Curriculum Updates and More Fleur-de-Lis Reflections

I have made a few changes to my 2015--2016 Vintage Catholic Home Education curriculum, which you can view in the previous post, and have reflected more upon my fleur-de-lis vision.

The only book in my current curriculum resources list that I don't own is Laura M. Berquist's Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum. I have checked this one out from the library before, and I did so again yesterday. What I had forgotten was that the book is subtitled, A Guide to Catholic Home Education. This is important, because a classical curriculum isn't necessarily Catholic. It's great that this method can be applied to any worldview, but the Catholic homeschooler can really benefit from a classical approach that is tailored to our Faith.

In the forward to Berquist's book, Donna Steichen gives a brief history of how the Catholic home education movement began. She writes that "in the past thirty years that culture in which most Catholics lived and which seemed to them to be simply the unchangeable given of life has collapsed in a vast secularizing implosion." I counted back 30 years from the book's publication, and Steichen is obviously referring to the confusion following Vatican II. She goes on to say that parents who had intended to pass on the Catholic culture in which they had been formed found themselves opposed by "an emerging managerial class within the Church, apparently devoted to accomodation and surrender". Strong words. I have heard these sentiments echoed by home educators who have discovered that many Catholic schools have been secularized and the Faith watered down in religious education programs.

Steichen offers Berquist's classical curriculum as an excellent alternative for those who "may have been overwhelmed by the flood of paper that a correspondence curriculum entails or may want a more flexible approach for their children." Berquist gives some recommendations for background reading before you begin to design your own curriculum, including For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay. Coincidentally, I have this book and had recently begun to re-read it. It happens to be a guide to Charlotte Mason, so I assume that Berquist acknowledges the overlap between these two methods. I have listed For the Children's Sake in my resources as a replacement for A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola. I still highly recommend Andreola's book for the homeschooling newbie, but I will most likely not be going back to it, as I have already read it thoroughly.

The other change I made to the resource list was to remove Modern Montessori at Home II (Spietz). I checked this one out from the library also, and after browsing through it decided that it wasn't what I was looking for. I have deeply internalized the philosophy and method of Maria Montessori through my classroom experiences and the intense teacher training I received, so I don't regularly consult her original works or my resource manuals anymore. Also, my Montessori experience was concentrated toward a younger age group than my child is now in, so the only Montessori material I still use is the Moveable Alphabet. This year it was instrumental for phonics training, and next year we will be using it along with the Making Words book that you can find in the Language Arts subject area. The "three period lesson" is also still useful, such as for memorizing the names of the continents.

For additional inspiration in translating Montessori principles in my home today, I added Lori Pickert's Project-Based Homeschooling: Mentoring the Self-Directed Learner to my list. I already own this book and just need to finish reading it! The emphasis is similar to Montessori in regard to preparing the home environment and offering the child ample opportunity for pursuing his personal interests, choosing his own work, and having the freedom to move around.

In the student books and materials portion of my curriculum write-up, I added two books to the Health subject area. I had sent my curriculum to my teacher friend who does our portfolio evaluations, and she mentioned puberty. Puberty! How could I have overlooked this? Here is a good reason for choosing the option to have an evaluation by a certified teacher over standard testing. Especially when the teacher personally knows your child, she can really make a difference in giving you feedback and suggestions. A member of one of my Facebook groups recommended an American Girl book, The Care and Keeping of You: The Body Book. I got this on Ebay and was alerted to a companion, The Feelings Book, which I ordered as well. There are also journals available.

So I think I am done now with my curriculum plans, although things always change, and as I said in the last post, many specific book titles have not been included, as the school asks to keep the outline brief, and we always leave windows open to follow rabbit trails and interests as they develop. After all, a huge benefit of designing your own curriculum is that you are not a slave to any particular curriculum!

As a final note, I'd like to make a suggestion to the homeschooling newbies and to those who are transitioning from a boxed curriculum package or other methods. I truly believe that you could get an excellent start on the journey using only Andreola's A Charlotte Mason Companion, Pickert's Project-Based Homeschooling, and We and Our Children: How to Make a Catholic Home by Mary Reed Newland. In fact, I think you could easily get all the way through the primary and elementary years using nothing but these references and The 4Real Learning Booklist by Elizabeth Foss at http://charlottemason.tripod.com/4real_learning_booklist.htm. How's that for a simplified fleur-de-lis?

So, if you feel led to homeschooling but are worried that you won't know how to do it effectively, I have given you the solution! For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light, says our Lord.

Vintage Catholic Homeschool Curriculum (2015--2016)

It's hard to believe that we are in the last month of this homeschooling year! My teacher friend will be here this weekend to do my daughter's portfolio evaluation, which is one of the options for reporting in Ohio. As such, I have prepared my curriculum for next year, which I will share with you here. Our school district asks for a brief outline, so my book lists are not entirely comprehensive, but a large portion of our literature will be sourced from the elementary cycles at the back of Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home by Elizabeth Foss.

 fleur-de-lis, aquaticglassmosaics.com

Section 1 of the curriculum write-up gives a description of our Vintage Catholic Home Education style. As many of this blog's readers will know, I use a fleur-de-lis symbol (see above) to focus my homeschooling vision. The base of the fleur-de-lis is always Catholic Faith Formation, represented by the Holy Family--Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. The three upper petals symbolize the methods/philosophies from which I draw inspiration and practical tools. The last designation I used was Maria Montessori, Charlotte Mason (CM), and relaxed homeschooling.

Because my child is almost 11 and will be in 5th grade, and I want to provide a more rigorous academic experience, I have replaced the relaxed homeschooling petal with Classical Christian Education. Already having in mind the type of changes I wanted to make, I happily came across a pertinent online article, "Charlotte Mason and Classical Education" by Christine Miller (http://www.classical-homeschooling.org/faq/mason.html). Miller combines the joyful guided discovery of Charlotte Mason, the benefits of the modern "school as play" movement, and the rigorous tradition of classical education into her Classical Christian Homeschooling approach.

I think that the "school as play" lifestyle element is intrinsic to both CM and Montessori, and the Classical Christian approach reflects my idea of relaxed homeschooling (the classic concept of schole, study as leisure), so these three "petals" (Maria Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and Classical Christian Education) perfectly encompass my entire vision. I use the word vintage with a dual meaning, indicating both the implementation of older, time-honored educational traditions and the use of vintage books. A third meaning of vintage refers to the pioneering days of homeschooling, before the advent of boxed curriculum companies and conventions (and before the internet!), when home educators had to forge their own paths. In my opinion, it isn't necessary to choose just one method, but at the same time one does need to limit the options so as to have a clear purpose and way to accomplish one's goals. The fleur-de-lis model, in my experience, helps to strike the desired balance, custom designed as you see fit.

I also know that many home educators have become discouraged and over-burdened from trying to strickly follow a curriculum package or one particular methodology. They sometimes feel like failures for not perfectly embodying the standards. Drawing from multiple but related sources allows you to truly individualize the education of your children and to tailor your homeschooling lifestyle to best suit the needs of your family; the learning styles, talents, and interests of your kids; and your own teaching style and preferences. From this standpoint, whatever you are doing is "right"! Your home education efforts can develop organically with you firmly at the helm, steering your ship as you choose, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

I think it's important to mention that the Catholic Faith, according to the Church, must permeate the entire curriculum. However, I don't interpret this to mean that every single resource must come from a Catholic writer or publishing company. What I believe is necessary is that you use as many Catholic materials as possible while also prioritizing using the best books available (which may not always be Catholic ones); that the atmosphere of the home (a.k.a. the domestic church) as well as direct teaching promote a living faith; and that truth, goodness, and beauty prevail. Of course you will take care to avoid anything anti-Catholic in flavor. As such, it may be wise to choose secular, neutral materials when suitable Catholic choices aren't available or don't meet your needs, rather than Protestant resources which could compromise your child's faith development.

copyright Organic Mothering

The 2nd part of my write-up lists the specific books and resources I use as the parent-teacher in creating my self-designed Catholic curriculum. These direct my way to the philosophies and particulars of the methods I employ. I wish to draw from these sources inspiration and wisdom; information regarding the learning tools directly employed; knowledge of the Faith and Catholic parenting; and specific book suggestions to be used with and by the child in her lessons. 

The third portion of the outline divides the books and materials used by and with the child in the lessons into the subject areas required by our school district. Though not required, I listed religion along with the history and geography category. You will find here both specific book titles and general subject matter to be covered. There are many other books, materials, and resources that could have been listed, including the Catechism of the Catholic Church, papal encyclicals such as "On the Christian Education of Youth", and Montessori's own works.  I hope that you will glean something useful from this curriculum guide. Please feel free to borrow anything you would like and to ask questions or give suggestions in the comments.

I. Vintage Catholic Home Education: We will be using a self-designed curriculum incorporating the philosophical methodologies of Dr. Maria Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and Classical Christian Education, drawing from the books and resources listed below. "Living books" will be the predominant choices for lessons, which are those written by an author who takes special interest in his subject and in which facts are presented in story form. Classical learning tools such as narration, copy work, memorization, and dictation will be utilized, with a core of Religion and the traditional liberal arts.

II. Curriculum Books and Resource:

- The Charlotte Mason Original Homeschooling Series (six volume set)

- Real Learning: Education in the Heart of the Home by Elizabeth Foss
- Mater Amabilis: a Charlotte Mason Style Curriculum for Catholics (www.materamabilis.org)
- Ambleside Online (www.amblesideonline.org)
- The Year and Our Children: Catholic Celebrations for Every Season by Mary Reed Newland

- Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum: A Guide to Catholic Home Education 
  by Laura M. Berquist
- For the Children's Sake: Foundations of Education for Home and School
  by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay
- Project-Based Homeschooling: Mentoring Your Self-Directed Learner by Lori Pickert

- The Holy Bible, Douay-Rheims Version and Revised Standard Version, Second Catholic Edition       

III. Subjects and Books/Materials:

Language Arts – Prayers for Young Catholics (Daughters of St. Paul); "Faith and Freedom" Ginn Readers; American Cardinal Readers; classic literature; Poetry for Children and Other People; Ingri and Edgar Parin d' Aulaire's Book of Greek Myths; Emma Serl's Primary Language Lessons; Tales from Shakespeare by Charles and Mary Lamb; Parables from Nature (Gatty); Making Words (Cunningham and Hall); Montessori Moveable Alphabet; Native American literature; public library visits and programs; Latin (Prima Latina, Memoria Press); Grammar workbooks (Frank Schaffer Publications)

Religion, Geography and History – Religious Education class at Sacred Heart Church; The Baltimore Catechism, No. 1; United States puzzle map; globe and maps; America's Founders and Leaders by William H.J. Kennedy and Sister Mary Joseph; A Child's History of the World and A Child's Geography of the World (Hillyer); Native American history and tradition; history of cultural, seasonal and holiday traditions; visits to Sauder Village living history museum; The Saint Book by Mary Reed Newland; Vision Books biographical novels of the saints (Ignatius Press); Hurlbut's Story of the Bible; The Loyola Treasury of Saints; Tree in the Trail and Minn of the Mississippi (Holling C. Holling)

Mathematics –  Intermediate Idea Book for Cuisenaire Rods (Learning Resources Inc.); Total Math (American Education Publishing); measurement; fractions; time and money; place values; addition and subtraction with regrouping; multiplication; division; decimals and percentages; Cuisenaire Rods and other related manipulatives; flash cards; calendar; mathematician biographies; board games

Natural Science – Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock; The Story Book of Science by Jean-Henri Fabre; One Small Square series (Silver); Kingsolver Encyclopedia of Horses; nature walks and nature notebook; study of trees and leaf collection; study of flowers and flower pressing; study of insects, birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and dinosaurs; the seasons; climate; sustainable living and organic gardening; science museum visits; calendar; ecosystems/animal habitats; chemistry kit experiments; dog training classes; volunteer work at the Humane Society

Health Education – General Hygiene by Frank Overton; study of bacteria, mold and viruses; nutrition; food preparation and baking; herbology; vegetarianism; The Care and Keeping of You: The Body Book for Girls by Valorie Schaefer and The Feelings Book: The Care and Keeping of Your Emotions by Dr. Lynda Madison (American Girl)

Physical Education – Gym class at St. Patrick; dance; Parks and Recreation soccer program; yoga practice; daily outdoor play; hiking; sledding; trampoline; running; swimming; scooter; pogo stick; horseback riding; hiking; bicycling; dog walks

Fine Arts – Art class at St. Patrick School; painting; drawing; poetry, music, and art appreciation (artist, poet, and composer studies; classical and folk music; hymns); pottery; Come Look with Me Series by Gladys Blizzard; art museum visits; attendance at plays and concerts; dramatic play; Parks and Recreation/library arts and crafts programs; Fayette Opera House concert series; piano lessons; movies and documentaries; needlepoint; crochet; creative writing

First Aid, Safety, and Fire Protection – Continued reinforcement of these subjects through library materials, field trips, and home safety plans

Catholic Natural Learning, Fleur-de-Lis Update

In past posts I used the symbol of the fleur-de-lis to illustrate my personal approach to home-centered learning.  This popular French motif has traditionally been used as a Christian symbol representing either the Holy Trinity, Jesus, or, due to the lily's association with purity, the Virgin Mary.  In my concept of Catholic Natural Learning, the base of the fleur-de-lis (that which ties the petals together) is Catholic Faith Formation. The lower parts of the flower represent the Holy Family--Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.  Religion is the foundation upon which education is built, as was discussed in the previous article.

Initially I had designated the three upper petals of the flower to represent the philosophical methodologies of Charlotte Mason (CM), Maria Montessori, and unschooling.  I am still utilizing the first two.  I will give you a brief overview of how we implement both of these.

I rely heavily upon the use of living books as advocated by Charlotte Mason.  These include high quality fictional literature, as well as non-fiction works that are written in story form by a single author who is passionate about his topic.  There is little, if any, use of textbooks or workbooks.  Most subjects are narrated. That is, the child is read to or reads for himself and then gives either an oral or written composition of the material.  Narrations have always been an integral part of our lesson times, but at present my daughter doesn't find them enjoyable to give, so for now I'm not requiring them. She does, however, enjoy doing picture studies, which are another form of narration.  Copy work is regularly done from Catholic prayers, the Bible, or Emma Serl's Primary Language Lessons.  

As a former Montessori classroom teacher, I can tell you that to transfer the Montessori Method to a home setting would require a great deal of space, intensive teacher training, and a huge financial investment. However, none of this is necessary in order to use select Montessori resources which you believe would facilitate your child's learning. Many Montessori materials can be handmade, such as the popular sandpaper letters, and lesson plans are available online. Similar, less expensive materials can be found by companies such as Melissa and Doug. Currently we are using the Montessori moveable alphabet for phonics training and word making, in conjunction with a set of phonics cards and a dry erase board. We use a clock with moveable hands along with a Time and Money workbook, and real money as well.

Key tenets of Montessori philosophy, such as treating the child as a person and educating him for life, including the nurturing of his spirit, can be incorporated by anyone, and these are also core ideas of Charlotte Mason. As Montessori is a very tactile, "hands on" type of method, the use of tools such as math manipulatives; building activities such as Lincoln Logs and Legos; putting together puzzles; and practical life experiences such as dish washing, orange juice making, and folding clothes are things easily incorporated in the Montessori spirit.

Honing one's faculty of observation is also a primary Montessori element. In the home, you can prepare the environment to provide developmentally appropriate activities that the child is free to choose from. Establishing learning centers with materials for such things as creating artwork, making music, doing science experiments, and for use in dramatic play encourages self-directed projects. The parent/teacher has the opportunity to observe and "follow the child" in exploring her interests, finding her gifts, and supporting her in the more challenging areas.

So what of unschooling? I have determined that creating an atmosphere of learning all the time can be established using natural methods such as CM and Montessori, making the inclusion of unschooling unnecessary. All of the promise of a joyful way of family life can be had without the dogmatic baggage that comes with unschooling and the generally anti-teaching attitude of many unschoolers.  And the truth is that unschooling does not qualify as a method at all; rather, it is a philosophical mindset. I do not believe that children should shoulder the primary responsibility of deciding what, when, and how they will learn, especially in the extremes of radical unschooling. This idea goes against the Christian vocation of parents as the primary educators of their children. Since the unschooling Gestapo will insist that one can't partially unschool, it makes sense to avoid the issue altogether.

What I have chosen instead for the 3rd petal on the fleur-de-lis is relaxed homeschooling, a term coined by Mary Hood. Relaxed homeschooling is also a mindset rather than a method. Hood has described it as a middle path between the opposite ends of unschooling and the traditional school-at-home approach. Upcoming posts will illustrate how I apply a relaxed mindset with the particular methods of Maria Montessori and Charlotte Mason in the context of Catholic education.

Homeschooling: Keeping It Catholic

To my dismay, Marianna Bartold, of the blog "Keeping it Catholic" (keepingitcatholic.blogspot.com), and author of the Keeping It Catholic Series home education guides, has written a great deal regarding the philosophical reasons why Catholic homeschoolers cannot, in good conscience, employ the methods of either Maria Montessori or Charlotte Mason! There is also the keepingitcatholic.org website. Since I do want to keep my homeschooling Catholic, I ordered her Volume I book from Amazon so I can read in depth about why she has red flagged these two educators, especially considering that Montessori was Catholic. In regard to Charlotte Mason, so far I have gathered that Bartold believes that because Mason's philosophy was heretical, and because her methods would naturally lead back to her heretical worldview, then no good can come of using anything in her method. I don't know that Charlotte Mason was indeed heretical, but at any rate, does Bartold draw a logical conclusion?

Let's first consider that the Catholic Church teaches that while Catholicism contains the fullness of the Truth of the Christian faith, other Christian branches and other religions contain portions of spiritual Truth, and that all Truth comes from the Holy Spirit. While we don't want to fall into religious indifferentism and conclude that all traditions are equal, we can still learn something from the beliefs and practices of others. I can see no way in which the CM practices of using living books and narration or keeping a nature journal, for example, would be inherently heretical. I can't imagine agreeing completely with any one educator, no matter how brilliant, except for the One Great Master, Jesus. (And because of her complete unity with the Holy Spirit, Mary would also qualify as a source of perfect Truth.)

Today I also found a website called Mater Amabilis: a Charlotte Mason style curriculum for Catholics (materamabilis.org).  Their discussion forum says, "Mater Amabilis and this group are 100% faithful to the Magisterium of the Catholic Church."  Bartold argues that the Charlotte Mason method cannot be morally "Catholicized".  Who is right?  I'll have to read Keeping It Catholic before I weigh in on this.  But I can't see how implementing the educational style of Miss Mason could be immoral as long as one holds fast to the Tradition of the Catholic Church.  Even if as an Anglican Christian some of her religious beliefs were in error, it does not hold for me that all of her educational ideas and practices would therefore need to be avoided at all costs.  If a theory and practice are sound and work for your child, shouldn't you feel confident in using them? More on this to come...

A Mother's Rule of Life

I am currently reading Holly Pierlot's A Mother's Rule of Life.  The premise of the book is taking the concept of a religious rule, such as nuns practice, and applying it to the vocation of a woman as wife and mother.  I love the idea of what I do as a vocation, which I have written about before.  Holly writes about being a Catholic homeschooling mother of five and how she brought order, and therefore peace, to her daily round.  She goes beyond developing a schedule to live by and extends the structure of her days into a deeper spiritual purpose.  Though she is not a fan of unschooling, I think that since I am on my own path to bringing greater meaning to the life of myself and my family, Holly's ideas will be a blessing.  I am already inspired to begin spring cleaning (including my email inbox)! The groundhog did promise an early spring, after all.

I want my days to flow within the framework of a flexible schedule.  Since I only have one child, I don't feel that I need every block of time sectioned out like Holly's. Once housework is caught up on and a system is in place to keep things in order, I can begin the bigger tasks of cleaning out closets and working on home projects. I know, we have visited this territory before, have we not? Yes, and we will need to come back to it twice a year, every spring and fall. We need to regularly re-evaluate what is working well, what isn't, and how to create the change we desire.

I spoke at length to my husband about unschooling, and he finally watched Astra Taylor's youtube video. We are on the same page about not wanting to be "radical" unschoolers. He pointed out that I have basically already been unschooling to a certain extent and thinks I should continue with Montessori and Charlotte Mason as a basis for the more formal lesson times. Because of some of the unschooling practices that we don't want to be associated with, such as letting children make all their own decisions, not only about what they will learn and when, but in every other area of life, he is hesitant to say that what we do is unschooling. I certainly agree that many people, especially in the homeschooling community, have very negative impressions about unschooling, and I don't want to misrepresent what we do. But I think that putting a qualifier in front of it, such as the word Catholic, would help correct any misapprehension.

By definition, Catholic unschooling requires that parents are actively involved in the faith formation of their children and in instilling good habits, morals, self-discipline, and responsibility. Children cannot be left to "self-regulate" or be allowed limitless access to TV, the computer, video games, technology, etc... I suppose there may be some Catholic unschoolers who give their children too much freedom in this way, but in that case they are not fulfilling the duties of their parental vocation and so are really practicing a secular version of unschooling.

On the other side of the coin, Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and John Holt all, in their own way, agree that the teacher/parent should not overly interfere in the learning of children, that much learning should be auto-educative, and that children should have a great deal of freedom in choosing those activities which most interest them. The adult can do some direct teaching but focuses mainly on facilitating the child's learning, whether that means answering questions, having conversations, locating the necessary resources, going places in the community, setting up lessons, or teaching specific skills when asked.

The Catholic Church's Mass schedule and the liturgical year provide a seasonal framework for ordering one's days, so Catholic unschooling will have a basic, intrinsic structure in this regard. Especially once Beezy and I are both taking Holy Communion, I want to add Wednesday morning Mass in addition to the usual Sunday morning (or Saturday evening). Praying the Rosary together and reading the associated Bible mysteries (stories) will be part of our curriculum. Doing copy work of Rosary and other prayers, as well as hymns and songs from Mass, and memorization of daily liturgical Bible readings will provide some of the practice of copy work and recitation. Right now Beezy has piano lessons on Mondays and religious education classes at church on Wednesday evenings, as well as regular play dates, so those activities also provide structure.

In general, I will apply the Montessori method to our Catholic unschooling by way of following the child and giving choices; role modeling desired behaviors and attitudes; encouraging practical life skills; a carefully prepared home environment that facilitates self-teaching and exploration of ideas; and close observation of the child to see who she is as a person, how best she learns, and what she is most interested in doing. From Charlotte Mason we will continue with living books and narration, keeping a nature journal, hand crafts, and spending time in the natural world and gardening. Since workbooks for math and phonics work well for us, we'll continue to use them, and we will take full advantage of library and online resources. I think this will all come together organically in a balanced system of learning and living in natural ways.

Easing into the Little Way of Unschooling

I am currently reading Homeschooling with Gentleness: A Catholic Discovers Unschooling by Suzie Andres. I am mostly convinced that Catholics can, in good conscience, unschool. But doing this is harder said than done. Our lesson time started out well today. Beezy finished a chapter in her Ginn reader and enjoyed the story. Then she completed her Hail Mary copy work just fine. I read the end of a novel to her, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, which by the way was quite good. I took a shower and got myself together while Beezy worked on her room, straightening up her things throughout the house, and putting stuff where it belongs.

Beezy did a math workbook page. Then came her piano theory homework, and I started to get impatient trying to keep her on task. Her teacher recommends only 15 minutes of practice a day, and I didn't want to run over, so I felt pressured (by myself, really) to hurry her along. We ended up spending 20 minutes on it. Is this really an issue? Why not just do the work until it seems that she is ready to be done, whether that takes 10 minutes or half an hour? I forgot to follow the child. Sorry, Maria Montessori!

While we were doing the piano homework, my husband came along and said a library book could not be renewed, so then I felt pressured to get the book read and narrated, even though what I said to him is that we did not have to rush to get it back. We have teacher library cards, which means that we don't accumulate fines on overdue books. Surely the person requesting, Don't Ride the Bus on Monday could wait a day or two? But against my own wisdom, I read this wonderful Rosa Parks story and enjoyed it less than I might have if I had picked it up when I felt more relaxed. Beezy would most likely have enjoyed it better too. She was noticeably fidgety at this time, so I sent her out to walk the dog in the middle of the book. When it was finished, she gave a creative narration that reminded me of a "spoken word" poem. She got a little carried away at the end, but I resisted my urge to tell her not to be so silly during her narration. I also did not use my plan book or check anything off. So plus points given for Mommio, and other points taken away! I know, progress, not perfection.

Collage Style Catholic Unschooling

We did get to lesson time today, after Beezy's homeschool friend left. She read three pages aloud to me from her Ginn reader, On Cherry Street. I usually have her read at least two pages, and this evening she wanted to read a third. I read a chapter to her from Little Town on the Prairie, which she narrated Charlotte Mason style. Then she did copy work from the Hail Mary prayer. Her dad came home in the midst of this bearing a new Monster High doll, so lesson time ended, and we had dinner.

Considering again Holly Pierlot's objections to Catholic homeschoolers adopting the use of the term unschooling, I think her point about John Holt's educational theories being secular and perhaps opposed to the Catholic parental vocation are valid. However, I will need to revisit his writings in more depth, because I'm not certain that what he advocated was anti-teaching. Certainly he was against a coercive, one size fits all, institutionalized schooling situation. But from what I have read from Catholic unschoolers, they are able to take the ideas of John Holt and apply them from within the domestic church.

The open source style of learning can incorporate faith formation; lessons of the child's choosing, such as piano or dance; apprenticeships; any curriculum that is useful and fits the child's needs; chores and family responsibilities; varying degrees of structure, etc... The direct teaching of skills such as reading is not frowned upon if children do not pick them up naturally, nor is formal work required by the parents forbidden. A common theme is that there is no timetable for when to learn any particular thing, and there is no rigid establishment of what is important for all children to learn. Learning is individualized, largely driven by a child's interests and each family's values.

In addition to John Holt, the names that most commonly come up on the path to unschooling are Maria Montessori and Charlotte Mason. Classical Catholic education is also often utilized in an unschooling approach. The key seems to be that parents and children are not slaves to a commercial curriculum and the daily checking off of items completed. Segue style learning, which I have written about before, is an approach of following an organic process of making connections between ideas, experiences and subject matter--the science of relations about which Charlotte Mason wrote. Learning is not compartmentalized from the rest of life. By "collage style" I mean that you take what you like from any number of sources and use whatever fits your family best, producing a customized education for each child that promotes faith, self-discipline, useful life skills, and an authentic human character.

In future posts I will flesh this collage style of Catholic unschooling out, giving ideas for a basic format and implementation of such a prospect. I will also incorporate the teachings of Therese of Lisieux and John Bosco, who are called upon as patron saints for Catholic unschoolers, as well as the writings of other notables of the faith such as Pope John Paul II.

St. Therese

Home (Un?) Schooling, Relaxed Catholic Charlotte Mason Style

"Relaxed Catholic Charlotte Mason" is a rather wordy way to explain my homeschooling style, but it will have to do right now, while I am in a phase of re-evaluating, re-defining, and setting a new course. I know what Romeo (or was it Juliet?) said about a rose by any other name smelling as sweet, but in the end it really did matter that he was a Montague and she a Capulet.

Charlotte Mason was Christian, but I don't know if she was specifically Catholic. At any rate, it is clear that she and Maria Montessori, who was Catholic, have influenced my philosophy and practices of education heavily, and for me, the Catholic part of Beezy's education must come first. Faith was at the heart of helping children to learn and grow in every area of life for these two lovely ladies. So whether or not I will definitely use the term "unschooling", I will most certainly be teaching my child in the way she should go.

"Jesus saith unto her, Woman, why weepest thou? whom seekest thou? She, supposing him to be the gardener, saith unto him, Sir, if thou have borne him hence, tell me where thou hast laid him, and I will take him away. Jesus saith unto her, Mary. She turned herself, and saith unto him, Rabboni! which is to say, Master. Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God."  
( John 20:15-17 )
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Mary Magdalene calls Jesus "Rabonni", the Jewish word meaning My Great Teacher or Master, the title of highest honor. Jesus was (and still is) the greatest teacher of all time, and all Christians are to emulate him. The Bible is full of exhortations to parents to teach their children well, not to allow them to "self-regulate" willy-nilly.  That being said, Jesus did not proscribe to the practices of the traditional teachers of his day. The man was radical. He danced to the beat of God's drum, and God's drum alone. He wanted the children to come to him and said that we must be like children to enter the kingdom of heaven. Children full of awe, wonder, humility, curiosity, innocence, exuberance, and faith. The public schools by and large crush these qualities in children. I fear that in the effort to disassociate from the traditional schools and their methods (which actually aren't the truly traditional ways of America), some homeschoolers have rejected teaching as well as schooling. They have thrown the baby out with the bathwater.


If I decide to be an unschooler, I will mean it in the sense of de-institutionalizing my homeschooling. In fact, the word "homeschooling" doesn't really make sense at all, as the home is a domestic church, not a school by way of the most common definitions. Unschooling better reflects the reality of home-based education, or at least it should.  I will continue to explore and define what unschooling means to me. But one thing is for sure: if I do declare that Catholic unschooling is my style of home education, teacher will not be a dirty word. If it's good enough for my Lord, it's good enough for me.

Charlotte Mason Unschooling

*Note to readers: As this is a very popular post, I feel compelled to tell you that I no longer advocate blending Charlotte Mason with unschooling. I believe that at its root, and especially in its "radical" form, unschooling is contradictory to the Christian parental vocation. I am now a strong advocate of a Catholic adaptation of the philosophy and methodology of Charlotte Mason in an uncompromised, yet still contemporary, form. All of the goodness advertised in unschooling can be found by going further up and deeper into CM, without any of unschooling's baggage. However, I think that the content of this article remains of edifying value, so if you find it helpful on your homeschooling journey, then it has served its purpose. Thank you kindly for reading!

Before anyone screams at me, I realize that the title of this post is a contradiction in terms--which is exactly why it works for me. I have always been the eclectic type, in decorating, personal style, education, interests, etc... My personality is composed of diametrical opposites, which used to make it hard for me to understand myself. Now I'm perfectly comfortable with my seeming contradictions. You know, the whole "introverted extrovert" or "extroverted introvert" thing. I am a walking oxymoron. Will I stick with this label of my homeschooling style, Charlotte Mason unschooling? Hard to tell, since I am still waiting for the unschoolers to describe their lifestyle and what it is that they do (and don't do). But in the end I'll do my own thing anyway, so onward we go!

Lest you think that the CM method and unschooling go together like liver and strawberries, read Kathy Ward's online article, "Why I Like Charlotte Mason" (http://sandradodd.com/people/kathyward/charlottemason). She gives several quotes from Charlotte Mason and John Holt to show their philosophical similarity. I was so impressed with this that I don't think I could possibly express the idea any better than she has, so thanks, Kathy!

I was feeling like I needed to do something different with our homeschooling, though it was actually flowing along quite nicely. That seems ironic when I think about it. Shouldn't we leave well enough alone and not go looking for trouble? Maybe that was what got me thinking about unschooling. Since our system has been working so well, and I am happy with Beezy's academic progress, it seems to me to be time to branch out. Beezy is endlessly creative, so that isn't an issue. But we could get back to needlepoint projects, for example. We could go on day trips and travel around the country. We have access to the woods in Michigan that we could visit more often. She wants to be a singer, which may or may not work out, but she has from a very young age shown a talent for song writing. She is taking piano lessons, and her homework book already has her making up tunes. It pleased her that she has homework "like the other kids" now, but hers is "easier because it's piano and it's fun."

Today we handmade tons of valentines and baked a strawberry shortcake together. Beezy listened to Taylor Swift and had a friend over to play who lives nearby. Her cousin is spending the night, since she has no school tomorrow. This has been a good week to set school work aside and ruminate on how best to proceed. The Astra Taylor youtube video really got my wheels turning! I want to provide more opportunities for independent learning experiences for my child. I was inspired by the valentine creations to become a collage artist, and when looking for library books, I learned a new term--altered art. We looked at collage art images online. I have made "illustrated discovery journals" via the idea by Sarah Ban Breathnach in Simple Abundance for years. From my experience, children absolutely love collage art. So I am planning to create a new art area for Beezy for scrap booking and creating collages or whatever she wants to do with it. She makes stuff out of our paper recycling bin all the time. I want to create a similar artist workshop for myself!

I have encountered the writing of several other homeschooling mothers who have a Montessori background and also found themselves drawn to Charlotte Mason. I have pointed out the  similarities of these educators at various points in this blog. One notable difference between them is that the CM method is predominantly teacher-led (albeit only in the mornings), while Montessori's is child-centered for the most part (though the role of the teacher is crucial). Charlotte did not establish a highly scientific, prepared indoor environment like Maria's, because she was much more nature and literature oriented. Both gave their students plenty of free time and put a high premium on respect for children as people and their innate capacity to learn without a great deal of interference from adults. Both believed in the spiritual nurturing of a child as a foundational principle of education. Both approaches contain elements similar to unschooling's basic philosophy. I am leaning more toward the CM method now, as Montessori materials are very pricey and take up a lot of space, and a full application of the Montessori method would be very difficult to duplicate in a home setting. And I don't want my home to resemble a classroom!

For your further edification in the CM method, below are the 20 principles of Charlotte's educational method, followed by a sampling of attainments suitable for a six-year-old. Enjoy!

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Charlotte Mason's 20 Principles form a synopsis of her Educational Method:

1. Children are born persons.

2. They are not born either good or bad, but with possibilities for good and for evil.

3. The principles of authority on the one hand, and of obedience on the other, are natural, necessary and fundamental; but––

4. These principles are limited by the respect due to the personality of children, which must not be encroached upon whether by the direct use of fear or love, suggestion or influence, or by undue play upon any one natural desire.

5. Therefore, we are limited to three educational instruments––the atmosphere of environment, the discipline of habit, and the presentation of living ideas. The P.N.E.U. Motto is: "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, and a life."

6. When we say that "education is an atmosphere," we do not mean that a child should be isolated in what may be called a 'child-environment' especially adapted and prepared, but that we should take into account the educational value of his natural home atmosphere, both as regards persons and things, and should let him live freely among his proper conditions. It stultifies a child to bring down his world to the child's' level.

7. By "education is a discipline," we mean the discipline of habits, formed definitely and thoughtfully, whether habits of mind or body. Physiologists tell us of the adaptation of brain structures to habitual lines of thought, i.e., to our habits. 8. In saying that "education is a life," the need of intellectual and moral as well as of physical sustenance is implied. The mind feeds on ideas, and therefore children should have a generous curriculum.

9. We hold that the child's mind is no mere sac to hold ideas; but is rather, if the figure may be allowed, a spiritual organism, with an appetite for all knowledge. This is its proper diet, with which it is prepared to deal; and which it can digest and assimilate as the body does foodstuffs.

10. Such a doctrine as e.g. the Herbartian, that the mind is a receptacle, lays the stress of education (the preparation of knowledge in enticing morsels duly ordered) upon the teacher. Children taught on this principle are in danger of receiving much teaching with little knowledge; and the teacher's axiom is,' what a child learns matters less than how he learns it."

11. But we, 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. Out of this conception comes our principle that,––

12. "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."

13. In devising a SYLLABUS for a normal child, of whatever social class, three points must be considered: (a) He requires much knowledge, for the mind needs sufficient food as much as does the body. (b) The knowledge should be various, for sameness in mental diet does not create appetite (i.e., curiosity) (c) Knowledge should be communicated in well-chosen language, because his attention responds naturally to what is conveyed in literary form.

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.

16. There are two guides to moral and intellectual self-management to offer to children, which we may call 'the way of the will' and 'the way of the reason.'

17. The way of the will: Children should be taught, (a) to distinguish between 'I want' and 'I will.' (b) That the way to will effectively is to turn our thoughts from that which we desire but do not will. (c) That the best way to turn our thoughts is to think of or do some quite different thing, entertaining or interesting. (d) That after a little rest in this way, the will returns to its work with new vigour. (This adjunct of the will is familiar to us as diversion, whose office it is to ease us for a time from will effort, that we may 'will' again with added power. The use of suggestion as an aid to the will is to be deprecated, as tending to stultify and stereotype character, It would seem that spontaneity is a condition of development, and that human nature needs the discipline of failure as well as of success.)

18. The way of reason: We teach children, too, not to 'lean (too confidently) to their own understanding'; because the function of reason is to give logical demonstration (a) of mathematical truth, (b) of an initial idea, accepted by the will. In the former case, reason is, practically, an infallible guide, but in the latter, it is not always a safe one; for, whether that idea be right or wrong, reason will confirm it by irrefragable proofs.

19. Therefore, children should be taught, as they become mature enough to understand such teaching, that the chief responsibility which rests on them as persons is the acceptance or rejection of ideas. To help them in this choice we give them principles of conduct, and a wide range of the knowledge fitted to them. These principles should save children from some of the loose thinking and heedless action which cause most of us to live at a lower level than we need.

20. 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.

Volume 6: A Philosophy of Education Charlotte Mason 1922

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"A Formidable List of Attainments for a Child of Six":

(A reprint of a curriculum outline from a CM school in the 1890s, from Summer 93 Parents Review published by Karen Andreola)

1. To recite, beautifully, 6 easy poems and hymns
2. to recite, perfectly and beautifully, a parable and a psalm
3. to add and subtract numbers up to 10, with dominoes or counters
4. to read--what and how much, will depend on what we are told of the child
5. to copy in print-hand from a book
6. to know the points of the compass with relation to their own home, where the sun rises and sets, and the way the wind blows
7. to describe the boundries of their own home
8. to describe any lake, river, pond, island etc. within easy reach
9. to tell quite accurately (however shortly) 3 stories from Bible history, 3 from early English, and 3 from early Roman history (to note, we may want to substitute early American for early English!)
10. to be able to describe 3 walks and 3 views
11. to mount in a scrap book a dozen common wildflowers, with leaves (one every week); to name these, describe them in their own words, and say where they found them.
12. to do the same with leaves and flowers of 6 forest trees
13. to know 6 birds by song, colour and shape
14. to send in certain Kindergarten or other handiwork, as directed
15. to tell three stories about their own "pets"--rabbit, dog or cat.
16. to name 20 common objects in French, and say a dozen little sentences
17. to sing one hymn, one French song, and one English song
18. to keep a caterpillar and tell the life-story of a butterfly from his own observations.

R.H. Series, Day 10 (What's in a Name?)

This past Saturday my friend Renee from Keystone Co-op came to my house to share information on homeschooling with my chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR), one of whose primary functions is to support education. Renee noted that she prefers the term "home education" to "homeschooling," which is a topic on which I have recently been reflecting.

Education is something that happens neither exclusively at home nor in a school building, though homeschooling is surely based in the home. Education is an integral part of life, from birth to death. Understanding it in this way allows the homeschooling parent to relax into the process of educating her children. Renee affirmed that attitude and character must come into place first, and then the academics follow.  This idea brings to my mind section 18 of Charlotte Mason's synopsis of her educational theory:

"We should allow no separation to grow up between the intellectual and 'spiritual' life of children; but should teach them that the divine Spirit has constant access to their spirits, and is their continuous helper in all the interests, duties, and joys of life."

I have decided to try out my own term to reflect this philosophy, as I continue to explore the lifestyle of relaxed homeschooling, and refer for the rest of this series to "Home-Life Education." This term will encompass the broad curriculum of my educational goals for my child. As Maria Montessori instructed, we must educate a child for Life, and the edification of her spirit is the primary focus.

So that Beezy might come to understand such a broad view of education, I am no longer going to use the word "school time" to refer to our formal learning of the day, but rather call it "book learning time." For indeed, that is exactly what it is. The time spent learning from books, though perhaps a central element, is only one aspect of education. All of Life is the curriculum.

Relaxed Homeschool Series, Day 9

"Cautious, careful people, always casting about to preserve their reputation and social standing, never can bring about a reform."  - Susan B. Anthony

Today we had a reading breakthrough! Following Charlotte Mason's advice to incorporate "reading at sight," Beezy was able to read the first 10 words from Beatrix Potter's The Tale of Peter Rabbit, a real story rather than the twaddle of modern books designed for children learning to read. Up to now, when I incorporated sight words, they were written on note cards and learned using the Montessori "three period lesson." This is a valid technique as well. However, last week Beezy said with wistfulness, "I want to read." I knew what she meant. She had randomly been sounding words out that she came across but would become discouraged, for example, when she read "seen" for the word "sheen." Plodding along at sounding words out gets boring, and while learning to read phonetically is important, Charlotte Mason believed that "...his progress in the art of reading depends chiefly on the 'reading at sight' lessons."

According to Ms. Mason, once the child has a good handle on the sounds of the letters and the process of making words, he should begin to read literature, never books with only 3 or 4 letters in each word. The story or poem is to be taken only a couple lines at a time, 10 or a dozen words. The adult puts her finger under each word, going slowly and pronouncing clearly, and the child repeats along. The interest and intense focus this exercise of reading a real book inspired in Beezy was surprising and wonderful! She didn't yawn, like she often does reading BOB books. She was determined to master the lesson. Finally, reading was truly exciting! There were a few words she knew or could sound out; otherwise, she learned to read by sight, "Once upon a time there were four little Rabbits, and..." We worked on the whole sentence, which continues, "their names were--Flopsy, Mopsy, Cotton-tail, and Peter." The 1st 10 words Beezy could read fluently, not merely by memory. Thank you, Charlotte Mason!


We are continuing to work through Dr. Christman's Learn to Read manual, and Beezy loves the Starfall online reading program. Slowly and surely, we will work through the Peter Rabbit book a couple of lines at a time, also searching for those familiar words elsewhere in the text so that they can be recognized and read anywhere. It may seem a slow way to go, but Charlotte says, "Not so slow, after all: a child will thus learn, without appreciable labour, from two to three thousand words in the course of a year; in other words, he will learn to read, for the mastery of this number of words will carry him with comfort through most of the books that fall in his way."

The above quotes and entire outline of Ms. Mason's reading technique can be found in volume 1 of her series, Home Education.