Teaching kids to count is fine, but teaching them
what counts is best. ~ Bob Talbert


Tuesday, May 13, 2008

My Conviction

As a homeschooling mom it is essential that I know why I have chosen to home school. It is not a good enough reason to say "because it is the more 'noble' way". I know that in the days ahead there will be moments when the public school down the street looks very inviting and the whole idea of homeschooling will seem utterly ridiculous. It is on days like these when I will need to go back to that little piece of paper stuck on the inside of my cupboard door and read it aloud. I will need to remind myself about my original convictions of why homeschooling is the best choice for our family at this time. I will need to read something more realistic than "because I want to be a good mom".

So here I sit on the brink of officially homeschooling my oldest daughter. Conviction writing time is here. My convictions are several, with some being stronger than others, but nevertheless each one is important and will be essential in the days ahead. So here they go . . .

Conviction #1 - Living Without Regrets. I have the opportunity to home school and a large support group is already in place. I don't want to look back on this time and wish that I had, when I hadn't.

Conviction #2 - Age 5 is Toooooo Young. Someone, somewhere decided that age 5 was the appropriate age for a child to leave the influence of his home and start being influenced by 20 other 5 year olds and an adult stranger. I personally feel that 5 is too young to leave home. Just my own personal conviction.

Conviction #3 - Faith and Character. No matter what I do, my kids are going to learn their ABC's and how to count simply by being alive. But will they learn how to love God with all their heart, soul, and strength? Will they grasp an understanding of God's love, faithfulness, and forgiveness? Will they learn that God cares about the big things but also the teensy, tiny things? As for character, we are presently talking a lot about the Fruit of the Spirit and trust me, we have a looooong way to go!

So there you have it. I may come back and revamp occassionally, but for now these are the convictions that stand. Now I just need to tape them to the inside of my cupboard door.

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Great convictions, Jessica. I agree with all of them. And five IS too young. These are the days that they are most moldable... so why would I send my children off to be molded by someone else?

Jamie {See Jamie blog} said...

I have a similar list:
http://jamiescottage.blogspot.com/2008/05/why-i-homeschool.html

I think it's great to remind ourselves WHY we're doing this so when those frustrating moments come - and they will - we'll be better able to handle it!

Caroline said...

Hi Jessica,
I'm not sure if you will see this comment as the post was posted way back in May.

I too made a list of reasons why we have decided to home school and wanted to thank you for encouraging me to do that. We talked about it when you came to our house, earlier in the year (I think it was around early May).

Thank you!