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A Twaddle-Free Education: An Introduction to Charlotte Mason's Timeless Educational Ideas
ABOUT THE BOOK
Are you disappointed with dumbed-down reading material (“twaddle”) written for children? Do you wish for your children to feast their hearts and minds on noble ideas, fine art, and great literature? Are you hoping your children gain an appreciation of nature and a deep understanding of natural sciences? Most importantly, do you want your children to develop a lifetime love of learning?
If you answered “yes,” you may discover a Charlotte Mason-inspired twaddle-free education is just what you’ve been looking for.
A Twaddle-Free Education is intended to be a simple introduction to Charlotte Mason's ideas for those either unfamiliar with or new to Charlotte Mason's methods. It can also serve as a quick refresher and encouragement for current Charlotte Mason home educators.
Charlotte Mason was a British educator from the last century whose ideas are currently experiencing a renewal among home educators and private schools throughout the world. A Twaddle-Free Education is a long time Charlotte Mason home educator's personal experiences and thoughts on applying a Charlotte Mason-style education simply and naturally in a modern American home school setting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
In the mid-1990’s, Deborah Taylor-Hough set up one of the first Charlotte Mason homeschooling websites and edited The Charlotte Mason Monthly newsletter. Debi currently edits The Charlotte Mason eMagazine and blogs at CharlotteMasonHome.com
CONTENTS
Are you disappointed with dumbed-down reading material (“twaddle”) written for children? Do you wish for your children to feast their hearts and minds on noble ideas, fine art, and great literature? Are you hoping your children gain an appreciation of nature and a deep understanding of natural sciences? Most importantly, do you want your children to develop a lifetime love of learning?
If you answered “yes,” you may discover a Charlotte Mason-inspired twaddle-free education is just what you’ve been looking for.
A Twaddle-Free Education is intended to be a simple introduction to Charlotte Mason's ideas for those either unfamiliar with or new to Charlotte Mason's methods. It can also serve as a quick refresher and encouragement for current Charlotte Mason home educators.
Charlotte Mason was a British educator from the last century whose ideas are currently experiencing a renewal among home educators and private schools throughout the world. A Twaddle-Free Education is a long time Charlotte Mason home educator's personal experiences and thoughts on applying a Charlotte Mason-style education simply and naturally in a modern American home school setting.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
In the mid-1990’s, Deborah Taylor-Hough set up one of the first Charlotte Mason homeschooling websites and edited The Charlotte Mason Monthly newsletter. Debi currently edits The Charlotte Mason eMagazine and blogs at CharlotteMasonHome.com
CONTENTS
148 pages, Paperback
First published April 22, 2015
93 people are currently reading
213 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
January 1, 2016
good intro and overview of the Charlotte Mason method. quick read. best for newer homeschoolers or those new to Charlotte Mason and would like a quick picture and insight on how one mom implemented it.
final chapter digs in to some of Gotto's works and how they relate to cm and unschooling.
Would have liked more on a typical day in her life at different stages and more practical "how it looked in our home" insights.
final chapter digs in to some of Gotto's works and how they relate to cm and unschooling.
Would have liked more on a typical day in her life at different stages and more practical "how it looked in our home" insights.
December 31, 2015
Deborah has captured feelings I have had my first year of home educating my two. We have just finished our first year and wish I would have found this book before we started. (Would have save us some money) It is very important to know what you want for your home and family and attempt to stick with it. Their are so many options available in methods and curriculum that everyone should be able to find what works for them. Deborah made a great point that consumerism is present in the homeschooling community as well. Companies believe in their products but major goal is to make a profit.
February 1, 2025
I read this pretty quickly. I like it gave a basic explanation. She also broke down explaining twaddle and books. What books should be encouraged, which I have seen myself in my own children. They crave knowledge and even at 5 my oldest loves to pull out DK books and learn. I also came to the realization I was trying to parent and teach out of fear not the way I truly enjoyed. That pressure from society and others I had to be doing something so structured or I was going to fail homeschooling. This gave me encouragement to dive deeper into whole based child education studies. Especially Charlotte Mason’s and Maria Montessori’s works. The better you understand it the less fear you have.
May 16, 2018
Poorly Organized
I thought this book had some good information and insight. I feel like most of it is pointing to other sources. The layout and organization of the book was poorly done. All of the academic, supportive “meat” was at the end of the book. Tell me why, then tell me how. An okay resource, but definitely not the best read on the subject of a Charlotte Mason education.
I thought this book had some good information and insight. I feel like most of it is pointing to other sources. The layout and organization of the book was poorly done. All of the academic, supportive “meat” was at the end of the book. Tell me why, then tell me how. An okay resource, but definitely not the best read on the subject of a Charlotte Mason education.
December 17, 2018
Detailed insight and examples of following the Charlotte Mason philosophy of homeschooling. I thought the book was short, to the point, and informative. I really enjoyed reading her essay at the end of the book which details the history of homeschooling & statistical results when comparing homeschoolers to publicly educated children. Would recommend for those wanting more information or an overview of the Charlotte Mason methods without feeling over whelmed or bogged down.
December 10, 2019
Nice summary
Nice condensed explanation and practical application of Charlotte Masons philosophies applied to modern day homeschooling. A bit biased against other homeschooling methods but that’s her experience so it’s her right to write about it. I Enjoyed her research paper at the end summarizing the advent of the homeschooling movement.
Nice condensed explanation and practical application of Charlotte Masons philosophies applied to modern day homeschooling. A bit biased against other homeschooling methods but that’s her experience so it’s her right to write about it. I Enjoyed her research paper at the end summarizing the advent of the homeschooling movement.
October 13, 2017
The book was basically an overview of what a Charlotte Mason education entails. I was actually hoping (from the title) that it would be more focused on book choice, but it wasn't. However, it was well done for what it was.
December 31, 2017
Great overview
Great overview of the Charlotte Mason teaching style. Well written with helpful book lists. Helpful for someone thinking about homeschooling.
Great overview of the Charlotte Mason teaching style. Well written with helpful book lists. Helpful for someone thinking about homeschooling.
December 8, 2018
Perfect for those new to the Charlotte Mason philosophy. Quick and easy read, answering most of the important questions of why and how-to.
August 7, 2019
The information was a solid 4-5 stars, but the authors voice was irritating (very superior/self righteous) so knocked it down to 3
August 13, 2019
Quick introduction to the Charlotte Mason method that includes a review of several homeschooling philosophies.
September 12, 2019
It's a good intro to Charlotte Mason. It also gave a lot of other book recommendations for homeschooling.
March 5, 2024
Really basic book and quite repetitive in places. A little boring. But it also has good lists and some decent book recommendations.
May 17, 2025
It was okay. It read like short blog posts on various topics around how this author implemented Charlotte Mason education in her family. It was choppy and didn’t flow well.
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December 23, 2025Gueti Büecher-Liischte nach Auter
June 22, 2021
Continuing Ed. for Educators (Summer Edition)
or a list of all the books I will be reading this summer to prepare for the upcoming school year.
I. Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder
II. A Twaddle-Free Education: An Introduction to Charlotte Mason's Timeless Educational Ideas
III. A Charlotte Mason Education: A Home Schooling How-To Manual
Summary
A decent brief overview of the Charlotte Mason method. As such, it did not provide much in the way of new knowledge for my purposes - however, I will surely benefit from some of the boredom buster ideas as well as reviewing her sources in depth.
or a list of all the books I will be reading this summer to prepare for the upcoming school year.
I. Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder
II. A Twaddle-Free Education: An Introduction to Charlotte Mason's Timeless Educational Ideas
III. A Charlotte Mason Education: A Home Schooling How-To Manual
Summary
A decent brief overview of the Charlotte Mason method. As such, it did not provide much in the way of new knowledge for my purposes - however, I will surely benefit from some of the boredom buster ideas as well as reviewing her sources in depth.
March 14, 2017
I'd like to have a copy for reference, especially the ideas and lists that aren't in Mason's writings, but I definitely want to read more about Charlotte Mason's ideas.
May 29, 2022
This was okay. The brief overview of CM philosophy was decent and approachable for a newbie, and the chapters of booklists and summer/winter/holiday activities could be helpful to a new, overwhelmed mom. She has read For the Children's Sake and the Moores and Gatto and Mason herself. For the K-2 level, this would the kind of guidance I would recommend.
After that, however, I'm not sure how helpful it would really be. When you eschew textbooks and just use a couple inspirational CM books and the public library, your unschooling is going to require a lot of work if you really want your kids to have a well-rounded education. She kindof doesn't go into how she taught kids math without a textbook, how she approached any topic past the read-about-it-and-take-nature-walks stage, or how she ran high school. One year she used an unschooling-friendly diploma service and says her kids were responsible for their own work, but in our state, a high school diploma requires hard science, real math, foreign language, etc. She never explains how this could be accomplished without textbooks or qualified teachers. (She herself doesn't seem to have completed college until after her children were grown, which is not to say she wasn't competent to teach them, but that perhaps her own understanding of college prep level work might be lacking.)
The latter half of the book seemed to be repetitive content she brought in from some of her other writings. She ends with what she claims is an overview of homeschooling, but while she does a decent job discussing unschooling and religious homeschooling trends in the 60s-90s, she conflates all other philosophies of education and doesn't bother discussing the big players of even back then (Konos? Sonlight?). Though published in 2015, this book doesn't even mention The Well-Trained Mind or Classical Conversations, arguably two of the most biggest influences in homeschooling in the past ten or more years. I happen to love the former (which I find very CM-friendly) and loathe the latter, but regardless of what I like, I simply don't think you can say you're comparing current homeschool options without even mentioning them. No online resources are mentioned beyond the fact that she has or had a blog. I kindof get the feeling that she homeschooled through the 90s but doesn't have much expertise on the trends of the past 15-20 years, so I wouldn't hand this book to a mom in 2021 who is trying to figure out her options.
After that, however, I'm not sure how helpful it would really be. When you eschew textbooks and just use a couple inspirational CM books and the public library, your unschooling is going to require a lot of work if you really want your kids to have a well-rounded education. She kindof doesn't go into how she taught kids math without a textbook, how she approached any topic past the read-about-it-and-take-nature-walks stage, or how she ran high school. One year she used an unschooling-friendly diploma service and says her kids were responsible for their own work, but in our state, a high school diploma requires hard science, real math, foreign language, etc. She never explains how this could be accomplished without textbooks or qualified teachers. (She herself doesn't seem to have completed college until after her children were grown, which is not to say she wasn't competent to teach them, but that perhaps her own understanding of college prep level work might be lacking.)
The latter half of the book seemed to be repetitive content she brought in from some of her other writings. She ends with what she claims is an overview of homeschooling, but while she does a decent job discussing unschooling and religious homeschooling trends in the 60s-90s, she conflates all other philosophies of education and doesn't bother discussing the big players of even back then (Konos? Sonlight?). Though published in 2015, this book doesn't even mention The Well-Trained Mind or Classical Conversations, arguably two of the most biggest influences in homeschooling in the past ten or more years. I happen to love the former (which I find very CM-friendly) and loathe the latter, but regardless of what I like, I simply don't think you can say you're comparing current homeschool options without even mentioning them. No online resources are mentioned beyond the fact that she has or had a blog. I kindof get the feeling that she homeschooled through the 90s but doesn't have much expertise on the trends of the past 15-20 years, so I wouldn't hand this book to a mom in 2021 who is trying to figure out her options.
June 27, 2015
A good basic introduction to some of the most popular aspects of Charlotte Mason's approach (living books, nature study, habit training).
I love the author's perspective and simple, easy approach to homeschooling. She even provides lists of books, specific practical suggestions, and encouraging ideas for homeschooling on a tight budget. She also gives an interesting history of homeschooling, compares different methods, and talks quite a bit about unschooling. I'm not structured enough to do a whole CM curriculum, but I'm not unscheduled enough to do complete unschooling -- I was happy to see how this little ebook blended the two together.
I love the author's perspective and simple, easy approach to homeschooling. She even provides lists of books, specific practical suggestions, and encouraging ideas for homeschooling on a tight budget. She also gives an interesting history of homeschooling, compares different methods, and talks quite a bit about unschooling. I'm not structured enough to do a whole CM curriculum, but I'm not unscheduled enough to do complete unschooling -- I was happy to see how this little ebook blended the two together.
March 1, 2021
Easy read filled with useful information
This author has a wonderful writing style covering mountains of information in a manner that shrinks those mountains into a walk through the park. I loved that she covered a short history of homeschooling from John Holt in the 60s to the present. Given so many approaches to homeschooling, it is refreshing to this eclectic homeschooling reader to see a clear definition of Charlotte Mason's style and guidelines to successfully using her style throughout your child's school years. A grand book for both education and reference. I'll keep this one in the library for ideas
This author has a wonderful writing style covering mountains of information in a manner that shrinks those mountains into a walk through the park. I loved that she covered a short history of homeschooling from John Holt in the 60s to the present. Given so many approaches to homeschooling, it is refreshing to this eclectic homeschooling reader to see a clear definition of Charlotte Mason's style and guidelines to successfully using her style throughout your child's school years. A grand book for both education and reference. I'll keep this one in the library for ideas
January 20, 2016
Quick, informative read
This was a great summary of the Charlotte Mason method of educating children. There were so many things that I agree with! Read 'living books' to your kids. Narration or Retelling, rather than taking tests. (Painting, drawing, sculpting, play-acting, etc.) Short lessons. Weekly nature walks. Nature journals. Art appreciation through picture study. Journaling. Copy work and dictation. Lessons before noon, afternoons for free-time and handicrafts. Establish good habits.
This was a great summary of the Charlotte Mason method of educating children. There were so many things that I agree with! Read 'living books' to your kids. Narration or Retelling, rather than taking tests. (Painting, drawing, sculpting, play-acting, etc.) Short lessons. Weekly nature walks. Nature journals. Art appreciation through picture study. Journaling. Copy work and dictation. Lessons before noon, afternoons for free-time and handicrafts. Establish good habits.
June 12, 2016
Short and concise, a perfect introduction to the Charlotte Mason method. Particularly enjoyed the lists of twaddle-free books by age/grade level.
The three things that really stuck out to me were quality literature (hence twaddle free and even at a young age), the use of narration (instead of testing), and pushing the "classroom" (if you can even call it that) outdoors.
This book has ignited a hunger only quenchable by providing a rich education at home for my children. Because of this book, I will definitely be picking up more books about Charlotte Mason methods.
The three things that really stuck out to me were quality literature (hence twaddle free and even at a young age), the use of narration (instead of testing), and pushing the "classroom" (if you can even call it that) outdoors.
This book has ignited a hunger only quenchable by providing a rich education at home for my children. Because of this book, I will definitely be picking up more books about Charlotte Mason methods.
January 24, 2017
What a good brief, super quick introduction to the Charlotte Mason method. I read this book in one sitting. I liked that the language used was easy to understand and it enabled to get the "big ideas" of this method. There were many additional resources provided for even more reading on the subject. This book makes you feel like this method is very do able and empowers me to feel like I can push the idea of creating life long readers. Highly recommend it for a beginning introduction on the method.
July 20, 2019
An okay introduction to this philosophy for someone who may feel easily overwhelmed by other books on this subject. It definitely makes Charlotte Mason approachable, although some of the organization and pieces she highlights were a little odd. She also leans more towards an "unschool"-Mason blend, while I would lean more towards a classical-Mason blend.
July 3, 2015
Some good tips and ideas here! The book lists are golden. I would like to see more content from an intro to Charlotte Mason pedagogy, but it was nice to have a firsthand account of implementation. Would give it 3.5 if I could.
December 13, 2015
For someone new to educational philosophy, this book might be valuable. The author had some good educational book suggestions, and of course, as she said, if you really want to know Charlotte Mason, read her originals. :)
March 29, 2016
The first book I have read on Charlotte Mason's method. I like the information she shared from Charlotte Mason's teachings and how she used the CM in her own home with her children. I will be reading the other books she recommended too.
March 30, 2016
A great summarized read for those thinking about a Charlotte Mason Education, but if you are already doing it, nothing new. One thing I did like was a list of 200 things for children to do when they are bored, the list had some creative options.
June 21, 2015
Always good to understand different education approaches
January 15, 2016
Gave great insight
Gave great insight and practical advice on implementing CM methods to homeschooling. I flew through this book. I recommended it.
Gave great insight and practical advice on implementing CM methods to homeschooling. I flew through this book. I recommended it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews