Education is fundamental piece of our family life and culture. This definition sums it up really well for us!
"The bringing up, as of a child, instruction; formation of manners. Education comprehends all that series of instruction and discipline which is intended to enlighten the understanding, correct the temper, and form the manners and habits of youth, and fit them for usefulness in their future stations. To give children a good education in manners, arts and science, is important; to give them a religious education is indispensable; and an immense responsibility rests on parents and guardians who neglect these duties." -Websters 1828 Dictionary
We implement many resources to accomplish our family educational goals and hope that by sharing them, you might enjoy some of them too!
We've been utilizing the Well-Educated Heart as a framework for our learning for several years now. I love the freedom and flexibility that it offers our family to read so many wonderful stories and poems, to appreciate wholesome music, to implement nature study in very organic ways, and to incorporate so much art!
I love Marlene Peterson's podcast titled The Well-Educated Mother's Heart. The greatest gift I've ever received is permission and encouragement to nurture and continue educating myself...and let that naturally overflow and lead my children.
We have used The Good and the Beautiful since we started homeschooling. I remember downloading files from Jenny Phillips' music site. It's been amazing to see TGTB grow and become what it is today! We love the stories, the colorful pages, and being able to use it as it works best for each of our kids.
We've recently discovered the beauty of The Mindful Heart! We enjoyed their Thanksgiving unit and we are so excited for their Christmas unit in December. We are also beginning Glimpses into the Past to prepare our hearts and minds for our study of The Book of Mormon in 2024. I'm really excited to use more of their materials!
The journey of homeschooling has become my most favorite part. We don't duplicate any school setting at home. We simply create a warm, safe, and welcoming learning environment that is friendly to our lifestyle of learning. We snuggle and read-aloud. We explore all kinds of things. We have discussions. We travel together and experience religions and cultures. We find answers to kids' questions. We show them how to seek out answers to their questions from reliable sources with the guidance naturally provided by principles of truth.
We have used resources from The Red Headed Hostess for our scripture study and Come, Follow Me study guides, beautiful art, excellent additional resource options to study, and tips for teaching and inspiring our family.
“Education is the key that opens the door to growth and opportunity. And when I’m talking about education, I don’t limit that to just school. The goal is, in my judgment, to learn how to love learning so when you have no idea about what to do, you can figure out what to do. Anything you learn in school is four or five years old when you’re learning it — the latest conceptual developments, the latest research. By definition, whatever you’ve learned when you graduate — it’s already obsolete. If you’re relying on what’s in books and what other people tell you, you’re dependent totally on them. When you don’t know what to do, can you ask the questions? Can you dig in, research and come to know what you need to do? That’s what education is. When you learn how to learn and you love learning how to learn, those are the very places where you get the greatest excitement because it’s uncharted territory.” -David A. Bednar