Academic Achievement
Don’t get me wrong; I am for—very
much for—giving your child a great education. However I also believe the mere
fact that you are homeschooling is ninety
percent of the battle won. Your child does
not need to be under pressure to do every
assignment,;finish;every;lesson,;complete
every course, and master every subject to
receive an excellent education.
My oldest child is currently on scholar-ship;and;is;making;top;grades;at;the;very
rigorous University of Georgia. Rarely,
if;ever,;did;she;finish;an;entire;course;in
our homeschool. However, that which
she did study and learn, she learned well.
Most importantly, she developed a love for
learning that undergirds her college success. We were relaxed homeschoolers out
of necessity; my situation demanded it. I
now believe that was a blessing in disguise.
I’ve;met;fear;driven;parents;that;wield
an iron scepter when it comes to their
child’s academics. Even if they know
the child has a full understanding of the
subject, they will not allow any leniency
on the completion of assignments. Some
require much more than what is even
asked. They want mastery—total mastery. If their nine year old cannot repeat
and;explain;everything;learned,;it;isn’t
good enough. Though they truly believe
they are helping their child acquire an
excellent education by being strict and
stringent, they are really only undermin-ing;the;greater;work;of;the;Holy;Spirit;in
their homeschool.
Accomplishment
We’ve;all;stood;in;awe;as;a;dear;friend
described;her;child’s;latest;achievement.
Whether;it’s;gymnastics,;a;science;fair,
or simply a mastery of math, we often
walk;away;feeling;less;than;adequate;and
fearful.;Sadly,;it’s;not;only;the;successes
of others that launch us into despair and
anxiety;;it’s;our;own;fear;of;failure.
We;jump;on;the;track;and;start;run-ning our race, enjoying our children and
their successes along the way. Then we
look;over;and;see;other;families;running
a;different;race.;They’re;jumping;hurdles!
And;look;how;accomplished;their;chil-dren are at jumping those hurdles! We
need;to;get;some;hurdles;on;our;track.
So we start adding hurdles, training our
children to work hard to successfully
jump those hurdles. We add activities to
our schedule that put our children and
ourselves;in;the;pressure;cooker.;Stress
is added to our journey and we eventu-ally;realize;we’re;failing;at;hurdling.;We
get tired and grumpy. We start yelling at
our children and fussing at our husband.
Life is hard and homeschooling is not
working.;We’re;weary;and;heavy;laden.
Why?;Because;we’re;not;running;the;race
marked;out;for;our;children.;We’re;at-tempting to do things God never called
us to do in our homeschool.
You see, God created our children in-dividually.;He;has;specific;plans;for;them.
He has a unique course for each of us to
follow;to;fulfill;those;plans.;If;we;stay
on;that;course,;we’ll;have;everything;we
need to accomplish His will. Hebrews
13: 20, 21 tells us: “now may the God
of peace, who through the blood of the
eternal covenant brought back from the
dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd
of the sheep, equip you with everything
good thing for doing his will, and may
he work in us what is pleasing to him,
through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory
for ever and ever. amen.” (NIV) 2
Let’s;be;still;and;know;that;He;is;God.
Let’s;rest;in;the;truth;that;He;has;plans;for
our;children;and;will;fulfill;His;purposes
for them. There is no need to push them
forward by our own efforts—no need to
be driven by a spirit of fear. God longs for
us to be led by faith, by His gentle Holy
Spirit who would not have us weary and
exhausted. So slow down and relish the
ride.;Take;your;peace;and;enjoy;the;little
ones;He’s;given;you;with;faith;in;His;ten-der;care,;knowing;He;will;fulfill;his;pur-poses for your children.
Jeannie Fulbright is the author of Apologia’s Young Explorer science courses for
elementary students. Please visit her website www.jeanniefulbright.com for more
encouragement and information about
her science courses.
Endnotes:
1.;Scripture;quotations;are;taken;from;the;Holy
Bible,;New;Living;Translation,;copyright;©1996,
2004,;2007;by;Tyndale;House;Foundation.;Used
by;permission;of;Tyndale;House;Publishers,;Inc.,
Carol;Stream,;Illinois;60188.;All;rights;reserved.
2 Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken
from;the;Holy;Bible,;New;International;Version®,
NIV®.;Copyright;©;1973,;1978,;1984,;2011;by
Biblica,;Inc.™;Used;by;permission;of;Zondervan.
All;rights;reserved;worldwide.;www.zondervan
.com;The;“NIV”;and;“New;International;Version”
are;trademarks;registered;in;the;United;States;Pat-ent;and;Trademark;Office;by;Biblica,;Inc.™
www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com
to be led by faith,
by His gentle Holy
Spirit who would not
have us weary and
exhausted.
