What Should You Buy at the Homeschool Convention?

Posted on May 20, 2008 
Filed Under Homeschool, Learning Lifestyle, Organization / Time Management

Will you be going to a homeschool conference this summer? If you’re teaching your children at home,  I highly recommend taking the time to do this– it will be a source of education and encouragement that can keep you inspired for the entire year (if you bring home the right things). Investing in “mommy education and inspiration” is one of the very best things you can do for your children.

What are the top five things you need to provide an excellent education?

  1. A vision for what you want to accomplish
  2. A plan for moving toward the goal
  3. The best resources available
  4. Wise counsel
  5. Supportive family and friends

Do you have all these ingredients? If not, a trip to a homeschool convention can help. If you can’t make it to a physical convention, a virtual convention such as the Ultimate Home School Expo is a good alternative. Of course, you won’t be able to purchase the supportive family and friends, but by sharing what you learn, you may be able to inspire them with a vision for the future that will help them move forward as well.

When I suggest that you may find much of what you need at a convention, I’m not suggesting that you spend a lot of money and drag home boxes of textbooks and workbooks for your children. If you’ve read my writings for any length of time, you probably already knew that;-)! What I’m suggesting is that you invest in some foundational resources that you can use again and again with your entire family.

Here are just a few of the books I’ve found inspiring and helpful. I consider many of these authors to be the wise counselors that can be so difficult to find in everyday life, and I recommend each of them without hesitation.

For Defining a Vision
A Thomas Jefferson Education (Oliver Van DeMille)
A Thomas Jefferson Education Home Companion (DeMille & Jeppson)
For the Children’s Sake (Susan Schaeffer MacCauley)
The Charlotte Mason Education Series (Mason)
Cultural Literacy (Hirsch)
Writing to Learn (Zinnsser)
The Marva Collins Way
C.S. Lewis- all

For Creating a Plan
Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (Covey)
Homeschooling at the Speed of Life (Rockett)
Getting Things Done (David Allen)
Time Management from the Inside Out (Morganstern)
Purposeful Planning (Phyllis Sather)

The Best Resources
Classic literature (you’ll find excellent lists of classics in all subjects in the TJ Education books listed above).
Reference materials from Dorling Kindersley, Usborne, and other sources.
Hands-on resources such as art supplies, musical instruments, and sports equipment.
Specific ‘how-to’ resources for tasks such as creating the high school transcript (my own Transcripts Made Easy, of course!) or building a gazebo.

Wise Counsel
See the resources above, and seek out local mentors who can inspire you and be faithful to you.

I hope you didn’t think I’d tell you exactly what curriculum items to buy– I don’t know your family, so I wouldn’t even think of trying to do that! The resources above will help you discover the best learning materials for each individual student, and that’s the way that learning works best. If you feel overwhelmed at the number of choices at the convention, remember that you can always pick up a catalog and order later. For the moment, just focus on the basics.

True education- the kind that transforms and endures– is not an assembly line process, but a sharing of the joy of learning. As Oliver Van DeMille writes in A Thomas Jefferson Education, “Wise parents and teachers learn to inspire their students to intensive self-study, instead of requiring them to follow a pre-formulated curriculum… Force in learning kills the spirit, dampens the passion and destroys the zest and life of learning. Force trains followers, not leaders” (42).

As you browse the aisles of your homeschool convention, I hope you’ll see some of the inspiring works I’ve listed above, and take a few home with you. The time and resources you invest in your own education will be reflected in everything your children learn, so the return on your investment will be far greater than you imagine. Enjoy the convention!

Announcements

Congratulations to the Home Educators Association of Virginia on 25 years of serving homeschoolers in Virginia! If you haven’t registered for their very excellent convention which will be held in Richmond on June 5-7, 2008, I recommend doing so as soon as possible. I’d like to meet you there!

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