Gentle Homeschooling

I named my business The Gentle Learning Company with this picture in mind:

Mothers snuggling with their children and reading beautiful literature and poetry, studying carefully crafted art pieces, reading God’s Word, and listening to classical music together. 

Can you see it? It’s a wonderful thing! 

I create reading lists for moms, to point them to such beautiful moments with a kind of order and structure. A reading list, alone, cannot create this kind of scene, though. It begins with gentleness.

What does gentleness begin with? A right heart.

A love of others, including our children, recognizing them as unique individuals, created by God. They are fully human, even though they haven’t “arrived’ in their knowledge and maturity (spoiler: neither have we).

Deference to others. A willingness to set aside our wants, even our “rights,” for the sake of another. In my estimation, this may be the single greatest mark of maturity in a human. 

I am not suggesting that we allow a child’s mood, temper or wants to rule the homeschool day. There can be order in a gentle homeschool environment–order with flexibility that acknowledges the personhood of each family member. 

Rigidity does not belong in a gentle homeschool environment. Rigidity often stems from a selfish desire to control. Sometimes it arises because we felt a lack of control in some other area of life, or perhaps in childhood. God has the power to heal this.

Harsh words should have no place in a gentle home. Even words of correction can be spoken in gentleness. Again, we are recognizing our family members as persons–created by God, with value and purpose.

Gentle homeschooling includes a smile and a softness of eyes. There will be moments of displeasure, when the smile disappears briefly, but the soft eyes should remain. It may take work to smile. God can heal this, too.

Ultimately, gentleness comes from the heart within. Sometimes, people want to show gentleness, but their heart is full of so much hurt that the opposite comes out. God, the great healer, can mend that brokenness. Let Him fill you up so that your days can be filled with gentleness!