I got back last night from the 10th annual InHome (homeschooling) conference in Chicago. There were about 800 people there, ~300 adults and ~500 children! Wow! They had tons of workshops for the kids (from African Tie Dye to Lego Robotics) and lots of how-to workshops for the parents. My favorite workshops were: having philosophical/Socratic discussions with your kids, going on long hiking trips with kids, and an intro to Brain Gym. The hiking one was really amazing- 2 families, 5 kids, the youngest 7 years old, hiked 10+ miles a day for a month, going up and down mountains 10,000 ft high, and completed the 220 mile long John Muir trail. Wow! The Brain Gym one was also really good. I was introduced to Educational Kinesiology, which is basically moving your body in ways that help your brain work better. Good for organizing, focusing, memory, relaxation, etc. I'm excited to learn more about that.
The conference opened with a performance of Japanese drumming which was a very powerful experience for me. It was so loud and booming that it made my organs vibrate and so of course it was completely captivating. I noticed during the performance that not one child made a peep or even seemed to move. We all sat mesmerized. It's kind of hard to explain the effect in words but I highly recommend going in person to that kind of performance so you can experience it yourself.
After the conference Andrea (my homeschooling friend that I went to the conference with) and I went to the semi-annual Illinois HOUSE Council meeting. (I always forget what HOUSE stands for but it's a large secular homeschooling organization.) She very unofficially represented our local HOUSE group there and, for me, it was the most important part of the whole weekend. I really needed to get in touch with the previous generation of homeschooling moms and that's who I met there. I felt mothered and guided and loved, protected and advocated for and encouraged. I heard lots of helpful stories. Sitting across from me was the founder of HOUSE, very grandmotherly, very funny, sharp as a tack. As Andrea pointed out, she was our Yoda. It was so great to meet our mothers in education. So smart and loud and powerful and organized. I learn so much by just watching people that I want to emulate than by any other means. Whoa! I think I've just been mentored! Cool.
Posted by Bahiyyih at February 26, 2007 02:24 PM