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Charlotte Mason Poetry is dedicated to promoting Charlotte Mason’s living ideas. We strive to share an authentic interpretation of Mason’s life work through a combination of original and vintage articles by a wide variety of authors. Our team draws from and transcribes many rare and wonderful documents from the PNEU many of which cannot be found anywhere else on the web.
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Editor’s Note, by Art Middlekauff In 1936, Elsie Kitching wrote a book review for The Parents’ Review, the journal she edited from 1923 to 1949. Published in the April issue, the piece covered The Year Book of Education, 1936, edited by Harley V. Usill. Kitching enumerated the key sections of the book and noted some … The post The Conflict of Philo…
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Editor’s Note, by Art Middlekauff N. McLeod enrolled in the House of Education in 1914[1] before heading up a PNEU school in Richmond, Surrey from at least 1921[2] to 1931.[3] In 1927, she contributed a short article to The Parents’ Review entitled “The P.U.S. Motto.”[4] The article is memorable to me because it opens with … The post Obedience firs…
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Editor’s Note, by Art Middlekauff In November 1909, the 13th Annual PNEU Conference was held in Birmingham.[1] On the morning of the second day, a paper by Dr. Helen Webb was read entitled “Environment in Relation to Nervous Stability.” It offered advice on how to raise healthy children in our modern hectic era, and it … The post Why Small Things M…
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Only eternity will reveal how many lives were changed, hearts inspired, and works completed because of the motto of Charlotte Mason. Four powerful verbs — I am, I can, I ought, I will — recited, contemplated, and implemented for generations. But what is the origin of this remarkable motto? Did Miss Mason make it up? … The post Ask Art #5 — The Mott…
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Charlotte Mason Poetry
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A Talk to Nurses on “The Child as a Person”
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Editor’s Note by Haley Struecker Today, we continue our short series of recommended reading from the Occupations leaflet with another article by Charlotte Mason’s “Beloved Physician”, Doctor Helen Webb. In the 1913 volume of the Parents’ Review, a lecture she gave at a PNEU Conference nurses’ meeting was published as “A Talk to Nurses on … The post…
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Editor’s Note, by Art Middlekauff “Dr. [Helen] Webb was one of the oldest friends of our dear Founder, Miss Charlotte Mason,” recalled Elsie Kitching. “She was a member of the original Council of the P.N.E.U. and was already lecturing for the Union in 1891… From then onwards few years passed without lectures from her, … … The post Thought-Turning f…
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I cannot tell you how often the aroma of freshly baked bread, or the smell of rice cooking, or the scent of wet grass transports me to my childhood, almost as immediately as I close my eyes and take a deep breath of those “sensations sweet.” When I listen to certain songs I am reminded … The post My Sensations Sweet first appeared on Charlotte Maso…
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Charlotte Mason Poetry
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Miss Mason’s Principles In Character Training
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Editor’s Note: Antoinette Devonshire was born in 1893 and arrived at the House of Education in 1915.[1] As a student of Charlotte Mason herself, Antoinette seems to have particularly excelled in French: her “Notes of Lessons” on French reading was published in the November 1915 Parents’ Review. Then the March 1917 issue of L’Umile Pianta … The post…
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Editor’s Note: Essex Cholmondeley (1892–1985) is mostly remembered today as the biographer of Charlotte Mason. She also wrote the impactful booklet Parents Are Peacemakers, revived in recent years by Nancy Kelly. Cholmondeley’s association with the PNEU began in 1911 when Helen Wix, a graduate of the House of Education, became the governess of Esse…
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Charlotte Mason Poetry
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Occupations for Children Under Schoolroom Age
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Editor’s Note, by Haley Struecker In the second part of her article “Children Up to School Age and Beyond,” Elsie Kitching clarified for parents: There should be no so-called ‘lessons’ in the playroom. ‘Occupations’ is the right word, and for these no time-table should be set and there should be a sense of much freedom … The post Occupations for Ch…
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Editor’s Note: Donald Beswick was born in 1928 near Manchester. “After two years at a Teacher Training College and one year at Trinity College of Music, he took up teaching and [became] music master at a Secondary Modern School in London.” It was said that “his hobbies [were] singing with the Oriana Madrigal Society, and … The post Joy to be Shared…
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Editor’s Note: The appearance of Maria Montessori’s first book in English in 1912 greatly alarmed Charlotte Mason and the PNEU. Mason’s response was swift and strong. On December 3 of that same year The Times Educational Supplement published her letter entitled, “Miss Mason on the Montessori System.” This letter became chapter VII of the 1913 … The…
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Thoughts and Encouragement for Habit Training Probably one of the first principles of Charlotte Mason I encountered when I started reading and researching her philosophy was that of habit training. At that stage I had no idea that it formed part of one of her twenty principles—that of “Education is a Discipline.” I read somewhere … The post Three H…
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Editor’s Note: In 1919, a set of students at Charlotte Mason’s House of Education were each invited “to write an essay on some subject suggested by the volumes of the ‘Home Education Series.’”[1] Charlotte Mason herself then reviewed these essays and published them in the opening pages of the November 1919 issue of The Parents’ … The post Habit fir…
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Editor’s Note: This year we are celebrating the Charlotte Mason Centenary — the one-hundred-year anniversary of Charlotte Mason’s death. However, this is not the first Charlotte Mason Centenary. In 1942, a different anniversary was celebrated — the one-hundred-year anniversary of Charlotte Mason’s birth. The January 1942 issue of The Parents’ Revie…
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Editor’s Note. Lucy Barnes was born in 1805 as the first of four children of the poet and philologist William Barnes. She recalled that she and her siblings “never had in the remotest corner of their memories the shadow of an unkind word from their father, who was as ready to play ‘bears’ with them … The post Family Bickerings first appeared on Cha…
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Editor’s Note. “Just before the summer holidays [in 1887],” reminisced Charlotte Mason, “a few persons met in a neighbouring drawing-room to discuss a scheme for a Parents’ Educational Union.”[1] As a direct result of that meeting, the PNEU was born. But that was not the only momentous event in PNEU history that took place in … The post The Work an…
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My early childhood memories are of me running barefoot on a farm in South Africa. My grandparents had a small piece of land where we milked cows by hand, raised our own chickens, and grew our own corn. Whenever I visit a dairy farm, the scent of fresh cow dung always transports me back to … The post In Praise of Romanticism first appeared on Charlo…
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Editor’s Note: A letter dated February 15, 1935 from Elsie Kitching to Henrietta Franklin included a tantalizing line: Thank you very much for your letter, and all the trouble you have taken to improve the pamphlets. I kept up the type of the Playroom Leaflet, but we had to get some printed off, as we … The post The Playroom Leaflet first appeared …
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Charlotte Mason Poetry
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Charlotte Mason and the Child Who Loves To Learn
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Which seems more interesting to you? Reading stories of Greek and Roman heroes, or sitting in a dim classroom all day memorizing historical dates? When I was little, my schoolwork looked like reading books and spending time out in nature. Many of us have childhood memories of schoolwork that looks like a blank classroom and … The post Charlotte Mas…
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Editor’s Note: By Dean and Karen Andreola In an episode of Wodehouse’s humorous stories of Wooster and Jeeves, the servant Jeeves ruefully remarks to his hapless master that he is retiring to bed “with an improving book.” Ha. Not likely. Jeeves is good at pulling the wool over the eyes of Bertie Wooster. “An improving … The post Mother Culture firs…
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Editor’s Note by Richele Baburina In 1942, the hundred-year anniversary of Charlotte Mason’s birth, a special Centenary edition of The Parents’ Review was published to commemorate all she had done for education as a life. The writers were varied. From former Parents’ Union School students to members of the royalty, each gave thanks to the woman who…
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Editor’s Note: Last week we shared Dr. R. Bryce Gibson’s February 1915 article “Education and Personality.” Gibson was a professor in Melbourne, Australia who was intrigued by Charlotte Mason’s reflections on the philosophy of Rudolf Eucken. He prepared an address for the Victorian Branch of the PNEU which was later published in The Parents’ Review…
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Editor’s Note: In Charlotte Mason’s day, The Parents’ Review reached the ends of the earth — or at least, the ends of the English-speaking earth. Charlotte Mason’s fascinating June 1914 article “Trop de Zèle” was no exception, and it quickly reached the great island continent of Australia. Dr. R. Bryce Gibson was a Professor of … The post Education…
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Editor’s Note: In 2009, Dr. Benjamin Bernier completed his groundbreaking book entitled Education for the Kingdom: An Exploration of the Religious Foundation of Charlotte Mason’s Educational Philosophy. The book remains the finest exposition in print of the theological origin and basis of the Charlotte Mason method. In his research, Bernier explore…
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Editor’s Note: On June 18, 1926, Henrietta Franklin welcomed parents and teachers to the 28th Annual PNEU Conference in Caxton Hall, Westminster. She “plunged” her audience “directly into the pith and marrow” of the PNEU enterprise with an address entitled “Miss Mason’s Contribution to Educational Thought.” She insisted that while Mason’s fresh ide…
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Editor’s Note: The January 1936 issue of The Parents’ Review opened with this announcement: It is fifty years since Miss Mason published Home Education, which formed the basis of her work as founder of the P.N.E.U. In commemoration of this, all P.N.E.U. members—parents, teachers, and Parents’ Union School pupils (past and present)—are invited to me…
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We live in a world where homeschool families are often far away from relatives. They do all the work of teaching themselves, without tutors or help. A governess? Just a relic of the past! Can Charlotte Mason’s volumes speak to these kinds of families? Families like ours? In 1924, Elsie Kitching reached out to mothers … The post Letters from Mothers…
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Editor’s Note: Our fifth article in the Elsie Kitching Series brings us to 1936. That year was the fiftieth anniversary of the Charlotte Mason method, born by the publication of Home Education in 1886. Elsie Kitching had been serving as the Director of the Parents’ Union School and the editor of The Parents’ Review since … The post After Fifty Year…
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Editor’s Note, by Haley Struecker Miss Ellen A. Parish was known in Ambleside as a woman of constant bravery, and such a reputation must have befitted her, for in January of 1923, the will of Miss Charlotte Mason named her “Principal of the House of Education for life.” Ms. Essex Cholmondeley, biographer of Miss Mason, … The post Home Education Und…
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Editor’s Note: On January 5, 1927, a PNEU Meeting was held in London in conjunction with the Conference of Educational Associations. The subject under discussion was “Modern Educational Agencies and the Parents’ Union School.” Henrietta Franklin chaired the meeting and opened by explaining how the late Charlotte Mason had evaluated new developments…
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Editor’s Note: The December 1926 issue of The Parents’ Review was subtitled “Of Little Children” and said that “This number has been prepared by special request.”[1] The issue was to contain several articles and poems about children, but the editor also wanted to include first-hand advice from actual mothers who had been trained at the … The post T…
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Editor’s Note, by Jennifer Talsma On April 14, 1925, Miss Elsie Kitching delivered the opening address to “The Parent’s Union School Gathering at Canterbury,” an event that fulfilled a wish Charlotte Mason had expressed in 1910, when, during a trip to that old city, she told Miss Kitching “What a wonderful place this would be … The post A Great Inh…
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Several years ago, a good friend of mine told me that he had been asked by his church to teach a class for some of the children. He had never done anything like this before, so he was not sure what to do or what to expect, but he said he would do it anyway. … The post A Code of Education in the Gospels first appeared on Charlotte Mason Poetry.…
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Editor’s Note: The closing pages of the very first Parents’ Review in 1890 contained a short section entitled “Notes and Queries.” Charlotte Mason introduced it as follows: We have received some valuable “Notes,” but do not publish all in this number, partly, that we may first take an opportunity to make clear to our readers … The post Notes and Qu…
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Charlotte Mason Poetry
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The Place of Science in the Education of Children
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Editor’s Note, by Dawn Rhymer On the plane bound for the Living Education Retreat, I was trying to read through several Parents’ Review articles on science, but my eyes grew heavy. I shook my head to stay awake and slid the sleep-inducing articles to the bottom of the stack, hoping the next one would capture … The post The Place of Science in the E…
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Editor’s Note: The December 30, 1955 issue of The Times included an obituary with the title “Disciple of Charlotte Mason.” The article surveyed the life of a woman who had died two days before: She took the intermediate examination in Arts at London University in 1893, but instead of proceeding to a degree she joined … The post Moral Training first…
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Editor’s Note: The Fourteenth Annual PNEU Conference was held in July 1910 in London. Charlotte Mason was not present, but the conference opened with a reading of her new paper, presented by her friend Ella Glover. It was a unique essay entitled “Two Differing Ideals and a Danger.” In it, Mason offered a close analysis … The post Two Educational Id…
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1906 was a big year for Charlotte Mason. It’s the year that she completed the Home Education Series! In that fateful year Mason published the fifth and final volume of the series, entitled Some Studies in the Formation of Character. Now you may correct me and say that there are actually six volumes in the … The post The Story of Formation of Charac…
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Editor’s Note: When the reader of Charlotte Mason’s first volume has reached only the twelfth page, he or she is struck by Mason’s bold hermeneutical stance: It is worth while for parents to ponder every utterance in the Gospels about the children, divesting themselves of the notion that these sayings belong, in the first place, … The post Of Such …
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The following thought exercise is based on a true story. Imagine that you get a call from your oldest daughter who has just started her first semester at college. This is the first phone call you have received from her since starting college away from home. Naturally you’re excited to hear from her: “Well, how … The post Critical Thinking Through N…
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Editor’s Note: The ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus famously wrote: God … either wishes to take away evils, and is unable; or He is able, and is unwilling; or He is neither willing nor able, or He is both willing and able… if He is both willing and able, which alone is suitable to God, from … The post Letter From a Scientist first appeared on Cha…
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In most schools today, technology is king. All students are given tablets and everyone learns to code. We are told that this approach gives kids an advantage. It helps them thrive in the information age. It prepares them for a future that is becoming more and more digital every day. Other schools reach back to … The post Using Technology Well first…
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Editor’s Note: In May of 1913, the PNEU held their 17th annual conference at Caxton Hall in London. It was a fitting venue for a gathering of educational reformers; just four years prior it had hosted a major rally calling for women’s suffrage. The year 1913 was an important one for the PNEU. Only a … The post Self-Education first appeared on Charl…
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I’ve dealt with fear my whole life as a mom. I was so excited about the process, but fear spoke to me constantly, telling me lies about my capability, my circumstances, and God’s faithfulness. Listening to fear caused a loss of joy as I believed these lies. I prolifically read parenting books in an effort … The post To Overcome Fear first appeared …
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Editor’s Note: Harlow College in Essex was established in 1862 and enjoyed a proud history until it was closed in 1965.[1] The years 1904–1935, however, were known as its “golden era.” Those were the years that E. Percival Horsey served as Headmaster. A student from the 1920s recalled, “It was Mr. Horsey who made the … The post The Mason Method of …
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Growing up in public schools I somehow caught the idea that discovery was for the professional. For the explorer or the scientist or the mathematician, but not for me. I thought that a discovery was only worth making if it was a “first,” like being the first person to discover a new species of dinosaur, … The post Scouting — The Joy of Discovery fi…
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In 2 Corinthians, the Apostle Paul writes that “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret, but worldly sorrow brings death.” I don’t know about you, but I’ve experienced a lot of sorrow in my homeschool journey. And to be honest, I don’t think I’m the only one. Many parents I … The post Godly Sorrow, Worldly Sorrow…
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Editor’s Note, by Heidi Buschbach In the days of the PNEU, experts would come and speak about topics of interest. Their presentations would be transcribed and included in the Parents’ Review. Mr. Walter Ford was one of those presenters. He worked with notable men such as folksong collector Cecil Sharp and British composer Ralph Vaughn … The post So…
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El artículo está disponible en español. “Miss Mason’s philosophy and methods are very fully set forth in her books, but the books are written with such apparent simplicity that, as a friend once said to me, there is a danger of sliding along the top of the words without touching the profound thought below. It … The post Idyll Challenge IV first app…
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