Dads and moms, in all the busyness of life and swell of expert advice, we've forgotten the fundamental truths of homeschooling and family. In short, we’ve forgotten why we do what we do. We have plenty of “how tos” but have forgotten the “why tos” and it evidences itself in our lack of joy of homeschooling, family, and parenting. Join funny guy and familyman, Todd Wilson, as he sets the stage for a great homeschool convention and the best year ever as he brings us back to the basics of what we believe about family and homeschooling. You're not going to want to miss this for the world.

Your house is a disaster, your kids seem out of control, and you wonder how you'll ever make it through another day of school. Your "get up and go" has "gotten up and went". You used to think homeschooling was the best thing since sliced bread, but now you’re feeling like burnt toast. Take heart - you're not alone! No one homeschools because it's easy. You do it because you believe it is best. But there are times when you need to be reminded once again why it's best. Join me as we do just that. You'll laugh and be encouraged in the toughest job you'll ever...love.

Are you new to homeschooling or new to Pennsylvania? Are you thinking about homeschooling at some point in the future? Do you have questions about what homeschooling might look like and how to get started? This session is designed to encourage and equip you to homeschool your children. Topics include: why homeschool, how to get started in PA, a typical day, curriculum, record keeping, testing, portfolios, and evaluations.

The world our children live in today is quite different from the one we grew up in. They are constantly bombarded with post-modernism, which says whatever you want to believe is your “truth.” Now more than ever, we need to provide them with the tools to discern and combat the lies being hurled at them on a daily basis, even as they are being homeschooled. Join me in this session, where we will identify some of these lies and learn what questions to ask to separate truth from deception.

If you have a hyperactive or easily distractible child, you won’t want to miss this informative and sometimes humorous message that shares stories from his experience as an ADHD child himself. You will receive practical and Biblical insights into ADD/ADHD and will be encouraged that there is hope for your child!

Dan breaks down Pennsylvania’s homeschool law in easy-to-understand steps to help you homeschool with confidence. He also highlights legal issues and legislation that impact homeschooling and shares some of the ways he is advocating on behalf of homeschooling families.

I don’t know why what you expect is typically what you get, I just know that it’s true. Since that’s the case it makes sense to understand this powerful reality at work in our world. Understanding the power of expectations changes your relationships, your parenting, your professional life, and ultimately the course of your life. This session will talk about God’s expectations, what that means for you, and how your expectations will change you and those around you.

Are you having trouble finding the time and energy to meet the needs of your husband after a hard day of homeschooling? Maybe you've forgotten what his needs are. Would you like your husband to take a more active role in homeschooling? Maybe your husband refuses to be involved in training your children. Join me as we look at your role, not as a homeschooling mom, but as a homeschooling WIFE. Your husband will thank you for coming! The discussion will be led by a real husband of a homeschooling mom.

Despite many stereotypes, homeschooling programs are unique and vary widely based on the student. Dan, a homeschool graduate himself, shares from his experience the benefits and challenges of homeschooling as well as the reasons why he is homeschooling his children.

It has only been in recent decades--with the development of technology capable of scanning the human brain--that neurologists have been enlightened as to how learning occurs and how we can optimize new knowledge. This session will address some of the amazing intricacies of the brain, the principles of brain-based learning, how boys and girls learn differently, and how God’s Word teaches us to think for learning retention.

Do you know where the theory of peer group socialization originated? Learn what really drives the question: “What About Socialization?” Israel will go back in History and reveal the engineers behind modern social education theory. You may be surprised to learn what is truly behind this infamous question.

Homeschooling high school can seem intimidating. This is an informational session for those with children approaching high school or in high school. Basic information about transcripts, credits, tests, course descriptions, and some of the options available for high school courses and curriculum will be presented. This overview is designed to provide insight and encouragement as you enter this new phase of the homeschooling adventure.

The heart of leadership is influence and everyone influences someone. That means everyone needs some basic leadership skills, no matter who you are or what you do. You can spend a lifetime reading and studying leadership, and that’s not a bad pursuit, but this session will give you the basic leadership skills you need to understand so you can apply them immediately

The homeschool movement coined and promoted the idea of fostering a LOVE of learning…and yet most homeschooling moms have fostered a “hate” of learning. Instead of inspiring their children to love exploration, discovery, and learning, all of which homeschool SHOULD foster, moms find their children fighting them tooth and nail to “do school.”

The first step in safeguarding your homeschool is knowing your state’s homeschool law. Dan regularly communicates with school officials, social workers, and others regarding the legal requirements and legitimacy of homeschooling. In this workshop, Dan makes sure you know what is legally required of you while equipping you to confidently handle interactions with government officials.

Have your questions answered by a panel of homeschool veterans.

Why do you homeschool? When your children are grown, what will define success for you? What is the difference between a Biblical view of education, and the way most Christian parents (even homeschoolers) educate their children? This workshop will help you to focus on what is really important.

This session is for anyone looking for information about evaluations. It is for those who are preparing to meet with an evaluator as well as those who might be interested in becoming an evaluator. We will look at the requirements in Pennsylvania Home Education Law for both. There will also be time for questions. Barb will share her experience in doing evaluations over the past 21 years.

Why is it that almost half of college graduates can’t find a job? What’s missing? What does a student really need to learn between the ages of sixteen and twenty two to be ready for “real life”? Everyone focuses on academics, but you need more than academic ability to be fully equipped for the challenges and responsibilities of adulthood. This session will guide you through the seven essential skills and abilities that are crucial for successfully launching into adulthood. This time of life is a unique time, offering amazing possibilities. Come learn how to maximize this time, focus on the essentials, and be prepared and equipped for extraordinary success!

Homeschooling is hard, parenting is hard, and marriage…well, that’s way hard. And that’s OK and even normal. Trouble is we don’t like hard. We want easy, fast, and cheap, and at the same time we want successful results. But the truth is that good things are hard and hard things are good, and they go hand in hand. Sadly, most people don’t ever experience the good because they can’t handle the hard. They put the hard thing off, hoping it will get easier, or they avoid it all together, and all they end up with is a pile of regrets. Here’s the good news: you can handle the hard. In fact, if you’re faced with two choices, pick ‘HARD.’ During this hour, you’ll laugh with Todd as he shares how to embrace the hardness while keeping your eye on the joy and experience God’s best for you.

It's a fact! The only thing tougher than being a homeschooling mom is...being married to a homeschooling mom! Dad, your wife needs your help. Come join me as we discuss how to support and assist our wives in the homeschooling journey. We'll also do a lot of laughing, as I encourage men to be encouragers of their homeschooling wives.

After you’ve filed all your papers to homeschool, what happens then? What do I do with these children all day? What does a day of homeschooling like? Are there different ways to homeschool and what do they look like? How do you find the perfect curriculum? What counts as “school”?

The world, the flesh, and the devil are vying for the minds of our kids, often in such subtle ways that it goes unnoticed until they are in crisis. This session will delve into multiple venues in which our thoughts, our time, and our choices are influenced by our worldview. We will put many of these examples to the test of a biblical worldview with the goal of heightening awareness of where “little foxes” creep in and seek to spoil (Song of Solomon 2:15).

As homeschoolers, we are often accused of retreating from society instead of impacting it. What is the balance between sheltering our children and reaching out to a lost world around us? In this session, Israel explains how you can equip your children for the ‘real world’ by developing a family ministry.

Pennsylvania is one of the most regulated states for homeschooling. It is considered one of the “hardest” states to homeschool in, but it’s not as difficult as it seems. Come hear about how easy it is to meet the law requirements, see what a simple portfolio looks like, hear a description of what an evaluation looks like, and ask all your homeschool law related questions.

Presently there is a big identity crisis among males regarding what a man is. There is no clear transition from childhood to manhood, and the culture has defined men simplistically. As a result, many fathers are relationally isolated and emotionally disconnected leaving them at a loss for how to lead boys into manhood. This workshop will address the culture’s attack on boys/males, the impact of biology on boys/males learning style, mentoring and educational principles to help boys develop into honorable men and concrete action steps moms and dads can take in the developmental process of boys.

We like things nice and neat, orderly, and with a predictable outcome, but most of the time OUR plans don’t ‘come together’ as we hoped. Instead, our plans often fall apart, disintegrate right before our eyes, and leave us dumbfounded and stunned. I’ve talked to plenty of homeschooling parents who were sold a plan. They followed the plan and then later stood before me with tears in their eyes because the plan “didn’t come together.” “We did everything THEY said to do,” they say. “We didn’t have TV…we homeschooled…we ate organic…we only wore dresses…we sheltered and protected….we practiced courtship…they played the violin…we emphasized the classics…we never missed family devotions…we emphasized purity…we birthed our children at home…we had a home business” and on and on the list goes. They feel betrayed, angry, and lost….and their children are starting ‘tell all’ websites!!! I have to admit that several years ago when I heard their sob stories, I inwardly wondered what they had done wrong. I believed that they must have gotten the WRONG plan…or didn’t carry the plan out according to the instructions. And while some of that may be true, I know NOW that sometimes our plans don’t come together because God has a DIFFERENT PLAN. Join me as we take an honest and humorous look at plans, why they fall apart and what to do when they have.

In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, homeschooling has exploded. Millions of new homeschool students are experiencing the benefits of a customized education at home. But the growth of homeschooling has also caught the eye of policymakers who want to help—and those who don’t. Dan will bring you up to date on homeschooling trends and equip you to advance homeschooling freedom into the future.

The goal of this session is to share the joy of designing and teaching unit studies. Learn how this unique approach to teaching uses real-life experiences, books, games, projects, and other resources to encourage students to deeply explore topics and to become life-long learners. Discover ways to integrate subjects to make learning more meaningful and fun. Realize the wealth of knowledge to be gained through unit studies as well as easy methods of constructing them.

Many homeschoolers struggle with self-doubt and/or criticism for their decision by well-meaning friends and family. In this session, Israel will tackle some of the top objections people raise about home education and will give statistics and fact-based answers to help give you confidence to defend your choice to home educate.

Simplifying your homeschool could be the difference between a parent who makes it thought the long haul and one who gives up after a few years, sending her child back to school because she “can’t do this anymore.” This workshop is full of practical ideas to implement and philosophical thoughts to ponder. Bring your specific questions about a trouble spot in your homeschool and let’s see if simplifying will smooth it out.

People are everything. Relationships are the foundation that gives meaning to our lives. Today we’re more connected than ever before and at the same time more isolated than ever before. Why? A lot of people no longer know the basics principles of great relationships. This session teaches those basic relationship principles.

Drawing from over 40 years of experience in the home-education movement, Israel will help you to avoid some of the top errors many parents make in the homeschooling process. The tips offered in this session can save you hundreds of dollars and perhaps years of regret from committing these costly errors.

All children are created equal. Girls and Boys have equal importance and significance but there are certain responsibilities that we need to train our boys and girls differently. It’s not archaic or about inequality, it’s Biblical parenting and our children need us to prepare them for the future. Join Todd as he tackles this sticky topic and combines laughter, truth, and practicality together for a vital topic in today’s wacky and purple world.

If you have more than one child, you know first-hand that they come to us uniquely “crafted” by our Heavenly Father--no two are alike! This fact is especially challenging when homeschooling and trying to plan what to teach. This session will: • Address the imperative given to us in Proverbs 22:6 to “Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent]” (Amplified Bible), • Include several “personality” test options to help you understand your children and how they learn best, and • Provide teaching/learning strategies to help you utilize this information to inform your homeschooling efforts.