Charlotte Mason Conference Resources
The lectures and Keynote presentations from our conferences are listed below- click on the appropriate button to access them. The lectures will appear in a pop-up window, so make sure that your browser is not set to block them.
Speaker: Lori Lawing
BiographyLori Lawing has come to appreciate Charlotte Mason’s way of training the intellect as well as her love of literature. In addition to teaching her children (ages 12, 11, 8, 6, and 4) she delights in teaching Shakespeare to a group of 25 six to twelve year olds. She is a 1985 graduate of UNC and was a member of Chapel Hill’s speech team, competing in oral performance of literture. She currently directs an annual competitive speech tournment for 100+ students in the greater Charlotte area.
Topic: Training the Intellect through Literature (2007) We all admit that nature, morality and theology are divine in origin, but Charlotte Mason believed the origins of the intellect are divine as well. Intellect is not man’s own sphere, nor his exclusive domain. If the source of intellect is divine, then our pursuit of knowledge is ultimately for the glory of God. Charlotte Mason believed we need to feed the child’s mind with the food of intellectual life: ideas. This session’s participants will practice with lessons of literture and poetry which require the mind to think. In the words of Shakespeare’s Henry V, “Work, work your thoughts!” Included will be a study of the literary aspects of Scripture, Shakespeare, poetry, classics, living books and recitation.
Recommended for: Primary to High School Teachers, Administrators and Parents
Speaker: Dr. Carroll Smith
BiographyDr. Carroll Smith has spoken on various topics related to Charlotte Mason. Currently he teaches at Gardner-Webb University and enjoys working with children, teachers, college students, and ChildlightUSA. He was a teacher and a principal for 21 years before coming to Gardner-Webb University where he has been for six years. Having grown up in eastern North Carolina, he attended East Carolina University for his undergraduate degree and his master's in school administration. He completed his terminal degree and wrote his dissertation on Charlotte Mason at Virginia Tech. Carroll enjoys reading, gardening, and discussing ideas with friends. He and his wife, Andra, and their two young adult college-age children, Corban and Anna, enjoy living, working and playing in North Carolina.
Topic: Nature Study (2007) Eve Anderson says that she started her nature notebook at 5 years of age. She says”I attended a CM school at the age of 5 and enjoyed my nature notebook and got satisfaction from my attempts at watercolour by observing the specimens carefully when copying it.” Notice what was important here: observing the specimens carefully. Here lies the importance of nature study. It is not about perfect watercolours and certainly we want children to develop in their ability to mix colours and paint--but the point is observation.
Recommended for: Primary to High School Teachers, Administrators and Parents
Read the Keynote Presentation
Speakers: Nicolle Hutchinson
BiographyNicolle Hutchinson graduated from a Christian liberal arts college with a degree in Elementary Education. After teaching in public schools for five years, she trained public school teachers and developed curriculum for Teachers' Curriculum Institute's middle and high school program, History Alive! and led the development of their first grade program, Social Studies Alive! My School and Family. In 2000, after a long search for an educational philosophy based on the Christian worldview, that, in Francis Schaeffer's words, “is true to the way things are,” Nicolle found Charlotte Mason's ideas. She studied and applied Mason's works and served as a teacher and leader in three Charlotte Mason schools. She conducted Charlotte Mason workshops, presented the Charlotte Mason session at the Florida Homeschooling Convention in 2004, and is now homeschooling in Pottsville, PA. In July she will begin her masters work at the University of Pennsylvania in the Education Leadership Program for Aspiring Principals. Nicolle is married to Storm, the pastor of First UMC-Pottsville, and the mother of Storm IV, an active nine year old. & Rebekah Brown Biography
Rebekah Brown graduated from a liberal arts college near Boston with a degree in Elementary Education. After teaching elementary and middle school in both the public and private sectors for seven years, she worked as curriculum director and lead teacher at a private school near Atlanta where she became acquainted with the ideas and practice of Charlotte Mason. Since then she has conducted inservice training for classroom educators, led study groups for homeschooling parents on the philosophy and practice of Charlotte Mason, and has spoken at several Charlotte Mason conferences. In 1999, she co-founded a Charlotte Mason school and training center in Texas where she served as teacher and curriculum director. Currently, Rebekah is the principal of South City Community School, a new Charlotte Mason school opening in the autumn of 2007 in St. Louis, which has an intentional mission to the underprivileged children and families in the city.
Topic: Goods of the Gods: Respecting the Child's Proclivity to Narrate (2007) Charlotte Mason spoke of a child's innate proclivity to narrate as one of the "goods of the gods." She advocated using this natural ability and desire to “tell back” as the primary method for the assimilation of living ideas. Through the reading of Mason's works and more current articles on narration, participants will experience creative forms of narration for many types of subjects and many ages, including high school and college. Participants will also observe original student work, compare the evaluative nature of narration with Bloom's Taxonomy, and share successes and questions with the entire group of learners.
This presentation explores the philosophy of narration, its methodology and its evaluative nature.
Recommended for: Administrators, classroom teachers, home teachers, college teachers, ELL teachers, media specialists, parents, preservice teachers, reading specialists, primary, upper elementary, middle, and secondary.
© Copyright by Childlight USA, 2008-2010. Development and design by