Feb 26, 20222 min read

Our British Retreat: Tea with Jane Austen.

Updated: Aug 1, 2022

Lately, tea parties have been our favorite way to celebrate special occasions in our family.

Due to my 8th grader's social studies project (from Catholic textbook project )about the Napoleonic era; we decided to dive into the Jane Austen world and embrace the customs, music, dances, and culture of that period of time.

I couldn't think of a better, fun way to incorporate, history, literature, authors, and books into our homeschool than to host a tea party: Better yet, a Jane Austen Tea party!

Tea time is the perfect ambient for homeschooling if you think about it. It automatically invites you to slow down and embrace the present moment. It gives you a fuzzy feeling of comfort and relaxation and encourages conversation and the ritual of dining together at the table. The very act of setting the table elevates your spirit to a level of composure and brings awareness of etiquette and good manners. Additionally, teatime encourages you to be a good host and helps you embrace homemaking activities such as baking, decorating, and staging arts, that have been lost through time.

In the words of my 16-year-old, the best part of this activity was to welcome moments of silence. Living in a fast-paced society, it seems like you always have to fill in the void of silence with aimless conversations, instead of finding the mere value of each other's company. For my 14-year-old the sense of elegance and femininity was the highlight of the activity. While, on the other hand, my son and toddlers exclusively enjoyed the food. Although surprisingly they enjoyed very much the aroma of tea!

This activity for sure, left imprinted on my kid’s hearts a beautiful memory, not only because we came together to serve one another at the heart of the home, but also because we celebrated another milestone on our educational journey.

It was a team effort for sure, while the girls prepared a short presentation on the school subject and gathered recipes of baked goods, my husband found for us some fun resources to go along with our party theme, and I collected the printables and decorative items for the final setup.

Below, are the milestones of our afternoon together, along with links and suggested items that helped us make this gathering unforgettable.