Janet Hamlin

My mother doesn't 'get' unschooling. That's fine. Of course, she's always
harping about it and is convinced that the kids aren't learning anything.

I recently sent her a funny picture of a sign in front of a church (some
Methodist church) that said: Don't let your worries kill you. Let the
church help.

I thought it was funny, and seeing that my mother always goes to church, I
sent it along to her.

This is her reply:

My church certainly doesn't fit that bill. We have such a wonderful "home"
for all ages. Yesterday the Sunday School started. They have such a
wonderful
program with people putting in so much time and thought to constantly make
the program more meaningful teach the kids about the important things of
life
that they will need to have to draw on as they go through their lives. I
love
it here.

So, now they're heathens because they don't go to 'Sunday School' either. I
wish I could think of a witty reply, but I think I'll remain mute or I'll
say something I'll regret.

Janet

Robyn Coburn

<<<This is her reply:

My church certainly doesn't fit that bill. We have such a wonderful "home"
for all ages. Yesterday the Sunday School started. They have such a
wonderful
program with people putting in so much time and thought to constantly make
the program more meaningful teach the kids about the important things of
life
that they will need to have to draw on as they go through their lives. I
love
it here.

So, now they're heathens because they don't go to 'Sunday School' either. I
wish I could think of a witty reply, but I think I'll remain mute or I'll
say something I'll regret.>>>>

How about "I'm glad you are happy there".

And then say no more.

Robyn L. Coburn

---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.752 / Virus Database: 503 - Release Date: 9/3/2004

jimpetersonl

> So, now they're heathens because they don't go to 'Sunday School'
either. I> wish I could think of a witty reply, but I think I'll
remain mute or I'll> say something I'll regret.
>
> Janet

http://www.holyobserver.com/detail.php?isu=v02i03&art=home_school
:-)
~Sue

Christian Ed. Directors Lament Increase in Home Sunday Schooling:
Sunday school enrollment in decline

With the academic year having ended in many parts of the country,
Christian educators are disturbed by a dramatic decrease in Sunday
school enrollment for the upcoming year, a trend they say is largely
due to the growing popularity of home Sunday schooling. Home Sunday
schooling, a system in which a child obtains Christian education at
home rather than in traditional church-sponsored Sunday schools, dwelt
in relative obscurity-primarily in New England and the Pacific
Northwest-for nearly a decade before the recent upswing.

Supporters say home Sunday schooling provides a vastly superior learning
model for children, especially those who do not flourish in traditional
classroom settings. Critics contend that home Sunday schooled children
miss
out on vital opportunities for socialization or fall short educationally.

Katherine Eusibio, president of the Nashville-based nonprofit Homestead
Christian Education, has been advocating for home Sunday schoolers for
eight
years. "Many, if not most, students have difficulty learning about the
Christian faith in traditional classroom settings," she argues. "Bringing
the experience into the home allows children to learn at their own pace
while spending more quality time with their families."

Ms. Eusibio insists that the results lauded by Christian Educators as
signs
of Sunday school success-such as high rates of scripture memorization and
the ability to identify flannel cutouts of major Bible characters-are
indications of conformity, not evidence of actual learning. "Traditional
Sunday school may seem to be a great success, but most of these kids
are not
really learning; they're just doing well at standardized Bible quizzing!"

Not so, says Harriett Petsche, Director of Christian Education for the
United Methodist Church, who considers home Sunday schooling a dangerous
trend that she says "threatens the future of Sunday School as we know it."
According to Ms. Petsche, success at competitive exercises such as
memorization and Bible quizzing correlates to a deeper understanding of
scripture. "Children in a structured curriculum can often recite very long
portions of scripture without even thinking about it. That's what I'd call
'allowing the word of Christ to dwell in you richly.' "

The attraction of home-based Christian education won over Neva and Allan
Magrath in 2003, when they began home Sunday schooling their two daughters
Erika and Ellen, ages 7 and 10 respectively. "Erika was having some
trouble
with a Sunday schoolyard bully, and Ellen had severe allergic reactions to
the combination of Oreos and orange juice from concentrate," recalled Mr.
Magrath. "It got to the point where the girls just dreaded getting dressed
on Sunday mornings. So we agreed to try this for a year, and we all
love it.
Now we sleep in an hour later on Sundays, and we all study Bible stories
together in our pajamas. Or sometimes we just have pancakes and skip the
stories."

It hasn't been all fun for the Magrath family, however. They say they've
received harassing phone calls from the Sunday school president at their
church, whose name they declined to disclose. Even their friends from the
adult Bible study they attend have expressed concern over the decision to
pull Erika and Ellen out of Sunday School.

But despite the criticism they've received, the Magraths say they are
quite
content with their current arrangement. In fact, they're contemplating
broadening their domestication of the church experience. "Now that we're
home Sunday schooling, we're considering just home churching while
we're at
it," says Ms. Magrath. "We ordered some sermon tapes from Willow Creek and
some got some worship CDs at the local Provident store. "We're just trying
to decide which media ministry to send our tithe check to, and then
we'll be
all set."

Fetteroll

on 9/13/04 11:09 AM, Janet Hamlin at jefhdvm@... wrote:

> My church certainly doesn't fit that bill. We have such a wonderful "home"
> for all ages. Yesterday the Sunday School started. They have such a
> wonderful program with people putting in so much time and thought to
> constantly make the program more meaningful teach the kids about the important
> things of life that they will need to have to draw on as they go through their
> lives. I love it here.

How about:

"Hey, you just described our wonderful home! It's a great place for all ages
too. Lots of energy being poured into making things better and better. And
the kids are constantly and joyfully learning things they'll use now and in
the future. And we love our home too :-)"

Joyce

[email protected]

In a message dated 9/14/2004 12:13:22 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
jimpetersonl@... writes:

Not so, says Harriett Petsche, Director of Christian Education for the
United Methodist Church, who considers home Sunday schooling a dangerous
trend that she says "threatens the future of Sunday School as we know it."
According to Ms. Petsche, success at competitive exercises such as
memorization and Bible quizzing correlates to a deeper understanding of
scripture. "Children in a structured curriculum can often recite very long
portions of scripture without even thinking about it. That's what I'd call
'allowing the word of Christ to dwell in you richly.' "<<<

Cracking up over here! <G>

The best part is that they learn to do it "without even thinking about it."

So being able to recite long passages of Dr. Seuss is allowing the word of
Geisel to dwell in me richly? Good.

~Kelly, Oh the Places You Will Go, Lovejoy







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]