Direction for the new term

Over our break, I really have taken more time to follow up my interest in Charlotte Mason's educational philosophy.

Ambleside Online has a great index of CM's writings and I decided to start reading through them. For some reason I began with volume 3. My first experiences with CM have been through the Real Learning forums, other blogs (see sidebar) and Elizabeth Foss's book . I figured it was time to go to the source.

We are already incorporating much CM style in our homeschool, but reading her original writings definitely inspire me to keep pushing on. Overall, the concept that resonates the most is the discipline of narration. Narration is simply the child retelling what he has learned. The form can be quite in depth, detailed and written or more like a casual, conversational rundown.

I have a difficult time explaining how this deeply this concept of narration motivates me. I see endless benefits in training a child how to listen, absorb and integrate ideas AND THEN communicate them effectively. This is not just an educational skill, this is a life skill.

ETA: ok I re-read this and I am tickled at the irony of me not being able to explain clearly why I think narration is so exciting. I needed more CM training as a child apparently, lol!