The  First  Edition

The strangest thing happened to me this morning. We were just finishing up breakfast and SweetP had opened the backdoor to check the temperature. "Oh, Mama! It is the most beautiful morning outside!" Punkin and Shug came running to stand beside her. All three of them just stood there breathing in great breaths of cool air while Little Dude cooed and drooled in his exersaucer. He seemed to enjoy the breeze just as much as his sisters. Bing bong. Just then the doorbell rang. Who on earth could that be at this time of day? Thankful that this was one of those rare mornings when I was dressed before 10am, I answered the door.

It took me a few moments to gather myself at first. Should I be alarmed at what I saw? I relaxed with one smile from our visitor, however, and soon became interested instead of anxious. Her gray hair rustled around the edges of her soft, plump face and her eyes sparkled with some sort of hidden secret. She broke her broad smile only to say (in a pleasant British accent), "Good morning, my dear. I do hope I am not interrupting your breakfast. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Charlotte Mason of Ambleside, England. I have come to spend the day with your little family". Well, as I said, it took me a few moments to compose myself. How odd.

The children were naturally inquisitive. "Who is she, Mama?" and "Do you know her, Mama?" and, of course, "Why is she wearing that puffy, long dress, Mama?". But, I had no time to answer their little queries. Miss Mason was gathering them close and getting to know them almost as soon as she stepped in the door. After all of the polite introductions and a little chit-chat, the Victorian woman in my living room made her proposition. "It has come to my attention," she began, "that you have been reading some of my work. If you don't mind, my dear, I would like to use this beautiful day to show you how to live out that which you have been reading". All I could think was "Are you serious?", but I could tell from her earnest, yet sunny countenance, she was fully expecting a reply. I stammered my agreement and the next thing I knew we were bundling the baby and heading out the door.

"I have a great many friends worldwide, my dear," she explained chattily, "I have been aquainted with some for years; others I am just beginning to know well. I shall tell you about some of these dear women, and perhaps they can help you along the educational path after I have gone." She bent slightly to take a gentle hold of Punkin's chubby little hand before she continued. "With such a brood of little darlings, the first thing must be very plain. You should get them out of doors as much as is possible. Not as much as is convenient, mind you, but as much as you can possibly manage." Watching her playfully tug a bit at the baby's foot, I asked, "How often do you mean exactly?" Her reply was brisk and spirited. "No less than four hours on every tolerable day, my dear! Five or six all the better!" At this decree a jubilant cry went up from the children. "Yea! Hooray! Six hours outside!! Woo hooee!" they sang.

Oh, dear. What was I doing?

Miss Mason sensed my concern. She stopped the brisk walk we had been taking and looked me so squarely in the eye that I was compelled to give her my serious attention. She was kind, but she was firm. "Dear, I cannot tell you enough how sincerely I believe this out of doors life to be the best possible life for your little ones. I know you have many cares, but let me relieve them a bit. Here, now." She took a small pink envelope from her dress pocket. "Read this first letter, my dear. I have others, but this one is first. It is from a beloved friend of mine named Melissa Wiley. Read how she has such a vision for a natural life outdoors with her children in their own, special haunts. She has such a poetic way, entitling her letter, 'Some Breezey Open Wherein It Seemeth Always Afternoon'. Oh, yes, and here are two others that you would do well to read from the very outset. My longtime friend, Sonya, has written an encouraging note regarding the importance of nature study in her letter, '8 Reasons to Do Nature Study'. But, you are hardly there yet, so many of your children are less than six years old! This third letter is necessary for you as well. It is a letter highlighting Out of Doors Play from DeputyHeadmistress. Now, do have a seat here beneath this Sweetgum tree while the child romp and play. You will have time to read the letters carefully."

I did read the letters, and I admit that I was encouraged by these mothers living out their educational philosophies. Oh, but it did all seem rather hard. So much presses from every side when you are a young (relatively), stay at home mother. How can I just drop everything and actually Get Out There?! I must have let a shadow come across my face, and Miss Mason must have seen it. She was soon beside me leading all of us over the hill and through the tall grass.

It wasn't long before Shug decided she was hungry. "Oh, of course, my dear! Here, let us sit down and take a little refreshment." Miss Mason took a small bag from her arm and took out several juicy oranges, crackers, and some slices of cheese. "There is nothing quite like a meal out of doors!" she beamed. "That reminds me of Danna's letter", she said as she handed me another dainty pink envelope. I snuggled up with Little Dude and read about Danna and her little family's picnic table lunches. One line, in particular really struck me. "...a day spent entirely outdoors is no more wasted than a day spent deep in a great library!" Hmmm. I considered her words as I watched Punkin play with the ant crawling up and down her arm.

"Young children need something new in nature to examine daily", Miss Mason exhorted as she helped me up from the grass. She then asked if she might hold Little Dude for a bit. For a moment I sensed her deep in thought looking at his round, pink face. She then seemed to shake a thought from her mind and smiled again, handing me more letters. Cassandra's letter echoed her words about new sights each day in Simply Beautiful. As Miss Mason held the baby and silently watched the children hop, jump, and climb, I lost myself in the letters. Christie wrote, "Preparing for nature study means the kids need to enjoy nature first. Just letting them be kids outside" in Climbing Trees. Amy wrote of how the small woods behind their home has given her family plenty of encounters with area wildlife in Enjoying Nature in Our Own Backyard. Karen told of her family's day at the lake and the many ways nature shows up in their lives each day in Science This Week. I glanced up. Little Dude was asleep in Miss Mason's arms and the girls were engrossed in collecting acorns from beneath a tree. I decided to read a few more.

Amber shared an ocean wonderland recounting her day on the sea with her family in Adventure on the Open Sea. Jodi illustrated how nature is sometimes right in front of you, like when she went camping with her family. She wrote a lovely letter about Camping Nature Study. There was also a delightful letter from Katherine by the name of A Suburban Fairy Tale. (I read that one twice just for fun.) And by the time I had read about Angi's trip to the apple orchard with her husband and daughter in Family Outing!, Vicki's account of raising Eastern Black Swallowtail caterpillars in Our Butterfly Story, and Michelle's experience raising Monarchs with her children in Goodbye, Butterfly!, I was beginning to believe I might actually be able to try Miss Mason's methods!

My thoughts were interrupted by Miss Mason's cheerful call to the children. "Come here, my dears!" Little feet came running, faces all flushed with exercise and fresh air. Miss Mason's voice was hushed and excited. "Do you see that lovely bush over there? The one all covered in flowers? Run along and let us see which of you can tell me the most about those very blooms. Tell me only what you see and all that you see. No more, no less. Go along!" The children ran off laughing and eager to provide their new friend with all the details she desired of them.

Miss Mason turned to me, the baby still sleeping peacefully in her arms. "Well? What have you to say about the letters? Were those lovely women as much an encouragement to you as I guessed they would be?" I then told her how I had indeed been bolstered by the accounts of so many like-minded mothers, but I also confessed feelings of profound inadequacy. "Right now all we have to do is play," I explained. "How will I manage actually studying nature when I know so little about it?" I was not at all surprised when a small stack of letters found its way into my hands. "We will talk more later, when the children nap. You are not alone in your apprehension. Nature study is new to many mothers. Jimmie, in fact, has joined an email group just to help mothers get started in regular nature study with their children. She tells how she hopes this year to see nature study become a natural part of her homeschooling just as picture study has already become in her letter, Artist Study Resources. You know, mothers have such creative ways to implement nature study into their days! Dana is part of a homeschool nature group that takes children on nature study field days. She has written all about it in Nature Days. Cindy has developed a way to use page templates for her children's nature notebooks in Our Nature Notebooks. Barb has simplified the amount of planned nature study she schedules each year, aiming for her children to become thoroughly familiar with at least one tree, one bird, and one insect each year. She explains her attainable approach in Nature Study the Gentle Way. At CM and Us and The Great Outdoors Mother Squirrel from Dewey's Treehouse shows how, although they may not be the earthiest devotees to my methods, they encounter a good bit of nature along the way nonetheless. Similarly, Michelle has learned to take advantage of nature study opportunities as they come up in normal family life in Nature Study - Formal or Not. Theresa even makes use of the lowly thistle weed to develop her children's observation and attention and to lay the foundation for botany in her letter, A Thorny Subject. Michal goes to some great lengths to ensure that her children get a truly detailed view of the insects they study in Living the Entomologist Lifestyle. These letters will be good for you to have! You can go back and read them over and over whenever you wish. You and I will talk more this afternoon."

As the children came rushing back full of enthusiasm over their flowers that "looked like a queen's skirts", I ducked behind a stand of bluestem grass to read the rest of the letters. I was so glad to find that they mostly dealt with the topic of nature notebooks. Having never kept a nature notebook myself, I have been wondering exactly how other CM moms use them. Lindafay gave such a lovely and inspiring example of what nature notebooks could be in her little pink letter, Recent Pages From Our Nature Journals and Cindy R. shared how even her husband has started keeping a nature journal when he has some freetime. I especially appreciated Cindy's book recommendation for those a little unsure about how to begin a notebook in Nature Journaling. Some mothers who have blazed the trail ahead even took time to give me a glimpse of how nature study might look in the later years. Leslie shared her plans for her son's senior year in Senior Year Plan and Elisabeth writes about her experiences educating her older children in Nature Study in the Upper Levels. 

When the last letter was finished I realized that the children were singing a tune I had never heard before. Then I realized that the lyrics were in French! "But, my children don't know any French!" I blurted out. "My dear," smiled Miss Mason, "I believe you mean your children didn't know any French. However, now, they do. A lesson or two must be got in, you know".

Then, Charlotte Mason winked at me.

I'm so glad you've found the CM Blog Carnival :) We've had tons of views everyday and we are thrilled with how well this first edition has gone! As you read the entries in this carnival, won't you consider leaving a comment on the participants' blogs? We are all very encouraged by comments when we have taken the time to write for a carnival :)

Thanks!