Sowing Character
In 2009 Promiseland Academy was introduced to the concept of Character Sowing. Another group of students prepares to embark on planting godly character in 2019.
Promiseland Academy has been blessed with many free, or almost free, resources from many different places. Yesterday was no exception. A homeschooling newsletter arrived in my inbox, and as usual, there were several freebies to partake of. One of the freebies caught my eye especially, Character-Sowing Cards. Character Sowing Cards? Hmmm. What are those? I wondered. Unable to resist, I clicked on the link. What I found there has been blessing me ever since.
The clicked on link took me to notebookingpages.com a website devoted to the rather obvious topic of notebooking. For those who might not be familiar with that term, notebooking is a highly effective learning method that our homeschool is learning how to utilize. Anyway, there in front of me were Character Sowing Cards. The creator of this marvelous idea had graciously shared them as a free download.
The cards are used in child training, but I think that perhaps this mama will benefit from them as well. The concept behind them is "Sow an Act ~ Reap a Habit, Sow a Habit ~ Reap a Character, Sow a Character ~ Reap a Destiny." The top of each card carries the words "I AM, I CAN, I OUGHT, I WILL" across it . The graphics on the card are tasteful representations of planting. The center of each card has a space for the parent to either write or place a label with the chore/character being sown into the lives of their child(ren). A sample list of character building habits was also on the site. This is where I rejoiced. The list contained behaviors that we have been "working on" in our house. The godly author of the notebooking site however, had written them so graciously. I'll post a few examples so you can see what I mean.
"NOT BE A HINDRANCE to others during chore time, school time, bed time, or any other time."
"USE KIND WORDS when speaking to my brothers, sisters, and parents"
"Not try to parent others and BE RESPONSIBLE ONLY FOR ME However, if I feel someone is in danger, I will let an adult know."
"Be considerate of my siblings and INCLUDE OTHERS in my activities when at all possible."
"GET UP AND BE READY ON TIME for school, for church, for anything that may be going on that day."
You can get the drift by now I'm sure. Such grace and love are contained in the writing of these instructions. So much nicer than my common "Don't be rude! Take care of yourself. I'll take care of your brothers and sisters." "Don't be so bossy!" "Get yourself out of bed and up and at 'em." Even though I do try very hard to be kind and courteous to my children, I immediately recognized that my everyday comments are seriously lacking in grace. Children tend to learn behavior by observing those in authority over them. My frequent reminders to "let your speech be always seasoned with grace" (Colossians 4:6) will be of no value unless my own speech contains grace.
Thank you Father for revealing this lack of grace to me. Not only have You revealed it, but You have given me an example of grace to show a better way. You are so good to me. How I delight in Your way. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
If you are a parent, grandparent, or children's worker and are interested in checking out the character sowing cards for yourself, head to http://www.notebookingpages.com/. They can be found under the free resources section. There are a number of free resources and printables available as well as resources to purchase. You never know, you might find just the right something to supplement a particular study or give as a Christmas gift. Perhaps you have been wanting something special to use in family worship during the holiday season, this may be just the place to discover it. Enjoy the visit. Hopefully we will be able to bless them too.
Also, the holiday season is rapidly approaching. Don't forget to send in those tips, hints, and ideas for gifts, decorating, and/or recipes. It isn't too late. Our scarecrow is still unassembled, but keep looking. He'll be joining us soon.
Following the busyness of the holidays, we will all be looking for a good read. Send in the titles to your favorite books or books that you want to read this winter for the beating the after holiday blues post. If you have a hobby that you particularly enjoy during the winter please feel free to share that as well.