Leatherwood Books Newsletter January 2010

LATEST NEWS A Wonderful New Year! 3 January 2010
New beginnings Each new year brings hope and optimism... into the forgiving mists of time we sweep away those failed projects and ideas which seemed brilliant until we realised they were our dreams and not those of our children. But be kind to yourselves, good intentions count a lot! During the lovely peaceful holiday times we start big new plans and begin to organise for the exciting year ahead. Whether you are homeschooling or simply planning for a new year at school, there is lots to be done and the luxury of time to plan ahead. We are here and ready to answer questions.
As promised... A subscriber to this newsletter reminded us recently of the promise to tell you a little more about us. That promise was made just after we acquired Leatherwood Books and we really counted on nobody being interested! However, having been taken up on that point, we'll add the first instalment of an account of our rather ordinary lives to our next newsletter. One big event has been added to the end of this newsletter though!

Inspiration for Parents Homeschooling and the Voyage of Self-Discovery and Have Fun, Learn Stuff, Grow by David H Albert (the author of And the skylark sings with me) are two inspiring collections of delightful bites to keep homeschool parents inspired and creative. Albert does not pretend to have answers to all our questions. He retells experiences and often urges his readers to get perspective by looking at the bigger picture. What are you trying to achieve when you push so hard? And at what point are you holding an eager youth back through your own preconceptions? Albert encourages us to be ourselves and to treat our children as the unique wonders they are. Ignoring outside pressure is often just what we need to make homeschooling work for the whole family. Delightful to read in bed or when you get a few minutes between homeschool tasks. Savour these essays, leaving plenty of time to ponder the wise words. Treat yourself to some attractively bottled inspiration for the new school year. Free to Learn by Lynne Oldfield is a fascinating account of Steiner & Waldorf educational philosophy and practice. An inspiring collection of article-style chapters exploring past and present in Waldorf early childhood education. The last section on global development and interpretation of the Waldorf philosophy will find favour with those interested in educational philosophy, whereas parents of young children would find the retelling of day-to-day activities in early childhood centres to be of practical use.

Core Subject Series Most homeschooling years we have used tried and tested textbooks for English grammar and Mathematics and then embroidered some exciting patterns for the other subjects with unit studies. Along those lines we list again the English, History and Mathematic series we stock: The Well-Trained Mind books (The Story of the World, First Language Lessons, Writing with Ease and others), Saxon Homeschool Math kits and components, and other homeschool resources. As mentioned before, please take into account that we do not keep all these titles in stock at all times and it might take a couple of weeks to get them to you. We also offer a huge selection of English Literature in book and audio format (poetry, classics and new titles).

*In our next newsletter we'll focus on some Unit Study Resources.*
Website of the Month If you are concerned whether a particular fiction title is suitable for a particular age group (and it has not been reviewed by us yet) have a look at this very useful site by a mother of two. The author of The Literate Mother blog grades books in useful categories (language, sexual content and so forth) and explains the grading for each book so that a parent has a clear picture of whether a book would be suitable for a particular child or not. Remember we can also get hold of any of the books that catch your fancy there! About Us Another wonderful new beginning is that this morning Peter's daughter-in-law gave birth to a baby girl called Daisy! Congratulations to granddad, Kerry, Dylan and (big brother) Louie. Mid-December we welcomed another baby girl to the family. Elsa became a great-aunt for the first time when Malaika was born, also on the other side of the world. Congratulations to Zilla, John and the rest of their family. Contact Us Just ask if you need information on items on the website or any book or audio book which you would like us to find for you. We wish you a beautiful and exciting 2010! Elsa, Peter, Seb & Lila

A Wonderful New Year!