Customer Reviews

Charlotte Mason's Original Homeschooling Series

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I've known that I want to homeschool my children since birth and have slowly but surely been devouring everything I can about the subject. I started by reading general guides on the subject of homeschooling, then progressed into some more specific books based on the methods and curriculum choices that appealed to me the most. I purchased Charlotte Mason's original series after reading Karen Andreaola's companion book (which is excellent). When I began reading Charlotte Mason's original work, I couldn't believe how much wisdom just oozed out of it. It seemed to be dripping from the pages. I interrupted my husband's reading and tv shows to share her pearls of wisdom about 20 times an hour while reading it. I have been totally impressed with her general philosophy but, now that I have read further, I'm even more impressed with the VERY specific instructions to the homeschooling mother. I mean, just her discussion of teaching children about geography and boundaries, including the use of a compass, was mind-numbingly useful. I absolutely recommend her books to anyone interested in incorporating Charlotte Mason techniques into their homeschool. So, where's the caution? All of the other reviewers are right. This is some heavy reading and the reviewer who said you need to read it little by little in order to digest the wisdom is completely correct. That does not mean that it is intimidating reading! It is simply packed to the gills with incredibly useful information. I would like to caution anyone considering buying this six volume set to first select a companion guide to read. I found that falling in love with the idea of Charlotte Mason instruction by reading a companion guide gave me the patience to read through the original works because I had a general idea of the wisdom contained therein. If I hadn't read a companion guide first, I might have grown impatient with the sheer weight of the originals. This may not be true for everyone, but I know it would have been for me. So, I recommend this without hesitation but with the recommendation to get your feet wet with a companion guide prior to reading the full set.

This six volume set is certainly not light reading, but it's well worth your time. Miss Mason was a widely read educator in Victorian England. She gathered ideas from many sources, and shared her conclusions on education with her readers. Her books are deep and thought provoking. She discusses everything from the proper amount of fresh air, to the development of good habits, the training of the will, the formation of character, to what sort of books contribute to a truly educated person. She also explains why to teach certain subjects as well as how. She is passionate about encouraging the natural love of learning in children. I do not agree with everything Miss Mason has to say, but I cannot recommend her more highly as wonderful reading for the serious home educator.

Well for those of you homeschoolers who have heard the name Charlotte Mason, this is it! This is her complete works written by Charlotte Mason herself. For those of you not familiar with this method of teaching and learning I will explain a little. A very basic definition is that she suggests a narrative method of learning. For just one exmple, a child reads a history lesson. The child then repeats back to you in his own words, what they have read. This assures comprehension of the material read. For those of you with reluctant writers, or younger children, this is great! Of course older children can write down what they have learned & experienced. She suggests studying the classics verus dry textbooks for learning. Similiar to that of a unit study approach. If you want the true Charlotte Mason method, this is all the material you will ever need.

For those of you who want to have direct information, I strongly suggest reading this series. I borrowed and read five other books about Miss Mason's techniques but felt that I really needed to have the original. This series has not been disappointing. I will use this as reference material for many years to come and am so glad that I have been able to read through these books for myself. Please do not be fooled by the titles in the series and skip over any. The first one was especially useful. This is a MUST READ for ALL Homeschoolers.

I had read comments in other books about Charlotte Mason's writings being very difficult to read, so I was nervous about getting her books. I read several of the companion books on the market before I decided to get these books. They are wonderful. They are not a quick, easy read, but they are full of wonderful, valuable information that the companion books don't give you. If you want to incorporate only a little of Charlotte Mason into your homeschool the companion books will probably be sufficient for you, but if you are serious about having a Charlotte Mason homeschool you should read these books for yourself.

For those who are interested in Miss Mason's philosophy of education or are still forming their own, this set is "must" reading. Deep, intense, and serious in some places, the 6-book set is not a quick read. The series needs to be intellectually digested and the time of the writing held in context. Many of her turn-of-the-century examples can be wisely applied by a contemporary reader.

I read several other books about Miss Mason's method before I attempted to read the Original Series. A Charlotte Mason Companion, More Charlotte Mason Education, and Educating the Whole-hearted Child were good introductions to her method.

Reading the entire Original Series was a rewarding experience. I am reading them for the second time now and would recommend them to anyone interested in her method and philosophy.

Charlotte Mason (1824-1923) was a British educational reformer, whose philosophy was considered revolutionary at the time. She Believed that children deserved respect and needed a rich and varied diet for their minds as well as their bodies. Towards that end, she developed her curriculum of "living books," narration, outdoor activities and short lessons on a variety of subjects. This series contains the original six volumes of Charlotte Mason's book, a rich resource for educators - both teachers in schools and teachers in home-schools.

Reading these books, it is easy to see why Charlotte Mason is considered a giant among educational theorists. Indeed, I am surprised she is not more widely read than she is! Ms. Mason was a genius of the first water, and I highly recommend her books to all parents and educators. I am glad I read these books, and I know you will be as well!

If you already know the basic premise of Charlotte Mason's philosophy on education, then you should be able to get through this series rather quickly. I skipped over much of her material since it is pretty antiquated. For example, I didn't feel I needed to read about the importance of outdoors or her dietary restrictions (no mustard, vinegar, pork or pastry...weird) not to mention how night air "quickens the blood". The best way to view this series is to skim it and pluck out the gems of wisdom regarding educating your children- I wouldn't follow her every recommendation to the letter. All in all, an essential read if you are planning on adopting the Charlotte Mason method.

There is so much wisdom to be gained from reading these books! Often, homeschoolers buy the curriculum of choice, but never learn HOW to homeschool. The CM series contains practical advice for creating a love of learning that will last a lifetime and training future members of society with good habits and a "think for yourself" attitude that is often lost today.

These books are not only great books for any homeschooling parent but just for parents in general. Charlotte Mason emphasizes over and over the importance of treating children as people, not talking down to them, not boring them with lectures but rather trusting them to understand concepts that are presented clearly and concisely, and what a great undertaking it is to raise and teach children so it should not be taken lightly. She offers many suggestions on how to best homeschool them, but also how to train them in good habits. Some other great observances she makes are that outdoor time is essential for children to explore and investigate the world, children should have time to explore and play without too much adult interference - or rather play activities should be child-led, school lessons should be short and varied - children are not bored with the amount of subjects, but the amount of time spent on each subject, children should read or be read to from books that are classics with moral teaching and insight and not dumbed-down to the child level... I could go on and on about the wonderful advice contained in these books. I have a notebook that I use to take notes from the books while I read or to mark any pages that I know I will want to reread. This way I have my notebook to review without searching through all of the books for the idea I want to remember.