Warm Parenting & Delayed Academics

In our family, we chose to follow the Moore Formula approach to education. The focus on work, study, and service helped us keep a balance in our family life while presenting the value of learning to our children in every facet of our lives. I believe that the Moore approach, more than any other, allows learning to become integral to the whole child and the complete family system. With this approach, education is not placed in a box. Instead, the entire world is open to the child in a way that most other types of educational systems cannot replicate.

Sometimes parents who choose to follow the Moore Formula find that they can feel like a fish swimming up the stream instead of going with the flow. That's because they are thinking and teaching outside the norm. Our culture and the educational system are creating learning environments that take the parent out of the educational formula at an early age (preschool). One goal of the present public system of education is to do this at increasingly earlier ages. As homeschool parents, sometimes we forget that these are external, artificial pressures and we take them upon ourselves. Research shows that children who's parents practice delayed- academics later rather than early academics, catch-up with and exceed peers who have been educated formally and  starting at a young age. Not only are delayed-study children beneficiaries academically, but research shows that they exhibit more skills in inquiry and higher-level thinking than their traditionally educated peers. Traditionally "schooled" AND traditionally "schooled at home" children who are not taught by the work, service, study model of delayed academics that Dr. Moore promoted have been found to exhibit signs (across the board) of burn-out by 4th grade. These are only a few examples of the excellence that results in children who received an education with delayed academics.

"School Can Wait" is an example of a very well documented and highly researched book which proves Dr. Moore's educational philosophy. This book is highly research-oriented and the result of a $257,000 federal grant which thoroughly documented the importance of unbroken continuity of parental attachment wherever possible and the dangers of formal schooling until at least eight to ten. In it Dr. Moore states that:

"The preponderance of evidence indicates that the key role of a parent throughout the years of childhood is simply to be the kind of warm, responsive, and relatively consistent person to whom a child can safely become attached. Early development and learning are actively dependent on this relationship. Parents are chiefly responsible for a child's early learning by their attitudes and responses to the child in frequent interactions." [School Can Wait, page 47].

The Moore Formula encourages warm, responsive parenting and a delay in formal academics until eight or ten years of age. It is a plan that has proved itself over and over again. It really does work!

Delayed Academics

Thoughts on Dr. Raymond Moore's belief in delayed formal academics:

It seems that the Moore's emphasized that learning begins at birth. Some of their books outline concepts to be taught starting from birth. They share age-appropriate activities and events that help a child achieve appropriate milestones for their age. So, it seems that their idea of delayed education speaks of "formal" and "school-like" learning. Essentially, most early school concepts can be taught in a variety of ways. Teaching a child to write using finger-paints on a large sheet of paper uses different motor skills (more appropriate) than using a pencil and  paper. The key is to keep learning age appropriate and to avoid burn-out.

In the beginning of my homeschool years I was fortunate to be able to attend a week-end series of lectures by Dr. and Mrs. Moore. One of the key points that struck me was hearing Dr. Moore emphasize that from his experience, most early-schooled children might do VERY well with early learning when taught formally, but that by 4th grade they were generally burned out and it was nearly impossible to bring back the love of learning, exploration, etc. that most of us value so highly in childhood learning. So, although a child may seem to be doing well and advancing properly --- it could be possible that long-term damage could occur in the form of burn-out.

Guided, planned, purposeful experiences that are age appropriate are never out of line. I believe it is wrong to hold a child back when they want to learn. But, I would encourage them to learn in a relaxed, non-paper and pencil, bookish manner. It is so much more fun and interesting for everyone (parent and child) if collections, cooking experiences, field trips, building, etc. projects are done to create that learning rather than relying upon a book.

Autumn Leaf Craft

When the boys were young, we spent much time creating. One room was reserved for messy projects like painting, cutting, pasting. Sometimes other media were used like wax, cardboard, string, balloons, newspapers, glitter, and more. What fun we had! This was always an integral part of our home school.

Last week when we visited Dad and Alma, one of the boys early projects was sitting on the nightstand in the guest room. So simple, yet sweet, these leaf art pictures have graced the guest room for nearly 10 years now. 

If there are young children in your family, this is a great project to do with them! Here's how:

• Purchase small frames. They do not need to be expensive. Frames from a place like the Dollar Store or WalMart work perfectly. Remove the colored 'advertising' in the frame. In it's place, insert a piece of plain white paper.
• At the craft store, purchase a sheet of beeswax. With sharp scissors, cut it to the same size as the 'advertising' paper you removed from the frame. Place the beeswax on top of the plain white paper.
• Sprinkle extra fine "prisma" glitter sparsely on the beeswax.
• Place one dried leaf per sheet of beeswax. Center it carefully, so that it looks like it's falling from a tree.
• Put the frame together, with the glass layer going on top of the leaf and beeswax. Secure tightly and enjoy.

*This project also works well with dried flowers.

Teaching is Inspiring, Motivating, and Inducing

"Teaching is inspiring a student rather than filling him with facts. It is responding to him rather than demanding of him. It is motivating him to explore on his own rather than controlling his explorations. It is inducing him to think, rather than repeating others' thoughts. Teaching is leading others to be like you --- and more. It is finding lessons in everything you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, and bringing them together to give deeper meaning and fulfillment to life." 

Dr. Raymond Moore

Home-Style Teaching, A Handbook for Parents and Teachers

Recipe for Home Teaching

As a new school year starts for many, it seems timely to review the core "recipe" for homeschooling. I have always appreciated the one by Dr. Raymond and Dorothy Moore, early advocates of home education. Here's their recipe for home-school teaching:

"The requirements are not complex. Parents need only to be loving, responsive, and reasonably consistent, and salt these qualities with a little imagination, common sense, and willingness to follow a few simple suggestions...And don't worry about the opinions of neighbors who don't know or care about the real needs of children. Just be kind to them. Have your children be helpful in your home and in the neighborhood. Visit the old and infirm and ill. Do favors for others without asking any in return. Soon your 'strange antics' will be forgotten...or admired." 

They remind us that:

• "In one sense you are teaching all your waking moments --- as models to your offspring. Yet while some parents are more diligent than others, none need to formally teach a full school day."

And continue with this:

• "Much more important is your working with your children in physical work, helping them learn practical skills and the nobility of work --- building character qualities of initiative, industry, neatness, order, responsibility, and dependability, which are hard to find in even one of ten children or young adults today."

And there's more!

• "Along with these grosser values you can by precept and example teach manners and graces which today are rare --- kindness, thoughtfulness, tact, forgiveness, generosity, and a just plain kind of for-others love. This is seldom done in schools these days. Teach therm how to walk tall, how to listen closely, how to speak graciously. Paul was not gesturing idly when he wrote Philippians 4:8, 'Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report;...think on these things.'"

Using the Moore Formula of work, study, and service, children have been found to excel academically and socially. For more on this subject, it's recommended that you establish your foundation and philosophy for homeschooling by reading several of the books Raymond and Dorothy Moore have written on homeschooling. 

The quotes above are from the book "Home-Spun Schools" page 12 - 13.

Tasha Tudor, Children's Author and Artist

Today we remember Tasha Tudor on her birthday. She was an extraordinary woman. A talented artist, she enjoyed nature themes and shunned modern conveniences. She is probably best known for her contribution to children's literature. She illustrated each of her books with her beautiful watercolor and drew people to her wherever she went.

Beloved Tasha Tudor, author and illustrator of many books and gardener extraordinaire, passed away at her home in Marlboro, Vermont on July 18, 2008. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts on August 28, 1915 and was named after her father, Starling Burgess. But her father, who enjoyed Tolstoy's War and Peace preferred to call her Natasha after a character in the book. Her mother's friends would sometimes refer to her as Rosamund Tudor's daughter. Tasha liked the sound of the name Tasha Tudor, and eventually had her name legally changed to reflect this preference. 



Ms. Tudor received many awards and honors for her exceptional contribution to literature. A Caldecott Honor was given for her work for Mother Goose in 1945 and again in 1957 for the book 1 is One. She also received the Regina Medal in 1971 for her contributions to children's literature. Her prose was always simple and captivating, frequently including rhyming text. Enchanting illustrations were detailed and realistic in soft colors that seemed to fade away onto the page. She was known for her love of nature and flowers, birds, and other charming animals were frequently featured in her art. 

Some of the books she wrote and illustrated are:

Pumpkin Moonshine

A Tale for Easter

Snow before Christmas

Thistly B

The Dolls' Christmas

Edgar Allan Crow

Amanda and the Bear

A is for Annebelle

1 is One

A Time to Keep

Corgiville Fair

Tasha Tudor's Seasons of Delight

The Great Corgiville Kidnapping

Tasha Tudor was one of the great artists of the 20th century. Her love for illustrating New England nostalgia and sentimental illustrations that made one think of a bygone era. She lived her life as she dreamed, simply and sustainably, preferring the old-fashioned in both lifestyle and dress. For 92 years the world was blessed by her presence and contribution to American culture, literature, and art. Although she is gone from us now, her legacy and spirit will live on through the work she so fluently contributed to all. 

The photographs today are taken from one of my favorite books: Tasha Tudor's Garden by Tovah Martin and Richard W. Brown.

Encouragement for Homeschool Mothers

Encouragement for homeschool moms comes from many sources.  Knowing of other mother's who cherished this role is encouraging, especially when they are from years past.  Moses had a mother who homeschooled him until he was twelve years old.  What precious years those must have been for her, as she knew that her time with him was short and so all that she taught to him was of great importance. 

The book, Patriarchs and Prophets, shares stories and illustrations of Old Testament individuals and how God touched their lives.  This quote on page 244 shares about Moses and his mother:

"She kept the boy as long as she could, but was obligated to give him up when he was about twelve years old.  From his humble cabin home he was taken to the royal palace, to the daughter of the Pharaoh, and he became her son.  Yet even here he did not lose the impressions received in childhood.  The lessons learned at his mother's side could not be forgotten.  They were a shield from the pride, the infidelity, and the vice that flourished amid the splendor of the court...."

"The whole future life of Moses, the great mission which he fulfilled as the leader of Israel, testifies to the importance of the work of a Christian mother.  There is no other work that can equal this.  Parents should direct the instruction and training of their children while very young, to the end that they may be Christians.  They are placed in our care to be trained, not as heirs to the throne of an earthly empire, but as kings unto God, to reign through unending ages."

True Homeschooling is Tutorial

“True home schooling is tutorial, hand-made, customized to each child. Such parents respond to their children in a loving, informal way, a balance between systematic structure where needed and a great deal of freedom for youngsters to explore.”
  
~ Raymond S. Moore

Read God Directly

"Man's thinking must not be subdued by his instruments. Books are for the scholar's idle times. When he can read God directly, the hour is too precious to be wasted in other men's transcripts of their readings." 

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Helping Children Live Aesthetically

"Children growing up in an atmosphere where beauty is considered an important part of daily life cannot help being inspired to develop their own original ideas in these areas, nor can they help being prepared to live aesthetically themselves. There is a 'togetherness' in sharing a prepared table that even very small children feel, although they cannot express it verbally." 

Edith Schaeffer

These are words that guided me on my homemaking journey at the beginning of my child rearing years. Mrs. Schaeffer speaks so eloquently when she writes; she creates word pictures of simple things that speak so profoundly to our souls. In another place she shares that every dinner table should have a centerpiece that is vibrant, interesting, and transitions with the seasons and experiences of life. Such a focal point provides family members with objects of nature and beauty to enjoy. Flowers, moss, rocks, shells, seed pods, and more can be gathered outdoors and be brought inside to make creative points of interest without added expense or fuss. Including children and grandchildren in the process might mean adding points of color found in small toys like Lego's, plastic figures, or miniature tea sets. An atmosphere where creativity is encouraged can inspire a child and set the stage for original ideas as they grow through life.

Nature Educates

 

"All Nature seems at work.  Slugs leave their lair
The bees are stirring, birds are on the wing,
And Winter slumbering in the open air,
Wears on his smiling face a dream of spring."

   Samuel Taylor Coleridge 

Nature provides so many wonderful opportunities for educating children. They relate so willingly to planting gardens, searching for birds on their nests, raising bunnies and chicks, or picking flowers to press. The first appearance of spring creates many positive object lessons for learning!

Homemade Clay

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup salt
• 1 tablespoon powdered alum
• 1 cup cold water
• Few drops oil of wintergreen or oil of cloves
• Food coloring (optional)

Mix flour, salt and alum.  Gradually stir in water.  Then add oil and food coloring.  Knead until mixture is well mixed.  Store in a tightly covered container.  Keep in refrigerator until ready to use.

Homemade Paste

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon powdered alum
• 1 quart water
• 3 drops of wintergreen or oil of cloves

Mix flour, sugar and alum.  Add water gradually.  Cook until thickened.  Remove from heat and stir in oil.  Cool.  Store in a covered jar until ready to use.

Not to eat!

A Creation of God

Each child is unique, a special creation of God with talents, abilities, personality, preferences, dislikes, potentials, strengths, weaknesses, and skills that are his or her own. As parents, we must seek to identify these in each of our children and help them become the persons God intended.

~ Dave Veerman ~