Have you ever had a war break out in the middle of history or read aloud to a child sitting upside down? You may be teaching a boy! Research shows that boys and girls learn differently. Understanding the differences can help to preserve the love of learning and the academic confidence of our sons: the early birds, the late bloomers, and the boys who would really just rather not. Understanding what they need at different ages – before school, as young learners, in the middle school years, and in high school can make us better homeschool parents and make them better students. Come and hear from parents who’ve homeschooled six boys from the beginning and graduated four so far, the award-winning authors of Raising Real Men, as they share solid research and practical advice on how to turn wiggle worms into scholars – and enjoy doing it!

People complain all the time that their children are lazy and unmotivated, but only 28% of American families give their children any chores at all. At all. We teach our children right from wrong, we teach our children to read and write but forget to teach them how to work. God gave us no choice. With eight bedrest pregnancies and then a full-time ministry and business, we had to get the kids on board or drown. Come get practical strategies for teaching your children to be diligent – to get their schoolwork done, to do chores, to take initiative, and to be confident in their abilities – at all ages. Help your kids to get out of the wagon and start pulling it, cheerfully. Really, you can do it!

How do you teach a young man to keep his way pure when the red-light district is riding around in his shirt pocket – or his friend’s? How can you help a boy think about the future when all he wants to do is game all day? Media addiction and porn are derailing young men at a rate that is hard to even believe. Learn how to teach your sons a healthy, Biblical attitude toward entertainment and sexuality. Prepare them to make it a matter of honor to practice self-control, do what’s right, and have healthy relationships with girls. Get them in the fight because there are no bystanders in this battle, and we don’t want our sons to lose. The stakes are too high.

We may hope our kids are really smart, but what happens when they are? It’s intimidating homeschooling a kid who’s racing ahead and seems to need more. Can you really meet his needs or would he be better off with professionals? How can you help her fit in socially? Should he graduate early or not? Hal & Melanie both went through gifted programs in school and now, having raised precocious children of their own, they have the insider’s perspective about the academic, social, and spiritual needs of talented kids. Learn how to teach, parent, and enjoy your bright kids!

So many parents ask, “Why doesn’t my son enjoy reading? I want him to love it!” We look at ways to help your boys read better (because it’s hard to love it when it’s hard!), enjoy reading more, and find joy in stories and in research. From the parents of six adult sons, all of whom learned (eventually) to love reading! Many boys struggle with writing, too. They complain that it's too hard, that they can't think of anything to write, that they don't know why they have to do it anyway. Hal & Melanie homeschooled all six of their boys all the way through. Their boys learned to love writing and won writing awards. You can pull it off, too!

Fear-based parenting drives us to make bad decisions despite the best of intentions. We choose curricula based on what our friends are doing, not what our kids need, because we're scared they'll miss something. We micromanage our teens because we're afraid they'll make mistakes. We stress and worry and can't sleep at night. Why do we fall so easily into the what-ifs? God has not given us a spirit of fear. This eye-opening session will point you to the real source of security and hope and free you to do what is best for your children no matter what anyone else is doing. Step up and take courage!

When do you get started, and what do you do first? We've had precocious readers and late bloomers, but every one of them has benefited from being homeschooled from the beginning. Find out how to know when each child is ready for formal academics, how to get started, and what homeschooling looks like for young children. Learn to relax and introduce your little ones to the joy of learning in a gentle and realistic way that will prepare them to succeed academically.

The turmoil of the tween/preteen years between nine and thirteen usually catches parents by surprise. Diligent students become addled and distracted. Kids raised in church start questioning the existence of God. Sweet children seem to climb on an emotional roller-coaster—and then invite you to join them. Don't get a ticket for that ride! Instead, learn to resist the temptation to lose it yourself and to shepherd our children through this challenging age with this funny and all-too-real workshop—and lay a foundation to make the teen years great!

When you get to the end of your homeschooling, and your child leaves home, things get real. At that point, the only thing you'll have is relationship: their relationship with God and their relationship with you. Learn about encouraging research that highlights the critical importance of relationships in the spiritual life of our children, find out how to rebuild strained relationships, and get practical help to build the kind of relationship that will last through adulthood. Hal & Melanie's six oldest children have grown up and left home, and are their best friends.

So many parents ask, "Why doesn't my son enjoy reading? I want him to love it!" In this session, we'll look at ways to help your boys read better, enjoy reading more, and find joy in stories and in research. What's more, we'll talk about ways to help your son over his hurdles with writing assignments. Melanie homeschooled all six of her boys from the beginning, and all of them eventually loved to read and won awards for their writing, too.

In spite of what the culture is telling us, boys and girls are different. Have you ever had a war break out in the middle of a playdate or had a single math lesson take three hours? Then, you’re probably raising boys! If the world seems intent on gender-bending and forcing our sons into a feminized mold, Hal and Melanie, parents of six boys, explain the Biblical way out – and a better way to turn wild little dirt-lovers into strong Christian men!

No matter how much we avoid it, we’re surrounded by the messages of media, from our computers to songs on the radio. Learn how to teach your children discernment, protect them from being manipulated by the messages around them, and instead to engage their culture for Christ.

When do you get started and what do you do first? We’ve had precocious readers and late bloomers, but every one of them has benefited from being homeschooled from the beginning. Learn to relax and introduce your little ones to the joy of learning in a gentle and realistic way that will prepare them to succeed academically.

It makes no sense to pour our lives into homeschooling, only to stumble at the finish line. We’ve got to pass the baton of Christian adulthood to our children and it can’t happen overnight. Hal and Melanie talk about this critical time in our children’s lives and how to transition from the benevolent dictator our 11-year-olds need, to the trusted advisor of our adult children. Let’s all finish well and prepare our sons and daughters to be servants of the Most High, even when we can’t make them any more!

Many purity resources these days focus on girls, but purity tends to be a much larger problem for young men, and many parents seem hopelessly naïve about the battles their sons are facing. In a time when over 90% of teens have been exposed to Internet pornography, how can we teach our boys to keep their way pure? What can we do when temptation is lurking on friends’ phones and beckons just a click away? How can we give them a Biblical contact for sexuality–from their toddler years to adulthood? Come hear the parents of six sons give you frank, practical advice on raising your son to be a virtuous knight.

Find out why Thomas Jefferson wrote at a standing desk, how a whiteboard can turn on a light bulb, and why your son does the things he does. Make school more fun for everyone and equip your boy with the learning he needs for manhood.

In spite of what the culture is telling us, boys and girls are different. Have you ever had a war break out in the middle of History, or had a single math lesson take three hours? Then you’re probably raising boys! If the world seems intent on gender-bending and forcing our sons into a feminized mold, Hal and Melanie, parents of six boys, explain the Biblical way out – and a better way to turn wild little dirt-lovers into strong Christian men!

With the average age of first marriage approaching thirty, how can we make sure Christian young people are really prepared for marriage and parenting? It doesn’t happen overnight. How can we navigate the confusing years of singleness and honor God and each other? Should young men and young women be friends? Will I ever get married? Will my children ever marry? Hear Hal and Melanie’s own courtship story and get practical encouragement.

In spite of what the culture is telling us, boys and girls are different. Have you ever had a war break out in the middle of history, or had a single math lesson take three hours? Then you’re probably raising boys! If the world seems intent on gender-bending and forcing our sons into a feminized mold, Hal and Melanie, parents of six boys, explain the Biblical way out – and a better way to turn wild little dirt lovers into strong Christian men. This session will make you appreciate your boys as never before!

Most purity resources these days focus on girls, but purity tends to be a much bigger problem for young men and many seem hopelessly naïve about the battles our sons are facing. Today’s young men grow up with challenges to their purity on every side. In a time when over 90% of teens have been exposed to internet pornography, how can we teach our boys to keep their way pure? What can we do when temptation is lurking on friends' phones and beckons are just a click away? How can we give them a Biblical context for sexuality—from their toddler years to adulthood? Come hear the parents of six sons give you frank, practical advice on raising your son to be a virtuous knight.

It makes no sense to pour our lives into homeschooling only to stumble at the finish line. We’ve got to pass the baton of Christian adulthood to our children, and it can’t happen overnight. Hal and Melanie talk about this critical time in our children’s lives, and how to transition from the benevolent dictator our eleven year-olds need to the trusted advisor of our adult children. Let’s all finish well and prepare our sons and daughters to be responsible adults and servants of the Most High, even when we can’t make them anymore!