The Primary Stage
These first years are ordered to the acquisition of the skills necessary for any further learning. At this stage the student should concentrate on learning to read well, and learning to write, both in terms of letter formation and power of expression. He should also spend time acquiring facility in addition and subtraction. If these skills are learned well, all the rest of his school time will be much more profitable and his education will be more complete.
As a parent and teacher the time spent with your child is valuable. If he does not learn to read in kindergarten or first grade, it won't finally make much difference in his life. But you should spend time reading to him during these formative years. The saint stories, the tales of noble actions performed by noble people, and the fairy tales, with their clear divisions between good and bad, will make a lifelong difference.
Mother of Divine Grace encompasses the knowledge of curriculum as well as their experience to enable us to find the balance of pushing our children to meet their goals, all the while inspiring them to bring out their talents. Just as importantly, the teachers and consultants take into consideration the student’s special needs and trouble shoot a need to slow down for a while. We are consistently awestruck at their ability, through verbal communication or viewing my children’s work, to guide us to bring out the best in our children whether it be showing us why we might reconsider a particular program based on our child’s particular learning style, or better yet, to really push our child in a particular area. The objective, yet passionate perspective, of the MODG teacher and consultant is a component of homeschooling that we will forever make a priority in our home school. It is their experience and passion for the welfare of these children that I believe enables them to see things that I don’t see as a parent.