Friday, August 15, 2008 - Neatness counts~
I'm a firm believer in doing your very best. Now, I'm not talking about perfection, rather, putting forth your best effort. Knowing you gave it 100%; not a half effort. I'm constantly telling my kids this very thing. Whether it be in schoolwork, handwriting, cleaning their rooms; we are to do our very best.
I've often related to my girls that our lives (every area) is a reflection of God. After all, aren't we supposed to be showing the world in everything we do who God is? I truly believe that applies to all areas of our lives.
Do we show the world 50% in some areas and 90% in others? Do we de-value certain things as applying to the Lord (such as handwriting, schoolwork) while elevating others (quiet time, church attendance)? Aren't we called to show forth our very best in this life God has given us regardless of it's eternal value? I believe so. While we'll never attain perfection, I believe God expects our very best effort in every area of our lives.
I believe this is an extremely important value to teach our children. After all, we have no idea what God's plan is for their lives. If we fail to teach and model this value to them, we quite possibly could be setting them up for struggle and maybe even failure in their lives as adults. Truly, it doesn't matter what God's path is for our kids~ diligence is key for any path in life. Regardless of what our lot in life is, we all need a good work ethic.
A very key area, I believe, is schoolwork. If I fail to teach my kids that neatness does indeed count, then when and where will they learn it? Likewise, there must be a progression in their efforts. My 11 year old should, by now, have progressed in her ability to communicate; whether that be verbally or in written form. Her handwriting should not mirror that of my 8 year old. While she will have her own unique style of writing both in content and in form, it should not resemble her writing in earlier years.
"Did you know that learning to print is a great tool for the development of fine motor skills for younger children? Or did you know that it helps develop attention to detail skills? — both of which play a big role later on in school, and in life." How interesting!
This is just another area in our lives and that of our children where we can learn to use all those wonderful skills we've been given to glorify God. It's not only our worship and devotion to our faith that glorifies our Savior, but even the small seemingly unimportant details in our everyday lives.
Comments
Thursday, August 21, 2008 - Very Good
Posted by thornfaith
That was well said. I tend to be a person who see both sides of the coin. I don't want laws to govern my children so much so that they miss the point of having Faith and Loving the Lord with all that they are but at the same time I don't want them to use Faith as a way or excuse to not try. Meaning I always want my children to love the Lord in Faith and in doing so they WANT to do things well. I never want them to do something they think they HAVE to do, it should be the love towards God that guides them to do it well.
Latte
Sunday, August 24, 2008 - Thanks for posting this!
Posted by HoneyBee10269
Hi Carolina,
It's funny that I should happen to come visit your blog and read this post. I was just emailing a friend about something similar. She had asked what we did for penmanship and I had basically told her that we hadn't been doing anything really. I totally agree with you that neatness does indeed count...but I struggle with what to do if anything regarding the use of cursive writing.
My daughter would perfer to print...and avoids writing in cursive if at all possible. Not that she doesn't know how, but doesn't want to take the time to practice it so that it becomes "second nature". I know this isn't exactly what you were referring to (at least I don't think anyway) but I've sort of come to the conclusion that other than having a "signature" written in cursive...it isn't crucial for other things to be written in cursive. I think that if she is printing neatly...improving with age...that it's legible, does it really make a difference whether it's printed or in cursive?
My goal is for her to want to learn to type (so far she's happy with her "hunt and peck" method!)...in this day and age, computer skills will be far more valuable than cursive. But yes, giving your best effort in whatever form of communication you are using at the moment is important...it shows that we care about how we are presenting ourselves and the God we serve.
So thank you for posting about this...I need to remember this when Bridgette complains the next time I ask her to re-write something that isn't quite up to what she's capable of!!
Have a great day!
Melissa
