The MACHE 2013 Graduation Commencement is now history and glorious memory. It was a day filled with joy and accomplishment.

Since early March, the graduates and their families have been working together to personalize this event.  From the first meeting it was evident that this group of families was used to working with others to make things happen.  To organize such an event takes many willing workers, and these workers came from the families of the graduates.  From program coordinator, to musicians, to ushers, all the necessary responsibilities were divided and assumed by the parents and siblings of these graduates.  These willing hands resulted in a day filled with well earned pomp and circumstance.  This team effort was organized by Drew and D’Ann Tillman.  Their experience in coordinating this event assured the day flowed smoothly.

The ceremony was held at Cedar Valley Church in Bloomington and began promptly at 1:00 on Saturday, May 18.  Dressed in caps and gowns and processing to the strains of Pomp and Circumstance, the thirty-three graduates of 2013 entered the sanctuary. Tradition included presentation of colors...

As you lean on the Lord to direct your path through the homeschooling years you may find He will lead you to be a part of a support group or perhaps even a co-op.  You may ask yourself, “Well what is the difference?”  Let me first explain that the term “co-op” is a group of homeschooling families that join together for similar purpose to “cooperate” and pool their resources to meet the needs of their homeschooling community. 

I once took a field trip with my children to a pumpkin patch.  We had a very educational afternoon.  One thing I have taken with me for years is that I learned that all pumpkins are squash, but not all squash are pumpkins.  A similar comparison can be made between co-ops versus support groups.  Many co-ops offer a support group component, but support groups generally are not co-ops.  Okay, now that I have officially confused you, let me break apart these two distinct titles. 

What does a support group have to offer? 

Is a co-op right for your family? 

What are you finding you need? 

Let me try to navigate the support group and...

On a brisk, chilly Thursday at the end of January, 44 students and parents gathered in the State Office Building for MÂCHÉ's Annual Legislative Training Days event.  This popular event, coordinated by former Representative and MÂCHÉ board member John Tuma and his wife Wendy, continues to be helpful to students in learning the legislative process and how a bill becomes a law in Minnesota. 

MÂCHÉ would like to thank their two legislative hosts, Representative Sondra Erickson and Senator Dan Hall. Representative Erickson greeted the students on Thursday morning, welcoming them to the Capitol and encouraging them to learn and observe much while at the Capitol. Senator Hall not only welcomed the students on Friday, but also willingly served as Chairman of the Student Mock Committee on Friday afternoon. 

A significant event for us this year was a visit from Representative Anna Wills from Rosemount. Representative Wills is the first homeschool graduate to hold a legislative office. It was a treat to hear her talk about how she became involved in public service and her perspective now that she is in office. 

This interactive event is always...

What is NHERI?

NHERI is the National Home Education Research Institute. NHERI conducts and collects research about homeschooling and publishes the research journal called the Home School Researcher. The institute has hundreds of research works documented and catalogued on homeschooling, many of which were done by NHERI. Simply put, NHERI specializes in homeschool research.

NHERI exists to do the following things:

• To research those who teach their children at home;
• To publish the research journal called the Home School Researcher, which chronicles the current research being done about homeschooling;
• To speak to the media, legislators, and national organizations about the homeschooling movement, showing factual research about those who teach their children at home;
• To serve as conference speakers and teachers for groups interested in homeschooling; and
• To work with legislators on Capitol Hill, and with state/local legislators, on issues related to parental rights, the freedom we have to teach our children at home, and homeschoolers coordinating with local school officials.
...

Homeschool Conferences that make an eternal difference

The National Alliance for Christian Home Education Leadership (NACHEL- referred to as the Alliance) is a non-profit group that supports leaders serving leaders in the home education community. It is made up of 48 loosely associated, but solidly Christian state-wide affiliate home education organizations from 45 states, Canada and Mexico and has over 1,000 years of cumulative home education experience.These are all fully Christian statewide organizations that have a statement of faith and bylaws that ensure perpetual Christian leadership for these groups. Frequently leaders from other nations participate in the annual conferences and in other affiliate events.The Alliance has existed and been serving the homeschooling community as a collective group for roughly 20-25 years. MACHE is proud to be a part of this Christ-honoring group!

However, as the winds of change have brought home education to the marketplace, we have seen the advent of for-personal-profit homeschool conventions. As you might expect, these have had an adverse effect on many of the non-profit conferences associated with...

The sight was stunningly magnificent!  We were spending a day sightseeing after attending the first Global Home Education Conference (GHEC) in Berlin, Germany.  Large rooms in the Pergamon Museum displayed various archaeological finds which had been moved there from various places in the Middle East. They included temples of false gods and their worship artifacts, and crumbling stone sculptures depicting armies supposedly protecting them. I could not help but make the obvious contrast in my mind between the false gods worshipped there and the one true eternal God who is the great “I AM.”  The false philosophies were crumbling, were full of cracks, and needed to be propped up by man. The Lord Jesus Christ is the true living Savior, is totally self-sustaining, and protects His own.

Entering one room, I unknowingly had walked through the famous Ishtar Gate. As I turned around and saw the structure which originally stood at the entrance to the ancient city of Babylon, I was amazed at its size! Painstakingly transported and rebuilt brick by brick as it had been constructed centuries ago, the beautiful walls of blue-glazed bricks contained sculptured...

Character does count. Our Founding Fathers certainly thought so. It’s been said, “Character is doing what’s right when nobody’s looking.” This is what we must instill in our children. Scripture is loaded with positive and negative examples of character. Character is basically the attributes of God. Our goal is to be like Jesus, and therefore we want to teach our children what character qualities mean so they can adopt them into their lives. Character Sketches, as I mentioned in the last chapter, has been a mainstay in our home, as have A Child’s Book Of Character Building, Vol.1 and 2. This book gives simple definitions that kids can understand. For example: “Attentiveness = listening with ears, eyes and heart”, and then applies it to daily situations as well as giving a Bible character who exemplified the quality.

Consider personalizing the character qualities for your children to make it easier for them to apply. It’s so effective to personalize scripture and character qualities to bring about real changes in our lives. Remember that a negative character trait in our lives is just a positive...

“Come on. It’s only thirty-five feet high. After all, you’ve been to the top of the Empire State Building and you’ve looked over the fruited plains from the top of Pike’s Peak.  You’ve walked on the bridge spanning Royal Gorge and have experienced the thrill of climbing out on the rocks which rest on the upper edge of the Grand Canyon walls.”  But no matter what thoughts I used to try to bolster my courage, there was something unnerving about the thought of rappelling down the side of that farm silo. It was on a different level, altogether.

Several years ago my boys and I were participating in a father/son campout and were enjoying a variety of outdoor activities. My sons were eager to try the activity of rappelling. I suggested that we do some other activity, but soon found myself standing in the rappelling line with them.  (I had no desire to reveal my apprehension.  After all, I did not want to lose respect in the eyes of my boys.) 

“They will probably get cold feet,” I reasoned. I watched the line of young boys and their fathers in front of me get smaller and...

Leaders, You won't want to miss this!

Fall will be here soon and it will be time for MȂCHÉ's annual gathering of Minnesota support group leaders. This is a fabulous chance to connect with other leaders and encourage each other on our leadership journeys.  This year's Support Group Leaders Retreat will be held on Saturday, October 27 at Horizons Community Church in Ham Lake, Minnesota. 

We are blessed to have Cam Leedahl, a veteran homeschool mom and leader, share with us. Cam is a founding board member of REACH support group in northern Minnesota and serves as a board member on the National Alliance of Christian Home Education Leadership (The Alliance).  She will have two sessions with us.

Session One: Building the Framework of Your Group
Cam sets out the general principles for a successful support group and helps you target specific applications for your distinctive group. Utilizing the right tools for the job helps to make the construction and maintenance of your group easier.

Session Two: Leadership Would be Easy if it Weren’t for People
Just as one support group...

I was reluctant. I didn’t really want to go to MACHE’s Legislative Training Days. The day Mom asked me about it, I was against it. But she pointed out that it would be very beneficial since I was studying American government this year. It would fit in perfectly with my studies. She and Dad really wanted me to do it this year, if not in my senior year. I asked what I’d be doing and she told me it was basically a tour of the capitol and a detailed run down of the processes that go on every day. I was glad at least I didn’t have to do anything up in front of people. Even though I still didn’t really want to, I said I’d do it because Mom and Dad wanted me to, and God has commanded me to obey and honor my parents. So I determined I would go without complaining, mentally or verbally, to obey my Savior.

My dad and I left early Thursday morning for the State Office Building. At first, it started out as I expected: an encouraging word from Representative Mary Kiffmeyer, an outline of the day, and lots of information about how the House and Senate operate. Then came the excitement - the tour of the State Office Building. Just as we entered the...