The Creative Side of Charlotte Mason Learning

“At Atmosphere, A Discipline, A Life” - Charlotte Mason

These words are what Charlotte Mason used to describe what homeschooling should be. It’s about more than just books and facts but rather teaching your children the ideas to run with as they explore and discover the things around them. A child learns so much from their home environment, and it is a privilege for parents to be able to teach them at home where learning can happen together as a family. As you share this journey of homeschooling with each other, you work together to build good habits, character, as well as academic skills. 

Here are some ways you can incorporate more of the Charlotte Mason way into your homeschool to do together as a family:

Create a Morning Basket 

Many homeschoolers have adopted this tradition of having a morning basket. This basket or box consists of things to do first thing in the morning. These activities are short and sweet and consist of a variety of topics. It’s generally used in the beginning of the day to ease into learning before the individual studies take place. Over time, the morning basket has come to look differently in each home, and sometimes the activities are broken up into chunks throughout the day or for meal times when the family is gathered together at the table. You can adapt this idea with what you think will work for your family. You could read a chapter from a book or look at a piece of artwork or listen to a piece of music and then discuss as a family. Here are some things you can include in your basket:

1. A read-aloud book: this could be a living book or a Bible reading or devotion (audiobooks work well too!)
2. Poetry
3. Art appreciation
4. Music appreciation
5. Character study
6. Memorization (of poems or passages or Bible verses)

Alternatively you could just set a special time in your day, and let everyone be involved in deciding what they want to do. You can even name it! Some homeschoolers like to do Tea Time or Circle Time or Family Time, but you can be creative in setting this up together with your family. Have fun with it!

Use Living Books 

What’s the difference between “living books” and textbooks? Textbooks are simply the facts on the subject, but living books offer information that allows for the application of facts in a way that would encourage family conversations on the subject instead of just listening to the facts. You’ll find your children more engaged and encouraged to ask questions - and who knows where your conversations will take you? 

Use Copywork 

Penmanship can easily become a boring task on its own, but if you have a purpose for the writing, then your child can be more encouraged to practice their penmanship. By using quotes from scripture or the books you are reading together in family read-alouds, you can reinforce what they have learned and also get them to practice their writing at the same time.

Create a Relaxed Homeschool Schedule 

Considering all these things, it may be time to reconsider your schedule. You are neither bound to a tight textbook driven checklist nor to copy the public school schedule, and so you can start planning on what you really want to focus on with what works best for your family. 

Here’s a planning sheet with a few tips on planning out an easier homeschool schedule:

Get The PDF

The goal of homeschooling is to help your children become well-rounded individuals. You have full control of what you pour into them. Learning can happen anywhere and at any time so don’t be bound only to the schedule. Keeping these things in mind, you are sure to enjoy the homeschooling journey as a family when everyone operates in a more relaxed atmosphere.

This article has been written by homeschooling staff writers of The Canadian Schoolhouse (TCS). Enjoy more of our content from TCS contributors and staff writers by visiting our Front Door page that has content on our monthly theme and links to all our content sections.