The Well Trained Mind

Since its publication in 1999, The Well Trained Mind has been helping homeschooling parents educate their children. Using the popular classical method, this helpful book continues to be a must have resource for many families.

Learning geography is a part of the classical method.

More than just a how to book, The Well Trained Mind explains the various stages of learning that your child will advance through. The book breaks down the stages in the traditional classical method:

• The Grammar Stage; kindergarten through fourth grade
• The Logic Stage; fifth through eighth grades
• The Rhetoric Stage; ninth through twelfth grades

This book explains in detail the workings of your child’s mind at each stage and how to best approach his education. At each stage, the book breaks down into the various subjects that the student will need to learn and the best way to introduce them. A number of resources are listed in each part so that there is no question about what materials you need. At the end of each part, there is a summary to give you an overview of what you read and to help you to implement a successful classical method in your home.

The authors have an extensive frequently asked questions page on their website. Since questions tend to fall within a limited number of subjects, you can probably find the answers that you are looking for there.

The authors, Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer, have gone to great lengths to explain how to homeschool using this book and this method. There are chapters specifically for home educators that include information on:

• Removing your child from the school system
• First steps in homeschooling your child
• Socialization
• Your child’s confidence
• Schedules
• Character issues
• How to homeschool when you have babies
• Creating a portfolio
• Transcripts
• Writing a diploma
• About the standardized tests, including ACTs and SATs
• Online resources
• Information about colleges
• Sports
• Apprenticeships
• Resource catalogs

There is much more. This is a huge book full of great ideas and resources for homeschooling your child.

The book can also be used to help you supplement your child’s education if he is enrolled in a public or private school. There are suggestions for use to create learning enrichment experiences after school, on the weekends, and during vacations. Even if you don’t wish to homeschool, or are unable to, this book is an investment in your child’s education.

The website has forums where you can connect with other families that are using the book in their homeschool, as well as for enrichment for their children enrolled in other schools. Spending some time on the forum and reading and asking questions is a great way to ensure that you are going to be able to utilize this resource in your own home.

There are categories on the forum for everything from used resources for sale to homeschooling in bilingual homes. Interacting with other parents that share your interests and have more experience than you do will help you to feel more secure in the decisions you make about the classical education method.

The authors ask that you buy the book through their own website, Peace Hill Press. In doing so, you enable them to continue working in the homeschool community by supporting them. They also carry several other books and resources that are meant to compliment The Well Trained Mind.

Susan Wise Bauer was homeschooled for most of her school years. She holds several degrees. She and her husband have four children. You can read her complete biography at Susan Wise Bauer and follow her blog at The History of the (Whole) World.

Jessie Wise is a home education consultant and an experienced tutor. She graduated magna cum laude from Carson-Newman College in Tennessee in 1959. She and her husband are homesteading in Virginia. You can read more of her biography at Jessie Wise.

If you are considering using the classical education method this book can be your roadmap to success.

• Thanksgiving Facts
• What Kinds of Animals Live in a Jungle
• Homeschooling Notebooking Ideas
• Which Curriculum Is Right For Me?

• Free Worksheets on Prefixes and Suffixes
• Free Grammar Worksheets
• Longitude Worksheet
• Free Spanish Worksheets for Kindergarten
• Printable Synonym Worksheets

• Classical Education
• Main Page
• Bob Jones Homeschool
• American Girls Homeschool
• Creating a Homeschool Schedule