by Angela Lasch
Throughout history, there have been significant events that everyone can relate to and has a story about. Depending on your age, you might have some things to share about where you were or what you were doing when you heard about the following:
- 1986 – Challenger disaster
- 1992 – Los Angeles riots
- 1994 – OJ Simpson’s “slow speed chase”
- 2001 – 9/11
While you may not remember one or more of those events, something everyone can recall, no matter where they lived or what they were doing, is when COVID and the subsequent lockdowns changed the world. One of the most significantly affected groups was school-aged children. When schools across the country shut down suddenly, everyone was “homeschooling,” and for the first time, many parents caught a glimpse of what was happening in their child’s classroom.
Since then, many in the homeschool community have discussed how to help families best “rescue” their kids from the public school system. Since most of us homeschooled long before COVID-19, it might be hard for us to understand the “new” generation of homeschoolers. Most of us homeschooled because we wanted to; we felt called to, and becoming group leaders was a natural progression of this calling. We wanted to help others have the opportunity to homeschool their own children.
But now, there are many options, and the word “homeschool” has many meanings. Since homeschooling has changed, groups are also changing, and many people are starting “homeschool” groups, but are they homeschooling?
What does this mean for CHEA’s Support Network? As leaders, we have had to adapt to meet the unique needs of families who educate their children outside of the traditional public school system. Maybe your group has done really well at this. Maybe you are struggling. How can CHEA help you serve and minister to the families in your area?
We have created a questionnaire to get feedback from you, our trusted group leaders; those who were around “before COVID” and remember the simpler times when our biggest challenge was simply where to have park day.
Please take the time to fill out the questionnaire and pray for us at CHEA as we seek the Lord’s vision for the coming years, both for homeschool families across the state as well as the leaders who serve them.