Rachel’s Educational Philosophy

1. Children don’t know what God will call them to be when they grow up (no matter how sure today they are that they are going to be an astronaut), so they need exposure to as much as possible. No one likes subjects that they don’t like. No one likes subjects that they have had no practice, encouragement, training, and education in.

   These things do not guarantee that the child will like a particular subject; but if they do not receive these things, they are much less likely to develop an appreciation for the subject on their own. Also, initial dislike does not always result in permanent loathing. As they mature, they might (and often do) find they love or are very good at something they initially hated.

2. English and history teach about people and how God works in and through them while training us to communicate the finished work of our Savior in an effective way ourselves.
3. Math and science reveal God’s created order, which reflects God Himself.
4. The Arts remind us of the beauty of God’s creation and train us to use those gifts to glorify God in a more meaningful way.

The End Goals of the Core Subjects (and the Not So Core Subjects):

1. English ~
• Literature, Drama – Character development, personalization of history, exposure to broader ideas, entertainment, examples of persuasive and/or personal expression
• Grammar, Spelling, Composition, Speech ~ Ability to express your own ideas in an effective, persuasive manner
2. History ~ To view all of history as the continued revelation of God to His people and the continued expansion of His kingdom (geography and missions are included in this as well as general history). To understand the causes and effects in regard to human endeavor (philosophy and government are both tied up in this).
3. Science ~
   • Natural Sciences & Art – Learn to accurately observe, record, and sort what you see. Broad knowledge of what God has chosen to fill the earth with. Learning to draw and photograph both are good supporting studies for this
   • Experimental & Hard Sciences – Understanding the underlying structures that God’s creation functions on and how they effect and relate to each other in order to use this information to further dominion work and expand the blessings of the garden throughout the earth at large.

4. Mathematics – Reflects the logical, organized nature of God; wires your brain to think logically; and is a support subject for many other subjects.
5. Music – Necessary for worship. The Bible is filled with examples of people glorifying God through music in both corporate and private settings. Deepens our appreciation of the beauty God has made for us to enjoy.
6. Bible – Direct teaching about God as revealed through His Word, church history, catechism, confessions & creeds, and church music. Outreach, service, and evangelism are wrapped up in this as well.
7. Foreign Language – Learning foreign language and culture helps teach that our cultural way of doing things is not the only way of doing things and viewing the world, trains the mind to think on multiple tracks, and for better communication in travel and evangelism.
8. Finances – Understanding of money, savings, debt, investments. How and why to be deliberate with your money, how finances effect personal contentment and happiness, and why you are bound to what you spend your money on (i.e. tithing binds you to God, debt binds you to the credit card companies, taxes bind you to your government, providing for your children and wife binds you to your family). This binding gives you a stake it the future of the binding entity so spend and bind wisely.
9. Physical education – Your body is the temple of God. Using it to fulfill God’s purposes is much easier when it’s functioning well. Learning to keep it healthy through proper diet, enjoyable physical activity, disease prevention, and risk assessment (not necessarily risk avoidance) while understanding that our health is in God’s control and sometimes the illness, injury, or death that occur despite our best efforts are at all times for the larger glory of God and ongoing perfecting work of ourselves.