Homeschooling in the Ski Lodge

The kids are on Winter break this week. There has been skiing, socializing, organizing and laziness but no time to write posts! Still, teaching opportunities present themselves.

Last night in the ski lodge my daugher asked me about the Twilight sequel, New Moon, and if they were shooting in Italy. I replied that they were probably doing “pre-production work”. This piqued her interest (and my son’s) and they began asking questions about the movie industry.

We went all through it from producers and investors to distribution rights and promotional item sales. I had no idea I knew much about how the industry works but I just kept dredging up more info. It must be all those trashy magazines I’ve read in doctor’s offices over the years. Anyway, my point is – when you teach something you find out just how much you know about the subject and it’s usually more than you think.

It made me feel good about my ability to teach.

It made me remember another odd circumstance. I was in a restaurant in NYC with my husband’s extended family. A cab caught fire and burned to crisp directly in front of the restaurant windows. This provided hours of entertainment for my young nephews but it also provided a teaching opportunity. I talked my 9 year old nephew through everthing that would take place, from the 911 call to the fire being extinguished to the car’s smoldering carcass being removed to the insurance settlement and the replacement of the cab. The surprising thing is that he was genuinely interested. Kids want to know how things work! These are life skills they’ll need someday.

This is a skill they won’t learn in public school. Our public schools increasingly focus on facts and test prep and memorization skills. That’s not the same thing as thinking skills. Looking back, I learned more from teachers who had conversations with us in class than I ever did from those who lectured. Those conversations left me thinking, they left me curious and were a springboard from which I learned to take the initiative to investigate and teach myself.

Homeschooling provides endless opportunities to each practical thinking skills and you know more than you think you do.

Feel good about it.