The Why: The Priorities of Homeschooling:
1) To direct our children to God, to instill in them a love for their Creator and an appreciation of all He has given them.
2) To give the a love for learning, and the tools to be self-learners, that will last them their whole life through.
Notice that neither of my priorities specifically involved academics. Academics and test taking is a way the world uses to measure the success of a teacher and a student. I am not concerned about the academic accolades of my children; this is striving for the praise of men. I am not training them for tis world, but for the next. That being said, they do need to be able to survive in this world that we are in but not of. Therefore, academics does play a role in their education, but it is, BY NO MEANS, THE REASON WE EDUCATE. If you are educating to this end, I can guarantee that your schooling is neither God honoring nor encouraging a joy of learning. We are not trying to “beat” the public schools at their game; we are in a completely different league.
The How: Simplify, Refocus, and Play
Simplify:
First of all, THROW AWAY THE TEST BOOKLET. You don’t need it. If you are spending one-on-one time educating your children, you know exactly how well they are doing. Remember that nearly all curriculum was written for, or at least patterned after, the public school way of doing things. This is in opposition to our priorities. Do I think you should throw out the curriculum too? No. Just remember it is it your guide, not your master. Most subjects will repeat ad nauseam. Your children do not need to do all the work in the book, in fact they may not need to do ANY of the work in the book. Introduce an idea and then find ways in your day-to-day life to show it at pertinent to LIFE. This works especially well for math, science and language. Their entire school time should be less than 3 hours. If it is taking longer, re-prioritize.
Refocus:
Our focus should not be so much on educating your children as in discipling them. That means that they should be spending significant parts of their day working along side you on what ever you are doing: laundry, dishes, shopping, ministry, etc. How did the 12 disciples learn from Jesus? They did not have a text book; they worked along side Him for 3 straight years. Keep a mental list (or a real one if you need to) of the topics they are studying at that moment. Discuss those ideas with them, show hem how they are used in your life, how it is important to you.
Play:
God made children to romp and roam and climb trees and scrape their knees. It is our culture which has decided they should be placed behind desks for 8 hours 5 days a week. Children should have about 3 hours of uninterrupted play each day. This does not however mean you let them loose outside and ignore them. Because of a child’s immaturity (and, truly, a teen is still immature) play should be monitored. Remember what the Scripture says about a child left to himself? He brings his mother to shame. This is a prime time for correction. As you are observing (ie eavesdropping!) your child interacting with his toys or his siblings, his character will be revealed giving you an opportunity to “smooth the rough edges,” if you know what I mean. When ever possible, play with them at what ever THEY want to do. It will make their day: remember how loved it made you feel if Momma took time to play dolls with you when you were little?
coming soon... The Nitty Gritty: Practical Ways to Make Homeschooling Fun
What school looks like at our house some days
Article By Sarah Elizabeth Forbes, copyright 2011
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