Hello friends,
A few homeschooling moms including myself have started a new blog about homeschooling.
Our goal is to open a little window into the lives of several different homeschooling families, so that anyone who is interested can see what homeschooling is really like.
We do this for several reasons: firstly, in hopes of dispelling a few persistent and inaccurate stereotypes about homeschooling and homeschoolers; and secondly, in hopes of inspiring and encouraging those who are thinking about homeschooling, and those who (like me) are just getting started and could use some ideas.
The authors come from different sizes and sorts of families in the UK and US, and no doubt our homeschooling methods vary quite a bit, too. But what we all have in common is our Reformed Christian faith, which motivates and colors all that we do.
I'm looking forward to reading the new posts, aren't you? Go ahead and bookmark the link, or follow in your favorite reader. I'll post the link on my "other blogs" page.
Training Up Our Children
Whenever I get around to writing up a "Why I Homeschool" type of post, I'll post that here as well as on the homeschooling blog. But all the nitty-gritty details about homeschooling and its challenges will go on the other blog.
I hope you all have an excellent Friday. I know we will; it's sunny, breezy, and cool (low 70's is the forecast). And we're going to the library today!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Where did October go?
It's nearly the end of the month. What happened to October? I just looked at the date of my last post and realized that it's been almost two weeks. And I haven't written a post of substance since the beginning of the month.
I guess there are a few reasons I haven't posted much. For one thing, comment reading/writing/re-writing/moderating has kept me busy. The couple of posts that I have written have gone into my already-full "drafts" folder to be mulled over for a while. And last but not least, I've been busy making things.
I work exclusively with recycled materials. The above items were made with yarn unraveled from old sweaters (great way to get quality yarns dirt cheap, by the way). I have a blog about crafting with recycled materials, actually, but I haven't posted much yet; and besides, I haven't made up my mind whether I will keep it on Wordpress, or go back to Blogger where it was originally. Once I make up my mind, I will add the link to my "other blogs" page.
In other news, we will finally be having another psalm sing next weekend. All being well, we will have a few more recordings to post. :)
Must run get little boys ready for tonight's prayer meeting!
I guess there are a few reasons I haven't posted much. For one thing, comment reading/writing/re-writing/moderating has kept me busy. The couple of posts that I have written have gone into my already-full "drafts" folder to be mulled over for a while. And last but not least, I've been busy making things.
I made this
and this
and this
and these.
This one I sold in my Etsy shop to some guy in Finland.
I work exclusively with recycled materials. The above items were made with yarn unraveled from old sweaters (great way to get quality yarns dirt cheap, by the way). I have a blog about crafting with recycled materials, actually, but I haven't posted much yet; and besides, I haven't made up my mind whether I will keep it on Wordpress, or go back to Blogger where it was originally. Once I make up my mind, I will add the link to my "other blogs" page.
In other news, we will finally be having another psalm sing next weekend. All being well, we will have a few more recordings to post. :)
Must run get little boys ready for tonight's prayer meeting!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
Three things
Firstly, I've been playing around with the design of the blog. Do you love it? Hate it? I haven't made up my mind whether I like it or not. I reserve the right to change it again without notice. That header will probably change, for one thing (but isn't that a cool hawk photo? My mom took it). Sorry if the changes are disorienting, and I promise that within a few days, I will settle on a final design and then leave it alone for a while. :)
Secondly, on several occasions I've gotten comments that said, in part, "Feel free to edit this if you need to." For the record, I can't edit comments. I can only accept or reject them as is. If I think something needs changing, I will have to e-mail you and invite you to re-write and re-submit it. Sorry about that.
Thirdly, I've added a page entitled "Homeschooling Resources." I will be linking to websites and books that I have found useful, and explaining why I like them. I hope this page will be of interest to those of you who are homeschooling young children, or plan to. I'll be listing more resources there soon, so stay tuned.
Secondly, on several occasions I've gotten comments that said, in part, "Feel free to edit this if you need to." For the record, I can't edit comments. I can only accept or reject them as is. If I think something needs changing, I will have to e-mail you and invite you to re-write and re-submit it. Sorry about that.
Thirdly, I've added a page entitled "Homeschooling Resources." I will be linking to websites and books that I have found useful, and explaining why I like them. I hope this page will be of interest to those of you who are homeschooling young children, or plan to. I'll be listing more resources there soon, so stay tuned.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Education: Three Points to Consider
My wise brother has pointed out that there are really three separate questions to consider when thinking about the education of our children, and that when people discuss the subject, the three questions sometimes get muddled together, when they really ought to be kept separate.
So here are the three questions. What do you think?
1. Should the education of our children be explicitly Christian? As a sort of sub-question, one might consider, can an education really be neutral?
2. Can a child be taught as well by his parents as by a professional teacher?
3. The question of influence: does the child influence the school, or the school the child?
In case you couldn't guess, my answers would be:
1. Yes, and no.
2. Yes.
3. The school influences the child.
What do you think?
So here are the three questions. What do you think?
1. Should the education of our children be explicitly Christian? As a sort of sub-question, one might consider, can an education really be neutral?
2. Can a child be taught as well by his parents as by a professional teacher?
3. The question of influence: does the child influence the school, or the school the child?
In case you couldn't guess, my answers would be:
1. Yes, and no.
2. Yes.
3. The school influences the child.
What do you think?
Friday, October 1, 2010
Last Friday
On Friday the boys and I took a trip to Galveston. We like Galveston. First we rode the ferry, which is both exciting, and free. (Sadly, this time we did not see any dolphins.) The ferry goes from Galveston Island to the Bolivar Peninsula, which doesn't have much of anything on it (thanks Ike), except for the Fort Travis Seashore Park, which is interesting thanks to its crumbling old concrete bunkers and fortifications.
These kids are so stinking cute together, I can't stand it. Isn't this a cool rusty old door? It leads into one of the old concrete bunkers. You can't see the jagged piece of rusty metal sticking out right behind Noah's bare legs.
Looks kind of desolate, don't you think?
Oh, here at last is a "danger" sign. Just to the right of all the broken off fence posts with the jagged metal edges. It's funny, walking around this place, I felt like I was trespassing on abandoned property.
We spent a little while on the playground (which is in good repair, thankfully). Behind Noah is the Houston ship channel, which leads to the Port of Houston, the busiest port in the US. In this photo, you can see five vessels if you look closely (one is just a dot on the horizon). It's kind of neat seeing all the industry along the channel--the huge loading docks, the oil refineries, and of course the cargo ships, fishing vessels, and oil rigs. Occasionally we see a huge cruise ship with passengers lining the rails. Lots of things to talk to the boys about, and to look up in the encyclopedia when we get home.
After we came back from the Bolivar Peninsula, we parked along the Galveston seawall and spent some time on the beach. The boys had a grand time digging in the sand.
In other news, the weather here gets more fantastic by the day. Look at the forecast for the next week:
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
More Psalm Recordings!
This morning I discovered more psalm recordings on two different websites. As far as I can tell, they have been there for a while, or at least long enough for my dear brother to have already known about them. Why am I always the last to know about these things? :)
The recordings posted on Middletome are older recordings, so the sound quality is up and down. And each file has multiple psalms on it, not identified in the file name, so you won't know what you're getting until you listen. But still, psalm recordings. :)
http://www.middletome.com/page46.html
The recordings on cambl.com are more recent and therefore of higher quality, and they are neatly listed and identified by psalm and tune. I have added those psalms to the list in this post.
http://www.cambl.com/psalms/2000-05EdComm/index.htm
The recordings posted on Middletome are older recordings, so the sound quality is up and down. And each file has multiple psalms on it, not identified in the file name, so you won't know what you're getting until you listen. But still, psalm recordings. :)
http://www.middletome.com/page46.html
The recordings on cambl.com are more recent and therefore of higher quality, and they are neatly listed and identified by psalm and tune. I have added those psalms to the list in this post.
http://www.cambl.com/psalms/2000-05EdComm/index.htm
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Recordings from the Scottish Psalter, Book 5, Psalms 107-150
Recordings from the Scottish Metrical Psalter (1650). These recordings are all sung a cappella, and are free to download.
For more recordings, and for more information about the people who made these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
For more recordings, and for more information about the people who made these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
| Psalm | Tune | Who's Singing? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Psalm 107:1-8 | Epworth | CCRPC | |
| * | Psalm 107:1-9 | Gainsborough | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 107:10-16 | Amazing Grace | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 107:17-22 | Nativity | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 107:23-30 | Kilmarnock | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 107:23-30 | Torwood | Santa Fe |
| Psalm 107:23-31 | Lochbroom | Highland Harmony Singers | |
| * | Psalm 107:37-43 | Glenluce | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 108 | Bishopthorpe | CCRPC |
| * | Psalm 110 | Southwark | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 112:1-5 | Caithness | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 113 | St. Etheldreda | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 115:12-18 | Contemplation | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 116:1-7 | Rest | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 116:1-6 | Coleshill | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 116:13-19 | Ericstane | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 119:9-14 | St. Paul | unknown |
| Psalm 119:57-60 | Belmont | Aberdeen FCC | |
| * | Psalm 119:57-60 | Belmont | Highland Harmony Singers |
| Psalm 119:57-64 | Belmont | Niallags | |
| * | Psalm 119:57-64 | Belmont | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 119:89-96 | Palestrina | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 119:169-176 | St. Andrew | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 121 | French | Santa Fe |
| Psalm 121 | French | Free Church | |
| Psalm 121 | French | Niallags | |
| Psalm 121 | French | somebody's wedding | |
| Psalm 122 | Free Church | Free Church | |
| * | Psalm 122 | St. Paul | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 127:1-5 | St. Andrew | unknown |
| * | Psalm 128:1-6 | Howard | unknown |
| Psalm 130 | Bays of Harris | Free Church | |
| * | Psalm 130 | Martyrdom | FP congregation |
| * | Psalm 130 | Martyrdom | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 132:1-9 | St. Flavian | Santa Fe |
| Psalm 133 | Eastgate R | CCRPC | |
| Psalm 133 | Eastgate R | Highland Harmony Singers | |
| * | Psalm 133 | Crimond | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 135:1-5 | Southwark | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 137 | Dunlapscreek | CCRPC |
| * | Psalm 138:1-3 | Tiverton | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 139:1-10 | St. Columba | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 139:3-9 2nd | Croft's 136th | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 143:1-5 2nd | Leuchars | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 143:6-8 2nd | Heber | unknown |
| * | Psalm 145:1-7 2nd | Rockingham | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 145:9-15 2nd | Retreat | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 146:5-8 | University | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 147:1-5 | Huddersfield | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 147:3-7 | Huddersfield | Glasgow FPs |
| * | Psalm 149:1-4 | New Lydia R | ConnorQ |
Monday, September 20, 2010
Free Psalm Recordings, Scottish Psalter
NOTE: a more comprehensive list of psalm recordings can be found here:
ScottishPsalter.com/recordings
***************************************************
I enjoy listening to recordings of psalm singing. Some time ago, I began a quest to hunt down all the psalm recordings available online. I was looking for recordings a) from the Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650, b) unaccompanied by musical instruments, and c) free to download. I've compiled a list of everything I could find that met my criteria, and thought I would share it with y'all.
The number of recordings available online has multiplied greatly in the last couple of years, so I'm no longer including links to every recording that I can find. I'm just including my favorites and the ones I listen to most regularly. I've divided the list into five parts according to the five books of the psalms:
Book 1: Psalms 1-41
Book 2: Psalms 42-72
Book 3: Psalms 73-89
Book 4: Psalms 90-106
Book 5: Psalms 107-150
A little more about the people behind the recordings:
1. Santa Fe--as you probably know, Jesh and I have been hosting occasional psalm singing gatherings, attended mostly by people from the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland in Santa Fe, plus occasional guests. We currently have these recordings hosted on archive.org; the list is here.
2. CCRPC--Christ Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church (RPCGA) in Wylie, Texas. This church uses the Comprehensive Psalter, which has the same text as the 1650 Psalter, but divided into selections with assigned tunes. Their recordings are posted here. They are singing straight through the psalter, and posting new recordings monthly.
3. Free Church--the Free Church of Scotland has a few psalm recordings on their website, but many of them are from their modernized psalter, not the 1650. They also have some Gaelic recordings. Another list of Free Church recordings can be found here, but most of those are duplicates from the Free Church site; the only one I got from that site was Psalm 130.
4. Highland Harmony Singers--a group of singers in Scotland who aim to promote psalm singing. I got their recordings from the website www.psalm-singing.org.
--Any recordings that have the singers identified as "unknown" or something similar are also from the www.psalm-singing.org site.
5. Aberdeen FCC--found on the website of the Aberdeen Free Church of Scotland Continuing. This page has a very useful list of audio files of psalm tunes; scroll down to the very bottom for sixteen very nice recordings of psalm singing. And this page has two "sample tracks."
6. Niallags--these are psalms sung and recorded by Niall Maclennan and posted in this set on Soundcloud.
7. Connor Q--Connor Quigley has posted a number of psalm recordings on Soundcloud. Many of these are from the Scottish Psalter; you can listen to them here. Direct links are in the lists above.
8. EPC youth--The Brisbane youth group of the EPC (Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Australia) have recorded an album of psalms from the Scottish Psalter. You can listen to the recordings on Soundcloud here.
If you know of other recordings that are a) from the 1650 Scottish Psalter, b) unaccompanied by instruments and c) free to download, please let me know and I'll add them to the list.
ScottishPsalter.com/recordings
***************************************************
I enjoy listening to recordings of psalm singing. Some time ago, I began a quest to hunt down all the psalm recordings available online. I was looking for recordings a) from the Scottish Metrical Psalter of 1650, b) unaccompanied by musical instruments, and c) free to download. I've compiled a list of everything I could find that met my criteria, and thought I would share it with y'all.
The number of recordings available online has multiplied greatly in the last couple of years, so I'm no longer including links to every recording that I can find. I'm just including my favorites and the ones I listen to most regularly. I've divided the list into five parts according to the five books of the psalms:
Book 1: Psalms 1-41
Book 2: Psalms 42-72
Book 3: Psalms 73-89
Book 4: Psalms 90-106
Book 5: Psalms 107-150
A little more about the people behind the recordings:
1. Santa Fe--as you probably know, Jesh and I have been hosting occasional psalm singing gatherings, attended mostly by people from the Free Presbyterian Church of Scotland in Santa Fe, plus occasional guests. We currently have these recordings hosted on archive.org; the list is here.
2. CCRPC--Christ Covenant Reformed Presbyterian Church (RPCGA) in Wylie, Texas. This church uses the Comprehensive Psalter, which has the same text as the 1650 Psalter, but divided into selections with assigned tunes. Their recordings are posted here. They are singing straight through the psalter, and posting new recordings monthly.
3. Free Church--the Free Church of Scotland has a few psalm recordings on their website, but many of them are from their modernized psalter, not the 1650. They also have some Gaelic recordings. Another list of Free Church recordings can be found here, but most of those are duplicates from the Free Church site; the only one I got from that site was Psalm 130.
4. Highland Harmony Singers--a group of singers in Scotland who aim to promote psalm singing. I got their recordings from the website www.psalm-singing.org.
--Any recordings that have the singers identified as "unknown" or something similar are also from the www.psalm-singing.org site.
5. Aberdeen FCC--found on the website of the Aberdeen Free Church of Scotland Continuing. This page has a very useful list of audio files of psalm tunes; scroll down to the very bottom for sixteen very nice recordings of psalm singing. And this page has two "sample tracks."
6. Niallags--these are psalms sung and recorded by Niall Maclennan and posted in this set on Soundcloud.
7. Connor Q--Connor Quigley has posted a number of psalm recordings on Soundcloud. Many of these are from the Scottish Psalter; you can listen to them here. Direct links are in the lists above.
8. EPC youth--The Brisbane youth group of the EPC (Evangelical Presbyterian Church, Australia) have recorded an album of psalms from the Scottish Psalter. You can listen to the recordings on Soundcloud here.
If you know of other recordings that are a) from the 1650 Scottish Psalter, b) unaccompanied by instruments and c) free to download, please let me know and I'll add them to the list.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Recordings from the Scottish Psalter, Book 4, Psalms 90-106
Recordings from the Scottish Metrical Psalter (1650). These recordings are sung a capella, and are free to download.
For more recordings, and to learn more about the people behind these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
For more recordings, and to learn more about the people behind these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
| Psalm | Tune | Who's Singing? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| * | Psalm 90:8-10 | St. Agnes | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 90:13-17 | Kilmarnock | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 91:1-6 | Belmont | Glasgow Bible study |
| * | Psalm 91:1-6 | Spohr | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 91:5-11 | Artaxerxes | Edinburgh FPs |
| * | Psalm 92:1-5 | Contemplation | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 92:12-15 | Howard | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 93 | Irish | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 98:1-4 | Huddersfield | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 99:5-9 | Warwick | Edinburgh FPs |
| Psalm 100 (1st) | Zion's Temple R | Highland Harmony Singers | |
| Psalm 100 (1st) | Old 100th | Aberdeen FCC | |
| Psalm 100 (1st) | Old 100th | Niallags | |
| * | Psalm 100 (1st) | Old 100th | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 102:1-8 (2nd) | Finnart | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 102:9-15 (2nd) | Herongate | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 102:13-22 (2nd) | Duke Street | Highland Harmony Singers |
| * | Psalm 102:13-22 (2nd) | Duke Street | Santa Fe |
| Psalm 102:13-22 (2nd) | Walton | unknown | |
| Psalm 102:16-22 (2nd) | Marrel | Niallags | |
| Psalm 102:23-28 (2nd) | Angels' Song | Niallags | |
| * | Psalm 102:23-28 (2nd) | Hereford | Highland Harmony Singers |
| Psalm 102:23-28 (2nd) | Retreat | Santa Fe | |
| * | Psalm 103:1-4 | Kilmarnock | Edinburgh FPs |
| * | Psalm 103:4-12 | Kilmarnock | Glasgow Bible study |
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Recordings from the Scottish Psalter, Book 3, Psalms 73-89
Psalm recordings from the Scottish Metrical Psalter (1650). These recordings are all sung a cappella, and are free to download.
For more recordings, and more information about the people behind these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
For more recordings, and more information about the people behind these recordings, click here.
In order from left to right, we have: the psalm, the tune, and the people/group singing. Click on the psalm to be taken to the hosting site where you can listen and/or download the recording.
I've put an "R" next to the tunes that repeat a line, since I know that not everyone appreciates those (as my brother says, "If that line was meant to be repeated, it would be repeated in the Bible.").
The quality of these may vary.
Where there are multiple recordings per psalm or section of a psalm, I've tried to pick out my favorites to include in the playlist I listen to regularly. The recordings in my playlist are marked with an asterisk *.
| Psalm | Tune | Who's Singing? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| * | Psalm 73:23-28 | Wetherby | Glasgow Bible study |
| Psalm 73:23-28 | Wetherby | Niallags | |
| * | Psalm 74:12-17 | Argyle | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 76:1-7 | Martyrs | ConnorQ |
| * | Psalm 80:1-4 | Evan | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 80:14-19 | Morven | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 80:17-19 | Evan | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 80:17-19 | Morven | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 81:1-7 | Bishopthorpe | Niallags |
| * | Psalm 84:7-12 | Wiltshire | Santa Fe |
| * | Psalm 85:1-7 | Naomi | Aberdeen FCC |
| * | Psalm 85:6-13 | Naomi | Highland Harmony Singers |
| * | Psalm 86:1-8 | Ayrshire | Niallags |
| Psalm 86:8-13 | Free Church | Edinburgh FPs | |
| * | Psalm 86:8-13 | Moravia | unknown |
| * | Psalm 86:14-17 | Palestrina | Santa Fe |
| Psalm 86:15-17 | Palestrina | Edinburgh FPs | |
| Psalm 89:15-18, 52 | Glasgow | unknown | |
| * | Psalm 89:15-18 | Newington | Highland Harmony Singers |
| * | Psalm 89:21-34 | Petersham | CCRPC |
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