Want to do Charlotte Mason but....

[whiteisle]

......I can't decide whose program to follow. I like aspects from SCM, AO, and from charlottemasonhelp but feel I need to choose one and stick with it.

Is AO too UK oriented to use in the US? SCM seems to require alot of purchased materials - is this really the case? CharlotteMasonHelp seems to strike the middle ground but..........oh, I could use some advice on all this!

I really feel drawn to this method/philosophy and want it work but I need to pick a path.

Thanks!

eta: DS turned 6 in May so we would be doing year 1 I suppose.

[WhaleinGaloshes]

Originally Posted by whiteisle

Is AO too UK oriented to use in the US?

This is only MHO, but I think yes. As written.

The approach they took to history which they describe here

Charlotte Mason taught the history of her own country alongside world history, doing both side by side chronologically. It hasn't been practical for Ambleside Online to duplicate that totally because Charlotte Mason's country (England) had a long, rich history, unlike the US, whose history is only known only vaguely before the 1400's. Rather, what Ambleside has offered is closer to a history of western civilization, with an emphasis on America's roots in Western/British history

is not what I am looking for. I resolved it by substituting Core Knowledge's sequence which I think does a nice job handling US History alongside world history, as CM valued, and use it following the CM rhythm (short lessons, narration, lit., etc.) The AO editors also suggest Beautiful Feet and Truthquest...History Odessey might also be a good choice.

I definitely think content needs to be kept current and relevant to my DD's situation, she's not a child growing up in Victorian England. AO is such an awesome reference and it's my favorite of the ones you mentioned, and not difficult to tweek into your comfort level. It is more that a set of books, it's a 'method' but it doesn't need nor attempt to script out book-dependent plans, so you can write your own book list without difficulty IMHO.

[Citymomx3]

I'm plugging AO. We're on our 3rd year of it now. Although we're reading lots of English History, we're also reading American Historical Biographies (George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Ben Franklin, Buffalo Bill), American Geography (Tree in the Trail, Paddle to the Sea), & American historical fiction. These incorporate a lot of American History. And each successive AO Year includes more and more American History.

I like AO, not only because the books are great, but because it has a great track record for effectiveness (as it has been around over 10 years). The whole CM method has done wonders for my mildly dyslexic son and the AO books actually hold his interest. We try and follow AO as written, except we do it secularly, having removed all (or most) of the religious readings. We also follow the schedules for poetry, nature, artist, and composer, study.

Keep in mind that AO is an advanced curriculum. Year 1 is recommended for children around 7-8 yo. Most of the books are free online, but in purchasing most of them, I never spend more than $150 (for over 20 books).

[briansmama]

Thanks for this thread- Charlotte Mason Help was one I hadn't seen before and I love how she incorporates more US History. We've been following AO as well, and I'm so grateful for the curriculum. The lit suggestions are very rich and my ds is really enjoying them.

[tankgirl73]

You should check out the CM yahoogroups. There are quite a few, including secular ones for those not wanting an overtly religious course (which AO is, unmodified).

LOTS of people have modified AO and other CM programs, so you should be able to find lots of tips out there.

Another suggestion would be to just not follow any particular program, but just do your own things in a CM style. Choose your own quality books and do your own narrations, dictations, and copywork from them, do some outdoor time and make some nature journals... voila, homemade CM lol...

We don't do any particular CM program ourselves, though we're inspired by the philosophy (specifically, narration (written or oral, or for my DS especially, DRAWN) instead of worksheets).

[newcastlemama]

Originally Posted by tankgirl73

Another suggestion would be to just not follow any particular program, but just do your own things in a CM style. Choose your own quality books and do your own narrations, dictations, and copywork from them, do some outdoor time and make some nature journals... voila, homemade CM lol...

This is what we do and I find it very simple.

[AngelBee]

We are a CM/Classical mix family, but do not follow any one outlined curriculum exactly. I pull from AO, Sonlight, Old Fashioned Education, Well Trained Mind, and other sources.

Mixing it is honestly not as hard as you would think. It is actually quite liberating. I can use what resources I can find and am mot tied down to having to follow any curriculum fully.

[Bluegoat]

It's interesting to see other people's impression, because I always feel like AO is more Americanized than I would like!

[Dillpicklechip]

Whiteisle, all of these programs are someone's interpretation of CM's methods, and while they all have their good points, there is absolutely no reason why you have to follow any of them. Pick and choose which aspects you like of each, or even start from scratch and create your own curriculum. It's not that hard once you get the hang of it.

As for Ambleside Online, it is an American curriculum devised by American homeschooling moms, so while I do use many of their selections, I substitute a lot for history since most of their history and all of their biography selections are American, and we're not. As someone mentioned, in the early years (when medieval history is being studied) there isn't much American stuff--how could there be? But in the years where modern history is taught there is lots of American content, too much as I said if you are not from the US.

If you haven't already read it, I would recommend Karen Andreola's book A Charlotte Mason Companion, in which she gives her ideas on how to implement CM's methods by choosing your own books, artwork, etc. Sometimes her writing is rather cheesy, but I think she does a good job of showing how you can use CM in a relaxed, gentle way, without worrying too much about strictly following someone else's curriculum plan.