Homeschool Conventions Useful?

[North Coast School]

DH and I are arranging our summer schedule and i am trying to decide about going to our state's homeschool association convention. It will be about a 3 hour drive each way for me, plus hotel expenses, and I am trying to decide if it's worth going.

 

For those who have gone to one, Did you enjoy it? Was it helpful? Was it fun?

 

We are fairly new to homescholing (2 years), but I am pretty clear about my curriculum choices already....

[G5052]

IMHO, they're not as useful as they once were. Now you can see samples online, and there are boards like this one where you can read discussions about the pro's and con's. And many of the speakers have materials online as well.

 

If you go, look carefully at the speakers and vendors to see if they are compatible with your goals and of interest to you. Some vendors have actually stopped going to conventions because it isn't the moneymaker that it once was. At this point of life, I'm not interested in the majority of the speakers, and I can't see spending the $$$ just to shop and hear maybe one or two presentations. I haven't been to a large one in over a decade, and I don't feel like I'm missing anything.

[Farrar]

I've been to two... one was a waste of time. I did buy a couple of minor things and got to look at a few things, but the speakers I saw ranged from Duh to merely decent. And while it wasn't a religious conference per se, there was still a lot of religious assumptions going on in a lot of the sessions.

 

At the other, I went specifically to see a couple of speakers who were really, really good - Ed Zacarro who does Primary Challenge Math and Julie Bogart who does Bravewriter. That made it worth it. I did end up walking out of one dud of a session, but overall it was great. The vendor hall was lame as lame can be though.

[placeofgrace]

I enjoy going. I have already registered for a convention that is about 2 1/2 hours away. It's the closest one. I mainly go to shop and look around. I "might" listen to a speaker or two, but that's not my main focus. I like to be able to actually put my hands on the curriculum/books etc. It's the only opportunity I have to see a large variety of homeschool stuff in one place. But really...you're the only one who can decide if it's worth it for you and your family. It is expensive with hotel costs and such, so if money is a major concern I wouldn't go.

[dbmamaz]

there's a convention 20 minutes to me, its a pretty small one, but i'm happy to support the organization. as a crowd-phobic introvert, i'm a useless wreck for 2 days afterwards, and honestly i'm not so sure i get enough out of it to justify that, but some of the presenters (yes, i was w Farrar in some of those sessions!) are really fun and inspiring.

[blondchen]

I went to the national Greenville Convention in 2010 and 2011. I went in 2010 as a total newbie when oldest DD had just turned 4 (on the advice of a friend I went a year BEFORE I had to make decisions about curriculum, etc.) so I was just getting my feet wet and browsing curriculum and I loved it. I found it to be very helpful and inspiring, especially the seminars. Last year I went to a few seminars and did more browsing in the exhibit hall - after looking at curriculum online it was great to see things in person and talk to the vendors. I solidified my choices for K and looked at some additional things for the future. So, it was a good experience and I'm glad I went both times. DH went also and it was fun for us to do that together.

 

That said, I'm a Greenville local, so there's no travel time or cost for me - just the registration. It's worth the $50 fee and I'm planning to go again this year (if I can figure out what to do with my kids!), but if I had to pay for travel and hotel it wouldn't be worth it. I loved it the first year especially (and there were some really great speakers that year, including SWB, and I had my MIL to watch the kids for both days) but now that I've gotten my feet wet I feel like I can get the help and support I need in other ways. It IS helpful to see curriculum in person (at least for me), but if you are clear about your curriculum choices already, you might want to carefully look at what seminars, etc. are offered to see if those would justify the cost in time and money.

 

HTH!!

[atozmom]

For me it is worth it. I am the kind of person that really needs to have things in my hands to make a decision. I also only live a little over an hour away from our big state convention.

 

I will usually go with 2 or 3 friends. We split the cost of the hotel room, which makes it more affordable. For me, it is a time of recharging after a long year. I get to take my time through the vendor hall, listen to a few lectures, relax by the pool and take some time to think about things I have looked at.

[Lori D.]

A number of homeschoolers I know locally don't go to our state homeschool convention, and are perfectly fine with not going, and don't really need to go. I, on the other hand, am a voracious "gleaner" and researcher, and went to our state homeschool convention each year and always found it to be useful. It probably really depends on how "good" or "mediocre" your convention is, and what you need/don't need from it. Below are the reasons I went each year, as the pluses always outweighed the minuses for me. BEST of luck as you think it through! Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

An encouragement and cheerleading to my flagging enthusiasm each year

We homeschooled both our DSs, one of whom was extremely strong-willed, a VS learner, and has mild LDs. So by the end of the year I was often completely wiped out and found just being at the convention with so many other homeschoolers reminded me I wasn't alone in this, and it renewed my vision of "why I'm doing this" and gave me new enthusiasm for the new school year.

 

Always came away with a great tidbit just at the right time

I always found at least one tidbit from one speaker that was *exactly* what I needed to hear that year. Here are a few of the things from different years that altered our homeschooling direction for the better in a powerful way:

- Debra Bell's statement at my first convention just before starting homeschooling that became my mantra throughout our 12 years: "It's not first and foremost about your child's academics — but about YOUR sanctification!"

- Joyce Herzog's great how-to session on teaching grammar to elementary ages when DSs were at that age.

- Andrew Pudewa's great how-to sessions on teaching writing.

- Mary Schofield's session on how to make a high school plan right at the moment I was spinning in circles trying to make the transition to homeschooling high school.

- Teresa Moon's session on public speaking (Communicators for Christ) the year I knew DSs needed to do public speaking -- which led me out of my comfort zone to lead a co-op class on public speaking, and filling a need for DSs, and blessing me tremendously!

- Dianne Craft's sessions on specific therapies, nutrition, and teaching tips for children with LDs. Even though this was late in our homeschooling journey, implementing some of her suggestions made an improvement for our DS with mild LDs.

 

Gave me special time with DH

The first few years, DH and I went and used it as a fun get-away, going to just a few sessions, strolling through the vendors (we both love books), and then spending time relaxing at the hotel pool, and going out to dinner. One homeschooling couple I know used the weekend in a similar way (as a get-away and just going to a few sessions) to discuss and pray over each child together, and set goals for each child.

 

Gave me special time with DS

After the first few years, I ended going alone for a number of years. Then, when oldest DS was in high school, just the two of us went for one day, and he would do the "teen track" sessions. I would do a few of those with him, go to a few others on my own, and we'd stroll the vendor hall and have lunch together. The 2-hour drive there, and then again home getting to chat, listen to music together, joke together was very special, memorable time for both of us.

[PachiSusan]

I found that going to that first home education convention was the best thing that ever happened to our home schooling journey. It helped us to cement that we were and can do this, and that we were going to go with a curriculum in a box and religious in nature. I enjoyed hearing everyone's journeys and I loved browsing through the books they had available. Would I go to one now 6 years into it? Probably not.

[Samiam]

I do think they are useful, much like a "business convention" is to anyone in a certain industry. For example, hair stylists go to hair shows, bloggers go to blogger conventions, even my DH who used to be in the Recreation industry (ie work for a City Rec department) had annual conventions, my friend who is in the insurance business goes to an Insurance industry convention every year (now that sounds completely boring, lol), and think of the annual electronics conventions, where new products are released each year. Most industries will have some sort of annual convention where the people go to seminars, learn about new products, network with each other, and generally just learn about their industry.

 

To be in this meeting area/convention center with hundreds, even thousands, of like-minded people. No hiding your purpose, or keeping it to yourself. Everyone there is all about encouraging your choices, and your journey. Hear from "experts" in the field, who can bolster your confidence, or even give you something new to ponder. Even after 10 years of homeschooling, I can still learn something new about my journey, something I hadn't considered or thought of.

 

I don't go every year, just depends on my budget and the dates of the convention. I've only went to local ones, so it was a "Mom's Day Out" for me....DH was home with the children, and I had no time limit as to when I needed to be home, and I'll go to some speakers, and walk the vendor hall several times. Exhausted by the end, but also refreshed in my journey.

 

Although online samples are great, sometimes they really don't show the big picture. I MUCH prefer to be able to hold the curriculum, look all through it. I've changed my mind on more than one purchase after seeing it in person.

 

I'd recommend going if you can.

[mschickie]

We go to the NYS LEAH Conference every year. Dh and I both enjoy it. It is time together for us plus we attend some great seminars. Dh was not sure the first year I dragged him but now he would not miss it. The vendor hall is always my big downfall though, Rainbow Resources always sucks me in :laugh: I do get a lot of my new curriculum while there. Sometimes I can find used books there too but the one big used vendor was not there last year, not sure why.

[beaners]

I've been to two... one was a waste of time. I did buy a couple of minor things and got to look at a few things, but the speakers I saw ranged from Duh to merely decent. And while it wasn't a religious conference per se, there was still a lot of religious assumptions going on in a lot of the sessions.

 

At the other, I went specifically to see a couple of speakers who were really, really good - Ed Zacarro who does Primary Challenge Math and Julie Bogart who does Bravewriter. That made it worth it. I did end up walking out of one dud of a session, but overall it was great. The vendor hall was lame as lame can be though.

 

 

This sounds pretty close to my experience. My children are still young, but I'm the type to research things very thoroughly. There's not going to be much (any?) new material for me to learn in a basic lecture about a topic, and there don't seem to be many lectures that dive into the meat of something unless they're how to use one kind of curriculum. We are Christian, but not the specific type of Christian the conferences seem to expect us to be. That means there were a lot of sessions about topics that didn't interest me, and there were large portions of sessions that I was interested in that were lost to that too. I can't 100% speak for those who are in sync with the beliefs the convention emphasizes, but if it was me I'd be a bit annoyed that I was just hearing back the same stuff I already believed. Or maybe other people are going for reinforcement and recharging, while I'm looking at it from the research and new information angle.

 

I saw Zaccaro too and he was one of the better sessions I saw. Of course being that obsessive researcher, I had already read a couple of his books. He went over a lot of the same material in the class, but it was still worth it because my daughter later picked out one of his math books and has had unbridled enthusiasm for the book ever since. I loved SWB, but she's not doing conventions this year. She could have read word for word out of a book, and I probably would have sat there with rapt attention. In all honesty, I liked her perspective and outlook far better than a lot of the other presenters. In retrospect I would have walked out of a lecture by someone who is very popular here, because his talk was focused so much on the negative things he perceived that homeschoolers were trying to overcome. Instead I went home and wrote a rebuttal about my own stance that lasted several pages, so that may have been worthwhile in that it forced me to better clarify my own position. (Nerd alert!)

 

It was nice to look over a few things in the vendor hall, but I'm flexible and so are my kids. For the moment, we can make just about anything work, so I'm trying to hold off buying more things when my shelves are overflowing.

 

The biggest benefit for our family was the buy-in. My husband was more excited afterwards. The kids got to see that lots of other people do this too, and they got to pick out a few books. I was glad to go, but that was the thing that really made it worthwhile. My husband is more excited than I am about checking out sessions this year, and I'm happy to have this be something he is positive about.

[ChicoryChick]

I have been going off and on to local conventions since my oldest dd was 4 (she is now 14). When we lived in PA, I would go to SEARCH most years because it was only 5-20 minutes (depending on location)and it had an awesome used book sale. (It was worth it just for that). It was there I was introduced to the WTM, I believe SOTW 1 had just been published and I think Jesse Wise was the one at the table that I talked to about doing history chronologically but that meant nothing to me at the time. Another year I heard Andrew Pudewa's "Building Forts" lecture which I thought was really good. I never did attend CHAP.

 

I did attend LEAH once the year we lived in NY but just for the vendors hall.

 

Now I live 2 hours from Cinncy and am considering attending that convention in April but haven't decided yet whether or not it will be worth it. I do need to look at some HS Biology options. I really miss SEARCH and being able to go with my sister and good friend.

 

sorry for the rambling.

[Lolly]

I went to one once. It wasn't one of the "big" conventions. It definitely was not worth the time it took to go. 3 hours and a hotel? Not for me.

[North Coast School]

Thank you all so much for your responses. I think I am leaning towards NOT going. We have a great homeschooling store in our town that supplies all the curriculum I could ever want to look at, and the lectures aren't overly compelling to me at this time.

[Candid]

I think the answer depends a lot on you:

 

Are you Christian? If not, then be warned most conferences have a Christian bent. Check out the speakers and topics as well as vendors that will be at the one you go to.

 

Do you love books? Then if the convention has a large vendor hall you'll be in hog heaven.

 

On the other hand, are you easily over-whelmed? Large conventions have been known to do this. If you decide to go and you know can be overwhelmed, then schedule your time in the vending hall in small chunks. Usually they will publish a map, do one aisle (maybe two) at a time.

 

Do you have a flexible budget with room for extras? A convention should tempt you with add ons to whatever you are using. Have a budget that allows for the addition of those can help the enjoyment factor. If your room money will eat your budget up by a large fraction, then I'd skip the convention.

 

Do you need encouragement? Many folks I know rave about our state convention because they get encourage by the speakers (Keep question one in mind though.) I'm more of an information only person, so speakers that are specific educational topics aren't as much interest to me.

[Tracy]

I think it really depends on why you are going. I am not a convention-goer, and I wasn't going to even try to go until my kids were a bit older and could come with me. But last year, a dear friend offered up the babysitting services of her mother, and so I decided to go. At the time, I was struggling with a particular issue with my dd. As it turned out, there was a single session devoted to that issue, and it completely changed my perspective and gave me so much hope. :hurray: That session by itself made the cost, the time, and the drive worth while. The rest of the convention was just okay, and one session I even found a bit offensive. I did have some friends there that I met up with from time to time, and that was a plus, too. It was good to be able to peruse the curricula, but there was little that I saw or heard in the booths that I couldn't find out here on these boards. :D

[HS Mom in NC]

Homeschool Conventions can be useful, the question is, what do you need right now?

 

Very generally speaking workshops are usually either philosophical or practical. Philosophical workshops usually cover why to take a certain approach, as opposed to other approaches, in your lifestyle, academics, or other aspect of your homeschooling life. Sometimes it covers what big ideas are covered in more philosophical oriented workshops. Practical workshops typically focus on how to do something in your lifestyle, academics, or other aspect of your homeschooling life. These are usually filled with examples of how people handle the more nitty gritty details of some aspect of homeschooling.

 

There are also product based workshops where someone who is trying to sell you a curriculum or other homeschooling product gets it out and does lots of demonstrations. They usually allow lots of question and answer time. There are also curriculum halls with lots of products out for parents flip through at their leisure with one person available to answer questions, but the amount of demonstration with the product is usually pretty small.

 

I've been to a dozen conventions. Read through the information about the speakers and their topics, which demonstrations are available, and what products will be there. Then decide if any of those things fit your particular needs this year.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I've been going to conferences on an off for about 15 years. Some local, some state, and the big conference in Cincinnati a couple times.

 

There have been workshops that brought me to tears because they were just the word I needed.

Peter Enns: Cut yourself some slack. God loves your children and wants to bring them into a relationship. His doing that doesn't rest on what curriculum you pick.

 

Susan Wise Bauer: (in response to a question about how much my kids should be writing) Ease up and don't make it a chore and something they dread. They will work to high school level gradually, not overnight. And her Homeschooling the Second Time Around was incredible. She doesn't record the session in order to be more candid, so I won't try to quote specifics. But the general observation that you should live more open handedly, because you aren't really able to be that controlling of other people hit me. (Since she isn't speaking this year, I'm planning to listen to a couple mp3s again, especially Homeschooling the Real Child and Teaching Students to Work Independently as well as the high school writing and literary analysis workshops.)

 

Todd Wilson's Lies Homeschooling Mom's Believe was funny in part because it put into words so many of the conflicted emotions and worries that I have.

 

But some of the best moments have not been designed as pump you up workshops. Dr. Carol Reynolds' workshop on hymn singing is absolute balm. I'm so glad that it was on the last day of the conference, because I really needed those moments of rest and deep breathing (plus I learned a new hymn). She is funny and entertaining and very learned.

 

When we started homeschooling, we lived overseas, in a country where homeschooling is only permitted to foreign military stationed there and diplomats. I had no homeschooling community outside these boards and emailing friends back home. The first conference after we moved back to the US had a homeschool follies of organization board members singing homeschool parodies of popular songs. It was so liberating to be in a room of a few hundred people, who all had the same struggles and crazy busy days. Who had the same late night doubts that they were making a horrible mistake to homeschool.

 

I also love the vendor hall. I've been able to speak with the curriculum authors on several occasions and understand how they thought their curriculum should be used and how to tweak it for specific occasions. I've found wonderful out of print books from used book dealers. And just as important I've been able to leaf through books and curriculum and realize that they were not a right fit. That they had too much copywork in a printing style that was very different from what we used. That they presupposed a religious dogma that we didn't share. That the text was only available as an electronic version. That the very high price didn't provide enough value added above what I would already bring to the table. That the lessons were so specific to the particular book scheduled as to be a frustration to me (we own several thousand books and I don't rush to get the latest, just because it's in print).

 

So while I spent about a thousand dollars at convention last year, I also decided about a thousand dollars worth was not a good purchase (for us).

 

I also get some girls' day out fun with my sister-in-law and a dear friend. They are good counsel and also let me experience the joy of homeschooling young kids again through their eyes. And it helps that we have family in the city where a big conference is held. So we come home from a long day of shopping to a hot, homecooked meal, dessert and wine. It's pretty nice.

[G5052]

Are you Christian? If not, then be warned most conferences have a Christian bent. Check out the speakers and topics as well as vendors that will be at the one you go to.

 

More specifically, are your views compatible with viewpoint of the Christian speakers?

 

This is the primary reason that I haven't been to the big state convention closest to me. The keynote speakers and many of the seminars just don't reflect our family's viewpoint.

[Sebastian (a lady)]

I go! Every year. Even after hsing for 25 years. It's the one time I get to do something for myself.I've brought the older girls a few times--never have brought Army girl. She would have been bored to tears. I'd like to bring my youngest some time. One of the reasons I go is to see old friends--I only see them once a year as it's a 5 hour drive for me. I stay with friends in south Denver and we go out to dinner--it's lovely. My favorite booth i Books Bloom--all old, used books--heavenly!

 

 

Books Bloom is a great vendor. They often have just the book I need, even though I didn't know it existed until I stepped into their booth. They had a great article last year in The Old Schoolhouse about moving beyond the tyranny of booklists and being able to recognize and use good book that aren't on popular curriculum lists because they are out of print.