The Top Actions to Take for Your Child's Education: A Christian Approach

As a home education parent, community leader and woman of faith, I'm often asked what I view to be most important to the education of children. My answers are brief and very easy for anyone to accomplish.

The first step is to read, read, read to your child. It is never too early, or too late, to begin. Children of all ages enjoying hearing a story read aloud. The second step closely follows reading out loud to your children. Read, read , read with your family. One needn't read all books out loud to read, discuss, and enjoy together. The key is to read out of the best books. There is a lot of trash out there, and not every book touted to be a classic is necessarily one that promotes the values you wish to instill in your children. Remember that a classic is a book, old or new, that inspires the reader to better themselves in some manner.

Know what your children are learning. Show an interest in what your child is learning at every step. Your attitude greatly affects your child's attitude. Asking questions not only helps you accomplish this goal, but it helps you monitor your child's progress. Don't forget the old proverb, "Only a fool possesses a silent mouth with a questioning heart."

Be present as your child's teacher. Even if you do not home educate your children, you still act very much as a teacher via homework or life skills. You became your child's first teacher at the moment of birth. Being present as your child's parent, however, is not something you can ever pass off to a public school instructor. Nothing you do can ever make up for a lack of parenting.

Be an example! Why should your child love to learn if you aren't doing anything to learn about the world around you? Does this mean you have to sit down and learn complicated algebraic equations? Only if you want to! Allow your child to see you enjoying something for yourself, too. Many hobbies require some level of learning to accomplish them. When your child sees you've taken the time to learn something for yourself that you enjoy, how much more will they be inspired to follow the same path?

Search, ponder, and pray in every aspect of raising a child. While some believe it takes a village to raise a child, I'm of the opinion that it takes the guidance of the Lord to bring them where He wants them to be.

Lead them, guide them, walk beside them. Will your child desire to make the right choices, in education or any aspect of life, if you aren't doing it yourself? Commit to every right choice. Being wishy-washy never brought anyone success. After you commit, follow through! It may not always be easy, but it's always worth it.

Discover the type of learner your child is. Each child comes not only with their own unique personality, but with different ways they best learn. Is your child an audio learner? A visual learner? Can they read something and then just *know it*? A universal approach is not appropriate for every child. It is amazing how much the parent learns about themselves in discovering the answers for their own children.

Be aware of your child's abilities as well as their weakness. Do not be afraid to ask for help if you suspect a problem in which you're not sure what to do. Listen to your child. What are they saying in their words or actions? Listen to the Holy Ghost. If you feel prompted to do something for your child, do not ignore it! The Lord does not want your child to fail, and He will not lead you or your child down the wrong path.

Make learning fun! Who wants to learn if it's a miserable chore? There are countless resources and various approaches to every subject to aid learning in an enjoyable way. Let your child go! If your child has discovered a new passion and joy in learning, let them run with it. If they are excited, they will desire to learn and retain that information much more easily than trying to force them through one method only.

After you let your child go, watch. Watch your child grow, learn, and love to learn. Watch your children become all they are and all you've given to them. Thank your Heavenly Father for this great gift. Thank Him for each child and every new day you have with them.

Finally, I say to know. Know that you only get one chance. You'll make mistakes, you'll learn, you'll do your best, and you 'll be okayl