Living Unabridged

What's the first and central task of a teacher?
from the book Instead of Education: Ways to Help People Do Things Betterby John Holt.

I like to read John Holt's work every so often to throw a stick of dynamite into my thinking about education in general and homeschooling in particular.

What I found really interesting this time, was this book was written before the modern homeschool movement had started picking up steam. It was in response to this work that people started writing Holt about how they were - quietly - educating their children themselves.
(It also made me sad that Holt didn't get to live to see the potential changes technology has brought us.)

I loved this book, and it made it into my commonplace book several times, so I'm sure some more quotes will be showing up here.

What I'm Reading Now:

Recent additions:

Nothing really, which makes me a little sad. I had to take back several books without finishing them. I do have several books on hold at the library that haven't come in yet. I'm waiting somewhat impatiently for those.

Recently Finished:

Everybody Writes: Your Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Contentby Ann Handley. Highly recommended for bloggers and other folks who are in the the "content creation" business. Practical and funny.

The Mysterious Affair at Stylesby Agatha Christie. First in the Hercule Poirot series. I don't think I've read this one before. You can definitely tell it came early in Christie's writing career, but the hints of what will make her the most beloved mystery author are all there.

Instead of Education: Ways to Help People Do Things Betterby John Holt. I talked about this one already, so I'll just say again: highly recommended.

Burnt Toast Makes You Sing Good: A Memoir of Food and Love from an American Midwest Familyby Kathleen Flinn. Nothing truly remarkable happens, nothing terribly horrific.

This is a family like many you might find in the U.S (including my own). There are personal triumphs and tragedies. Despite the fact that it sounds like it breaks all the rules of memoir (which always seem to be based on horrific experiences or losses), this is nostalgic, fun look at a family that might not be so different from your own.

Recent Kindle Additions:

Anne of Green Gables Collection: 12 Books, Anne of Green Gables, Anne of Avonlea, Anne of the Island, Anne's House of Dreams, Rainbow Valley, Rilla of Ingleside, Chronicles of Avonlea, PLUS MORE!I own paperback copies of all of L.M. Montgomery's novels but I still ordered this one. You can never have too much Anne. And at $0.99, this is a steal.
The 15 Success Traits of Pro Bloggers: A Proven Roadmap to Becoming a Full-Time Bloggerby Jonathan Milligan. Picked this one up when it was free (it isn't any longer), but haven't read any of it yet.

Current Read Aloud:

Betsy-Tacyby Maud Hart Lovelace. Our 10 year old and 8 year old are thoroughly enjoying this one. The 10 year old recently asked me, "Are you going to read Betsy, Tacy, and Tib after this or do I need to plan to just read that one myself?"

Also, did you know today was World Read Aloud Day? If you'd like to see a list of our favorite read alouds check out this post: 5 Days of Raising Readers - Be Together.

Current Book to Review:

Still haven't ordered one but there may be some new, interesting titles coming along in March.

I do have a cookbook giveaway going on now. If you're interested in teaching your kids to cook, or improving your own cooking skills, you might be interested in this: Kids in the Kitchen: Real Life, Real Learning. (With a Simplified Dinners cookbook giveaway)

What are you reading now?

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