Mar. 27, 2007 - Comments
“Liz” left a comment on my post on why we homeschool, but did not leave any way in which to contact her. So, I would like to take a minute to address her comments. Please keep in mind that I am simply giving my opinion, based on what I know to be true about what I believe to be a very important topic. I am in no way attacking my reader/commenter or her beliefs and opinions.
Here is what she said, “The main reasons that I don't want to home school are that 1) public schools have a variety of activities and sports that I think are great opportunities for kids that they can't get homeschooling - but maybe that's not always true today? 2) I feel very strongly about exposing my children to other children with different religions so that they have a better understanding of the Lord... not just what I teach them. I think there is so much to be learned from all religions. 3) this one is more true in certain areas/states/school districts than others, but most teachers can specialize in certain areas and teach my children about that much better than I ever could.”
1) public schools have a variety of activities and sports that I think are great opportunities for kids that they can't get homeschooling - but maybe that's not always true today?
There are a variety of sports and activities available in most towns and cities through city leagues and the recreation department – Little League, soccer, and basketball, just to name a few. These teams consist of members of your community and are available to all. You may find that they are even more favorable than school teams these days. What’s more, many public schools allow homeschooled children to participate on their sports teams.
2) I feel very strongly about exposing my children to other children with different religions so that they have a better understanding of the Lord... not just what I teach them. I think there is so much to be learned from all religions.
Hoping our children will learn something of religious value from other children in public school is as foolish as it is destructive. Exposing our children to other religions at such an early age can be very detrimental to their spiritual growth.
Now, please hear me out…. Our children need to be grounded on a firm foundation of faith. To be distracted by other people’s beliefs or lack thereof, can stunt their spiritual growth and only cause confusion. I truly believe it is important for each of our children to know what they believe and why before we expose them to the world.
I believe that the above comment is true in that there is a lot we can learn when we study other religions, but my guess is that most Christians don’t know too much about their own faith and should learn about it before trying to master another *religion*. Becoming mature in one’s faith requires time. Each of us need to decide why we believe what we believe in light of the TRUTH, so we may fully appreciate that our God loves us and accepts us and doesn’t require much from us. We first must grow in our relationship with Christ and place our lives in His Hands, with BLIND FAITH, before we indoctrinate our minds with what is not true about God, the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
3) this one is more true in certain areas/states/school districts than others, but most teachers can specialize in certain areas and teach my children about that much better than I ever could.
While some teachers may specialize in certain areas, they could never teach my children better principles than I could! God has given us, as parents, the responsibility of teaching and training our own children and will equip each of us to do this. As Christian parents we need to rely on Christ to work through us.
When our children are in their elementary years, they are learning the basics of academics – reading, writing, and arithmetic, but they are also learning how to interact with others, how to respect and honor their parents and how to become followers of Christ – Is this not more important??
I believe that as they enter the upper grades, we are capable of teaching them, even while we may be learning (or re-learning) right along side them. Who is truly better able to teach them how t0 be productive members of society? During these years of upper education, however, I know that I can supplement subjects with private tutors or junior college courses (most JC’s offer classes to high-schoolers to earn school credit).
Aside from the academics, while I know it is important, it is certainly not all-important. I can truly teaching my children so much more at home than what can be taught by any accredited teacher in some public (or even private) school! Not because I know more about certain subjects, but because it is my God-given duty and responsibility.
There are so many reasons why we have made the decision, and I have only just touched on a few, but please understand that I feel very passionately about what we do. In no way do I intend to be judgmental or harmful in my ramblings.
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