Today we are going to talk about our core values.
I'll be honest. We didn't come up with this set of core values on our own. Kevin and I adopted them from the United States Air Force.
It wasn't as random as it sounds, I promise.
You see, when Connor was just a wee lad (snark) he came up with his life plan. It's a doozy. But it includes plans to go to the Air Force Academy, so Kevin and I looked it up. While doing some research, we stumbled upon their core values, which we adopted as our own.
So, here are our official Homeschooling and Family Core Values:
Integrity First.
Service Before Self.
Excellence in All We Do.
The integrity part helps us remind them to be honest. There is no cheating at board games or Pokemon. There is no lying to mommy about whether or not you hit your brother. You have to keep your word when you promise to put on your eye patch after lunch without complaining.
Service before self is useful in reminding them to help out around the house with things like putting trash in the trash can, putting dirty laundry in the hamper and putting dirty dishes in the sink. I could also use this one to remind them that they need to do their homeschooling before playing, but we are trying not to make the homeschool work seem so much like a chore.
Excellence in all we do is one I cite frequently. Often Connor already knows something, so he will simplify whatever worksheet we are working on. Instead of writing a word in a blank, he'll just draw a line from the word to the place that it belongs. Sometimes I let him get away with it, but if I want that to serve as his printing practice, I'll have to re-explain the directions and ask him for excellence. Then he will usually cooperate willingly. Also, it's a reminder that projects should be finished to completion. This is great for managing distractions.
Even if no one here ever ends up at the Air Force, these core values seem like good choices for raising the boys to be good people.
No comments:
Post a Comment