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Your Questions Answered: When You Want to Quit Homeschooling
Sonya and Laura share encouragement and ideas for dealing with homeschool burnout.
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Sonya Shafer
How to Teach Shakespeare
I’m going to venture to say that most of us did not grow up with Shakespeare as a regular part of our education. In my school years, I had only one Shakespeare play introduced to me and that was a…
Your Questions Answered: Questions about Dictation
Today we want to dive into a few questions that we’ve received from different home educating parents who have questions about Charlotte Mason’s method of dictation. If you’re not familiar with that wonderful method for teaching children spelling, then take…
Hints to Teachers
On my bookshelf I have a copy of a book from the early 1900s that was used in Charlotte Mason’s schools. Many books like this contain an introduction full of helpful comments, but the introduction to this book is so…
New Picture Study: Holbein
A new artist has been added to the award-winning Picture Study Portfolios collection: Hans Holbein. Each Holbein picture in the portfolio has an interesting story behind it that will encourage your child to look closely and discover more about the…
Your Questions Answered: Favorite School Supplies for a Charlotte Mason Home School
Today, we want to tackle a fun topic: school supplies for a Charlotte Mason education. We already talked about what we consider back-to-school essentials for the mom, and those are more the attitudes that set the atmosphere of your home.…
How to Teach Grammar
Today we want to discuss how Charlotte Mason taught English grammar. Grammar analyzes the system and the structure of a language. That’s a heavy concept that requires abstract thinking, so Charlotte did not start formal grammar lessons until the student…
Nature Study: Not Just a Checklist
Today we want to discuss a mind-set that could be robbing you of some of the richness involved in nature study the Charlotte Mason way. We want to talk about whether your mind-set is a checklist (“Yep, just do that.”)…
Charlotte Mason Notebooking
Some of you have asked about notebooking and whether that is a Charlotte Mason method. It’s a good question, and the answer all depends on what you’re thinking of when you think “notebooking.” For some people, notebooking is like scrapbooking.…
What to Do If Your Child Doesn’t Like a School Subject
What should you do when your child doesn't like a certain school subject? Sonya and Laura discuss ways to approach this in your home school.
How to Do a Book of Centuries
I want to introduce to you a wonderful tool that Charlotte Mason used to help her students see where everything fit in history. It’s called a Book of Centuries. What You Will Need A Book of Centuries is basically a…
Dealing with Our Past Homeschooling Mistakes
Imagine a scenario with me. You are teaching your child how to write. So, as Charlotte Mason detailed, you set before that child a model of the handwriting you want him to copy. Now let me ask you a question:…
3 Simple Ways to Enrich Your Homeschool Experience
Just five minutes, three times a week, can enrich your homeschool experience more than you might realize.
Your Questions Answered: Back-to-School Essentials for Mom
This time of year, it seems like no matter which store you go into, there are lists and lists of back-to-school supplies: these are the things the students will need to get into the school days ahead. But what about…
How to Do Dictation
Today we want to talk about how to do formal spelling lessons in a Charlotte Mason way: dictation. If you have been following the previous articles in this How To series, you will have seen how Charlotte included some spelling…
2 Ways to Schedule Your Homeschool Day
Today I’d like to walk through two different ways to schedule a school day. Both are viable options. Use the one that fits best during this season of life. Over the years—or even during different terms of a single year—you…
4 Ways to Schedule Your Homeschool Year
Here's a look at four possible homeschool year schedules. Choose the one that works for your family!
Getting Started with a Book of Mottoes, or Commonplace Book
I just pulled a notebook off my little reading table and opened to the first page. And I can’t stop smiling at the diversity of wisdom and wit recorded there. First is a quote by Eleanor Roosevelt: “I decided to…
How to Do Transcription
Today I want to explain a practice that will help your student develop handwriting fluency, practice beautiful penmanship, encourage correct spelling, and feed your child’s mind with worthy ideas. It’s a simple practice, but it can yield big results. That…
Finding a Substitute Book
In a Charlotte Mason education, it’s the books that shine. They are the teachers, and a lot depends on them. That’s why we are selective when it comes to the books we recommend in our curriculum at Simply Charlotte Mason.…