[3] Frederic Lister Burk was born September 1, 1862, in Blenheim, Canada West.

[4] His parents were Matilda Turner (1822–1905), his English mother; and Erastus Burk (1816–1897), his American father.

[4] At the age of 7 his family moved to the town of Coloma in El Dorado County, California.

[3][5] Burk developed an original system of individual learning based on teaching aids, like self-correction and self-drill.

[2][3] Burk's educational system had influence on the practice of teaching in the United States, including the development of the Dalton Plan by Helen Parkhurst, and on the activities of Carleton Washburne to create the Winnetka Plan.