Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival 04.08.14

It's that time again- Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival. I always feel so privileged when my blog hosts the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival. The topic this go-round is “Some Unconsidered Aspects of Religious Training,” but any CM related post is always welcome. As I'm fond of doing, I've categorized the submissions but in no way do I mean for them to be read that way. Pick and choose or go in order. Either way: Grab your favorite drink and cozy up to read all these great submissions.

Religious Training

Nebby at Letters from Nebby- "It is our hearts God wants, not our outward obedience only. But He does want our outward obedience as well and I have largely been won over by Charlotte’s emphasis on habit training."

Amy at Crossing the Brandywine- "I started searching for how to show my children truth, goodness and beauty. I realized how fundamentally wrong our culture’s education is, indeed our culture itself. Always doing, and, what’s worse, valuing people by what they DO."

Carol at Journey and Destination- "You are not worshiping God as you should if you have departmentalized your life so that some areas worship and other parts do not worship. ~A.W. Tozer"

Patti at School Days Scrapbook- Reading George MacDonald's book, The Baronet's Song, she is reminded "of a quote by Charlotte Mason from Home Education, "The Essence of Christianity is Loyalty to a Person--Christ, our King. Here is a thought to unseal the fountains of love and loyalty, the treasures of faith and imagination, bound up in the child. The very essence of Christianity is personal loyalty, passionate loyalty to our adorable Chief..."

Tammy at Aut-2B-Home in Carolina- "Every family and situation is so unique, I can offer no answers. You probably know a family dealing with autism who never makes it to church but wishes they could. Why not ask them what you can do to help make church work better for their family? Then, see what you can do about making it happen. Even if it doesn't work, they will appreciate that you tried."

Penney at Changed by Love- "My overarching philosophy is “Values are caught more than they are taught”, so my first thought about this is that parents model reverence for God, and then children automatically revere and honor God, too. It may not always turn out that way, but I believe this is generally what happens."

Art/Composer Study

Patti at All Things Bright and Beautiful- "Jacob von Rueysdale - Sailboats, Georg Philipp Telemann - Water Music in C; A A Milne - Come Out with Me" {this site automatically plays the music; the player is down at the bottom of the screen. Don't scroll, just look down.}

Barb at Harmony Fine Arts at Home- "Intimate Impressionism – Edouard Vuillard"

Narration

Cindy at Our Journey Westward- "In this post, I’d like to show you some simple lessons I’ve used with Eli, my seven-year-old. He’s been doing short narrations for quite some time, but as we’ve transitioned into larger selections, he’s struggled a bit with story order. Here are some easy ideas for narration help. They specifically teach the skill of story order."

Rebecca at Down a Rabbit Trail- "When narration is at its best and most effective, it flows naturally. Within a family oriented lifestyle of learning, narration is the art of talking - abundant conversation, open discussion, good spirited debate. Questions are asked, answers found, opinions shared, stories are told, details given, funny moments relayed, perspectives pondered and widened. Informal conversation is the key - hearing it, participating in it, reading it and eventually writing it down."

Blossom at North Laurel Home & School- "Often times when narrating, they start with one point {usually around the beginning of what they read but not always} but before they are done, they’ve made the connections in their minds again and cover more of what they’ve read. There are quite a few times when a narration starts with, “that was a difficult passage to narrate on” because..."

Nature Study

Amy at Crossing the Brandywine- "So, it appears nature study is more than drawing pictures of flowers in a nature journal. I realize that the Handbook of Nature Study is an older resource, but it provides a good jumping off point. Plus, the lessons which are done with the children are mostly experiments (or models) and questions to help their observations and to follow those observations to a logical conclusion."

Amy at Fisher Academy- "When just beginning one should spend lots of time (months?!) simply getting outside, with the priority of opening eyes and hearts to nature. After some time (err on the side of too much rather than too little), you and your kids will begin to recognize some birds and plants and whatever other by sight. Next, you'll probably notice those same things in other areas (roadside, friends' houses, etc), and THEN is the time you might look for the names of those new acquaintances in a book or by asking Someone Who Knows."

Geography

Celeste at Joyous Lessons- "These rich connections are partly due to the breadth of our studies this year, partly due to our heightened awareness, partly due to our broad approach to geography, and partly just one of the joys of this style of liberal arts education. Thank you, Miss Mason, for living books, the Science of Relations, and "learners awake"!"

Curriculum

Brandy at Afterthoughts- "I want to spend my time becoming a better CM teacher. In the PNEU world, teachers were not curriculum designers, and that was okay. Division of labor is a good thing. Your time might be better spent honing your knowledge of local flora and fauna, making entries in your commonplace book, and all the other disciplines Miss Mason expected from her teachers."

Other CM related submissions

Brandy at Afterthoughts- Free audio download of Brandy's 2013 Bakersfield Home Education Conference talk. 

Barb at Harmony Fine Arts at Home- "Good habits are hard to break so if we teach our children from the start to do their best job at everything they put their hands to, they will be able to achieve so much in life. We must teach them that good habits and perseverance are what make us successful, especially in God’s eyes. Col 3:23"

Anne at Archipelago {AO Advisory's official blog!}- "You might say that some contemporary approaches to education are about picking the chocolate chips out of cookies, examining them, and then trying to put them back in again; CM is more of a whole-cookie approach. It is definitely different from the "industrial model," the "brick in the wall" or piling-up-information model of education. It emphasizes respect for the individual, process over product, context over unconnected facts. It is a way of learning that is both innovative, cutting edge, stretching to the future, and also very much part of the classical tradition, reaching back towards the past."

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Thank you for visiting to read the latest Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival. Don't forget to submit a post to the next Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival, April 22nd. Submit posts anytime to charlottemasonblogs (at) gmail (dot) com
See the schedule at this link. 

5 Reasons I Love a CM Education

I wrote this post on 09/12/13; I'm reviving it as a submission to the Carnival of Homeschooling

*This post contains Amazon affiliate links. See Disclosure/Policies.*

How do I love thee? Let me count the ways. My favorite poem begins that way. Today I am going to count the ways that I love homeschooling but more specifically the ways I love a Charlotte Mason education. In absolutely no particular order other than what came to me as I sat to write this.

1. Science of relations. This took me a while to understand when I first heard the term. And it is even possible that I don’t have it down quite yet.

"Education is the Science of Relations"; that is, that a child has natural relations with a vast number of things and thoughts: so we train him upon physical exercises, nature lore, handicrafts, science and art, and upon many living books, for we know that our business is not to teach him all about anything, but to help him to make valid as many as may be of--

         "Those first-born affinities
       "That fit our new existence to existing things."

-Charlotte Mason, Volume 6, page 154, (Principle #12) 

“Our deadly error is to suppose that we are his showman to the universe; and, not only so, but that there is no community at all between child and universe unless such as we choose to set up.”

-CM, Volume 3, page 188

At first I thought this meant that simply they would realize that one book mentioned a person that we’d read about in another book. And in a way this is true; they do and will recognize names and events from one book to another, especially with the books that have been chosen. But it means more than that. They will realize and recognize how these things, –the events, the attitudes, the personalities, the successes and failures- all can be associated with our own lives. Not just our own lives but the world around us. At least that is what I take ‘science of relations’ to mean.

It took me awhile to understand that I am a companion on this educational journey. Teacher, to a point. Facilitator could be a better word. I offer the best that I find, and indeed, shelter from what I consider harmful. But it is up to them to grasp that it is all connected. We joke, half-way, that I raised them wrong; I always gave them the answer when they asked “why”. It’s taken us a couple of years to look for the relationship rather than to just wait for the answer to be given.

2. Freedom. I think that homeschooling offers a lot of freedom. We can choose what we use for our curriculum, what method we use, when we do school, how often we study a subject, and we can do it all in our pjs if we want. We don’t do that last one, by the way. Well, not that often anyway. But a huge ‘freedom’ I find in Charlotte Mason’s education philosophy is the freedom to have God at the center of it all.

“Of the three sorts of knowledge proper to a child, the knowledge of God, of man, and of the universe,––the knowledge of God ranks first in importance, is indispensable, and most happy-making.”

-Charlotte Mason, Volume 6, page 158

Many think that homeschooling because of religious beliefs is ridiculous. And to that I say, I don’t homeschool because of my religious beliefs (but will add if one feels that it is ridiculous to homeschool for that reason, that means their ‘religion’ doesn’t mean much to them). I relish the fact that we can incorporate our beliefs into our school. Charlotte Mason did not have the same ideas that our household holds (she didn’t argue with evolution) but spoke of the importance of God in the lives of children, and their parents.

Religion –a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.

-dictionary.com 

“We allow no separation to grow up between the intellectual and 'spiritual' life of children, but teach them that the Divine Spirit has constant access to their spirits, and is their Continual Helper in all the interests, duties and joys of life.”

-Charlotte Mason, Principle #20

Public school or another educational method wouldn’t prevent me from instilling ‘religion’ into my children but having a mentor that puts such importance on it is a wonderful thing.

3. Living books. Not just ‘books’ but ‘living’ books. The difference is amazing. A textbook relays facts and information. Learning can most certainly happen with a textbook. It just isn’t as fun, it doesn’t connect with the reader, and the information may only live in the mind long enough to take a test or finish the task for which the text was assigned. We’ve used Ambleside Online since 2009/2010, Years 5-10 (Y7Lite-10 with my dd; Y5-Y8 with my ds).

Some of our favorite living books that we have used thus far:
English Literature for Boys and Girls by H. E. Marshall
Watership Down* by Richard Adams
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Mere Christianity* by C. S. Lewis
This Country of Ours by H. E. Marshall
Tanglewood Tales by Nathanial Hawthorne
Washington: The Indispensible Man* by James Thomas Flexner

And although neither would agree without some hesitation, The Birth of Britain* by Winston Churchill has been a great book. There are so many more that we’ve used and read through that have been, if not wonderful and joyous, at least enjoyable. The same cannot be said of most of the other methods and curriculums we’ve tried.

*Amazon affiliate links.

4. Challenging yet not crushing. A CM education is challenging. It isn’t easy and I don’t think it is right for everyone. Personally, I do believe that every one can follow and benefit from a CM education, but I am realistic enough to know that there are so many other methods that can be appealing to families, for a variety of reasons. In many public schools, the norm is –or used to be when I was going through it as well as my kids –to give the students text books, quizzes that are full of multiple choice and to feed the information to the students. Many excel in this atmosphere. I know I did; for majority of school, I was almost a straight-A student. It wasn’t until some of my classes in college required me to think outside the text book that I started to realize that spoon-feeding and multiple choice tests weren’t the only way to get an ‘education’. I’m not saying I received a poor education –wait, yes, that is exactly what I’m saying. I didn’t want my kids to have to go down that same boring path. I loved to learn, but hated how I was being taught. My memory was great; my comprehension, and subsequently application, not so great. I’m still working on that.

“…[W]e, believing that the normal child has powers of mind which fit him to deal with all knowledge proper to him, give him a full and generous curriculum; taking care only that all knowledge offered him is vital, that is, that facts are not presented without their informing ideas.”

-Charlotte Mason, Principle #11 (which is followed by “Education is the science of relations”, #1 of my reasons above)

CM advocates gauging how much the student knows through narration. That isn’t the only way, but it is a very integral part. If you cannot tell what you know, in an intelligible, organized, detailed manner, how well did you first, take in the information, and second, process that information? There is the saying that people who can, do; those who can’t, teach. But truly, if you can’t do it, how can you adequately teach it? I think that you can do it without being able to teach it but …how much better to be able to do both.

“As knowledge is not assimilated until it is reproduced, children should 'tell back' after a single reading or hearing: or should write on some part of what they have read.”

-Charlotte Mason, Principle #14

A CM education stretches the mind to focus more on connections, I believe. It goes along with “science of relations”, perhaps. When we read through the books that we do, the “living books”, we gain a connection with all that we are reading about; the atmosphere, the people, the emotions, the events, the results, etc. This is the ‘not crushing’ part. This connection is like a friend that we do not forget. It challenges us to reach farther than just the next mark on our test, the highest grade in the class; it challenges us to reach farther than we had before and beyond a grade. At first the kids, and I’ll admit I did too, had such a difficult time with the choices that came along with the CM method. The kids sometimes preferred fill-in-the-blank and multiple choice assignments! Because they were easy. I’m not giving them easy, but I am giving them tools that they can use to grow, without crushing them.

5. Individual responsibility for learning.  I actually got this from my daughter. She appreciates the ‘self-teaching’ aspect; being able to take any article, book or other resource, whether written, visual or an experience, and find the pertinent bits as opposed to having the ‘answers’ supplied. My kids, being older, do a lot of their work independently. I set forth the books they will read and the resources they can use. By this time they have learned how to read what they know they need to and they know how to study for information. I see it as them taking a responsibility for their own learning.

“Children must learn the difference between "I want" and "I will." They must learn to distract their thoughts when tempted to do what they may want but know is not right, and think of something else, or do something else, interesting enough to occupy their mind. After a short diversion, their mind will be refreshed and able to will with renewed strength.” 

“Children must learn not to lean too heavily on their own reasoning. Reasoning is good for logically demonstrating mathematical truth, but unreliable when judging ideas because our reasoning will justify all kinds of erroneous ideas if we really want to believe them.”

The above quotes are L. N. Laurio’s modern English paraphrases for Charlotte Mason’s Principle #17 & 18. Although it can apply to a multitude of circumstances, I’ve put it here because I think it goes well with having responsibility for one’s actions. Learning is definitely an ‘action’.

Those are my top 5 reasons for loving a CM method for educating. It’s not only for my kiddos and not only for ‘school’. It is for me as well and for life.

 

CM Blog Carnival- April 2, 2013- Education is a Discipline

What a great Carnival this is! There are many submissions this go-round. This edition’s optional topic is Education is a Discipline, but as always, any CM submission is welcome.

I apologize that I’ve not given much of a teaser for each of these but I’ve not even had time to read through them all. How about taking the trip with me?

Carol- The Tempest in 10 Weeks

Megan- Nourishing a Life: Parents as Inspirers

Ann- Outdoor Hour Nature Challenge: Squirrels & John James Audubon Art/Artist Study

Mama Squirrel- You know why Charlotte Mason preferred North's Plutarch? (or, don't eat your fingers) (Updated) she says: “A two-in-one post about Plutarch studies: I started out comparing a sentence from three Plutarch translations, and ended up solving a CM Plutarch-version mystery.”

Nebby- Charlotte Mason and the Puritans on Education

Nancy- A Child’s Reading List by Jerram Barrs

Barb- Watercolor Pencil 101 Tutorial Video and Printable

Simply Charlotte Mason- The First Key to Good Habits: Repetition

Living Books Library- Ten Books for Parents Who Want to Encourage the Habit of Reading

Tammy- Gleaning Habits from Picture Study

Megan- Picture Study, Holocaust Week, and other Remembrances

Lanaya- Teaching Reading: I Happened Upon Some Tricks

Catherine- Giving Up Your Dreams for a Season, Part 1 (link to the Part 2 is found in this post)

Silvia- Life and Death in Shanghai

Celeste- More on Memorization- Using Evernote)

Amy- Thoughts on Education is a Discipline & Thoughts on Atmosphere

Lynn- Charlotte Mason Says: Handiwork (Rainbow Yarn Jars)

Laura- Education is a Discipline

Thank you to all who submitted posts for this edition of the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival. Thank you for joining us this time around. Find the CM Blog Carnival schedule here. Next edition will be April 16, 2013, at Harmony Arts. The optional theme will be Education is a Life (Ch6).

October 2, 2012–Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival

Did you know…that I just love hosting the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival? Yep, I do. I love it most because I get to read the great submissions and often before very many others have. I guess I’m greedy like that.

The optional theme for this round is:

Principles #14 & 15 - (14) Children should 'tell back' after a single reading or hearing: or should write on some part of what they have read. (15) A single reading is insisted on, because children have naturally great power of attention; but this force is dissipated by the re-reading of passages, and also, by questioning, summarising.

I do apologize for the later-in-the-day posting of the submissions; you’ve been waiting anxiously, I am sure! I’ve categorized the entries as I felt they should be but if you disagree or think a different category would be better, let me know! And so without further ado, and in no particular order, here is the latest Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival!

(Application of Charlotte Mason method) Catherine, at Grace to Abide, shares their first day of school- and a glimpse of the first day for Year 1, 7-year-olds in Russian schools.

(Narrations) Mama Squirrel, at Dewey’s Treehouse, shows us a written narration over Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity, by Robert Cwiklik. The book is a Year 6 science biography in Ambleside Online’s curriculum. (Principle #14 & 15)

(Charlotte Mason Reflection & Nature Study) Carol, at Journey & Destination, has two posts that are being linked this time: Reading for Mother Culture shares the insights she has had while reading Charlotte Mason’s works, as well as other books. Her other post features nature study in Australia with photographs and examples from their family’s journals. 

(Application of Charlotte Mason method) Melissa, at Educating Mother, reminds us what Charlotte Mason has to say about staying healthy, and how they try to do their duty (there’s also a link to healthy peanut butter fudge!).

(Art & Nature Study) Barb, at Harmony Art Mom, shares a book resource for drawing with children and how she creates a positive atmosphere for  a group of mixed age artists. At Handbook of Nature Study, she discusses the benefits of digital photography in nature study.

(Exams & Nature Study/Application of Charlotte Mason method) From Joyous Lessons, Celeste shows us exams from their “AO-influenced Year 1, Term 1 studies”, while Angela discusses her thoughts on Charlotte Mason’s words about being out of doors- and there’s a muffin recipe! 

(Narrations) Leah’s post, at The Making of a Mom, shares with us a glimpse of Ambleside Online Year 1 narrations in their home. (Principle #14 & 15)

(Narrations) Amy, at Fisher Academy International, gives some tips and hints on how to get effective narrations. The first of three parts. (Principle #14 & 15)

(Narrations) Mine (Blossom) right here, talks about the benefits of narration, as well as our initial struggle. (Principle #14 & 15)

(Charlotte Mason reflection) Nebby, at Letters from Nebby, talks about not letting reason become a master, rather it should be our servant.

(Math) Sarah, at All That’s Goood, gives readers much to think on about living math, including how Charlotte Mason used math to build mental and moral habits.

(Application of Charlotte Mason method) Laurke, at Windy Hill Home School, lets us see how a couple of weeks in Year 2 looks at their house.

(Nature Study) Nancy, at Sage Parnassus, shares a book treasure pertinent to nature study and journaling, and with YouTube video links to correspond.

Next time, October 16, we head over to CM in California. The topic for discussion will be Principles #16 & 17. But don’t feel that you have submit a post that only talks about that in particular; feel free to submit any CM related post you would like. The more the merrier!

Find out more about the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival here.

Tell Me What You Know -CM Principle #14 & 15

14. As knowledge is not assimilated until it is reproduced, children should 'tell back' after a single reading or hearing: or should write on some part of what they have read.

15. A single reading is insisted on, because children have naturally great power of attention; but this force is dissipated by the re-reading of passages, and also, by questioning, summarising. and the like.


Acting upon these and some other points in the behaviour of mind, we find that the educability of children is enormously greater than has hitherto been supposed, and is but little dependent on such circumstances as heredity and environment.


Nor is the accuracy of this statement limited to clever children or to children of the educated classes: thousands of children in Elementary Schools respond freely to this method, which is based on the behaviour of mind.~ Charlotte Mason, Principle #14 & 15

When we first began this Charlotte Mason method of learning journey in our homeschool, the act of ‘telling back’ almost felt too easy. We started with AO’s Y5 and Y7Lite; Y5 might even have been considered ‘lite’ as well the way we did it.

But when I actually tried to get Fox to tell me what he’d read, what he remembered from his readings, it was often not much. I discovered that he was zooming through the readings, missing key points and passages. Once we got that remedied {oh, it took some time! and tough love lol} what was difficult for him was to be able to pay attention for longer passages, then narrate.  Lee, on the other hand, was just ‘confused’ by quite a few of the readings so the readings were kept very short. {I’ll admit that I even dropped some books and added in textbooks. That set us back a bit…}

When the kids would ask –again- why they had to narrate what was read {sometimes I’d read out loud, as I still do} when I already knew what was written, I would say, “I want to know what you know.”

As time has gone on and the level of difficulty has increased for both Fox and Lee, I’ve been pleasantly rewarded, not surprised mind you –okay, fine at first I was –, by their increased attention. Also the ability to hold the information longer. Another thing that I like about narration is that the information they recall from the passages isn’t always the same as what sticks in my mind.

What if I were making up questions –true/false, multiple choice –about, say, Julius Caesar, and I recalled vividly when he quickly built a bridge so his army could pursue his foe, but the kids focused more on how he treated his soldiers? Would it be fair to say that they knew nothing about Julius Caesar if they could not answer questions that focused only on what I recalled? No, that would be an incorrect assumption.

Often times when narrating, they start with one point {usually around the beginning of what they read but not always} but before they are done, they’ve made the connections in their minds again and cover more of what they’ve read. There are quite a few times when a narration starts with, “that was a difficult passage to narrate on” because it was a) long, b) had many different factors in one passage, such as many different individuals or events {that doesn’t happen terribly often, so far}, or c) they were not paying attention. I didn’t list those in the order of occurrence. Generally it is the last that is the problem.

Concerning information that I want them to recall, to focus on in the reading, that they might not on their own, I specifically tell them to be paying attention to such-and-such. I’m not terribly big on dates and names but the reasons and circumstances behind such things I am. If a war took place, why did it happen? Who was involved is good to know as well as when but if they only have a general idea of the circumstances but can tell me the more significant details, then I call it a good. What good is it to know that a war broke out in the United States between the North and the South in 1861 but not know why it happened? That is pointless memorization.

That’s not what telling back is.

I included all of Principle #15 but sometimes I’ve seen it shown as only the first part:

A single reading is insisted on, because children have naturally great power of attention; but this force is dissipated by the re-reading of passages, and also, by questioning, summarising, and the like.

I’ve included the rest of it here, as I’m sure you’ll find in other’s review of it as well, not just mine, because it points out that no matter who the child is, they can learn this skill.

Acting upon these and some other points in the behaviour of mind, we find that the educability of children is enormously greater than has hitherto been supposed, and is but little dependent on such circumstances as heredity and environment.



Nor is the accuracy of this statement limited to clever children or to children of the educated classes: thousands of children in Elementary Schools respond freely to this method, which is based on the behaviour of mind.

It’s been paraphrased nicely:

A child educated this way learns more than children using other methods, and this is true for all children regardless of their IQ or background.

What more is there for me to say? One more thing:

Experiences may vary but the results are the same. 

If you are interested in learning more about Charlotte Mason’s methods for teaching, here is a great place to start.

Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival…4/7/12

I’m so excited to be hostessing the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival this time! Thank you for stopping by my blog to spend some time digging deeper into Charlotte Mason. The theme this edition is “Foreign Language” but of course, all CM posts are welcome. Shall we get started? Indeed!

Foreign Language:

Lanaya from Delightful Education shares how their family has gone about learning Latin and Spanish. She also includes some resources that you may find useful. “The ideal way of learning a foreign language would be to have a native speaker live with us (or maybe just come to our home several hours a week) or to live in the culture of the language we are learning. After all, our kids seem to be learning English pretty well living in America. –Lanaya”

Nadene from Practical Pages rightly points out that we need motivation to learn a second language. Her family is learning Afrikaans. She gives some good tips for teaching a foreign language and recaps Charlotte Mason’s approach. “Ultimately we all need this motivation to learn a new language – to use it for effective communication. –Nadene”

Christine from Zing☼Day describes how she has been continuing her family’s exposure to the Portuguese language. It may be tough but stick with it! She also gives some resources for using with any foreign language. “Rather than teaching my children a foreign language, I'm hoping for a closer connection. I'm hoping to teach them a second language. –Christine”

Amy from Fisher Academy International shares how for her and her family living in a location where Spanish is spoken, still requires work and study to be able to be fluent in this second language. She shares some goals, resources and words from Charlotte Mason. “What I needed was a completely customizable curriculum, that could be used for multi-level and multi-age groups!  That is a tall order, but it's filled by none other than Charlotte Mason ala Gouin! Oh yeah! –Amy”

Nature Study:

Barb from Handbook of Nature Study shows us how to organize a nature notebook with notebooking pages. This would work well with those who follow the Outdoor Hour Challenges. “If you start this system with your child's notebook, they can keep adding to it from year to year with ease. –Barb”

Karen from Red Letter Living shares photos of her boys enjoying nature and words from Charlotte Mason. Beautiful post. “With a broad smile beaming from a dirt-smeared face, my youngest son excitedly tugs my hand and points to the ground. He has found a big black ant. –Karen”

Art Study:

Tiger’s Mum from The Tiger Chronicle takes us through their study of Japanese master, Hokusai. This post shows how Tiger and his mum become immersed in art study. “As with many great artists, Hokusai was a versatile artist in that he was very skilful in many different forms of art, the most significant ones being ukiyo-e and woodblock prints. –Tiger’s Mum”

Sarah from All That’s Goood shares her “Artist Study Helper” covering Matisse. Included are art lessons, notebooking pages, Montessori cards, and a biography. “There is so much in this little e-book you could spend a whole year on it, or you can just choose one or two activities you enjoy and do those. Whatever you do your children will love looking at this colorful artist. –Sarah”

Other areas of interest within CM living and learning:

Jimmie from Jimmie’s Collage asks the important (CM) questions when considering a curriculum. “Curriculum decisions can be downright stressful. For Charlotte Mason homeschoolers, though, there are guiding principles that aid us as we evaluate curriculum. –Jimmie”

Allison from Adding to the Beauty talks about the connection she’s seen between Legos and handwriting for her boys. She kindly gives some resources as well as poem suggestions for handwriting practice. “I will continue to encourage neatness in handwriting, try not to cringe at his "effort", and keep a hopeful lookout for five-tiered Lego battle cruisers produced by his apt and willing hands. –Allison”

Nancy from Sage Parnassus shares with readers how visitors are welcome to take part in all the activities when they come to ‘observe’. It’s definitely a place I would love to visit! “They get to sit with us, look at art with us, sing with us, narrate with us, paint with us, listen with us, eat with us, observe with us, be still with us... –Nancy”

Please visit the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival next time! Feel free to submit your post for the upcoming carnival also.

Upcoming carnival will be 5/1:
Theme: Overview of CM's 20 Principles
Additional Reading (optional):CM Series: vol 6 pg xxix & in chart comparison format with modern English
PR Article: P.N.E.U. Principles As Illustrated by Teaching
Schedule of upcoming carnivals found here: http://fisheracademy.blogspot.com/p/cm-carnival-schedule.html
Submit posts to upcoming carnivals here: charlottemasonblogs (at) gmail (dot) com

Experience Through Another’s Words

Why use living books? Charlotte Mason understood the need for enjoying learning. When we enjoy something we are more apt to continue doing whatever it is. Learning may not always be fun but there’s really no reason it should be dreadful (or dreaded!). Here is an excerpt from Volume 3, School Education, pages 164-167:

Frederika Bremer, in her novel of The Neighbours (published 1837):

"I was then sixteen, and, fortunately for my restless character, my right shoulder began to project at the time. Gymnastics were then in fashion as remedies against all manner of defects, and my parents determined to let me try gymnastics. Arrayed in trimmed pantaloons, a Bonjour coat of green cloth and a little morning cap with pink ribbon, I made my appearance one day in an assemblage of from thirty to forty figures dressed almost the same as myself, who were merrily swarming about a large saloon, over ropes, ladders, and poles. It was a strange and novel scene. I kept myself in the background the first day, and learned from my governess the 'bending of the back' and the 'exercises of the arms and legs.' The second day I began to be intimate with some of the girls, the third I vied with them on ropes and ladders, and ere the close of the second week I was the leader of the second class, and began to encourage them to all manner of tricks.

"At that time I was studying Greek history; their heroes and their heroic deeds filled my imagination even in the gymnastic school. I proposed to my band to assume masculine and antique names and, in this place, to answer to no other than such as Agamemnon, Epaminondas, etc. For myself I chose the name of Orestes, and called my best friend in the class, Pylades. There was a tall thin girl, with a Finlandish accent, whom I greatly disliked, chiefly on account of the disrespect for me and my ideas which she manifested without reserve; . . . . from this arose fresh cause for quarrels.

"Although in love with the Greek history, I was no less taken with the Swedish. Charles XII. was my idol, and I often entertained my friends in my class with narration of his deeds till my own soul was on fire with the most glowing enthusiasm. Like a shower of cold water, Darius (the tall girl, whose name was Britsa) one day came into the midst of us, and opposed me with the assertion that the Czar Peter I. was a much greater man than Charles XII. I accepted the challenge with blind zeal and suppressed rage. My opponent brought forward a number of facts with coolness and skill, in support of her opinion, and when I, confuting all her positions, thought to exalt my victorious hero to the clouds, she was perpetually throwing Bender and Pultawa in my way. O Pultawa! Pultawa! many tears have fallen over thy bloody battlefield, but none more bitter than those which I shed in secret when I, like Charles himself, suffered a defeat there. Fuel was added to the flame until––'I challenge you, I demand satisfaction,' cried I to Darius, who only laughed and said, 'Bravo, bravo!' . . . I exclaimed, 'You have insulted me shamefully, and I request that you ask my pardon in the presence of the whole class, and acknowledge that Charles XII. was a greater man than Czar Peter, or else you shall fight with me, if you have any honour in your breast and are not a coward.' Britsa Kaijsa blushed, but said with detestable coolness: 'Ask pardon indeed? I should never dream of such a thing. Fight? O, yes, I have no objection! but where and with what? With pins, think you, or'––'With the sword if you are not afraid, and on this very spot. We can meet here half an hour before the rest; arms I shall bring with me; Pylades is my second and you shall appoint your own!' . . . . Next morning when I had entered the spacious saloon, I found my enemy already there with her second. Darius and I saluted each other proudly and distantly. I gave her the first choice of the swords. She took one and flourished it about quite dexterously, as if she had been accustomed to the use of it. I saw myself (in imagination) already stabbed to the heart. . . 'Czar Peter was a great man,' cried Darius. 'Down with him! long life to Charles XII!' I cried, bursting into a furious rage. I placed myself in an attitude of defence. Darius did the same. . . . . Our swords clashed one against the other, and in the next moment I was disarmed and thrown on the ground. Darius stood over me and I believed my last hour had arrived. How astonished was I, however, when my enemy threw her sword away from her, took me by the hand and lifted me up, whilst she cheerfully cried: 'Well, now you have satisfaction; let us be good friends again; you are a brave little body!' At this moment a tremendous noise was heard at the door and in rushed the fencing master and three teachers. My senses now forsook me."

Further on in the chapter pertaining to School-Books and How They Make for Education, Mason asks first, what was it that made these girls so excited? Books is all we know- Frederika said, “At that time I was studying Greek history…” (“In the first place we may conclude it was books,” Mason postulates.) Based on the time of the author’s writing The Neighbours, Mason understood that reading was the form of ‘instruction’ for Frederika. But thinking on many books that are used in schools at Mason’s time and even now, I can understand how she would come to the conclusion that “those Swedish girls must have used books of another sort; and it is to our interest to find out of what sort.”

I’ve been reading quite a bit lately. Partly because I do a lot of book reviews. Books that are just so-so and books that are challenging. Some of the books are hard to put down and some I have to force myself to read. Some, though, I read because I want to find a good one for my kids to learn from.

Way back in 2009, I started researching for homeschooling materials. What I wanted then was to have it all in one easy to use ‘package’ that I could pretty much give my kids the books and let them go. Let them do what the instructions told them to do; fill in all those blanks with the correct answers; ace those tests to show they had learned a lot. What I discovered is that I truly did not want that kind of education for my kids.

This post isn’t about testing or even about using worksheets and fill-in-the-blank assessments. No. It’s about living books. If a child, a student, is given a living book I think that it is almost guaranteed they will ‘ace’ whatever ‘assessment’ is given over the reading.

So what is a living book? Let’s start there.

I wrote a post over two years ago trying to explain what a living book was. My definition just directed to others’ definitions. Now, two years and some reading later, I think I can attempt a definition in my own words.

A living book will grab the attention of the reader. But not only that, the book will be written in an engaging way by an author who is passionate about what they are writing about. It is very good when the book is conversational but that is not necessary to be a living book. And quite often, but not always, living books are old.

If you visit Ambleside Online, Simply Charlotte Mason, Living Books Curriculum, or a multitude of other websites that advocate the Charlotte Mason method of learning, you can find living book examples.

We have a few on our bookshelves *wink* and I’ll share a couple with you. Some of our living books…

The History of English Literature for Boys and Girls by H. E. Marshall
The Story Book of Science by Jean Henri Fabre
How the Heather Looks by Joan Bodger
The Story of the Greeks by H. A. Guerber

Why choose “living books”? Here is another bit from Mason’s Volume 3:

“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. By spiritual I mean that which is not corporeal; and which, for convenience sake, we call by various names––the life of thought, the life of feeling, the life of the soul.”

Reading up on the teaching of foreign language (advocating Latin and Greek) from the Parents’ Review Articles, I starred the passage by R. L. Leighton:

“Nothing so quickly or strongly stimulates us to perceive and understand the conditions under which we live as the contemplation of other men living under conditions that strikingly contrast with our own. Personal experience of these differences is unattainable, for few can afford foreign travel, and those who can travel rarely get far below the surface level of hotels and shops, which are much the same all over the civilized world.”

Although it is pertaining to foreign language, wouldn’t it be applicable to other subjects as well? Some places we cannot get to for one reason or another. We cannot go back into time and relive a historic event. But if we have a book that is well written to take us to those places or to show us the event, through lively words and descriptions, we can indeed experience it. And we will remember it.

There are living books for just about every subject. We just have to find them. And that is where the fun starts for us as parents and teachers. After that, we get to enjoy them with our children while they learn from them.

This post was written in association with this week’s Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival but I wrote it late so it isn’t featured in the post at Jimmie’s Collage. I encourage you to head over there and read the submissions. Perhaps next time I will get my act together –on time.

On Holiday- the Charlotte Mason Way {maybe}

“On holiday” – does that conjure thoughts of Thanksgiving and Christmas? It does for me but ‘holiday’ doesn’t just mean the days of the year that are marked on the calendar as a day when the post office is closed Holiday* can also mean {chiefly British} a period of cessation from work or one of recreation; vacation (dictionary.com).

According to that definition, the next week for us is a ‘holiday’. We will be ‘ceasing’ with our studies, or taking a vacation, and hopefully having some recreation. That the week is also the week of Thanksgiving was completely coincidental- and quite fortuitous.

The next Charlotte Mason blog carnival is pertaining to ‘holiday’ activities. Thankfully the Parents’ Review has some insightful articles that discuss how Charlotte Mason envisioned children (and families) spending their holidays. She did not think that the parents should cater to the children and make sure they had constant fun and entertainment. {Thank goodness! I don’t do that so well!} She also did not suggest that the children simply exhaust themselves with ‘play’ and then pass out afterward. Rather {what I gather} is that Miss Mason believed that giving of oneself and our time to others should be at the top of the list on holiday. 

I would love to be able to take my children to the mission, food pantry, or homeless shelter to devote our time to giving some happiness to another person. I have not taken that step yet because of various financial and personal reasons but it is definitely something that I hope to make a part of our lives. This is something that is not simply forgotten. It is a time that one takes from themselves and give to others.

“Would it not then be an excellent thing to assume, as a matter or course, that a certain proportion of each holiday should be set aside for the benefit of other people, in working for missions, for the poor, or for the children's hospitals; the object is not of much moment, provided the aim be a little self-denial for the sake of others. Perhaps a series of entertainments could be organised for the amusement of the village children; or a little girl who enjoys her handicrafts classes at school, might like to show a friend less fortunately situated than herself, how she makes her baskets (Suggestions for Holiday Amusements, E. A. Parish. Volume 14, 1903, pgs. 366-373).”

If we cannot do that what would be another way to give of ourselves to others? It is suggested, in the article by E. A. Parish, that the family be treated to read alouds. I won’t argue with the reasoning behind it but unfortunately our family is slowly getting back into the read alouds {we used to do them often when the kids were younger} and I think it might be awkward.

We take it for granted that reading aloud shall form one of the delights of all holidays, summer and winter, and a pastime in which every member of the family circle takes part, from the oldest to the youngest who is able to read at all.

The importance of good reading cannot be too highly estimated, and nothing helps so much to produce it as this delightful custom of family reading, where it is felt that the pleasure of the circle depends on the power of the reader to give, pleasantly and naturally, what he is himself gaining from the book (Suggestions for Holiday Amusements, E. A. Parish. Volume 14, 1903, pgs. 366-373).

What does a family that is not used to spending holiday in a way that is unselfish do? Generally, it seems that our family holidays {and here I mean the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays as well as the time we do not have work or school} are spent doing what each person wants to do. How about start small- make something for  someone else. Make it with the knowledge that what you are making will be given away to someone else, in the hopes of bringing them happiness. How about starting there.

That’s where we are starting. It is small and it may not have a huge impact but it is my hope that we all will gain from it.

I was reading at Simply Charlotte Mason about handicrafts {because that is an area that I would really like to have the kids –and myself- do more} and came across a link for Susan Gaylord’s site. While there I found the youtube tutorial for making a “stick and elastic book”. With Christmas coming up fairly quickly, gift giving is of course on all of our minds {at least one of the individuals in my family is more concerned with the getting than the giving at this point- there’s still time for a change!}. Making things for others, homemade, will be a great way to spend our ‘holiday’, will teach us some more handicraft and will, I hope, bring happiness to those who will receive the gifts.

Since we are still “newbies” to the Charlotte Mason lifestyle, I look forward to reading what others have to say and share on how they spend their holidays.

 

*hol·i·day [hol-i-dey] noun

1. a day fixed by law or custom on which ordinary business is suspended in commemoration of some event or in honor of some person.

2. any day of exemption from work ( distinguished from working day).

3. a time or period of exemption from any requirement, duty, assessment, etc.: New businesses may be granted a one-year tax holiday.

4. a religious feast day; holy day, especially any of several usually commemorative holy days observed in Judaism.

5. Sometimes, holidays. Chiefly British . a period of cessation from work or one of recreation; vacation.

“It Doesn’t Make Sense!”

That is what I heard today while ds was to narrate Saints & Heroes Volume 1 (Becket).

He’s read this book off and on for the past 1 1/2 years (yes, it’s one of those subjects that we take longer to get through) and he’s not had an issue with it ‘not making sense’ before.

So what is the problem? Concentration.

We are moving soon (the movers will be here this Friday, the 9th) and so I let my son stay the night- for the last time- at a friends house even though it was a Sunday night. That is not something that is usually allowed. The public schools were out today due to Labor Day but we still had school.

When he is at his friends there is a lot of video gaming and tv watching. And staying up way later than he should. Coming home today, at about 12:00 pm, he seemed tired and very cranky. I knew he had stayed up late. I was okay with that because we are moving and it was a last time with his friend. We will move to a place where he knows no one. I suggested he nap and work on school later. No, no, he didn’t want to do that.

To make a longer story shorter, when he read some of S&H and began to narrate, he quickly gave that statement. I am not perfect (shock) and sometimes I get very annoyed when my kids do not try as hard as I know they can. Today, however, I approached it differently. If there was something that in my mind made sense that didn’t in his mind, I wanted to help so that he could understand. Or perhaps it was something different.

He is generally fidgety and has a difficult time staying with one thing at a time. Today he was almost upside down in his chair and he was having trouble concentrating.

Sometimes in the streets are to be seen wonderful and edifying sights. I do not know why it so happened, but the above subject immediately called up before me the figure of a man playing five or six musical instruments with different parts of his body. This active, but not altogether successful, man may perhaps teach us something about "concentration."

Suppose that one of us were to take his place, we should probably commence by blowing the cymbals and clashing flute, beating the fiddle, and drawing a bow across the surface of the drum. This would not do, and we should have to be removed by the police. Children know the difficulty of concentrating their wills upon two or more actions by some of the games they play, where hands and feet and head are required to perform movements not in accord with the usual rhythm of their lives. by George Radford. Parents’ Review, Volume 3, 1892/93, pgs. 588-593 (emphasis mine)

Often times I think I’ve made a real mess of habit training with my children but that doesn’t mean I should stop trying. Reading the Parents’ Review articles, I was struck by the importance of concentrating.

But as years go on interests arise which no senior is as hand to put aside, and many a dreamy lad goes through his tasks with his brain really fixed upon none of them. He can still learn in a manner the lessons given him to learn; he may still remain at the top of the class, but his memory is receiving it death-blow as a phenomenal one, and he sinks into an inaccurate scholar, a student without unerring detail, a dreamer spinning clouds from clouds. He has lacked either sufficient communicativeness, or a discerning confidential pedagogue and friend. The things of which his mind was full ought either to have been poured out or drawn out. If he could have had them brought into the right channel and developed, a poet might have been born, or an engineer or lawyer made. by George Radford. Parents’ Review, Volume 3, 1892/93, pgs. 588-593 (emphasis mine)

We’ve yet to find a book that has been recommended by Ambleside Online that the kids were truly not interested in- perhaps they were stubborn at the start but it gained their interest and came to be books they really enjoyed. I think it actually comes down to … me.

Training, in fact, cannot be begun too early, and woe to that parent who attempts to put it off. It is cruel kindness to the child. While the tender mind is open to all impressions, while there is as yet no questioning or thought of rebellion, or weariness of brain and body to interfere, begin to inculcate the habits of method, of patience, of diligence, and of perseverance. Believe me, not time is more valuable than these earliest years, even though as yet your little darling seems scarcely more than a pet and a plaything on which to lavish your caresses. Is it not a notable fact that most stepmothers and guardians who take charge of a child as old as six or seven, find the task somewhat difficult even with lovable and docile children, simply because there has been no mother's watchful care, and so these first precious years have been wasted? Bad habits, even at that early age, have taken deep root, and the work of training has to be begun from the beginning--with this difference, that there is sturdy childhood instead of pliant infancy to work upon. by Mrs. Thomas. Parents’ Review, Volume 3, 1892/93, pages 681-686 (emphasis mine)

Internet, computer, tv, video games, twaddle books (oh, yes, there are a few), electronics, cell phones, etc. all play a role in our family’s lives. Granted the allowances for each of these are smaller than the ‘average’ household (who spend an average of 55 hours a week using the electronic devices and I can’t imagine the statistics for ‘twaddle’ books is available), they still have a way of holding onto the minds and ‘day-dreaming’ of my kids. When they are to do school work, sometimes they are focused more on “When I get done, I can play on the computer for x amount of time…”

Roberts says, “keep one subject before the mind at a time, and to encourage energy and perseverance in studying and discussing the one point to which we have narrowed the inquiry.” Mrs. Thomas stresses that “…the mother or teacher must be prepared to bestow much time and energy on this object, and must leave nothing to chance.” (emphasis mine)

It cannot be left to the student to focus on these things. It is my *job* to direct my children. Since I started later on the habit training, I may have a difficult road ahead but it will be to their benefit in the long run that I keep at it. And as I teach them, I also learn.

It requires my time, my effort, my love.

I was kind and gentle with my ds today (I knew he was tired but since he chose not to nap…school had to go on) but firm that he focus on what was at hand. It went much smoother after that and he realized he understood what he read but simply wasn’t concentrating on it well.

Stuck… but Hopefully Not for Long.

My thoughts are quite disorganized today. I’ve been going back and forth between different thoughts all day.

I definitely need to concentrate! (which, wouldn’t you know, is the topic of one of the suggested readings from the Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival)

It is Saturday but it doesn’t really feel like it. (Not that Saturdays usually feel so different than other days) This morning was wonderful. The air was nice and cold. Yes, cold. I couldn’t see my breath but there was a moisture in the air that prevented it from being crisp which to me made it feel cold.

Autumn is coming….and thank goodness!

I talked to my hubby (who is in Ohio) and he said it is still hot and muggy there. Well, it will cool off soon enough. I hope I will be content with the cold this year It seemed last winter was so wet and bone chilling that I could barely stand it.

After hopping around the world wide web and seeing this blog post on lily pad with pastels, I’ve wanted to do some art. But not just any art- pastels. Which I’ve never used in my life (well, that I can recall- I’m guessing in elementary school they probably had us use it…maybe?). Tonight the sky and the lighting was beautiful at dusk. The grass on the lawns were a shade of green that you only see at dawn or dusk. The sky was orange, pink and blue- perfectly blended- with a sliver of moon, stark white, against the blue.

Of course that post above and the urge to be artistic makes me think of this post about ‘degrees of separation’ (or I think, ‘scent of life’). Being outdoors is important. The beauty of nature leads to so much more in ones life! (from linked site: “research in Australia has linked a spike in nearsightedness to young people spending less time outdoors, where their eyes must focus at longer distances.” Interesting.) But honestly, it is something mostly I’ve read about. Being outdoors so much and enjoying it so much. I love to be outside but we hardly do it. I could use the excuse that I live in the “city” and there are limited opportunities to enjoy nature. But that is just an excuse.

We can see from other CMers experiences of life in the city. Take a look at one of the last photos on that post…beautiful. Of course, that post makes me think that I am not including another important aspect in our homeschool- art. We do draw and we do enjoy looking at others artwork but we treat is as an expendable.

Sigh, our family is technology driven, nature ignorant. We can download, upload, html, bbcode, etc. But we cannot identify birds that frequent our backyard or what thrives in the river that is about a mile from our house. We are rarely in our backyard which has a plum tree and an apple tree. We used to have a small garden but the grasshoppers (which we avoid) ate pretty much everything last year and we didn’t try again (we also knew that we were going to move).

The kids do play outside. I don’t want to give the impression that we sit (rather that they) inside on a couch or chair in front of a computer, tv or some other electronic device and do no physical activities outside. They do. But generally it is play that revolves around what they see on tv or their games. Sometimes it is in reference to the books they read.

I have a long way to go until I can say that we really implement CM methods in our home. But it is what I want to be able to say. We have gotten other parts of it into our days…but I think we are missing a huge important part by not making opportunities to enjoy nature and art.

I know that when we move we will be outdoors much more than we have been previously and I am looking forward to it. I am also impatient.

Not long ago I discovered that we have a pack of pastels. That is what started me thinking about all of this in the first place. All of the blog posts in the blogosphere that aligned with my thoughts were simply coincidental. Or were they …?

The Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival 3/22/11

Hosted by Simply Charlotte Mason

Although I did not contribute to this edition of The Charlotte Mason Blog Carnival I would like to direct my readers to it. This edition can be found at Simply Charlotte Mason blog. There are great number of submissions this time on the theme of Education is a Discipline and many more that are relevant. 

I'm off to read it myself :)

Enjoy!