Homeschool: Don't Leave Out the Best Parts

When most homeschooling parents think about their children’s course of study and what subjects to include in their education, reading, writing, math, science, and history likely come to mind. While teaching these is important, of course, so too are those areas of focus that bring delight, beauty, and meaning.

Homeschool Planning: Ask the Kids

’Tis the season for homeschool planning. Many homeschooling parents, as they work their way toward the finish line of this school year, are also making their plans for next year. It’s a time to review the year that’s wrapping up and anticipate the needs of each child for the coming year.

One invaluable resource that parents may be overlooking is the perspective of their children. If you’re in the thick of your homeschool planning for next year, don’t forget to tap into the experiences, hopes, and wisdom of your children.

Some of the greatest advantages of homeschooling include the ability to cater an individualized education to the needs of each child and creatively dive deep into his or her interests.

Former Teacher Chooses Homeschool

As some parents decide whether to homeschool their children, a specific facet of the homeschooling population may offer some unique insight. Among homeschoolers you might be surprised to find a great many former public school teachers who said “no thank you” to the prescribed route and chose the path of homeschool for their own children.

One such parent is Sarah Miller from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Sarah taught professionally for 10 years before choosing to homeschool her own children. She now blogs about her experience and helps other parents who are just getting started.

Veteran Advice for Homeschooling High School

Ms. Moore: Getting to pour into your teen in the years right before they leave home, teaching them real-life skills as well as the academics, and skipping the negative peer pressure and bullying that can take place.

For the teen, the main benefit is a custom-tailored school experience, getting to really pursue their interests, and not following a one-size-fits-almost-no-one program. They get to go deep where their interests lie and can just skim the things that aren’t of interest. And of course they can go by their own sleep schedule.

4 Signs Parents Won’t Be Sending Their Kids Back to Public School This Fall

Parents are discovering new educational options like never before.

Famous Investor: The Homeschooling Boom Is Just Beginning

According to remarks by one prominent investor, this is just the beginning of a widespread shift away from conventional schooling models toward disruptive innovation in education–with homeschooling leading the way. “It certainly feels like we’re on the front end of a pretty dramatic homeschooling boom,” said Marc Andreessen, co-creator of the original Mosaic web browser, co-founder of Netscape, and co-founder and general partner of the leading venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz.

CCI/CCHSA Alum Alison Gibson qualifies for the Tokyo Olympics

Alison Gibson and Krysta Palmer are the first divers to qualify for the U.S. Olympic team.

Gibson, 21, and Palmer, 28, won the women’s synchronized springboard at the U.S. Olympic Trials in Indianapolis on Thursday night, the first of four consecutive days of finals that determine the full team for Tokyo.

https://olympics.nbcsports.com/2021/06/10/alison-gibson-krysta-palmer-diving-olympic-trials/

Why Christian Higher Education is One of the Most Important Decisions You Can Make

Classrooms then are not neutral. Professors have academic freedom to express their convictions. They teach subjects from their perspective and draw students to their conclusions. At secular institutions, the viewpoint in the classroom will be anything but Christian. As the Washington Times reported, professors who identify as liberal outnumber those who hold more conservative values by 12 to one. One Christian professor in a top secular university reports that if his colleagues knew of his faith, they would make his life difficult. So, in a university designed to impress how to think, one will encounter an environment that will do everything it can to convince someone to think contrary to everything that his or her parents, pastor and church have labored tirelessly to instill in them. Is it the best use of resources, then, to pay for someone to contradict everything you stand for? Furthermore, is it the best use of resources to pay for getting less instruction than you need? After all, it is documented that because of the thought agenda of college campuses, most classes in one's major are increasingly becoming more dedicated to political and cultural correctness than to actual training. In what other situation would we pay more to not only get less of what we are paying for but also to get more of what we despise? Yet, that is the decision we often make in higher education. This is far from neutral.

https://notthebee.com/article/the-absolute-urgency-of-christian-higher-education

Sally Clarkson: Has COVID made you an 'accidental homeschooler'? – I've been one. And my kids are thriving

Today our four grown children are thriving in their adult lives, and I believe that educating, inspiring, and mentoring them was some of the best work I have ever done.

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/covid-accidential-homeschooler-sally-clarkson?fbclid=IwAR0v-1EK_64cr_MAhgcMfIEJpDEQob9cq8FUg1qacRKPaLcvF-LUm3iNfYs

Content Knowledge and Critical Thinking Go Hand-in-Hand

Despite what some bureaucrats in British Columbia’s education department might think, there can be no deep understanding and application of knowledge without the memory and recall of basic facts. Being well-informed about a topic is the first step in thinking critically about it. Ignorant people do not think critically—ever.

The reality is that content knowledge and critical thinking have always belonged together. Just as students should not simply memorize facts without understanding the bigger picture, teachers cannot expect students to develop critical thinking skills in the absence of specific content knowledge. Since these two things belong together, we need to stop presenting them as opposites and instead recognize them as partners. Critical thinking requires content knowledge.