Mimi Rothschild - The Southern Baptist Academy Homeschooling Blog

By Mimi Rothschild

In other news, new study shows water found to be wet. In all seriousness, it gets my goat that the results of this study would be considered surprising. This eCanadaNOW report explains:

A much-anticipated report from the largest and longest-running study of American child care has found that keeping a preschooler in a day care center for a year or more increased the likelihood that the child would become disruptive in class — and that the effect persisted through the sixth grade.

Parents, your children’s formative years are not worth it. Even if you can’t make those mortgage payments without a second income, consider finding work that would allow you to be at home taking care of the children.

The New York Times hits on an even more pressing issue, and one that should raise eyebrows among homeschoolers:

That the troublesome behaviors lasted through at least sixth grade, he said, should raise a broader question: “So what happens in classrooms, schools, playgrounds and communities when more and more children, at younger and younger ages, spend more and more time in centers, many that are indisputably of limited quality?”

If daycare centers are linked to bad behavior, couldn’t we extrapolate and assume that elementary schools are as well? I don’t need to conduct a scientific study to tell you that the average homeschool student is better-behaved than the average public school student.

As a society we’ve come to assume that the natural way for children to grow and develop socially is through constant peer-to-peer interaction. While peer socialization is important, parent-to-child socialization may prove to be more critical. Homeschooled children look up to their older siblings and parents, desirous of their maturity, knowledge, and social status. This is a good thing!

Public schooled children, on the other hand, spend a majority of their waking hours for twelve straight years surrounded by peers who are no more mature than they are. How can we expect our children to transcend behavior problems when we place them in such an environment?

By Mimi Rothschild

On today’s post about service learning, we’ll discuss ways to engage your homeschooler in service to the community while simultaneously beefing up those college applications.

Personalize the volunteering experience. If your child is interested in construction, tools, and working with his or her hands, you can get the child involved in a Habitat for Humanity project. There are countless volunteer organizations that are dedicated to building or rebuilding houses for the poor. Many college-level engineering programs encourage service learning for students to obtain hands-on work experience.

If your child is comfortable working in the kitchen, perhaps he or she would enjoy working in a soup kitchen, homeless shelter, or community cafeteria.

Older children interested in teaching or social work can find many outlets for volunteer work. Volunteer at a community daycare program or after-school counseling center.

Homeschoolers interested in preserving the environment can volunteer for community clean-up days, plant trees, and more.

If your child is interested in pursuing a career in full-time ministry, there are lots of options. The homeschooler can help set up on Sunday mornings, run a projector, or help out in the nursery.

Homeschoolers should look always for ways to learn and build on their inherent interests when volunteering. The primary focus should be to serve, but that doesn’t mean there can’t be mutual benefit.

By Mimi Rothschild

I would like to take an opportunity to discuss an interesting supplement to a homeschool education: Service Learning. Wikipedia defines service learning as follows:

Service learning is a successful method of teaching, learning and reflecting that combines academic classroom curriculum with meaningful service, frequently youth service, throughout the community. As a teaching methodology, it falls under the category of experiential education. More specifically, it integrates meaningful community service with instruction and reflection to enrich the learning experience, teach civic responsibility, encourage lifelong civic engagement, and strengthen communities.

Service learning has several benefits.

• It helps the community
• It gives students an invaluable learning experience
• It is great for resumes and college applications
• It fosters personal enrichment
• It gives Christian homeschoolers a servant’s heart.

When Christian homeschoolers go out into the community to learn, they are given a hands-on experience. They are able to apprentice under experienced volunteers. Even public schools have adopted similar programs where students are required to spend a certain number of hours each year involved in community service.

There are a variety of opportunities for homeschoolers to reach out to those in need and learn something in the process. I will be listing specific opportunities throughout the next few weeks. Feel free to submit your ideas for service learning activities.