Hey Mama Monday: Preparing for College and Life, Mama
Hey Mama,
I know that today it seems like your children will be young and needy forever, but I can attest that it will feel like time went by way too fast when you are standing at the graduation of your homeschooled child and looking back. You may be crying tears of frustration and over-tiredness now, but you will be crying tears of gratitude, pride, and thanksgiving sooner than you know.
When do you start preparing them for life after homeschool graduation? Today! We daily raise them up to let them go. One day at a time, one developmental milestone at a time, we are training them to live on their own.
Creating the best path for our kids from birth to life after graduation starts with goals—daily goals, yearly goals, and life goals. What might your goals be for your children as they grow and learn while still under your covering?
My goals for them might be
- To love God, His Word, and His people.
- To unquestioningly obey God’s instructions and ours.
- To be able to combat the enemy of their souls: the world, the flesh, and the devil.
- To develop in their specialized fields (and prayer for wisdom about what those are).
- To train them academically to read well, write well, research, and perform higher math.
- To consider their future in trade schools, college, apprenticeships, or entrepreneurial ventures.
- To teach life skills in finances, cooking, cleaning, and marriage preparation. (This is where we are the living example!)
- To be good citizens, good neighbors, and ministers of the gospel (to love God and love others).
- To remember that they are ambassadors of Jesus Christ wherever they go.
Help in preparing them for the future
- Transcript and college prep help from Lee Binz, Inge Cannon, and Janice Campbell and Jeannie Fulbright.
- Taking outside classes to put on their transcript helps them learn how to answer to someone else and learn study skills. (Options could be a college class during high school, a class taught by another homeschool mom, or community classes.)
- Find volunteer, community service, missions, or apprenticeship opportunities during junior high and high school.
- Prepare them in writing, research, and note taking skills. Kim Kautzer has excellent insight on preparing for college writing here.
- Gap years: Maybe your child needs a year off after high school to consider his possibilities. This is a good time for extended mission trips, volunteer work, or exploring different career options.
No need to fear, homeschool parents! You can do this! The Lord is on your side! He is for you and with you!
“The LORD is on my side; I will not fear…” Psalm 118:6
Deborah Wuehler is the Senior Editor and Director of Production here at The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine. She would say she is a very ordinary homeschool mom–with one exception: she has an extra-ordinary God Who provides all she needs for life and homeschooling. She has eight children aged 11 to 29. Deborah’s mission is this: to point other homeschoolers to the Lord in all they do, think, and feel—and to confirm that they, too, can find everything they need for life, godliness–and homeschooling–in their knowledge of Him (2 Peter 1:3, 4).
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