Teaching Reading and Spelling...

A while back, I wrote about spelling. I shared which curriculum I favor and some reasons why I like it. But how does that apply to a more Charlotte Mason approach of schooling?

Mason's belief of living ideas can still be implemented even when using a curriculum. It just requires an understanding of the curriculum and the freedom to begin stretching yourself. Let me first inform you that I am just a mom. I do not have a special teaching degree. I am just a mom who believes that this is where God has placed me and therefore I must be a good steward of this role. I also believe in self-education and living by example which means I take this very seriously. With all that said, I needed a curriculum that would teach me how to teach spelling. I did not want a workbook to do the job for me but I would need some help along the way.

Enter Spell to Write & Read

My first few years of using this curriculum taught me just as much as my children. We trudged through relying on grace as I wrapped my brain around this new concept of phonics. Eventually I began to understand and felt more liberty with the curriculum. I was learning the how's and why's of spelling and this knowledge would help me in the next phase of teaching.

At the same time I was reading Charlotte Mason's view on teaching spelling. She spoke of a child's first reading lesson and using a letterbox. My youngest at the time was in kindergarden and expressing interest in reading and spelling. (side note: I think one reason for our success is that I waited on him. I did not push him) I used magnet letters and basic flashcards to introduce the letters. During this time I taught him the sounds of the letters and we played short games throughout the day and before bed. It was an ejoyable experience for him. As time progressed I began to introduce multi-letter phonograms.

Teaching Spelling
"But the fact is, the gift of spelling depends upon the power the eye possesses to 'take' (in a photographic sense) a detailed picture of a word; and this is a power and habit which must be cultivated in children from the first." CM

I wish I had read this quote prior to trying to teach my then 6th grader. She could pass a spelling test but after that she could not remember how to spell the words. In frustation one afternoon I asked, "Can't you see the words?" She replied back, "NO!" That was an eye opener for me.

Not everyone learns how to spell the same way but there are some core principles that can be applied. I finally reached the decision that teaching phonics was the key and found that SWR met my goals of learning how to be a teacher as well as teaching phonics in a multi-sensory way. The first year, we just filled in the gaps and strengthened the foundation for my daughter. We were still struggling with "seeing the words" but I was patient. The following year we began to implement Charlotte Mason's dictation method. Over the summer, I attended a class on teaching spelling the CM way. Putting myself in the student's position helped me to see that this was not an easy task. It would require discipline and study. This would be the next layer in our journey. I will try to share specifics in a different post but for now, we used dictation to intentionally build her mind's eye. We progressed from "Mom, how do you spell...?" to "Mom, do you spell it...?" She was beginning to see it!

Illiterate spelling is usually a sign of sparse reading; but, sometimes, of hasty reading without the habit of seeing the words that are skimmed over." CM emphasis mine

 
Teaching Reading
One evening while his sister was at basketball practice he told me he wanted to learn to read. I had heard this before but procrastinated starting anything official. Quite truthfully because I felt like my plate was rather full at the time and I had a great fear of teaching this particular subject. That night he persisted and so I wrote down on a scrap piece of paper some simple words that used the phonograms he knew. I touched each letter as I made the sounds. I spoke slowly and then repeated it quickly. After understanding what I was doing, he took on the next few words alone. By the end of the night we had made a collection of words and I informed him that he was reading! :-) He was so proud and so I knew that it was time to introduce the next phase.

We began our first official SWR spelling lists and also began using our Pathway readers. The first book was a primer entitled First Steps. As learned in SWR, we "marked" the words that he did not know. Then we began reading about this little family and their adventures. He enjoyed the stories so much that he never thought of this as work. After a while I no longer needed to mark the words. He would get a pencil and do it himself. We progressed through the series and now he is reading chapter books and his Bible.

Building a Relationship with Spelling...

Spell to Write & Read

Recently, I shared my opinions on teaching spelling using Spell to Write & Read. In that post, I said I would revisit the topic and share how we merged Charlotte Mason's views on spelling in to this curriculum.

Before I could even digest how CM would conquer teaching spelling I myself had to actually understand it. I had to learn what the difference between whole language and phonics. I had to know what was meant by such fancy words as diphthong and phonogram. You see, I could spell. I don't remember ever learning phonics. I'm sure I learned something when I was little but I had no memory of it. I am the type of speller who can "see" the word and knows if it's right or wrong. So you can imagine my frustration when my then 6th grader (fresh home from public school) could not spell to save her life.
I clearly remember asking her, "Don't you see the word?" Her response was a resounding no!

What? How can this be? Everyone sees the word, right? Ah one of the first true lessons in becoming a teacher to my children. And so I began my spelling journey. In order to be a better teacher, I was going to have to immerse myself in spelling. I was going to have to become a better communicator. I was going to have to meet her where she was at. It didn't take long for me to find a curriculum that would help become my guide on this journey. I didn't want her to just be able to memorize words. We had been down that road and it wasn't working. She could get a list on Monday, test perfectly on Friday, and never remember how to spell it. We had to take drastic measures.

The first two years she and I both were learning side by side. I was finally understanding why we changed y to i when making a word plural. I learned why we have a silent final E at the end of the word little. A whole new world was opening up to me and I realized that the English language did indeed make sense and I could truly teach this subject. My confidence grew and I was ready to take on more.

We had spent time building a foundation. Now it was time to add another layer. First we began with accountability. When misspelling words we began to keep track of these words.

Our notebook:

1. One page per phonogram. If the phonogram had more than one sound we had a colomn for each sound on the page.
2. One page per spelling rule. We used the Chart Masters to help create this section.
3. Each time we had a misspelled word we went to the notebook and she would put it in under the phonogram or spelling rule that she had missed.

This idea came from modifying the Spelling Word Bank idea.

From here we began to incorporate Charlotte Mason's method of dictation. I asked her to choose a book that she loved. She chose Pride & Prejudice. Each week, I would select a passage and she would copy it in to a composition notebook. We discussed the words that we thought might be difficult to spell and analyzed them using the SWR method. Tuesdays and Wednesdays were her responsibility to study the passage and the words. On Thursday she and I would sit down for dictation. I would read the passage and she would write them down in her notebook. When the passage was completed, I gave her a moment to look over her work and punctuate where needed.

Then she was asked to check her dictation. The original copy and a highlighter were given to her to accomplish this task. When she came to a misspelled word or an incorrect punctuation she was asked to highlight it. On Fridays, she logged these words in to her notebook and we verbally went over the grammar errors.

Soon we began to see several rewards. First we went from, "Mom how do you spell...?" to "Mom, do you spell it this way...?" to "Never mind, I know it." This was a huge thing. She was finally seeing the word! Secondly we were able to isolate what phonetic sounds, spelling rules, etc. were giving her a hard time. This gave us a clearer picture of what to work on.

One of the big takeaways I got from reading Charlotte's work is that children need to build relationships with the words and have a mental picture of it as well. By using a favorite story my daughter already had the relationship with the words. That left us just needing to build the image in her mind's eye.

I don't think we would have been successful if I too had not built a relationship with the subject we were teaching.

A Charlotte Mason find...

We are working our way through Tapestry of Grace Year 1 this year and are started to get in to our rhythm. As we walk through the ancient world we have encountered mummies, nomads,Abraham, the Nile, Noah, Sumeria, and the story of Gilgamesh. Since this is my second time around, I am stretching my wings a bit and venturing out while keeping TOG's scope in mind.

My youngest has really taken to the story of Gilgamesh and it is always fun to hear how it comes out. Recently he was talking with a homeschool mom and mentioned that he is reading Gilgamesh and so she let me peek at study guide she was using in her school. I was immediately impressed with it. The study guide is written from a Charlotte Mason perspective and walks through creating a literature notebook as you read through the epic of Gilgamesh. It includes passages from the text for copywork and writing/essay ideas to complete the study. It is definitely one worth keeping in mind. My only regret is that Beautiful Feet has not created any more wonderful literature study guides.

Organized Simplicity...the calendar

Words can not describe how much Organized Simplicity, has been rolling around in my mind. It seems like each week a new facet is brought forth for me to consider. This week it is the calendar.

With four kids we can easily spend much of our time in the car shuttling them here and there. There is no doubt that our life is filled with seasons and there are times when commitments overlap and it is necessary but overall we can over-schedule ourselves. For our family a compromise was to allow the children to play sports but only one child per season. This decision was brought about after a particular sports season where several nights of the week were spent at practices and Saturdays were spent criss-crossing town while mom and dad tag teamed which child's game they would watch. We were out and about more than we were in. As a result, we were all feeling the stress this stretched-thin calendar. I longed for peaceful evenings with my family and dinner around the table and so our compromise was reached.

Recently we again had to spend more time in the car than I would have liked driving the older children. As we finally emerge from this season I am reminded once again how precious the calendar truly is and how we should diligently guard it. Free time is valuable time for a child as well as a family. It is in these moments when we process the events and knowledge of the day. Charlotte Mason calls this materly inactivity.

'Masterly Inactivity.'––A blessed thing in our mental constitution is, that once we receive an idea, it will work itself out, in thought and act, without much after-effort on our part; and, if we admit the idea of 'masterly inactivity' as a factor in education, we shall find ourselves framing our dealings with children from this standpoint, without much conscious effort.
Charlotte Mason Volume 3 Chapter 3

One small step for man...

Today has been one been one of those days...

As the children quickly ran off to all corners of the house to explore their more leisurely passions, my friend and I began exploring ours. Yes, I am a complete nerd. I love reading, planning, and discussing school. With laptops running, papers strewn across the table, and laughter filling the room we began the task at hand. This year we are using Tapestry of Grace (TOG) Year 3 and are now in Unit 3. As each child grows, I continue to tweak and improve in all areas. I feel an excitement as I read through the Unit synopsis and my imagination runs wild. I admit it...I can get carried away but I love learning!

Today's task to work with my friend on best adapting Unit 3 to our particular needs. I have heard TOG described as a buffet table. There are many choices and each family will have similar "plates" but not exactly the same. That is what drew me to TOG in the first place. It is perfect for many types of families. In our home, we currently have 3 of the 4 classical levels.

1. Rhetoric
2. Dialect
3. Upper Grammar

This can make teaching a challenge if each child is on his own individual plan. But using the unit study approach can simplify the process.

Today, I worked through the reading lists and began adapting. My youngest (7) has been blessed with growing up in a more Charlotte Mason friendly home. This year we are making a history book filled with maps, oral narrations, and pictures. He has enjoyed reading living books and then re-telling me what he has heard. So using my library's online catalog search and www.Amazon.com, I began building his reading list for this unit. My daughter (12) is my more literal child and so we searched for activities and reading that would help develop and excite her. For my oldest (16), we discussed the virtual co-op plans and went ahead and wrote out our exam questions Charlotte Mason style. I will post those in my next blog. What an accomplished day!

A-Ha Moment

We have read much about exposing our children to living books. If you are like me you have probably googled the term "living books" and perused book lists for guidance. If you are like me you may have even had emails or conversations with Charlotte Mason mentors looking for living books.

In our school-house we have been making the transition from traditional school philosphy to one of living ideas like Mason's ideas. There are days when I feel like I have it all under control and then there are days when I am just hanging on for dear life. Both scenerios present great learning opportunities. After all we learn from our mistakes. There are seasons in our school-house when I am uncertain why Mason taught the way she did and it is not until I have one of those a-ha moments that it all comes togther. Last week, I had such an a-ha moment and thought I would share.

For a while now we have been reading living books for history and for literature. We have enjoyed them but I will confess I have wondered how my children were going to make connections or if they were going to make connections. I have seen glimpses of it but I don't think I ever experienced it quite the way I did while with my sisters in Savannah for our FSO Weekend. I dubbed the acronym FSO...Fun Sisters Only.

Mercer House

For a few months we had been planning a little trip to Savannah for my sisters and I and (for the first time) my now 18 year old daughter. My sisters and I decided that we would read the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil prior to the trip. While the book focuses on an alleged murder in the Mercer House, the author spends quite a bit of time allowing you to get acquainted with the people and the history of Savannah. Stories of Sherman's march towards Savannah and the music of Johnny Mercer are just a few of tales he told. I can remember reading one afternoon and feeling like I truly knew the layout of Savannah. He wrote of the beautiful squares and I could envision magnificent trees sprawled throughout the squares. I was craving the slow southern lifestyle of Savannah and began to look forward to our trip. We had chosen a bed and breakfast across the street from the Mercer House. Three sisters from three states were about to converge upon this neighborhood.

We met on Sunday and started our weekend with lunch on the patio. After a brief rest from our road trip we headed out to explore the historic district. Our first stop was the Mercher House and so began my living history moment. I recalled in the book that the owner of the home, an antique dealer, hung a flag over his balcony to annoy a movie crew that was disturbing the peace of his street. As we walked around the outside we tried to determine which balcony this occured from.

We crossed the street and found ourselves wandering through the first square. Again, we recalled a scene from the book and tried to imagine how it played out. We continued walking towards the riverfront not really sure what we wanted to do but enjoying the conversation and the scenery. At one point we saw a horse and carriage and decided this would be a great way to acquaint ourselves with the city and enjoy the atmosphere of old Savannah. We climbed in and began to listen as the guide narrated her way through town. This is where I had my a-ha moment. As she shared the stories of Savannah, I realized that I had heard bits and pieces of them from our book. I listened intently and asked questions and found my mind wandering as we continued. I had built a relationship with this city before I had even seen it. I was acquainted with its history.

It hit me like a ton of bricks. THIS is what Mason spoke of when she said to read living books. THIS is what she referred to when she spoke of building relationships with history. THIS is what education should feel like. I was not labored by the trip or bored as we spent time there. I didn't feel like reading the book or even walking through the historic homes were a chore. I remembered the history of Savannah because I was enjoying the journey. I even came home and voluntarily created two narrations.This being one of the two! My challenge is to take this new understanding and implement it further in our own studies here at home.

20th Century Chart

This summer I attended our local Charlotte Mason mini conference which recapped several wonderful sessions given during the Childlight conference earlier. One of the recaps was in regards to paper trails...the art of Mason's notebooks.

We have dabbled in a variety of notebooks here. Some more successful than others but my older children still struggled with the idea of keeping a notebook for history. Then I learned about Miss Beale's Century Chart and was intrigued. So this month I have been reading and creating my own.

The premise of a century chart is a 10 x 10 grid that represents one century. The example below shows a chart of the 16th century and the key that goes with it.

Examples of Miss Beale's Century Chart


Key to the 16th Century Chart



As you can see each block is not crammed full of information but rather the child selects what is important to him. Another thing that intrigues me is that not every block is filled up. Investigating further I read that the children might have a science century chart as shown below.


This year we are doing TOG Year 4 which looks at the 20th Century so what better way to help my children understand the century than to ask them to build their own century chart. In my next post I will show you how I chose to do this with my three learning levels: 3rd grade; 8th grade; and 12th grade.

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CM Geography

While searching for something online, I came across an intriguing little Charlotte Mason gem that I will be examing further over the summer. 

41 elementary geography lessons

My mind is already imagining a composition notebook filled with illustrations and narrations as we work our way through. I love when things like this happen. Now back to my original search...

 

The 20th Century...

Yesterday, I spoke of Miss Beale's century chart and how we are going to use this to help us study the 20th century. Today was part one of the venture.

For my high schooler, we decided to use an 11x14 drawing pad. We came to know Charlotte Mason later in her homeschool education so this was the better choice for where we are at.

I began by showing her my feeble attempt at one as we discussed the definition of a century. Did I mention that I am artistically-challenged? I started with my own personal life in the 20th century. I felt like this would be the best place to start history...with their own personal story.

Since she is older, I decided she could make the grid and that by doing so this would help her understand the chart. So with pencils and ruler in hand she (and others in her co op) began designing the first grid.

This week's assignment is to begin filling in their life on the century chart. I am excited to see just how unique each one of them will be. We have four girls participating in this mini-co op. Can't wait to share them with you.

FSO Weekend...Savannah

Last weekend, my oldest daughter and I packed up the car and headed south to Savannah. My sisters and I met at the Savannah Bed & Breakfast Inn. We sat on the patio and shared lunch and then we headed off to explore the historic city of Savannah. After heading down to the riverfront, we took a horse and carriage ride through the city. My sisters and I had decided to read Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil prior to our trip. I felt like I had already been to Savannah. The beautiful squares described in the book were coming to life. As we rode through the quaint streets, I recalled tale after tale of Savannah's history. I was making connections! Right there on the horse and carriage ride, I had a Charlotte Mason a-ha moment! I was experiencing the benefits of a living book. Later that day as the sun began to set we made our way back to the inn and shared appetizers on our patio. The next day we walked the streets of the historic district and toured one of the homes. Again winding up our day on the patio enjoying food and each other's company.

With over 400 pictures on our camera, I picked a few to share from our FSO (fun sisters only) weekend! 

Education is a Life...

The room was already overflowing when I walked in. People were milling around looking for chairs and quickly coming to the conclusion that it was standing-room only. It took a few moments but then we were all settled in. Some at tables while others littered the floor. We were there to be inspired...hungry to stretch ourselves and our teaching abilities. Today we would feast at the table of ideas.

For more reading, go to Charlotte Mason volume 6.

After a brief introduction, we transitioned from sharpening our skills to peacefully participating as if we were the students. In her quiet manner, we were handed our Book of Prayers and a piece of paper. This was not just any piece of paper. It was beautiful and heavy in weight. One we would want to treasure. The instructions were given and we complied. First with our dictation and then our prayers. We were asked to think upon what we read and choose a portion of the prayer we felt spoke to us. A few shared but all placed their thoughts on this beautiful paper. As we finished writing we listened to her read a portion of St. George and the Dragon while doing popcorn narration to help create the habit of attention. Seemlessly we transitioned in to math work by working on one math problem. We were asked to think upon the equation and quietly show when we would be able to explain how we solved it. She worked on the board as one student and then another explained their methods. Then she asked us to think deeper about our math problem. We would need to draw how we solved the problem. Math is a thing...an idea. It is not just an unrelated string of numbers. Our minds were growing weary but she had already anticipated that and gave us instruction. We were in a new place and we needed to go outside and explore our surroundings. As we left the room we were asked to find something from outside and bring it back inside. A bowl of trail mix was by the door to provide small sustanance as we ventured out in to nature. We explored, some quicker than others, but we all returned with our little treasures from nature in hand. Upon our return, she read to us the history of our temporary home. We sat absorbed, knowing that she may call upon any of us at any time. Instead she asked us to chose something from what we read and save it to share at home or with a friend. Again, in a quiet manner, our instructions were given. We were to take a moment and draw our piece of nature or possibly even the map from which we live. While we worked music played in the background beckoning us to stay, quietly working, until it was completed. Our mini school day was almost finished but again she asked us to reach in to our mind and recall one more time the story she had read earlier. This time we were to think of pictures, images the story created in our mind's eye. We were to add that to our notebook.

As I listen to the song below, I am transformed to the classroom where education is a way of life. Where atmosphere is peaceful and ideas are planted. I recognize that my home can not be exactly like the 3rd grade model I participated in but I can examine the atmosphere of my own home and school. I can prayerfully prepare the soil for ideas...

Spelling...

 I guess I knew at some point this had to be done. If you know me at all you know that I deeply love history and yet the Lord decided to ignite a different passion in me...spelling! Or rather phonics.

My oldest son, unbeknownst to me at the time, taught me about whole language and the ability to memorize what words looked like. While my oldest daughter taught me that the typical style of spelling (list on Monday, test on Friday) produced no true long-term memory for her. So with these polar opposites in mind I began my quest for a way to teach spelling that would cover all the bases. I found that the more I researched Spell to Write & Read the more I could identify with what it was trying to teach both my children and myself. And so began my love affair with phonics.

So what are a few things I loved about Spell to Write & Read?

• One program teaches preschool through high school
• Phonograms & spelling rules give you the tools needed to spell-it takes the mystery out of spelling
• It uses all forms of learning, visual, auditory, & kenestitic
• We could ALL do certain portions together
• Reading came organically, not forced
• I learned so much about phonics

Some of the ways I have used Spell to Write & Read in our home.

• When we first began, I was learning just as much as my children so it was important to stick to what the author had laid out. As I began to develop a strong foundation, I could be a bit more creative without losing the core of the curriculum.
• For early learners, I used this to play games and gently introduce the phonetic sounds. I also made sure that the youngest child was nearby when teaching my older children. Sometimes even pausing to see if he could answer a simple question and praising his success.
• As development progressed we used magnet letters and dry erase markers to continue reinforcing the phonograms. We also enlarged some of the first charts to work on with the magnet letters.
• For remediation, we had different reinforcement tools.
• We made it a part of our "homeschool life" When some one asked how to spell something, I used fingergrams to spell the word.

To keep from being too overwhelming I will share in a different post my thoughts on SWR and merging it with Charlotte Mason's philosophy.

So Now What?

I can remember being a little girl and going to my dad's office. He had a large desk cluttered with papers and behind him was a vast bookshelf filled with books. One summer, I am sure in an effort to keep me busy, he assigned me the job of stamping his books on the inside cover. From the library of Ben F. Ward, Jr. He even had the pockets for me to put on the inside back cover just like the public libraries. His collection was filled with classics and non-fiction. My mother shared years later that he read every book in his library. Today I have some of his collection in my own library now. It is truly special to pull out one of his books for a school reading assignment or just for pleasure. I always share with the kids that this was their grandfather's book and they should take extra special care of it. I can not think of a better legacy to leave your children than a love for books.

Just a snapshot of my summer reading ambitions.

• Redeeming Love as recommended by my 16 yr old
• Seven Men Who Ruled from the Grave
• Towards a Philosophy of Education in Modern English Volume 6 of Charlotte Mason
• First Start French - Previewing for school next year

Lessons from my Father...

I have been contemplating adding a new "feature" to my blog but always seem to put it off for another day. So here in the quiet of an evening, itunes playing, I have decided to put my thoughts on virtual paper.

Education is an atmosphere

I don't think I truly understood how true that is. Nor did I appreciate how my parents raised me to be in constant pursuit of knowledge. I have so many memories of my father sitting in his chair with a book or with his Bible silently living out his beliefs right in front of me. This unit we are reading Alice in Wonderland and I can not help but think of one summer and his gentle guidance for me. Being a typical child, I wasn't too concerned with the how I spent my hours and so much of it was blindly wasted in front of the TV. One afternoon my father called me in to his office. At that time he had a built-in bookshelf filled with books behind his desk. There he sat behind his desk surrounded by literature. It is here that one of my life lessons began. In his calm way, he passed me a gold hardback copy of Alice in Wonderland and asked that I read it. He began to talk to me about the quality of what fills my time. Am I spending it doing something of value, something noble, something good? Or am I just allowing myself to be a passive participant in the gift of time God has given me?

Of course being young, I listened and even stored it away under "all the things my father tried to teach me but I'm not going to pay too much attention to right now." I am thirty-something years old and his words of wisdom still ring in my ears. There was no yelling. There was no "Shelley, you are wasting your life." Just a simple gesture to open my eyes to see that there is more to life than just being lazy. So how does all this tie in to the quote by Charlotte Mason, (Education is an atmosphere)? "The child breaths the atmosphere emanating from his parents that of the ideas which rule their own lives." volume 2

Century Chart

Curse you Charlotte Mason! It is evening time and the house is quiet so I have decided to work on my Century Chart. Yes, I am doing one as well! However there should be a disclaimer when venturing in to the wonderful world of CM. You should have some sense of artistic ability!

AHHHH

Is it cheating if I have a friend draw for me? Maybe I can just cut and paste in some pictures? LOL I am at the point where I am only desiring to add items to my chart that I think I can actually draw. Now I know what you are thinking, doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose of the project? But really, have you seen me draw?

So here are the more positive notes I can relate to you...I can now verbally describe the Wright Brothers airplane as I have now studied various pictures trying to draw some facsimile of it for about 20 minutes only to decide that maybe they aren't as important as I originally thought. haha

In all seriousness, this is a great tool to reinforce what you are learning. Careful observation and reviewing the dates allows the student to personally own the information. Another thought I have is that I am having to chose what I want to put on my chart which means that I am owning more than what I put down.

Instead of sharing the artistically-challenged Century chart. I thought I'd post some of the more talented ones.

Personal Century Chart

Notice each one is unique

The child's personality is displayed

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I see skies of blue, clouds of white...

"Let them once get in touch with nature and a habit is formed which will be a source of delight and habit through life."  Charlotte Mason

While my middle schooler is working her way through Apologia Physical Science we decided to close the textbooks and spend some much-desired time outdoors. With glimpses of sunny afternoons, blooms on the pear trees and the sweet smell of spring lingering in the air our senses have awakened. And so we set out to explore the backyard. Before just running outside we sat down around the table and spoke about the five senses. I asked the children what their favorite things are when they are outside. Kaelyn, my gardener, spoke about how she loves the feel of dirt on her hands. She is also my hands-on learner. Ben said he loves to hunt down the perfect stick to assist in the adventures of his imagination. I shared that I love to sit outside and listen to the sounds of nature...the way the wind sounds as it passes through the trees; the birds that sing back and forth; the occassional laughter of children. Ironically the way each of us observes nature is also how we also like to learn. After some time outdoors we came back in and using a describing wheel with the five senses we put down our observations.

And I said to myself what a wonderful world!

A Picture of Narration...

As knowledge is not assimilated until it is reproduced, children should "tell back" after a single reading or hearing: or should write on some part of what they have read.

Charlotte Mason (Vol. 6, Chapter 10 The Curriculum, p. 155)

While every year is a journey of sorts, this semester has been quite a journey for myself as well as for my oldest daughter. Her days of energy have been shortened and her desire to do the simplest of tasks becomes taxed. School has taken a back seat to doctor's appointments, hospital visits, physical therapy, and tests. As we come out of the fog, the following has plagued me most. How do we function? Can we "catch up?" I feel so behind.

There is no doubt that I like things neat and tidy...including my life! :-) But that is hardly a reasonable expectation nor is it even a promise from God. Coming to terms with her illness was easy. Coming to terms with how to handle the mess it leaves behind was (and is) harder than I thought. Thankfully, God is in control!

Today, we laid in bed. Her anatomy book on her lap and her hand in mine. As she read, I massaged the aching fingers. She journaled but then fatigue took over. Still I massaged the joints and she laid with her eyes closed and narrated the chapter she had just read. I am humbled by the realization that God had already placed this philosophy in my path...that He placed this understanding that education is not worksheets and checkboxes. We have been sowing the seeds of narration for several years now. The understanding that by retelling information one creates ownership of that information gives me peace. We can be unconventional but with purpose.