BJU Press Blog

language arts

Little House and the Big Omission (Part 1)

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The wolves howl hungrily in the Big Woods, but inside the little log cabin a cozy fire projects the lively shadows of Pa’s fiddle playing while Mary and Laura sing along. Scenes like this one from the Little House series are still etched in my mind. My mother read each of the Little House books to us children, and I recently began reading them with my daughter.

This beloved series captures the essence of pioneer life. We experience the nineteenth-century American frontier with the Ingalls family on long journeys plodding across the prairie in a covered wagon, through relentless Dakota blizzards that nearly brought a town to starvation, and against harsh farming realities such as grasshopper plagues and hailstorms. We learn perseverance, discipline, family harmony, and courage.

Yet as I’m reading through this series as an adult, I’ve noticed a big omission in the Little House series. We take for granted that Little House is a wholesome Christian series. After all, the Ingalls family prays, goes to church, and lives morally. However, the Christianity portrayed in the Little House series is merely cultural, from dull Sabbath-keeping and moral judgments to religious platitudes, such as “The Lord helps them that help themselves.”

The gospel is conspicuously absent from the Little House series and so the shell of Christianity that remains implies a works righteousness that cannot save.

So as I read the Little House series with my children, I want to point out the instances of cultural Christianity and contrast it with biblical truth. This may help them recognize cultural Christianity today, such as when we hear politicians say “God bless America” with never a mention of Christ or our need for repentance, or when we interact with that likable neighbor who believes his moral life and good deeds and occasional church attendance earn him a title deed to heaven. As we enjoy the story of American frontier life, here are some discussion questions you can use to help children distinguish between the shell of religion and real life in Christ.

Naughty Cousin Charley

In Little House in the Big Woods (210–11), Laura was astonished at how Charley disobeyed and distracted his father. She couldn’t imagine being so naughty, and she thought he got what he deserved in being stung by the yellow jackets.

Discussion Questions

  • Do you think you are better than Charley (Luke 5:32)?
  • When we compare ourselves with other people, we often think we’re relatively good and that God will accept us into heaven. But what does the Bible teach us about comparison and our true state before God (2 Corinthians 10:12; Isaiah 64:6; Romans 3:10–24)?

Clichés

The Little House series is full of practical proverbs and optimistic sayings, such as “All’s well that ends well” and “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.” In Farmer Boy (146), Mother is frightened at the possibility of being robbed, but Father reminds her, “The Lord will take care of us.” She responds, “The Lord helps them that help themselves.”

Discussion Questions

  • Is “The Lord helps them that help themselves” a biblical proverb?
  • When it comes to salvation, is this proverb applicable (Romans 5:6-11; Ephesians 2:8-9)?

Getting Even with Snooty Nellie Olsen

In On the Banks of Plum Creek (168–76), Laura shows the normal human response of loving her friends and hating her enemies, seeking to get even with haughty Nellie Olsen by chasing her into the muddy creek area infested with bloodsucking leeches. Laura’s friend thought Nellie got what she deserved, and “deep down inside her Laura felt satisfied when she thought of Nellie dancing on the creek bank” (176).

Discussion Questions

  • How does Jesus say we should respond to our enemies (Matthew 5:43–48)?
  • What did Jesus do for those who were God’s enemies (Colossians 1:21–22)?

Ma and the Indians

Several times in the Little House series, the Ingalls family encounters Indians, much to Ma’s displeasure. In By the Shores of Silver Lake (82), she declares, “I always heard you can’t trust a half-breed.” The author observes, “Ma did not like Indians; she did not like even half-Indians.”

Discussion Questions

  • What are some reasons why Ma disliked Indians? Are there any people groups that you naturally fear or dislike?
  • Are there really different races of people or only one human race descended from Adam and Eve (Acts 17:26)?
  • How does faith in Christ break down ethnic barriers and give us a love for enemies (John 3:16; Colossians 3:11; Revelation 5:9)?
  • Contrast Ma’s attitude with the love and sacrifice of David Brainerd, who sought to bring the gospel to the Indians.

Stay tuned for Part 2  with more discussion questions to help us see the Little House series through a biblical worldview and gospel lens.

Works Cited

Laura Ingalls Wilder. Little House in the Big Woods. New York: Harper & Row, 1971.

———. Farmer Boy. New York: Harper & Row, 1971.

———. On the Banks of Plum Creek. New York: Harper & Row, 1971.

———. By the Shores of Silver Lake. New York: Harper & Row, 1971.

Write a Novel in a Month?!

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Looking to inspire those budding novelists under your tutelage?

November is the perfect opportunity to get them to stretch those creative muscles. By introducing them to National Novel Writing Month, you just might see even timid and procrastinating writers start baby-stepping their way to literary greatness.

 

While the average novel is around 100,000 words, National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo as it is called) cuts that requirement in half, asking writers to produce a 50,000-word short novel in thirty days. By producing a shorter work, your writers are being trained to make it “meatier”—with no droning on about superfluous details or patience-testing fillers. This project calls for cutting to the chase, keeping things moving, and only letting in the important stuff. NaNoWriMo is all about getting a story on paper and worrying about fine-tuning it later.

Writers are also forced to map their strategy and organize their time. We all have other stuff to do, especially during the holiday season. Not many of us would choose to skip Thanksgiving dinner to write. So your writers will have to divide the number of words they need by the number of days they will actually be writing throughout November. A realistic goal would probably be a chapter a week.

Needless to say, having a firm grasp of the basics of fiction writing will go a long way toward your students’ success with this project. A review of plot, characterization, description,and so on before plunging forward will give added direction and confidence. Who knows where the journey will lead, once the first step is taken? NaNoWriMo mini-novel today, best-seller tomorrow.

NaNoWriMo Writing Project Tips

      1. Decide on the required number of words. Your students have other classes and projects, so you may need to make your minimum word count smaller than 50,000.
      2. Choose the start and end dates for the project. You can go with the traditional month of November time frame, or you can have it go shorter or longer if you need to. Whatever you decide, make sure it’s a reasonable period of time to meet your word-count requirements.
      3. Determine the grading criteria. Will you grade based on completion only or will you also check the quality of writing—sentence structure, spelling/grammar, and such? Be sure to let your students know this at the beginning of the project. (NaNoWriMo is typically focused on completing a rough draft.)
      4. Implement weekly (or other periodic) checks. If left alone, some of your students will fall behind in their writing. Help them out by giving occasional due dates and telling them what you will be looking for in those checks.

• • • • •

Rebecca is a work-at-home freelance writer, novelist, wife, and the mom of two bright-eyed little ones. She credits her success in writing and her love of books to her own mom, who homeschooled three kids from pre-K through high school.

Have you ever participated in NaNoWriMo or adapted it for your students? Tell us about your experience in a comment.

Ready, Set, Read! (Part 3)

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Over the past few weeks, we’ve been sharing portions of an interview with Nancy Lohr, author and acquisitions editor for JourneyForth. In the first part of the interview, Nancy explained how the BJU Press Summer Reading Program works and gave a few tips on how to encourage reluctant readers. During the second part, she discussed how children with special needs can participate in the program. Nancy also shared some suggestions for choosing reading materials for children. Below is the final part of our interview.

image of the 2014 sumnmer reading logo

Do you have any suggestions for dealing with objectionable content in children’s literature?

It is no secret that there are plenty of books published for children and teens that do not have a biblical worldview in either the philosophical foundation of the story or in the language and actions of the characters. So what are parents to do? One approach is to pre-read all of the books children read with the goal of presenting material that has no “warts,” but that can consume so much time that children will be waiting for you.

Another approach is to choose books carefully but be prepared to discuss the content when your children encounter something in print that doesn’t square with Scripture and the direction of your home. Children in my library loved to recognize statements in books about dinosaurs that didn’t square with the creation account in Genesis 1. Depending on the age and skill of your reader, you might want to purposely read a book from a different perspective to open discussions. Armed with a trustworthy anthology, search for books from authors and publishers that are a good fit for your family. Read the annotations and discuss with your child what kinds of concerns he or she might find in a given book, and then ask your child to share a sentence or paragraph with you that matches your concern. Make these talking points, and . . . well, talk.

Help your child build discernment as he or she reads. This is a perfect time to develop the concept of our being in the world, but not of the world. Show how to go to Scripture to determine a biblical response. And give your child permission to stop reading if the content is not suitable, and then move on to another, better book.

How can parents provide incentives along the way during the BJU Press Summer Reading Program?

Additional encouragement through the eight-week program may be helpful if it is suited to the individual children. Perhaps your avid readers would like to shoot for a specific number during their reading time, like a large number of minutes or pages or books. These readers might like to read from a variety of categories that include their comfort zones, but stretch them into types of books they haven’t read yet.

Maybe the whole family can go to a favorite place outdoors and enjoy a “book-nic.” Take a blanket, pack a picnic basket meal, and carry along a book for everyone.

If your children like stickers or trinkets or snacks, consider awarding these at milestones during the program.

Incentives can help keep your children motivated during the program, but the best outcome any of us could hope for is that the children begin to be motivated by reading itself with no additional motivation needed. You are there when you hear, “Please, Mom, just one more chapter?”

How can parents model good reading habits for their children?

Join your children during their reading time to read material that interests you, and if what you are reading makes you laugh out loud, I can almost guarantee that you will hear, “What? What’s so funny?” Be in the habit of sharing with them from your own reading. “Hey, listen to this” ought to be a common phrase in your home. Model for them what you are asking of them.

Do you have a reading-related question that we haven’t covered? Let us know in a comment, and we’ll do our best to answer.

Ready, Set, Read! (Part 2)

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We hope you’ve signed up your child(ren) to be a part of the BJU Press Summer Reading Program. If you haven’t, there’s still time! Registration is open until June 17.
A few weeks ago we shared part one of our interview  with JourneyForth acquisitions editor Nancy Lohr. Nancy shared with us some great information about the BJU Press Summer Reading Program and gave us some tips for encouraging reluctant readers to read this summer. Below are some more great nuggets from our conversation.

image of the 2014 sumnmer reading logo

What would you say to parents of special needs children who want to participate?

I would shout, “Hurrah for you!” The fact that your child cannot lift words from the page without some help doesn’t mean his or her literary taste buds won’t enjoy the story just as much as other children. Customize this reading program to maximize its effectiveness for your child. You may need to break the reading sessions into smaller segments, or “read” audio books while following along in the print book. You can do the same kind of seeing/hearing with eBooks by using the text-to-speech function of eReaders along with the on-screen text. Some books are available in DVD format so you can watch with the closed captions turned on. The Mice of the Herring Bone DVD from ShowForth is an example of this type of book. If you have other ways that you make reading accessible to your special needs child, we’d love for you share your approach with us on the JourneyForth Facebook page.

What’s the most important thing for parents to remember when choosing reading materials for their children?

Summer reading qualifies as leisure reading, so engage your children in the selection process to find topics of interest. Let your children read the materials that they didn’t have time for during the school year. Children learn how to read in school; they learn to love reading when they are immersed in topics or stories that they enjoy.

Don’t be overly concerned about whether the material is “hard enough.” Certainly you don’t want to let a capable reader slide by and gain little, but experts agree that regular reading in materials of the child’s choice is one of the best ways to strengthen reading skills as well as to develop a love for the written word. And the children who learn to love reading are the ones who will be reading long after the last school assignment is complete.

As a librarian, I often saw children who used their summer reading time to read all of the Hardy Boys® series—in numerical order—or some challenge of that nature. Those children did a heap of reading during the summer and had fun in the process. That’s huge motivation regardless of their skills. Reading is an accrued skill that develops as children read regularly.

What are some reading challenges that your child faces? Let us know in a comment.

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Ready, Set, Read!

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The BJU Press Summer Reading Program has begun! In celebration of its launch, we spoke with Nancy Lohr, acquisitions editor for JourneyForth, about the Summer Reading Program and topics related to reading. Nancy, an avid reader herself, has also worked as a classroom teacher and a children’s librarian in the past. Below is a portion of the interview.

image of the 2014 sumnmer reading logo

What is your goal for the Summer Reading Program, or what would you say is its purpose?

The BJU Press Summer Reading Program is designed to give parents a manageable and effective way to keep their children reading through the summer months. Research shows that children can lose ground educationally during the summer months, and parents can minimize or eliminate this loss by establishing a pattern of leisure reading at home. Reading contests and programs can be notoriously difficult for the parent or teacher to execute, so we’ve designed our program to promote regular reading for children—we’re asking for reading five days a week for eight weeks during your summer—with a minimum of paperwork for Mom and Dad and taking into consideration the varying skills and interests of the children who participate. This gives families time for vacations, summer camp, and family activities while still making reading a priority, which in turn advances reading skills and fosters a love of reading.

Do you have some suggestions or encouragement for parents of reluctant readers?

If you as parents know why your child is reluctant, then you have some idea of where you need to focus your efforts.

Maybe you need to start the summer with an engaging read-aloud for your family. This could be the fanciful My Father’s Dragon or the poignant Stone Fox or . . . you get the idea.

Help your child select books appropriate to his or her skills. Scour an anthology or your library’s catalog to find something that is engaging to your child and suitable for your family, or talk with your local children’s librarian for ideas. Get recommendations from the readers in your world. Try cooperative reading with your child, taking turns with paragraphs or pages or with each of you reading the words of specific characters. Or one of you signal the other when you are ready to handoff to the other reader. Some children like to reread books; that’s just fine. Who doesn’t like to spend an afternoon with an old friend? Reading skills are strengthened even in rereading. Consider why that book is your child’s friend, and then look for books that are similar in some way.

If your child has adequate reading skills but doesn’t like to read, then it may be that he or she just hasn’t found a home-run book yet. Reading fiction may not be your child’s cup of tea, so look for nonfiction that will answer questions or deliver information. It may be that a book about combustion engines or the Smithsonian Magazine can satisfy your child’s need to know. Use the summer to find the kind of reading material that scratches the reading itch for your youngster.

Do you have a reluctant reader in your home or classroom? What have you done to motivate that child?

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