Cycle 1 Language Arts – Junior High (Digital)

If you aren’t sure which cycle to start with, watch this video for help: https://vimeo.com/318497753

The History cycles keep repeating all the way through high school. The next time your child is in Cycle 1, they will be promoted to a higher form, thus with new material. You will follow the alternative Morning Time options your second time through the cycle.

Here’s a scope and sequence: https://agentlefeast.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Scope-and-Sequence-2023.pdf

AGF follows Charlotte Mason’s prescription to start with the history of your own country.
Volume 1, pg. 281 “The early history of a nation is better fitted than its later records for the study of children, because the story moves on a few broad, simple lines; while statesmanship, so far as it exists, is no more than the efforts of a resourceful mind to cope with circumstances… In the early years, while there are no examinations ahead, and the children may yet go leisurely, let them get the spirit of history … stir your heart with the story of a great event, amuse you with pageants and shows, make you intimate with the great people, and friendly with the lowly. A child who has been carried through a single old chronicler in this way has a better foundation than if he knew all the dates and names and facts that ever were crammed for examination.”

See this blog post to learn more about Charlotte Mason’s approach to History.

Each cycle currently comes with a Canadian history option. This is digital only and not included in the printed Teacher book.

This chart shows you how the forms in A Gentle Feast are set up in comparison to US grades and the PNEU (Charlotte Mason’s programme)

Watch this video for more details about forms: https://vimeo.com/318499301

This is the main course portal for all the subjects for grades 1-12 except for Math. You will need to add on the other feast courses like Morning Time, Language Arts, and Enrichment separately.

This varies by form, but here is a list of subjects that are scheduled. You will need to access the living books scheduled, but many are obtainable from the library or in the public domain.
Bible Time
Beauty Loop (Poet Study, Picture Study, Composer Study, Hymn Study, Recitation, Fables/Hero Tales)
Literature
Geography (map work and a scheduled reader)
Natural History
Copywork, Dictation, and Creative Writing
Science (forms II and up)
*For Form IV, I have scheduled lessons from Sabbath Mood Homeschool’s Science guides. These guides will need to be purchased separately.
Grammar (forms II and up)
History
Shakespeare and Plutarch (forms II and up)
Read Alouds (forms I and II)
Singing (forms I and II)
Nature Study
French, Spanish, and Latin plans
You will need to provide your own math. I do give a list of my suggestions in the curriculum.

I really want to say true Miss Mason’ recommendations to not start formal lessons until age 6. That doesn’t mean your kindergartener or preschooler sits around all day. They are welcome to listen to the read alouds and participate in morning time, though neither of these should be mandatory. These years are vital for the laying the foundation for learning. I HIGHLY recommend reading Charlotte Mason’s first volume, Home Education during this time. Kindergarten is perfect time to learn letters and sounds using our phonemic awareness program 100 Gentle Lessons Letters in Sight and Sound and learning how to form letters with our 100 Gentle Lessons in Manuscript handwriting.

As a mom of 5 children, I totally get this. One year I had students in every form. I wrote A Gentle Feast with the goal of creating a family-centered program. The morning time brings everyone together with each different level reciting their own poems and reading their own fables. All your children will be studying the same time period, so they can listen to each other’s narrations or you may want to choose one spine to read aloud to several children. The nature study topics can also be done as a family. As Charlotte Mason used forms instead of grades, some of your children will naturally be combined. By looking at the booklist, you can continue to combine further. History and Geography are natural subjects to easily combine. Once students are reading well, I highly recommend each child reading their own literature independently (whether by eye or ear-for dyslexic and other learning exceptions). This can be nuanced and each family is so different. For more specifics, I highly recommend asking for input in our incredibly supportive Facebook group.

In the parent packet, I have included a sample schedule and tips for scheduling your day according to Charlotte Mason’s principles. Depending on when you start, morning lessons should be finished by lunch time. Activities for afternoon tea are included.

Welcome to the beautifully rich world of a Charlotte Mason Education! I created AGF to provide families with the hand holding I wish I would’ve had when I first started homeschooling. When you purchase AGF, you get an Introduction Course where I teach you how to get started with the curriculum and the foundational principles of A Charlotte Mason Education. In the parent packet, I walk you through how to approach each subject in a Charlotte Mason education. I also HIGHLY recommend reading For the Children’s Sake by Susan Shaeffer Macaulay. You can also sign up for my free beginner’s course HERE.

Since we follow the philosophy of Charlotte Mason, we have built our curriculum on her principles which need to be understood in order to use the curriculum in the most effective way. Miss Mason states in principle 20: “We allow no separation to grow up between the intellectual and ‘spiritual’ life of children, but teach them that the Divine Spirit has constant access to their spirits, and is their Continual Helper in all the interests, duties and joys of life.” 

Another helpful quote by Miss Mason is: 

“This idea of all education springing from and resting upon our relation to Almighty God-we do not merely give a religious education because that would seem to imply the possibility of some other education, a secular education, for example. But we hold that all education is divine, that every good gift of knowledge and insight comes from above, that the Lord the Holy Spirit is the supreme educator of mankind, and that the culmination of all education (which may at the same time be reached by a little child) is that personal knowledge of and intimacy with God in which our being finds its fullest perfection.” 

I would also encourage you to think through what a Christian worldview truly means. Charlotte Mason’s view was not to give children cleaned up moralizing books with only one viewpoint. She believed that all true ideas were divinely inspired and that these ideas were best conveyed through living books, nature, and beauty. See here for more information on a sacred education: http://www.asacrededucation.com/a-sacred-education 

You can read more about this in this wonderful article  by Becky Anoi here: https://charlottemasonpoetry.org/charlotte-mason-and-worldview-formation/

You can read Charlotte’s words here: 

https://charlottemasonpoetry.org/moral-instruction/

https://www.amblesideonline.org/PR/PR07p052GreatRecognition.shtml

This article sums up the philosophy for science books:

https://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/2017/07/must-we-read-only-christian-authors/

A Gentle Feast is pleased to offer a discount to all active military and missionaries (not church staff) who rely solely on support. If you would like more information, please email in**@**********st.com.

Another helpful quote by Miss Mason is: 

“This idea of all education springing from and resting upon our relation to Almighty God-we do not merely give a religious education because that would seem to imply the possibility of some other education, a secular education, for example. But we hold that all education is divine, that every good gift of knowledge and insight comes from above, that the Lord the Holy Spirit is the supreme educator of mankind, and that the culmination of all education (which may at the same time be reached by a little child) is that personal knowledge of and intimacy with God in which our being finds its fullest perfection.” 

I would also encourage you to think through what a Christian worldview truly means. Charlotte Mason’s view was not to give children cleaned up moralizing books with only one viewpoint. She believed that all true ideas were divinely inspired and that these ideas were best conveyed through living books, nature, and beauty. See here for more information on a sacred education: http://www.asacrededucation.com/a-sacred-education 

You can read more about this in this wonderful article  by Becky Anoi here: https://charlottemasonpoetry.org/charlotte-mason-and-worldview-formation/

You can read Charlotte’s words here: 

https://charlottemasonpoetry.org/moral-instruction/

https://www.amblesideonline.org/PR/PR07p052GreatRecognition.shtml

This article sums up the philosophy for science books:

https://sabbathmoodhomeschool.com/2017/07/must-we-read-only-christian-authors/

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Here’s some helpful information:

Using the Charlotte Mason Method in High School YouTube playlist

Making transcripts for multiple history streams

Testimonial of an older student starting this curriculum

Absolutely! We love working with families to provide this rich living education in a variety of settings.

Here is all the information: https://agentlefeast.com/schools-and-co-ops/