A Miss Mason quote

"The children should have the joy of living in far lands, in other persons, in other times--a delightful double existence; 

and this joy they will find, for the most part, in their story books." 

~ Charlotte Mason 

We are going into week 5 of Ambleside online year 5.

We have been thrusted into a plethora of characters & places. 

The Book of Marvels has so quickly become a read aloud not to be missed. Whether it's the way Richard writes, I don't know, but my children & I are enthralled with this book as he discovers some of the wonders in our world. 

I'm reading this one out loud, and I allow my children to use their iPods to search whatever marvel we are reading about, and we then locate the place on our maps. 

After I have finished reading, my children narrate individually what they remember. 

We are also taken with Shakespeare's Hamlet and it is bringing out the theatrical within my children & I; such fun. 

Pondering on Miss Masons quote above, I am continually grateful for the rich living literature that bring this joy; how they transport us to another place and time, such a priceless gift. 

So far this term we haven't done a lot of nature drawings, so I am planning on packing a picnic one day this week and venturing off to either the beach, the bush or the lakes to find an inspiring place to draw what captures our attention.