I really enjoyed doing my link-up mash-up last week, so I thought I’d give it another go this week! So, I’m again combining Lisa-Jo Baker‘s Five Minute Friday with Doodle Bugs Teaching‘s Five for Friday.

So here we go, with five random things from today or this week using, as my starter, the word prompt “last.”

We started our home schooling year this week, so it’s been a really fun and really crazy week around here. We were mostly done by the time the baby was born last year, so this has been my first real go at home schooling two elementary students and a pre-schooler while having an infant around the house. I can honestly say I enjoyed most of the moments this week! 🙂

As I’m doing my planning, thinking, and strategizing for this year, I find myself thinking about my priorities, namely, “What are the things I’m teaching them that I want to really last?” Of course, it’s all important or we wouldn’t waste time on it, but what are the most important things I want them to take with them? So, without further ado, my top five lessons I want to really last from my kids’ home school education.

1. Life is not all about you. It’s so easy, with all the fantastic child-centered learning ideas out there, to communicate to our kids that life is all about them. I’m actually not opposed to child-centered learning, but I go to great lengths to help my kids understand that while I try to teach them in ways that make it really easy for them to learn (and these are often child-centered), they are not the center of the universe and will not be treated as such!

2. Life is not all about fun. I’m not sure I’ve ever been more convicted by a blog post in my entire life as I was by this one. We are making a conscious effort in our house and our home school this year to think about the questions we ask our kids after learning activities, school days, and extra-curricular stuff. We are trying to move away from the “Did you have a good time?” kind of questions and move toward the “Did you get a chance to be a good friend to someone?” and the “Did you learn anything you can use to help someone else?” kind of questions.

3. Our world is amazing! Hopefully, this lesson comes through from many different angles – from our science lessons to our geography lessons to our discussions of cultures and languages of the world.

4. There is always more to learn. This is a corollary to number 3. I never want my kids to be know-it-alls or to grow complacent in their knowledge. I try every day to be instilling in them a love for learning so that they will become life-long learners. I also want them to know how to learn so that when they find a new interest, they know how to find out more.

5. There is always someone to serve. I believe the point of education is to serve others. At the very least, we should pass on the wonderful things we’ve learned. And hopefully, we can use them to bless others. On a large scale, I hope my children will eventually choose lives of serving others no matter what their professions. And on a small scale, this may look like helping a younger sibling understand a math concept you learned a few years ago or helping a neighbor or friend who is struggling with something.

Well, I lost track of time there with a few distractions thrown in the mix, so I have no idea how close I came to my five minute goal! Sorry!

I found that to be a really good exercise, to stop and think about my priorities with my children. I realized this isn’t really about their education so much – this is just life stuff! What would you change or add to my list? What are your five big life lessons you hope will really last for your kids?