 One of my homeschooling friends, whose children are grown, said to me, "There is one thing I regret about my homeschooling." Curious, I asked what that would be, as she is one of my homeschool heroes (someone I have looked up to). She said, "I wish I would have had them memorize more Scripture." This hit me once again that I, too, can tend to lean too much on "academic" studies and bypass the greater things. This Christmas season is a great time to memorize some of the best Scriptures. If that's all you do academically these next couple of weeks, you've done the eternal, important thing. And, you can use the Scriptures for copywork! Project for the week (Mom that includes you, too!): write a verse from the Bible every day from Monday through Thursday, and maybe by Friday you will not only be able to write it without having to look at it, but you might have it memorized as well. If it isn't memorized in one week, keep the same verse for another week until it is memorized by heart and by hand. Get something fun to keep track of the Scriptures you memorize and review them every week. Celebrate when you hit 5, 10, and 20 verses! You won't have to look back on your homeschooling and have any regrets. Here are three Christmas Scriptures to get you started: Isaiah 7:14 "Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." Isaiah 9:2 "The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined." Isaiah 9:6 "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace." Find more here: KingJamesBibleonline.org Christmas Scriptures on Pinterest Christmas Copywork: momsmustardseeds.com An Advent idea: Celebrating 12 Names of Christ Enjoy those children while they still are able to celebrate Christmas with you. Pour Scripture and good memories in their hearts today as you still have them Home Where They Belong! ~Deborah dwuehler@theoldschoolhouse.com
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Raising Real Men
Teaching the Bible to our kids is part of your family's daily spiritual life, and it's easy to get discouraged--other people seem so spiritual and organized, and our family ... well, we all seem better at catching the vision than getting it done, don't we? The good news is that family devotions don't have to be that hard. Here's what we've discovered in our own family of ten:
1. Just start! Frankly, between the temptations of the Devil and the laziness in our souls, it's ever so easy to give up or never even try. Instead, just make up your mind and begin again as often as needed. If you start over 15 times a month and stumble the next day every single time, you've still had devotions 15 times.
2. Find a time that works for your family. We really do know a family which rises in the dark morning hours for devotions. That's not our schedule, though, and we find we're more alert and receptive at other parts of the day. It may be first thing in the morning, or around the dinner table, or just before bedtime. Choose a time you can reserve for devotions, then keep it!
3. Keep it simple. When your children are young, they don't need deep apologetics or word studies--they need to hear the stories, learn the history, and grow familiar with basic truths about sin, grace, faith, and forgiveness. Do the complex studies with your teenagers, but family devotions should focus on the basics.
4. Keep it short. Don't think you need to expect an hour and a half of intense study and worship every day. When the Spirit's close and our hearts are warm, you might find it easy to spend extra time--but it's better to spend a consistent 15-minutes every day than once a month for two hours.
5. Start with the Bible but remember other parts of worship. A devotional commentary like Charles Spurgeon's Morning and Evening is a great help for leading family devotions, or you can go verse-by-verse through through the Bible yourself. Even if you only have time for a few verses to read, set aside a few of those minutes for honest prayer. At different times we've also learned hymns together, memorized Bible passages, or worked through a catechism--a question-and-answer form of teaching found in both Catholic and Protestant history. The best of these are full of the Bible and can help us remember key doctrines and how they relate to one another.
6.Use the time to train behavior, too. When will your little ones learn to sit still for church? When you teach them to sit still for 10 or 15 minutes of family devotions! We've been able to take all our young children, even when two or three years old, into the "big church" with the grown ups, partly because we've been able to teach them worshipful behavior at home.
There's no greater gift we can give our children than to fill their hearts with the Word of God!
You can help us keep sharing God's Word and practical help with people by shopping at our Merry Christmas Shop, where we have tons of new character-building gifts and resources including a new Radio Theatre version of A Cry From Egypt (with over 50 actors!), practice swords, new audiobooks, and finally, Hero Tales 5! Please visit and share.
Merry Christmas!
Hal & Melanie and all the Youngs
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The Familyman
 Normally, I read the topic at hand and jump right in. The words flow and thoughts are clear, but this time I didn't jump right in after reading the topic. In fact, I felt a dread come over me that I rarely feel, except when this topic comes up.
It's not that I'm against Bible memory; just the opposite is true. I believe in Bible memory and in it's power and purpose. It's just that I'm a loser-dad and fail to make it a priority in my family.
Yes, we've memorized lots of Bible verses. It's just that I'm not very good at memorizing, and my good intentions often get pushed aside because of life.
My wife is better than me and includes scripture memory as part of the school day (she's used Awana materials and scripture memory music CDs). She can memorize like crazy.
Normally, I give advice like, "If you don't like to do it, then don't do it; you decide what's best for your kids, or you don't need to feel guilty," but I'm not going to say that on this topic. Maybe you and I need to a feel a little guilt.
Mom, you and I need to have our children memorize scripture, not so we can say they did it, but because it needs to be in their heart. It pays such huge dividends, especially in this increasingly secular and ungodly mosh of "whatever you believe best."
You can skip math, science, and history, but don't skip the Bible. If you're feeling loser-ish like me, shake it off and scrawl down a short Christmas Bible verse and have the kids memorize it (Galatians 4:4,5).
I don't think I even know what copywork is so I'll leave that for someone else to write about.
Let's do it. Be real,
Todd
PS. Still haven't gotten your Christmas game, To Bethlehem? Read this email: "Received To Bethlehem yesterday after ordering it over the weekend. Now that's some fast shipping!!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Now, on to the game. We broke it right out and started playing immediately after dinner and I'm sooooo glad we finally purchased this game. It was so much fun and everyone had a great time playing. Even after I arrived at the Savior first, the kids didn't want to stop playing so everyone else kept going until they all finished. Long story short, WE LOVE IT!! Thanks for creating such a wonderful, fun and family-oriented game centered around the birth of our Savior. We will be recommending it to everyone." - MP Order now!!!
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A division of The Old Schoolhouse� Magazine
Did you know? Every class is INCLUDED for members! No limits!
Have you been enjoying Everyday Copywork on the Dailies tab at SchoolhouseTeachers.com? We have more than 200 copywork printables for your family to enjoy, including both print and cursive worksheets. There are more than a dozen Scripture and Scripture-related units including the Beatitudes and the Ten Commandments. If you haven't tried it yet, this is a great time to start! This week we are enjoying Christmas poems by Janice Green that celebrate the birth of Christ.
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Announcement
The Old Schoolhouse� Magazine.
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Announcement
As you read through the magazine, jot
down where you see these TOS Apples.
Then enter your answers HERE.
One person* who finds all the apples
will be selected to win a Kindle Fire!
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Announcement
Now you can be a TOS affiliate and earn some extra cash!
Would you like to earn 20% commission on TOS items that family and friends purchase through an affiliate website? It's easy, check out this page for more information. Once you are signed up, you simply share your unique affiliate link with family and friends. If anyone purchases anything from the TOS website using your affiliate link, you receive a 20% commission. There are even buttons available to help you promote your affiliate link on your website or blog.
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Contest Corner
For the month of December, 2014
Book 1 and 2 from Wizzy Gizmo
Recently, the Schoolhouse Review Crew had an opportunity to review a group of products that are all about providing resources to parents and teachers to help them "Equip children for life by exploring God's Word."
So "what" is a Wizzy Gizmo? You should be asking "who" is Wizzy Gizmo. He is a brilliant inventor who creates all manner of extraordinary gadgets. These inventions are used to help kids explore the Bible. Wizzy Gizmo is also a series of Bible books for kids, Bible audio dramas, Bible flashcards, and more. These Bible resources for kids are intended to appeal to kids and open up the truths of the Bible in an exciting way.
Here are the products you can expect to read about as you browse through the Crew Reviews:
Book One: Who Created Everything?
This paperback book is simply the written telling of Wizzy Gizmo adventure in Genesis 1. The book contains highlighted vocabulary words. There is also a glossary and a set of review questions in the back. Ideal for ages 4-12.
Book Two: In His Image
This is the story of Adam & Eve. Readers will learn how God made man different from the rest of His creation. We are reminded how we were created in the image of a creative and almighty God. This paperback book also contains vocabulary words, in addition to the glossary and review questions located in the back. Ideal for ages 4-12.
Click on the banner below to read the Crew Reviews!
YOU can WIN Wizzy Gizmo books!
TO ENTER: Email Heather with your name, mailing address, and phone number for contact purposes, with the subject line, "Wizzy Gizmo" for a chance to win* the these two books for your family!
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