On Principles 16 & 17: The Will Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Principle 16 & 17: The Way of the Will We may offer to children two guides to moral and intellectual self-management which we may call ‘the Way of the Will’ and ‘the Way of Reason.’ The Way of the Will: Children should be taught (a) to distinguish between ‘I want’ and ‘I will.’ (b) That the way to will effectively is to turn our thoughts away from that which we desire but do not will. (c) That the best way to turn our thoughts is to think of or do some quite different thing, entertaining or interesting. (d) That after a little rest in this way, the will returns to its work...
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On Grief: The Interruption Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
I’m supposed to be working on my next episode of the “Summer with Charlotte” series that I’ve been slogging through this summer these past few months but after wrestling through fits and starts in my head I realize the answer is, as usual, simple and honest, if not immediately obvious. I can’t. Not, I can’t ever. I just can’t yet because something has happened and writing anything before you, dear listener, know about it feels incredibly dishonest.
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On Principles 9 & 10: The Mind Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Principle 9 & 10: How We Make Use of Mind “We hold that the child’s mind is no mere sac to hold ideas but is rather, if the figure may be allowed, a ‘spiritual organism’ with an appetite for all knowledge. This is its proper diet with which it is prepared to deal and what it is able to digest and assimilate as the body does food-stuffs. “Such a doctrine as the Herbartian, that the mind is a receptacle, lays the stress of education, the preparation of food in enticing morsels, duly ordered, upon the teacher. Children taught on this principle are in danger of receiving much...
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Beyond Morning Time: A Conversation with Cindy Rollins
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Cindy Rollins homeschooled her nine children for over thirty years. She is the host of podcast and a co-host with Angelina Stanford and Thomas Banks of the popular . She also curates the “Over the Back Fence Newsletter” at . She is the author of ; , and . I had the privilege of meeting Cindy at a conference here in north Alabama this past spring and I’m thrilled to share our conversation with you today. She has so much insight to offer to the homeschool community and loves to encourage moms so I know you’re going to love this episode. Join us today as Cindy and I discuss a variety...
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On Principles 5-8: The Instruments of Education Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Principle 5: Three Instruments of Education Therefore, we are limited to three educational instruments - the atmosphere of environment, the discipline of habit, and the presentation of living ideas. The P.N.E.U. Motto is: “Education is an atmosphere, a discipline and a life.” Reference: Volume 6, Chapter 6 We saw last time that there are quite a few wrong paths to take when approaching education that may be not only be our knee-jerk reaction but also taken with the best of intentions. These paths may even “work” but today Charlotte will show us a better approach. She says, “there are...
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On Principles 3 & 4: The Posture Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
This is the third article in my “Summer with Charlotte” series. If you missed the first two, you can read and . Let’s jump in. Principle 3: Authority and Docility The principles of Authority on the one hand and Docility on the other are natural, necessary, and fundamental. Principle 4: The Sacredness of Personality These principles (i.e. authority and docility) are limited by the respect due to the personality of children which may not be encroached upon whether by the direct use of fear or love, suggestion or influence, or by undue play upon any one natural desire. Join me next time as...
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On Principles 1, 2 & 20: The Defining Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Principle 1: Children are Born Persons “No sooner doth the truth…. come into the soul’s sight, but the soul knows her to be he, first and old acquaintance.” “The consequence of truth is great, therefore the judgment of it must not be negligent.” Reference: Volume 6, Chapter 2 Here Charlotte quotes Benjamin Whichcote, who was the founding father of Cambridge and a puritan divine (an archaic word for theologian). I won’t attempt to unpack his words but I will say that with these quotes she is setting the stage to highlight the importance of truth and its inseparable...
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On Education: The Charlotte Mason Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
Where do I even begin? For the better part of twelve years I have been writing (and reading and podcasting and speaking) about Charlotte Mason. I’d like to think I’ve hit that 10,000 hours expert level of knowledge about her but truth be told there is still much to learn. I’m being totally serious when I say Charlotte is in my top five people who I want to meet in heaven. I intend to have many a tea time with her discussing great books. It seems the more you know about something the harder it is to condense that information into something tangible and simple. Something about not...
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On Nature: The Great Outdoors Episode
Homeschooling Outside the Box
“Never be within doors when you can rightly be without.” It’s one of the first Charlotte Mason adages I learned by heart. I use it all the time to this day. I bet it’ll be one of those sayings my kids will remember when they’re fifty and say with a smile - albeit a slight roll of the eyes - “my mom was always saying…” and I’m so happy to think that. When God made humans, He put them in a garden. Not a house, not a cubicle, but out of doors. We were not created to be inside as much as we are. You hear about “new” ways to be healthy like or beach yoga and it’s important...
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To the Pre-School Mom
Homeschooling Outside the Box
While becoming a parent is the true beginning of the journey, the preschool years bring a certain amount of well, uncertainty…for those of us who embark on the adventure of homeschooling. When is “the beginning” of their education? What should education look like in the early years? The culture tells us more is better, and the sooner the better. But Charlotte Mason referred to these formative, early pre-school years as “a quiet growing time.” Children learn through play and experience and these years are best spent growing up alongside the example of mom, dad, and older siblings in...
info_outlineIf there is a quintessential practice in Charlotte Mason’s approach to education, it is the act of narration. You can pick and choose which living books you want to read, you can use watercolors or not in your nature journaling, and you can dictate your own routine in a way that best fits your family, but you simply cannot reap the full benefits of Charlotte Mason’s approach without narration.
WHAT IS NARRATION?
Narration is the art of knowing. Simply stated, it’s the act of telling back what you have heard in a way that is authentic to you. This isn’t about parroting back the last sentence or idea of a paragraph; it’s about processing the information you’ve received and delivering it back in a meaningful way. Charlotte Mason said, “if you cannot tell, you do not know.”
Narration is a challenging demonstration of true knowing and makes multiple-choice, comprehension questions, and the like, unnecessary.
There are two types of narration: oral and written.
Join me today as I talk about the benefits of narration.