St. Clare's Learning Center

Homeschooling doesn’t insulate your child from the world. It won’t make your kids nicer, or more responsible, or smarter. It won’t make them better Christians, or Christians at all.

But what homeschooling gives you is TIME to parent. With your children under your influence, time is a blessing.

Time for manners. Time for responsibility training. Time to talk. Time for deep Bible study. Time for quality academics.

Time with you.

You have been given a very short window of time to raise your sons and daughters to adulthood. But that window of time can be stretched when they are home with you.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:4-9)

Make the most of childhood by being there. Be the primary influence on your children. Talk to them, disciple them, and be a wall between them and the world.

Homeschooling is more about HOME than SCHOOL.

-Nikki Truesdell

"Keep your children wild -- don't
make them grow up too fast.
Let them spend their days in the sunshine using their imagination.
They are the change!
Those wild children daydreaming in the sunshine will grow into grounded adults with minds and spirits capable of creating a better future."

~Brooke Hampton

You are not the best, you may not even be #2 (or 3, or 4, or 5..) but if you can influence and inspire others to do better, make someone smile and feel good about themselves, and be able to make even a teeny tiny positive impact on humanity -- It would be a far greater reward than anything else. 🫶

Why do people pay for dance lessons?

The answer is:

- They pay for their child to learn what it takes to commit to something meaningful;

- They pay so that their child can learn the magic of creation, of forming something beautiful using their body;

- They pay so that their child recognises the power of discipline, of working at something consistently, at least two days per week, honing their skills and building their fluency;

- They pay so that their child understands not to quit when the novelty has worn off and the work must set in;

- They pay so their child learns that they must still put in the work, even when tired and grumpy, not just giving up and spending hours on the screen;

- They pay so that they can learn the joy of creating art with others: listening intently, and learning to plié, relevè and glissade;

- They pay so that they realise that it’s not just “enjoying themselves” but working meticulously on small details;

- They pay so that they DO enjoy themselves;

- They pay so that their child creates neural pathways that impact every single area of the curriculum;

- They pay so that their child develops the most incredible fine motor skills;

- They pay so that their child sees that art can be transcendent, and can accompany us through our darkest times;

- They pay because music and arts puts us in touch with something that can’t be otherwise expressed.

So, they don’t just pay for dance lessons -- they pay for so much more. 🩰

A system that was designed to label a child as "ahead" or "behind" is not a system that was designed with the best interest and knowledge of children in mind.

Our children are all unique individuals with curious, imaginative, creative minds. Each one fully capable of learning exactly what they need when they need it.

Any parent with multiple children will tell you that no two children are the same. So how could we ever expect to create an effective system that treats every child as if they were exactly that?

It's impossible.

When we take away the individuality of our children, we essentially take away their humanity. Along with it, we take their drive and passion for learning that they are born with, which is the biggest travesty of all.

Parents, no matter what anyone says, do not ever believe the lie that your child should be somewhere or someone other than exactly who they are right in this moment.

Do not waste thoughts about where your child "should" be - and focus instead on the unique beauty of where they ARE.

If you're feeling that pressure right now, pause all other thoughts and just watch your child for a day or two. Pay attention to their unique talents, the special ways they communicate with you and others, the amazing things they are so very capable of doing already.

I promise you will feel comfort and relief in seeing the truly incredible human that stands in front of you.❤️

~ via your natural learner

Do not ask your children to strive for extraordinary lives.

Such striving may seem admirable,
but it is the way of foolishness.

Help them instead to find the wonder and the marvel of an ordinary life.

Show them the joy of tasting tomatoes, apples and pears.

Show them how to cry when pets and people die.

Show them the infinite pleasure in the touch of a hand.

And make the ordinary come alive for them.

The extraordinary will take care of itself.

~William Martin

She is... EXTRA.

She just is.

All the time she is extra sad, and then extra "OMG, Mom-that-was-so-epic-let-me-tell-you-everything.”

Extra energetic, then extra I'm too tired to help with any family chores.

Extra hungry, then extra refuses to eat her food she just asked for because she's full.

Extra defiant, then extra hands me adorable "I love you, Mom" art.

There is no middle ground with this kid.
And really, there never has been.

Sometimes that makes others label her "difficult" - and if we're being honest - labeled that way in our house, too.

But as I watch her continue to lean into who she is, I find myself more frequently stopping to admire her gift.

Because no one ever has to guess what's going on in her mind and heart. She expresses herself without fear of judgment and owns all parts of her expression. If she's feeling sad or frustrated, and someone seems annoyed by it - she will call them out and remind them she's allowed to have feelings.

There is no people-pleasing.
No conforming.
No adjusting who she is based on who's in the room.
(And, gosh, could we all learn from that.)

So while her "extra" can be hard to parent at times, I forever remain committed to never making her be less... because I know the world is already pointing the remote control her way and waiting to press "volume down."

So today?

I bite my tongue and take multiple deep breaths when I catch myself about to do the same thing, and instead create the space to let her figure out how to be her extra self. And I find ways to show her how she can use that passion to make a positive impact, and embrace that authenticity to inspire others to do the same, and channel that grit into the important things.

Daughter is extra.
And I pray no attempt to slow her down is ever enough.
Because the world needs more people like her.

—

❤️
~ctto

"Play is the highest form of research" - Albert Einstein

Recipe for Preserving Children 🤗
via the Earthmonk