Performing and Homeschooling

After our performance Saturday evening, I was talking to a friend of one of our relatives and we were discussing how much work goes into a production of this sort. He commented that we must not be able to get much homeschooling done during this time. I tried to explain to him that this was our homeschooling. Yes, the bookwork gets cut down a bit while we're performing, but the things the kids (and myself) learn while doing something like this certainly qualifies as education.

Yesterday I gave more thought to the myriad of things we've learned since being involved in these productions. They include, but are not limited to:

- Dance
- Theatre - including the art of costuming, makeup and "staying in your role"
- Sewing - we've got tunic making down to a science
- Timing
- Music - learning to listen for key parts of the music and being exposed to a wide variety of music
- Listening to and taking direction from someone other than Mom
- Practicing the virtues of patience, perseverance, charity and obedience
- Learning to act with a wide variety of ages - from age 6 up to 50 + year olds
- Deepening our prayer life by praying for the performances and praying about the roles to be played
- Learning to budget our time so that we can do all that needs to be done
- Learning how to plan easy-to-pack-and-eat-on-the-run-yet-nutritious meals (can you say...pizza!)
- Learning to how to graciously accept compliments
- Learning how to function on less than optimal sleep

If this doesn't qualify for some real-life training and education, I don't know what does! I know that this type of learning is not limited to just homeschoolers, but since, as homeschooling parents, we are directly responsible for our children's education as well as extra things like this, it helps to take a step back and look at all the good things they are learning so that we don't feel "guilty" if we fall behind in the books.

We are very thankful for the opportunity to be involved in something as rewarding as these performances. Since I never was a part of anything like this in my youth, I'm glad I get the chance to live it through my children! Isn't God good?