Charlotte Mason’s Educational Method is centered around the idea of a three-pronged education. Education is atmosphere (environment). Education is discipline (habits of character). Education is life (academics). It is essentially learning through living and ideas, not simply through facts. Mason was a British educator living during the late nineteenth/early twentieth centuries. She had unique ideas about educating our youth for the time during which she lived and taught.

Mason’s method is a favorite amongst homeschooling parents. In fact, many public schools have adopted and adapted many of her principles of education and are applying them in the classroom.

What is Charlotte Mason’s method? According to Wikipedia, it is a method in which children are taught as whole persons through a wide range of interesting living books, first hand experiences, and good habits.

Some of the main components of Mason’s method are:

1. Living Books

These actually tell a story instead of having a student learn from a dry textbook. Historical fiction is an example. Children take a great deal more interest in hearing a story than reading some material which is written dully in a textbook.

2. Narration

Students take what they have gleaned from a lesson, field trip, reading and put it in their own words in a journal. These responses do not have to be in words. They can be in pictures, diagrams, brief snippets, etc.

3. Short Lessons

For younger children, no lesson should last longer than 15-20 minutes (this trains their attention span). For older students, the lessons may be lengthened to 30-45 minutes.

4. History

Use historical fiction, living diaries, journals, letters, primary sources, speeches. Tell it like a story, use a time line. Manipulative time lines are very helpful.

5. Foreign Language

Teach the students how to hear and speak the language first. Then worry about reading and writing the language. Isn’t that how we learn our native languages?

6. Geography

Children can learn geography through the current reading material and identifying locations on maps and globes. Mason recommended a 10 minute blank map drill weekly for the locations being studied. Many educators today refer to this as visual mapping. Students look at a map for a number of minutes. Then they reproduce everything they remember. They immediately study the original map again to assess their performance and to try to remember more. This activity is repeated several times for 10-15 minutes.

7. Copy work

A child carefully copies a well written passage. He/she absorbs grammar and punctuation rules and improves handwriting.

8. Nature Study

Outdoor studies and field trips. The children keep journals on what they see, labeling each entry with locations, names, and dates observed.

9. Math

Use manipulatives to enable your child to understand the hows and whys of the basics of math.

In order to update to the twenty-first century and stay with Mason’s ideas, technology must be integrated. There are so many virtual learning opportunities available in the internet. Just be sure to review the sights thoroughly before introducing them to your child.

Charlotte Mason also had advice for subjects including dictation, Bible, poetry, recitation, Shakespeare, handicrafts, hymn study, music study, and picture study.

Mason’s theories do not include a specific curriculum. Rather it is an applied philosophy that is easily adaptable to any state’s curriculum and has the ability to fulfill your needs.