mamato4girls Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 Anyone else come home from a homeschool convention more confused or at least overwhelmed then before you left? Last year I went to our state's convention is was sort of overwhelming since it was my first one and my first year hs'ing, but it was still pretty small. This year I went to a neighboring states convention, it was HUGE, and I am so confused, and overwhelmed. Uggh! Thought seeing some new things first hand would help, no, now I am even more undecided. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tex-mex Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 How can we help? :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamato4girls Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 I don't know:confused: I am going to take a few hours this afternoon when dh gets home to really look through catalogs, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rita Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 This year I went to a neighboring states convention, it was HUGE, and I am so confused, and overwhelmed. Uggh! Thought seeing some new things first hand would help, no, now I am even more undecided. Hi Vicki! I have 2 boys, 14 and 12, and am in a state of confusion too :D That's why I didn't go to the convention, LOL. I knew if I went, I'd see stuff that looks fabulous and that I want. Enjoy perusing your catalogs! blessings Rita Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ConnieB Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 I think it's normal even for experienced homeschoolers to come home from the vendor fair a bit overwhelmed. There are SOOOO many choices, and having just a few minutes to look them over they almost all seem fantastic. It's not until you get them home and start really digging in that you find some of them aren't right for your family. I really wish the local teach stores had more of the homeschool titles available....I'd take an afternoon and go sit and read curriculum. Ok, that being said.....IMHO the first thing you really need to decide/figure out before you choose a curriculum is how you teach and how your child learns. This makes a world of difference in which curriculums will actually work for your family. The very best curriculum in the world won't work for your family if it goes against your child's learning style (and your teaching style). It just will never click. Do some googling to research learning styles. Don't skip on the time for this, research until you feel confident that you have a clear understanding of the different learning styles and which one you and your child fit into. Don't be surprised that both of you fit in more than one style, but try to determine which style is MOST like both of you. Once you know what learning style then you need to determine what your education goals are.....and those can be so wide and variable that I couldn't even begin to list them all....but there are many encompassing "methods". Just because you're on the Well Trained Mind board doesn't always mean that you have decided that Classical is your method, but often people who are here start out as Classical and perhaps morph into something else over the years. Even if you've decided Classical is for you, there are even different philosphies of that as well. Basically, the better you know what you want out of homeschooling, the easier it will be to narrow your choices of curriculums. And once you have the learning style AND the method.....the choices become less overwhelming. Yes, it takes some work and research, but believe me, the time spent will be well worth it. I truly wish someone had suggested learning styles to me for my first two years of homeschooling......I wouldn't have come so close to giving up. Once I learned that the reason it wasn't all warm and fuzzy wonderful for us, like it seemed to be for everyone else, was because my teaching style and my first child's learning style were complete opposites. I was teaching my style, but she was fighting it every step of the way. After a lot of reading and a lot of soul searching, I figured out ways to teach to her style but still stay sane.....and the rest of the years have been much much smoother. Good luck with your research....and whatever you do, stay away from the Rainbow Resource catalog. It will send you straight to the funny farm it's so huge and has such marvelous description of everything.....and believe me when I say buying everything that sounds good is bank-account breaking, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamato4girls Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 "Good luck with your research....and whatever you do, stay away from the Rainbow Resource catalog. It will send you straight to the funny farm it's so huge and has such marvelous description of everything.....and believe me when I say buying everything that sounds good is bank-account breaking, lol. " :iagree: That thing is big! I did buy from them at the convention, but it was small stuff that is so much easier to buy when you can see it in person. Thank you so much for the advice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2a&z Posted May 25, 2009 Share Posted May 25, 2009 I was at the same state convention and I understand that it can be overwhelming. Last year was my first time going and I couldn't believe all of the vendors and all of the choices!!! My DH went with me and we spent more money than we had planned. This year I did all of the research beforehand so I knew what I wanted and what vendor would have it. (We use most of the recommendations from TWTM.) I had a list and was able to buy the bulk of our curriculum for my 2 dc in 45 minutes. The next day my DH and I just browsed and picked up a few things to supplement our core curriculum. Going to the convention prepared allowed us to enjoy the seminars and vendor fair more than last year. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mamato4girls Posted May 25, 2009 Author Share Posted May 25, 2009 That is great! I was pretty prepared too, so I thought. I reasearch things to death and just wasn't able to make a decision. I was at the same state convention and I understand that it can be overwhelming. Last year was my first time going and I couldn't believe all of the vendors and all of the choices!!! My DH went with me and we spent more money than we had planned. This year I did all of the research beforehand so I knew what I wanted and what vendor would have it. (We use most of the recommendations from TWTM.) I had a list and was able to buy the bulk of our curriculum for my 2 dc in 45 minutes. The next day my DH and I just browsed and picked up a few things to supplement our core curriculum. Going to the convention prepared allowed us to enjoy the seminars and vendor fair more than last year. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 This makes me glad I didn't go. ;) Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted May 26, 2009 Share Posted May 26, 2009 ...teach your child, not your curriculum. That is all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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