What is an idea?
One thing Charlotte Mason cared passionately about was the need to feed children IDEAS. She said the life of the mind grows on ideas.
An idea is anything which captivates our minds and causes us to think.
Ideas are usually imparted from one person to another through enthusiasm or conviction – which is where we get Charlotte Mason’s term, “living book”. Meaning that through the book, a “living thing of the mind” is passed on to the reader.
I like the things that Charlotte Mason had to say about ideas – how ideas behave, how they endure, how they pass from one mind to another.
Ideas can be good or bad, they can reproduce, and they can grow. They can have a powerful impact on people and change the way people behave.
Because we are spiritual beings, ideas have an impact on us that they would not have on animals who are primarily physical creatures.
What does an idea look like?
You can see ideas at work in the minds of even the smallest children:
- A baby grasps the idea that his fingers belong to him and he can control them.
- A one-year-old works out and gets the idea that pushing the buttons on the remote makes all the adults in the room jump up and down and start yelling.
- A five-year-old get the idea that the shape of “t” stands for a certain sound.
- You see your child wrestling with the idea of numbers reaching into infinity.
- You see your child considering the idea that blood is circulating though his body all the time, or that his heart beats all the time and when it stops he will die.
These are examples of ideas in action.
How powerful are ideas?
Ideas have huge power in our lives. As well as inspiring us to action or experimentation, ideas can control our behaviour too.
For example,
- We absorb from our environment the idea that doing sloppy work is shameful, and work well done is something to be proud of.
- We get the idea that the world scorns a coward, but to be brave is noble.
- We believe the idea that hard work and diligence increase our chances of success.
- We get the idea that flossing and brushing our teeth is good for us.
Those kinds of ideas, planted in the mind, are the seeds that will, properly nourished, grow into the kinds of habits and character we want.
Ideas can deeply affect our behaviour and our attitude to all aspects of daily life. It’s something that impacts our children as we teach them. And a knowledge and understanding about ideas can be a great asset in our parenting.
You can read more about Ideas and what Charlotte Mason thought about ideas in Lesson Two of Charlotte Mason Made Easy.
You can join the course here
https://www.charlottemasonmadeeasy.com
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https://charlottemasonmadeeasy.com/cmme-the-book/