7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education (UPDATED!) ~
Written by Jamie C. Martin of Simple Homeschool

Welcome back to my newest Simple Homeschool series, in which I’m going back in time to share my thoughts as a retired homeschool mom after 15 years of active duty.

This month I decided to revisit this popular post from the very first year of Simple Homeschool; I wrote it in 2010!

Obviously I have a lot more experience and thoughts of my own to share now, so I’ve updated the post below with them. Look for the red headings to easily spot those.

Let’s learn a bit more about Charlotte Mason education together:

Prefer to listen instead?

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If you’ve been homeschooling for long, you’ve undoubtedly heard of Charlotte Mason.

Her educational principles, which she developed in 19th century England, offer much to home educating children and families alike.

But what exactly is a Charlotte Mason education? How can you know if it will work well for your family?

Use this overview to help you decide.

7 Characteristics of a Charlotte Mason Education

1. Habits

Charlotte believed that the development of good habits within a child provides the foundation for early education. She wrote, “The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days.”

For this reason Charlotte advised delaying formal academics until age six, instead advocating play and work within the gentle boundaries of the family unit.

Charlotte saw good habits as so crucial that she recommended putting all else aside if a bad habit appeared, and working with the child (in a friendly way) to reconcile the issue before it could develop further.

Jamie’s thoughts on habits today:

Keep in mind that Charlotte Mason worked with children in schools, and was not a mother herself. Please have no guilt if you find that instilling good habits in your children is a lifelong endeavor – it is!

I agree with the delay of formal academics (in most cases), and that is what worked well in our family. However, I can remember feeling guilt over the fact that my kids did have bad habits, and this can feel even heavier to those of us who have children with a variety of diagnoses and special needs.

Habits are a big priority, but they are not our ONLY priority. Success in this area can take a decade or more to observe!

2. Style of Lessons

Charlotte Mason style lessons are short, especially for young children. The goal is to train the child to focus fully on their work, but only for the amount of time they are developmentally capable of.

For early elementary-aged children this often means only 5-15 minutes per subject. In older grades the duration extends to 45 minutes or more.

Photo by D. Sharon Pruitt

When a child becomes restless, Charlotte advised changing the lesson to a different type of subject–maybe moving from handwriting to music study, or from math to handicrafts.

Short lessons means that more subjects can be incorporated into a school day. This fits with the Charlotte Mason philosophy of introducing many topics to children and allowing them to delve deeper into the ones that spark their interest.

Jamie’s thoughts on style of lessons today:

Yes! I 100% agree that short lessons are the best lessons, especially for littles, but boy did my Inner Taskmaster find it hard to stop without reaching the “official” end.

I felt like I didn’t get my closure and gold star! Looking back though, I would try to work with a timer/clock and mark where we leave off so we could return and begin the next time.

3. Living Books

Living books are the opposite of textbooks–quality literature (either fiction or non-fiction) written by an author with a passion for the topic. The writer’s passion and expertise breathes life into the book, as opposed to a textbook that gives impersonal overviews of many topics.

Living books present inspiring stories that engage the minds of children and adults alike, providing characters our children can look up to and emulate.

Jamie’s thoughts on living books today:

Yes, especially for younger ages, living books are the way to go! However, for those of us with a proclivity toward insecurity, please remember that this does NOT mean that you must only choose books that are 100 years old or were on Charlotte’s official reading list.

You’re looking for books, new and old, that have that spark of life to them that captures your own imagination and that of your child. You get to create your own list as you go!

4. Narration

A Charlotte Mason-style education uses narration as one of the central methods to evaluate a student. The goal is to teach a child to think and express themselves clearly.

Up until the age of 10 or 11, Charlotte advises teachers to use mainly oral narration with a child. After listening to a short passage of a book, the child will tell back, in his or her own words, important aspects of the story.

Letting a young child do this orally helps them develop analytical thinking skills without getting stuck by the physical mechanics of handwriting.

At around age 11 Charlotte Mason teachers begin having children do written narrations, which lengthen and become more in depth as children get older.

Jamie’s thoughts on narration today:

I experienced a ton of pressure in this area that we weren’t “doing it right.” It’s essential to remember that life with a classroom of students must be organized differently to life at home with a handful.

When I asked my kids to repeat back what they had heard…it often resulted in that deer in headlights look, left me feeling disappointed, and took away from the enjoyment in what we were reading. But there were other times when the kids were so excited about something they had read that they couldn’t wait to come and tell me every. single. detail.

This is narration at home, in the context of real life. The same way that we might summarize a book for our adult friends! So experiment with narration to see how or if it works for you, but feel free to allow it to naturally happen as opposed to forcing it.

5. Dictation

Dictation exercises introduce and reinforce spelling and grammar concepts.

Charlotte recommends using inspiring quotations or Scripture for dictation. The child studies the passage until they are certain of the spelling and punctuation. Then the teacher dictates the passage slowly while the child writes it down.

Formal grammar study is usually delayed until age 10 or 11 in a Charlotte Mason education.

Photo by Wonderlane

Jamie’s thoughts on dictation today:

I definitely agree with the concept of delaying formal grammar study as a general idea. Aside from Mad Libs and chatting casually about grammar mistakes in real life (as an English major and author, grammar is very important to me!), we delayed this formally even longer than Charlotte.

We used Fix It Grammar for a while; I loved those workbooks! Dictation is a bit like copywork, which I listed as one of the things I’d do differently of if I could go back in time.

But dictation was not a top priority for us until the teen years, and it doesn’t have to be for you to homeschool well. Try it and then decide for yourself!

6. Art & Music Study

Charlotte Mason believed in exposing a child to greatness in many forms, which is why she introduced music and art appreciation at her schools.

In Charlotte’s schools, one composer or artist was studied each term–both through experiencing the music and art, reading living books about the artist, and perhaps reproducing the style through art or music lessons.

Jamie’s thoughts on art and music study today:

Of course it is beautiful to introduce art and music to a child, yes! If this an area of personal passion for you as a homeschooling parent, then please focus on it and share your own inspiration. That always makes for beautiful memories and learning moments!

However, if it feels rote, remember that it doesn’t have to be as formal as it was in Charlotte’s schools to make an impact over your entire homeschooling years. You are spreading a feast for your kids, as Charlotte used to say, but you are NOT force-feeding them. There is a difference!

7. Nature Study

Photo by James Wheare

Charlotte thought children should spend as much time as possible outdoors, especially as young students.

Students kept their own detailed nature journals as part of their nature study and also used nature guides to discover and identify the natural world in their neighborhood.

Jamie’s thoughts on nature study today:

You do not have to spend several hours outside daily to have your kids appreciate and benefit from nature. Some of CM’s quotes suggest otherwise, and if that fills you with guilt, remember to look at the heart behind it.

Nature inspires us and is and worth getting into whenever possible, but your kids aren’t doomed to failure if they miss a day or don’t spend six hours outside in the rain LOL! We never did nature journals, but I know other families who have and have loved them.

Good and terrifying news: You get to be your own expert, on this and every other decision!

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Charlotte Mason’s ideas created an educational revolution when she developed them. She hoped education would open the doors of equality and opportunity to all.

She believed that, regardless of what social class they belonged to, children deserved dignity and respect. <— THIS is my biggest Charlotte Mason takeaway. Use her ideas out of dignity and respect for your individual children; don’t use them out of fear of failing your kids or getting it wrong.

Never put any homeschool philosophy or method above a precious child of God!

Charlotte expressed the hope in many a homeschooling parent’s heart when she wrote the following:

“The question is not,—how much does the youth know? when he has finished his education—but how much does he care?

And about how many orders of things does he care? In fact, how large is the room in which he finds his feet set? And, therefore, how full is the life he has before him?”

Further Links to Learn More (UPDATED):

• Modern Miss Mason
• Heritage Mom
• Ambleside Online
• Living Books Curriculum
• What is the Charlotte Mason Method? (a good overview)
• When Children Love to Learn: A Practical Application of Charlotte Mason’s Philosophy for Today
  
• A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning
• For the Children’s Sake: Foundations of Education for Home and School

Has your family incorporated any of Charlotte Mason’s ideas? Please share what has worked for you.

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

I’ve gotten some of my best ideas from reading about how other homeschoolers spend their days. Every family organizes their time differently, but whenever I glimpse another mom weaving things in and out of her day, I walk away with a creative thought that sparks something new in my family’s routine.

Our way of doing things has evolved over the years as my children pass through new ages and stages, but the one thing that has remained the same is that we begin and end our days together.

Today is no different.

Amber’s Homeschool Day in the Life (with a 7-, 9-, 11-, & 13-year-old)

Morning Time Routine

I woke up around 6:00 this morning and knew I couldn’t go back to sleep, so I came into the kitchen for tea and sat at my laptop. I checked my email, engaged on social media, and did a bit of research for a writing project. This early alone time always flies by, and soon I’m joined by my 7-year-old son Brooks looking for a serious snuggle before breakfast.

After our daily love fest, Brooks unloads the dishwasher while I cook breakfast. When everything is ready, he runs upstairs to wake up any siblings who haven’t yet made their way to the kitchen. My husband comes home from the gym, and we share a hot meal before starting our morning time routine at about 9:00.

At the kitchen table, we do the lessons I’ve planned for the whole family. Today that looks like Bible study, singing a folk song and spiritual, Paul Laurence Dunbar poetry recitation, picture study, geography, and current events. This is, by far, everyone’s favorite time of the day, and we linger at the table, talking and laughing much longer than my well-intentioned schedule dictates.

Independent Work Time (Together Apart)

After morning time, we shuffle around as the older kids grab their books and checklists for the day before finding their favorite spot to settle in. We have an open floor plan on the main floor, so even when we spread out, there’s a sense that we’re all still together. While they’re getting into their (mostly) independent work, I quickly shower and fix another cup of tea while chatting with my husband, Scott.

After checking on my “Big Three,” I sit on the sofa with my youngest guy as we go through his lessons. He also has a daily checklist. All his work is with me, so he doesn’t need it, but he enjoys knowing what we’ll be doing each day and insists on having the same setup as his siblings.

Today we start with our daily math, copywork, and reading lessons before moving on to a book about mammals, a read-aloud African geography story, and two Black history picture books from the Joyful Generations Heritage Pack that I put together, especially for him. We wrap up with an American folk tale just in time for lunch, and he narrates to me while I prepare grilled cheese sandwiches, bell peppers, and orange wedges for all.

While working with Brooks, my other kids ask me questions about their lessons as needed. Their level of independence correlates to their ages, and my 13-year-old daughter does most of her lessons independently. She takes Algebra and Spanish online, and the lessons are pre-recorded so she can work at her own pace.

She breaks up the video lessons by reading living history, literature, and science books in between. We usually do grammar and health with her 11-year-old sister, Sasha, but today both girls just spend time on written narrations covering what they’ve read because we got a late start.

Relaxed Afternoon Flow

After lunch, I take a moment to return a couple of phone calls and make a doctor’s appointment. Then I work on math with my middle kiddos separately and listen to 9-year-old Beckett read some of his books aloud. He can handle them independently, but lending my ear encourages him to stick with it and finish his lessons.

Without regular interaction with me, his day would only be filled with leisure because his favorite line is, “I’m taking a break,” which cracks me up every time as I predictably respond, “A break from what? You haven’t done anything yet!

As long as they complete the things on their checklists, my kids can control their schedules after morning time. My oldest likes to finish everything early and have the rest of the day to herself. She’s creative and always has projects on hand to delve into.

Today she worked on modeling a jointed doll out of clay. My other kids prefer to wind their way through the day at a relaxed pace, with plenty of playtime and wandering, so they typically finish lessons later in the day.

By mid-afternoon, everyone starts congregating in the living room because we’re reading Book four of the Wingfeather Saga; the story is riveting, and we are dying to know what happens next. I share a couple of short chapters, leaving everyone on a significant cliffhanger before I head to my room for a little self-care break.

My Self-Care Break

I’m recovering from a major infection and spinal surgery, and I administer daily IV antibiotics through a PICC line while listening to audiobooks and checking messages on Voxer. When I finish with the medication, I respond to emails and social media posts while resting in my medical recliner. Then I throw on my sneakers and a light jacket before heading out for a therapeutic walk around the neighborhood with Scott.

Closing Out the Day

Friends have been providing dinner for my family during this recuperation time, so after my walk, I head to the kitchen to reheat food and catch up with the kids as Scott wraps up his day in his home office. After dinner, we do our daily clean-up and reset everything for tomorrow. This only takes about 10 minutes, but with everyone helping, we get a lot done.

Then we gather to listen to another chapter or two of our read-aloud before getting ready for bed.

The boys have lights out at 8:30, but can listen to an audiobook for a while before falling asleep. The older girls read and work on creative projects in their rooms at night. They can stay up as late as they want if they don’t get carried away.

Tonight they are both still up when I retire to my room to write this post at 10 pm, and they typically turn their lights off by 10:30 pm.

In some ways, no two days are exactly alike for us, but today was representative of our average day spent at home. On other days, you may find us at musical theater, piano lessons, homeschool group activities, or hiking in the woods. I work hard to manage our schedule well, so we have a comfortable balance of homebody and on-the-go days.

We thrive when we have a mix of both!

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

8 Easy Ways to Enjoy Poetry in Your Homeschool ~
Written by Amber  O’ Neal Johnston of Heritage Mom

In winter I get up at night
And dress by yellow candlelight.
In summer, quite the other way,
I have to go to bed by day.

This stanza from “Bed in Summer” by Robert Louis Stevenson was the initial verse of poetry I read to my children on our first official day of formal lessons over eight years ago. Because I’d never developed a love of poetry, I shared this simple but enjoyable poem with apprehension.

I wanted to give my children opportunities to build relationships with poets and their words, enjoying poetry in our homeschool, but I wasn’t sure what to do beyond just reading random poems.

As it turns out, this lack of experience and direction worked in my favor. I purchased an anthology of children’s poetry that I saw recommended online, and we started reading 1-2 poems a day with no agenda other than pure enjoyment. We didn’t dissect the verses, search for deep symbolism, or focus on scansion.

I didn’t even know what scansion was! Each morning over breakfast, we would read a little bit of poetry aloud, smile, and move on with our day. It was easy and felt perfect.

That’s not to say that a poem should never be studied; there is undoubtedly room for engaging deeply with verse. The poet Monk Gibbon explained that the first step is to see children enjoy poetry, after which they’ll often move on to the next stage on their own.

Namely, they’ll seek “to study those poets whose work needs some preliminary elucidation if it is to be appreciated.”

The difference, it seems, is one of desire. Rather than force children to pick apart poetry, we can help them to enjoy it so they will want to study to appreciate better what they encounter.

If you’d like to incorporate and enjoy poetry in your homeschool routine, here are a few easy ways to help make it enjoyable:

1. Memorize a poem

I encourage my children to learn by heart the verses they love. My grandparents used to recite poetry from their childhood on a whim, and I was always impressed. It’s a sweet way of bringing a smile to someone’s face at any moment.

2. Make things fancy

We often pair poetry with tea and yummy baked goods – sometimes homemade, sometimes store-bought. I’ll light a candle, set out our tea service, and serve the treats on a pretty platter. The poetry is the same, but the ambiance makes it feel more special.

3. Take it outside

We love reading poetry outdoors and especially with friends. Sometimes we’ll invite other families to join us at the park or by the creek to recite poetry for one another.

Usually, it’s a no-frills type of thing, but every April (National Poetry Month), we go all in as we host an annual program for our homeschool group.

4. Lean into your background

Poetry is a beautiful way to connect more deeply with your own culture.

My family has engaged with many Black poets who especially speak to us, including Effie Lee Newsome, Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Paul Laurence Dunbar, Maya Angelou, Alice Walker, and Gwendolyn Brooks. We even named our little boy Brooks after the latter.

5. Engage with different cultures

Discovering a love for the imagery and ideas of others is one of the best gifts of poetry.

My family has gained a deeper understanding of the joys and disappointments of many people groups by reading work from an array of international poets and American poets of Chinese, Korean, Cuban, Palestinian, Guatemalan, Filipino, and Native ancestry.

6. Attend a reading

Poetry comes alive when read aloud, and hearing expressive and vibrant readings is an incredible way to enjoy it. In our area, public readings can be easily found on college campuses, coffee houses, and bookstores.

7. Use poetry for gifts.

Poetry can be very personal. People tend to be attracted to certain types or qualities, so receiving or giving a particular poem that someone shares just for you is a lovely and unique experience.

When you encounter a poem you can’t stop thinking about, be sure to share it with a loved one.

8. Write your own.

Poetry has a way of infecting us with urges to hear more and even write our own. Encourage your children to try their hands at penning a verse and take it a step further by joining them in the endeavor. It’s fun to share your silly or serious thoughts with others.

Poetry can be intimidating if you believe that there’s only one right way to pursue it.  

Once you embrace the freedom to read, smile, and move on, you’ll find that there are abundant opportunities to grow your love of verse in every direction. You will find the joy of having poetry in your homeschool day.

What’s Your Child’s Learning Style? Take Jamie’s new quiz and set yourself up for homeschooling success by understanding the way they learn best!

Embracing Nature Study and Time Spent Outdoors ~
Written by Amber O’Neal Johnston of Heritage Mom

Though Charlotte Mason’s philosophy is often yoked to historical time periods and living books, these things alone don’t comprise a complete CM experience. There are many facets to explore, and one in particular – nature study- is an aspect of her teachings that intrigued and terrified me in equal measure.

In her first volume, Mason states, “We were all meant to be naturalists, each in his degree, and it is inexcusable to live in a world so full of the marvels of plant and animal life and to care for none of these things.” While this concept resonated deeply with me, I had to sit back and chuckle because I was raised in the air-conditioning and had no clue where to begin.

At around the same time that I was introduced to Charlotte Mason, a friend recommended that I read Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv in which the author directly links the lack of nature in the lives of today’s wired generation to some of the most disturbing childhood trends, such as the rise in obesity, attention disorders, and depression.

His book builds a compelling case for the idea that direct exposure to nature is essential for healthy childhood development.

Upon finishing Louv’s book, I went back to Mason’s volumes and found this quote: “He must live hours daily in the open air, and, as far as possible, in the country; must look and touch and listen; must be quick to note, consciously, every peculiarity of habit or structure, in beast, bird, or insect; the manner of growth and fructification of every plant.”

Armed with Mason’s charge and Louv’s research, I became determined to make time in nature a major part of our home life and, therefore, our homeschool.

This commitment ran so deep that we relocated to a property where our children can confront nature – wooded landscapes, lakes, a creek, and wildlife – steps from the back door. I quickly embraced the new environment, one that I’d been dreaming of for years, but determining exactly what to do once we headed outside proved to be more challenging.

Through that experience, I learned that the biggest obstacle to embracing time in nature is not scheduling, location, or weather. It’s me.

Once I committed to pursuing nature study in an intentional way, we slowly learned how to observe plants, animals, waterways, fields, and forests.

Although I, the teacher, knew next to nothing about the natural world, I clung to Louv’s words: “It’s a good thing to learn more about nature in order to share this knowledge with children; it’s even better if the adult and child learn about nature together. And it’s a lot more fun.”

Embracing Nature Study and Time Spent Outdoors

If you’d like to spend more time in nature with your family but aren’t sure how to start, these tips that we’ve picked up along the way can help you get the most from your time outdoors:

Collect objects. Forest findings like pinecones, nutshells, and wood slices or beachcombing treasures such as shells or driftwood can ignite your children’s imaginations.

Create checklists. Making plans to visit all the national parks in your state, chasing waterfalls, or climbing the area’s most scenic mountains can motivate you to head out and check another wonder off your family’s list.

Bring an expert. Discovering natural treasures on your own and letting the beauty of the environment speak to you are incredible ways to approach nature. Still, sometimes there are neat things that you’re unlikely to uncover without a little expert help. Occasionally, consider asking a naturalist or experienced friend to join you for an excursion.

Invest in gear. Having the right gear for whatever kind of terrain or environment your family prefers is critical. Being overheated, cold, wet, hungry, or unprepared can ruin good intentions for time spent in nature.

Ask first: Every time you plan an activity with your kids, ask yourself, “Can we do this outside?” The honest answer may be no, but the times you can give an easy yes make the question completely worthwhile.

Each day that we can, my family embraces nature – sometimes to study something specific, occasionally to search for a favorite plant or find evidence of a familiar animal, and often with no expectations whatsoever.

My kids don’t know any other way of living, but this lifestyle is entirely new to me, and I’ve discovered a secret that I wish I’d known as a child: The woods make me come alive!

Whether you’re new to homeschooling or simply open to exploring a different approach to learning, I invite you to try integrating nature study and outdoor exploration into your routine.

Discover on your own how time spent outside can infuse your home education journey with simple pleasures and lifegiving ideas.

How do you incorporate nature and the outdoors into your homeschool?

What’s Your Homeschool Mom Personality? Take Jamie’s quiz now and receive a free personality report to help you organize your homeschool based on what your personality type needs most!

“Now I don’t have to die to go to heaven,” my son grinned. “It’s right here.”

We were walking along the trails zig-zagging through the wild countryside of the property we would soon call home. Towering trees, low-hanging limbs laden with moss, a pond and trickling creek, old-growth stumps — it was all so lush and green and vast — as far as the eye could see.

But even as spectacular as the scenery was, I couldn’t take my eyes off him. Seeing his wonder–rapture really–as he explored and discovered, head tilted back, gazing straight up, pointing here and there, “Mom, red-tailed hawks!”

I couldn’t believe this was where, Lord willing, our kids would grow up.

I grew up out in the country, and took for granted the gold-mine that was my backyard. I grew up hiking through the woods, forging the river to a friends’ house, building forts from limbs and twigs, climbing trees, planting gardens, holding still and silent watching the deer creep by.

These days, though, it seemed you had to choose between a roof over your children’s heads OR a piece of land, so I had long ago given up the idea of raising my own kids out in the woods.

So, when we fell into this gift of a place, that had a roof and land, I knew it was meant for more than just our own personal pleasure — I wanted the gift of nature to bless others as well.

All this was happening as I was reading Charlotte Mason’s The Outdoor Life of Children. Of course other books like Simplicity Parenting and Boys Should be Boys had said the same thing in a more contemporary context:

Regular exposure to nature is critical for the mental, emotional, physical, and intellectual health and development of children.

So, when my friend suggested that I host a homeschool co-op every Friday out here on our property, I enthusiastically agreed.

Actually I didn’t.

See, I wanted to bless others with our property, but a co-op made me cringe. I like the idea, and know they are a great benefit to many (Kris gives great ideas here), I just couldn’t fathom adding another responsibility and commitment to our already full lives.

So imagine my relief when all the interested moms gathered together at our property, and as we brainstormed about possible ideas and structures, the one unifying theme that tied all our hopes together was simply this:

We all just wanted Nature.

Most of us had already dialed in the 3 R’s for our kids. They were already involved in scholastic activities and even outside lessons.

No one wanted another thing that required much prep. What we all wished for was simply this: time for our kids to freely enjoy nature, with other kids, every week.

And so, Nature Day was born.

It is nothing impressive, just a time from 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Fridays, for our kids of all ages to gather together for the sole purpose of enjoying nature together.

We usually have a “Nature Mission” during the first hour, some challenge for the kids to do either on their own or together. Then we enjoy a sack lunch together outside, and allow the rest of the afternoon for the kids to play and explore outside.

When we began, I was bursting with ideas for potential nature missions:

• Build a tree fort
• Scavenger hunt
• Leaf collection & identification
• Survival skills (start fire, filter water, build shelter)
• Holiday cards made from nature
• Field Guide practice
• Bird watching and identification
• Make homemade bird food
• Build a bird house
• Pond science
• Flower and leaf pressing
• Seed germinating
• Gardening (each have small plot)

We haven’t done all of these yet. It turned out that my kids are the oldest, so some of my ideas were a little lofty (4-year-olds should’t build fires?), and some days we simply go for a hike together and call it good.

And I mean that, we call it good because fresh air and time together and exploring the glory of God’s creation is just that — good.

The other moms have also done a great job coming up with fun activities like mushroom spore-prints, “stained glass” leaf window-hangings, and leaf turkeys for Thanksgiving. Scavenger hunts are always a win, and you can switch things up for each season, so that’s fun.

Next year, another family will have moved out to some land near us, so we’re looking forward to rotating who hosts Nature Day each week. While I’m thrilled to share our space, it will be nice to go elsewhere from time to time as well. Which brings me to my point:

You don’t have to live in the wilderness to host a Nature Day.

There are so many places — parks, wildlife refuges, local hikes and national forests — all it takes to host a Nature Day is a group of families who want to opt outside.

I love Jessica’s simple suggestions in this post. Perhaps even this Spring might be the perfect time to add something fresh into your weekly routine and transform Fridays into Nature Day.

Here are some supplies and inspiration:

• Our favorite Nature Journal.
• Some field guides we love. (We find them used at Exodus, our local book store.)
• Pocket microscope.
• Magnifying glasses. (Heidi has this one.)

And now, your turn! What are ways you incorporate Nature Study into your homeschool routine? Share your ideas!

This post contains affiliate links.

There’s a one-word banner I’m waving these days: Habits. 

The word probably doesn’t kindle a fire of passion or enthusiasm in your soul.

Yet.

Though you may not come alive when you hear the word habits, I will tell you this one-word anthem is revolutionizing our homeschool like nothing else has in a long time.

I stumbled upon this volume, Habits: The Mother’s Secret to Success, a selection of Charlotte Mason’s writings on the topic of character formation in children. I had been in a weary season, struggling with homeschool, behavior issues, and general overwhelm with life.

There was so much to do, where to begin? Our days felt haphazard and aimless. I lacked passion and zeal for homeschooling. I found myself wondering if I was even cut out for this home-education thing.

Insert habits. 

Within the first few pages, I knew this was what I’d been missing. Her words of wisdom rang true and clear, timeless.  We began with baby steps, heeding her advice and implementing simple habits.

The keys for me to remember were:

• Don’t implement a habit you cannot completely reinforce for 2-4 weeks. Previously I would assign my children more than I was willing to reinforce. This led to constant frustration, overwhelm, and frequent negative interactions. To my amazement, scaling back and only requiring a few things, which I was completely devoted to joyfully and enthusiastically reinforcing, has brought success, giving us far more frequent joyful interactions. Hooray!

• Don’t ease up on a past habit as a “reward” for good behavior. Mason maintains that this is the fatal move so many mothers make. Let’s say Johnny has been doing an excellent job of picking up his dirty clothes, for two whole weeks. You’re so happy, that when you notice he left them on the floor, you kindly do it for him, “just this once.” But that actually undoes the habit-keeping, and will extend the amount of time it takes to actually make a habit. It will harm him in the end, because the sooner the habit is solidified, the sooner he’ll have mental-space for other things. Once something is habit you don’t have to think about it anymore!

• Reward with freedom, not food or money or toys.  The reward for finishing math early is not a lollipop, it’s free time. It’s the freedom to do whatever he wishes with the time that’s left. The reward for finishing all his chores without being asked is free time, time to play outside or read or craft or Lego or whatever his heart desires. What a wonderful, wholesome, and refreshing reward!

So why do I bring this up at the holidays? Isn’t this the time when schedules and structure are tossed to the wind in the name of fun and festivities?

Exactly.

I’m finding that our simple habits are carrying us through the would-be chaos of the holiday season.

We drove 3,000 miles over a two-week period recently, and I found that keeping our simple habits in place, even as so many other things were different or unpredictable, helped us have a refreshing, renewing, joyful trip, returning back to our home-routine with relative ease.

So what will your Holiday Habits be?

That is, what simple habits will you reinforce to help your family navigate this often-hectic season?

Perhaps it’s a 4-part morning chore routine. Perhaps it’s always beginning something at 10 a.m. Perhaps it’s your read-aloud time in the afternoon. Perhaps it’s eating green vegetables at every meal. Perhaps it’s saying the Lord’s Prayer at breakfast. Perhaps it’s a nature-walk every day at 1 p.m. Perhaps it’s reading an advent book before bed.

For those of you who are naturally highly-structured, this may seem like a no-brainer.

But maybe just a few of you, like me, need a nudge to stake out healthy habits this holiday season. I guarantee we’ll have an easier time easing into January if we’ve not abandoned these things all month long.

Your turn! What helpful habits have you implemented with your children? What new habits do you think might be helpful to include this holiday season? Thanks for reading.

Originally published on Dec 17, 2015

When we begin our homeschooling journey, we so desperately want to do things “right.” We want to use the right materials, books, curricula, and get the “right” results from our little ones.

It was with these thoughts and intentions in mind that I first came across the word “twaddle” — a word I’d never heard before my venture into home education began.

What is twaddle anyway?

According to dictionary.com, twaddle is “a term used to describe trivial or foolish speech or writing; nonsense.”

When it comes to books twaddle usually refers to dumbed-down literature for children. Examples include most books based on kids’ television shows, abridged versions of classic books that simplify the language and meaning, and books that don’t leave scope for a child’s imagination.

History of twaddle

Educational pioneer Charlotte Mason originally coined the term “twaddle.” Mason was a British educator who devoted her life to improving the quality of education in the 19th century.

From Mason’s book Home Education:

“Even for their earliest reading lessons, it is unnecessary to put twaddle into the hands of children. That children like feeble and tedious…story books, does not at all prove that these are wholesome food; they like lollipops but cannot live upon them.”

From her book School Education:

“The question resolves itself into–What manner of book will find its way with upheaving effect into the mind of an intelligent boy or girl? We need not ask what the girl or boy likes. She very often likes the twaddle of goody-goody story books, he likes condiments, highly-spiced tales of adventure.

We are all capable of liking mental food of a poor quality and a titillating nature; and possibly such food is good for us when our minds are in need of an elbow-chair; but our spiritual life is sustained on other stuff, whether we be boys or girls, men or women.”

Definition of a classic

If we don’t want excessive twaddle in our homes, then what’s the alternative?

Classics. Unfortunately, though, many of us mistakenly believe that classics are either boring or old. Nothing could be further from the truth!

In our home we pull much of our educational philosophy from the ideals of Thomas Jefferson Education. I love the TJEd definition of a classic, a work “that inspires greatness.”

This means that classics exist in every possible field of study, from sewing to surfing, and that we can easily tell if a work is a classic by the reaction it births within us. Does it inspire? Does it make our children want to learn more? Do we want to reread it because we discover something new each time? These are the titles we want to saturate our homes with.

And we don’t have to have too many to bring about positive results. I think of the books that line our walls as those we want to carry on a relationship with–those that are old friends. Others may come in and out–from the library or other sources–but those that stick with us are the ones we return to again and again.

The 80/20 principle

If we attempt to avoid twaddle, should we never let our kids look at a comic strip? I remember stressing over this point when I first found out about Charlotte Mason’s ideas.

I so badly wanted to get it “right,” but my attempts made me feel hypervigilant and unrelaxed. It sounded like exposure to twaddle would be the end of my kids and ruin their educations. (Can you tell I have an all or nothing personality? ;))

But what I’ve found is that if we surround our kids with the exceptional 80 or 90 percent of the time, we can flex with the other 10 to 20. A couple of years ago I even purchased a Go Diego Go early reader for my little people. They were really into the show at that stage and I hoped the tie-in might encourage them to want to read it.

Guess what? No permanent damage done!

I have high goals for my kids’ learning–a lengthening attention span, a love of language and the intricacies of words, and a developing vocabulary. Keeping twaddle out of our home helps us head in the direction of these goals.

But I don’t have to fret and worry about the occasional Dora the Explorer picture book either. A lollipop every once in a while won’t ruin a whole foods diet. Relax, go forth, and read!

Further reading on Charlotte Mason and twaddle:

• Educating the WholeHearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson
• A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola
• For the Children’s Sake by Susan S. MacAulay
• Choosing good books for your children
• 7 characteristics of a Charlotte Mason education
• Twaddle-free books for preschoolers

How do you deal with twaddle in your home?

Though we’re not always consistent with including it, nature study is one of our favorite ways to spend some of our homeschool day.

It’s fun, relaxing, interest-led learning in a real-world, hands-on environment.

Following are five tips for making nature study an anticipated part of your family’s education (because you’ll be learning, too, Mom):

1. Utilize The Handbook of Nature Study – The Book and the Blog

The Handbook of Nature Study, by Anna Comstock is the comprehensive nature study book. Written by the late founder of the Department of Nature Study at Cornell University, this detailed reference guide was originally written for elementary school teachers.

The first few chapters explain the how’s and why’s of nature study. After that, the volume is broken down into sections on animals, plants, earth and sky. The sub-sections and the index make it easy to find information on nearly any nature-related subject imaginable.

The Handbook of Nature Study blog offers fantastic direction for getting started, from the Outdoor Hour Challenges, which encourage you to get out and study nature as a family, to notebooking and journaling pages. It was the blog’s author, Barb, whose passion for nature study ignited the interest in our family.

Photo by Kris

2. Keep a Nature Journal

Yes, this means you, too, Mom. When your kids see you getting excited about nature study, they’ll get excited, too.  I modeled my nature journal after a picture of one I saw in The Handbook of Nature Study.

I did not put any expectations on my kids’ journals. I wanted it to be something they wanted to do, not something they had to do. I encouraged them to draw pictures, make rubbings of leaves, tape leaves to the pages, or even include quotes or poetry, like I enjoyed doing, but I didn’t require it.

A good resource for getting started with a nature journal is Keeping a Nature Journal by Clare Walker Leslie and Charles Roth.

3. Give Everyone a Camera

This may not be feasible in every family, but at this point in our family’s lives, each of my kids has their own digital camera – either a hand-me-down or one they’ve received as a gift. We all see the world differently as evidenced by the variety of photos we take.

My kids seem to enjoy nature study more when they are encouraged to photo journal our outings with pictures of the things that catch their interest. We rarely go on a nature walk with a detailed agenda. I may encourage the kids to look for things like different types of tree bark or a variety of mushrooms, but generally I like to just let them look for things that catch their attention.

Photo by Kris

4. Pack a Nature Backpack

We keep a nature backpack in our van so that we don’t have to worry about forgetting something and so that we’re prepared for impromptu nature walks. Included in our backpack are:

• Nature journals
• Pencil boxes with colored pencils, writing pencils, an eraser, and a pencil sharpener
• Binoculars
• Magnifying glass
• Sandwich bags (in case we find an interesting specimen to bring home)
• Field guides

5. Join a Nature Center

Some of you may be blessed with great places to observe nature in your own backyard. If, however, you’re like us and live in a subdivision, you may want to join a nature center. We have a couple of options in our area and the inexpensive membership was well worth having a place where we knew we could go hiking and be sure to see different types of plants, animals, and birds.

Don’t overlook nature preserves or national parks in your area either. These are typically free and offer some great opportunities to observe nature.

Photo by Kris

Nature study doesn’t have to be – and shouldn’t be – a complicated undertaking that adds more stress to your life. I encourage you to utilize these tips to get out and see how enjoyable and relaxing it can be to explore the world around us.

Do you include nature study in your homeschool? What tips would you add?

Ages of my children: 12, 10, and 8

Educational Philosophies I pull from: Leadership Education, Literature-Based, Charlotte Mason, Unschooling

When Jamie first proposed this series I thought, “That will be easy to write. We don’t use much.”

Then I saw all the questions from the introductory post and realized I might actually have something useful to say.

A few of your comments jumped out at me:

• The repeated request to know what has worked and what hasn’t, and why.
• How to “make your own” curriculum.
• How to use readily available resources (like the library) and literature as materials for learning.

I can answer these because of our own eclectic and interest-led elementary homeschooling experience.

Defining Curriculum

My Random House College Dictionary defines curriculum as:

1. the aggregate of courses of study given in a school, college, etc.
2. the regular or a particular course of study in a school, college, etc.

The simple definition of curriculum is a course of study.

Homeschoolers often refer to curriculum as learning materials that are packaged, prepared and prescribed in a certain order to teach a particular subject or subjects.

There is a difference.

I don’t mean to get hung up on semantics, but I want to make sure when I talk about curriculum we’re using the same definition. For the purpose of this post and to keep things clear, when I refer to curriculum I mean packaged, prepared and ready-to-use materials.

Photo by Renee Tougas

Elementary Education

I believe the focus of the elementary years is to foster, grow and develop a child’s innate appetite for learning and life.

This is the love of learning phase.

As such, we don’t use a lot of pre-determined (learn certain things at certain times) curriculum because we want our children to explore their world from an internally motivated perspective. We want them to learn about things that fascinate, intrigue, puzzle, and interest them.

To this end we use a lot of literature. Both to explore our interests and to expose ourselves to new ideas. Most of these books we access for free from the library.

However, there are some academic skills we teach our children to help them as they explore and make sense of their world.

Reading, writing, and arithmetic are the academic basics that we purposefully and actively teach our children during their elementary years. To do this, I use curriculum.

I use this curriculum very loosely and on our own timeline, but it helps me provide structure and skill building practice.

Reading

Reading is foundational. It’s one of the most important pieces of building an education.

You learn to read. And then you read to learn.

It’s easy as homeschool parents to get panicky about our children learning to read. I’ve written a detailed post about our family’s experience. And let me tell you it hasn’t been an easy process – talk about what has worked and what hasn’t!

Here’s a quick summary:

• With all three of our children we used Teach Your Child To Read in 100 Easy Lessons. This curriculum worked the best with our oldest who was reading independently by the time she was six.
• With our other two it’s been a lot of trial and error and in the end I just let it go until they were really ready to try again.
• My ten-year-old just finished his first chapter book all on his own initiative. Reading has not come easy for him but he’s internally motivated to keep doing it. And that’s the real goal – to foster a child’s natural desire to learn.

Photo by Renee Tougas

Writing

There are two parts to writing – mechanics and composition. We’ve used two curricula to teach writing mechanics.

We use Getty Dubay to teach our children handwriting. We choose this program mostly for how easy it is to transition to cursive and for its aesthetic appeal.

When she was eleven our oldest daughter “graduated” to a typing program after learning cursive handwriting. For that we used Ten Thumbs.

We teach spelling, grammar, and vocabulary in the context of everyday life composition writing. This includes letters to penpals and grandparents, e-mail, secret codes (these are the kids’ absolute favorite), book reports, science reports, poetry, story writing and more.

In the past I tried both Spelling Wisdom and Natural Speller. Many people really like these programs and I liked them quite a lot also. My daughter was less enthusiastic though, so we’ve taken a life-learning approach for spelling.

Math

Our family likes Math-U-See and it’s the only math curriculum we’ve tried.

One of my children struggles with math more than my other two and I am considering a different curriculum for him, perhaps I’ll try Teaching Textbooks.

Photo by Renee Tougas

You can find an extensive post on FIMBY about how we teach math.

What about the rest?

This is a list of the subjects we study through reading (together and individually), discussions, travel, outdoor adventures, relationships, play, experiments, community involvement and otherwise everyday living:

• World Study – history, geography, and cultures
• Science & Nature Study
• Art, Dance and Music Appreciation
• Handicrafts & Home Skills
• Physical & Outdoors Education
• Bible & Character Formation

You can visit Homeschool Help at FIMBY for more posts on building an interest-led elementary homeschool course of study.

What resources or curriculum do you use for elementary education?

Written by Jamie Martin, editor of Simple Homeschool and founder of Steady Mom

I wished I hadn’t shown up that day. But God knew better.

The late summer sun spun rainbows through the window of my minivan, as I sat in the parking lot of a church–journal and pen in hand. I had just attended my second homeschooling conference, and was completely freaked out.

Without knowing it, I had registered for a conference on unschooling–a term I had never heard before that day.

I wasn’t sure I ever wanted to hear it again.

What do you mean, children don’t need to be taught? How will they learn otherwise?

So before heading home, I took deep breaths and tried to make sense of this new information. Tried to rationalize it away with ink and words on paper.

If only I could go back and tell myself what I know now.

Baby Step #1: Considering Homeschooling

My journey to homeschooling didn’t begin with a search for an educational philosophy. I didn’t even know there was more than one educational philosophy!

I just assumed that homeschooling meant doing “school” at home – worksheets, lessons, tests, recess, and so on. It didn’t sound that appealing, to be honest. I felt like I’d already served my time in school, and didn’t really want to be sentenced to another term without parole, if you know what I mean.

But something seemed unnatural about sending my kids away for seven hours each day. They still seemed so…little. Surely, as their mama, I knew what was best for them. Or did I?

I felt I owed it to them to research all the school options open to us before sending them on the yellow bus that stops a few doors down. That meant checking out homeschooling, too.

So I read books, talked to homeschooling friends, and spent time online. One day I discovered a radical lady whose educational thoughts began to shape my own.

Baby Step #2: Charlotte Mason

When I first found out about her, Charlotte Mason’s insights on learning seemed so out of the box.

Young kids need short lessons, exposure to a wide variety of subjects, plenty of time in nature, living books, and art and music study? Now this sounded more like the education I would have enjoyed as a kid.

I studied books like A Charlotte Mason Companion and When Children Love to Learn. Being the Type A parent I was, I planned out decades of ideas for future curriculum (My kids were still in preschool by the way!).

Photo by Kevin Hutchinson

Baby Step #3: Leadership Education

Over time, however, I noticed just how much my kids were learning through play and read-alouds. I began to wonder, especially after that nutty conference, if maybe these unschooling folks were on to something?

But no, no, no. I wasn’t that confident…or crazy.

Then one night, I heard on a forum about a philosophy called Thomas Jefferson Education (also known as Leadership Education). Reading the description felt like coming home.

It was less structured than Charlotte Mason, but more structured than unschooling.

The phases of learning were exactly what I was looking for.

Baby Step #4: Interest-Led Learning

For a while, that is. Then one day the magic of the blogosphere led me to Jena (so many of you love her words like I do!).

Her children were almost grown, she was a certified teacher, and she had chosen interest-led learning for her kids (basically a fancy word for, yes, unschooling).

By this time I had figured out that homeschool did not have to look anything like “school” at home. It was a lifestyle, and each baby step took me further and further away from the traditional stereotype I had started with.

Each baby step made me happier and more confident in my homeschooling decision.

Baby Step #5: Discovering Us

Every time I found a new, intriguing educational philosophy, it helped me devise my own.

Few people fit within the confines of one singular type of learning. Through homeschooling, we piece together what we find and love, and create something new. We merge and blend to discover exactly what works for us.

This is a process that we get to be a part of over our entire career in home education. Just like in other parts of life, we find what we need at the exact time when we need it.

If we live with eyes open, that is.

I wish I could go back to my minivan in summer 2008 – wish I could whisper something in the ear of that unsettled Jamie with pen in hand.

“Jamie,” I would tell her. “Everything’s gonna be okay.”

“So lighten up.”

Have you seen your philosophy of education evolve over time? What does it look like in your home today?