Eggleston-help!

[striving2Bprov31]

To all,

My daughter is 9yrs. old and doing Bigger Hearts right now. She and I both love it! When I rec'd my shipment of the history spines and other books I was thrilled and awestruck!! What wonderful reading!! Little Pillows is something EVERYONE should own!! Anyway, she has always been an AVID reader. When in third grade in ps she rec'd an award from the principal for reading almost 6,000 pages from the beginning of school to Christmas. But...until March of this year I had never heard of living books (new to homeschooling), so consequently, that is not what she had been reading as an independent reader. Certainly, several of the books my children and I have loved together over the years I now realize were living books. But, In first grade she gobbled up books like Junie B. Jones and other books like those. When she outgrew those it was on to other books of that kind. You know--"twaddle" as Ch Mason put it! So this is the issue: she is definitely not "fighting me" or complaining about the books she's doing for Bigger. She is very eager to read just about anything. But I can tell this is new for her. I think it's going to take some "getting used to"-when you go from books like Junie B. Jones to books like Edward Eggleston's or Pedro's Journal. My question is how long do you think it will take for her to acquire the taste for 'living books" when she's been feasting on junk food books for the last three or four years? I have to admit I just didn't know any better!!! I always checked the books for clean content, but other than that, I was just so thrilled she wanted to read!!! Anyway, experiencing a little mother guilt. If anyone could help me out with this question, thank you!! I just want to know that there is still hope for her future love of reading!!! Thank you!

Liz

[sharonb]

It's wonderful that your dd loves to read so much. My oldest is like that. Every night she goes to my bed to read at 8 pm (so that the baby can go to sleep undisturbed since they share a room). Usually it's 10 pm before I remember to tell her to go to bed! She devours books. I would say the most "twaddly" books she reads are the cul-de-sac kids books by Beverly Lewis, but I don't mind those so much since they are Christian.

If I were you I wouldn't worry about the transition to the new style of books for your dd. She loves to read and I'm sure she'll be fine. If she complains, you could remind her that those are her books for school. Maybe you could allow a limited amount of twaddle for her free reading, but also make sure there are plenty of non-twaddle books available. All of our books are on bookcases in the hallway right outside my room, so dd picks from that each night. She reads a huge variety and she is always telling me something she learned.

I can't really give you an answer on how long it will take your dd to get used to the new kind of books. But, like I said, I really wouldn't worry about it, and wouldn't feel guilty. Just try to control what new books come into the house in the future!

[lmercon]

Don't allow any more mommy-guilt!
I cringe when I think back to my early teaching days as a ps teacher. I remember telling parents that it didn't matter what their children read (inappropriate things aside), they just need to read a lot. I was just repeating what I had been taught, but uggh......! I think most of us were brought up with that philosophy of reading...content doesn't matter, page count does.
Since your dd is an avid reader, I really believe she will begin to gravitate away from the twaddle to the good stuff because she will recognize the difference. Once you've tried honey-cured, spiral cut, you don't go back to spam!
Laura

[dale1088]

I totally agree! Let go of the guilt. Just keep feeding her the good stuff. My dd was like yours, pulled from pub school and only read "twaddle". Then we read Baby Island and Stories from Grandma's Attic and Stuart Little and Cricket in Times Square and Mr. Poppers Penguins, and so so so many more. She likes historical fiction but mostly, and still enjoys the American Girl books, and now I pretty much don't allow anything that I know isn't good reading. I use the book list from DITHOR, and also use the Simply Charlotte Mason reading list site. I have a notebook I keep with me for library trips so that I am not scrambling to find her appropriate books.

I think the more I keep giving my kids the really good stuff, the less they even seem attracted to the not-so-good. I wish this approach worked with food! More and more broccoli and still they want cake and pizza!

[my3sons]

When I got my teaching degree, the motto was "do whatever you have to do to get them to read - any book that gets them reading will do". Oh my, what were we thinking!!! I taught for 7 years and accumulated a lot of twaddle on the shelves. I took the twaddle home and thought my dc would read it and enjoy it too, and that's when I found out about living books and the CM style of learning. I have very few of the books I'd bought during teaching ps left on my shelves now. I think it will take about a year to switch your dd over to living books and fully convert her. As the ladies said here - don't feel guilty though! Nothing is accomplished in that - instead, feel great joy in knowing you realized this very young and your dc will have from this time forward to learn to love excellent literature! Most dc never have this - spending their school years feasting on junk food twaddle books - and they graduate often never wanting to crack open a book again. Your dd has a world of reading ahead of her, and a mom committed to choosing books wisely. Thanks for posting this - it is so worth the switch to living books! This is a growing year, and you'll be teaching your dd one of the most important things of her life - choosing wisely what to read. So, it's worth the growing pains!

In Christ,
Julie

[Carrie]

Liz,

This is a terrific question and one that is so timely for many moms. I agree that during my public school teaching days I had never heard the term "living books" either. As I began researching and reading more and more about Charlotte Mason, I slowly began to see what a living book really was. Surprisingly enough, many books that I recalled fondly from my childhood were ones that would be considered living books.

Sadly enough, there is so much twaddle out there that many of the truly excellent living books have been down-sized from school libraries to make room for more twaddle. This makes it tough for kiddos in school to find worthwhile books to read. So, be encouraged that you are not alone in your new awareness of what makes a book living or in your quest to surround your child with them.

Books that are living aren't always kiddos favorites, but they are memorable. Kiddos will have their favorite genres and that is completely normal. Kiddos who enjoy nonfiction and biography will love and adore the history spines. On the other hand, kiddos who love fantasy, adventure, folk tale, and fiction in general will love DITHR and Storytime. No matter what their preference may be though, using the books within any HOD guide will raise your child's listening and reading level, will greatly impact their vocabulary and personal understanding of the subject matter, and will whet their appetite for truly good literature so that they will learn to recognize good writing.

The switch-over takes time and will often happen gradually. So, give yourself, and your little sweetie, plenty of time to settle in.

Blessings,
Carrie

[striving2Bprov31]

To all,

Thank you for your responses! I appreciate the encouragement! I think she will eventually come to love living books. It is funny...I look back, and all of the books I loved as a child and teenager I saved and they went with me when I got married. They are still on my shelves today. When I first learned about living books I quickly realized that these books that I adored-every single one- was a living book!! I couldn't part with them. They had made such a powerful impression on me that I have read them over and over again. Island of the Blue Dophins, To Kill a Mockingbird, Little House In the Big Woods....I still have the copy of Island of the Blue Dolphins that I first read in 6th grade! Anyway, thanks again for the encouragement!!

Have a great week!!

Liz