Homeschool Conference 2011: A Review

The most memorable thing about the homeschool convention this year was the food and the company.  A good friend and her daughter were able to join us for Friday and Saturday.  It was lovely to eat lunch in the restaurant at the Millenium Hotel.  We even had our dessert before dinner on Friday as we enjoyed Graeter's ice cream while we waited for our table at the Rock Bottom Brewery.  Saturday we enjoyed sushi for lunch. 

In addition to wonderful meals and great company, I enjoyed several outstanding speakers.  Carlita Boyles gave an outstanding talk on maturation levels and math.  It was so comforting to hear a speaker say things that my heart already knew.  I also enjoyed the intellectual challenges offered by several other speakers about worldview and teaching classical literature.  Both talks made me wish to spend several more hours being tutored myself. 

My major struggle this year was how Christian was being emphasized over all else at the convention. We are Christian but we don't list our religious beliefs as our primary reason for homeschooling.  Therefore, avoiding all things secular is not our top priority.  In fact, sometimes we seek out the secular and find that it's the best choice for us.  Just because a book says Christian on the front, doesn't make it the best choice.  I struggled with the Christian means superior attitude several times through the weekend.  I tend to think that Christian means sinner bathed in grace.  I'm not sure how that applies to literature, science and handwriting.

R didn't go with me to the conference this year and I hadn't voiced my struggle about the Christian curriculum claims.  I found it interesting that when I showed him a book I had debated over because of it's title(... for Christian Kids), his first comment was, "How is Christian ...... different from regular ......"  Well, it's not and that's why I bought the book.  Not because of the title but because what the book contained was really the best choice for my children, whether they were Christian or not.  I wonder how long it will take until Christians stop striving for recognition and begin to seek excellence.