Goss Homeschool Academy

In my previous posts I've shared a lot of links about the music instruction of singing in Charlotte Mason schools.  You can read Part 1 here, Part 2 here , and today, I'll share a sample lesson of what a MODERN Tonic Sol-fa would look like!  We still use the same types of principles of breaking up a lesson in rhythm training, sight singing, vocal exercises, etc.  Those same principles can be applied using available resources!  And don't forget, the modulator, sight-singing, time, and ear-training concepts can all be covered with the units from Solfa Sofa!!!  Let the work I already did help you out in your lesson planning! Here's what the timetable has to say: Voice Training - 3 minutes This is training the voice with vocal exercises that increase the vocal range of students, develop good diction and vowel placement and singing timbre of the students! My favorite clinicians for children's choir exercises are Henry Leck and Jay Althouse This is al...

In the past 4 years of homeschooling I have thought a lot about my "why" but never felt like I had completed a train of thought in my purpose for homeschooling. In discovering Charlotte Mason and reading more for my own personal growth, I'm inspired to write out my "why" along with references that I have read in the CM volumes as support for my choice.  Our book study is reading through Volume 2 right now and the title of the chapter I read this week is "A Catechism of Educational Theory" - if that doesn't inspire you to have a "why" written down for your homeschool I don't know what does! LOL! I love reading other posts from homeschool moms on why they have chosen this path and it is a beautiful thing when you can peek into the heart of your fellow friend and mom! One reason I believe it is something good to do for yourself and family is that it gives you something to look at when you've lost your vim and vigor (espec...

  In a previous post I listed my love for the Child's World Volumes and it seems every reading we find another treasure among the stories!  (Click here to read!)  Today, our reading for science on the Earth's surface (fulfilling the subject of physical geography) was about how canyons, gorges, and caves are formed!  We live near an area of a local cave that is family friendly for hiking and I hope that this story can be a fun and easy read to get kids excited about noticing the cave formations and develop their child passions for exploring and learning more about nature! Here are the screen shots of the chapter!  If you have trouble reading let me know and I will work on transcribing for easy text reading! ***Disclaimer - although the series does reference "millions of years" many times, if you subscribe to a young earth position in science you can easily substitute when reading aloud to your kids!***          ...

As I prepare for our monthly nature walk I wanted to share this sweet story and poem I found in an old nature study book.  You can read it from the original here. WINTER AND SPRING.  Old Winter sat all alone in his hut. It was a cold, little hut, and it stood beside a frozen river.  The winds were howling and shrieking, and the flowers had hid themselves away in the earth. Even the big round sun had crept away towards the south, for he did not like Old Winter and the north. One morning Old Winter heard a gentle step at his door; a soft perfume came in upon the air. “Ah! you have come, good Spring-time,” Old Winter said, “Come in, the children will be glad you have come. Sit down and let us talk together. “I shall have to creep away to my own home very soon, now that you have come. “You have never seen my home. It is very beautiful, I think, and it is white and shining. “The waters have a beautiful, sparkling roof over them. It ...

One of my favorite pastimes is finding interesting writings concerning our school subjects that have been written by authors of the past century who really knew the art of writing and vocabulary!  I started reading this chapter about studying nature and fell in love with this author's voice!  "Leaf and Tendril" was written in 1908 by John Burroughs, a naturalist from the late 1800s and you can read it in totality at this link! LEAF AND TENDRIL I THE ART OF SEEING THINGS I DO not purpose to attempt to tell my reader how to see things, but only to talk about the art of seeing things, as one might talk of any other art. One might discourse about the art of poetry, or of painting, or of oratory, without any hope of making one s readers or hearers poets or painters or orators. The science of anything may be taught or acquired by study; the art of it comes by practice or inspiration. The art of seeing things is not some thing that may be conveyed in ru...