Torah Home Educators Conference

I would have written a review, but a good friend of mine and an exceptional homeschool momma wrote up a great one. Her blog follows her unschooling journey.

With her kind permission, here is the link:

http://homeschoolchumash.blogspot.com/2016/05/torah-home-education-conference-2016.html

I should add that there was very good childcare, which gave me peace of mind both for my presentation and for the rest of the conference.

After the conference, there was a Mom's night out, which I needed like air. We actually stayed that extra night just so I could go out. And I discovered that despite having spent the whole day being social, talking to strangers, and networking (activities that I like only in small doses), I did not mind hanging out with strangers some more. There were chair massages in a candlelit room. There was a tichel sale, where I acquired a gorgeous sari wrap and was shown how to wrap it. There was a Pampered Chef presentation and a giveaway. Now I'm a proud owner of a spiralizer. There was a chessed project of making non-skid socks for hospital patients. There was an artist's corner with canvasses, acrylic pain0,t and masking tape design suggestions. I have not painted since before the baby was born. There were wine and yummy pastries. And there was casual conversation. It was nice to get out.

So if you are at all on the fence whether to attend a conference in the future, come. You will walk away with something new.

Torah Home Education Conference

It is coming up!

I have gone the previous two years and I am bummed out, as this year it is not likely that I can attend. If you are interested in homeschooling, or if you are just getting started, or if you have been doing it for years and want to talk shop, or just to have a sympathetic ear, this is the place to go!

The conference will take place in tri-state area during Memorial Day weekend.

Interested in educational alternatives for your children?  The original Jewish educational method, homeschooling, is growing and you're invited to learn more at the 2014 Torah Home Education Conference.  There will be speakers talking about finding your homeschool philosophy, how to homeschool special needs children, putting a preschool curriculum together, home education and technology and much more.   Potential and currently homeschooling families welcome.  A kosher lunch and child care will be available.  More information and registration at http://2014theconference.eventbee.com.

the conference

I went to the Jewish Orthodox Homeschoolers' Conference. I drove up with the baby and another mom who is planning on homeschooling her kids. This was a very weird road trip. I drove all the way up to Baltimore and down, with a stopover in Richmond. We talked all the way up and down, and probably still can do more talking! I have not shared a room with someone whom I was not related to since college. In both locales we stayed in houses with triplets. Moreover, neither me, nor my friend left out kids in care of husbands and just took off, nor are we planning on doing it any time soon.

The conference itself was very interesting. I went last year with the kids, but I was in a very different place now. Last year I was just feeling my way, trying to find a balance, working on curriculum and looking forward to hear from the experts. This year it felt more like a reunion. I met so many people who came the previous year, and made some new connections. I was able to evaluate information based on how it fit my family's needs. I even met a few unschoolers. Last year I compared myself to everyone else. This year I felt no need to do so.

Two things really stood out at the conference: the binder and the feeling of unity. We were given totes which contained a binder full of resources. There were websites providing curriculum, directory of frum homeschoolers, sample lessons, select articles, posts and presentations and much more. I feel like I have been handed a resource book to lead me wherever the homeschooling happens to take me next.

Secondly, the unity was simply incredible. I was sitting in the same room with people from all over, and from all ends of the orthodox spectrum. Every one has their own methodology to homeschooling, yet everyone there took an obligation of educating their children seriously, and into their own hands, so to speak. The openness of conversations, the flow of ideas, the energy and dedication made it easy to talk to whomever happened to sit next to me.

I wished that I brought my kids along, they would have enjoyed interacting with other frum homeschooled kids. However, this year it was impossible, with the baby and all. My mantra lately has been: there is always next year.

MD trip part 2: the conference

The conference was on Sunday, so we spent Shabbos in Baltimore. There was oneg on Friday night for adults. By the time I got there, I was so tired, that, I think, I did not make the most of it. I met a few other parents, heard some stories and got the feeling that there are a whole lot of homeschoolers in Baltimore. For some reason, I thought there wouldn't be. I assumed that it was too frum, that there are so many school choices, that people are very stuck on doing a mainstream thing. It was a pleasant surprise to discover otherwise.

Then, on Shabbos, there was get-together for adults and kids at the park. As we were walking there, 8 yo asked if all the people there will be Jewish. I said, they will all be Jewish and frum. Then I realized that he had no idea what a convention was. I explained. He said, oh yeah, my teacher once went to a convention, they taught her that it is easier to use smartboard with knuckles than with fingers.

When we got there, there was quite a crowd. I met with a few people from Friday night. The boys first kept to themselves, but then they joined in the global tag game and seemed very happy. The 2 yo made an instant friend.

The following morning was the conference. 8 yo seemed embarrassed to go to babysitting. I reframed it as childcare. By the end of the day, the boys did not want to leave. They ran in the gym, made pottery, played table games and ran on the stage. I saw them waving to some other kids in the hallway as we were departing.

As for me, I was a bit nervous. I was worried that it might have been a whole crazy trip for nothing. But I was mistaken. First of all, just sitting in an auditorium with over a hundred frum homeschoolers was amazing. As I looked around the room, I saw tichels, hats, sheitels, snoods, hair tucked in, hair hanging out, hats on top of the sheitel. I saw people from all over. I saw young mothers, just starting to homeschool their oldest. I saw older people, with their grown-up homeschooled children, who are now homeschooling the next generation. I saw husbands, wives and couples. In short, the overall picture is that all segments and groups of Jewish people are homeschooling, not just a few weirdos who did not fit in.

The other vibe that I got, is that it is good to be swimming against the current. As one of the first presenters said, we are being shut into progressively smaller boxes, until the size is 2 inches by 2 inches and there is no leeway. This conference showed the bigger picture.

A few highlights:

• When you embark on something new, there are three reactions: ignoring, ridiculing and fearing. Based on the Yated Neeman's article, frum homeschooling is feared and being lashed out against. I am hoping for eventual acceptance.
• To teach kids one needs to have an end goal in mind. Is the goal to produce kids who think that Judaism is something that we do because everyone does it, or independent thinkers who "work" for it?
• A parent is not an instructor, but an educational facilitator. Not a slave driver. The children will study what interests them and parent will provide resources necessary to support those interests. The environment needs to be set up appropriately, the atmosphere has to conducive to learning, but the drive to learn will come from the child. 
• Children carefully observe their role models, primarily their parents. There could not be any hypocrisy, as it will be immediately picked up.
• A strong relationship between a parent and a child is desired and encouraged. Before you say, duh, think: when the child is in school the whole day, the allegiance is to the pack. When the child is home, the allegiance is to the family. Besides, I have met plenty of people who cannot wait to ship off their 2 and 3 year olds to someone's care because they cannot tolerate their own kids.
• Limudei kodesh and chol can and should be seamlessly integrated. One needs a deep understanding of the sciences in order to understand Torah, but one also needs to a close relationship to Hashem in order to appreciate the marvelous world around us.
• Your relationship to finances will impact your child's relationship to money. Should we define ourselves by how we make a living? Are you fiscally responsible? A child should be taught basic skills, such as making a budget, balancing a checkbook, giving tzedakah, paying bills, conducting cost-benefit analysis, allowance management, etc.

I also got to meet a few of my fellow bloggers and posters. But the most interesting part was meeting people who are not homeschooling yet, but came because they are interested.

There is a problem with our educational system, both public and private. There are courageous people who will find a way to educate their child, even if it's not mainstream, even if everyone frowns on it, even if the outcome is not guaranteed. In short, there multitudes of people who take veshinantam levanecha seriously.

something to look forward to

Very exciting:

• Frum homeschooling conference is in Baltimore this Sunday. I can't wait to meet others in the same boat and see how they swim. I am looking forward to getting some tips and ideas. I am also looking forward to the drive and (hopefully) to the arrival of a car fridge to make that drive more pleasant. Oh, and to a couple hours to kill in Washington on Friday. Which Smithsonian institution should we visit? 
• We are organizing sun room as official homeschooling space. I made a shelf for the boys with all their books and notebooks. Each boy gets a half. Next step: a cubby-like area for pencils, glue, erasers and for ongoing projects. Finally, I will be moving in all art supplies in hope of corralling them into one area instead of three.
• We are getting a drum set for 8 yo. He had very good practice today and has been consistently practicing, so time has come for a junior drum set.
• 6 yo locked me and all three kids in the utility room this morning. At least my husband was around to hear our banging and to let us out. I am pretty sure the kid did it just to see what would happen if all of us are locked in that room. This takes me back to the time my 8 yo was 1 and locked a pregnant me in the basement. He was so little that he could not open the lock, so I was on one side of the door and he was on another. Luckily, I picked the lock with a screwdriver.