Fall Curriculum 🌱

Apparently there is a trend going around about building a personal curriculum and I am here for it. The funny thing about this is — I had no idea this was an actual trend until today. It’s going around on the clock app and I was completely unaware since I am not on social media other than Substack. I just decided last month that I wanted to start learning about literally everything I’m interested in because I have so much more time on my hands these days since I am down to my last two classes before graduation in December.

I didn’t want my learning to stop with graduation. So I decided it’s time to really hone in on all of the things I’ve been wanting to learn more about but just never had the time to do so.

So let’s just jump right in, shall we?

Here are the things that I will have studied by the time 2026 arrives.

🌌 Academy of Reverie

Herbal Studies

• Herbal Medicine
• Herbal Teas
• Human Immune System + herbal support
• Female Body & Cycle Syncing
• Herbal Skincare
• Deep Dive into Herbs

Cultural & Historical Studies

• Harlem Renaissance (poetry, essays, music, cultural history)

• Classic Literature

• The Nature of Time (got this idea from a fellow Stacker, shout out to Raya)

• Countries & Cultures:

  • Japan & China (tea ceremonies, food rituals, cultural wisdom)

  • Russia & Iceland (folklore, traditions, landscapes)

  • Antarctica & Greenland (climate, survival, culture)

Science & Exploration

• Marine Biology (oceans, reefs, ecosystems)
• Human Immune System
• Space Exploration

Culinary Arts

• Bread baking
• Broths & soups
• Pastas from scratch
• Sauces from scratch
• Stocks & fermentations
• Full-meal creation combining all skills (bread + sauces + broths + herbs + wine pairings)

Wine Studies

• French Wines (Loire Valley, Burgundy basics, tasting)
• Italian Wines (Tuscany, pairings, tasting notes)

Alongside my my academic style of studies, I want to also add a few lifestyle rituals and also keep up with the ones I’m already doing.

Lifestyle & Ritual Practices

• Slow mornings
• Library Rituals
• Gratitude at Sunset journaling
• Cooking as ritual (seasonal dinners)
• Digital + physical decluttering
• Gentle movement (stretching, walking, dance)
• Buying fresh flowers weekly
• Family rituals (movie nights, storytime)
• Daily prayer out loud

I have broken everything down into 4 units — September - Unit 1 — October - Unit 2 — November - Unit 3 — December - Unit 4.

Am I excited to nerd out? Absolutely. I have ALWAYS been a nerd. My friends in high school would make fun of me sometimes with how excited I got about back to school supplies and making sure I had everything I needed to take the best notes. This is MY time to shine, okay? So, how exactly will I be channeling my inner Rory Gilmore this fall? I’m glad you asked.

So I’ve been seeing everyone with their beautiful notion templates and planners and I am obsessed, obviously. That type of thing is my jam and it’s incredibly cool to look at. However, HOWEVER, I have learned this year that I simply cannot handle notion templates and beautifully laid out planners. I know, I know, cue the sad music.

As beautiful as they are, my mind just cannot keep up with them because it just seems like too much work. So I am retiring my notion workspace that I have been working to keep track of and use since 2020. I learned what's best for me and that is one simple notebook, a binder with loose leaf paper and something simple in my digital space to keep it all organized. So goodbye notion and my overstimulating planners, and hello composition notebooks, my one journal that I use for all of my thoughts and lists, index cards, and Google Keep. Google Keep is where I am storing all of my units and what I will be learning in each one, assignments that I created for myself, and notes from what I’ve learned. I am really big on taking notes on paper so I will first take notes by hand and then type them out in my Google Keep and add labels to them to keep them organized. Example: I labeled all of my unit sticky notes in Google Keep as “Academy of Reverie”. On the side panel, all of my labels are listed. So once I take a note on something, I can label it and it will be easy to find once my notes start piling up.

I have already started taking my notes in my fresh composition notebook and that makes me so happy! I also recently acquired a book on literally everything herbal and I am so excited to use it as a tool for research. Google is amazing as we all know, but there is something about learning straight from a book that just gets me going. So that is another thing that I want to do more of. Also, writing my grocery lists down on paper and taking it into the store with me that way (the first picture). Crossing off my items when I went shopping the other day felt so good. Practicing being more present has been such a beautiful thing for me lately and I’m happy that I have started incorporating little things into my routines that help me stay present and grounded.

I hope that this post encourages you to start self studying and if not, that’s okay! You can watch from the bleachers because I will be sharing snippets of my studies here on Substack for my paid subscribers — so consider upgrading. ;)

Until next time, friends. <3