A Roadmap for the Launching Years
What was your roadmap for your teenage years? I bet every parent wishes there was a roadmap to give their teens in the launching years. God’s Word is a map for us. As a graduation gift for my oldest daughter and her friends, I made the MAP art piece and printed them on magnets as a visual reminder that God did not leave us without an instruction book for life. The verse on the art is Psalm 119:9-10. This is an excellent roadmap for teens in the launching years. How can a young person live a clean life? By carefully reading the map of your Word. I’m single-minded in pursuit of you; don’t let me miss the road signs you’ve posted. Psalm 119:9-10 The Message Recently I gave a tribute and read some of Psalm 119 at my father-in-law’s funeral. Before I married into the family, I had dad for a couple of my education and geography classes at Liberty University. Dad taught through Psalm 119 one year in the daily devotions he did at the beginning of his classes. With 176 verses, there was plenty to talk about! As his student I appreciate the consistency of this. He was…
Teach Kids to Advocate for Themselves
What are some reasons you should teach your child to advocate for themselves? No matter your parenting style, teach your kids to advocate for themselves. It will nurture their independence and give them ownership of their problems. In the younger years, you can give children language for asking. Teach them to politely ask for something they need or want and encourage them to tell why they need it. In the middle years, role play difficult situations and how to self advocate. This gives kids empowering strategies and the language to express themselves. With my tutoring clients, we often talk through how and when to ask a teacher for help or a parent for project supplies. This is a good age to allow real world experiences like ordering in a restaurant or paying for something at the store. Provide support for critical thinking and problem solving. Successful self advocacy boosts self esteem, especially during the launching years. I remember my daughters disliked having to go into restaurants for a take out menu or call the doctor’s office to schedule an appointment, but they felt pretty proud of themselves once they had done it. It would have been easy for me to…
Product Review: CLEP Exams
What are some ways you can save money on college? Testing out of required college courses is one way to save money on college and earn credit toward a college degree. AP (Advanced Placement) exams are sometimes offered to high school students upon completion of an advanced level high school course and award college credits for passing. However, CLEP exams (College Level Examination Program) are available to just about everyone anytime with 34 tests in 5 subject areas. These 1- 2 hour computer based multiple choice exams cost $89 per test and can award 3-6 college credits. There are even testing sites in countries other than the US. Anyone who excels at a particular topic and is planning to go to college should consider taking a CLEP exam as many colleges and universities accept passing scores as college credit. College Board, creator of the SAT test, offers AP and CLEP exams and a wide variety of test and college prep materials. By taking AP and/or CLEP exams, students may be able to save significant time and money on college or free up their schedule to take other courses. With some careful planning and research, some students have even shaved a…
10 Life Skills for the Launching Years
What life skill did you fail to learn before moving away from home? The launching years are a perfect time to teach your teens the life skills they need to cope with the challenges in the world around them so that they can feel confident and prepared. So many of these skills can be learned alongside parents and adults as they go about their everyday life. Do not wait until your kids are grown to start this! We started earlier than most, but the rewards have been great. Here’s 10 basic life skill categories you use to think about what your teens already know and what you can teach them during the launching years. 1. Meal Prep Teach your kids what makes a nutritious balanced meal and how to cook 5 or 6 simple ones. Show them cooking basics. As their confidence grows, expand their recipes and teach them meal planning and grocery shopping. Assign them a night to cook each week. Teach them to grill and how to brew good coffee. 2. Home Management Teaching cleaning chores and laundry should not wait until the launching years! Now teach kids how to use household appliances, unclog a drain, sew on…
Chore Charts
What was your least favorite chore as a child? Who does that chore at your house now? Chores are a fact of daily life. “Mom, it was so smart of you to try to get us to do one chore a day and not leave them all for Saturday! I’m so sorry I didn’t listen! Now I understand!” That’s what my married daughter said to me after my wise words and chore charts finally sunk in after all those years. The chore chart first appeared when my girls were in preschool. The weekly chores in the younger years involved bringing me the little trash cans on trash day and helping to dust or deliver piles of clean laundry to the bedroom. I remember once buying a new feather duster and toilet brush and bringing them home like prizes! Being young, my girls were excited about the new tools! The weekly chores grew into a daily chart that listed each person’s name and a chore that could be done in less than 5 minutes that day. (Saving them until Saturday was NOT an option then!) Dad and Mom chores were sometimes listed so everyone could see the shared workload. As the…
Setting up School Year Expectations
How does setting a homework schedule build life skills that impact the workplace? Just as a classroom teacher sets expectations, parents can also use the start of a new school year to set expectations for homework and chores. As children grow, so should their responsibilities as these life skills may impact their future workplace performance. During the younger years, they can be expected to put their backpack in the designated location and put any “parent homework” in a certain spot everyday. Homeschoolers can be expected to return their daily supplies to a designated location. As they get to the middle years, these school year expectations can grow. To avoid the morning rush or get a few more minutes of sleep, bookbags can be packed the night before, lunches can be made, and clothes laid out. All of this can be done by the children, with some initial supervision by the parents or caretakers. By the launching years, these school year expectations should be firm and there should be little need for reminders or follow ups. The start of a new school year is a great opportunity to revisit the expectations. “Each night after you clean up the dinner dishes, I’d…
Book Review: Blazing New Homeschool Trails
Are you more of a trailblazer or a trail follower when it comes to raising and educating kids? No matter how you answer this question, this BRAND NEW book, Blazing New Homeschool Trails: Educating and Launching Teens with Developmental Disabilities, could be for you! My friend, Natalie Vecchione, did not set out to be a trailblazer. She set out to be a wife and mama and along the way, realized that the path was no longer clear for her as a mama of a child with FASD (Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder is a brain based disorder). She unexpectedly became a trailblazer and is now leading others down the path though FASD Hope. I had the privilege of tutoring Natalie’s son, so I got to walk a little bit along their path. So many hindrances to their path could have broken their family, instead, it made them stronger. When Natalie said she was co authoring a book, I couldn’t wait to read it. In fact, I happily volunteered to be on the launch team so I could read it early! I also looked forward to reading the story of Cindy LaJoy and the business, Buckaroos Slices and Scoops, that her kids…
Smooth Transitions from College to Home
What was your experience living at home after high school or college? Today’s blog post is a guest post from my youngest daughter, Jill Donaldson. Having just graduated from college and returning home for her last summer before grad school, I asked Jill to give tips for parents and students for coming home from college and transitioning back to family life for the summer or winter break. The biggest way to create a smooth transition from college to home for the whole family is through clear communication of expectations. As a parent, what way do you expect your child to help around the house or what meals do you expect them to participate in? As a student, what freedoms do you expect to have? Having those conversations will greatly improve the transition especially if the student has work or school obligations on top of family expectations. Parents: One of the things that parents can do to adapt to their child’s level of college independence is to set clear expectations of their time. It is reasonable to ask your child to let you know what days they will be home for dinner or an estimate of what time they will be…
Book Review – Wumbrand
What book have you read that was life changing? Hopefully your first answer was the Bible. In addition to God’s Word, there have been a handful of books that have impacted my thinking and actions. WURMBRAND Tortured for Christ the Complete Story was one of those books. A friend gave me the book and movie as a Christmas gift. 376 pages will have you staying up at night wanting to know what happens. The movie Tortured for Christ is graphic and a shorter way to get the gist, but not nearly as rich with details as the book. Apparently the story has been around for years in several different books and sermons, but this is the complete story based on the words of Richard and Sabrina Wurmbrand themselves. It tells the life story of the Wurmbrands who were imprisoned for their faith in Communist Romania post-WWII yet never gave up on their faith in God or in their desire to help others. Could the same be said of us? Would we be brave enough? Strong enough? Would we have memorized enough scripture should our Bibles be taken away? Could we survive mental and physical torture for years on end and…
Parenting Books
Ever wish you had a quick list of helpful books for raising a child? Here’s 15! This list is not comprehensive nor will you agree 100% with every chapter in each book, however it’s like a recipe. You take the basic ideas and tailor it to your family’s needs or what’s in the pantry that day. I find it much easier to modify a recipe than to make one up, wouldn’t you agree? No book list should ever replace solid Biblical truth. The best of parents are those who understand that solid parenting skills come from the unchanging truth of God. They also reach out to like minded others who are just a few steps ahead of them. A friend recently asked me for some parenting resources, and I literally went to my bookshelf and pulled off a few favorites. These are books I have read or used over the years. I ask that you use discernment in whether or not they are the best resource for you. Whether you are a parent, a grandparent, a teacher, or favorite friend, I hope this list will be helpful. It’s divided into 3 sections, and I’ve included Amazon links. The Younger Years…
