Hello~ (shuffles feet) I'm new here!

[Damselfly]

Hello! I'm new to the boards and am FILLED with questions, concerns, ideas and anxiety about embarking on my homeschooling journey this coming fall. Well, I should say "officially" starting this fall when my oldest of two sons begins Kindergarten :D. I have read everything there is to read on every HS'ing philosophy, and was immediately drawn to the gentle, beautiful writings of Charlotte Mason. Having said that, I also know that I am the type of person that needs a lot of hand-holding and guidance, and The Well Trained Mind has become my 'bible' of sorts for how I'd like to 'structure' my time. So, I guess you could say I'll be using TWTM as my guide for creating our day-to-day plans, but nurturing the "environment" of my homeschool with CM philosophies. Does that even make sense :confused: ??

Gotta go get my little guy up from his nap. I hope to get to know you all and that you won't tire of me coming to you for advice!! It can all seem so overwhelming.

[cajun.classical]

Hello! I'm new to the boards and am FILLED with questions, concerns, ideas and anxiety about embarking on my homeschooling journey this coming fall. Well, I should say "officially" starting this fall when my oldest of two sons begins Kindergarten :D. I have read everything there is to read on every HS'ing philosophy, and was immediately drawn to the gentle, beautiful writings of Charlotte Mason. Having said that, I also know that I am the type of person that needs a lot of hand-holding and guidance, and The Well Trained Mind has become my 'bible' of sorts for how I'd like to 'structure' my time. So, I guess you could say I'll be using TWTM as my guide for creating our day-to-day plans, but nurturing the "environment" of my homeschool with CM philosophies. Does that even make sense :confused: ??

Welcome. Have you read The Latin Centered Curriculum? You'll find an entire scope and sequence for each grade (lots of hand holding) with a great deal of CM philosophy. There's a revised edition coming out in the spring, but perhaps you can get a copy from a library to browse now. YOu may also want to look at www.amblesideonline.org (http://www.amblesideonline.org) or www.simplycharlottemason.org (http://www.simplycharlottemason.org). These are free online curricula that follow CM. Ambleside is a little intimidating at first glance, but really well put together if you give it a try. There's also an ambleside scheduling yahoo group that may help.

My encouragement is to embrace that CM philosophy and don't feel like you have to do everything in the WTM. No one does.

[Dawn E]

You've come to the right place as there is a wealth of wisdom to be found on this board. This is our first official year, but I have been reading WTM posts for several years gleaning information.

We, too, will be combining Charlotte Mason and Classical with some Montessori and other things thrown in the mix. I look forward to seeing you around and sharing in your adventures. :)

[Beth in Central TX]

Hi Shannon,

Welcome to the boards! It's great you found this resource so early in homeschooling journey. I have all boys too, but my 5-year old is my youngest.

I think you will find that many people blend different homeschooling philosophies to find a mix that works the best for their homeschool.

Take care,

[WTMindy]

you will find tons of wisdom, quite a few chuckles, and (if you are lucky) some cherished friends here!!! Feel free to fire away with those questions.

[Tutor]

Welcome! And you've already made the most important discovery in the homeschooling journey that will make homeschooling much less stressful (I hope)... there is no "magic" curriculum/ philosophy/ schedule that works for everyone.

Enjoy the journey. Looking forward to "seeing" you around.

[Melora in NC]

Welcome! This is a great place for answers, ideas, & online friends!
The photos on your blog are lovely!

[godpoetry]

Welcome to the boards. Come and ask questions anytime. This board has many helpful ideas.

[Mrs Mungo]

Welcome! I can't tell you how many great ideas and wonderful encouragement I've received from this board over the last 7 years!

[Lisawa]

Welcome! So glad you found the place! *Ü* you will find wisdom, resources and Im sure friendships here as well. :)

[Tammyla]

Welcome~

[mcconnellboys]

Welcome! It sounds like you're already well on your way to having fun with this journey,

Regena

[Damselfly]

For the warm welcome :) !!

[Zelda]

Makes perfect sense! You'll find many comrades here.

Welcome, from another newbie!

[MelissaMinNC]

Yes, you completely made sense, and if you do a search through the posts here, you will see that there have been several conversations lately about combining WTM and CM in the ways you describe. I'm sure you'll find lots of answers here - I know I sure have!

:)
Melissa

[St. Theophan Academy]

Welcome! Here is another site that might give you some ideas for how well the classical and CM philosophies meld.

http://www.tanglewoodeducation.com/

We follow LCC but with a lot of the CM concepts such as nature studies, composer study, picture study, poet study etc. (and a little bit of Waldorf art thrown into the mix :)

Anne Marie

[Beth in SW WA]

Yes, Welcome! I'm a newbie here and have learned tons from the fine folks who frequent these boards (a special "Thanks" to SWB for providing this venue). This is an amazing group of parents. Don't ever feel you can't ask a question. So many benefit from the questions of others.

[BizyPenguin]

I think many here share your philosophy. I did not read the other responses, but Simply Charlotte Mason (http://www.simplycharlottemason.com)is my favorite CM web site. All the best!