How an Ancient Italian Volcano Changed America

By Amy Barr

 

Several years ago my husband and I visited all the usual places while giving our children a tour of Washington, D.C. We trekked miles to see the major memorials. As we walked, we chatted about American history, political thought, Classical ideals, art, and architecture. While waiting to see The National Archives, an impromptu group of listeners formed as we explained the neoclassical images adorning the building. One eavesdropper remarked, “I didn’t know this art had to do with Greece and Rome!”

Thomas Jefferson was more than architect of our Declaration of Independence; he also was fascinated by real architecture as he imagined the construction of our new nation.1 He gave considerable thought to crafting buildings to last for generations. Jefferson could have recommended the flowery architecture of European cathedrals or the onion-bulb towers of Russia or even the down-to-earth Colonial style. Instead, he dreamed up enough columns and capitals to make Cicero himself feel at home.

Our nation’s Founding Fathers drew inspiration from the Classical world, but what brought Roman ideals to the fore in the late 1700s? Two factors came into play. First was Jefferson’s brilliant Classical education. Second, I suggest, was the unearthing of thousands of mysterious things in northern Italy that had remained hidden since the tragic eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in A.D. 79. The discovery of these objects came to light during our nation’s most formative years.       (more…)

6 Essentials to Inspire Your Young Artist

By Tim Chambers
Based on a recent survey, ten out of ten kids love to draw! I asked kids at my recent art workshop for a show of hands to the question “Do you like to draw?” Every hand went up. It was unanimous. (No animals were hurt during this survey, though some of the kids did get paint on their hands and clothes.)

Seriously, most kids do enjoy drawing, and it shows in their work and their enthusiasm. We love to hang our children’s art up on our walls, our refrigerators, and in our offices. They remind us of what it means to do something for the pure joy of it, don’t they? We frame some of our kids’ art, and even years later, they evoke a smile when we look at them.

I grew up watching my father do wonders with a plain canvas or paper. There was always an ample supply of art supplies and art books in his studio. My dad’s steady encouragement, instruction, and resources are a big reason why I followed in his footsteps as a professional artist. Many of us have children who love to create, though without an artist in residence to guide them. I’m here to give you a few ideas. Read on for practical suggestions about what you can do to cultivate your child’s art interests.
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The Sandwich Approach: Prepare-Experience-Review

By Jessica Hulcy

As a high school junior, I was a foreign exchange student to Northern Ireland, experiencing the ultimate field trip by living in Ireland. My Irish father was a butcher raising cattle, so this city girl learned to drive a tractor, pitch hay bales, and tend cattle. I was the first female ever to want to visit the slaughterhouse. I learned about socialized medicine and witnessed the Catholic/Protestant conflict that dated back centuries. I baked tea cakes once a week with my Irish mother on a cast-iron stove. I traveled to Scotland with my Irish father and brothers to buy the smallest car I had ever seen. I learned Irish songs and dances. My Irish grandfather took me to climb the Giant’s Causeway, a geological wonder . . . and the entire family and friends watched me water ski in the North Atlantic in a wetsuit, thinking this Texan would love it. All I could think about was Jaws! What an incredible, unforgettable, living unit on Northern Ireland.

The Sandwich Approach to Field Trips

Fast forward: When I first began homeschooling, I remember a homeschool mother telling me how wonderful it was to go on field trip after field trip, seeing sight after sight. I grimaced. Why? Hadn’t I loved my Irish experience? Why the grimace? Then I began to remember my fresh-out-of-college, public school teaching days when I piloted a hands-on science program that taught children strictly through experimentation—with no lectures. What I thought I would love, I hated, until I realized what the program was lacking . . . wrap-up or summary. The science program was very different from my Irish experience. Pre-Ireland, I read about the country extensively, and then I had plenty of wrap-up through journaling and speaking engagements post-Ireland.      (more…)