Do They See You?

A good woman is hard to find,
    and worth far more than diamonds.
Her husband trusts her without reserve,
    and never has reason to regret it.
Never spiteful, she treats him generously
    all her life long.
She shops around for the best yarns and cottons,

    and enjoys knitting and sewing.
She’s like a trading ship that sails to faraway places
    and brings back exotic surprises.
She’s up before dawn, preparing breakfast
    for her family and organizing her day.
She looks over a field and buys it,
    then, with money she’s put aside, plants a garden.
First thing in the morning, she dresses for work,
    rolls up her sleeves, eager to get started.
She senses the worth of her work,
    is in no hurry to call it quits for the day.
She’s skilled in the crafts of home and hearth,
    diligent in homemaking.
She’s quick to assist anyone in need,
    reaches out to help the poor.
She doesn’t worry about her family when it snows;
    their winter clothes are all mended and ready to wear.
She makes her own clothing,
    and dresses in colorful linens and silks.
Her husband is greatly respected
    when he deliberates with the city fathers.
She designs gowns and sells them,
    brings the sweaters she knits to the dress shops.
Her clothes are well-made and elegant,
    and she always faces tomorrow with a smile.
When she speaks she has something worthwhile to say,
    and she always says it kindly.
She keeps an eye on everyone in her household,
    and keeps them all busy and productive.
Her children respect and bless her;
    her husband joins in with words of praise:
“Many women have done wonderful things,
    but you’ve outclassed them all!”
Charm can mislead and beauty soon fades.
    The woman to be admired and praised
    is the woman who lives in the Fear-of-God.
Give her everything she deserves!
    Festoon her life with praises!

                             -Proverbs 31:10-31 The Message

There is so much we can learn from the woman in Proverbs 31:10-31.  She has been taught on from many different angles and perspectives.  Jewish tradition holds that Bathsheba was responsible the passage in Proverbs 31, sharing her wisdom with her son Solomon. We have all heard teaching on her life from the viewpoint of what we “should” do.  I want us to look at her from the perspective of what we “can” do, and what our children need to see us doing.

You can find the rest of my post here at MichelleHight.org.

Homeschooler, You Are Different! It's a Good Thing!

Not that we dare to classify or compare ourselves with some of those who are commending themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding.-2 Corinthians 10:12

We live in a culture of diversity.  Everything is different.  There are lots of choices when it comes to virtually just about everything.  No two people are alike, with the exception of identical twins.  Sometimes even they look different because of environment and other factors.  So, why should our expectations for homeschool be any different?

In the United States, there are a variety of school types to choose from preschool up through high school.  You have Montessori schools, Charter schools, Public schools, and Private schools, the latter of the two of which I am going to discuss.

I have worked in both private and public school.  There were extremely different.    In the public school, students were allowed to wear clothing of their choice.  In the private school, students wore a uniform, except on special days.  In the private school, classes were smaller, giving the teacher a little more control and freedom.   Public school classrooms are often filled to maximum capacity.  Public school students attend school for free.  Private school students pay tuition to attend school, giving everyone involved a little higher standard of accountability.

Within both school settings you had teachers teaching different grades.  Those teachers had different backgrounds.  They went to different colleges.  They came from different cities.  They had different life experiences.  They had been teaching for different amounts of time.

When I student taught, I taught 7th grade and 3rd for my final practicum.  There were three 3rd grade teachers.  I was only supervised by one, but I got to go in all three classrooms.  Each one was different.  They had different personalities and different things they liked.  Each of their students was different-different life experiences, different interests, and different abilities.

So, why I am telling you all of this?  As a homeschooling parent, you will be different than the homeschool mom you like on facebook.  You don’t have the same qualities, intent, or purpose as her.  Your children and your family do not have the same personalities, likes or dislikes, and purpose for your life as theirs.  You might be tempted to compare yourself to her and other homeschooling moms along the way.  This is not helpful to you.  The Bible has something to say about comparing ourselves to others and about thinking of ourselves in the correct way. God’s purpose for you, your child, and your family, is not the same as my purpose, or my child, or the purpose for my family.  So, why should our educational focus and goals be the same?

Let’s look at one family in the Bible.  In the book of Genesis, we read the story of Joseph. He and his brothers were shepherds.  But it seems as though Joseph developed some other skills along the way.  We know that God gave him the ability to interpret dreams.  He also seemed to have wisdom and leadership skills either given to him by God, or developed in him by his life with his family.  Later on, after he was sold into slavery in Egypt, those abilities proved to help him.  The skills he possessed eventually propelled him to the position of Prime Minister of Egypt, thus enabling him to keep the Hebrew nation alive by saving them from famine. (See Genesis 37-50.)  God has a purpose for every person and family.  You and your family are no different.

So, when you feel tempted to compare yourself to another homeschooling family, remind yourself of the differences in the current educational system. Remind yourself that just like those differences, there are no two homeschools alike.  And most importantly remind yourself that God has a plan for you and your family that is significant to only you.

Many blessings to you on your homeschool journey wherever it may take you!

~Beth

(This post was originally published at Upside Down Homeschooling)

Making Good Memories-Part 2

As I write for this blog, I am not writing out of my expertise. I am by no means an expert in parenting or in homeschooling. I write to you about what I have learned or am learning. One day you will pass along what you are learning as a mom or dad and homeschooling parent to somebody else that needs encouragement.

In an earlier post, I started talking about making good memories. It is so important to make good memories with your children. I don’t remember everything from when I was a little. I think I started remembering more the older I got. I am not sure why that is. It would make an interesting study to find out why our memories became more detailed the older we get. In my last post I talked about the importance of making good memories since we, as homeschooling parents, are with our children all day long, and have the greatest potential for impact.

In the first post about making good memories, I talked about: 1) Don’t sweat the small stuff. 2) Laugh a lot. 3) Hug and Kiss your children. The next three ways I believe you can ensure you make good memories are:

You can read the rest of my post, here, at Growing Your Homeschool.

When People Don't Understand

"..'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord...."

-Jeremiah 29:11

What do you do when your family members and other people don't understand what you are doing? How do you handle all the questions? How do you handle the criticism?

I don't know if I have all the right answers to these questions. I know that in general it takes people a while to get accustomed to the idea of homeschooling, even those who want to do it. 

I will share what we have done. My husband and I have talked about homeschooling from the very beginning. We always wanted to do this, even before we had kids. Maybe God put this in our hearts long ago, because He knows everything, and He knows what is to come.

When our children started showing signs of developmental delay, we thought it would be better for them to be around other children; we thought that would help the speech improve, social skills advance, etc. But several incidents caused us to revisit homeschooling, and we decided this was the best thing. Thankfully we had people to encourage us in this endeavor. But that was not the case with everybody.

I encounter questions regularly, from grandparents, doctors, friends, you name it, especially because of the diagnosis of Pervasive Devolopmental Disorder. I explain myself a lot. I tell them things I know about school and how I think it will benefit my children to be homeschooled and how I feel it will not benefit them to be in a classroom setting. I have tried to arm myself with as much knowledge as possible.(My Bachelor's Degree is in Education, but to some people even that is not enough for me to do an adequate job homeschooling my children.)

As for the criticisms, I have tried to battle the same way, with knowledge. I have armed myself with research, and education, and information about how children learn. Do you know what I have learned? People have to come to their own realizations about this. People have been so conditioned to see public school as being the perfect setting for children. It may not be right,that perspective, but it is just so.

It all comes down to this. What is best for your child? What is God leading you to do for your family?

If you are struggling with this decision, let me arm you with a little knowledge. There are many successful people in history that were homeschooled and you just might recognize a few of their names:  Leonardo DaVinci, Orville and Wilbur Wright, Thomas Edison, Louisa May Alcott, Alexander Graham Bell, Abraham Lincoln, George Washington, and Albert Einstein. Contemporary examples of homeschoolers include The Jonas Brothers and Venus and Serena Williams.

At some point, I am going to stop explaining and let people see the fruit. I have tried to be kind but after a while questions and criticism can wear on you. That is when I revisit why we are doing what we are doing. We have to do what is right in our own hearts for our own family, and what we believe is God's plan for our children.

What productive ways do you deal with encounters with people who don't understand?

~Beth


*This post originally appeared at Growing Your Homeschool.