What is Classical Education and where did it come from? According to Wikipedia: The classical education movement or renewal advocates for a return to a traditional education based on the liberal arts (including the natural sciences), the canons of classical literature, the fine arts, and the history of ... Read More...
Curious about classical education? Where do you start with Classical homeschooling? This Christian classical reading list tells you exactly what you need ...
Learn the 8 principles of classical education and in doing so, you'll get a handle on classical pedagogy in a very short time!
Exploring the 2 Types Classical Education is an in-depth look at the foundations of classical education; the similarities and differences.
Through the years, I have homeschooled my children in several ways - unit studies, literature-rich studies, and the 4-year history rotation. At the root of all of it was a classical education, even though I veered from that a bit in the earlier years due to the New-and-Shiny Syndrome. As my oldest child aged and I folded my girls into our homeschool, I saw that I needed to have more structure and 'classical-ness' (that's totally a made up word) in our homeschool. If my goal was to give them a classical education, then I needed to educate myself on how
Summer is coming quickly, and it's the perfect time for homeschool moms to read classical education books in preparation for the upcoming school year.
In classical education preschool should be a gentle affair. Preschoolers are exploring the world and putting pegs together that will aid future studies.
Learn how one mom gave her 5 children a classical education through each stage of the Trivium. Complete with curriculum and extracurricular suggestions.
Everyday Scholé is back!!! We’ve taken quite a few months off as all of us were wrapping up blogging projects or writing projects, but this month we are beginning a yearlong series that is sure to inspire you and your homeschool. We are taking an in-depth, practical look at the eight essential principles of classical pedagogy (make haste slowly, much not many, repetition is the mother of memory, embodied learning, songs, chants, and jingles, wonder and curiosity, educational virtues, and scholé, contemplation, and leisure). Each month we will focus on a different principle and how to practically implement that principle in your homeschool. Can you tell I’m excited?!? I think what I’m most excited about is that I’m not a true classical homeschooler. I’m a Charlotte Mason homeschooler. It’s true that Ms. Mason had much in common with classical homeschoolers {some even consider her a classical homeschooler in her own right}, but on the surface a few of the eight essential principles seem to fly in the face of what Charlotte Mason homeschoolers promote as a “true” Charlotte Mason education. So for the each of these eight principles I’m going to be focusing on how to use classical pedagogy as outlined by Dr. Perrin in the link above, but in a Charlotte Mason way. Before we start this journey through classical and Charlotte Mason, I wanted to mention something that Dr. Perrin states at the beginning of his video. He says, “Principles should support our practices.” Basically the thrust of that statement is that the things you do in your homeschool should have a principle that supports them. For example, if you are a Charlotte Mason homeschooler why do you engage in nature study? Because you are supposed to do so if you ascribe to Ms. Mason’s philosophy? Because the curriculum you bought says to do it? Do you really even know why Charlotte Mason was such a huge proponent of nature study for all students throughout their school years? These are important questions to ask about any homeschooling philosophy whether it’s classical, unschooling, traditional, etc. If you don’t know what various educational practices are trying to accomplish in your homeschool, it is pointless to do them. While I’m focusing on these eight principles in a Charlotte Mason homeschool, I hope that you will look at them through whatever philosophy influences your homeschool because I truly believe these eight essential principles of classical pedagogy are fundamentally just really great educational practices in general that can be applied to whatever method you use. I can see how all methods of education can be tweaked and manipulated in such a way to benefit from the use of all eight principles. The hardest part, as Dr. Perrin states toward the end, is that changing our mindset about education to one that encompasses these ideals is work for us. It is not natural for those of us who are graduates of the public school system here in the United States. The most difficult challenge you will have is not the vision, but the implementation. You might have noticed that scholé is the last principle listed. I firmly believe this is because as you focus on the other seven, teaching from rest will become a natural byproduct of your endeavors. It doesn’t mean that it comes naturally, as I mentioned above, but it will be apparent that schooling your child with these principals in the forefront of your mind will reap a calmer, restful, leisurely approach to education in your home. I’ve seen this lived out in our homeschool and I’m excited to share some practical ways I’ve achieved this in the coming year. Be sure and check out my fellow Everyday Scholé bloggers and their thoughts about the principles of classical education. What educational philosophies influence your homeschool the most? Let me know in the comments. Chelli
The Well-Trained Mind approach to classical education springs off the Lost Tools of Learning by Dorothy Sayers and uses history as the anchoring subject.
Have you ever wondered just what is classical education and the classical method? Here's a brief and easy to read explanation!
Have you ever been embarrassed by your small child repeating something you said? Welcome to the grammar stage in classical education!
Combining Charlotte Mason and Classical education is possible! Here’s how we blend the Charlotte Mason and Classical homeschool styles.
A classical education gives students a firm foundation for future success in all areas of learning and life. Here are four easy ways to implement it.
A Guide to Classical Homeschooling - what is classical education, how you can implement in your homeschool, and tons of resources!
Classical homeschooling curriculum include Veritas Press, Memoria Press, Classical Academic Press, A Well Trained Mind and more.
