elementary

We were home schooling when nobody was homeschooling. We started with our firstborn son in his kindergarten year, 1980--81. It started out as a matter of convenience (we didn't like public school but lived a half-hour commute from our church's Christian school) but soon grew into a conviction.

Over three decades later, we have never experienced a moment of doubt as to our choice. That little boy in kindergarten is now a college graduate, a lawyer and a married man with three children, all of whom he and his wife plan on teaching at home. He is also the eldest of our fourteen sons and daughters. His younger siblings, some of whom are also the parents of our 11 grandchildren, are homeschooling as well. Obviously, our children are as pleased as their parents are with the method of education we chose.

Over the years, of course curious people have asked us why we made the decision to begin and continue homeschooling our children. There are many reasons we love it, but for the sake of brevity I'll share a few here.

First, we love having so much time with our children. It hurts us to hear parents talk about how glad they will be when the kids go back...

We are excited about our new store!  

Please take time to visit our new store and see what is there. Simply click on the store tab at the top of the page or on any of the sub-menu items under the tab.  We also provide links for you throughout this article. The store contains over 750 products, including over 2,800 audio files. In addition to some great search tools to help you find what you want, audio samples have been provided with each product. If you are curious about a particular recording, just listen to the sample. The playback controls will be clearly visible next to the product. Click on the play button and position the playback indicator anywhere in the sample.  

Past MÂCHÉ conferences: There are over 250 workshop presentations from past MÂCHÉ conferences that have been added to our store. Listen to material from particular speakers you enjoy or receive help for specific needs you might have: encouragement, curriculum guidance, teaching and learning styles, readiness skills, special needs, high school transcripts, organization, and much more. The various "filters" displayed in the left column of...

Premise:  If the right curriculum can be found, it will perform the magic – the abracadabra – to transform a student from ignorant to educated all by itself.

As an experienced homeschool mom, speaker and curriculum writer, I’ve noticed that many believe this and seek earnestly for the genie, or the wand, or the catalog.  And, lest you think I’m loftily looking down my nose, let me add that I was one of them.  In the early days of homeschooling, I was convinced that there truly existed a perfect curriculum, and spent years on a quest, like those in search of the Holy Grail, to find it.

Most of us who invested way too much time and money on this zealous mission have found by now that there is no fantastic carpet ride — only increasing disappointment, discouragement, and often the end of homeschooling altogether.  We wonder why all of our attempts end in defeat, in our children showing distaste and disgust at the results of our valiant effort to find the perfect curriculum.  Convinced that it’s the curriculum that accomplishes the difficult feat of teaching, we continue to crawl toward the...

On April 28th, 2004, the police uncovered a family (father and daughter) deep in the forest in northwest Oregon. Homeless and destitute, the father had opted not to leave his daughter to grow up on the streets. Instead, he took her into the woods, and for four years they lived in a lean-to in the forest. Police were amazed to find the girl clean, healthy, and. . . educated! There in the forest, the father had homeschooled his daughter with nothing but a Bible and a decrepit set of encyclopedias. Officials tested the twelve-year-old and found that she had already achieved a 12th-grade equivalency. Now,ask yourself, how could this be? There was no department of education. No certified teacher. No expensive curriculum. No notice-of-intent to homeschool and no standardized tests. So what was the secret? Police Sgt, Michael Barkley, told reporters, “What was so clear was that their living conditions were unacceptable, but their relationship was a real deep love and caring for each other” (Source www.katu.com).

There are some factors in the education of a child that transcend all others. Because they are so basic and powerful, they eliminate the need for...

Whether you are attending a homeschool conference for the first time or just know that you benefit from reminders of what you need to do before attending one, we hope that this article will help you get ready for and enjoy your annual homeschool conference in the best possible way.

Benefits of Attending.

The opportunities brought together in this once-a-year event can renew and expand your vision for teaching and training your children. Be encouraged, rejuvenated, inspired, motivated, and better equipped to homeschool.

• Speakers can broaden your horizons as they expose you to new ideas, methods, materials, and approaches – as well as remind you of the basics.

• Workshops will give you practical training in various and specific topics to make your teaching more efficient.

• Exhibit Halls enable you to examine, compare, and purchase a great variety of the latest and best of home education materials, technologies, and products from hundreds of...

Do your homework! Read several of the publications listed below to gain a solid perspective about homeschooling.

• The Basic Steps to Successful Homeschooling by Vicki A. Brady

• Christian Home Educators’ Curriculum Manual (Elementary Grades) by Cathy Duffy

• Christian Home Educators’ Curriculum Manual (Junior/Senior High) by Cathy Duffy

• The Christian Home School, Revised and Updated by Gregg Harris

• Home Grown Kids: A Practical Handbook for Teaching Your Children by Dr. Raymond and Dorothy Moore

• The Home School Manual for Parents Who Teach Their Own Children by Theodore E. Wade, Jr.

• The How and Why of Home Schooling by Ray E. Ballmann

• How to Home School by Gayle Graham

• Home Schooling: The Right Choice! by Christopher J. Klicka

• When You Rise Up: A Covenantal Approach to Homeschooling by R. C. Sproul, Jr.

• The Whole Hearted Child: A Handbook for Christian Home...

Life is very busy in our home. Rick and I are the parents of 14 children, ages 31-7 years old. We only have nine living at home now, as four are married and Josh was promoted to heaven a few years ago. All of our married children still live in town and now we have four (soon to be five) grandchildren. Life, as I said, is busy, but very rich . We are very blessed.

We’ve been home educating since 1980. We’ve just completed our twenty-sixth year. I’ve been frequently asked how is it possible to home school so many at the same time? Our school day is generally a three hour period in the morning, although sometimes the older children will have reading to finish up in the afternoon. Presently, our house has three rooms in close vicinity of each other, which we utilize during the morning schooling time. The dining room table is where those writing do their work. The living room is where those sit who are reading and the kitchen table has traditionally been the center for the preschoolers and toddlers who are working on their projects. By the way, I have special learning activities for preschoolers, which I save only for use during school time , so they look...

“Here’s your breakfast!” said Mom, as she cheerfully placed in front of her awakening children a plate covered with smooth refried beans and a little dollop of molasses.

The children went suddenly silent. This was new. However, they had been taught not to complain, so they dutifully ate what was put before them. Yet, each secretly looked forward to lunch.

At noon the children eagerly waited to see what tasty treat Mom would produce. Once again there appeared another plate of refried beans and molasses. Lunch was a rather quiet affair, except for Mom, who burbled quite happily about giving only the best to her family. Dinner ... same story. Three days and nine meals of beans and molasses later, Dad finally spoke up.

“Hey, hon, what’s up with the beans and molasses diet we seem to have gone on?”

“Well,” she replied excitedly, “I read this great book, Better Nutrition by Selective Feeding. I answered all the survey questions about our family, you know, and found things like how I always need something sweet around 4 p.m., and you need more fiber every three or four days, and Joey needs...