Over our long and continuous homeschool journey (over 18 years!), we have used many different curricula and types of curricula--workbooks, textbooks, and a mixture of Charlotte Mason/classical/ and unit studies. Last year, I had been reading more about Charlotte Mason's method of education and found so much that resonated with me--including nature study, art instruction, music, narrations...And so I set out to make last year our first purely Charlotte Mason year. I purchased membership for one of these Charlotte Mason curriculums and hurried on to purchase all of the books and supplies we would need for almost the entire year. Then the books started coming in, and I started prereading. "Huh. I don't agree with that," I thought. There were things I was finding that didn't line up with the Bible. I contacted the company with my concerns. Well, just discuss them with your children, I was told. But these books were teaching something blatantly opposed to God's Word--evolution, for one.
After some time, I decided I would need to choose something else for our family, and I did so. Curriculum try number two: ordered all the books and supplies again. Books came in, and I started reading. Hmmm...more things contrary to God's Word. A majority of these books seemed to have a "woke" flavor, plus some other issues. But these were "Christian" companies...again I contacted the company with my concerns, but they didn't share mine. I just couldn't use such material to teach my children, and so I ordered something else. This curriculum seemed a bit better. There was no blatant evolution, and the book selections seemed a bit more conservative. We used this for awhile, but they were really only learning about God in the short Bible readings we had every morning. Everything else was secular, without any mention of the Creator and Lord of the Universe. I decided to add in some books from another Charlotte Mason company to give my children more to read, to see if that would help. But it ended up being too much, and again, there were issues with content I was not comfortable with. For example, if you do purely Charlotte Mason, you are supposed to have your children read mythology. My youngest at the time who I was homeschooling, kept asking me, "Mom, why are we reading these weird stories? I don't like them--they're ridiculous!" I really agreed with her, but, we were "supposed to" read mythology because somehow it was going to benefit her. But would it benefit her spiritually?
After doing a lot of research, I switched most things over to a more conservative Charlotte Mason company, which worked fine for history because we were in the same time period. The book selections were a bit better, without as much questionable material. But there was still plenty, without any warnings! We also tried a Shakespeare play, because if you are doing Charlotte Mason, you are supposed to learn Shakespeare! Even though I chose a milder play, there were still blasphemies and other course talk and situations in it, which I tried to explain to my children. But most them told me afterwards that they did not like going through that play and didn't think a Christian man would write such things. I also fully expected with this company that there would be more mention of the Lord along with our history readings, and a pointing out of His working in the world. But there was next to nothing of this. I started thinking upon all of this more seriously and hearkening back to our main purpose in homeschooling our children and why I started in the first place...
It dawned on me that while I was homeschooling my children, they were receiving much of a type of education that they'd get in a public school setting--not receiving a Christian worldview or God-honoring material in their books. Their "peers" in these books were not a good example to them. They were not learning that God made the world and everything in it. They were not being stirred on to holy living. I knew we had to change something, and it all weighed heavily on me while I purused through curriculm for the upcoming school year.
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Why are you homeschooling, or if you haven't started yet, why are you interested in it? Is it because you want your children to have a better chance academically? Do you want your children to not be stuck in a classroom? Do you want to have more time with them? Do you want to have more control over what they are learning? Perhaps you've learned about a certain method of education and want your children to be taught that way. Maybe you want to make school "fun". Or, maybe you want to keep your children away from peer pressure.
While none of these reasons are wrong, and some of them are very good and may be helpful for your children, the above reasons may not be enough to keep you going through the years when difficulties arise and you have challenging days. I think there is one overarching reason that we Christian parents should homeschool our children and that we must keep at the forefront of our minds. In all of our plans and curriculum choosing, this should be the most important aspect. What is this "Reason for Homeschooling"?
The reason is to bring our children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. To show them, in all subjects, and in all ways, the Lord is King and the Creator of all. That this is His world, and He has been working in it since the beginning of time. We must also show them that we are not living for ourselves and our pleasure, but for the One Who made us and all things. We must help them in all their studies to learn about the Lord and their place in His world.
So, I believe we cannot just follow a curriculum, but we need to be actively involved in each step in knowing what our children are learning, and if it is something beneficial to them spiritually. We must not fully embrace a curriculum, but embrace Christ! Of course, there are some good Christian curriculum companies out there, but it seems they are getting harder to find. And I always recommend prereading your children's books, especially if they will be reading them on their own.
If you'd like me to write more on this subject, please let me know in the comments.
But now, on to the fun part for you...
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Autumn Blessings Homeschool Giveaway
We’ve teamed up with a wonderful group of homeschool bloggers to bring you something special this fall—the Autumn Blessings Homeschool Giveaway!
Between October 7-13, 2024, you can enter for your chance to win one of two $75 gift cards that could be just what your family needs to bless your homeschool journey.
It’s simple to enter, and we’re excited to bless two of our amazing homeschooling families with this gift!
The winners will be announced on October 14th, so make sure to mark your calendars and join in.
We’re praying this blessing finds its way to the right family!
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