Preparing for School

Tomorrow we begin our official homeschooling journey as Jack starts his Kindergarten year.  When I first found out I was pregnant with him, I began reading about homeschooling...dreaming about the day when we would have the privilege and honor of training up our children at home.  The ideas and methods that resonated most deeply with me came from Charlotte Mason, a turn-of-the-century British educator who was a champion for educating the whole child with a "feast" of beautiful ideas.

So, our family has chosen a homeschooling mindset that is based on the educational writings of Charlotte Mason. It uses “living books” rather than textbooks or twaddle. It respects children as persons and gives them a broad education.
It presents a generous curriculum, including nature study, picture study, music study, and handicrafts, as well as the usual academic subjects. It seeks to “spread
a feast” before the child and let him digest what is appropriate for him at that time. And it uses methods that will nurture a love for learning, not just present a body of information. (More can be found at Simply Charlotte Mason)

We know that education involves much more than textbooks and "dry summaries of thought", as Charlotte said.  We want to provide lots of "living thought" and ideas for our very lively Jack.  Our curriculum will include:

- Bible: reading from THE Living Book, with memory verses and a study on God's Names
- Literature: a feast of good read aloud books that will expose Jack to different eras of history and places on our globe
- Poetry
- Science: based mostly on living books and lots of nature study outside with a nature journal/sketchbook
- Math: using manipulatives and hands-on activities that will focus on math reasoning and understanding rather than numbers and symbols
- Art:  appreciation of art through child-sized masterpieces of art as well as drawing and painting instruction
- Music:  focusing on listening to Tchaikovsky's works and also Vivaldi's Four Seasons; beginning violin instruction and music note recognition
- Hymn Study
- Foreign Language: learning to hear and speak Spanish words and phrases
- Handicrafts
- Habit training: this year we will focus on the habits of full attention, best effort, obedience and truthfulness

We look forward to this year of learning and discovery and we hope to share some of our highlights with you as we go!  As for George and Joe...well, they'll be along for the ride, too!  George will be included in things like Bible, reading, nature study, music and art.  And I have some special activities to keep him busy, too.

To God be the glory!