“It is infinitely well worth the mother’s while to take some pains every day to secure, in the first place, that her children spend hours daily amongst rural and natural objects; and, in the second place, to infuse into them, or rather, to cherish in them, the love of investigation…” -Charlotte Mason
We have been practicing Charlotte Mason in our homeschool for months now. My daughter has been more aware of her environment and her natural classroom.
Armed with “A First Look at Philippine Trees” by Anáhaw Books, we marched to University of the Philippines Diliman and explored a line of trees. We confirmed they were Narra, Aguho and Acacia. My daughter touched the rough barks of the tree. It was a moment when she would marvel at its texture and complexity. We gathered leaves from the trees and matched them with the pictures of the trees.
It’s amazing how God provides object lessons for our homeschool. The university just finished their periodical trimming and we saw cut branches and looked at their interior. Here we were given the actual object that the picture in our book is representing. Amazing how my daughter said, “Mommy it’s the same!!!”
We identified the parts of the tree, the parts of the trunk and so many more things. Science was never about memorizing things. Science was about discovery. It’s about observing. It’s about wonder. This was no complicated lesson, we just marveled at how much time God invested in making these trees. Each one has its own complexity and beauty. 
🌳 If God paid this much attention to trees, how much more to humans like us. 
🌿
We called the day “Tree Hunt” day. We looked for the trees and the pictures. We wondered what the other trees are called. Macy had the idea of reciting one verse from one of her favorite books “We’re going on a bear hunt,” only this time we’re looking for trees! (P.s. I have no plans of going on a bear hunt
😅) “We’re going on a tree hunt! We’re gonna see a Big one! What a beautiful day and we’re not scared!”
