Amber O’Neal Johnston fell in love with the principles of Charlotte Mason when her oldest was a preschooler. After wholeheartedly committing to follow Mason’s philosophy, she became disheartened when months went by with little mention, if any, of the stories and accomplishments of Black people in her school room. The literary quality of the books was better, but she found that the cultural emptiness she experienced as a schoolgirl was being perpetuated within the walls of her own home.
Committed to bridging the gap for her four children, Amber has embarked on a journey of uniquely merging living books with life-giving books and a culturally-rich environment to ensure that their education is not a legalistic venture in Charlotte Mason but an honest experience that honors the Truth while helping her children to see themselves and others.
Amber shares her observations on inclusive home education, diverse books, world travel, and more at www.HeritageMom.com and in her book A Place to Belong, a guide for families of all backgrounds to celebrate cultural heritage, diversity, and kinship while embracing inclusivity in the home and beyond. When asked about her path she likes to smile and say, “In my house, Charlotte Mason has an afro.”
2023 Conference
Diversifying the Feast: Finding Beauty Through Culturally Rich Learning
There are innumerable ways to integrate voices of color into our children’s lessons naturally and consistently through the years. Formal and informal opportunities for diversifying the feast exist within history, literature, music, art, poetry, and more. Some studies will lead our students to grapple with complex stories, tragedies, and trials. But we also have a unique opportunity to highlight the triumphs and joys rooted in every culture. This session will discuss specific ways to shape an inclusive home atmosphere that values people of color and the ideas their stories and gifts convey to our children.
2022 Conference
Finding Freedom in Charlotte Mason
When parents and teachers rely on intuition, reflective practice, and common sense to revise their application of Mason’s principles based on the family or child at hand, they often walk away feeling as though these “departures” are separating them from the more legitimate world of CM purists. This session will reframe some of our thinking in this area as we discover that embracing freedom is not an educational or moral failure but an inherent aspect of a true Charlotte Mason education.
2021 Conference
Roots & Branches: Pursuing Universal Brotherhood Through Family Heritage
In the midst of living books and time-tables, have we forgotten Charlotte Mason’s vision of universal brotherhood?
“Here is the simple and natural realisation of the noble dream of Fraternity: each individual attached to a family by ties of love where not of blood; the families united in a federal bond to form the nation; the nations confederate in love and emulous in virtue, and all, nations and their families, playing their several parts as little children about the feet and under the smile of the Almighty Father.”
Building authentic relationships across racial, ethnic, and cultural lines requires self-awareness, humility, and a willingness to sit with the tension that often accompanies the melding of different viewpoints or even competing aims. Before children can be expected to thrive in diverse spaces and relationships, they must develop agency through personal identity. Kids (and adults too) find it difficult to honor the humanity of others when they are disconnected from their own personhood. We’ll discuss how we can use family culture and intergenerational history to deeply water our children’s roots as they spread wide branches towards others.
2020 Conference
Mirrors & Windows: When Living Books Are Not Enough
A mirror is a story that reflects your own culture and helps build your identity. A window is a resource that offers you a view into someone else’s experience. There is a shortage of living books featuring black characters, yet it is incredibly unhealthy for children to solely read about the lives of white fictional characters, the trials and contributions of white historic figures, and the struggles and triumphs of slaves, former slaves, and the poor, ignorant, or down-trodden. We’ll discuss how we can stay true to Charlotte Mason’s principles while creating mirrors and windows for all children to see African and African-American culture reflected in their school books.
Vendor Hall
Featured Products
Heritage Packs: Multicultural Lesson Guides
Heritage Packs are designed to help home educators and school teachers bridge the gap between the traditional curriculum they love and the legitimate need to add diverse voices to their lessons. Filled with literary mirrors and windows, these lesson guides will lighten your load and allow you to focus on what you love most – your children.
What’s in a Heritage Pack?
– Each pack contains a list of recommended lifegiving books with book summaries and integrated at-a-glance lesson plans.
– You’ll receive a suggested weekly page breakdown that combines books for a cohesive program, and some packs come with recommendations for books across multiple age ranges so families can study and grow together.
– In addition to the base reading plans, each pack includes suggestions for optional videos and one or two bonus books – just for fun!
