The Dish: A Mother's Review

The Dish: 

A Mother's Review #3

Knowledge of God

"Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." Psalm 51:10


Happy New Year! As we all return to school from a break, or to begin a new year, there is no doubt that there is some planning occurring in a multitude of homeschools this month. Many of us are beginning a brand new school year, and many others are smack dab in the middle of one. Either way, there is no doubt a need for a clean heart and a renewed right spirit. In the trenches of homeschooling, repentance is both necessary, and life giving. The reality is, we will never homeschool for a week without the need to repent and to have our spirit restored. We should, no doubt, be growing continually. With growth, comes the increased ability to control our tempers and our tongues. The truth is, however, that with all of the joy that homeschooling brings, it also brings much difficulty. If you are waiting on the day that molding hearts and minds and lives is no longer the most challenging thing you will ever do in your life, then I am afraid I have bad news. You will always be exhausted, children will always be frustrating, and your limits will always be tested. The good news to put the proverbial silver lining on the bad, however, is that we can always have a right spirit restored within us. We can always return to the place where we went wrong, and we can always seek the forgiveness and grace that never fails us. What do you need to repent of, and where does your spirit need to be renewed? If your homeschooling heart is feeling anything but clean, run, with haste, to the feet of the One who's fountain of grace never runs dry. Repent, dear mother, and have your spirit renewed.

Knowledge of the Universe

Nature Anatomy
Have you seen this wonderful book? It is a mix between nature lore and a field guide, and it can be used as either. You can read through it for nature lessons, pop it right into your Treasure Time and read it as nature lore, or reference it for information like a field guide. The best part is that it's simply lovely, so no matter how you use it, you will be blessed by the incredible drawings AND you will gain from the wonderful knowledge within. Check it out! It will be money well spent! 

Also, an app we are loving on our nature outings: Picture This. 
You snap a photo of a plant, and it identifies it and gives you possible matches. You select the best match based on the photos provided, and it records your "sighting" for others to see, along with giving you field information.  It is a portable field guide, that does the identifying for you.
We are loving it!

Knowledge of Man

Shakespeare Roundup:

Lamb's Tales 
Nesbit's Tales
Masterpuppet Theatre Finger Puppets
Shakespeare Made Easy (With Modern Translation)
Dover Thrift Editions of the Plays
Shakespeare in Three Easy Steps
List of Shakespeare Movies 
Shakespeare for Children Audio CD
Shakespeare for Everyone
Picture Book Retellings by Bruce Coville
Bard of Avon (Living Picture Book Biography)
How to Teach Your Children Shakespeare 
  

 Food for the Mother's Soul
Are you a part of the Wild + Free Community? It's such a wonderful community, and so enriching! You can search for local groups, subscribe to their monthly bundles, or sign your children up for their explorers program. I am not a fan of very many "extraneous" expenses, or subscriptions...but these are worth every penny. If you don't want to subscribe, download the free bundle and read through the downloads you receive. It's all about Mornings, and it's all enriching reading!
 

Around the Table  

What is Happening in the Charlotte Mason World?

I am one of dozens of Charlotte Mason bloggers this week whom are announcing the release of Karen Glass' new book: Know and Tell. Narration is foundational to both the Charlotte Mason philosophy and method. It is also one of the most questioned and challenging aspects of this way of educating. This book has been long awaited in the Charlotte Mason world, and will no doubt be a treasure. I can't wait to read it. Here is what the author says about the book:"In Know and Tell, you’ll find a discussion of the role of narration in every day life that makes it so potent as an educational method. Narration is a relationship-building exercise. In addition to helping you understand why narration is so effective, Know and Tell will walk you through the process from beginning to end, so that you can see how each stage moves into the next.

The book is supported by dozens and dozens of narrations from real children, which illustrate how the process unfolds. The six-year-old who repeats back the last sentence you read verbatim will become the confident high school writer who can produce an essay every week, if you have the confidence in narration to use it consistently in the educational process. It is my hope that Know and Tell will give you that confidence. I’ve filled it up with tools that will help you along the way, and I hope to hear back from readers that narration is flourishing."

Also, listen to this episode of the Mason Jar, with Karen, all about Narration. You are sure to walk away better equipped for whatever stage of narration that your children are in. 

Something to Chew On

"If mothers could learn to do for themselves what they do for their children when these are overdone, we should have happier households. Let the mother go out to play!" ~ Charlotte Mason




I just released a Round Up of all of my favorite Mother Culture, along with a few thoughts about its vital importance. I would love to add to my master list of Mother Culture sources, so I would love to hear from you. What are your favorite blogs, books, podcasts, articles, websites, poetry, art, music, etc that enrich your soul and feed your mind? I want to hear all about what YOU do for Mother Culture. Let the mother go out to play, indeed!

May All Your Days Be Spent.....Delightfully Feasting
Crystin <3