They say a parent is a child's best teacher. But what if we don't have lesson plans?
When I was growing up, my favorite thing to do - hands down, no question - was playing school. I liked best of all when I got to be the teacher. I would set up my teacher's desk, plan my bulletin boards, and make a pretend grade book. I wielded a red pen with great authority.
By high school I was volunteering to help teachers grade papers (Brown nose? Most certainly!) and I joined Future Teachers of America.
I never followed the dream, however. After high school I majored in journalism and never gave another thought to teaching.
Then I had kids.
From the start I found myself falling back on my old teacher techniques. Getting a toddler to sit on the potty, tracking their ear infection medicine, teaching them to count and read, sharing my favorite mnemonic devices for remembering U.S. history dates, and passing along my knowledge of Latin, Greek and Spanish.
As a parent, you're a whole lot more than just a teacher, but it does make up a big part of what you do.
To fully appreciate your role, picture a classroom full of children and imagine that there is a child whose parents are not involved at all in his education. Think about how unprepared he'd be for school, how far behind he'd be, how many roadblocks he'd face.
Every time you ask your child, "What did you do in school today?" you're helping in his education.
To get even more involved, check out How to Be an Involved Parent .
