Charlotte Mason's Beliefs - a disclaimer

Back in the fall of 2006, when I first started really reading books both about and by Charlotte Mason, a friend from church cautioned me. "She had some reeeeaaaaalllly weird doctrine" was the warning. This particular friend had been drawn to CM's ideas at one point, but ultimately tossed the whole kit and caboodle aside when it became very apparent that Charlotte was not at all a Reformed Baptist. But, of course, I already knew that much. I had not expected her to be.

Charlotte Mason was an Anglican in Victorian England. Obviously, the Anglican church then and now differs from my own personal beliefs (pretty much summed up here). So, the question arises - and it is a legitimate question - how in the world can a Christian hold to the truth of Scripture (in the doctrines of grace) and yet still give Charlotte Mason's method a second look? The answer sounds trite, but please understand that I'm serious. How can it be done? It must be approached very carefully.

But, why mess with it at all? Why not just "toss it" and buy a handy, boxed curriculum with better doctrine?

Because her methods, where they stand apart from occasional doctrinal error, are exceptionally sane, logical, and effective. In my estimation, Charlotte Mason comes closer to getting to the heart of what real education is all about for the early years more than any other system, approach, or curriculum I have seen yet. When she writes about education, it's as though all you knew in your heart of hearts about learning is laid out for you.

And, besides, I believe her doctrine isn't as bad off as it first seems. I think part of what seems to be incorrect or inconsistent doctrine may really be attributed to a lack of clear understanding on the part of the reader. Many readers get all up in arms when they first read of Miss Mason referring to children as "good". It takes some digging to get to her real meaning. It also takes a serious consideration of the time and place in which she lived. I believe that Miss Mason did not deny the existence of a sinful nature nor did she deny the power of sin within the child. She was combating a prevalent thought in her day. Namely, that certain children were born "good" while others were born "bad", and that state was mostly determined by their social and economic status. So, we can't just read her writings at face value and dump them because she seems difficult, at best, to understand theologically.

Even if she is totally off track in her doctrine, though, and even if she's got a truly unbiblical view of the spiritual state of children (which I do not think she has), what does that mean for us? Hang with me here for a minute, y'all - I think we have to really take a hard look at some assumptions.

Firstly, let's ask "Do we have to adopt Charlotte's doctrine to follow Charlotte's methods?" Absolutely not! Let's just pretend for a moment that we are completely clear on some of CM's fuzzy points. Let's imagine that we know for certain that she believed children to be born without original sin and to be inherently good. Yikes, right? What does that mean for us, considering her methods? Does it mean that, since Mason believed my oldest daughter was born without sin I should clearly think differently of my daughter's spiritual state now that we are "doing Charlotte Mason"? Do I now find myself saying things like, "Sweetheart, go discover all the wisdom and knowledge that is yours internally. Go relish all of the goodness naturally in you that has not yet been tainted by the world and those wretched bad habits!"? This idea is out of the question for me, and not a danger toward which I am easily tempted. "Oh," some will say, "but the real danger lies in the subtleties. Bad doctrine will touch absolutely everything in her books". To this I say, God has given us brains, sisters. And we have the responsibility to pray for wisdom in all areas of life and to think - biblically. If I cannot discern dangerous doctrine well enough to reject it, the issue runs far deeper and is far more serious than any homeschooling method. The child of God must read everything watchfully, begging God for discernment. If any of Charlotte's suggestions seem "off" to me, if they contradict the Scriptures at all, then I must drop them right then and there. She was just a woman - completely fallible - and I fully expect some mistakes in her philosophy. I cannot read her in any other way.

Secondly, let's ask "Is there nothing to be gained from someone with a few errors in doctrine"? I believe that God, in His common grace to even the unsaved, gives them gifts and unique abilities. I believe that He gives them these gifts and abilities for His own glory and for the benefit of His sheep. Does your car mechanic have to be a 5-pointer to fix your transmission? Nope, but that working transmission sure is a blessing. Does your pediatrician need to be a believer to give you a helpful diagnosis? Nope, but you are certainly thankful to know what is wrong now. I've never heard anyone ask about Susan Wise Bauer's doctrinal statement, and I don't think I've ever heard that Dorothy Sayers professed Christ at all - are their contributions to the current homeschool movement beneficial anyway? Are we blessed by C.S. Lewis' books? He was Anglican, ya know, with some rather muddled views of his own ;) So, let's ask it again now. Do we possibly have something valuable to learn from Charlotte Mason - a woman with 60 years of experience teaching children and hundreds upon hundreds of former students attesting to her extraordinary worth as a woman and educator - even though she has some doctrinal issues?

As you know, I have been blessed by many of her insights, and my answer to this question is "yes!". We have much to gain.

Thirdly, and lastly, let's ask "Does implementing Charlotte Mason's method in our home learning require us to follow every part of that method"? CM said that for "the programme" (as it was called in her schools) to really produce the excellent results for which it was known, it had to be followed completely. Every part left out could be expected to weaken the end result. That may be so. I have not yet come across a part of the programme that violates my conscience, but if I should someday meet up with a CM practice with which I disagree wholeheartedly, again, there is no way I'm going to accept what I believe may compromise the Word of God and the spiritual lives of my family. So, if I must drop part of the programme, let my children be academically inferior to Charlotte's students at the end of the day! Excellent education is our goal, but it is not our highest goal. There are elements in a CM education that we may leave out, and there are things she advises against that we will most definitely add in. Our version of CM will be strongly influenced by the truths to which we hold so dearly :)

There you have it! :) My official Charlotte Mason disclaimer. I admit, you do have to eat the meat and throw away a few of the small bones with this method. BUT, Miss Mason offers so much wisdom, grace, and truth regarding education that the meat is plentiful and exceptionally worth it.

Isn't Charlotte Mason Attractive?

Well, I have finished the reading I wanted to get through before the New Year. With Christmas coming up fast, I won't likely be blogging much this weekend. I just wanted to take a moment to "recap" my experience this fall with Charlotte Mason and her teaching method. Before I say anything else, I just want to say that I already feel extremely blessed by the wisdom that the Lord shared with Charlotte over a hundred years ago. I have no doubt that she was a sister in Christ, and one uncommonly blessed with insight into children and their upbringing.

The most attractive thing to me about a Charlotte Mason education is that it seeks to teach the whole child. Wise parenting coupled with many different educational approaches could produce the same result, but how wonderful to have such a kind, thoughtful guide to help the young mother through such a potentially overwhelming task as that of educating her own children at home. Charlotte Mason was a homeschooler at heart, encouraging parents with the firmly held belief that a loving, nurturing home and family provide the best learning environment for a child.

I am also deeply encouraged by the purpose behind her method. Education is not pursued for education's sake. Charlotte Mason believed that a proper education must be sought out for the children's sake. And to what end? That they be well-educated and live successful lives on the earth? Certainly, those are benefits. But, Charlotte again and again reminds us that children must be well-educated and well 'brought up' for the good of others - that they may be useful in the kingdom, a blessing to others, and glorifying to the Lord Jesus Christ. Character is highlighted. The knowledge of Jesus Christ is paramount. Education strives toward these ends. Not that they speak 5 languages or even that they score such and such on their SAT, but that others maybe be blessed and that the Lord may be glorified. What a vision for noble, God-honoring parenting!

Now that I have passed over into the Charlotte Mason recruitment ranks, let me stop there, LOL :) The following are some highlights of what I find to be The Best of Charlotte Mason in the practical, teaching sense (as much for my own notes as for the benefit of anyone reading):

Time Out-of-Doors:

I think this is a critical component for a healthy childhood - especially for the pre-school and early elementary grades. With this priority, the "whole child" is considered, not just the child's academics. Children must run, skip, holler, imagine, observe, feel, see, and smell outside. Here is the time for a child to "consider the lilies of the field and the birds of the air"...

Short Lessons:

This one is a bit more controversial, and there are many convincing arguments for and against short lessons. Simply put, it makes good sense to me. The idea is NOT to make school overly easy for the children, nor is it stemming from the belief that children cannot be expected to sit still for long periods or attend for more than a few minutes. Basically, the idea of short lessons is to ensure that the child gives the whole of his attention, energy, and effort to the task at hand. Everything is to be done to the very best of his ability. Sloppy carelessness is not tolerated. Half-hearted work is not acceptable. He must give his best. Here's a good illustration to explain the idea: Charlotte asserted that a child who writes only six or so "h"s in his very best writing with careful attention is better off than the child who writes 30 letters, becoming tired and sloppy by the last line - allowing him to write part of his lesson without neatness, without the desired outcome. What good is a row of sloppy "h"s from a tired, distracted child? At this point he is learning little more than how to slack off and make sloppy letters. Better to never let his hand make the sloppy letters at all, and to keep his energy fresh. There is also bound to be less conflict between the mother and her children as the children are kept positive and interested in short lessons. As the child matures, his lessons gradually increase in length. Never so long, though, in the early years that plenty of time outdoors would be prevented.

Living Books:

I don't think I've mentioned the idea of living books, yet. Sometimes they are also referred to as "whole books". This is a central idea in CM's method. Basically, dry textbooks are to be avoided. They are written by scholarly committees usually far removed from actual children as well as from a true love for their subject matter. Whole books are written (usually) by one author, an author who has a passion for his topic. They are filled with information, yet personal and engaging. I've been looking over some "real books" for first grade science. Here's the dedication written inside one of the books I plan to use on Birds:

"To the children and the birds of America - that the bonds of love

and friendship between them may be strengthened..."

Isn't that beautiful? This author wants children to have more than just a memorized list of birds in this family and that family, more even than the ability to name a bird on a flashcard. He wants the children to learn to love the birds, to become friends with them. This book is a living book. Textbooks are not going to give the same response. Whether we do an official Charlotte Mason education or not, real books are a must for our family.

Narration:

This is a bit harder to explain. For brevity's sake, I'll just say that narration is a child's verbal response to something that has been read in a book, either alone or as a read-aloud with the rest of the family. It is "telling" a short book report, or verbally answering a leading question about a passage. Sometimes it can be accompanied by an illustration. Sometimes Mama writes down the child's narration for him; he may or may not copy it afterward. Narration begins in first grade, and completely takes the place of written tests or reports until the second half of elementary school. The idea is that asking a young child to write down an original composition concerning a book or passage requires him to not only organize his thoughts, but pay attention to his still fledgling spelling, handwriting, grammar, and punctuation. He is not able to fully give his mind to any of it. By verbally "telling", the child is allowed to focus in on the content of his words and the content of the passage. He is composing verbally, without the distractions of mechanics he has not yet mastered. Mama knows if he "got it" when she read to him or when he read in the living room for ten minutes, because he is able to verbally tell her all about it - often with a great deal of detail and enthusiasm.

The Humanities:

This is purely my preference. I love how much Charlotte Mason focuses on literature, poetry, music, and art. Certainly, the more mainstream subjects are not ignored. CM students follow a rigorous science, history, and mathematics "curriculum" in their school years. How often, though, is a school-aged child exposed to the beauty and great thought in the humanities? The best art, music, poetry can only add beauty to a child's life - a real sense of God's gifts in all things good.

There's much more, really, but these are my closing thoughts on a wonderful Charlotte Mason semester. The 'method' that can lift my mind and thoughts higher is certainly welcomed to do so.