Who is Neighbor? And Why Does He Need Me?

Another great product from Apologia Ministries!

Who is Neighbor? And Why Does He Need Me?

I am a HUGE fan of this series,  Who is God?  and Who am I? (which I reviewed last year, read about it here) have been transformational in our family!!

Here's a description from their website:

"The third book in the award-winning What We Believe series helps children understand what it means to be salt and light to the world (Matthew 5:13-14). This study will encourage kids to develop a Christlike servant attitude based on these biblical truths: God created me to be a blessing to the world; God chooses to work through me; I can make a difference at home, in my community, and at church; the church is God's family; the church is one body with many gifts; and I am an important member of Jesus' body."

Cost:

$39  - Textbook (beautifully done, hardcover!)
$24 - Notebooking Journal
$8 - Coloring Book

What's your worldview?   How you see the world, and what you believe determines the way you act.  I believe the single most important "subject" to teach in our homes is this - a Christian Worldview.   You cannot miss teaching this, everything else falls into line when you put developing your children's Christian wordlview first!  If we fail to do this, the world will eagerly fill in the blanks for them, you do not want to miss this opportunity to shape the next generation!

So, off the soapbox, and on to the practical... How do We do that?  First, you need to find a partner like Apologia Ministries. They have created a very easy to use - but complete, Christian Worldview Curriculum called the What We Believe Series.

The text is desgined for the elementary student ages 6-14.  You can see a Sample Lesson here.  You customize how you use it to your particular family.  At the Bentz Test Laboratory, we do this all together, with mom reading and numerous pauses for discussion (my favorite teaching method!). But, older students could easily pick this up and work through it independently.

Each lesson begins with The Big Idea, and is followed with short stories, Think About It questions, vocabulary words, Scripture verses to copy and memorize, character traits, prayers, discussion questions, and the final portion of each lessons is a story of an Encounter with Jesus.  Throughout this book you continue to build the House of Truth - a visual model of a Christian Worldview.

My favorite part of this course is the Notebooking Journal.  It is a full-color, spiral bound journal for them to create their personal learning journey.  The Coloring Book is a big hit for my  "littles" to keep them active while we are reading.

I wish I could invite you over for lunch (that's when we read together - I get to do all the talking while they are chewing...)  Who is my Neighbor? And Why Does He Need Me? has sparked so many great discussions and learning moments!  This series does a wonderful job of appealing to all learning styles.  The stories and information are presented in an engaging visual manner.  There are even recipes for your hands-on learners.  (The BBQ Bacon Burger was a big hit!)  The Apologia website has additional resources available to help you as well in their "bookextras" section.

Some of the themes discussed in this book are:

1. Does Anyone Really Need Me?
2. How Can I Make a Difference?
3. Who Is My Neighbor?
4. Why Did God Make Families?
5. What Can I Do For My Country?
6. Why Can't We All Just Get Along?
7. Who Is God's Family?
8. Why Does the Church Need Me?

I HIGHLY recommend this series - we are anxiously awaiting Book 4 of the Series!  See what the other members of the TOS Review Crew thought here.

Disclaimer:
I was sent complimentary copies in exchange for my honest opinion as part of the TOS Review Crew.