Homeschool Chat: What is the Charlotte Mason method?

Charlotte Mason was a British educator. She lived at the turn of the twentieth century. She believed that children should be respected as people and taught the motto: “I am. I can. I ought. I will.” She also believed that children were natural born learners and that the desire to learn need only be facilitated. [...]

Three Risen Loaves

Three Risen Loaves

What does it mean when the bread rises higher than it ever has on the day we celebrate the greatest rising? I made three loaves and didn’t think of the significance of number until later. I scored the dough right before baking. It was then that I saw the marks and remembered… So here I [...]

Easter Guide

Easter Guide

Gathering our Easter resources proved to be quite an undertaking. It took hours of reading, watching, consolidating, typing, linking, prepping supplies, purchasing materials, remembering past resources and researching new ones. Yet even with an extensive array of curriculum, meaningful Easter basket ideas, educational videos, baking projects, hands-on activities, books for all ages, music, and more… [...]

There Is Much To Do

As the world burns, bleeds, and weeps - a ten year old finishes his first week of the fifth grade. Pencils litter geography lessons and long division. I begin gathering loose papers and stacking books. A journal falls open. Prompts mark the pages: “Things I’m grateful for...” and “Things I’m praying for...”. There, scrawled in [...]

Easter

It is well documented that Jesus was killed during the time of Passover. The connection between these events is deeply woven. It spans centuries, languages, and cultures. During the first Passover, lambs blood was used to mark the homes of Gods people while they were still held in slavery. Prophecies written centuries before the crucifixion [...]

Broken Sword

A toy sword broke. But Papa assured our little warrior that it could be mended. He brought out two rolls of thick, strong tape. “Which would you like? Black or red?” “Red!”, came the reply. “Okay, here...”, Papa tore off enough to provide a strong repair and went to place it on the sword. “No! [...]

Turn for the Tide

Part One: The Glow . Our leader quickly explains what I will need to hurriedly write down. As scribe, I will listen for tag numbers, latitude, longitude, measurements, physical descriptors, and military time. I nod, hoping I won’t forget my instructions or fall behind. How quickly will this all happen? The tag, medical pack, a [...]

Ready for God

“I wasn’t ready yet for church, but I was ready for God. And I’ve always believed that the ocean is one of the surest places to find Him.“- Shauna Niequist, "Cold Tangerines” . I did find my way back to church. And I’m so glad I did. At some point you must go deeper than [...]

For Such a Time as This

The day stretched until I was sure it would burst. My arms couldn’t hold it. Both of my boys were out of sorts. Their struggles became the pick-up stick pile that I wove in and out of all day. Papa swore it was full moon angst. And I just swore that my patience was gone. [...]

Nothing wasted

Were there voices trying to tell your story before you even had ears to hear it? And as you grew, did the volume of lies, half truths, and imagined details grow right alongside? . Did your mother turn off the sound and whisper with her heart that you were a gift of worth; coming into [...]