Benjamin West: Impromptu Mini Study

Celebrate the simple in learning

It's been a few years and a few children ago that we read Benjamin West and His Cat Grimalkin by Marguerite Henry (yes, the author who wrote the beloved Misty of Chincoteague, another classic worthy of the read). The book introduced us to the Father of American Painting, an artist of whom we were unfamiliar.



Recently, the youngers were introduced to Benjamin and the olders were reacquainted while reading Benjamin West: Gifted Young Painter by Dorothea J. Snow, a biography from the Childhood of Famous Americans series. We were all intrigued, just as we were years ago at our first introduction.

Little known facts we learned:

• Benjamin wrestled with how his God-given talent could possibly be woven with his Quaker faith, giving his family and his church a new perspective to consider. 
• Benjamin was creative and industrious, making the best of what he had, from colored clay (insert science study here) to using his cat's fur to make paintbrushes (there is a character lesson of truth telling here but I won't spoil the story).
• Benjamin was a court painter for King George III. 
• Benjamin taught famous painters Gilbert Stuart (think famous portrait painter of George Washington) and John Trumbull (think Declaration of Independence) 

Interesting new vocabulary we learned from our reading journey through Benjamin West: Gifted Young Painter .

• Satchel
• Provost
• Ramshackle
• Aghast
• Daub
• Folly
• Hautboy
• Chortled
• Nape
• Comely

We finished the COFA biography today. As I read the last word of the book, a little perked up, interested:

"We have to find out more!"

Yes, we can. And so can you! Look up these painters in your favorite set of encyclopedia (yes, they still exist), explore Google images, and watch a few You Tube videos.

We:

• Analyzed several paintings from each of the artists, beginning with Benjamin West's mentioned in the COFA biography: William Penn's Treaty with the Indians and The Death of  General Wolfe. A discussion ensued regarding how artists depict history in their work and whether or not the history is accurate. 
• Learned of the friendship between Benjamin West and Benjamin Franklin and then studied the the significance of Benjamin Franklin Drawing Lighting from the Sky. A great lesson in history and art appreciation.

A good story sparks an interest.

Our little impromptu mini study sparked a new fire.

"Benjamin influenced many artists. Let's find out more about those artists."

• Charles Willson Peale
• Gilbert Stuart
• John Trumbull
• Thomas Sully
• Samuel F. B. Morse

A spark ignites an interest, which in turn lights a new fire.

More to do:

• Differentiate between portrait and self-portrait. Paint or draw your self-portrait.
• Create a time line of the American history occurring at the time Benjamin West and the other painters were painting. What events were taking place? Did the painters have anything in common?
• Talk about other events in American history happening about the same time. 
• If you had the opportunity to meet Benjamin West, Gilbert Stuart or John Turnbull, what questions would you ask them about their work or the time in which they lived? 
• Learn about the Quaker faith and how it is similar or different from the faith of your family.
• Read Barbara Brenner's The Boy Who Loved to Draw, biography of Benjamin West. If reading more than one book about Benjamin West, discuss how the books are similar or different. Compare facts in each work.

A spark ignites an interest, which in turn lights a new fire.

That's the ever giving blessing of learning.

Discovery Biographies: Living History with Living Books

Garrard Publishing Company's Discovery biographies have been some of our favorite reads, encouraging independent reading in newly fluent readers. These books are often the next choice after Step-Up books, also biographies.

Discovery biographies are historical adventures written for little learners at the mid-elementary level. The cover copy on one book states "Discovery Books have been tested by the Spache Readability Formula and edited so they can be read by children in grades 2-4". We found our later elementary learners also enjoy these books due to the engaging content and find much satisfaction in finishing a book in one day.

The books--we especially like the hardcovers--offer full page, three-color illustrations with larger font size. Garrard states "all facts are authentic for they have been carefully checked by leading sources for historical accuracy". This series has definitely opened another reading level of living books for us!

We have not read all the titles, choosing to save some titles for later learning. Also, note the varied covers. Nice to have visuals when shopping a used bookstore or garage sale.

Presidents

Title	Author
Ulysses S. Grant: Horseman and Fighter	Colonel Red Reeder
Abraham Lincoln: For the People	Anne Colver and Polly Anne Graff
Andrew Jackson: Pioneer and President	John Parlin
Thomas Jefferson: Author of Independence	Anne Colver and Polly Anne Graff
John F. Kennedy: New Frontiersman	Charles P. Graves
Franklin D. Roosevelt: Four Times President	Wyatt Blassingame
Theodore Roosevelt: Man of Action	James C. Beach
Harry S. Truman: People's President	David Collins
George Washington: Father of Freedom	Steward Graff

First Ladies

Title	Author
Abigail Adams: Dear Partner	Helen Stone Peterson
Mary Todd Lincoln: President's Wife	LaVere Anderson
Dolly Madison: Famous First Lady	Mary Richmond Davidson
Eleanor Roosevelt: First Lady of the World	Charles P. Graves
Martha Washington: First Lady of the Land	LaVere Anderson

Explorers, Navigators, Aviators, Adventurers

Title	Author
Amelia Earhart: Pioneer in the Sky	John Parlin
Henry Hudson: Captain of the Ice Bound Seas	Carl Carmer
Charles Lindbergh: Hero Pilot	David R. Collins

Men and Women of the Frontier

Title	Author
Buffalo Bill: Wild West Showman	Mary Richardson Davidson
Daniel Boone: Taming the Wilds	Katherine E. Wilkie
George Rogers Clark: Frontier Fighter	Adele deLeeuw
Davy Crockett: Hero of the Wild Frontier	Elizabeth Robards Mosely
Annie Oakley: The Shooting Star	Charles P. Graves
Jeb Smith: Trailblazer and Trapper	Frank Brown Latham

Inventors, Scientists, Medical Pioneers

Title	Author
Clara Barton: Soldier of Mercy	Mary Catherine Rose
Elizabeth Blackwell: Pioneer Woman Doctor	Jean Lee Latham
Alexander Graham Bell: Man of Sound	Elizabeth Rider Montgomery
George Washington Carver: Negro Scientist	Samuel and Beryl Epstein
Dorothea L. Dix: Hospital Founder	Mary Malone
Benjamin Franklin: Man of Ideas	Charles P. Graves
George W. Goethals: Panama Canal Engineer	Jean Lee Lathm
Florence Nightingale: War Nurse	Anne Colver and Polly Anne Graff
Eli Whitney: Great Inventor	Jean Lee Latham

Statesmen, Political Figures, Revolutionaries, War Heroes

Title	Author
Jane Addams: Pioneer of the Hull House	Helen Stone Peterson
Henry Clay: Leader in Congress	Helen Stone Peterson
Fredrick Douglass: Freedom Fighter	Lillie Patterson
David Glasgow Farragut: Our First Admiral	Jean Lee Latham
Francis Marion: Swamp Fox of the Carolinas	Elizabeth and Carl Carmer
Booker T. Washington: Leader of His People	Lillie Patterson

Authors, Artists, Entrepreneurs

Title	Author
Helen Keller: Toward the Light	Stewart and Polly Anne Graff
Francis Scott Key: Poet and Patriot	Lillie Patterson
Ernest Thompson Seton: Scout and Naturalist	Wyatt Blassingame
Booker T. Washington: Leader of His People	Lillie Patterson

Cornerstones of Freedom- Chronological Listing

Great finds at Friends of the Library used book store at our local library. Within 5 minutes of returning home, littles opened the tote bag, eager to listen to me read. We chose The Pullman Strike. Three paragraphs in, we were hooked, moving fast toward the back cover.

Our afternoon of reading made us curious about others we could acquire. Paula's Archives to the rescue. Not only was there a list of the books in the series but they were in chronological order. Double win! You may find a Cornerstones of Freedom title for your next living history study in the used bookstore of your local library. Happy hunting!

Read What Interests YOU!

"Honey, this is a great book!" 

Words from an engaged read-aloud Dad, spoken sitting aside his daughter; the two of them engrossed in the plot of Kit Carson: Boy Trapper by Augusta Stevenson.

Read what interests you!

Little leaner chose the book from several she pulled from our home library. Eager, she carried her treasure to Dad. Together, they read. Together, they learned. 

"Mom, we just read 36 pages!"

Another learner needs a new read...

"Mom, help me find  a book."

At the shelf, I locate John Wannamaker: Boy Merchant by Olive W. Burt. I bubble over with excitement! As a child my parents took me to Wannamakers Department Store in Philadelphia to see the Christmas play and hear the organ. 

I was hooked! I reminisced, telling my daughter of our train rides to the city and the day in the store. She was hooked, too! We read together. We learned together.  

"Mom, read another chapter, please!"

Learning is contagious...

Read what interests you!

Makers of America Series Chronological: Living Books Teach History

One of our family's favorite read-aloud series is the Makers of America books. They have taken us from Kitty Hawk to watch the Wright Brothers fly their plane to the wilds of Penn's woods which would eventually be known as Pennsylvania. We have learned history, geography, and science, walking along side some of the brilliant men and women who have made an lasting impact on American history as well as world history. We have loved every sentence of our journey through time. 

I found the first of our collection at a used book sale, for 50 cents. Yes, 50 cents! I searched the internet as well as some of my book resources and could not find a listing of the books (if you find one let me know!). Eventually I was able to purchase another book in the same series and it had a partial listing of the books in the series. From that list, I began collecting these hard to find literary treasures. We have loved every one we have read so far. 

Made in America series 

(may not be a complete listing)

Leif Ericson: Explorer, Ruth Cromer Weir

Christopher Columbus: Discoverer, Alberta Powell Graham (1451-1506)

Champlain: Father of New France, Cecile Pepin Edwards (1574-1653)

Roger Williams: Defender of Freedom, Cecile Pepin Edwards (1603-1683)

La Salle: River Explorer, Alberta Powell Graham (1643-1687)

William Penn: Founder and Friend, Virginia Haviland (1644-1718)

Benjamin Franklin: Printer and Patriot, Ruth Cromer Weir (1706-1790)

George Washington: First President, Elise Ball (1732-1799)

John Paul Jones of the U.S. Navy, Ruth Cromer Weir (1747-1792)

Lafayette: Friend of America, Alberta Powell Graham (1757-1834)

Eli Whitney: Master Craftsman, Miriam Gilbert (1765-1825)

Andrew Jackson: Fighting Frontiersman, Frances Fitzpatrick Wright (1767-1845)

Sam Houston: Fighter and Leader, Frances Fitzpatrick Wright (1793-1863)

Lewis and Clark: Explorers to the West, Madge Haines and Leslie Morrill

Abraham Lincoln: Courageous Leader, Lillian J. Bragdon (1809-1865)

Clara Barton: Red Cross Pioneer, Alberta Powell Graham (1821-1912)

John Muir: Protector of the Wilds, Madge Haines and Leslie Morrill (1838-1914)

Thomas Alva Edison: Inventor, Ruth Cromer Weir (1847-1931)

Luther Burbank: Nature's Helper, Lillian J. Bragdon (1849-1926)

Jane Addams: World Neighbor, Miriam Gilbert (1860-1935)

The Wright Brothers: First to Fly, Madge Haines and Leslie Morrill

Living Books: Marco Polo and Co-op

Isn't it fantastic when everything we teach, everything we're involved in as a family, weaves together in a learning tapestry? We try to weave together what we can, but it isn't always possible. Monday it was.

Knowing I would be teaching Marco Polo in our co-op (and I knew next to nothing about him, yikes!) I decided we needed to find a family read-aloud, a book we could all enjoy, a book to get our feet wet, a book to give me some threads on which to weave a lesson (which I would have to teach other people's children!).


Looking on our family home library shelves, I found the perfect read, from one of our favorite series, The Story of Marco Polo by Olive Price. Read the first paragraph, we were immediately swept away to the canals of Venice.

"'Today's the day!' cried Marco Polo, a dark-eyed boy nine years old. 

Marco pulled aside the yellow silk draperies which hung at a casement window, and looked down on a wide canal. there were few streets in Venice. Almost every passage through the city was a winding waterway. 

Marco's home was in a fine part of the town. It was large and filled with beautiful things. Marco lived there with his mother and his faithful servants. "

***

"The day soon came when the great voyage began. Marco Polo set sail from Cathay with two thousand men. He was given a fleet of Chinese ships, each with a crew of three hundred. The ships had splendid sails and were even more seaworthy than any he had seen as a boy in Venice.

The fleet sailed south on the China Sea. It put into ports where Marco saw many new things. He recorded the descriptions of foreign streets and strange people in his notebook. He made drawings of place he had never seen before and charted the roads to them accurately."

We loved the book! In some areas it set ground work. In other areas it filled in gaps with information we hadn't known. It certainly invited us along on Marco Polo's adventure, allowing us to understand the serious crisis Marco met along his journey. I never really appreciated the extent to which navigators risked to give us the geography and understanding we have today. 

Forward a few weeks, it came time for me to teach! 

I set up the room with the major landmarks: mountains, Gobi desert, Kashgar (the trading area), and Shangdu (where the Great Khan resided). Blue painter's tape on tile marked the Silk Road. I gave each child a map of Marco's travels and chose three children to be Marco, his father, and his uncle. Each dressed up with sheets of fabric and straddled a stick horse (pretend camel). As I told a synopsis of Marco's venture to the Great Khan, the children moved along "Asia". After I told the story, the three children sat down with the group and I explained "trading along the Silk Road". Each child had a travel pouch and items Marco found or encountered along the journey: silk, coal, jewels, pearls, spices, furs, and paper money. For thirty minutes, children traded along the Silk Road. At the end of the day, they understood a bit more about Marco Polo and his travel across Asia and then along the Spice Route to the south.

Other living books about Marco Polo

• Adventures and Discoveries of Marco Polo by Richard Walsh (Landmark)
• Adventures of Marco Polo by Russell Freedman
• Marco Polo: A Journey through China by Fiona MacDonald, David Salariya and Mark Bergin
• The Travels of Marco Polo- Volume 1 (other volumes available) by Rustichello of Pisa and Marco Polo and Henry Yule (Kindle version of Polo's manuscript, primary source for high schoolers)

Online quiz 

Interactive map

NOTE: In almost every book I've read, there is content which could be considered controversial. This book, The Story of Marco Polo, is no different. I must note, having read the book and penning a post, there is mention of cannibals in Sumatra. As with any book, the parent must decide how and when to handle content with their family. 

Living Books Forum: A Book Ignited a Fire...A Learning Fire!

Do you have a childhood favorite read, one that impacted you so greatly you remember every page? 

Maybe a picture book, a chapter book?

After reading your favorite book, did you reach for others by the same author? The same topic or genre?

Not long ago one of the learners in my home read a book that started a literary fire, a fire that burned brightly for months, actually almost a year if you count all the extended studies ignited off to the side.

The book that started the fire? 

The Story of Florence Nightingale by Margaret Leighton

I remember the evening she finished the book. She closed the book, clutched it to her chest, and remarked, "That was a good book! I feel like I know Florence Nightingale. I know the trials she faced as she treated people. I know about her courage to do something other people thought she shouldn't do. That was a good book!"

"Do we have any other nurse books?"

Wow! The power of a story!

We walked to the bookshelf and pull a few others. One after another, they were read, each time adding another layer of learning. When she read the all books we owned, we looked for more. 

Eventually her study broadened to women who changed medical science. That leg of the learning journey became a biographical science project (really mini research projects grouped into one) which spark studies in human anatomy and physiology, later branched to health and nutrition. Each learning segment was sparked by the one before, but ignited by one book.

                                         The Story of Florence Nightingale by Margaret Leighton

Keeping great books--books that are alive and carry the reader into the story-- in my home is one of my greatest pursuits. Finding books which capture attention and ignite learning, all the while building reading confidence and fluency. Finding books is now part of my yearly planning as I consider curricula for the coming year. Sometimes I comment, "I used to spend hours thumbing through catalogs, now I reference book lists and search garage sales, used bookstores, and Ebay". When we find literary treasures, eyes light up. Learning fires are started!

                                              Are there books in your home that ignite learning? 

                                     Do you want to learn more about how you can spark interest? 

           Join us at Living Books Forum, April 5, just one week away. 

Workshop descriptions here.

Register here. 

Living Books Forum: Excerpt from The Wright Brothers: First to Fly by Madge Haines and Leslie Morrill

What is a living book? Another mom inquires. A term best defined by an excerpt, a sample. 

Here are a few excerpts from one in a series we enjoy, Makers of America. The book is titled The Wright Brothers: First to Fly by Madge Haines and Leslie Morrill and invites the reader on adventures of experimentation with the Wright brothers from the time they were young boys to their famous flight.

"One evening Wilbur said to Orville, 'I wish I could find the scientific law that made the small helicopter rise. Then I think I could figure out why the big one we made did not fly.'

'I'll bring you some books from the town library,' Orville offered. 'I know you have ready everything your're interested in, in Father's library.'

During those months while Wilbur was slowly gaining his strength, he used his hands in making light, delicate things. He became very skillful in using chisels and tools. He read books and magazine articles on the subject of flying.

As Orville came into his room one evening. Wilbur looked up from a magazine and spoke with a new note of eagerness. 'A man in Germany has made a glider that can carry him through the air.'

***

'Otto Lilienthal. He has been experimenting with gliders. He waits for a strong breeze, then he runs down a hill into the wind, and the glider actually carries him.' Wilbur was demonstrating with his arms. 

Orville reached over to take the magazine from his brother. 'Why don't we make one?'

Wilbur nodded. 'But we'd better do some studying first.'"

***

"With the wind blowing harder then ever, the plane kept climbing. Now it was ten feet off the ground and still in the air. Now it was flying right away from Wilbur.

The boy who had been watching jerked off his cap and waved and shouted, 'He's flying! He's flying!'

Orville did not hear. He was too busy trying to steer the plane and to think of what was happening...with 'the machine moving forward, the air flying backward, the propeller turning sidewise, and nothing standing still.'

In a few seconds the plane began to come down, but it did not crash. It settled gently on the sand.

'How long was I up?'

'Twelve seconds!'

There are living books for almost every subject, at every reading level, from beginning readers through adult. 

How do we incorporate those into our days?

One simple way is to have the books available, in your home, where children and young adults have them accessible.

Tina Farewell and I will be sharing how to build a home library with title your children will enjoy. Later in the morning Tina will be sharing how to teach grammar, vocabulary, mechanics and conversation from the contents of living books. I will be offering a workshop on using living books (real books) through the high school years. 

Workshop descriptions for ALL the workshops offered at Living Books Forum can be found here.

Come to Living Books Forum and you will gain lists of titles as well as practical helps to make learning engaging and memorable in your home.