{"id":1569,"date":"2014-12-13T06:21:15","date_gmt":"2014-12-13T13:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/?p=1569"},"modified":"2015-07-06T10:31:11","modified_gmt":"2015-07-06T16:31:11","slug":"memorization","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/memorization\/","title":{"rendered":"A Moment for Memorization"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"louisapies\"My little Julianna, at the age of 9, came home from Sunday School excited about the fact that they were going to be expected to memorize lots of Bible verses that year and that the teacher had a reward in store for whoever could do it. She also expressed disbelief that, except for another homeschooled girl in her class, the other children were mortified at the prospect of having to memorize so much. \u201cI guess homeschoolers just like to memorize things,\u201d<\/strong> she surmised.<\/p>\n

\n

Many homeschool families make memorization a daily affair and reap great benefits from doing so. I recently met a homeschool mother of 11 outstanding children, and I was amazed at how much memory work her children did. From the time they can sputter out a few words, this incredible mother has them learning and reciting little poems and scriptures.<\/p>\n

I was pretty impressed, so I attempted to teach my children to memorize things also. Every week in my homeschool, we work on a memory verse taken from our assigned scripture reading.<\/strong> I search out the best verse, hopefully one that describes an eternal law and its accompanying blessing. I dictate this passage of scripture to them, and they write it and then correct their work as an English lesson. They keep this in a section of their notebooks where they can refer to it for memorization. I also write this verse on an index card and stick it to the bathroom mirror where it is seen often. My children work daily on memorizing it, with the goal of passing off their verse by Friday. As you can imagine, children can accumulate quite a bundle of Bible verses in their memories, which I know will make them better people.<\/p>\n

I love to hear children recite excellent poetry. I think\u00a0it exercises their brains and gives them worthy things to think about<\/strong>. One of my favorite poems is \u201cI Love You, Mother,\u201d and I have only to start the first few lines when we are having a problem getting chores done and everyone knows exactly how I am feeling and can finish the poem themselves. It gives us a common bond of emotion and experience.<\/p>\n

\"swing-407428_1280\"I Love You, Mother<\/h4>\n

\u201cI love you, Mother,\u201d said little John.
\nThen forgetting his work, his cap went on
\nAnd he was off to the garden swing,
\nLeaving her the water and wood to bring.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love you, Mother\u201d, said rosy Nell,
\n\u201cI love you more than tongue can tell.\u201d
\nThen she teased and pouted full half the day,
\n\u2019Til her mother rejoiced when she went to play.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love you, Mother\u201d, said little Fan.
\n\u201cToday I\u2019ll help you all I can.
\nHow glad I am that school doesn\u2019t keep.\u201d
\nSo she rocked the baby \u2019til it fell asleep.<\/p>\n

Then stepping softly, she fetched the broom
\nAnd swept the floor and tidied the room.
\nBusy and happy all day was she,
\nHelpful and happy as a child could be.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love you, Mother,\u201d again they said,
\nThree little children going to bed.
\nHow do you think that mother guessed
\nWhich of them really loved her best?<\/p>\n

An excellent way to get your children to learn a lengthy poem without much effort on your part is to make a recording. You can read the poem into the recorder or you can have a child do this. Then listen while you run an errand, and the children will learn it easily with enough repetition. Some of my favorite poems that would be good for this purpose are:
\n\u201cThe Spider and the Fly\u201d (a great lesson on\u00a0temptation and vanity!)
\n\u201cPaul Revere\u2019s Ride\u201d
\n\u201cHiawatha\u201d (parts of it)
\n\u201cWork\u201d
\n\u201cTrees\u201d
\nThere are so many others that I love. These are just a few common ones to get you started.<\/p>\n

Another good way to get make memorization easy is to use recordings that have educational songs<\/strong>. My children learned their multiplication facts this way, as well as the capitals of the United States. It is tough to forget anything set to song. I still can\u2019t flip through the New Testament, looking for a verse, without singing to myself, \u201cMatthew, Mark, Luke and John . . .\u201d taught to me 30 years ago at church!<\/p>\n

Memorizing freedom documents and quotes is a way to understand the Constitution and our country\u2019s principles of liberty.<\/strong> Lincoln’s “Gettysburg Address” \u00a0is an inspiring, short work perfect for memorizing. I also have my children memorize the preamble to the Constitution and quotes of the patriots.<\/p>\n

A friend of mine hosts a Poetry Festival each year, inviting grandparents, relatives and church teachers to a performance where their children recite poetry from memory. The children dress up to act the part and enjoy a chance to be in the spotlight. This is a great idea and gives the children a good reason to learn something challenging.<\/p>\n

One leader recommended the use of hymns to dispel bad thoughts and temptations. He advised people to memorize the words to a hymn so it could be sung when there was a need for help. That is what is so useful about memorization:\u00a0many a time the words to a song or poem have come into my mind when I needed some wisdom in making a decision or needed an enlightened perspective. <\/strong>Consider the truth so beautifully portrayed in this poem:<\/p>\n

\"robins-nest-494009_1280\"Not In Vain<\/h4>\n

by Emily Dickinson<\/p>\n

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
\nI shall not live in vain:
\nIf I can ease one life the aching,
\nOr cool one pain,
\nOr help one fainting robin
\nUnto his nest again,
\nI shall not live in vain.<\/p>\n

Try memorization in your home school. It is amazing how capable children are of remembering things with a little practice.\u00a0It gives them a wonderful feeling of achievement and satisfaction. <\/strong>They are going to memorize things anyway (such as jingles, TV commercials, lyrics to songs, etc.), so take the opportunity to instill your values into their receptive minds through memorization of inspiring Bible verses, poetry, etc. They\u2019ll reap the benefits for years to come!
\n\"\"<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

May I recommend:<\/b><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n

\"October
\nMemorizing Magic
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

\"jefferson\"
\nWisdom from Jefferson
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

\"8263\"
\nPoems for Memorization
\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

My little Julianna, at the age of 9, came home from Sunday School excited about the fact that they were going to be expected to memorize lots of Bible verses that year and that the teacher had a reward in store for whoever could do it. She also expressed disbelief that, except for another homeschooled […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":3886,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[18,3],"tags":[80,132],"class_list":["post-1569","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-homeschooling-goals","category-how-to-homeschool","tag-memorization","tag-poetry","entry"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/louisapies.jpg?fit=334%2C400&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p6IrRN-pj","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":661,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/using-muscles-for-memory\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":0},"title":"Using Muscles for Memory","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Wiggles! Kids seem to be full of them and they can make sitting still, learning, focusing, and concentrating extra hard! If you can't fight 'em, join 'em. Time to use those big muscles to help kids learn! I have a chin-up bar hanging over a doorway near where we do\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to Homeschool"","block_context":{"text":"How to Homeschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/04\/were_gonna_get_you_daddy.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":375,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/memorizing-magic\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":1},"title":"Memorizing Magic","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"If there is one thing in my homeschool that I am very thankful we've done over the years, it is \"memory work\". It seems as a natural part of conversation, one of my children mentions a poem they have learned that pertains to the topic we are discussing. For example,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "English & Language Arts"","block_context":{"text":"English & Language Arts","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/what-articles\/english-language-arts-articles\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Louisa and kitten","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/October-1696-225x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":399,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/a-small-price\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":2},"title":"A Small Price","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"It's that time of year again! Local stores are advertising 10 cent notebooks, 59 cent pencil boxes, and extra low prices on school supplies. It's time to take my homeschooled children school shopping and buy them everything they want. That might sound a bit unnecessary, and extravagant. After all, we\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Concerns"","block_context":{"text":"Concerns","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/homeschooling-concerns\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Soccer player Louisa (8)","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/louisasoccer-300x267.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":344,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/thomas-jefferson-decalogue\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":3},"title":"Wisdom from Jefferson","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Wisdom from Jefferson Here's 10 wonderfully wise maxims from Thomas Jefferson. I'd like my children to memorize these! A Decalogue of Canons for Observation in Practical Life by Thomas Jefferson February 25, 1825 1. Never put off till to-morrow what you can do to-day. 2. Never trouble another for what\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Parenting"","block_context":{"text":"Parenting","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/why-homeschool\/homeschooling-parenting\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"jefferson","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/jefferson.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":1730,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/a-plea-to-homeschoolers-do-it\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":4},"title":"A Plea to Homeschoolers: Do it!","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"\u201cI hear you are one who really does homeschool\u201d, someone in my community told me in a casual conversation. \u201cOh, really?\u201d, I replied. \u201cHow do you know?\u201d \u201cBecause Vi told me you do it,\u201d she returned. \u201cHow does Vi know?\u201d I asked. \u201cBecause she\u2019s your neighbor. She should know.\u201d \u201cWell,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Concerns"","block_context":{"text":"Concerns","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/homeschooling-concerns\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"ammonlouisa_firstgrade","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/04\/ammonlouisa_firstgrade-198x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":996,"url":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/co-op-school-add-zip\/","url_meta":{"origin":1569,"position":5},"title":"Co-op School\u2014Add Zip to Your Homeschool!","author":"Diane Hopkins","date":"","format":false,"excerpt":"Want to make homeschooling easier!? Try creating a Co-op School! Co-op\u00a0school is simply a few homeschool families getting together to do school together once a week. My family enjoys it tremendously. Every Friday, we\u00a0meet with a few other\u00a0families from 9:30 to noon. Some years, our group has grown to many\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "How to Homeschool"","block_context":{"text":"How to Homeschool","link":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/category\/how-to-homeschool\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/girl-369234_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/girl-369234_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/girl-369234_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/girl-369234_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/05\/girl-369234_1280.jpg?fit=1200%2C801&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1569","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1569"}],"version-history":[{"count":18,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1569\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7328,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1569\/revisions\/7328"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3886"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1569"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1569"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/happyhomeschooling.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1569"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}