"Of Course I Know What Phloem Is, Son!" (How to teach stuff you
© Joan Archer
In Eastern philosophy, we are taught that "when the student is ready, the teacher will appear." Of course, our Western philosophy tells us "if you can't run with the big dogs, stay on the porch." I prefer the Eastern philosophy myself, having been a small but tenacious "dog" all of my life.
The first time I encountered subject matter which I knew nothing about was when the boys began studying American History. I don't remember much from my history classes in school, because I was in the generation of "dumbed down" classes, and phony lessons on self-awareness and self-esteem. What I feel I learned in school, I could hold in one hand. Everything else I know about history I learned from my husband and my ex-husband, both big history buffs. I also learned a lot from my neighbors, several of whom are immigrants. So, how do you teach what you really don't know?
First of all, admit you don't know. This was taught to me in JROTC in high school, It is worse to act like you know and prove yourself a fool in front of your children than it is to admit you don't know. When you admit you don't know, you also open to door to them being able to later admit to themselves that they don't know, which encourages life-long learning. When you differentiate between ignorance (which simply means you don't know something) and stupidity (which means you don't know something, aren't capable of learning it, and are simply not interested in doing any better) you keep your personal pride intact. Ignorance is temporary, but stupidity goes on and on...
Secondly, and this I also learned in JROTC, try to determine where you can find the needed information. Would it be more accessible on the Internet, in a worksheet, or in a book? Could it be found on a map, or learned from your next-door neighbor? Teaching your child how to find materials to teach themselves about something they are completely unfamiliar with will be a skill they will use their entire lives.
