Three of our five kids are in public school this year.
We usually do about 80% homeschool and 20% public school, so this much public school is a bit of a stretch for our family.
That’s a lot of experiences they are having that we know nothing about.
Our ability as parents to find out what’s happening during those many hours away from the family often comes down to one thing—our skill at asking open-ended questions.
Simply asking, “How was school today?” and getting the one word answer is never good enough.
Here are a few of my favorites:
“Describe one time today when you got annoyed.”
“What was one thing you learned that kind of surprised you?”
“Who did you talk to today?” “What was their name?” “What do you think of them?” “What did you learn about them?”
“What was your favorite part of today?”
“What was the strongest emotion you felt today? Why?”
Ask lots of follow-up questions.
I want to deeply know my kids and I think it kind of weird, frankly, that they spend that much time away from the family team.
So these daily conversations are really important if we’re going to stay connected.
Do you have a short list of go-to open-ended questions?
Jeremy
PS. Want to know more about our education philosophy? Jeff and I briefly discuss it in this video called, “Are Public Schools Bad For Family Teams?”
This entry is a part of Jeremy’s Journal, a newsletter Jeremy sends out every Wednesday morning to encourage you on your parenting journey. You can sign up to get them every Wednesday here.
