I love writers who paint with words. I used to encourage my 1st and 2nd graders to do this and they actually became quite good at it.

Years ago I read a treatise from a few educators in California, whose plan it was…

“To teach only the most most basic of vocabulary as it was not necessary to have more than one word for red.”

 It is mind numbing to contemplate. Where would we be without ruby, wine, or crimson? Each of these can bring to mind items which are exactly described by these colors.  Yet, the lack of imagination those educators would put upon us would leave us all with an 8 box of Crayola colors.

Test yourself by imagining Renoir if he only had red, orange, blue, green, purple, yellow, brown, and black?  Oh, sorry Renoir, you only have eight colors to chose from and you aren’t allowed to mix them.  You needn’t be an artist to envision how your efforts at illustration would be limited.

I do get discouraged with the product of the last thirty years of our educational system,  when I see that many of the 18 to 30 year olds will write reviews on a book they didn’t finish. Their main complaint ?  “The book was too wordy”  or “The author spent too much time on describing the setting; it was boring,” They are the very ones who want illustrated novels and/or to watch the movie instead.

Can this be corrected for the future of our progeny?  Am I a rebel to rage against a system that produces this mass of unimaginative and under-educated people who will replace me when I die?

Perhaps, but it needs to be said.

an OOPS and a notice..

This was supposed to publish on Sunday, my error.  And please also note that my profile has suddenly disappeared!  Was it something I said???  (probably)  I’m not going to take this post back, that would be confusing, but I will be rewriting my profile and try to get it done by Sunday.  😀