Teaching your child to read can seem like such a daunting task. Before I taught Henry to read, I was totally overwhelmed by how many curriculums were out there. How in the world could I possibly choose what would work best for him and wouldn’t be difficult for me to teach? I wanted something that was Charlotte Mason based since that is our homeschool style. That’s when I came across A Gentle Feast. I found this curriculum through Charlotte Mason homeschool Facebook groups, and I am so glad I did! Here’s my review of A Gentle Feast Curriculum 100 Gentle Lessons in Sight and Sound.
About A Gentle Feast Curriculum
A Gentle Feast curriculum was created by Julie H. Ross. Ross was a teacher in several academic settings and is a fellow homeschooling mom. She struggled to find a Charlotte Mason style curriculum that worked for her entire family, so she used her own plans to create A Gentle Feast.
The curriculum covers most subjects, including your basics like literature, geography, history, science, grammar, and foreign language. You select your own math curriculum, but she does provide her suggestions. The plans are open and go, so there is no guess work in what you’re doing each day.
100 Gentle Lessons in Sight and Sound
While I did not use the entire comprehensive curriculum, I did use 100 Gentle Lessons in Sight and Sound to teach Henry to read. There are two parts to the Gentle Lessons in Sight and Sound. We used Level 1, and about halfway through Henry was reading completely on his own. Here’s what I loved about it:
- Short lessons. This is a hallmark of a Charlotte Mason lesson. It generally took us no longer than ten minutes to complete a lesson each day. This was great because it wasn’t too overwhelming for Henry. It was also a great way to keep his attention focused the entire duration of the lesson.
- Hands on Lessons. Some of the lessons involve word-building letter tiles that Henry really enjoyed using. It was fun to see how many words he could make. There are also word match the word to the picture sheets and sequencing pages where the child glues the nursery rhyme strips back in proper order. The variety of lessons made it fun and engaging. Some of the lessons felt like games to him, which made going through the lessons even more fun for both of us.
- Use of nursery rhymes. The lessons are based on children’s nursery rhymes which are the perfect length for a beginning reader. Even Lilly enjoyed hearing Henry read the nursery rhymes and went on to memorize them herself after hearing them.
- Copywork is included. Copywork is another important facet of a Charlotte Mason education. Throughout the curriculum, there are different copywork activities where the child writes a sentence from the lesson. This allows for practice of proper letter formation and also helps the child learn to correctly spell the words in the lesson.
- Digital or print copies available. One nice thing about this curriculum is you can either order a printed copy of the lessons or a digital download. The printed lessons are beautiful, but I went with the digital files to print on my own. This way I could print extra copies of lessons if needed, and I can reprint the lessons I need for the girls in the future.
Other Resources
To check out A Gentle Feast, visit:
For more on why I chose the Charlotte Mason method of homeschooling:
Why We Chose the Charlotte Mason Method
To learn about why we decided to homeschool, check out:
Teaching Henry to read was a bit nerve wracking, but this curriculum put me at ease and made it so simple for us. I would highly recommend A Gentle Feast 100 Gentle Lessons in Sight and Sound to anyone looking for a beautiful Charlotte Mason style curriculum. I can’t wait to use it again with our girls!
How have you taught your child to read? What did you use? Comment below and let’s start a conversation! I love hearing about other homeschooling methods.
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