We’ve finished the Open House blitz over here at our house:  Three open houses at two different schools in three days.

We met our teachers, turned in our school supplies, compared class schedules with friends, opened lockers, navigated new hallways, and filled out forms–lots and lots of forms.

Now we’re back to enjoying four more days of summer break before the big yellow bus arrives on Tuesday for the first day of school.

Maybe you have kids who have already headed back to school for the year.  Maybe you’re like me with the brand new backpacks lined up and ready to go for next week.

Maybe you’re a teacher….or a praying grandma….or a young mom thinking about schooling options for her little ones.

There are so many great resources out there for homeschooling parents, which is fantastic for my many homeschool friends!  You can Google and Pinterest search away to find support, encouragement, practical tips, and curriculum ideas.

But for those of  us who have chosen a traditional school setting for our kids, there aren’t always as many resources available.  In our time as a Christian family in our local public schools, I’ve searched for books , prayers, tips and encouragement and found a few gems.  They are reminders that our kids can be blessed in these schools and our families can be a blessing there, as well.

Here are some of my discoveries:

Books

• Going Public:  Your Child Can Thrive in Public SchoolWhen I was first praying over whether to homeschool or send my kids to  public school, I found this book and read it all the way through in a weekend–no small feat with three kids five and under!  I just soaked up all of the encouragement that I wasn’t dooming my kids to failed faith and failed futures by sending them to school.

• Send Help, My Precious Baby is Now in Middle School

For those with tweens and teens in middle school, Jessie Clemence has put together a devotional just for you!

• Moms in Prayer, Standing in the Gap for Your Children

Fern Nichols from Moms in Prayer International has written a few books on praying for your kids.

• Mom’s Little Book of Powerful Prayers

Check out the prayers on pages 102-140 in Mom’s Little  Book of Powerful Prayers reminders that God  is carrying our children.

Websites:

• Moms in Prayer International has meant so much to me.  When my kids first went off to school, I met with a few other moms once  a week to  pray for them, their teachers and school staff members, and their classmates.  I needed that weekly encouragement from other moms and that time of focused prayer.  Even though I’m not in a group now, I continue to be blessed by their resources.   They have prayer guides  on their website and prayer prompts they share on Facebook.
  https://momsinprayer.org/
  https://www.facebook.com/MomsInPrayerInternational/ 
• Kim Harms wrote an article called, Christian Kids in Public Schools, for Today’s Christian Women that shares her heart and perspective on choosing the public schools for their family.
  http://www.todayschristianwoman.com/articles/2014/july-week-5/christian-kids-in-public-school.html
• See You at the Pole, especially for tweens and teens, encourages students to gather at their flag pole for prayer.  This year’s event is Wednesday, September 27th.
  http://syatp.com/ 
  https://www.facebook.com/myseeyouatthepole/?ref=br_rs
• 10  Ways to Bless  a Teacher over at “Teaching Sam & Scout” has some thoughtful ideas.  After all, our teachers give so much to  our kids!  Let’s find ways to encourage them.
  http://www.samandscout.com/10-ways-to-bless-a-teacher/
• 5 Ways to Bless a Teacher:  I have my own little list  of ways to be a blessing  to the teachers in our lives.  I hope you find some encouragement here!
  https://heathercking.org/2013/07/29/back-to-school-5-ways-to-bless-a-teacher/ 
• If you’re looking  for information on what students are legally allowed to do in public schools when expressing their faith, check out Students Don’t Have to Leave Their Faith at Home from the Alliance Defending Freedom.
  https://www.adflegal.org/issues/religious-freedom/k-12/overview 

Prayer Prompts and bible verses:

Here are some of the prayer prompts and Bible verse collections I’ve created to help me focus in prayer during my kids’ school year.  I hope you find some that are helpful!

• 5 Prayers for Our Schools
• 5 Prayers for a New School Year
• Bible Verses About Praying for Children
• Praying for our Kids Around the Clock
• Bible Verses to  Encourage Those Who Teach