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"Let's Go, Five in a Row"
January 22, 1996 Conference held on Compuserve's Christian Homeschool Forum Kathy: We are just so excited to have the Lamberts here again with us tonight! Jane & Steve Lambert: We want to be "less formal" this evening. I see so many names I recognize as Five in a Row users... and I suspect there are several questions people would like to ask...specific questions... and those who aren't FIAR users will learn a little as we go along..and perhaps have questions of their own.
Is everybody getting over the long holiday break and getting back into
the routine again? Does anyone have any specific ideas for getting that
routine going again? Something that's working for you? After 14 year of
homeschooling we find that it's always a long break...and hard to get going
again. We sometimes use a "review" time after the holidays to get going
again... it's familiar territory. Or use a favorite FIAR story from last
semester as a jumping off point.
Deedra: This probably isn't a secret to anyone, Jane & Steve Lambert: That's great...exactly the sort of thing we find works for us. Jane: We started Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening before Christmas and are now continuing a study of Robert Frost. It has been motivating to me. Jane & Steve Lambert: Wonderful! 'Tis the season!! Dave: Please explain FIAR? Jane & Steve Lambert: Dave...FIAR is a unit study, primarily for children ages 4-8 which is based on 55 different children's picture books, like Mike Mulligan, Madeline, etc. We cover Social studies, language arts, art, math and science in a relaxed approach to make learning both fun and relevant...HOPEFULLY! Anyone have anything to add to that explanation? Jane: I have been getting my 16 yr old involved in a FIAR study to learn more about children's literature. so it goes beyond age 8. Jane & Steve Lambert: (smile) Even adults love some of this material... we have children from 2 to 52 reading FIAR...it's for the "young at heart!" Tamara: Jane has a good point! Jane & Steve Lambert: As EVERY homeschooler can tell you...you learn a tremendous amount about a subject when you teach it to someone else!! Carol: Dave, FYI, FIAR stands for Five in a Row. Michele: FIAR introduces you to a lot of excellent children's literature that you might not otherwise run across. Jane & Steve Lambert: Thank you Michele. Are there certain books that have become favorites that were new to you when you began? Michele: We would have probably never read a book like *Storm in the Night* but it was one we really enjoyed. Lentil was a new one that is now my son's favorite Jane & Steve Lambert: Mine too!! Michele: A Pair of Red Clogs Jane: The Rag Coat was my absolute favorite. I love Lauren Mills illustrations too. Jane & Steve Lambert: I LOVE a pair of red clogs too! Rag Coat is Steve's favorite...a very endearing story! Kathy: We loved How to Make An apple Pie Sooooo much! Michele: We are looking forward to *Moonjellies* - what a stranfge title until you know what it means! Kathy: I wanted to add that the best part of FIAR to me has been the relaxed part. We started on Volume 2 today and we all just snuggled and share!! It was great and then we ran to our encyclopedia, grabbed out the map, and the book gets... taken everywhere. Jane & Steve Lambert: The cover illustration was chosen for that very reason! We're convinced that if those early learning experiences are fun and pleasurable... it sets a lifelong precedent. Debbie: We have been unable to find A Pair of Red Clogs. Does anyone know where I could by it? We have found that we must own the books because we can't bear to part with them :) Jane & Steve Lambert: It's out of print ... I know of no current source, sadly. Anyone else found a copy recently? These titles come and go from print but ILL (Inter-Library Loan) is the best solution until a title is reprinted. And try writing the publisher!! They may not realize people are looking for it. Michele: I especially like the way the lessons are adaptable to take a lot of time and effort or just a little. We tend towards just a little Jane & Steve Lambert: Some homeschool mothers believe in the old concept that if a little is good... more is better... and way too much is JUST RIGHT! But we agree with you...less if often better! it's all too easy to get an early learner burned out on the whole education experience by age 7 or 8. God has given them such wonderful curiosity if we can just learn how to CO-OPERATE with it... instead of working against it! That's the philosophy behind FIAR. Kathy: As we were going through Make Way for Ducklings today I realized how FIAR is something we will use for awhile. I guess many look at it at first as covering only one year, but there is so much to cover that you will keep coming back over and over again. I just want to thank you for making it so complete and inspiring. :-) Jane & Steve Lambert: Michele: Another thing I like about FIAR is that it introduces language elements to my son in a very low key way. And I can see how there will be many writing projects that he can do when he is a little older. Jane & Steve Lambert: Excellent... we don't want to make it difficult for early learners... rather we want them to just get a taste...a hint... of what's to come...to be continued later! Debbie: We've been using FIAR for over a year now and I'm amazed at how much geography my 5 year old knows! Ping was our first story and we were reviewing today...she can still point out the yangze river (did I spell that right? :) Jane & Steve Lambert: I believe so... Children learn so much when we share together instead of lecturing... and now I see there's a "t" in Yantze. Michele: Any more FIAR volumes in the works? Jane & Steve Lambert: (smile) Not of the type you know... but there will be a Bible Study Supplement to the first 55 lessons, probably in March..and several more new projects are in the works... using the unit study concept to make learning more interesting. IN fact... we've pretty much given you the best of the best in the first 3 volumes...out of more than 4,000 children's books we've examined. We may do something for older later... but our first love is early learning Michele. Shemane: PMJI, but is FIAR helpful for teaching a 5 yo phonics? How? Jane & Steve Lambert: Shemane... as to phonics... No. FIAR makes no attempt to teach reading. you'll need to supplement FIAR with whatever approach to reading development you've chosen... phonics, etc. Shemane: Forgive me, but I'm new to hs. What does FIAR teach? Eileen: PMFJI, but I feel that the reading of good literature makes phonics easier to learn when the time comes and increases comprehension,etc Jane & Steve Lambert: Phonics...and the basic, line upon line precepts of mathematics are two areas that FIAR does not address. FIAR covers Social studies, language arts, art, applied math and science. Thank you Eileen...and I agree with you. Jane: In Papa Piccolo you say, "A family can be different combinations of people." Can you elaborate on this? I'm not sure I agree. Jane & Steve Lambert: Well...Papa Piccolo adopted the kittens...they became a family... let me say... that I believe completely in the traditional family unit... but if either Jane or Steve Lambert died tomorrow... would that make the surviving spouse and our daughters any less of a family?? What if we were both killed in a car accident and our children went to live with their grandparents? Would they still be a family?? My point in that comment was this... The reality is that lots of children come from broken homes... through death...divorce...etc... but a family is those you live with..those you love..those you take a responsibility to care for. Does that help at all?? Jane: Yes, thank you. Actually as I got to "know" you thru the forum I understood a little better what you must mean. Jane & Steve Lambert: (smile) Steve has pastored a church for several years.. and we've counseled LOTS of couples on the issue of divorce, we don't believe in it, for example... but we set out from the beginning to make FIAR accessible to every child and every homeschooler with our best efforts and all the love we could put into it. I'm glad that makes sense to you. Kathy: Jane, I wanted to ask you to cover again the concept of FIAR, just for some of the new homeschoolers we have ... We have had quite a few lately and this is a new idea for them! Jane & Steve Lambert: FIAR got it's name from the idea... that we might take a "simple" children's picture book and read it for five days in a row exploring a different subject each day. We've found that after examining "social studies" on Monday, learning about WHERE the characters lived.. what it was like WHEN they lived... how they related to one another... that children brought new insights and understandings to the story on Tuesday. After learning about the author's use of language on Tuesday, new vocab...punctuation, literary devices, etc... the children had more insights on Wednesday's reading.. on Wednesday we examnine the illustrator's work.. choice of medium... techniques..styles...etc. in short each time through builds upon itself and children begin to learn the way we learn as adults by engaging their God-given curiosity and seeing where it takes them. What else can you add to that Kathy? Kathy: You said it so well. Kimberly: and don't forget easy! Kathy: I 've found it brings us all together. I like to start out our day with our FIAR book. :-) Pam: One of the things I have enjoyed most about FIAR is how it serves as a "springboard" for discussion of some pretty heavy-duty topics--issues like slavery, death and dying... it has given my boys an opening to share some of their deep thoughts and feelings. Jane & Steve Lambert: Some of the books we've chosen invite that kind of discussion. But we've tried to leave a wide gateway to share with each child... in whatever way they think best. It's a much better mousetrap than a textbook that "teaches" each subject.. Pam: It doesn't DEMAND that kind of discussion... it just allows for it. Jane & Steve Lambert: some children are ready to explore their feelings on difficult subjects...others definitely aren't. Yes...exactly! Eileen: What I particularly appreciated was the treatment of artistic techniques and mediums...not my greatest area of strength! I was learning along with my kids. Jane & Steve Lambert: Thank you. We put a lot of work into that. Little children can learn so much about art. I always thought it was a pity that most of us didn't begin to "appreciate" art until we took an art appreciation class in college... (I still have my old Jansen textbook!) 3 year olds can begin learning about colors, techniques, styles, mediums... Good for you...we've tried to make it easy for "non-artsy" moms... I find it fits with Philipians 4:8... ...whatever is true, honorable, right, pure LOVELY, of good reput... let your mind dwell on thsese things. Art is lovely...the world is filled with God's beauty. Tamara: Something I like about FIAR is that it teaches many of the principles of unit studies--something our kids can put into practice themselves in the coming years. We'll never look at young children's literature quite the same now that we've done FIAR! :) Jane & Steve Lambert: And hopefully Tamara.. they'll never look at ANY literature the same... in fact.. they'll never look at the world around them the same!! Michele: Last fall we were pretty sporadic with FIAR -only once making it through all five days with the story - since we started up again after the holidays we have done all 5 days with each book and it has made a big difference. We rearranged ourt schedule and it just seems to fit in better - now. We do it right after our Bible study whereas before it was just sort of tagged on wherever it fit Jane & Steve Lambert: People use FIAR so many different ways... but our goal.. was to make it a "jumping off point" every day of the week.. one of the phrases that Jane has used in the philosophy of FIAR is "spoons full of sugar" She's saying every day to a child, "here sweetheart...try a bite of this and tell mommy what you think. Do you like that flavor? How about this? Is that interesting to you?" We do this in every subject.. and the goal... or at least one goal... is to find those "flavors" which interst or excite a child... which so often leads to several hours of self-initated exploration...that can take you through the afternoon... Afterall... when a child begins to ask for more information your job becomes a lot easier... if they say, "Mommy, do you think the library would have any good books on weather?"... you know it's going to be a good afternoon!! Jane: My goal is to read Stopping By Woods...until they have it memorized. They really enjoy trying to remember when they look at the artwork. ( Of course, my 9 yr old can read it.) Jane & Steve Lambert: I have it memorized! (Jane) I learned it as a young student and still enjoy it! Memory work is always wonderful if you can do gently...naturally. Kimberly: I really appreciate how God has used you in our lives. I learned so much when we did Ping as did the kids. Thanks Jane & Steve Lambert: Thank you Kim. One of the great things about homeschooling is the opportunity to learn WITH our children... as we teach them. |
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