Daily lessons that will help you spread a feast of art, music, literature, poetry, and more—wonderful studies that will enrich life for your whole family!
Click the Book List tab to see a list of materials needed for these lesson plans.
The 1st edition is now out of print. A new 2nd edition is coming in Spring 2024. More details→
We are excited to bring you a 2nd edition of our Enrichment Studies lesson plans in Spring 2024. The new 2nd edition will feature revised literature lessons with improved lesson timing to keep lessons short but complete, new introductions to help parents set the stage for each book, and deep high school lessons using the Great Book Discussions series. The 2nd edition will also include additional guidance in good habits, foreign language, and Scripture memory lessons.
Spread a wide feast of wonderful studies that enrich life!
Give all your students (grades 1–12) the variety of attractive subjects that makes a Charlotte Mason education so enjoyable! These enrichment subjects go beyond the “three Rs” to add life to your home school. The simple lesson plans in this volume detail a complete book list and daily lessons to help you provide an ample feast of enriching subjects in just one hour a day.
Also available in a bundle
Save some time with our convenient bundle which includes most of the materials needed for these lessons in one place!
enjoy the beautiful artwork of Constable, Rembrandt, and Velazquez;
get to know Robert Louis Stevenson and his poetry;
listen to the compositions of J. S. Bach, Beethoven, and Chopin;
ponder the classic and imaginative Shakespeare play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream;
be spiritually enriched by 30 Scripture memory passages and 6 timeless hymns;
learn the handicrafts of crochet and hand sewing, and the art of painting with pastels;
read wonderful literature books the whole family will love;
practice speaking a foreign language;
and form good habits that will prepare your children for life.
Resource List
Click on the Book List tab to see a full list of the resources needed for these lesson plans.
High School Credit
For the completion of assignments in this Enrichment Studies, Volume 1, using the Older Group of literature books, we suggest that students should be awarded 1/4 credit for Fine Arts and 1⁄2 credit for Literature. (If you continue similar Enrichment studies through all four years of high school, the student will earn 1 full credit of Fine Arts and 2 of Literature.)
Sample Schedule
The lesson plans in Enrichment Studies, Volume 1, are very doable, taking only about 1 hour a day. Your weekly schedule would look something like this:
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Scripture Memory (10 min.)
Habits (10 min.)
Picture Study (10 min.)
Family Read-Aloud (20 min.)
Scripture Memory (10 min.)
Hymn Study (5 min.)
Poetry (5 min.)
Foreign Language (15 min.)
Family Read-Aloud (20 min.)
Scripture Memory (10 min.)
Habits (10 min.)
Music Study (10 min.)
Family Read-Aloud (20 min.)
Scripture Memory (10 min.)
Hymn Study (5 min.)
Foreign Languages (15 min.)
Handicrafts (20 min.)
Family Read-Aloud (20 min.)
Scripture Memory (10 min.)
Nature Study (15+min.)
Repetition: Poem (5 min.)
Family Read-Aloud (20 min.)
The Enrichment Studies series
Our Enrichment Studies curriculum makes it simple for you give your students the wide variety of enjoyable subjects that Charlotte Mason recommended. The volumes can be completed in any order and can be paired with any of our other lesson plans.
*Three options are given for Family Read-Aloud books: a group of books for younger students, a group for middle students, and a group for older students. Select one of the groups to read aloud to your family—the one that best reflects the age range of most of your students. The Young Group is geared toward approximately grades 1–4, Middle Group for grades 5–8, and Older Group for grades 9–12. If you have a wide range of student ages to accommodate, you may want to select one group of books to read aloud and assign another group to older students to read independently.
Based on the sample, I am able to see what is covered in term 1 using the Term 1 Resource List. Could you please tell me what is covered in term 2 and 3? It looks wonderful!!! Thank you!
Sonya Shafer –
Hi, JeniRae. The list for the entire year is found on pages 8 and 9. Most of the resources continue across all terms, but here are the specific details for Terms 2 and 3:
Term 2
continue Scripture Memory Verse Pack 1
continue Book of Centuries
Creating a Masterpiece pastels
Constable Picture Study Portfolio
continue Enjoy the Poems of Robert Louis Stevenson
Beethoven Music Study with the Masters
continue Journaling a Year in Nature
continue Singing the Great Hymns
continue Speaking [Spanish] with Miss Mason and Francois
continue Laying Down the Rails for Children
Young Group Read-Alouds: Five Little Peppers and How They Grew; The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
Middle Group Read-Alouds: The Story of the Treasure Seekers; The Swiss Family Robinson
Older Group Read-Alouds: The Fellowship of the Ring; The Two Towers; The Return of the King
Term 3
continue Scripture Memory Verse Pack 1
continue Book of Centuries
Handicrafts Made Simple: Crochet
Velazquez Picture Study Portfolio
continue Enjoy the Poems of Robert Louis Stevenson
Chopin Music Study with the Masters
continue Journaling a Year in Nature
Shakespeare in Three Steps: A Midsummer Night’s Dream
continue Singing the Great Hymns
continue Speaking [Spanish] with Miss Mason and Francois
continue Laying Down the Rails for Children
Young Group Read-Alouds: Mr. Popper’s Penguins; Pinocchio
Middle Group Read-Alouds: My Side of the Mountain; Treasure Island
Older Group Read-Alouds: The Return of the King; Where the Red Fern Grows; The Innocence of Father Brown
jenirae –
Thank you. I was guessing many continued throughout the year, but wondered when Shakespeare fit in. I am excited to try it!
Patricia –
hi…. just wondering what happens when the year is done and you want to continue the set up. are there any other volumes?
Sonya Shafer –
We are working on the next volume, Patricia, and hope to provide several in the coming years.
Patricia –
Thats great Sonya… thank you! In the meantime, if this is a one year plan, can I adapt it to be used next year again with different materials?
Sonya Shafer –
Yes, absolutely. You could substitute different artists, composers, hymns, handicrafts, literature read-alouds, etc. and tuck them into the same schedule.
Patricia –
perfect…thank you
Rated 5 out of 5
Emily –
We have been using Enrichment Studies for 1 week. I have completely changed our curriculum and are relying on you (no pressure Sonya) to guide us on our Charlotte Mason adventure. My boys (8 and almost 10) and enjoying the shorter and more varied lessons. I am continually surprised by how easy this transition from online curriculum to SCM is going. Enrichment is my favorite time of the day!
Rated 5 out of 5
Helen Swavely –
Absolutely love and am grateful for this wonderful resource. It has made life so easy as we use this for our Morning Basket starting off our day with lovely thoughts, music, and art and more. It is our most favorite time of the day from our littlest to our oldest who a sophomore in college. (yes, he listens in when he can.) Thank you, Sonya and your staff for making teaching and homeschooling and breathing so easy. It has become the easiest thing I have used in the 16 years of our homeschooling. God Bless You!
Rated 5 out of 5
Stefanie –
I plan to come back and update my review once we are in full swing, but I purchased this book to assist me as I prepare to begin Year 1 with my 6 year old. I am super excited just looking through it! It is wonderfully laid out and SO incredibly simple! I plan to do the same as the above reviewer and use it for our Morning Time. I will substitute Outdoor Secrets for Journaling a Year in Nature. And for those who are on a tight budget (like me), it seems very easy to substitute free options via online resources, library, etc. for some of the resources suggested in the book. The guide is beneficial in that it provides some focus and direction for structuring your morning or enrichment time. I definitely feel more confident heading into our first year of homeschooling with this book in hand!
Rated 5 out of 5
Brooke –
Great resource. This is going to be our first year and I was overwhelmed but KNEW I wanted to provide a CM education. There has been a couple things I am doing slightly different (e.g. I will not be doing Spanish curriculum this year and I already know how to hand-sew but I will be doing my own projects with them) but it has been super easy to adjust what I need to follow the rest! This guide helps me so much, I really hope there will be a Volume 2 and beyond!
Rated 5 out of 5
Melissa –
I have so loved doing this with my kids this year, and so have they (ages 14 & 16).
Rated 5 out of 5
Laryn –
We love this concept and everything that is included. It was recommended to me to start the Enrichment Studies as a morning start to our homeschool day. I have slowly bought up everything I need, and boy does it add up. It may be nice to add a package for each volume that includes a slight discount?
Doug Smith –
That’s a great idea, Laryn. We would love to offer a complete package but don’t have the ability to make it happen right now. Regarding cost, hopefully you can find some of the materials at a local library. But even if you buy all of the materials it is likely more economical than many of the packaged curriculums out there.
Rated 4 out of 5
Mrs. Becky –
I love this book! I love this system! It makes the planing so much easier, and if a certain book isn’t available at the library/in my collection we can easily substitute without having tests and worksheets go to waist as with other curriculum’s. Last year we struggled to get all the Studies (verse, artist, music, hymn, poetry…) in, this year we are on track and enjoying our studies. We do spread it throughout the day some, doing the read aloud during lunch and them mom gets a quite lunch to herself during nap/recess time! This system makes teaching CM style easy and enjoyable for all. Mom is happy to have a plan that I can see and prep for ahead of time, the kids love the relaxed approach to learning. My oldest, age 8 says he likes it because there is more “listening to stuff, i take it in better”. The lack of worksheets or busy work is appealing to our whole family.
Rated 5 out of 5
mossyarmywife27 –
We adore our morning enrichment studies. We all used to dread “school”. I’d say, “school” and they’d say, “oh man”. I felt horrible too because I have 5 boys ages 9,7,3,2,1 and my 3 little ones were watching way more TV than I was proud of just so I could get through “school” with my older two. We were desperate for a change. Once my children realized learning wasn’t something to be dreaded it was a little comical because for a while they were still saying their infamous “oh man” I’d ask them why they were complaining and say, “I thought you liked our new school”. They’d stumble and think for a moment, “yeah I do, I don’t know why”. The word “habits” comes to mind. We are about 4 weeks in now and I can’t even begin to express how amazing it is to be able to all learn together. I shorten the lessons to accommodate the little ones so it’s taking us much longer to get through the lessons but I love the flexibility of this that I can use it as an outline and not feel weighed down to a strict schedule. This has changed our whole home school and is shaping our way of life, thank you so much!
Rated 5 out of 5
Sarah –
I would be lost without this book! This is our first year homeschooling charlotte mason style and i was very overwhelmed in the beginning! I didn’t want to do everything exactly as was planned such as Shakespeare, some of the readers etc that we had a problem with but it has been very easy to swap things in & out enabling me to “custimize” this book to what i want for our family. This book makes my days so much smoother, organised and has been invaluable to me as a beginner on this journey!
Rated 5 out of 5
Heather Lewis –
I appreciate the framework, ease of use, and beauty this resource provides for our homeschooled days. Thank you!
Rated 5 out of 5
Ashley Vasquenz –
I just received Enrichment Studies Volume 1 for my 6 year old and cannot wait for the upcoming school year to begin. I think I’m more excited than my daughter, because I know the quality of the education that awaits her. Using the library definitely saves expense, but we are opting to buy all of the reading material to share among all 3 of our children, and everything is easy to source. Overall, the quality of a SCM education is SO worth it!
Rated 5 out of 5
Rebecca Seymour –
This is a question rather than a review. My daughter has already read the reading list for the older group, except The Innocences of the Father Brown. I’m looking for some suggestions for a 14 year old girl who loves to read!
Please help me understand the whole concept of “Art Instruction and Handicrafts” as mentioned in the sample. My thinking is that there is an art piece that a child will follow or copy thru painting, sketching, etc., is that what this mean? Thank you!
Tamara Bell –
Great question! Charlotte gave students art instruction separate from picture study. You have the general idea however she did not have them copy a famous artists artwork. Instead, they would learn how to use different methods (paint, drawing, clay, etc) and be allowed to express themselves artistically. You can read more about Charlotte’s approach to art here:https://simplycharlottemason.com/blog/teaching-art-subject-by-subject-part-6/
Rated 5 out of 5
Rebecca Seymour –
I love this lesson plan book. This is our favorite part of the school day. After each portion is completed, I put a little check mark. It’s a wonderful feeling to look back and remember everything we’ve learned together. It’s enjoyable for the whole family. Each day has no guesswork, no decision fatigue, and helpful reminders to get up-coming books. Everything is done for you. Thank you SCM. Looking forward to using book 2 next year. Hopefully more of these will be available soon…hint, hint. They are a fabulous resource for us – busy moms.
Mrs. K –
We are enjoying Volume 1, and wondering if there is still a plan to release more of these?
Tamara Bell –
We are so glad to hear you are enjoying Volume 1. We are currently waiting on 1 more resource before releasing Volume 3.
Rated 5 out of 5
Krystle Olmos –
I just have a question:
In addition to the enrichment study, do we but all of the books listed in the book list tab?
Tamara Bell –
Hi Krystle,
Thanks for the question! The Enrichment Study Lesson Plans are the lesson plans for all of the resources listed on the Booklist tab. Unless you have substitutes you would like to plug in, you will need the resources on the Booklist.
JeniRae Morrow –
Based on the sample, I am able to see what is covered in term 1 using the Term 1 Resource List. Could you please tell me what is covered in term 2 and 3? It looks wonderful!!! Thank you!
Sonya Shafer –
Hi, JeniRae. The list for the entire year is found on pages 8 and 9. Most of the resources continue across all terms, but here are the specific details for Terms 2 and 3:
Term 2
Term 3
jenirae –
Thank you. I was guessing many continued throughout the year, but wondered when Shakespeare fit in. I am excited to try it!
Patricia –
hi…. just wondering what happens when the year is done and you want to continue the set up. are there any other volumes?
Sonya Shafer –
We are working on the next volume, Patricia, and hope to provide several in the coming years.
Patricia –
Thats great Sonya… thank you! In the meantime, if this is a one year plan, can I adapt it to be used next year again with different materials?
Sonya Shafer –
Yes, absolutely. You could substitute different artists, composers, hymns, handicrafts, literature read-alouds, etc. and tuck them into the same schedule.
Patricia –
perfect…thank you
Emily –
We have been using Enrichment Studies for 1 week. I have completely changed our curriculum and are relying on you (no pressure Sonya) to guide us on our Charlotte Mason adventure. My boys (8 and almost 10) and enjoying the shorter and more varied lessons. I am continually surprised by how easy this transition from online curriculum to SCM is going. Enrichment is my favorite time of the day!
Helen Swavely –
Absolutely love and am grateful for this wonderful resource. It has made life so easy as we use this for our Morning Basket starting off our day with lovely thoughts, music, and art and more. It is our most favorite time of the day from our littlest to our oldest who a sophomore in college. (yes, he listens in when he can.) Thank you, Sonya and your staff for making teaching and homeschooling and breathing so easy. It has become the easiest thing I have used in the 16 years of our homeschooling. God Bless You!
Stefanie –
I plan to come back and update my review once we are in full swing, but I purchased this book to assist me as I prepare to begin Year 1 with my 6 year old. I am super excited just looking through it! It is wonderfully laid out and SO incredibly simple! I plan to do the same as the above reviewer and use it for our Morning Time. I will substitute Outdoor Secrets for Journaling a Year in Nature. And for those who are on a tight budget (like me), it seems very easy to substitute free options via online resources, library, etc. for some of the resources suggested in the book. The guide is beneficial in that it provides some focus and direction for structuring your morning or enrichment time. I definitely feel more confident heading into our first year of homeschooling with this book in hand!
Brooke –
Great resource. This is going to be our first year and I was overwhelmed but KNEW I wanted to provide a CM education. There has been a couple things I am doing slightly different (e.g. I will not be doing Spanish curriculum this year and I already know how to hand-sew but I will be doing my own projects with them) but it has been super easy to adjust what I need to follow the rest! This guide helps me so much, I really hope there will be a Volume 2 and beyond!
Melissa –
I have so loved doing this with my kids this year, and so have they (ages 14 & 16).
Laryn –
We love this concept and everything that is included. It was recommended to me to start the Enrichment Studies as a morning start to our homeschool day. I have slowly bought up everything I need, and boy does it add up. It may be nice to add a package for each volume that includes a slight discount?
Doug Smith –
That’s a great idea, Laryn. We would love to offer a complete package but don’t have the ability to make it happen right now. Regarding cost, hopefully you can find some of the materials at a local library. But even if you buy all of the materials it is likely more economical than many of the packaged curriculums out there.
Mrs. Becky –
I love this book! I love this system! It makes the planing so much easier, and if a certain book isn’t available at the library/in my collection we can easily substitute without having tests and worksheets go to waist as with other curriculum’s. Last year we struggled to get all the Studies (verse, artist, music, hymn, poetry…) in, this year we are on track and enjoying our studies. We do spread it throughout the day some, doing the read aloud during lunch and them mom gets a quite lunch to herself during nap/recess time! This system makes teaching CM style easy and enjoyable for all. Mom is happy to have a plan that I can see and prep for ahead of time, the kids love the relaxed approach to learning. My oldest, age 8 says he likes it because there is more “listening to stuff, i take it in better”. The lack of worksheets or busy work is appealing to our whole family.
mossyarmywife27 –
We adore our morning enrichment studies. We all used to dread “school”. I’d say, “school” and they’d say, “oh man”. I felt horrible too because I have 5 boys ages 9,7,3,2,1 and my 3 little ones were watching way more TV than I was proud of just so I could get through “school” with my older two. We were desperate for a change. Once my children realized learning wasn’t something to be dreaded it was a little comical because for a while they were still saying their infamous “oh man” I’d ask them why they were complaining and say, “I thought you liked our new school”. They’d stumble and think for a moment, “yeah I do, I don’t know why”. The word “habits” comes to mind. We are about 4 weeks in now and I can’t even begin to express how amazing it is to be able to all learn together. I shorten the lessons to accommodate the little ones so it’s taking us much longer to get through the lessons but I love the flexibility of this that I can use it as an outline and not feel weighed down to a strict schedule. This has changed our whole home school and is shaping our way of life, thank you so much!
Sarah –
I would be lost without this book! This is our first year homeschooling charlotte mason style and i was very overwhelmed in the beginning! I didn’t want to do everything exactly as was planned such as Shakespeare, some of the readers etc that we had a problem with but it has been very easy to swap things in & out enabling me to “custimize” this book to what i want for our family. This book makes my days so much smoother, organised and has been invaluable to me as a beginner on this journey!
Heather Lewis –
I appreciate the framework, ease of use, and beauty this resource provides for our homeschooled days. Thank you!
Ashley Vasquenz –
I just received Enrichment Studies Volume 1 for my 6 year old and cannot wait for the upcoming school year to begin. I think I’m more excited than my daughter, because I know the quality of the education that awaits her. Using the library definitely saves expense, but we are opting to buy all of the reading material to share among all 3 of our children, and everything is easy to source. Overall, the quality of a SCM education is SO worth it!
Rebecca Seymour –
This is a question rather than a review. My daughter has already read the reading list for the older group, except The Innocences of the Father Brown. I’m looking for some suggestions for a 14 year old girl who loves to read!
Tamara Bell –
Hi Rebecca! We have a list of great books for older students found here: https://simplycharlottemason.com/planning/curriculum-guide/literature/ Hopefully you will find some new to her books. 🙂
leilanie –
Please help me understand the whole concept of “Art Instruction and Handicrafts” as mentioned in the sample. My thinking is that there is an art piece that a child will follow or copy thru painting, sketching, etc., is that what this mean? Thank you!
Tamara Bell –
Great question! Charlotte gave students art instruction separate from picture study. You have the general idea however she did not have them copy a famous artists artwork. Instead, they would learn how to use different methods (paint, drawing, clay, etc) and be allowed to express themselves artistically. You can read more about Charlotte’s approach to art here:https://simplycharlottemason.com/blog/teaching-art-subject-by-subject-part-6/
Rebecca Seymour –
I love this lesson plan book. This is our favorite part of the school day. After each portion is completed, I put a little check mark. It’s a wonderful feeling to look back and remember everything we’ve learned together. It’s enjoyable for the whole family. Each day has no guesswork, no decision fatigue, and helpful reminders to get up-coming books. Everything is done for you. Thank you SCM. Looking forward to using book 2 next year. Hopefully more of these will be available soon…hint, hint. They are a fabulous resource for us – busy moms.
Mrs. K –
We are enjoying Volume 1, and wondering if there is still a plan to release more of these?
Tamara Bell –
We are so glad to hear you are enjoying Volume 1. We are currently waiting on 1 more resource before releasing Volume 3.
Krystle Olmos –
I just have a question:
In addition to the enrichment study, do we but all of the books listed in the book list tab?
Tamara Bell –
Hi Krystle,
Thanks for the question! The Enrichment Study Lesson Plans are the lesson plans for all of the resources listed on the Booklist tab. Unless you have substitutes you would like to plug in, you will need the resources on the Booklist.