ARE YOU READY…TO RAISE AN ADULT?

At Indian Rocks Christian School, we are deeply committed to our Portrait of a Graduate. Cultivating sound minds, servant hearts, and skilled hands is not a slogan—it is how we prepare students to pursue God’s call on their lives in any industry or ministry.

But here’s a quiet truth: much of what prepares a student for adulthood happens between the cracks—outside the formal curriculum and beyond what any portrait can fully capture.

I was reminded of this in June of 2023 while attending a college parent orientation for one of our children. The vice president leading the session spoke candidly about the habits and skills that lead to student success—and the consequences when they’re absent. What struck me most was this: nearly everything he shared would have been far more helpful if I’d heard it years earlier.

So, wearing two hats—as the Head of School who deeply believes in our mission, and as a parent of three Christian school graduates navigating life well (all glory to God, and deep gratitude to their incredible mother)—I want to share a few practical encouragements with you.

Here’s the guiding principle behind these recommendations: help your child experience adulthood a little sooner than makes you comfortable. Often, our comfort as parents unintentionally slows our children’s readiness to grow. Below are twelve ways to help prepare them well.

Twelve Ways to Help Your Child Grow Toward Adulthood

• Require your student to read books.
  Regular reading is a key differentiator for high-functioning college students and lifelong learners.
• Teach your student to take notes—especially at church.
  Note-taking builds focus, reflection, and retention, all essential adult skills. Church is a great place to do it! 
• Have your student make their own appointments.
  Calling, scheduling, and documenting commitments is an increasingly rare—but vital—skill.
• Insist on professional email communication.
  Don’t let them become 20-year-olds who type ‘lol’ and ‘bro’ into their emails. The habits they form now will shape future opportunities.
• Encourage handwritten thank-you notes.
  Gratitude nurtures humility and strengthens relationships while building emotional intelligence. 
• Make your student get a job.
  Few things accelerate maturity like meaningful work and responsibility. It did for our children, and I believe it will for yours as well. 
• Teach basic financial responsibility.
  Have them pay a small bill. Due dates—and money due on those dates—are real.
• Teach ownership of outcomes.
  Grades are earned, not given. This mindset matters far beyond school.
• Talk about sex early, appropriately, and biblically.
  God designed it as a gift for marriage, and you should be the first voice they hear about it. 
• Confront excuse-making with grace and truth.
  Life is challenging, but it is not out to get them.
• Teach them to ask, “Is this the wise thing to do?”
  Pausing for wisdom often changes outcomes.
• Share your own faith journey.
  Your salvation testimony gives them a framework for their own walk with Christ.

What a blessing it is to partner with you in the sacred work of Christian education at IRCS. We are grateful for your trust and encouraged by the way you are shaping your children. It is a privilege to watch them grow into who God is calling them to be on our campus each day. 

God bless & Go Eagles!