Regret Free Education

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         It’s the time of year when we start evaluating the school options for our children’s education.  I’ve always said I wish I were the type of mom who could enroll her child in public school when they were entering kindergarten and never think twice about it until they have graduated.

         The education piece in our parenting has lead to MANY discussions, much prayer and a lot of indecision over the years.  After more than 16 years of education decisions for our children (which included: Christian, public and homeschool), I can say I am very glad we did home educate our children.  

I do NOT regret the years we chose to homeschool our children.  I will adamantly say home education is NOT for everyone, but for our family, it occasionally was.

         A simple list should suffice why Home schooling worked for our family.

1.    We loved being able to spend quantity and quality time with our children.

2.    We are always more intentional about educational opportunities when we see ourselves as both parent and teacher.

3.    Because I am not always at “my best,” the more time I spent with our children, the more likely they will eventually see “my best.”

4.    We were able to travel and still consider the time a day of school.

5.    We could be selective about who our children spent their time with.

6.    Our children were forced to be best friends.

7.    I was able to watch our children learn to read, do math and fall in love with History.

8.    Bible “class” was a practical application of what we were reading and learning about

9.    Their classes were chosen and taught based on their interests and abilities.

And finally,

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10. I will never regret the hours I had with our children, rather than hours they would have spent with teachers in a traditional school setting.

I know many of you are evaluating what kind of education you will offer your children in the coming school year.  Evaluation is a reflection you have great concern for the well being on your child.

     Don’t feel like you have to make the same decision for your children that your friends are making for theirs.  Ask the Lord to give you discernment and direction.  He may direct you to the neighborhood public school or your church’s Christian school.  Should He lead you to home educate your child, He will teach through you, and you will never regret the time with your child.

     Trust Him in this parenting piece.  The Lord Jesus cares about our children far more than we do.  As we trust HIM, we have no regrets!

Proverbs 27: 23  

"Be sure you know the condition of your flocks, give careful attention to your herds."

         

Seeking Education

With a college graduate, a freshman in college and a middle schooler we have found ourselves looking at every option known to Christian Americans on how to educate our children.  Our children have experienced Christian, public and home schooled education.

So many parents wait until their child reaches the ripe old age of five and enroll them in the public school around the corner and never look back.  It didn't come quite so easy for Greg and I.

This is the time of year when many concerned parents consider where their children will receive their education in the fall.  If you are making this decision for the first time or at least the early years of education I highly recommend Susan Schaeffer Macaulay’s book, For the Children’s Sake.  Mrs. Macaulay does an incredible job of helping us to see our children as gifts from the Lord.  She encourages us to see that education doesn’t start on the day of enrollment.

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 I ask you to pray and seek the Lord’s direction for your child’s education.  This could mean your children may or may not be doing the same form of education.  The key is to ask Him. Seek after His plan for each child.  Knock.  He will give you direction.

Matthew 7: 7  “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened to you.”

James 1: 6 “But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt…”

Education at its Best

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Proverbs 1:7

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding. Proverbs 9:10

I do not want to be a fool! I don’t want to do foolish things, and I don’t want to my kids to act like fools! I want wisdom, I crave understanding, and I desire to do what is right and best for me and my family. Many of you may know that I am in the process of homeschooling my four year old. Being that this is his preschool year, I am doing a hodge-podge of various curriculums to make sure that this year is fun and challenging for him. There are so many curriculums to choose from, and while I experience great freedom in selecting one that suits him best, I want to be careful to put Christ at the center of his education.

One curriculum that I really like for building a Biblical foundation for learning is My Father’s World. I by no means want to seem like I am advertising for them. There are pros and cons to this curriculum, and I often find that I have to supplement it with other things like math, phonics, etc. However, one thing the preschool and kindergarten curriculum really emphasizes is building a firm foundation in God’s word as well as exploring God’s wonderful creation. For example, one lesson is about leaves—there are science projects, art projects, songs, and letter recognition activities that center around leaves. BUT the one thing that stood out to me was this activity.

The gist of the activity is as follows: Go outside and collect a branch with multiple leaves on it. Bring it inside and talk about how the leaves are nourished by the nutrients in the branch. Then, we are supposed to talk about how the branch in our lives is God and his word, the Bible. We are supposed to remain connected to him so we can grow. The next part of the “experiment” gets really good. Next, we are supposed to ask our kids what they think will happen if the leaf decides it want to do its own thing and leave the branch. What if the leaf doesn’t want to be obedient anymore? What if the leaf thinks it can do better on its own…without anyone telling it what to do?

Notice here, we are just supposed to ask and not supply the answer. After they supply their own answers we pull a leaf off and observe. At first it looks just like the other leaves—healthy. As the week goes on, we observe the leaves on the branch versus the leaf by itself. Naturally, the lone leaf starts to shrivel and dry out. The other leaves that are connected to the branch still look pretty healthy. Then we discuss how when we decide that we know better than God, or we want to be God, or we don’t want to listen to God and the parents he gave us (i.e. we want to do our own thing) we suffer natural consequences for our rebellion. So while we are learning about leaves, enjoying God’s beautiful creation, and creating leaf collages, and making textured leaf paintings and drawings, and learning about the letter “L’, we are also learning how God holds everything together and that we should stay connected to Him.

I just want to encourage you to reflect on what the Bible tells us: No education is complete without knowledge of the Holy One. Our children’s every day education needs to point them to the awesomeness of an all-powerful Creator—thus giving meaning and relevance (i.e. what does this have to do with me?) to their education.
My agenda in homeschooling is to bring up kids with strong character, strong family support and relationships, and a love for learning. This is the route of schooling that God has placed on my heart. Your path may be a bit different, and that is OK. God may have directed you in a direction that looks far different from mine. I love that our walk with the Lord is so personal. So that being said, your kids may be in a public school, a charter school, a magnet school, a Montessori school, a secular private school, or a Christian private school. Whatever schooling route the Lord has placed upon your heart, I would encourage you to put Christ at the center of your child’s education—regardless of whether or not their school does so. This may require a lot of extra work on your end, but I guarantee you that you will reap the benefits of this and they will too.

Some Biblical Principles to consider:
Math—God is constant. Just as 1 +1 is always 2, God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.
Science—True science points to a highly intelligent, omniscient Creator.
Literature—God uses stories to teach us his truths
Grammar—God’s word is perfect. Clear language helps us better express His truths.
Social Studies—History tells us His story. When we veer from God’s plan, big messes happen (which we should not repeat). When we stay close to Him, beautiful milestones are left behind for others to follow.

These are just a few ideas. I encourage you to add to these and put them into practice.

Prayer:
Dear Father,
Thank you for the knowledge of you, the Holy One. May we seek your face in all things and put you at the center of our children’s’ education. Please guide us in the path of truth, and draw us closer to your heart. Change the way we think so that our thoughts please you. Help us make disciples of the next generation. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.