Thoughts on education

Charlotte Mason is such an interesting Christian lady. She was born in 1842 and was educated at home by her parents. She was orphaned at 16 and went to teachers college. She became a teacher shortly afterward and realized that parents needed help with their children. She gave a series of seminars that were later published with the title Home Education. This was the beginning of the Parents’ Education Union.

She helped expand education to all classes of children. Her philosophy of education is interesting to me, “Two key mottos taken from those principles are "Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life" and "Education is the science of relations."

Her ideas include the use “living books” not textbooks and to replace the practice workbook with narrations. As little children they are read to and then asked to tell what they learned the mother writes it down. As the children grow, they will read and write part of their ideas and later they will write their narrations in entirety.

Science it taught mostly by observation, and a nature diary where the children draw and write what they learned through observation.
Art is also an area of real learning. Studying at least 5 paintings from the same author in a semester. Studying mostly just means having them one painting propped open on the table. The mother should also know about the artist and answer questions or tell stories about the painting or artist as well.
Spelling and grammar are learned in the mix with the narration, again in a real life context not a booklet/lecture.
History as well is learned from “living books” biographies and autobiographies.
Music is taught by listening to great composers. Later children who study instruments will be delighted to play what they already know.

She also had an interesting and challenging idea of motherhood. Since mother was the teacher, she had to always be learning and growing. The mother must take time for herself to read and learn or her teaching will dry up.
When I wrote my first application for teaching, I wrote that my goal was to, “educate lifelong learners.” I knew at the time that it sounded good and would help me get hired, but I really meant it. I really enjoy learning and reading and challenging my mind to new things, and continually learn and grow being a lifelong learner. How comforting it is to see that can overflow into motherhood and “home education” and how it already has in Sierra and Weston.

I have so much to learn about mothering, especially nurturing with gentleness, which I am sorely lacking; but one of my strengths is teaching and reading a summary of Mason’s ideas made it clearer to me how that can run over into mothering and help me to create a better environment of home and learning. That is in a sense, mothering. Mothering and teaching are really not able to be separated. The teaching really does begin at birth and what a mother knows naturally flows from her into her children’s minds.

It is freeing too to take the mystery out of education and realize that I am not really a home “school.” I am not part of the machine of school that includes tests, pressure and labeling. I am free to educate my children aside from these things. I am free to find the most interesting, entertaining and good books read them and share them with my children. To teach them to read, write, figure, and think in those contexts. How wonderful.