English educator Charlotte Mason insisted upon the use of "living books" in her schools and educational societies. I have to say this is one of my absolute FAVORITE Charlotte Mason ideas. So what exactly was she talking about?
Living books, according to Miss Mason, are written by authors whose passion and excitement for their subject are pouring out of the pages they have written. They can carry you away to another time, another place, keep you up at night, and keep making entrances into your mind long after you have read them. Science, history, fiction, non-fiction, biographies, or really any kind of book can be a living book. They somehow elicit from you the desire to question, love, despise, wonder, empathize, dream, think, etc., about that topic as if you are really there, or actually know the people or principles involved. You actually feel as if you have a relationship with them.
Charlotte Mason teaches that this process of forming a relationship with subject matter is the root of all education. Mere facts passing through our minds that do not stir up any emotion or interest by us will continue to pass right on by, likely to never be remembered or cared about.
Take, for example, a kid who loves baseball. He knows the teams, his favorite players, and a crazy amount of statistics for both of them. Why can he remember all of those facts so well? Because he has a RELATIONSHIP with those numbers, they represent the skill and prowess of some of his greatest heroes. They literally serve his needs the same way a friend or family member would. So, because he LOVES them, his mind can happily and easily digest an unbelievable amount of them.
Charlotte Mason mirrored this discussion in a statement about information vs. knowledge:
"Information is the record of facts, experiences, appearances, etc., whether in books or in the verbal memory of the individual;" while "knowledge, it seems to me, implies the result of the voluntary and delightful action of the mind upon the material presented to it."
Don't we all want our children to have a continuous "delightful action of the mind" as all of the wonderful information of the world is presented to them? Whether it be due to baseball or dinosaurs or princess stories or physics, we learn a tremendous thing about the human mind in regards to learning and relationships. When it is excited about something, or connected to something, its ability to focus, remember, and recall the topic is vastly improved.
As a homeschooler, I really want to apply this idea of improved learning based on relationships to my children in their secular education. But mostly, I really just want to my children to have as many "delightful actions of the mind" as possible in this life - not just in academics, but in loving, learning, finding God, and every good thing this world has to offer.
I really love living books that continually create "delightful actions of the mind" over and over again. I have seen my children literally jump up and down in joy or groan and writhe on the floor in pain as we've navigated the ups and downs of a great book. The ultimate relief that comes with triumph at the end of a living book is, without a doubt, one of the BEST "delightful actions of the mind."
I am excited to start an ongoing list of our favorite living books!
What are some of your favorites?
