Music Appreciation

With all of the material to cover each day, how can a family make time for the "extras" like art and music appreciation? It seems to me that the best way to make sure the children are regularly exposed to the arts is to find a way to seamlessly weave these subjects into the day. This is especially easy when it comes to music - just play it on a CD! If we can just remember to play the music, there are great gains in just listening to it. There may be occasional conversations about instruments, movements, etc., but they are not necessary for young children to genuinely benefit from the music. Simply enjoying Strauss while we do a few chores or eat breakfast is enough to introduce great music to our children.

It should come as no surprise that, as with the other subjects, Charlotte Mason urges the very best quality for our children. Our modern minds immediately jump to defend our preferences and we ask who can judge what is really quality. My reply would be that time is the best judge of quality. Music that has lasted the test of time and has been continually considered excellent most likely is excellent. With this view in mind, classical and folk music will take center stage in our listening choices for Year One. Hymns, of course, also qualify as quality music. We often listen to hymns in the van and Sam memorizes a new hymn each month with the children during bedtime devotions. I'd like to play hymns more regularly in the house during the day. I'll have to move some hymn CDs inside :)

Although I played around some with the idea of a "composer for each term" during this last year, I admit that it seemed more contrived than I liked for my everyone-six-and-under crew. I'm willing to give it a go, however. Above all, for this age group, the music is about beauty and big ideas. We may get to some of the details of the composer's lives, but if, at the end of the term, I can say that the children have grown to love classical music more, I will consider our term's "study" a success.

Keeping a regular time for this music seems to help me play it consistently. A habit of playing a CD every morning while I make breakfast, for instance, is an easy way to make sure that quality music is a part of each day. Even if we don't get around to it every day, though, a couple of days a week is better than none and probably enough to make a positive impression on the children. Beyond a regular listening time, we will also use our term's music for some of our drill & dance days (that's just fancy PNEU lingo for dancing up some exercise in the family room).

Beyond listening to CDs, we also hope to establish a bit of a family tradition by attending several philharmonic concerts together each year. The Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra has some great, informal "teaching" performances on Thursday and Friday nights that are reasonably priced and appropriate for preschool and up. Special nights like these can be a great way to show the children how much we enjoy beautiful music, besides just being a really nice way to spend an evening together. We have used the fall season's performance schedule to choose our composers for the term (we'll being focusing in on two composers from now until December). We plan to attend a concert in November with the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra performing Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 23 in A Major and Mahler's Symphony No. 7 in E Minor. So, Mozart and Mahler it is!

Apart from the set composer study schedule, Classics for Kids is a really neat radio program and website that offers a little more in-depth music study than just listening alone. There is a weekly show available as well as a backlist of previous airings. Worth looking into. Also, the Classical Kids Series of CDs has won award after award. We own the Vivaldi CD (purposefully a little spooky in parts - I could do without all that, but overall okay for children old enough to handle it) and hope to buy the Mozart disc soon. I haven't heard this one, yet, so I cannot vouch for it personally, but these CDs seem to be favorites with lots of homeschooling families. I didn't realize it before tonight, but apparently there are theatrical tours of these productions, too! That sounds like something I want to look into :)



*edited to say that Mozart's Magnificent Voyage wasn't really our cup of tea. We checked it out from the library, but we will not be buying it. Just wanted to say that ;)

Example Week: Year One Week One

**Just wanted to clarify that we NEVER got started with lessons by 8:00 AM. Eventually, I gave up on even having this as a goal :) Didn't want anyone to think that we actually did that. It seemed like a good idea, but reality set in rather quickly ;)**

This is not the official Ambleside Online reading list. I have taken a good deal of liberty with arranging, rearranging, deleting, and adding. For the AO list, please visit the Ambleside Online homepage.

Our schedule this week will not include all of our subjects. We are using this week to ease back in to a school day routine. All of the readings will include narration. I'd really like to be able to work with Shug some this week with her drawing and I also want to work with watercolors once this week. Shug has also started making her circles clockwise - need to fix that :) Punkin will be learning about seasons and we'll introduce a shortened version of our preschool Apple theme for her. Some of my goals are not directly related to the curriculum, but instead relate more to family life and running the household. Prayer is always good :) Here are our hopes for the coming week:

Do 20 mins. of chores after breakfast each day

Begin Lessons at 8:00am each day

Monday:

Before we even got going this morning, SweetP asked, "Mama, what's 'the fall of Rome'?" Checked my facts in an encyclopedia and we discussed it for a few minutes (Yay for books in the house - I wouldn't have come up with Germanic Barbarians on my own, lol.)

Began lessons at around 9:15am - we'll try again for 8 tomorrow ;)

We did 20 minutes of morning chores after breakfast*

Bible*

I made my bed

Among the Forest People - Chapt. 1* (love it!!)

Livingstone - Chapt. 1* (lion attack, intense, SweetP only. Looked at Africa on the globe. Found the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Equator, and Victoria Falls)

Poetry* (favorite was "Somewhere" by Walter de la Mare)

A.A. Milne (kindergarten)* ("We Are Introduced to Winnie-the-Pooh and Some Bees, and the Stories Begin" - somehow Pooh just feels restful. I like that.)

5 books for Punkin* (6 if you count the one SweetP read to her)

Work on counterclockwise circles w/ Shug* (also "o", "a" on the dry erase board)

An Island Story - Chapt. 1 (Sam in P.M.)* (with 2 oldest girls - Hubby even listened to a narration from SweetP)

Well, we got everything on the list read and narrated today, but not without a few eventful moments. The actual "school" part went fine, but everything was against us getting outside today. LOL, more later... ;) Thanks for your prayers and encouragement! We're feeling a bit better, btw. Little Dude is still the worst off - gunky nose, poor guy.

Tuesday:

Began lessons around 9:00am - a little improvement, *sigh*. We were ready at 8:30, but baby peed on himself.

Girls did 20 minutes of chores after breakfast, but I bathed Dude & fed him, washed his sheets- did chores later

Bible*

Aesop: Hercules and the Wagoner* (discussed why the moral isn't truthful. A better choice might be "Do thine own part faithfully." from the hymn 'If Thou But Suffer God to Guide Thee' - old PCA days, lol)

I dusted and vacuumed the living room after Aesop/ older girls played in family room/ Punkin helped me dust

Just So Stories: Whale* (Vocab "astute", "infinite", "sagacity"- Shug got SO excited when it mentioned Albion)

I put new sheets on Dude's mattress before his nap, then I broke the crib - literally. *sigh, again*

Poetry* (favorite was "The Secret Cavern" by Margaret Widdemer)

D'Aulaire's George Washington: 2 pgs.* (discussed slavery a bit)

Work on counterclockwise circles w/ Shug* (also "o", "a", and "d" on the dry erase board)

5 books for Punkin*

50 Famous Stories - Sword of Damocles* (Sam in P.M.) (Sam wrote out "Dionysius" and "Damocles" on the dry erase board beforehand. SweetP had a hard time narrating this one. Sam more or less discussed it with them afterward. Concepts a bit abstract, it seems.)

I feel like I ran a marathon and I never did get around to making my bed today. Little Dude still not shaking this cold :( Joy asked me today if Aunt Sissy was coming soon. Hopefully, we'll see her at the end of the week :)

Wednesday:

Began lessons by 9:15am. I chose to let the children sleep in a bit because I wanted to have breakfast alone with Sam. He left for NYC today. I also chose to hold off on most of our lessons until the 2 youngest were down for nap. Not sure yet if that was a good idea or not.

We did not do chores right after breakfast. Instead, because there was a lull in the rain, we went for a nature walk around the neighborhood. Incorporated map study by drawing a little map of the corner and a dozen or so trees that are there.

We did chores after our (rather lengthy) walk*

Bible*

Parables From Nature - Faith*

Little House in the Big Woods - half of Chapt. 1 (Joy's first time!)*

Poetry (didn't get to this today)

D'Aulaire's George Washington: 2 pgs.*

A.A. Milne (kindergarten): ("Pooh Goes Visiting and Gets Into a Tight Place")*

5 books for Punkin*

Drawing with Shug (Draw-Write-Now Book 1)*

Also, older 2 girls played the card game "War" together in the afternoon (greater than, less than)*

Added in copywork (Shug copied o,a,d,g again and SweetP copied "Praise the LORD!"*

Began memorizing Psalm 150*

Folksongs and dancing/exercise in family room for about 20 minutes ("Turkey in the Straw" is a fave)

I made a big mistake today with SweetP's narration of Parables of Nature. She has been narrating so fluidly and with such great detail that I thought she might be able to narrate once at the end of the reading. I turned out to be entirely too much for her to narrate in one fell swoop, and she became flustered and overwhelmed. Poor thing. It was foolish of me, really. I know I'm not *supposed* to read twice, but I felt that I had to give her another chance since the mistake had been my own. I'm also not *supposed* to ask a beginning narrator to narrate an entire reading at once. I'm also not *supposed* to do lessons in the afternoon. That whole lesson was a big CM failure.

On the bright side, though, I did get a chance to explain again why we even do narrations at all. I emphasized how narrations help SweetP fix the story in her mind and are really part of the learning process - not just a test of what she remembers. I wanted to ease any sense of pressure she may have been feeling. Testing, as such, is a nasty process - I saw a glimpse today of how a test-oriented misunderstanding of narration could take the focus off of the material and onto the "performance". Lord willing, we dealt sufficiently with the issue this afternoon. Her next narration (of the D'Aulaire book) was lively and detailed again. Phew. Thank you, Lord, for covering over my mistakes.

Thursday:

This is a light day. Yay. I hope to add in some recitation, copywork, and something for our nature notebooks. Collected leaves yesterday, so we may try to identify those trees and press the leaves. Sissy is visiting, too, so it's nice that we don't have a full school schedule going. She'll probably read all of the books to Punkin ;)

Began schoolwork by 9:00am - maybe I should just give in :[

Did 20 minutes of chores after breakfast*

*Heather did come today and she read 3 books to Punkin. I love my sister. Also, my mom came down last night so I'd have another adult in the house with us. I love my Mom, too. See you tomorrow night, Mom!*

Bible* (John 9, helped illustrate concept of "faith", clarifying Parables of Nature a bit)

Poetry* (favorite was "Rathers" by Mary Austin - Shug just helped me remember the poet, lol)

D'Auliare's George Washington: 2 pgs.* (did 3 pages instead, really took time to enjoy the illustrations today)

5 books for Punkin*

Drawing with Shug (Draw-Write-Now Book 1)*

Read through Psalm 150:1,2 several times for memorization*

Copywork* (Shug worked on o,a,d and SweetP wrote "Praise the LORD in his sanctuary;")

Playdoh*

Had "Aunt Sissy Time" instead of doing nature notebooks

Good, good day today. I think I'm starting to get a feel for what to do in the morning and what to save for the afternoon. Also, if we're going to do some work during naptime, I have to get the youngest two down by 1:15pm or so. Much later than that and the older two are too toasted to give much attention by the end of lessons. Good day today. We're getting there... I'm looking forward to tomorrow.



Friday:

Finally! Today felt right :) *relieved sigh* Amanda asked me earlier this week, "Isn't this fun?!" and my honest reaction was, "No. It's exhausting." Today, though, we found a groove. Of course, now we have to add more into the picture for the beginning of next week, but at least we ended this week without Mama wondering if she'd completely lost her mind :)

We began "lessons" today at 9:45 am - and in a prairie. The morning was so beautiful, I decided to head for the great outdoors before we did anything else. We were moderately successful animal trackers - we located the tracks of one mature deer with a fawn. We were able to follow their walk for about 30 feet along the muddy trail. SweetP noted how they stayed to one side of the path and Shug found several spots that looked like deer had bedded there. Goldenrod, asters, and prairie coreopsis were everywhere - beautiful. We stayed at the arboretum for about 2 and 1/2 hours. Had lunch from Tim Hortons on the way home (I mentioned that just for P Steve).

All of our lessons were during naptime. SweetP and Shug did fine with that today and didn't seem too tired. We did not do any copywork. Honestly, the days that we did copywork this week were a "bonus"; I hadn't planned on officially beginning handwriting until next week. Mom is coming over again this evening to spend the night with us. Considering that Little Dude was up no less than four times last night (teething?), I'm very glad to have her with us :) I'm always glad for her visits, but this one is especially appreciated. Sam comes home late tomorrow afternoon. Yay.

Bible* (Exodus 25:1-8 describing the offerings for the building of the tabernacle - God's earthly sanctuary)

Recitiation* (Read aloud through Psalm 150:1,2 together twice. Talked about "Praise God in his sanctuary")

Paddle to the Sea - Chapt. 1* (We cheated. This was the very beginning of the book and the first chapter was ONE page long. I read the first three chapters (three pages total) just to get into the story a bit. The girls really, really enjoyed this book. SweetP narrated chapters 2 and 3. I'll try just reading one page next time, but I felt like it was worth it to get "into" the story a bit here at the beginning. Believe me, they are highly anticipating following along with Paddle on his adventures!)

Poetry* (Favorite was "For a Child" by Fannie Stearns Davis. Shug is really getting into the poems. She actually asked to take our poetry book up with her for rest time yesterday.)

A.A. Milne (kindergarten): ("Pooh and Piglet Go Hunting and Nearly Catch a Woozle". Punkin asked me if we were going to read about "catching the weasel". I told her we were and then she said that she didn't like that one. "My sisters like that one, but I don't like that one. May we please read a different one". Sure, honey ;) Woosels apparently unnerve more than just Pooh Bear.

5 books for Punkin (we'll reach this point by tonight)

Watercolors* (Used tubed colors for the first time. Played around with adding more water and changed the shades of green from dark to light. Worked on brushdrawing ovals (tip from a Parent's Review article). Then, SweetP and I brushdrew (sounds funny) one of the leaves from our Wednesday nature walk. We'll add it to her nature notebook when it dries. We always take longer w/ watercolors than I mean to. It was a profitable lesson, though.

Animal Tracking :)* (SweetP also studied the introduction to our tracking field guide. She drew a picture of a white-tailed deer and assigned herself copywork. She was writing common tracking terms down when I came downstairs from laying the baby down. She's a crack up.)

Praise the Lord that our first week is under our belts! Part of me wishes everyone could be in kindergarten forever, but I think I'm just adjusting to the change. It will probably take a full three weeks to start hitting the groove on a regular basis. Thank you for your prayers, everyone!

The Weekly Nature Walk

I know. Four to six hours a day outside sounds absolutely NUTSO to some of my dear blogging pals. That's okay :) You know what, though? I'm not going to go on and on about multiple hours outside tonight. I'm going to talk about one little half hour. Thirty minutes that comes around just once a week. A weekly nature walk. Educational. Fun. Outside.

For a weekly nature walk, you don't need an old quilt or a half dozen bottles of water. You don't need a 90 acre park nor do you need a travel potty (well, usually not). You may need a little sunscreen or herbal bug spray before you leave, but all you really cannot do without is - a slow pace and nature eyes. "Nature eyes" simply means eyes that are ready to see anything - to really observe it - and to see it with great attention.

The goal is to walk slowly around your own neighborhood for 30 minutes one day a week.

Look up and down, listen carefully. You may want to let each child take a brown paper bag along to collect natural treasures they find along the way. If your children turn out to be voracious little naturalists, you may want to buy a small plastic bin lined with a paper towel or a cardbox for them to empty their bags into after you return home. If your child picks up an acorn, take a moment and gently help him really see the acorn. Examine it. If you pop the top off, what does it look like? What part do you think a squirrel eats? What tree did it fall from? One acorn can easily lead to ten full minutes of observation and play beneath the oak tree. We learned late this summer that each type of oak produces an acorn with a characteristic shape. A red oak acorn looks differently than a burr oak acorn, for instance. SweetP has made a little game of learning to identify them. Shug and Punkin just knock them around with sticks :)

The key is to go slowly and to really exercise the skills of attention and observation.

Stop and watch the little flock of sparrows. Why do they keep flying over to that tree? Can you tell what kind of tree it is? What do they have in their mouths? There are even clouds above to watch and talk about and dandelions that your neighbor would gladly let the children pick. That's the third monarch butterfly you've seen flying in that direction. Where are they going? In what direction are they headed?

Now, if you have energetic little ones (as I have) it may be a good idea to allow an extra ten or fifteen minutes at the beginning of the walk for an all-out run. This, of course, is excellent exercise. We can count it in our school day as Phys. Ed.! :) Once they have run a bit, they'll be a little more inclined to go slowly and pay more attention. It's not something to pressure them about, only lead them gently to look more closely and for just a little longer. After a few weeks of practice, they will begin developing more of an interest in their findings and attention will naturally increase.

The point is to enjoy God Almighty and His creation - to "consider the lilies of the field and the birds of the air".

Even a short walk outdoors offers countless opportunities to marvel at the awesome (in the true sense of the word) creative imagination of our God. Maybe it would be well if we asked the Lord for eyes to truly see His creation when we go out with our children. It is all around us, but we know so little about it. It's so encouraging, though, that the more we learn the more we want to learn.

Isn't that what education is all about?

Blessings,

Jacci

Check out this website dedicated to helping parents get

their children outdoors in nature for one hour a day.




AND... did you know that this week is Take A Child Outside Week?

Visit this website to learn more :)





*I feel that I should warn you of something inevitable. There is almost no getting around it. If your children have any interest at all in nature, you will have to identify at least one of the findings you bring home. Sometimes I tell the children before we even set out on a walk, "We will not be able to identify all of these leaves this afternoon, but I will be certain to set aside time next week to find out their names". I've been building up a collection of nature fieldguides to help me with our naming projects, but the internet works too :) My neighbor is constantly looking up this leaf and that bug on the internet with her daughter. There is no lack of information out there :) Happy nature walking!

Beaded Jewelry Handicrafts (about 6 years old and up)

One of the really fun projects we've had going is a growing inventory of beaded bracelets. Since the beginning of the summer, the two older girls have been working away at these sweet little pieces of beginner's jewelry. The idea is to have a sale in September out in the driveway :) We're trying to decide on a worthwhile use for the money they make. Hopefully, we can find a way to bless others with their income. It won't be much at only a quarter a bracelet, but it will certainly be something to them!


My mom gave SweetP a rather extensive collection of beads for her 6th birthday. One of the kits included some thin elastic that was perfect for her little hands to bead on. We didn't mess around with clasps and all that just yet. I just triple tied the ends of the bracelets together and gave them a good tug to make sure they would hold.

I think the bracelet total is holding at around 25 or so between the two of them
right now. SweetP had set a goal of personally making twenty. She only has one more to make! :) Shug wasn't as goal oriented, lol. She also has to rest for part of naptime, so she was somewhat limited ;) We've usually fit in some beading time in the afternoons when it's just been way too hot to be out for long and both of the little ones were napping anyway. Punkin loves beading, too, but it's a whole different experience when she's involved :) We've found it's better to have everything put away before naptime ends.

We still have plenty of beads to continue creating with after the sale. We'll move on to necklace and bracelet gift sets next, I think. I doubt it will be long before every little girl in our church is sportin' some hot pink plastic ;)

Formidable List of Attainments

"A Formidable List of Attainments for a Child of Six", a reprint
of a curriculum outline from a CM school in the 1890's.

from Summer 93 Parents Review pub by Karen Andreola


1. To recite, beautifully, 6 easy poems and hymns
2. to recite, perfectly and beautifully, a parable and a psalm
3. to add and subtract numbers up to 10, with dominoes or counters
4. to read--what and how much, will depend on what we are told of the child
5. to copy in print-hand from a book
6. to know the points of the compass with relation to their own home, where the sun rises and sets, and the way the wind blows
7. to describe the boundries of their own home
8. to describe any lake, river, pond, island etc. within easy reach
9. to tell quite accurately (however shortly) 3 stories from Bible history, 3 from early English, and 3 from early Roman history (my note here, we may want to substitute early American for early English!)
10. to be able to describe 3 walks and 3 views
11. to mount in a scrap book a dozen common wildflowers, with leaves (one every week); to name these, describe them in their own words, and say where they found them.
12. to do the same with leaves and flowers of 6 forest trees
13. to know 6 birds by song, colour and shape
14. to send in certain Kindergarten or other handiwork, as directed
15. to tell three stories about their own "pets"--rabbit, dog or cat.
16. to name 20 common objects in French, and say a dozen little sentences
17. to sing one hymn, one French song, and one English song
18. to keep a caterpillar and tell the life-story of a butterfly from his own observations.

Scribbling, Doodling, and Pre-Writing

Before we even begin trying to form letters, we spend a huge amount of time in what some would call "pre-writing". Mainly, this has been nearly accidental in our home and more a part of playtime, although I now see how beneficial it has been. It's simply scribbling at first, gradually developing into drawing and doodling. I keep a drawer accessible for the "older" children with paper, various pencils, erasers, Ferbies, and such for them to use whenever they want (except right before a meal - we need to set the table!). Magna-Doodles have been invaluable for this purpose, too, especially for toddlers that don't necessarily get free Ferby access! :) We have large Magna-Doodles in several rooms of the house and one or two small ones in the van.


I gently encourage making circles and tracing simple lines as a game of sorts fairly early on (about 2 and 1/2). As the children get older, I keep on the lookout for attempts at letter formation. I do not want them forming letters incorrectly - even for playtime. An attempt to make an "H" turns into an impromptu two minute lesson in handwriting :) I really think this kind of daily "play" has been instrumental in preparing the children to write... it hasn't hurt at least. Beginning at around age 4, we have also used Ready Writer and have enjoyed it very much. Although, I'm not sure it has been any more beneficial than the stylus practice we've had through doodling and drawing. Shug, in particular, seems to be beyond it already and it hasn't been as helpful for her. Others have recommended inexpensive activity books with mazes for pre-writing. I haven't found these to be as profitable as good old-fashioned scribbling and tracing, though.

With a little encouragement and some materials, doodling and pre-writing can be a natural part of the day - one the children may even ask you for! :)

Charlotte Mason's Beliefs - a disclaimer

Back in the fall of 2006, when I first started really reading books both about and by Charlotte Mason, a friend from church cautioned me. "She had some reeeeaaaaalllly weird doctrine" was the warning. This particular friend had been drawn to CM's ideas at one point, but ultimately tossed the whole kit and caboodle aside when it became very apparent that Charlotte was not at all a Reformed Baptist. But, of course, I already knew that much. I had not expected her to be.

Charlotte Mason was an Anglican in Victorian England. Obviously, the Anglican church then and now differs from my own personal beliefs (pretty much summed up here). So, the question arises - and it is a legitimate question - how in the world can a Christian hold to the truth of Scripture (in the doctrines of grace) and yet still give Charlotte Mason's method a second look? The answer sounds trite, but please understand that I'm serious. How can it be done? It must be approached very carefully.

But, why mess with it at all? Why not just "toss it" and buy a handy, boxed curriculum with better doctrine?

Because her methods, where they stand apart from occasional doctrinal error, are exceptionally sane, logical, and effective. In my estimation, Charlotte Mason comes closer to getting to the heart of what real education is all about for the early years more than any other system, approach, or curriculum I have seen yet. When she writes about education, it's as though all you knew in your heart of hearts about learning is laid out for you.

And, besides, I believe her doctrine isn't as bad off as it first seems. I think part of what seems to be incorrect or inconsistent doctrine may really be attributed to a lack of clear understanding on the part of the reader. Many readers get all up in arms when they first read of Miss Mason referring to children as "good". It takes some digging to get to her real meaning. It also takes a serious consideration of the time and place in which she lived. I believe that Miss Mason did not deny the existence of a sinful nature nor did she deny the power of sin within the child. She was combating a prevalent thought in her day. Namely, that certain children were born "good" while others were born "bad", and that state was mostly determined by their social and economic status. So, we can't just read her writings at face value and dump them because she seems difficult, at best, to understand theologically.

Even if she is totally off track in her doctrine, though, and even if she's got a truly unbiblical view of the spiritual state of children (which I do not think she has), what does that mean for us? Hang with me here for a minute, y'all - I think we have to really take a hard look at some assumptions.

Firstly, let's ask "Do we have to adopt Charlotte's doctrine to follow Charlotte's methods?" Absolutely not! Let's just pretend for a moment that we are completely clear on some of CM's fuzzy points. Let's imagine that we know for certain that she believed children to be born without original sin and to be inherently good. Yikes, right? What does that mean for us, considering her methods? Does it mean that, since Mason believed my oldest daughter was born without sin I should clearly think differently of my daughter's spiritual state now that we are "doing Charlotte Mason"? Do I now find myself saying things like, "Sweetheart, go discover all the wisdom and knowledge that is yours internally. Go relish all of the goodness naturally in you that has not yet been tainted by the world and those wretched bad habits!"? This idea is out of the question for me, and not a danger toward which I am easily tempted. "Oh," some will say, "but the real danger lies in the subtleties. Bad doctrine will touch absolutely everything in her books". To this I say, God has given us brains, sisters. And we have the responsibility to pray for wisdom in all areas of life and to think - biblically. If I cannot discern dangerous doctrine well enough to reject it, the issue runs far deeper and is far more serious than any homeschooling method. The child of God must read everything watchfully, begging God for discernment. If any of Charlotte's suggestions seem "off" to me, if they contradict the Scriptures at all, then I must drop them right then and there. She was just a woman - completely fallible - and I fully expect some mistakes in her philosophy. I cannot read her in any other way.

Secondly, let's ask "Is there nothing to be gained from someone with a few errors in doctrine"? I believe that God, in His common grace to even the unsaved, gives them gifts and unique abilities. I believe that He gives them these gifts and abilities for His own glory and for the benefit of His sheep. Does your car mechanic have to be a 5-pointer to fix your transmission? Nope, but that working transmission sure is a blessing. Does your pediatrician need to be a believer to give you a helpful diagnosis? Nope, but you are certainly thankful to know what is wrong now. I've never heard anyone ask about Susan Wise Bauer's doctrinal statement, and I don't think I've ever heard that Dorothy Sayers professed Christ at all - are their contributions to the current homeschool movement beneficial anyway? Are we blessed by C.S. Lewis' books? He was Anglican, ya know, with some rather muddled views of his own ;) So, let's ask it again now. Do we possibly have something valuable to learn from Charlotte Mason - a woman with 60 years of experience teaching children and hundreds upon hundreds of former students attesting to her extraordinary worth as a woman and educator - even though she has some doctrinal issues?

As you know, I have been blessed by many of her insights, and my answer to this question is "yes!". We have much to gain.

Thirdly, and lastly, let's ask "Does implementing Charlotte Mason's method in our home learning require us to follow every part of that method"? CM said that for "the programme" (as it was called in her schools) to really produce the excellent results for which it was known, it had to be followed completely. Every part left out could be expected to weaken the end result. That may be so. I have not yet come across a part of the programme that violates my conscience, but if I should someday meet up with a CM practice with which I disagree wholeheartedly, again, there is no way I'm going to accept what I believe may compromise the Word of God and the spiritual lives of my family. So, if I must drop part of the programme, let my children be academically inferior to Charlotte's students at the end of the day! Excellent education is our goal, but it is not our highest goal. There are elements in a CM education that we may leave out, and there are things she advises against that we will most definitely add in. Our version of CM will be strongly influenced by the truths to which we hold so dearly :)

There you have it! :) My official Charlotte Mason disclaimer. I admit, you do have to eat the meat and throw away a few of the small bones with this method. BUT, Miss Mason offers so much wisdom, grace, and truth regarding education that the meat is plentiful and exceptionally worth it.