Which Method/Philosophy of Education Do You Homeschool With?

[kalphs]

This week's question is "What method/philosophy of education do you homeschool with?"

[kewb]

100% eclectic with a strong classical bent.

 

I pick and choose what works for my two. There are things I love about all the philosophies and I incorporate what I can from all f them.

[Verity]

I love the classical method of education; however, the reality of special needs kids/LD's means that in reality we pull from a grabbag a tools and curricula to get our best fit. Mostly we use classical with accomodations.

[mommaduck]

You need multiple choice. Most Classical educators are eclectic by nature. Charlotte Mason falls under Classical as a type of Classical. Some Classical educators use the Unit Study method for a few of their subjects as a means of teaching multiple levels at the same time, but still follow a Classical schedule/rotation.

[FO4UR]

I voted eclectic.

 

I'm classical when it comes to the 3R's, the skills that are best built systematically.

 

I'm CM when it comes to history, literature, science, fine arts.

 

I occasionally borderline on unschooling in the content areas when my dc get fixated on a topic...dropping SOTW to delve into some mythology or for a short while, for ex...aka chasing rabbit trails.

 

My dc are young though...and I'm just trying to live up to my siggie.;):tongue_smilie:

[Hedgehogs4]

I probably should have chosen "ecclectic" but what I use is primarily classical and CM. Content-wise we are more classical, but method-wise, we are enjoying more of CM approach this year.

[LittleIzumi]

Eclectic with some CM, some child-led, some unschooling, some... who knows what as I haven't actually read TWTM but it could be classical. I just do what works for us. I want to incorporate some Montessori, too.

[Mama2Many4]

We're Eclectic here too incorporation strong classical.

[regentrude]

Eclectic.

We use classical approach for english/history, but omit Greek and go light on Latin. We have a very strong math and science focus and use textbooks and traditional courses for those. We educate bilingually. With all these, our children have a big say in directing their education which sometimes borders on unschooling (of very academically driven and ambitious students).

[Guest Cindie2dds]

I voted eclectic since I use Oak Meadow along with Ambleside and other Charlotte Mason resources.

[melissel]

100% eclectic with a strong classical bent.

 

I pick and choose what works for my two. There are things I love about all the philosophies and I incorporate what I can from all f them.

 

:iagree:

[shinyhappypeople]

I voted eclectic.

 

I'm classical when it comes to the 3R's, the skills that are best built systematically.

 

I'm CM when it comes to history, literature, science, fine arts.

 

I occasionally borderline on unschooling in the content areas when my dc get fixated on a topic...dropping SOTW to delve into some mythology or for a short while, for ex...aka chasing rabbit trails.

 

My dc are young though...and I'm just trying to live up to my siggie.;):tongue_smilie:

 

This, to a T.

[elegantlion]

I call our style adapted classical. We follow LCC for our core subjects, do a few subjects the WTM way, and pursue his interests in a few others.

[Crimson Wife]

I always call ours "literature-based" when asked. :D It's been heavily influenced by TWTM, CM, and DYOCC but I don't follow any one of those strictly.

[Caitilin]

Classico-eclectic. :D

[swellmomma]

Depends on the year and what our needs are. Definitely eclectic, wishing to be more strongly classical, but this year more of a unit study and CM (as far as living books are concerned) approach.

[Closeacademy]

I chose other. We use Waldorf with some hints of classical and Montessori. I used to be more LCC but the Waldorf aspects really keep our school calm, centered, happy and productive. Too much classical and we stress out.:001_smile:

[Elizabeth in MN]

I mainly follow The Latin-Centered Curriculum.

[Diana B]

I'm relaxed WTM Classical with a CM leaning. I called myself eclectic. :) We do some unit studies or FIAR style studies when it works. Emphasis on lots of good books.

 

I agree with PP that the choices given are not good, especially for this board! Most of us here at least have some kind of Classical leaning - but some follow it more heavily and some are much more Eclectic.

 

And really, in my opinion, the way we keep a classical philosophy is an eclectic manor because unless you use one publisher for all of your curric you are pulling from a variety of sources and using a variety of methods.

[SophiaH]

My educational philosophy is Latin-Centered, but my methodology is tending toward eclectic, so I chose eclectic.

[Mandy in TN]

Curriculum, method, and philosophy are different things.

 

Curriculum: Eclectic- code for I use whatever materials I want.

 

Math- Classical

Saxon, Kumon Drill Work, lots of extras- currently Hands on Equations and Math Mammoth

 

Poetry, Grammar, Composition, Vocabulary- Textbook

MCT Island

 

Literature- Eclectic

Sonlight books, Open Court Readers, history related, etc

 

History- Weekly Unit Studies

Based on Gombrich's Little History

 

Science- Trimester Unit Studies

Great Science Adventures- Space

Great Science Adventures- Human Body

Great Science Adventures- Tools and Technology

 

Memory Work- Classical

 

However, I really like to pull it together with several methods:

 

· a little bit of Waldorf- the part that emphasizes imagination and creativity in learning,

· a little bit of Montessori- the part that emphasizes supporting a child's nature by allowing them self-exploration within prepared materials,

· a little bit of Charlotte Mason style Classical- the part that emphasizes narration, chronological history, living books, enjoyment of poetry and short lessons

 

My overriding philosophy is almost entirely Charlotte Mason

 

My child is not a blank slate, but is a whole person complete with his own personality and capacity for good and evil. I respect that he is born whole and that his mind is naturally designed to learn. I can provide the nourishment of education for his mind to grow healthy through a learning lifestyle where he is trained to be disciplined not in subject matter but in life for "education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life."

My child must be taught the difference between what he wants to do right now and his will to do what is appropriate/ right. He must also be taught to be careful not to rationalize something to be right simply because he wants it to be so. Along these lines, there can be no true happiness without first taking care of responsibilities. “…the chief responsibility which rests on them as persons is the acceptance or rejection of ideas. To help them in this choice we give them principles of conduct, and a wide range of the knowledge fitted to them.”

 

"I am, I can, I ought, I will." is the place from which I instruct, because we achieve through diligence not through intelligence or imagination. I use habit training as a road to success, but I exercise this alongside the idea that “perhaps the business of teachers is to open as many doors as possible.”

 

Gotta love CM.

Mandy

[angela in ohio]

Classical :001_smile:

[momto2Cs]

Eclectic, with an unschooling bent these days

[mom31257]

I chose eclectic because, although I use a lot of textbooks, I try to incorporate other methods as well. I also find that what works in one subject with a child may not work in another subject. For example, ds is loving reading real books about history, but he really enjoys the short stories, poems, and plays in his reading textbook, too. Math and grammar are traditional textbook approach, but science this year is mostly hands-on with some notebooking.

 

Where I am falling short is in review. I find myself wanting to go on to the next thing because I'm a list checker. I want to incorporate more review because I guess I should want to learn less and know it well instead of exposing them to lots of material and remembering less.

[MamaSheep]

I love the classical method of education; however, the reality of special needs kids/LD's means that in reality we pull from a grabbag a tools and curricula to get our best fit. Mostly we use classical with accomodations.

:iagree: That's how it works at our house too.

[nukeswife]

Eclectic. Extremely eclectic.

 

:iagree:

[Kates]

We're pretty eclectic. I have a 13yo who borders on PG, but is also dyslexic, dysgraphic, and has sensory issues; he can tackle college work but needs it presented in a variety of different ways. Textbooks are out (unless I can mask them as a spine within a project-based study), but he LOVES literature, philosophy, theology, and every branch of science.

 

Most of the time I'm just running to keep up with him lol...and to give him the depth and the breadth that he needs, the challenge that he thrives on.

[Chris in VA]

Also eclectic with a classical, WTM-ish vibe. We use lots of WTM suggestions, but not all of them.

[Joyofsixreboot]

I vote eclectic because while we read 'classic' literature we also narrate CM style. We read AO suggestions and write on them. We use a textbook based curriculum, often orally with questions. We will be doing Latin but also learn Spanish. I like to pull what works best for my kids.

[Mama Lynx]

I consider us to be classical.

 

We use many LCC recommendations. We use some WTM recommendations. We narrate CM-style. We do recitation. We often do art and music CM-style. We are fairly laid-back and flexible in our execution.

 

But with all those variations, we are still classical.

[Moniksca]

We're eclectic with a classical/CM feel and child-led science.

[Lady Florida.]

My philosophy is very much CM. We go through waves of child led and non-radical unschooling, but CM is always there in the background.

[TechWife]

I chose eclectic, but I wish there was a choice for confused!

 

I have a classical emphasis with a history cycle (at least through logic stage, tbd for rhetoric) and writing. I have also pretty much followed TWTM science recommendations, except that I did it before I read TWTM. I thought I was shooting in the dark.

 

I have been moving from classical towards CM for math and Bible. I have also been adding some living books to science studies as well. I have re-attached myself to my long lost homeschooling roots and have begun to look at ds as a "whole-child" again.

 

For electives, we have used a combination of project based, delight-directed and unschooling methods.

 

I would love to have more projects in the high school years, but I am trying to figure out how to do that. I also want to really make use of the years we have left at home for character and Christian world-view training. At the same time, we need to get all of those college admission requirements met!

 

See what I mean - confused!

[NanceXToo]

eclectic/relaxed

[Donna T.]

I chose eclectic, but I wish there was a choice for confused!

 

 

 

:thumbup:

[jenL]

Eclectic, but with a strong bend toward Classical and CM. I follow TWTM pretty closely, but I do not hestitate to choose other curriculum to meet the needs of my children.

[Guest Cindie2dds]

I chose eclectic, but I wish there was a choice for confused!

 

:lol: Me, me! You know, the more I think about it, the more that should be a category also. I have moved from classical to Waldorf to CM to..... confused.

 

Actually we've found our groove, but it's just that, our groove. It's a mix of Waldorf (OM style), CM and a lot of math and computer games with Daddy for fun. :)

[kalanamak]

You need multiple choice. .

 

I've never read a word of CM, but when I took the quiz in Cathy Duffy's book, I racked the chart. We try to be outside for hours a day, and use living books. The subjects are right out of WTM, however.

[Ravin]

I put other because our method is classical, but our approach is very relaxed as well. In 2nd grade we're focusing on the 3 R's, and letting everything else be child led.

[Jilly]

My philosophy has slowly changed over the years. I would now classify myself as relaxed.

[....]

I can never answer this question. Officially, I guess we're eclectic.

 

I follow a lot of suggestions from TWTM, but also from Charlotte Mason. We do study Latin and read a lot of classics....and our science is definitely Charlotte Mason science. We read Sonlight Read-Alouds/History, but we also follow the Core Knowledge Sequence for things we've missed (like all their poetry, art, American Tall Tales, etc). And, to make this weirder, I present a LOT of stuff in Unit Study format. In fact, we are getting ready to do a Farmer Boy unit study...and I might start assigning BFIAR for my oldest kids this winter...

 

Honestly, I don't know what method we use...:confused::confused::confused:

[Pam L in Mid Tenn]

I was torn between Classical and Eclectic. My underlying main Philosophy of education is Classic..... but it looks very eclectic at my house. We've used ALL the methods of home schooling over 14 years. I voted eclectic, but now that I'm thinking about it more, I suppose I should have voted Classical.

[Heidi]

I do mostly Charlotte Mason at the moment, while my children are young. I plan on leaning more classical as they get older. Grammar, writing, and Latin will be very important in the later years to me.

[Kfamily]

I lean heavily towards CM, but I adapt with Classical in mind, I think...:lol:

[kalphs]

You need multiple choice. Most Classical educators are eclectic by nature. Charlotte Mason falls under Classical as a type of Classical. Some Classical educators use the Unit Study method for a few of their subjects as a means of teaching multiple levels at the same time, but still follow a Classical schedule/rotation.

Sorry about that.

Looks like I will have to take a remedial tutorial from my friend, Heather.

[laughing lioness]

Where is neo-classical and Great Books? I chose classical, but the reality is that we are more of a neo-classical.

[Firefly]

I've tried every method listed in the poll, and over the years have settled on an eclectic style that is mostly classical/Waldorf-ish.

[sagira]

We are mostly (90%) Charlotte Mason here, so I put CM as my main method. We don't do nature study as often as I like, or habit training, but do narrations, copywork, dictation, by the book. We also have shorter lessons for the early grades, training attention, have an emphasis on quality vs. quantity, and strive to read only living books. I love the CM method. For grammar we use PLL, but next year I'm going to include two days of Voyages in English 3, and use the writing portion of VIE as a springboard for teaching and discussion for helping ds with his narrations across the curricula (thank you, 8FilltheHeart).

[KrissiK]

I am classical. I follow TWTM almost to a "T". I say almost because we don't do Fine Arts. We tried, but it just ain't workin' Sam! Little boys have trouble sitting still and need to have their afternoons free. So, we'll try to pick that up maybe next year or the year after.

[Mom22ns]

If I can only choose one, I have to say eclectic. I love CM and have read WTM multiple times and there are many principals of classical education that I agree with. However, I have one child with multiple LDs and have long since learned that there is no "Method/Philosophy" that perfectly fits either one of my kids or me. I have to pull from different sources and different models in order to achieve what I consider to be the best possible education for our family.