The Methods of Charlotte Mason
Charlotte Mason’s most well-known teaching method is probably her advocacy of using living books instead of dry textbooks - comprised mainly of boring facts. Living books are generally historical fiction or books written by a person who has a passion for the subject and writes in a conversational or narrative style. Charlotte believed that children were intelligent enough to listen to and read a wide range of high-quality books. Charlotte coined the term “twaddle” to refer to books that dumbed down and insulted the child’s intelligence.
Charlotte also advocated narration as a means of helping children process and retain what they have read and then restructure and share what was read in an oral or written format using his own words.
Charlotte on math and science
Charlotte believed that children should have a good understanding of how and why when working math problems. Therefore, she advocated the use of manipulatives to help give children a concrete understanding of math concepts. Her method also involves giving the child a solid grasp of how math relates to our world and real-life situations.
For science, Charlotte took her students on weekly nature hikes. These hikes involved observation, identifying and recording interesting discoveries. A “nature study” included a sketchbook in which the child would sketch and record his observations. As the children moved to upper grades, nature study became more complex and involved more in-depth lessons and explorations.
Even if you do not totally subscribe to Charlotte Mason’s teaching methodology, it isl worthwhile to implement at least one or two of her methods. Charlotte Mason had a tremendous insight into the heart of a child and was dedicated to finding the most gentle and natural ways for them to learn.
Charlotte Mason Resources
Simply Charlotte Mason: This website offers many free resources as well as lesson plans that you can purchase and a fantastic listing of living books divided by category.
Getting started: This website provides a simple but excellent rundown on utilizing the Charlotte Mason method in your homeschool. If you are like me and get overwhelmed by too much information, then you will like the simple subject-by-subject layout.
Jeanette Steiner is a single homeschooling mom who has been teaching her (7) children for 11 years. To read more informative articles with tips and advice like the ones in this article, please click here: http://www.completehomeschoolcurriculum.com
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