CPQ October Newsletter
The weather has finally turned in Tucson, and it is, dare I say it, cool. Just last week, it was still in the very high 80’s. But this week, I am excited to say that we are not only experiencing amazingly lovely temperatures, but we are also meeting fellow homeschoolers to drive up the mountain and maybe catch a glimpse of some fall leaves. The only place to see fall leaves here in the desert during actual fall months is to go up Mt. Lemmon, which sits at about 9000 feet elevation on the city's north side. (Fun fact about Tucson—it is surrounded on all four sides by distinct mountain ranges, so you can always tell which direction you are going without giving it much thought.) Down in the valley, the colors usually change around Christmas week. ‘Tis the season for porch sitting and dog walking without having to put on or take off any extra clothes! We are going to thoroughly enjoy it for the two weeks it lasts. I hope you are enjoying some lovely fall weather yourself today.
:) Cara
On The CPQ Blog
Uncommon Thoughts on the Common Cold
Behind the Scenes
Habit of Reading is at the printers
Fortitude articles are heading to layout
Upper Years articles are heading to copyedit
Personhood main article writers are being contacted
Did you know you can be a part of CPQ? Visit our website to find out how to submit photography, writing, and content pieces from your kiddos.
The Habit of Reading
Our next issue is at the printers!
Let’s highlight the main articles this quarter:
From Amber O’Neal Johnston:
In her first volume, Miss Mason writes, “The most common and the monstrous defect in the education of the day is that children fail to acquire the habit of reading. Knowledge is conveyed to them by lessons and talk, but the studious habit of using books as a means of interest and delight is not acquired” (V.1, p. 227).
This eye-opening idea hit home as I saw how easy it was to sustain a love of reading without any supporting action. And how the accoutrements of a well-read life can temporarily satisfy as empty calories do, while true satiety comes only through actual foodstuffs. I recognized then that my focus had to shift from promoting a love of reading with my children to securing their future reading lives. And when my gaze was rightly fixed, I discovered many gifts waiting for my family.
From Cara Williams:
Building the habit of reading becomes less about joy and less about getting lost in a story. Instead, it, out of necessity, must be taught as a habit, one derived from a sense of duty to self and others. I used to feel burdened by the idea that the love was not there until I read the passage above in the volumes. I began to realize that Charlotte Mason almost never advocates for a love of reading because a love of reading isn’t the goal. The goal is a love of knowledge. Sometimes, a love of knowledge and a love of reading go hand in hand, and sometimes, they don’t.
Mason believed that the best source of knowledge was found in books—so much so that she built her entire educational philosophy around that idea. She knew kids had to develop a habit of reading early, but she also knew that not every child learns the same. There are allowances in this passage for being both behind the norm and for being ahead. Charlotte Mason believed that the love and pursuit of knowledge were meant for every child. I shed a measurable burden of pressure and guilt after comprehending this. It told me that it was ok that my kids didn’t always understand. That wasn’t the point.
From Nancy Kelly:
Charlotte Mason encourages us to develop the habit of reading in ourselves and in our children. She shares guidelines with us about quantity and quality and exhorts us to read with a plan. Telling back to someone, writing about what we have read, or even silently narrating to ourselves is important. Her use of the phrase, “read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest” from the Book of Common Prayer reminds us that we are to pay close attention first to the Scriptures and then to all other reading. How we read books is how we will read the Bible and how we read the Bible forms the habit of all other reading. As with everything we do in life, the habit of reading is sacred.
And from Sparrow:
So it is with many books. You’ll actually think about it, really, instead of just enjoying it. (I don’t mean specifically challenging your first assumptions about it. That can be an aspect of it, but it’s more than that.) There must be something in the underlying themes, maybe not intentional on the part of the author, that did it. Or just a passing phrase of a character, or just a strange description. It pulls you out of the book, but in a good way somehow. It gets you thinking about your own life, shoves you politely out for a break from the smooth river of story. You’re left stranded for a second without even realizing it, and then you might go back in and forget it ever happened. But then, perhaps not. Perhaps you stay in that spot all by yourself, making connections that don’t exist in the book, and by the end you’re changed a little.
Back issues will be available in the shop soon.
Something to Read and Something Pretty
Our download this quarter comes from The Parent’s Review article titled: The Influence and Teaching of the Educated Mother. Have you read it? Give it a read and grab your free download by clicking the button below.
Join the CPQ Team
We are seeking someone passionate about music who wants to join Common Place Quarterly! We are looking for someone who could commit to a year’s worth of articles (four total), approximately 600 words long, of composer biographies for the “educate” section of the magazine.
If you are interested in this, please contact us at info@commonplacequarterly.com for more details and use “CPQ Composer Biographies” as the subject line of your email.
Get To Know The Editors
What’s Cara…
Reading: The Covenant of Water by Verghese
Making: Colonial Christmas Celebration plans for our local CM Academy
Eating: Chili Mac that my mom dropped off
Watching: All the new cartoons on the Bentkey App with the kids
Buying: New pants for the ever-growing 9-year-old
Drinking: Cafe de Olla
Thinking about: the many different ways that community learning manifests itself and how each of them has its own form of beauty, connection, and encouragement
Learning: about topographical poetry and how it came to be
What’s Mariah…
Reading: A Tale of Redwall: Mossflower (aloud to the boys), A Zoo in my Luggage (on audio), and The Moonstone.
Making: thoughts into an article for the Fortitude issue.
Buying: nerf guns for my husband and me. I have an idea for something fun we could do to celebrate his birthday next month.
Eating: Chili and cornbread. ‘Tis the season.
Watching: I won’t lie. I started the Great British Baking Show series over again.
Learning: to be gentle with everyone, me included.
Drinking: Chai tea
Thinking about: how to make this holiday season simple, cozy, sweet, and meaningful without losing my mind or ignoring caretaking responsibilities.
What’s Sarah…
Reading: The Story of the Middle Ages by Christine Miller (time for Term 2 pre-reading!) and Blessings All Mine with 10,000 Besides by Fredrick L. Kosin
Buying: A big package of black slipper socks. Almost everyone in my family can wear the same size sock now, so I’m planning on putting a basket of slipper socks next to the couch in the hopes that stinky, sweaty slippers don’t become a thing this year.
Eating: donuts that my dad dropped off…that was a surprise and a treat!
Watching: The third Anne of Green Gables movie with the kids.
Making: A baby quilt of pieced bird blocks and my first throw pillows from favorite scraps of fabric. I want my couch to look like a fabric store exploded on it.
Thinking about: High school transcripts. I wrote my first course description this week and decided how to divide up my 14 yo’s timetable into appropriate classes for his transcript.
Drinking: Banana leaf tea. Apparently, it helps with inflammation and sleep and has lots of polyphenols. Who doesn’t need all of that? It’s actually delicious.
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