Hey, Mama!
Iheard you were struggling. You feel ike a fraud. How can you truly teach, you ask. You have this little secret . . . you are awful at grammar.
You’re no fraud. God bless you, Mama,
and keep on trekking along, whether you’re
all that great at grammar or not. Your lack
shouldn’t stop you from homeschooling;
that’s for sure.
Let me share a little secret: I personally
know a number of homeschooling parents
who struggle with grammar themselves.
Others aren’t so good at spelling, yet all of
them are fully committed to homeschool-
ing their kids. Indeed, these parents realize
they themselves have holes in their own
education. But they don’t let that stop them
from the cherished call to educate their
children and mentor them—at home. Hur-
dles are not reasons to quit.
For the longest time as a new parent/
homeschooler, I just kind of assumed
that a kid was only as academic as his
parents. But I’ve found out I was dead
wrong about that. I keep seeing these
homeschool graduates (or close to being
graduated) who’ve come out on the other
end with absolutely pristine writing and
communication skills—excellent grammarians themselves. They passed their
parents right up. Why is that?
A homeschool family is gifted in all
manner of areas. The mom might be an
incredible cook, even if not the best speller.
Her daughter, who worked hard through-
out her homeschooling years excelling
(naturally) in those areas of study in which
she had the most interest, can easily carry
on where her mother left off and exceed it.
The daughter may not care one whip about
cooking, like her chef Mama, but because
of the nature of her own educational jour-
ney—homeschooling—she had the time to
become proficient in her own pursuits: in
her case, the literary arts. Because of that
love, it was a natural progression for her to
dive deeply into the mechanics of grammar,
thus mastering the skills to be the best writ-
er she could be. She soared right past her
Mama in that department. (And she finally
learned how to roast a chicken years later!)
So, all that to say . . . don’t let teaching
grammar scare you if it’s not your tal-
ent. Surround your kids with good books
Grammar Can Be Great!
Don’t let teaching grammar scare you if it’s not your talent.
Hey Mama!
Gena Suarez
