Homeschooling, Week 7

     We are back on track after taking last week off in order for me to attend the webinars.  Our week started with a doctor's appointment for my Little Toughie which happened to also land on the last meeting of our book club discussion of The Core.  Unfortunately, I missed out on all the wonderful insights I know the other parents had to share.  Bummer.

     One of the last chapters covered was Fine Arts, which was probably my favorite subject all throughout my education.  One of the questions I posed to our book club participants was how do they incorporate drama into their curriculum?  It's fairly easy to do drawing and painting and even music classes, but to me drama can be a bit harder or something we ignore.

     My daughter takes acting classes.  From the moment she could speak she would put on shows for us.  Whether it is singing or dancing or a fashion show...she has always loved performing.  When the opportunity came up for her to take classes (thanks Groupon!) we chose to give it a chance.  She loved it.  Moreover, her instructor said she was a natural and after only 16 classes her teacher said that my daughter was ready for a show.

     Why am I telling you all this?  Because my daughter is the one who came up with how to incorporate drama into our curriculum.  We had just finished reading My Father's Dragon (a lovely story) and I could hear my kids discussing the book.  My daughter told her brother that she wanted to pretend to be the dragon and that he should be the father.  A light bulb went off and I suggested that they pick their favorite chapters out of the book and act them out for me.

     Not only would they have to recall the what was said in the story, but they would have to remember the circumstances and figure out (with our limited supplies) costumes and settings.
    
     My daughter took charge and began rummaging through her dress-up box for whatever they could use for costumes and props.  She recalled much of the story and gave her brother his lines.  Then it was time for the show.  I wish I had recorded their performance, but I wanted them to feel relaxed and have fun.  It was a delight to watch and to see just how much they remembered from the earlier chapters of the book.

     So, that's just one way to incorporate drama into your curriculum.  I've read other homeschooling blogs from parents with older kids that would act out moments in history, bedecked in period costumes and with painted backgrounds, all in front of an audience.

     I can't wait to do that!