PrincipledMom™

My most exciting times as a home educator have come under inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Without the help of the Holy Spirit my lessons become dry and frankly pretty boring. I thought I would share some thoughts concerning this.

If you are a Christian teaching your children at home, you probably already have experienced spirit-led lessons, even if you didn't know it or call it that.

When you are teaching multiple grades together you can relax. Just as happens in a church full of individuals, the Holy Spirit has a wonderful way of tailoring the lesson to fit the needs of the hearer. I never cease to be amazed that a room full of people can hear the same sermon, the same words and scripture, and get something intimately personal from it. Only God's living Word can do that.

The Holy Spirit is here for, among other things, education.  John 14:26 Jesus says that when He left the Holy Spirit would come and "will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you." "All things" there means in the Greek just that--all things. So rejoice that the Holy Spirit is there to teach you, to teach your kids, and to teach you to teach your kids all things.

If you are struggling in an area such as math or history or even how to schedule your day or deal with a difficult character issue, help is a prayer away. God gives wisdom liberally if we will only ask (James 1:5). And when we don't even know what we need the Holy Spirit (Rom. 8:26) and Jesus (Rom. 8:34) both are praying God's will on our behalf. Praise God! If you are weak in an area let God show Himself strong. I can tell you from experience those are the most exciting lessons of all because I cannot do that in my own ability. (2 Cor 12:9)

I encourage you to be careful not to put your lessons in a box and think there will be amazing revelations every day in every subject. That won't happen. Many days will be pretty average. But that's what makes the special times so special. And God's grace is in the every day, speaking in quiet whispers through His Word in every subject.

With the Biblical Principle Approach that places God's Word at the center of every subject, you can't help but have Holy Spirit inspired lessons each time you pick up your Bible and read His life-giving words to your family. It's rhema.

For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.      Hebrews 4:12

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I am hosting a history study here on my blog beginning Monday, April 7. The resources you need are these two books here (click the pics to purchase), along with a Bible. I also recommend a notebook, lots of notebook paper, 8 dividers and a nice pen. Since we use the notebook method in BPA, you know we always need more notebooks!

I will post on the week's lesson and then (hopefully) you will leave comments regarding the lesson, or link to your blog's post on the topic. My hope is to generate positive, insightful conversation regarding America's Christian history as we learnfrom these lessons.

There are 8 lessons, so we will take one each week and discuss it here and at our weekly Thursday night chats. I will add a new topic to my category list to make these lessons easy to find in the future, which is helpful if you can't study with us right now. I hope you will prayerfully consider joining me for this exciting study.

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Notebooks are not a new idea. Many of the founding fathers kept notebooks of their lessons and discoveries. What is so special about notebooks, as opposed to, say, workbooks? I say a lot.

Production. A notebook is not simply a container of a child's work. It is a tool for learning and self-government. It requires the child to be a producer of education and not a consumer of information. The child is an active part of the learning process.

Developing character. Notebooks are also a tool for character development and an excellent education. These traits include stewardship, diligence, patience, perseverance, faithfulness and satisfaction.

Self-education. The child must learn how to learn, and a notebook will do that. These notebooks are filled with their own thoughts and reasoning. I encourage my children to take ownership of their ideas. When they are comforatable with that concept it will be easy for them to take on more of their own education

Scholarship. The child must write and produce their own work, as opposed to consuming a workbook. They are required to write down their own thoughts and ideas and to do it well. Neatness counts! Standards are a good thing. Children like to know what is expected of them, and notebook standards give them a goal and parameters, which also foster scholarship.

Reasoning. It requires thinking, and sometimes a lot of it, to produce and to learn. I know my kids sometimes act like their brain froze up when they are required to use their "reasoning muscles." But I also have noticed that my 4th grader has come a long way and doesn't shut down like she used to. She wrestles hard sometimes to reason out an answer. That is encouraging and wouldn't happen if I were not using a notebook.

Reference. Hopefully your notebook will be filled with things, especially as they get into the upper grades, that will help them in other subjects and other areas of interest. I know one young lady who came home for a break from college and went to find her French notebook. She said it was to help her in her college class because some of the material was already there, giving her an edge. Another young lady I know has made notebooking such a lifestyle that even though she is out of high school she still makes notebooks for her interests. When she went on a missions trip she created a notebook her whole team could use as a reference, with maps, history and more on the country they were visiting.

Mastery. We are not slaves to the notebook, but masters. It is our tool to use as best fits us. It will help strengthen our weaknesses and highlight our strengths. And also a notebook helps us to master a particular subject.

Individuality. Of course notebooks are an expression of our unique thoughts and are our own intellectual property. My children love to peruse their notebooks from time to time and appreciate all the hard work they have done. They enjoy reflecting on projects and lessons they enjoyed, and also to remind me of things they weren't crazy about. Some families keep electronic notebooks, some keep more like a scrapbook. There are lots of ways to express your individuality and education. Notebooks don't simply have to be filled with written papers. You can include CD's of audio, DVD's of movies you make, printouts, foldouts and pockets, photos, art of all kinds, the list is really endless. Celebrate your family'e education, don't just endure it.

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The first Biblical principle we study, and the overarching principle as well, is "God's Principle of Individuality." This principle can be seen everywhere, and we focus on seeing it in the subjects.

If God cares about individuality, then if we study the subjects individually we are enjoying the distinctiveness of each subject. There is a rich history, diverse vocabulary and important principles that each subject contains. A goal of learning with the Biblical Principle Approach is not fact mastery but subject mastery (through principles).

We are not discussing facts but principles, so multiple grades are able to learn together. There is no need for complicated lesson plans for each child. A little modification and all your children can learn at the same time.

How can we understand the unique vocabulary and rudiments of a subject if they are all lumped together? Each subject has its own language and foundation. It is important for children to learn these in order to master the subject.

When you understand the rudiments of a subject, along with its vocabulary, you are able to see how the subjects naturally overlap and fit together. There are common principles that bring the subjects in harmony and bring a richer appreciation of all the subjects.

For more reading on the subject, these two PDF handouts are available for download.

Selected Quotes Concerning the Individuality of Subjects

My personal notes concerning unit studies vs. individuality of subjects

I have nothing against unit studies per se, I just prefer a distinct subject methodology with natural subject integration. What I mean is I do not rally around a topic but around the principle of a subject. I may pick a certain topic that several subjects will naturally fit into but I do not try to contrive lessons to fit a topic.

Once or twice a year I will do a study on a subject and the subjects will naturally integrate, such as a study on Bach (which we are starting this week). HisStory, geography, literature, English and music are all naturally covered as we read through the book, adding to our enjoyment and understanding of the life and times (and character) of Bach. The subjects add to our understanding of cause and effect, of the things that made Bach who he was. They are not disjointed facts but parts of the whole under the principle of individuality. We see how, where, with whom and when he lived contributed to his character. Along with this study we continue our math, Bible and science separately.

The subjects are beautiful and unique. I don't want my children to miss out on the treasures that each subject contains. 

I hope this post will spark some conversation regarding the topic.  I will begin over the next several weeks to go over each of the individual subjects, beginning with history. Our Thursday chat will also correspond to the weekly subject.

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In the final part of this series I wanted to end with some practical application, because that's what I enjoy.

Imagine the classical music playing in the background as you gather your little chicks for a day of lessons. As you finish your opening prayer your little cherub-faced angel is looking up at you longingly for some words of inspiration. You pontificate as your child sits at your feet, enraptured by your wisdom. Yea, right. Let's get real...

Reasoning with yound children is a little like swimming for the first time. It's scary but you can't wait to do it again. You don't have all the answers (who does??) and you don't feel fully prepared (you probably never will, honey). The phone rings, the littlest ones get into stuff they shouldn't and you sometimes have a bad day. How do you manage to carve out some time to reason with your kids?

1. Reasoning takes place anywhere, anytime. It can be with a simple discussion about grasshoppers or a memory verse from church. Next time your little one asks you a question, I challenge you to ask them some questions back. See if they can answer their own question, at a basic level.
2. Also you must pray. Ask the Holy Spirit to make you instant in season and out of season. Kids come up with conversations at the strangest times and you would hate to miss out on a wonderful opportunity.
3. Build time to reason into your daily plans. Don't fill up with facts and activities and leave no time to ponder things. Give them time to respond with their own thoughts, even if they must take a day to do it. Let them think and get back to you. But don't forget to get back to it!
4. Get rid of notebooks with fill-in-the-blank answers. They will never learn to reason that way. Ask your own open-ended questions. When they are young it is very easy to do.
5. Take time, as you can, to prepare beforehand. I know this can be a struggle sometimes but when you read the lesson ahead and write some points out to reason together it will boost your confidence and you will be more porductive.
6. Keep your Bible and 1828 dictionary close. They will be invauable to your family as you reason together.

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