Recon

Christian Worldview is a new subject that we've added this year for the boys. It was born of a conviction that, while knowledge and intelligence are noble things, they are useless without God. When I sat and wrote out my list of goals and dreams for each child, the most important desire for each child was that they loved God and lived for Him. My top priority as a teacher is to impart a knowledge of God and prepare them to live their faith out in the real world. Recon is a Christian Worldview curriculum geared toward teen-aged students, and does just that.


The material is fully scripture-based. It is not an apologetics course. It takes scripture and applies it toward the internal and reconciles this with the external. The truth is, the challenges they will have to face are spiritual challenges.The books prepares them for this. The "internal" education is not touchy-feely nor self-centered. It prepares them for stepping out in their faith and sharing the truth of God with others. The first half of the book focuses on defensive training. The second half of the book focuses on offensive operations.

The packaging, with its military theme, might cause you to think it is geared toward entertaining teens. This couldn't be further from the truth. It is an intense, no-frills curriculum. Samples are available on their website so that you can get a good feel for the material. The military theme is not an effort to be "catchy" but to convey the concept that we are living in the midst of spiritual warfare.

Teacher preparation time takes about 10 minutes to read through and familiarize yourself with the lesson. The lessons themselves take about an hour to go through with students. This is a long time, but not longer than math, and much more important.  It is well worth the time investment.

The intended age range is 11th-12th grade students. It is equally suited for college-aged students and adults. Younger students can certainly glean a lot of wisdom from the program, but may not be ready to grasp the full benefit of the lessons. The curriculum is designed to prepare older students for the challenges that await in college and in life. I have a very mature 7th grade-aged student and realized it is not a good fit for him. One section of the book discusses what is holding them back from walking through the doorway into adulthood. For my 7th grader, there is plenty, as there should be! He has several years of boyhood left and doesn't need to rush through them. Still, there is a LOT of great information in the program and the boyhood/manhood topic makes for great conversation.

There are 72 lessons included. It is intended to be taught for four days and be a 1-semester course. It could also be used with a youth group taught twice a week, once on Sunday and once in a mid-week service, and last for a year. According to the manual, it is well-geared toward Christian schools or youth groups because of the small group activities included in the lessons, an important part of the learning experience. However, I have two sons working through it and I haven't run across anything that couldn't be adapted to fit us.

The coil-bound student book is available on Lulu for $12.99. The 400-page teacher manual is available for $21.99. This is an amazing price, in my opinion. If you have a group of students learning, you will want to purchase the license and PDF option for $200.

The Recon website contains other helpful features, such as devotionals, links, and the option for students to register and then connect with other Recon graduates when they go to college.

Disclaimer: I received this material in exchange for my honest opinion as a member of the TOS Crew, and received no other form of compensation. For whatever they're worth, the opinions are mine and mine alone, as stated in my disclosure policy.

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