I just finished up my second year of homeschooling, so I am still at the beginning of this incredible and faith-filled journey! Looking back on this past year, I had obstacles and challenges to overcome, hard moments and trying times to face; there were many sleepless nights or nights with very interrupted sleep! In spite of it all, we learned so much together as a family, and I would love to share with you my favorite and most memorable day at home with my children.
As a backdrop, this school year I followed a very riveting curriculum called Five in a Row Volume 1 by Jane Claire Lambert. It guides you by reading a different book each week, and through that book you and your children learn about and discover science, social studies, art, music, language arts, and mathematics! I highly recommend it.
Now, it was in the middle of winter and the book of the week was The Clown of God by Tomie DePaola in which he retells the story of a poor juggler who offers his talent, all he has, to God. It is a touching folktale if you ever get a chance to read it; it truly captured the attention and hearts of my children and I.
As this story was set in the Renaissance, we therefore learned some things about that time-period in history. The main point I wanted to drive home to my kids was that there were times when people would be thoroughly entertained and content simply being together. And, in this story, they would watch street performers showcasing their artistic abilities with no phones, computers, televisions, or other devices. It was shocking and not easy for my children to picture living this way, so we did something drastic.
First, we started the week by juggling everything we could find: oranges, potatoes, small balls, bananas, apples, and zucchini (that was in the book)! My older son Luke really got into it, and was very diligent at working on his juggling skills. We even got pretty good at juggling items back and forth to each other. I’m no juggler, but I enjoyed trying something new and laughing at all the failed attempts!
Later in the week I prepared the kids for a real “game-changer”: We were going to have a true “Renaissance Day” with NO technology and limited electricity (I did cheat and use my stove and microwave however)! To my surprise when that day came, the first thing I remember hearing from Luke in the morning was, “Mom, it’s Renaissance Day so no electricity–You have to turn off the lights in the bathroom!” Since it was winter there wasn’t a ton of sunlight so we did use candlelight during the day, which was a real thrill for them.
To be honest, I was kind of dreading the day! It was mainly because I wanted to be faithful to what I had decided, and to me that meant putting my cellphone out of range for only emergency purposes! How did I survive and what did we do the rest of the day? I have to tell you, it was nothing short of delightfully GLORIOUS. We lived the Renaissance, a true cultural RE-BIRTH: we continued juggling, painted, memorized poetry, sang, made up our own skits, dance routines, and performances. The togetherness and sweet unity brought joy to my heart and theirs. That night when my husband (daddy) came home, we put on a show for him! It definitely was a Renaissance, a reawakening of our habits and a revitalization of our spirits.
Back to “reality” and the day in age we live in, I am a mom who worries about screen time, but I’m not one to ban it entirely either. However, this memorable “Renaissance Day” reinforced the benefits of just being a family who interacts and doesn’t have to depend on the next episode of whatever to fill in the gaps. It’s funny because now I sometimes will comment to my children when they want to watch another video, “I think we are due for a Renaissance Day!”
If you would like to adapt this to something your family can experience, choose any time period in history before more technological developments like cell phones, computers and TVs! You could be reading about the prairie days in Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder, or discussing anything in Biblical times and remind your children of what was UN-available and not invented in that time-period of history. Then, choose a day and go radical!
If we face the facts, technology usage can be necessary yet addictive. Let’s lead by example here, and not be so consumed with checking our phones 24/7 and then expecting the kids to never want screen-time. It’s life on the edge when we can turn our phones off and be 100% in-tune with everyone we come into physical contact with! We need this just as much OR MORE than they do!
I-phones, i-pads, kindles, tablets, laptops, smartphones, you name it for entertainment these days we’ve got it! Conversely, I’ve heard unbelievable stories of God’s fantastic work in other countries, and how people who are “dirt poor” are thoroughly entertained. How? They are satisfied by witnessing God’s mighty hand as He moves, accomplishing astounding miracles in their communities because they are crying out to Him alone. My only response: Jesus, break me and fill me with a yearning and a fascination for YOU and Your words, and a faith that can move mountains.
I am setting some boundaries for myself that include keeping my phone out of reach during the day if I am at home, and to limit how often I am checking it to a handful of times a day (every three hours is doable). Also, on Sundays the kids know there is no screen-time unless later in the day we choose to watch a movie as a family. Your limits may be different, but make them reasonable and challenging so that you too are LIVING a life of fresh and sweet bonding with those around you!
To end lightly, I found a quote on Facebook today that is fitting for this topic, and it reads, “My curfew was lightning bugs. My parents didn’t call my cell, they yelled my name, I played outside, not online…” Yeah, I remember those days, because I grew up in them. I’m as nostalgic as they get, and I will always miss my own childhood. Let’s not forget to teach our lovely children AND remind ourselves of the compelling beauty and fun that can take place without a screen!
May God richly bless and strengthen each of you today.
Great comments! I agree it's crazy how I have to consciously "distance myself" from my phone these days, as it can easily overtake the actual time with those around us! I have recently listened to headlines on the TV news and radio about tips for limiting screen-time for adults and phone addiction. Everyone knows it is a habit, but being conscious of the damage it can do to your relationships and to the quality of your life is essential to curbing it. God bless you my dear! Great words of wisdom 🙂
I love the idea of unplugging and taking it back to the basics. I find it most difficult for me to put down my own device, but I’ve become more aware, and like you, I’m starting to distance myself from my phone. It’s important to be present in the moment and soak up time with the people that surround us.
It took me back to my childhood when you wrote about using candles to light up the room. My mom used to do that with us, and we loved it. I think I’ll incorporate that with my children too! I thought it was neat how you connected your homeschooling and learning with these experiences!
I agree with you! Too much screen time can produce moodiness in our kids and in ourselves! Thank you for that reminder. 🙂
Renaissance Day – what a cool idea! We limit screen time at our house for special occasions, family movie nights, or emergency situations (like dragging kids with me to a work meeting). I've noticed that when my kids have too much screen time, they become cranky, whiny, and generally less cooperative. But then I look at myself and too much screen time for me sometimes results in a similar deterioration of attitude and overall mood. Devices and screens have their place and purpose, but should not consume us or our time. It's just another example of something we teach our kids that is just as good for us to learn ourselves.
Theresa, thank you for these wise words and for spurring us mothers on in a difficult age to raise a family. May God's Word be the light for our path as you quoted from the Scripture! As you reiterated, technology has positive and negative effects for society. It's something we can use to our advantage but if the temptation for sin is so great, we must take it out of our lives completely (see the movie FIREPROOF for a true story of a father having to literally destroy his computer to save his marriage). Thank you for sharing!
About 16 years ago an older Christian brother who was a computer software engineer at the time said that the computer (modern technology system) will become the future 'Anti Christ' figuratively. I thought his prediction was a little weird and didn't pay much attention to it but his statement does stick with me for some reason. I am not certain whether the Anti-Christ will be a true physical world leader or a world system, but I have certainly seen many negative effects caused by the modern technology, noticeably in the last few years. Because everyone is burying their face constantly in the screen, there is less human interactions, people have poorer social and conflict resolution skills in general. As a result, more emotional issues emerged in our society, in particular among our youth. My colleagues and I observed the lack of memorization and critical thinking skills among our students – every question and answer is only a click away, who needs to memorize anything or critically think through a problem. Additionally, there are broken marriages and infidelity caused by the temptation from social media…etc. Needless to say, modern technology has improved our lives and advanced our society in many positive ways, however, when comes to screen time usage, I will exercise a previous post title from Krystal LESS is MORE! God bless you all who have young children to raise in this very challenging era, may GOD's words be the lamp to your feet and the light to your path (Psalm 119:105).
I love your example of just building in the backyard with your siblings! Right now all of the kids are in Laurelle's room playing Barbies, and they need time to just PLAY, PLAY, PLAY with real objects and expressing themselves verbally to each other. It will produce a sense of unity, belonging, and security in children for the rest of their lives. Thank you, Marcia 🙂
Michelle, I am very motivated to be more up-front with my children, as you are with yours! I do explain a lot of things, but I like how you even told your kids that they are far more important than a piece of technology that you are using! I'm sure kids may need to hear those positive words of reinforcement these days, as it seems a lot of us parents can pick up the bad habit of taking our kids to a park, for example, and then "checking out" while they play and we surf the net.
We have a TV but no cable channels, only 10 or so free digital channels that come through with an antenna. Less is more! Our two oldest sons have tablets that were given to them for Christmas by some generous relatives. They love them but we have parental controls on how much screen-time they have, and it is no more than 15-30 minutes a day maximum. The positive piece is the tablets have a ton of really interesting books, and we are able to select how much time we want them to read first before they can play a game or watch a video on it.
Also, I too think the battle will begin as the kids grow in age and what we accustom them to now while they're little will surely set a precedence for the future. You hit the nail on the head by fostering a love for nature, reading, and togetherness now; this will stay with them!
THANK YOU for taking the time to share! I gained so much from it!
I am more and more grateful that I grew up in a mostly screen free world- even our TV only received four channels and not always in English! 🙂
We only have one TV in our house and don't currently own a tablet so the kids don't really get that much screen time at the moment -they are only 4 and 5 though and so once we enter Kindergarten and beyond, the real struggles will begin. Video games concern me as I think my son will be very drawn to them. I have tried to focus on developing a love for nature, reading and exploring in both of them and hope that those interests will not take a back seat to screens as they grow.
My own phone use is a battle I fight with myself every day! There have been evenings that I find I am too tired to read my Bible and then am reminded that I was not too tired to spend 20 minutes scrolling through Facebook. I try to be upfront with the kids and explain why we limit screen time-I have also told them before that they are far more important than what is happening on my phone and that we can all remind one another when needed to put down the phone or to turn off the tv 🙂
Krystal I love to hear how much fun and good times you had with the kids by being fully present in their life’s. Definitely you are adding so much value. These experiences are not going to be forgotten by them specially Luke and Bennette.
I got a flash back! I Remembered how much fun I had playing in the back yard building homes with bamboo sticks when I was 9 years old. It was just incredible! I clearly remembered my brothers playing long hours building roads, bridges and houses on the dirt.
So much to appreciate!
Thank you ❤️🙏🏼
Yes, Facebook free if you feel that will help you stay connected more with your son! I too have found that although I like to keep in touch with certain people via social media, it is more stressful than peaceful many times when I am actually viewing it; i think it's information overload once again! Taking a prolonged break is a great idea. 🙂
I gleaned many things from what you wrote, and love how you are stretching your kids to sit still and focus. Sometimes it's easy to just let them goof off and be wiggle worms, but I too have found that when I communicate that certain activities require us to be still, it sets them up for success.
You are so gifted at being candid and relative to what all of us need to hear. THANK YOU for sharing how God is working in these areas in your life!
(I had too much to say lol – I had to split my comment into two!). Here's the rest:
It seems to me that as a society we're less able to sit still anymore without constantly checking something or doing something or being entertained. I feel that the technology in our lives has more detrimental effects on us and our children than we may even realize yet and it can be a subtle influence on the culture as a whole even if you're guarding against the effects of technology. So in our house we are more strict on limiting technology. But over this past year, I was seeing some increased restlessness and fidgeting and whining about being bored and having nothing to do. This was new for us. Our kids have typically been very self controlled and could sit still with us very well, so I didn't know what was the cause for this. I think some of it may have been a side effect of the schedule they have at school. They seem to have so much work and such tight schedules for their day, always moving from one activity to the next, and so they started expecting to always have something to do and started forgetting how to sit still or focus on one thing for an extended time. So Jose and I were talking about it, and sort of wondering if we were just expecting too much from the kids, and I was praying about their behaviors and for God's guidance with helping them. Jose and I we were talking about kids from previous generations, my grandparents generation for example, which was during the Great Depression, and how they would never need a fidget spinner to sit still and it wouldn't be tolerated for kids to be so restless and out of control. And we thought it isn't that this generation of kids is that different and can't sit still, it just seems that it doesn't seem to be expected very often of kids now anymore. So around this same time, God was really impressing on me the importance of being still in His presence to hear from Him. And it occurred to me, if I don't encourage my children and give them opportunities to grow and learn how to be still and quiet, without having to be doing something or being entertained, its going to be much more challenging for them to be still before God and to enjoy their own personal quiet time with Him. So then these fidgeting and restless behaviors became more important for us to try to lessen. So we really focused on giving the kids opportunities to re-learn and remember how to sit still and be quiet, or to have a conversation with the family without interrupting when someone else is speaking. We took them listen to the pastor preach at church instead of going to their classrooms so they could practice sitting still and listening there and we also started borrowing activities previous generations would enjoy as a family. We would take turns and have a family member perform a "concert" on the piano while everyone else sat still and listened respectfully in the "audience". We would sit and play card games, or they would sit still and listen to me read a story or just sit still at the dinner table after everyone was done eating and just sit there and talk, rather than running off to play. And over this past year I've really loved where this focus has led our family in different ways to connect and bond. And it seems their restlessness and fidgeting has subsided a little bit as well the more they are challenged to practice it.
Thank you for your post Krystal! May God continue to bless and strengthen you for the future years of homeschooling that you are so privileged to have. You are doing a great job with the kids! I love hearing their words and enthusiasm for the activities you've shared through the posts! You're instilling in them a love of learning and fostering a great family bond!
Krystal, I love the idea of the Renaissance Day! And The Clown of God sounds very interesting as well! A great book to read with the kids over the summer! We'll definitely have to check it out! Jose loves the Renaissance time period, so I'm sure he'll get in on this as well 🙂
I'm very skeptical of all the new technology lol – the more technology I hear about, the more I want to run away from it. It just seems like the technology is out of a futuristic movie sometimes. I don't take part in a lot of technology but I still find myself wanting to check my phone throughout the day, for no apparent reason. I think some of it is from when I was working and would always be tending to emails and having to respond timely – that tendency to keep checking is still ingrained in me. And often Jose and I will text throughout the day with each other – and that I used to enjoy but it has become increasingly sort of a nuisance and hindrance to our relationship. When we are communicating via text, its usually short responses, or if there is a need for a longer response, one of us inevitably gets confused about what the other is saying or frustrated because it really is a conversation that is better in person, because the tone is missing or some other reason, and then since we've been communicating throughout the day, when he gets home, I don't feel as excited to go talk to him and welcome him home. I've been cutting back on texting and just being more present where I am and with the kids, and I think its helping.
I love this post. I love the Renaissance day idea. I have personally been thinking about going facebook free for the summer. My son will be in 3rd grade next year and my heart aches at him growing up so quickly, so I want to focus on being present in my own life and not everyone else's facebook life. 😊