Starting Points

Posted by Belinda | 0 comments

This is the season when many parents are looking for wisdom, knowledge, and just a simple word of encouragement as they prepare.    I pray that this piece will be stimulating, or at minimum, revitalizing, as you take in the magnitude of the blessing the Lord has in store.

Seek Ye First…

I am of the opinion that the choice to educate our children at home is really taking back a God-given responsibility to teach our children in accordance with Deuteronomy 6.  The real questions, from my perspective, are:

1. Are you willing to make the sacrifices to your own life and lifestyle to take on your child’s education?
2. Are you confident in your ability to begin this journey?
3. Are you willing to persevere through the difficulties that inevitably surface in your pursuit to homeschool?

The answer to these questions might not be a resounding “yes” today, but if you have gotten this far, you and your spouse can take the next step forward and trust God to reveal to you his plans for your family.   Touch and agree in prayer, speaking God’s words back to Him.  An example might be as follows:

Lord, I thank you for your goodness in all things, and for your promises to us through your Word.  You tell us that we are more than conquerors in Christ Jesus.  You tell us that we can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.  You tell us to train our children in the way they should go, and when they are old they will not turn from it.  I need guidance, Father, in how to dedicate myself toward home education.  I am submitting this decision to you.  I pray the willingness to sacrifice as needed to complete this work.  Let me not love anything in this world more than I love doing your will in mine and in my children’s lives.  I am believing you that the fruits of the Spirit will manifest themselves richly in my life that I may exercise love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, faithfulness, kindness, and perseverance and self-control with my children.  I will not get weary in well-doing, and I trust you to, in season, reward me and my family.  In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Be Your First Homeschooling Student

Without doubt, from the moment you began to think about homeschooling, you have had visions of school days dancing in your head.  Were your “students” in desks for 7-8 hours each day?  Were they perusing through textbook after textbook?  The reality is that most of us enter the homeschooling arena from a traditional academic background, and it takes a period of readjustment for us as parents to encompass all that homeschool can be. Also factor in helping our children adjust if they have spent time in traditional academic environments as well.  Even if your child has never seen the inside of a classroom, he or she may have an expectation based upon conversations with friends or relatives.

There is nothing wrong with a traditional approach to home education, if that is your preference.   Too often, though, we enter into a traditional approach and then dive into major curriculum expenditures because that is all we know.  The facts are that your homeschool, within state-specific boundaries, can look as much or as little like a traditional school as you and your little student(s) find effective.  I will offer this bit of wisdom:  before you spend money on education for your children, invest in your own education.  Having a better understanding of your home education options may completely change your vision of homeschool, and may save you literally hundreds of dollars.

Your first lesson, you ask?  Learn about the law.  Each state has legislation regarding home education and expected documentation to support the legitimacy of your “school”.  You will find that some states are more homeschool-friendly than others, but all states will have guidelines regarding expected subjects, days of school, and in some cases, reporting requirements.  Visit the Home School Legal Defense Association’s website, www.hslda.org , for more valuable information in this area.

Set Goals

One of my favorite passages of scripture is Jeremiah 29: 9-11 in which that Lord encourages us that He has plans for us, ‘plans to prosper us and not harm us, plans to give us a hope and a future.’   I am reminded when I look at our children that, in the same spirit of our heavenly Father, we desire to give our children a hope and a future.   You know the plans that you have for your children, and after praying about homeschooling, there is no better starting point than to begin to write those plans.

It may be clear to us that we need to establish yearly goals for our students, but what about setting goals for yourself and for your school?  Knowing what you want your children to accomplish long-term, and knowing what you want to accomplish as a parent/ home educator will shape and define your school environment as much as any curriculum decision.  I cannot stress this enough: invest in your own education and understanding before you take on the sometimes overwhelming task of curriculum decisions.

There are, from my perspective, two sets of goals that are critical to your homeschooling vision.  The first set of goals has to deal with what you want your children to be able to do after they finish school.  You may be able to quickly list ‘go to college’ or ‘get a job’, but how about the more intangible goals that relate more to what habits we teach each day?  As an example, when we really thought about it, we began to list goals such as these:

1. As adults, we want our children to be our friends.
2. We want the children to marry spouses that know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
3. Our children will be independent thinkers (i.e. plan “A” should not always be to call Mom and Dad!)

There is no curriculum that will directly teach these elements, but as they are what is critical to us, we have to in the words of Stephen Covey, “begin with the end in mind.”  Developing this list allows us as parents to instill in them those values and impart the love and wisdom that will, with the grace of God, make this list real in our lives.

The second list is an annual list of what we want to accomplish in our homeschool environment.  This list is completely separate from your list of what the children should accomplish; that list comes later.  This list is for you.  As a first year homeschooler, many of your goals might center around developing a comfort level in your new role.  I will again use some of our goals as triggers for generating your own thoughts:

• We will clean our home regularly and keep it neat (this may sound small, but one of the challenges of homeschooling after working outside our home for years was adjusting to the clutter associated with being there all day).

• I want to develop a “rhythm” in balancing homeschooling, a home-based business, and a newborn.

With the Lord as your foundation, the possibilities are endless!  After prayer, jump in and get started with your own education and your own vision.    What is most important is that you begin to shape an environment that will allow your children to flourish spiritually, academically, and physically.    May the Lord bless your endeavors.

Belinda Bullard is a wife and homeschooling mother of three, Belinda is an author and the owner of A Blessed Heritage Educational Resources, a literature-based history curriculum featuring African-American presence in history, as well as the contributions of other races to American history. A chemical engineer by formal education, she also serves as adjunct faculty for college distance learning programs. Belinda blogs at Simply Belinda and Chronicles of a Blessed Heritage.