Shakespeare: Macbeth

Macbeth & Banquo with the 3 Weird Sisters (Image Source)
Macbeth is the scheduled Shakespeare play this term at AmblesideOnline.org, and as usual, we'll be following the rotation. We will be adding some new things this time around though, and I'm writing those down here, for posterity's sake. Because I may need to be reminded some years down the road, as I am in this for the long-haul. I have a mere 18 years to go... at least if we're done making babies who turn into future students. ;) Speaking of babies, I have lately discovered that I hold a very divergent view to that of Lady Macbeth in regard to suckling babes...

Ahem.

So, Macbeth...

What we usually do: 
Listen to an (abridged) version: Bruce Coville's rendition in audiobook format is what we used this time around.
Do a sketch, or more correctly termed, a schematic sketch of all the characters (everybody usually wants to do their own version):
Read the play aloud as a group, dividing into character parts.
I've decided on a couple monologues from Macbeth that we'll read aloud weekly during the term. The olders will use these for recitation. The littles just benefit from exposure. :)
See links below for sites I used to find the monologues...


What's new:
This year, my eldest AOy4 student is participating in the readings. Traditionally, before each scene, we divide up the speaking characters and then read the lines aloud together. Now, we have another reader! Because of the nature of this play and because of the fact we'll be using a study guide (see next point), I've dismissed my younger AOy4 student from the readings. He can listen/read if he wants to, but otherwise he's free to do something else.

With my AOy9 students, I'm experimenting with using Brightest Heaven of Invention to guide our study. So far, we've covered the Intro and the first two lessons. It's been a little choppy navigating how to divide the readings and commentary and questions and all over 12 weeks as BHI divides the play into four lessons. I haven't figured out a completely streamlined way yet, but I'll be posting my speculative plan (see end of post, if that's of interest to you). Then hopefully, I'll re-evaluate at the end of term what I think could have been done better. You know, for posterity's sake.


Helpful Links:
The University at Adelaide offers the best free kindle versions of Shakespeare that I can find online, with great formatting and linked table of contents! Check out their version of Macbeth here. I also like and have used MIT's version which I push-to-kindle.
Youtube version of the Orson Welles 1948 movie of Macbeth - The author of BHI, recommends this one as the best of the four versions he previewed. We may watch it... I'd really rather see a live performance though...

My friend Nancy just taught through Macbeth with her co-op students, how handy of timing is that? Here is her post: Recommended resources for Macbeth. Matter of fact, upon her recommendation, I purchased the kindle version of Leland Ryken's study guide for Macbeth. While he and the author of BHI have made distinct observations on the play, I definitely think one or the other is sufficient. BHI features six plays (Henry V, Julius Caesar, Hamlet, Macbeth, Taming of the Shrew and Much Ado About Nothing). There are Ryken study guides for Hamlet (coming soon) and Macbeth.

Monologues for recitation and memorization: here and here.
Arkangel audio version of Macbeth (unabridged) from LearnOutLoud.com

Brightest Heaven of Invention: A Christian Guide To Six Shakespeare Plays by Peter Leithart, find it on amazon.com here:


Miss Charlotte's commentary and application from Macbeth: 

"Every child, every man, who comes to a sudden halt watching the action of his own reason, is another Columbus, the discoverer of a new world. Commonly we let reason do its work without attention on our part, but there come moments when we stand in startled admiration and watch the unfolding before us point by point of a score of arguments in favour of this carpet as against that, this route in preference to the other, our chosen chum as against Bob Brown; because every pro suggested by our reason is opposed to some con in the background. How else should it happen that there is no single point upon which two persons may reason,––food, dress, games, education, politics, religion,––but the two may take opposite sides, and each will bring forward infallible proofs which must convince the other were it not that he too is already convinced by stronger proofs to
strengthen his own argument. Every character in history or fiction supports this thesis; and probably we cannot give a better training in right reasoning than by letting children work out the arguments in favour of this or that conclusion.

Thus, Macbeth, a great general, returns after a brilliant victory, head and heart are inflated, what can he not achieve? Could he not govern a country as well as rule an army? Reason unfolds the steps by which he might do great things; great things, ay, but are they lawful, these possible exploits? And then in the nick of time he comes across the 'weird Sisters,' as we are all apt to take refuge in fatalism when conscience no longer supports us. He shall be Thane of Cawdor, and, behold, confirmation arrives on the spot. He shall also be king. Well, if this is decreed, what can he do? He is no longer a free agent. And a score of valid arguments unfold themselves showing how Scotland, the world, his wife, himself, would be enhanced, would flourish and be blessed if he had the opportunity to do what was in him. Opportunity? The thing was decreed! It rested with him to find the means, the tools. He was not without imagination, had a poetic mind and shrank before the horrors he vaguely foresaw. But reason came to his aid and step by step the whole bloody tragedy was wrought out before his prescient mind. When we first meet with Macbeth he is rich in honours, troops of friends, the generous confidence of his king. The change is sudden and complete, and, we may believe, reason justified him at every point. But reason did not begin it. The will played upon by ambition had already admitted the notion of towering greatness or ever the 'weird Sisters' gave shape to his desire. Had it not been for this countenance afforded by the will, the forecasts of fate would have influenced his conduct no more then they did that of Banquo." vol 6 pg 140

Divide Macbeth (using BHI as study guide) over a 12 week term:

For now, we're going with the Option 2. (see below)

#1 - Either split the readings in half: read half of the reading selection each week (designated in BHI 'lessons'), read only half of the commentary and deal with half of the review & thought questions (pick several from those that apply to that week's reading).

OR

#2 - Read the whole selection from the play one week, narrate and pick several of the review questions. The next week, read the commentary and choose several thought questions for discussion and/or for essay format of written narration.

Possible 12 week term schedules using BHI:
Option 1	Option 2
wk1 intro (Colville audiobook or Lamb's) and schematic sketch of characters, read BHI intro wk2-3 Act 1.1 - 1.4 + commentary, review and thought Qs (half/week) wk4-5 read Acts 1.5-2.4 + commentary, review and thought Qs (half/week) wk6-7 read Acts 3-4 + commentary, review and thought Qs (half/week) wk8-9 read Act 5 + commentary, review and thought Qs (half/week) wk10 video, choose from essay questions, start paper (outline + first draft), write play wk11 edit paper + second draft, practice play wk12 hand in paper & perform drama	wk1 intro (Colville audiobook or Lamb's) and schematic sketch of characters. y9 - read BHI intro wk2 Act 1.1 - 1.4 + review Qs wk 3 BHI lesson 1 &thought Qs wk4 Acts 1.5-2.4 + review Qs wk5 BHI lesson 2 &thought Qs wk6 read Acts 3-4 + review Qs wk7 BHHI lesson 3 + thought Qs wk8 Act 5 + review Qs wk9 BHI lesson4 + thought Qs wk10 watch video, choose from essay questions, start paper (outline + first draft), write play wk11 edit paper + second draft, practice play wk12 hand in paper & perform drama

::

Maybe some of this will prove handy for somebody. Most likely, that somebody will be me come 'bout 15 years from now... Oh my, I can hardly imagine that far out.

Latin: What we do

Latin is a subject we do together. :)
We like learning together. 

Normally, one would begin Latin studies around Ambleside Online's Year 4. However, we didn't officially begin until AOy6 (for several reasons which I explain in another post). Up until recently, we've gone weekly through 1-3 lessons (per 20min sitting) in Getting Started with Latin (GSWL). After lesson 20 or so, we watched Visual Latin's (VL) Intro videos (free online). Honestly, VL's Dwane really brought life and meaning to our studies; the boys suddenly really WANTED to learn Latin. They like this guy who knows more than just one language and obviously finds Latin fun. I was seriously tempted to switch right away, but in the end, I think I'm glad to carry on through the end of GSWL and use the VL as an encouraging boost throughout. Once we're finished with GSWL, I'll probably use VL in conjunction with Lingua Latina (the teaching guide for using these together is free online here).

Here's what our weekly Latin lessons looked like:
1) I show the kids the new vocabulary word at the top of the page and they try to guess at its meaning. Having a good knowledge of Spanish already, this is usually a no-brainer for them. Other times, the word is new, we make a mental note of it and then get right to work using it in context of other ideas (the practice sentences).

2) I read the lesson aloud and then we alternate reading and translating with the given practice sentences like this:

3) I read the sentence aloud, Cullen reads the sentence aloud, Javen translates the sentence.

Spectat lunam. He looks at the stars.

4) Then we switch. I read aloud, Javen reads aloud, and Cullen translates.

Nauta stellas spectat.

Currently, we're doing Latin almost daily. I was noticing that we were having to spend too much time reviewing each week. Converting to shorter daily lessons should help to keep it fresh (and finish with this book sooner). This is recommended for all language study! Frequent short lessons are better than less frequent long lessons... this might just hold true for many areas of study!! :)

So for us, Latin's been relatively painless! It took some getting used to in the beginning, referring back often to the pronunciation guide in the back of the book (or one could listen to the free audio commentary provided by the author online here - my boys said this is BORING to listen to. I agree, but I think for some, teachers especially, it is probably really helpful).

Javen has started keeping his own notes of words he especially wants to remember. I like that initiative; paying careful attention does a good job of making an impression on the memory and then using the words often helps too. Eventually, if we continue deeper, a Latin notebook is definitely required as a REALLY helpful tool for keeping exercises and favorite passages in.

After lesson 60 or so, we watched Visual Latin's Lesson 1: Being Verbs (available for free online). This was awesome fun for the kids because they already were very familiar with many of the words Dwane uses, and yet they learned several words that they'd been really wanting to know (Getting Started with Latin introduces new words VERY slowly). I'll have them do the free worksheet on the day following that of watching the video.

So that 'bout sums it up. Both kids say they like Latin; personally I think they're rather proud of the fact that they are learning it. I certainly am proud of them for both learning and liking it!

Helpful links:

My kids tolerate this book:
Getting Started with Latin w/ free Audio files

An Extension of the above book:
Linney's Latin Class w/ free Lectures online based on the following classic book (available for free online): Latin for the first year

My kids ENJOY this:
Visual Latin. Try it here: 6 FREE Visual Latin Lessons!
The author recommends: Latin audio found here.
When/if I buy Visual Latin, I'm considering this Latin 1 & 2 package deal on DVD
*One of the MAIN advantages of this company is that almost all the materials are also available as downloads... perfect for oversea dwellers (like us!) and no shipping costs. :) But, I still think the DVD idea is kind of nice to keep info all in one place for back up.




More Helpful links:

Parents' Review article: Why Learn Greek and Latin?
Ambleside Online's page on Foreign Language.
English as She is Taught (through Latin).

Map Skills: What we do

If you read this blog even remotely regularly, you'll catch on that I've ever-so-slightly had geography on the brain lately.  :)   See here and here if you doubt my words ;)  It's not that geography is all that we do... it's not even one of the MAIN things, so I'm not sure of the reason for all the latest craze!

But here we are.  :)

I've mentioned here that we've been using A Child's Geography: Explore The Holy Land by Ann Voskamp for the second half of AOy5 into the first half of this year.  In addition to mapping the readings for AmblesideOnline (which we have NOT been uber-faithful in doing for EVERY book over the years) we also hone our map skills using map drills ala SimplyCharlotteMason style. 




Here's what we do:

In AOy4 or AOy5, we formally begin Map Skills (depending on the child's skill level).  We use blackline maps and do the same sort of thing as we would do with picture study only with maps!  It's fun.  We pick a continent/region to concentrate on each term.  I give the boys their maps, they spend about 5 minutes looking at/memorizing what they can from the labeled map.  When they're done, or the time's up, they turn over the map and fill in everything they can remember - the country names/oceans, etc.  After a couple of weeks, once they have the general idea of the continent being studied, they usually like to spend time looking from various atlas maps as the coloring and such varies and makes it more interesting.

Now, since we do this weekly, there is no need to be sloppy.  They are to memorize one or two states or countries perfectly (spelling & capitalization) and fill them in.  Or, they are to remember as many as they possibly can and then refine the spelling later on (I prefer the former, my kids the latter ;).

They either hand this in for me to look over, or they self-correct using the labeled side of their map, or an atlas (this depends on my own assessment of how detail-oriented they are, or in need of encouragement).  They then wipe off their maps and store them away.

Also, since there are years of school ahead... I don't stress out about how much they remember (by the end of the term it is pretty amazing what all they know!).  Of course I want them to put forth their best effort, but they'll have other opportunities throughout the years to look at a map as it comes up in their readings and other studies.  What I'm aiming for is a good understanding of who is neighbors with who, which countries border the sea, which are land-bound, etc.  I also do try to choose a map that corresponds with what they'll be studying in the AO year they are in.

Materials:

Blackline map of the region desired.
Sheet protectors (with a glossy finish).
Fine tip, wet-erase pens (overhead markers).
Clear packaging tape (optional).
Sponge for wiping (optional).







How-to:

1. Print off maps (preferably find a map that has both labeled and blank versions of the same map, otherwise you'll have to fill in one neatly...)
2. Tuck into the sheet protector one labeled and one blank map back to back.
3. Tape the open edge shut (this will prevent your map from getting yucky when little people clean it off.
4. You are good to go!

Helpful Links:

THE 3 best sites online for FREE labeled and blank outline maps of the various regions -
National Geographic (print detailed, basic and even as simple continent outline, in .gif or .pdf!) &
Eduplace.com (available in .pdf only)
PrintableMaps.net

Expo Vis-A-Vis Wet Erase Markers, 8 Colored Markers - $7.50!  (pack of 4 pens is $6.50)
Avery Diamond Clear Heavyweight Sheet Protectors, Acid Free, Pack of 25 - These are the ones I use, cost a little more but are VERY good quality!  A great investment.