A new year is upon us and believe it or not, it is time to start planning to go to one or more of the wonderful homeschool conventions that will be offered this spring and summer. Some of you are asking yourself: "Do I really want to take a day or two away from my busy schedule to go to a convention?" You would be surprised, but most home school families ask themselves that question each year. Look at the figures. We estimate that there are 40,000 families in California home schooling. The four major conventions probably attract between 6,000 to 7,000 families each year, which means that only 15% attend any conferences during the year. We find that this is a sad statistic. One reason that the average homeschool family only lasts two years is a lack of knowledge about what it is they are trying to do. It takes a great deal of perseverance and determination to homeschool your children for many years, and the conventions can be very helpful.

With five or six local conventions this year, there is something for everyone and a program for every budget and preference. For those who are overwhelmed by the huge Christian Home Educator's Association Convention at the Ontario Convention Center in July, there are at least three smaller conferences this year: Bayshore, LINK, and for the first time, California Homeschool Network is planning a family friendly conference with activities for the whole family. You can derive a tremendous benefit from going to conventions. First of all, it is a time of confirmation. During the rest of the year there are times when you feel like it is you against the whole world. You start to question your decision to home school and feel inadequate. When you attend a conference, no matter how big or small, you realize that there are other families with the same convictions you have with regard to the raising of your children. We cannot over emphasize the importance of this benefit. While you are attending these conventions, you will probably create some new friendships or meet people you met the year before and compare notes.

Most conferences offer a multitude of workshops that address issues ranging from the "why" to the "how" of home schooling. Even though some organizations tend to repeat themselves each year with the same speakers, there are several workshops that should be of benefit to you. Get hold of the agendas for the different conventions and determine which event would benefit you most. Be on the lookout for new speakers and ideas. Of particular interest should be workshops by booksellers and other vendors. It is amazing how much information you can receive in these workshops. Now realize that the purpose behind the vendor workshops is to "sell" a product. With this in mind, go to these workshops to learn more about a particular product or idea and see if it has a place in your homeschool.

Now for a word of caution. As the popularity (and profitability) of home schooling increases, you will find more and more companies entering into the home school market. As you listen to these new "experts" be sure to ask the following questions. One, "Have you ever home schooled ?" If the speaker or vendor has not home schooled this should raise a red flag. How can they really tell you how to do it if they have not done it themselves? True, there are some excellent speakers who have not homeschooled and many good products are sold by non-home schooling people; just be careful of the counsel they give. Secondly, "How will my homeschool benefit from your product or service?" Be sure that the product fits your home schooling style and your childrens' needs. Beware especially of extremely high- ticket items. Not that all big tickets are bad, but just be sure that you will benefit from the purchase. For example, Geo-Safari and The Phonics Game are both big ticket and definitely worth the investment if you use them. Otherwise they make very expensive shelf decorations. Conventions are also a fantastic place for you to look at all the curriculums, games, books and other home school products. The larger conventions tend to have a great number of vendors in the vendor hall. The biggest selection of vendors will be found at the CHEA Convention. But don't be under the impression that the smaller conventions will not have a good selection of vendors. Many home school families literally buy their entire year of materials and books at these conventions. This is particularly true in areas where there are no retail outlets that specialize in home school materials.

Another side bar on discounters. If you attend a convention and spend time talking to the vendors, please have the courtesy to buy from them. Don't spend time with them and then buy from a discounter who will not spend time with you. Don't forget, many vendors spend up to several thousand dollars to be at these conventions to serve you.

In the process of deciding which convention to attend, don't be afraid to call the organization putting it on. Determine if the theme of the convention and of the organization fits into your particular philosophy. Each convention has it's own personality that tends to reflect the attitudes of the parent organization. The differences between CHEA, LINK, CHN and Bayshore are tremendous and should be taken into consideration. If you are looking for a more structured approach to homeschooling with a strong Christian influence, then the CHEA convention is a good option. If you are looking for a more relaxed and secular approach, the Bayshore Conference becomes your choice of the day. For a great convention with the best overview of home schooling including a wide variety of speakers, we suggest the LINK or CHN Conferences.

Whatever the decision, we feel that all these conventions offer a tremendous value to the home school community and it would be a great benefit to everyone to attend at least one of these events each year or two. Better yet, go to two this year if you possibly can. Only when you have seen homeschooling through the eyes of a variety of people, can you begin to realize the vast potential and the unlimited possibilities that await your children.

Southern California will have three major conventions this year with several smaller regional events as well. An overview is as follows:

One we highly recommend is the LINK CONFERENCE to be held at the Pasadena Hilton on May 1-4. Even though this is small compared to the CHEA Convention, I promise you that this will eventually grow to be as big if not bigger. The beauty behind the LINK CONFERENCE is the ability of Michael and Mary Leppert to present a well balanced family oriented convention. This year's featured speaker is former New York State Teacher of the Year and author of three brilliant books on education, John Taylor Gatto. You will find a wide variety of speakers both Christian and secular at the LINK. This convention is also extremely family oriented. There are wonderful events being planned for every age group with games, activities and a Saturday night family event as well as the line up of great speakers. Carolyn will present a talk on teaching with games on Sunday. If you are unable to attend the conference, the vending halls are open to the public and you can stop in and check out the materials offered there. The LINK is always a very happy conference and we hope you will put it on your schedule this year.

The CHEA Convention is the grand daddy of them all. It is also the biggest in number of attendees and vendors. If you are looking for a great Christian based convention, this is the place to go. This year it will be held at the Ontario Convention Center in mid-July. CHEA has a pretty decent Teen Program but younger children are not welcome at the convention. Nursing moms are welcome if they are "considerate" of other attendees. Warning: CHEA can be discouraging to "relaxed" homeschoolers. Go for the Christian content, but choose your speakers carefully and take the "advice" with a grain of salt. Christians really can be successful unschoolers - just ask our daughters.

If the big conventions are too big for you, there are several smaller conventions that might attract between 100 - 300 people. Instead of a large slate of speakers, you might find one or maybe two speakers and a scaled down vendor area. These can be very informative and worthwhile. Most of these cost much less than the bigger ones and take considerably less time to attend. We know of two this year: Cornerstone Curriculum Fair, June 7 in Canyon Country (661-251-9175) and Bayshore Conference, March 29 at the Long Beach Airport Marriott (562-434-3940). The Catholic home educators usually have one too, but we don't have any information yet.

The California Homeschool Network (CHN) is planning an exciting Family Homeschool Expo this year at the Riverside Convention Center on June 14-15. There will be the usual lineup of great speakers to help you unlock the mysteries of homeschooling but CHN is also making a special effort to provide family activities and workshops so everyone can have a great time. Carolyn will be running a family game room where families can come and learn to play some new and interesting games. A nice feature of the CHN Family Expo is that there is no additional charge for the childrens' activities.

Well, that's the scoop on conventions for now. As you can see, there are several good reasons to attend these conventions. We highly recommend that both husband and wife attend together. It is very difficult for one spouse to attend and give an accurate review of the conference to the other spouse. For conferences that are several days in length you might consider this to be a mini-vacation for you and your spouse. The LINK has a wonderful package deal for the entire family if you can afford it. Even if you go on a daily basis, take one day and enjoy dinner out together where you can discuss the positive benefits of the convention and how you might apply them to your homeschool.

One last bit of advice. When you hear a speaker talking about a new concept, take some time to digest it before going hog wild and buying a large number of items or implementing the program. Be sure that it will be appropriate for your family.

See you at the conventions!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!