What a feast it was.
The Plenary
Mariah Kochis
We were excited and grateful to welcome Mariah Kochis as our plenary speaker! Mariah is a homeschool mom of three—the oldest is now a speech therapist—and a longtime Charlotte Mason educator. She’s an editor at Common Place Quarterly, an idealist stuck in the real world, and doing her best to mind her own business, love like Jesus, and give everyone—including herself—grace. She lives in Wyoming with her husband and children, two dogs, and seven chickens. Her emphasis for the plenary sessions was on homeschooling through the storms.
The Breakout Sessions
Charlotte Mason’s Secrets
Lisa Hajda has been adhering to Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education for almost 35 years as she homeschooled her ten children. In this session, Lisa explored Margaret Coomb’s thoroughly researched biography of Charlotte Mason in order to give us a broader understanding of the context of Mason’s life and the development of her philosophy of education.
Beauty Will Save the World
Christine Kremer is a founding member of the Living Feast Collective, wife to Micah, and mother of nine. In this session, Christine explored how placing beauty before your student can train their hearts and minds to love the beautiful and be drawn towards Christ.
The Neverending Notebook
Sara Holmquist is an entrepreneur, Charlotte Mason homeschooling mom of four, and co-owner of Normal Roasting Company alongside her husband, Josh. A champion of perfectly imperfect notebooking — because a full life beats a full notebook — Sara led a lighthearted, honest look at how Charlotte Mason-style notebooks can nourish your homeschool, and your soul, one imperfect page at a time.
Curating Your Living Library
Clara Williams is a second-generation homeschooling mother of four daughters. Charlotte Mason says, “…children must have books, living books; the best are not too good for them…” Clara’s session explored what makes up a “living book,” along with practical tips for the curation and organization of your own living library.
The Art of Narration
Amelia Rodgers is a second-generation homeschooler who has loved using Charlotte Mason’s educational philosophy for the past 10 years. Her breakout examined what Mason said about narration, the power of narration as an educational tool, and how to practically do narration in your home without losing your mind.
Hospitality as Formation
Hannah is a devoted wife to Brandon and mother of four, involved in Living Feast Collective since its beginning. Her session explored practical ways hospitality forms our children’s hearts — beginning with how we welcome our children and growing as we open our homes to others.
The Feast That Year
The Weekend, in Pictures
Living books by the armful, candlelight, handwork, singing, folk dancing, a thirty-minute Julius Caesar, and a room full of mothers who get it.