The Old Schoolhouse Magazine

Show & Tell

Pam Havens

Educating a child’s mind is the ultimate goal in de- veloping a lifetime love for learning by means of experiences. Education is not merely grasping concepts forced into the brain to dissipate shortly after the information has been regurgitated through quick ways of testing.

Our home education journey was a choice we originally made so we could continue pursuing our “Eclectic/ Charlotte Mason” style of parenting. With a more relaxed approach to education that includes our world view convictions, and tailoring specific subjects to each child, our homeschooling venture has had many opportunities to pinpoint areas of success and weakness. Yet through each hardship we have learned to endure, persevere, and pursue deep character development found only in our family unit.

I personally never expected to make it past a few years of homeschooling with my first child. Yet, here I am six years later with the responsibility of currently educating a fifth grader, a second grader, a kindergartener, and a baby who naps intermittently.

Our consistent, structured routine “most days” happens from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. We have a lunch break around noon, followed by a “brain-break,” which consists of outside time or free play, and then we complete our day with any unfinished