Sometimes we homeschoolers....
We scoff at other homeschoolers who used packaged or "canned" curriculum, but at the same time we're hovering around homeschool message boards or listening to other moms conversing at our local homeschool group, hoping to pick up ideas on what curriculum is popular, what works... Then we, as a group, latch on to certain things like Math U See or Saxon and when something new comes along, we resist it, because it's not tried and true. Sometimes taking the path most traveled is akin to purchasing canned curriculum. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not against canned. Sometimes canned is a perfect fit for a family... Especially, perhaps, a large family where the mom just does not have the time to sit down and follow rabbit trails, sampling this and that.
I'm sure my point isn't coming across... The guest room is ashambles and my mother-in-law is arriving tomorrow from the Netherlands, and I need to make a run to the city for supplies as well, so both a chore list and a shopping list are running through my head as I try to type this... ;o) My point is, that we really shouldn't scoff at those who use "canned" because what Charlotte Mason homeschooler doesn't have Fabre's Book of Insects or Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study on their shelf, or at least their wish list? Isn't that akin to canned if we all have the same thing? Again, don't get me wrong... I think every homeschooler should have copies of Fabre and Comstock on their shelves. ;o) But sometimes we do need some fresh ideas that have a hard time making it onto our wish list of "tried and true" because our time and resources are limited... After all, we don't have public funding and our taxes are paying public schools, not our own schools. ;o) So with all that rambling I bring you an excellent link of fresh ideas, especially for the joy of Charlotte Mason types, prepackaged for your perusal: MacBeth's Opinion (I especially love the high school science suggestions!)
Now I'm off to concentrate on finding missing pillowcases that match the bedding on the guest bed... And making a shopping list... Dish soap... Milk.... Scrubbing Bubbles flushable bathroom wipes... And where is that dustpan? I'm sure Steadfast had it in the garage....
I'm sure my point isn't coming across... The guest room is ashambles and my mother-in-law is arriving tomorrow from the Netherlands, and I need to make a run to the city for supplies as well, so both a chore list and a shopping list are running through my head as I try to type this... ;o) My point is, that we really shouldn't scoff at those who use "canned" because what Charlotte Mason homeschooler doesn't have Fabre's Book of Insects or Comstock's Handbook of Nature Study on their shelf, or at least their wish list? Isn't that akin to canned if we all have the same thing? Again, don't get me wrong... I think every homeschooler should have copies of Fabre and Comstock on their shelves. ;o) But sometimes we do need some fresh ideas that have a hard time making it onto our wish list of "tried and true" because our time and resources are limited... After all, we don't have public funding and our taxes are paying public schools, not our own schools. ;o) So with all that rambling I bring you an excellent link of fresh ideas, especially for the joy of Charlotte Mason types, prepackaged for your perusal: MacBeth's Opinion (I especially love the high school science suggestions!)
Now I'm off to concentrate on finding missing pillowcases that match the bedding on the guest bed... And making a shopping list... Dish soap... Milk.... Scrubbing Bubbles flushable bathroom wipes... And where is that dustpan? I'm sure Steadfast had it in the garage....
Comments
"For the well-formed Christian, especially a homeschooled Christian, who has parents ready and available to answer questions, this should not be a problem." !
Finally, another of like-mind on that issue.
How exciting that your mom is coming to visit! I hope you enjoy your visit!
I don't think the wheel needs to be reinvented, but I find the cookie cutter education the local public schools around us are giving to be quite tiresome. I keep running into teenagers with the exact same worldview as the teen next to them. They have the same "boxed & packaged" way of thinking, and it's a bit disconcerting to think the schools just pumping out these robots that think the exact same way as the school system.
I'm also curious as to what you mean by the "restrictive" setting of the home. Homeschoolers don't stay home for school. We have science lessons in our meadow and creek... we meet at each other's homes for co-ops and "cottage school" type classes. We have history in the park or at the museum... on a whim we can take a field trip out of state to a historical monument... without having to fill out forms in triplicate in order to ask our principal's permission. Our brief stint with public schools this year felt very oppressive and restrictive to us.