Can We Teach Purity?

Purity and modesty are something we have talked about quite a bit here on Family, Faith and Fridays.  Most of you who know our family personally know we are pretty conservative, especially when it comes to relationships and dating.  As the years have gone by though, and several of our kiddos are grown and out of our house, we are continually reevaluating and adjusting our beliefs and standards.  Adjusting, not lowering, I promise!  So when we were given the opportunity to review Abby Ludvigson's video program, Sex by Design with the Homeschool Review Crew we jumped at the chance.

Let me make this clear right off the bat- this is NOT a sex education program.  Trust me, I would not touch that with a ten foot pole.  It is however a program designed to get your teens thinking about purity and what that means from a Biblical worldview.

What Is Sex by Design then?
This video and book series is taught by Abby Ludvigson who works with The Navigators,  a urban missionary group out of Colorado, to teach and equip young people to wait for God's best for them.  Single until the age of 34, Abby has lived what she has taught.  As a former teacher, her dynamic personality and teaching style are sure to capture even the most reluctant teen.  

Abby provides a 7 part video series to watch with your teen.  Topics include-

• Plan Ahead: Living Pure in a Sex-Saturated Culture
• Counting the Cost: Every Decision has a Price Tag
• Dating: Doing Relationships God's Way
• Sex: God's Purpose and Plan
• Modesty: God Cares What I Wear
• Pornography: Its Deception & Steps to Get Out or Stay Out
• Secondary Virginity- Running Back to God

Also included is the teen guide book and a parent edition.  These almost 200 page books have chapters that correspond with each lesson.  Each lesson begins with the Film Outline section and is a place with fill in the blank sections to be answered while watching the video.  That section ends with scripture reference and Truth Statements.  Consider those the main points of the lesson.

Next you will find the Follow Up section that includes discussion questions.  Don't worry parents- the parent guide has answers for you to be looking for and ideas of topics to talk about and also includes a script of the video.  The next section is called Personalize It.  Here is where your teen can write in notes and answer questions Abby asks, as well as get ideas for further study or other assignments she gives.



The final section, Apply It is where the rubber hits the road, asking your teen to make the topic their own, beginning with starting a journal to their future spouse.  Those journals are what Abby presented to her now husband, Greg, on their wedding night.  There are also activity suggestions and book recommendations.

Sprinkled throughout each section of each chapter in the margins are icons that point them to the Online Resource Guide.

The Online Resource Guide is on Abby's website and gives you access to related articles and more for each lesson by leading Christian authors and speakers.  Books are listed, articles are linked, and downloads are available for you to print, as well as video clips for you and your teen to watch.

Also included in the student book is a short Bible study to go along with each chapter.

So how have we used this and what do we think? 
When we first got this program I spent some time looking through the parent guide, reading the intro from Abby and the 8 page section Getting the Most From This Series.  This section tells the who, what, and why of the program as well as provides a chart of a "helicopter view" of the program as a whole.  I then watched the first video by myself to get a feel for things.  Since that time, my 15 year old son has been watching one lesson a week by himself and then we come together to talk about what he has seen, questions he has answered in the workbook,  and discuss any topics he or I feel need to be addressed. 

On the day he watches the video he also downloads any assignments, such as the purity pledge in Lesson 1.  In advance of his watching the lesson, I print off any articles from the Online Resource tab that I want him to read so he can do so sometime during the week at his own leisure.  We have also made note of several books Abby mentions that we would like to order. 


I have also since sent the video links to my college daughter to watch because I think they offer a lot of good information. The information is certainly not new to her at age 19, but I think it is a good reminder for older teens as well.

Let's face it, no program is going to change a persons' life in an instant, especially a teen.  BUT, I do believe that the more we talk about sensitive subjects and the more open we are, the more likely our teens are to hear us out and consider our advice.  Plus let's face it, sometimes the same advice we as parents would give comes easier from the mouth of someone else.

For us, this has given my son and I a starting point for some good conversations.  I know many would want to watch the videos together, but by choosing to allow him to watch them alone first I feel it has given him room to think and process first before being plowed over by mom.  Not that I ever plow over my kids, right?!

Why do I love this program?

• Abby is honest and forthright while being sensitive to the subject.
• This is not a "gory details" program, but one based on Biblical Worldview.
• This is a faith based program.
• The videos are in short 15- 25 minute segments keeping it from being overwhelming.
• It is strategy based, giving kids not just goals to make, but ideas for how to obtain them.
• It is multifaceted approach will capture the interest the various types of learners from auditory to visual!
• The included Bible Study allows your child to dive into the subject at an even deeper level.

Sex by Design is designed to make your teens think for themselves, to make plans for purity before they are in the situations that require action, and then gives them the Biblical "whys" for those decisions.  It approaches sensitive subjects with respect and opens the doors for family discussion.  It is a program every family with teems needs in their arsenal.

After all, purity is a war worth the fight! 

High School Must Reads

So we have talked about our little kid books as well as our middle school favorites and now is the time for some high school must-reads in our family.  I want to start by sharing each of my girls' favorite books and then share a few series that they love.

Keep in mind this is a pleasure reading list.  Our kids have pretty intense reading lists for 9th-12th grade and there you will find all the "classics," from A Scarlet Letter to To Kill a Mockingbird.  And some of those they even enjoyed!  But this list - just think curled up in a hammock or by a fire reading for just the fun and pleasure of it!

The 20 year old's favorite book is by far The Hiding Place.  Don't ask me why, and yes, it was on her required reading list.  I think it is a sad book.  She thinks it is convicting and is worth reading several times a year.  Seriously.

The 16 year old's favorite book is actually on our middle school list, Surviving the Applewhites, and she does not care who knows it.  She too reads this one over and over again.  When I made her pick a more "mature" book, she begrudgingly said any of the series below.

Some other favorites include:

Sherlock Holmes - This is also another favorite of my oldest.  Who doesn't like a good mystery?

The Inkheart Series - For a slightly more mature audience (it does contain some mild language), this series is one of the 16 year old's favorite.  She loves fantasy, but if that bothers you, let this one go. (Ashton does not like this series)

The Percy Jackson series -  Yes, this contains lots of mythology so be forewarned.  I feel at this older age, my kids are able to discern between fact and fiction, filtering books through their Christian worldview, but I know not everyone agrees with that philosophy.  Again, just be forewarned if mythology concerns you this is not the series for you.

Lord of the Rings series - I know many kids have seen the movies, but have they read the books?  If not, now is a good time to get started.  I would say the same thing about the Chronicles of Narnia series.

Let me also add two books that I think are must reads for every highschooler from a mom and teacher point of view, High School Prep Genius and Victus Study Skills.

We found High School Prep Genius as a review and I highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking about  going to college.  It covers a lot of information in a quick and easy style.  I figure as long as our teens are filling their days with reading, they should at least cover a few that are "real world" application books.

Victus Study Skills was also a review item that I loved.  While you will need to get the student workbook in addition to the guide, I assure you it is worth it.  Both my 12 year old and 16 year old learned a lot about themselves and their study habits as well as ways to improve those habits.  As they get older, those skills will be needed more and more so now is a good chance to slip in that information.

Beginning on Wednesday, fellow Crew members are sharing their favorite high school reading lists, so make sure you come back to follow the link to the carnival.  I always add to our list after reading someone else's!

Blessings,

 

Micro Business for Teens- TOS Crew Review

Did you know that by definition a Micro Business is small business that can be started up very quickly, usually has one owner and is home based, is low risk and manageable and takes little to no start up money.         When CPA Carol Topp started Micro Business for Teens, it was in response to her finding very few resources on the market to help teens start such a business.  Her research, teamed with her CPA background, resulted in the books which we have been reviewing-Starting a Micro Business, Running a Micro Business, and Micro Business for Teens Workbook.  These books are not about kids selling lemonade on the street corner.  Targeted for those 10-18, they are about legitimate businesses, though on a smaller scale, that teens can and do run successfully and make decent money doing so.   Starting a Micro Business is a 7 chapter book that starts with teaching you just what a mirco business is.  From there you will be introduced to a bunch of micro business ideas, pitfalls to look out for and how to avoid them, writing a business plan and financing your business, and a final chapter to motivate your young person to get started!  This is the book you need to inspire your teen, get them brainstorming and get them started with a micro business. Running a Micro Business is a nine chapter book that covers sales, marketing, customer service, record keeping and book keeping, using software, legal pointers and reducing your risk and time management.  This book takes over where the first left off and tells your teen from the first days of a business to the nitty-gritty details needed to keep that business running. Micro Business for Teens Workbook is a 14 chapter workbook designed to go with both of these books and gives you some hands on activities and exercises to do.  From writing a business plan to record keeping it will walk you through the process you learned in the books. How we used this product- I admit that these books intrigued me as a parent.  What parent out there has not heard their children ask, "How can I make some extra money?"  Mine are no exception.  Chores in this house do not earn you cash, so  they knew they had better find other avenues if they wanted the cash badly enough.  My 12 year old was assigned reading Starting a Micro Business.  He read several chapters a day and afterwards we would discuss what he read, answer any questions he had and brainstorm together.  My 20 year old daughter read the second book, Running a Micro Business.  She has had a small sewing business for several years but is ready to take it up to the next level.  We figured this book would be just what she needed to fine tune her business and pick up a few new ideas. What we thought- I think these books are a great idea!  As Carol points out, there are many "how to run a lemonade stand" type books for younger adults but very few for teens that speak at not only their level but to their point in life. These are kids with often big dreams, but little time and money. They need to be encouraged and motivated but also be given a dose of reality as well.  I think she does just that!  By having your teen develop a business plan (the hardest part of it all for my son) they see that there are more things to cover than just I want to mow grass and then go do it.  Yes, that's what my son wants to do.   This is the kid who has never been behind a lawn mower for more than a minute.  But Carol's books gave him the motivation and confidence to get started and with a little training from his father is ready to go out and conquer the grass.

As encouraged in Chapter One of the Running A Micro Business book, he has even developed a Sales Statement-  I mow lawns so you don't have to!  Once his flyer is done, he is anxious to get started!

While our daughter on the other hand already had a business going, she did pick up a few helpful tips as well, mostly on the taxes and legal side of things.  She said that the Bookkeeping Basics chapter was the most useful to her, but she did think the level at which it was written could have been a bit higher.  Keep in mind though, she is no longer a teen.

The workbook covers chapters for both books so we split them up between the kids.  They would do each section when it pertained to the chapter they were reading for the day.  Most chapters in the workbook begin with a fill in the blank page that is a review of the particular chapter read.  It is then followed by brainstorming and other activities pertinent to what was learned; for example a business plan or expense spreadsheet.  One of my favorite lessons was one that had the teen do more research on their intended business using one website, one book and one person as their resources.

Another thing I want to mention is that Carol's website has a great blog, full of articles and short videos.  Especially for those that are visual or auditory learners, this is a gem of a resource.  I encourage you to have your teens take a look at it!  And speaking for auditory learners- an online portal for Micro Business for Teens is in the works- take a look at the first lesson of FastTrack!

If you have a teen that has been pestering you for ways to make some extra money this summer- these books would be a good place to direct them.  We highly recommend them!

You can buy these products- Starting a Micro Business (Book- $9.95, eBook $4.95) Running a Micro Business (Book- $9.95, eBook-$4.95) Micro Business for Teens Workbook (Book- $14.95, eBook- $9.95) Micro Business for Teens can also be taught to a group.  A free teacher guide is available as well as group prices for the resources. You can find Micro Business For Teens at- https://www.facebook.com/MicroBusinessForTeens?ref=ts https://twitter.com/CarolTopp

http://www.pinterest.com/caroltopp/

CREW Review- College Common Sense

Have you sent a child away to college yet?  This year was a first for us, the first of four kids leaving the nest to fly on their own.  Letting them go is almost as hard as planning the details of how they are going to get there and who is going to pay for it.  Almost!  It is a difficult road, let me just tell you, especially the how are they, make that WE, going to pay for it part.  I now have a resource to help answer that question and am already putting it into practice with our next child up who is in her freshman year of high school.

 

Introducing....

 

 

 College Common Sense, and the program Going to College and Paying for it Online Video and Workbook  is the brain child of mom and college financial aid consultant Denise Ames.  Her goal with this program is to simply make sense of the financial aid process, help you navigate it efficiently and show you how to get as much "free" money as you can to send your child to college. 

Her program falls into two parts really.  The first is her website and her free monthly newsletters and lessons plans.  By signing up on her website you will receive a monthly newsletter with helpful ideas and goals to work on.  The weekly lesson plans that are sent to you get more specific on certain things you should try to accomplish that week or month.  For example- attend a college fair or fill out the FAFSA.  She also often references free videos to watch that are easily located on her site. 

Here is what is unique to these lesson plans as well as Denise's program- she breaks the assignments into four age groups- Seniors, other highschoolers, Middle school students  and Elementary school students.  Yes, even the younger kids can participate in this program.  So if the assignment is go visit a college campus, the assignment for the younger kids may be to come back and draw what they saw in their notebooks, while the older students will be focused on the details such as what majors the school offered.

The second part of the program is the DVD and workbook that can be purchased through College Common Sense.  The DVD consists of 6 video lessons, each lasting about 20-30 minutes:

The Big Picture

How Financial Aid Works

All About Free Money

The System That Works

You in the Process

Pull it all Together

There are several pages of notes in the workbook that correspond with each video lesson as well as additional worksheets for some.  Denise recommends that just the parent watch the videos in the case of younger students, but having teens watch independently or with you.  Though most of what you read in the workbook she repeats in the videos, I think the auditory learner in all of us will benefit from seeing it presented in two different mediums.

So how did we work through this-
My 9th grader and I watched the videos, sometimes together and sometimes separately to get the idea for the week.  We then picked one or two of the activities that Denise recommended to work on for a few days.  I found that one of the things we learned about that was an AHA! moment for us was the scholarship binder.  While we did apply to scholarships with my oldest, I felt we were rather willy nilly with the process and definitely could have stood to be more organized.  By creating a binder with 12 tabs, Denise gives you the organizational tool and many tips on how to aim for completing one "good" scholarship a month.  Just think, if you start as a freshman or sophomore, that is a lot of scholarships you can apply for with minimal stress to your child and no last minute scrambling.  Denise even says that there are scholarships out there for kids to earn as early as elementary school.  Who would have thought!

What did we think-
We had a slow start with this program at first, but I will have to say that by the time we got to the third video  I was sold.  Yes, some of this information you might know, but I would be willing to bet that a lot of it you would have to deliberately set out to find.  Why reinvent the wheel?  Why drive yourself crazy, and believe me you can, when someone else with years of experience can guide you through the often confusing system?   Instead of searching for random scholarships that may or may not be a good fit for your child, Denise gives you several websites to start with, but more importantly helpful hints on not only where to look but how to look for what is the best fit for your child.  Another area that I was especially impressed with was Denise's breakdown of how to write an essay for scholarships.  She gives a simple outline to use that makes the set up a breeze for highschoolers.  Trust me on this, any little hints and techniques you learn can and will make a difference in how cooperative your child will be when it comes time to put in the effort.

Scholarship Binder

What did my child think-
Quite honestly, it overwhelmed her a bit, but it did get her thinking outside the box a little with her likes and dislikes and where she would like to head.  There is a lot of information out there to take in and with a military family there are still a lot of moving parts to consider. I think that by starting this program at an early age and approaching it as an adventure, you could take some of that scariness away.

If college is something you are considering for your child, I would recommend taking some of the work out of the process and allow a veteran in the field of Financial Aid guide you through the process!

Details-
Denise's website, College Common Sense, has free access to lots of information!  Start there!
The Going to College and Paying For It online DVD and workbook that we reviewed can be downloaded for $25.00 for a year's access.  The physical products cost $50.00.



  Disclaimer: I received a free copy of this product through the Schoolhouse Review Crew in exchange for my honest review. I was not required to write a positive review nor was I compensated in any other way. All opinions I have expressed are my own or those of my family. I am disclosing this in accordance with the FTC Regulations.