Special One-Day Homeschool Conference in Wisconsin

Posted on January 12, 2009 by Barb

For those of you homeschooling in Wisconsin (plus those in other states who like to drive!), here’s some information about an upcoming homeschool conference:

Greetings, Fellow Wisconsin Homeschoolers!

My name is Tina Hollenbeck. I currently serve on the board of the Green Bay Area Christian Homeschoolers (GBACH), and I am writing to invite you and your group members to a special one-day homeschool conference that we are sponsoring on Saturday, April 25, 2009.

On that day, we are hosting a phenomenal, internationally-known speaker (and author of two books published by Moody), Dr. Kathy Koch, the founder and president of Celebrate Kids, Inc. (www.celebratekids.com).

Dr. Kathy is a former university professor of education who was called to start her ministry over 15 years ago. Through Celebrate Kids, she seeks to help “parents, educators, and children of all ages meet their core needs of security, identity, belonging, purpose, and competence in healthy ways. Through a problem-solving framework of these integrated needs, the ministry’s programs…provide solution-focused strategies that improve people’s intellectual, emotional, social, physical, and spiritual health.”

Dr. Kathy is known for sharing key, relevant, and practical truths with passion. Her clarity, illustrations, down-to-earth manner, and humorous style will make it easy for you to listen and learn. The time will fly by and you’ll apply new ideas and see them work within days! And, though she speaks in many venues, April 25 will be homeschool-specific.

During our conference, Dr. Kathy will address two key topics that are extremely relevant to homeschoolers:
Got Hope? Optimistic Living During Challenging Times
How Am I Smart? A Practical Guide to Multiple Intelligences

You can find details about these seminars by going to our website, www.gbach.org.

We would love for many in your group to take a “field trip” and be our guests that day. :^) And any who register by January 18, 2009, will receive an amazing 33% discount off the full conference price. What’s more, one registration fee (of only $30 by January 18) covers either an individual (if only one from a family can attend) or the cost of a husband and wife and any children in grade six or above!

I would greatly appreciate if you could pass on this information to every Wisconsin homeschooler you know (and, actually, virtual schoolers are welcome as well) as soon as possible, especially so that those interested might be eligible for the steepest discount.

Any interested individual or family can simply print out the registration form and return it with the proper fee to the address listed on the form. Of course, if you or anyone in your group has any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me. I will be more than happy to provide any additional information or clarifications.

We look forward to hearing from you and your group members – and to meeting many of you on Saturday, April 25, 2009.

Most sincerely,

Tina K. Hollenbeck

http://tinahollenbeck.blogspot.com/
http://tinahollenbeck-celebratekidscolumns.blogspot.com/

Happy Third Anniversary to the Carnival of Homeschooling!

Posted on January 9, 2009 by Barb

Blog carnivals became popular a few years ago, but most lost steam (and participants) as the novelty wore off. But not the Carnival of Homeschooling. Check out this list of education-related carnivals. Many have not published a new edition in months. Yet, of those still in the game, most are not as old as the Carnival of Homeschooling.

Who gets credit for this? First of all, the Cate family, who initiated the Carnival of Homeschooling and organized it so that, week after week, other bloggers could sponsor a weekly edition using a template, so to speak, set up by the Cates. (I was so happy to have a post in the first edition.)

Also, we have to give credit to the many, many bloggers who live the homeschool lifestyle and are willing to share regular little peeks into their lives so that other homeschoolers (and potential homeschooling parents doing research) can benefit from their experiences and advice.

I write books about homeschooling. So do many other homeschooling parents. We’ve worked hard and I think we publish some pretty helpful books. But I always recommend to new and prospective homeschoolers that, in addition to reading books about homeschooling, they visit the Carnival of Homeschooling. Surfing through the various editions of the past as well as the current Carnival will give you a very wide-ranging, informative and true-life look at the homeschooling life. As they used to say in the old Bell Telephone commercials (I’m dating myself here), “it’s the next best thing to being there.”

Homeschoolers Under Attack Again? Any Day Now….

Posted on January 9, 2009 by Barb

President-elect Barack Obama’s daughters just finished up their first week at their new school, the pricey private-school-for-children-of-the-elite Sidwell Friends (the same school Chelsea Clinton attended). It has apparently earned favored status among hypocritical politicians who vote against vouchers and tax credits that would allow other children to attend the kinds of schools they choose for their own children.

In an op-ed piece in the Washington Times, writer Gary Jason reminds us of Obama’s anti-school-choice stance, then points out that the teacher’s unions that helped put him in office will surely use their newly acquired power to go after homeschoolers. Nevertheless, I found this to be quite an optimistic article.

Criticizing the Travoltas

Posted on January 5, 2009 by Barb

Over the weekend I got caught up in reading about the tragic story of actor John Travolta’s 16-year-old son Jett, who died suddenly on Friday after a seizure-related injury.

The comments sections of articles about this issue posted on the Internet were packed with diatribes related to Jett’s possibly having been autistic, and speculation about whether he was being treated properly (the Travoltas belong to the cult of Scientology, which opposes psychotropic meds). The Travoltas have long-denied that Jett was autistic, although some who knew Jett did not believe them.

What really got my attention was the large number of comments from readers who said they themselves were parents of special needs children. I’m sure a few were lying in a misguided effort to boost their credibility (after all, you can say anything on the Internet). But most rang true, because they fell into the two general categories of special needs parents I’ve come to recognize:

1) The Fighters. They cope with their child’s diagnosis by putting their energies into fighting/curing the malady. They join rallies (“Walk for Autism”) and cite studies and statistics. They’re the cheerleaders in the fight against the disability and for funding in related matters.

2) The Accepters. They’ve come to terms with their child’s disability for the most part, often after many years of struggle. They appear more concerned about incorporating their child into normal daily life than focusing on the disability.

Commenters from the first group were more accusatory against the Travoltas. The second group tended to be more sympathetic, with many also suggesting that people who are not parents of special needs children had no right to criticize the Travoltas because they had not “walked in their shoes.”

My thoughts are closer to those of the second group. The lives of special needs parents can be quite challenging and lonely. No one who hasn’t been there should criticize them.

I feel sorry for the Travoltas. They must be in so much pain over the loss of their son. As Scientologists, they themselves are disabled in that they must face their grief without the knowledge and comfort of the one true God. That is the biggest tragedy of all.

I’m Baaaaack……

Posted on December 31, 2008 by Barb

Hope you enjoyed the Christmas holiday! I can’t believe it’s been two weeks since I last posted. But I’m glad I took a break from blogging because I needed to spend that time with my family.

Our son and his wife came to stay with us for a few days before Christmas. It was nice to have them here, and our younger kids enjoyed some much-needed big brother time. While they were here, we made Christmas cookies together, went to the movies, and relaxed.

On Christmas Eve, we drove in two cars through snow and slush to the Chicago area. That evening our daughter and her boyfriend met up with us, and we had a lovely family gathering….in our hotel room.

Why a hotel room? Well, we lived in Chicagoland for nearly all of our lives, and our family Christmas would have been held in our home there, if we still had a home there. But we don’t, so I borrowed an idea from my cousin. She has five children and tons of grandchildren, all scattered over a couple of states. So she rents a centrally located hotel room or vacation home for their family gatherings. I really admire her for this. She sees that it’s more important that everyone be able to get together, than where they actually go to be together.

So we all gathered in the large living area of our hotel suite ($62 a night—they were having a special!) and ate (we brought trays from Sam’s Club and home-baked Christmas goodies) and talked and opened gifts. It was so nice. The next day some of us were able to attend our old church for a Christmas morning service. We spent the rest of the day visiting Chicago-area family members.

Our son and his wife headed back home Christmas evening. The next day, my wonderful husband took dd17 out shopping, using the trolley that stops near the hotel, so I could take the car and dsds15 to see his best buddy, who also has Down syndrome, is the youngest of five and is homeschooled. They had a great time hanging out, and I enjoyed my time with his mom, who is one of my dearest friends. It was hard to say good-bye, that’s for sure.

That night we went into the city to see our daughter. She has her apartment fixed up just the way she likes it, and she really did a great job. It was good to spend some more time with her.

The next morning, we left for home. It took twice as long as usual because there was thick fog all the way back. I’ve never seen anything like it….300 miles’ worth of fog! We were very glad to get home safely. Since then, it’s been laundry and end-of-the-year bookkeeping and exciting things like that.

And tomorrow will be 2009. What will the year bring? For us, the odd-numbered years have always been the most exciting. We were married in one (1979), had our kids in odd-numbered years (1983, 1985, 1991, 1993), and started our businesses in odd-numbered years (1995, 2003, 2007). Our big upheaval (a move after nearly twenty years in one house) also happened in an odd-numbered year (2007).

Today’s news reports are full of predictions of economic difficulties, violence here and abroad, and other sad things in 2009. But we must never forget that God is in control. I have great hopes for this year. For you, I hope 2009 is the best year ever!