Yes, it is absolutely, positively possible to continue using Charlotte's methods through out the high school years! Sonya Shafer did an excellent job of pulling it together in the last SCM Learning and Living DVD. Shafer started off by reminding us to think about the big picture and to recommit our goals for each child in our homeschool. I loved the quote she used...
"But the function of education is not to give technical skill but to develop a person; the more of a person, the better the work of whatever kind." - Charlotte Mason
This is a powerful reminder that we are educating born persons, not simply checking boxes or cramming facts, but creating thinking persons with good habits and character, who can discern truth and beauty.
Shafer moved on to mention a couple of pitfalls we should avoid when teaching through the high school years. I must confess to being guilty right off the bat. I assigned too much reading too quickly, not allowing time to ruminate and think. I am coming to realize the value in a slower reading schedule. I hope to make adjustments in our future high school experiences.
Next, Shafer covered things that stay the same in a Charlotte Mason high school education. I can think of two things that fell by the wayside in our high school experience and they were oral narration and nature study. Angel did still orally narrate occasionally, but not because I required it. The narration was born out of excitement or a connection she made with a book she read. Nature study totally did not happen in high school. However, we were fairly new to CM's methods, therefore the habit wasn't developed early on so it was easy to drop. Again, hopefully, things will be different the next time around. Of course, Shafer also taught what changes in a CM high school.
Much of what Shafer covered regarding grades, calculating credits, and transcripts was review for me. I had previously posted quite a bit of the same information here.
A couple of things that I really appreciated about this DVD finale was when Shafer explained how a Charlotte Mason education does and does not prepare a student. The pros way out weighed the cons in my book. The cons were very minor and things you could easily discuss or walk through with your student near graduation such as how to use a textbook or how to take standardized tests, among other things. These are skills that certainly shouldn't take twelve years to teach. You should be able to give your student a brief 101 before graduation so they can practice these skills in college.
Sadly, our CM Study Group is finished meeting :( ...But, it was encouraging and fun to start building a Charlotte Mason community in my area. I heard many positive comments so I'm planning to continue with a Charlotte Mason book club in the new year, which I'm really looking forward to! We will read and discuss Charlotte's six volume series, which I'm sure will be the subject of many posts here :)
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