A Mother’s Education in Fall: Learning & Growing Alongside Your Children
As homeschool mothers, we are constantly pouring ourselves into the work of planning, teaching, and nurturing our children. We gather living books, plan nature walks, and fill our homes with an atmosphere of truth, beauty, and goodness. But in the midst of all this, it is easy to forget that we are students too. Charlotte Mason’s vision of mother’s education reminds us that the work of learning is not only for our children, it is for us as well.
The Call to a Mother’s Education
Charlotte Mason often spoke of the mother’s duty to grow as a person. A homeschool mom is not only a teacher but also a fellow learner. When we pursue ideas, read widely, and engage with beauty ourselves, we model for our children what a lifelong love of learning looks like. This is not about adding more pressure to already full days. Rather, it is about cultivating habits of nourishment and small practices that keep us alive to ideas, beauty, and truth.
Autumn as a Season of Learning
Fall offers us the perfect backdrop to step into this role as learners. As the season changes, the world outside becomes a living textbook. Leaves turn shades of gold and crimson, birds gather for migration, and gardens yield their last harvest. These shifts in creation are invitations not just for our children but for us too.
Instead of standing on the sidelines while our children sketch leaves in their nature journals, what if we sketched alongside them? What if we copied out a poem about autumn beauty and tucked it into our commonplace book? What if we let ourselves be caught up in the delight of discovery? In doing so, we embody the truth that education is not confined to childhood but extends across a lifetime.
Simple Practices for a Mother’s Education This Fall
You do not need hours of extra time to nurture your own education. Here are a few small but meaningful ways to grow this autumn:
Read alongside your children: Choose one of their fall read-alouds such as Charlotte’s Web or Ox-Cart Man and let yourself savor it as literature, not just as a school assignment.
Keep a commonplace journal: Copy down lines of seasonal poetry or scripture that stir your heart.
Nature journaling: Sketch a leaf, acorn, or migrating bird right beside your children. You will be surprised at how deeply you begin to notice.
Handicrafts: Try knitting, candle-dipping, or pressing leaves. The act of creating with your hands fosters patience and quiet joy.
Encouragement for the Homeschool Mom
Mother’s education is not selfish, it is essential. When we take time to learn, we deepen our well so that we can pour out into our families from a place of abundance rather than depletion. Your children do not need a perfect homeschool mom. They need a mother who is alive to ideas, inspired by beauty, and willing to keep learning.
This autumn, let the changing season remind you that growth is not only for your children. As the trees let go of their leaves and the days invite us to slow down, take a moment to ask yourself: How will I be a student this fall?
