MASH Homeschool Conference: Meeting the Challenge

Join the Manitoba Association for Schooling at Home (MASH) for a day of homeschooling encouragement!
<!–TICKETS WILL BE AVAILABLE AT THE DOOR (CASH OR CHEQUE ONLY)–>
<!– EARLY BIRD TICKETS EXTENDED UNTIL AUGUST 27, 2016
Individual Tickets $30 each
Couple’s Tickets for married and common-law partners $40 for two–>
September 17, 9:30 am -4:30 pm
Bord-Aire CC, 471 Hampton Street

REGULAR PRICE

Individual Tickets $40 each
Couple’s Tickets for married and common-law partners $50 for two

(If digital payment is a concern, please contact MASH for assistance.)

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE (Workshops, titles and speakers will by subject to change)

9:30 am Meet and Greet

10:00 Keynote – Homeschool Graduate Open Panel
Meet a panel of homeschool graduates who are pursuing their education and careers after having completed a homeschool education. Find out what their insights in ideas as they reflect on the ins and outs of their alternative educations.

11:00 Workshop Slot #1

• Flexible Learning: Adapting to Learning Challenges by Linda Thorklason

Frustrated learners start to turn off and feel like they can’t learn. Through using different tools and by using multi – modal teaching strategies children will reduce their counter – will to learning and will increase their knowledge base.
We will talk about different resources and ideas for creating a positive and effective learning experience.

Linda has been homeschooling her 2 children for 6 years. In those years Linda has needed to work with aspergers, ADHD, tourettes, anxiety, ‘non – specific’ learning disabilities, dysgraphia and dyscalcula. Her children have shown success at the regional heritage fair, regional science fair, and at various science competitions. From years of developing curriculums and working with different ages and skill levels of learners Linda thought she was well prepared to take on homeschooling her children. Quickly she found that typical classroom methods didn’t work. After consulting professionals through conferences, appointments and personal research she found following non-conventional learning strategies brought out the best in her children beyond original expectations.

• Constructing Knowledge by Sean Giesbrecht

With emphasis placed on creative expression, iterative design, collaboration, and hard fun – maker education is well equipped to meet the curricular and so-called “real world” expectations our students face. This talk will include hands-on and minds-on activities to enhance your appreciation of learning through making. You will leave this session with the theoretical rationale to implement the principles of maker education as well as practical activities you can adapt and apply for your individual needs.

Sean Giesbrecht is currently a Middle Years Teacher with Pembina Trails School Division in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He is passionate about inquiry-based education, maker education, and helping students meet their goals through authentic, personally meaningful learning activities. Sean believes in creating a positive learning environment where all students can both work towards, as well as expand, their potential as social, emotional, and economic actors in their communities.

Sean is the founder and facilitator of MakerJam: A gathering of student makers to celebrate collaborative creativity. He is also a Graduate student at Queen’s University. Sean studies inquiry-based program implementation and evaluation at the classroom level. At home, Sean is married to the most amazing singing accountant this side of wherever super-talented singing accountants congregate. Together, they have a Miniature Schnauzer, Oliver.

12:00 Bring Your Own Bag Lunch and a refillable water bottle.

1:00 Workshop Slot #2

• Does Homeschooling Work? Prove It! by Ross McCallum

For homeschooling parents, conviction is often enough to compel us to educate our kids. However, for family and friends who see us living out this conviction, and for those who are still investigating homeschooling for themselves, many questions remain: “Do homeschooled kids learn enough to be prepared for the marketplace/university/life? Can parents without degrees in education teach their kids? Won’t kids miss the opportunities of the traditional school system? Will they turn out weird? What about socialization?” Using up-to-date educational and psychological research, and stories of past and current homeschoolers, the talk will equip investigating parents to make an informed decision about homeschooling and provide active homeschoolers with the knowledge to address the questions of others.

Ross and his wife, Jen, have been blessed with a unique mosaic to call their family, with one biological son (age 8), one adopted daughter (age 3), and three foster children (ages 21 months, 14 months, and 2 months). Ross is nearly finished his PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Manitoba and is applying his training in mental health, child development, and educational assessment to his passion for the institution of the Family.

• How to Create a Transcript and Build a Portfolio for you Homeschool Graduate by Jennifer Gehman

Learn how to create a transcript and portfolio for the post-secondary application process.

Jennifer Gehman is a long-time homeschooling mother. She has graduated two homeschool students and is still homeschooling her youngest three. Her oldest daughter spent a year at UW before entering CreComm at RRC and her second oldest will be attending a the Post High Photography program at Tec Voc before pursuing university.

2:00 Break

2:15 Workshop Slot #3

• Self-Care for the Care Giver by Linda Harrison

Homeschooling can be a difficult job. Too often, homeschooling parents are so busy caring for their children that they forget to look after themselves. This can lead to stress and burnout. In this workshop, you will be given an opportunity to think about how you are spending your time, and you will be given strategies for integrating self-care activities into your daily life.

Linda Harrison is an Occupational Therapist who has specialized in mental health. She is the author of Daily Living Skills Worksheets: Reproducible Resources for Teaching Independent Living Skills. She has been homeschooling her two children for five years. She is a member of the MASH Advisory Committee.

• Poetry: Playing With Words by Derek Eidse

Kids can play words like instruments, take risks with expression, add flavour to thoughts, and jump off the page into performance. In this session, you’ll learn how to encourage these skills in your kids through word games, field trips, watching the best new poets, and presenting pieces to peers.

Derek Eidse is a part-time high-school teacher at the University of Winnipeg Collegiate, and a part-time home-school parent.

3-4 Veteran Homeschool Question and Answer
Bring your questions and this group of long-­time veteran homeschoolers will try to provide answers and insights into the very rewarding but often difficult adventure of homeschooling.

VENDORS who will be present include:
The Possibility Centre
Suzuki Music Winnipeg Inc.
Touch of Equine
Linette Stanton Music
The Whole Child Education Centre
Usborne Books at Home
Canadian Mennonite University
Tutor Doctor     
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TICKETS – Tickets are non-refundable but can be transferred to another individual. Please email [email protected] with names of original purchaser and new attendee.

There is NO NEED to print paper tickets or confirmation emails. Your name will appear on the attendee list at the door.

LUNCH IS NOT PROVIDED: Please bring your own brown bag lunch and a refillable water bottle.

NURSING BABIES ONLY: While we at MASH love toddlers and children, this event cannot accommodate them!

<!–
EARLYBIRD TICKETS EXTENDED UNTIL AUGUST 27, 2016

Individual Tickets $30 each
Couple’s Tickets for married and common-law partners $40 for two

REGULAR PRICE

Individual Tickets $40 each
Couple’s Tickets for married and common-law partners $50 for two

(If digital payment is a concern, please contact MASH for assistance.)

(If digital payment is a concern, please contact MASH for assistance.)