A Charlotte Mason Education

Articles

Can Charlotte Mason be Therapeutic for Moms?
By, Stephanie Walmsley

www.CharlotteMasonMadeEasy.com

What kind of a question is this? you might wonder. Well oftentimes moms can get burned out trying to “get it ALL done.” As a mom, we wear so many different hats each and every day: wife, mom, teacher, housekeeper, grocery shopper, cook, chauffeur, booboo kisser...the list can go on, and on, and on.

How are we supposed to cope with everything? In wearing the “teaching hat” alone, there are lessons to prepare, books to read or assess, schedules to figure out... And then, when we don’t live up to our own impossible expectations we blame ourselves and feel like we’re failing.

This blaming and judging of ourselves is so destructive to us and to our families. And it usually causes us to react badly: we may start yelling at our kids because it seems that they are always fighting or arguing about something. Or we may start complaining - about our kids, our constantly busy lives, our constant “to do lists.” Will we ever get everything checked off? Will we ever get through the mound of laundry that seems to be piling up faster than the landfill down the road? Will we ever again feel like we have had a successful, peaceful, pleasant day?

The answer is, “YES!” Yes, you can catch up with your laundry, you don’t need to be yelling at your children, you can have an awesome day with your children again! How you might ask? Well there is a very special person who can help teach you how. Her name is Charlotte Mason.

Charlotte Mason didn’t just provide a “theory,” or a “way of schooling.” She had a philosophy which gives a whole new way to handle things...a whole new way of life while enjoying your children, and your time of teaching at home! Over the years, she developed a philosophy of, not only education, but of a way to learn and to live life.

She had a way of seeing things as God would have us see them...as the Bible says, “Think on things that are true, pure, lovely, right... (Phil. 4:8 NLT Study Bible).

Miss Mason brings to light some of these “things” in the form of the Liberal Arts...the beauty of nature, the uniqueness of the arts, beautifully written poetry, exquisite portraits, classical music by great composers such as Bach, Mozart, and Beethoven.
And something that I particularly like about her philosophy is that Miss Mason realized that children were real human beings to be loved and cherished. As the Jesus says, “I tell you the truth that unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven.” (Matt. 18:3 NLT Study Bible) She liked to see children enjoying time out-of-doors in the afternoons, enjoying nature, building things, using their imaginations, accepting and appreciating one another's unique talents and abilities in their play, breathing in the fresh, clean air that God renews for us daily.

What better way to view the world - as God's beautiful creation? And for the mother, by having “short lessons” as Miss Mason encourages, this frees us up to plan our meals, catch up on our laundry, make plans for the next day, and get some of our 'to do list” crossed off.

If this way of thinking and philosophy sounds like something that you are drawn to, then please, join me on this wonderful homeschooling journey. Start by reading more about Charlotte Mason in this free, illustrated biography of Charlotte Mason: http://www.charlottemasonmadeeasy.com/free-CM-biography.html