Well, tomorrow is the day; we begin our new, improved homeschooling. We're calling the room "The Last Frontier Homeschool". I've transformed our guest room into the school room, received and organized the curriculum and supplies, outlined our first week (and most of the 1st quarter, and some of the whole year), and now it's time to pray like crazy!
Lord, please let my patience and enthusiasm be at an all-time high as we head into this week. Put in me the words You want the girls to know about You, Your Word, and Your world. Let them both be open and obedient and curious about our lessons and about You and Your Son. Be with Daddy this week as well as we all try to adjust to our new schedule and all-encompassing, learning lifestyle. Make our love for You and for each other obvious and overflowing. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.
As I mentioned last post, we are utilizing the Charlotte Mason approach this year. Her methodology is quite difficult to describe in a nutshell, but luckily we have access to http://www.simplycharlottemason.com/, (my new best friend) who offers this explanation:
Charlotte Mason was a British educator who lived in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Her method, the Charlotte Mason method, is centered around the idea that education is three-pronged: Education is an Atmosphere, a Discipline, a Life.
By “Atmosphere,” Charlotte meant the surroundings in which the child grows up. A child absorbs a lot from his home environment. Charlotte believed that atmosphere makes up one-third of a child’s education.
By “Discipline,” Charlotte meant the discipline of good habits — and specifically habits of character. Cultivating good habits in your child’s life make up another third of his education.
The other third of education, “Life,” applies to academics. Charlotte believed that we should give children living thoughts and ideas, not just dry facts. So all of her methods for teaching the various school subjects are built around that concept.
For example, Charlotte’s students used living books rather than dry textbooks. Living books are usually written in story form by one author who has a passion for the subject. A living book makes the subject “come alive.”
She taught spelling by using passages from great books that communicate great ideas rather than just a list of words.
She encouraged spending time outdoors, interacting with God’s creation firsthand and learning the living ways of nature.
These ideals fit in so well with how I picture the best homeschool for our girls. They need so much a gentle, nurturing, but focused agenda, and I really believe that if I can manage it, we will all be very happy with the process and the results.
We're also incorporating a system of "workboxes" which hopefully will enable the girls to work independently a few times a day, so Mommy can focus on dishes, laundry and dinner.
And that will be a big blessing to Daddy.
No comments:
Post a Comment