The Commonplace

The host reflects on homeschooling and the importance of philosophy, emphasizing practical guidance. The significance of Christ in all aspects of life is emphasized, along with updates on the podcast break.

Do you remember the first episode of the season? I laid out the first morning of formal schooling with its materials galore: alphabet and math manipulatives, nature packs, watercolors, piles of books, cups of tea, and so on. I asked if buying and organizing supplies are what make a ready mother-teacher or if maybe, just maybe, we were missing the main thing. You know, like how to teach.From January to December, we’ve spent the entire year getting our pedagogy in place, learning our educational philosophy, and preparing to be mother-teachers. It’s been a joy to do this and I hope you feel yourself getting your bearings in the classical Mason world as we learn together. Before I close us out this season, I have one more surprise. Today, the excellent Karen Glass joins me on the podcast to bring it all together: motherhood, philosophy, and education as one harmonizing whole. It was a dream to talk with her and I hope you enjoy our conversation!To catch the bonus question at the end of the episode, join us in Common House! __________ Karen Glass homeschooled all of her four children from start to graduation using Charlotte Mason’s methods. She has immersed herself in Mason’s volumes and explored resources that Mason herself read and referenced. After many years of study, she has written several books to share some of the things she has learned, including Consider This: Charlotte Mason and the Classical Tradition and Know and Tell: The Art of Narration. After living overseas for 25 years, she has recently relocated to the United States and has been speaking and teaching on various topics related to Charlotte Mason and education. You can find her on Instagram and Facebook, as well as many encouraging articles on her blog, which is linked to her website. __________ You can find Karen on Instagram, Facebook, or her website.Pst. You can also watch today’s interview on Youtube! Just search The Commonplace! __________ Resources from Karen GlassIn Vital HarmonyKnow and TellA Thinking LoveConsider ThisMind to Mind__________You can find the full episode notes here.__________Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!

Explore Principle #20 of a classical Charlotte Mason education, emphasizing the integration of intellectual and spiritual life in children. Discuss the disconnect in our understanding of education and the importance of recognizing all knowledge as sacred. Learn about Christian education and its alignment with God's design, emphasizing the holistic approach of treating children as whole individuals.

Did you think we were finally finishing Mason’s twenty principles? Not. Just. Yet. My. Friend. While thinking through some angles on educational philosophy and pedagogy I can’t speak to, I knew there was another important one besides the older, wiser mom (Catch Bethany in last week’s interview!): the dad. The good news is that I do know a classical Charlotte Mason homeschooling dad. Today’s guest is Trae Bailey, a classical educator married to his high-school sweetheart and father to four young children. He kindly joined me to talk about how dads can support the homeschool and the home at-large since every home is one of education. While moms will certainly leave with some beautiful, encouraging ideas, this one’s for the dads. Ps. If you’re curious about the story he mentions at the top of the episode, you can find “Bren and Brohen” in Common House. Last month, I shared how we use story in our home to teach and inspire our children by sharing a story I made up on a Tuesday afternoon when my kids were listening to the Dragon Folly. __________You can find the full episode notes here.__________Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!

We've spent the whole year getting our pedagogy in place by studying Mason's 20 principles. But sometimes, we need help bringing all that philosophy down to the practical level, down to our commonplace homes. Thankfully, today's guest is here to help. Bethany Douglass, a wife, mother of four, and writer at Cloistered Away, joins me to offer practical homeschooling encouragement on setting rhythms, cultivating atmosphere, important practices for moms, and how to pursue truth, goodness, and beauty through it all! To catch the bonus question at the end of the episode, join us in Patreon! __________ You can find Bethany on Instagram @cloisteredaway and at Cloistered Away. Find the reel mentioned in the episode here.Pst. You can also watch today’s interview over on Youtube! Just search The Commonplace! __________ Resources from Cloistered Away Homeschooling | Getting StartedHomeschooling | Preschool YearsHomeschooling | Childhood YearsHomeschooling | EncouragementHomeschooling | ResourcesHomeschooling | Gift GuidesFamily | MotherhoodHome | Simply Rhythms & RoutinesFood | Sabbath Routines & Dinners__________You can find the full episode notes here.__________Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!

Never in my reading life have I found a chapter in a book that mentions such a range of characters. In Chapter IX of Volume Six, Mason manages to pull together Florence Nightingale, Euclid, Pythagoras, Satan, William Shakespeare and Karl Marx in her exploration of the Way of Reason. What point does she make? Reason is a yes man who will try to confirm any idea accepted by the Will. Which is how we get Florence, Shakespeare, Marx, and your children all thinking their own thoughts right. __________You can find the full episode notes here.---------Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!

The podcast discusses the importance of training a child's will to make the right choices. It explores techniques to strengthen the will, redirect thoughts, foster obedience, and teach virtue. The speakers emphasize the significance of daily choices and highlight Charlotte Mason's perspective on the will.

The podcast discusses the two guides in the moral and intellectual self-management of a child, the way of the will and the way of the reason. It explores the role of reason in providing logical demonstrations and emphasizes that logic does not always equate to goodness.

Those of us formally schooling are kicking off the new year right around now, so I thought it was the perfect time to share a BONUS episode as a bit of beginning of the year fun.I’m joined today by two dear friends, Amanda Faus and Brooke Johnson, to discuss how to form a classical Charlotte Mason co-op. I asked them my burning questions: how to build a co-op vision, how to share the group’s philosophy with enquiring moms, what to do for mother’s education, and more!I know you’ll love their gracious wisdom and my opening troubles with technology. Grab a pen and some paper, and settle in. This is my hour-long gift to you for this second season, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to introduce you to the world of co-ops through a conversation with our amiable guests, Amanda and Brooke!Pst. You can also watch today’s interview over on Youtube! Just search The Commonplace!__________You can find Amanda on Instagram at @commonplacecontemplations or on her blog commonplacecontemplations.wordpress.com where she may eventually write about motherhood in the early years and homeschooling with a classical Charlotte Mason approach if she ever finds the time. You can find Brooke on Instagram @brookejohns where she is consistently inconsistent with posting. When she remembers, she may share a thought on Christian formation, hobby-farming, discipleship, motherhood, and homeschooling. __________To catch the bonus question at the end of the episode, join us in Common House!----------You can find the full episode notes here.---------Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!

It’s narration week! I mean, really, what’s more Mason than talking about narration?(Actually, a lot of things. You have to talk about all the things.)But let’s get to it! What is narration? Why does it happen after a single reading? What if you have a lot of students narrating at once? How do you narrate a piece of music? Is it the same thing as a discussion?…what if the kid’s narration was…subpar? We’re going to talk about all of it and more! Let’s go!----------You can find the full episode notes here.---------Join the 400+ mother-teachers in Common House (It’s like a Patreon, but better.) where we think deeply and learn together through full courses, bonus minisodes, monthly Q+A video calls, resources, and more!