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Mother/Teacher Encouragement- "Mother Culture"
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I have realized that at this stage in life and in homeschooling I am looking for positive reinforcement. I plan on buying SCMs new calendar journal, but I think I want more! I am looking for resources that can provide daily, weekly thoughts and encouragement. I honestly am hoping for print resources as there is something so calming about fingering pages, as opposed to reading from a bright screen. But I am open to any ideas!
I am also interested in resources that encourage and foster the idea of mother culture. I think I have gotten to that burned out point and I want to start attending to myself so that that calm and peace can then be poured upon my family as well.
Does anyone know of resources like this? Or just thoughts? Thank you very much!
Lauren
I listen to podcasts as I wash dishes or fold laundry. It helps the time go faster and encourages me. I generally listen to A Delectable Education, SCM, or Pam Barnhill (she’s got a couple).
In addition to the ones Holly mentioned, Schole Sisters and The Mason Jar are also good podcasts. They have been going for a while so there is lots of back episodes to listen to.
Karen Andreola has a blog called Mother Culture. She posts every couple of weeks or so.
Close Reads is a book club podacst with weekly reading and discussion. They read classic books and I enjoy learning from Angelina, Tim, and David. This is my type of mother culture. 😉
Make a list of books you want to read (or think that you should). Listen to them on audio while you clean the house or do things with your hands. You will be surprised how much you can get done while doing this. I sometimes follow along in the books. At least doing this gives my brain something to think about beyond my 4 walls and children. I mean that in a good way. Currently, I am reading Crime and Punishment. Lots of think on there.
The Charlotte Mason Institute group has some online video study groups that you can join for a small fee. They are studying CM’s books exclusively. My group was part of the inspiration for theirs, and I can say that having this group was blessed me so much. Not just because I am learning more from CM, but the camaraderie, the support, and love we have built up over the last few years. They enrich my life and bless my family through their friendship. If you aren’t able to join their groups, maybe you can start one here. My group meets weekly via Zoom, but you can meet as often as you want and use any virtual meeting group you want. We started with WebEx. I have heard of Voxer and, of course, Skype.
What a great idea! I have just become interested in learning more about podcasts, so I hadn’t even thought about them until you mentioned it. I have already downloaded SCM podcast and listened to a couple while cooking and doing dishes…I think this is going to be a gamechanger for me as I have grown to really dread being by myself all the time in the kitchen. Listening to some good podcasts is relaxing and gives me food for thought.
I downloaded SCM, Pam Barnhills podcasts, and the Schole sisters podcasts. I haven’t heard of The Mason Jar so I will look into that.
Thank you!
Sheraz- I love the idea of a support group. I will look into the website you mentioned. But I am also wondering, how did you find the members of your group and get it started? It sounds like these are all ladies you met online? where and how? Thank you for your thoughts and sharing!
Julie Bogart of BraveWriter is a wonderful source of encouragement! Check out her podcast as well as her “A Gracious Space” book series.
Daily Focus by Janet Tatman is a devotional for homeschoolers, both in print and ebook. Homeschooling Today is a quarterly magazine in both print and digital. If you are a member of HSLDA, they offer a discount code on HSLDA website.
These encouraging books are printed by Christian Light Publications by Frieda Thiessen, Homeschooling with Joy with 201 pages and Homeschooling Through Every Season with 125 pages.
Here is a link to The Mason Jar hosted by Cindy Rollins, the mother of Morning Time. 🙂 She is/was Pam Barnhill’s inspiration for Your Morning Basket.
https://www.circeinstitute.org/podcasts/the-mason-jar
RE my group: All of the original group met at the Charlotte Mason Institute Conference in 2015. All of them stayed in the same dorms and really clicked in their conversations at night. By the end of the conference, they had decided they wanted to read the whole CM original homeschooling series book by book. They went back to their homes and invited anyone who was interested to join. I was one of those invited. The first few meetings involved about 32 people, but over time about 9 of us stuck with it. We have read 3 books in their entirety and we are almost done with our 4th. We met together in 2016 at CMI in person for the first time for some of us. We still meet every Monday night for an hour or two. (Some of our first meetings went for 3 or 3 1/2 hours. We had to get better control of time, and as we went, our need for support leveled out. haha!)
Here is what I would do:
Check out options for the cost of using an online meeting host such as Zoom, Skype, or WebEx. Decide what works best for you. There is a small charge for some of them if you have over a certain number of people attending. (Share the cost with your group. Sometimes that helps with commitments.)
Advertise that you want a virtual group to meet online to read and discuss CM’s volumes. Participants will need to commit to meeting however often you decide to do – we meet weekly, but 2x month or monthly works as well. They need to agree to read the assignment prior to the meeting so you can actually discuss and apply the principles and methods you are learning about.
When you get enough people for the group, hash out the time and days you meet.
Create a reasonable reading schedule. We posted these guides in our own Google Drive place where we could all access as needed (we also keep running lists of curriculum resources as we discuss) but you can just email it. For example: For once a week meetings, we read 10 pages. For my local group that meets twice a month, we read 20 pages. For the group that is doing Brandy Vencel’s Start Here guide, we read the readings for the principle we are studying.
Everyone comes to the first meeting. It will be a bit chaotic for 2-3 weeks as you work through the technical part, but hang in there. After about a month, you start to gel and get your group. Some people will drop out so expect that. If it ends up with only a few people, relish it. That will help develop relationships that mean something to/for you.
If you are serious about leading a group, pray to know how to start. Check out resources that will help you know how to work the computer aspect. Look at study guides and helps. Brandy Vencel at Afterthoughts blog has two group study guides for CM. One studies each of CM’s principles in depth (called Start Here) and the other is for Volume 1. She has a leader guide and a member guide for Volume 1. Brandy is one of the Schole Sister ladies. Pam Barnhill is another.
https://afterthoughtsblog.net/product/start-journey-charlotte-masons-20-principles
https://afterthoughtsblog.net/product/afterthinkers-guide-home-education
Advertise your group on CM forums and Facebook. With prayer, a bit of internet magic and some preparation on your part, you’ll be enjoying a group of lovely friends soon!
@Lauren – I just got this notice in my email about new CM study groups opening up right now on the CMI website. I pasted the link below (scroll down the page to find two diffferent options). There is limited availability though, so you need to hurry.
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