Month: September 2013

The MASH Not-Back-to-School Picnic is next week.

Tuesday, September 17th (rain date Thursday, September 19th)

10:00 am – 2:00 pm

Harbourview Park and Recreation Complex (1867 Springfield Road) in Transcona, Winnipeg.

Directions and park info are on this page

Bring a NUT-FREE lunch and a blanket. Dress for the weather. A lot of the children enjoy playing soccer in the field next to the park.

We will post on the website http://www.manitobahomeschool.com by 8:30 am on the 17th if the picnic is considered “rained out”.

See you all at the picnic,

Monique Turner
MASH Advisory Team

The latest MASH newsletter contains very important information about the changes that MASH has recently made, as well as articles and opportunities about homeschooling groups and activites around Winnipeg and Manitoba.

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You can find previous editions of the newsletter here.

Hello MASH Members,

It has been a trying year for MASH, and there are some changes that we’d like to tell you about.

MASH has been declining in membership for recent years, and we have had difficulty getting members to come to AGMs or get involved in leadership. At the last AGM, we had a situation where almost the entire board was discussing resigning, each for their own personal reasons. There were no serious issues at hand, just a sense that there was a great deal of effort being expended in directions we were not interested in pursuing.

We began to discuss the things that MASH does well, and the things that we felt were of little use to the membership or to the board. We talked about the things that we wished MASH could be and what we felt we wanted to do for members. We also talked about the things that we didn’t want to do, and the things that ate up our time and our patience.

Out of that discussion came a series of decisions that has led to some very significant changes.

First, and most significantly, the lack of volunteers and the requirements of the current structure and bylaws led to a great deal of stress felt by current board members. The latest AGM was the point of “either close the doors or make some big changes”. As a result, the decision was made to dissolve the MASH board and the current constitution. We decided to rewrite MASH from the ground up to meet the needs of the volunteers serving and the members of the association.

The new bylaws are available for you to read on the MASH website http://manitobahomschool.com/about-mash We will summarize the major changes here.

1) MEMBERSHIP IS NOW FREE. By paring costs in the last few years we have managed to get our expenses to a minimal amount every year, and we believe we can cover these expenses through goodwill donations at MASH-organized events, and through advertising in the newsletter and on the MASH website. Removing the burden of managing memberships, handling the finances involved, dealing with expirations, late applications and such will remove one of the greatest stresses that the board faced.

2) MASH IS ABOUT INFORMATION. We intend MASH to become a primary online destination for anyone looking for information on how to homeschool in Manitoba. We want to centralize a store of articles written by Manitoban homeschoolers. We want to help people connect to each other in real life by seeking out and publicizing groups that are available to assist homeschoolers, and by running seminars and information sessions designed to get homeschoolers and future homeschoolers talking face to face with people who can answer questions and offer assistance. MASH will also be a repository of information on local sources of homeschool resources and local business that offer special classes or discounts for homeschoolers.

3) MASH IS ABOUT ADVOCACY. We already have a very close relationship with the government liaisons, and we think that we can be of assistance to homeschoolers by maintaining that relationship and leveraging it to make your needs known.

4) MASH IS NOW 100% DIGITAL. Printing and mailing costs were significant in terms of both time and money. Newsletters will now be available in PDF format only and all other communication to the membership will now be via email, the facebook page or the website.

5) YOU BECOME A MEMBER BY ADDING YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS TO OUR EMAIL MAILING LIST. If you give us your email address through the form on the website, you are now a MASH member.

6) IF YOU ARE ALREADY A MEMBER, YOU WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE ADDED TO OUR MAILING LIST. If you are a current MASH member, you don’t need to do anything. We will add your email address to the mailing list, and you can stay a member as long as you wish without sending us another cheque.

7) YOUR MEMBERSHIP IS VERY IMPORTANT. You can get the benefits of MASH without joining. However, when we approach government, being able to point to the size of our mailing list and say that we represent a group of people who are interested in Manitoban homeschooling will be very useful in building our credibility and influence. Please consider adding your name to our list.

7) THERE ARE NO MORE ANNUAL GENERAL MEETINGS, OR TRADITIONAL BOARD STRUCTURE. AGMs were poorly attended (less than five members at the last three AGMs), expensive, and in the end rather frustrating. We wanted to help members come together to learn about homeschooling, not to listen to board business. The board will now be replaced by an Advisory Team. The primary difference is that roles and duties within the advisory team will be fluid depending on the skills and desires of the current Team members. The advisory team will have meeting throughout the year that MASH members are welcome to attend.

8) A PLACE ON THE MASH ADVISORY TEAM IS AVAILABLE TO ANYONE WHO WISHES TO HELP OUT. If you have any desire to help out by submitting articles, helping run the website, running seminars, talking to homeschoolers who contact us for help, or if you simply want to contribute to the discussions about MASH’s direction, there is a place for you at the table. All you need is a letter introducing yourself, and after you attend 2 meetings the Advisory Team votes to make you a member of the Team.

9) MASH IS STILL GOING TO DO WHAT WE DO BEST. There will still be the regular New Homeschooler Orientation nights that are well attended and appreciated. We still plan on running Enrichment Evenings on various topics. We still plan on holding Weekend Workshops with various guest speakers. We still plan on holding regular “Parents’ Night Out” meetings to discuss whatever you need to talk about. We still plan on having an active Facebook page for you to share your thoughts and ideas. We still plan on running the MASH Picnics.

In short, MASH has changed to an organization that allows the Advisory Team to spend far less time on internal management and much more time on the parts of the role that are far more enjoyable and fulfilling: helping members get the most out of their homeschooling experience.

Thank you for your support,
The MASH Advisory Team

MANITOBA ASSOCIATION FOR SCHOOLING AT HOME
BY-LAWS

August 2013

NAME
The name of the group is the Manitoba Association for Schooling at Home, hereafter referred to as MASH.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES
MASH is a not for profit group dedicated to creating a sense of association among homeschoolers throughout the province of Manitoba.
MASH actively promotes and advocates homeschooling by providing information to the homeschooling community
MASH also works as a liaison between homeschoolers and the Government of Manitoba.

MEMBERSHIP
Membership is open to anyone who agrees with the aims of the organization.

It is open to all faiths, philosophies and points of view.

A member is any person who has registered with MASH to receive homeschooling information, and who agrees with the aims and objectives of the organization.
Membership may be revoked at any time with an 80% agreement of the Advisory Team for reasons of misconduct, illegal activities, or the pursuance of issues or activities contrary to the objectives of the Association. The member or members affected shall be given notice of the termination.

ADVISORY TEAM
Subject to the provisions of the By-laws, the affairs and business of MASH shall be under the direction of the Advisory Team.

The Advisory Team will be responsible for communicating all matters of importance to the general membership. It shall adopt policies, long term plans, and budgets, and shall plan activities, appoint and assign duties to committees or individual members and shall do all other things necessary to conduct the business of MASH.

Members of the Advisory Team must be adult members of MASH.

There shall be a maximum of fifteen (15) members on the Advisory Team.

Members of the advisory team may be removed at any time by an 80% majority vote of the Advisory Team for reasons of misconduct, illegal activities, or the pursuance of issues or activities contrary to the objectives of the Association. The member or members affected shall be given notice of the intended termination and shall be entitled to address the next meeting of the Advisory Team before the making of any resolution on removal.

MEETINGS
The fiscal year for MASH shall be from September to August.

The Advisory Team shall have a minimum of 1 meeting per quarter of the year.

A quorum at any meeting of the Advisory Team shall consist of a simple majority of the number of members on the Team.

Any member of the Advisory Team who has not attended a meeting within 12 consecutive months will be considered to have resigned their position.
Advisory Team meetings shall be open to any interested members unless a meeting is deemed in-camera for reasons of privacy or sensitivity.

ELECTIONS PROCEDURES FOR THE ADVISORY TEAM
Members of the Advisory Team will be elected for a two (2) year term.

If the Advisory Team is at maximum capacity, the Team will maintain a waiting list of individuals interested in volunteering on the Advisory Team. When a position opens, due to resignation, or mandatory term length, the Advisory Team will elect new members first from the waiting list.

A newly elected member shall be limited to two consecutive, 2 year terms. At that time the member must resign if there are members on the waiting list. If there is no waiting list, the member may be elected and considered as a newly elected member.

Interested members must first attend a Advisory Team meeting and provide a letter of introduction to the team, in order to be considered for election or to be placed on the waiting list.

New members will be voted by secret ballot by the current Advisory Team members at their discretion based on the best interests of the association
Advisory Team members may be elected at any time during the year, which shall be considered their first year of term, but all re-elections to the Advisory Team will be held at the first meeting of each fiscal year.

POSITIONS
The Advisory Team shall, at its first meeting of the year, elect from its team, the following mandatory positions:
President
Vice President
Treasurer
Secretary
Media Liaison
Government Liaison

These positions shall be elected annually by a majority vote of the Advisory Team.

When any vacancy occurs in one of these positions, the position shall be filled at the earliest opportunity by a majority vote of the Advisory Team.
President and Vice President must be filled by two separate Advisory Team members, while Treasurer, Secretary, Media liaison, and Government liaison, may be held separately or simultaneously with any of the other positions

If the positions of President and Vice President cannot be filled, the Advisory Team shall consider the association dissolved. All outstanding expenses shall be paid, contracts terminated and any remaining funds donated to Winnipeg Public Library.

The President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer have signing authority for the disbursement of funds on behalf of MASH. Cheques shall be signed by any two of these officers.

DUTIES
The President shall preside at all meetings of the MASH membership and of the Advisory Team and shall ensure adherence to the bylaws. The President shall have general supervision of MASH affairs and shall be considered to be an ex-officio member of all committees. The President may vote on all matters and in case of a tie shall cast the deciding vote.

The Vice President shall assume the duties and responsibilities of the President in the President’s absence and shall perform other duties as assigned by the Advisory Team.

The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all funds and keep such funds in a financial institution(s), issue receipts as required, and make disbursements. The Treasurer shall keep an accurate record of all funds, prepare an annual report at the end of the fiscal year to be presented at the first meeting of the next year and provide any itemized report as requested by the Advisory Team.

The Secretary ensures that minutes are taken and kept for all meetings of the Advisory Team and committees and are easily available to all members of the Advisory Team. Minutes are comprised of a summary of decisions made and/or topics discussed. The secretary is also responsible maintaining and archiving all official MASH correspondence.

The Media Liaison or other members designated by the Advisory Team are the only individuals authorized to speak to the media on behalf of MASH.
The Government Liaison or other members designated by the Advisory Team are the only individuals authorized to interact with the Government on behalf of MASH.

COMMITTEES
The Advisory Team may appoint committees as it deems appropriate for the purpose of managing the affairs of MASH. Committees are subject to the direction of the Advisory Team.

Each committee shall include at least one member from the Advisory Team. Committee chairs must be members of MASH and may or may not be members of the Advisory Team.

Committees the Advisory Team may consider striking include but are not limited to:
Communications
Website
Special Events
Government Communications
Fund-raising/Advertising
Newsletter

ANNUAL OPERATING EXPENSES
There will be no annual membership fee for members.

The funds required to operate MASH shall be obtained through fund-raising, advertising, donations, grants, and other sources as approved by the Advisory Team.

AMENDMENTS TO BY-LAWS
The By-laws of MASH may be amended with an 80% majority of all Advisory Team Members

Suggested amendment changes need to be presented to the MASH membership six months in advance of the proposed vote and any questions, comments or concerns forwarded to the Advisory Team to be discussed at a minimum of two meetings of the Advisory Team prior to a vote.

Fall Orientation, Sunday, September 15th, 1-3:30 PM.

Westwood Library
66 Allard Avenue
Winnipeg

If you are new to homeschooling and are needing information we welcome you with us for an afternoon of homeschooling information. Questions about curriculum? How to get your homeschooled kids into university? Please join us. If you are a veteran homeschooler and have years of experience we welcome your experience and wisdom.
These orientation sessions have been very well attended in the past and it is very exciting for MASH to be able to help people in their homeschooling journey.

Please bring a nut free snack to share.

This is an adult event. Nursing babies are welcome, but please don’t bring other children.

(Just a note: That the program room is in the basement of the library which is the children’s department. If you find yourself without childcare, it might be possible to let your children stay in the children’s department while you hovered from the program doorway. Certainly not the ideal situation, but would allow you to at least hear some of the orientation.)

Starting September 18, Wednesdays from 1:00-3:15 pm.

Meet at the West Portage YMCA @ 3550 Portage Ave. for a fun home school day.

Includes:
Learn to Swim Program from 1:00-1:30 pm (This is a pre-registered program)
Sports and Games from 1:45-2:30 pm
Adventures in Art 2:30-3:15 pm

There is also a wonderful indoor play place and an area with tables where you can eat lunch.

COST:
Pay a drop in fee of $4 per child for the Sports & Games program and/or Adventures in Art.
If you are interested in the Learn to Swim Program you can get your monthly or yearly membership for the YMCA and go every week.

Dear Homeschooler,

The Manitoba Conservatory of Music & Arts promotes music education for all and is excited to once again offer their Homeschool Band program as well as kick off their Homeschool Fiddling program for the 2013-14 year. Both music programs are offered to homeschool students looking for a musical compliment to their academic studies. These programs are held at the Conservatory during the regular school year.

Homeschool Band

This group class is much more than a community band program, offering a more intimate and individualized approach while promoting working together as a group to experience and master a full band sound. Musical development is promoted with encouraged at home daily practice in between the bi-weekly practices held at the Conservatory. The course will cover instrument proficiency, musical knowledge, as well as practice techniques. Ensemble instruction is supplemented with individual instruction to increase proficiency with the student’s chosen instrument. A final concert will demonstrate the skills learned throughout the course.

Intermediate Band*
(Ages 9-15)
Monday & Friday 1:15 – 2:15 p 12 weeks beginning September 30
$295
*Students must have completed 2 years of band class

Beginner Band
(Ages 9-15)
Monday & Friday 2:20 – 3:20pm 12 weeks beginning September 30
$295

Holiday weeks: Students will have individual lessons arranged for the weeks which there are statuary holidays (October 14 & November 11). Each student will receive 2 one hour private lessons with a teacher of their instrument for those weeks.

Homeschool Fiddling
(Ages 7*+)
Monday 11:00 am – 12:00 pm 10 weeks beginning September 30
$125
*Students must be able to read at a Grade 1 level Homeschool Fiddling

A lively class, fiddling offers the chance to learn an instrument while also discovering a part of Manitoba ‘s heritage. Taught in a group setting, students will learn how to play the fiddle, as well as learning jigs and reels with one of Manitoba ‘s finest fiddle instructors, the founder of the Frontier Fiddlers Program, Cameron Baggins. This class engages even the most energetic homeschooler, developing musical discipline as well as new skills. A final concert will demonstrate the skills learned throughout the course. Parents are welcome to enrol as well!

The deadline for registration is Friday, September 20, 2013. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me by phone at 204.943.6090, or by email at ashley at mcma dotca.

We would also like to invite you to our annual Open House, September 6-7, 2013. You will find informal and formal concerts, consultations with our faculty members, early childhood program demonstrations, and answers to all of your questions. Please join us to learn more about what we do here at the Conservatory. For more information visit our website at www.mcma.ca .

Sincerely,

Ashley Boychuk
Community Services Coordinator

(Taken from the Winnipeg Homeschool Yahoo! Group)

I would like to let people know about an interesting course for homeschoolers that is being offered at the Canadian Mennonite University. It is on music history & I believe geared to middle- or high school aged students. The info is below. I am flogging this course as my son would like to take it but they need additional students to run the course.

Mary

MUSIC HISTORY: “The Story Behind the Music”

Music history comes to life in this innovative class presented by Dr. Michelle Miller. Dr. Miller is a professional flautist and music history scholar with many years’ experience teaching children and adults.

This class will provide students with a foundation to understand the history and literature of music. Major compositions selected spanning the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century will be studied. Students will explore the music, the people who wrote it, and the instrumentation used to perform it. They will also learn what else was going on in the world, e.g. politics, social movements, when the music was written.

This class is a perfect opportunity to learn the material required for the RCM History exams.

Friday afternoons (75 minute classes)
Cost: $175 (14 weeks)

See: http://www.cmu.ca/csma/programs/homeschool.html

(Taken from the Winnipeg Homeschool Yahoo! Group)

I would like to let people know about an interesting course for homeschoolers that is being offered at the Canadian Mennonite University. It is on music history & I believe geared to middle- or high school aged students. The info is below. I am flogging this course as my son would like to take it but they need additional students to run the course.

Mary

MUSIC HISTORY: “The Story Behind the Music”

Music history comes to life in this innovative class presented by Dr. Michelle Miller. Dr. Miller is a professional flautist and music history scholar with many years’ experience teaching children and adults.

This class will provide students with a foundation to understand the history and literature of music. Major compositions selected spanning the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century will be studied. Students will explore the music, the people who wrote it, and the instrumentation used to perform it. They will also learn what else was going on in the world, e.g. politics, social movements, when the music was written.

This class is a perfect opportunity to learn the material required for the RCM History exams.

Friday afternoons (75 minute classes)
Cost: $175 (14 weeks)

See: http://www.cmu.ca/csma/programs/homeschool.html

(Taken from the Winnipeg Homeschool Yahoo! Group)

Hello everyone,
Monica Goerman of Monica’s Danz Gym: Dance, Aerial Silks, Hoop and Trapeze Classes is offering a Homeschool class for children ages 7 to 10 starting in September.

The class will run noon to 1:15 every Wednesday.

Please email goermann at shaw dot ca or call (204) 261-8890 with questions or to register if you are interested. Registration needs to happen fairly soon since the class starts at the beginning of September!

Our children took this class last year and I would highly recommend it…We’ve been hounding her this summer to offer it again and she just agreed- so it’s a great opportunity.

Since the session runs the full year, the kids will also be able to participate in the year end show…

Warmly,
Adrienne