On Designing Your Own Charlotte Mason Curriculum

I have been tossing the idea around for a few days to write a short series on designing your own Charlotte Mason (CM) homeschooling curriculum. I've encountered many mothers recently who are either brand new to homeschooling or wish to transfer from the curriculum they have been using. What I'm thinking about today is how home education is still very much a grassroots thing. The development of my homeschooling philosophy and the methods I use have evolved organically over the years. I would be hard-pressed to come up with a how-to on this beyond posting the curriculum outline that I submit to our school superintendent each year and occasionally writing an update. Each family is unique, but I'll try to give you a general guide for getting started.

I don't even remember when I first learned about CM, but I probably stumbled upon it while researching homeschooling online. I remember asking around the co-op we used to belong to if anyone was using CM, and there was only one mother who seemed to know anything about it. She lent me Karen Andreola's A Charlotte Mason Companion. I think my daughter was five at the time, so it has been six years that CM has been a part of our homeschooling journey.

Everyone else at the co-op used a boxed curriculum package, and Sonlight was a popular one. I checked into the cost of that program, which was several hundred dollars. Other companies were similarly expensive. I had my Montessori teaching background to rely upon, so I plunged ahead from the start with designing my own plans. I sought the advice of seasoned homeschoolers for book suggestions and to talk through navigating this countercultural maze.

So the first suggestion I can give is to seek out other homeschooling families in person. I met the first one where I currently live while shopping. I saw a mother with three kids out and about during school hours, so I walked right up and asked her if she homeschooled. I got her phone number, and we are still friends to this day. Facebook groups are a great resource, but I want to really emphasize seeking out home educators in your local area. The next thing anyone should do is to find out what your state's regulations are. You can search these at the Homeschool Legal Defense Association website (hslda.org).

Since converting to Catholicism, I have found my job as a homeschooling mother to be much easier. This is because the Church has clear teachings, such as that parents are to be the primary educators of their children. This in itself is empowering, to understand that ours is a God-given vocation. Also, faith formation must be the foundation of your children's education. When you design your curriculum with this focus, you can rely on the Holy Spirit to guide you. The academics are important, but they are always secondary. Your home is a domestic church.

A solid homeschool can be built with a very simple, basic curriculum. As you discern your child's unique temperament, learning style, and interests, you can make adjustments as needed and find what works best for your family. Always remember that you know your kids better than anyone and care most about their welfare, so you are by far the most qualified to teach them, regardless of your own educational background. 
The basics that you need, in my opinion, are the following:

- A Catholic version of the Holy Bible
- The Catechism of the Catholic Church
- A children's catechism (we use the Baltimore Catechism)
- High quality literature and music, which can be borrowed from the library
- A comprehensive math text/workbook and manipulatives (glass stones or similar for counting, an  abacus, a ruler, measuring cups, a set of number cards and math symbols, a fractions set, and a clock with moveable hands will suffice)
- Catholic readers, such as the Faith and Freedom series from Ginn or American Cardinal Readers from Neumann Press
- Alphabet cards and/or tiles and shaving cream for tracing letters if you are at that stage
- basic arts and crafts supplies, pencils, and paper
- a guide to the saints and liturgical year (I like The Year and Our Children by Mary Reed Newland and The Loyola Treasury of Saints)
- Rosaries
- The great outdoors
- A sketchbook for use as a nature notebook
- Art books or prints for picture studies

I have already suggested beginning to approach Charlotte Mason using Andreola's book. Next go to CM's Original Homeschooling Series, volumes 1 and 6, which you can read at Ambleside Online or purchase used copies. Use Elizabeth Foss' online Catholic 4Real Learning Book List (charlottemason.tripod.com), and you are ready to go! You don't have to spend a lot of money, and it doesn't have to be complicated. Just trust the process.

If You're Going to Do a Job Half-Assed...

Allow me to explain the title. When I was in high school, my dad asked me to clean the kitchen, so I did. Except that after I had finished, he came into the kitchen and reminded me that he had told me to clean it. Confused about what he meant, he pointed out the specific things I had missed in my duty. Dad asked, "If you are going to do a job half-assed, why bother to do it at all?" 

Far from feeling criticized, this "philosophy of the half-assed" was forever emblazoned into my psyche. The image of the half-assed stirs the imagination! And it challenges one to take action, to make a decision, to commit and to persevere.

I have been thoroughly committed to homeschooling, and even more so since becoming Catholic. As a convert, I had to learn what it means to be a Catholic mother and home educator. Catholicism has radically changed my worldview, and it is the ribbon woven through every area of life. The Faith supplies a depth of meaning and a focus that was seriously lacking before, and when I allow it to be, it is a balm for my perennially restless spirit.

I'm not surprised, then, that I also experienced a sort of crisis in my homeschooling as a result of my conversion. I had been using a relaxed Charlotte Mason method prior to being Catholic, and though that seemed to work well, I was always on the lookout for new inspiration. As I have written about extensively, I was seduced by unschooling and its promises of joyful, "natural" learning, while feeling simultaneous revulsion to the dogma of radical unschooling.

Blogs, Facebook groups, and other online resources bear testament to the eclectic approach to homeschooling that seems to be increasingly prevalent. It's eerily similar to the "cafeteria Catholic" phenomenon. When you start picking and choosing which tenets of the Faith you will and will not subscribe to, the domino effect will obviously come into play. Unfortunately this is not apparent to many, and the very center of Catholic belief, the doctrine of the transubstantiation of the Eucharist, comes into question for some of these folks. 

I am not saying that being an eclectic homeschooler is anything so very dire as falling prey to the temptation of self-will that leads to cafeteria Catholicism, or that there is even anything inherently wrong with choosing an eclectic approach to teaching one's children. One of the things we relish as homeschoolers is the very freedom to be who we are as individuals and families, and to prioritize that which we most fervently value in life. The great challenge is to find what philosophies, methods, and resources will best help us to reach our goals. Wading through the enormous possibilities can be positively overwhelming, and the result can be something hodge-podge, unfocused, and, well...half-assed. 

Let me illustrate what I mean. Out of curiosity, I once belonged to a FB group of Christian Pagans, or Pagan Christians, as the emphasis would vary. That will make absolutely no sense to some of you, as you will recognize in this wording an oxymoron. Yet there is a compelling urge for many to design their own religion, to take what they like from various sources and be "free" to worship as they choose. Never mind that the elements in question simply don't go together and result in religious multiple personality disorder, if you will. On a side note, one of the moderators for the Christian Pagan group was staunchly anti-Catholic, though she wouldn't admit to having a bias, and she kicked me out of the group! I was evidently too Catholic. So much for "freedom" of religion, eh?

In a similar vein, I occasionally come across self-proclaimed pagans and other non-Christians wishing to learn how to do a secular Charlotte Mason method. Good people, there is no such animal! Clearly, Charlotte Mason's overriding philosophy is that Education is the handmaid of Religion, as she wrote in Volume 6 of her home education series. And just as clear is the fact that by religion she meant Christianity.

Now, this begs a question for Catholics, as Charlotte was Anglican. Should we even be attempting to "Catholicize" CM, or is it intrinsically heretical, as Mariana Bartold of Keeping It Catholic suggests? As I have written before on this topic, I have found none of the heresies, such as naturalism, modernism, and pantheism, that Bartold brings out in her arguments. Her real issue seems to be that  Charlotte Mason was Protestant. In adopting CM's philosophy and method, we must recognize the "Bible-only" nature of Charlotte's faith and make sure that Catholicism permeates our curriculum. We must be certain, regardless of the methods we use, that our Catholic Faith is the foundation upon which we build our homeschooling. I have found no compelling reason that the Christianity that Jesus himself established cannot be the cornerstone of a CM education. I see no way, on the other hand, that one could rightly establish a secular CM homeschool.

Certainly anyone can employ the tools of narration, copy work, and nature studies, for instance, regardless of religious affiliation or the lack thereof. But using those tools in and of themselves does not a CM education make. For that, one must read Charlotte's own words, critically evaluate and understand them, and realize what the aim is in its entirety. By all means, you can be inspired by Charlotte Mason without necessarily adopting the whole kit-and-caboodle, but... And now we come full circle.

If you are baking a cake, and you wish it to turn out as anticipated, you must precisely measure the ingredients and follow the recipe. If you are a reasonably accomplished baker, you may make substitutions to those ingredients that work quite nicely. You may even be able to improve upon the original recipe. We have resources today, and increasing awareness of child development, that Charlotte Mason couldn't even imagine. I think it would be extremely difficult to do CM in a completely "pure" way.  Because I have a Montessori teaching background, I have used what works for my child from that method along with CM. At one of the Montessori schools where I taught, unit studies and whole language methods were integrated. Similarly, because they are effective and my child likes them, we use some workbooks, which are not part of either method.

I have done my homework in both areas, and I continue to do it. I have a firmly established vision for my child's education and our family life, and everything I do works toward that. Charlotte Mason and unschooling, despite some perceived common ground, are like oil and water if you really understand the purpose of each. I've come to be certain that it's important to narrow the possibilities and to commit your homeschooling efforts in a particular direction. Harsh as this may sound, it isn't okay to just "wing it", regardless of what mothers in other groups may tell you. Do you imagine that the Blessed Mother was secretly thinking to herself, "I'll just wing it?"

I only speak of these things at all because I have been there. I have been confused, and mislead by well-meaning people, and I've been terribly scattered at times. I had a belly dance instructor once who said, "Know what you are doing, and then you can do whatever you want." Another teacher said that you can't create dance fusion until you have mastered those forms that you desire to fuse.

So what I am saying is, be careful what you put together. Make sure you know what the ingredients are before you go about creating your own recipe. Have a firm vision and purpose in mind, and choose your methods wisely. Realize that method flows from philosophy, just as Sacred Scripture flows from the Church's Tradition, and not the other way around. Make an actual plan. Do not homeschool willy-nilly. Make sure, above all else, that your choices are Catholic, and keep yourself and your children out of that half-assed cafeteria line!

Natural Learning Updates

Over on The Sparkling Martins blog today, Dayna has written about how her oldest two children learned to read naturally, without phonics training, direct teaching, or tests. It's food for thought, the idea that people will want to learn this wonderful and useful skill, and therefore internal motivation will lead to the acquiring of it, when a child is interested and ready.

At my house we do "natural" reading lessons, using a Montessori inspired approach you can read about in the Aug. 31 post. Reading is not so far an activity that takes priority in Beezy's life, though occasionally I find her reading of her own accord, not only because it is part of "school". Still, she likes to read, and it isn't being forced upon her. Reading is also a part of other activities, such as the Pictureka! board game we played today. Being read to is still one of Beezy's greatest joys, and her comprehension skills are strong. Some days I feel content with her reading progress, while other days I find myself feeling a little frustrated. Then I know that I have to step back and refocus.

Keeping track of daily activities in my small leather notebook helps me to see that learning happens all day long, in a variety of ways. Learning is simply life. And for children, play is the primary and most effective method of education. Just now, Beezy brought a bug in that she found in our birdbath and said, "I'm studying it." I noticed it had wings and so was likely to die in the cup of water she had put it in, so she took it out and set it in the shade. So much can be learned simply through observation and conversation.

I do still need to have some formal learning time and a basic system to follow in order to feel comfortable with our homeschooling life. My foray into unschooling, however, has taught me that having a rhythm to our days, rather than a set schedule, provides for a relaxed flow and an openness to spontaneous choices. I do feel more joyful with a natural learning mindset. I think it is the unschooling attitude that sets it apart from other methods more so than the actual things done throughout the course of the day. Reading, math, writing, science, history, religion and other "subjects" happen in every homeschooling situation, and many of the same resources are being used. The difference is in why a topic or skill is being pursued, in what context, and in what form.

A common concern I come across in my reading are the so called "gaps" that may occur with homeschooling, and especially in the case of unschooling. This seems like a lapse in common sense. Regardless of how one is educated, no person will have learned everything there possibly is to learn, even if he lives to be 100. I know nothing about statistics, robotics, calculus, or accounting. Nor, at this time, do I care to. Even in my strongest areas, such as literature, there is still much to be learned. I was recently turned on to the poetry of Gerard Manley Hopkins, an English Jesuit priest from the Victorian era, who I somehow missed in college. I suppose Hopkins has come into my life at the time that we were meant to be introduced. What a happy surprise! I'm grateful for the gap in my education.

There is much deconditioning to do in our understanding of what it means to be educated. The U.S. is possibly on the verge of military action in Syria. Are we to embark on yet another war in the Middle East? All of the knowledge in the world will not help our leaders make the best decisions if they lack wisdom. Sadly, our youth is growing up in a culture in which wisdom is rarely considered, and even knowledge has taken a back seat to "information." The Common Core Curriculum being implemented this school year seeks to replace much of classic literature with "informational textbooks." The written word will be dissected until anything alive and inspiring has been gutted from it like a fish.

Education as information must be cognitively understood and memorized, within a limited context, whereas an emphasis on culture--symbol, story, nuance, philosophy, art, history, religion, language, ethics, and experience--results in greater understanding, in a relational context. Culture is not easily measured by multiple choice and true and false tests. Test taking skills are measured by tests. Only a small fraction of the learning styles and intelligences natural to humanity fit into the public schooling model of education. The "smart" people are the ones who best fit into that limited fraction and who are the most obedient and compliant to outside authority.

Despite my sometimes negative impressions of radical unschooling, I am continuing to open my mind, little by little, to its potential goodness. Yes, I believe that it sometimes goes too far in the name of "freedom" and veers into the perils of unparenting and neglect. But within the peaceful borders of what I believe to be the truth of the Catholic faith, I see the promise of a beautiful, thriving garden of limitless possibility for a better future for humanity. A sea change, one mindful family at a time.

Teaching Reading & the Three Period Lesson

http://www.montessori.org/imc/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=96:the-three-period-lesson&catid=79:principles&Itemid=70


This year we have begun reading lessons with the Ginn basic reader, We Are Neighbors. As you will find with many reading series, new words are given for each page in the back of the book. I use a technique for teaching reading based on Montessori's "three period lesson". For details on how to implement the three period lesson, see the link above.

The first thing I do is go to the back of the book to see if any new vocabulary words are listed. If there are, I point to the word on the page and simply say it, ie., "This word says neighbor." If it is a phonetic word, I will also demonstrate sounding it out. I have Beezy look at the word carefully and repeat it. This is the first period.

In the second period, I take one paragraph at a time and ask Beezy to find certain words, ie., "Point to beautiful." She really enjoys picture and word searches, so this is especially effective in reinforcing previously introduced words, and it helps me to see what needs additional attention.

In the third period, I have Beezy read the page we have just covered to herself while I leave the room. When she is finished, I return, and she reads it to me. During this period any issues of comprehension can be addressed.

This whole process makes reading lessons fun and provides a solid method for building reading confidence. It is this one-on-one teaching that makes homeschooling so ideal. There is no need to go any faster, or slower, than the child is able to go. Sometimes I have focused too much on how many pages are read rather than on how well vocabulary is being learned and the story is being understood.

Always in the forefront of my mind, I endeavor to instill the joy to be found in reading, to help my child build confidence in her abilities, and above all, to nurture her spirit. These are the ultimate goals. Progress, not perfection. Heaven first, and peace on earth.

Pause.

You cannot pass! I am a servant of the Secret Fire, wielder of the Flame of Anor. The dark fire will not avail you, Flame of Udun! Go back to the shadow. YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!!
--Gandalf to the Balrog Demon, The Lord of the Rings

A candle is lit.  Incense burns.  Sacred music plays.  I sit and breathe and tell myself, pause.  The Balrog Demon must go no further.

When I was a Montessori teacher, sometimes I was surprised at hearing a young child say to her classmate, "Go away."  This was not in the context of children leaving someone out of their game or trying to hurt another's feelings. It was a direct, assertive message given to the person who was intentionally bothering her and distracting her from the purpose of her work. Go away. Here there is no room for misinterpretation.

I have been as polite as I can be. Non, merci. I do not wish to play your game. Sometimes this is not enough.

Message to the haters and killjoys, the bullies, the hecklers, the frenemies and rabid critics:

Go. Away. Your comments have been deleted, unread. You are not on the guest list. I will not feed your dragon. I stand on the battlefield, untouched. I have prayed for you and send you in peace. Godspeed. The door is always open to those who choose to walk in the light. But, "I can't light no more of your darkness" (Sir Elton John).

I have not harmed you. You must slay your own Balrog Demon. I will not take your sword in my side. I will not ride the crazy train with you. I will not breathe your toxic air.  

I am busy making crème brulee.

Rules vs. Principles

Radical unschoolers make much ado over living by principles rather than rules. This sounds fine in theory, but then it occurred to me that principles might lead to certain rules, just as a matter of logical flow. What's the problem with rules? It seems that some fear that establishing specific rules would lead to punishment if those rules were broken, and punishment is not allowed. Instead, natural consequences should be permitted to occur so that the child will learn on his own to make better choices. I don't believe that rules necessarily lead to punishment. I do agree that natural consequences are superior to punishment, but as usual we need to define the terms.

At the Montessori schools where I worked, the teachers also believed in natural consequences, but in a different way from unschoolers. The natural consequence of, say, stabbing someone with a pencil might be to have the privilege of using the pencil taken away for a certain amount of time. The RU philosophy, on the other hand, would dictate that the parents do not provide the consequences at all. The freedom to use the pencil would not be taken away. The hope would be that when the other kid got upset about being stabbed, or hit the stabber on the head with a block in retaliation or whatever, the one wielding the pencil violently would realize that was something he should not do. This is only an illustration and is not to say that RU parents would allow their children to seriously hurt one another.

If the children were able to work the problem out on their own, Montessori teachers would do their best not to interfere. Especially if no one was physically harmed, we would often send the child who was telling on another back to her friend, reminding her of how to use her words to express her feelings. An RU parent would also likely use such guidance, so there are similarities, but the distinction is important.

In Montessori, the only consequence of many conflicts might be the requirement of an apology, a reminder of how to treat one another respectfully and with empathy, and/or a suggestion to draw your friend a nice picture if you had hurt his feelings. A time out might be used to help a child have some time to calm down before coming back to resolve the conflict. Natural consequences as understood in the RU way, with no direct parental interference concerning the outcome, sometimes work but often do not achieve balanced results. A child may not stop drinking too much soda just because his body has become unhealthy from it, or stop shoplifting because she got caught, for example. Therefore, I would have to argue against the idea that children will always "self-regulate" effectively. (I would instead champion positive habit formation and authoritative parental action when needed.) This leads to the next analysis of terms.

Another RU reason for not establishing rules is that this would be coercion. "Coercion" and "force" are often used by radical unschoolers in the same sentence. In reality, these words are synonyms. Why say the same thing twice? I think it is a subtle form of emotional manipulation, to make you feel bad for being "forceful" (in other words, somehow violent) with your child. I agree that using intimidation, bullying, or physical punishment to get a child to conform to an adult's will is a bad thing. But just as with the false idea that teaching usually means coercion, the villainization of rules goes too far. And here's the irony: one definition of "rule" is a regulating principle. Rules and principles are both codes of conduct. We typically think of a principle as a generalized, rather than a specific, rule, but these words are also synonyms on some level. The sharp line that unschoolers draw between rules and principles is imaginary. This hair-splitting doesn't help anyone, and it leaves the radical unschooling philosophy feeling flimsy and shallow.

It's as if parents don't trust themselves to be fair and discerning, and kind and gentle with their children, unless they follow a strict dogma of what they can and cannot do. They insist that their children must be trusted to make their own decisions regarding education and everything else, and so they must avoid any semblance of "teaching" or "rules" or "coercion" at all costs, or they will destroy their child's freedom. Do we free our children by chaining ourselves this way?

I agree that arbitrary rules set only for the convenience of parental control are not ideal and can harm our relationship with our children. Rules that naturally flow from religious and personal values, however, make good sense. They create peaceful boundaries. In this way, I also agree that living by certain principles can mean that not as many specific rules will be necessary. And self-discipline can be taught to a child without shaming or physical violence. One Golden Rule comes to my mind: Do unto others as you would have done unto you. This is a brilliant guiding principle to follow!

A Modified Homeschooling Fleur de Lis

 

Our homeschooling approval letter arrived today. The superintendent is always very prompt; I only turned in my paper work on Monday! This means that the evaluation by a certified teacher was completed and my curriculum outline finished. Not only that, but aside from what we will borrow from the library, I have all of the books we will use for the upcoming school year organized into a basket and an antique egg crate. These are next to our shelves of games and other fun, educational activities. A freshly dusted and tidied set of shelves, I might add! If you remember reading it, or in case you didn't, Order on the Homestead was one of the upper petals of my original "little way of homeschooling" fleur de lis. The center petal was Catholic Faith Formation, and the other was Charlotte Mason/Open Source Learning. The base segments represented Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.

Now that I have had time to delve deeply into studying unschooling, and have determined that many of the positive points are also found in Montessori and CM, I think I will modify the format. Catholic Faith Formation will actually be at the foundation, tying everything together, with the members of the Holy Family still in their places. The Faith is central to our lives, home (domestic church), and educational efforts. It should guide and permeate the methods (petals) used above the base. Since I am now calling our homeschooling philosophy Catholic Natural Learning, the upper domain of the fleur de lis will be Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and Unschooling. These are all natural methods. Order is intrinsic to Montessori's philosophy, while CM is strong on good habit formation. There is then no need for a separate category of "order on the homestead".

While unschooling's benefits are basically included in the other two methods, the emphasis on joyful living; partnering with children in learning; treating children respectfully and as equal people; acknowledging that the child is the primary agent in his or her learning; balancing the needs of all family members; and passionately pursuing interests has been such a good influence on me that I want to keep these principles in the forefront of my mind.

One more very important point to mention. Maria Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and John Holt were all brilliant educational reformers, and each cared deeply for children. However, none of these was ever a parent but Maria, who was not instrumental in raising her son, Mario. As carefully and mindfully as they observed children, none of them were ever homeschoolers. They were all classroom teachers, though after leaving teaching, Holt spent much time with families in their own homes. As much inspiration as we may glean from these folks, our own experience and intuition trumps any scholarly advice or modern educational guru. We know our children best. We know best what they need to learn and thrive as human beings. And if we aren't sure, no one cares more about finding out than we do. So trust in God, and trust yourselves!

I do not believe that the full burden of education and decision-making, or even the greater part of it, should ever rest on children. As they age and mature, certainly they can handle ever-increasing autonomy. Gradually. The gentle authority of parents should be exercised. Consistency is important. Peaceful borders (limits) are necessary. These elements create security for children and are part and parcel of the parental vocation. In fact, I would say that they are all quite... natural. 

Life, Unscripted.

One great thing that Dayna Martin addresses in her Radical Unschooling book is that there is no radical unschooling script. First let's consider that sometimes it does help to have a few useful phrases on the tip of one's tongue. In conflict situations in the Montessori classroom, for example, we taught the kids to begin with, "I don't like it when you..."  I felt like I got free assertiveness training along with my teacher education! I found that the same things that worked with young children worked with drunk men in bars. "I don't like it when you (name the offense)," was met with amazement and a cloudy understanding. Oh, women don't like that! Good to know. You could see the wheels turning. But I feel that to be authentic, one shouldn't be a walking, pat response. Using someone else's parenting style or scripted lingo will feel uncomfortable and false to both you and your children.

If unschooling results in a one-size-fits-all method of parenting, it is no better than mainstream patterns of punishment, abuse of authority, coercion, or generic curriculum use. In other words, there should be no "unschooling police", no bossiness about what you absolutely can and cannot do when it comes to unschooling. This would be failing to see the forest for the trees, and it would violate unschooling principles! I have discussed my understanding of unschooling as a method of education that does not separate learning from the rest of life. It is open source learning, not placing limits on learning according to time, place, or persons. Anyone in the child's life can be a teacher. Unschooling follows a child's interests and abilities, custom tailoring the education according to his or her needs.

Radical unschooling seems to have as its basic premise the extension of freedom and trust in education to other areas of life. But does this mean that there can be no limits, no rules, that the child should have everything and anything he wants, when he wants it? I think common sense alone would tell us, no.  Luckily we don't have to rely on common sense as Catholics, though. Original sin means that we have a tendency toward disorder in our desires, though we are, as creations of God, innately good. We must not fail to take either of these truths into consideration. We can also rely upon the particular trust in the Holy Spirit to guide us and our children, rather than some nebulous conception of blind trust.

Catholics do not consider immoral choices acceptable. Our freedom of choice is a freedom within limits, within the parameters of a set of definite values and guidelines established by the Church. And these are set forth for the benefit of all people and for their ultimate happiness, both in heaven and here on earth. So I can agree with Dayna that happiness should be the basic goal of education, but perhaps with a somewhat different slant. Radical unschooling for Catholics could still be possible within these boundaries, allowing for flexibility of rules, bedtimes, chores, food, etc.., which are determined according to a family's unique situation, values and principles, and depending upon such things as a child's age, maturity, personality, etc...

Radical unschooling certainly means respecting children as persons. According to Dayna, it is the path of balance, designed to meet the needs of all family members. It does not over-emphasize the rights and needs of the child. When I reflect upon my Montessori experience, the first school in which I taught was entirely child-centered and did not take into account the needs of teachers at all. This was extremely energy draining and spirit crushing.

Radical unschooling for Catholics could mean eliminating punishment. A partnership paradigm between children and adults is still possible along with the understanding that the parent is under the authority of God and teaches her children accordingly. We can establish our authority without being authoritarian. Most of all, I think it means freedom for each member of the family to be who God has created him or her to be. And it means that all families are free to be who they are. Unscripted.

Believing in Unschooling, Part 3

It appears that there are indeed Catholic families who practice radical unschooling, and they are not so dissimilar in their philosophy from non-Christian, radical unschoolers. I admit, however, that the internal struggle is still there. I vacillate from feeling the JOY of embracing unschooling and the creeping FEAR of...I don't know--the unknown? Worry about what other people will think? Worry that it won't work, and my child will "fall behind"?

It is summer, which is the perfect time to practice unschooling, when the public schools are closed and most homeschoolers are taking a break from academics. But I don't want to spend the whole summer with the spectre of what will happen in the fall haunting the back of my mind. The most logical thing to do, it seems, is to go from the known to the unknown--a basic Montessori principle. I know that my whole family is more joyful, and all of the relationships in our home have already improved, since I have increasingly focused on the ideas Dayna Martin puts forth in Radical Unschooling: A Revolution Has Begun. Just the night before last, for instance, it was getting late, and Beezy decided to rearrange her dollhouse. At first I wanted her to hurry up and put the things away so she could go to bed, but then I added, "but take your time!" She went from looking discouraged to feeling grateful. I respected her need to be doing that project at that moment, and it didn't take her long to finish.

My background as a Montessori teacher provides not only a philosophical touchstone, but a practical one; that is, how exactly might one apply Montessori principles to unschooling? Here is how it worked:  Children in my classroom would be asked if they would like a "presentation" of a particular "work", and they were free to either accept or decline. Most of the time they happily joined in the lesson. I think this approach could be successful with homeschooling lessons as well. Children naturally want to be able to do the things that they see adults and other children doing, and they enjoy having the attention of their parents.

Take a goal I have regarding the Faith. I would like to instill a routine of morning prayers and an evening Rosary. I can simply let my husband and daughter know that I am going to do these things and invite them to join me. They can either accept or decline the invitation. I do agree with unschoolers that internal motivation is much more effective in the learning process and in accomplishing anything in life in general, than the threats of punishment or disapproval hanging over one's head. Montessori used the word seduce, which in Victorian times meant to entice the child to wish to participate. The teacher sits on the floor with a project she is obviously very interested in doing, and the children will flock curiously to her side.

What do you think? I think it's an experiment worth trying, not just for the sake of the children, but for the sake of families. What if radical unschooling (which in it's best form could be called mindful parenting) could bring back the family as God intends it to be, the foundation and bedrock of a healthy, loving, thriving, peaceful, mutually supportive society? Wouldn't it be nice? Yes, but I don't think it is merely something that would be just great but is already too lost to be retrieved from the rubble.  It is possibility.  It is freedom.  It is hope.

My Catholic CM Homeschool Curriculum Outline

Let's face it, sorting through all of the possible approaches to homeschooling can make one's head swim, especially if too much time is spent surfing the web and reading ad nauseam descriptions and opinions. It might be easiest to just be eclectic, choosing from the homeschooling buffet the things one likes from various methods and putting them together in a hodge podge manner. This may work well for some. My belief, though, is that one needs an underlying purpose, a guiding philosophy. Then one needs a method that works with the child's predominant temperament and learning style. Some of this, for me, is provided by Marianna Bartold's Keeping It Catholic Series Home Education Guide. The rest can be found in the sources listed below, in the curriculum outline that I will be providing to our school superintendent (for the state of OH). 

I intend to continue with the Charlotte Mason method, relying upon Mater Amabilis and Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum for Catholic book recommendations for the relevant age group, and also potentially using choices provided by the other resources listed.  Despite Keeping It Catholic's red flag, Charlotte Mason is an adapted form of classical education, the teaching methods of which Bartold herself says can be used with any worldview, be it Protestant, Catholic, atheist, etc...

I wanted to get this done early so it is ready to submit as soon as the school year has ended. I am not primarily relying on my Montessori manuals at this point, but I still reference them occasionally for ideas. While the idea of unschooling still appeals to me and will be incorporated, I do think my daughter needs some structured learning time that is teacher-led. The CM method designates this and also provides for the free time, real world experiences, and child-led pursuits that unschooling champions. It's really the best of both worlds, the middle path between the "school at home" and the "freedom without limits" ends of the spectrum, neither of which is appealing. So think it out for yourself, but keep your homeschooling simple. Remember the "Little Way". In the end, the best way to learn to teach your children is to just do it!!

Curriculum Books and Resource Materials:

- Mater Amabilis: a Charlotte Mason style curriculum for Catholics (materamabilis.org)

- The Original Charlotte Mason Homeschooling Series (6 volumes by Charlotte Mason)

- A Charlotte Mason Education by Catherine Levison

- A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola

- Keeping It Catholic Series Home Education Guide, Vol. 1 by Marianna Bartold

- When Children Love to Learn by Elaine Cooper

- Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum by Laura M. Berquist
- Handbook of Nature Study by Anna Botsford Comstock

- Montessori Resource Manuals: Language, Science, Mathematics, Geography, Art,   

   Music, and Movement             

- Corresponding Montessori materials and similar manipulatives

- The Holy Bible, RSV, Second Catholic Edition

- St. Joseph's Baltimore Catechism

*Involvement with the Keystone Homeschooling Co-op for field trips and special programs, such as fire safety 
 

*Religious Education at Sacred Heart Church

Classical Education, Charlotte Mason (CM) Method: The Charlotte Mason method of narration will be used in the teaching of all relevant subjects. The child is read to, or reads for herself, from literature and retells (or writes) what has just been read. The use of what Ms. Mason termed “living books” will be the predominant choices, with minimal use of textbooks and workbooks. Living books are those written by an author who takes a special interest in his subject and in which the facts are presented in story form. Classical learning tools such as copy work, dictation, and recitation will also follow the CM method. Many resource materials will be borrowed from the library.

Subjects and Books/Materials:

Language Arts – handwriting (printing and cursive); Starfall.com reading curriculum and reading and writing journal; Ginn readers; Beatrix Potter book series; Little House on the Prairie book series; The Harp and the Laurel Wreath by Laura M. Berquist; children’s classic literature; Poetry for Children and Other People; Native American literature; public library programs; beginning Latin; American Cardinal readers (Neumann Press); The Velveteen Rabbit

Geography and History – United States puzzle map; Native American history and tradition; history of cultural, seasonal and holiday traditions; American Girl book series; visits to Sauder Village living history museum; Ignatius Press lives of the saints (biographical novels); A Child's History of the World; Hurlbut's Story of the Bible; National Geographic for Kids magazine; observation of the liturgical year

Mathematics – Montessori Tens Boards; Time & Money workbook; Total Math workbook; measurement; fractions with manipulatives; place values; addition and subtraction with regrouping; continuing multiplication; beginning division

Natural Science – Rocks, Rivers, and the Changing Earth by Herman and Nina Schneider; nature walks and keeping a 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; daily calendar; ecosystems/animal habitats; 4-H project: pets (dog)

Health Education – study of bacteria, mold and viruses; personal hygiene; nutrition; food preparation; herbology; vegetarian diet

Physical Education – dance classes; Parks and Recreation soccer program; yoga practice; daily outdoor play; hiking; sledding; trampoline; local running races; swimming

Fine Arts – painting; poetry and art appreciation; 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; ArtSpace (WCAC) programs; West Bethesda folk concert series; St. Patrick School art classes; 4-H project: cake decorating

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

Keeping It Catholic: Charlotte Mason Red Flag

“Every education teaches a philosophy; if not by dogma then by suggestion, by implication, by atmosphere. Every part of that education has a connection with every other part. If it does not all combine to convey some general view of life, it is not education at all” (G.K. Chesterton, The Common Man).

My Keeping It Catholic homeschooling guide, by Marianna Bartold, finally arrived! As I mentioned before, she red flagged both Charlotte Mason and Maria Montessori. I have read the whole CM portion (her objections to Montessori are basically identical), and the author makes what appears to be a fair argument for cautioning against some aspects of Mason's worldview. Her reasoning is based on the perceived evidence that Mason's philosophy is too laced with heresies such as rationalism and naturalism, and is inspired largely by the Enlightenment figure, Jean Jacques Rousseau. One should be aware of these issues, by reading Mason's own words, Bartold suggests. (Note: Having now read a significant amount of CM's writings, I have found none of those heresies suggested by Bartold nor any infatuation with Rousseau.)


The good news is that the methods used by Charlotte Mason which I like, such as living books, narration, and copy work, were actually borrowed from classical education. Bartold herself says that the classical method can be applied to any worldview, be it Catholic, Protestant, atheist, etc... In and of themselves, then, the educational methods used by Charlotte Mason are not problematic. Furthermore, she understood children and how to effectively teach them. Scholasticism is the Catholic philosophical application of classicism. Since this is all new to me, I'm going to have to read the whole volume and come back to distill what I have learned.

What about unschooling? It is not mentioned in this volume in the Red Flags section. However, Bartold does object to the idea she perceives in the CM method that the teacher is only a facilitator of the child's education, which is a belief embraced by some unschoolers. (I did not, however, get the impression that Mason actually thought this way in my own readings.) Child-led learning is said to be the inheritance of Rousseau's influence, so it is perceived negatively. The idea that children naturally desire to learn is denied, a point on which I vehemently disagree with Bartold. She understands John Holt to have been an atheist, but I have no idea whether that is true.  

My idea of Catholic unschooling, as I have put it forth, is that the parents must actively teach their children along with the child-led, auto-education (self-teaching). Merely "strewing" educational materials in the hopes that one's children will find them and be interested is simply not adequate. Radical versions of unschooling do not fit with the parental vocation. In my opinion, there is certainly room for interest-led learning and a relaxed, gentle approach, but the education of the child in every area of life, including academics, is the primary responsibility of Catholic parents. The child cannot be left largely to his own devices in that case.  

What I argue along with other unschoolers is that the "traditional" means used in public schools need not apply in acquiring an excellent education. So can I, in good conscience, be a "Catholic unschooler"? According to my definition, yes, I think so. This is true especially since Bartold thoroughly covers various learning styles and the four basic human temperaments and advocates that the parenting/teaching style should correspond to the child's individual needs. Custom-designing the education is thereby encouraged, which also fits in with an unschooling mindset.

On that note, look again at the quote by C.K. Chesterton. According to what he said, it logically follows that a child cannot get what qualifies as a true education, according to a Catholic conscience, in the public schools. The general view of life espoused in the schools is secular humanism, a religion at odds with any form of Christianity and many other faith traditions. For the Catholic parent, this leaves only the options of homeschooling or a Catholic school. If public schooling is absolutely unavoidable, then Catholic parents have to be even more diligent in countering the ill effects and in firmly establishing the Faith as central to the child's education. It seems to me that this would be a nearly insurmountable task, but with God all things are possible. The challenge for the homeschooler is to keep it Catholic, for the Faith to permeate the entire education.

Bartold lists St. John Bosco as a good source for Catholic educational philosophy and methods, who is also designated as an inspiration for Catholic unschoolers in Suzie Andres' books. So since I have much more reading to do, I think it's time to take a hiatus on the subject for now. Have a blessed Holy Week, everyone! Next time you hear from me I will be a bona fide Catholic!!

The Value of Routines

"Some parents, instead of being rigid about routines, feel they are helping their children become more flexible human beings by never 'imposing' a routine upon them, but this usually has the opposite effect. In our experience, we have found that children who have no consistent patterns in their lives tend to grow up into adults who are constantly seeking security and stability, and who, due to their fear of instability, are often unable to be truly flexible and creative. Consistent routines which are based upon the child's real needs provide a sense of security which frees the child to develop a strong sense of self-esteem" (waldorf-unschooling.blogspot.com, "Oak Meadow and bedtime").

This reflects my intuition toward implementing a flexible but more purposeful schedule and providing a more specific focus to our homeschooling as I explore the subject of unschooling. How can this make sense, the idea that unschooling led me to reinforce the importance of a routine? Aren't these diametrically opposed concepts? According to Oak Meadow, it's quite the opposite. It's common sense that children, and maybe teenagers especially, feel more secure when they have certain things in their days that they can expect, and when they are clear about their family's values and boundaries. Consistency for children was a key Montessori concept.

Beezy is so used to being read to at bedtime that it is almost inconceivable to her if it doesn't happen--such as because a parent has a sore throat or we stayed up very late watching fireworks. This ritual makes her feel secure, as do prayers at meal times and before going to sleep. She seems to feel similarly secure when we have a designated "school" time, and she wants to be finished with it by the time the school kids get off the bus. Then again, she gets excited for those days when the family takes a field trip on a Friday instead of doing school. It appears that both routines and variety are the spice of life!

I think that the key is balance. Routines don't have to be rigid, and they don't have to signal boredom, either. There can be a great deal of flexibility within a schedule--a new food to try at dinner, a new ecosystem to explore in your science studies, a different park to visit, a special feast day to celebrate or saint's life to learn about. Being spontaneous is perhaps more fun when it represents a break from the usual routine! I always had the same bedtime growing up, so it was exciting to get to stay up later for a special TV show. Certainly some rules should be broken (ie. Rosa Parks refusing to go to the back of the bus), but other limits actually provide the security needed to safely explore increasingly greater autonomy. There is no such thing as freedom without limits in this life. People can't fly of their own power because they don't have wings, just as snakes can't walk for lack of legs. Unlimited freedom can become its own cage, with children who grow up to be adults lacking in a sense of self-discipline and self-worth. I'm glad I had a curfew when I was a teenager, and I'm glad that when I turned 18, my dad granted my request to have it extended an hour. He could trust me not because I had always been given limitless freedom, but because I had shown self-discipline within the imposed limits.

I don't think unschooling is about letting children do whatever they want, whenever they want. Unschooling is about giving children what they need.

Discerning the Child's Needs

Beezy is sick and has been running a fever since Saturday. Thankfully we are going to the doctor this afternoon. It has got me to thinking about how different I can be toward my child when her needs are so clear:  cold medicine, herbal tea, saline nasal spray, tissues, good books to read to her, movies to watch, Tylenol, and lots of tender loving care. When she is ill I am gentler, more aware of what I need to do to help her.

More often I think adults react to children without taking a moment to be mindful of their underlying needs. Our culture focuses more on disciplining behaviors that are determined (often arbitrarily) to be undesirable. When a child is throwing a tantrum, or hitting someone, or running through the house, the automatic response is to punish the behavior, to scold (and therefore humiliate) the offender. My experience with Al-Anon, a support group for friends and family members of alcoholics, gives me valuable insight and a different response. This is the practice of the acronym HALT, which originated in AA. If you are feeling hungry, angry, lonely, or tired, you are to halt what you are doing and take care of that need in a healthy way, therefore lessening the chance that you will drink (or if you are the loved one of the alcoholic, before it can manifest in some other self-destructive behavior).

In a similar way, when a child is out of sorts we adults need to HALT for him. Is the child hungry, angry, lonely or tired? When Beezy was much younger, she would become overstimulated in large groups of people. Her dad and I could sense when this was happening, and we knew it was time to leave the party, street fair, or whatever crowded place we were in before she had a meltdown. Other hidden needs might be to feel included, to be paid attention to, to have some one-on-one time, to go outside and release some energy, to be comforted, to be accepted. There is always a need underlying the behavior, and the primary goal ought to be to meet that need, not to simply stop the behavior (or worse, punish the child for it). When the needs of children are discerned, the appropriate action can then be determined, which may indeed include a natural consequence such as a time out, having a toy or privilege removed, or making an apology. The adults in the situation may very well be contributing to the unacceptable behavior, and we need to take responsibility for our part in the problem. Is our own hunger, anger, loneliness, or sleep deprivation, or other problems such as grief and depression, coloring our view of the child?

There is also the issue of expectations. Not everyone has the same ideas regarding what is or is not acceptable behavior, or about what the natural consequences should be. For example, I imagine that there could be a large gap between how an unschooling parent sees and handles behavior issues, and how more traditionally minded people view them. Generation gaps, religious beliefs, and pop psychology are other possible influences. This is why observation of children is so important. This is why the adult needs to HALT before reacting to a child, before judging and making assumptions. Lording over children is disrespectful toward them. It is failing to see Christ in the child, and to me that is unacceptable behavior.

When I was in my Montessori teacher training, we actually had classes specifically on how to observe the child. We even took a field trip to the zoo to document in writing the actions of the animals in minutest detail. We did not draw conclusions; we just objectively watched and recorded what we saw. It requires more of the adult to be an intent observer, to objectively evaluate what is really going on with a child and to adequately meet her underlying needs. It is easier to blame the child, or if he isn't yours, to blame his parents or his teachers. They may be contributing to the issue, but when has blame ever solved a problem?

What I hope to gain from pursuing Catholic unschooling is a better relationship with my child; in fact, I think all of the relationships in my home will benefit from this approach to learning and life. When I become impatient or frustrated or distracted, I want to remind myself to be present in the moment, to really see my child as the amazing person and beautiful soul that she is. I want to extend the gentleness to her that I do when she is sick, at all other times.

Catholic Collage Unschooling

"The edge of unschooling is not a solid line. It will depend on the principles by which a family intends to live, and the philosophy of learning and parenting through which they see the world."
--Sandra Dodd

I am awake with stomach discomfort, so I am up early. Checking my email, I found this gem from Sandra Dodd's blog, Just Add Light and Stir. I must say, I really admire the brevity of her posts! They're daily meditations that say something meaningful in a small space. Another blog I recently found, Stories of an Unschooling Family, has also been key in helping me to assimilate this concept. Do you ever ask God for a sign? Last night for no apparent reason I went to one of my bookshelves and opened a journal that I began writing in March of 2009. At the top of the first page I read this:

Unschooling
Educating a child for life

??????????????

Four years ago I wrote this? My daughter was four years old, and we had decided not to send her to preschool, but to plan on homeschooling. I commented on the Montessori precept of "follow the child" and how it would gel nicely with John Holt's unschooling philosophy. And four years later I am just now coming back to this? I thought it was curious that since unschooling has come to the forefront of my mind, I have also been thinking more about the Montessori method and getting back to some of those principles. It is all coming together, and I think it's time to stop doubting and just trust the Holy Spirit in this. It's all well and good, and even necessary, to think through making such a change and evaluate all the angles, to use our God-given faculties of reason. But at some point comes the time to "leap, and the net will appear."


I also think it no coincidence that I will be entering into full communion with the Catholic Church at the end of this month. I will officially be a Catholic! This has been a long journey, and I already thought of myself as Catholic before beginning RCIA. I wrote a lot about my new religious path, and eventually I realized that after a certain amount of pondering, it is time to put the elements into practice. I think this is true in regard to unschooling. I have been reading and writing and talking about it. I have been testing the waters. Now it's time to jump in, or at least to wade out and really explore life away from the safe shore. So what do I want to call it? For now, Catholic Collage Unschooling. For me, this ties together the use of Charlotte Mason, Montessori, John Holt, and any other approach that is effective for my child with the teachings of the Church. There is truly no line between life, learning, and the Faith. If we believe, we can walk on water.

My Carefully Laid Homeschooling Plans...

I spent a lot of time on Sunday making a homeschooling schedule for the week. I thought I could use it as a prototype for generally ordering lesson times, to make sure things like learning the Rosary and practicing piano were accomplished. Then yesterday Beezy's first question was, "Is there school today?" She really didn't wish to do school. Yet somehow she quickly decided that she wanted to do shaving cream writing (based on a variation of Montessori's sandpaper letters), because "it was always my favorite thing." And she wanted to do it first. This was a strange coincidence, because very recently I had been thinking about getting the shaving cream back out. Beezy is still having trouble telling "b" from "d", so a relaxed, three period lesson on these was perfect! We then proceeded with following my original plan for the day. The entire lesson time was only three hours, including breaks for showering, getting dressed, walking the dog, playing, and eating. She also had her piano lesson later on.

This morning when she got up, Beezy asked what we were going to do. I had planned Tuesday as an art day, including a picture study via the Charlotte Mason method. When I talked about cleaning the art easel, refilling the paint cups, and setting up a new arts and crafts area, she didn't seem all that interested. She asked if she could watch "What About Bob?", which she is doing now, in the company of our dog. The thing is, if she wants to be able to do art, we have to keep our supplies in  good condition and have organized access to them. That means she needs to help with these processes! Everyone living in a home needs to pick up after himself and have age-appropriate responsibilities. Everyone benefits from an orderly, well-run household. 

 Bill Murray in "What About Bob?"

We'll see how my art day ends up unfolding. I anticipate that Beezy will be more willing to graciously help with my plans after having been allowed to watch her movie first. I cannot be too attached to my schedule. I have to allow flexibility and for Beezy to follow her interests as part of her educational experiences. At the same time, she does not understand at this point how much she will benefit from a beautiful arts and crafts area, and since "all kinds of cool crafts" is the interest she told me she wants to pursue, then she should have a hand in how this is accomplished. And she already found a basket with lid in which to keep the paint cups. I will put on some great music and let the transformation begin! 

Unschooling Red Flag

I'd rather have dentures than horrible memories of a parent forcing me to brush my teeth. 

I found this quote in an online article, "Beginning Unschooling: Some Ideas"(sandradodd.com/beginning).  I think if I spent any time directly commenting on this, it would be giving the sentiment a certain validation, so I will not.  It stands on its own to illustrate my concerns about adopting the term unschooling. I realize that not all forms of unschooling are so radical, but the unfortunate truth is that people who think such things are out there, and this is the impression many people have of what unschooling is all about. That Sandra Dodd, a leading name in unschooling, allowed this idea onto her page says "red flag" to me.

An underlying part of the unschooling philosophy is that children know what they need. Sometimes they do. We have all heard a child say, "I need to go to the potty." We have also all known a child so tired she could barely stand, who would not admit needing to go to bed. As an adult there have been more times than I want to remember when I didn't know what I needed or how to find what I needed. It would be inexcusable neglect not to directly guide a child toward what he needs, in fact, to insist upon it  (like taking him to the bathroom sink to brush his teeth!--ok, I couldn't resist after all...).

Which brings me to the whole teaching question. I have a book by John Holt called Teach Your Own. Clearly Holt was not against teaching if he used the word "teach" in the title of his book in this way. I may be going out on a limb here, but from the three books by Holt I have read, I do not believe that he would discourage any parent from showing a child how to brush his teeth properly and then following through to make sure it became a good habit, two to three times a day. My husband pointed out that radical unschooling is the flip side of the one-size-fits-all, authoritarian school model. In the case of radical unschooling, all children are still treated exactly the same, as if they were not individuals with varying needs.

What Holt advocated was that adults closely observe children to know them extremely well and therefore be able to determine how best to help them thrive. He emphasized guidance and facilitation as the chief methods of teaching, setting a good example for children to follow, and allowing as much self-directed learning as is reasonably possible. He was not even entirely against using some traditional schooling methods in those cases where they worked well for the child. He did not, however, establish a clear, systematic method of education. He used homeschooling and unschooling interchangeably and did not advocate any particular method, aside from teaching children in a way that corresponds with how they naturally learn. I think we can see the potential problem here. Unlike Montessori and Charlotte Mason, with their clearly formulated philosophies and practices, unschooling based on John Holt can easily result in muddied water.

So if I add the foundation of the Catholic faith to my unschooling, would the water then be clear? Maybe. After reading Suzie Andres' books, I think the water is certainly much less grainy. Still, after getting through the thirteen essays in A Little Way of Homeschooling, I was left with an unsatisfyingly vague impression of how this works. I enjoyed reading the stories of these unschooling families, and perhaps I should read the book again and see if it sinks in a little better. All of these parents were very active in the education of their children and did not strike me as "radical".  Interestingly, the essays of those who employed other methods in tandem with their unschooling did not seem much different in substance from those who were supposedly "pure" unschoolers, leading me to believe that what we really have here in some cases is a form of relaxed homeschooling, which overlaps in some places with unschooling.

What disturbs me is that there are those Catholics who call themselves radical unschoolers, which in my opinion is a contradiction in terms. Radical unschooling is diametrically opposed to the Church's teachings on the education of children, and I certainly do not want to be identified with such parents. I imagine this is Holly Pierlot's concern with Catholics using the label of unschooling as well. For those who like this term and have clearly delineated what it does and does not mean for themselves, it is certainly not my place to say that they should not use it. I think that the purest definition of unschooling, the one that Holt intended, is simply learning in an open source manner, without the traditional school building and the methods employed therein which do not reflect how children naturally learn. Many forms of homeschooling could rightly be called unschooling!

Unfortunately, though, some took unschooling for a ride on a runaway train, and their children are the derailed victims. Because of the seriousness of the implications of the "radical" approach, I have deep misgivings about adopting the word, even with putting Catholic in front of it, and even if I know without confusion what I mean by it. The jury is still out, but it would be irresponsible of me not to seriously consider these red flags. I do believe that the Holy Spirit is guiding me in a new direction, and that some of the tenets attributed to unschooling are useful and inspiring; but perhaps in the end I will be the fish that notices the nice bait, but also the hook, and swims on by to find more enriching fare.

Homeschooling's Little Way of Love

On St. Therese of Lisieux, from Wikipedia:

In her quest for sanctity, she believed that it was not necessary to accomplish heroic acts, or great deeds, in order to attain holiness and to express her love of God. She wrote,

Love proves itself by deeds, so how am I to show my love? Great deeds are forbidden me. The only way I can prove my love is by scattering flowers, and these flowers are every little sacrifice, every glance and word, and the doing of the least actions for love. 

 Therese in July, 1896

St. Therese's "little way" was the pursuit of sainthood through simplicity in an everyday life of love and in doing the will of God in the smallest of tasks.  Hers was a way of gentleness and the belief in the prevalence of the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus. How can the homeschooling mother emulate the saint's little way? First of all, by grace, by centering one's life on the love of God and the practice of the Catholic faith. We are models for our children of Jesus and the Virgin Mary, practicing patience and virtue in all things; and when we make mistakes, we make amends. We allow our children to be imperfectly themselves as well, and forgive them, bless them, and comfort them. We have self-discipline, and we model this virtue to our children. We correct them gently, being firm but never harsh, not allowing our anger and frustration to turn into severe and humiliating punishment. 

There was a Montessori teacher by the name of Pen, and when you walked into her classroom, it seemed as though a magic spell had come over the children. Pen's eyes were everywhere, but you would not hear her voice, so soft spoken was she, whispering into the ears of children who worked quietly and with intense concentration. They were not sitting at desks, listening to her droning attempts to cram their minds with facts and figures. She gave lessons to individual children and small groups, while the rest pursued activities of their own choosing, whether on a floor space designated by a rug, at an easel, or sitting at tables in chairs. How did this petite Asian woman exercise such control of her classroom without speaking above a whisper? Her authority was in her demeanor, the look in her eyes, the tone of her low voice. Her quiet grace was contagious. 

Pen is an example of a true artist at work. Are we mothers required to be any less?

A New Homeschooling Year!

I am planning to begin our homeschooling year tomorrow, Tuesday, August 21!  My husband will start his first day of teaching college for the semester, so it will be nice and quiet in our home.  My intentions are very focused this year on using the Charlotte Mason method, in a relaxed homeschooling environment, so I will post regularly on what books and materials we are using. Hopefully this will provide others who are inclined toward Charlotte Mason with some ideas, and I hope readers will comment with ideas of their own! For this method can seem intimidating, because it does not rely on a set curriculum purchased from a company.

The Charlotte Mason method, to me, is about natural family living.  Its tenets are living books and narration, nature studies, the formation of habits that lead to self-discipline, auto-education (basically, self teaching), and the use of a broad and generous curriculum.  There is structure in this method, and it does not fall under the category of unschooling.  Formal studies are traditionally finished by 1:00 p.m., with the afternoons free for doing hand crafts, spending time outdoors, being together as a family, and exploring personal interests. The spiritual growth of the child is on an equal par with academic development.

We will be focusing especially upon reading, so this will be the top priority.  While other subjects will not be neglected, I will be more relaxed in what we cover.  We use a multi-subject BrainQuest  workbook curriculum (available at Target for $10); otherwise, our resources come from "living books", which include classic and high quality literature as well as books written by a person who is passionate about his subject and provides the pertinent information in story form.  In other words, dry textbooks are very much not Charlotte Mason! Much of what we use comes from the library.  I have purchased some materials from Ebay and from a local education store.

Since Beezy, age 8, loved the Dick and Jane readers, we will progress using the similar Ginn readers, beginning with Under the Apple Tree.  We will also continue using Beatrix Potter's books, implementing sight reading primarily. The Ginn books will be a combination of sounding out words and the sight reading that naturally occurs by the pattern of repetition used in these readers. The BrainQuest pages will provide practice in phonics and spelling.  Charlotte Mason advocated beginning sight reading as soon as the basics of phonics have been learned, because this is where the art of reading truly happens.

She did not believe in ever using "twaddle" written for children which consists of only 3 and 4 letter words and the forced creation of sentences with obvious word families (ie. cat, sat, and bat all in one sentence)--sorry, Dr. Seuss! I can attest to Charlotte's wisdom in this, because the BOB readers by Scholastic that we started with were just such books, and they were laborious to read and a big flop with Beezy!  Long words are delicious to children, and the number of letters in a word should be of no consequence.  In fact, longer words typically have more easily distinguished patterns than words that are short and very similar to one another (ie. what and went).  And the recognition of sight words is encouraging to children, rather than having to sound out each and every word.  Decoding is a building block, but it is not, in itself, actually reading.


Following Beezy's interests, she will begin to learn cursive writing this year! Since her printing is very neat, I believe she has the fine motor skills for cursive.  But we will still continue to practice printing skills, especially since she needs a little more experience with some of the capital letters.

For literature we will continue with the Narnia series by C.S. Lewis that we began over the summer. We are almost finished with Prince Caspian.  I read these books to her, and beginning with the next one in the series, she will narrate back to me every few pages or after each chapter. This takes the place of tiresome questions, allowing the child to make the story her own, and giving the teacher a true idea of the child's comprehension.

For history I will be reading The Earthshapers by Karen Speerstra to her, which is a story about a Native American girl of the Mound Builders, which include the Hopewell, who lived, among other places, in our state of Ohio.  For natural sciences we are studying the ecosystem of the rainforest, and our first book is actually a video of The Shaman's Apprentice by Lynn Cherry.  Both of these subjects will also be narrated.

For math we will continue learning to tell time, using a clock with moveable hands as well as BrainQuest pages.  And every day we will use a Melissa and Doug magnetic calendar and the song, "Days of the Week."  After some review with addition and subtraction, we will begin multiplication. We will also continue our study of fractions begun last year. I use an abacus and Montessori bead materials for math, as well as fractions manipulatives.  It is very important that the foundations of math be very concrete, rather than based merely upon the abstraction of symbols.  One should be able to touch math!

Soccer practice begins tomorrow, so that covers gym, and if we have time, we will begin a needlecraft project for children that I found at JoAnn Fabric.  I also got one for myself so that we can learn together!  And right there is the beauty of homeschooling--learning together and creating a unique family lifestyle that nurtures the spirits of all those living under our roof!