I do insist on names, and that’s something I’ve had to really work with my two ds11 on this year. It is hard to remember it all, and I have told them I struggle with this as well, and that it helps me to write down the names as I encounter them. I will let them use that list of names when they give me a narration. Even though it’s difficult, I believe it’s really important to remember who or what you’re reading about! 14 can be tough with girls, I agree, but if you don’t insist, my guess is this may not pass but instead become a habit.
I asked a similar question at a local Charlotte Mason support group meeting last year, and was told by the leader that it could be one of two problems:
– the child isn’t attending and has gotten into the habit of being lazy
– or it’s the wrong kind of book.
I’ve had kids who fall into both categories at different times. With at least one ds11, it was a real skill to manage the narrations and we only did a few pages at a time to start – less if that’s too difficult. I instructed them that if they’re having trouble, they have to go back to where they started and see if they can mentally narrate each paragraph – not that I expect them to narrate each to me, but it helps them figure out where they stopped understanding or paying attention, and helps them focus more. I find myself doing this frequently as well, particularly when reading CM’s original series, which can be a challenge, and I’ve shared that with them so they know it takes work sometimes to make information your own.
With my ds 14, who is a strong student and gives wonderful narrations, I found we’d chosen the wrong text earlier this year – a much recommended but very dry book (Streams of Civilization). This kid with an amazing memory and love of history could remember hardly a thing from his reading, and I realized that we’d chosen the wrong book – not a story, not living, not engaging and dry as unbuttered toast. When we switched to Story of the Ancient World and First Ancient History, he was back in his groove and loving and remembering history.
Does she read it herself? I found my kiddos actually do better when they are reading themselves after age 10, as Charlotte suggested; they read their own history, while I read historical fiction and geography aloud. One thing that sometimes helps my kids get started is to read a few sentences from somewhere in the text to jog their memories, and give them a starting place.
Blessings,
Aimee