The Charlotte Mason style of homeschooling is really a method. She believed in education the whole child not just the mind. Rather than write a bunch on this I’m going to give you this link (CLICK HERE) Sonya Schaeffer from Simply Charlotte Mason does an excellent job explaining the Charlotte Mason video and has a video to explain more. It’s a fabulous introduction to what a Charlotte Mason education is – so read and watch.
There are many curriculums that claim to be Charlotte Mason inspired however, very few are truly CM. I would highly encourage you if you are just looking into Charlotte Mason to dig into information that will give you a true (or “whole hog” as they call it in CM world) reflection of a Charlotte Mason philosophy. Many of these “inspired” CM curriculums say things that are not true to CM and their curriculum would not hold up to the standard of CM.
To learn about the true Charlotte Mason philosophy – here are my recommendations
- A Delectable Education Podcast: If you want a firehose of real information on CM this is where to start. From their website you can listen in order and I highly recommend starting from the beginning. If you don’t want to read this is the best way to learn! (CLICK HERE to listen to A Delectable Education)
- Charlotte Mason wrote a 6 volume set on her philosophy. Though the language is a bit old, once you get used to her voice in writing it is pretty easy to follow along and who better to learn about the CM philosophy from than Charlotte Mason herself (CLICK HERE to see the 6 volume set)
- A Charlotte Mason Companion- written by Karen Andreola. She and her husband were the original discovered of the Charlotte Mason 6 volume set. They have an amazing story on how these books made it to the states and were printed for the first time. Karen is a wealth of knowledge of Charlotte Mason and homeschooling and has given countless families encouragement through the years. I’d encourage you to read either of her books (A Charlotte Mason Companion or Mother Culture) and follow her on Facebook. (CLICK HERE to see Karen’s Books) (CLICK HERE to read the story of the CM Books coming to America)
- For the Children’s Sake – written by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay is my one of my favorite books on homeschooling with Charlotte Mason. I try to reread this book each summer. It’s an inspiring book and I am always a better homeschool mom after reading this book. (CLICK HERE to see For the Children’s Sake)
Here are Charlotte Mason curriculums. The Charlotte Mason curriculums that are “whole hog” or true CM curriculums are under “The Standard” title and more under the “inspired” curriculums.
