Spring Term Starts with Learning at Home

The Spring term has started for our Seniors, who began at-home learning today, and our Infants and Juniors, who begin their lessons at home tomorrow. Although we are disappointed we couldn’t welcome them in person, as Mr Fletcher wrote in his message to parents following the announcement of a new national lockdown, ‘I am very grateful to be part of this wonderful community and am certain that we can work together creatively to make the coming half-term a positive one for our children.’

Mr Fletcher wrote the following words during the first national lockdown nine months ago, but they still hold true today:

‘One of our goals at Heritage is to cultivate “the life of the mind” or “an inner life”. It is a big idea. Seeing the goal of education in terms of obtaining qualifications, important as they are, is a shadow by comparison. Someone with a rich inner life possesses an imaginative capacity to go places, to discover delightful oases, to find inward re-creation and nourishment, to relish truth. Such a person also knows where to find the resources to live generously, even in a season of unusual pressure.

We can learn lessons from grandparents. Our wisest elders find satisfaction in quieter, more local pursuits, in part out of necessity, but also due to regular investment in wholesome interests. Many of our elders have understood the point I’m trying to make: the inner life really does matter. In order to flourish, the mind, like the body, needs a healthy diet of good food. When we partake of a good meal of mind food, we are satisfied by it.

If we take this seriously, we ought, for starters, to be attentive to our own needs, especially now. Hopefully this truth helps us to frame Learning at Home in the right way. Children too are hungry for knowledge and the curriculum is intended to be enjoyed, even to bring delight.

Teachers are working hard to prepare hearty meals of stimulating activities and readings for the weeks ahead. The good news is that satisfying mind food is available to us in greater abundance than ever, although in this age of information saturation we also need to be discerning.

The mind needs real food, not “twaddle” as Charlotte Mason used to say. She described the best books as “living” because they possess vitality, originality, and interesting ideas that grip you. Real things also feed the mind, so in addition to enjoying books, let’s try and be outdoors as much as possible and make time for activities such as baking, music and art or learning a new skill.

Of course, our primary concern in these anxious days is to support all those adversely affected by the coronavirus. At the same time, children happily remind us that life is irrepressible. Although it feels like our horizons have narrowed, it is not too much to hope that we and our children can yet glimpse expansive new vistas in the weeks ahead.’

The Book of Centuries: Reflections for the New Year

The celebration of a new year gives us an opportunity to mark another milestone in the timeline of history 𐆑 another 365 days completed. Charlotte Mason believed  that the chronology of history formed the framework for much of a child’s education. She wrote, ‘It is a great thing to possess a pageant of history in the background of one’s thoughts…The present becomes enriched for us with the wealth of all that has gone before.’

To help children understand this chronology, early Charlotte Mason educators used a ‘Book of Centuries’ 𐆑 essentially a timeline in a book in which each two-page spread covered one hundred years. One described it in this way: ‘Every child’s “Book of Centuries” should bear witness to “a liberal and generous diet of History.” The children should be free to enter on their pages events and drawings which have interested them in their wide general reading ….As time goes on the pages become fuller, and fascinating historical facts are discovered which shed light on contemporary and consecutive history in each century.’

Heritage pupils learn history in keeping with the same principles; through narration, in chronological order. They also keep a Book of Centuries 𐆑 for Juniors, a small binder divided  into the Ancient World, The Middle Ages and The Modern World 𐆑 to be filled by the pupil over time with written narrations, maps, and pictures. (Years 7 and 8 also keep a more traditional Book of Centuries as part of the Enrichment Programme.) Entries include authors, composers, scientists and artists as well as historical figures. All elements of learning therefore hang together with the timeline, allowing them to make their own connections and providing a visual ‘peg’ to hang their knowledge of history on. Pupils begin to see for themselves the progression of human society, and history becomes a captivating story to remember for a lifetime rather than dry, disconnected names and dates to memorize for an exam.

Again, Charlotte Mason: ‘Let a child have the meat he requires in his history readings, and in the literature which naturally gathers around this history, and imagination will bestir itself without any help of ours; the child will live out in detail a thousand scenes of which he only gets the merest hint.’

A Nativity Concert, Together but Apart

Although unable to gather together as normal for our annual Christmas Concert and Nativity, Heritage families were able to join each other virtually to view a pre-recorded version of the concert during a live Zoom session. Infants acted out the nativity story, with the Head Boy and Head Girl giving the Bible readings. Each class performed a Christmas song.

Nearly 200 families attended the event, which was hosted by Mr Fletcher. Some of our parents shared their thoughts:

The infants’ nativity play was wonderful 𐆑 beautifully acted and adorable costumes!  It was really inspiring to hear the carol singing.  The teachers had obviously done a great job of preparing them so well.
-Rosie Gathercole, Mother of Freddie (Y10)

What a lovely opportunity to see the whole school contributing towards a creative and musical telling of the Christmas story. We enjoyed every moment of the performance.
-Douglas and Katherine Leckie, parents of Eloise and Rose (UP), Arthur (Y3) and Eva (Y5)

Wow, what an evening.  After a term of keeping carefully distant it was such a joy to ‘enter’ school and see the children 𐆑 from the youngest baa-ing sheep to the oldest singers and beat-boxers, all playing their part. It was so special to see screens of children, teachers and grandparents, and together to celebrate making it through this term, our amazing school, and the birth of Jesus.
-Cat Meakin, mother of Benji (Y4) and Izzy (Y6)

A Coffee Morning with our Founders

Last Thursday morning, the HCA hosted a virtual coffee morning with Jason Fletcher and Fiona Macaulay-Fletcher, who shared the story of the founding of Heritage in 2007, and its growth from 16 pupils in two classes to the current capacity of 200 pupils in Lower Prep through Year 11.

Although this story is documented on our website, parents hearing it for the first time were able to get a better sense of the monumental effort, commitment to vision and remarkable provision that led to the school opening its doors on the first day and at each step along the way, up to the purchase of the building in August of this year. Mrs Fletcher likened the  beginning stages, with all of its uncertainty, to ‘the story of Noah and his ark; building away at the ark but no sign of rain or flood’.

Mrs Fletcher was also delighted to welcome her father, Ranald Macaulay, to the session along with her mother Susan Schaeffer Macaulay, author of For the Children’s Sake, a book about the Charlotte Mason approach to education on which the school is founded. Mrs Macaulay shared her experience of meeting people who were educated in the Charlotte Mason way and are now in their 80s and 90s, saying that their ‘entire lives have been enriched; not just through their achievements but also in their soul.’

Mr Macaulay asked his son in law, Mr Fletcher, ‘What is the magic of the Charlotte Mason philosophy?’ Mr Fletcher replied that it was the view of ‘Knowledge as something that feeds you and grips you… the understanding that we’re aiming for something much bigger than exams and results; we’re aiming at the central role of knowledge and literature.’

Help for Parents of the iGeneration

Last Tuesday evening, 40 Heritage families attended a webinar delivered by Jason Royce, Director of Souster Youth. The purpose of the session was to discuss the unique challenge of raising the ‘iGeneration’ – children born roughly between 1995 – 2010. This generation is remarkable in part by the amount of time they spend online, averaging about four hours per day on their phones. And the periods of lockdown due to the Covid pandemic have led to children being on screens even more than ever. Jason’s talk gave support to parents who are struggling with how to think through this challenge and to set appropriate boundaries in their own homes.

He outlined the risks that technology can present to young people including exposure to inappropriate content and false information, promotion of harmful behaviours, oversharing of personal information, and bullying and other negative online interactions. Despite these risks, he urged parents to take a balanced view, noting that some claims about technology’s negative impacts have not yet been proven by research, and that screens can present positive opportunities as well.

However, Jason did note some important conclusions that can be drawn from psychological health studies. First, what children do on screens matters more than the time spent on screen. Second, screen use can impact quality and quantity of sleep. And finally, there is an opportunity cost when screen time replaces other activities that would otherwise benefit children.

Basic rules like eliminating screens at mealtimes, bedtimes and in rooms at night, and putting limits in place that prioritise more beneficial activities over screen time, can help parents mitigate these negative impacts. But more importantly, he encouraged parents to always be having conversations with their children about technology. He provided a list of topics and resources to help.

In closing, he shared some ideas to keep in mind and pass on to our children:

  • The internet is like an amazing city; enjoy it, but stay alert
  • What we do online has an impact offline
  • Ask: ‘What would someone who loves me say about this?’

What parents said:

Jason Royce’s talk was the first on the topic of navigating the digital world that didn’t leave me feeling daunted. I liked his analogy that the internet is like a city. It makes total sense that we wouldn’t let our nine year old wander the streets unprepared. So too, goes for the internet.  He emphasised that it’s not all about putting blocks on search engines (although of course something to do), but about connecting with our kids, discussing the issues and asking them questions. The most important thing I came away with is the need to set up the circumstances for trust between parents and kids so that a fluid discussion can arise if problems precipitate. It is essential. I truly appreciated his genuine enthusiasm for the internet and the great tool that it can be. To that end he emphasised that not all screen time is created equal! This will have a big impact on our household. Too often, talks of this ilk make it out to be Gotham City out there. Thank you, Jason!

-Annabel Fraser

I thought the session was really thought provoking. Jason’s insights were helpful not just for our children’s use of tech but ours too! 

-Anna McDonald