Mentor Notebooks and Leadership Education

live.
This week I hope to 'live' outside! Heading to a park this morning with some of my homeschooling peeps. And, if the weather holds out, I'm hoping to check out some nature parks with the kids for outdoor sketching. 

The meal planning service I subscribed to last week is quite fun! You choose your menus and recipes and then printout a grocery list. They offer a new menu every Thursday, but the archives of past menus are there too. Lots of room for customization too. I'm sure there are many such services and apps, but here's a sample of what we ate last week:

• grilled vegetable wraps with rice pilaf (delish!)
• baked ziti with chicken sausage (ok)
• baked potato soup with BLTs (yummy!)

Tonight we're having Baja Marinated Chicken on the grill, together with Black Bean & Rice Salad. See - I would never think of that on my own!

faith.

BIG feast day coming up this week, well actually two feast days. The first is on Wednesday - we celebrate St. Joseph the Worker. Then on Friday, the Apostles Saint Philip and Saint James. I was thinking of doing a  monthly fast on the First Friday of the month, but looks like this month isn't the best one to start. 

homeschool.

This is the heart of my post today. I want to introduce to you one of the tools I learned about at the DeMille Seminar on Leadership Education last weekend - one that I am CERTAIN will have a huge impact on our family. Maybe yours, too.

It's the "Mentor Notebook." 

Very high tech, isn't it. A notebook and pen.

You are a mentor to your children, whether you are homeschooling or not. You may be a mentor to others as well. Maybe you're a teacher or a youth minister or a grandparent. Either way, as a mentor its valuable to spend some time thinking about how YOU can do your job better.

Here is what you do.

You have a meeting every week with your notebook and pencil. That's right, just you, your notebook and a pencil.

You write each child's name on a page of his/her own, from babes-in-arms to your oldest, everyone gets a page. Include a page for your spouse and yourself as well. You can be as comprehensive as to include anyone you are in a close relationship with - grandparents, grandkids, Godchildren, close friends, whatever. But that can be a bit overwhelming, so start with your children and spouse first.  Everyone gets a page.

 My name is in the next section. Mamas always seem to put themselves last!

The next step:

For each person in your notebook, you sit and brainstorm ways and ideas of what each person needs this week. What can YOU do to SERVE him/her? What does he/she need in order to better excel this week? What would INSPIRE that person this week?

You brainstorm and write down as many things as you can think of - some of these may be bad ideas! Or just unworkable! That's OK! But in all likelihood, there will be one or two things that you can deliver on this week to help your child succeed. You need not fill in an entire page either. Next week, when you repeat this process on a fresh page for that child, you can look at the previous week and check off what you delivered on. Or you can throw that old piece of paper away too, if you like ... but the idea is still the same.

Brainstorm, plan and deliver.

Sunday night at my kitchen table. The bigs are out with Dad, the littles are in bed ... ahhhh. Wait a minute, where's the wine? 

This is not something you share with the people on the list - you don't want to create an expectation at this point. Later, maybe for the older scholar-phase kids, you can have them go through the same process then compare. But not now.

This IS something you do weekly and consistently. You and your spouse can each do this exercise separately for your children, then compare lists. That's a wonderful idea because women and men have different perspectives that can truly benefit your children.

Your ideas need not be confined to academics either. Maybe you have an intuition that your child just needs lots of hugs this week or special attention. Do that. Or maybe you sensed a spark of interest in something your child read about and you want to find an experiment or book to light that fire. Perhaps your toddler is having problems with sharing and you want to find a storybook on that topic for said toddler. The Mentor Notebook applies to everyone in the family.

You know your children better than anyone else; you are the expert! So often during the course of a week I will have a specific thought about what my child might really enjoy or something I need to find for that child, but I don't write it down or the thought fizzles among the million things there are to do in a day. I think the Mentor Notebook will help make my reflections more consistent and produce results.

We are having a Mentor Notebook Challenge on the TJEd Forum (TJEd Muse) I belong to, and please let me extend that challenge to you, too! The challenge is to create a Mentor Notebook and then try to set aside time weekly (I like Sundays) to do it. If it seems too overwhelming to do for all of your children at once, then spread it out over a week or more. One mom has already mentioned that she does a daily reflection on the needs of her children after spending about 10 minutes reading her Core Book (for me that would be the Bible). That is a great idea too.

We will be reporting back to each other on the forum every Sunday for a while, to share experience and insights. Kind of like an experiment. You should try this too. Let me know what you think!

[sew].

I'm not sure what or even if I will sew this week! I would like to get to some leggings for the girls but ... things are a bit crazy already ... we'll have to see how it all shakes out.

Have a wonderful week and God bless all your mentoring endeavours!!

The First Day - Young Explorers Block 1

WOW!!!

This morning was our first morning of Young Explorers, the community homeschool program I'm currently piloting.  For the benefit of the parents, and for those of you who might be interested in forming a "Love of Learning" group of your own, here is a rundown of the morning.

The group is a good size - we have eight children ages 6-10, plus my own littles.  If  you do a larger group you will need another helper :).

Icebreaker
I asked the children what an icebreaker was, and they gave me definitions involving types of machines in the arctic that break the ice for boats to go through LOL! They were right! And from there it was an easy leap to the concept of "breaking the ice" and getting to know one another better.  Our icebreaker was easy - say your name and tell us something about yourself, and we will all guess if that "something" was true or false. I had lots of interesting factoids, mostly involving wildlife. Some have seen penguins, bears, coyotes, wild turkeys and polar bears.  That was fun and got the kids warmed up.

Read-Aloud #1 - from the Seven Habits of Happy Kids
We read and discussed the first habit - where Sammy the Squirrel is "bored" and looks to each of his friends to entertain him  or suggest something to do. In the end, Sammy finds out that he can use his talents (he likes to fix old things like radios, phones, etc), to make someone else feel better (Allie the mouse was sick in bed). Sammy fixes an old radio and wraps it in a ribbon for Allie. Each of us shared what our passions and talents were and how we can use them to brighten someone else's day.  I had to laugh because one child's passion was eating! T'was good. The icebreaker and story took a good half-hour.


Living Math - Mobius Strips

By this time, the kids needed to move so it was perfect to switch to some hands-on Living Math.  Today we explored Mobius strips - they are super-cool! First, I read a little blurb about Mr. Mobius, found in Famous Problems and their Mathematicians.  Mobius had retired from a long career in math and astronomy, and was on vacation with his wife. They were in a cabin with no windows and flying insects were a problem. He tried hanging flypaper from the ceiling, but alas, Mr. Mobius is a tall guy and kept running into the flypaper. To make it shorter and more effective, rather than making a simple loop, Mobius twisted one end of the flypaper before making a loop. And he was amazed by its properties - as were we :). He started an entire new branch of mathematics! (Incidentally, there is also a Mobius-type bottle which might be fun for you to google and explore with your children).

So we explored Mobius strips. First we made a simple ring using adding-machine paper and tape, and chatted about it. It has an inside surface and an outside surface. It has two distinct edges. We cut it in half lengthwise around the loop and it formed two new and separate circles.  So far so good.

Then, we each made a Mobius strip and tested its properties. We drew a line down the middle and put our scissors to work, with interesting results!!

Some ended up with two new linked Mobius strips and some ended up with one big Mobius strip. Most of all, the kids wanted to keep going and keep cutting down the center of each new strip that evolved, to see what would happen.

And that's the idea, isn't it? To inspire them to be curious! One child said she couldn't wait to get home and make more strips to see how far she could take it :).  And after everyone left for the day, Alexa was busy making more strips as was my 12yo.

Break and Snack
We had spent a good 45 minutes at Living Math. And by that time, we were ready for a break. We took our snacks and headed outdoors. The kids REALLY needed this time to expend energy, and it was a beautiful day. We had a good 15 minutes of outdoor time and that was time well spent.

Power Hour and More Socratic
We moved right into our art picture study. Since my large poster-sized prints had not yet arrived, I had to use pictures out of my art books, which was hard with a large group! We set a sand-timer and I instructed everyone to examine the painting closely until the sand ran out, then I hid the picture and quizzed them on what they saw. We did this for several Monets - and they seemed to really enjoy this.

We read and discussed Robert Frost's poem, The Road Not Taken.  First, I read it like a narration with no artistic pauses at the end of each line or verse so it didn't read as a poem at all. Then I read it like a poem - to illustrate to the kids firsthand how a poem is different and stylized and how its much more pleasurable to listen to as a poem. We discussed the meaning of the poem. I had to laugh in my head, as one child said there were two paths you could take in life - one is getting pierced and tattooed and the other is doing the right thing and being a good person LOL. You got it!!

Finally, we read Samba the Coward, from The Olive Fairy Book (free on Kindle!!). GREAT STORY!!! We laughed, we cried, we almost died. Seriously, we had so much fun reading this. ALL the kids were totally engaged. And we tackled the concept of courage, cowardice, and bravery.  Kids are so smart. They came to their own conclusions Socratic style. Are we born with courage? How do we get it? What IS it exactly? Its so funny to hear their thoughts on courage before reading the story versus after. Most importantly, provide time for your kids to THINK about these concepts.  If never given the opportunity ....

So there you have it - in a nutshell! Day 1 a total success.  We meet again tomorrow, this time the focus will be Living Science instead of math; all else will be similar to today.

God bless your week!!

Young Explorers Art/Picture Study - Block 1

Van Gogh's Bedroom

I have always loved the Charlotte Mason approach to teaching art appreciation via picture study. Choose an artist and several selections by that artist. Each week, show one of the art selections and let the child just take it all in. Then, remove or hide that piece of art and ask the child to describe everything he can remember about the picture - this being called a narration. Finally, have a discussion about the piece to further encourage the child to interact with it.  Keep the art visible for about a week. If you pick 6 pieces per artist, viewing one picture per week, you can cover 4-6 artists in a school year.

So simple.



Bridge in Monet's Garden

Having been through this with my older kids (group A), I am taking a bit of a twist in my approach with group B and the Young Explorers learning group. My approach is influenced by the TJEd lifestyle, particularly the principles of "You, not them," and "Inspire, not require." Let me explain.

"You, not them."
Before this principle took shape for me, I would have chosen 5-6 artists and a selection of their artwork based either on a canned curricula or online schedule for picture study. This may or may not be chosen according to the history period we were studying. My choices would be systematic and we'd not look at the next artist until we had finished a good 6 weeks of the current. I'd probably follow the exact recommendation and use the exact artwork specified.  And ask the kids the exact questions suggested by the curriculum developer. Did you like the picture? How does it make you feel? Seems like a rational approach. Easy. Don't have to think too much. Check the box and get 'er done.

Farmer's Garden with Sunflowers - Klimt

This time I have chosen what I love! In other words, I started with ME. Not them.
I spent some time going through my favorite online gallery where you can order prints and posters. I scrolled through the fine art prints (with a price filter on to view the lowest price items first) and chose several pieces by a handful of masters (I love Klimt, Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir - they just kept beckoning)  that I could gaze at forever because they are beautiful to me; pieces I would love to have in my own home. Pieces that aren't the size of a postcard.

Add to cart.

Renoir's Dance at Bougival

"Inspire, not require."
Because I am excited about these pieces, I have no doubt my enthusiasm will spill over to the kids!  When I tell them I can't wait to show them the art selection for the day, it will be sincere! And I'm going to be the one taking great pleasure everytime I walk into the kitchen and see the poster on the wall.

So, we aren't sticking to just one artist for each block, although that's a fine and systematic approach. We'll be viewing some classic Monet, Van Gogh, Renoir, and Klimt. (We won't go into detail on Klimt's biography!!) But how neat to view paintings of sunflowers from the perspective of 3-4 different famous artists. Monet, Van Gogh, Klimt - they all had their sunflowers. What is it about sunflowers that artist like to paint? I can almost guarantee you my kids will be inspired to paint their own sunflowers, perhaps yours will too.

Van Gogh's 15 Sunflowers

And I love Van Gogh - he painted hundreds! While Van Gogh is probably one of the most commonly studied artists, you can't really get enough of him. (Its ok if the kids have studied him before - he is a classic, which means you can return to him over and over again and get something new out of the experience each time). When the kids see that his still life teapot-and-fruit-on-the-table paintings were ... not really his niche ... as they compare them to his more famous works ... the kids will realize that you don't just begin as a perfect artist. It takes time and practice to find where you fit in.

Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir, Klimt - they are classics. They are worth knowing and falling in love with.

Klimt's Tree of Life

Later, when the kids are older and more inclined to analysis, we can take a more systematic approach. We can analyze impressionism from baroque. We can talk pointillism. We can study the more obscure artists and what influenced them. 

Van Gogh's The Sower



But not now! Now is the time to give the kids the eye candy and create in them an appetite for the true and the beautiful!

Have a lovely weekend!

TJEd - the Good and Bad

There are many criticisms of TJEd aka Leadership Education. I have grappled with some myself over the years; it is why I have never really fully embraced the philosophy, not fully (see this post).  I won't go into the criticisms (you can google that), but perhaps the misgivings, for me personally, stem from the fact that the author Oliver deMille and 95% of the TJEd machine and followers are of a drastically different faith than I am.  By "machine/follower" I mean co-authors, authors of related books on TJEd, online 'Leadership' schools, many TJEd forum members, and online classes for TJEd moms. OK, I don't have hard statistics to back that up, but I think its safe to say by far the majority are of a VERY different religious background, and therefore different worldview.  Why is this all a misgiving to me? Can't someone of a different faith than I  create a new approach to education? Of course Of course!! But let's just say, I need to be more careful, more vigilant, ever discerning what I read and buy into of TJEd, in order to ensure it does not run contrary to my own belief system. Fair? Every author comes with bias of some sort, right? And as discerning readers we have to continually question and critically assess.  Oliver deMille has written several books recently, not necessarily related to TJEd and homeschooling, and I see some elements I do not agree with.  An example, in the book TJEd for Teens he and his co-author recommend a Teen Top 100 booklist.  Some of the books on the list are ... his own.  I'm sure he truly believes they should be there. But ... I don't necessarily buy in.  In the same book, he defines "key mission areas" that we all fall into when we discern our purpose in life.  He uses interesting categories, some of which fall directly out of the Catholic's Corporal Works of Mercy such as to 'feed the hungry,' but the list also includes 'to create wealth' as a personal mission.  I'm not sure that creating wealth would qualify as one's *main* purpose in life from a Catholic perspective. I guess if you are "called to create wealth" for the benefit of others ... maybe a case could be made?  But, from a Catholic perspective, I have read that prosperity is more dangerous than poverty, and this I believe to be true. So, in the end, as with everything, prayerful discernment is necessary for a Catholic parent and homeschooler. Always.

Another hesitation I have.  DeMille has put together the "7 Keys of Great Teaching" and even added an 8th Key as TJEd has evolved.  I love the 7 Keys.  I use them to a certain extent, but not exclusively.  Was Thomas Jefferson actually educated by his mom using the 7 Keys? Of course not.  The 7 Keys were put forward by deMille based on his research, thoughts, and opinions.  So TJEd, as a modern educational philosophy, has not *really* been tested scientifically to determine if in fact this approach creates "leaders" and "statesmen," other than the idea that some of the Founding Fathers of America would have studied classics and had mentors and would have taken ownership of their own education.  But you know what? The 7 keys overlap other educational philosophies (such as reading and studying the classics).  So I'm not all that fussed over the fact that TJEd is relatively new and untested.  I do love so many elements of TJEd that I'm willing to accept the fact there are imperfections, and tweak it the way I want.  My experience on the TJEd forums leads me to believe that others are doing the same - tweaking and modifying. That's okay.

But here's what I'm excited about today. I recently participated in a free trial class for moms through the online Abigail Adams Academy.  We read and discussed a speech by Gandhi.  It was WONDERFUL!! What a treat to bring together other women from different parts of the continent to have a scholarly discussion! I plan on being a regular attendee beginning in the fall. And that brings me to:

Key of Great Teaching #7:   "You, not them." 


(otherwise known as: don't ignore yourself in the process of home-educating your children)


One thing I know for sure about TJEd, it has inspired thousands of moms, in the trenches like me, in the thick of motherhood and homeschooling, to work on their own education and make themselves better people by studying and discussing the classics. Writing about them.  Working on their own Core and Love of Learning phases.  I am so grateful!! Another thing I know for sure? This approach to education, this TJEd stuff - its different than everything else I've used/seen/read about.  It aspires to all the lofty ideals like character, virtue, relationship, true education. I like that.

Have a great week, God bless you.

Conveyor belt: what is it really?

Recently on a forum, a homeschooling mom made a tongue-in-cheek confession that she loved a good conveyor belt.  I'm sharing with you some excerpts of my response to her :).


Remember that TJEd concept of conveyor belt education? Its where everybody hops on the belt (preschool or kindergarten), then gets the same education, at the same time and pace, without consideration of individual learning needs or interests.  At the end of the belt (eg grade 12), you get the "stamp of approval" (diploma), you hop off, and you get a job. Or go on to another conveyor belt (eg college).  In a conveyor belt model, you are told what to think. But not how to think. 

In the homeschool area, I think the conveyor belt is more of a mentality than an entity:

A mentality that the "plans" (such as a school-in-a-box curriculum) must be followed to the tee in order for real learning to occur. Or that you must have plans at all.


A mentality that we must check, check, check the items off the list, irrespective of the individual student's learning needs, desires and abilities. 


A mentality of one size fits all and the size is not dictated by you but by someone else. 


Please don't fall into that trap. Its the sure path to mommy burnout and kills any love of learning.

During a couple of my pregnancy/baby years, we used Sonlight curriculum - a packaged school-in-a-box that comes with ready-made lesson plans and a schedule for 36 full weeks of school.  This would be considered a conveyor belt, because someone else made these plans.  Yet, we loved it! The reason we loved it and why it worked was because I did not approach it with conveyor belt mentality.


I was very careful to make it work for us, and not be a slave to its plans and checklists. We didn't do all the writing assignments, grammar components, etc etc etc. and we didn't finish 36 weeks of lesson plans - nor did I ever expect that we would. Rather, we did what we loved - the reading, the mapping, the Bible memory, the running off on trails for the sake of learning. We used it as a spine and let it be a rough guide. There was no "drudgery" or "work" involved, it was pure pleasure. It inspired the kids, and because of that, we kept it up. I think many people who first buy a boxed curriculum expect to "finish" in the prescribed 36 weeks, but seasoned homeschoolers soon find out that its difficult to stick to someone else's plan and still be happy and sane by the end of the school year. We all either abandon it, or alter it, or burn ourselves out.  Same with any specific "curriculum" for individual subjects - reading, history, math, french - if you expect to get on the conveyor belt at lesson one, and require your kids to complete every. single. page. from start to finish, I think you miss a great opportunity to enjoy the ride of learning. I would bet that at some point it becomes drudgery. And while your kids may now be fluent in french verb conjugation and they are officially performing at grade level of their peers, at what cost did they achieve it? At the cost of love of learning? Wait a minute - that's one of the reasons why I started homeschooling in the first place - because I wanted to instil a great love for learning in my children!!!

Even the TJEd for Teens Top 100 booklist could become a conveyor belt, if approached with the mentality that "these are the top 100 books that every wannabeascholar MUST start with in order to be a scholar, and we will go through each and every one so we can check, check, check them off the list." I certainly don't think that list is the be-all end-all. But, if you use it as a spine or a starting place, tweak here and there, read this one but not that one, then it becomes a great tool! Any list of classics can and should be approached this way; they are after all, a matter of opinion.


My entire point was this: to employ a TJEd or Leadership Education model, we need not be afraid of packaged curriculum per se.  We just need to know how to apply it and not have crazy expectations.  We need to use it concurrently with inspiration. 


Avoid the mentality of the conveyor belt.


  

Homeschool planning: the Compass

"Each binder should include the student's past and current compass - a six month list of everything they want to study, learn and do."

- from Leadership Education The Phases of Learning

You are going to like the Compass.

You will like it, because you are already thinking about next year's school year, aren't you.  You are turning things over in your mind. Making notes. Perusing resources.  Reading.  Some plans are no-brainers, you think, because they are just a continuation from this year. You've already made some decisions.

But.

I would like to encourage you to back up just a bit and ask yourself this question: 

 To what extent have I thoroughly considered my child's strengths, weaknesses, skills and knowledge, and most importantly, their genius and mission 'leanings' in their life? 

This is where the Compass is most helpful in your planning journey.  It provides a highly individualized big-picture vision, a spine for the learning pathway; a nice road-map to revisit on a weekly basis and to re-evaluate about every six months.  It helps provide clarity of thought of where you are at, and where your child is at.  I'm in the process right now, with myself and each of my children (except the 1yr old!).  Remember, one of the 7 Keys of Great Teaching is 'You, not Them'.  This means, you don't ignore yourself and your own education in the process :).

Everyone practising Leadership Education has their own way of implementation, and not a lot of "detail" is provided in the book about what the Compass specifically looks like.  I like that fact, because I can make it into something that works for me; you can do the same.  The Compass is  a six month list of everything the child wants to study, learn and do - a very vague definition and feels unschooly to me.  However, after reading an excellent post on the Compass by wonderful TJEd blogger Celeste, I am implementing an outline based on hers. Thank you, Celeste!

Spend some time with each child discussing and then writing down whatever appeals to you in the following:

1. Strengths - we've all got 'em! Think beyond just academics.  Think character, hobbies and interests, etc.

- What are my favorite things to do?

- What do I excel at?

- What am I really confident in?

- What would my family/friends say I'm good at?

- What virtues are most prominent in me right now?

2. Top Personal Classics 

- make a list of the top classics that have really impacted your life; this is a list you will add to

- maybe you phrase it as the 'best 10 books you've ever read'

- beside each book, make a note as to the general theme or how it impacted you

3. Areas to Strengthen - we've all got these too!

- What needs work?

- Where am I weaker academically?  

- What life-skills do I need to work on?

- What would my family/friends say I can improve upon?

- What virtues do I need to cultivate most right now?

4. Objectives - these should be a natural fall-out from the above.  As a parent, you may be nudging your child in one direction or another

- What books do I want to read in the next six months?  - if 'kindness' is a virtue that needs building upon, maybe the chosen classics or stories revolve around this theme.   

- What part of my Core Book (eg the Bible) do I want to spend time on in the next six months? - for my core kids, we are spending time Bible storybooks that outline salvation history - like a Jesse Tree in storybook form

- How can I go deeper into my favorite things and my passions? - I notice how Dawson loves to work with building things and creating things with his hands, so I'm thinking how I might extend and build upon this love of his - so we bought a kids sandbox kit and he's responsible to build it

- What skills do I want to/need to work on?  For example, my daughter makes the same meal every two weeks - so that she gets really good at it - its my requirement but she gets to pick the meal we work on; the first school year it was roast chicken dinner every other Monday.  

- What academic area(s) do I want to or need to study? - when you answer this question with your kids, it becomes a clear signal where to focus your prep time; child weak in reading? then must find a way to  inspire reading via games, books, experiences, etc

- Are there any other things I want to learn, see or do?

- What is my mission and purpose? - don't be afraid of this one. Of course its not written in stone. But if there are any tendencies at all, even if its very general in nature, write it down. As an example, one of my children said whatever her mission, she wanted to inspire others.

The Compass exercise is not something to whip up in a half-hour, so do spend some time on it and enjoy the process.  Keep a copy of each child's Compass in both your own and each child's binder.  And if you have a child approaching or in Scholar phase, I would encourage you to use "The Real You" exercise in A Thomas Jefferson Education for Teens, as it goes even deeper than the Compass.  It also includes a Teen Top 100 Booklist to work through, if desired.

This week, I'm working on Compasses for the binders.  Join me?

May God grant you all the blessings of an abundant week and an abundant life :)!!

What's your homeschooling culture?

So, tell me. How exactly do you homeschool?  I mean, how do you put it all together and do it? Could I have a copy of your schedule? Your lesson plans? Your reading list? Your educational plan? Your typical routine?

Remember back to when you first started homeschooling.  Were these questions ever burning inside of you?  Maybe you didn't come out and ask other homeschooling moms, maybe you did, maybe you asked your mentor and she emailed you entire pdf documents with her year-plans, schedules, booklists, and projected purchases for the upcoming year ... I'm just sayin.   'Cause there comes a point when you have made the decision to home-educate, you've perhaps alligned with a particular philosophy or method, you've even bought curriculum, but then ...

The question of how to do it is particularly poignant when it comes to Leadership Education.  Its based on principles and not on methodology, no how-to manual; precisely because it is not based on a "conveyor-belt" model that characterizes how our schools deliver education today. 

The real question should be: How do I do it?

And whether your philosophy is TJEd, Charlotte Mason, Montessori, Classical, etc., ultimately you become the expert of your own homeschool.  You adopt bits of this and that, you feel out the routines and schedules that work for your family, you experiment here and there.  It becomes your personal homeschool culture and develops over time, and that is why no one homeschool looks the same as another.  The only commonalities among homeschoolers seem to be the core values of sanctity of children, and the primacy of the family.  Which is why homeschool culture and family culture go hand in hand.

I have been deeply pondering homeschool and family culture; they are so similar.  Webster's has several definitions for culture, two of them apply here:  "a set of shared attitudes, values, goals and practices; also the characteristic features of everyday existence."

Applied, this becomes the way your family or homeschool forms itself - your rules, roles, habits, activities, beliefs, etc.   So ask yourself, what are your special values and beliefs?  How does your family have fun? Are you connected to a faith community? What are your family rules and traditions? How do you parent? What are your family's talents?  What is your family charism - for example do you all have a thing for music? hospitality? service? outdoor life? What about your homeschool?

We have some definite isms, our family.  Later in the evening, after the littles are in bed and the house is quiet, our olders will eventually make their way to hubby and I and we sit and we talk about everything and nothing.  Happens every night without fail.  Another ism, we always always always gather on Sunday evenings for a family Rosary.  Love that.  We should do it more often but I'm thankful for even the Sundays.  And in our homeschool?  We do our work in the mornings.  I protect mornings.  We value a little tea-time and snack on most days.  We value our games, and we value our read-aloud/discussion times.  We value our babies and little ones in the mix of the olders. We value our love of learning. It is our rhythm, our culture.

What about you?

You are so unique. And wonderful.  And an amazing reflection of our Creator. Your family, too, has its own beautiful culture, homeschooling or otherwise.  I want to tell you not to be afraid to step into it and embrace it more fully.  If you're homeschooling, I want to tell you: Have confidence. Be secure. Pray lots. And don't try to follow the crowd because it won't work for you.   

So, tell me. What's your family culture? What's your homeschooling culture?  I'd love to hear.

God bless your week!

Thomas Jefferson Education ... and me

About six years ago, I read A Thomas Jefferson Education and was completely astounded, mesmerized, blown away, all of that.  The philosophy was amazing and captivating to me.  It is a must-read for anyone interested in exploring education outside the box.

And I've continued to have a small love affair with TJEd aka Leadership Education ever since, but never quite implementing the entire philosophy, never quite going all the way with it.  I read and devour everything written about it, I download the talks and other goodies which are always inspiring, and I ponder. I dream.  I pray.  I implement only what I like.  But something always holds me back from jumping all in, and I think that's a good thing.  You should be able to trust your gut, your instincts when it comes to how you foster your children's education in your own home.  Right?

Yet, there is something to be said for this TJEd way of life and I do incorporate LOTS of elements.  Maybe the purist TJEders would be offended, I don't know.  Is it possible to adopt certain ways and parts of something into your homeschool without going whole hog?  That's a good question :).

Let me begin at the beginning with TJEd, just to give you a little background.  The cornerstone principles, as explained in the book linked above, are called the "Seven Keys of Great Teaching," and here they are:

1. Classics, Not Textbooks
2. Mentors, Not Professors
3. Inspire, Not Require
4. Structure Time, Not Content
5. Simplicity, Not Complexity
6. Quality, Not Conformity
7. You, Not Them

Some have added an eighth principal, that is "Secure, not Stressed."  THAT was a good idea, because implementing the principles in totality takes a great leap of faith!  

Lately, I have been VERY excited about principle #7, You, Not Them.  Essentially, you have to educate yourself before you can pass on any inspiration to others.  Ever read a classic? No? Then that's where you begin.  Ever discuss a classic with someone else? No? Then do that.  Need to inspire your kids to enjoy math? Then read a math classic and get excited about it, pass it on to your kids.  You see? Your education is really a key to your child's education.  If you are excited about something, they will want to know what all the fuss is about.  So, I continually work on my own education, and for me that has taken the form of reading classics.  I read for myself, but also with an eye to recommending it (or not) to my kids.

LOVE the Kindle for this.  Most of the classics are free downloads, so you really have a wonderful library right at your fingertips and not taking up space.  Here's a taste of what books I'm currently breathing:

Mansfield Park by Jane Austen

Miss B is also reading, we go to Starbucks every other Monday night to discuss the plot and characters, GREAT bonding time with my teen! This book is chalk full of tongue-in-cheek humor as it comments on charm versus virture in the Victorian era. An interesting romance! 

Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

I've just finished previewing this with kids in mind. Ms.L'Engle is one of the top ten banned authors in many Christian Schools.  Yet, the book has been critically acclaimed.  It keeps popping up as a classic and I think I would feel I was missing something by not reading. Its actually quite good!  I think it would make a great read-aloud and that way you could discuss the very few elements that might spur some questions regarding faith issues.

If Protestantism is True by Devin Rose

Hubby and I are reading/have read. This book is one of the very best Catholic apologetics books I've ever read.  Rather than bantering over this Scripture verse or that, (because you can always seem to find verses to support either viewpoint), Devin Rose uses logic and reasoning (my kinda language!) to answer common Protestant issues.  LOVE it.

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

I'm reading with an eye for my 12 yo son, but its going to be a no-go.  The book is disturbing to me, full of mature themes that are unpleasant, and quite a bit of swearing. I found this book suggestion among a list of "50 books for boys and young men", on the blog "Art of Manliness" HERE.  Many of the recommended books do look good though.

You, Not Them.

Enjoy the journey!!