What if the most important thing you teach your child has nothing to do with curriculum? In this episode of the Everyday Educator podcast, host Emma Bortins sits down with her mother-in-law and Classical Conversations founder Leigh Bortins to discuss the ideas behind her new book, The Habits: Practicing the Art of Grammar. Together they explore how naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling build the foundational habits that help children — and homeschool families — truly flourish. If you're a homeschool mom looking for a classical Christian approach to raising lifelong learners, this conversation is for you.
Leigh opens by sharing how it took her twelve years of homeschooling to truly understand what her husband had been telling her all along — that what children need most is consistency. It wasn't until she had a second set of young boys while her older sons were teenagers that the power of habits became undeniable. The routines she had built into Robert and John made it possible to keep the family functioning; without them, the whole thing would have fallen apart.
From that personal foundation, the conversation moves into the heart of the book: a framework of five habits — naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling — that Leigh calls the building blocks of a grammar education. These aren't abstract academic concepts. They're what every good mother already does instinctively: naming the dog, teaching a toddler not to touch the stove, helping a child memorize where mom will be in Walmart. The point is to recognize these habits, name them, and practice them with intention.
The episode takes a fascinating turn when Emma asks about AI and technology. Leigh's position is clear: children under 12 don't need screens at all. Not because technology is inherently evil, but because children who never learn to entertain themselves, sit still, or be alone with their thoughts will struggle with self-control for the rest of their lives — with or without technology. The habits of self-governance have to come first.
The episode closes with Leigh's single most important piece of advice for new homeschoolers: find a mentor. Not a curriculum. Not a method. A person who seems to be doing it well and is willing to let you watch.
What You'll Learn
- What the art of grammar actually means — and why it's about far more than memorization
- The five core habits of the grammar stage: naming, attending, memorizing, expressing, and storytelling
- Why Leigh says attending is the one habit she'd tell every family to start practicing today
- How habits shape not just academic ability but character, self-control, and spiritual formation
- Why parents need to self-assess their own habits before they can effectively pass them on
- What Leigh thinks about AI and technology — and her recommendation for families with children under 12
- Why feeling inadequate to homeschool is universal — and why it's not actually the obstacle you think it is
- How the habits formed in the grammar years show up years later in college anatomy and chemistry courses
- Where to find Leigh online and which books to read alongside The Habits
This episode of Everyday Educator is sponsored by:
Summit Ministries
Do you want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endure, and friends and faith for life? Summit's Student Conferences equip young Christians with the hope, clarity, and confidence they need to follow Jesus boldly in today's world. It's not just about getting apologetics answers. Students learn how to live winsomely and bravely in today's world. Visit summit.org/cc before March 31, 2026, and lock in the early bird rate. Save an additional $250 when you use the code CC26. Want your child to have conversations that challenge, encouragement that endures, and friends and faith for life? Grab their spot now at summit.org/cc
Timestamps
00:00 — Welcome and Introduction
02:22 — Leigh's Reaction to Being Interviewed by Her Daughter-in-Law
03:10 — What Took So Long to Understand: The Role of Habits in Homeschooling
04:13 — How a Second Set of Young Boys Changed Everything
05:14 — What Her Husband Was Saying All Along — and When She Finally Heard It
06:40 — What Is the Art of Grammar? Beyond Memorization
07:33 — The Five Habits: Naming, Attending, Memorizing, Expressing, Storytelling
09:33 — Expressing and Storytelling in Everyday Family Life
10:19 — What Happens in Families Without Habits
12:04 — Emma's Daughter and the "Tell Stories, Dance" Moment
13:49 — It's Not Just What Students Know — It's How They Learn
15:45 — The One Habit That Distinguishes Flourishing Students: Self-Control
17:08 — Parents Must Self-Assess First: More Is Caught Than Taught
18:47 — Sitting on Daddy's Lap: Three Very Different Experiences
19:50 — Slowing Down in a World That Moves Too Fast
20:15 — AI, Technology, and Homeschooling with Humans
21:19 — Leigh's Recommendation: No Screens for Children Under 12
23:14 — Having the Conversation with Your Kids About Why
24:15 — How Habits Shape Character, Not Just the Mind
25:23 — You're Not Being Raised for Yourself — You're Being Raised to Serve
26:06 — The Story of Jonah's Timeout and What It Revealed About Siblings
27:15 — The Connection Between Intellectual Habits and Spiritual Formation
29:09 — How to Cultivate Spiritual Habits at Home: Find a Mentor
31:27 — There's No Single Answer — Fit the Liturgy to Your Family's Schedule
31:58 — Encouragement for Parents Who Feel Inadequate to Homeschool
33:55 — What Second-Generation Homeschoolers Bring to the Table
37:03 — If You Could Only Start One Habit: Attending
38:09 — Situational Awareness and Why It Matters for Everything
40:35 — How Early Habits Prepare Students for Logic, Rhetoric, and College
41:47 — What CC Students Say When They Call Home from College
42:32 — Thank You, Closing Thoughts, and Where to Find Leigh
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