The Role of the Mother: A Child's First and Best Teacher

"Maternal love is the first agent in education." — Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi

Charlotte Mason's first volume, Home Education, is comprised of a series of lectures she delivered on education. These lectures were so well received that they were later compiled into the book we know today. By modern standards, however, the title can be somewhat misleading. The book is not focused on homeschooling as we typically understand it today, but rather on what children can—and should—encounter and learn from birth through approximately age nine.

Because mothers are most often the primary caregivers during the early years, Mason's intended audience was largely mothers (as well as governesses, teachers, and others closely involved in the lives of young children).

Charlotte Mason goes so far as to say:

"…it is upon the mothers of the present that the future of the world depends, in even a greater degree than upon the fathers, because it is the mothers who have the sole direction of the children's early, most impressible years. This is why we hear so frequently of great men who have had good mothers—that is, mothers who brought up their children themselves, and did not make over their gravest duty to indifferent persons."^1^

Mothers as Disciplers

Charlotte Mason held a firm conviction that one of a mother's most important duties—perhaps the most important—is the discipling of her children. In modern Christian culture, it is easy to conflate discipline with discipleship, often justifying punishment by quoting Proverbs 22:15. But are discipline and punishment truly the same thing? Charlotte Mason would say no.

She explains:

"What is discipline? Look at the word; there is no hint of punishment in it. A disciple is a follower, and discipline is the state of the follower; the learner, imitator. Mothers and fathers do not well to forget that their children are, by the very order of Nature, their disciples…"^2^

Mason emphasizes that true discipleship is not achieved through force, but through attraction, persuasion, and example. Parents are to present ideals of life and duty winsomely and consistently, until children are stirred with a genuine zeal for virtue and holiness.

Reading Scripture Wisely

Reading the Bible aloud to children is a vital component of this discipleship, but Mason cautioned strongly against moralizing Scripture. She urged parents to allow space for the Holy Spirit to work, warning:

"Do not read the Bible at the child; do not let any words of the Scriptures be occasions for gibbeting his faults… It is the office of the Holy Ghost to convince of sin."

When Scripture is over-explained or reduced to constant moral correction, we risk hindering rather than nurturing a child's spiritual life. Mason writes that the Word itself is living and active, capable of applying truth without excessive adult commentary:

"A seed, light as thistledown, wafted into the child's soul will take root downwards and bear fruit upwards."^3^

Our responsibility, she believed, is to cultivate a love for the Word—to make Scripture reading one of the most delightful moments of a child's day.

The Formation of Conscience

Another key component of discipleship is the formation of conscience. Mason explains that as mothers instruct children in duty, they teach them to recognize the voice of conscience as the voice of God—an inner "do this" or "do it not" to be obeyed with confidence.^4^ Through this process, children develop moral clarity and a sense of responsibility grounded in faith.

Mothers Should Take Interest in What Is Being Taught

Charlotte Mason was keenly aware that parents are often too quick to surrender responsibility for their children's education to teachers without much thought as to what or how children are being taught. She lamented that parents frequently yield both direction and instruction "more than is wholesome for the children."

Mason argued that even when parents do not personally teach their children, they should form well-considered opinions regarding subject matter and educational methods. This involvement benefits both the teacher and the child. When teachers know that parents are engaged and supportive, their work gains vitality and purpose.

She also believed that informed parents help prevent education from becoming overly professionalized—focused on subject mastery for its own sake rather than on how learning shapes the child.^5^

This principle applies regardless of educational setting. Whether we homeschool or send our children to public or private schools, we should be able to articulate why we choose certain curricula, understand what and how subjects are taught, and know the values and approaches of those instructing our children. Without this insight, it becomes difficult to meaningfully support or supplement a child's education—or even to have thoughtful conversations about what they are learning.

A Mother's Role in Habit Training

Finally, and perhaps most significantly, mothers play a central role in habit formation—particularly during the early years. Charlotte Mason describes habit training as one of the mother's most powerful tools:

"In the hands of the mother, habit is as his wheel to the potter, his knife to the carver—the instrument by means of which she turns out the design she has already conceived in her brain."^6^

Habit formation, Mason believed, is the means by which the ultimate aim of education is achieved: the formation of virtuous human beings who love the Lord.

Whether intentionally or unintentionally, mothers inevitably shape their children's habits. Mason observed that mothers inevitably pass on their own values—whether thoughtful and principled, or driven by appearances and public opinion:

"Given… a mother whose final question is, 'What will people say?'… the children grow up with habits of seeming, and not of being."^7^

A Vast Responsibility

The role of the mother—through discipleship, habit formation, and educational involvement—is vast and multifaceted. While it is impossible to condense all of Charlotte Mason's wisdom on motherhood into a single post, it is my hope that this reflection encourages deeper exploration and renewed intentionality.

For a fuller understanding of Charlotte Mason's vision, there is no substitute for reading Home Education itself.

Sources

Charlotte Mason, Home Education, p. 2
Charlotte Mason, Parents and Children, p. 67
Charlotte Mason, Home Education, p. 349
Charlotte Mason, Home Education, p. 341
Charlotte Mason, Home Education, p. 170
Charlotte Mason, Home Education, pp. 98, 106
Charlotte Mason, Home Education, p. 106