Charlotte Mason Gave Our Homeschool Wings
(All photos in this entry are from a family adventure to the Big Island of Hawaii in 2005-I am so in the mood to go again and this was my way of feeding that desire.)
I can remember clearly sitting on the bench at the park reading A Charlotte Mason Companion and devouring the ideas that Karen Andreola expressed about her personal experiences with a Charlotte Mason homeschool education. Each chapter made me want to know more about this method of education. My four children were all homeschooling at that time and they were doing fine but it seemed like as much as I tried to put my finger on it, the harder it was to discover what the missing element was in our homeschool. Some days were dry and boring and it was not for my lack of trying, but rather I was longing for a better way to offer their subjects in a meaningful way.
I wanted more than the Three R’s and the mechanical school days that we were churning out. What in the world were we homeschooling for if we could not do better than the public school system?
Who knew that a lady from the early 2oth century would supply the fuel for a better homeschool experience? How were her ideas and principles to be applied in our modern world? Was it even a good idea? I decided to investigate more and eventually started to take some baby steps.
Shell Beach, Kona
Charlotte Mason’s ideas breathed life into our homeschool. Picture study, listening to composers, lots of outdoor time, free afternoons, and meaningful handicrafts were added in right away and it was so refreshing. Next came lots of living books and narrations. I began to focus on habit training and we worked hard on raising our standards of excellence in our daily work, both in schoolwork and around the house.
Hapuna Beach boogie boarding with Dad
We started nature journals, regularly listened to wonderful classical music, hung famous artwork up on the wall and really looked at it every week. We centered our free time on meaningful things like working on handicrafts, enjoying our backyard, and learning about the things we encountered in our everyday life. Things just started coming to life.
Smashing macadamia nuts, near Hilo
The shelves were cleared of twaddle and replaced with more living books. We squeezed in more artwork on the walls of the school area. We dusted off our singing voices for early morning worship. Notebooks were filled with narrations of all kinds that reflected the experiences and reflections of some very eager minds.
Laupahoehoe-site of a tsunami in 1946
Mom found time to just let the kids play and explore and not feel guilty. Dad became a great instigator of field trips to near-by trails he had heard about from friends. The backyard became our field laboratory and it keeps growing and changing with our family’s interests.
More than all that….above all else……I became a more confident homeschooling mom. This felt like what school should be like with true learning, with brain cells popping, with eyes wide open all the time, with fingers busy with projects and drawing and making things.
Walking out on the lava at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park
No more wasted time with worksheets and textbooks and mind-numbing drills. There was a space filled with Charlotte Mason’s principles that was empty but now is overflowing with goodness.
At the park in Hilo
We are no longer content with anything but the most excellent of homeschool days. We will never go back to those old dry bones of a homeschool again. We have experienced homeschooling with wings.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom

What a beautiful, passionate post! I’m sad that my d is back in public school this year. I was really looking forward to doing your Medieval Art study with her. I refuse to quit reading “my” CM-inspired bloggers though!
Hopewell,
There is always after school.
😉
Barb
great post! 🙂
Thank you so much for this. I am inspired! We just officially made the switch to Charlotte Mason this year. Although we cancelled our nature study today due to 100+ degree temperatures and smoky air, my daughter is making her own Mondrian-inspired art as I write! Thanks for the encouragement!
Beautiful and inspiring!
Thanks, Barb!
Thank you very much for this post. I too am trying to implement more and more CM every year into our home. This just gives me the the encouragement to continue to do so.
Blessings,
Amy
http://homeplatefun.blogspot.com
What an encouraging experience!
I can see myself there.
This is our first year using any type of CM methodology, so we’re definitely baby-stepping.
I’m still not sure what twaddle is, but I’m sure my shelves are littered with it (blush)
Thanks for this post!
Can I just say, “Amen!” ?
Thanks Barb, that was beautifully written! You and others have inpsired me again to use more of CM’s methods in our homeschool. I plan to use your outdoor hours from last spring now that we are entering spring here in NZ.
Rachael 🙂
I’ve been reading your blog for a while and found this post beautiful. We have a little CM influence and I think it is growing. I especially like ‘twaddle-free’ books.
Thanks for the encouragement.
Sarah
Rich, sister, just rich.
This would be a great post for the pics alone. I miss the great times and good friends we left in Hawaii.
We did a little CM style outing today with our rice harvesting trip. Not only did we get to use sharp tools and harvest rice the traditional Japanese way but also enjoy the variety of dragonflies, crickets, walking sticks and ladybugs in the field. Who could ask for more fun?
Your post is just what I needed to read today. I recently read a bit of the Karen Andreola book you mentioned because school felt flat here. We were already doing nature hikes and loving that, but now I’m struggling to fit in art and music. I feel so inspired visiting your site! Thanks, Barb!
I truly appreciate all the comments on this post. I have been wanting to just do a free write about our CM experiences and sort of a reflection post for a long time and yesterday was the day it all came together.
I am glad you enjoy the photos too since it was a little self-serving to include our family vacation photos but it just seemed to fit after it all was put together.
Education is an atmosphere….it can happen anywhere at anytime.
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
Amen to that!! We’re on our way. I hope that we get to the same point.
I am so excited to have my 3 children back with me and homeschooling, they spent last year in public school. This is the best for our family. Getting back to homeschooling has made me re-evaluate it too, what do we want out of it? how do we want our days to be filled? your post came at the perfect time. Thank you.
I just found your blog by googling “art science mommy blog” and I am so glad, this first post was awesome and I am going to buy that book.
Oh yes. I cannot imagine attempting homeschooling without Charlotte Mason. CM giving homeschol ‘wings’ describes it well. But then I feel the same about Harmony Art Mom. How would I homeschool without your blog? Your ideas, how-to’s, reviews, sharing of your own experience are invaluable. Much much thanks. Keep on keeping on….
Andrea,
That is the nicest thing anyone has said to me all week…thanks. 🙂
Barb-Harmony Art Mom
Your title really expresses it well. C.M. has given us wings also!
I enjoy seeing your pics of Hawaii.
What a fantastic post. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Blessings,
Dawn
Beautiful picture of a CM homeschool. Very encouraging – thanks!
Wonderful! 🙂
Just popping in from the CM Carnival!
Thank you for this post. We still struggle with certain aspects of CM education even as we begin our third year, probably due to the fact that we have more regulation here than I care for. It’s comforting, though, to read about other families who have successfully made the sorts of changes we want to achieve over time.
Cheers!
Ruby
Our harvest is finally in, and now we can settle into a real homeschooling lifestyle again…and to me that means music, art, outdoor time, nature notebooks, and lots and lots of reading. And, this year, maybe even those handcrafts!
Thanks for the encouragement and giving me back that vision!
Visiting from TCC.