As I’m sitting here typing up my lesson plans for this week, I’ve got the voice of Dr. Guthrie floating through my head: “Coverage is the enemy of understanding.”

If I learn nothing else in my “Teaching and Learning” class (and that is far from true, because I’ve learned a lot), this one quote will have been worth it. Because I’m a stuffer, particularly when I feel like I’ve gotten behind. I have distinct memories of sitting on the couch in the basement with my oldest when she was 5 years old, cramming two days worth of Sonlight into one day in order to speed through the schedule faster. Why? Oh yes, because she’s my practice child. Poor her.
But the rest of them have definitely benefited from what I learned on her – there is no need to rush through this. And less information in one sitting is actually better. When I feel like I have to race through information in order to check it off, I’m doing a disservice to their overall education. Coverage is the enemy of their understanding.

Got it. And thanks, Dr. Guthrie. You’ve helped me relax my educational goals for my own children. They don’t realize it yet, but they’re grateful, too.