But I would not advise anyone to send his son to a place where the Holy Scriptures do not come first. Every institution, where the Word of God is not taught regularly, must fail.
~Martin Luther
What is the ‘heart’ of education? Is it defined by the public school system and by colleges?
I started homeschooling 12 years ago when my children were ages 4 and 2 and my third child was yet to be born. Now they are 11, 14 and 16. We have come a long way and I must say God has homeschooled ME!
I highly recommend homeschooling for several reasons, the number one reason is that you get to spend time with the family that God has blessed you with! Our society has sold a lie to so many parents that they are to leave their children each day, all day, and pay other people to teach and train them. But God says differently. Parents are to:
Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.
~Proverbs 22:6
Homeschooling is a lifestyle and NOT at all supposed to be a replica of the “government run institutions” like public schools. The ‘heart’ of education is not meant to be a monotonous, joyless and rushed assembly line…but rather, quality time spent together cultivating a love of learning, with God as the foundation.
Please, don’t be discouraged by thinking “you are not equipped” to teach. If you can raise your child, you can homeschool them. God equips you as you go along!
Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord: And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.
~Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Teaching your children can be done inexpensively, and some states even give you tax breaks & incentives. Look for inexpensive supplies – I recommend a printer (we bought our inexpensive one at Walmart but it’s not mandatory), world map, printer paper for both printing and drawing, lined paper, pencils/pens, colored pencils (and any other affordable art supplies), and binders/folders for storing paperwork, for example.
See below for some very helpful recommendations, websites & tools!
THE BIBLE: This should be the foundation of their education, get a good one and read it together daily, as well as have them read it privately on their own. I recommend the Reformation Heritage Study Bible (heritagebooks.org) which has easy to understand study notes, very thoughtful questions asked at the end of chapters, confessions, catechisms, articles and more!
DICTIONARY: Yes, a good ol’ inexpensive dictionary! Buy used – you don’t have to buy brand new. I prefer an actual book vs. an online dictionary. Using an actual book uses their brain more & involves more searching – it is far better than ‘googling’ for example. Have your children look up words and copy the definitions. I give them words to look up at times, but mostly allow them to choose and search for their own words they are interested in. They learn how to alphabetize, learn vocabulary, and more!
CHARACTER STORIES: Reading good stories about family & character values are so important. Some examples are ‘Plain and Simple Thoughts for Children and Parents’ by William Plumer, Mildred A. Martin books such as ‘Wisdom and The Millers’, ‘A Hive of Busy Bees’ published by Sure Foundation, and the newly released ‘Life on Maple Street – A Christmas To Remember’ by Gina Handerhan!
K5 LEARNING: (k5learning.com) and other free websites, that allow you to print free worksheets for your children. Don’t be misguided by the belief that if your child falls under a different grade that you can only use their ‘specific grade’. This is wrong. Use whatever grade level worksheet that helps your child! It really doesn’t matter! Remember you are the parent and the teacher.
YOUTUBE: YouTube is an easy to use, free resource to watch documentaries and videos on historical events, science, how things are made, how to repair things, cooking, art tutorials & more!
EASY PEASY ALL-IN-ONE HOMESCHOOL: (allinonehomeschool.com) Some families prefer an all in one approach and this does it for free. You can also pick and choose what you would like to use.
ANSWERS IN GENESIS: (answersingenesis.org) They help families understand God’s Creation, the amazing Science behind it, and they explain why evolution & old earth theories are wrong.
HILLSDALE COLLEGE: (Hillsdale.edu) They give free online, conservative, informative college classes on history, our nation and more! Remember you don’t need to wait for your child to be ‘in college’ to take these courses. We started at around age 15.
LIBRARY: We love to buy & own books for our own personal library, but it’s equally nice to also save money whenever possible by borrowing them for free. Have your children read, read, read as much as possible!
SWAPS: Find homeschool mothers, perhaps in your Church, who are willing to swap what they have for something you don’t need….and some homeschool moms are more than willing to give you what they don’t need anymore for nothing in return! We have been blessed by several moms along our journey who gave us boxes of books!
COPYWORK: Copying quality writing helps your children not only to learn what they are writing about but also helps them to learn grammar and practice their handwriting. This can be done easily and for free by using books you already own or borrow (like the Bible, science books, history books, etc)…or there are specially designed workbooks for this purpose such as the ‘Westminster Shorter Catechism Copywork’ designed by Gina Handerhan!
CURSIVE WRITING: Have you noticed many schools don’t teach this anymore? Have your children write in cursive when you believe they are ready – do not ignore teaching this! Studies show that it activates different neurological pathways than typing & printing, improves motor skills, and helps your child retain more information. It is so valuable and such a crucial skill!
TYPING: (Typing.com) Teach your children to type faster and easier for free!
DUOLINGO: (duolingo.com) Learn Spanish, French and other foreign languages for free!
PLAY: Let the children play…seriously. Let them play and explore as much as possible!
QUIET TIME: Don’t be afraid to enforce quiet times. Young children can nap and older children can read or draw…and learn to be creative quietly.
COOKING: Let your children cook and bake! Let them learn to prep, cook & season food. Not only is it an art but it also involves math & science!
Your children will always be learning for the rest of their lives. You are providing them with a great foundation and inspiring them to learn – you are not replicating school classrooms packed with hours of unnecessary busy work! Last, don’t let yourself be ‘weighed down’ by grade levels that the world says your children should be in – teach them all sorts of things about God and His creation including math, science, history, music and more. Much of it will often naturally be above their ‘grade level’ and other times you can choose to go ‘below their grade level’ for supplementation or extra practice.
Remember, be encouraged and enJOY learning together!
Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
~1 Corinthians 10:31
More information on the true gospel, family life, creativity & encouragement can be found at:
LETUSNOTGROWWEARY.COM
Let Us Not Grow Weary 