Testing Deadline Now Extended Beyond November 1st

Hello Home Schoolers, 

About a month ago I wrote to you letting you know that the Oregon Department of Education decided to extend the testing deadline to November 1^st. Last week the Department clarified that the testing deadline was actually extended to November 15^th even though their home school page still says November 1^st. This update may have no significance to many of you because your children have already tested. But for others, having an extra two weeks to get it done takes some pressure off. For this reason, we’ve added a final remote group testing opportunity that will be held on November 15. If you’re interested in reserving a seat for your student to test on that date, the on-line registration form can be found here.

Speaking of getting it done, the first of August marks a sea change for many home school families.  While there is plenty of summer left to enjoy, maybe you’ve noticed the nights are cooler, the evening crickets are sounding off, and the daytime temperatures not so extreme. We’re just a little more aware that the beginning of school is just around the corner. We need to truly start getting ready, not just be thinking about getting ready. 

Add to this awareness the uncertainty of how the coming covid restrictions will impact us, the government pressure to vaccinate, and the blame that’s leveled at you for everything that’s going wrong if your vaccination decision isn’t the same as everybody else’s in your community circle. 

These are unprecedented times for all of us. 

There is a perspective to help you through this. It’s found in Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians. He writes: 

Aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you.

~ First Thessalonians 4:11

Complimenting this perspective is the one found in the well-known Serenity Prayer:

God, grant me the Serenity

To accept the things I cannot change…

Courage to change the things I can,

And Wisdom to know the difference.

God isn’t calling us to be passive, but neither is he calling us to hyper-activity in an attempt to control and live out our lives. When you think about it, Jesus didn’t show up in a big way, with a great display of power or fanfare. He didn’t show up the way we think God would, if he were truly God. But of course, He was God.  Instead, he came in weakness and vulnerability, born in a stable.  He was raised in a little out-of-the way town, and eventually died a death reserved for criminals. 

Anyway, just thinking about this given the daunting circumstances we all face. 

Have a good rest of the summer as you prepare for this next school year. 

Thanks for reading!

Curt Bumcrot, MRE