For a great and effective door has opened to me, and there are many adversaries. –1 Corinthians 16:9 (NKJV)
One of the biggest temptations we have as homeschoolers is to bring the public-school model into the home, a model that many say is presently in failure mode. There have been several studies on the state of Illinois public school’s effectiveness. One of the more interesting articles I read recently noted there are 53 public schools in Illinois that do not have even one student that is grade-proficient in math. According to the Illinois Family Institute, “Illinoisreportcard.com reports that only 32% of students met or exceeded grade level proficiency standards in math for the 2019 school year after completing the Scholarship Aptitude Test (SAT). Only 38% of students met or exceeded grade level proficiency in English Language Arts. The Illinois Science Assessment test shows 49% of students are at grade proficiency in science.” Can you imagine the outcry if homeschoolers did as poorly. Still, we parents feel the need to compare ourselves with the public school system and follow much of their methodology.
I understand some of this as my wife and I were both trained as public-school teachers. I especially struggled in getting out of the classroom mindset, always thinking about preparing my children for college rather than for life. Furthermore, I didn’t distinguish the difference between education and schooling. Many people are highly schooled but are poorly educated. We all say our children are unique, but we don’t really act like it. Several of my children learned basic math, not from a book or a computer but by playing store together. I taught several of them to tell time simply by using an old Timex instead of looking at clocks on a piece of paper. Fractions and liquid volume were taught in the kitchen during baking lessons.
One reason I always encourage people to seek God first in their homeschooling journey is He will create unique opportunities if we depend on Him as much as as we do our own efforts. Just as Paul saw many closed doors supernaturally opened for the sake of the gospel, the same can happen for us in the home. Like Paul, there are many adversaries in homeschooling with the major one being our past experiences and definitions of what we call learning. What does this look like?
If your child likes to build, there may be an older person in your church or neighborhood who would love to teach him/her how to build a bird house or other similar project. Not only would your child learn carpentry skills and safety, he/she should also learn how to read a tape measure. I remember being part of a church expansion program, and a carpenter out of the union hall literally didn’t know how to read a tape measure and cut over twenty boards too short. Even when he recut them, they were too short (gotcha!). Older people are probably one of the most overlooked resources we have, starting within our own family.
You may find a mechanic who would change some grunt work for automotive lessons. Your child may not get paid, but the skills and work ethic he learns will provide so much more in his/her future. My daughter worked as an intern at a family-owned horse training facility. We had no way of knowing they were among the top in the nation in showing halter horses. We didn’t plan this. We simply asked. (Actually, we were initially declined, but the owner ended up changing his mind. My daughter spent two years with that family and ended up getting paid.) I know of a young man who was taught coding by a small business owner who needed some part time help. It ended up being a wonderful opportunity.
Sure, we want our children to be as book smart as possible, but we don’t know what opportunities our children will miss if we think of knowledge, education, and opportunity only in this vein. Even if they don’t use a new skill professionally, they can still save thousands of dollars with DYI projects around the home.
As we contemplate curriculum and cooperative activities, we need to look to the One who opens doors of opportunities. Make this a consistent prayer doing daily devotions and delight when God answers as only He does, celebrate His goodness as a family.
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