An Ambleside Education

Education in all classes follows the clearly defined guiding Principles of Charlotte Mason and teachers are carefully trained in the Ambleside Method and accountable for applying it consistently. By maintaining an optimal learning atmosphere, training in the necessary habits, and engaging with inspirational ideas, Ambleside schools give their students the opportunity to become mature learners and excellent workers. Gaining knowledge and producing quality work become their own reward, thus negating the need for entertainment and artificial enticement.

The Ambleside Curriculum is composed of carefully chosen literary texts and objects of study. In all disciplines, beginning in the very early grades, Ambleside students are exposed to some of the best books, the greatest works of art, the most beautiful music, and the majesty of creation. A typical day at Ambleside is both rigorous and inspiring, involving the work of the mind and the work of the hand, requiring individual effort and group cooperation. And, all is done under the watchful eye of a caring teacher who is as concerned with the forming of the heart as the informing of the mind.

At Ambleside, each class has a primary teacher who spends the vast majority of her time (including lunch and recess) with her class. And, class size is kept small (limited to twelve in kindergarten through second grades and sixteen in the older grades). This allows teachers and students to know each other well and to cultivate the kind of relationships necessary for optimal learning. While student work is assessed throughout the semester, based on oral responses and work product; special assessments in the form of essay examinations are given near the end of each term. After the completion of each term, parents receive an extensive, narrative “Report of Progress” detailing subjects studied, student strengths, student weaknesses and plans for future growth.

While most Ambleside schools are not affiliated with a particular church and Ambleside families are not required to share a particular faith commitment, all Ambleside students are exposed daily to the person and principles of Jesus Christ. They begin each day with an assembly that includes prayer and the singing of a hymn, attend a weekly chapel service, and study the Old and New Testaments as part of the curriculum. All Ambleside faculty and staff share a commitment to believe, follow and obey Jesus. This accords with the institutional commitment of Ambleside schools to the person and principles of Jesus, as revealed in Scripture, taught in the Nicene Creed, and lived in accordance with the Ambleside Code of Conduct.

Benefits
Not only are Ambleside students given the opportunity to become masters of art and ideas, learning to paint and to sing, to read with understanding and to write with clarity, to appreciate great literature, to wonder at the revealed mysteries of number and of science, to share in the glory and ignominy of human history; but they are nurtured in healthy ways of relating to God, self, others, and work. By cultivating the habits proper to learning, Ambleside students grow in all areas of study to the fullness of their God-given potential. In cultivating the habits proper to mature living, Ambleside students grow in the skills necessary to live full and satisfying lives, rich in devotion to God, service to others, and continuing personal growth.

In the course of an Ambleside education students are on their way to becoming: