Charlotte Mason wrote that “music is a necessary part of education.” While she recommended that students learn to sing and play an instrument, at the core of Charlotte Mason music learning is enjoyment. That’s right – the best thing we can do for our kids is to put on music and enjoy it with our kids.
In this conversation, Amy and Leah talk through the three main points of Charlotte Mason music, share some of their favorite resources for incorporating music into their homes, and divulge some of their favorite (silly) musical family pastimes.
Listen now, or scroll for shownotes!
We are perceiving, too, that a human being is endowed with an ear attuned to harmony and melody, with a voice from which music may issue, hands whose delicate action may draw forth sounds in enthralling sequence. With the ancient Greeks, we begin to realize that music is a necessary part of education
Charlotte Mason, Towards a Philosophy of EducationT
The Art of a Musical Atmosphere
[2:01] Charlotte Mason’s method hinges on enjoyment of music
[5:01] An atmosphere of music in a home is a home where music is valued.
Training of the Ear
[7:05] I mostly think of training the ear
[7:24] Listen to music. There is lots of music in a Charlotte Mason Education.
[11:31] Read picture books about music
Training the Voice and Hands
[15:41] Piano is great to start with for training the hands
[18:28] Training the voice is simpler
[19:49] My son wanted to “learn the microphone”
Teaching Music Theory
[21:11] If you wait until they are ready, they will learn faster
[25:26] Charlotte Mason wouldn’t have us pick apart music, but to enjoy it
Mentioned in this Episode, and other resources on Charlotte Mason music
Hoffman Academy (for piano lessons)
Clap for Classics (and a blog post by Leah about this resource)
Singing Made Easy (affiliate link)
A post by Leah that discusses composer study
Stories from Wagner (an old book, originally printed in lovely, small hardback editions (think Beatrix Potter but slightly longer/larger). Reprints are available if you can’t find an old copy second hand. Amy has several books from the “As Told to the Children” series and they are delightful.
