Break Out The Spurs

It is the last stretch.

It is the second of seven last stretches for me. Brian is pushing toward the end of his high school career, and we’re about to launch him into the world. You know, pushing him out of the nest into the wild blue yonder. Or the wild camo yonder, as the case may be.

Brian’s first tour with the Marine ‘pool meeting’ included running. Like the wind, Bullseye! He wasn’t used to such a hard run and nearly stopped during the last stretch. One of the Marines, seeing him lag, ran up behind him and put a hand in his back. He pushed. He wouldn’t let Brian stop. From his position behind Brian, he could talk in Brian’s ear…words only meant for him. You can do this. In order to accomplish this, the Marine had to slow his own pace, pull up behind the others, and come in later than he would have. Because of his efforts to encourage, Brian ran the whole way. Well, he threw up when they stopped, but he ran the whole way. J And he showed the Marines that he can run until he throws up.

As we’re going through the last months of school, Brian is trying not to lag. He’s working full time, pulling off an A in Advanced Physics, and still working on all of his other courses, a total of 12 credits (as opposed to the usual 6 or 7). Given the amount of time left, looking at the whole picture is a little frightening. No diploma, no Marines. Now is when he needs that hand in his back, pushing, not letting him stop, spurring him on until he throws up – at the finish line.

It’s that ‘coming along side’ thing, without which many of us would not make it. Everyone needs a hand up from time to time. Then, when they’re up, they know how to lend a hand up to someone else. The Marines, and the police officers, I’ve discovered, know the meaning of coming along side. This takes many forms, but ultimately, it encourages, scares or angers you into going the rest of the way, of completing a task you thought you might not be able to do.

Much of the New Testament was written with military terms. Perhaps this was because of Rome, which was very military minded. “Let us consider how we may spur one another on…” was a military reference. Spur. Kick. Poke. But get them going. So, break out the spurs. And bring a bucket – I think he’s going to throw up. But it won’t be until he passed the finish line.

Military Encounter - Perceptions of Home Schooling

My 18yo son has been exploring his options. He's looked at several different vocations, but peace keeping and U.S. Marines seems to keep coming up. We went, yesterday, to visit with a Marine recruiter. He's Infantry, so most of his focus came from his own personal experience, as expected. When he asked about grade level and we indicated that we home school, his first question was to the tune of 'to whom do you report?' He found it difficult to understand that we are responsible for ourselves and do not feel the need to be monitored by the State. His second question only confirmed that we are odd - "And you're registered with the State?" Um, no. We're not. The diameter of his eyes increased. He stated that he was not sure the Marines would take him, based on that. Hmmm. I told him that our decision not to register with the State was due to a personal conviction that parents are responsible for the education of their children. We have no squabble with others who choose public education. But for us, we were convicted that home education was right for us, AND that the State has no responsibility there, since we are capable of completing the required courses.

I have struggled often with feelings of inadequacy. This sometimes comes from others who ask things like, "Whatdoyoumean you haven't covered that yet???" and similar questions. As I was writing up transcripts in recent weeks, which has been interrupted by doing my taxes, I have been mostly impressed with my children. They know WAY more than I do. To grant a child the desire to learn and the enjoyment of learning is, I think, a major goal of education. Secondly, to grant them the skills in which to find what they need to know is equal in importance. Beyond that, I am a facilitator, a coach. Taking ownership of their own education is key to the whole learning process.

So Brian took the short ASVAB and scored well, with time to spare. Boo yah! The recruiter was impressed. And when I told him that I can provide proper transcripts, he said that 'there should be no problem, then.' Yep!

Now, to complete high school, get his diploma, finish his transcripts...we're nearly finished with the beginning of the launch. He is leaning toward ROTC, and going in to the Marines as an officer. Of course, that may change, but he's making decisions for his future and becoming a man of excellence. I could not ask for more than that.

Transcripts and Graduation

So I'm nearing the end of the 12th grade for my oldest son. This week, I've been writing up transcript information on worksheets that I got off the web. I think the one I liked the best was the one that HSLDA has on their site. There are some things that I wish we'd covered, but, for the most part, we've done okay.

Both my 18yo and 15yo are signed up with Number2.com, so that they can study for the SATs. We've never done any state testing. The reason I chose not to is because I felt 1. that they test differently than my children have learned, and 2. that I don't want the State tracking my children. I've never signed up with the State to register my home school, either. I believe, based on the Bible's instruction to parents, that it is my responsibility, and my husband's, to be sure that our children are educated. All of the particulars may not be in place, but if I have given my children a love of learning and have provided for them the learning environment in which to study, AND taught them from the Scriptures to reason, then I have done what I ought. Anyway, it will be interesting for all 3 of us to see how they do on the study questions. I'll most likely post something on that later.

I am amazed, actually, at all that my children are accomplishing, subject-wise, within the school year. It is really a lot. As I seem to always question my own aptitude and ability, I am encouraged by what I am seeing.

In addition to the paperwork and bookwork, I have seen such a sense of direction in my 18yo and 15yo. They are taking responsibility for their own education, scheduling their own days to accomplish their tasks. It is truly a blessing to watch. In fact, all of the kids seem to be 'catching it' this year. Perhaps a little late in the year for a few of them - but that's ok. They're catching it.

Back to work!

Well, I've been busy setting things up in other places...MySpace, Facebook, ACH seminars, the website, getting my house back together after Christmas, managing my mother's 'stuff,' etc.

So today we're back to our 'normal' schedule. Becca was SO excited to do spelling that we did that first. We've discovered a new phonogram...'r' is pronounced 'rawr!' lol! She laughed for ten minutes after that came out of her mouth. :-) Poor thing seems to be coming down with the flu now, after lunch. She's unhappy that she can't do the rest of her school work. Except reading. She's not THAT sick. :-)

So one of my goals is to help the kids take ownership of their own education. One part of that is learning to evaluate their own work. Today, Becca started right in on her math lesson, finished the whole thing, and got all of them wrong. That's because she was supposed to estimate...hm...reading directions is SO important. And Mom is SO mean! Guess she'll remember to read the instructions next time.

I'm proud of Brian and Josh, as they are taking care of their own schedules. I even allowed them to set their schedule for this year. After some laxing, occasionally, their plowing ahead again.

My Asperger son, Jon, however, seems to come up with the attitude that he doesn't want to do what is 'forced on him against his will.' Ha! I laughed in his face when he said this, as there is little thing called 'authority.' Hmmm.. Mom is SO mean! So today, and upon Daniel's request, I typed up a list of their subjects, with columns to write in what they did each day. Daniel did a little dance. Jon, well, it's hard to tell how he feels about it. We'll see how it works for them. Daniel wants to keep track and see that he is doing all that is required of him. He is discovering that he actually likes that 'feeling of accomplishment' that comes from completing the list or crossing off the list.

Meanwhile I almost finished all the ironing, and a lot of the laundry.

Now, we're off to do a doctrine study - beginning with Justification.