We’ve shared here on the Winter Promise blog about Charlotte Mason before. Be sure to read Kaeryn’s post here, you don’t want to miss reading about what Kaeryn personally learned by homeschooling the Charlotte Mason way!

Today we want to share 10 of the simplest ways to incorporate a Charlotte Mason education into your own home. This post is not an all-comprehensive guide to Charlotte Mason. This is just 10 easy ways to get started implementing these fabulous ideas from Charlotte Mason!

1. Accept and even appreciate that you are going “against the grain.” No over-scheduling, no boring textbooks, no exhaustion from trying to “get it all in.”

2. Go on a nature walk and discuss what you see. Play in your backyard for hours. Let your child explore. Often.

3. Have your child start and keep a nature journal. Nothing elaborate. Just draw, label and date what you see in your own backyard!

4. Read a lot of good, living books together.

5. Observe and appreciate classical composers and artists. Listen to great music. Look at great art.

6. Simple Narrations. Don’t be scared of narrating! All this means is allowing your child to TELL BACK what they have read, heard, studied!

7. Short lessons. Yes, really! Most of us know by now that the longer you go on about something, the less your children hear! Charlotte Mason knew this and short lessons were one of the main points of her way of educating.

8. Copywork, then dictation. Don’t let this scare you either. Give your child beautiful writings ~ poems, hymns, Scriptures ~ to COPY correctly. This is copywork. Then, a few years into their schooling, begin dictation. Give the child a short passage to study, then read it to them and have them write it. You can work on grammar and spelling with these methods!

9. Reading aloud. Charlotte believed in reading to the children daily from the Bible and other great works quite frequently. Poetry, Shakespeare, biographies.

10. Morning lessons, afternoon free time. I love this scheduling idea from Charlotte Mason herself! Charlotte Mason knew that children needed to be outside, playing, free to explore, and work on handicrafts for many hours!