I am fortunate enough to have been both a teacher and a parent in my life. There is so much crossover in the skills we learn from these pieces of our lives that I thought it would be interesting to document some of them.
First (and most obviously) is the element of patience. Both teaching and parenting require a certain level of calm. It takes practice to remove the negative emotion from our teaching and remember that we are the adults in the situation. When this skill is learned in either part of our lives, we can begin to reflect on our strategies more effectively and become objective. This puts us in a powerful position as teachers or parents, since wise choices are rarely made in moments of frustration. Keep your emotions in check and remember not to take rebellion personally. It is a child’s or student’s natural way of finding out where your boundaries are.
As a teacher, I employed the “Love and Logic” methods with my students and, when I became a parent, they were so second nature that I didn’t even realize it had crossed over. Giving your children or your students the ability to choose and the understanding that there are consequences to every action helps them feel empowered. It creates children and students who can make appropriate decisions and gain confidence in themselves.
One last similarity that became glaring to me is that when I’m having fun, the kids are having fun. As a substitute teacher, consider how your present yourself and the work that needs to be done. Are you excited? Enthusiastic? Bored out of your mind? The students will pick up on this and follow your cues. I have found much success in teaching and parenting by focusing on my presentation skills. “Alright, time to do your chores kids,” isn’t nearly as appealing as, “Let’s see who can clean up the most toys before the song is done!” Put yourself in your student’s shoes or your child’s shoes to help you stay positive and upbeat. This will make all the difference in the attitudes of your students or children.
Obviously there is much more crossover between these two jobs. What other similarities have you found? Do you find that you have become a better teacher after parenting or a better parent after teaching? Share your thoughts in a comment below.