Month: July 2015

Making a Difference

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One of the ways that I have been able to influence my kids in the things of God is through books.  I enjoy researching and looking for books that will challenge and inspire my kids on their journey with God.  One of those books that I found was by Max Lucado called “You were made to make a difference”.  He wrote an adult version and a teen version.  You can also get it on audio.  My kids loved it on Audio because they tell a lot of testimonies and stories of how kids changed the world.  I wasn’t sure if my kids would find the book boring or exciting.  They ended up loving the different stories.

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For example there was this kid named Austin Gutwein who wanted to try out for his basketball team at nine years old.  Unfortunately he didn’t make the team but he made an amazing impact on the world using basketball.  He saw a video on World Vision about kids in Africa who didn’t have parents because of AIDS.  He wanted to somehow help these orphans.  So he came up with a plan to shoot hoops and raise money for these orphans.  For every shot that he got, someone donated a certain amount of money.  The money went to Africa to help the orphans.  He did great and was able to bless Africa but he wanted to do more, so the next year he got 1,000 of his friends to also get different people to donate and they would all shoot hoops on the same day.  Austin ended up starting an organization called Hoops for Hope.  In just five years Hoops for Hope had raised one million dollars for orphans in Africa.  The money has been used to build schools, medical clinics and orphanages. If you are interested in checking out Hoops for Hope, you can find Austin’s organization website at HoopsofHope.org. This is Austin Gutwein’s book that shares his journey.

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These kind of testimonies inspire kids that they can make a difference in all kinds of ways.  Austin’s story was just one of the many inspiring stories in this book.  I was surprised how interested my kids were and how they wanted to think up their own ideas and ways to make a difference.

Akebu to Zapotec

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My oldest son is on his first mission trip without us to Guatemala.  He went with an organization called RIM which stands for Real Impact Missions.  They take 20-25 teenagers from around the United States and go to different countries around the world.  The first 2 weeks of the mission trip is outreach and serving the people.  There is an option of staying for another 2 weeks for a medical mission trip in the same place.  RIM is a great organization and opportunity for young people to go on mission trips.  They have a website that you should check out if your kids are wanting to go on mission trips.

I have always wanted my children to have a heart for missions and the world.  If God asked our family to move to Africa, I would be there in a heartbeat.  My challenge as a teacher and parent has always been on how to cultivate this in my children while still  living in the United States.  One of the resources that our children have enjoyed doing is going through the children’s book called “Akebu to Zapotec”.  This book goes through 26 countries that do not have the Bible in their own language using the first letter of the alphabet for each of the different countries.  This is the 2nd book that the author has written because kids prayed for the countries in the first book and all those countries received the Bible written in their own language.  We take a different country every week and pray that they will receive Christ and get a Bible in their own language.  This has been a great introduction to kids on how they can reach the nations and change the world with their prayers.

A Unique Learner

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My 12 year old son was diagnosed with Auditory Processing Disorder a couple of years ago.  The easiest way to explain what that is if you are not familiar with the term is a dyslexia of the hearing.  He cannot process things through listening.  This made it very difficult to learn how to read and write because of how phonics works.  He does read quite well but only because I taught him with a whole language curriculum.  Phonics don’t make sense to him because he has a hard time processing the sounds.  He is brilliant in science and math but reading and writing are still a struggle.

I found an awesome curriculum that is for dyslexic students.  It is called the Stevenson  Curriculum.  Stevenson Curriculum is created for kids with learning disabilities.  We have been using their language arts program.  It has helped my son quite a bit.  They use mnemonic devises to teach the kids how to read, write and spell.  If my son can associate a picture or story with a spelling rule or phonics rule, he is more likely to remember it.  Stevenson Curriculum is worth checking out if you are working with a student with learning disabilities.  Its a great resource.

Homeschoolers Buyers Co-op

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Homeschool Buyers Co-op is a resource that can be very useful to homeschoolers.  They created a website for homeschoolers to buy a product together to get a big discount.  There are hundreds of different products or curriculum that you might buy anyway for your school year.  The way the website works is you sign up to become a member for free.  Then you can pick and choose curriculum that you would like to buy.  If you find a curriculum that you want to purchase, you sign up for it.  The organization will then purchase that curriculum on a certain date that they set.  This allows many people to sign up for that purchase and then buy it as a group for a significant discount.

I bought Discovery Education Plus which is an internet resource that allows you to put any subject and grade of your child and it has learning videos that can go along with any of your lessons.  This product is usually a year membership for $375 for a year membership but because homeschoolers buyer co-op is arranging homeschoolers to buy it as a group, we can get it for $99.  This is a brilliant idea and amazing resource for homeschoolers to take advantage of.  The website to sign up is homeschoolbuyersco-op.org

Will a College accept a Homeschooler?

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The answer is Yes!  85% of colleges nation wide are now accepting homeschoolers.  The percentage maybe even higher now. You can go on the different websites of colleges and many of them will have a list of requirements for homeschoolers.  This is helpful when you are planning out your high school years.  I went on the website of our local University to get an idea of what to plan for the next 4 years of my son’s high school years.  Even if he ended up going to a different university or in a different direction, we have a plan that could fit in a number of colleges or universities just by changing it a bit.

The transcript that you create for your child is just as valid as any public or private school.  If you need help creating a transcript, I want to recommend Lee Binz again.  She has webinars that walk you through how to do a transcript that a very helpful.  Your child will also need to take the SAT or ACT to go along with their transcript. There may be other requirements from a university that are unique to that university.  That is why its helpful to go on their different websites and look to see what they require.

I recently found out through my quest in researching homeschooling high school that it is more ideal to homeschool high school all the way.  If you start homeschooling high school and decide to put them back in school, the public or private schools do not have to accept your transcript.  They can count some credits and not count others.  Colleges accept homeschoolers transcripts but public or private high schools sometimes have a harder time just taking them at face value.

Some Colleges are actively looking for homeschoolers because they have seen how well homeschoolers can do in college.  The nature of homeschooling helps our students become great independent learners which is essential in college.  Homeschoolers also have more opportunity to show their unique talents or interests to different universities because of the freedom of their schedule.  For example, my oldest son it passionate about the piano.  He want to practice quite a bit and compete in competitions with piano.  Homeschooling allows me to give him time for his piano so he can pursue what he loves.  This part of his life will be a unique part of his high school journey that I can add to his transcript.

Who is living in your house?

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Have you ever had one of those moments where your perspective is changed and its like putting on a different pair of glasses.  You start to see things just a little bit differently.  I had one of those moments when I was listening to a speaker talk about who was living in my house.

The question was in reference to my children.  Who was living in my house?  They could be the next King David or Daniel.  The next Queen Esther or Mary.  A doctor that finds cures to diseases.  A missionary that preaches to unreached people.  A teacher or political leader. A loving parent to raise more world changers. God has entrusted and given us the privilege to raise world changers that are going to make an impact in the nations.  This changed my perspective on how I look at myself as a parent.  I was seeing my kids through a different set of lenses.   My job as a parent to help them to be equipped to do what God created them to do.  God gave each of our kids unique gifts and talents that He wants to use in His wonderful plan for each of their lives.

I started thinking about different people in history that have made an impact in the world.  Mary the mother of Jesus is an example.  I wondered who her parents might have been and how they impacted her life.  I don’t know many teenagers that would have an angel tell them they are going to have a baby and their response is that they are willing to do what the Lord says.  She was strong in her faith.  Could her parents have had a part in that perspective?  I think of King David and the impact that he made and how close he was to God.  How did his parents influence him in helping him grow in faith towards God?  Parents have great influence in their kids lives.  We have the opportunity to have a positive impact in helping them become what God has designed them to be.  Kids are an adventure and an amazing gift that God has let us be part of.  I am excited to find out what God’s unique plans are for each of my children.

HSLDA…Homeschooling Legal Defense Association

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I love to research different things about homeschooling.  I like to collect different ideas and resources that make my homeschooling more effective.  Different people have asked me about resources or ideas that might help them in their own adventure of homeschooling, so I thought I would start making a list of them for people to check out if they want to.

The resource that I am presenting today is HSLDA.  This stands for Homeschooling Legal Defense Association.  They are an amazing resource to homeschoolers nationwide.  Their job is to defend homeschoolers and stand up for the rights of homeschooling.  They have a website that is worth checking out.  On their website they list all the homeschool laws for each state.  This has become more important to me as I enter the world of homeschooling highschool.  They also have a ton of resources listed on their site to help people be more effective in their homeschooling.  HSLDA offers a 1 year membership for homeschool families for around $110 per year.  If you decide to become a member, they will represent you for free if you were ever in need of their legal services.  I love how they are standing up for the rights of homeschoolers.  They have also watched out for parental rights too.

If you join their email list, you can get alerts on what is happening in the world of homeschooling and the battles that are being fought to keep the freedom and privilege of homeschooling present.  I like the alerts that I am given because then I know how I can pray to see God move in the different battles that are occuring throughout the world of homeschooling. HSLDA is a great resource and support to homeschoolers.