Education is....(FILL IN THE BLANK) part 1

For many years, while the children were very young, I tried to answer the question... "What is an education?" 

Is an education progress in the 3R's; reading, writing and arithmetic?
Is it your results on formal examinations?
Is it measured by the breadth of you general knowledge?
Is it measured by your own development and maturity as a person?


The Church says that all parents are the "primary educators" of their children. Well, in addition to that, I have taken it upon myself to be my children's educator in terms of academics as well.....but what is it that I am trying to achieve?

What does it mean to be "an educated person" or to "educate" someone? There is something there that suggests more than just book-knowledge, but I could never quite articulate it to myself.

What is an education?!


I found an answer that satisfies me in Charlotte Mason's writings....


"Education is an atmosphere, a discipline and a life."

so, looking at each in turn:



"Education is an atmosphere, a discipline and a life."


Atmosphere:  the ideas and values and attitudes that govern our home and family will be absorbed by the child, and that will form one third of the child's education. More things are caught than taught, as they saying goes!
CM wrote: “the child breathes the atmosphere emanating from his parents; that of the ideas which rule their own lives.”

What you value as parents, what you care about, how you spend your time, the ideas that you live by,  how you treat others, how you talk and what you do, your vision of the world and more, will be all absorbed by your children and will form them and shape them and educate them.



"Education is an atmosphere, a discipline and a life."


Discipline: The habits of the child, make the character of the man, says CM. The habits that are cultivated in the child will form one third of their education. And you'd be surprised what we think of as being "personality" or just in someone's nature, which in actual fact is just a habit which has been cultivated in them, or which they have cultivated in themselves.....

attention
memorizing
mental effort
perfect execution
thinking
accuracy
concentration
thoroughness
cleanliness
courtesy
kindness
manners
modesty & purity
neatness
order
regularity
courage
diligence
generosity
gentleness
patience
respect for other people
obedience
truthfulness
thought of God
self-discipline

and more  (big list here)

Every person will be born with different innate strengths and weakness,  but each of those traits can be trained in a child as a habit, regardless of their own innate inclination, and this is part of an education.

(and wow, there is nothing like trying to instil good habits in your children to realise how many bad habits you have as a parent!)

Every day, every hour, the parents are either passively or actively forming those habits in their children upon which, more than upon anything else, future character and conduct depend...

"Education is an atmosphere, a discipline and a life."


Life:

Charlotte believe, as I have written of before, that children should be fed an intellectual diet of rich living ideas, not just dry lifeless writings,  and they should feast on the best mankind has to offer....rich poetry, beautiful art, inspiring music, great literature which deals with subjects that move us, challenge us, inspire us and change us as people, they should enjoy the marvels of the natural world and spend lots of time outdoors, they should enjoy physical pursuits and be skilled at useful handicrafts.

This latter part of an what "an education" is, is the 'academic' part, but CM believed that this academic part contributes only one third of what makes someone an educated person.



In the next post I will write about my booklists, and sources for books that we use.

all the children looking at the newly hatched ducklings

babies!