Before mass compulsory schooling, students learned to investigate, reason, and form independent attitudes. Today's home educating parents are discovering many exciting ways to get beyond packaged curriculum and experience real books, real experiences, real relationships-real learning!

This workshop is designed for the parent who is considering home education. The first question to ask is "Shall I home school?" We’ll look at the common reasons for home schooling with a focus on how to tell whether it’s right for you. The second question, "How do I begin?" will be answered in a step-by step manner not only showing what needs to be done, but when and how. Finally, we’ll make sure to cover the common questions of "What about socialization?", "What if I don’t feel qualified?", and "What about high school, college, or hard academic subjects like chemistry or trigonometry?"

Watch your step! Those wee ones are learning from everything you do. Betsy will offer encouragement and ideas for mothers of toddlers, especially those balancing their older and younger children’s education.

Today most people think that education is to train a child for a good paying and satisfying job. Is that how we as home educators ought to view education? We have already taken the quirky road of non-conformity by teaching our children at home. Ought we consider something so outrageously daring as to become traditionalists? For thousands of years, until modern 20th century man became “enlightened,” education primarily had one goal in mind. Come find out what that goal was. This foundation of education must be solid in order to have an ordered, civilized person and society. Come learn how to be a trend setter by pursuing traditionalism.

As you homeschool your children, what are your expectations? Are these realistic or false ones? How can you tell the difference between the two? This workshop will discuss this and the dangerous and idolatrous traps homeschoolers can fall into if caught unaware. In the process, a new confidence will be gained to help you raise your children realistically in a very real world.

Raising motivated children starts with the parents. How are you as a parent motivated? How will you model that for your children? But one must step back even further to ask – why are you home schooling? When having that answer clear in your mind, you as a parent-teacher then have a source for your own motivation. Spreading that to your children then becomes easier. As they catch your vision they also will be more motivated. Obedience is another key issue of motivation. Come and discover the many aspects of motivation in this talk which will help you deal with, " Mom, I don't want to do my math today – or ever again."

Have you ever heard someone say “All children are gifts from God” only to roll your eyes and think… “Ha! They don't know what goes on in my house!” If you don't look for God's gifts, you may be missing some of His best. Come laugh and be encouraged to see just what God had in mind when he designed your child. Learn how to see your child through God's spectacles and how to stay focused on God's vision of your child...not the world's.

Has some distortion. Discover the foundational building blocks for a strong homeschool. In this informative class, you will develop a family mission statement, learn how and where to shop, uncover your child's learning style and outline a personal school calendar. Hand-outs include resources, lesson planning and scheduling sheets which are not included on the CD.

Relax. It's easier than you think. This workshop will walk you step-by-step through a simple and easy-to-use method based on phonics and fun combined in a simple game that kids will ask for day after day. The game is learned in one minute but will grow with your child through years of learning. All the materials for this method will cost you less than $2.00

NOTE: There are long periods of silence on this recording while those in the session were filling out personality assessments For some strange reason, you’ve decided to homeschool your children. At the beginning you thought, “This will be great!” Now reality is settling in. You’ve lost your temper twice this week, one of the kids told you they want to go back to public school, and you can’t find the test papers that need grading. You’re thinking,“Maybe I just don’t have the right personality to homeschool my kids. The OTHER homeschoolers I know seem to do it so much better! What’s wrong with me?”

Chris speaks to the hearts of home school fathers and mothers urging them to teach their children what really matters. Chris Klicka calls all homeschoolers to draw closer to the Lord and seek him with their whole heart. As an attorney, Chris Klicka has been battling for the right of parents to homeschool since 1985, and has been battling multiple sclerosis since 1994. He walks the talk as he shows how we must live in light of eternity and make every single day count. As a homeschool father of seven, Chris speaks from both his heart and many years of practical experience. He describes how we must understand suffering and how we are commanded to share the gospel as a family and as individuals virtually everyone we meet. He helps us all to return to our "first love" and establish a close relationship with our Lord and Savior. Chris explains that you're not homeschooling for homeschooling sake, but for the glory and honor of God. We can delegate authority to teach our children to someone else, but we can never delegate the responsibility.

Many people succeed in school but fail in the real world outside. Real education prepares the student for every aspect of life - practical, professional, spiritual, economic, civic. Jesus came not to be served, but to serve. Those things that make us most useful for service add up to a real education.

Chris Klicka, home school attorney and father of seven, will present scores of biblical references which demonstrate how God requires our children to be nurtured and educated. The main purpose of this talk is to help homeschoolers develop a lasting commitment to homeschooling as the means to best train our children in God's ways. He will explain how the agenda and philosophy of the "movers and shakers," past and present, in public education are diametrically opposed to this. Chris will encourage us to keep up the fight and train our children to be leaders of tomorrow who have been taught not only to believe like Christians, but also to think like Christians. Chris will also urge the audience to sound the warning to other Christians to remove their children from the public schools. Chris proves his case very convincingly and this has become one of his most popular talks.

These workshops will be aimed especially towards those planning to start home schooling this fall. The Knopp’s have a passion to help newcomers catch a vision that will sustain them through good times and bad. Disheartened home-educators and those desiring to reestablish their original commitments are also welcome. From intensely challenging to fun and wacky, Mom, Dad, graduates and students will share their perspectives in a down-to-earth style. This presentation is intended to terrify the overly confident and empower the intimidated.

When the Boyers started home educating in 1980, they were typical young parents with the typical misunderstanding of what education is all about. Since then, our two decades of home schooling have brought many suprises - many of them life-changing.

Socializing children means nothing more (and nothing less!) than teaching them how to love others as they love themselves-even in the midst of conflict. Learn how peacemaking can be a key to your children experiencing success in their marriages, churches, careers, and most of all, in their Christian witness.

Parents of children with disabilities experience many challenges associated with having and teaching a child with learning problems. Negative emotions, lack of support and distorted perspectives can keep us from being effective teachers of our children. In this workshop, Mrs. Hensley will discuss the importance of facing challenges honestly as well as look at how these challenges are actually opportunities placed in our lives by God for our spiritual growth.

Have you ever felt overwhelmed with the demands of parenting? Life is certainly a challenge for parents, and especially those who accept the added responsibility of home education. But there are ways to make life easier and more productive, and this workshop discusses some of those. Marilyn Boyer, mother of fourteen children and a veteran home educator of twenty-two years' experience, shares her techniques for accomplishing a mammoth amount of housework while giving her children a superior education at the same time.

It's a blessing but it can be stressing! Home schooling with tiny ones around the house is a special challenge, but one that many moms handle with great success. Come hear how Marilyn Boyer, mother of 14 and a homeschooler of 22 years' experience, makes her little ones a valuable part of the team!