Paula and I had been digging through her box of her homeschool records, collecting details for a transcript for her daughter. We went over each and every course in detail, from American Sign Language to Zoology. The completed transcript looked amazing. Walking out the door to leave, I casually asked, “What are you doing this weekend?” Paula didn’t hesitate to respond and excitedly described her daughter’s upcoming Latin competition. “Latin?” I said. “You in no way mentioned Latin!” She had fully forgotten four years of high school Latin.
It was obvious that Paula’s daughter enjoyed Latin—that’s why she was enjoying a weekend competition. But this demonstrates why homeschool records are crucial. Forgetting a two-week unit study on economics is not a big deal. The actual trigger for concern occurs when you forget broad swaths of learning, such as four years of Latin.