When we first start homeschooling, we rarely have the benefit of watching other people educate their children on a daily basis (unless, of course, we were home educated ourselves!). We pour over schedules, book lists, and examples of the homeschool days of other families. This can be helpful, but sometimes all the variety can be…
Not long after I started my first son on homeschool lessons, I shared my process for scheduling a term with Ambleside Online (a free, Charlotte Mason homeschool curriculum). Since then, I’ve been through that process several more times and added another student into the mix. I know many moms wonder where to start with a…
Too often in homeschooling, math feels like a subject tacked onto a literature-rich, Charlotte Mason based curriculum. Not only can it feel dry and rote, but it can also be a solitary subject, with our kids working on their own math problems at their own pace. But while individual work might be necessary, it doesn’t…
The latest addition to our Charlotte Mason homeschool curriculum is scouting skills. Scouting doesn’t receive nearly as much attention as other Charlotte Mason staples, like nature study or artist study. However, there are strong connections. The modern scouting movement has roots in Charlotte Mason’s work, and scouting was taught in Parents’ Union Schools. Scouting as…
If I wake early to read my Bible and pray, and have not love when my children interrupt me, I am only a donkey in a lion’s skin. I may hide under a mane of righteous actions, but the bray of self-centered entitlement exposes me. If love is patient and kind, I am anything but…
When my eldest son started his first ‘formal’ year of homeschooling in January, we made some changes to our morning time together. While we already had the habit of reading lovely stories and enjoying music together, I began to ask my son to narrate our Bible passage for the day, and we began in earnest…
Do we sometimes expect too much from our homeschooling curriculum? Obviously it’s important. A crucial part of the Charlotte Mason philosophy is to give our kids a broad and generous education. A curriculum certainly helps me make sure that we get the proportions right. But just because curriculum is a valuable tool, doesn’t mean that…
I’ve been doing a morning time routine with my kids for a few years now. After breakfast, we gather and enjoy music, poetry, and books together. Over that time, I’ve noticed one thing: morning time only runs smoothly when all of the books and resources are actually in the basket. Nothing derails morning time faster…
Throughout high school and university, I acquired more than enough ‘leadership experience’ to fill a resume. After all, teachers, professors, and counselors touted leadership as essential to any future success. But despite this emphasis on leading others, I did not find stepping into the leadership role of ‘motherhood’ natural. Before children, I worked with groups…
I concluded in the last post that as moms, we need to rise to the challenge of continuing our own education. Mother culture, loosely defined, is time we spend seeking out and taking in those ideas, usually through reading living books. But like most living things, our minds need a direction to grow in. If…