Tristan at the helm and just another day of hands on experience on the way around the world--perhaps the best teacher of all.

The light pattering of rain slowly builds to a tom-tom rhythm upon Imani’s cabin in Langkawi, Malaysia as the echo of the morning's Muslim call to prayers fades to a whisper. Tristan, our son bounds back into our sailing catamaran to announce that a lot of rain is approaching. Tristan is "ship's weatherman"—keeping the family apprised of changes in the atmosphere and predicting (fairly accurately) if bad weather will come our way. Tristan has learned the intricacies of weather by inquiry and experience. Sailing around the world on a boat is real learning in action.

Tristan watches and notes the changes in the sky—the fluffy trade wind clouds give way to high wispy clouds. They move quickly on to be overcome by the dark anvil-shaped cumulus clouds that precede the high winds that signal the release of big, fat, hot drops that smack Tristan into high alert to close all hatches. So begins the day's science aboard.

We, the Gounard family have recently completed an almost five-year circumnavigation 1999-2004 aboard our 33-foot catamaran—from San Francisco Bay and back again. Our two children Maya (born 1987) and Tristan (born 1993) have lived aboard our boat , which we built from 1989-1994, for most of their lives. Both have never been to elementary or secondary school, yet learning remains a large part of life aboard.

Neither Marc nor I are trained teachers. We are parents who facilitate our children's learning—answering the never ending questions, when we have answers and when we don't, we help them find the answers they seek. We have learned to keep the learning as much fun as possible. Under such circumstances, the kids absorb so much more and we parents are a lot less stressed. Learning is a pursuit that will continue a whole life long, so enjoying the process is something we strive toward.

Lying quietly under a big blanket of night sky, Maya points out one constellation after another. "See that reddish star there? That's the heart of the Scorpious constellation. Once you find the red star, the scorpion shape seems to just pop out of all the stars and you can really see it." Maya spent months of evenings with her National Geographic field guide to the stars and a small penlight, learning all the constellations she could see against the velvet black sky found above the open sea. Her fascination was born out of boredom. Away from her friends back in the SF Bay Area, she longed for them and being a young teen she needed to be alone without parents or little brother. So each evening, she would lie under the stars for hours, learning and contemplating. Boredom is the seed to real creativity.

Maya demonstrates proper coconut gathering techniques. Some important life skills can be learned only in the tropics.

As one contemplates cutting the dock-lines and setting off, traveling with kids is not as daunting as it seems. In many ways the learning part actually is easier, due to the lack of distraction that exists in most classrooms. As parent, you really get to understand how much they really know. And observing how they learn, it becomes easier to tailor the learning to each youngster's learning style.

From toddler age on, we parents observe how our little ones take on the world, learning all they can each day. The way they learn to walk, approach a climbing apparatus, or maneuver a tricycle shows us how they will approach learning to read, write, and tie their shoes. As cruising parents, we have time to truly observe and note their learning style and teach to it.

What becomes the most difficult part of cruising with kids is actually keeping them socializing with their age peers. During our travels, the best times had by the entire family were times when other kids were close at hand. We found ourselves adjusting our plans to accommodate time and destinations with other cruising kids. We spent an additional three weeks in Bora Bora, due to the terrific time that we shared with two other boats in our anchorage with similarly aged kids. The highlight of that time was shared by all the cruising girls, ages 9-12, who camped on a small island for three days and three nights—no parents or little brothers allowed without their permission. Survivor style, they prepared their meals, climbed coconut trees to collect their morning drinking nuts, wove palm-leaf mats, and fought nightly invasions of hermit crabs. They learned so much about being truly self-sufficient, yet they loved every minute of the playful life they created together.

This classroom is hard to beat. Imani and the Gounard family on their way around the world, bound for another South Pacific adventure.

Safety issues aboard are very easy to teach to children. There is nothing like real application to help kids learn. They easily see the good sense in wearing lifejackets and clipping on to jack-lines when visibly off-shore with nothing but water all around. We never had a problem with our children or visiting friends falling in line with the safety rules Marc or I insisted were requirements to being on board.

We returned to SF Bay for Maya to take the California High School Proficiency Exam and thereafter to enroll at the local Junior College— the College of Marin. She has completed two semesters and enjoys the vibrancy of learning especially when she is shoulder to shoulder with others who love to learn. Her travels and independent learning have positioned her to excel in her first formal learning experience. Tristan continues his homeschooling here in Sausalito as we continue to live aboard.

So yes, do take your kids to sea. Kids open the door to many cultures of the world because to the world holds children as precious. And your youngsters will return to your homeport with a more accurate perception of how the world really works and with the skills to be world citizens. Kids…don't leave home without them.