THIS CLASS IS NOW FULL.
INSTRUCTOR: Alicia Thorson & kids (For teacher bio, please see Here)
EMAIL: Alicia@empowered.academy
TIME: Fall 2020 Fridays 12:00 CT (potentially beginning 1 week later than the start of the EOA school year)
SUGGESTED AGE RANGE: 14+
Course Description:
How many times have you thought “I hope we’ve done enough to prepare them for the real world”? Only a hundred plus times a day, right? Trust me, I’ve been there.
This class is going to help us all out with that.
Having sent our eldest daughter off to college last year, we learned quite quickly which things we neglected to fully prepare her for, & were also pleased to see her succeed, in situations she was ready for.
Having learned from our guinea pig, we are now more equipped to prepare our next three graduates.
In this course, we are going to have a great time learning how to adult!
As my kids and I brainstormed the list of things this course should cover, we realized there is a whole lot of content, and class time is limited. Those things considered, this is how this course is going to work: We are going to spend week one getting to know our new classmates. We will present kids with all of our ideas, as well as gather their ideas. What do they have questions about, or are nervous about facing, as they approach their older high school years? What do they want to learn? We will also welcome parent input-that week, and throughout the course. This way, we can focus on the matters our families most need.
What will class look like?
*Live & interactive: Class attendance is critical to the success of this course. We will not be posting recorded sessions. We are a co-operative learning group, & the benefits to this type of learning are totally lost if kids don’t show up. We will also have an active Facebook group for kids to keep in touch with & post in, throughout the week.
*Interesting: I’m sure some weeks will be more fun than others, but we will aim for powerpoints, engaging videos, games, interactive practices, & lively discussion time, to learn and grow together. Each week, I (Mrs. Alicia) will lead class, along with one of my four teens. We will rotate who is co-teaching, depending on which subject is covered that particular week.
*Practical: This is the KEY to the success of this class. Each week, the kids will have an out-of-class challenge they must complete, in order to receive a Certificate of Completion and suggested grade for this course. Sometimes, a parent or family friend’s assistance will be necessary, to accomplish this. For example, if we are doing a week on Car Maintenance, & the assignment is to tune up & clean the family car, Dad may need to be available, with new oil & windshield wiper fluid, & Aunt Betty may need to loan her car vacuum & sponges, so the car can be made brand-spanking-new that week! (In a nutshell, we need you to be on board with making sure kids can be successful in these challenges.)
Topics covered (but will be slightly adjusted, after that first week, & as we make our way through the class)…
- Loving God (how to grow closer to the Lord, hear His voice, bring Him glory in our daily lives)
- Personal Grooming (hygiene, skin care, laundry & clothing care)
- Social Skills & Manners (conversation practice, writing thank you notes, responding to texts/emails)
- Keeping a Clean & Organized Space (including cleaning bedroom & bathroom, dorm life tips)
- Cooking (including shopping, finding recipes, making a meal plan, & cooking/serving/cleaning up after a meal)
- Car Maintenance (including oil changes/refilling fluids, cleaning car inside & out)
- Childcare & Child Safety (how to entertain kids, stress management, safety measures)
- Getting a Job (having references, applying, making a resume, interview skills, follow-up)
- Finances (creating a money management system)
- Being a Gracious Host (inviting people, hosting a party, starting a grill, making a fire, cooking & serving food outdoors, activities/games)
- Communication (unspoken language, facial expression, posture & gestures, online tips)
- Getting My Life Together (making goals, creating routine & order, career aptitude test, planning studies to align w/goals, college & career research)
- Healthy Relationships (being YOU, being a great friend, finding & keeping close friendships, how to not be a creep, dating)
- Being a Good Citizen (finding joy & purpose through serving others, how to find opportunities to serve in your community, becoming knowledgeable of goings-on, importance of voting)
- Personal Safety (personal defense, being aware, online safety)
- How to Deal with Stress in a Healthy Way (coping strategies, living a healthy lifestyle, managing anxiety, anger, etc.)
Required Resources:
- We will provide everything needed, gathering from many different resources. Access to a Bible (or Bible app) will be important for looking up verses, here or there. On occasion, we will recommend a book or resource, for further learning. This will always be optional.