“Children Are Born Persons”

This principle convinced me to follow the Charlotte Mason method.

At first glance when I heard this principle, I thought, “well obviously” but then I thought about my own teaching experience and realized that although obvious, we didn’t always live or recognize that principle.

Charlotte Mason’s first principle reminds us that children are not just minds to mold, but minds and souls. We are to feed the kids with truth, goodness, and beauty.

Children have to learn moral habits and daily duties. Yet, each child has his or her own interests that we should acknowledge and allow to flourish. We may even have to tweak our lesson plans to make it possible for each child to learn and love the material. In other words, we are to respect the mind of the child.

Susan Schaeffer Macaulay says, “When we begin studying the person, the real child, we must serve who he is, not for him into our schedules or plans.”

We do this through living books, art study, music study, and more. Giving our child a rich education is a good way to teach our children to love learning.

What comes to mind when you hear “Children are born persons”?

Click here to learn about Charlotte Mason’s Principle #2.

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