PRINCIPLE 13: NOTEBOOK EDITION
In devising a SYLLABUS for a normal child, of whatever social class, three points must be considered:
a)He requires much knowledge, for the mind needs sufficient food as much as does the body.
b)The knowledge should be various, for sameness in mental diet does not create appetite {i.e., curiosity}.
c)Knowledge should be communicated in well-chosen language, because his attention responds naturally to what is conveyed in literary form.
Again, Mason compares education—the nourishment of the mind—to eating—the nourishment of the body; and here we have three principles for ‘spreading the feast,’ Mason’s phrase for setting the syllabus.
We need lots of food regularly; we aren’t nourished to full health if we are given ‘pap-meat that may be good for the sick,’ or ‘diluted knowledge’; we need hearty meals. ‘If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone?’ {Luke 11:11}
We need all kinds of food; we are not going to be well-nourished on a fruit diet, a vegetable diet, or a seafood diet. We need all types of food to maintain robust health; we are omnivores.
Food that is fittingly and attractively served in a cheerful environment actually has better nutritional value, something Mason talks about in Home Education and Parents and Children. We get more out of our food when it is appetizing—different textures, colors, flavors, etc.
The blank page, with its welcoming versatility, is an empty plate ready to receive much and various food.
• my new ’20 Principles’ commonplace for collecting thoughts of different authors, corresponding to Mason’s principles for education •
December 5, 2014