Thursday September 22 2016  EVERY HOME IS A SCHOOL

While recently driving home from our son’s house we passed the school where our grandson attends.  On a signboard that faces both directions of traffic were these words:

 

“EVERY HOME IS A SCHOOL.

  WHAT ARE YOU TEACHING?”

 

Those few words hit a cord in me.  It is an absolutely 100% TRUE AND VALID STATEMENT!

When I read the newspapers, listen to the news, or drive down the streets of our cities, it seems that not everyone treats “home” as a learning ground.  So many crimes, such bizarre behaviors, unruly children in the classrooms, belligerent children in public places all attest to the fact that perhaps not everyone’s home is a teaching place.  Perhaps we assume if the home was a school that only good things would be taught.  But that is so far from the truth.  The home IS the teaching place; it is up to the parent as to what they teach.

It would be a misnomer to insinuate that just because a child grows up, follows the crowds, gets involved with drugs, alcohol, and crime it is the result of parents who have not taught their children right from wrong.  Some homes, absolutely, other homes that have painstakingly taught strong moral principles and have given excellent parental guidance, still result in offspring who go against the teachings in the home.  Each child eventually separates from the parent and must be held accountable for their own actions.

But the statement that a home IS A SCHOOL is absolutely correct.  The question is: “WHAT ARE YOU TEACHING”?  Are you actually spending time with your children instead of allowing them to immerse themselves in all the electronics available in today’s world?  Do you turn off the TV?  Do you eat together?  Do you listen to one another?  Ask yourself the question, “WHAT AM I TEACHING THEM?”

Over 30 years ago when our children were young I overheard a TV show the children were viewing that was geared for young adolescents.  My heart was clenched.  I heard nothing but words that were disrespectful toward their parents and behavior that was going against their parent’s rules.  That night Dave and I had a conversation.  The next day was the first day of our children’s lives without television.  It was a difficult weaning but they made it through.  Television was no longer the center idol in our family room.  We chose what came into our home, from television, video games, and internet.  The week after our son moved out of our home to get married was the week I signed up for the internet.  When children are not TV watchers you have totally different children living at your house.  It was awesome.

Perhaps my measures seem harsh to some but we know our children benefited far more from the teaching and instruction we provided for them than allowing the world, and all the temptations that are made available through television and internet, to entice our young and impressionable children.  And believe me, that day when we turned off the TV was a turning point that guided our home school in a whole new direction.  The children still attended public schools but we were able to do more, experience more of life, have more conversations, and much less stress about wanting everything that was advertised on the TV.   The benefits of turning off the television were endless.

Look at your family life.  Where can you improve the value of your schooling?  Considering the high cost of children, isn’t the value of their education worth it.  And when I used the word “education” I am referring to that which they receive at home.  There is no education that is more valuable than that.

 

SCHOOL IS THE PLACE

Kathleen Martens

September 22, 2016

 

School is the place

Where we send our kids.

The world’s values taught

Without putting on the skids.

 

School is the place

Where you have to fit in,

And dress to a standard

So you can have a friend.

 

School is the place

Where you can’t say God’s name,

But must be tolerant to all others

Or it’s you who is to blame

 

School is the place

Where deviant behavior taught,

But one must keep silent

About spiritual thoughts.

 

But school should be the place

That starts in the crib,

Where love is nurtured

And you are taught how to live.

 

School is the mother’s arms

That cuddle and nurture her young.

Where peace and joy are taught

Through lullaby’s gentle song.

 

School is a home

That teaches love and prayers,

Where children learn kindness,

As well as compassionate care.

 

School is the clock

That forever runs

When parenting young children,

Precious daughters and sons.

 

And school is the setting,

The course of a child’s life.

A journey of joy and contentment

Instead of competition and strife.

 

SCHOOL IS THE HOME

And so remember well

That the parents are the teachers!

And NEVER is there a bell.

 

And little children are watching

Who someday, tall will stand.

Give them the tools they need

And the greatest, are God’s commands,

 

That they will be strong and true,

That good decisions will be made.

If home is where the teaching begins

Perhaps their values will not fade.

 

Proverbs 22:6

Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

 

Thank You Father for all the parents who truly do see home as a place to teach their children.

Thank You Lord for the protection of our children’s minds as they are taught values that differ from the Biblical view.

Thank You Lord for our two children and our two grandsons.

GOOD NIGHT AND GOD BLESS YOU THROUGHOUT THIS DAY!