We’ve reached twelve weeks of 1st grade homeschool, which means one of our three terms is complete! There were definitely bumps along the way (switching math curriculum and dropping a phonics curriculum to name a few). However, it only just confirmed that cultivating a Charlotte Mason-inspired homeschool is a blessing in our Cooper nest.
After every term (every twelve weeks), we will have exams. Charlotte Mason exams are not what you might see in a traditional, public school setting. Charlotte Mason exams are ultimately the narration of twelve weeks worth of narrations. Exam questions are open-ended and aren’t fill-in-the-blank formatted. Instead, an opportunity (or in our home, a celebration of sorts) for the children to share what they truly know.
Exams are not just for evaluating the children
Mothers can use exams to discern problem areas and evaluate the curriculum being used. (Has the curriculum become a master to your homeschool or is it serving your family well?) Exams help illuminate the areas in which the child is flourishing, which helps plan for the upcoming term. Also, if there is ever a term where a child demonstrates great trouble in a subject, this allows mothers to slow down, and meet the child where they are at. Homeschool exams don’t have to create a pass or fail mentality, but rather an opportunity for growth, and intentionality.
A really fascinating (to me) fact, according to several resources, is that homeschool children perform better on standardized tests overall, in comparison to kids in a public and private classroom setting. You can read about one article here, but several sources support this notion.
Here are some general questions I’ve been asked about exams. I hope to help someone understand the richness and value that a Charlotte Mason Exam can give in homeschool.
What does your exam schedule look like?
Before I share my own schedule, it’s important to note that creating an exam schedule will greatly depend on your family’s rhythm, routines, and children’s ages.
From what I’ve researched, families usually allot one week to their exams. However, we were able to complete exams in one day. I had initially planned exams for 3 days if we needed more time. However many days you need, consider using the time you would normally spend doing formal lessons, and use that time for exams.
Show and tell portion of our exams
Once we finished the exam questions in about an hour (with a few small breaks in between), we enjoyed lunch and resumed our afternoon as normal. When I knew my husband was on his way home, I started setting out the “show and tell” part of our exam day. This included art projects, drawings, books we read, poetry, illustrated narrations for history, geography mapwork, etc. It took up our entire kitchen island, dining room table, and all four dining chairs to display. It was amazing to see all that we had done in just 12 weeks!
I had my daughter take my husband around the rooms showing him the different books and papers she did, and he was so kind enough to ask intentional questions like “tell me about so and so from this picture you drew”, and she would with glee! We concluded with recitations, sitting on the couch while my daughter recited her poem, sang her favorite hymn of the term, and recited her scripture verse.
P.S. This is such a practical way to get your spouse involved in homeschool! It was both a joy for my daughter to share and for him to see the hard work she really accomplished in a term. It gave him a deeper appreciation for the work being done in the home.
How did you prepare for our first exam?
Since I am using Ambleside Online as the core of our year 1, I immediately went to their website and read the information on their exam page, here. It was so helpful, and they even give exam question examples for each year. I formatted our own exam questions from their example but gave it a little more detail to our own homeschool which you can see below at the end of the article.
I also found the Delightfully Feasting blog by Crystin to be extremely helpful with preparation. She has several blog articles of exam schedule examples! Crystin also has a virtual exam workshop that explores “the art of Charlotte Mason Exams and their beautiful role in the culmination of each term of school.” She takes you through a deeper dive into Charlotte Mason-style exams with this workshop; you’ll surely walk away feeling better equipped. You can find her blog here, but I’d also recommend following her on Instagram if you’re on there! She’s one of my absolute favorite sources for all things Charlotte Mason!
Finally, I took my notebook and began writing the subjects down that we covered from term 1, including poetry and other passages we memorized over the term, and then started typing up the questions I would ask my daughter to narrate for me during the exam. I planned for no more than a couple of questions per subject since we are just starting out. However, a couple of times in our exams, those couple questions led to more questions and narrations.
How did you come up with your own questions for the exam?
I combined the exam example from Ambleside Online website for year 1 and my list of subjects we covered in term 1 and listed my own questions. I only added questions from the readings that we read. My goal is not to “trick” or “stump” my children with vague, confusing wording. The goal in a Charlotte Mason exam is to have your child tell what they know, pulling from their own mind, and their own ideas. Oh, and what a joy it is to see their confidence soar when they share!
Lastly, I will end by sharing the exam questions we used below. Since this exam was personalized, I don’t recommend using it in its entirety. However, I do hope it guides you well when putting together exams for your own children. For Year 1, we mainly did an oral exam with some light copywork demonstrations. As my children begin writing more confidently, there will be both oral and written examinations for variety.
Click here to see our exam questions for Year 1, Term 1!
