Homeschool

I’m honored to present this guest post to you from Dakota Lynch of Scripture Memory Fellowship.  Mr Lynch is the IT &Communications Manager, and has been a wonderful help to the homeschool community.  Please enjoy his thoughts on Scripture Memorization and visit the Scripture Memory Fellowship website to see the amazing program there.  Over the last two years, I’ve traveled to homeschool conventions and book fairs across the country. As I chat with dozens of homeschool moms at each of these events, I frequently turn to their young children and ask if they can quote any Bible verses. Of course, John 3:16 or “Jesus wept” is recited quickly by most, but when asked if they know any others, the response is often disheartening: blank stares, sheepish grins, and a somewhat embarrassed parent.  Granted, most of these kids are being raised by well-meaning parents who want more than anything for them to know Christ and embrace a biblical worldview. But tragically, many parents mistakenly think they can do this without teaching the actual words of Scripture.  This might seem like a minor omission at first, but it couldn’t be any more serious. Why? Because a biblical worldview cannot be said to exist apart from a deep and wide knowledge of God’s actual words. We cannot omit the study and memorization of God’s Word from Christian education any more than we could omit the Constitution and Founding Fathers from our study of American history. Without God’s Word, Christian education is not Christian education at all, but moralized secularity.   Of course, you probably already believe memorizing Scripture is important. After all, the whole reason you decided to homeschool in the first place is likely because you place some value on the Bible’s principles for living. Scripture memory, then, automatically gets your parental stamp of approval. “Sure, memorizing Bible verses is a good thing,” we say — yet relatively few of us make it an integral part of our lives. The problem, as is so often the case, comes down to prioritization. It’s one thing to mentally assent to the value of knowing Bible verses; it’s quite another to stop what you’re doing and make a focused effort to memorize a few. We know memorizing is important, but we tend to put it in the same category as exercise and eating healthy. Running three miles and then eating a salad is admirable, but sleeping in and having a donut probably won’t kill us, right?  It’s not that we fail to see the importance of memorizing Scripture; it’s that most of us fail to see the indispensability of it. And if you are homeschooling your kids in hopes of them embracing a biblical worldview as adults, then knowing God’s Word is foundational to the success of your homeschool. Let me say that again, just in case you missed it: if you are homeschooling because you want your kids to have biblical values, then instilling the actual words of Scripture in their hearts is vital. At Scripture Memory Fellowship, our mission is to motivate and equip believers to memorize God’s Word. Over the years, we’ve learned that a few simple steps will get your family on the road to successful Scripture memorization:  First, decide what you’ll memorize. Goals and deadlines are part of every core subject, and Scripture memory should be no exception. So, set a definite goal with specific verses to memorize.   Second, set a target completion date and share your goal with at least one person outside your immediate family. That added measure of accountability will help you stay on track for the long haul.  Third, make a weekly appointment with a well-chosen person to hear you recite until your goal is reached. If you’re not sure where to start, our Jonah memory program is great for beginners and is especially suited for integration in any homeschool program. Details and signup info are at scripturememory.com/start.  Whatever your family chooses to memorize, I can guarantee you’ll be richly blessed as you resolve with the psalmist, “I will delight myself in Your statutes; I will not forget Your word” (Psa. 119:16). 

During my last decade of being a homeschool mom, I embarked on a journey of graduate school.  Most of the classes were wonderful.  The research classes and history of education classes interested me the most.  If I had more time, I would read more about these topics on my own. Learning about educational methods also intrigued me.  Since I was homeschooling during this time, it amazed me how homeschooling methods were exactly on target for the mastery learning.  Mastery Learning, developed by Bloom, is the newer method that classroom teachers try to implement.  It’s so much more difficult to provide this in a classroom than it is in the homeschool. I felt very good that I was providing individualized instruction as well as assessment.  When the level of assessment met mastery level (90%), then we went on to the next educational level.  Being a homeschooler allows such flexibility, there is no rush to move ahead until the child masters the concepts and content. Most curriculum allows the homeschool mom to use mastery learning.  It’s good when selecting curriculum that you study it to look for quality of content.  If the “text” offers only a few pages and then a test “assessment”  there is not much for a student to master.  This type of curriculum would need to be heavily supplemented.  Sometimes you get what you pay for.  Even for young students, you want to grab their imaginations and create a desire to learn. Be aware and cautious of many in the movement who encourage: fun, play, games, etc.  Please don’t stop reading here.  I’m not suggesting that you must sit in a desk all day.  But, learning isn’t all fun and games.  Becoming a diligent student who masters 12 years of school and who is ready to compete globally, must learn to be a hard worker.  This isn’t accomplished by spending much of your time playing computer math games and going on 20 field trips per week.  (You may disagree with me, and that’s fine.  This post is my opinion.) The wonderful homeschool SAT scores that we hear about are from students who worked hard and got into college.  Even if your child doesn’t go to college, they need to learn to have a good work ethic and have good knowledge of high school subjects.  The homeschoolers that don’t do this, will end up just like their public school peers: not able to get good jobs. Now for positive news:  When homeschool students work hard and complete their courses with Mastery Learning, they have a wonderful opportunity to enter the next step in life without educational hindrances.  My children, and thousands more like them, have stepped straight into college and done well.  Many others have succeeded in other career choices or accepted the beautiful call of wife and mother. Life is not easy when you try to live right.  Homeschooling is one of the hardest things I’ve ever tried to do.  I tried to do it the best way that I could; and made many mistakes.  God blessed me and our children, as we dedicated each year to Him who received all the glory. God bless you and your family as you work and plan your homeschooling for this year. @2017, copyright Lisa Ehrman