Reading Children’s Stories Sunday, May 24 2009 

1 loveofbooks 10:42 am

How to Read Stories

In my previous blog entry I promised that I would dedicate this one to some examples of how, as parents, it is within our capability to read stories to children in more educational ways. I will give a simple, although straight forward example. In many children’s books designed for children aged 1-3, the story ends with the character going to sleep (this could be Mickey Mouse, Spot, Builder Bob, Bugs Bunny or any other character – it doesn’t really matter). I think that it makes a big educational difference for the child if the parent reads the story as written (“and the character went to sleep”) or if he includes his own content. In my opinion, this content inclusion is a vital part of the parenting job and is the room for the parent to use the fact that his child emulates the book’s character as an educational tool.

Some Sleepy Examples

Here are some examples of what can be read into a lovable character going to sleep. The precise choice depends on exactly what the goals and objectives of the parent are at the time. A while back, we had been working on stressing the importance of cleaning up all the toys prior to going to sleep. The story line thus read: “…and the character a cleaned up his toys, took a bath, brushed his teeth and went sleep”. I can tell you that several nights of such reading left their mark and straightening up the room became an important part of our sleep ritual. Another important thing that we have been working on with our toddler now is the concept of praying before going to sleep. The story line was thus appropriately extended to: “…brushed his teeth, said his prayers and went to sleep”. These innovations are excellent and easy to implement in the various toddler books. As the tales become more complex, this becomes increasingly more difficult.

 

The Importance of Children’s Books Sunday, May 17 2009 

1 loveofbooks 7:36 am

Children’s Books are Important!

At the very beginning of this blog line, I spoke about the importance of the content of children’s books. I pointed out that many children’s tales which we innocently tell our children are actually highly un-educational and rather pointless. I also cited several examples to illustrate my point (as you may recall, Hansel and Gretel got particular attention). Consequently, I have been faced with the dilemma of many young parents who find themselves searching for books of appropriate content for their young children. Similar concerns have risen regarding movies for children but as we do not own a television and the computer is intended for work this is usually not an issue (we do indulge the little princess with an occasional DVD on the computer- rarely more than once a week). I believe in good and responsible education from the start and thus children’s books are perceived to be a vital tool for for achieving such goals.

The Youngest Ages

Although every educator and most parents will agree that the youngest ages of the child are the most vital for their education and development, they will also likewise agree that a child can have his upbringing spoiled and his development warped at any age. Thus keeping a careful eye on the books being read and their effects on the child are both vitally important. At the youngest ages, this is determined mostly by the parents and their behavior. As soon as the child is old enough that books can be read to him their content becomes something plastic that as parents we must mold to the best of our ability. In order to illustrate my point, I will bring some examples. These will star in my next blog entry, so if this sort of thing interests you and your child’s education is of value, by all means, bear with me!

 

Ending a Story Monday, May 11 2009 

1 loveofbooks 7:09 am

A Minor Point of Style

As a close for my review of Melville’s work of Moby Dick, I would like to point out a certain caution regarding style. When reading Moby Dick one gets the impression that towards the end the author was so intent on bringing his story to a close that he started to cut things short and step up the pace of the tale considerably. This is good and bad. I will try to point out both sides of this issue in the next two paragraphs.

Why it’s Good

The ending of a good tale must be dramatic. It must bind the reader’s attention so powerfully that he will read on without pause until the very end of the story. This will also be the flavor which remains in the reader’s mouth upon completion of his reading. The long winded style which filled a large portion of the book is thus not particularly suited for creating a powerful and dramatic end and so, Melville changes his style to suit his purposes.

Why it’s Not So Good

The problem with Melville’s change of pace and style is actually two fold. First off, merely changing styles so drastically leaves an after taste which diminishes the pleasure of the tale considerably. This is something which skilled and experienced authors attempt to avoid at all costs. Second, this increase in drama and change of perspective distances us from the tale. Until this shift we were travelling along with the voyage of the whaling ship as though seeing things from the eyes of Ishmael. He was guiding us through the tale and demonstrating the sites, elaborating where necessary. Now, suddenly, we are distanced from the tale and events are described as they happen. We are no longer full in the heart of things, as we were previously. This, to my eyes, seems a great loss.

 

Before his Time Sunday, May 3 2009 

1 loveofbooks 6:14 am

Blog Writing

Whoever reads Moby Dick today will recognize that the style he uses is remarkably familiar. In fact, the style used by Melville is practically identical to the modern day style of the blog. The author tells his story as though from the point of view of Ishmael, a seaman who decides to join a ship which is going whaling. Ishmael is incredibly verbose and he tells his tale as though he were keeping a diary. However, the reader is addressed often and the addresses include apologies and elaborations. This is precisely the style of construction of the associative writing of the blog.

The Time Line

The blog also contains an element of time in it. The blogger experiences and shares his experiences over the course of time. This is reflected in the fact that the blog is constructed of a series of entries some of which are more connected than others. In a similar way, Ishmael seemingly experiences his adventure in almost real time. There are some few exceptions where the author puts into Ishmael’s words clues to the conclusion of the story (it is clear that Ishmael has survived to tell the tale, for example. It is also clear that his cannibal friend is going to die at some point in the tale).

Before his Time

This blog style, which when I first read Moby Dick made the tale more cumbersome, today seems to me to be a near perfect style of blogging. The fact that the author was able to conceive of and maintain such a style is a credit to the author and his skill. It would seem that in today’s modern age, the world is more prepared to accept Moby Dick. In fact, I would even add that some of the authoritative elaborations that appear in the tale also resemble the online style of today where research can be accomplished by anyone who has access to the Internet.