Homeschool Fever

Key Mottos:
“Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life”
“Education is the science of relations.”

Student’s Motto:
“I am, I can, I ought, I will.”

Charlotte Mason, a British educator who lived in the late 1800s, was one of the formost leaders in developing the view that all children - regardless of social status or gender - should be educated.  She viewed children not as mere cups for pouring knowledge into, but as gentle spirits who’s love of learning must be kindled so that it will remain intact throuhout life.

She was also instrumental in developing the PNEU (Parents’ National Education Union), a chain of parent run schools in England.  Her written work, a 6 volumn set known today as The Original Home Schooling Series, laid out her radical (for the times) theories of early childhood development so that others may learn from them. 

Her theories for family centered education were based on the following principles:

• Living Books - the use of real, high quality literature in education.  Firsthand accounts, historical works, and even Plutarch made for excellent educational materials.  Boring, dry, fact-only textbooks were not used.  Not all books were recommended however, with light reading and reading with no literary back-bone (also referred to as “twaddle”) being dismissed.
• Narration - a child’s “retelling” of the story they just heard, either orally or verbally.  This causes the child to use many mental facilities in forming thoughts about what they story meant to them.  Doing this also increases mental skills needed for concentration, attention, and recollection.  It takes the place of mundane worksheets and shows the teacher what the child knows, as opposed to what he doesn’t.
• Copywork - copywork was used in early grammar school levels to guide the children in learning correct penmanship, spelling, and grammar rules.  Again, “twaddle” was never used and only high quality literature was used.  Younger grammar students would spend 10-15 minutes daily copying one or two sentences, while older grammar students would gradually begin copying longer works straight from their other subject books.
• No Homework - homework was not given to children under the age of 13 because the other aspects of this method allowed for early mastery of subject material
• Short Lessons - lessons were short, 10-20 minutes daily, and full attention was required.  No dawdling was allowed! 
• No Grades - Charlotte wanted children to enjoy learning in itself, and for an inborn love of knowledge and admiration to be the main motivator for success.  Therefore, artificial outward motivators such as prizes or grades were not used.
• Free Afternoons - academics were typically completed no later than 1:00 pm (earlier for younger students), with the rest of the afternoon given as free time for the child to explore his own interests.  During this leisure time, children were encouraged to physically play (running, jumping, climing, etc.)or participate in handicrafts or viable social activities. 
• Few Lectures - throwing material at a bored child would not create knowledge nor a love for learning.  Therefore, teacher led lectures were few, and teachers were encouraged to read with the children and encourage self-education and independent thought.
• Study of the Fine Arts - no education was complete with out a love for the higher aspects of fine culture, such as biblical study, dance, theather, classical music and master paintings.

Today, “Charlotte Mason” has developed somewhat of a cult-like following, with adorant mothers studying her principles and doing their best to apply them to their own family’s educational structure. 

For more indepth information on Charlotte Mason, you can print out her entire homeschooling series at Ambleside Online.  Other must-read books include A Charlotte Mason Companion: Personal Reflections on the Gentle Art of Learning (Karen Andreola) as well as A Charlotte Mason Education (Catherine Levison).

A free 12 year curriculum structure (a list of living books to follow as well as complete timeline) based on her principles of education is available at www.AmblesideOnline.org