How to Best Ready our Kids for Navigating a Changing World

Spring 2020 – the spring where graduations, birthday parties, and even a wedding or two took place via Zoom, if they happened at all.  Online scavenger hunts and digital escape rooms became part of our vocabulary as did other strange terms like shelter in place and social distancing. The world is changing quickly, as this last spring has proven, and predictions indicate that this decade will continue to be one of rapid shifts and sharp angles.

What does the future of work look like for our kids as they prepare to enter this new landscape of adulthood? While we can’t predict the future, there are four big economies to keep an eye on.

The Big Tech Economy: Wide-spread automation, robotics, and AI development will continue and expand the technological ecosystem where drone deliveries, driverless cars, and virtual reality designers are mainstream.

The Precision Economy: Sensors become widely adapted for business while the expansion of data will require more analysts. Behavioral scientists and gamification experts will work to help people detox from digital overload as well as get the most out of workers.  

The Exodus Economy: Consumer capitalism will take another hit with yet another recession, and people will continue to look to more sustainable lifestyles. While big losses will hit industries based on consumer spending, industries in upcycling and community energy become mainstream.

The Empathy Economy: Tech will be stewarded and managed by IT managers, and automation will take over many of the dull, dirty, and dangerous jobs. Living in a high-tech world will force us to embrace emotional work. Education, spiritual and emotional care, and entertainment become more important than ever. Personal brand and digital detox consultants, as well as “in store influencers” who have detailed, insider information about brands, will become a growing trend.

While industries are changing rapidly, future workers will need to have a robust approach to upskilling and reskilling as well as a zeal for lifelong learning.

Whew! That’s a lot to think about!

How do we best prepare your students for this future world that is going to be high tech, rapidly changing, demanding, and basically unchartered territory?

They are going to need

1. A clear plan
2. A way to navigate that plan
3. Good traveling companions along the way

A Clear PLAN – Focus on the Core 4 and the 4 C’s of Education

The Core 4

1. Math
2. English
3. History
4. Science

And then other things to think about

1. Foreign Language – Many colleges no longer require foreign language but having one or more, especially a critical language, might garner your student scholarship dollars. (https://truenorthhomeschoolacademy.com/why-should-your-homeschooler-study-critical-languages/)
2. Formal and Informal Logic
3. Digital Citizenship
4. Humanities (Bible, Art, Music)
5. Speech and Debate
6. Health & Psychology

And don’t overlook the 4 C’s of Education, also known as Life Skills:

1. Communication
2. Critical Thinking
3. Creativity
4. Collaboration

Throw in Grit, Faith Training and Apologetics, a few hobbies, free reading, a job, or volunteer work, and your schedule might get full quickly.

A Way to Navigate the Plan – Goals/Subject/Curriculum

I like to create a simple grid on a Word Doc with Goals/Subjects/Curriculum across the top.

Start with your goals. Does your student have specific academic or vocational goals for high school? Begin with the end in mind, as much as possible, and work backward from there. If you’re not sure where to start, our Academic Advising program will assist you with creating a personalized learning plan to guide you through high school, taking into account state requirements and where you and your student see themselves after high school.

Assessment- who are they, what can they do, what do they enjoy, what makes money. A simple place to start is with some basic career and personality assessments. We do this in our Orienteering course, and it’s a fun way for students to asses and evaluate who they are and what careers and jobs might fit their temperament, goals, dreams, and ideals. Kids take the MMPI, Holland Code, and others and come out with a list of possible careers, after looking at the importance of work and what work their parents and grandparents have done. Kids also come up with a Capstone project related to their intended career fields as well as book reports on leadership. It’s great to set aside time dedicated to career and self-exploration so kids aren’t heading out into the world unprepared.

Good Traveling Companions

In this digital world of social distancing, it can be tough to find friends that are truly fellow sojourners. I would recommend that your family really delve into the Bible together, read, study, and then pray about where to fellowship and find friends and what activities to participate in. There are so many things for our kids to do, but there is also limited time, and not every pursuit is beneficial. High school is a great time to focus on and hone areas of interest but also to explore and really consider many different activities and experiences. Local, state, and regional co-ops and activities like Teen Pact are a great way to learn, have fun, and meet other kids from around the country.

Online education can take care of several needs at once: giving your kids outside accountability, teaching them digital citizenship, allowing them to interact and engage with each other students and adults, and really putting the world at your student’s fingertips.  Online education can vary greatly; it’s worth understanding what kind of programs are available. https://truenorthhomeschoolacademy.com/online-learning-a-homeschool-primer/

It’s a world in flux, and the best way to prepare our kids for launching into young adulthood is to have a clear plan, working the plan, and having good traveling buddies along the way. Tried and true basic, like reading, writing, and arithmetic, along with soft skills – in other words, the tried and true basics that have stood the test of time will continue to prepare your students well.

I’d love to hear the large and small ways in which you are preparing your kids for the exciting new world in which they’ll live!

Need help with any of the above? Our Academic and SPED Academic Advising can help you create a Personalized Learning Plan. WE are also available to talk with groups.

https://truenorthhomeschoolacademy.com/product/academic-advising/

Lisa Nehring has been married for 34 years, has five kids, 2 graduate degrees, and a black belt in homeschooling, having done so since 1991. She owns and operates True North Homeschool Academy https://truenorthhomeschoolacademy.com/ which offers K-12^th grade classes, clubs, a unique membership site with enrichment classes, community, and more!