Some of you could be wondering, "What is life like for the boys?" Good question. William is in 4th grade , Peter John is in K-5 and Emory is 3.5.
Many of you know that my degree is in elementary education, and I taught in the private and public schools. When we were at St. Christopher, we decided the Lord was wanting us to home school William. That was first grade.
The boys do daily studies in journaling, writing workshop, reading, geography, math, science, history and social studies, world events and of course, the Bible's teachings are woven throughout. William and Peter John are avid readers and both gifted writers and artists. In fact, William has become a blogger recently. He just loves sharing his ideas and experiences with everyone. Peter John is a prolific artist who creates the most fascinating pictures. Emory is gaining a command of the English Language and his brothers too!
Talk about God blessing our home school endeavors. We are blessed to have two retired teachers as grandmas, and they supply us with tons of resources, advice and materials. The boys get a lot of physical activity, playing soccer, building forts, hiking, wrestling, and exploring the world around them. And life and nature is always presenting authentic learning experiences which create a true love for learning. I'll never forget when we were living at Camp and studying whales, and that same day, a pilot whale beached itself right in front of our house. God is so good to equip us when we obey His calling.
The boys have friends and cousins out to play periodically, and they go to visit friends as much as possible. The go to the park, youth group, Sunday school, church activities, parties, family events, play sports, dance, listen to music, do experiments, go on field trips, build things, create art, play outdoors, build fires, explore, and investigate their world around them.
Some of the exciting opportunities they have had recently were visiting NJ and Maine where they went to nature centers, the LL Bean headquarters, Westpoint, forts and explored their grandparents' property, going to camp at St. Christopher, going on the Disney Cruise to Bahamas, experiencing life while living at St. Christopher, sea turtle patrol, visiting the turtle hospital at the Aquarium, Stingrays hockey, fishing, crabbing, boating and much more.
They get much needed quiet time as well. Studies show that kids develop better when given down time. The boys play with each other, imagine, draw, dream, and talk about life. We spend a lot of quality time together as a family, praying, having discussions, horsing, and thinking of ways to help others.
The boys are always involved in service of some sort. They support missionaries, give their money to the church, helping their family with chores and tasks, and don't forget all the work they contributed at the Camp.
Big Peter is also an amazing teacher. He builds, reads, plays games, and takes the boys on adventures, all things we draw on for their education.
Recently William went on a road trip to NJ at Christmas with his dad. Peter said William was an excellent navigator with thew map, even through Washington DC! They went to an area devastated by the hurricane, and William couldn't help but pick up a broom in this one restaurant and start serving. It's in his DNA to do mission work.
The qualities the Tetrev boys are self-sacrifice, hard work ethic, compassion, prayerfulness, forgiveness, curiosity, enthusiasm and adventurousness, and determination. They know Jesus and what He did for them, and they know their life is about relationship with Him.
2013 will be full of making new friends, seeing wonderful things and learning more about the world God created. Please continue to pray for their protection and provision. If you have any learning opportunities you would like to share, feel free. You know we love a good adventure!
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