Contact Information
Spring Hill, TN 37174
msteinhauer21@gmail.com
(615) 569-1972
jerstein97@gmail.com
(615) 509-0774
Faith & Philosophy
I have had multiple trials and traumas in my life, including losing my teen brother in an accident, losing my sister and mother to cancer, and surviving a serious car accident on the interstate. Through these trials and more, I’ve realized that I need His help daily, and He is all I need. I have experienced God to be loving, to the point of even using friends to remind me of His love, speak directly to my heart and pour blessings upon me. He has miraculously protected my life and my son’s life, provided for us and our businesses in only ways that HE can. I’ve learned He is always present and even closer still in the valleys. When I am listening and willing, the Holy Spirit nudges me to stop and pray for someone or randomly bless someone.
I want something completely different for my son than what I had. I went to a public high school, and even took "Honors English", but I felt completely unprepared for English in college. My husband was homeschooled and loved his faith-based education. I want my son to have an education where everything is taught through the lens of scripture, and he's encouraged to love and be excited about learning new things. I want him to learn how to think critically, reason persuasively, communicate effectively, and lead with integrity.
We read a story from his childrens bible every night, help him read and memorize scripture. We teach him to be kind and love others like Jesus. We aim to be an example of prayer to him, showing him that we can bring anything to God, big or small. We pray with him, pray over him, and allow him to see/hear us pray for others.
Academically, I want him to learn that he can do hard things, and he can do more than he *thinks* he is capable of. I want to see him excel in what seems to be his favorite subjects right now- math and reading. I hope that he remains excited about and grows to love learning. I want him to learn how to think clearly and critically, reason persuasively, communicate effectively, and lead others well, with integrity. Spiritually, I hope that he will grow closer to God while at Saints Classical, knowing that God is the Creator of all. I hope he makes it a habit to refer to scripture for truth and guidance in any situation he faces and that he would enjoy reading the Bible regularly on his own. be surrounded by peers who can walk and learn alongside him, while growing closer with God, encouraging and sharpening each other. Socially, I hope he can form strong friendships with his classmates that he can carry on for years. I hope that he is kind and helpful to classmates and teachers, and exhibits the love of Jesus.
A Christian classical education uses a biblical framework to understand everything. Students are taught how to learn, think critically, reason pursuasively, and speak effectively. It teaches them how to love learning and grow with the Lord, keeping their love for God a priority.
We seem to bring a combination of authoritative and reflective parenting philosophies in our household. We set rules and firm limits, and explain the why briefly. I try to prioritize relationship and communication, responding to an emotion by comforting him if needed, asking questions and trying to understand the behavior and emotion. I want to walk beside him and help him learn how to self-regulate.
Students (1)
Gavin Steinhauer Pre-K → Kindergarten
He is finishing up his last year (preschool) at Spring Meadows Academy.
Gavin is talkative and doesn’t seem shy. He is pretty happy, but sometimes emotional. He’s honest and kind and learning to share. He likes to say hi to everyone and ask questions. He likes to play by himself or with friends. He likes to help me and help his little brother. Sometimes, he’s a little loud (especially when excited) and needs a reminder to quiet down. He likes to take things apart and figure out how they work. He is interested in the solar system and planets, anything outer space and even tell you facts about planets. He likes to sing songs with me, like the rainbow song, and can tell you the proper order of colors in a rainbow! He likes educational shows on Youtube like Numberblocks and Blippi. His favorite thing is to have people read books to him daily. Now, he enjoys trying to read books himself. He likes to play with his toys and with his younger brother and cousin and friends in the neighborhood. He loves to jump on his trampoline and swing and slide on his playlet, ride his bike and play with playdough.
He’s very interested in numbers and math, including counting, addition, subtraction. We’ve even talked a little about multiplication and counting money. He’s also interested in and always excited about doing experiments at home with me. He also enjoys the alphabet, learning about phonics, mixing colors, coloring with crayons, cutting paper and cardboard. He just began having “homework” with preschool this semester and he is usually excited about it and completes it all in one sitting, with minimal help from me. He will spend awhile and work hard on an activity, especially if it’s one he enjoys. He likes to stay until he figures something out/finishes what he’s doing. He needs encouragement sometimes if it’s something he hasn’t done often or is still hard for him to do. I help him through it. We remind him that he CAN do it and he can do hard things. Then when he accomplishes the task, he is really proud of himself.
Some days, he’s able to switch his behavior pretty quickly, and only needs a reminder. Sometimes, he needs a few reminders. Then he says “ok” and tries to listen and do better. He seems to respond best to having a toy or item taken away if he is not using it properly or in a kind way. He may not even cry. He may just say “ok.” He might also be removed from a situation, and in that case, he would be sad and cry. If he’s taken away from friends because he’s not playing nicely, he gets upset. But I comfort him and help him move onto another activity. When he has tv time taken away for the day, he tends to be ok with it and moves on. Sometimes, he’s a little emotional about it. With something more serious, where he needs a spanking, he usually cries, and we help him calm down, hug him and remind him that we love him. We reiterate what we expect of him, and discuss a better way to respond in that situation or a better way to handle his emotions, or remind him to ask for help.