I asked for a bunch of history books for Christmas (in addition to the world's coolest garden hose) and received quite a haul. My favorite periods of history are the ancient Greek and Roman worlds. I already had the Landmark Thucydides, but wanted the entire collection. So my husband gave me the Landmark Herodotus, Landmark … Continue reading What I am reading these days (a lot of history!)
Tag: History
Traditional vs symbolic logic: homeschoolers need them BOTH
When we first started homeschooling our daughter, our affinity toward classical education programs was clear. Choosing a curriculum, however, was less straightforward. The first curriculum provider we chose to work with was Memoria Press. Memoria Press is based out of Louisville, Kentucky, and operates classical schools out of local churches around the country. We ended … Continue reading Traditional vs symbolic logic: homeschoolers need them BOTH
American History for homeschoolers (elementary)
I am in the process of preparing for our daughter's upcoming academic year. For us, that begins in April - a totally arbitrary date that corresponds to when we relocated to Florida. We are planning on switching to American history from world history this year. We have covered world history in previous years using Susan … Continue reading American History for homeschoolers (elementary)
Reading lists and podcasts
As my family and friends know, I am a bibliophile in the extreme. Our house is so cluttered with books that it would give Martha Stewart or Marie Kondo a nervous breakdown. And I have more or less been that way since I was a young child. I have started a project to check off … Continue reading Reading lists and podcasts
Touring Charleston, South Carolina… with a dog
We just returned from a long weekend in Charleston, South Carolina. We have one day's respite and then we are heading to Lake Hartwell (on the Georgia - South Carolina line, but not along the coast) for Thanksgiving. Lots of fun travels this month! This was our first long trip with our Jack Russell terrier, … Continue reading Touring Charleston, South Carolina… with a dog
Formal gardens, new mountain bike trails, and a pristine beach
Elise had her weekly riding lesson this morning, in an extraordinarily soggy ring from all of the rain we've been having. Even the pony wanted nothing of it. Afterward, for fun, we decided to load up our bicycles and head to Washington Oaks Gardens State Park. The park is located at the former winter home … Continue reading Formal gardens, new mountain bike trails, and a pristine beach
On the history of American hiking
Theodore Roosevelt hiking with John Muir I just finished reading the book, On the Trail: A History of American Hiking by Silas Chamberlin. If you love hiking and conservation (as I do), this is a delightful tome. I had not thought much about how hiking was an unintended consequence of the growth in industry and … Continue reading On the history of American hiking
Absinthe, early auto racing, and John D. Rockefeller’s house
Our family loves serendipity, and today was quite full of it. We had to drive down to Ormond Beach this morning to check out a posh place for boarding dogs. We are planning to drive down to Fort Lauderdale for the International Boat Show later this month (a weekend full of yachts!) and we can't … Continue reading Absinthe, early auto racing, and John D. Rockefeller’s house
The culture wars of late 18th century America
I rather enjoyed reading about the experiences with students at William & Mary that contributed to Thomas Jefferson taking on the project of education reform (from today's Wall Street Journal): By this time he had lost all patience with the college in Virginia’s colonial capital, and no wonder. As Mr. Taylor shows in his unsparing … Continue reading The culture wars of late 18th century America
Why South Carolina was the most important theater in the Revolutionary War
A few days ago, I referred readers to Kevin Honold's essay on the rewards of studying history. In that essay, he talks about how reading a biography of the Revolutionary War hero Francis Marion as a child kindled his love of history. I had not read much about the famous warrior, so I bought and … Continue reading Why South Carolina was the most important theater in the Revolutionary War