Form IIB Form IIA (lower) Form IIA (upper)
Options for Form II
Family Reading for Form II
Optional “Sunday” Reading for Form II
Grammar and Latin
Recitations
Drill in Good Manners
Sol-fa and Sight Singing
Form II is heavier than Form I in both type and amount of content, but still retains the beauty and variety. The first year, IIB, is a transition year, with fewer subjects than IIA and introductory material to build a foundation.
In history, we continue with our study of our own country. However, we add another stream in IIB, and a third (ancients) in IIA. We start getting into the more unsavory bits of history, while still keeping things age appropriate.
If you want to go in a completely different direction for history, we love Eva Tappan’s biographies spread out over several years. Though it is not the way it was done in the PNEU programmes, Charlotte Mason’s books do talk about spending a full year with a single person, getting to know his thoughts and those of his contemporaries. It is a legitimate option in a Charlotte Mason education.
Science begins to branch out from strictly nature study. It is still heavy on experiences, but now adds special studies with drawings and notes each term. In addition, we bring in more modern books from Bill Brysan and Isaac Asimov.
To bring more breadth, we also add Latin, Shakespeare, citizenship, and grammar studies. These all add a bit of time to our day, but we still go at a slow and steady pace rather than trying to go quickly through material. We are like the tortoise rather than the hare.
As always, we based this Form off the actual work in the PNEU programmes from the 1920s and early 1930s, and we encourage you to compare . We also have optional books not for narration in multiple subjects. These are books that we and our children have loved, and are fun for additional reading in the subject. They are truly optional, so don’t feel like they must be read if you simply don’t have time. Most of them are lighter, easier reading than are in the programmes.
Remember also that there is more to a Charlotte Mason education than simply books. Outside time, music, artist and composer study, singing, drawing, and scouting games should not be considered add-ons but an integral part of the curriculum. If you don’t have time to do it all, then trim little bits across the board rather than leaving out entire subjects. Do less Latin, four artist prints rather than six, one less book in several subjects, rather than staying purely to the academic work and leaving everything else to “when we have time for it.”
As always, our biggest difficulty in writing this Form was in not overloading the students with too many wonderful books and resources. Be careful that you don’t fall into that trap yourself. If you add a book, take one of similar length out.
Students in Form II are generally ages 9-12, depending on when their birthday falls, and generally are expected to spend two years in IIA.
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