Signed in as:
filler@godaddy.com
Homeschool and Unschooling and Resources
Our Unschooling into Apprenticeship Story
Both Isaac and I come from families who believed in institutionalized education. Both of us went through 19+ years of religious education at the "finest" schools and state schools available to us. Both our parents sacrificed a lot to pay the high price to send us to these schools (and we are still paying on school loans for that "education”), yet we are not currently using that "education" to "make a living."
Our parents hoped that with sacrificing and sending us to those schools was that we would never commit "apostasy" and leave the Seventh-day Adventists faith, but instead find everything we needed in that system. Well, what we didn’t find in that system was YHVH and the Truth, so when YHVH called us out –– we did leave, much to their pain (I get it and am truly sorry for them).
When we were separated out and given eyes to see –– we saw indoctrination, we saw the lies, the business it is and its false messiah and religion that we were taught for decades. Of course, the Ruach ha’Kodesh uses wherever we are to find us and move us toward repentance. I know that opportunities in that system were used to woo me to YHVH. There are a few things that I’m extremely thankful for from that experience. I learned to think, I meet my husband, Isaac through the church, I fell in love with Campmeeting (which is what I envision Sukkot being like now) and I became a camp girl through my experience at Camp MiVoden –– all these things through that “system.” But not everyone is a “black sheep” like I was — always challenging the “system” and looking for the Truth.
After we left that “system” it has been a SUPREME challenge to provide experiences and opportunities for our girls even remotely similar. Honestly, I have not been able to. But though it was hard and there was “guilt” to deal with, we were committed to raising our girls to KNOW and OBEY YHVH FIRST. I want them to have the inheritance that is promised through Ye’shua––there is no eternal inheritance through the SDA church!
When we took our girls out of public school (2nd and 4th grade) in approx. 2007 we thought long and hard about what YHVH wants our children to learn and be able to do. Quickly we took a different philosophy for raising children then most people do who bring their children home to homeschool. We didn't want to "play school." Neither did we want to "bring school home."
After searching the Scriptures we saw that most important to YHVH is that we raise them to learn, do and remember His ways. This isn't something you learn in ANY school. It's not something that you learn with 3 times a week Bible class or once a week during a church sermon. It’s something that takes being “set-apart” to soak in.
In my research, the Ruach ha'Kodesh led me to find the very cool “lapbook" idea from Heart of Wisdom which the content of them I based in the Feasts. But what gave me the MOST freedom as a mom was when the Ruach ha'Kodesh led us to discover UNSCHOOLING–– a philosophy as old as the hills that gives parents freedom from guilt, micro-managing and allows the child to learn what the child wants to learn –– when the child wants to learn it. Do they want to read? They will tell you when they are ready. When they are open to learning –– they will pick it up and learn it quickly –– because they WANT to! Just let the child BE a child! Let them explore their world all the way until they are an "adult." DUH! This freedom, joy and blessing has been all together stollen from parents and children with the modern education “system.” Of course, we also did research about which states laws would allow us to live this way. And trust me, we would have moved if our state hadn’t allowed this.
Unschooling doesn’t mean a free-for-all. It means that you don’t try to force Greek hellenized topics and thought processes that they will NEVER use later down the throats of our children. It was NEVER a free for all in our home. I love structure, so they did chores; they continued their ballet education, gymnastics and music classes. They read out loud to me. They did their Feast lap books. I challenged my girls constantly, but not in the same way that regular school does. Over all, the biggest structure in their life was not get ready for the school bus, but get ready for Shabbat or a Feast Day. They LIVED in Yah’s rhythm of Feast days –– over and over and over......