Favorite session at Midwest HS Convention?

[creekmom]

I would like to order some of the cds from the convention, but first I'd like to know if anyone has a favorite they would recommend. I thought Andrew Pudewa's and SWB's were fantastic!! The one on how to ace the PSAT was good too, but I don't think the taping went well for that one. Which ones did you find were the most informative?

[Susan in KY]

There were a lot of good ones, but "Homeschooling the Second Time" by SWB needed to be seen in person (no recording!). I also liked, "Fairy Tales and the Moral Imagination" by Andrew Pudewa (Christian content on that one) and "Four Deadly Errors of Teaching Writing" by the same. I didn't attend two of his sessions, but heard they were all good.

[Sandy in Indy]

Any of them that are marked "OSO" you won't be able to order now. They had to be ordered at the convention. That includes all of SWB and JW's talks.

 

Pudewa was one of my favorites. Loved his talk about Boys and the one on Fairy Tales. I also like John Stonestreet (definately CC there!). Most of the sessions I attended were either SWB, Pudewa or Stonestreet.

[Melabella]

Do you have a link to the CDs that are available?

[radiobrain]

MCT.

 

His sessions weren't recorded, but I understand why. His visuals are integral to his sessions.

[ladydusk]

Martin Cothran's packed session (SRO!) on How to Think was my absolute favorite, and as a speaker he was my favorite, it was soooooo good (and packed!) I am completely bummed these talks weren't recorded.

 

My next favorite was Leigh Bortins (saw her twice) and she was great! (I ordered all of her CDs)

 

I enjoyed Cheryl Lowe and Terri Johnson (from Knowledge Quest).

 

I'm looking forward to hearing Andrew Pudewa's Fairy Tales talk when I get the CDs I ordered. And I'm especially looking forward to hearing SWB's history talks! I knew I'd want to buy those, so I freed up some time by determining that ahead of time, but I'm afraid it sounds like I wasn't the only one who made that choice.

[Saille]

The MCT talks were definitely my favorites, and yes, the visuals are a big component of the talks...very like his books. However, I purchased (but have not yet heard) one of SWB's talk on self-educationf, Karen Braun's iHelp for the eHome, the session by the creators of Mathshapes: Go Figure!, and Julie Bogart's "The Bravewriter Lifestyle". (I want to know more about having tea time! :D ) Julie was lovely to meet, btw. I went to Catherine Duffy's session on learning styles, and I found her very engaging, but her categories were not as much my cup of tea as Gardnerian theory.

[creekmom]

You can order Andrew Pudewa's talk on fairy tales on his website (www.excellenceineducation) for just $3.00 (a download). I heard his talk on how to teach boys and other kids who'd rather be making forts... , and it was excellent!! - I noticed it is for sale on his website also.

[Leanna Tomlinson]

I enjoyed MCT's talk on High School academic writing. The poor man had an awful case of laryngitis, but he persevered and gave a great presentation. His passion for the subject is inspiring.

 

I gleaned a lot of useful information on Jan Bedell's talk about the Brain. I wish I had attended her talk about dyslexia. She sells a DVD with much more information.

 

Dr. Jeff Meyers was great. My ds enjoyed his talks too. I attended "Powerful from the Podium" and "Rescuing Your Child from the Culture of Irresponsibility".

 

I bought Atelier Art after listening to Christy Peddicord's "Why Art is Essential to your Child's Education". Don't order the CD. There were so many visuals that made this presentation effective.

 

Even though I didn't agree with everything he said, I enjoyed some common sense parenting advice from John Rosemond.

 

Leanna

[lauracolumbus]

There were a lot of good ones, but "Homeschooling the Second Time" by SWB needed to be seen in person (no recording!). I also liked, "Fairy Tales and the Moral Imagination" by Andrew Pudewa (Christian content on that one) and "Four Deadly Errors of Teaching Writing" by the same. I didn't attend two of his sessions, but heard they were all good.

My kids really enjoyed Pudewa's Fairy Tales session. And Jim Weiss was a huge hit as well. My personal fav was MCT's poetry session.

[mcconnellboys]

I was only there one day and so didn't see anyone by SWB and (of course, LOL) loved all her talks! I wish I could have seen Cothran. I would have loved to have seen Inge Cannon again; it's been years. I would have loved to have seen Pudewa (even though I don't use his writing - I like to hear him talk). Wish I could have seen a bunch of others, too.

 

Have you taken their survey yet?

[ladydusk]

I did my survey. I asked that they bring in Andrew Kern from CiRCE :)

 

Well, I kinda begged. LOL

[angela in ohio]

I did my survey. I asked that they bring in Andrew Kern from CiRCE :)

 

Well, I kinda begged. LOL

 

That would be like heaven! I will put that on my survey, too.

 

I was sad not to see them there this year, as they had a booth last year.

[ladydusk]

I was sad not to see them there this year, as they had a booth last year.

 

I think 2009 was a rough year for them (the office moved back home) so the man running the booth may not be working with him any more? maybe? I did see Lost Tools of Writing either at Memoria Press or CC (I think CC), so at least the curriculum was there somewhere.

[Harriet Vane]

Anything by Dr. Pennington. I have heard (and been impressed by) his sessions at past conventions, and this year I found his "When You Feel Like Quitting" session to be absolutely electrifying. I half-expected the same tired comforting platitudes and rah-rah about homeschooling, but was instead encouraged by his kind, practical, empathetic words.

[BearWallowSchool]

My favorites were SWB's "Homeschooling the Second Time" and Cheryl Lowe's "Preparing Your Children for Classical Education"...but I really want to use Memoria Press K so thats why I like that one so much.

[ladydusk]

Anything by Dr. Pennington. I have heard (and been impressed by) his sessions at past conventions, and this year I found his "When You Feel Like Quitting" session to be absolutely electrifying.

 

Oh, I wanted to go to that ... and then I almost ordered it ... and then I didn't. Phooey. Maybe he'll do that session again next year. [sigh]

[PeterPan]

Dumb question #892. Are we able to buy the cd's from those workshops now that it's over? The line was LONG that last day and I just left. Can we order them online??

[tkeller]

I also love Dr. Pennington but missed that talk! I'll have to listen to it.

 

I loved Nancy Wilson's talk about raising boys and girls. Also loved Doug Phillips talk about courageous boyhood. With my son as young as he is I tend to go to more of the parenting type seminars.

 

My sister and I went in together to buy the CD set of all the seminars, so I will be listening to them all year! We did this last year, and it was great to get to listen to uplifting messages year round! IT can be pricey but well worth it!

[Mom2boys]

Yes, you can order them from Rhino Technologies at www.rhino-technologies.com. All though, the last time I looked, they had not added this year's sessions to their web site yet. And some sessions were "on site only", so you can't buy those.

 

Dumb question #892. Are we able to buy the cd's from those workshops now that it's over? The line was LONG that last day and I just left. Can we order them online??

[PeterPan]

Thanks, I just found that after reading in another thread!! Now hopefully they'll get them up soon, before I lose the link. :)

[ladydusk]

On Facebook this morning:

 

CiRCE Institute will be exhibiting at the 2011 conventions. Andrew Kern will be speaking/presenting in Memphis, Greenville and Philly. Buck Holler (CiRCE Certified Master Teacher) will be speaking/presenting in Cincinnati. (Yes, he's a cowboy - but one who teaches Greek and Latin and Shakespeare and knows Hebrew pretty well to boot!)

 

Might have to go to one of the other cities :( ... but this is better than no presence!

Edited April 22, 2010 by ladydusk

[ReneTL]

I LOVED hearing Jim Weiss speak. He told some of his stories with some interesting tidbits thrown in. Instead of buying the recordings from the convention, I would (and did) buy some of his recordings. He has everything from Shakespeare to spooky stories and he does a great job getting the kids excited about learning and listening to classics. He has a new CD coming out this summer with the stories of the great master artists from the Renaissance. His website is http://www.greathall.com

[PeterPan]

Ladydusk, well that will be fine. At least it won't be like two years ago when LToW had a booth in Cincy and put some man in there who had never USED the stuff, only his wife. He was pretty flustered that first night trying to answer my questions, lol. So if Buck Holler is a master teacher, that will do. And now I'm plagued trying to remember if that was the name of the sweet singing love interest in some old b&w movie... Nope, just remembered. That was Buck Winston. :)

 

Well fine, at least they're coming. And yes, I would think there will be some shifting around of attendees. Really though, LToW doesn't apply to you with a 5 yo. Nuts, I'm not even SURE it applies to me, and I have an almost 11 yo! I think you can do lower grades with it but that it's probably more ideal for older kids, kids ready to write persuasive and whatnot essays. Until then, makes more sense to stick with the foundational stuff out there (WWE, CW, WT, etc.) rather than trying to bring something very complex down to their level. Just my two cents. Besides, if Kern goes over big, they'll probably bring him to Cincy the year after that. Bide your time. :)

Edited April 22, 2010 by OhElizabeth

[ladydusk]

Ladydusk, well that will be fine. At least it won't be like two years ago when LToW had a booth in Cincy and put some man in there who had never USED the stuff, only his wife. He was pretty flustered that first night trying to answer my questions, lol. So if Buck Holler is a master teacher, that will do. And now I'm plagued trying to remember if that was the name of the sweet singing love interest in some old b&w movie... Nope, just remembered. That was Buck Winston. :)

 

Well fine, at least they're coming. And yes, I would think there will be some shifting around of attendees. Really though, LToW doesn't apply to you with a 5 yo. Nuts, I'm not even SURE it applies to me, and I have an almost 11 yo! I think you can do lower grades with it but that it's probably more ideal for older kids, kids ready to write persuasive and whatnot essays. Until then, makes more sense to stick with the foundational stuff out there (WWE, CW, WT, etc.) rather than trying to bring something very complex down to their level. Just my two cents. Besides, if Kern goes over big, they'll probably bring him to Cincy the year after that. Bide your time. :)

 

OhElizabeth ... no, I'm not ready to buy LTOW! I'm planning on WWE until then (and maybe WWS after ... I'm definitely in the right place to be patient!) I just want to listen to (read: stalk) Andrew Kern! I've been listening to last year's CiRCE CDs and they're absolutely wonderful. He has so much knowledge and explains things so completely and makes philosophy practical! I actually bought a bunch of CDs from that CiRCE booth at the conference in 2008 and have listened to them over and over (a whole set on Grammar Stage!).

 

Buck Holler will be an acceptable replacement, I suppose. He's been part of the writing of LTOW II (and maybe the updated edition of LTOW I), so he will be able to answer you questions.