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Darkness in Dystopian Fiction and the Hope After

May 15, 2018 by Jenna

dystopian fiction today
In the last few years, there has been a trend towards dystopian literature in young adult fiction. Though the trend may eventually die down, the books it has produced are still popular. If your children start asking about reading these books or watching the movie adaptations, what will you say? It’s always better if you read them yourself first. But you may still find yourself uncertain about whether dystopian fiction is appropriate for your children.

Let’s address a few of the basic questions you may have and point out some things to consider when approaching this genre of literature.

What is dystopian fiction?

Dystopian fiction is the opposite of utopian fiction. Instead of living in a perfect world, the characters typically live in a post-apocalyptic world with highly isolated societies. Dominant themes include an overly controlling, and often broken, government and a socialistic structure of society. Series such as The Hunger Games and The Giver are examples of popular dystopian fiction, but the genre is far from new. Though there is some debate, the earliest dystopian novel is either The Time Machine (1895) or When the Sleeper Wakes (1899), both by H. G. Wells. Rebellion against an oppressive government and violence because of that rebellion often characterizes the genre. It also has a tendency to be hopeless and repressively dark.

Why is dystopian fiction popular now?

Of course, a work of literature makes more sense when you understand its author’s background, but it’s also true that what a society chooses to highlight often reveals a great deal about that society. The culture that’s drawn to dystopian literature often identifies with the darkness, fear, death, and hopelessness that dystopian works portray. It’s a society that lacks security and dreads an uncertain future. It sees itself reflected in solitary heroes who try to repair a system that was broken long before they were born. It’s a society that is deeply afraid, with nowhere to turn. Even when their heroes win, it often feels like a broken victory.

The people in this society are your children’s peers and friends.

How can dystopian fiction be valuable?

Just like many other books, dystopian novels offer an opportunity to discuss a biblical worldview of the issues they raise. Naturally, mature children or those whose parents are reading along with them will be better equipped to critique those ideas. The following questions may also help direct your discussion of dystopian fiction: What does the Bible say about obeying the laws of governments? What does it say about obeying laws that are contrary to God’s law? How could the protagonist have handled a bad situation differently? What is a biblical response to a fearful and troubled society?

But perhaps even more importantly, familiarity with these stories opens up pathways of communication for your children with their peers. Yes, we live in a dark and broken world, but its future is by no means uncertain. We have a greater hope in Christ, who has already won a complete victory, and in His hands those who trust in Him are secure for all eternity. Your child might have a wonderful opportunity to share the hope we have in Christ with others who are deeply discouraged.

Filed Under: Shaping Worldview Tagged With: dystopian fiction, homeschool reading, young adult literature

Adding a Reading Hour to Your Homeschool

January 4, 2018 by Jenna


One of my earliest memories about reading was curling up on the couch with my mom and my two brothers as she read us the first chapter of The Hobbit. For some reason, she never finished reading the book to us. But I was so fascinated with Tolkien’s description of a hobbit hole that I felt I had to learn to read just to find out what happened. At least, that’s what I tell people. This was the first and only reading hour that my family ever did.

Ever since then, I’ve always thought of a family reading hour as one element of an ideal family. So I loved hearing about Dynel, a homeschool mom of ten, and her family’s reading hour.

In her family, everyone gets together every day in their special reading corner, and Dynel reads to them for about an hour. Even her youngest kids join in, and they’ve all learned valuable skills in stillness and attentiveness. During their reading hour, Dynel and her family have worked through many classic works of literature. She finds that reading aloud lets her select or adapt the material she reads. She makes the books either more understandable or addresses inappropriate elements.

If you want to add a reading hour in addition to your normal reading instruction, here are some additional ways you could set it up. Your reading hour should be fun, so if you or your children get frustrated with one approach, try a different setup.

Dad’s Reading Hour

One family I know has their reading hour at night right after dinner. The father is often away for long hours at work. Reading together as a family gives the children a chance to connect with Dad. He gets to learn what makes them laugh, and they get to share some valuable moments of stillness outside of the hustle and bustle of the day. Dads might especially enjoy reading these adventure-focused books aloud.

Reading Aloud

If you want to build your children’s confidence and skill in reading aloud, try taking turns while reading. You can assign a different reader each night or alternate readers from page to page, or even paragraph to paragraph. But experienced readers may get frustrated, and less experienced readers may feel overwhelmed by long passages. Remember that reading hour should be fun. So if it isn’t working for one of your readers, you should drop the activity. Keeping all reading times short lets everyone practice, and it makes sure everyone’s happy. These selections from a variety of genres and reading levels help keep everyone interested. Seasonal Christmas books are also especially good for read aloud reading hours.

Reading Silently 

Not every book should be read aloud. And not everyone has the same amount of interest in the topic of a book. For these kinds of situations, you can spend your reading hour reading separate books silently. After your children finish their books, or at the end of every hour, they can share the highlights and what they learned with their siblings. This would work well for informational books and biographies. If your boys put up a fuss about reading “girl books,” independent reading hours are a perfect time for your daughters to read about excellent female heroines and then explain why the boys should read them too. Even the little ones can get involved with books on their level.

Your family’s reading hour may wind up being somewhere between Dynel’s experience and mine as far as regularity is concerned. Even though I don’t remember my mother ever reading aloud to us again, there were many, many evenings that we spent reading together from then on.

 

This post was updated on 3/14/2018 for the purpose of clarifying terms.

Filed Under: Successful Learning Tagged With: homeschool reading, reading aloud, reading hour

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