Hooks ISD is the newest school district in our area to adopt Lifewise Academy as a part of its weekly learning opportunities for students, thanks in part to a mom that saw the need for students to learn about a Christian lifestyle.
LifeWise classes focus on core themes of the Bible, what we refer to as the “main and plain things” of Scripture, with emphasis on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Each lesson reviews a Bible passage as well as a “Living LifeWise” character trait, such as respect, love or kindness.
Kristin Smith is the local director of the program in Hooks, and she says that she saw the need for her own children and took it to the next level.
Smith was born and raised in Hooks and now has her own junior high age children in the district. She calls herself just a mom that wanted more for her kids and the opportunity arose to bring Lifewise to Hooks and she jumped on it.
Her pastor at New Covenant Life Church in New Boston, Ron Humphrey, was instrumental in bringing the program to New Boston, and has been a great help to Smith and the rest of those starting the program in Hooks.
The Hooks program will start this year on October 19 and will be held on Mondays following. They will have 1st and 2nd grade this year and hope to add 3rd and 4th grade next year with plans to elevate it up to junior high in future years.
The 1st grade teacher for Lifewise will be Emily Thomes, and Amanda McBride will see the 2nd grade students in the program. Children will be taken during school hours just down the road to Myrtle Springs Baptist Church for their Lifewise Academy classes, where Pastor Kyle Peters welcomes the opportunity to host the Lifewise students.
Smith told the West Bowie Post, “For me personally, my kids grew up at home, we were a homeschool family. I was nervous about putting them in public school, but we decided to take a leap of faith and enroll them in Hooks.
Junior high age kids are more self-conscious than the younger kids, and the world is a hard place, and we thought about pulling them back to homeschool. But then the opportunity came up with Lifewise and we thought, what if the right call is not to pull them out of school but rather to put Jesus in the school.”
She continued, “Everyone at the school has been so supportive. The principal even came to me and asked what we needed so could pray for us.”
The program held a Lifewise 101 last week to inform the public about all that the program offers and Smith says they had a great turnout with three local churches represented.
If you want to learn more about the Lifewise Academy program in Hooks, check out their Facebook page found at www.facebook.com/lifewisehooksor go to lifewise.org
