 |
| The surprise of being a beekeeper |
You want to know my experience?
So let's get to it!
The Good. The Bad. And the Ugly. Let's hear all the BUZZ!
 |
| The bees in my top bar hive |
Last summer I attended the CMI East Conference. I heard a small 'commercial' about this new curriculum that they were piloting. As I had been homeschooling with a Charlotte Mason philosophy for the past 11 years, I didn't think this curriculum would be very helpful to someone like me. I dismissed my need of it within minutes.
 |
| My two hives. One Langstroth and one top bar. |
But then I began to think more about what kind of help a new curriculum could provide for me. I valued the research I knew had been done. Research that wasn't available in the volumes alone. Information that hadn't been available on the internet when I began my first Form 1 child 12 years ago. I had great respect for those that were on the Board and those helping to create the curriculum.
This year I would have five students for the first time. A Senior, a freshman, a seventh grader, a fourth grader and a first year student. Whew. The pilot would be covering the youngest three. I still would need to put together something for the highschoolers. It seemed counterintuitive to have someone help me with something I had already done well three to four times. I can give a real response to what it's like to have been living and educating with Charlotte Mason and then jumping into this.
This year I would have five students for the first time. A Senior, a freshman, a seventh grader, a fourth grader and a first year student. Whew. The pilot would be covering the youngest three. I still would need to put together something for the highschoolers. It seemed counterintuitive to have someone help me with something I had already done well three to four times. I can give a real response to what it's like to have been living and educating with Charlotte Mason and then jumping into this.
For the past seven years, I have been part of a study group of Charlotte Masons volumes. I have gleaned so many gems from these books. Each time I really understood a new part of this kind of philosophy and methodology I would begin to implement it. Sometimes it was with ease. Other times it just didn't work at all. Could the Alveary help me fix my gaps?
I had used Ambleside Online and Mater Amabilis as references for helping myself find books that could be useful in our home. I also used other websites that provided living sources. Our schooling was super full of goodness, truth and beauty. This year was new in that I would have five students at one time. I was poised to have a senior and a freshman in highschool as well as three kiddos in the Alveary. And a four year old. So life was going to increase a little this year.
What was the GOOD that the Alveary added to our homeschooling?
The lessons were all planned out for me. Each week and each day I could easily access the links to places of interest on the internet, the pictures and music and each time consuming search was already done for me. It gave me simplicity if I was willing to use it.
I especially enjoyed the Spanish lessons. I was able to move my youngest children so much farther along with Spanish. We picked up many poems and songs in Spanish. It became a delight for the whole family. A foreign language was smoother than it had ever been. We used the resources suggested and developed a nice rhythm to our language lessons.
I looked closely at the amount of time the Alveary was going to take me each day. And I realized I was cutting short our school day to benefit my own needs. So this year I cut out many of the great things I did for myself (bible study in the morning, friends for lunch, day playdates, etc). I added in more time at home. Every morning was sacred time together with real focused learning. I also took advantage of a better scheduling for the weekends. Daddy was able to join us when I scheduled our rambles in nature for Sunday afternoon. This forced us to find Sunday as a real day of rest. Together. It helped sooth the worry that soon one of our bees would be leaving our hive as she heads out into the world of her own. The Alveary made me refocus on what I was doing. Homeschooling first.
The pilot program had forums and a facebook page that I could ask questions on and hear ideas being shared. Using the internet as a helpful part of our schooling rather than a source of feeling inadequate was healing for me. My children loved being able to see pictures of other children's work on the same subjects. Being part of something larger than our own home was exciting.
Each month two webinars were provided in a live setting. These were experienced Charlotte Mason educators talking about both the philosophy and methodology as well as implementation of the HOW. I had heard many of these in the past at live events, but it was great to have access to these people. The webinars were also available to be watched in an archive format. I really enjoyed this option!
The pilot program had forums and a facebook page that I could ask questions on and hear ideas being shared. Using the internet as a helpful part of our schooling rather than a source of feeling inadequate was healing for me. My children loved being able to see pictures of other children's work on the same subjects. Being part of something larger than our own home was exciting.
Each month two webinars were provided in a live setting. These were experienced Charlotte Mason educators talking about both the philosophy and methodology as well as implementation of the HOW. I had heard many of these in the past at live events, but it was great to have access to these people. The webinars were also available to be watched in an archive format. I really enjoyed this option!
What was the BAD of using the Alveary for my family?
There are many times that I got overwhelmed with the help. There were some books that I didn't connect with and we stopped reading them. I, at times, tried to do more than my family of six children could adjust to at a time. It would have been helpful if someone would have told me to do three things well and then add one more slowly. Around Christmas, after our first Term exams, I began to streamline more subjects. I see that my weakness is trying to do everything as written. And I had begun to do many things poorly. This made me feel personally as if I was failing. So I set a new goal at doing a few things excellent and letting perfection go. When we had those things going well, then we added another and another.
As it was a pilot program, there were some times in which there was no clear answer for me. Determining a better choice on a book, knowing how to choose a biography from the list of hundreds shared, considering how to balance a CM coop with the Alveary...these were questions that many had. And I wasn't able to have a definitive answer. Instead it had to be experienced. And there were some bad feeling days on my part.
I found the amount of information on the web site available to Alveary members to be so expansive I couldn't listen or process it all. I had to prioritize what I needed and use. I wanted to be able to to listen to it ALL. Right now. But in reality, for me, it was good to listen to one thing, try to implement it and when that habit was well ingrained, THEN try to add a new thing.
If I had been brand new to homeschooling, I think it would have been imperative to access more of the philosophy of a Charlotte Mason education. I wish the Alveary had put together some "first watching webinars" that would have shared the philosophy and methodology practiced a little better. I have had mothers come and observe us in our learning at home to get a better understanding of the 'how'. {There were also book groups reading through the volumes available for Alveary moms. I did not take advantage of this as I already am in two different real life groups reading through the volumes. If I lived in an area where I did not have access to them, I would have joined an online/skype book group with the Alveary. It's imperative that you read and reread the volumes if you do this kind of education}
As it was a pilot program, there were some times in which there was no clear answer for me. Determining a better choice on a book, knowing how to choose a biography from the list of hundreds shared, considering how to balance a CM coop with the Alveary...these were questions that many had. And I wasn't able to have a definitive answer. Instead it had to be experienced. And there were some bad feeling days on my part.
I found the amount of information on the web site available to Alveary members to be so expansive I couldn't listen or process it all. I had to prioritize what I needed and use. I wanted to be able to to listen to it ALL. Right now. But in reality, for me, it was good to listen to one thing, try to implement it and when that habit was well ingrained, THEN try to add a new thing.
If I had been brand new to homeschooling, I think it would have been imperative to access more of the philosophy of a Charlotte Mason education. I wish the Alveary had put together some "first watching webinars" that would have shared the philosophy and methodology practiced a little better. I have had mothers come and observe us in our learning at home to get a better understanding of the 'how'. {There were also book groups reading through the volumes available for Alveary moms. I did not take advantage of this as I already am in two different real life groups reading through the volumes. If I lived in an area where I did not have access to them, I would have joined an online/skype book group with the Alveary. It's imperative that you read and reread the volumes if you do this kind of education}
What was the UGLY?
The ugly was all me. I have so many ways I need to change. So many ways I need to hold still and let the Holy Spirit change me. As a homeschooler, each mother has to have a strong personality to be able to weather the emotional ups and downs of daily work. She has to be malleable to the suggestions [snide remarks] that come from well meaning persons. Sometimes this is detrimental to being a homeschooling mom.
About one month after I signed up my children for the Alveary, I began to see the large undertaking I had agreed to. I wanted to do everything that was suggested in the Alveary and according to what was suggested! I was overwhelmed. I had a really good cry. I considered throwing in the towel. I met with one wiser homeschool graduate mom and she talked me down from the ledge. Integrating my five children into the Alveary for our family was a much bigger worry for me than I realized. I also began to see the bigger picture. I could use the Alveary to help me accomplish the goals I had already set for our homeschool. I could use the Alveary to it's fullest potential or I could use what would work for me.
Now that we are rounding out our year, {we only have four weeks left} I have the hindsight to see where we have been and all that we have accomplished.
I considered the bees...did you know that one bee visits 50-100 flowers on one trip out of the hive? And he's working his whole lifetime to make only about 1/12 of a teaspoon of honey? If I compare this to my one year of work with my children...the offerings of 50-100 flowers {books and things} I've given them. Is there hope that we have made a little honey of their life? Have the habits of duty begun to be second nature for them? Have they seen the perseverance in my life?
 |
| First harvest of honey in 2016 |
I've tried to have kindsight for myself. Not just looking back, but being kind at all I've learned. I'm so much more faithful with my Nature Journaling. I'm singing in Spanish now. I'm feeling a lightening of my load. We have decided to continue with the Alveary for the coming year. And with anticipation and joy I'm looking forward to how we will learn together.
And spring is here and the bees are flying.