27 Nov Copywork the Charlotte Mason Way

While researching the different homeschool methods for my children, a friend directed me to the book A Charlotte Mason Companion: by Karen Andreola.  I have been devouring it obsessively for the past couple of weeks. Can I just say, I LOVE THIS BOOK!  In fact, at the risk of sounding utterly corny, I would say this book resonates in my soul.  I had no idea what homeschooling could look like and how it could nourish not only my children’s minds, but also their souls and spirits. I am learning all kinds of things about Charlotte Mason’s methods, all of which simply ring so true to me. 

Charlotte Mason’s Approach to Copywork

While reading, I came upon the subject of Charlotte Mason’s approach to copywork, which has been prominently on my radar recently.  My 4 year old has been going to pre-school and each week they cover a letter of the alphabet.  They learn to recognize the letter in words and they do copywork, writing down the letter.  He’s know the alphabet since about 15 months old, so this is maybe a little boring for him, but this cannot be an excuse for his hideous handwriting!!!  It’s just scribble! 

Now, I know. He’s 4. I also know that the teacher cannot closely monitor all of the children in his class. Maybe most people don’t even care about handwriting, but I am a Nurse. I work in an area where proper handwriting is vital. I could go so far as to say neat handwriting can mean the difference between life and death! My concern is that if I allow this level of effort now, it will become a habit. So, my solution is to ensure good handwriting habits are in place before he gets to school.  I saw the need, but had no idea how to proceed.  My first thought was to simply sit Clark down after breakfast and before heading out to school and to copy a page of a letter.

Copywork the Charlotte Mason Way

This approach was showing some results. But then I came across Charlotte Mason’s methods. They seemed much more efficient. Charlotte Mason says:

“Secure that the child begins by making perfect letters and is never allowed to make faulty ones, and the rest he will do for himself; as for ‘a good hand,’ do not hurry him; his ‘handwriting’ will come by-and-by… “

“A Child should Execute Perfectly. No work should be given to a child that he cannot execute perfectly, and then perfection should be required from him as a matter of course…Set him six strokes to copy; let him, not bring a slateful, but six perfect strokes, at regular distances and at regular slopes. If he produces a faulty pair, get him to point out the fault, and persevere until he has produced his task; if he does not do it to-day, let him go on to-morrow and the next day, and when the six perfect strokes appear, let it be an occasion of triumph. So with the little tasks of painting, drawing, or construction he sets himself–let everything he does be well done… Closely connected with this habit of ‘perfect work’ is that of finishing whatever is taken in hand. The child should rarely be allowed to set his hand to a new undertaking until the last is finished.”

The Charlotte Mason Principles for Copywork

I have outlined Charlotte Mason’s principles for copywork here as a reference for myself. I hope they can help you as well:

1. Expect perfection.
2. Choose a word or phrase or passage from a book or poem your child enjoys.
3. Do not give in to whining.
4. Keep the lesson VERY short to avoid tediousness-5 to 10 minutes is plenty for young children.
5. Start with a stroke, not a letter.
6. Do not require a page full of strokes or even a line, just a few PERFECT strokes.
7. Do not go on to a new letter until it is perfect.
8. A job well done makes the doer happy.
9. The lesson immediately following should not be written work. Choose something different for a change of pace. 

We switched up our methods and instantly saw improvement! For the next year or two we will concentrate on perfecting letters and numbers. Then as the child progresses Charlotte Mason suggests moving on to copying passages of literature, poetry and the Bible. This exposes them to noble thoughts, good sentence structure, rich vocabulary, punctuation and grammar.   We’ve been working this method for several weeks now and I have definitively seen an improvement in the work that my son brings home.  His teacher has too!