I have the very unexpected delight and honour of having been asked to be part of the early years panel at the Modern Miss Mason conference. For those of you who may not have come across the lovely Leah Boden, she has become a leading light not only in the UK home ed world, but also in the States, so it’s especially exciting to be a part of her conference. It’s being held in Warwickshire, at the same venue as the Learn Free conference and being live steamed to virtual ticket holders across the world. I’ve (obviously) never been live streamed before, but, having watched the first few minutes of my talk at Learn Free, think it’s probably a better option than my own zoom skills! So, my musings here today will flow out of the preparation I’m doing for this.
I couldn’t resist putting in the above photo, from an unexpected and laughter filled road trip recently. I was given the opportunity, last minute, to go with a lovely friend of mine up to Oxford, to attend Sally Clarkson’s last Bible study group before she heads back to the States. For a mum who hasn’t done much adventuring by herself for years, it was very exciting! We drove up in my friend’s campavan and after a delicious bring and share supper at Sally’s parked up in the car park of the above pub overnight, then had a quick wander around Oxford the next morning before driving home.
Nature notes and homestead jottings
June always takes me by surprise; with recent rain after a long spell of warm weather, veg, flowers and weeds are growing prolifically. I managed to strim a pathway through the long grass in the field to get to the fruit cage and found the redcurrants are ripening, ruby red berries which glisten in the sunlight like jewels. I freeze them and eat them on my muesli in the mornings. I had just finished my last tub of frozen berries, so it’s perfect timing. The rhubarb is also providing tender sweet stems and I used some to make the above pudding on Sunday, as Lanky Dude was home for lunch. We also had the last of the hams I made from last year’s pigs and some elderflower cordial Dancing Toes and I made a couple of weeks ago. It always feels like a celebration when all six of us are around the table again!
Home education journal
Sparkly Eyes and I made this soda bread (an Irish recipe) for lunch on a day when our learning revolved around finding out about the early Celtic and Roman Catholic missionaries. Every fortnight we have the delight of sharing our day with another teenage girl and her mum and it’s an opportunity to do something a little different. So last week we read about Patrick and Columba, Aiden and Cuthbert. We studied the Celtic cross of Iona and designed our own crosses using chalks. We then had a look at the Lindisfarne gospels and wrote and illuminated a Bible verse. We listened to a Gregorian chant, from the Catholic tradition and then talked about the significance of the Council of Whitby where Catholic and Celtic traditions collided. I found it all especially poignant as we’ve visited both Iona and Lindisfarne, beautiful and windswept islands, on separate summer holidays; living history at its best.
Musings for our time
One of the questions Leah will be asking us is about the foundations of our home education. This is a great question and very much in keeping for what is burning in my spirit. My answer is in 4R’s.
Relationship with God, within our family, within our community and beyond. Having this in mind will influence how we go about our learning on the early years; readalouds with snuggles and snacks, rambles and picnics in the great outdoors, fun projects and engaging outings.
Rhythms, habits and traditions. Daily, weekly, yearly and even seasonal rhythms along with learned habits will anchor us in stormy seasons. For example, we always have pizza on a Friday night and a picnic tea with our family prayer time on a Sunday night. This has given us boundaries for our weekend for years. Charlotte Mason talks about habits being like train tracks along which we can journey without having to think each time. For children with additional needs, especially processing issues, although these are incredibly hard to instil, once there are they can make life easier. Our traditions enrich our family culture and I’ve found will wing our adult children home!
Resilience is grown through doing hard things. It can be heartbreaking when we watch our small children have to deal with pain and difficulties, but in the long term I think learning strategies to walk through these will contribute to their ability to stand strong through the inevitable storms of life.
Roots are ultimately what anchor us and I urge us all to think and pray deeply about where we want our children’s roots to be embedded. For us, it’s in Jesus. He will be there when all else crumbles.
Underpinning and flowing through all these is love. Our children need to know beyond doubt we love them for who they are, not for what they achieve. May we have God’s abundant and sacrificial love flowing through us each day to be poured out into our children.
Mothering through the seasons 