This is one of my favorite weeks of the year. It’s the “already, not yet” week. We have already experienced most of the year — we’ve made it through Christmas morning, decking the halls, singing carols, and slowly, slowly, we are emerging from our cocoa coma to realize a new year is upon us. This new year is a gift…
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On Reflection & Expectation
On Memory Work
The phrase “memory work” is one that can carry baggage for people. The act of memorizing something may bring to mind a collection of facts you memorized as a child that you now deem useless such as the planets or the names of the bones in the body. You may think of learning scripture verses in exchange for candy or…
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On Poetry: The Homeschooling by Subject Series
Do you consider poetry to be a staple of your homeschool? Oftentimes when the subject of poetry comes up with other parents, even the most enthusiastic homeschoolers will admit that they shy away from this subject. When I press to understand why that is, the answer is usually that they themselves are not excited about poetry. They consider it either…
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On Folk Songs: The Homeschooling by Subject Series
This is going to sound familiar; a lot of what I had to say about hymns applies to folk songs, as well. Of course, there is a sacredness that goes along with hymns that you don’t find in folk songs but that doesn’t mean we should skip them. Folk songs pass culture from one generation to the next and help us learn…
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On Hymn Study: The Homeschooling by Subject Series
Over the next few months I’m going to break down each subject and look at how we study it and what our favorite resources are. Our family adheres to Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education. To truly understand how to teach each subject, check out my series on Charlotte Mason’s 20 Principles. Hymn study is one of those easy to neglect subjects. We write…
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