Question: What Will My Kids Think of Implementing Charlotte Mason Methods Into Their Homeschool Day?

Hypothesis: I believe they will enjoy the fun activities and prefer a bit of structure in their day.

Materials: notebooks, new pencils, looseleaf, sketchbooks, library books, magnifying glass, art supplies, journals, Italian and ASL programs, graph paper, field guide, globe/atlas

Procedure:
1. Start morning with copywork - Shel Silverstein for J, Dr. Seuss for W. (15 minutes)
2. Give each a math worksheet (torn from workbook, addition for W and long division for J as per requests) and I assist as I'm needed. (15 minutes)
3. Do read-aloud from "non-twaddle" book - Roald Dahl (Mon.), Ancient Egypt (Tues.) (20 minutes)
4. Kids do oral narration from read-aloud (5 minutes)
5. Focus on Art - Michaelangelo, craft = self-portraits (Mon.). Focus on History - Ancient Egypt (Tues.). (20 min)
6. Out for fresh air. Errands (Mon.), Park (Tues.)
7. Afternoons to do what they want
8. Evening journalling and bedtime readaloud (starting Bridge to Terabithia soon!).

Observations: Lots of laughter, eagerness to get started, pride in work, more imagination, teamwork, enthusiasm

Conclusion: Implementing the Charlotte Mason method is currently a success! Of course it's only been a few days, but they're having fun with it and are eager for more of the same. The whole "structure thing" is taking less than 2 hours, but they feel they're doing so much. They like having "work" to do and to be able to see what they've accomplished. The day seems to run much more smoothly now for some reason, too. So, for now, we'll keep on keepin' on and see where it takes us.

:^)