Each year, homeschool conventions invite companies, colleges, and other educational resource providers to exhibit in locations across states and countries. While homeschool conventions have been a staple of the homeschooling journey in the past, you might be wondering if they are necessary anymore in the modern world. After all, can’t you just find everything you need to know about which homeschool curriculum and resources to choose online?
What You’ll Miss Out On By Not Attending a Homeschool Convention
It’s true that the internet is a powerful research tool and that many families have found their homeschool curriculum with just a few online searches. However, there is so much that you will miss out on by not attending a homeschool convention. From hearing renowned speakers to meeting representatives from different homeschool companies, below are just five reasons why you should attend a homeschool convention in 2022.
1. Listening to World-Renowned Speakers
At many homeschool conventions, college and curriculum exhibitors aren’t the only attractions. Often, well-known leaders in the home-education movement give talks on homeschooling, Christ-centered education, and different educational approaches like the classical model.
For example, it’s not uncommon for Andrew Pudewa of IEW, Andrew Kern of the CiRCE Institute, or our own founder, Leigh Bortins, or CEO, Robert Bortins, to speak at large homeschool conventions like Teach Them Diligently or Great Homeschool Conventions.
Sure, you can find videos of all these homeschool leaders online, but there is something special about listening to their talks in person. Plus, you can meet them afterward during the convention and ask them your own questions about homeschooling!
2. Meeting Homeschool Curriculum Representatives
Although the internet is a great place to begin researching your homeschool curriculum options, often the key factor in making a final decision comes down to a conversation with a representative of a curriculum provider.
On the one hand, these people often have their own children enrolled in the program or are using the curriculum they represent. So, through a conversation with a representative, you get to hear first-hand stories of how their curriculum has served and benefited their own family.
Also, when choosing a homeschool curriculum, it’s important to consider questions like, “Does this curriculum share priorities and values as well as a similar worldview with my family?” and “Can I see my family using this curriculum long term?” These are questions much easier to answer when engaging in an in-person conversation with a representative rather than just reading about that curriculum online.
3. Previewing Homeschool Books and Resources
If you attend a homeschool convention, you can swing by a booth to peruse the books and resources that exhibitor has to offer. This hands-on approach to choosing a homeschool curriculum is just not possible online.
Chances are high that if you attend a homeschool convention, you’ll find some helpful materials for your home school you otherwise wouldn’t have! For instance, at our booths at Teach Them Diligently and Great Homeschool Conventions events, we give away free copies of our annual Classical Conversations catalog, a resource-rich magazine homeschool parents can reference all year long.
4. Experiencing the Homeschool Community
Although many homeschool families use the internet to connect, true homeschool community is found through in-person conversations with one another. Whether speaking with a curriculum representative at a booth, a homeschool leader after a talk, or just another parent wandering down convention halls, it’s refreshing and inspiring to hear the perspectives and stories of other parents in the larger homeschool community.
Plus, there is something special about seeing all the families at a homeschool convention who have chosen to or are considering homeschooling their children. It’s encouraging to see that when you choose to homeschool, you are taking part in something bigger than yourself, your family, and even your local community. You are taking part in changing education for the better!
Attend a Homeschool Convention in 2022
Since some large homeschool conventions only go to big cities like Fort Worth, Texas, or Cincinnati, Ohio, it’s important to check the locations of the homeschool convention you wish to attend to see if there is one coming to your region. Generally, these events travel to locations throughout the summer, the perfect time for parents to research their options and plan for the upcoming schoolyear.
Each year, local representatives from Classical Conversations exhibit and leaders from our company speak at two of the largest homeschool conventions in the United States: Teach Them Diligently and Great Homeschool Conventions. If you choose to attend either of these conventions at a location near you, pop by our booth and say hello!
Not yet a Classical Conversations member and interested in our community-based approach to homeschooling? We’d love to hear from you! To learn more about us, click here.
