To save myself from answering what I expect to be asked quite a bit: Why didn't I choose the CMEC again? 1. My co-op was not using the CMEC this year for our common subjects, so I no longer needed that half of the curriculum. 2. I was already making quite a few swaps for natural history, history, tales and literature. (Pulling from the larger classical tradition-and things like the One Thousand Good Books List-I wanted to continue with fairy tales and fables beyond Form 1B, and I wanted to "shop my shelves" as I've been collecting classic literature for years for my family. 3. I loved the continued Mothers' Education Course but didn't have the time to complete it. ^ Because of these reasons, it didn't seem prudent to pay $300 for a quarter of a curriculum. It was not because I didn't like the CMEC or felt it failed in some way. It was logistical! But once I started thinking I might not sign up, other points became clear. 1. I had unintentionally worn myself out trying to complete two curricula: the CMEC and my classical must-haves. Why would I work that hard when I could make the classical must-haves the curriculum? 2. I started pulling together my own version of The Children's Tradition before I knew Amanda was working on hers. Since we love many of the same classical philosophers, we had a great deal of overlap but hers was complete and had a steady path for the full grammar years. So, I thanked her for her efforts and adopted her program.

@2mpdavis

21 күн бұрын

I would say that CMEC does not leave fairy tales behind after form 1B. What is The Princess and the Goblin but a fairy tale. Many literature reads from Shakespeare, to MacDonald, to Tolkien are fairy tales.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

@@2mpdavis Yes, when using "a story which touches on Faerie", as Tolkien defined them, you will find fairy tales beyond the Grimms/Anderson picks for Form 1B. You are correct! However, to put it more clearly, I think children need a rich diet of folk fairy tales to properly engage with later stories like MacDonald, Tolkien, etc. And they certainly need them longer than a few per term for the first year. They were the very diet that allowed the following authors to create such good works!

@annagracehayes

20 күн бұрын

​@@2mpdavis100% agree. I actually love that the CMEC encourages so much leisure reading. It doesn't have to all be during the official school time.

@2mpdavis

20 күн бұрын

@@annagracehayesyes I found that we continue with many fairy tales in the evenings, weekends, summers and the many that are built in. I think we actually have done a fair number off senior’s list by grade 7. Slow and steady.

@SwissAdelina

19 күн бұрын

I was homeschooled, partially classically, and now my babies are very young and I love learning from your ideals from the beginning. I gotta say- this video is so freeing for me just to see a real time example of someone who was *all in* for one curriculum and now you’re fine tuning your family’s needs and going all in on a new one. None of these leaving CMEC reasons imply “bashing” the program or that other people shouldn’t be using it for their own growth. I just see reasons that it wasn’t suiting your particular family vision anymore. I was the youngest in my family growing up and we did bounce around and try different curricula for my siblings and for my early years. Nonetheless by the time my family really settled on a curriculum that cast a unified vision for education, we were *all in* till I graduated. It got to a point of excitement about the program that communicated to me as a young person, probably quite unintentionally from the adults POV, an exclusionary mindset towards those who were not or who stopped using the curriculum. (It felt similar to the exclusionary mindset that I felt from my earliest years towards those who chose not to homeschool). I love home education, but I don’t want to repeat any of those mindsets. It’s really refreshing to see that I can go all in when I find a curriculum worth being excited about without closing my curiosity to continue to find tune new things down the road. Thanks for all the little ways you’re encouraging young moms! Even those of us not starting out totally new to it all!

More from this guest PLEASE! I know you are very well planned ahead for your podcast Autumn- and love your generous sharing but Amanda was a guest those of us new to the classical world can understand, see ourselves in, not over our heads! I will find her podcast next! You two make a great team explaining things.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

11 сағат бұрын

Amanda is the best! You should definitely check out her podcast (The Wonder Years) and I have other interviews with her in Season 4 and 2!

I love this pivot towards more Classical education and drawing upon all of the richness of Mason but also the tradition of thousands of years. (I agree with your assessment on Mason being Classical, but you know what I mean). This was a great conversation.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

19 күн бұрын

Woo! You're tracking with me!

Just heard the name John Senior on a webinar. I’m so excited to learn more. You girls are killing it. What a great conversation.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

11 сағат бұрын

Woo! A John Senior wave is hitting the Charlotte Mason world!

I love the idea of having “no formal subjects” as far as the kids can tell and letting their education blend together naturally. How am I just now hearing about John Senior’s 1,000 Good Books List? Further into the wardrobe I go. . . 📚

@thecommonplacehomeschool

20 күн бұрын

Oh, I think you will love that list!

Im going to be checking all of the links and really diving into my research of the TCT because I've been praying for 2 months about our curriculum and asking God how to fill in the gaps I was feeling from the CMEC as well. Amanda I am so grateful for this option for my family because ever since I learned who Charlotte Mason was from Autumn's "Why We Read Fairy Tales" video a friend sent me I have not been able to "leave the wardrob" but I've struggled to know how to best DIY my own curriculum that could really feed my childrens whole soul because I saw holes in everything that I was researching. Your work seems to be a true answer to prayer in a way I struggle to form into words because it's more of a yearning deep within my heart that I have laid before God. I'm hopeful and excited. Becca

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

What a lovely note. I'll make sure Amanda gets to read it!

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

16 күн бұрын

Thank you for this encouraging comment, Becca! I really think of TCT as a DIYer's guide to classical elementary education. If you end up purchasing TCT I pray it gives you clarity for how to bring together all the pieces of this beautiful approach to education! - Amanda

A curriculum inspired by John Senior? You ladies make my dreams come true!!! Great interview, now I have a lot of research and reading to do.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

Right? It's hard not to want to follow the IHP once you know about the IHP...

I have to say, you have become my favorite KZread person. Thank you for these life giving conversations, and for always being an encouragement! Also on a side note, if you haven’t heard the song “Old Neptune, He’s Roaring” by Brian Sauve, I think you’d love it! Blessings 🫶🏽🤍

@thecommonplacehomeschool

20 күн бұрын

I'm so glad you've enjoyed the conversations! I'm having a lovely time too! And yes, I do know this song! I think it was sent my way 100+ times the week it was released. Happy to be the Narnia-dragon-story lady!

I had heard CMEC was intense so personally I knew it was not for me. Thanks for sharing your whys. Per the website linked, I find her take on history to be refreshing and one that completely makes sense. I know of only one other curriculum that takes a similar approach and that is Five in a Row (literature based unit studies). I personally do not recall any bit of history from elementary school and do not find it necessary to study it chronologically. I’m very interested in this interview and look forward to watching. Thanks! *6 minutes in and I love this already!

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

I loved our time with the CMEC. They are the most faithful to Mason/the PNEU that you can find today! I really only have wonderful things to share about them. At the same time, since I put Mason within the tradition and pull from others besides the wonderful lady, I want certain things that a pure Masonite wouldn't consider.

@Dreblueskies

21 күн бұрын

@@thecommonplacehomeschool I don’t doubt that, I personally cannot be such a purist which is why I wasn’t drawn to their program. I too like to take inspiration from others.

@Emmannie

19 күн бұрын

​@@DreblueskiesThis is perhaps why I won't stay for next year as well. (We're only in Kinderleben so who knows yet if we're called to do 1B in a couple of years..) I seem to be an unschooler at heart but I don't mind some structure.. and having such a seemingly rigid list of MUST-DOs felt too constricting. At the same time I've been hearing its Science selections aren't up-to-date, and I know my software engineer husband will question them and want to swap them. Then as a Kumon fan, I wanted that for Math, so yet another swap? 🤷🏻‍♀️ Good thing we have a little < year to decide. I love videos idk this to help me with that discernment!

@Dreblueskies

19 күн бұрын

@@Emmannie I think you like all of us out there we are finding out what works best for us and our children. I definitely like freedom and being able to adjust things. I hope you find works best for your family. Are you considering the children’s tradition?

I would love to hear more conversations like this, thank you for posting it! I was wondering if you had a link to a website that would explain what the Eastern Orthodox church teaches?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

17 күн бұрын

Ooh, hard to peg one perfect place. (It would be just as difficult to find one website that captured classical education!) You could peek at this: www.goarch.org/-/introduction-what-is-the-greek-orthodox-church- But I recommend the podcast At the Intersection of East and West.

@AndersonChronicles

14 күн бұрын

In this same line of thought; is Amanda, Orthodox? Catholic? Or non denomination? Thanks:)❤

@thecommonplacehomeschool

13 күн бұрын

@@AndersonChronicles she’s OPCA (orthodox Presbyterian).

I LOVE this!! Does this also include suggested artists and composers for each year?

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

12 күн бұрын

It does. We have a book that we follow for each!

This is so exciting! Have you heard of the Thomas Jefferson Education philosophy? This feels like it could be the bridge between the worlds of CM and TJEd that I've been trying to create for my family. I can't wait to dive into these links and things!

@thecommonplacehomeschool

19 күн бұрын

No, I haven't! I'll have to look into it!

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

16 күн бұрын

I remember my mom having TJEd on her shelf when I was in high school and she gave it to me to read as an inspiring idea for how to approach my learning as self-education in those years. That was fifteen years ago, but now that you mention it I can see why you would see overlap there! - Amanda

@pylesofbooks

14 күн бұрын

@@TheWonderYearsPodcast that's neat!

If you had middle school-aged students and had to pick a curriculum for the 2024-2025 school year (until Amanda comes out with the Logic stage curriculum) which one would you (or she recommend? Any direction would be greatly appreciated :)

@thecommonplacehomeschool

19 күн бұрын

She's not following a neo-classical "ages and stages" model but she is working through the Grades 7-12 in Norms and Nobility (by David Hicks) currently to see how she might structure upper years!

@SepiaSerenade

18 күн бұрын

@@thecommonplacehomeschool Thank you very much! That’s so refreshing to hear that this is not “following the (neo) stages.”

What would you say the main difference is with the AO curriculum? I’m interested in this but I currently pull a lot from AO and I’m thinking I may have quite a lot of the information in this curriculum already.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

14 күн бұрын

Oh, they’re pretty different! AO pulls strictly from Mason so you’ll find a lot more wider classical philosophy in TCT. But Amanda wrote a whole thing about it: thewonderyears.substack.com/p/how-the-childrens-tradition-differs

I love the idea of "no subjects" but I am not sure I understand that idea in the context of this particular curriculum. When I looked at the flip through video on Instagram, it looked like it was divided into subjects. What am I misunderstanding because I am very much interested in possibly giving this curriculum a try.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

15 күн бұрын

There are real categories by which we describe different aspects of knowledge, yes! But knowledge cannot be wholly divided as if history isn't related to literature or natural history, etc. Amanda wrote more on this here: thewonderyears.substack.com/p/the-childrens-tradition-does-not

Are you going to supplement or add anything to this curriculum or keep to it pretty strictly? As a new homeschooler I’m curious about adding in a handwriting, grammar, and possibly more story driven history lessons. I bought the curriculum but do have gaps in my own knowledge about what to do with my kids and these books. I don’t really know how to do narration or keeping notebooks and I’m assuming we should still do that with this curriculum? I could use a little more support with the practicals of how to implement the curriculum!!

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

12 күн бұрын

This curriculum should not need any supplementation. Copywork is handwriting, we do scientific grammar lessons beginning in 6th grade, and the history books are about as story-driven as you can find! As to filling in the gaps in your knowledge, that is totally understandable. FYI I offer consultations on my website, so feel free to make an appointment and I could walk you through all the details and how it could look for your family!

@thecommonplacehomeschool

12 күн бұрын

Oh, I'm so glad you're here! While Amanda has made this amazing curriculum for the table, my work centers on equipping mother-teachers with the philosophy needed to teach (and live) classically. I have four seasons of The Commonplace podcast available and if you go through my KZread videos you'll see videos covering narration, story, timetables, pre-reading, and much more!

Can you explain how this is different than Ambleside Online?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

15 күн бұрын

Amanda wrote a full answer to this here: thewonderyears.substack.com/p/how-the-childrens-tradition-differs

Okay maybe a more practical question: did you bind it yourself or get it done somewhere?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

12 күн бұрын

I used Office Depot!

Where can I find John Senior’s list of 1000 books?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

19 күн бұрын

seascs.net/documents/2017/10/John%20Senior%20The%20Thousand%20Good%20Books%20List.pdf

@hillaryenloe

Күн бұрын

Thank you for sharing the list!

Where can I see a sample of this?

@sandraruiz4737

21 күн бұрын

I am using AO so I will likely not switch this year!

@baileyaspenson3028

21 күн бұрын

@@sandraruiz4737My oldest is 5, and I have been so set on AO, but this seems wonderful as well!

@Dreblueskies

21 күн бұрын

I would like to see a sample as well.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

You can see an in-depth walkthrough here: instagram.com/reel/C83w01eO1KF/ She also has some photos on the website: thechildrenstradition.com

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

See above!

What do you do? How do you catch an older kiddo up? Can you do this family style? I feel so behind already! What about older kids/teens…is it too late?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

6 күн бұрын

It's never too late to start! You can do family style (although the specifics will depend on the family); I'd recommend trying to find the best "grade" match for what your children have read and use "free reads" or "family time" to pull from the 1000 Good Books List (find online or in Amanda's curriculum) and catch up on the other missed ones.

If this curriculum is revised, will those who purchase prior to that have access to the revised content?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

18 күн бұрын

I believe that's on the FAQ page now! (I don't think so. I think you have to repurchase if you want to have the non-beta version next year but double check the page!)

@LionWolverine

18 күн бұрын

@@thecommonplacehomeschoolthat's what the FAQ says, yes. Honestly, for me that is a turn off. As an example, beta testers with A Gentle Feast were given the curriculum for free, and any updates to AGF are given to all users for free. (I've never used AGF but thought they were a similar enough example.)

@thecommonplacehomeschool

18 күн бұрын

@@LionWolverine Ah yes, I understand. Feel free to shoot Amanda an email! She’s very kind and will be happy to explain further.

I have an almost-4yo but would love to see what is coming for us. Do you think there are elements that would be useful to me now even for preparing myself?

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

16 күн бұрын

I would say absolutely, because the philosophy surrounding the poetic mode of learning applies equally to a 4 year old, and then you could reference the books I list from Senior's 1,000 Good Books list as "early years" in the Appendix. There are many poetic habits like prayer, family chores, time out-of-doors, and reading aloud that you can focus on cultivating right now. - Amanda

@thecommonplacehomeschool

14 күн бұрын

I agree with Amanda!

@angelamarie8634

13 күн бұрын

Thanks! I appreciate the feedback, now to convince the husband! 😀

@hillaryenloe

Күн бұрын

Yes! Start reading and planning now!

How do y'all feel about a child doing a drawing for a narration about something being read to them? Or even acting out the reading with their toys or puppets? Especially for a child who is very young or one that may have a language disorder or dyslexia.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

13 күн бұрын

Okay, a learning disability changes things but I'm not studied enough to know how much and when. I do recommend A Delectable Education for further listening! They have a couple episodes around neurodivergence! But I, personally, let my children draw a narration whenever they ask to do so. In Form 1, the focus is oral narrations, so I require those and always respond, "Thank you!" when they finish while marking in my logbook if the narration was good, average, or poor for that student. (My kids don't see these notes; they're for me to remember in my assessment of that term.) Drawing isn't required but always welcome and I find I see another layer to their understanding based on what they draw. I think it's helpful!

@TheWonderYearsPodcast

12 күн бұрын

I completely agree with Autumn! Because we want children to imagine the images of the story we are reading to them, drawing a picture fits nicely into keeping them in the poetic mode as they try to imagine (dare we say, contemplate?) what they "saw" in the story, through the words. Like Autumn said, we want to prioritize oral narrations because of how well it strengthens their intellectual muscles. But a drawing sometimes is great, too!

@TruthSeeker2996

3 күн бұрын

So - when do you guys start history? In the upper grades ? And what do you recommend ?

@hillaryenloe

Күн бұрын

Dyslexia child, we do lots of drawing as it’s a strength and oral narration as well as it’s a strength! This all works so well to adapt as you feel called for your child’s needs.

I'm interested to know what all the differences are in your teaching method compared to Charlotte Mason, and your reasoning behind it.

@thecommonplacehomeschool

14 күн бұрын

Amanda has many helpful essays on her Substack: thewonderyears.substack.com/p/how-to-teach-reading-poetically

What IS a tutorial day??

@thecommonplacehomeschool

21 күн бұрын

I believe this is Amanda's name for her co-op day!

hold me back from wanting to do this with my upcoming kinder! ahh so beautiful!

@thecommonplacehomeschool

12 күн бұрын

Haha! There is a huge section of "nursery years" reading on the Senior list!

@luccalele9740

7 күн бұрын

@@thecommonplacehomeschool do you mean the 1000 books list?

@thecommonplacehomeschool

7 күн бұрын

@@luccalele9740 yes! Sorry!

@luccalele9740

6 күн бұрын

@@thecommonplacehomeschool We are working through it! Do you find that kinder is a “hard year” to figure out? I want to keep him engaged and expose all the beautiful ideas and habits but not do too much and it feels disjointed without a plan but a plan/curriculum feels like too much 🤔

@thecommonplacehomeschool

6 күн бұрын

@@luccalele9740 I did something called The Benediction Table for those years so I had a loose plan but didn't get overwhelmed or overwhelm the kids. Delight is the main thing. If you have that-and time outside and good books-that's a great kinder year.