4 August 2010

Dear Friend, 

I know that many homeschoolers are still on vacation, but I'm getting questions for those who are gearing up for fall. I'll include one here, and answer more on the blog (I've already answered them privately) in the coming weeks. I've also chosen a summer poem to inspire you: The Summer Rain by Henry David Thoreau. You may enjoy it on the blog: 

 http://www.janice-campbell.com/2010/07/29/our-summer-poem-the-summer-rain-by-henry-david-thoreau

I've finished the series of blog articles on caregiving, and ironically find my own caregiving situation drastically changed. My grandmother fell when she was in respite care during the NoVA conference, and she went to the hospital and from there into rehab in a nursing home. We're beginning to wonder if she'll ever be back home with us, as 97-year-old bodies and minds don't bounce back quickly. It's been a very difficult time, and I ask that you pray for wisdom and peace as we work through all this.

Here is a link to the most recent caregiving article, Can Learning Go On While Caregiving? Crisis Schooling for Homeschoolers: 

http://www.janice-campbell.com/2010/07/14/can-learning-go-on-while-caregiving-crisis-schooling-for-homeschoolers 

 You'll find links to the rest of the caregiving articles at the bottom of each post in the series. 

The Excellence in Literature question (and my informal e-mail answer):

Is there a teacher's manual with suggested answers?

The EIL books are written so that you don't need a teacher's manual at all, because they're designed to be self-directed. The instructions are written out week by week, and are pretty simple, as you can see in the sample unit. As the mom-evaluator, all you'll end up doing is evaluating the essays according the rubric that's included, and you can even outsource that if you prefer (Connie Schenkelberg is a retired teacher, and she does evaluations via e-mail). The front and back of the book contain background information for how to approach the course, and that's pretty much all that's necessary. 

As for suggested answers, that would be difficult. In any literary analysis class, a professor would expect to get almost as many different interpretations of the focus text as there were students. Writing prompts direct students to analyze something specific about the text, but just as on the SAT essay, they are to use all of their knowledge, experience, worldview, and reading to create of a plausible analysis. This obviously results in a wide variety of responses. 

Analytical essays usually contain qualifying phrases such as, "The author seems imply that....". It's impossible for a reader to know exactly what an author intended (unless the author has left a documentary statement, and even then, the reader has to judge if the statement is reliable), or exactly why certain plot elements exist, but the point of it all is to examine the text closely and apply other knowledge and come up with a reasonable hypothesis that addresses the writing prompt.

There is not exactly a "right" answer. An essay can be badly written or poorly supported, but if there is a well-reasoned answer to the prompt, and the response is supported by quotations from the text or appropriate supporting materials, it can be a valid essay even if the student takes a position that another writer or teacher disagrees with. After you've established that the essay answers the writing prompt, it's a matter of evaluating each of the items on the rubric, which makes the feedback useful to the student.

 

Don't forget about Connie Schenkelberg's writing coach service. For many of you who aren't comfortable evaluating written work, Connie is a real blessing! Here's the link:

http://www.everyday-education.com/grammar/writing-coach.shtml

And now, I hope you enjoy the rest of summer!

 Blessings,

Janice Campbell

www.Everyday-Education.com