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Guest Post: Encouraging Reluctant Nature Students
Charlotte Mason wrote “We are all meant to be naturalists, each in his own degree, and it is inexcusable to live in a world so full of the marvels of plant and animal life and to care for none of these things.” (Home Education, page 61) But what can we do if our children just aren’t interested in nature? Irish…
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Beautifully Illustrated Irish Nature Books to Enjoy One Page a Day
Each day, during our book basket time, we read a double-page spread from a beautifully illustrated nature book. I leave the book open on a bookstand or shelf for the rest of the day to allow the images to blend into our day. We also follow this approach for both poetry and art. Coming up: Irish Page-a-day Nature Books ~ General…
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Starting Calligraphy
Previous posts: Handwriting without tears, Cursive (coming soon) My daughter wanted to try calligraphy. This has been lovely for us to do together and so I thought I would share what we used. I remember wanting to learn copperplate as a teenager. I bought wide, chisel-shaped nibs because that was all that had been in my local stationery shop. It…
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I want to close my Audible account… What could I buy with my Audible credits?
It is common to subscribe to Audible and not be listening as quickly as the credits clock up. But you have to spend all your credits before you unsubscribe or you lose them. What books might you buy? I’ve seen this question a number of times, so here are some suggestions for Irish home educators… And by the way, when…
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Guest Post: Nature Study – How Can I Teach What I Don’t Know?
Irish nature lover and home educator Maireen has written a lovely post answering the question “How can I teach what I don’t know?” when thinking about studying nature. I have been chatting recently to a friend about homeschooling and nature study. She said she and her husband had been looking at my Instagram feed and he spotted the post on silk…
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Books & Curriculum, Books to Read Aloud, Irish Booklist, Irish Geography, Irish Nature Study, Uncategorized
Irish Living Book list – Classic fiction set in Ireland
This is the first post in what will be a series of posts listing living books for Irish home educators with children in primary school. Reading quality books is an important part of a Charlotte Mason education, whether snuggled on the couch reading aloud together or reading to themselves. I had difficulty locating living books set in Ireland and could…
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I want to read Charlotte Mason’s volumes – Which book should I buy?
I am delighted that you are at this page as it means you are planning to read Charlotte Mason’s volumes. When you go searching there are a variety of different printings of the six volumes which Charlotte Mason wrote and it can be a bit confusing. To clarify: the content in the different editions is the same. In the editions…
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Learning to Play the Piano in our Home
Why? ~ Introduction to Music ~ Our Piano ~ Piano for littles ~ Piano apps for a bit older ~ Starter Piano Song Books ~ Further Thoughts ~ Relationships “Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” – Plato Like every subject in our homeschool, I think it is…
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What’s in our bag when we go out for a nature walk? Guest Post!
Irish nature lover and home educator Maireen has written a lovely post describing what she brings along for a nature walk. She has included some of her beautiful photographs of her family on a nature walk. You can see more of her photos on her Instagram. Maireen lives with her long-suffering husband, their two little girls and a motley collection…
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Making My Own Books
I was making some simple comb bound books as I get ready for more formal school. It is quick to make a book like this when you have a printer, binder and cutter, but fathoming it out the first time can take a bit of time. To simplify it for you, I made notes as I worked to create this…
