by Olivia Spears
The Four Types of Love + How to Explain Them to Children
The Valentine's Day atmosphere provides us with a good opportunity to talk with our children about love, affection and caring for others all-year-round -beyond the hearts and the chocolates. C.S. Lewis wisdom can help us on this.
by Olivia Spears
The Role of Grandparents in Faith Formation
You know we are passionate about parents as primary catechists of their children, but what role do grandparents play in the faith formation of their grandchildren? This question wades into more delicate waters, but since we have many grandparents in our community, let's dive in together.
by Olivia Spears
A Catholic View on Work and Rest
Catholicism claims that our labors do not remain empty or servile but should be tended to in and for love. When this happens, work makes us more of who we really are. We are molded by the constancy of our work. We are purified by its repetition. We are delighted in its completion. However, as worthy as work is in our development as human persons, it must not be entered without also entering into rest. The Church is clear on the boundaries between work and rest. Let's dive together into this.
by Olivia Spears
How to Do a Picture Study
Simply exposing your child to art can boost their cognitive development, creativity, and academic performance. Discover the joy of exploring sacred art with your children with a simple method and our best picture study resources to get you started.
by Olivia Spears
Why We Need Sabbath Rest
As Christians, we are familiar with the sabbath. We know that God commands us to rest on the seventh day. But how often do we really embrace sabbath rest?
by Olivia Spears
What is a Mother's Morning Basket?
A mother's morning basket is meant to fill her soul and mind with truth, beauty, and goodness. So what should we include in our mother's morning baskets?! This is the fun part! I'm happy to offer some suggestions based on what has been particularly helpful to me over the years.
by Olivia Spears
Our 2023-2024 School Lineup | Booklists + Resources
August is upon us, which means it is nearly time to begin another school year in our home. I have been in planning prep for a couple of months (I take it slow!) and I'm happy to share our booklists with you here! How I Plan a New Homeschool Year My planning process typically follows three movements: Pray (you can learn more about that here) Make booklists (jot down all my ideas and resources, then heavily edit) Put it all together in a rhythm First, I'll share our booklists. Then, I'll share a loose idea of our rhythm! The Groundwork... My oldest kids are entering the 4th and 1st grades, and my youngest two are 3 years and ten months old. While each child does their own level of phonics, math, copywork, and logic, most of our subjects are done family style in a loop rotation (more on that later). This fits our family best in this season and we all really enjoy this setup. My three-year-old will not do any formal preschool work; however, he likes feeling "big" and has asked for his own school work this year. I've picked up A is for Art to go through with him as interest dictates. My main priority each morning is to snuggle him and read picture books to fill his cup before our school day begins. Our Homeschool "Curriculum" | The Booklists ***Unless otherwise linked, all books can be found on this Amazon list!*** Like I mentioned, we have family subjects and individual subjects. Only the older two have individual work. These children have different learning styles, so we use different resources for each. Family Subjects Morning Basket Our Morning Time will consist of The Daily Feast + any memory work (like poetry, Mass parts, and longer dictations for my oldest).P.S. already using my Daily Feast notepad and it's a game changer for organization!We will also do our fun read alouds during this time. I don't have a final list yet, but I've shared some definites in the Amazon shop! Catechesis We will be using Into the Deep Level Two this year, taking pauses to do the picture studies on the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary during Advent, the Luminous + Sorrowful during Lent, and the Glorious during Easter. History We used The Story of the World last year and it was a family favorite all around! We are moving to Volume 2 this year. I use the student guide for extra reading, map work, and projects.Additionally, I'll be reading one story each week from American Tall Tales so they have a touch point with their national history. Geography We use the geography prompts in the SOTW above.I'll also pepper in Charlotte Mason's Elementary Geography. Nature Study/Science It's a water year for us! I'll be using Among the Pond People in the fall semester and Ocean Anatomy and Watercolor with Me in the spring. I picked up The Good and the Beautiful's Wind + Waves. We used their Little Hearts and Hands last year and it was a great resource to have on hand for days when I needed extra support (like when a kid was sick or the baby didn't sleep). Excited to have that in my back pocket again this year. Literature My fave! Well, alongside catechesis and history. We will ease into the first semester by revisiting A.A. Milne's When We Were Very Young. Aligned with our history studies, we will also read some Norse Myths!In the second semester, we will read a couple of Shakespeare plays (the kids have loved these—not yet sure if we will revisit old favorites, read new, or a combination of both).Our main focus this spring semester will be fairy tales. I've snagged some fairy tale picture books from Will Moses, and I have a couple of collections here at home I will pull from. (A note on finding books on fairy tales: be sure they are the original text, not adaptations!) Character Building I have some perfectionistic students (no idea where they got that 😬), so we are working on growth mindset with Mistakes that Worked.We will also be reading through A Book of Golden Deeds.In the spring semester, we will revisit Connoisseur Kids. We used it this year and it was a roaring success, so the kids want to go through it again! Artist Each year, we study two artists. In the fall we will study Van Eyck and use the picture studies from Simply Charlotte Mason. In the spring, we will deep dive Michelangelo. I'm pumped. We will use SCM's picture studies, along with The Stone Giant, Michelangelo for Kids, Mike Venezia's Michelangelo, and a giant coffee table book of his complete works. Composer As with the artists, I select two composers to study each year. In the fall, we will study Handel and, in the spring, Paganini.I'm an Opal Wheeler fan girl, so I just use her books. Mike Venezia has a book on Handel, too, so we will use that as well. Language I don't stress about this much yet. My energy is focused more on reading fluency at this stage and, with a toddler and baby, I don't have much overflow to devote to foreign language. I have Prima Latina and we will use those DVDs each week in "car school" when we drive a small distance to pick up our farm food and dairy. On Rhythms... Our family functions best with a rhythm rather than a strict schedule. But we typically begin around 9 a.m. (this gives us time for personal prayer, breakfast, morning chores, and getting ready).Typically, we school Monday-Thursday, as Fridays are set aside for errands, Mass, and cleaning. Weekly Loops With that, here are the family subjects we will loop throughout the week: Mondays || catechesis, character building, history, nature study, and composer Wednesdays || catechesis, character building, history, literature, and nature study Thursdays || catechesis, history, literature, and artist/drawing Like I mentioned, all of this will be tested by actually living it, and we will adjust as needed! I always enjoy reading other people's homeschool plans, so I hope this has brought you some entertainment and solidarity! God bless your new school year!
by Olivia Spears
Building Their Lives on the Liturgical Year
“The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days; while she who lets their habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction with the children.” - Charlotte Mason Order is something we all strive to have in our lives. It makes the world go ‘round and helps create a sense of security throughout childhood and adulthood. Maintaining a smooth, rhythmic schedule aids your child in more ways than you can count. Having a rhythmic home life is good for the body, but having a rhythmic liturgical life is good for the soul. The Faith isn't simply meant to be learned; it's meant to be lived. Things such as reading about the lives of Saints and understanding the seasons of the Church can be done during any time of day, not only during religion class. Leaning on the liturgical year provides a structure in your children's lives that can accompany them into adulthood. How Living the Liturgical Year Now Impacts their Future as Catholics An impactful way to help children as the next generation of Catholics is having structure built within their spiritual life. Helping your child increase attentiveness to their faith will aid them in growing long-lasting habits in their love for the Church and the Lord. Reading the Bible as a family, attending Mass every Sunday, and praying the rosary are great ways to have a lasting impact. A good liturgical option is to keep up with Saints’ feast days. There is a feast every day and there are multiple ways to celebrate. Reading a summary and then praying to the Saints daily is a fun and mindful way to keep up with the liturgical year. Another great option is considering a liturgical planner for your child. A planner is used to organize the day to day events. Your child can not only keep track of the upcoming week, but also see different religious feast days and holidays, such as Christmas and Easter. A Structure for Worship The Catholic liturgical year organizes the Church's celebrations and events, providing a structure for worship and reflection. Having a religious structure encourages orderliness in the soul. Order is physical as well as mental. Following the ebb and flow of fasting and feasting within the liturgical year is a physical reminder of the liturgical year. For example, let's say that, at the beginning of the week, you fill out your planner. You include things like events, birthdays, work schedule, weekend plans, etc. A liturgical planner works the same way as a normal planner, but it has Catholicism filtered into its pages. What a fun way to help your child grow in their faith! Continuous Contemplation Living the liturgical year allows us to remember the life and teachings of Jesus and to deepen faith through various liturgical seasons and feasts. Remembering the Saints that have lived out the faith serves as an inspiration for Catholics. Contemplating the faith daily helps with spiritual growth. Catholic Connection The liturgical year helps to create a sense of unity and community among Catholics worldwide. Community is something we as humans need. We usually look for people that we can relate to, sympathize with, similar beliefs, etc. Connecting with other Catholics over your love of the Faith is amazing! Check Out our Student Planner! What’s a fun, immersive way to help your child grow in the faith? Consider purchasing our newest product, the Student Liturgical Planner! This is a great option to encourage orderliness and structure in your child's school and home life. Keeping track of events such as sports practices, play-dates, to-do list on chore day can all be done in this planner. Throw in the liturgical year filtered into the calendar and you have the perfectly-curated Catholic Student Planner. What are some of your favorite ways to build your child's life on the liturgical year? Give us some ideas in the comments below!
