The Charlotte Mason Approach to Homeschooling

There are numerous ways to homeschool a child. One of the many approaches to homeschooling is the Charlotte Mason Approach. Read on to find out more about how this approach was originated and still influences homeschoolers.

Who Was Charlotte Mason?

Charlotte Mason was a British educator, born in 1842 whose mother died when she was 16 and her father died a year later. She earned a First Class Certificate for teaching at the Home and Colonial Society. She spent the beginning of her career teaching at the Davidson School in Worthing England.

What did Charlotte Mason Do?

While teaching at the Davidson School, Charlotte Mason began to have a problem with the inequality in education. During this time, poor children were taught trades, and rich children were taught fine arts, and literature. During her next assignment at Bishop Otter Teacher Training College in Chichester, England, she began lecturing about the basic principles of raising children. Her lectures were published and became very popular. Charlotte Mason moved to Ambleside England at nearly fifty years old and formed a training school for governesses and other people who worked with small children. By 1892, her writings greatly influenced the National Parents Education Union and the Parents Education Union, and therefore her philosophies for educating children were followed by many. She spent her last years overseeing a network of schools devoted to "a liberal education for all." After Charlotte Mason Died, her school became known as Charlotte Mason College and later became a part of Lancaster University. It is know part of the University of Cumbria and Health center to which a local museum is attached.

What was Charlotte Mason's teaching philosophy?