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Original Homeschooling #1
Home Education: Vol. 1 of the Home Education series by Charlotte Mason
NEWLY EDITED AND ANNOTATED!
Charlotte Mason has been the name in home education for over 100 years!
This book contains the original text of Home Education Vol.1 but has been modified and annotated for a new generation of families looking for the ancient wisdom in these texts.
This edition has been modified for easier reading and contains dozens of annotations to help the reader understand the historical context.
Charlotte Mason has been the name in home education for over 100 years!
This book contains the original text of Home Education Vol.1 but has been modified and annotated for a new generation of families looking for the ancient wisdom in these texts.
This edition has been modified for easier reading and contains dozens of annotations to help the reader understand the historical context.
415 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1886
1453 people are currently reading
3558 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte M. Mason
65 books231 followersCharlotte Mason, a renowned British educator, lived during the turn of the 20th century. She turned the idea of education being something of utilitarian necessity into an approach based upon living ideas. She believed that education is "an atmosphere, a discipline, a life" and a "science of relations." Her methods are embraced around the world today, especially among the homeschool community.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 220 reviews
February 13, 2023
Not sure how many times I have read this. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this aloud for my Patreon group. So many riches. The book that started it all.
February 5, 2020
First finish 2/5/2020
The end is a flourish of the core: Christ. All Christ.
We may quibble on the outworking and the day to day, but make no mistake: Jesus is all in all.
The end is a flourish of the core: Christ. All Christ.
We may quibble on the outworking and the day to day, but make no mistake: Jesus is all in all.
June 1, 2010
Own.
I attempted this book several years ago, but I didn't make it passed the talk at the beginning about airing, vulgar servants, and other particulars to Victorian London. This time I skimmed through the beginning and was rewarded by the meaty and edifying second half.
I liked the title: Home Education: Training and Educating Children under Nine. Yes, under nine we are assuming are best suited to learning at home under their mother's care rather than at school under a master. Miss Mason posits that children can and should give full attention to their work in short bursts, rather than drawn out "desultory" reading and thinking. With short but intense chunks of work done in the morning, alternating types of application required (10 minutes of listening to quality reading, then narrating, then 10 minutes of a discipline like copywork or math, then 10 minutes again of reading and narrating, etc.), a full and quality education can be had in a couple morning hours, leaving the majority of the day open for hobbies, out-of-doors, and free play, which are productive and necessary activities for children.
From this book I have a better idea of how to secure attention (it comes from the child knowing he will be accountable to relate the information in his own words, every time), how to draw out a narration, and how to instill habits of order and "easy living." I also feel reassured that a solid, meaty education can be had with only a couple hours a day spent in lessons. Quantity of time and work does not a quality education make. A quality education is made with quality books and quality thinking, done in short bursts of complete application.
I am sorry I wrote these books off for so long, but grateful I went ahead and purchased and read them before forming much in the way of school-time habits. Now, granted I am accustomed to reading older British books, but still I don't think the language was difficult at all, nor would it be a hurdle to anyone who is comfortable with Austen.
I attempted this book several years ago, but I didn't make it passed the talk at the beginning about airing, vulgar servants, and other particulars to Victorian London. This time I skimmed through the beginning and was rewarded by the meaty and edifying second half.
I liked the title: Home Education: Training and Educating Children under Nine. Yes, under nine we are assuming are best suited to learning at home under their mother's care rather than at school under a master. Miss Mason posits that children can and should give full attention to their work in short bursts, rather than drawn out "desultory" reading and thinking. With short but intense chunks of work done in the morning, alternating types of application required (10 minutes of listening to quality reading, then narrating, then 10 minutes of a discipline like copywork or math, then 10 minutes again of reading and narrating, etc.), a full and quality education can be had in a couple morning hours, leaving the majority of the day open for hobbies, out-of-doors, and free play, which are productive and necessary activities for children.
From this book I have a better idea of how to secure attention (it comes from the child knowing he will be accountable to relate the information in his own words, every time), how to draw out a narration, and how to instill habits of order and "easy living." I also feel reassured that a solid, meaty education can be had with only a couple hours a day spent in lessons. Quantity of time and work does not a quality education make. A quality education is made with quality books and quality thinking, done in short bursts of complete application.
I am sorry I wrote these books off for so long, but grateful I went ahead and purchased and read them before forming much in the way of school-time habits. Now, granted I am accustomed to reading older British books, but still I don't think the language was difficult at all, nor would it be a hurdle to anyone who is comfortable with Austen.
August 1, 2021
I was pleasantly surprised by how easy this was to read. Not to mention how relevant it still is! After reading through this first volume, I'm feeling even more secure in our decision to use a Charlotte Mason approach to schooling our little ones.
March 14, 2024
The first time I read through Home Education, my oldest was just 6 and babies were still coming. While inspiring, it also seemed oppressive and impossible, a klaxon blaring all that I wasn't doing and ought to be.
Now, having walked through these early years of existence with five different persons, I am reading it without the burden of "should be doing" on my heart. This leaves room for me to notice Charlotte's incredible respect for small children and their needs. She's acutely aware of them as whole beings, with minds and moods affected by home life and diet, clothing and exercise. She sees their need for sensory input as a wonderful foundation to be abundantly fed and nurtured, not as something that interferes with true education. But she doesn't idolize children. She knows that they need solid guidance and discipline so that the sensory input can feed them rather than control them. She is about investing in the whole child here, in all of their unique splendor: body, mind and soul. Solid appreciation for real things, for the knowledge that is acquired via the senses, not only through words. Last time I saw the focus on living ideas, on finding the right literature. This time it is her appreciation for all that is not words and numbers which stands out to me.
On this reading, I'm finally seeing all the grace and respect that she has for mothers who do what we can. It's really been encouraging.
Now, having walked through these early years of existence with five different persons, I am reading it without the burden of "should be doing" on my heart. This leaves room for me to notice Charlotte's incredible respect for small children and their needs. She's acutely aware of them as whole beings, with minds and moods affected by home life and diet, clothing and exercise. She sees their need for sensory input as a wonderful foundation to be abundantly fed and nurtured, not as something that interferes with true education. But she doesn't idolize children. She knows that they need solid guidance and discipline so that the sensory input can feed them rather than control them. She is about investing in the whole child here, in all of their unique splendor: body, mind and soul. Solid appreciation for real things, for the knowledge that is acquired via the senses, not only through words. Last time I saw the focus on living ideas, on finding the right literature. This time it is her appreciation for all that is not words and numbers which stands out to me.
On this reading, I'm finally seeing all the grace and respect that she has for mothers who do what we can. It's really been encouraging.
April 4, 2016
Reading this as my oldest is soon turning 9, I feel that I could have done things differently. Mason was very wise and lots of her writing makes sense and are sound. Parenting and teaching does not come with a manual but this is the closest it comes to an instructional manual as it gets .
September 16, 2025
Charlotte Mason’s Home Education is nothing less than a foundational text for anyone serious about the spiritual, intellectual, and moral formation of children. The first volume in her series offers not only a philosophy of education, but a theology of child-rearing—rooted in natural law, common grace, and the transforming power of the Gospel.
Mason opens with weighty, arresting questions: Can the development of a human soul be left to instinct? Can motherhood be reduced to intuition without study or preparation? Her answer is as challenging as it is hopeful: the mother has an immense duty—and education must be intentional, not improvisational.
From there, she leads us deeper through more great questions:
Why must the child learn? Because the mind, like the body, must grow.
How must the child learn? Through the loving, thoughtful guidance of the mother—the best teacher a young child could ask for.
What must the child learn? Everything worthy. Every child, regardless of background, deserves access to a broad and generous curriculum. Mason’s vision is nothing short of a liberal education for all—a wide feast of subjects that fill the mind with “fruitful ideas and valuable knowledge.”
Mason then turns to the spiritual center of the child. The will must be trained through habit and direction. The conscience, through Scripture and story. Yet ultimately, she leads us to a higher truth: only the awakening of the soul by grace can bring true life. The Christian parent, then, must present the Gospel—not as a single lesson, but as the living center of all education. The child must not merely be made good; he must be made new.
Charlotte Mason’s Home Education is more than a parenting manual. It is a deeply theological, profoundly practical, and beautifully written invitation to see the raising of children as sacred work. It challenges modern assumptions and elevates motherhood—not as sentimentality, but as vocation.
If you’ve ever thought home education begins at the kitchen table in kindergarten—you’re wrong. It begins far earlier: in the habits of the nursery, the rhythms of outdoor life, the quiet building of will, and in the presentation of the Gospel to a soul in need of waking up to its Creator.
If you’ve ever wondered whether the first years of life matter—read this. If you’ve ever asked whether a mother can also be a philosopher, a theologian, a guide, and a gardener of souls—read this. If you seek an education rooted in truth, virtue, beauty, and grace—start here.
“The child of the Christian mother, whose highest desire is to train him for the Christian life… when he wakes to the consciousness of Whose he is and Whom he serves, she would have him ready for that high service.” — Charlotte Mason
Mason opens with weighty, arresting questions: Can the development of a human soul be left to instinct? Can motherhood be reduced to intuition without study or preparation? Her answer is as challenging as it is hopeful: the mother has an immense duty—and education must be intentional, not improvisational.
From there, she leads us deeper through more great questions:
Why must the child learn? Because the mind, like the body, must grow.
How must the child learn? Through the loving, thoughtful guidance of the mother—the best teacher a young child could ask for.
What must the child learn? Everything worthy. Every child, regardless of background, deserves access to a broad and generous curriculum. Mason’s vision is nothing short of a liberal education for all—a wide feast of subjects that fill the mind with “fruitful ideas and valuable knowledge.”
Mason then turns to the spiritual center of the child. The will must be trained through habit and direction. The conscience, through Scripture and story. Yet ultimately, she leads us to a higher truth: only the awakening of the soul by grace can bring true life. The Christian parent, then, must present the Gospel—not as a single lesson, but as the living center of all education. The child must not merely be made good; he must be made new.
Charlotte Mason’s Home Education is more than a parenting manual. It is a deeply theological, profoundly practical, and beautifully written invitation to see the raising of children as sacred work. It challenges modern assumptions and elevates motherhood—not as sentimentality, but as vocation.
If you’ve ever thought home education begins at the kitchen table in kindergarten—you’re wrong. It begins far earlier: in the habits of the nursery, the rhythms of outdoor life, the quiet building of will, and in the presentation of the Gospel to a soul in need of waking up to its Creator.
If you’ve ever wondered whether the first years of life matter—read this. If you’ve ever asked whether a mother can also be a philosopher, a theologian, a guide, and a gardener of souls—read this. If you seek an education rooted in truth, virtue, beauty, and grace—start here.
“The child of the Christian mother, whose highest desire is to train him for the Christian life… when he wakes to the consciousness of Whose he is and Whom he serves, she would have him ready for that high service.” — Charlotte Mason
August 23, 2021
Wow. This book is so Very, Very Victorian.
I suppose that should come as no surprise, seeing as it was written by a Victorian educator, but having for several decades known Charlotte Mason only as "that method that some homeschoolers are really sold on," I suppose I was caught off guard at how much of her advice blares nineteenth century conventional wisdom.
Phrenology is out, but the amount of suspect psychology Charlotte Mason propounds is pretty hefty, as is the advice on strengthening of the lungs and other organs.
She is very scientific both in her interests and her thinking. Except that she is also a romantic who views communion with nature as the panacea for childhood development and seems to believe that children are quasi-heavenly beings sent down into the world.
She speaks strongly for Christianity, but it is a mamby-pamby Christianity of generally being good. When it comes to Bible lessons, read the Bible sincerely, trusting children will soak up its "essence," but be prepared later on to explain to them how perfectly logical it is that they are not to believe the Genesis account since Darwinian theory clearly proves it to be a fairy tale.
Every educated person should learn French.
And don't let a postmodern critical theorist peak into this book because it is stuffed with Victorian generalizations about "the such-and-such race" and their characteristics, or the "red Indian savages" and so forth.
Also, the Mother is free to devote the necessary 5-6 hours outdoors daily, including school lessons, presumably because she employs a nanny/governess, cook, and other household servants. I slightly shudder imagining modern homeschool moms trying to take on The Charlotte Mason Method as written, because it is decidedly NOT designed for the lower-middle classes who must keep house for themselves.
However, looking beyond the shock of the book's many antiquated assumptions, I can see to a degree why this method appeals to modern homeschoolers. First, it happens to be an old(er) and still extant book written with the assumption that a mother raising her own little children is very good--and that she can do it very well. Second, there truly are many timeless and worthwhile ideas. Without detailing my personal pros and cons, I can at least comment that I often found myself lashed wildly from rejecting an idea completely to embracing a beautiful insight.
All in all, I would need to read much more before I could judge whether Charlotte Mason is an educational method I wish to espouse. I think if I knew more of the ideas against which she was reacting, as well as the general Victorian view of children and education, I would be better set to decide whether this is the particular place in history to embrace as my "classic" type of education or whether I would want to look to a yet further corner of history. Perhaps a book to return to again some time.
I suppose that should come as no surprise, seeing as it was written by a Victorian educator, but having for several decades known Charlotte Mason only as "that method that some homeschoolers are really sold on," I suppose I was caught off guard at how much of her advice blares nineteenth century conventional wisdom.
Phrenology is out, but the amount of suspect psychology Charlotte Mason propounds is pretty hefty, as is the advice on strengthening of the lungs and other organs.
She is very scientific both in her interests and her thinking. Except that she is also a romantic who views communion with nature as the panacea for childhood development and seems to believe that children are quasi-heavenly beings sent down into the world.
She speaks strongly for Christianity, but it is a mamby-pamby Christianity of generally being good. When it comes to Bible lessons, read the Bible sincerely, trusting children will soak up its "essence," but be prepared later on to explain to them how perfectly logical it is that they are not to believe the Genesis account since Darwinian theory clearly proves it to be a fairy tale.
Every educated person should learn French.
And don't let a postmodern critical theorist peak into this book because it is stuffed with Victorian generalizations about "the such-and-such race" and their characteristics, or the "red Indian savages" and so forth.
Also, the Mother is free to devote the necessary 5-6 hours outdoors daily, including school lessons, presumably because she employs a nanny/governess, cook, and other household servants. I slightly shudder imagining modern homeschool moms trying to take on The Charlotte Mason Method as written, because it is decidedly NOT designed for the lower-middle classes who must keep house for themselves.
However, looking beyond the shock of the book's many antiquated assumptions, I can see to a degree why this method appeals to modern homeschoolers. First, it happens to be an old(er) and still extant book written with the assumption that a mother raising her own little children is very good--and that she can do it very well. Second, there truly are many timeless and worthwhile ideas. Without detailing my personal pros and cons, I can at least comment that I often found myself lashed wildly from rejecting an idea completely to embracing a beautiful insight.
All in all, I would need to read much more before I could judge whether Charlotte Mason is an educational method I wish to espouse. I think if I knew more of the ideas against which she was reacting, as well as the general Victorian view of children and education, I would be better set to decide whether this is the particular place in history to embrace as my "classic" type of education or whether I would want to look to a yet further corner of history. Perhaps a book to return to again some time.
February 16, 2023
I read this along with recordings that Cindy Rollins does on her Patreon. I cannot recommend too highly this Charlotte Mason volume, and the offerings of Cindy's patreon. So much wisdom and encouragement from Charlotte and Cindy. What a team!
March 8, 2023
excellent! my second reading, this time was alongside friends which made the reading even better because we could discuss ideas.
October 16, 2025
Charlotte Mason was wise in her time and beyond her time. I’m very thankful I was encouraged to learn more of her teaching methods.
2025: loved reading this again. Loved at the end she is exhorting us to pray for our children and not to hinder the Holy Spirit moving in their lives. So thankful I was led to this wise lady, by God.
2025: loved reading this again. Loved at the end she is exhorting us to pray for our children and not to hinder the Holy Spirit moving in their lives. So thankful I was led to this wise lady, by God.
December 25, 2023
More thorough review to follow when I have time to type. I’m also listening to Cindy Rollins read the book with a bit of commentary on her Patreon, so I’m going to count that as a second read when I finish that.
October 17, 2019
Will return to this again. First read took a loooong time to digest.
Read second time through with book club. Gleaned so much wisdom & was able to apply more with older children.
Read second time through with book club. Gleaned so much wisdom & was able to apply more with older children.
May 1, 2021
So very good. I wish I had read this five or ten years ago.
March 4, 2019
I started reading this book because I had read of some homeschooling methods that were based on Charlotte Mason’s books on education. She wrote Home Education in 1886, and as I read I was amazed at how much of what she says is still applicable today. There have been changes in science and in the world, but since the chief object of her book is how to educate your children; children are much the same as they ever were. They are born into the world and need to grow and learn about the world around them.
As I read, I found that my opinion of this book grew as well. I think it is one of the best parenting books I have read. So many of the books today are from a secular worldview, and the Christian books are usually only on spiritual ideas, without the honor and respect of science and natural laws that Mason has in her views. She is very good at starting her ideas at the basic, logical beginning, and working from there. She is also very good at not giving too specific of advice (as every child is unique, so techniques for handling each child would vary), yet her advice is helpful and very specific about some things.
The section on habits is worth reading, whether homeschooling or not. This section helps establish a way of thinking about the issues you are facing with your children, and why they are constant daily battles. If a child is in a habit of doing something, the only way to cure that habit is to replace it with a different, good habit. Good advice that I need to apply in my own life.
Some of my favorite quotes, from over 100 years ago and still true today:
“On fine days when it is warm enough to sit out with wraps, why should not tea and breakfast, everything but a hot dinner, be served out of doors? For we are an overwrought generation, running to nerves as a cabbage runs to seed; and every hour spent in the open is a clear gain, tending to the increase of brain power and bodily vigour, and to the lengthening of life itself.”
“All this is stale knowledge to older people, but one of the secrets of the educator is to present nothing as stale knowledge, but to put himself in the position of the child, and wonder and admire with him; for every common miracle which the child sees with his own eyes makes of him for the moment another Newton.”
“We were all meant to be naturalists, each in his degree, and it is inexcusable to live in a world so full of the marvels of plant and animal life and to care for none of these things.”
Mason is very strong-minded about children spending as much time outdoors in nature as possible, and today in the world we live in I feel it is even more important! I realize that although I spent a great deal of time outside when I was a child, it is so easy for my children to only see the wonders of nature second-hand from television. The problem is that it isn’t real and that it is curated to show only what the nature program is trying to show. The real, natural world is entirely different and immersive. Our world is so science-minded these days, yet, without spending time outdoors in nature a great deal, the wonders of science will always remain locked to children, and uninteresting.
In that same vein:
“Power will pass, more and more, into the hands of Scientific Men. — It is infinitely well worth of the mother’s while to take some pains every day to secure, in the first place, that her children spend hours daily amongst rural and natural objects; and, in the second place, to infuse into them, or rather to cherish in them, the love of investigation.”
On habits:
“What remains to be tried when neither time, reward, nor punishment is effectual? That panacea of the educationist: ‘ One custom overcometh another.’ This inveterate dawdling is a habit to be supplanted only by the contrary habit, and the mother must devote herself for a few weeks to this cure as steadily and untiringly as she would to the nursing of her child through measles.”
“The education of habit is successful in so far as it enables the mother to let her children alone, not teasing them with perpetual commands and directions — a running fire of Do and Don’t; but letting them go their own way and grow, having first secured that they will go the right way, and grow to fruitful purpose… The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days; while she who lets their habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction with the children.”
“Half the clever talk we hear today, and half the uneasiness which underlies this talk, are due to a thorough and perfect ignorance of the Bible text.”
“But let the imaginations of children be stored with the pictures, their minds nourished upon the words, of the gradually unfolding story of the Scriptures, and they will come to look out upon a wide horizon within which persons and events take shape in their due place and due proportion. By degrees, they will see that the world is a stage whereon the goodness of God is continually striving with the wilfulness of man; that some heroic men take sides with God; and that others, foolish and headstrong, oppose themselves to Him.”
“Let all the circumstances of the daily Bible reading — the consecutive reading, from the first chapter of Genesis onwards, with necessary omissions — be delightful to the child; let him be in his mother’s room, in his mother’s arms; let that quarter of an hour be one of sweet leisure and sober gladness, the child’s whole interest being allowed to go to the story without distracting moral considerations; and then, the less talk the better; the story will sink in, and bring its own teaching, a little now, and more every year as he is able to bear it. Once such story will be in him a constantly growing, fructifying moral idea.”
As I read, I found that my opinion of this book grew as well. I think it is one of the best parenting books I have read. So many of the books today are from a secular worldview, and the Christian books are usually only on spiritual ideas, without the honor and respect of science and natural laws that Mason has in her views. She is very good at starting her ideas at the basic, logical beginning, and working from there. She is also very good at not giving too specific of advice (as every child is unique, so techniques for handling each child would vary), yet her advice is helpful and very specific about some things.
The section on habits is worth reading, whether homeschooling or not. This section helps establish a way of thinking about the issues you are facing with your children, and why they are constant daily battles. If a child is in a habit of doing something, the only way to cure that habit is to replace it with a different, good habit. Good advice that I need to apply in my own life.
Some of my favorite quotes, from over 100 years ago and still true today:
“On fine days when it is warm enough to sit out with wraps, why should not tea and breakfast, everything but a hot dinner, be served out of doors? For we are an overwrought generation, running to nerves as a cabbage runs to seed; and every hour spent in the open is a clear gain, tending to the increase of brain power and bodily vigour, and to the lengthening of life itself.”
“All this is stale knowledge to older people, but one of the secrets of the educator is to present nothing as stale knowledge, but to put himself in the position of the child, and wonder and admire with him; for every common miracle which the child sees with his own eyes makes of him for the moment another Newton.”
“We were all meant to be naturalists, each in his degree, and it is inexcusable to live in a world so full of the marvels of plant and animal life and to care for none of these things.”
Mason is very strong-minded about children spending as much time outdoors in nature as possible, and today in the world we live in I feel it is even more important! I realize that although I spent a great deal of time outside when I was a child, it is so easy for my children to only see the wonders of nature second-hand from television. The problem is that it isn’t real and that it is curated to show only what the nature program is trying to show. The real, natural world is entirely different and immersive. Our world is so science-minded these days, yet, without spending time outdoors in nature a great deal, the wonders of science will always remain locked to children, and uninteresting.
In that same vein:
“Power will pass, more and more, into the hands of Scientific Men. — It is infinitely well worth of the mother’s while to take some pains every day to secure, in the first place, that her children spend hours daily amongst rural and natural objects; and, in the second place, to infuse into them, or rather to cherish in them, the love of investigation.”
On habits:
“What remains to be tried when neither time, reward, nor punishment is effectual? That panacea of the educationist: ‘ One custom overcometh another.’ This inveterate dawdling is a habit to be supplanted only by the contrary habit, and the mother must devote herself for a few weeks to this cure as steadily and untiringly as she would to the nursing of her child through measles.”
“The education of habit is successful in so far as it enables the mother to let her children alone, not teasing them with perpetual commands and directions — a running fire of Do and Don’t; but letting them go their own way and grow, having first secured that they will go the right way, and grow to fruitful purpose… The mother who takes pains to endow her children with good habits secures for herself smooth and easy days; while she who lets their habits take care of themselves has a weary life of endless friction with the children.”
“Half the clever talk we hear today, and half the uneasiness which underlies this talk, are due to a thorough and perfect ignorance of the Bible text.”
“But let the imaginations of children be stored with the pictures, their minds nourished upon the words, of the gradually unfolding story of the Scriptures, and they will come to look out upon a wide horizon within which persons and events take shape in their due place and due proportion. By degrees, they will see that the world is a stage whereon the goodness of God is continually striving with the wilfulness of man; that some heroic men take sides with God; and that others, foolish and headstrong, oppose themselves to Him.”
“Let all the circumstances of the daily Bible reading — the consecutive reading, from the first chapter of Genesis onwards, with necessary omissions — be delightful to the child; let him be in his mother’s room, in his mother’s arms; let that quarter of an hour be one of sweet leisure and sober gladness, the child’s whole interest being allowed to go to the story without distracting moral considerations; and then, the less talk the better; the story will sink in, and bring its own teaching, a little now, and more every year as he is able to bear it. Once such story will be in him a constantly growing, fructifying moral idea.”
February 1, 2025
Absolutely fantastic. So well written. Am I a classical homeschool mom yet?? Hah.
Things that stood out:
-go outside. Be outside. Enjoy outside.
-the importance of a neat, appealing home
-proper nutrition and care of a child’s body essential to providing them energy to learn and explore
-it’s all about *habits*
-do not allow for sloppy work
-let God’s Word do it’s work and do not try to lecture your young child on the meaning of each passage. Let a sense of wonder and joy in God’s Word be the feast they feed on and rather make smaller comments about the goodness of God and salvation than lengthy talks about morality (this is speaking particularly of young children).
Things that stood out:
-go outside. Be outside. Enjoy outside.
-the importance of a neat, appealing home
-proper nutrition and care of a child’s body essential to providing them energy to learn and explore
-it’s all about *habits*
-do not allow for sloppy work
-let God’s Word do it’s work and do not try to lecture your young child on the meaning of each passage. Let a sense of wonder and joy in God’s Word be the feast they feed on and rather make smaller comments about the goodness of God and salvation than lengthy talks about morality (this is speaking particularly of young children).
August 19, 2017
I've read many books and blogs on Charlotte Mason Philosophy of Education. While reading Home Education I was already pretty familiar with what I was reading based on my other readings. Much can be learned from CM original writings. Home Education is more than an educational foundation for homeschooling parents its more about child training than education. It covers more about building habits and laying a foundation for your child to be successful not just in education but in life as a person, as a Christian. I would recommend this to all parents to read even if they don't plan on homeschooling or following a CM Education.
I really can't share all the parts I loved from this book but here are a few:
" The education of the will is really of far greater importance, as shaping the destiny of the individual, than that of the intellect."
"Augustine-'The soul of man is for God as God is for the soul.' The soul has one appetite, for the things of God: breathes one air, the breath, the Spirit of God; has one desire, for the knowledge of God; one only joy; in the face of God. 'I want to live in the Light of a Countenance which never ceases to smile upon me.' is the language of the soul. The direct action of the soul is all Godward, with a reflex action towards men. The speech of the soul is prayer and praise, the right hand of the soul is faith, the light of the soul is love, the love of God shed abroad upon it."
"The Essence of Christianity is Loyalty to a Person.--Christ, our King. Here is a thought to unseal the fountains of love and loyalty, the treasures of faith and imagination, bound up in the child. The very essence of Christianity is personal loyalty, passionate loyalty to our adorable Chief. We have laid other foundations-regeneration, sacraments, justification, works, faith, the Bible-any one of which however necessary to salvation in its due place and proportion, may become a religion about Christ and without Christ. An now a time of sifting has come upon us, and thoughtful people decline to know anything about our religious systems; they write down all our orthodox beliefs as things not knowable. Perhaps this may be because, in thinking much of our salvation, we have put out of sight our King, the divine fact which no soul of man to whom it is presented can ignore. The idea of CHRIST IS LIFE; let the thought of Him once get touch of the soul, and it raises up a living power, independent of all formularies of the brain. Let us save Christianity for our children by bringing them into allegiance to Christ the King.
"The Effort of decision, we have seen , is the greatest effort of life: not the doing of the thing but the making up of one's mind as to which thing to do first."
Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life.
And we as parents my we continue our on education even if we have finished our formal education.
I really can't share all the parts I loved from this book but here are a few:
" The education of the will is really of far greater importance, as shaping the destiny of the individual, than that of the intellect."
"Augustine-'The soul of man is for God as God is for the soul.' The soul has one appetite, for the things of God: breathes one air, the breath, the Spirit of God; has one desire, for the knowledge of God; one only joy; in the face of God. 'I want to live in the Light of a Countenance which never ceases to smile upon me.' is the language of the soul. The direct action of the soul is all Godward, with a reflex action towards men. The speech of the soul is prayer and praise, the right hand of the soul is faith, the light of the soul is love, the love of God shed abroad upon it."
"The Essence of Christianity is Loyalty to a Person.--Christ, our King. Here is a thought to unseal the fountains of love and loyalty, the treasures of faith and imagination, bound up in the child. The very essence of Christianity is personal loyalty, passionate loyalty to our adorable Chief. We have laid other foundations-regeneration, sacraments, justification, works, faith, the Bible-any one of which however necessary to salvation in its due place and proportion, may become a religion about Christ and without Christ. An now a time of sifting has come upon us, and thoughtful people decline to know anything about our religious systems; they write down all our orthodox beliefs as things not knowable. Perhaps this may be because, in thinking much of our salvation, we have put out of sight our King, the divine fact which no soul of man to whom it is presented can ignore. The idea of CHRIST IS LIFE; let the thought of Him once get touch of the soul, and it raises up a living power, independent of all formularies of the brain. Let us save Christianity for our children by bringing them into allegiance to Christ the King.
"The Effort of decision, we have seen , is the greatest effort of life: not the doing of the thing but the making up of one's mind as to which thing to do first."
Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life.
And we as parents my we continue our on education even if we have finished our formal education.
October 16, 2025
Goodreads documents that this was my 4th full time through Home Education. Still 5 stars ⭐️ and I still glean so much from each subsequent reading!
August 7, 2018
*trumpet fanfare*
It only took me six years, but I finally finished it! My oldest child is six-and-a-half and started first grade/form 1B last week, natch.
This is a great introduction to the Mason educational philosophy, with a mix of practical and philosophical advice. The reason I kept getting stuck is two-fold.
One: near the beginning she talks about how to select a governess and whether to feed your kid beef, and she assumes that the mother implementing her ideas has household staff and few chores of her own. It's all very 19th-century, and I just got bogged down a bit. It also doesn't seem super urgent when you have a six-month-old.
Two: this is a book about childrearing. But really, it's a book about mother-rearing. I'm supposed to be thoughtful, patient, observant, wise, consistent, firm, loving, AND holy? It's daunting.
But I made it! And just in time.
It only took me six years, but I finally finished it! My oldest child is six-and-a-half and started first grade/form 1B last week, natch.
This is a great introduction to the Mason educational philosophy, with a mix of practical and philosophical advice. The reason I kept getting stuck is two-fold.
One: near the beginning she talks about how to select a governess and whether to feed your kid beef, and she assumes that the mother implementing her ideas has household staff and few chores of her own. It's all very 19th-century, and I just got bogged down a bit. It also doesn't seem super urgent when you have a six-month-old.
Two: this is a book about childrearing. But really, it's a book about mother-rearing. I'm supposed to be thoughtful, patient, observant, wise, consistent, firm, loving, AND holy? It's daunting.
But I made it! And just in time.
November 7, 2019
“Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life.”
AT LAST!
Finally finished Home Education, by Charlotte Mason, thanks to a wonderful slow-read book club. After reading through, I am confirmed in my inclinations to offer my kids a Charlotte Mason education. I believe it is an age-appropriate way to inspire the curiosity, imagination and wonder critical to a traditional liberal arts education.
A few main thoughts: some info is specific to Mason's time and place. I'm not going to insist on wool clothes in our temperate climate.
I appreciate her focus on viewing a child as a person, and the idea of spreading a wonderful educational feast, but not force-feeding them information. "I am, I can, I ought, I will."
AT LAST!
Finally finished Home Education, by Charlotte Mason, thanks to a wonderful slow-read book club. After reading through, I am confirmed in my inclinations to offer my kids a Charlotte Mason education. I believe it is an age-appropriate way to inspire the curiosity, imagination and wonder critical to a traditional liberal arts education.
A few main thoughts: some info is specific to Mason's time and place. I'm not going to insist on wool clothes in our temperate climate.
I appreciate her focus on viewing a child as a person, and the idea of spreading a wonderful educational feast, but not force-feeding them information. "I am, I can, I ought, I will."
July 2, 2023
This book is beyond precious to me. This is the book that “started it all” for me as an aspiring home educator. I originally began this book the summer of 2021, with a group of young women in my church, led by a seasoned Charlotte Mason homeschooler who was ready to impart her wisdom. I was so blessed by each meeting that we had together, discussing the highlights of each chapter, challenging each other’s philosophies of education, and talking about our own experiences. Unfortunately, our dear leader and mentor moved away and we were unable to continue the book together. I recently decided to pick the book back up, finish what we started and get my highlighter out.
I have never been so challenged by a book in my life.
This book essentially undid all of the early childhood education I received in college. I AM SO GLAD! Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education is classical, attainable, inclusive, and biblically based. She urges her readers to view children as “born persons” and to lay out the “feast of ideas” for them. Since beginning this book, I have read several others that were inspired by Charlotte Mason’s method and philosophy. When I was still working as a music teacher, I began implementing many of the methods with my students to great success. Charlotte Mason is also the reason I am writing this review at all. She inspired me to read again. To educate, inspire, and challenge myself with living books. I can write forever about how much I love this book and love the woman who wrote it. Thank you, Miss Mason.
I have never been so challenged by a book in my life.
This book essentially undid all of the early childhood education I received in college. I AM SO GLAD! Charlotte Mason’s philosophy of education is classical, attainable, inclusive, and biblically based. She urges her readers to view children as “born persons” and to lay out the “feast of ideas” for them. Since beginning this book, I have read several others that were inspired by Charlotte Mason’s method and philosophy. When I was still working as a music teacher, I began implementing many of the methods with my students to great success. Charlotte Mason is also the reason I am writing this review at all. She inspired me to read again. To educate, inspire, and challenge myself with living books. I can write forever about how much I love this book and love the woman who wrote it. Thank you, Miss Mason.
June 30, 2025
I have been reading through this book for almost a year. It was not an easy book to read but, boy, is it a gem.
After closing the book, I have a few (disjointed, sorry!) thoughts:
1. I wish I had read this when my kids were younger. This book is for moms of younger kids, probably 0-7 years.
2 BUT I’m super thankful that I have been privy to the wisdom from this book through the scholarship and ministry of the likes of Cindy Rollins and the Ambleside Online advisory. What I would do without these women I DO NOT EVEN WANT TO CONSIDER. I am truly indebted to Charlotte Mason and those who have come after her - a wide feast has been spread before me and I (and my kids) are richer for it. Yes, I am now gushing. I love these people.
3. I WISH younger moms would read this book! I promise you, your parenting will be better for it.
4. I am astounded that a woman who did not have children could pour out six volumes of insight. And yet, why am I astounded? She gave decades of her life to the study of younger souls. It takes more than biology to be a mother and an educator.
In my opinion, her last section on the will, the conscience, and the divine life of the child is pure gold.
After closing the book, I have a few (disjointed, sorry!) thoughts:
1. I wish I had read this when my kids were younger. This book is for moms of younger kids, probably 0-7 years.
2 BUT I’m super thankful that I have been privy to the wisdom from this book through the scholarship and ministry of the likes of Cindy Rollins and the Ambleside Online advisory. What I would do without these women I DO NOT EVEN WANT TO CONSIDER. I am truly indebted to Charlotte Mason and those who have come after her - a wide feast has been spread before me and I (and my kids) are richer for it. Yes, I am now gushing. I love these people.
3. I WISH younger moms would read this book! I promise you, your parenting will be better for it.
4. I am astounded that a woman who did not have children could pour out six volumes of insight. And yet, why am I astounded? She gave decades of her life to the study of younger souls. It takes more than biology to be a mother and an educator.
In my opinion, her last section on the will, the conscience, and the divine life of the child is pure gold.
July 18, 2022
A must-read for any homeschooler. It has greatly impacted my homeschool and family life already, and I know I will carry many of Charlotte Mason’s lessons into the rest of my parenting life.
That being said, this was a HARD read for me. I was being held accountable to read it because of a book club I am in, and there is no way I would have finished it otherwise. The sentences were long, many sections felt unfocused, and I just had trouble tracking with the overall narrative. I am sympathetic to other homeschoolers (even ones who follow the Charlotte Mason method) who are not able to finish Home Education.
My favorite part was Part V: Lessons as Instruments of Education. I loved the practical applications of her methods, and really examples of how to do lessons with her approach.
That being said, this was a HARD read for me. I was being held accountable to read it because of a book club I am in, and there is no way I would have finished it otherwise. The sentences were long, many sections felt unfocused, and I just had trouble tracking with the overall narrative. I am sympathetic to other homeschoolers (even ones who follow the Charlotte Mason method) who are not able to finish Home Education.
My favorite part was Part V: Lessons as Instruments of Education. I loved the practical applications of her methods, and really examples of how to do lessons with her approach.
January 17, 2021
Great book. Even if homeschooling is not in your family's future, I would highly recommend reading it for the author's thoughts on training up a child "in the way he should go."
For Challies 2021, this was my choice for "book I have always wanted to read."
For Challies 2021, this was my choice for "book I have always wanted to read."
August 23, 2023
I cannot even begin to describe how valuable this book has been in preparing me for each year of homeschooling.
So I won’t.
You just need to go read it - because you don’t need to be a homeschooler to read and profit from its wisdom.
So I won’t.
You just need to go read it - because you don’t need to be a homeschooler to read and profit from its wisdom.
March 21, 2025
If you’ve been around the internet homeschooling world, you’ve probably heard of Charlotte Mason. Maybe you, like me, know a lot about her and her teaching approach second hand. I wanted to read about her philosophy in her own words. I enjoyed working my way through this and picked up speed when I switched to the audiobook from Living Book Press. The accompanying/read-along PDF was excellent for getting a screenshot of significant passages.
The sections on habit and will were particularly illuminating. I look forward to continuing through the other volumes.
The sections on habit and will were particularly illuminating. I look forward to continuing through the other volumes.
February 8, 2024
It took me a year and a half, but I am done! Books on theory and philosophy are not my thing. I loved the application of it however and so there are so many good thoughts on educating our children!
November 15, 2022
A thought-provoking text with insights on parenting and education that inspire and excite me!
June 14, 2025
my second or third read through. great things to ponder and practice
August 18, 2025
I loved this! It's a weighty book, meaty and one to move through slowly, pondering as you go. There were certainly some things to take with a grain of salt, but overall, I love Charlotte's methods and her perspective. She was ahead of her time in many of her ideas, and so much of what she theorized has now been supported by modern brain research!
This was so helpful for me to gain a better understanding of her approach and underlying philosophy. Never mind that it's supposed to be for the upbringing of the under-nine crowd; it is so foundational and so helpful, no matter how young or old your kids may be. This is not just advice on how to homeschool your children...this is practical wisdom for how to raise and parent them. It's like Parenting 101! And I love that she takes the basis for her method from the code of education in the Gospels...see that ye despise not, offend not, hinder not, any of these little ones.
The last part of the book, about the Will, is particularly convicting. There is so much to learn and ponder here, about our own lives, behaviors, motives, and character, as adults. This book provides ample avenues for ideas to ponder, methods to live out, and above all, the reiteration to PRAY and recognize that the Holy Spirit is THE teacher of both ourselves and our children!
This was so helpful for me to gain a better understanding of her approach and underlying philosophy. Never mind that it's supposed to be for the upbringing of the under-nine crowd; it is so foundational and so helpful, no matter how young or old your kids may be. This is not just advice on how to homeschool your children...this is practical wisdom for how to raise and parent them. It's like Parenting 101! And I love that she takes the basis for her method from the code of education in the Gospels...see that ye despise not, offend not, hinder not, any of these little ones.
The last part of the book, about the Will, is particularly convicting. There is so much to learn and ponder here, about our own lives, behaviors, motives, and character, as adults. This book provides ample avenues for ideas to ponder, methods to live out, and above all, the reiteration to PRAY and recognize that the Holy Spirit is THE teacher of both ourselves and our children!
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