If you are in the process of creating your own Charlotte Mason curriculum and schedule, you may be wondering just how closely you\u2019re adhering to her principles. <\/p>
Let\u2019s take a look at what she says about a typical school day: <\/p>
In practice, however, we find that the use of books makes for short hours. No book-work or writing, no preparation or report, is done in the Parents’ Review School, except between the hours of 9 and 11.30 for the lowest class, to 9 and 1 for the highest, with half an hour’s interval for drill, etc. (Vol 3 Page 240). <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>
How is that possible? The Charlotte Mason method emphasizes reading a lot of books, but how is it that in her schools, all the readings are done \u201cbetween the hours of 9 and 11:30\u201d for younger kids, and between \u201c9 and 1\u201d for older kids? <\/p>
Factors at play in a Charlotte Mason daily schedule: <\/strong><\/h2>
Here are some things to consider when plotting your daily schedule for a Charlotte Mason homeschool: <\/p>
1. The habit of attention contributes to short lessons <\/strong><\/h3>
The answer lies in the power of the habit of attention. Do you remember that in the CM method, we are supposed to read through lessons once, and only once? From a young age, when we\u2019re reading aloud to our children, we train them to pay attention by letting them know we will not be repeating anything they miss hearing. From that time on, they learn that they need to give their full attention. <\/p>
As our children grow, we cultivate this same habit of attention by requiring only a single reading, followed by narration. That means that we are able to go through so much more material, because our children are able to listen well and do not require any repetition. <\/p>
2. CM students get most of their afternoons free<\/strong><\/h3>
Another interesting thing that CM students have done in Miss Mason\u2019s schools is that they are usually done by lunch time or a little after. Take a look at what she says: <\/p>
From one to two hours, according to age and class, are given in the afternoons to handicrafts, field-work, drawing, etc.; and the evenings are absolutely free, so that the children have leisure for hobbies, family reading, and the like. We are able to get through a greater variety of subjects, and through more work in each subject, in a shorter time than is usually allowed, because children taught in this way get the habit of close attention and are carried on by steady interest. (Vol 3 Page 240) <\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>
Now, that\u2019s not to say that you can\u2019t do school on other times of the day. I know a family whose dad works at the airport and usually comes home late at night, so the whole family\u2019s body clock has adjusted to spend time with him. The kids wake up late in the morning, do their chores, and then start school at lunchtime. <\/p>
Perhaps the more important thing to consider here is the principle: instead of packing our children\u2019s days full of \u201clessons\u201d from 9 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon, we need to be aware that part of the CM education is their being able to have free time for more leisurely activities. <\/p>
What are the Charlotte Mason subjects? <\/strong><\/h2>
Charlotte Mason encourages giving our children a wide variety of lessons, a generous feast, so to speak. This means your weekly schedule will likely include the following subjects: <\/p>
- Bible<\/li>
- History<\/li>
- Geography<\/li>
- Science<\/li>
- Literature<\/li>
- Shakespeare<\/li>
- Math<\/li>
- Art (includes picture study, drawing) <\/li>
- Foreign Language<\/li>
- Music (includes hymns, folk songs, composer study) <\/li>
- Handicraft<\/li>
- Nature Study<\/li>
- Poetry<\/li>
- Grammar (for 10 years and older) <\/li><\/ul>
And then, under each subject, you may use two, three, or even more books. For example, in History, you might have a History Spine, a book such as A Child\u2019s History of the World<\/a>, while you also have a biography of an important person in history, such as D\u2019Aulaire\u2019s Pocahontas<\/a>. <\/p>
The key to remember in creating a daily schedule is that you don\u2019t need to go through every subject every single day. Some of these you may have lessons once or twice a week; others, like Math and Copywork, you might do everyday. <\/p>
How much time do you need per subject at Charlotte Mason? <\/strong><\/p>
According to Charlotte Mason, the average lesson length for children in first to third grades is about 15 to 20 minutes per lesson, including the reading and narration. For 4th to 6th grades, this increases to about 20 to 30 minutes per lesson, and then to 30 to 45 minutes per lesson for the 7th to 9th grades. <\/p>
This means that the number of pages may vary depending on your or your child\u2019s reading speed. If the assigned reading goes past the time limit for that day\u2019s lesson, we recommend closing the book, doing a different activity, and then coming back to it at a later time, to give your child\u2019s brain a chance to rest and to keep him fresh and alert. <\/p>
How to Create a Daily Schedule for a Charlotte Mason Homeschool<\/strong><\/h2>
In case you need it, we have created a FREE Charlotte Mason Daily Schedule Template<\/a> to help you out with your planning! <\/p>
Alternatively, here are some tips to help you get started: <\/p>
1. Collect all the books you will be using for the year. <\/h3>
Take a look at this example for a student in Form 2 (or 4th to 6th grades) <\/p>
Bible: Joshua, John <\/p>
History: On the Shores of the Great Sea<\/a>, D\u2019Aulaire\u2019s Benjamin Franklin<\/a>, 50 Famous Stories Retold<\/a>, The Story of My Life<\/a>, Missionary Heroes<\/a><\/p>
Science: Our Wonderful World<\/a>, Ways of Wood Folk<\/a>, Robert Fulton<\/a> <\/p>
Literature: Secret Garden<\/a>, Men of Iron<\/a>, Pollyanna<\/a>, Princess and the Goblin<\/a><\/p>
Shakespeare: Beautiful Stories from Shakespeare<\/a><\/p>
Geography: Home Geography<\/a> <\/p>
(Most of this booklist is included in our Charlotte Mason International Curriculum, coming soon to this website!) <\/p>
2. Divide the different subjects and books into the days of the week. <\/h3>
As you can see, we can’t just assign per subject, because each subject usually has several books. <\/p>
From our example booklist, you can see that for History, On the Shores of the Great Sea<\/a> is your History Spine, but you also have a History Biography, D\u2019Aulaire\u2019s Benjamin Franklin<\/a>, and The Story of My Life<\/a>. Meanwhile, Missionary Heroes<\/a> and 50 Famous Stories Retold<\/a> are actually more like History story books. <\/p>
You can assign them as once lesson for each type of book for different days of the week, say, Monday, Wednesday, Friday. <\/p>
3. Assign one chapter from each book onto one or two lesson blocks per week. <\/h3>
For example, if you have a book with 20 chapters, if you read one chapter per lesson and do two lessons per week, you will finish this book in 10 weeks. <\/p>
4. Divide longer chapters into two separate lessons. <\/h3>
Again, this depends on several factors, such as your or your child’s reading speed, or even if you are alternating reading with your child. <\/p>
5. Add your \u201criches.\u201d <\/h3>