PARENTING & HOMESCHOOL CONFERENCE

Homeschool in Freedom and Find Joy
Have you ever found yourself drawn to “formulaic” parenting? If your homeschool has lost it’s JOY, or if you are struggling to find time to disciple your children, in the midst of homeschooling, this session is for you. Listen in as Heidi shares three pitfalls of modern homeschooling and offer ways to guard against them and flourish—from diapers to diplomas!

Keep the Gas Tank Full and Other Lessons We’ve Learned from Thirty Years of Marriage – A Workshop with Jay and Heidi St. John
“Transparent. Honest. Funny. Real.” That’s what people say when they hear the St. Johns speaking about the ups and downs of their union. Join Heidi and Jay for an hour that will encourage and inspire you as they share wisdom from 23 years of homeschooling and 30 years of marriage. This workshop is rated “M” for marriage. Bring your spouse if you can!

Prayers for the Battlefield
Are you weary? Today’s parents are up against a lot. We’re shepherding children in a time when the war for their hearts and minds has reached a fever-pitch. And yes—the battle is real—but so is our God! Heidi offers hope and teaches parents how to pray for their kids at every stage development. We’ll get real about the struggle, but we won’t focus on it. You’re raising a special generation of warriors! Don’t give up—you were born for this!

Raised to Release: A Workshop for Parents (or soon-to-be parents) of Young Adults
Jay and Heidi have raised four of their seven kids to adulthood—often in spite of themselves. It’s tough to let your kids make their own decisions, especially when you’re so used to doing it, right? What if you see them making an unwise choice? Homeschooling parents often struggle to release their teens to pursue God’s plan for them but it’s crucial that we do. They will share tools that every parent on the precipice of releasing their child needs. Bring a notebook and get ready to enjoy this season of transition with your kids. Good things are coming!

M.O.M. = Master Organizer of Mayhem
This fast paced workshop goes through Kristi’s popular “Top Ten” list on how to bring more order and organization to your home and heart. This workshop goes through lots of very practical and applicable tools on how to get rid of the mayhem in your home — without getting rid of the kids (or your sanity). Moms of all ages and stages have loved this workshop and used its tips to bring grace and peace to their home.

Quitting the Comparison Game
With the growth of social media, the comparison game has become an almost unavoidable stumbling block. Discontentment and envy can easily sneak their way into our hearts and minds if we don’t guard against them. This workshop is designed to encourage you to get out of the comparison game and focus on what unique ways God wants to use you.

Charting Your Way through High School for College, Career, or Military
Consider a Guidance Counselor’s perspective for each year of high school, wherever your child is headed! For college-bound teens, this includes entrance tests, applications, and financial aid information. Students headed directly into the workforce can benefit from career aptitude testing, training opportunities, and building a resume. Learn about the military’s homeschool enlistment policy and advice for applying to the service academies.

Developing a Plan for High School: Sample Four-Year Plans
What plan would suit your high school student? What subjects do you teach and when? This seminar will help you organize your thoughts and lay the groundwork for a viable four-year plan. You’ll learn about high school credits, simplifying grading, and the fundamentals of recordkeeping—transcripts, extracurriculars, and diplomas.

Homeschooling Challenges and Solutions for Military and First Responder Families
Many military and First Responder families choose to homeschool. This session will give an overview of some of the reasons why many feel homeschooling is a better fit for their family, as well as examine some of the challenges and solutions to homeschooling that these families may encounter.

The Path to NCAA Eligibility: A D1 Athlete Journey
Do homeschoolers receive athletic scholarships? This workshop focuses on how to successfully navigate the NCAA eligibility journey with discussion about Core Course Worksheets, getting scouted, travel clubs, college bound summer camps, and the life of a D1 athlete.

“Permanent Change of Station” (PCS) and Homeschooling
Most military families relocate every few years. This frequent relocation means readjustment to new environments and forming new relationships. For homeschooling families, it also means considering how to continue homeschooling amid a PCS move. This workshop will offer practical ideas and tools to handle these transitions with grace.

The Prodigal Son, the Forgiving Father, and the Power of Beholding
We homeschooling parents invest a lot of ourselves in our children. When one of them strays, it is a painful, prayerful time. As one who has wandered himself, and one who has shepherded seven children through sometimes challenging times, Jim has a word of encouragement, reconciliation, and hope for walking through troubled times.

State of the Homeschooling Nation Address
A serious but entertaining look at HSLDA’s recent cases and why they are important to you and your homeschool. You’ll want to hear about the Case of the Miscreated Court, the Case of the Rotten Big Apple, and the Case of the Caseworker’s Monumental Miscalculation. With over 15 years’ experience representing homeschooling families around the country, Jim has a unique, up-close perspective on trends, emerging issues, and what the future holds for homeschool freedom.

Discovering the Riches of a Charlotte Mason-Inspired Education
Your homeschool lessons don’t have to be boring! In this workshop, you’ll learn how to add various “spices” to elevate your kids’ learning to a rich and tasteful feast. You’ll also gain practical ideas to capture the heart of your child and help him or her fall in love with learning in a fresh new way!

Home & Homeschool on Autopilot
Is trying to balance homeschooling with cooking, cleaning, laundry, and everything else you do leaving you completely overwhelmed and burned out? Thankfully, it doesn’t have to be this way. In this workshop, you’ll learn practical steps to put your home and homeschooling on autopilot, making your life way easier. Stop just surviving and start thriving!

Raising Children to Love God’s Word
Why do the majority of Christian children leave the faith by the time they go to college? It’s due to a lack of knowledge of God and understanding of His Word. Charlotte Mason makes it clear that the knowledge of God should take absolute priority in our homeschool. In this workshop, you’ll receive a daily action plan to help your children study and fall in love with God’s Word.

Scheduling the Feast of Subjects
Teaching Bible, math, history, science, reading, and writing keeps you busy enough. How can you make time for art, foreign language, literature, music, poetry, folk songs, hymn, Plutarch, and even Shakespeare too? In this workshop, you’ll learn practical steps for teaching all this and more, through implementing Charlotte Mason’s concept of spreading a feast of ideas.

Serving Like Jesus
As homeschool families who are blessed to spend vast amounts of time with each other, God has given us plenty of opportunities to imitate the servant-heartedness of Jesus—the greatest servant in existence. In this session, we will discover what glad servanthood really looks like, and how we can become willing and joyful servants to our loved ones and the world as we follow in the footsteps of Christ.

The Transformational Power of Encouragement
The trials of life can often be extremely disheartening, but this session will help us discover that the greatest source of encouragement to our own souls comes from being used by God to encourage others. Amid the current homeschooling season of life that God has placed us in, we will dive deep and uncover what the Bible has to say about how we can become ready and eager encouragers toward those in our immediate circle of influence, and beyond.

The Unfailing Sympathy of Christ
Weaknesses! Not only do all of us have them, but they are often the greatest source of our disheartenment as Christians. Whether it’s in our role as husbands, wives, children, or homeschooling parents, we are all often haunted by our shortcomings and besetting sins. Enter Christ—our High Priest who sympathizes with our weaknesses, and who experienced our same temptations. Be refreshed by the delightful truth that Jesus calls weak sinners like us to come boldly to His throne of grace, where we will find mercy and grace to help us in our time of need.

Choosing Curriculum & Teaching Methods
Homeschoolers are free to embrace learning in any and every way possible. But that freedom can be overwhelming as you begin to realize the number and diversity of choices available. Penny will define terminology such as literature-based learning, classical education, the Charlotte Mason approach, “real” books, and more. Come learn how to apply your vision for education and the needs of your students to help narrow and clarify your curriculum choices.

Creative Scheduling Tips for Working Homeschool Parents
Homeschooling while working (whether full-time or part-time employment) is doable with some creativity, flexibility, and out-of-the-box-type thinking. Penny worked part-time throughout much of her time teaching her kids and has since consulted with many working homeschool parents. Gain encouragement, inspiration, and support as you discover how others have made it work.

Middle School – Is it Any Different
What do you need to cover now as the bridge between the academic foundations of elementary school and the more advanced coursework of high school? And how do the startling physical, mental, and emotional changes of puberty impact your homeschooling, your family life, and your student’s faith?

Catastrophic Geology
When Mount St. Helens erupted, it blew the top off evolutionary geology. The information gained from Mt. St. Helens has changed the way we view geological features in some of our national parks. Richard will discuss the formation of fossils, coal, petrified wood etc. and present evidence revealing that they can be formed in a short time, not over millions of years.

A Family Team
A family is a beautiful gift from God when we are not losing it in the business of our culture. Christa has learned to prioritize the relationships in their home and the unity between she and her husband as they learn to balance his home life with an intense calling in law enforcement. You will leave this time encouraged in ways to safeguard your family from missing the best gifts of home for the good things of the world.

Teaching Older Children with Younger Children at Home
Teaching older children with littles ones also needing to be cared for creates unique challenges. Christa grew up homeschooling as the oldest child of four children and experienced these challenges firsthand. Now with six children, baby- thirteen years old, she has been creatively working through this for many years. Christa will share practical advice and helpful perspective of ways to have peace and productivity at home while educating children and pouring into your young ones.

Homeschooling on a Shoestring
We all want our kids to have the best of everything – from education to extracurriculars, we don’t want to skimp. However, our resources aren’t always as plentiful as our best wishes. Thankfully, homeschooling doesn’t have to cost a fortune. Come learn practical and affordable tips for giving your children quality, home-based education without breaking the bank.

A Pathway to Teaching Public Speaking
Glossophobia, or a fear of public speaking, affects up to 75% of the population. Don’t let your students shy away from this important skill! Starting with the simple task of memorizing and reciting poetry and moving into four public speaking models, this pathway presented by Julie Walker will help your middle- and high-school students speak up and speak well.

The Vital Need of Modeling the Image of God to Your Children
Hosea 4:6 says “My people perish from lack of knowledge.” This refers to the intimate knowledge of our God: Who is He? What are His characteristics? And what does He require of us in order for us to be His image-bearers, reflecting God’s Holy character to our children and others around us. In this workshop, Roger Wheelock details six major moral characteristics of God, and challenges parents to model these same qualities in all of life – especially at home.