Educating at home is something we all do as parents, regardless of whether or not our kids go to school. Every single one of us educates our children in a variety of different ways. We may not be their sole teachers, but they learn from us all the time through our words, actions and choices.

We are all teachers.

We are all learners.

When I was first applying to teachers college, I had to write a letter about why I felt I should be chosen for acceptance. I recall putting down the words: to teach is to learn forever, words that had resonated within me for a very long time, because I’ve always felt passionately that teaching goes hand-in-hand with learning. You can’t have one without the other, and they are a continuous, symbiotic process.

When we came to a decision to homeschool my own kids, I observed them through the years embrace being learners and teachers, and during my years of teaching at home I grew so much as a teacher, a mother and follower of Christ. I had to learn how they learn, and adjust how I teach accordingly, so that each one of my kids could get the full benefits of a one-on-one education. I always knew when they had fully grasped a lesson or a concept when they were able to teach it back to me, or share it with somebody else. Being there for them during those “lightbulb moments” was a uniquely special experience. They were teaching something they had learned, and the teaching is what cemented it for them.

Our family chose the path of homeschooling because it was right for us. This journey has been the most rewarding and also the most challenging, but when I look back now I don’t regret it, and I wouldn’t change it. I’ll never know all the reasons, I’ll never understand all the whys, but my husband and I do know how precious those moments we had with them are, and the opportunities that came with them were very special. For each and every one of them I’m grateful…so grateful.

As I reflect on my 17 years as a homeschool mom, four very specific things come to mind that my kids taught me: 

 

Number one: Look beyond myself.

This may seem simple, maybe even obvious to any moms reading this, but it’s not as simple as it seems. Raising five kids with unique needs and different ways of learning constantly put me in a state of them before me. Did I always do this willingly? No! I can fully admit that reality. But I was on a mission to provide what they needed. Whether it was physically, emotionally, mentally spiritually, academically athletically, I was out there to be their number one cheerleader, to be the kind of mom they could run back to and get a hug, to pray with, and also to recognize that they would be making choices which needed specific discipline and direction as well. That is part of the parenting journey whether we like it or not! We all need direction when we are beginning to make poor decisions, we all need others in our lives to point us to God’s loving and merciful truth.

 

Number two: Talk less and listen more

This one is easier said than done! Did I do it perfectly? Absolutely not! It’s impossible to not talk, but a wise choice of words makes way more sense than a bucket full of foolish hot air aimed at hurt, control or divisiveness. As moms, sometimes we vent to our kids because of our own issues, not because of anything related to actually what the kids are actually doing or not doing! If I could count the amount of times I regret a word that flew out of my mouth, perhaps a novel would arise from the ashes! But when you know you have wronged your kids with unwarranted words, you seek forgiveness and instead of telling yourself you will never break the cycle, know there is freedom as followers of Christ. Our sin does not define us. Take every thought captive and pursue knowing God. Understand the magnificent character of God, and by the power of a Spirit-filled life–although sin crouches at our door–we must live as we read this truth: “as far as the east is from the west so far are our transgressions removed from us.”

The Lord works righteousness
    and justice for all who are oppressed.
He made known his ways to Moses,
    his acts to the people of Israel.
The Lord is merciful and gracious,
    slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.
 He will not always chide,
    nor will he keep his anger forever.
He does not deal with us according to our sins,
    nor repay us according to our iniquities.
 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him;
 as far as the east is from the west,
    so far does he remove our transgressions from us.
 As a father shows compassion to his children,
    so the Lord shows compassion to those who fear him. 

For he knows our frame;
    he remembers that we are dust.

Psalm 103:6-14

 

Part two of what they taught me will be available next week!