Classical ConversationsWe have been privileged to be a part of the Classical Conversations community of homeschoolers for four years. In my family, we believe in a classical model of education that includes three stages:
Stage 1: The Grammar Stage where student learn and memorize terms and facts. These provide “pegs” that the students expand upon as they become older. Stage 2: The Dialectic Stage where students are expanding on the knowledge they have gained in the grammar stage and asking questions and engaging in a dialogue and arguments. Stage 3: The Rhetoric Stage allows students to solve problems and communicate well with a strong foundation to support them. organized argument. |
Charlotte MasonWe are a family of readers who hate being told what to do and when to do it. I am also distractingly introspective. This led to the inevitable quiz of, “What kind of homeschooler are you?” Unsurprisingly, we came up as Charlotte Mason types.
Why I like Charlotte Mason’s Approach: METHOD NOT CURRICULUM. Pretty simple, really. I did not decide to homeschool my children to only replicate a “school” setting within my home. I had a child, now eight, who demanded “why?” for every assignment he was given in preschool. “Why do I need to line up? Why do you want me to color my letters? Why do I have to stop building my fortress to practice my numbers?” Now, I have been assured that he was not rude in these questions. He was, genuinely baffled by the structure. His home environment was designed more along the lines of a Montessori style environment, he already knew his letters and numbers, and he knew how to come in when called. This child now reads until I pry the book from his hands at night. It is not a huge cognitive leap to use books as the gateway to conversation and lesson starters. His sister, now four, is desperate to join in any activity he does and has been sneaking books into her bed and practicing aloud. She is an artist: drawing, painting, singing, and dancing. A lesson read aloud to her often finds itself illustrated. She adores the Charlotte Mason picture study idea and colors for every memory work sentence in Classical Conversations. I am a creative and passionate learner who wants her children to grow intro independent learners of good character. I want us to read good books written by people who love their subject. I believe copy work improves handwriting and retention, and nature studies will help us appreciate an protect our world. |
?Who knows what might get thrown in next? The boy child just asked for violin lessons. One day we spent an hour watching YouTube about how the creative brain differs before laughing our fool heads off at brain teasers and optical illusions.
Come December we always pick another country to study. We read their Christmas-time legends, their stories of Santa, their traditional foods, and songs. We replicate a traditional meal. I have intensely talented friends who are brilliant in areas I never consider. Thank goodness for them. They give my children things I never could. The National Parks Service offers amazing programs and, here in VA, the programs with our state parks are essential to our life. I WILL make time for them. The library. Our FANTASTIC base library has parties, challenges, activities and events. They are so used to my babies that they feel like friends. |
Tips and Tries
#1
This summer, I wanted to be sure to follow where my children’s passions lay. Reading Julie Bogart’s “Brave Learner” thanks to a friend’s recommendation has only reinforced that. My youngest is an artist and I am happy to add that since I missed out on it with my eldest. He didn’t even want to color anything except explosions until his little sister picked up a crayon. Drawing, painting, dancing, singing, and detailed coloring are now a part of our daily life. Since she graduated herself to “Kindergarten” once she hit 4.5 (on the day no less) I embraced her readiness.
After attending a Challenge A training and being impressed by the importance of focusing on geography NOW, I invested in the “Draw Europe” book by Kristin Draeger. My 8 year old, not one to be left behind, took the challenge further and became impatient to complete the map. The middle picture above is the 4 year old’s tracing! After a few weeks of Ms. Draeger’s map, asking her to trace the CC map was very easy. We do this twice a week and pull out “her” map when we talk about medieval history or medieval scientists as well. Asking both kiddos to blob map no longer seemed strange or forced but funny-though the perfectionist boy child wants to work with a grid and folded segments WHICH IS FINE so long as he agrees not to stress himself out.
My try is definitely now a tip: TRACE YOUR MAPS! If they practice tracing their maps, adding in the memory work is easy. The English Channel is between England and France. Easy find! The Mediterranean Sea is south of Europe and North of Africa. Got it!
#2...
Create a CC “uniform” for those who refuse to wake without a fuss...and have them wear it the night before.
My eldest despises mornings as much as I remember despising mornings as a child (okay, as much as I despised mornings this morning). Spoiled homeschool child that he is, he often enjoys a leisurely morning, first breakfast, and second breakfast. Not so on community days and certainly not when Mama is a tutor. This year’s agreed upon solution is to bathe the night before, dress in the clothes for the next day, and sleep in them. I saw it on a tiny living in an RV show and wanted to hug that mother.
Mock not. Have you ever tried talking a half-dead eight year old into a t-shirt when he has gone limp noodle on you? The boy is 68 pounds of muscle with a tendency to flail in distress when sleepy. I will save myself a battle here.
Some of you moms out there have MORE children than me. How you do it, I do not know. I would suggest, however, that you save yourself the screaming to get ready on co-op mornings and have them ready to roll as soon as they roll out of bed. Pack the cooler the night before, shove them in the bathroom to brush their teeth, and run before they are awake enough to complain.
My eldest despises mornings as much as I remember despising mornings as a child (okay, as much as I despised mornings this morning). Spoiled homeschool child that he is, he often enjoys a leisurely morning, first breakfast, and second breakfast. Not so on community days and certainly not when Mama is a tutor. This year’s agreed upon solution is to bathe the night before, dress in the clothes for the next day, and sleep in them. I saw it on a tiny living in an RV show and wanted to hug that mother.
Mock not. Have you ever tried talking a half-dead eight year old into a t-shirt when he has gone limp noodle on you? The boy is 68 pounds of muscle with a tendency to flail in distress when sleepy. I will save myself a battle here.
Some of you moms out there have MORE children than me. How you do it, I do not know. I would suggest, however, that you save yourself the screaming to get ready on co-op mornings and have them ready to roll as soon as they roll out of bed. Pack the cooler the night before, shove them in the bathroom to brush their teeth, and run before they are awake enough to complain.
#3
Foundations Review How To: Review +One
Do not stress yourselves out about this mamas, and papas, and caregivers (oh my!). You can keep this very stick-in-the-sand and replicate what your student learned in class. Especially with our youngest learners, this IS enough, I promise. However, should you feel compelled by some inner voice to go further, do more, this is easily enough done.
Day:1 class. Pay attention to what is modeled. Write down ideas you might have trouble remembering later. Ask questions of your tutor after class or during your community lunch. If they seem distracted, ask if you can call them later. They are kind people and will say yes.
Day 2: This does not have to be the day after community. You might need a break, a breather, a chance to decompress or bring in other work. On the second day of your choosing review what was done in class plus one for two of the sentences.
History sentence +1 example: let’s sing the song and then write/trace the sentence. Not a writer? No problem! Let’s sing the
song and color a picture of the main character or idea. CC connected and Pinterest are full of coloring sheets. Still not enough?
Read them a story about the topic while they color or play. Act it out with action figures or Barbies.
Day 3: Review the sentences +1 again for 2 sentences.
Science Sentence +1 example: let’s watch a video about the science sentence topic or, better yet, let’s make a mini Ecology
lapbook over the next few weeks of science sentences and add to it. The first eight weeks are ALL ecology topics. Or...spend one
week on each type of land and aquatic biome, the animals who live there (producers, consumers...herbivores..), their reactions to
environmental change, and the threats of pollution. Find these biomes on a map.
Geography +1 example: say it and trace it. Say it + blob draw it.
Day Four: Are you sure? I hope you have an older foundations kid or not a great many extras. Review +1 for 2 sentences.
Latin +1 Example: Say it +write it. Say it and then contextualize it for your writers. Conjugate “amo” in present, imperfect, and/or
future tense. “Amo” (I love), “Amas” (you love), “Amat” (he/she/it loves).
Timeline +1 Example: Sing the song and then play timeline card mix up and put them back in order. Or...pick on card and study
the image on the front. What do you see? What does the author show? Turn it into a picture study. Or....Pick One card from that
week, read the back, and write a paragraph about it (using other sources for your older foundations student).
Day 5: For pity’s sake!! Be kind.
Play the cd while your kid plays or you are running errands. Let them quiz you and model how to make and recover from
mistakes.
Do not stress yourselves out about this mamas, and papas, and caregivers (oh my!). You can keep this very stick-in-the-sand and replicate what your student learned in class. Especially with our youngest learners, this IS enough, I promise. However, should you feel compelled by some inner voice to go further, do more, this is easily enough done.
Day:1 class. Pay attention to what is modeled. Write down ideas you might have trouble remembering later. Ask questions of your tutor after class or during your community lunch. If they seem distracted, ask if you can call them later. They are kind people and will say yes.
Day 2: This does not have to be the day after community. You might need a break, a breather, a chance to decompress or bring in other work. On the second day of your choosing review what was done in class plus one for two of the sentences.
History sentence +1 example: let’s sing the song and then write/trace the sentence. Not a writer? No problem! Let’s sing the
song and color a picture of the main character or idea. CC connected and Pinterest are full of coloring sheets. Still not enough?
Read them a story about the topic while they color or play. Act it out with action figures or Barbies.
Day 3: Review the sentences +1 again for 2 sentences.
Science Sentence +1 example: let’s watch a video about the science sentence topic or, better yet, let’s make a mini Ecology
lapbook over the next few weeks of science sentences and add to it. The first eight weeks are ALL ecology topics. Or...spend one
week on each type of land and aquatic biome, the animals who live there (producers, consumers...herbivores..), their reactions to
environmental change, and the threats of pollution. Find these biomes on a map.
Geography +1 example: say it and trace it. Say it + blob draw it.
Day Four: Are you sure? I hope you have an older foundations kid or not a great many extras. Review +1 for 2 sentences.
Latin +1 Example: Say it +write it. Say it and then contextualize it for your writers. Conjugate “amo” in present, imperfect, and/or
future tense. “Amo” (I love), “Amas” (you love), “Amat” (he/she/it loves).
Timeline +1 Example: Sing the song and then play timeline card mix up and put them back in order. Or...pick on card and study
the image on the front. What do you see? What does the author show? Turn it into a picture study. Or....Pick One card from that
week, read the back, and write a paragraph about it (using other sources for your older foundations student).
Day 5: For pity’s sake!! Be kind.
Play the cd while your kid plays or you are running errands. Let them quiz you and model how to make and recover from
mistakes.
#4
My favorite review game at home remains: STUMP THE MOM.
There is something different about couch school. Cuddled together under piles of blankets and cupping my favorite coffee we ease into our day. For night owls who abhor morning activities, this is a gift. Normally, this means reading history stories aloud or studying an interesting person. Maybe we pick an animal from a different biome and watch a clip (watch out for scrublands :( so many wildfire videos). On Mondays, however, My children giggle together and take turns trying to stump their mother on their Classical Conversations review.
We can put so much expectation on memorization that the opportunity to play teacher and laugh at their mother is a moment to savor. My youngest rolls a die and my eldest draws the appropriate homemade flashcard. Have you ever had to answer questions about the timeline out of order? Or backwards? Hilarious! Have you ever had to sing your skip counting songs in funny voices while joyful voices cackle and correct your “accidental” mistakes?
My tip today is to take the time to be silly.
There is something different about couch school. Cuddled together under piles of blankets and cupping my favorite coffee we ease into our day. For night owls who abhor morning activities, this is a gift. Normally, this means reading history stories aloud or studying an interesting person. Maybe we pick an animal from a different biome and watch a clip (watch out for scrublands :( so many wildfire videos). On Mondays, however, My children giggle together and take turns trying to stump their mother on their Classical Conversations review.
We can put so much expectation on memorization that the opportunity to play teacher and laugh at their mother is a moment to savor. My youngest rolls a die and my eldest draws the appropriate homemade flashcard. Have you ever had to answer questions about the timeline out of order? Or backwards? Hilarious! Have you ever had to sing your skip counting songs in funny voices while joyful voices cackle and correct your “accidental” mistakes?
My tip today is to take the time to be silly.
#5
Family-Focus First
My first few years of homeschooling included many options. Too many options! Do you know how blessed we are with choices as homeschoolers? I think back to even one generation before us and my heart hurts for their journey. How brave they were.
For first-time homeschoolers there are curriculums to review, co-ops to try, activities to indulge in, and play dates to keep. And field trips! I love field trips. If I wasn’t careful, I discovered that I was running around every day and too busy to actually be at home and that wasn’t my plan for school. On the other hand, more than two days at home made me antsy. Finding the balance between the two took a bit of time and involved some hard conversations with myself. I had to practice saying no to a few choices, a few friends, and a few children.
Once I found CC, I had to practice family-focus. OFTEN. It is not my job to compare my school with another home’s school. There are so many brilliant and creative homeschool parents out there-parents whose strengths lie in very different areas than mine. Trying to fit their style into mine was an invitation for anxiety and discontentment. I am not them. I was made unique and needed to learn to bring my gifts to my school. That is my tip for you. Identify your strengths. Write them down in dry erase marker on your mirror or add it to the front of your schedule. Family-focus has improved my confidence as a home educator and allowed me to celebrate others’ successes and strengths without comparing myself to them.
There are so many wonderful tools on CC connected and wonderful resources shared between home educators on the facebook page and forums. Use them but don’t be ruled by them. Limit your time. Consider it like any Pinterest addiction. Set a timer.
My first few years of homeschooling included many options. Too many options! Do you know how blessed we are with choices as homeschoolers? I think back to even one generation before us and my heart hurts for their journey. How brave they were.
For first-time homeschoolers there are curriculums to review, co-ops to try, activities to indulge in, and play dates to keep. And field trips! I love field trips. If I wasn’t careful, I discovered that I was running around every day and too busy to actually be at home and that wasn’t my plan for school. On the other hand, more than two days at home made me antsy. Finding the balance between the two took a bit of time and involved some hard conversations with myself. I had to practice saying no to a few choices, a few friends, and a few children.
Once I found CC, I had to practice family-focus. OFTEN. It is not my job to compare my school with another home’s school. There are so many brilliant and creative homeschool parents out there-parents whose strengths lie in very different areas than mine. Trying to fit their style into mine was an invitation for anxiety and discontentment. I am not them. I was made unique and needed to learn to bring my gifts to my school. That is my tip for you. Identify your strengths. Write them down in dry erase marker on your mirror or add it to the front of your schedule. Family-focus has improved my confidence as a home educator and allowed me to celebrate others’ successes and strengths without comparing myself to them.
There are so many wonderful tools on CC connected and wonderful resources shared between home educators on the facebook page and forums. Use them but don’t be ruled by them. Limit your time. Consider it like any Pinterest addiction. Set a timer.
#6
Follow their interests.
We LOVE unit studies and we incorporate them often into our work. They do not interfere with our CC work but often tie into in unforeseen ways. Try it. I dare you.
This Fall season, my little one is studying fairies. She adores fairies in all their forms and is delighting in discovering more about brownies, pixies, merrows, selkies, and leprechauns. She can’t believe these stories are from the countries she traces in her CC Geography during the Middle Ages (circa 450 to circa 1500). She does NOT love the medieval music they likely played in the fairy rings but she thinks it is interesting that early Christians still protected themselves with iron or by making their faces dirty (can we say the medieval period in Europe was FETID?) The big kid is taking longer with his board and is certainly more diligent. Do you know how many stories there are about St. George defeating the dragon and prompting the conversion of multitudes in Libya during the Roman Empire? Do you know that his costume changes in art over the centuries to reflect the ARMOR OF GOD? The kid cannot believe how many countries that he traces in Geography have legends about dragons or the varying meanings of dragons (elemental control, weather control, symbol of Satan, etc.). We have traveled all over Europe recording different dragons. We have picked up library books about reptiles and discussed the properties of sulphur from the periodic table (earlier cycle). He noticed today that Dragon City steals from the idea of the world tree. Cool beans! These connections can occur organically. What is your child interested in about the Middle Ages? Warriors? Princesses? Early Science? Video games (Cue in Dragon City, Zelda...video game inspiration from history and myth)? It will fit, I promise. Do not be afraid to follow their interests. |