The beautiful picture that unfolded as we studied Charlotte Mason’s writings about Nature Study.
Our children love to make their own movies and explore the various aspects of filmmaking. They have found that the bonus features on movie DVDs offer many insights about how films are made that they can try to emulate. Those little extras can add a lot!
As we wrap up this series, we wanted to make sure you know about the Bonus Features page we’ve put together for nature study.
On this special page, you’ll find lots of little extras! [Continue reading Nature Study Bonus Features …]
We’ve had a great time doing this nature study series, and we’re excited to announce our new nature study handbook: Hours in the Out-of-Doors: A Charlotte Mason Nature Study Handbook!
Hours in the Out-of-Doors compiles and organizes Charlotte Mason’s comments on nature study. [Continue reading New Nature Study Book …]
We’re approaching the end of our series on nature study. We hope you’ve enjoyed the posts and learned a lot from them. As we start wrapping things up this week, we want to share some of Charlotte’s counsel to parents. Here are ten do’s and don’ts that will help you guide your child in nature study. [Continue reading Do’s and Don’ts of Nature Study …]
During the past few weeks we have been sharing that there is more to nature study than just spending time outside. We’ve looked at Charlotte Mason’s ideas about
- why to do nature study,
- when to do nature study,
- what nature study looks like, and
- how to keep a nature notebook.
And most recently we’ve been discussing how Charlotte supplemented nature study with living science books and object lessons in their natural settings. Today let’s look at one more way to supplement nature study: nature projects. [Continue reading 5 Great Nature Projects …]
When I hear the phrase “object lesson,” I think of several little presentations that I watched when I was a child. In those presentations the speaker would perform some kind of attention-grabbing trick with an object and then use that trick as an illustration to teach a moral lesson.
Let’s make it perfectly clear right away: that is not the kind of object lesson that Charlotte Mason advocated! [Continue reading Natural Object Lessons …]
As wonderful as Charlotte Mason-style nature study is, it does have its limits. Charlotte was aware of those limits, and she did not use natural study exclusively. As we researched her comments about nature study, we discovered that she supplemented that foundation with three things: living science books, object lessons, and nature projects. [Continue reading Nature Study, Plus . . . …]
“Where do I find a nature notebook?”
“What does it look like?”
“How do we go about creating a nature notebook? Is there a template somewhere?”
Questions like these cross my desk regularly. So let’s reveal the secret of the mysterious nature notebook. [Continue reading The Secret of the Nature Notebook …]
“OK, I’m convinced that nature study is a great thing! We’re ready to go outside and do nature study! . . . Uh, . . . what do we do when we get out there?” Here are some of Charlotte’s key descriptions of how to do nature study. [Continue reading Nature Study in a Nutshell …]
If you bring up the subject of “when to do nature study,” different moms have different ideas in mind. “Yes, how old should my child be to start nature study, and how long should we spend outside?” one mom asks. While another mom says, “This will be helpful; I’ve always wondered which seasons of the year Charlotte did nature study.” [Continue reading When to Do Nature Study …]
Nature study is one of those aspects of the Charlotte Mason method that is often mentioned but rarely studied in-depth. Just what, exactly, did Charlotte mean by “nature study”? We’ve been combing her writings and compiling her comments, and a beautiful picture is unfolding! Over the next few weeks we will share that beautiful, encompassing picture with you. [Continue reading 8 Reasons To Do Nature Study …]