CHARLOTTE MASON ROCKS!

I wanted to show you a picture of our home...all decorated for Christmas! Don't look at my windows...they're not as clean as they should be! Can you see Tommie in the upstairs window..and can you see me waving in the doorway?





Gotcha! NOT TRUE!....

This week and into the next, we'll be expanding on our unit of England! A few entries back, I explained a little of the fun we've had, learning about The Great Fire and The Great Plague. This week finds Tommie reading Mark Twain's classic, "The Prince and the Pauper."

It's a fantastic book for boys! I've been able to use the Charlotte Mason methods again.. with great success! Spelling, vocabulary, narration, dictation, handwriting and culture.

Our homeschooling was becoming too routine and too much like the movie Groundhog Day! This style saves a ton of time and wraps everything into one nice package, successfully- and with depth. Outside of the Charlotte
Mason basics, this week we actually took a vacation to England! I bought (at Goodwill $1.) a one-hour movie...where we toured all of England! It gave us a nice little overview of the entire country! I also had made a scavenger hunt, in which Tommie was taking a trip to Great Britain and had to locate and write: where the legend of The Loch Ness Monster lived, where shipbuilding takes place, The White Cliffs of Dover, abandoned tin mines, Liverpool, The Cotswalds, and much more! I was given a very old book with a map that highlighted all the popular spots...this is where I pulled my information from. It was great for map work, too! Today, using the same old reference book, he had to figure out which countries speak English... South Africa, India, Indonisia, etc. Another thing which was quick and effective was a very small lesson on Shakespere. Who he was, what did he do, when was he born, research and make a theater program of his most famous plays: comedy, historical and tradgedies. The movie gave a good look at his home and talked a little about Anne Hathaway, so that was a bonus! At this point, I'm not sure he needs to know too much more about Shakespere... until high school!

Next week, we'll be visiting and touring this English style mansion...the one in the photo- that you thought was my house! It's open to the public and all decorated for Christmas... I think this will be a very warm experience and a nice finale for our unit and end to our December homeschooling! smile-wink-nod!