I saw on the news this morning that there is a family in Canada who has chosen to keep the gender of their baby a secret. The baby is a few months old and it was reported that only six people in the world know the gender of this child. The controversial part of this is that this baby's parents have decided that they would like to allow their child the freedom to eventually make its own choice as to what sex it would like to be.
I am appalled. However, that is my opinion.
Here is God's. At 1 Corinthians 6:9, 10, the apostle Paul wrote under divine inspiration to the congregation in Corinth: "Do you not know that unrighteous persons will not inherit God's kingdom? Do not be misled. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men kept for unnatural purposes, nor men who lie with men, nor thieves, nor greedy persons, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit God's kingdom."
My spiritual conscience tells me that this is a situation of an innocent child being kept for unnatural purposes. I form that opinion based on the fact that God created a man and then made a "helper as a complement of him," a woman. (Genesis 2:20) God did not ask Adam if he wanted to be male. He likewise gave no choice in the matter to Eve.
It is a natural occurrence based on chromosomes whether we are born male or female. This amazing procedure of reproduction was instituted by God. The moment we are conceived the Bible tells us at Psalm 139:16 that God sees "the embryo" of us, "and in [his] book all its parts were down in writing." God has such a loving interest in each and every one of us that he records who we are from the moment we begin forming. To afford a child the choice of potentially going against the gender it was created to be is a gross unnappreciation of the wonderful works of God in the fear-inspiring way we are wonderfully made. (Psalm 139:14)
Why would loving parents place such a monumental decision on their young child? This child is going to have to "pick" an identity as a toddler, really. There is a reason we don't receive certain privelages as citizens until we reach a specific age. We simply are not mature enough to make relatively well informed choices until we are grown. Are these parents prepared for the possibility of raising a very confused member of society?
I also find this to be an act of greed on the part of the parents. What if this child is humiliated because its parents have put this burden on him or her? They have not gotten a measure of noteriety at their child's expense.
There are ways to provide our children freedom to make choices for themselves while we "keep on making sure of what is acceptable to the Lord." (Ephesians 5:10)
What does this example teach people? What's next?
What I love about homeschooling is that we are free to look to God's Word for the principals we need in order to make good decisions and to base our education on what we know about our Creator. This world is beyond corupt. "All Scripture is inspired of God and beneficial for teaching, for reproving, for setting things straight, for disciplining in righteousness, that the man of God may be fully competent, completely equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16) I am grateful to be able to assist my children in looking to our Grand Creator for guidance and direction amidst this very misguided world.
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
Mom As Teacher
As a parent, you have some pretty high expectations for your children. You want the best for them. You want them to be challenged. You want to see them conquer challenges successfully.
When you take responsibility for providing your children their education, you realize that their degree of intelligence directly reflects your ability to teach them. Perhaps you push them a little too hard, knowing there are those who continually seek to criticize your decision to educate your children at home. Should measuring up to other people's expectations affect the way your children are taught, though?
I learned something from my dog trainer that has weighed heavily on my mind. She said that it is important not to let your puppy fail. If your puppy will only hold a sit for 15 seconds, keep the hold at 12 seconds and release him. Don't let him fail.
Why am I associating this concept with homeschooling? Because of the enormous amount of desire parents have to see their children perform above and beyond and excel in everything. We parents naturally feel disappointed when our children do not live up to the standards we expect of them. Most of the time, we tend to reprimand for substandard performance and neglect to praise them for what they are achieving. And, we set a mark for them that we only become satisfied when they reach.
As parents and more importantly as homeschooling parents, we should not let our children fail.
Homeschooling is a wonderful provision which allows parents to take control of tailoring our children's education to be specific to them. Therefore, our children need only measure up to their own potential. When we try to force our children to go beyond their potential, we make them feel like they have failed. Homeschooling is not about failure.
Sometimes children need a creative approach to learning. This is a great way for parents to use some imagination. Instead of pushing a subject until our children become frustrated and upset that they just can not understand it, take the opportunity to explore fun ways to reinforce the main idea behind the lesson. Use our world! When we have practical, hands-on examples, things become clearer and easier to make sense out of.
So, push your children to reach their potential. Recognize that everyone has strengths and weaknesses. Build upon, praise, and encourage strengths. Find creative ways to work with weaknesses while praising good efforts. Don't let your children feel as though they have failed.
When you take responsibility for providing your children their education, you realize that their degree of intelligence directly reflects your ability to teach them. Perhaps you push them a little too hard, knowing there are those who continually seek to criticize your decision to educate your children at home. Should measuring up to other people's expectations affect the way your children are taught, though?
I learned something from my dog trainer that has weighed heavily on my mind. She said that it is important not to let your puppy fail. If your puppy will only hold a sit for 15 seconds, keep the hold at 12 seconds and release him. Don't let him fail.
Why am I associating this concept with homeschooling? Because of the enormous amount of desire parents have to see their children perform above and beyond and excel in everything. We parents naturally feel disappointed when our children do not live up to the standards we expect of them. Most of the time, we tend to reprimand for substandard performance and neglect to praise them for what they are achieving. And, we set a mark for them that we only become satisfied when they reach.
As parents and more importantly as homeschooling parents, we should not let our children fail.
Homeschooling is a wonderful provision which allows parents to take control of tailoring our children's education to be specific to them. Therefore, our children need only measure up to their own potential. When we try to force our children to go beyond their potential, we make them feel like they have failed. Homeschooling is not about failure.
Sometimes children need a creative approach to learning. This is a great way for parents to use some imagination. Instead of pushing a subject until our children become frustrated and upset that they just can not understand it, take the opportunity to explore fun ways to reinforce the main idea behind the lesson. Use our world! When we have practical, hands-on examples, things become clearer and easier to make sense out of.
So, push your children to reach their potential. Recognize that everyone has strengths and weaknesses. Build upon, praise, and encourage strengths. Find creative ways to work with weaknesses while praising good efforts. Don't let your children feel as though they have failed.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Agricultural Education
There is so much to learn on a farm. Not only will children be able to appreciate how animals grow, they have the opportunity to learn about conservation, geography, business, and health.
An important lesson learned on a farm is safety. A farm poses several dangers and practicing good safety precautions is essential to the well-being of both people and animals on the farm. In addition to safety, children learn how important it is to be in good physical shape in order to handle the variety of duties there are to fulfill. A history discussion comes about when modern conveniences show the children how the physical work around a farm has changed throughout the years.
Children can learn about why animals have to eat the feed they are fed, what happens if an animal eats too much, and can get a real life sense of just how much an animal has to eat in a day in order to be healthy.
Farm chores a fantastic way to incoporate physical activity into the children's day, and presents an amazing wealth of opportunities to learn. 8)
Children have the chance to develop confidence and responsibility while doing chores at a farm. This work teaches them the value of being good, productive citizens. They learn that animals have needs and those which live on a farm rely on people to meet their needs. By working on a farm, children get to experience the hard work and dedication involved in maintaining a farm. On the business end, they realize that the farmer must make money to keep the farm running and they learn the different ways the farm brings money in.An important lesson learned on a farm is safety. A farm poses several dangers and practicing good safety precautions is essential to the well-being of both people and animals on the farm. In addition to safety, children learn how important it is to be in good physical shape in order to handle the variety of duties there are to fulfill. A history discussion comes about when modern conveniences show the children how the physical work around a farm has changed throughout the years.
Children can learn about why animals have to eat the feed they are fed, what happens if an animal eats too much, and can get a real life sense of just how much an animal has to eat in a day in order to be healthy.
Farm chores a fantastic way to incoporate physical activity into the children's day, and presents an amazing wealth of opportunities to learn. 8)
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Going a Different Route
I have to say that I really enjoyed the ease of having the Little Boy's curriculum all planned out for me through the Calvert School program. However, this program is not working well for him and it's not the approach I wanted to take for educating my children at home. We gave it a try and Calvert School certainly does offer a magnificent curriculum and support system, but I am planning a different route for the Little Boy's fifth grade education.
I still want to have him enrolled in a program that offers some organization with regard to basic academic curriculum. I also like the idea of being able to keep records through an online system offered by certain programs.
The biggest change I am looking to make going forward is reintegrating spirituality. When Suaemoc did not follow a structured program, we focused a great deal on spirituality. That aspect was extremely enjoyable for me and the children. Neither of the children's programs offer any spirituality in their education and sometimes even deviates from what we know of our Creator.
The Young Lady will continue with The American Academy because I chose that program for her based on its electives and career focus. She will earn an accredited high school diploma through American and I like that the course has a level of difficulty that provides a challenging curriculum for her.
The Little Boy, though, will be switching over to Pear Blossom School in the fall. One area I have been trying to work on with the Little Boy is doing his own research. Pear Blossom promotes self-directed learning and making use of technology to enhance learning options, including internet research, computer aided instruction, multimedia presentation, and communicating with others. Pear Blossom also encourages being responsible, active citizens demonstrating involvement in the local community. In higher grades, Pear Blossom will afford the Little Boy the opportunity to get credits from his participation in the Theocratic Ministry School and in field service. Being graded by submitting his assignments and receiving a transcript from Pear Blossom School is another perk to enrollment. Calvert School offers the same, though the service is not included in his general enrollment in their program and costs extra. Based on the extra cost for that service through Calvert, I opted out this year.
In the younger grades I was against the traditional grading system. I believe that both children are at a point where they understand the importance of achieving high standards and are able to accept that grades received reflect their effort. What's nice about education at home is that they don't have anyone else to compete with. Neither one of them need feel bad about receiving a "lower grade" on an assignment. Rather, they may simply see these as opportunities to increase their efforts. 8)
I still want to have him enrolled in a program that offers some organization with regard to basic academic curriculum. I also like the idea of being able to keep records through an online system offered by certain programs.
The biggest change I am looking to make going forward is reintegrating spirituality. When Suaemoc did not follow a structured program, we focused a great deal on spirituality. That aspect was extremely enjoyable for me and the children. Neither of the children's programs offer any spirituality in their education and sometimes even deviates from what we know of our Creator.
The Young Lady will continue with The American Academy because I chose that program for her based on its electives and career focus. She will earn an accredited high school diploma through American and I like that the course has a level of difficulty that provides a challenging curriculum for her.
The Little Boy, though, will be switching over to Pear Blossom School in the fall. One area I have been trying to work on with the Little Boy is doing his own research. Pear Blossom promotes self-directed learning and making use of technology to enhance learning options, including internet research, computer aided instruction, multimedia presentation, and communicating with others. Pear Blossom also encourages being responsible, active citizens demonstrating involvement in the local community. In higher grades, Pear Blossom will afford the Little Boy the opportunity to get credits from his participation in the Theocratic Ministry School and in field service. Being graded by submitting his assignments and receiving a transcript from Pear Blossom School is another perk to enrollment. Calvert School offers the same, though the service is not included in his general enrollment in their program and costs extra. Based on the extra cost for that service through Calvert, I opted out this year.
In the younger grades I was against the traditional grading system. I believe that both children are at a point where they understand the importance of achieving high standards and are able to accept that grades received reflect their effort. What's nice about education at home is that they don't have anyone else to compete with. Neither one of them need feel bad about receiving a "lower grade" on an assignment. Rather, they may simply see these as opportunities to increase their efforts. 8)
Friday, April 1, 2011
Iowa eagles about to hatch!
Watch: Iowa eagles about to hatch - CTnow This is an amazing live stream of baby eaglets about to hatch. We've been watching the momma eagle sit on her eggs and continually prep her nest for the arrival of her babies. Every so often, the daddy eagle flies into the nest, bearing gifts of nest materials for momma to use. There are three eggs that momma eagle is sitting on and the video is being shot in a resolution high enough that the cracks in the eggs will be visible. Really, this is a fascinating thing to witness! 8)
Thursday, March 31, 2011
❀◕‿◕❀ April Showers ❀◕‿◕❀
Suaemoc survived New England's winter of 2011! 8D Spring's rejuevenation inspires new ideas and creativity. It also brings forth the opportunity for outdoor exploration again and doing fun springtime projects. 8)
As with last year, a foal is on its way at the farm, expected to arrive before the end of April. The mare, named "Stormy", is getting settled into the birthing stall. After the winter we had, "Stormy's" foal should be named something like, "Surviving the Storms", "After the Storms", or maybe "Too Many Storms!" ;P In any event, the birth of a horse never gets old and is an especially grand learning experience for the Young Lady with her equine career goals. We appreciate the opportunities like this which don't come to a public school classroom.
The experience of birthing a foal is in line with how Suaemoc is embracing life and loss, as our hamster fell asleep in death over the winter. Our respect for God's creatures caused us to want to place her in a small box in our freezer until she could be properly buried. This, too, brought forth the Little Boy's curiousity to learn how the freezer keeps things from going bad for a while. He conducted some experiments on mold growth and learned about the factors necessary for molds to grow. He has now become a little obsessed with expiration dates and keeping things fresh. ;)
The children are being encouraged to take initiative and venure outside of their comfort zones. As always, we're keeping focused on valuing morals and responsibility. Striving to strengthen our convictions to uphold high standards for ourselves is also driving us to take advantage of the nicer weather and take part in cleaning up our neighborhood. Hopefully, we'll have an impact on others. It's important to take care of our community in whatever ways we can and the children are learning that it just takes one person to begin a chain of making a difference. 8)
This year, we've seen the brain's and body's incredible power to heal, giving a hard lesson in determination. As we enter springtime, renewal and revitalization sprouts forth, and no matter how many changing seasons we see in our lifetime there's always going to be amazing wonderment to behold and learn from.
As with last year, a foal is on its way at the farm, expected to arrive before the end of April. The mare, named "Stormy", is getting settled into the birthing stall. After the winter we had, "Stormy's" foal should be named something like, "Surviving the Storms", "After the Storms", or maybe "Too Many Storms!" ;P In any event, the birth of a horse never gets old and is an especially grand learning experience for the Young Lady with her equine career goals. We appreciate the opportunities like this which don't come to a public school classroom.
The experience of birthing a foal is in line with how Suaemoc is embracing life and loss, as our hamster fell asleep in death over the winter. Our respect for God's creatures caused us to want to place her in a small box in our freezer until she could be properly buried. This, too, brought forth the Little Boy's curiousity to learn how the freezer keeps things from going bad for a while. He conducted some experiments on mold growth and learned about the factors necessary for molds to grow. He has now become a little obsessed with expiration dates and keeping things fresh. ;)
The children are being encouraged to take initiative and venure outside of their comfort zones. As always, we're keeping focused on valuing morals and responsibility. Striving to strengthen our convictions to uphold high standards for ourselves is also driving us to take advantage of the nicer weather and take part in cleaning up our neighborhood. Hopefully, we'll have an impact on others. It's important to take care of our community in whatever ways we can and the children are learning that it just takes one person to begin a chain of making a difference. 8)
This year, we've seen the brain's and body's incredible power to heal, giving a hard lesson in determination. As we enter springtime, renewal and revitalization sprouts forth, and no matter how many changing seasons we see in our lifetime there's always going to be amazing wonderment to behold and learn from.
Monday, January 17, 2011
Home's Still Cool In 2011
I wish there were fun gadgets when I was a child to use with my schooling and make learning that much more interesting and accessible. The Young Lady and the Little Boy have such a wealth of information right at their fingertips all the time. I'll admit that I often become jealous and begin to flip through the courses offered online in the mailings we receive from local colleges. When knowledge is so readily available, who wouldn't be excited about taking it all in?
I honestly feel that Suaemoc offers so much more to my children that sending them off to a public institution because of technology. In a public school environment, you don't see the children making complete use of what's available to them through these amazing mediums. As homeschooled youths, a question gets asked and it opens up the opportunity for exploration. The children have fun trying to find their answers and many times it leads to more questions, more answers, and an inspiring growth of creativity. When learning isn't confined, children flourish.
Tell me you wouldn't have been more inclined to read "The Scarlet Letter" if you could lay in a comfortable place with your Kindle! The Young Lady and the Little Boy don't have one, but if I had the money it would be a serious consideration to add this device to our homeschooling materials. One bonus would be availability, since the Young Lady and I have been to the local library on several occasions to try to get a book that's required for her course and it's never there.
Am I saying it's necessary to have the latest and greatest in order to successfully homeschool? Not at all! Simply having internet access opens up endless possibilities in learning. Something as simple as this wasn't even available to me as a student.
God has given us these amazing brains which are just hungry for information. Technology empowers us to feed our brains with so much! Yes, there are places we don't want to go to, but a properly trained conscious, along with the loving, watchful eye of "mom", will enable our course to keep clear of the ditches. This is why I happily allow the children to explore and encourage them to "look it up" when they wonder. Every "why" can lead to a fascinating adventure in education! 8)
I honestly feel that Suaemoc offers so much more to my children that sending them off to a public institution because of technology. In a public school environment, you don't see the children making complete use of what's available to them through these amazing mediums. As homeschooled youths, a question gets asked and it opens up the opportunity for exploration. The children have fun trying to find their answers and many times it leads to more questions, more answers, and an inspiring growth of creativity. When learning isn't confined, children flourish.
Tell me you wouldn't have been more inclined to read "The Scarlet Letter" if you could lay in a comfortable place with your Kindle! The Young Lady and the Little Boy don't have one, but if I had the money it would be a serious consideration to add this device to our homeschooling materials. One bonus would be availability, since the Young Lady and I have been to the local library on several occasions to try to get a book that's required for her course and it's never there.
Am I saying it's necessary to have the latest and greatest in order to successfully homeschool? Not at all! Simply having internet access opens up endless possibilities in learning. Something as simple as this wasn't even available to me as a student.
God has given us these amazing brains which are just hungry for information. Technology empowers us to feed our brains with so much! Yes, there are places we don't want to go to, but a properly trained conscious, along with the loving, watchful eye of "mom", will enable our course to keep clear of the ditches. This is why I happily allow the children to explore and encourage them to "look it up" when they wonder. Every "why" can lead to a fascinating adventure in education! 8)
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