The teaching of “thinking skills” has become big in education in the past few years. Although we believe God wants our children (and US!) to learn to think correctly, in fact Romans 12:1-2 tells us that our way of thinking HAS to be CHANGED, as usual I think “school” (the mentality, whether in a government or Christian institution, or at home) has gone about this all wrong. There is a place for Formal Logic and Reasoning to be learned by some – mature teens and adults, but generally, I don’t believe children need to be taught “thinking skills” as a separate class subject.
It’s not that we don’t think it’s important, but rather we believe learning to reason properly is a part of LEARNING in ALL subjects, actually all aspects of Life. It is through the application of gaining Wisdom, in ALL of Life. It isn’t a separate, fragmented class to take, just as “Christian Education” isn’t tacking a Bible class onto your academic curriculum list. It is impermeating, and basing ALL that you learn, with and ON God’s Word. “Wisdom is the principal thing,” for wisdom is thinking God’s thoughts, and there is no higher Logic.
We really don’t focus on “thinking skills” as such, but rather developing a Biblical Worldview, which is just another way of saying “thinking God’s thoughts”. It’s having the same view of an aspect of Life that God Himself has of it. We think this is the most important thing we teach, and our goal in training and teaching our children – beyond loving and knowing Jesus personally, of which this is a part.
I think we’re doing a great job in “giving” our children a Biblical World, through reading that imparts the Scriptural view of things, and our own modeling of “Biblical thinking”. It truly is something WE must develop in our own lives first. Most of us have been thoroughly indoctrinated by our own education and just living in society with a humanist, even Marxist, and definitely unbiblical way of thinking. Many, perhaps MOST, of today’s Christians – even Evangelical Christians – have not renewed their minds and been transformed out of this mindset. We allow this mindset to not only remain in us, but it’s ever increasingly anti-scriptural view to set our children’s way of thinking, too.
That’s why, in several of the last few posts, in talking about “where do we begin?”, I’ve stressed that the parent’s reeducation must be the foundation. Although these articles have focused on transforming our view of EDUCATION, our renewing can’t stop there. Our way of thinking must be transformed in ALL areas – not just education. God has a view and His Word has the answer for EVERY area of life. As Marshall Foster, of the Mayflower Institute says, our goal is not to just raise kids who aren’t pregnant and on drugs by age 18. It’s to raise World Changers, for the glory of God. To do this we must have a transformed, Biblical Worldview AND impart that into our children.
4 simple steps taken from Marshall Foster give us the guidelines to this:
1. Teach the mighty deeds of God – that is History as His Story, the workings of God throughout the ages. Read Psalm 78. Verses 4-7 say: “We will not hide them from their children, telling to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength and His wonderful works that He has done. … which He commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children; that the generation to come might know them, the children who would be born, that they may arise and declare them to their children, that they may set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments; …”
2. Read original biographies. These are the true original stories of people’s lives and how God worked in them, including the futility of those without faith in God; not a dumbed-down, politically correct, revisionists view of someone’s life. Read Hebrews 11. 1 Cor. 10:11 says: “Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.”
3. “Bad company corrupts good morals.” 1 Cor. 15:33 According to the Word, your children will turn out like who they spend much time with, and other’s bad morals will rub off much faster than your child’s good morals will rub off on them. This includes real people of course, but also TV, computer or video games, and even reading books that have a non-biblical view. Pro. 13:20 “He who walks with wise men shall be wise, but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” I could go on and on here, but would undoubtedly get off on a rabbit trail that I will cover more thoroughly in another post. Hint: It has to do with Wisdom and Fearing God, the whole basis of a Biblical Worldview.
4. Make life and home a joyful revolution. Home is the center for God’s dynasty and the basic tool for God’s kingdom to be built. You are the center focus of this. Make your home the center of YOUR and YOUR FAMILY’S LIFE. Make it a joyful place to be. Model Biblical “gender” roles. Develop an atmosphere – provide a good library, historically 60% theology, 40% history. Build culture yourself – paraphrasing Dr. Spurgeon, “Set yourself on fire and your kids will come to watch you burn.” As I said, MODEL IT! God has a purpose and plan, not just for YOUR life, but for your DYNASTY – those you disciple. Deut. 6:3-7 says: “YOU fear the Lord your God, keep all His statutes and His commandments… be careful to observe it,…these words shall be in YOUR HEART. You shall teach them diligently to your children ….” Pro. 22:6 says: “train up a child” – this is a word picture of passing on YOUR tastes and culture to your children. Make sure they are GOD’S! – the way they SHOULD go. There is far more said to our husbands than us moms on this, but Pro. 14:1 says: “The wise woman builds her house…” And Pro. 31:26: “She opens her mouth with wisdom, …”
As I said, by modeling this and giving our children great reading based on a Biblical Worldview, they will *HAVE* a Biblical Worldview. But will they be able to REASON from this worldview? I believe THAT training takes a little more than just reading and having modeled to him. Hebrews 5:14 says: “Solid food belongs to those who are mature, that is those who by reason of use (practice) have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.” To do this, we must (and must teach our children to) not just read, but also study and “exercise their senses”. Their reasoning skills aren’t developed just by hearing, but also by practicing. This is accomplished through the 6 Processes of Learning:
1. Receive – taking in information.
2. Record/ Recite – record that information through quoting and through their own words, “parroting back” through Copywork, Recitation, Oral or Written Narration.
3. Ruminate – “to chew on”, think about the new info, relate it to what we already know.
4. Reason/ Relate – to actually process the information and make judgement on it. We MUST have the foundation of Wisdom through God’s Word in order to do this. The 4R method used in the Principle Approach, through Researching what the Word has to say on a topic, “exercises our senses to discern,” causing Wisdom to be gained. God “has given to us ALL things that pertaining to Life and godliness…” 2 Peter 1:3
5. Respond – this is the step of deciding what to do with the information. Toss it totally if it doesn’t line up with Biblical Truth. Keep the “baby” but throw out the “bathwater”, if there is some Truth buried in man’s faulty understanding. Embrace it and make it our own – if it totally lines up with Biblical Truth.
6. Release – communicate the results of the above process, sharing what we’re learned – through discussion, essays, teaching others, etc.
We must TRAIN our children how to walk through this Process of Learning, but it is done through whatever learning they are doing, not through separate “classes” on it.
So, while there is a place for learning Formal Logic and Reasoning “techniques”, I am far more concerned with my children developing a strong Biblical Worldview through ALL that they learn, to not only live their own lives by, but to also be able to present, through God-given Wisdom, from His Word and His Grace (supernatural empowering), His Truth to all who may “ask for a reason for the hope that is in them.”
Proverbs 4:7: “Wisdom is the PRINCIPAL thing, therefore get Wisdom and with all your getting get understanding.” Proverbs 9:10: “The FEAR OF THE LORD is the beginning of Wisdom..” And Wisdom is having a Biblical Worldview. Joshua 1:8 “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” That is probably the key to what we all want for our children (and our own lives), that they/we would be prosperous and successful in God’s eyes, and that comes from developing a Biblical Worldview, by knowing God’s thoughts and thinking like Him.
