"That afternoon, when Laura arrived, a little round table in the hearthplace had already been laid for tea. And what a meal! There were boiled new-laid eggs and scones and honey and home-made jam, and, to crown all, a dish of fresh Banbury cakes. The carrier had a standing order to bring her a dozen of these cakes every market day.

It seemed a pity to Laura that the first time she had been offered two eggs at one meal she could barely eat one and that the Banbury cake, hitherto to her a delicious rarity only seen in her home when purchased by visiting aunts, should flake and crumble almost untasted upon her plate because she felt too anxious to eat."  - Candleford Green, Ch. 1

Though I finished watching the final episode of Lark Rise to Candleford's Season 3 some time ago, my obsession has not subsided in the least. I've read all I could find by Flora Thompson and have spent an inordinate amount of time tracking down recipes for some of the foods mentioned in the book(s) and series. I bought The Lark Rise Recipe Book by Mary Norwak, but found it disappointing (a few of the recipes can be found here). Two things I was especially eager to try were Banbury Cake and Queen Cake.

After those cravings had been satisfied, finally, I launched into a full-fledged baking (and cooking!) spree which has lasted for several weeks now. Nevermind that it's entirely *too hot* to be baking! Here are a few of the favorites that we've tried:

• Buttermilk Spice Cake w/Cream Cheese Frosting (my favorite!)
• Budapest Coffee Cake (the kids' favorite)
• Orange Yogurt Cake
• Maple-Nut Chiffon Cake
• White Wonder Cake
• Raspberry Cream Cheese Buns
• Carrot and Pineapple Cake
• Banana Coconut Muffins

Spanish Cake (from The Boston Cooking-School Cook Book by Fannie Farmer)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 egg yokes
1/2 cup milk
1 3/4 cup flour
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 egg whites

Mix ingredients in order given. Bake in two 9" cake pans for 20-25 minutes at 350°. Frost with  Cinnamon Vanilla Buttercream or Chocolate Cinnamon Buttercream. (I'm thinking this cake would be delicious with just a hint of orange too!)

After taking a month or so to focus solely on Math and Language Arts (with a little Nature Study thrown in), next week we'll be returning to our usual school work. In History, we will resume our study of the Middle Ages by spending a week on the West African kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhai. Below are some of the resources I've found, many of which we'll be using.

• DVD: [Geography] BBC Atlas of National History: Wild Africa: Includes six episodes: Mountains, Savannah, Deserts, Coasts, Jungles, Lakes and Rivers.
• Board Games: 10 Days in Africa (BGG), Through the Desert (BGG), Timbuktu (BGG)
• Website: The Story of Africa: West African Kingdoms (BBC)

Books

• Africa: Geography & Environments (National Geographic World Regions) by Sherilin Chanek (Study Guide here)
• Ancient West African Kingdoms: Ghana, Mali, and Songhai by Mary Quigley (preview here) 
• The Royal Kingdoms of Ghana, Mali, and Songhay: Life in Medieval Africa by Patricia & Frederick McKissack (preview here)
• Mansa Musa: The Lion of Mali by Khephra Burns (preview here)
• Traveling Man: The Journal of Ibn Battuta 1325-1354 by James Rumford

Curriculum

• Exploring Africa! Classroom Activities
• A Golden Age: Three West African Empires (.PDF)
• A Hidden History: The West African Empires before the Atlantic Slave Trade (.PDF)
• West African Empires (PowerPoint Presentation)
• West African Geography, Climate, History (.PDF)
• Measuring the Travels of Two Adventurers: Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta + Handouts (.PDF) (GR 6-8 / Math)
• Ibn Battuta Worksheet ("A Visit to Mali")
• FINAL PROJECT: Medieval African Kingdoms Promotional Campaign
• Ghana: Medieval Trading Empire of West Africa (preview here), $14.95
• Unit 2, "African Roots" from Focus on U.S. History: The Era of Exploration and Discovery by Kathy Sammis, $25.00 (preview here)
• Document Based Activities: Medieval Africa, $13.45-16.95
• [Mr. Donn & Maxie's] Ancient and Medieval Africa, $23.95-29.95

As promised, I've finally put together a list of most of the medieval herbs we'll be attempting to grow this year for our garden project. The herbs are grouped according to usage, though of course many would have served multiple purposes.

Culinary / Kitchen Garden: Borage, Chicory, Oregano, Chives, Thyme, Parsley, Onions, Basil, Lovage, Wild Strawberry

Household Garden: Clove-Pink, Scotch Broom, Costmary, Soapwort, Mullein, Roman Chamomile, Fennel, Meadowsweet, Wallflower, Tansy, Lady's Bedstraw, Pennyroyal

Physick / Medicinal Garden: Feverfew, Horehound, Elecampane, Hyssop, Opium Poppy, Marsh Mallow, Angelica, Wood Betony, Cowslip, Wormwood, Moonwort, Pot Marigold, Mandrake, Rue, Cinquefoil, Clary

Dye and Fiber Garden: Woad, Agrimony, Madder, Weld, Indigo, Flax, Safflower, Dyer's Chamomile

Roses:
I'm also hoping to grow the following period-appropriate roses. More information on medieval roses can be found here:

• Apothecary's Rose, R. gallica officinalis, available at Heirloom Roses
• White Rose of York, R. alba semi-plena, available at Rogue Valley Roses
• Wild Dog Rose, R. canina, must be grown from seed in the U.S.
• Scotch Briar, R. spinosissima, available at High Country Roses
• St. John's Rose, R. sancta, available at Vintage Gardens
• Rosa mundi, available at Rogue Valley Roses

Garden Reference:

• Medieval and Renaissance Gardens: An excellent handout from an SCA class on Medieval/Renaissance garden design. Includes an extensive bibliography.
• SCA Period Gardening: Includes translations of several medieval gardening texts and a number of plant lists, including Charlemagne's.
• Medieval Peasant's Garden: An article about a 7th grade Medieval History project; includes plot plan and lists for Medicinal, Household, Culinary and Dye/Fiber plants.
• The Bonnefort Cloister Herb Garden: A list of herbs in the late 13th-early 14th century Bonnefont Cloister Garden, grouped according to their uses.
• Santa Clara University's Medieval Garden: Plant lists for the medicinal, kitchen and Mary garden's can be found here.
• The Medieval Kitchen Garden: A good article on medieval gardens and kitchen gardens in particular.
• Medieval Gardens at l'Abbaye Royale de Fontevraud
• Medieval Gardens at The Prebendal Manor
• Gardens at Buckfast Abbey
• Medieval Gardens: The Mary Garden: A list of plants with symbolic meanings, representing the virtues of the Virgin Mary.
• Mary Gardens: A wonderful comprehensive reference site.

Folk Medicine / Herbalism Reference:

• Monastery Gardens: Ancient Herbal Folklore
• Herbalism, Medieval, Magickal and Modern: An extensive collection of SCA class handouts, articles and documentation.
• Herbalism in the Middle Ages: A collection of articles, websites and period sources.
• Monk Herbalist: All About Ancient Medieval Healers
• Medicinal and Magick Herbs of Medieval Europe

Seed Sources:

• Sand Mountain Herbs
• Richters Herbs
• Horizon Herbs
• Alchemy Works

Finally, I've compiled a list of useful reference books in the blog toolbar on the left-hand side.

This afternoon, while browsing The Well-Trained Mind Forums, I stumbled across a downright *thrilling* discovery. In an old thread, I found a link to this Wired Magazine article about custom-printing public domain books. Now, I'm an avid Google Books user, but *hate* reading books online (as do my kids). I also dislike printing everything out as it results in significant paper/toner usage and just isn't quite as nice as having the actual book in hand. Unfortunately, many of the public domain books that I love are either impossible to find, or prohibitively expensive.

The Espresso Book Machine will turn a digital copy into a library-quality, perfect bound book in just minutes (how magical is that?!), but unfortunately, only a handful of book stores in the U.S. own the machine. Even more distressing is the lack of a shipping option offered. Finally however, I found this: the Harvard Book Store will print and ship books! And better yet, their search system appears to tie into Google Books directly. This really is, in my mind, completely revolutionary and opens a whole new world of possibilities for homeschoolers!
After quick deliberation, I ordered copies of the following (at a mere $8/apiece):

• Handbook Of Nature Study: For Teachers And Pupils In Elementary Schools by Dietrich Lange
• Nature Study in Elementary Schools: A Manual for Teachers by Lucy Langdon Williams Wilson
• In the Child's World: Morning Talks for Kindergartens, Primary Schools and Home by Emilie Poulsson (I adore this book and refer to it often!)
• Nature in Verse: A Poetry Reader for Children by Mary Isabella Lovejoy
• The Child's Fairy Geography, Or, A Merry Trip Round Europe by Forbes Edward Winslow (absolutely delightful and quite informative!)
• Legends of the Middle Ages: Narrated with Special Reference to Literature and Art by Hélène Adeline Guerber
• Scenes and Characters of the Middle Ages by Edward Lewes Cutts (contains some good information not readily available elsewhere)

Already I'm making a list of the books that I'll need to order next (a few, in particular, that I forgot to order today!):

• Sharp Eyes: A Rambler's Calendar of Fifty-Two Weeks Among Insects, Birds, and Flowers by William Hamilton Gibson (referred to often by Emilie Poulsson in the above volume)
• The Book of Nature Myths by Florence Holbrook
• The Fairy Land of Flowers: A Popular Illustrated Botany for the Home and School by Mara Louise Pratt-Chadwick
• The Stories of My Four Friends by Jane Andrews (The "Four Friends" are the four seasons)
• Types of Children's Literature: A Collection of the World's Best Literature for Children by Walter Barnes (a fairly useful anthology)
• Merrie England: Travels, Tales and Historical Sketches and Bonnie Scotland: Tales of Her History, Heroes and Poets by Grace Greenwood (excellent!)
• Chaucer for Schools by Mrs. H.R. Haweis (also excellent!)
• Stories from Old English Poetry by Abby Sage Richardson
• Old Ballads in Prose by Eva March Tappan
• The Open Road: A Little Book for Wayfarers and The Friendly Town: A Little Book for the Urbane by Edward Verrall Lucas
• A Book of Golden Deeds of All Times and All Lands by Charlotte M. Yonge
• English Fairy Tales and More English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs
• Ethics for Young People by Charles Carroll Everett ("A dry subject attractively treated")

For dinner throughout the week we enjoyed recipes from From a Monastery Kitchen. On Wednesday, we had fun learning about the history of pretzels (first made by monks as early as 610 AD to use up leftover scraps of dough, they were formed to represent a child's arms in prayer) and making our own. Ours, unfortunately, didn't look quite right, but they were absolutely delicious!
On Thursday, we were finally able to begin our study of Irish saints. We watched the St. Patrick segment from "In Search of Ancient Ireland" and read The Life of St. Patrick: Enlightener of the Irish by Zachary Lynch. We also began work on this gorgeous 500 pc puzzle of St. Patrick from Project Kells/Tailten Games:

I can honestly say that this puzzle is the *hardest* we've ever done! There are many, many pieces that fit together perfectly and look as though they belong together, until you notice just the tiniest speck of another color that doesn't belong. All of the intricate Celtic knotwork and detail is enough to make a person crazy, but for the most part we're enjoying it.
Friday was a busy day, so we skipped school work entirely. In the morning I finally had an appointment with a plastic surgeon for Botox (which I've been postponing since early last month due to the cost!). Last November, my new neurosurgeon informed me that I would need to try Botox for my migraines before he'd see me again. Essentially, the Botox freezes the muscles compressing the trigeminal nerve which triggers migraines. If it works to relieve my headaches (the plastic surgeon feels confident that it will), then I'll need to have a brow lift done to permanently cut away the offending muscle(s). Naturally none of this is covered by insurance, ugh. I was told that it would take about a week for the Botox to start working, but that many patients report relief immediately. Thus far, I've been blissfully headache-free, which is really amazing since I have headaches, in varying degrees, daily. Let's just hope it continues!
Friday afternoon was spent trying to get everything together so that the twins (or Elon) are ready for school next week. I'm anticipating a much smoother course now that we'll be relatively free of daily complaints and disruptions (hopefully), so, I'll be adding some additional work back into our schedule. I'll have more on that just as soon as I get it all sorted out.
For my own self-education this week, I read half of The Autobiography of Henry VIII by Margaret George and half of Sun Dancing by Geoffrey Moorhouse; I also read roughly a quarter of both The Book of Margery Kempe and The Age of the Cloister, as well as portions of The Beginnings of Western Science, Medieval Hospitals of England and Medieval Hospitals of Yorkshire. Frankly, it was a bit stressful juggling so many different books, so my goal for next week is to simplify things a little. I got seriously sidetracked this week by my research on Irish saints and medieval hopsitals, which had not been planned. I have not made any progress in my Praeceptor Training, which is hardly setting a good example for the kids!

I'm not sure what happened to Parts 3-5, but they're not available on YouTube. Fortunately, the documentary can be purchased directly from Mr. Severin (who can be contacted via his website). I've ordered a copy and look forward to watching it; I think the boys, in particular, will enjoy it as well!

Another option, though a bit different is the YouTube series In the Footsteps of St. Brendan the Navigator (See Also: Climbing Ben Nevis, The Faroes Island & Iceland Expedition).

Over the weekend, I spent my time researching and planning for our study of Irish saints as a part of our larger study on the Church in the Early Middle Ages. I previewed a portion of the video "In Search of Ancient Ireland" (which I'd purchased last year for our St. Patrick's Day unit study) and was thrilled to find that it is perfectly suited to our needs. Part II of the DVD contains segments on the following: St. Patrick, St. Brigid, St. Columba, Monastic Treasures & Culture, Seeking White Martyrdom, St. Columbanus, and Irish Pilgrims.

The segment "Seeking White Martyrdom" was especially appreciated as just prior to watching the video, my imagination had been captured by Skellig Michael and I'd been avidly researching the island with the hopes of including it in our study. Truly I cannot imagine living in such a place and it humbles me to imagine the determination of the monks who chose to do so! I read every word of The Forgotten Hermitage of Skellig Michael, absolutely enthralled. My interest in Skellig Michael then led me to order a copy of Sun Dancing by Geoffrey Moorhouse, followed soon thereafter by Celtic Spirituality by Oliver Davies and How the Irish Saved Civilization by Thomas Cahill (though I have mixed feelings about Cahill's work).

In the midst of all this, I also began researching St. Brendan [the Navigator], who was on my list of saints to cover and is also mentioned in the video. In particular, I enjoyed this post about St. Brendan, as well as St. Brendan and the Contemporary Novel. Naturally, I then had to order Brendan: A Novel by Frederick Buechner, and I'm not sure how I could miss The Brendan Voyage by Tim Severin. Goodness, I'm going to be very busy reading, but oh how I'm looking forward to it! Unfortunately, my books won't arrive until later this week, which scarcely allows me any time for preparation before our study (slated for next week, yikes).
A few additional sites of interest:

• Monastic Ireland: Stories of Saints and Historic Sites
• Early Irish Monasteries
• Celtic Monasticism: History and Spirituality
• Database of Early Christian Sites in Ireland

After a lovely Christmas break, this week has been one of easing back into our school routine and trying out new curriculum, yet again. And what a week it's been! Let me just say now that I am totally and completely wiped out!
Last month I spent a fair amount of time researching the Classical Liberal Arts Academy and found myself deeply impressed with the school on many different levels. Realizing that it would be quite a *challenge* for us (especially in its demands for structure and discipline, two areas in which we're rather lacking), I enrolled the kids in the three core classes: Classic Catechism I, Classical Arithmetic and Classical Grammar I, while also enrolling myself in the Praeceptor Training. I naively anticipated that the addition of a few online classes would simplify my life somehow, because it seems I've struggled a lot with homeschooling this past year.
However, this week has been nothing short of a *total* nightmare, made worse by the fact that I've been dealing with an increasingly nasty migraine for the past three days. Every single day has been a battle, replete with hours of whining/crying/arguing over the work and how hard it is to do. Essentially, there's a lot of memorization (it's ALL memorization), and while I knew it wouldn't be easy, I certainly wasn't expecting this. How on earth do you force a child to memorize pages (and pages) of material? It's overwhelming, I do understand that, yet not completely impossible if they'd avoid working themselves into such a frenzy over it! At any rate, we're committed, and I do believe the classes are valuable, so I'm not prepared to let them win this battle. I firmly believe that once we get past this hurdle (if I survive it), we'll all have benefitted. I can only hope that next week I'm headache-free and in a better position to deal with this, um, challenge. This weekend I'm going to begin praying this Novena for Homeschooling Mothers (Day 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), which certainly can't hurt.


Aside from our online coursework, the kids each completed a lesson in their Singapore Math books daily. In History, we continued to read from St. Benedict: Hero of the Hills by Mary Fabyan Windeatt (perhaps the emphasis on the obedience of the monks will rub off on them?!) and Life in a Medieval Abbey by Tony McAleavy. In particular, we began to study the art of illumination; we read Marguerite Makes a Book by Bruce Robertson and started on Bibles and Bestiaries: A Guide to Illuminated Manuscripts by Elizabeth B. Wilson. We'll continue this study next week using some of the resources listed below. I am deliberately keeping history quite light right now until we get more settled with our other classes. Given my tendency to over plan everything, I'm trying to do as little planning as possible ~ not an easy feat.
Online Resources:

• The Making of a Medieval Book from The Getty
• Digital Library of Illuminated Manuscripts from Lehigh University
• Leaves of Gold from the Philadelphia Museum of Art ~ a wonderful site that was recently taken down, but thankfully still available via the Internet Archive

Lesson Plans / Hands-On Activities:

• Understanding Medieval Manuscripts (PowerPoint Presentation)
• Looking at Illuminated Manuscripts: Lesson Plans & Ideas for Discussion from The Getty
• Illuminations: A Lesson in the Art of Illuminated Letters
• Create an Illuminated Alphabet Book from The Getty
• Make a Medieval Book from the V&A
• Make Your Own Medieval Manuscript 8-page codex templates from the Philadelphia Museum of Art
• Tools of the Trade & How They Were Used: Printable worksheet from Leaves of Gold
• Find the Tools in the Margins: Printable worksheet from Leaves of Gold
• The Scribe in His Workshop: Printable worksheet from Leaves of Gold
• Crayon Resist Illumination
• Medieval Letters Set
• The Illuminated Lettering Kit
• Make Your Own Manuscripts! Templates Suppliers

In other news...I've been doggedly pursuing my own self-education this week. In addition to my Praeceptor Training class, I read A World Lit Only By Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance: Portrait of an Age by William Manchester ~ a lousy book riddled with inaccuracies! The only thing I gained from the book was a renewed interest in Henry VIII and a desire to learn more about Europe's primevil forests. So to that end, I'm currently reading the excellent and exceedingly well-researched The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Sommers by Margaret George and have ordered The World Without Us by Alan Weisman, which mentions Poland's ancient Bialowieza Forest.
Speaking of books, it's worth mentioning that Amazon is currently offering another trial of Amazon Prime, this time for 3 months (!), with the purchase of any textbook (through 2/5/2010). Their definition of a textbook appears to be a bit loose, but to qualify I ordered The Book of Margery Kempe and The Age of the Cloister: The Story of Monastic Life in the Middle Ages by Christopher Nugent Lawrence Brooke (which does not qualify). I had a trial of Amazon Prime right before Christmas and have been dearly missing out, so I was thrilled to discover this offer (thanks to Jessica at Shower of Roses!).

This morning, while browsing Susan Wise Bauer's blog, I found the perfect reading challenge: A Tournament of Reading. Since I'd already made up my mind to spend much of the year reading about the Middle Ages, this will be a piece of cake. My goal is to reach the "King" level, which means I'll need to read nine books, at least two books in each category (history, medieval literature and historic fiction).

Last summer I put together the following Medieval book list for myself; the Medieval Europe group at LibraryThing always has excellent recommendations as well. Here are the titles that have captured my interest thus far:

*Historic fiction is denoted by italics; titles read in 2009 are in navy.

• Kristin Lavransdatter by Sigrid Undset


• At Day's Close: Night in Times Past by A. Roger Ekirch


• A History of the Church in the Middle Ages by F. Donald Logan


• Life in the Medieval Cloister by Julie Kerr


• The Age of the Cloister: The Story of Monastic Life in the Middle Ages by Christopher Nugent Lawrence Brooke


• Charlemagne by Derek Wilson


• Daily Life in the World of Charlemagne by Pierre Riche


• The Far Traveler: Voyages of a Viking Woman by Nancy Marie Brown


• Mysteries of the Middle Ages And the Beginning of the Modern World by Thomas Cahill
• A World Lit Only by Fire: The Medieval Mind and the Renaissance: Portrait of an Age by William Manchester


• King Arthur: Myth Making and History by Nicholas Higham


• Malory: The Knight Who Became King Arthur's Chronicler by Christina Hardyment


• The Medieval Calendar Year by Briget Ann Henisch


• A Medieval Book of Seasons by Marie Collins


• Lost Country Life by Dorothy Hartley


• The Ties That Bound: Peasant Families in Medieval England by Barbara A. Hanawalt


• The Good Wife's Guide (Le Menagier de Paris): A Medieval Household Book by Gina L. Greco & Christine Rose


• Medieval Children by Mr. Nicholas Orme


• Growing Up in Medieval London: The Experience of Childhood in History by Barbara A. Hanawalt


• A History of Private Life, Volume II, Revelations of the Medieval World by Phillippe Ariès


• Holy Feast and Holy Fast: The Religious Significance of Food to Medieval Women by Caroline Walker Bynum


• Down the Common: A Year in the Life of a Medieval Woman by Ann Baer


• The Book of Margery Kempe by Margery Kempe


• Robin Hood by James Clarke Holt


• Imagining Robin Hood: The Late Medieval Stories in Historical Context by A.J. Pollard


• The Last Apocalypse: Europe at the Year 1,000 A.D. by James Reston


• The Year 1,000: What Life Was Like at the Turn of the First Millenium by Robert Lacey


• The Needle in the Blood by Sarah Bower


• A Needle in the Right Hand of God: The Norman Conquest of 1066 and the Making and Meaning of the Bayeux Tapestry by R. Howard Bloch


• The First Crusade: A New History: The Roots of Conflict Between Christianity and Islam by Thomas Asbridge


• God's Battalions: The Case for the Crusades by Rodney Stark


• The Book of Saladin: A Novel by Tariq Ali


• The Knight in History by Frances Gies


• Hildegard of Bingen: The Woman of Her Age by Fiona Maddocks
• Eleanor of Aquitaine: A Life by Alison Weir


• Power of a Woman: Memoirs of a Turbulent Life [Eleanor of Aquitane] by Robert Fripp


• Eleanor of Aquitane: Queen of the Troubadours by Jean Markdale


• The Troubadour's Song: The Capture and Ransom of Richard the Lionheart by David Boyle


• Thomas Becket by Frank Barlow


• Four Queens: The Provencal Sisters Who Ruled Europe by Nancy Goldstone


• Lark in the Morning: The Verses of the Troubadours by Robert Kehew


• The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time by John Kelly


• Reluctant Saint: The Life of Saint Francis of Assisi by Donald Spoto


• Spiritual Franciscans: From Protest to Persecution in the Century After Saint Francis by David Burr


• Katherine by Anya Seton


• Chaucer: His Life, His Works, His World by Donald R. Howard


• Joan of Arc: Her Story by Régine Pernoud


• The Friar and the Cipher: Roger Bacon and the Unsolved Mystery of the Most Unusual Manuscript in the World by Lawrence Goldstone


• Out of the Flames: The Remarkable Story of a Fearless Scholar, a Fatal Heresy, and One of the Rarest Books in the World by Lawrence Goldstone


• The Foundations of Modern Science in the Middle Ages:Their Religious, Institutional and Intellectual Contexts by Edward Grant


• Medieval and Early Renaissance Medicine: An Introduction to Knowledge and Practice by Nancy G. Siraisi


• The Beginnings of Western Science by David C. Lindberg


• Magic in the Middle Ages by Richard Kieckhefer


• Strange Histories: The Trial of the Pig, the Walking Dead, and other Matters of Fact from the Medieval and Renaissance Worlds by D.J. Oldridge


• The Medieval Flower Book by Celia Fisher


• Marking the Hours: English People and Their Prayers, 1240-1570 by Dr. Eamon Duffy


• The Medieval Garden by Sylvia Landsberg


• Sweet Herbs and Sundry Flowers: Medieval Gardens and the Gardens of the Cloisters by Tania Bayard


• Hildegard's Healing Plants: From Her Medieval Classic Physica by Hildegard Von Bingen


• Monastic Gardens by Mick Hales


• Brother Cadfael's Herb Garden: An Illustrated Companion to Medieval Plants and Their Uses by Robin Whiteman


• A Tale of Two Monasteries: Westminster and Saint-Denis in the Thirteenth Century by William J. Chester


• The Age of Pilgrimage: The Medieval Journey to God by Jonathan Sumption


• A Stolen Tongue by Sheri Holman


• The Last Divine Office: Henry VIII and the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Geoffrey Moorhouse

For quite awhile now I've been searching for a music history and appreciation program that includes music prior to the Baroque period (after all, music has existed from the earliest times!). While a few contain cursory information on the Middle Ages and Renaissance, none appear to delve into the amount of detail I require, so I've decided to pull something together myself (we're all quite passionate about music, otherwise I probably wouldn't bother!).

For starters, I purchased the HarperCollins College Outline History of Western Music by Hugh H. Miller and A Student's Guide to Music History by R.J. Stove. I may also read The Rise of Music in the Ancient World: East and West and the Norton classics: Medieval Music and Anthology of Renaissance Music (to myself, of course, if I can find the time!). While I don't plan to get super technical with the kids, I would like them to know - at minimum - the main themes, historical context and identifying styles of each period. Essentials of Music is a useful resource for this as well. If I can find enough material, I'd also like to cover non-Western music (Indian, Persian, Asian and Islamic music, for example) - however, that will require much more research!

After spending some time on Amazon, here is the 'starter' list I came up with, though I'm sure it could use some fine tuning:

• Music of the Ancient Sumerians, Egyptians and Greeks by Ensemble De Organographia
• Music of Ancient Rome by Synaulia
• Hymns from the Vedas and Upanishads, Vedic Chants by Jitendra Abhisheki
• Edda - An Icelandic Saga - Myths From Medieval Iceland / Sequentia by Icelandic Anonymous
• Music of the Crusades by Geoffrey Shaw
• The Fall of Constantinople
• The Glory of Byzantium
• From Byzantium to Andalusia: Medieval Music and Poetry
• Hildegard von Bingen: Symphoniae (Spiritual Songs) by Sequentia
• Early Music Festival / David Munrow, Early Music Consort by Francesco Landini
• Music of the Gothic Era
• Love's Illusion, Music From The Montpellier Codex by Anonymous 4 (13th century)
• The Lily and the Lamb: Chant and Polyphony from Medieval England by Anonymous 4 (13th century)
• An English Ladymass: Medieval Chant and Polyphony by Anonymous 4 (13th and 14th century)
• The Black Madonna Pilgrim Songs from the Monastery of Montserrat (1400-1420) by Ensemble Unicorn
• Codex Faenza: Instrumental Music of the Early 15th Century by Ensemble Unicorn
• A Feast of Songs: Holiday Music from the Middle Ages by Barry and Beth Hall
• Sinners and Saints: The Ultimate Medieval and Renaissance Music Collection by Philip Pickett and the New London Consort
• Instruments of the Middle Ages and Renaissance by David Munrow
• Isabel I: Reina de Castilla (15th century)
• Spanish Music of Travel and Discovery by Waverly Consort (15th century)
• Carnevale! by Ensemble De Organographia (16th century Italian carnival music)
• William Byrd: Second Service and Consort Anthems by Choir of Magdalen College Oxford (16th century)
• Armada: Music from the Courts of England and Spain
• Music of the Middle Ages (OR) Terres Turquoises by Constantinople
• Early Venetian Lute Music

Several of the above CD's are published by Naxos, which has a great Early Music Collection. Since I'm only personally familiar with the Anonymous 4 selections (which are beautiful!), I tried to choose only those that appeared historically accurate and had very positive reviews. I've ordered a few CD's to get started, so we'll see how it goes! My plan is to spend about 30 minutes per week on a formal lesson, but we'll play the CD's quite frequently during reading and at other quiet times.

This list is very much a work in progress!

• The Annotated Mona Lisa: A Crash Course in Art History by Carol Strickland
• The Annotated Arch: A Crash Course in the History of Architecture by Carol Strickland
• Architecture: The World's Greatest Buildings Explored and Explained by Neil Stevenson
• Building (DK Eyewitness) by Philip Wilkinson
  
• Arches to Zigzags: An Architecture ABC by Michael Crosbie
  
• Great Artists: The Lives of 50 Painters Explored Through Their Work by Robert Cumming
• Art: The World's Greatest Paintings Explored and Explained by Robert Cumming
  
• History of Art for Young People by Anthony Janson
  
• The Story of Painting (DK) by Sister Wendy Beckett
• Looking at Pictures: An Introduction to Art Appreciation by Joy Richardson
  
• Usborne Introduction to Art: In Association With the National Gallery, London
  
• Art From Many Hands: Multicultural Art Projects by Jo Miles Schuman
• Teaching History Through Art (Visual Manna)
• The Incredible Art Department: Website with many wonderful lesson plans & resources.
• Architecture for Kids: From Teach the Children Well.
  
• Architecture for Kids: A complete unit study on sacred architecture.
• Cupola's Building and Structure Gallery: Galleries for each major architectural period.
  

Year 1
Art History:

• Ancient Egyptian Art (Art in History Series)
  
• Ancient Greek Art (Art in History Series)
  
• Ancient Chinese Art (Art in History Series)
• Ancient Roman Art (Art in History Series)
• An Ancient Greek Temple by John Malam
  
• Pyramid by Dave Macaulay
• City: A Story of Roman Planning & Construction by Dave Macaulay
  

Art Instruction:

• Hands-On Ancient People Vol. 1: Art Activities About Mesopotamia, Egypt and Islam by Yvonne Y. Merrill
  
• Hands-On Ancient People Vol. 2: Art Activities About Minoans, Mycenaeans, Trojans, Ancient Greeks, Etruscans, and Romans by Yvonne Y. Merrill
  
• Draw and Write Through History 1: Creation through Jonah
• Draw and Write Through History 2: 600 B.C. to A.D. 395

Year 2

Harmony Fine Arts Medieval & Renaissance Art & Music Appreciation is now available and is designed to be used in conjunction with Artistic Pursuits or Mark Kistler's Draw Squad for hands-on art instruction.

Art History:

• Romanesque: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting by Rolf Toman
  
• Gothic: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting by Rolf Toman
  
• The Art of the Italian Renaissance: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting, Drawing by Rolf Toman
• Baroque: Architecture, Sculpture, Painting by Rolf Toman
  
• The Renaissance Art Book by Wenda O'Reilly
• Go Fish for Art Game: Renaissance Artists
• 120 Italian Renaissance Paintings (Book & CD-Rom)
• Master Builders of the Middle Ages by David Jacobs (OOP)
  
• Castle by Dave Macaulay
• Cathedral by Dave Macaulay
• Mosque by Dave Macaulay
  

Art Instruction:

• 1-2-3 Draw Knights, Castles, Dragons by Freddie Levin
  
• Draw and Write Through History 3: Vikings through the Middle Ages*
• 1-2-3 Calligraphy by Eleanor Winters
• Medieval Letters Set: Kit to easily design your own illuminated letters.
  
• Design Your Own Coat of Arms by Rosemary A. Chorzempa
• Rose Windows and How to Make Them by Helga Meyerbroeker
  

Medieval art incorporates many mediums, especially frescoes, sculpture, illuminated manuscripts and mosaics. The major periods are:

• Early Christian, A.D. 100 - A.D. 500
  
• Celtic, A.D. 600 - 1200
  
• Byzantine, A.D. 300 - 1453
• Romanesque, A.D. 1000 - 13th century
  
• Gothic, Mid-12th century to late 15th century
  
• Islamic, From the 7th century...

The major periods of Renaissance art are:

• Early Renaissance, Early 15th century
  
• High Renaissance, 1495-1520
  
• Mannerism, 1520-1580
• Baroque, 1600-1730
  

Key Artists:*

• Cimabue (1240-1302)
  
• Giotto di Bondone (1266-1377)
• Donatello (1386-1466)
• Lorenzo Ghiberti (1378-1455)
  
• Fra Angelico (1395-1455)
• Filippo Brunelleschi (1377-1466)
• Jan van Eyck (1395-1441)
  
• Masaccio (1401?-1428)
  
• Leon Battista Alberti (1404-1474)
• Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)
• Michelangelo (1475-1564)
• Raphael (1483-1520)
• Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510)
• Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528)
  
• Titian (1485-1576)
• Tintoretto (1518-1594)
• El Greco (1541-1614)
  
• Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640)
• Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598-1680)
• Diego Velázquez (1599-1660)
  
• Rembrandt (1606-1669)
• Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675)
  

*The Basic Art Series by Taschen includes most of the above artists. Each book retails for $9.99.

Artist Biographies & Other:

• Antonio's Apprenticeship: Painting a Fresco in Renaissance Italy by Taylor Morrison
  Painting in the Renaissance by Una Roman D'Elia
• Renaissance Artists Who Inspired the World by Gregory Blanch
• Marguerite Makes a Book by Bruce Robertson
• Brother Joseph: The Painter of Icons by Augustine Denoble
  
• A Boy Named Giotto by Paolo Gua
• The Glorious Impossible by Madeleine L'Engle (artwork by Giotto)
  
• Da Vinci: Renaissance Painter
• Famous Artists: Leonardo Da Vinci
• The Second Mrs. Gioconda by E.L. Konigsburg (Leonardo Da Vinci)
  
• Michelangelo: Renaissance Artist
• Michelangelo by Diane Stanley
• Michelangelo and the Renaissance by David Spence
• Michelangelo's Surprise by Tony Parillo
  
• Rembrandt and Dutch Portraiture by David Spence
  
• I, Juan de Pareja by Elizabeth Borton De Trevino (Diego Velázquez)