Moral Education
Charlotte Mason believed that education should influence the moral formation of students. However, it is also an area that needs to be handled carefully according to Mason.
This education of the feelings, moral education, is too delicate and personal a matter for a teacher to undertake trusting to his own resources. Children are not to be fed morally like young pigeons with predigested food. They must pick and eat for themselves and they do so from the conduct of others which they hear of or perceive. (Philosophy of Education, p. 59)
Vigen Guroian, a past CMI conference speaker as well as author and professor, resonates with Mason’s sentiments and believes that books are a powerful way to develop the moral imagination. In his book Tending the Heart of Virtue: How Classic Stories Awaken a Child’s Moral Imagination, he states,
Mere instruction is not sufficient to nurture the virtues. It might even backfire, especially when the presentation is heavily exhortative, and the pupil’s will is coerced. Instead, a compelling vision of the goodness of goodness itself needs to be presented in a way that is attractive and stirs the imagination. A good moral education addressed both the cognitive and affective dimensions of the human nature. Stories are an irreplaceable medium for this kind of moral education—that is, the education of character (p. 20).
The rest of his books highlight a few classic stories that attractively depict character and virtue. One of my favorite stories that he mentions is Pinocchio. I have enjoyed reading illustrated versions of that book aloud with my children and relating to his behavior that wants to obey and be a respectful child but time and again falls into temptation and gets himself into trouble. Guroian also discusses The Velveteen Rabbit, The Little Mermaid, The Wind in the Willows, Charlotte’s Web, Bambi, The Snow Queen, The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, The Princess and the Goblin, and Prince Caspian. What books have impacted you and your students’ moral imagination and presented ideas of virtue and character in a creative and indirect way? Head on over to the Hive and share your book suggestions.
Notes
1. Member Survey: We need your input to continue improving the Alveary! Please fill out this survey, to help us, and as a fun thank you you'll get a chance at winning one of three prizes:
Prize #1: A collection of living books curated by Board Member (and book expert) Kerri Forney especially for the ages of your students and mailed to you.
Prize #2: A one-on-one Zoom chat (45 minutes) with CMI Founders Carroll and Andy Smith. Enjoy tales of their finds while researching in the Charlotte Mason archives at the Armitt Museum in Ambleside and savor their wisdom on Charlotte Mason education.
Prize #3: A one-on-one Zoom consult (45 minutes) with your choice of Alveary Program Director, Shannon Whiteside, or CMI Board Members Kerri Forney, Min Jung Hwang, or Lisa Ector. Here’s your chance to ask questions, gather ideas, and be inspired by their years of research and experience in Charlotte Mason education!
2. Office Hours: Here are the videos from our session on neuroatypical learners with Danielle Merritt-Sunseri:
Accommodations for Neuroatypical Learners
Our next session will be Wednesday, October 26th at 3:30 p.m. EDT. We would like to know what you are excited about! Come and share a book title, a podcast, a website, an app, a product–anything that you wish to share. We are interested in hearing from you. If you have Mason/Alveary questions, submit them at least 24 hours in advance by commenting on the event in The Hive. Otherwise, come and share your excitement with fellow members. (We will not record this segment.) Here is a link to the spreadsheet with all of the past Office Hours videos.
3. New Hive Course: Quite a few of you have registered for our new course, “Charlotte Mason 101: The Methods”. This course will help you implement Mason's methods in your home or classroom and give you the rationale for why instruction is done a specific way. It is not so important to do it exactly as we prescribe, but rather to understand the principles and apply those to your students' needs. This is primarily a video course of very short lectures (in many cases, excerpts from our webinar library) about the subject area, explanations of a lesson, and mini-immersions. You can find the course under “Courses” in the left sidebar of the Hive.
4. Exams: Term 1 exams are posted under Step 5 on your Alveary Dashboard. While not strictly required, we do find it invaluable to receive a copy of completed and scored exams for the purposes of research and book evaluation. If you are willing to share your student’s exam with us, please compile any separate files you have (from scanned pages, etc.) into a single PDF. Name the file “[Student’s Name] [Grade] T1 Exam.” Upload the exam PDF via the Dropbox link appropriate to the student’s form:
Form 1 (Grades 1-3) Exams Form 3 (Grades 7-8) Exams
Form 2 (Grades 4-6) Exams Form 4-6 (Grades 9-12) Exams
Complete instructions are provided at the beginning of each exam document.
Queries
1. New Member Advice: I am new to Mason and the Alveary and am stressed about things like the Book of Centuries and the Citizenship Notebook. I’ve been doing some subjects, but don’t feel like I can cover them all. Do you have any advice for me?
Here are some suggestions as you navigate the rich feast of a Charlotte Mason education:
1) You don't have to do it all. Determine what subjects you want to prioritize and concentrate on being consistent with those. However, it is good to have a mix of more rigorous subjects with more inspirational subjects, such as picture study or music.
2) Make a list of what subjects or activities you want to incorporate next and add those in gradually. Perhaps you will choose to do one Shakespeare play instead of three or two days of art instruction a week instead of three.
3) Don't do it alone. Try to find other families or a coop where you can do some of the subjects together or ask a relative or friend to teach some of the lessons in person or via Zoom.
4) Figure out what subjects your children can do independently. As children get older, they need to take on more responsibility for their lessons and learn accountability for completing tasks and doing their narrations. Write a list of what you would like them to accomplish by the end of the day or the end of the week, and give them gentle reminders to work on those subjects and occupations. This can include an entry in their Book of Centuries, an entry or two in their nature notebook, and an entry in their citizenship notebooks.
5) Set a time every week when you will sit together as a family, and everyone will work on their notebooks, even you. Perhaps on a Friday afternoon, you can have a special treat, work on these notebooks together, and make it a special occasion.
6) Have your children set up their school day the night before. Put out the nature study supplies, the art supplies, the notebooks they will use, and the books they will read. When everything is set, it is easier to move on to the next subject and you are not wasting time looking for materials.
