Summer is quickly approaching. I know this because my snow shovel is no longer residing by my front step and the sound of many lawn mowers is in the land. Another sound may also be heard as you finish up your school year. That is the sound of children bemoaning their lack of activity. "Moooom, there's nothing to do around here!"
I have the perfect solution! It's biblical, it looks great on a high school transcript or job resume, and it teaches character and servant hood. A very wise friend (who has been somewhat of a mentor on my homeschool journey) once recommended the age-old concept of volunteering. She shared how a volunteer position was/is a requirement for her junior high and high school children. Happy to take her up on that suggestion, we have also made volunteering a requirement for our students.
It was amazing to me the volunteer opportunities out there if you just begin looking. Our oldest child (now in college) spent some summers volunteering for an organization that runs an adaptive riding program for disabled children and adults at a local horse farm. Another child enrolled in a teen volunteer program at the nearby medical center and has had some awesome opportunities to work in the nursing home with aging adults. Our youngest began volunteering at a local Rescue Mission store not too long ago.
The cost is minimal ... transportation back and forth, schedule juggling, but the rewards are too numerous to count. So the next time you hear that familiar whine of boredom, tell your children about the perfect plan you have for their summer!
Blessings ...
~Judy
Here's an opportunity to add a great worldview piece to your school year. Check out this fascinating new book that looks at the spiritual and moral themes found in Pixar movies. The Wisdom of Pixar is written by Robert Velarde, one of Sonlight's curriculum developers, a dad and a great writer. You can view his recent conversation with Sarita Holzmann as they discuss the virtues of movies like Toy Story and Cars.
