Teach your children poetry

What is the Charlotte Mason approach to the				encourages us to give children contact with
study of poetry? Our first step is to see				the minds of thinkers. Education is mind to
that our children enjoy it. Much later they				mind, thought to thought, person to person.
will probably take the second step for
themselves, reading those poets whose work				Notes, commentaries, lectures, long lists of
needs some preliminary study and background				questions, and other middlemen are not
explanations in order to be appreciated.				needed. Let the poets speak and the children
				do the thinking.
In Our Present Society Poetry is Almost
Invisible These days poetry seems to have				Biographical backgrounds on the poets serve
been boiled down to the popular "jingle" or				to widen a child's curriculum and add to his
an advertisement's "catchy phrase." Does				cultural heritage.
poetry only belong to bygone days when the
average person spent what little leisurely				For a lighter dose, or to tempt a child who
time he did have reading and reciting?				doesn't think he will like poetry, try the
Consider the life of ancient Athens at its				nonsense poetry of Lewis G.
best-its peace and learned leisure and
poetry. Compare this to the restless,				Carroll or Edward Lear. Slightly older
artificial, luxurious existence of Rome.				children won't be able to resist the humor of
				Ogden Nash. While "nonsense" poetry is not
Like ancient Rome, today is a day of bigger				full of great insights, it does train the ear
and better things-interstate highways,				to delicious sounds and rhythms. What fun
100-acre amusement parks, huge hotels, super				just to repeat, "Jabberwocky" or "The Owl and
supermarkets and bigger and bigger newspapers				the Pussycat!" Humorous poetry can be just as
(so that whatever is hideous in life may				much fun to repeat ("Telephony" by Ogden Nash
reach our ears within a few hours of its				is a good example), and has a sharper tang,
happening).				great for developing those critical thinking
				skills! Develop Your Inner Ear A calm stately
Poetry is one of the things that can't be				voice echoes from the past, "Take your time."
made bigger and better. It must remain				Poetry will speak wonderful things to those
quietly and unobtrusively and forever itself.				who give it time and attentiveness. As
Vulnerable, it may drop unnoticed out of the				reading requires an inward eye, poetry
running, leaving us to our steel-girded world				requires an inward ear. Unencumbered by
of material things without its pleasure. But				modern media, our great-great-grandparents
despite its invisibility many people still				had both. They read poetry for pleasure and
read poetry for pleasure today. I'd like my				made a regular meal of their favorites.
children to be among them.
				A really good poem can be read many times
Poetry is Serious Business Poetry is not just				over. Your readings increase in pleasure over
a school subject. It is the deepest				the years. This is an old-time method of
expression of thought and feeling of which				"studying" poetry that deserves mentioning.
certain exceptional minds have been capable.
It includes the full gamut of all human				From Shorter to Longer Works In the days
experiences, from war poems and epics, to				before workbooks, young children in Miss
psalms of worship, to love sonnets, to				Mason's schools had copy books. Children were
delightful nonsense verse that trips off the				to choose some favorite verse and copy it
tongue, to nursery rhymes-anything people				neatly into these personal books. Thus the
think about or sing about. We can read it as				study of poetry also yielded better
though we ourselves shared in those thoughts				penmanship, spelling, and vocabulary.
and those emotions.
				After years of a relationship with poetry,
Poetry has been helping men and women from				built on the shorter poems, children will be
all backgrounds and cultures share deep				capable of enjoying and comprehending longer
emotional experiences and insights throughout				and more abstract works. High school students
all recorded history. Hearing a translation				can become familiar with the longer works of
of a remarkably beautiful poem written by				traditional classic poetry just by checking
King Tutankhamen to his wife, I was				out books of poetry from the adult section of
astounded! Chaucer, Shakespeare, and the				a public library. This is where some
author of Beowulf also wrote poetry that				background explanation, in the form of
still speaks to us today on many different				critical commentaries or even the ever-handy
levels. They didn't write it for textbooks				Cliff Notes, may be helpful.
either.
				Along with Beowulf, the works of Chaucer and
Early in this century Vermont farmers would				Shakespeare are commonly studied in high
read poetry beside their fires in winter. My				school. They contain more adult themes, so
husband Dean and I once knew a hefty				use your discretion. These were included with
Rolls-Royce auto mechanic who loved opera and				emphasis in a Charlotte Mason style of
poetry.				education. I am unfamiliar with more modern
				poetry, but the usual warnings apply.
We would admit a child grows up lopsided if
athletic prowess is his only ambition. Let's				Poetry For an Uncertain World It has been
take this idea further and say he'd receive a				said by an educator following Charlotte
lopsided education if he could "make the				Mason's philosophy, "Literature is the sum
grade" without any love or respect for				total of the courage and home, the faith,
poetry.				delight, and despair of the past, and if we
				deny youth this, and give them instead a
With Tact and a Tiny Bit of Enthusiasm How				little pale skepticism of our own, a
can we introduce our children to poetry? You				conscientious distrust of the ideals with
can never make a girl or boy like a poem				have sustained other generations and other
against his or her will. You can not bully				ages, a belief that the world began yesterday
them into it, or argue them into it. Convert				and if we are not careful will end tomorrow,
them by indirect means.				because our own idealism is unequal to the
				problems it has to face, then we do them a
Infect them by your own interest and gentle				poor service. All our aspirations for the
enthusiasm. Pick out some poetry that appeals				young are likely to be defeated unless we
to you and simply read it aloud to your				hand them on a certain moral stability, a
children. Eventually they may desire to start				belief in beauty, truth and goodness for
reading some on their own. Don't be surprised				their own sake; whereas if we give them
if their tastes are a bit different than				these-and in giving them these poetry will
yours! If you do not like poetry there is an				surely be included-we have at least the
obvious remedy: introduce the child and the				assurance that we have done our best to equip
poem and leave them to make friends for				them adequately for the certain difficulties
themselves. They may, or they may not, but				of this uncertain world." Resources For the
you can never make things better by your				Young Lavender's Blue is a book of nursery
interference.				rhymes compiled by Kathleen Lines with
				pictures in soft pastel colors by Harold
In introducing people it is generally a				Jones. It's published by Oxford University
mistake to praise too much beforehand.				Press.

You may only establish a distaste. In the				We wore out a copy of The Random House Book
same way it is a mistake to praise a poem too				of Poetry for Children (selected by Jack
eloquently. After all, the child is entitled				Prelutsky and illustrated by Arnold Lobel) in
to form his own opinion. To drag a poem into				our home. It provides a cute and funny
the glare of publicity is to lose some of				commentary on life. I suggested it as a
those very qualities which made it precious.				"first" poetry book for kindergarten through
When you share a poem you can simply say with				second grade. You may need to remove the few
tact "I like this poem, do you?" In the case				Halloween pages.
of younger children, try and create a mood of
enjoyment, first by choosing the sort of poem				A copy of A Child's Garden of Verse by Robert
they are likely to appreciate and then by				Louis Stevenson should be available in every
throwing yourself into reading it aloud with				public library. We have a copy illustrated by
gusto, or better still allowing them to throw				Jessie Willcox Smith.
themselves into it with zest. If you
introduce them to really good poetry as Miss				A poetry book with gorgeous full color
Mason advocated, suitable for their age,				paintings is A Child's Treasury of Poems
children will do the rest for themselves.				edited by Mark Daniel. It is coffee-table
				quality.
Ways to Take a Poetry Break Seasonal Poetry
One way is to choose poems that celebrate the				Favorite Poems Old and New selected by Helen
changing of a season. Look in the index of				Ferris is a handy anthology that has been
any large poetry anthology for anything that				around since 1957 and is for sale in many
has to do with the particular time of year.				homeschool catalogs. I checked this book out
The Book of 1,000 Poems lists poems by season				of a library so many times that I was happy
in the subject index. There are over one				to see it available at a curriculum fair and
dozen poems per season with more than two				bought a copy.
dozen for spring-a favorite subject with many
poets. Whether it be winter, spring, summer,				The Book of 1,000 Poems is an inexpensive
or fall, you are certain to find an array of				hardcover "no-frills" anthology of over 600
poems. Read a few at a time to savor the				pages which we use a lot, too.
season. In between new readings any
previously read poems can be repeated as				For Older Students Treasury of Best Loved
often as desired-a painless way to memorize				Poems, illustrated by Eleanor Fortescue
poetry. Seasonal poems can be copied into				Brickdale, is a good introduction to reading
greeting cards by the children or onto large				weightier works. I have used it to acquaint
paper surrounded by children's drawings.				myself with poems by John Donne, Robert
				Burns, William Wordsworth, Lord Byron, Percy
By Subject Perhaps a more "schoolish" way to				Bysshe Shelley, Elizabeth Barrett Browning,
incorporate poetry into the curriculum would				Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson, Robert Frost,
be to ask what the poets have to say about				and others.
anything with which you happen to be
studying. Nature poetry abounds. I counted				An old book still in print is One Hundred and
fifty short poems about birds in our poetry				One Famous Poems, compiled by Roy J. Cook. It
anthology! There are poems about the sea,				has a black and white photograph or portrait
trees, animals of various kinds, the wind,				of each poet. The poems do not seem to match
the moon. There are poems about the early				the staunch Victorian faces, which leads me
morning, unusual people; there are patriotic				to believe that in some cases it may be
poems and story poems. Poets write about				better to read the poem without seeing the
honesty, fortitude, chivalry, decisiveness,				face. I guess we're more accustomed to the
loyalty, perseverance, hope, faith, and love.				modern "cover girl/cover guy" look. Charlotte
Their commentary on any subject as well as				Mason would deem the poems in this book
their subtle or profound sentiments are				required reading for every high school
worthy to be woven into our homeschools.				student.

One Poet at a Time Still another way to				For the Serious Reader of Poetry Five Hundred
acquire a taste for poetry is to become				Years of English Poetry (edited by Barbara
familiar with one poet at a time. Here are a				Lloyd-Evans) will satisfy any serious reader.
few favorites for the elementary years:				It has 1200 pages of meaty longer (British)
William Blake, Samuel Coleridge, Eleanor				poetry beginning with word-for-word Geoffrey
Farjeon, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, Walter				Chaucer (1343-1400) and ending with Matthew
de la Mare, Christina Rossetti, William				Arnold (1822-88). It omits Shakespeare, as
Shakespeare, Robert Louis Stevenson, Lord				the editor assumes you already own his works
Tennyson and John Greenleaf Whittier.				and she felt that including works from him
				would inconveniently lengthen the already
This time look in the index under an author's				over-sized book (high school/college level).
name. Read all of his or her poems you can
put your index finger on in one week.				Biographical Stories for the Young I have
				included several biographical stories of
Poetry is strewn with ideas-saturate yourself				famous poets in issues of my Parents' Review,
in these words that can have an intoxicating				a newsletter for home training and culture. A
effect on the intellect.				free description of back issues is available
				from Charlotte Mason Research & Supply
Ideas to the mind are what nutritious food is				Company
to the stomach. Remember, Charlotte Mason

1 A B C D E F 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137

Welcome to your ultimate homeschooling resource

Teach your children poetry