OLLI Summer Term Classes 2018

Grandparents and Grandchildren Reading Louisa M. Alcott’s Little Women Together
Originally published in 1868, Louisa M. Alcott’s Little Women is still popular today with readers of all ages. Why do we find this novel about the March family – father, mother, and four daughters – entertaining and informative 150 years after its publication? Have families and communities fundamentally changed since the days of the Civil War? What do we have in common with the members of the family?  Does an older generation have more in common with them than the current generation?
We will discuss the novel, its author, and it’s time for a couple of sessions before Sarah Thornton, artistic director of the Cloverdale Playhouse, meets with us to talk about adapting the novel into the play that premiered at the Playhouse in November of 2017. We may have time to draft an autobiographical chapter (or scene) for our own family story. Try to complete the novel before the first session.
June 4, 11, 18, 25 - Monday - 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon - 4 sessions
Instructor: Nancy Grisham Anderson

A Homemade Christmas
The first chapters of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women find the March family at Christmas with very little money. We thought it would be fun to think about what kind of tree adornments this family might create using things from around the house (specifically paper and ink). Paper garlands come to mind, as well as decorated cones to fill with small treats.
We will create some old-fashioned Christmas decorations out of paper using a technique called Zentangle (an easy-to-learn art form using simple pen and ink strokes that form beautiful patterns on paper).
June 4, 11, 18, 25 - Monday - 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. - 4 sessions
Instructors: Sharon Wheelahan and Suzie Smith

Leisure Reading – Escapism???
Many readers begin to think about lighter, more leisurely reading as winter begins to turn to spring and summer. They want selections to take on vacations, to read on planes, or to read at the beach while occasionally looking up at the sand and the water. There are many categories of selections from which to choose without turning to what many people label as “trash.” Some of these less demanding selections may take up serious issues – adoption, wildlife preservation (dolphin or raptor rehabilitation, or sea turtle preservation), death, and infidelity – while entertaining readers at the same time. This workshop will introduce the class to writers, genres, and series from which they can select their summer reading. This will not be a reading course – with the exception of two sessions – as much as it will be an introduction to books that readers may find entertaining for leisure reading.
June 6, 13, 20, 27 - Wednesday - 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon - 4 sessions
Instructor: Nancy Grisham Anderson

All summer workshops will meet at Saint James United Methodist Church, 9045 Vaughn Road, Montgomery AL 36117.