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New and overwhelmed
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I have been homeschooling with traditional methods for quite some time now. I really want to make a change because I feel like we are just going through the motions and not really getting our intellect touched. I hope that makes sense. When I look at what SCM has to offer, I get warm fuzzies… and I love what I see. However, I am overwhelmed by how do I truly implement it? Language Arts is the scariest one for me!! I don’t know how to let go of the grammar textbooks and know that they will truly learn what they need to learn. My thought was to use English Lessons through Literature, but I feel like there will be gaps… but then, I cannot imagine sharing all of the wonderful poems and literature with them… I would NEVER pull off reading all the lit/poems unless it is truly scheduled out for me. It just is not how I think. I can write my plan and achieve it, but I don’t know what books, or how many books to plan for. What about literature analysis? Part of me feels like they will get it just by reading, and then the other part of me freezes in terror scared that I will forget to teach something important and fail them at life. Ok.. yes, I am being over dramatic, but you get where I am coming from. So I am wondering… how do you get over the fear of letting go of traditional methods? How do you know it is enough without little boxes to check and worksheets to complete. Help!! I need encouragement to make the leap!
You’ve come to the right place:). This site has a wealth of free information, curriculum guide, etc. Also, SCM has recently come out with scheduled guides/handbooks for other subjects, if you feel you would benefit from following a preset schedule at first. Personally, we’ve moved away from using anyone elses schedules and I use the free planner here to help develop big picture down to a daily routine. Then, I write down in a notebook or large calendar what was actually done each day, sometimes just “as scheduled” or “spelling, math, Lit 1 ch. ” etc and I’ll note the hours for attendance record needs. A way of checking off, marking progress without worksheets or boxed curr. Honestly, our best days are when I’m too tired from the baby to make it look or feel like “school” and we just grab books, DVDs, sketchbooks and work thru the basket, interspersed with snacks, tea, and breaks. And no pressure from myself to accomplish a ton in one day. 🙂
I’ve had similar feelings! I just started gradually using more and CM methods in our homeschool, and I became more comfortable and confident. It was less overwhelming than trying to think about trying to change up everything immediately. I started by ditching science and history textbooks, quizzes, tests etc in favor of living books and oral narration and went from there.
We started using SCM last school year and I found the Enrichment Studies Volume 1 lesson plans to be very helpful along with the Genesis-Deuteronomy and Ancient Egypt lesson plans. Everything was nicely planned out for me–what to read and when. I just opened up the plans each day. Some things were read aloud, other books were for the older kids to read on their own and it would tell me which chapters to have them read.
This year I will be winging it more because SCM hasn’t come out with lesson plans for Enrichment Studies volume 2 yet…I don’t think…but I’ll be following their lead for Joshua-Malachi and Ancient Greece.
I have six kids, ages 2-14, so some structure helps.
Have you read A Charlotte Mason Companion by Karen Andreola? It’s a wonderful book for getting started and I am reading it again right now. It was very helpful to me as my older kids were in a regular school up until two years ago. It’s hard to break from traditional ways of doing things but I think that the variety and addition of the best of everything (beautiful art to observe, music to listen to, well-written stories to take in, etc.) has injected joy into our days. I can’t imagine homeschooling any other way at this point so I’m really grateful to have learned about Charlotte’s methods and for SCM doing the legwork and planning to help me implement it.
This year I will be winging it more because SCM hasn’t come out with lesson plans for Enrichment Studies volume 2 yet…I don’t think…
Enrichment Studies, Volume 2 is in our printer’s hands right now. Stay tuned! 🙂
Yes, three new composer studies will be released soon to go with the new Enrichment Studies, Volume 2.
We have several new products that will be released over the next several weeks. We will announce when each product is available on our email list.
Awesome–I appreciate the hard work that I’m sure has gone into the products. Looking forward to placing an order!
I keep coming back to SCM. I get my confidence up, then totally freak out 😛 One year I bought a bunch of things, but I think it was too much too soon for my oldest. He is turning 9 in 2 weeks and even though according to the state mandated tests he is doing really well, I still am second guessing anything and everything I am doing! I don’t want to care what the tests say, he’s not enjoying school and that makes me sad. This year I feel like we have hit the point where I need to really focus on what we are doing and get a good game plan for the future. I can’t keep skipping around. We took a break last year, just doing workbook stuff (CLE). It was a nice mental break for me, and at first they enjoyed the concrete structure of a workbook, knowing what needs to be done to be ‘done,’ but by the end of the year it was drudgery for us all. I am almost done with “A Charlotte Mason Companion” and it has been a wonderful read (albeit, very slow for me… I started several months ago, but I am determined to finish it! Almost there!).
We started school back last week with MFW’s Exploring Countries and Cultures (we tried it last year, but it was too soon so I shelved it). It’s OK, and I want to “love” it because I love what the company stands for, but so far I haven’t been able to get into it. I am torn between the comfort of a checklist, and the freedom that CM can offer. Argh. (I did read a side note in the manual that the first 2 weeks are tough to get through so I want to give it a little longer). My husband was a HS skeptic in the past, but is now my biggest cheerleader and supports me in whatever direction I choose to take. In some ways I wish he had a little stronger of an opinion so I could either head that direction or rule something else out. Ha!
So, anyway, that’s my “you’re not alone” ramble…
Jennifer, I completely understand your feelings of being overwhelmed and unsure. The fact that you are seeking answers to your questions shows how much you love your family.
Rest assured that at one point or another we all fear Language Arts. We all lack confidence in that area because of how we were taught (and what we don’t remember) and we feel completely inadequate to teach it. You are not alone.
A huge part of how Charlotte Mason taught was her use of living books. If you are presenting to your children a “feast” of good living books, they will be exposed to so much more than just grammar rules to be checked off on a list. You will find freedom in the method and soon see that your children will take ownership over what they are learning. You may find our blog series on Language Arts in the Charlotte Mason Method helpful.
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