Home education is my way of “lighting the fire” in my children. Many people (especially the so-called “experts”) look at education as “filling a cup”; that is, children are empty of knowledge and they (the teachers) must be the ones to fill that cup.
I have a Bachelor of Science degree in Education and English and I know what teachers are taught. Not much. An education degree from even the best university focuses on teaching behavioral science and other educational psychobabble. It’s a joke. The average college student has very little knowledge in any subject and thus doesn’t have anything with which to fill those empty vessels. Ask a college student if he’s read any good books lately and you will probably get a blank stare.
Any mother who has been busy with babies and laundry and meals and…well… life can testify to the fact that children learn. They learn through that wonderful God-given curiosity and zest for living with which every child slides into the world.It’s a wonderful thing!
If a mother (or father or grandparent or any other person who is vitally interested in the child) will turn off the computer or t.v. and look that child in the eye and talk about the world…guess what happens? Education happens! And, if that same caring adult opens up the pages of books and reads many of them to the child guess what happens? The child’s imagination is stimulated. .. It’s a wonderful thing.
And it doesn’t take a non-reading expert who managed to finish his college classwork to stimulate learning, to engage the imagination, to light the fire.
Nine tenths of education is encouragement.
Anatole France; Nobel prize in Literature
Encourage your children… Light the Fire!
Great statement, Jill! I graduated many years ago with a teaching degree. I believe most great teachers are born with the ability to teach–it can’t be taught.
I transitioned from a teacher, to a mother who taught, to a mom who homeschools. I began homeschooling my daughter at the age of 9 and haven’t looked back. We mostly use a semi unschooling approach now. It seems to work best for her.
Love your site.
Joyfully,
Jackie who stays busy homeschooling a high-spirited 14 year old dyslexic sweetie.
My Attempt at Blogging
Thanks Jackie. Have you read the research on dyslexia from neurodevelopmentalists? I highly recommend finding an ND and getting your child evaluated. If I had more time I would continue training to become an ND because they deal with the root cause of learning struggles. You can find the link in my sidebar (ICANDO)
Jill
I will check it out. Thanks!
This is GREAT,GREAT,GREAT, encouragement for me! a 25 yo mother of four who has taken on the challenge of homeschooling all of our children. I find it interesting that even with your degree(s) you admit that this is not an important requirement in educating your children. One would think you would use this as a qualification for you to do it. I have no college training and doubt myself sometimes, but still with all my inadequacies I feel called to do this for my children. It’s for the glory of God, so I’ll cast those cares on him for now and focus on getting a balanced family life going here for us. Using this blog as a tool in my journey. i hope you know you are now a mentor in my head or friend in my head as wendy williams would put it! Anyway take care and thank you for sharing your life.
Jill, to this I say a resounding “Amen sister!” As an example of your statement “And, if that same caring adult opens up the pages of books and reads many of them to the child guess what happens? The child’s imagination is stimulated. .. It’s a wonderful thing.” I want to share how after reading together Beatrix Potters book – “The Tale of Samuel Whiskers or The Roly Poly Pudding” and watching the wonderful video together, my grandchildren, aged 4 1/2 and 2 1/2 years of age, love to play this game in the yard where I, Grandma, am Samuel Whiskers, the big rat, and they are the mischeiveous little kittens, Tom, and Mittens. They run to me while I am sitting on a big pink exercise ball bouncing or up in their fort off of their swing set and I grab one of them and call for “Anna Maria”, my rat wife, to bring the flour and make dough for the roly poly pudding. I put them on the pink ball and roll them back and forth to make the pudding. They then run away and we do this all over again. Too much fun! But it certainly shows how even the young children can learn these stories and use them in their imaginary play. Blessings, Debbie
Well, your grandchildren are certainly courageous little people…that particular Beatrix Potter book always gave me the creepy crawlies! However, you can tell their imaginations have engaged in the story because of their delight in acting it out. Love it!
Jill