Listen Now:
The Chicken picture Nicole used in the Object Lesson
The Duck picture Nicole used in the Object Lesson
Nicole and Henry recording this episode
Birds of the Air, Arabella Buckley
CMPeoria.com–A Continuing Conversation Retreat
Search “Notes of Lessons” in this volume of the Parents’ Review to see examples of HOE Teachers’ Lessons
I loved this episode ladies! Thank you! I’ve been under the impression that object lessons are supposed to be done outside every day. Do you have any sort of general guidelines for when they should be done using pictures versus done outdoors?
That’s a great question, Heather. I do not have anything definitive from Charlotte Mason, other than that she allotted time for it during the morning school schedule for Form 1, but said of the homeschool family: “This is where the family enjoys so great an advantage over the school. It is almost impossible that the school should give any but set lessons; but this sort of teaching in the family falls in with the occurrence of the object. The child who finds that wonderful and beautiful object, a ‘paper’ wasp’s nest, attached to a larch-twig, has his object-lesson on the spot from father or mother. The grey colour, the round symmetrical shape, the sort of cup-and-ball arrangement, the papery texture, the comparative size, the comparative smoothness, the odour or lack of odour, the extreme lightness, the fact that it is not cold to the touch––these and fifty other particulars the child finds out unaided, or with no more than a word, here and there, to direct his observation. One does not find a wasp’s nest every day, but much can be got out of every common object, and the commoner the better.” (2/182-83) I take this to mean that whenever possible, we should be doing object lessons outdoors or at least with an actual object. We should only use a picture to look at things that would be very difficult to look at in person.
I hope that helps.
~Nicole
That does! Thank you so much Nicole! I did wonder how I was going to pull off tying object lessons to some of our special studies so I appreciate that your immersion lesson was not outdoors.
My 10-year-old son was in the room while I was listening to this episode, he loved the lesson and wanted to share his observations about birds, too. Who knew learning and teaching could be so simple, yet so beautiful—Charlotte Mason, that’s who!
That is so wonderful, Katie, and I think your comment gets to the heart of Miss Mason’s education perfectly – so simple, yet so beautiful.
~Nicole
My own almost-5-year-old, Henry, loved this, too! He is a natural narrator, for sure ~ a delight to me, as I don’t require it, and don’t do formal lessons yet, but love knowing how he is already doing this work of his own education! 🙂 He enjoyed hearing another Henry, and he enjoyed the lesson. 🙂