It turned out that Daniel had been looking at his Flags of the World poster and asked which country one of them belonged to. DH then tried to prompt him to read the word himself, letter by letter. Daniel was not in the mood and said very firmly that he has no intention of reading until he is 10!
So let's unpick this. Firstly, I bought the poster (and a couple of others) in Lidl last week, intending to stash them for the future. Daniel spotted the flags one and asked to have it up in his room, chose a spot where he could see it easily, then experimented with the relevant efficiency of blue-tack versus sellotape (and had a conversation with us about the possible damage excessive use of the latter could do to the wall). He looks at it several times a day, frequently asks for the names of the countries, has learned the concept of a capital city, can recognise a few of the flags by himself, now knows one or two capitals too, and has, on occasion, been persuaded to sound out a name. He has also learned the idea of alphabetical order and how to find a country's flag that way. On this particular evening, he had asked a simple question that required a simple answer - maybe it was part of a more complicated train of thought - and his response sounds like a 5 year old's version of "Just answer the damn question!" It is all too easy to get so caught up in what WE want them to learn that we miss all the other things they ARE doing.
To be fair to him, DH did see my point. I also reassured him with an abridged version of our day. He eventually begged for mercy - before I had finished! Just for the record, here it is:
(After Adam's music class we decided on a whim to go to Buckfast Abbey - about half an hour away - for lunch and a wander. This is just what we discussed in the couple of hours we were there, and only what I can remember.)
Passed some building work being done to prepare for their millennium next year. Discussed the word and its meaning, and what the area looked like when I visited as a child.
Saw a mural in the cafe showing monks building the abbey. D started listing the various bits of equipment he could see - ropes and pulleys, horse-drawn cart, hammer and chisel, and so on. Talked about how, when they arrived, the monks didn't know how to do any of those building things but they found people who could teach them. Thought of some examples of him doing the same with people we know; e.g. when he wants to know how to fix something, he often asks my dad to show him.
He referred to the abbey as a 'castle', so we talked about the difference. Talked about monks and nuns, how they live, what they do, why they do it. Discussed why Judaism doesn't really have an equivalent.
Went to look around the abbey, having a brief chat with both of them on the way about how to behave inside. Both were amazing - held my hands, talked in whispers and didn't mess around.
Spotted a nun praying so pointed her out (discreetly!) with reference to the previous conversation. A service had just finished so we also saw a couple of the brothers.
Lit a candle together at the Lady Chapel with an explanation about why they have them there, and why I tend to light one (in memory of my godmother, who was a regular churchgoer).
Daniel spotted a large chandelier above the high altar that looks like a crown. Talked about the idea of God as a king, with reference to our own Hebrew prayers that he is starting to learn.
Saw the massive stained glass window and talked about how it was made. Admired the colours for a few minutes. Spotted Moses in smaller window and noted that he was carrying tablets just like those above the ark in the synagogue.
Saw some historical photos on the way back out and had a quick look, discussing building techniques.
Saw the font (hard to miss!) and explained baptism and what we have instead.
Back outside and off to investigate the gardens. First was the physick garden, and Daniel pointed out a plant that looked like lavender but wasn't. Having found the real lavender, he wanted to know why one variety had flowers and the other not yet.
The garden was divided into four - household (dyes etc), medicinal, culinary and poisons (i.e. to be used with care - planted on an island with a shallow channel of water around it). Daniel remembered that we use fennel for tummy aches and chamomile for headaches. Talked about how to use bay leaves in cooking. Enjoyed spotting different alliums (they have come up a few times this summer), from the massive ones down to little chives. Wanted to know the names of all the plants we saw and what they could be used for. Wild strawberries were in the medicinal section and he theorised they were for "hard tummy aches" - I think this might have referred to constipation, combined with warnings in the past not to eat too much soft fruit in one go or he would get a runny tummy. If so, good logic! Smelled various herbs.
Adam was very excited to spot meadowsweet, which he has learned to identify along the walkway to forest school. He went off to explore and came back to get us so we could admire the pond skaters on the water channel around the poisonous plants.
Long chat about the medieval period, when it came relative to the Romans, Saxons and Vikings, and what characterised it (knights, squires and castles). How there was a lot of fighting and people were busy trying to stay alive, so most people couldn't read or write. The role of religious communities in keeping literature alive and in caring for those who were sick and couldn't pay for doctors. How the herbs grown in the physick garden provided medicines for treating people.
Off to the sensory garden. Admired the roses, talked about the pebble feature and why it was there. Daniel found some bamboo and remarked that pandas eat it, at which Adam (who I didn't think was listening) fished his plastic 'Pando' out of his pocket and 'fed' it some bamboo. Daniel then said experimentally "Pandas eat bamboo... and rocks", so his brother immediately departed for the pebbles and started making Pando munch on those too. Daniel exploded with giggles! Psychology and the power of suggestion?
On the way back up towards the car park, Daniel insisted on a detour through the large lavender garden. Watched the bees for a bit and generally enjoyed comparing the different colours and varieties.
Went to the monastic produce shop and looked around. Talked about what is made at Buckfast (including honey, with reference to our German holiday the year before last when Daniel got to have a go making some) and how other places might make different things according to what grows well in their area.
Sat down on a bench while Adam went off for a run and admired the decorative iron work on the big doors to the abbey. Talked about blacksmiths and how that iron work would have been made, and remarked upon the stone carving around the door. Then discussed the word 'skill' and its relationship to 'clever' and the importance of having both people who are good at thinking about things and those skilled at more practical jobs.
Phew! All of that came up in the space of about two and a half hours (including lunch) and all was completely led by Daniel. This wasn't me lecturing at him, it was proper interactive conversation, with genuinely relevant thoughts and references from him. You could clearly see how all the new information was fitting neatly into things he already knew and was likely to stay there, being added to as and when.
My point is that this was pretty standard. Daniel never STOPS learning, asking, talking, making connections! Maybe not related to the phonetic properties of the letter E, but that will come when he is ready - exactly like everything else.
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