Summer of the '60s
Our homeschool focus this summer is the 1960s (And maybe the ‘70s? It depends on how far we get!).
Last summer we had such a good time with our Buggy Study and Moon Month, emphases drawn from Henlee’s curiosity. This year we had plenty of questions and ideas, but it was difficult to figure out where to start.
Enter our beloved Rowan County Public Library. The theme for summer reading is a groovy “All together now!”
As they said:
”This year's Summer Reading is all about kindness, friendship, and unity! There's no mistaking it—times have been tough for a while now, and we could all use a little understanding and compassion. Your Rowan County Public Library is the perfect place to find that sense of community!”
We couldn’t agree more. We’ve decided to camp out in the land of bell bottoms, bouffant, and, as it turns out, some really good books.
What We’re Reading
One of our unofficial goals is to read every Newbery award-winning book and possibly all of the honor books (runners-up). Newbery books are original American novels for children and young people published in the year of their award. Such a unique glimpse into time!
We’ve decided to draw our family read-alouds from the Newbery winners in the 1960s.
One thing I like so far about our evolving home education style is that we commit to the discipline and delight of discovery and skill-building while also being open to where the road leads. So I don’t have a sketch for all the read-alouds this summer, but we do have a bank to pull from.
Family Read-Alouds thus far:
It’s Like This, Cat by Emily Cheney Neville – a fourteen year old boy comes of age in New York City. He takes in a stray tomcat mainly to annoy his father, but through growing care and dedication to the cat, he grows in empathy and action on the behalf of others. I loved watching the stretch in his awareness of the world and of his parents and how, therefore, the father-son dynamic transforms over the course of the tale.
The Bronze Bow by Elizabeth George Speare – We’re just starting off with this one. It’s about a boy whose father is murdered by the Romans in first century Palestine. The boy falls in with violent thieves and then hears about a rabbi from Nazareth…
Freewater by Amina Luqman-Dawson – We’re also just starting this as an audiobook. It won both the Corretta Scott King and the Newbery this year! It’s about two children who escape from slavery and discover a community of free folks living in the Great Dismal Swamp.
We’ve also pulled 15 or so of the Caldecott winners our library had available from the 1960s and ‘70s.
The art from any era definitely evokes the ethos of the time. I mean, I can almost smell it. So far, these award-winning picture books have taken us to where the wild things are, to babushka's little warm house in the Russian snow, and into a funny little Scottish ballad where there’s always room for one more…
What We’re Listening To
From literature we make the jump to music. The sixties was certainly a time of rich cultural shifts and incredible musical expression. As a friend from church who was present at many concerts in the ‘60s and also studied the decade professionally, the Beatles in particular “really pushed music forward.” We’re making a playlist as we go.
I had trouble rooting around in the music at first because of the intense way our society drives (permits? expects? drives?) our bards to drugs, alcohol, and other abuses. I don’t want to glorify destructive behaviors in song, and I also do not want to forsake good and beautiful music necessarily because of the artists’ personal life. It’s a hard line to follow in the sixties (or any era, unfortunately). Holler if you want to be a conversation partner with me in this, or if you have any suggestions for our playlist!
We want to learn these two by heart:
Here Comes the Sun by the Beatles
If I Had a Hammer by Peter, Paul, and Mary
Our morning devotions have also led us to study Mahalia Jackson. Mahalia will take you to church!
And around the Fourth of July we’ll experience Jimi Hendrix’s Star Spangled Banner.
What We’re Seeing
Artwork:
Our Caldecott books are providing much of our art appreciation, but I anticipate a trip to the Kentucky Folk Art Center again here soon.
We’re also looking into the work of Roy Lichtenstein, Bridget Riley, and maybe Paula Rego.
Films:
The Sword and the Stone (1963)
That Darn Cat! (1965)
Remember the Titans (2000; story set in 1971)
101 Dalmatians (1961)
Those Calloways (1965)
The Hobbit (1977)
And… the original Scooby-Doo! Where Are You? (1969) series!
What We’re Making
Crafts: So we do a lot of painting, drawing, cutting, pasting, stitching, and otherwise creating around here. In addition to just doing what we do, we’re aiming to try a few particular projects. So far we’ve made a little monster critter from a craft kit my friend Robin put together! All of the materials were recycled and we learned three new stitches. So fun!
We’re craft-curious about…
Macrame. We keep fairly busy making cards, painting, knitting, and sewing whatever we like, but the word on the street is that macrame was super popular in the ‘60s. I may strew materials for a cute wall-hanging and see what happens.
Retro Crafts. I’m keen to see what Henlee thinks of the simple ideas I found here. Thaumatrope anyone? Pinch Pot? God’s Eye?
Dances: The Twist was the number one song of 1960, so we’ll twist and hopefully keep working on our line dances.
Acts of Kindness: With any pass through history, it is life-giving to remember Paul’s encouragement to “not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:21). God’s goodness will ultimately win the Day; God is at work in history for good, which is both personal and universal. Acts of kindness are ways little ones (and all of us) can practice living into God’s reality and trusting the divine dream for us all.
We pray the Holy Spirit will bear much fruit in us!
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation has excellent free resources for people of every age. We’re looking at this little booklet.
Food: We’re hoping our summer wraps with a ‘60s Dinner Party that features any and all of these recipes. Watergate Salad is at the top of my list. I have always wondered what that magical stuff was at church covered-dish dinners.
Where We’re Going
Outside: While not directly related to the ‘60s, I’ll mention that we started our second year of the 1,000 Hours Outside Challenge back in May. The goal of the challenge is to at least match screen-time with green-time. We have found that time shared outdoors transforms our attention, appetites, and aims. Muuuuch of our homeschool/living/adventuring takes place outside now. That context shapes the questions we bring to the table.
The Library: We plan to attend at least 6 library events this summer ranging from story-times to history lectures to magic shows!
The road! Later this summer we’re planning to take a Southern road trip through Little Rock, Birmingham, Atlanta, and the swamplands. We hope to be able to make at least one meaningful pilgrimage in each location that is relevant to the Civil Rights Movement.
(I don’t feel comfortable sharing details ahead of the trip itself, but I can’t wait to share after the venture!)
Wonder is for the Whole Family
I love how home education for us is a family adventure, not a chore or isolated task for our child. We are all onboard to marvel over God’s world and the truth, goodness, and beauty therein. We all want to grow in discernment and integrity.
The sixties represents a sizable gap in my own grasp of history. Conventional education often only makes it through WWII. I am grateful for this opportunity to learn.
What this looks like for us grownups…
I’m reading “What They Didn’t Teach You about the Sixties” by Mike Wright.
Aaron and I are watching:
CNN’s “The Sixties” documentary series. Find it here.
Films we’ve missed:
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner
Lawrence of Arabia
A Man for All Seasons
I’m learning about the musicians as we encounter them, matching artists and their contexts to the songs I’ve heard all my life.
I’m aiming to pick up a few new journaling techniques in order to record the beauty of the days given to us under the sun.
As Aaron and I play, draw, make music, and tell stories with Henlee we are being educated anew, perhaps even set a little freer.
I’m also curious about the church scene of the ‘60s and am still looking for appropriate resources that cover that time in baptist circles, especially our progressive predecessors. Perhaps I’ll take this opportunity to get better acquainted with the work of Henlee Barnette.
Our homeschool focus this summer is the 1960s (And maybe the ‘70s? It depends on how far we get!). We’ve decided to camp out in the land of bell bottoms, bouffant, and, as it turns out, some really good books.