I find that I am far enough into the school year to begin asking myself a very familiar question - who is really being educated in our homeschool?  To the untrained and inexperienced, it is the children who are embarking upon this educational pursuit.  I disagree.  It is not the children at all, but us parents.

My husband jokingly says that homeschool mothers are by far the smartest people on the planet.  This is especially true for those of us with large families.  Why?  Well, you figure that we will have gone from Kindergarten through High School atleast 3 times, we should be smart!  This is funny, but also very true. The homeschool mother is truly being educated.

I have discovered over this past week that there is so much of my history that I really don't know.  In preparing for the lessons I am to teach my children, I have discovered things about my country that I never read once during school, not even in college.  Of course, the world-wide-web didn't exist in the form that we currently enjoy and it does make a huge difference when it comes to what information is available to us during our research phase.  Nonetheless, I find myself wondering how it is that so much pertinent information could be left out of my education.  Am I alone?  Do any of you wonder about the "quality education" you received as a youngster?  When you compare it to the education that your children are receiving from you, do you still think that it was pretty good?  I don't.  Sometimes I would that I could just homeschool myself.

Wait a minute, I am!

My education is going far beyond the discovery of information, but it is also teaching me things that I would never have been capable of learning during my younger years.  There really wasn't much opportunity to teach my peers, to condescend with those of low estate, or to multi-task in the way that I must now.  Being responsible for the spiritual, character, and educational development of my children makes it necessary for me to learn all types of new skills.  I find myself reading everything from my Bible to How To Win Friends and Influence People  to Different Children, Different Needs.  I am learning to be a mom, home organizer, project manager, social worker, bible instructor and teacher.  In order to be confident that I am doing a good job, I have decided to pursue my "master's" degree in each area.  It means many hours of prayer and study, but it is the most valuable education that I can imagine right now.

For the next few years (actually about 17+), my children will be enrolled in our homeschool, but I will be the one who is being educated the most.