Reading, the Basis of Education

Today I had to miss class to help with the Consulate General Dinner.  One of the people being honored was a "lifelong educator", and in his speech he had a lot to say about education.  It really made me think about how important early education is to our society.  We all take it for granted that we start school at the age of five, and many of us don't finish until we are twenty-two or older.  All of our upper-level education is based on what we learn to do in kindergarten, first, and second grade: Read.  Teaching children to read is a daunting task, something I have learned by volunteering with the HOSTS program, but it is one of the most important things we will ever learn to do.  Children's books and literature play a huge part in this process.  Kids don't want to read text books or adult novels.  They want funny, irrational, interesting books.  Having reading mateial specifically for children helps a ton when trying to teach children to read, and reading is the basis for education.  

Lewis Carroll, aka Charles Dodgson

I found the class lecture about Lewis Carroll rather interesting, so I decided to find out a little more.  Here's what I found:

Charles Dodgson (Lewis Carroll) was born in 1832 in Cheshire, England.  He was extraordinarily gifted, and he known as a mathematician, photographer, logician, clergyman, and writer.  I find it very interesting that he was such a good photographer for his time.  It seems to simple for the man who wrote Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.  I also find it amazing that he just made up this story one day to tell Alice, and then wrote it down.  One tends to wonder how his brain must have worked, and whether there might have been something wrong with him.  During his later years, Dodgson preached at a Church (Which also seems odd to me), and enjoyed his fame and success.  He died of phenomena right before his 66th birthday.  Today, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass are still popular among children and adults alike.  

Dr. Seuss!

Its a new week...so time for a new book!  Today I read Oh The Places You'll Go by Dr. Seuss.  This book is special to me because I received it as a gift from an old teacher when I graduated from high school.   This may seem odd, but it really gave me something to think about before I left for college.   The pictures and rhymes are so much fun, but they have meaning also.  As I read the book again, several things stood out to me.  First, the illustrations are great.  They are colorful, flowing, and make the words a little easier to relate to.  For children, this is very important.  Dr. Seuss did a fantastic job of creating this children's book.  One of the kids I mentor in HOSTS also chose this book to read.  I could see his face light up as he looked at each of the pictures, and he read each word with enthusiasm.  This was the other thing that stood out to me...Seuss seemed so passionate about his work, and it is obvious in every book he wrote.  They are all fun, crazy, and awesome to read, even though they are only children's books.   

The Giving Tree

Today I went to the bookstore to read children's picture books...how much better could a Sunday afternoon get!?  I picked The Giving Tree by Shel Silvestein as the fourth book on my list.  This book tells so much with so few words.  It is also one of the most depressing picture books I have ever read.  After everything the tree does for the boy, he never really seems appreciative.  In the beginning everything seems so good, and then so many things change.  I think everyone can relate to this book, and maybe children can even learn a lesson from it.  Everything changes, but it isn't always a happy thing for everyone.  In a sense, I also think this book has a very spiritual aspect to it.  The tree, perhaps a symbol for a higher being, gives everything to the boy and expects nothing in return.  This is much how the Bible describes our relationship with God.  He gave/gives us everything, and so many of us are ungrateful.  

Another amazing part of this book is the drawings.  They are so full of life and explanation, even though they are so simple and cute.  Shel Silverstein is a wonderful author and artist!  

Reaction to Alice

When I began reading Alice's Adventure's in Wonderland I had no idea how weird it was.  Honestly, I really didn't enjoy the first six chapters, but maybe it is only because I didn't understand them.  Also, knowing how much Lewis Carroll liked little girls made me wonder if something wasn't right.  I usually like fantasy but to me this book has no plot or reason.  It makes it rather difficult to read and understand.  The class discussion today helped me understand the book a little more, and now I know that many of the experiences described were inside jokes for the girls the book was written for.  Still, I don't find many of the descriptions and conversations as funny as I thought they would have been after reading the introduction.  Maybe it will get better...who knows!

Fantasy to Me

To me, fantasy is everything my life isn't.  It allows me to escape, to dream, to believe.  My favorite books, the Harry Potter series, are a wonderful example of fantasy.  What is true for them is true for many other children's fantasies.  After I get up from a few hours of reading, I feel like I am still in the book, part of the plot.  Nothing else matters to me but finding Lord Voldermort during those few hours.  Other books similar in genre also allow me to paint my own pictures.  The author gives me guidelines, but because the things in these books aren't real, I am free to design them however I want.  Before today, I didn't realize how much I enjoyed reading works of fantasy.  Tuck Everlasting, Charlotte's Web, and The Hobbit all fit under this category, yet they are all so different.  Every one of them I love, though.  My mind wonders through page after page of descriptions of things I know don't really exist, yet while I'm reading they are the most real thing in my world.  At that moment, they are the only things in my world.

The Passageway

This will be the fourth installment of my short story:

As Emma topped the hill she had been working to climb, her stomach dropped.  Before her was a winding river, as beautiful and wide as the Nile.  Further down river it was apparent that the river dropped off a cliff, creating a cascading waterfall.  What was even more strange was that there were people on this river, paddling boats from one side to the other, like water taxis.  Other boats were obviously for fishing or entertainment.  What a pain it must be to keep the boats from falling over the waterfall like a toy tugboat being flushed down the toilet.  Emma could hear nothing.  Not the waterfall crashing so close by, not the people talking a chattering to one another, not the birds she so recently enjoyed listening to.  What was happening, and why had so many things changed with the one step it took to top the hill?  Emma confidently began walking up to one of the boat people.  If she anything good was going to become of this situation, she had to make it.  

My Favorite Book

One of my favorite children's book is Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  In fact, my parents read us the whole series when we were younger.  I'm not sure why this one was my favorite, but reading it recently defiantly made me remember how amazing of a book it is.  Wilder does a great job of describing the surroundings and everyday life of her family.  After doing a little research, I found out that when her family moved to the "little house on the prairie", Laura was only three.  In the book she tells the story as though she is six or seven.  Many of the experiences she has on the prairie remind me of living in the country for my whole life.  Even though it is obviously very different, my siblings and I spent day after day outside playing in the creek and climbing trees.  Laura also spends much of her time exploring the outdoors, even though living in Indian territory could be dangerous.  For the most part, this book just makes me happy!  It is wonderfully interesting and a pleasure to read!

A Brief Study Guide of 3 Fairy Tales

Cinderella- 

• Classic Version- Brothers Grimm Version, Lin-Lan, Yeh-Hsien, Story of the Black Cow
• In the classic versions the stepmother is the villain, Cinderella is a passive character, absent or dead fathers, fairy Godmother has something to do with ending
• Catskin Versions- Donkeyskin, Catskin, Princess in the Leather Suit
• In the Catskin versions the father wants to marry the daughter, Cinderella takes an active role in her future, mother is dead, forced to leave home

Little Red Riding Hood-

• The Story of Grandmother- very gruesome, LRRH gets no real instructions from mother, she saves herself
• Perrault Version- Has a moral, still no instructions from mother
• Red Cap, Brothers Grimm- LRRH and Grandmother are saved by a hunter, similiar to the stories we know today, has a "second story" that tells what happens to the good girl
• James Thurber Version- Very different from the usual, both LRRH and wolf know the story, "Not so easy to fool little girls as it used to be"
• Goldflower and the Bear- Little brother represents the masculine figure, Goldflower knows what is happening the whole time, very clever, saves the day
• Roald Dahl Version- My favorite!, LRRH shoots wolf and gets the skin, in a later story the little pigs have to call "Miss Hood" to get help, then she kills the pig also

Snow White-

• Jealousy and envy are the basis for most versions of this story
• Anne Sexton Version- Not written for children, story implies that Snow White will someday be just like her stepmother, looking in mirror.
• The Young Slave- an early version, uncle saves Snow White from horrible aunt, put to sleep with a poison comb
• Brothers Grimm Version- Very similiar to Disney's version, real mother is introduced in the beginning and step mother dies at the end, involves mirror, poison apple, prince, etc.

Ever After!

I love the movie Ever After! I think Drew Barrymore did a wonderful job playing Daniele and the plot was great. What I found interesting, however, was the way it related and corrisponded to the Reniassance. When we were going over this in class, I realized how important all these factors are. They all fit together very well, and make the movie understandable and believable for adults as well as children. My favorite character was Leanardo da Vinci because I felt he was so unexpected in the movie. He made a great "fairy Godmother", though! Everything he did made sense in a way that I would not have thought of, but worked well throughout the movie. One problem I have with the movie is that Daniele is a little to blunt for my taste. Although it makes her character, it seems like she sould have been a little more careful with her words sometimes. Over all, I liked the movie a lot!

Forever, He Said

Someone once told me forever, 

Never did I realize the ties it would sever.

Like a fairy tale, he told.

Never did I realize the hell it would hold.  

It won't be hard, it can right.

Never did I realize the fight.

Fairy tales are for children

When meanings can be hidden.

I know better, I am no sleeping beauty.

I have a life, I have my duty.  

Now I know when to stop.

Now I understand the life I must top.

Not for me, I shouted.

This attack on my heart won't be allowed.  

It can't work, our lives are two.

I know it, I know you.

Leave me be, let me go.

I will always love you, I know you know.  

This is my response to real life fairy tales, just in time for Valentine's Day!

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

I just finished reading the last of J.K. Rowling's novels, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.  I read the book during the summer, but I felt I went too fast to actually enjoy all of it.  There are several things about this book I find interesting.  First, after reading the whole series in a row, I realized how much better of a writer Rowling was when she finished book number seven.  Even though she was amazing to begin with, the last book is a level about the rest.  It was so interesting to see the progress she has made.  Another awesome thing about The Deathly Hallows is the way it ties up every loose end in the story.  Even when you think you understand, you turn the page and find out you were wrong, but that it is explained in such a way that everything now makes sense.  I also think this book is much more depressing than the others.  Rowling's tone changes to fit Harry's maturity level and the circumstances.  It is much more serious and dark than the others, but still amazingly colorful when it comes to descriptions of the everyday happenings in Harry's life.  After finishing all the books, I cried harder than I ever have at the end of a movie.  Each book that came out has been my favorite until the next came out, and the last was no different.  Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is my favorite book, and I guess it will be until J.K. Rowling reveals her next masterpiece.  I can't wait!

The Passageway

The third installment of my short story:

Emma couldn't help but be frightened, even though her surroundings were the most gorgeous thing she had ever seen.  How would she ever get back home if the door she came through had disappeared?  She began to walk slowly toward the hill in front of her.  It was a gentle climb, yet Emma found herself strangely out of breath.  All around her were things that should have made her happy and joyful, but no matter how she hardly she focused on these things her stomach wouldn't let her enjoy herself.  It was one of those feelings you get when you know something isn't right, when you realize everything might not be okay.  She continued to walk up, ever closer to seeing what was beyond the grass covered hill.  The pleasant sound of the birds continued and the sun warmed her face.  Surely nothing could go wrong in a place so beautiful...

H.O.S.T.S

After hearing the announcement about HOSTS in class a few weeks ago, I decided to get involved.  It really was one of the better decisions I have made.  Although I only worked with one child for 30 minutes on Monday, I was so glad I did it!  Each child gets to pick a book on their reading level and read it to their helper.  The little boy reading to me picked Clifford the Big Red Dog, and I think he really enjoyed it.  I also enjoyed it because I got to listen to someone so young begin to like reading.  I felt honored to get to do the same thing my mom did with me with someone else.  His face lit up when he got to turn the page and see what happened next, and he read every word perfectly.  I never knew listening to a child read could be so rewarding.  After I got home on Monday I emailed the director and asked her if I could spend more time helping.  I am already looking forward to next Monday!!

Ella Enchanted, Ella My Dog

When I was about 10, our family got a dog.  My mom had just finished reading us Ella Enchanted (Yes, she read to us all the time!) so we named the puppy Ella.  My sister and I absolutely loved the book, but then again, what 10-year-old girl wouldn't?  Until just recently, that had been the last time I read the fabulous book.  Now that I am older and more understanding of character development, plot, etc., I realize how great it really is.  When I was little, I knew it was a good story and had a good ending, but thats about it.  Ella is a fantastic character throughout the book.  She is strong willed, yet must be obedient, she intelligent, witty, and beautiful.  During the book, the reader gets a chance to see many sides of Ella, and each is more intriguing than the last.  She is one of my all-time favorite characters!