Preliminary Consideration and Chapter 1 Method of Education

Preliminary Considerations

• Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, a life.

  • Atmosphere → Children learn through the environment and relationships around them.

  • Discipline → Building good habits is foundational.

  • Life → Nourishing the mind with living ideas, not just facts.

• Parents are the child’s first and most important teachers.

  • Home is not secondary to school; it is the primary place of formation.

  • Parents must be intentional in shaping habits and ideas.

• The goal of education is character and whole-person growth.

• Not only filling the mind with knowledge, but shaping will, habits, and affections.

• Learning is not for exams, but for living well.

Chapter 1 – A Method of Education

• Education is a discipline of habits.

  • Habits (of attention, truthfulness, kindness, order, etc.) are the rails on which a child’s life runs.

  • Forming good habits early saves effort later.

• Children are born persons.

  • They are not empty vessels, but individuals with their own minds and dignity.

  • Respect their thoughts, do not underestimate their ability to understand big ideas.

• Mind feeds on ideas, not just information.

  • Use living books and real experiences instead of dry facts.

  • Narration helps children take ideas and make them their own.

• Education shapes the will.

  • Teach children to choose wisely, not just to obey.

  • The will can be strengthened by small daily choices, guiding them toward self-control.

My Takeaway 

• Your home is the most powerful classroom.

• I will Focus on habits + living ideas + respect for your child as a person.

• Knowledge should be life-giving, not rote or mechanical.

• Parenting and teaching is not about control, but guiding children to grow in independence, character, and love for God and others.

Children are a public trust .