by Christine Owens, A Year Of Poetry Teatime
There are those moments when you are homeschooling that you think to yourself, “Wow, I nailed that.” What I am about to share with you is one of those moments. The best part is it didn’t require months of planning or hours of searching on Pinterest. It was on a whim, and it is something anyone can do. Yes, even the homeschooler in the middle of nowhere.
Years ago, I was reading The Secret Garden, by Frances Hodgson Burnett, to my 4 children.
They were ages 10, 6, 3, and 1.5 years old. Reading aloud had become a challenge with my 3-year-old. He did all he had in his power to thwart any, and all, book reading. But I was determined to finish this book.
We had spent an embarrassing amount of time finishing this simple book. It wasn’t our first time reading this book, but we had spent the time learning all sorts of things to do with the book. We explored English manners, the Indian Elephant, Robins, keys and more. We even took the time to design our very own English gardens.
My children had asked if we could visit and English garden, and, of course, I laughed it off as if it was an impossibility. A trip to England just wasn’t an option. But then I started thinking about how I could make this request a reality.
After a quick search online, I found that the Chicago Botanical Garden actually had sections created in different styles, and the English Garden was one of them. Chicago was a 2-hour drive, and I wasn’t sure if it was worth it.
I kept pondering on it as the week went on, and then I was up late and ran across a FB post about a Corpse flower that was in bloom at the Chicago Botanical Garden and would only be open for one more day. So, what does every clear-thinking homeschooling mother do? I packed all of my kids up early the next morning, and we started our trek to Chicago.
This is how it unfolded.
On the way there, we talked about the corpse flower and how unique it is to be able to see the phenomenon. When we reached the garden, we still had a quarter of the book to read. My plan was that we would finish it TODAY! We started with a picnic lunch outside the gardens. Sandwiches, juice, fruit and more kept the children content as I read a few chapters to them.
Then we packed up our picnic and loaded it back into the car. With the smallest in the stroller and more snacks on board, we entered the gardens and went straight to the corpse flower. We waited in line, the older two eagerly waiting with their notebooks to draw and observe. We probably spent 30 minutes just looking and admiring the giant bloom. The oldest became very anxious to see the English garden, but I let the 6-year-old brother finish up his sketch.
We left the greenhouse and as we searched for the English garden, we talked about what they thought of the flower that had been towering over us. They were glad it didn’t smell as bad as they had thought it would, and were amazed that a flower could be that big.
We followed the signs to the English garden. The children walked around pointing out English garden attributes that we had learned about. We still had a good amount of the book to go, yet we were united in our goal to finish the book. We started out under an arbor with benches and read for a while there.
We were finally getting close to the end of the book. I was standing and reading as the younger two walked about, and we were feeling the excitement for the end. We were finally on the last chapter, and I looked around for the perfect place to complete our Garden Read aloud.
There was a pond, so we made our way over there and enjoyed another snack as I tearfully made our way through the end of the book. The pure joy the children had when we finished the book was unforgettable. The surroundings along with the words expressed in the book made a permanent mark in their hearts and minds. To this day, my older kids think back on that moment as one of their favorite experiences ever!
This is a big claim since they have been to historical sites and have been to half of the United States. I, too, will never forget it. The Secret Garden became our family’s favorite book, and we read it every few years. They learn from it every time and I tear up even when I know what is coming. The book is special.
So how can you have this same experience, no matter where you live? You may be thinking, I don’t have an English Garden anywhere near me. This is my tip to you… don’t get hung up on perfection. Maybe there is a historical home or a nice neighbor who has a beautiful garden. Maybe you have a local park you can have a nice picnic while reading and ask your children to close their eyes and picture themselves in a secret garden.
They can listen to the bird sounds and notice the feeling of the wind on their skin and feel the grass as you read. You could find a neat secret spot along a hiking trail and claim it as your own secret garden. You are only limited by your own imagination.
Your Secret Garden Experience is just around the corner. Grab the book and start reading.
