Lesson title: Don't be a genre snob!

As a child I was mocked for reading classics out of choice. I was teased, and called a swot. Everyone else was reading Goosebumps, Horrible Histories and then Harry Potter broke on to the scene. 

I steered clear of all those and was happy with my Chalet School, Mallory Towers, Jane Austen, Dickens and Oscar Wilde....Yes I was the book nerd who read the texts used in English literature classes for fun. 

This proved very useful over the years, and I was soon asked to teach classes when my knowledge was proven to be greater than the teacher involved, and I held revision classes as well for my class mates.... I'm aware this isn't making my street cred go any higher. 

I have always loved period/historical dramas, spending many happy an hour lost in that world, ranging from Dickens, Austen, Thomas Hardy, Oscar Wilde, the Bronte sisters. 

Now everyone who is into period dramas such as myself will have entered the enduring argument of which is better, the books or the film/series adaptations, and which adaptation did the best justice to each individual book.

I don't feel there is a right or wrong answer here because it is very personal. I for example personally cannot stand the Keira Knightley version of Pride and Prejudice (I'm now sat shielding my head with a copy of Austen against the onslaught of protests). I'm not sorry, every scene is vomit inducing, and the casting was horrendous. However this is just my opinion. I absolutely love the Colin Firth series and have watched it countless times. This difference of opinion is invitable and healthy. 

However I am guilty of a worse crime. I was for many years a period drama snob. When Downton Abbey was first released I refused to watch it. Haunted by the childhood jibes I could not accept that a period drama could be a cult hit in mainstream society. I was convinced it must be modernised and not created in the spirit of the classic period drama. I am ashamed to admit I held this opinion until season five! 

A friend finally coaxed me to try the first episode, reassuring me it was amazing. I'm so glad she convinced me. I love it! It is amazing, well produced, the actors are awesome and the story lines are heart wrenching. So many times I've sobbed over Sybil and Matthew. 

Now here comes along Bridgerton! Again with the massive hype. This time I was determined to watch it straight away... I did.... I watched the entire season in two days.... And I have recently pulled an all nighter to watch the second season. It is so unique but equally brilliant. 

My lesson to the children from this will be as follows. It is fine to love a genre and be passionate about it, but remain open minded and explore all that it has to offer. No matter if it is not typically classical, if there's a modern book behind it or not.

Most importantly do not internalise what others think about your reading choices!

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Learning From Your Environment

Image
There is so much potential for learning on car journeys. This time Sophia's attention was caught by seeing electricity pylons and wind turbines and she was avidly asking questions about these. I briefly introduced them to her and offered to set up some follow up science educational YouTube videos at a later date. Good old 'Dr Binocs' came through and the children have been eagerly learning about fossil fuels, renewable energy and electricity. Sophia has started writing down her thoughts and knowledge on electricity in her new science book. It is a great sidestep from their current topic of light, which is being learnt enthusiastically. They have loved their light experiments, as simple as they were, including going into a dark room and shining a torch, seeing how a pencil seems to change when placed in a glass of water, just with a light shining on it. Observing what materials allow light to pass through and which cast shadows, and performing shadow puppet plays on the wall...
Read more

Role playing Is A Serious Business!

Image
The morning period is personally the best time of day for lessons for my girls. They are alert, focused and raring to start lessons, consequently breakfast lessons are an established learning time. I have a captive audience, they are in the kitchen with me anyway learning how to prepare the food, tidy down and set the table. This session can be the best for attention span and concentration out of the entire day, so I have learnt to capitalise on this precious half hour.  This morning we learnt twenty spellings from two word families. They are storming through their word lists, quickly approaching the 200 mark in only a couple of months. I cannot recommend this learning style enough, the girls are retaining their spelling knowledge and are actively using the words in their artwork in their free time. Today they also requested spelling tests to be their handwriting practice, and did further spelling practice on top for another half an hour through choice.  The rest of breakfast ...
Read more

Always be thankful

Image
 It was December 2021 when Miss Jo, The Children's Coach contacted me and offered the girls free places in her January zoom class. This was the tutor who had organised and ran the summer fun project which the girls had been nominated and awarded for bravery. The girls absolutely loved her as a teacher and had immediately bonded with her. They wrote her letters and talked about her every day during this project.  I took her up on this very kind and generous offer and the girls had a regular half an hour zoom class every Thursday on the theme of gratitude. The girls were the youngest ones in the class and they handled it really well.  Sophia wrote the classes on the calender, scheduling in the lessons, for the month. Kira took a postcard written to her by Miss Jo, which she had received the previous year, to bed with her every night until the classes took place. She read it to me as her bedtime story.  The first thing Kira said to Miss Jo on class, was to thank her for...
Read more