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Principle #8 Education is a Life

Ideas have consequences

“Education is a life. That life is sustained on ideas. Ideas are of spiritual origin, and God has made us so that we get them chiefly as we convey them to one another, whether by word of mouth, written page, Scripture word, musical symphony; but we must sustain a child's inner life with ideas as we sustain his body with food.” (Vol 6, p. 109)

***

Mason understood that children are hungry for ideas to feed their mind just as much as they are hungry for food to sustain their bodies. We take the time and care to feed their bodies each day, so it is part of our duty towards our children to make sure they are fed with ideas worthy of their time and attention.

Flowers and Fruit by Claude Monet

As mother-teachers, we are able to lay the feast of ideas for our children each day knowing that they will take what is nourishing to them and reject what they don’t need. Perhaps this is where Mason gets her reputation for being gentle. Here we see that she respects the child knowing that he can’t possibly take in everything we serve to him, just as the body must take what it needs and discards the rest. Mason is not talking about child-led learning. Rather we must see that she is showing us that the ideas being presented to a child throughout his day, his morning devotion, his nature walk, and even the scolding he gets when he tries to touch the hot stove, are all a part of the ideas that feed his mind and become a part of him.

Keep in mind as we look at this principle it will present itself differently in the early years where everything is new to the child and he is exploring and learning the names of things. As our children get older more is expected of students to engage, work to understand, and join more deeply in the work of self-education. As we look at the educational tool of life-giving ideas keep in mind that the role of the teacher changes and more and more responsibility is passed onto the child and in many ways more training and structure is added to help support the child as his abilities increase.

Ideas as the Food of the Mind

“But the children ask for bread and we give them a stone; we give information about objects and events which the mind does not attempt to digest but casts out bodily (upon an examination paper?). But let information hang upon a principle, be inspired by an idea, and it is taken with avidity and used in making whatsoever in the spiritual nature stands for tissue in the physical.” (Vol. 6, p. 26)

Since ideas feed the minds of our children, we want them to receive their fill. We don’t want them to lack nourishment and be left underdeveloped in an area. Now we return to our first principle for help. What is a person and how are they formed? To which end ought we aim?

Our children each have a mind, body, and soul. Each part is connected to the whole.

The mind is fed primarily with books which store the ideas of great thinkers who pass their knowledge from the mind of the author directly to the mind of the child.

The body is fed through physical activity such as sports, handcrafts, and getting outside in nature.

The soul is fed through the study of truth, beauty, and goodness, which are the Holy Scriptures (Truth itself), music (which works the mind, body, and soul in harmony to convey emotion through sound), art (which uses the body to convey truth through various mediums and also takes the life-giving ideas found in books and expresses them visually.)

We haven’t given out children any dry facts in this list of nourishing ideas. The sawdust they despise comes in the form of lists and disembodied dates, city names, or famous figures without the inspiring idea to accompany it.

For instance, when I taught grammar, it became clear that simply defining a noun as a "person, place, or thing" wasn’t enough. Children needed to experience and apply the concept in real sentences, identifying nouns in context rather than memorizing a dry definition. This is the difference between passive information and active, usable knowledge—a distinction that applies to all subjects. Abstract ideas like grammar concepts must be engaged with and internalized by each child, so that they can use this knowledge as a tool, not just rattle off some definition for a test. This is our aim with every idea we present: that our children will find something fit to feed upon and be nourished thereby.

Ideas have consequences

Ideas themselves are dangerous things because they work on us for good or for ill. A man can spend his life pursuing an unworthy idea that destroys his soul, such as Hitler. On the other hand, we see how ideas can bring healing and life, Mother Teresa in caring for a multitude of children remarked, “too many children? It’s like saying there are too many flowers.” Here’s an idea worth passing on that is rooted in God’s goodness and the dignity owed to the child as a person made in His image.

As we consider the impact of ideas, it’s important to recognize their potential to shape our lives—whether for good or ill. On one hand, harmful ideas can lead to devastation, as seen in the actions of figures like Hitler. On the other hand, life-giving ideas, such as Mother Teresa's belief in the worth of every child, have the power to heal and uplift. This underscores why character formation is at the heart of a Mason education: we want to expose our children to ideas that will lead them toward truth, goodness, beauty, and praise.

Mason explains that an idea can in fact change the trajectory of our lives, and this is why character formation is at the heart of a Mason education. We want the ideas we present to point our children to what is true, good, beautiful, and worthy of praise. I’ll let Mason expand on this in her own words: “A live thing of the mind, according to the older philosophers, from Plato to Bacon, from Bacon to Coleridge. We say of an idea that it strikes us, impresses us, seizes us, takes possession of us, rules us; and our common speech is, as usual, truer to fact than the conscious thought which it expresses. We do not in the least exaggerate in ascribing this sort of action and power to an idea. We form an ideal––a, so to speak, embodied idea––and our ideal exercises the very strongest formative influence upon us. Why do you devote yourself to this pursuit, that cause? 'Because twenty years ago such and such an idea struck me,' is the sort of history which might be given of every purposeful life––every life devoted to the working out of an idea. Now is it not marvellous that, recognising as we do the potency of ideas, both the word and the conception it covers enter so little into our thought of education?” (Parents and Children, p. 35).

Over Christmas, I took my children to see a local performance of the Nutcracker ballet. Afterward, my youngest children were so captivated by the performance that they spent hours twirling and leaping through the house. The idea of ballet—its grace, movement, and beauty—seized their imaginations, and they became embodiments of the very idea they had encountered. This is a perfect example of how ideas, once introduced, can take root and inspire action. The same principle applies to the ideas we present in education: the ideas we feed our children will shape their hearts, minds, and lives in ways both seen and unseen.

Nourishing the child with Ideas

The life-giving ideas that we feed our children with come in various forms. We don’t have time to cover all of them, but we can get started with three concepts that will help you on your way. They are: Living books and materials, atmosphere and habits, and giving a child the power to choose school assignments within set parameters.

Takeaway #1: Provide Living Books

Mason tells us that “we owe it to every child to put him in communication with great minds that he may get at great thoughts; with the minds, that is, of those who have left us great works; and the only vital method of education appears to be that children should read worthy books, many worthy books.” (Vol. 6, p. 12)

  • History: Use books that help make the time period come to life.

  • Science: Use books that ignite our wonder and bring us in touch with God’s creation.

  • Literature: Use books with elevated language that point children to truth, goodness and beauty.

  • Geography: Use books that feel like a travel guide.

  • Citizenship: Use books that showcase the character of great men and women through stories to show what the character trait looks like “with skin on” such as Plutarch’s Lives.

These living books help us to connect with the ideas and help the subject come alive. If the book you are using feels more like a list of dry facts that do not offer context to your subject, skip it and look for a book that will make an idea become personal.

This past year I read Pinocchio twice because he was in high demand for either his naughtiness or his virtues. Pinocchio, a puppet in form and spirit, helps a child to see the right thing that ought to be done as they walk with Pinocchio through all his bad decisions. When does he become a real boy? When he stops being everyone's puppet and learns to govern himself- that is when he gains true freedom. Freedom is the idea- the story is the means of conveying it.

But books are not enough.

Children need to experience the world through their whole person - not only their mind, but their bodies and souls as well. To only educate the child’s mind and neglect their hands, feet, legs, arms, is to leave the child malformed.

Takeaway #2 Provide Living Things

Ideas also come through “things” that operate in the material world.

Things include:

  • Watercolor painting

  • Naturalist demonstrations

  • Visiting a local nature preserve

  • Exploring living museums

  • Touring art museums

  • Exploring science museums

  • Play dates

  • Participating in co-ops

  • Conducting science experiments

  • Taking art lessons

Don’t hole yourself up in your home reading All The Books and miss the life happening outside your home. It is all a balance. To find that balance between reading and expressing these true, good, and beautiful ideas, we need to know ourselves, our kids, and our duty.

Takeaway #3: Present Ideas in a Thoughtful Atmosphere and supported by intentional Habits

These ideas… should draw a child “towards things honest, lovely, and of good report" (Vol. 2 p. 36).

Ideas are in the air of the home and manifest themselves in the daily habits we embody. We teach our children about who they are in the sight of God, who God Himself is, what their duties are and what attitude we ought to have towards these things through the atmosphere we carry with us. This is where we see how sanctifying motherhood really is. We feel the weight of the duty we carry and we long to pass on whatever is true, and lovely, and honorable to our children. But here we see, once again that we need help from above.

There are plenty of habits we can cultivate, such as family devotions, Morning Time, picture study, composer study, poetry tea times. All of which are excellent habits of the mind and will feed our children with living ideas that will nourish them. But our best tool as we train habits, and teach chores is our attitude. If we can do one thing in shaping the habits of mind and atmosphere of the home, it is having a good attitude about the work at hand to help our children have access to ideas that will nourish their souls.

Takeaway #4: The energizing power of choice

I tend to lean into checklists especially when I feel out of control. But I find that when I’m feeling tense, I don’t make room to give my kids the freedom they need to experiment, fail, and develop the skills they need. We do not expect to master any new skill the first time it is presented to us. It takes time to learn. So it is with ideas. They need time to take root. They start off by seemingly floating in the air. Then, perhaps we see it again in a book, or during a conversation with a friend.

What I have found is that each family has different capacities for taking in ideas. Some are more bookish and thrive with hosts of books and can engage with them all. Then there are those of us who need to go deeper with fewer books. Know thyself. Know thy family. Our goal is to bring children into a relationship with ideas and not to stuff their heads with as much information as possible in one school year.

For example, once children get into middle school, they need help managing their time, but they also need opportunities for freedom. In this case a checklist can be a helpful tool but not to be used as a spur - force-feeding ideas versus presenting ideas and letting a child take what they will.

My middle school boys are taking a writing class this year with a tutor. She has a few homework assignments that give them freedom within set parameters. One assignment is to write a description of something each week. But she doesn’t frame it that way, it’s more of a scavenger hunt vibe. One week she told them to describe their favorite animal. Another time they needed to bring in two similar items (two spoons, for instance) and then describe them while finding a way to describe what is different about them. These assignments are genius because they allow the child to choose what he’d like to describe. I was surprised how personally my boys took to finding just the right item or picture to share with their classmates. They were invigorated by the power of choice.

It is here that I need to offer a user warning. Allowing children to choose within the constraints of their work is not being child-led. This assignment in self-education was initiated by the teacher and implemented by the students within the context of authority. The teacher was acting as a friendly guide. The student still needed to submit to the teacher’s guidance and follow through to do the work. The children need to be obedient and complete the work. That is the duty of the student. But the duty of the teacher is to help the child to engage with the ideas - she can’t force the child, but through our disciplines, atmosphere, and life-giving ideas, we can help or hinder the child. This is where the power of choice helps to aid the teacher in presenting life-giving ideas to the child--so he can engage with them on his own terms and in his own way.

Character Formation Through Ideas

"Only those ideas which have fed his life are taken into his being" (Parents and Children, p. 38).

It is not enough that we help our children engage with the great ideas in history, science, music, mathematics etc. What good are these things if the child can’t honor his parents or do his duty to his neighbor? We want to raise children who are tender to the weak, brave when faced with life’s challenges, and are able to govern themselves well before God and man alike.

Children who have been taught that good and evil exist and that they have a choice. They may spend their lives pursuing the good and pointing others toward God’s goodness or live for themselves pursuing the desires of the flesh. There is no middle ground. And, since this is such a high bar that no man can reach it, we have been given help from God through His Son. We can call on Him for help to show us the way that is right and good and true. Truth is under attack. But God’s people are at work in this wicked world to radiate His light. May we be faithful to the calling to which we have been called to teach our children the good ideas of God’s righteousness and show them how to live a faithful life devoted to Him.

In Conclusion

The difficulty we face with curating a feast of ideas for our children is that we are at odds with our culture. We are constantly bombarded with ideas that are unworthy of our time and attention. And now, even the good ideas come toward us like a flood. We need to have filters up so that we can focus on the work at hand and can do it faithfully.

This is where have a good church home, a supportive community, and access to lving books and resources for living experiences can be vital to a homeschooling family.

Mason sums up her take on this principle this way:

“Education is a life; that life is sustained on ideas; ideas are of spiritual origin; and,

'God has made us so'

that we get them chiefly as we convey them to one another. The duty of parents is to sustain a child's inner life with ideas as they sustain his body with food. The child is an eclectic; he may choose this or that; therefore, in the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening withhold not thy hand, for thou knowest not which shall prosper, whether this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.

The child has affinities with evil as well as with good; therefore, hedge him about from any chance lodgment of evil ideas.

The initial idea begets subsequent ideas; therefore, take care that children get right primary ideas on the great relations and duties of life.

Every study, every line of thought, has its 'guiding idea'; therefore, the study of a child makes for living education in proportion as it is quickened by the guiding idea 'which stands at the head.'” (Vol 2, p. 39)

Mason gives us an inspiring vision for the variety of ideas we can bring to nourish our children. We know that we fall short and have more to learn, but we can, however imperfectly be faithful to our calling to teach them the wisdom of God and to point them to the path that leads to life. We know that these big ideas of all that is good, true, and beautiful will nourish their souls beyond anything we could hope or imagine.

Reflection Questions:

  • How do I currently "lay a feast of ideas" for my children in their education? List three examples. What is one area I could improve to offer living ideas during my child’s day? (i.e. time outside, work with hands, story time, rest time, time with friends, time helping in the kitchen, chores (ordering spaces), etc.

  • In what ways am I balancing the use of living books, hands-on experiences, and the development of habits and atmosphere in my home? Are there any adjustments I need to make?

  • How can I incorporate more opportunities for my children to make meaningful choices within the boundaries of their education? What benefits might this bring to their engagement and growth?

  • What is one habit we keep that draws my children toward what is true, good, and beautiful? How does it help cultivate my child’s character?

  • How am I nurturing life-giving ideas for myself? What habits, resources, or communities support me in this work, and where might I seek additional support?


20 Principles of a Liberating Education:

#1 Children are born Persons

#2 The Good and Evil Nature of Children

#3 Parents are in Charge and Children Must Obey

#4 Limits to Our Authority as Parents and Educators

#5 Education is an Atmosphere, a Discipline, a Life| a primer

#6 Education is an Atmosphere

#7 Education is a Discipline

#8 Education is a Life (You are here)


Bibliography for further reading:

In Vital Harmony by Karen Glass

Start Here, a Journey through Mason’s 20 Principles by Brandy Vencel

Philosophy of Education by Charlotte Mason

Parents and Children by Charlotte Mason

Discussion about this podcast

However Imperfectly
However Imperfectly
Welcome to, However Imperfectly where homeschooling and homemaking intersect. This podcast is for the homeschool mom who desires to educate her children with a rich Charlotte Mason education and also has meals to put on the table and laundry to sort each day. I am your host, Joy Cherrick. I hope you find encouragement as we explore the ideas of Charlotte Mason in the context of our modern homes. Mason provides the principles for living and learning with our children that offers education unlike the one we received and a full life together. We don’t have time for the latest educational fad. We