The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop

Would you like to teach your kids about life in the middle ages? What were the lives of the peasants like? What did knights do? What did squires do? How did you become a knight or squire and how old did you need to be before you could be a squire?

The Castle in the Attic is a work of fiction (and has an evil wizard in it), but the story seems to grab children's attention, at least children grammar school children and perhaps middle school children as well. The story keeps the kids interested and they can't help but learn about a castle's architecture, how peasants lived, and how long journeys took in the middle ages.

Much of the book lends itself to topics of discussion. What is chivalry? Is a person more likely to follow the edict of a stalwart? Were all lords tyrants, or were tyrants an aberration? Could you imagine going off and leaving your family to be a page or squire at a very young age, and how did children back then cope without their parents?

This book could be read to your children and could easily start off a middle ages unit study with lots of fun and engaging potential activities, some suggestions of which are listed below.

Following the details in the story, build a castle. Learn about the different rooms in the castle, including the buttery, armory, chapel, scullery, kitchen, stable, and great hall.Castles were nothing without people, and castles contained lords, ladies, knights, pages, squires, servants, and serfs. Where did each person work and what did each person do? Which work was most difficult? Could anyone be a serf? Could anyone be a lady?Make a practice sword and shield, designing your own coat of arms. Study the different weapons used in the middle ages, including the lance, long bow, mace, dagger, and scabbard.Make a small square of chain mail to show how long it takes to make knight's armor. (A two-by-two inch piece should be sufficient). Or, make a coif out of fabric.Make a small tapestry like Mrs. Phillips. For children not adept with embroidery, use fabric paint or fabric markers instead of needle and thread. Go to the fabric store and have the children feel wool, which is what tapestries were made of in the middle ages.

Question and answers, suggested activities, and more are available at Mountain City Elementary Corner's web site.

Gwen Nicodemus has two children that she's been homeschooling all their lives. Gwen also teaches science and math classes in a local homeschooling cooperative. As a temporarily retired engineer, Gwen keeps her brain active by writing unit studies and little books for her kids whenever someone gets interested in a new topic. Check out the great free resources, including unit studies, videos, tutorials, and little books at http://unitstudiesbygwen.com/

©2011, Gwen Nicodemus

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Review: Battle For the Castle by Elizabeth Winthrop

My kids enjoyed The Castle in the Attic by Elizabeth Winthrop, so we decided to listen to the sequel, The Battle for the Castle. Both children gave the book a thumbs up, and I was sufficiently entertained with the book to keep listening to it.

The summary

William went on a magical journey six hundred years back in time with his nanny, Mrs. Phillips, in the first book, The Castle in The Attic. He met Sir Simon and defeated the villain, Alastor. This book starts off with William being two years older and Mrs. Phillips sent him a birthday present, the charm of Janus used in the first book. The charm can be used to shrink and un-shrink things, animals, and people. Then, if these shrunken folk spend the night in the castle in William's attic, they wake up in the past. The attic is gone, and a forest is outside the castle.

William and his friend Jason bring their bicycles to the attic, shrink themselves, and go on an adventure. They meet Sir Simon as he is about to leave for a tournament, and they stay at his castle. They spend time with a boy and a girl at the castle and together. The girl tells them of an omen her grandmother, Calendar, kept repeating before she died. Sir Simon sent Calendar away to the convent because he thought she was crazy and he does not believe the omen. Few believe it but Calendar's granddaughter does. Jason and William believe it too.

Topics for discussion

New technology: The kids are interested in the bicycles. They have never seen them before. How would you react if someone from the future brought something to you and you had never seen it before?

Human behavior: Some people panic in emergencies. Some people do not panic, seem to gain clarity, and lead through touch situations. Which type of person are you? Is that a trait you can change?

Human behavior: Why did the small rats turn on the large rat? Would humans behave that way in a similar way if they were in that type of situation?

Swimming: Is it a good idea to go out on a boat? What about when you cannot swim? What if you are with people that can swim?

Rats: What can rats really do? Can rats really chew through walls? Can they eat entire animals? Is one rat dangerous? How many rats does it take before the rats are dangerous?

I'm an engineer who quit full-time work and now freelance so I can homeschool my two children. I also teach science classes at a local homeschooling cooperative. As a temporarily retired engineer, I try to keep my brain active by reading, writing, and teaching. Check out the free resources, including unit studies, videos, tutorials, and little books at Unit Studies By Gwen or her blog at GwenOnline.
©2011, Gwen Nicodemus

View the original article here