school/church

[janny108]

We tried homeschooling for Ashley who is 12. There are no other kids at home. Well it wore me out, plus there are no kids to hang out with. So she is going back to school in Aug.

Also how can we get her interested in youth at church? She does not really know anyone.

 

[lucypevensie]

Is she a shy kid? Does she not want to go to church? It's hard to have to go to church when you feel that no one even cares that you're there or not. It's a common issue in many church youth groups. I remember my mom forcing me to go to youth group, and then I just sat by myself and no one talked to me. I hated going. But when my friends also started going then I started to love youth group. Would she be more interested in going if she could bring a friend?

Maybe there's a particular ministry she could help out with that would help her feel valuable. Getting my kids involved with a ministry has helped them to enjoy church more. The deal is that they must go to their class first, and then afterwards they can help out in the kitchen where coffee is served. They LOOOVE working in the kitchen (wish they loved working in the kitchen at home, but whatever...). At our church, it is actually highly recommended that teens are involved in a church ministry on a regular basis. It is so good to see teens working in the nursery, playing music for services, and serving coffee instead of just huddling in the back pews passing notes.

 

[Decaffeinated]

Talk to the youth pastor about your concern. He might know of someone in the youth group to pair her up with.

 

[LarissaLeeper]

I tried the homeschool thing with my son, wore me OUT too, so I feel your pain. I think the above suggestions were great. Ask all of your resources at church/friends.

 

[ex-pat]

Does your church have a large youth group? Perhaps you could organize and host a trip to someplace out of the ordinary (and inexpensive). I don't know what your local resources are like, but here some inexpensive options would be to do a tea party in a Victorian mansion, apple picking, or a hay ride or sleigh ride depending on the season. If your daughter likes to sing, ask for volunteers to practice Christmas carols at your house (with hot chocolate and cookies) and finish by taking a group carolling at a nursing home (pre-arrange this) to finish with a party at your house. Other options include volunteering to lead a group to historical sites (many places have free tours) or go geo-caching...again, if you volunteer to put a notice up and host events your daughter is interested in, you could have fun events that she'd have a place in creating, and a tailor-made group of potential new friends from her church youth group that share her interests. Sometimes that's easier than facing a large group and trying to figure out who shares your interests.