CMP Review 2024-12-31

December 31, 2024

The role of habit in the Charlotte Mason method can be difficult for parents and teachers to grasp. How important is habit to the method? How does it relate to other factors like inspiring ideas and personal influence? And how much of Mason’s guidance on habits is still relevant to us today?

Mason had a very close friend named Helen Webb who was a medical doctor. Remembered “as much poet as woman of science,” Dr. Webb had the remarkable ability to synthesize the scientific and the spiritual elements of Mason’s method and make it all clear to the lay person. Her writings on these subjects held a special place of honor in the PNEU.

In 1929, Webb’s articles were collected into a single hardcover volume entitled Children and the Stress of Life. Last year I was delighted to see it for the first time, and I soon began to appreciate it for what it is: a gold mine of explanation and guidance for the Charlotte Mason educator.

Why do some habits “stick” and some don’t? When is personal influence good and when is it bad? What is the role of ideas and habit in the development and education of our children? In 1929, the PNEU published a book with clear answers to these questions, declaring “it is hoped that the reprinting of these lectures may help and inspire many generations of parents.”

It’s a message of wisdom for our generation of parents, and now you can read or hear it here.

@artmiddlekauff