Excellence in Education for Any Child

I have had so much fun reading this summer.  I have read several excellent books, some of them I’ve blogged about.  The latest is called:

  Simply Classical, A Beautiful Education for Any Child, by Cheryl Swope

Such a beautiful story, and so welcome in my heart. It  is just fantastic what this mother did with her adopted impaired twins with an integrated approach of therapies and classical education.  To see how the daughter went from an I.Q. in early grade school of 75, to testing at 8th grade, with results of either right on at an 8th grade level, or in many categories, levels of 11th, 12th grade and post secondary.  Such proof that a classical education can do so much for special needs children. 

I can not stress enough the Latin, the beautiful language of the ancient literature, the scriptures, beautiful literature overall, the purposeful instruction in Grammar, Logic and Rhetoric, the seven liberal arts, and the exposure to all things, good, true and beautiful.  Modern day education has strayed so far from anything resembling these attributes and is such an ugly mutation of the beautiful, dignified manner to educate with excellent content, while within the stages of human development.

I applaud Cheryl Swope for taking on the task of truly educating her special children with excellence.  I have always subscribed to the idea that you have them home, do something excellent with them.  You are not doing them any favors by keeping them home, and not helping them excel and truly filling them up with all things true, good and beautiful that are at your disposal. 

It’s true Cheryl had a MAs in special education, and it’s true she didn’t know how to teach children, had never really learned in her studies and field work, and wasn’t even close to understanding what classical education was about.  She herself was the product of the public school system, and university, that eroded away all classical thoughts and Christian teachings.  It was a sheer blessing she emerged with the seeds deep inside of her, the yearning for something more beautiful and substantial to enrich her children’s education and progress, as well as herself. 

If this author can do it with two children very greatly impaired, you can do it with your children that are not cognitively and physically impaired.  And you can do it with your child/children that are impaired.  This story makes my heart leap for joy as I see my own autism spectrum disorder child grow so much this last year with our own homegrown integrated approach of excellent school and therapies.  I am so blessed and glad to be giving him an excellent high quality classical Christian education that is so hard to find out there.  What is pawned off as education today, with all it’s progressivism and serious anti-Christian garbage is such a sad state, through charter schools and public schools and sadly even tuition paid private schools, it’s no wonder children are so confused and emotional and trying to grasp onto something of substance in their lives and souls.   Integrating the Christian faith with your classical education is the only way to go.  It will make so much more sense.  When history is a true account, from the ancient pagans to the gospels….your child will know the truth of his salvation history, he will see the “big picture” and have the scriptures at his disposal as an every day way of life and living.

You are the example also.  By our children seeing us praying, reading the scriptures, attending bible study, and encouraging beautiful hymns and church practices, we give them a higher and better standard to mark their lives by.  Let’s face it, there is so much they can fall into if they are not solidly and truly grounded in the Christian faith.  I feel I have fallen short in some areas of my child education/raising (by not sending my children to a very Christian oriented university).  I’m grateful they didn’t fare worse, but I can see where some of their Christian formation has been eroded by the experience.  I only pray they are healthy enough and infused with the Holy Spirit plentiful, to make a good recovery and move forward, perhaps even stronger.

So if you are at all interested in education and home education,  and want to read something truly inspiring, truly real life….this is an excellent and informative, beautifully written book. 

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