Teaching Rhetoric - Teaching the Trivium Ch. 7

This post contains an affiliate link to the book that we are going through.

Welcome to another week of the Teaching the Trivium book club!  I am so excited to read and discuss this book along with you.  I loved the discussion last week and would love to hear from more of you!  Today we talk about rhetoric.

Chapter 7 - Teaching Rhetoric

"Every subject has it's own rhetoric."  Rhetoric is the "creative expression of sound conclusions." (pg. 175) 

I really enjoyed this chapter because it brings everything together.  I am very narrow sighted, just beginning to teach my children the grammar of each subject.  This chapter helped me see the light at the end of the tunnel.  This is what we are striving for!

By the rhetoric stage, our children have learned the facts about the world around them.  They have thought about this information and drawn conclusions.  Now they must learn to express these conclusions clearly, persuasively, accurately, and interestingly.

Grammar is no goal, and Logic is no goal...if we have no output, then we have nothing.  pg. 176

Principles for Learning Rhetoric

While there are different formal programs for learning rhetoric, the Bluedorns say that practice is the best method for increasing your communication skills.  In fact, they said that no matter what curriculum you choose to use, it must include activities in public speaking.

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How do you facilitate the practice of rhetoric for your children? (Debate team, giving speeches, etc.)

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Next, the chapter goes on to talk about developing rhetoric skills in our children.  I thought this quote was very inspiring for me and I think it can be applied to any stage of the trivium.

Require enough to press him, but not to break him.  The younger years require patience and trust, yet firmness and steady pressure.  pg.179

Here are some ideas the Bluedorns give for preparing your child for their study of rhetoric (many more or listed in the book):

• Instill a love of learning in your child
• Fill your children's minds with good examples by having them do copywork, dictation, outlining, and narration
• Sharpen their minds and voices by having them do oral narrations, recitations, and interpretations
• Practice letter and journal writing
• Let them listen to live speeches, debates, etc.

The chapter ends again with suggestion of  how to teach rhetoric at each age range:

• Before age 10 - Build their vocabulary through reading to them and talking to them in challenging ways (including letting them listen to adult conversations like preaching, debates, etc.)
• Ages 10-12 - Focus on grammar and spelling.  Shift from recitation to interpretation of prose and poetry.
• Ages 13-15 - Teach them how to compose different types of papers and require regular writing projects from them.
• Ages 16-18 - Let them continue to increase their rhetoric knowledge and practice their skills is front of others.

Influencing the World with Rhetoric

I remember sitting in a basic college writing class and being startled at the inability of some of classmates to write cohesive sentences.   I am not a "let's go conquer the world!" type of girl, but if someone asks me a question, I want to be able to answer them well.  If I am presented with a problem, I want to be able to confidently and convincingly explain my proposed solution.

I strongly believe in the sovereignty of God, so my main goal is not to change the world or turn America into a Christian nation, but I want to do what is put before me to the best of my ability.  I want to be able to give an answer for what I believe in, and I want to encourage others to do what is right.  All of these things require basic rhetoric skills.

My point is that even if your goal for your children isn't to give speeches for the rest of their lives, convincing everyone they meet to change their mind about something, being eloquent, concise, and persuasive are skills that will be useful in everyday life.

  

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Do you have rhetoric age children in your home?

How do you foresee their training in rhetoric being a worthwhile study?

What resources do you use to teach rhetoric?

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Leave comments here on the blog post, or share about it on social media (#ClassicalMamasRead).  I'll be sharing too, so follow me on facebook, twitter, or google+ and we can chat about it there as well!  Don't forget, if you want to share your thoughts about Teaching the Trivium on your own blog, link it up below so we can all come and visit!

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Next week we will be talking about chapter eight of Teaching the Trivium.  If you haven't gotten your own copy yet, make sure you check your library or order one soon so you can be ready for next time!  Also, this is a 600+ page book, so I am only touching on certain points of each chapter.  There is so much great information that I am not covering, so if this discussion interests you, you are going to want to make sure to pick up your own copy so you can read more!

Classical Mamas Read Link-Up

Did you write about Teaching the Trivium on your blog?  Have you been reading and blogging about another book (for you, not a children's book)?  Do you have a book club going on at your blog (once again, not for a children's book)?  I'd love for you link up here so we can all be encouraged by each other and maybe find another great book to read!

I think I'm going to keep this link-up ongoing since there aren't going to be a huge number of posts and then anyone new will be able to be encouraged by the other book reading ideas and discussions.  If the number of posts gets too large, I will fix it.

Please note, all posts must be on topic (about a book you are reading) and appropriate (think family friendly).

SPEED! A Skip Counting Game

Kids love to play games.  Moms love it when their kids are learning.  Everyone is happy when they find an activity that satisfies both criteria.

Last year I noticed a blogger friend (Julie from Highhill Homeschool) had created a game called SPEED!  It's a card game that teaches skip counting from 2's to 9's.  When I first read about SPEED!, I thought it would be too difficult for my son, but as they year went on, his ability to play games greatly increased, so I thought I would give it a shot!

Boy am I glad I did.  Come read my full review at The Curriculum Choice!

Trivium Tuesdays - Classical Link-Up #95

Welcome to another week of Trivium Tuesdays!  For those of you who are new here today, this is a link-up aimed at encouraging and informing other homeschoolers who use the Classical model of teaching.  Here we can share with each other and learn from one another.

Don't forget to follow my Pinterest boards that are a part of the All Things Classical List!

Also, please remember to only link up posts that have to do with homeschooling using the classical model of education.  Thank you for understanding this link-up's theme.

Featured Post from Last Week

I love finding ways for little kids to do big kid stuff.  Pam shared a great idea for how she does just that when it comes to presentations!  I thought this post, Presentation Notes for Non-Readers, would be especially helpful for the CC folks out there and anyone who does presentations with their kids.  Thanks for the adorable, yet effective idea, Pam!

This Week's Link-Up

Here are the rules:

• Your post must have to do (in some way) with classical homeschooling (any age children).
• Your post may be from your archives as long as you only post it one time on this link-up.
• Please link to your direct post, not your blog in general.
• Please place my Trivium Tuesdays button (found on my right sidebar) on your blog post so others can learn about this link-up!
• It may be helpful to state in your link description what stage of the trivium or what subject your post is about, if applicable, so others can easily find posts they are interested in looking at.
• Remember, everyone loves comments =) So don't be shy, and tell someone if you liked their post!

I reserve the right to remove any link-up that does not have to do with classical homeschooling.         

If you are a regular here at Trivium Tuesdays and have something to share that is a little off topic, but still would be an encouragement to the readers here, please still share it =)  I'm referring to people who are just trying to get their blog more exposure without following the rules above.

I will visit each of your blogs this week and feature my favorite link-up for all to see next week!  Also, if your blog has a button I will place it on my sidebar (under Friends to Visit) for the week until it is replaced by the next week's favorite =)

Ultimate Typing - The Easy and Effective Way for Typing Fast

Do your children need to learn to type or improve their typing skills?  Ultimate Typing might be just what you need!  Thank you to Ultimate Typing for wanting to share with us today!

Ultimate Typing™ is a touch typing tutor that lets you improve your typing skills quickly and without the often repetitive and boring efforts required by other systems. It has been designed by touch typing experts so every feature of it is carefully created to facilitate learning. The software was developed by eReflect, an educational software company, whose design team has built Ultimate Typing™ incorporating the latest technology to help people master their keyboarding skills fast.

A "Personal Tutor" Approach 

Ultimate Typing™ is more than simply a typing software program, it's a personal tutor program that offers guidance, help, and recommendations as you practice to ensure your learning is progressing. The software features high quality video tutorials in which your personal tutor explains typing theory before you are prompted to put it into practice.

Progress Monitoring 

Your typing practice is monitored by an activity tracking tool, which recommends new milestones based on your performance. The system also encourages you to practice further on certain aspects of keyboarding if the tracking tool notices that you are progressing in some areas more than others. This sort of progress tracking is what lets any typist develop balanced typing skills and excel both in typing speed and accuracy.

Personalized Learning 

Ultimate Typing™ is not a rigidly structured software system that uses a "one size fits all" approach. Instead, it is fully customizable, allowing it to meet your individual typing needs, regardless of your previous knowledge or typing level. Its technology permits you to set typing milestones and then uses your input to help you focus on different aspects of typing. The more you practice, the more accurately the software offers feedback and adjusts your training accordingly. This is especially helpful for younger users or beginner typists who can benefit a lot more from a tailored typing practice. However, experienced users will appreciate the flexibility of the exercises in the higher levels.

This personalized approach is a feature that respects each typist’s individual learning style and pace, making any user quickly comfortable with the system, and encouraging them to work on their weaknesses before moving on to more advanced touch typing practice.

Combines Typing Skills and New Knowledge 

An innovative feature of the system is the way it expands learning beyond essential keyboarding skills. By giving the user the ability to choose the text they want to practice typing with, Ultimate Typing™ brings together two skills that are in high demand today: keyboarding and staying up to date with the latest information.

 
Whether you’re a homeschooled student, a 35 year old mom, or a busy professional, you'll appreciate the fact that the software offers a wide range of typing content to practice with. As you work on your typing skills, you'll also be reading and learning new information. The system has over 500 ebooks pre-installed to choose from, and users can also input or download any text documents they want to use to learn to touch type with.

Ultimate Typing™ is a complete typing tutor. It's obvious that a great deal of work and research has gone into its development. The practice lessons and games are engaging and offer users plenty of incentive to keep them motivated with their touch typing training.

It’s the perfect typing tutor for all sorts of learning environments, whether that's homeschooling, schools, or even offices. And it's the perfect typing tutor for you.

 Learn more or Purchase for $29.95

 

Teaching Logic - Teaching the Trivium Ch. 6

This post contains an affiliate link to the book that we are going through.

Welcome to another week of the Teaching the Trivium book club!  I am so excited to read and discuss this book along with you.  I loved the discussion last week and would love to hear from more of you!  Today we talk about logic.

Chapter 6 - Teaching Logic

"Every subject has it's own logic."  Logic is "the science of correct reasoning."  (pg. 149)

My kids are not to the logic stage, but I really enjoy looking ahead to see what is coming and how the trivium all fits together, so this chapter was very helpful!

What I learned is that logic is basically the idea of getting at truth.  Without logic, words lose their meaning and when words lose their meaning, the line between true and false (or right and wrong) gets blurry.  

That seems to be exactly where we are today in our society.  People have elevated feelings and experiences over truth, thereby losing their logical capacities.  What is left is relativism, and morality goes away.

If truth becomes relative in our thinking, then it follows that morality must also become relative in our thinking.   (pg 153)

If you ask a homeschool family why they choose to homeschool, they probably won't say "because they don't teach logic in public schools" but the sentiment is there.  Relativism is abundant in everything that is controlled by the government. Children are not taught to practice logic in order to find truth.

What is Logic Useful For?

Just like the grammar stage is essential in any learning process, so is the logic stage.  In the grammar stage we learn the facts so we can build upon them in the future.  In the logic stage we learn how to think about all those facts that we learned.

Every science --- whether it be chemistry, physics, geography, history, or theology --- is (or at least is should be) the application of the science of Logic to observations made in that particular field of knowledge.  Hence the study of the exact science of Logic is foundational to the study of every other subject.   (pg 157)

Practically speaking, we want to learn logic (and teach it to our children) because ensures that we will learn everything else well.  It will allow our children to look at 'truths' that are presented to them and assert whether they are truths at all.

As a Christian, using logic helps us to evaluate every new claim or idea that the world throws at us.  We will not so easily get tossed in the wind, but will be grounded in the truth.  "To reject logic is to reject truth, and to reject truth is to reject God."  (pg 158)  I'm no expert on logic yet, but I think the opposite of that statement would therefore be true as well: To embrace logic is to embrace truth, and to embrace truth is to embrace God.

Principles and Observations for Learning Logic

The rest of the chapter goes on to share the breakdown of the actual study of logic.  There is formal logic (the study of the systematic form of argument), and informal logic (less theoretical and more practical).  The Bluedorns do a great job at explaining the different types of reasoning and many types of fallacies.  They give many examples that really make clear a challenging subject matter.

They also give some tips for how to actually teach logic in your home, including what to do at the different ages.  Before age 13 they recommend playing great mind strengthening games, reading quality literature, and continuing working on memorization and narration which also build the mind.  They recommend starting formal logic training at age 13, starting with informal logic and then moving on to the study of formal logic at age 15 and above.

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Do you have logic age children in your home?

What ages have you found your children ready to begin the logic stage?

What are your favorite resources for teaching logic?

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Leave comments here on the blog post, or share about it on social media (#ClassicalMamasRead).  I'll be sharing too, so follow me on facebook, twitter, or google+ and we can chat about it there as well!  Don't forget, if you want to share your thoughts about Teaching the Trivium on your own blog, link it up below so we can all come and visit!

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Next week we will be talking about chapter seven of Teaching the Trivium.  If you haven't gotten your own copy yet, make sure you check your library or order one soon so you can be ready for next time!  Also, this is a 600+ page book, so I am only touching on certain points of each chapter.  There is so much great information that I am not covering, so if this discussion interests you, you are going to want to make sure to pick up your own copy so you can read more!

Classical Mamas Read Link-Up

Did you write about Teaching the Trivium on your blog?  Have you been reading and blogging about another book (for you, not a children's book)?  Do you have a book club going on at your blog (once again, not for a children's book)?  I'd love for you link up here so we can all be encouraged by each other and maybe find another great book to read!

I think I'm going to keep this link-up ongoing since there aren't going to be a huge number of posts and then anyone new will be able to be encouraged by the other book reading ideas and discussions.  If the number of posts gets too large, I will fix it.

Please note, all posts must be on topic (about a book you are reading) and appropriate (think family friendly).