So, I've been wondering how to incorporate God's Word into our homeschooling days. I want to make the Bible a huge part of our curriculum because, as I've read over and over, if your kids know everything in the world, but don't know the Lord, what good have you done? (And various other thoughts to that effect.)
After my brainstorm the other day where it all started to come together, I heard about Pictures From Proverbs from Restoring the Years. I was intrigued. Start with Proverbs? I had never thought of that. I'm used to thinking in terms of "Bible stories." Of course I thought we'd read a Proverb every day, but I never thought much about teaching with them.
So with that information rolling around in my head, I then stumbled on this post from A Complete Thought. The article she references was about a father and daughter who lived for 4 years in the forest. The father had homeschooled the girl the entire time using nothing but a Bible and an old set of encyclopedias. I encourage you to read the whole article. What really struck me was how little it really matters what curriculum I use and how much it matters how I approach everything. And also, how wonderful the Bible is!
I once knew a teacher who I really respected because she had so much training in early literacy. She would pull students out of my classroom who could not even read their name and they would come back reading in a few short months. She worked, as I did for a time, with the lowest of the low. I worked for a whole week with one first grader on JUST HIS NAME. But, by golly, he knew it when we got through! You would probably be surprised at how unprepared some children are when they walk into school and the teachers have the total responsibility of getting them on grade level by the end of May. Incredible. BUT THE POINT...(sorry) is that she told me one time, "I can teach children to read. All I need to do it is paper, a marker, and some stickers." For all her training, she knew what it all boiled down to.
I think the same is true of homeschooling. The bells and whistles are wonderful. But if I only had a Bible and some old encyclopedias, would my daughter learn? Of course she would.
The author of the article, Kevin Swanson, talked about using the Bible for instruction. And where did he end up? In Proverbs. Here's what he had to say,
"Immediately, you will discover that an entire book of the Bible, the book of the Proverbs is dedicated to the subject of education. This entire book chronicles a father's training of his son, with the exception of the last chapter - mom's instructions to her son."
Interesting. So now that I have been hit over the head with PROVERBS at least 3 times over the last few days...I'm thinking God must want me to think about starting with Proverbs in our homeschool. What do you think?
After my brainstorm the other day where it all started to come together, I heard about Pictures From Proverbs from Restoring the Years. I was intrigued. Start with Proverbs? I had never thought of that. I'm used to thinking in terms of "Bible stories." Of course I thought we'd read a Proverb every day, but I never thought much about teaching with them.
So with that information rolling around in my head, I then stumbled on this post from A Complete Thought. The article she references was about a father and daughter who lived for 4 years in the forest. The father had homeschooled the girl the entire time using nothing but a Bible and an old set of encyclopedias. I encourage you to read the whole article. What really struck me was how little it really matters what curriculum I use and how much it matters how I approach everything. And also, how wonderful the Bible is!
I once knew a teacher who I really respected because she had so much training in early literacy. She would pull students out of my classroom who could not even read their name and they would come back reading in a few short months. She worked, as I did for a time, with the lowest of the low. I worked for a whole week with one first grader on JUST HIS NAME. But, by golly, he knew it when we got through! You would probably be surprised at how unprepared some children are when they walk into school and the teachers have the total responsibility of getting them on grade level by the end of May. Incredible. BUT THE POINT...(sorry) is that she told me one time, "I can teach children to read. All I need to do it is paper, a marker, and some stickers." For all her training, she knew what it all boiled down to.
I think the same is true of homeschooling. The bells and whistles are wonderful. But if I only had a Bible and some old encyclopedias, would my daughter learn? Of course she would.
The author of the article, Kevin Swanson, talked about using the Bible for instruction. And where did he end up? In Proverbs. Here's what he had to say,
"Immediately, you will discover that an entire book of the Bible, the book of the Proverbs is dedicated to the subject of education. This entire book chronicles a father's training of his son, with the exception of the last chapter - mom's instructions to her son."
Interesting. So now that I have been hit over the head with PROVERBS at least 3 times over the last few days...I'm thinking God must want me to think about starting with Proverbs in our homeschool. What do you think?
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI'm truly sorry I had to delete the previous comment.
ReplyDeleteBut, to the previous commenter I will just say this:
I am not forcing any beliefs, just writing about my family's journey. You are welcome to quit reading my blog at any time. Thanks!
Hi again, Brenda...thanks for the linkage. I really like reading your blog, especially as you embark on this marvelous, crazy, invigorating, exhausting, liberating, painful but always worth it journey called home education.
ReplyDeleteKevin Swanson was a keynote at this year's homeschooling convention in my state, and I remember well that story about the little girl and her dad.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of conventions, do they have one where you live? You would love it, I am sure!