When I had three kids, four and under, I learned about Charlotte Mason and her principle of spreading a wide feast of ideas. Practically, this looks like 20 different subjects in a Charlotte Mason classroom that get covered during the week.
Before we were in the formal school years, I got into the habit of discovering where all the different sections of books were at the library so I could just walk the shelves and grab some that covered a wide range of ideas without any preplanning. For years, we have had this system in place that has provided an educational cushion through all the ups and downs in our lives and given our kids a lot of learning in a very natural way.
For years, we have had this system in place that has provided an educational cushion through all the ups and downs in our lives and given our kids a lot of learning in a very natural way. I also supplement by putting books on hold at the library that deep-dive into what my kids want to learn more about so that I’m not hunting for specific books once we get there.
In this week’s episode, I’m sharing practical tips for not losing the library books and keeping free books free, bringing some great books into your home, and some of our recent favorites.
How we avoid fines and the library to keep our books free:
We moved all our personal books upstairs to a home library and have a separate bookshelf downstairs for the library books to create separation.
We have ONE library card, so we don’t lose track of the books we have checked out, what’s on hold, and what we have to return.
We try to get to the library on the same day every week so that we don’t have many different due dates to keep track of.
I try and go to our library account after we get home from the library to renew any books that we might have missed returning.
We have a library book bag that holds between 20-30 books, which creates some margin.
Recent Library Book Favorites That Were So Good We Would By Them
Professor Wooford McPaw’s History of Astronomy
Papa is A Poet A Story about Robert Frost
The Planet Hunter: The Story Behind What Happened to Pluto
Nothing Stopped Sophie: The Story of Unshakable Mathematician Sophie Germain
Hawk Rising
Send a Girl!: The True Story of How Women Joined the FDNY
Find Me! Adventures in the Forest
The Apartment: A Century of Russian History
Under Your Feet... Soil, Sand and Everything Underground
Charles Dickens (Little People, Big Dreams)
A Walk in London
Cooking Class Global Feast!: 44 Recipes That Celebrate the World’s Cultures
How to Create a Holiday Season Everyone Enjoys (Including you!) [Episode 137]
Simplify to Soar [Episode 136]
How to Make Progress on Your Goals when You're Exhausted [Episode 135]
Our Favorite Family Dinner Ritual [Episode 134]
From Chaos to Calm with Steph The Secret Slob [Episode 133]
Owning the Pivot into Motherhood with Elizabeth Jacox [Episode 132]
Embracing Your Individual Journey with Angela Red Elk Laughlin [Episode 131]
Why I Don't Use a To-do List - and What I Do Instead [Episode 130]
How Do You Juggle it All? [Episode 129]
5 Steps to Tackle Overwhelm and Sleep Again [Episode 128]
Loosening the Grip of Anxiety with Annie Stoker [Episode 127]
Scripts to Help You Advocate For Yourself [Episode 126]
I am a Committed Mom with Mary Caplin [Episode 125]
So What Does Thriving Mean Anyway? [Episode 124]
Why (and how!) I Don't Stress About Homeschool [Episode 123]
Lessons Learned From the End of Pregnancy [Episode 122]
The Power of Actually Writing Down my Morning and Evening Routines [Episode 121]
Lower Your Expectations and Love it with Tiana Woodbury [Episode 120]
Getting Ready for Baby (or Any Other Life Change) [Episode 119]
Peace, Joy and Contentment: A Two Year Growth Journey and One Simple Change with Jeni Awerkamp [Episode 118]
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
Dr. Laura Call of the Day
Focus on the Family with Jim Daly
Calm Parenting Podcast
The Art of War
Gulliver’s Travels
Good Inside with Dr. Becky
The 1000 Hours Outside Podcast