K is for Knowing
The power of narration
You can only tell what you know.
This is such an obvious phrase that the truth of it, the power contained in its use, often slides by our notice.
It is the supreme test.
“Tell back what you have heard.”
“Tell what you understand about this.”
“Explain what is happening here.”
It is the knowing that a multiple-choice question cannot verify; the kind of assimilation a fill-in-the-blank question cannot secure.
“Telling what you know” assumes (habit) and requires (effort) much. It assumes that something has been attended to purposefully; that quality content worth attention and effort, be it a book, a conversation, or an experience, was offered. It assumes that sorting and ordering have happened inwardly to unravel the principal ideas and sequence of events in order to put them forth again in some sort of coherent order.
Narration ushers the mind to a deep place of seeking to know in a cohesive way. The moment a particular question is posed the bobber pops back up to the surface in a desperate attempt to play the narcissistic game of “guess what the teacher is thinking”. Attention shifts: the inward moves outward as the student’s attention is pulled from the material to the teacher.
The problem is it seems too simple – from the teacher’s perspective. Teachers like to be busy doing and saying and organizing and clarifying. Narration requires little of the teacher – but much of the student. This is why the teacher must practice narration personally so that they are reminded of the weight of what they ask. That they are not in fact doing nothing – but rather placing a definite something, an expectation - consistently. Placing it gently – centering it firmly, not letting it be shrugged off but readjusting where needed. This is an art gained only by practice, continuance. Patient continuance.
It is sometimes easy to move out of the “performance” mentality for the teacher, only to have it settle on the student. Narration is not a performance, the value of a lesson (or the teacher!) doesn’t rest with any one shining example of reproduction. Narration is a cumulative skill and has a cumulative effect. It is the long-term training that it affords that is its true value. It is the tool of self-education. It turns a reading into a lesson, an experience into a part of the person.
Narrating is not memorizing or parroting back – there is a place for rote, but it lies in the shallows. Narration takes us deeper into thought, purpose, nuance, and theme. There is a sense of understanding that is needed for narration that is not needed for rote. This means that sometimes there will be more thought, nuance, and theme present than is recreated by the student. This is to be expected, they are students after all and not masters.
Ideas will come round again – there is a rhythm to a Charlotte Mason education, like waves upon a shore, a coming and going, a leaving and a taking, and in this, I am not referring to the rereading of material (this is not recommended as it dulls attention) – but rather the ebb and flow across grade levels, and Forms, and life. The great point is – that we are offering them the very best at whatever age their personhood happens to be, not waiting for some arbitrary “arrival date” and then, via narration, expecting them to grasp what they can – because what they reach for and attain on their own will be truly theirs and they will have gained powers to apprehend the next idea that comes along.
And like the waves on the shore, there is never an end to this pattern. Learning isn’t confined to a neat little box called K-12. There is a lifetime of ideas ahead, and we want to equip them with the ability to possess them. This is the higher goal to keep in mind when the reading stops, the narration request is made, and there is quiet. This is normal. This is part of the rhythm. Don’t give into temptation to rush the quiet or fill in the quiet, this is where the magic is happening. Once the words begin, they will flow – but the work happened in the quiet, inward parts.
Sara Timothy 2024
Author’s Note: As with the caution at the end of the article, G- Is for Grammar (see it if you haven’t!) I don’t want to over-romanticize this aspect of a Charlotte Mason education, but I don’t think I am! As with most things, the surface is often more mundane than the inner, BUT we need the inspiration of the inner to motivate us with consistency on the surface. This is what I hope I’ve done here.
Narration is the workhorse of a Charlotte Mason education – and most days, it happens in a seemingly mundane way. Don’t feel like you are doing something wrong if it doesn’t feel all warm and fuzzy. Narrate and move on. This tool does its best work inwardly – with consistency. Sometimes, plain and simple are the best helpers towards consistency.
Have you noticed how many times I used the word consistency up there? There is a reason! When I first started toying with narration, I wasn’t impressed. We did it here and there and it seemed just so-so. It wasn’t until we started doing it consistently that I began to see fruit. The rule at our house is, “Every scheduled reading must be narrated in some way.” Links below will fill in some of those ways and why.
For Further Reading in the Volumes:
Topical CM Series (amblesideonline.org)
For Further Learning:
Know and Tell: The Art of Narration
Narration (charlottemasonpoetry.org)
Five Steps to Successful Narration (free e-book) (simplycharlottemason.com)
Narration: The Foundation of a Charlotte Mason Education | A Gentle Feast
Creative Narration | Charlotte Mason Help
Episode 8: Narration 2.0, The Act of Knowing | A Delectable Education Podcast
Silent Narration?? • Sage Parnassus
Are Narration and Discussion Interchangeable? – Afterthoughts (afterthoughtsblog.net)
Editor’s Corner Picks (These are extra items we use in our own homes):
Softcover Notebooks — Riverbend Press
Narration Jar - Simply Charlotte Mason
Narration Bookmarks - Simply Charlotte Mason