Reasons to Send Your Kid to a Lutheran School

A few years ago, I wrote this blog about why our family loves Lutheran schools. Every year, this post circulates among Lutheran educators and parents. I’m so glad for those of you who also love your Lutheran school.

But today I have a whole new appreciation for our Lutheran school. You see, our daughter, Catie, is an eighth grader and will soon graduate from our beloved Westlake Preparatory Lutheran School. This is hard because the teachers and Christian community at her school have been some of our greatest blessings. Because of the teachers’ call to share the Gospel, Catie has not only survived school, she has thrived.

We’re not sure where Catie will go to school next year. We have several good Christian schools in our city, the public schools are among the best in the state, and we know dozens of homeschooling families who would welcome Catie into their cohorts.

Wherever Catie chooses for high school, we will help her to continue to grow in what she learned at Westlake. Thanks to these years at our Lutheran school, Catie is secure that she is a unique child of God who is loved and celebrated for her specific gifts.

For that reason—and for the reasons below—we love Lutheran schools.

If you do too, share this post. Spread the word that Lutheran schools are still all about Jesus . . . and that makes all the difference in this world.

5. It’s National Lutheran Schools Week!

For one week a year, Lutheran school kids get to ditch their uniforms to dress up like their favorite storybook character or like a hippie from the ’60s.

The really good news about this? If your kid goes to a Lutheran school, they probably wear a uniform the other 180 school days. Uniform = no dressing drama in the busy mornings. Young divas, I’m looking at you.

4. Lutheran school teachers teach because they are called by the Holy Spirit.

If a call from God seems like a really big deal, you’re right. It makes all the difference in the world. Teachers come earlier, stay later, email when your child seems upset or especially ecstatic, pray with your child, visit their students’ homes for dinner, and worship alongside your kids during chapel.

3. In a Lutheran school, your child is not just part of a school, they are part of a rich education history.

Lutheran schools have taught kids—and taught them well—for generations. Your kids’ Lutheran teachers are part of a close-knit group of outstanding educators, doing what they’ve done well for centuries. Teachers and administrators gather together to share teaching ideas, share their faith, and inspire one another. Lutheran schools have thrived for so long because we do education well.

Martin Luther would be so proud.

(Not too proud, though.)

2. Different is better.

More and more public schools are relying on minimum skills tests to evaluate their students and teachers. Here’s the report card on these tests: they are the epic failures of America’s education system.

Many people agree these tests stress out teachers and kids, they don’t accurately measure what kids have learned, and the pressure to perform well short-circuits real learning.

In most Lutheran schools, there are no required state-issued tests, which frees the kids, teachers, and administrators from all that extra stress. It also gives teachers extra time to perform afternoon-long science experiments or to slow down the class until every kid masters the concept. Not surprisingly, teaching to kids instead of to tests works wonders.

1.The most important thing of all: the Gospel!

Kids have deep questions about the Bible, they want to pray about their sick uncle and their family trip, and they like to sing beautiful songs about Jesus. In other words, childhood is about developing academically and physically, yes. But most important, childhood is about growing spiritually. Lutheran schools nurture each child’s spiritual growth. Teachers start class with prayer, they teach kindness from the example of Jesus, and they help kids articulate and defend their faith. The most important thing of all is that Lutheran Schools teach the children the good news of their Savior Jesus. They help children understand their need for forgiveness and the wonderful news that Jesus lived perfectly in their place, died for them, and rose again, so that they too will receive the gift of eternal life. If there was only one reason to send your kid to a Lutheran school, this would be it.

But let me tell you, those uniforms are also really nice.

This post previously appeared on the author's blog, christinasbooks.com.

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