Why You Don’t Need to Be Afraid of the Things You Don’t Know in Homeschooling
One thing I hear often from parents worried about whether they are “capable” of homeschooling is this idea that you have to remember everything you were ever taught in school in order to teach it.
That’s way too much to expect of yourself. Studies show that as adults, we **only use about 37% of what we learned in school.** Why would we retain the rest? We don’t. And yet, we do just fine.
But here’s the good news: you don’t need to remember everything to be able to teach your kids. To explain, let me take you back to when your child was a toddler and it was time for potty training.
When you taught your child to use the toilet, how did you know how to teach them? Did you think back to how you were potty trained? Did you remember exact instructions your parents gave you? Of course not. Most of us don’t even remember that age, let alone the details.
So how were you “qualified” to teach your child to use the toilet?
Because you knew how to figure out how — and you had tools.
First, you probably took some time to teach yourself how to teach it. Maybe you read a book. Maybe you hit up some parenting blogs, or watched YouTube videos. Maybe you asked a friend or family member who had done it before. In this day and age there is no limit to the information available to us- you can be taught and learn to teach absolutely any skill you choose.
Second, you probably accessed some tools to support you while you taught it. Maybe you purchased a kids book about using the potty to read to your child. Maybe you found a tv show for your child to watch that instructed them for you. Maybe you bought a kids’ potty to make it more accessible for them.
Most likely, you used a combination of resources!
And then you tried.
You experimented. You considered your family needs and lifestyle, and your child’s uniqueness and what would inspire and motivate them. You looked at what was working and what wasn’t, and you made adjustments. Maybe your first attempts didn’t work for your child. You learned more about how your child learns, or what motivates them, so then you tried something else. Eventually something clicked.
For some kids it happens quickly, for others it’s a long and messy process. Maybe you even thought you were failing at times. But at the end of the day, they figured it out — because you stayed with them through the process.
And when all our kids are grown, no one will care whether they were potty trained at 14 months or 3½ years. They all learned what they needed to know, in their own time.
Homeschooling is the same.
You don’t have to know algebra or remember the dates of every war. You just need to be willing to learn alongside your child, model teaching yourself things you need to know, find tools that work, and make adjustments as you go.
Most of all, you just need to be present with your child through the process.
Because just like with potty training, the most important thing your child carries forward isn’t just the skill itself — it’s how they felt while learning it with you. The connection, the encouragement, the bond. That’s what lasts.
? Lindsey
Certified Special-Ed Educator & Co-Founder, Schoolio
