Board Rules
Board Rules
Please read the forum rules. By using our website you are agreeing to these rules and guidelines.
- Be Humble
Post your opinions and your experiences, but remember that other families may have different experiences than yours and may reason their way with impeccable logic to different conclusions. Posts which "lay down the law" may be deleted.
- Be Civil
Don't attack another poster's background, religious convictions, experience, or parenting style. Above all, resist the one-liner subject-header put-down. Nasty cracks will be deleted.
- Think Before You Post
The posts on this forum are available for all the world to see. If you don't want all the world to see what you have to say, don't post it. We are not likely to remove a thread/post because you later regret writing it. If you are all fired up about something, take a walk or have a cup of tea before posting something you will regret.
The forum admins are unable to delete accounts. Users can delete their own content by editing posts.
- Don't Insist on the Last Word
Some disagreements will result in a draw. Be willing to let a thread end on someone ELSE'S opinion. "Last words" which have no purpose other than to assert that, after all, you're REALLY right, will be deleted.
Do not assume that everyone on the boards shares a particular religious conviction
These boards are inclusive. You are welcome to ask theological questions, but don't post as though everyone who frequents the boards shares your ideology. Offending posts may be deleted. Don't use inquiries as an excuse to proselytize for anything. Answer questions that are posted but don't use these questions as an excuse to springboard into criticism. For example: If someone asks, "What are your kids dressing up as for Halloween?" don't launch into an explanation of how evil Halloween is. If someone asks, "Is Halloween evil?" have a ball. (Conversely: if someone posts, "We don't do Halloween; what can we substitute?" don't take this as an opportunity to prove to them that Halloween is really just fine.)
- If You're Joking, Say So
Really. Humor doesn't come across in cyberspace. Honest. Smiles help - try them. 🙂
- No Advertising
If you are the publisher or author of home schooling (or other) materials, or have a financial interest in a particular program, you may answer direct questions about those materials but don't use a general query ("What science/language arts/history materials should I use?") as a chance to promote your product. When these questions are posed, we hope that parents will hear from other parents not from those who may have a vested interest in the use of a particular program.
While advertising of products & services is prohibited, it is permissible to post invitations for people to join free or nonprofit programs or groups. But don't overwhelm the WTM forums with spam: Make your invitation clear, post it once, and direct people to your own site for further information and interaction.
- No Partisan Politics
There are many places on the internet to discuss political positions. This is not one of them. Do not post partisan political positions, links to partisan political sites, conspiracy theories or links to conspiracy theories, or anything else related to the political parties in the United States.
- Respect Medical Science
Vaccines have been preventing unnecessary death since 1796. While we are 100% supportive of a parent's right to choose medical care for their children, we are not open to hosting, on this site, misinformation about the dangers that vaccines may cause to the human race, considering that, for 300 years, they have prevented hordes of people from dying.
- Will We Delete (or close) Posts?
At times, when threads get too intense, we have to delete (or close) them. Even threads that start off civil can quickly devolve into mayhem, and we may choose to preemptively close them. Please don't ask why the thread (or your post) was deleted. It wasn't necessarily something you said. Very likely, somebody before you or after you posted something that had to come down. Sometimes, the only way we can remove the troublesome posts is by removing the whole thread. And a question like "where did my post go?" or "where did the ________ discussion go?" only serves to bring the discussion back to the boards. Posts that ask "where is X post?" will be deleted. We may also delete posts that do not add to the topic at hand.
- Social Groups
Social groups exist so that you can all have additional fun/support. Posts in social groups which attack or mock other social groups or members will be deleted. We expect that you're all mature enough to understand why, so we won't answer messages asking why deletions were made.
- Will We Merge Threads?
Yes. Unlike the old board format, this new format will bring an old thread to the top when a new post is added. Starting a new *update* thread is not helpful for those who did not see the original thread. If admins see a thread that appears to be an update, they will merge it with the original thread. They don't always get it right. Do everyone a favor and add your update to your original thread.
- Don't Announce That You're Leaving and Never Coming Back
Posts along the lines of "I'm not appreciated here, so I'm leaving" really aren't necessary. If you post something like that, know that we'll be deleting it. It's not that we don't appreciate you ... we just don't appreciate those posts.
- No Spouse/Significant-Other Bashing
The Internet (and this site in particular) is not the appropriate place to complain about your husband (or wife) or to ask for marital counseling. Call a friend instead.
- Use Your Inside Voice
Posting a message in all caps is the cyber-equivalent of yelling please don't do it. It's rude. Really.
Don't use board space to talk about the boards
You can always email the moderators with suggestions, but we've been doing this a long time and probably have heard it all before. (In other words, don't expect an answer.) Threads about how the boards should be run differently, laments about how much more/less welcoming the board is/was now/in the past, and criticisms of the moderators should be posted on...someone else's board.
- Don't Create Duplicate Accounts
As stated in the Admin thread, don't create more than 1 account. You will be banned.
If you have established two (or more!) accounts, please send email to support@welltrainedmind.com so we can merge the duplicates into one account. This will preserve the posts in both accounts.
- Sale/Swap Board
In an effort to make your Sale & Swap purchases safer, we have instituted a 50 Post Minimum policy. We want people who post items for sale to have a track record in our community. Although you may have been active on our "old" board, we cannot move posts for the old board to the new board. Please don't ask if you can be an exception to the new rules. Everyone starts fresh here. Registered users with fewer than 50 posts will still be able to respond to a FS thread and will be able to post in the WTB forum.
No dealer posts. Please don't post more than 10 items per month. We understand that you want to sell all your used curricula, but it makes it hard to tell whether you are a parent with lots of books or a dealer. If you post a single item, it's a good idea to just use the resource name in the Subject Line. You might also consider putting the cost, the condition of the materials, or the grade level in the Subject Line as well. If you have multiple items, please group them by type of resource. Buyers will be able to look into a thread that applies to what they are looking for, and those who aren't looking for that type of resource can scan on.
All transactions on the sale boards are buyer/seller beware. The forum owners provide this space as a service to parents, but are unable to mediate disputes involving buying and selling. Please take reasonable precautions when dealing with unknown buyers and sellers, and use the buyer/seller feedback tools if you have had an unsatisfactory experience.
- Finally
The owners of this forum reserve the right to change these rules at any time in order to better serve the community.