Do We Ever Stop Learning or Teaching?

My favorite time of year is approaching...the end of another school year. For most home school families, the days ahead will encapsulate the remaining few lessons of the school year with either excitement or a feeling of franticness! For our household, it is a time to reflex on the year we are about to close and then relax with what the children have learned or scramble to finish those last few lessons in order to complete the book. Although it has taken us nearly 10 years to settle into a comfortable routine, I think the rather unusual path we have chosen has served the children well. Even though they are on opposite ends of the philosophy spectrum, we have managed to incorporate the Charlotte Mason approach as well as the Classical method in our home schooling endeavors. It seems to satisfy the different needs of each child - the one who loves to do dictation and narrate each story, the child who must be outside drawing in their nature notebook and the 'to-do list' child who begs for more workbooks! Regardless of the book, subject or child, the year must come to a semi-stopping point. I say 'semi' because I don't believe that the learning ever stops. How can you see the gorgeous flowers in full bloom and not tell your children the names of each! Can I truly find a frog, turtle, bunny or baby garter snake in my yard and not capture them for just a few hours so we can peer into their lives and transfer the image into our notebooks? Is it really possible to witness an incredible thunderstorm and not sit outside (under the covered porch!) and talk about how awesome our Creator is and then explain the speed of sound? Is the trip to the zoo ever a non-educational event? So I rest my case...we are always learning and/or teaching. Ironically, most of the captured learning in our children takes place while enjoying nature - without a workbook!

Why do I look forward to summer so much? No more lesson plans, 5:30 am alarm clocks and classes to attend with a deadline. But much more than the needed break from those areas is the opportunity to spend relaxed, quality time with my family. Swimming, canoeing, bike rides, late nights with friends, parties, catching fireflies and counting the stars without any regards for a schedule bedtime!

As we enter our last week of school, I'm really thinking of putting away a few more of the 'needed' books and heading outdoors for a memorable way to end the year. Not only are the flower beds bursting with color, the tomato plants have bloomed with several tiny balls that will soon be resting atop our salads. A mama bunny has given us four precious babies for us to observe, as well several frogs, snakes and a bountiful amount of birds.

I am also looking forward to re-reading some of my favorite books this summer to encourage me for the upcoming school year. Three of my favorites are The Heart of Home Schooling by Chris Klicka, A Survivor's Guide to Home Schooling by Luanne Shackelford and Things We Wish We'd Known by Diana Waring. If I have sparked an interest for you and you are possibly considering home schooling, I can recommend two more books that might give you a window into the heart of a learning family: The Homeschool Journey by Michael and Susan Card and The How and Why of Home Schooling by Ray Ballmann. Of course, there are hundreds of books on home schooling, but these are just a few of my favorites that don my bookshelf.

I leave you with a challenge...weather you home school or not, make this summer a memorable one. Relax more. Enjoy your children and get to know what makes them smile. Teach them how to be in awe of God's creation and all the beauty that He gives us. Throw a blanket in your backyard and have a picnic. Visit a different park every week. Focus on a character trait in yourself that needs pruning and seek God's wisdom for improvement. Strengthen your marriage by realizing that you can only change YOU - not your spouse.

Most of all...laugh. Laugh at yourself and laugh with your friends and family. I think the medicinal properties of laughter is extremely underrated. It truly is medicine for the soul!