What homeschool method do you use?

[wy_kid_wrangler04]

Do you just do classical home education, or do you combine that with other methods?

 

We do a mix of classical and Charlotte Mason. We are HUGE on living books~!

[elegantlion]

We follow The Latin-Centered Curriculum, tweaked a bit as my ds is more science oriented. We tweak in a few other areas but follow the philosophy of LCC.

[fivetails]

We're "eclectic", if we need to be classified in some way. We use a mix of whatever works best for each child. :)

[Gratia271]

I basically have a classical approach with elements of TJEd and Charlotte Mason interspersed.

[mystika1]

Unit Study ah la Charlotte Mason with some WTM thrown in.:D

 

Thanks,

 

Penny

[Dinsfamily]

Definitely eclectic here...classical base with some CM and PA added in.

[amydavis]

 

We do a mix of classical and Charlotte Mason. We are HUGE on living books~!

 

:iagree: This is basically how I see my teaching style. We follow TWTM quite a bit. We LOVE books. In fact, I will say it borders on obsession. :D I especially appreciate the Charlotte Mason approach in regards to science. I am hoping this mixture encourages a love of learning in my children.

[rafgaf4]

Classical Education here! This year our day consists of Latin, Greek Studies, Christian Studies and Arithmetic.

[JudoMom]

We're classical, of the WTM variety.

[Ester Maria]

Well, I suppose you can rightly label me as "classical", BUT...

 

1. We're NOT the strictly TWTM style classical, or even classical inspired by TWTM, as I actually discovered TWTM some years ago when I was already homeschooling and had implemented many of the things TWTM suggests not as a result of my familiarity with the book and the system, but based on my own education more than anything else. I also have considerable disagreements with TWTM both with regards to the content and the method.

2. Our cultural base for education is Italian first, then Jewish (though we don't do a full and proper Jewish education, it's a cultural thing rather than religious for us), and only then Anglo-American (which is more circumstantial than actually desired), which also creates significant differences when it comes to the choice of texts, the levels of the things studied (since we tend to base a lot of things on vague Italian curriculum than the things over here) and, of course, to the language itself through which all of the knowledge is absorbed. In other words, we're classical, but in a different cultural circle, our approach to classical education is through somewhat different lens.

3. Our levels vary, my daughters are literally studying a mix of middle, high school and even college level, depending on the subject, specific interests or talents. This produces a lack of unifying curriculum or thematic units, meaning that the whole thing is quite chaotic. I mean the basic structure is there, but it's not equally developed in all of its parts (which I think is completely okay). I take into account the needs of each child, so their individual structures actually greatly differ, even if they technically study pretty much the same areas.

4. We're really big on the work on text, ex cathedra lessons and a rather structured work, I'm not a fan of most modern methods of education which are based on creative work, hands-on, child-lead and alike. Which translates to, we don't "have fun" and it's never been my primary intent to amuse or indulge the kids during the school. In the context of how education looks today, my methods might seem like really outdated and even despotic, but they're working for us. I seriously minimize wasting time on arts and crafts related to school work, and prefer doing actual work through the text and discussion, in a good old fashioned way.

[Michelle My Bell]

I would say we are a mix of Charlotte Mason (we're HUGE on Living Books as well, see my blog below:tongue_smilie:) and Unit Studies. We also work towards maximizing our children's strengths through deeper study. I am not big on classical style but I hang out here because... well doesn't everybody?:lol:

 

Michelle

Edited March 23, 2010 by Michelle My Bell

[Annie Laurie]

I always say eclectic because I don't want the pressure of trying to fit into a certain philosophy and don't want to box myself in. I lean toward classical, WTM, the most though.

[meet me in paris]

Definitely eclectic. *I* like classical, but it doesn't necessarily work for my kids. I use WTM as a guide, but tweak it as needed for my girls.

[OnTheBrink]

Started out classical/CM/LCC but am moving toward a more traditional approach. My dd likes textbooks and workbooks (I think she was left here by aliens).

[Rosie_0801]

In the world populated by my plans, we are WTM classical types where I agree with them, and mostly inquiry-based for the parts I don't ;)

 

My eldest won't even be three for another two weeks, so I have no idea how those plans are going to migrate to reality. I do know that I am right in not having bought Before FIAR or anything like that! She's not a sitting down and reading stories type of girl. I hold out hopes for my boy. He's only one, so I can continue projecting dreams at him for a bit longer :)

 

Rosie

[i.love.lucy]

I started more CM and now am a die-hard WTM groupie!

[swellmomma]

I use the WTM as a theory not a curric to follow. We are pretty eclectic and while I use many of the suggestions in the book I also utilize other things like sonlight.

[khall]

Our approach is somewhat Charlotte Mason and somewhat Waldorf with a little bit of unit studies thrown in.

[....]

Depends on which student. :lol:

 

Eclectic - some Classical Approach, a lot of Charlotte Mason-type stuff and looking to beef up the math/science/writing because my 2 oldest kids are expressing a ton of interest in the natural and physical sciences (they even have careers picked out) :tongue_smilie:.

[Closeacademy]

I use an LCC classical framework but I also use Waldorf and Montessori techniques to teach. I also try to encourage child-led learning when they find something they are interested in learning more about that isn't a part of the scheduled curriculum.:001_smile:

[angela in ohio]

Christian Classical

[MissKNG]

We don't follow any philosophy or method...so that's called eclectic, right? We do have state standards so I make sure we are aligned with those plus I ask my big girl what she wants to learn about and focus on that stuff too. The Bible, the 3R's and science are the most important aspect of our home school.

[Homemama2]

We're an eclectic mix of mainly charlotte mason and classical...basically I use what meets my children's needs while honoring God.

[Woodland_Mom]

We follow a Christian classical approach to education.

[Wheres Toto]

Definitely eclectic/Unit Studies here. But, my homeschooling kids are still very young and we are constantly evolving. I probably will continue to use the eclectic label to avoid a more narrowly defined label (plus knowing us we will always be using a mix of things).

[King Alfred Academy]

I'm a die hard CM wannabe but our school is mostly WTM with bits of CM thrown in.

[MamaSheep]

We hold strongly to the "whatever works today" philosophy of education, with a focus on flexibility and avoiding panic attacks and/or ADHD wanderings enough to get some kind of knowledge and understanding past the neurological guardians of the brain. I use classical education ideas to help give our flexibility some structure, but some days I wonder if what we really wind up doing would even qualify as "ecclectic".

[Guest]

We hold strongly to the "whatever works today" philosophy of education, with a focus on flexibility and avoiding panic attacks and/or ADHD wanderings enough to get some kind of knowledge and understanding past the neurological guardians of the brain. I use classical education ideas to help give our flexibility some structure, but some days I wonder if what we really wind up doing would even qualify as "ecclectic".

 

As another parent of an Asperger child, I too fly by the seat of my pants and the best-made plans go by the wayside as I struggle to get knowledge past those neurological guardians (love that image!) and prevent my daughter's anxiety attacks. Nice to know someone else is in the same boat.

[EmeraldGirl]

Do you just do classical home education, or do you combine that with other methods?

 

We do a mix of classical and Charlotte Mason. We are HUGE on living books~!

 

Yep, that's us. However, our cycle will start with American History next year, then move to Ancients.

[shinyhappypeople]

Oh, wow. I've been pondering this very issue of late. I realized I'm a CM dropout, though I've held on to some of her best ideas.

 

We are very relaxed, (mostly) interest-led and play-based (imaginative play is their most important school subject!). We use mostly living books. We read together a lot: lots of classics, a little "junk food lit," and everything in between.

 

I believe there's nothing that can't be taught by reading a wonderful book about it or doing something in the real world (museums, aquariums, DVDs, talking to an expert, etc.)

 

We do use some curricula for convenience, but they don't own us. The formal curricula are supplements to all the other ways we learn, instead of being the other way around.

 

I don't see this changing much as the girls get older. How they play and create will evolve, but other than that, most things will probably stay the same.

[AngelaNYC]

We are very unschooly/child-led/delight-driven and use whatever looks good at the time. :001_smile:

 

My kids mainly prefer a relaxed Charlotte Mason approach, using a hodge-podge of various resources. They love narrations, copywork, nature study, timelines, living books, short lessons, & dictation exercises, so we include those. We're not very good with scheduled curricula, so we create our own schedules based on what we enjoy doing. We were using AmblesideOnline with ds, but he started losing interest after a while (I loved it). I know my kids learn best when they are interested in what's going on. The best thing that works for us (and has been amazingly effective for 5 years) is using the worldbook course of study as a guideline or checklist of what to cover each year. We use textbooks, workbooks, websites, CD Roms, literature, classic literature, field trips, science experiments, homeschool group classes, projects, crafts, maps, and journals, and we try to do everything we can to foster the kids' interests.

 

Hmm, not very classical. I hope I'm still welcome here, lol. :001_unsure:

[Jayne J]

LCC content, CM methods (living books, short lessons, artist, composer and nature studies, children are persons, etc.)

[Pam B]

Next week 2 ds will start WTM. Right now, they are finishing up Classical Conversations. DD has (I think) 6 more weeks of CC then she will join us in WTM.

[PeterPan]

We're a happy combo of WTM and VP.

[Mommee & Baba]

We're "eclectic", if we need to be classified in some way. We use a mix of whatever works best for each child. :)

:iagree: This is our classroom too! We also throw in a mix of CM learning and teaching tools too :D

[FlutterbyMommy]

We are early in our homeschool experience, so who knows where our journey will take us. It is difficult to label what we do. The best I can come up with is Eclectic Homeschooling ;)

 

We use Christian classical (CC), a dash of CM (ala living books and utilizing our outdoor classroom), and a sprinkle of Montessori (some purposeful play, learning through play, and practical life activities). We are not structured and often child-lead, so maybe we fall into unschooling-lol.

 

This question is more challenging than I anticipated!

Edited March 24, 2010 by FlutterbyMommy

[Ravin]

We're pretty much LCC, with Heathen Studies instead of Christian Studies, and more structure to elementary science.

[MamaSheep]

As another parent of an Asperger child, I too fly by the seat of my pants and the best-made plans go by the wayside as I struggle to get knowledge past those neurological guardians (love that image!) and prevent my daughter's anxiety attacks. Nice to know someone else is in the same boat.

:grouphug: Some days it's very nice to know you're not floatin' that boat alone, all right...lol. I've wondered sometimes if the planning is even worth it, but then I've tried it without the planning, and it was a complete disaster. I mean worse than the usual disaster...lol. So I keep making those plans I know are never going to work out quite like I...um...planned. Oh well. Life has a way of going on, and things are getting progressively better so it must be working on some level, right? Keep paddling!

 

(Strangely, having ADHD dd home with us this year (with her own neurological labyrinth) seems to have actually brought on a new burst of independence in the boy, much to my relief. I was quite nervous about taking on both of them at once. Some days my cup really runneth over.)

[ondreeuh]

I have no idea. We use workbooks for LA and math (CLE), narrations a la WTM, living books for history, hands-on experiments for science, and we've been reading lots of classics for our read-alouds. Pretty much a bit of everything, I think!

[Annabel Lee]

I'm still trying to figure it out. It keeps changing. ;)

 

Classical/Traditional with a desire to incorporate a little Montessori and CM. Our faith is a "life thing" that spills over into school, influencing it some, but it's not a school subject unless we choose to study church or Bible history along w/ our regular history.

[nono]

Well, I love to read about all methods, and see their merits, but I quickly caught on that WTM (minus Latin), mirrors who I am. Since I'm the primary teacher, I need to be authentic to be effective.

 

I have a huge anti-Latin bias (not meant to be inflammatory, it is just so for me). I couldn't teach Latin with a straight face or any enthusiasm, so I'm not going to do it. But, I can see the merit as to why it is a part of a curriculum, so instead of using Latin, I choose to teach another ancient language that makes sense to me: Chinese, with traditional characters. I don't know that it is the right substitute, but it is one I can embrace with joy and excitement, and my kids feel it!

 

Additionally, my dd, while still 5, decided to learn to count in French. Her pronunciation was excellent. We made a fuss over it, and she asked if we could add French to her school. So we have. I honestly never thought I'd be teaching Chinese and French in kindergarten, but we have a ball with both, and are going nice and slowly.

 

The local homeschool Moms tease me that for being such a jokester and clown, it surprising that WTM suits my style. I was taught for 12 years in Catholic, classical-style schools. Just because we learned in that manner, doesn't mean we didn't have a heck of a lot of insanity and fun during those years. :D I hope that by having fun and craziness during the school day, my children will continue to beg for "more school" throughout our years. But I am hoping by about 3rd grade or so, the chair races will cease. They are murder on the carpeting!

[texasmama]

I use the WTM as a theory not a curric to follow. We are pretty eclectic and while I use many of the suggestions in the book I also utilize other things like sonlight.

 

This describes me pretty well. :)

[lovemykids]

Hmmm, let’s see, I’d say I’m CM/WTM style, with child led, inquiry based, Waldorf and Montessori overtures. Is that possible? :lol:I swing from somewhat rigorous to partially relaxed, throughout the year. We take off maybe a total of two months per year, due to being relaxed, mainly so that we can finish math, but we never stop reading!

[Amy Jo]

LCC content, CM methods (living books, short lessons, artist, composer and nature studies, children are persons, etc.)

 

:iagree:

[EppieJ]

We're totally eclectic. Some of you probably wouldn't call us true "homeschoolers" because we take advantage of our school district's "alternative education" program. Ds takes some workshops there each Wednesday (science, math, art), and we use RS Spanish thru the program as well as swimming, but everything else is up to us (we just can't report any "religious based learning" in our SLP)

 

Other than that, we use SOTW, Cantering the Country, Apologia (Swimming Creatures this year), Sonlight Reading Lists, Kumon Math, Singapore Math, and various other things. For the first time (thru a workshop) this year, ds participated in the National Novel Writer's Month (November). Most of our LA now consists of editing this novel. Next year, I hope to consolidate some of our studies, for instance, doing NaNoWriMo for LA and combining IEW with our American History studies.

 

As you can see from my list, I am notorious for trying to cram too much into a year! I'm getting better, but I've got a long ways to go!

[Annabel Lee]

I am notorious for trying to cram too much into a year! I'm getting better, but I've got a long ways to go!

 

Me too - as a teacher I'm a work in progress. I'll have it all figured out in time for the grandkids.

[Reya]

The virtuoso education, as I'm calling it! It's the Renaissance ideal:

 

-many foreign languages, taught not for their structure but to actually speak and read them

 

-excellent grounding in literature, Christianity, and history--our heritage

 

-science and mathematics as a creative and exploratory endeavor, not a moral discipline

 

-a refined taste for the beauty of God, expressed through a rigorous grounding in logic and philosophy and skillfully expressed through the abilities to draw accurately, play and sing pleasantly, and appreciate the arts

 

-physical grace, though swimming, gymnastics, and dance, likely tennis and fencing, too. All my kids will be required to dance a passable waltz and foxtrot!

 

"Virtuoso" means, literally, "very virtuous," and it was applied to an accomplished person. I want my children to be "very virtuous" in every way, including educationally.

 

My son's educational goals are to "learn all the languages and all the math." So this takes that into account. My 18-mo-o daughter already has found all the Singapore books on the shelf and is dragging them to me to read, just like her brother did when he was a little older. I'm baffled. There are 51 linear feet of books in that room, and she has always gone straight for the math books, just like big brother, so it looks like I have another math kid on my hands.

[Reya]

Are you a fluent Chinese speaker? Do you have access to one?

[branycbur]

We're classical, of the WTM variety.

 

That sums us up completely!

[mom31257]

I guess eclectic is the best word to describe our homeschool. There are all kinds of methods at work here, classical, CM, traditional, etc. I do not believe my children would do best with one method in every subject. They have strengths are weaknesses that need to be addressed. I, too, have strengths and weaknesses that play in to how we do our schooling.

 

One thing I am trying not to do is stop and compare. After spending a lot of time on this board I found myself feeling inadequate and worrying if I was doing enough, but I know that my kids are okay and will be fine. Am I giving them the best education absolutely possible? I hope so, but knowing my own limitations, probably not. Are they getting better than they would get in public school? Yes, and that is without question for where we live.