Dads and moms, in all the busyness of life and swell of expert advice, we've forgotten the fundamental truths of homeschooling and family. In short, we’ve forgotten why we do what we do. We have plenty of “how tos” but have forgotten the “why tos” and it evidences itself in our lack of joy of homeschooling, family, and parenting. Join funny guy and familyman, Todd Wilson, as he sets the stage for a great homeschool convention and the best year ever as he brings us back to the basics of what we believe about family and homeschooling. You're not going to want to miss this for the world!

Let’s face it! Most men today are yellow-bellied, Lilly-livered weenies. They may wear tall Stetsons, drive fast cars, bungee jump from bridges, collect souped-up power tools, and carry big black Bibles, but they’re weenies. They flex their biceps and proclaim their faith, but when the economy collapses, the newest pandemic hits the scene, a family crisis arises, or the going gets tough…they play it safe. Truth is: God wants your sons to leave the heavily-populated, safe waters and live dangerously. He wants your sons to trust dangerously, work dangerously, and love dangerously. But, that doesn’t come naturally. Everyone around them, from the talking heads in the media to pastors in the pulpit, keep repeating, “Play it safe.”  Here’s a secret: dangerous living leads to joy, family happiness, and real success while safe living results in worry, family failure, and heartache. So join Todd as he encourages you and your sons to GET DANGEROUS.

Homeschooling places great demands on parents and leads to great expectations. This combination often sets us up for an intense sense of failure and disappointment. Homeschooling doesn’t always go according to our plans. Even when we are doing our best to follow God and love our families, we may find ourselves in the “fiery furnace.” In this workshop, Zan Tyler explores the causes of burnout and talks about ways to avoid them. She also explains what to do if you are already there—ready to throw in the towel and put your children on that appealing yellow school bus. This workshop contains many practical tips on streamlining your life, but it also focuses on developing a powerful, biblical vision of what you are ultimately trying to accomplish in the lives of your children through homeschooling—to sustain you through the hard times and difficult days.

This workshop is for those of you who are working to juggle homeschooling life with toddler life. We will look at the importance of prioritizing, planning our work and working our plan to ensure balance between working with our older children and meeting the needs of even the littlest. Table Talk discussions will center around creative ways to engage our little ones in the power of play while still being accessible to the rest of our children. You will leave with a list of resources and recipes, but more than that, my prayer is that you leave feeling encouraged, knowing that you can do this and you are not alone.

We don't all love diagramming sentences or arguing over parts of speech, but we all need to understand language and use it properly. This workshop will address both practical and philosophical reasons why grammar and writing matter, then dig into ways to teach them without losing your mind.

When you look at your children, do you see only little people making demands on your time? Or do you see what God sees—a landscape of limitless possibilities? Author and homeschool mother Zan Tyler wants to take you beyond the demands of everyday life to embrace a wondrous, life-giving vision for your children’s future. You will learn to recognize the signs of potential in your children’s lives—signs that are easy to miss yet ripe for cultivation. You will begin to see every facet of each child’s life through the eyes of faith and the lens of Scripture and to create a vision of hope and beauty. You will also look to the Master Gardener as you learn to use the tools He has given you for cultivating that child’s potential. Let Zan show you how to help your kids establish a godly identity, build deep relationships, discover their unique purpose, develop a biblical worldview, and build leadership and communication skills. You will come away with a vision of child-raising so captivating and enthralling that you will know, come bedtime, it’s all been well worth the effort.

You may not crack open a book, work through a curriculum, or call it school, but it's your job to train your children. Join me as we look at the trials, triumphs, and tribulations of training our children. Now don't worry, I won't make you feel guilty or give you a forty-six point outline, but I promise to tell it straight and to encourage you in the best job there is - fathering.

This session is aimed toward those just beginning homeschooling and those considering homeschooling. Find out what steps you need to take to start, how to plan your day, how to respond to concerned friends and family, and how to have what it takes to survive and thrive while homeschooling. Bring your question and concerns to this inviting, helpful session.

Parents of struggling students often find that their best resources are other parents who have walked the same road; this workshop is intended to offer the same encouragement and a few more concrete sources of help.

Establishing a clear biblical worldview and a strong foundation in basic Christian doctrine will inoculate your children against the false teachings and worldly values they will one day encounter during the critical teen years. This workshop will give you the confidence and tools you need to cover this vital subject with your children.

X-Boxes, Game-Cubes, the INTERNET, Facebook, and iPhones have changed the way we live, have fun, and interact. Children quietly glued to game monitors for hours have replaced laughter and creativity. They beg to play, whine when they can’t, and even lie about the time they’ve spent on “the gadget”. Teens and pre-teens spend most of their waking hours texting, chatting on Facebook, or ‘tweeting’ on Twitter. Today’s latest-breaking technology becomes tomorrow’s obsession, demanding more time, attention, and sacrifices. Technology has become a powerful tool and ‘everyone is doing it' but maybe you feel like you’ve lost control in your own home. Does the chill down your spine tell you that something is terribly wrong? Do you feel like a beast has invaded your home, but you don’t know how to handle it? If so, then join me as we talk together about the timely topic of taming the TECHNO-BEAST!

Homeschooling is more like a 26-mile marathon than a 100-yard dash. If you want to complete the race successfully, you must develop a training strategy that builds your strength, stamina, and vision and enables you to persevere until the end. Zan Tyler, who homeschooled her children for 21 years, provides training tips that will help you complete the God-given task of homeschooling and help you “run with endurance the race that lies before us.”

Sometimes the decisions facing us with the upcoming high school years can cause us to lose confidence; yet, it is precisely these years that have the most return for us as parents. In this session, practical and tangible information will be covered regarding course material, extra-curricular activities, transcripts, diplomas, ACT, SAT, PSAT, TOPS, free online tutorials, and classes, college prep vs. business, and resources for "the teacher." You will have to listen fast, but handouts will be available as well.

"My child hates piano - should I let him stop?" "I'm thinking about starting my children in music - what should I do?" "When should my child begin piano?" "Should all children learn piano?" These are questions I commonly hear from homeschool parents. What should one look for in a teacher? How can a child be encouraged to play? These questions and more will be covered in this workshop.

Enjoy tea and cake as ladies share the experiences as a homeschool mom, pursuing excellence, and trying to find that ever-elusive "balance." Several ladies have prepared something to share, but the time is flexible enough to address the needs and concerns of the attendees.

As homeschooling parents, we don't want our children missing out on the opportunities and activities of their counterparts. However, providing our children a myriad of extra curricular activities can become costly. Over the past few years, we have been able to identify several free or low cost activities, field trips and family experiences that will enrich your homeschooling experience.

Families with children who desire competitive athletic experiences have several avenues to meet that need. Hear how families have addressed that need, and what opportunities may be available for your athlete.

Our children live in the midst of a secular culture and face a host of frightening problems that we never had to deal with at their age. Because they are often not prepared to counter our culture, startling percentages of children raised in evangelical homes do not continue in their faith and beliefs into adulthood. For this reason, training our children to develop a strong biblical worldview is one of the most important things we can do. Teaching them to think biblically about all areas of life equips them to become powerful thinkers, leaders, and communicators. Most importantly, it also gives staying power to their faith as they face opposition. Our goal as Christian homeschoolers must be bigger and broader than turning out kids with exceptional talent and high SAT scores. By incorporating worldview training, we can better equip them to use their gifts to impact the world for Christ, help others by solving real problems, and bring glory to God in the process.

Have you really considered your vision for homeschooling? Do you have clear goals you are striving toward? Are they purely academic, or do they include goals like discipling and connecting with your children? Many times we lose sight of the most important goals in lieu of the “book” side of homeschooling. The focus of this workshop is to encourage parents to consider and prioritize the relational aspects of our homeschooling journey – connecting our heart with the hearts of our children.

In the traditional school environment, students have an average of eight to ten individual interactions with their teacher each day. In your homeschool, these verbal interactions can number in the hundreds and thus greatly enhance the education your children receive at home. Zan Tyler shares how the simple, free tool of conversation can help your children replace boredom during lessons with a motivation to learn. Discover why parents make the best teachers and capitalize on these strengths. Explore strategies to minimize conflict in your home and promote camaraderie and enthusiasm instead. Identify simple but profound ways to replace drudgery in learning with stimulating academics. Conversation is key!

God has created each family and each family member to be unique. When we, as parents, embark on this adventure we call “home schooling,” we need to realize that we cannot have a “one-size-fits-all” mentality. What works well for another family may spell disaster for yours. The success your first child enjoyed with your original curriculum choice may not be mirrored by your second child. We’ll touch on a variety of ways you can educate your children, from kindergarten through high school, without getting stuck in an educational rut. We’ll also explore some of the many opportunities that await your child after graduation. Join us as we learn to “Think Outside the Box.”

This session explores using co-ops to enrich the homeschooling experience. We will consider different kinds and sizes of co-ops, discuss the pros and cons of belonging to one, and find out how to start one of your own.

Everyone has dreams - you, your spouse, and your children, but for every dreamer a dream killer lurks in the shadows. They're the ones who constantly remind you why you shouldn't homeschool, have more children, be a stay-at-home mom, start a new business, or take that step of faith God’s telling you to take. Dream killers grew up with you. They live in your house and sometimes they even...are you. Their intentions may be good, but if you listen to them, you will miss out on God's best for your life. Join Todd as he helps you revive old dreams, fan the dreams in others’ lives, and urges you to throw caution to the wind and set sail for the adventure of a lifetime.

What is the easiest way to keep track of your home business income and expenses? Can I take mileage deductions? What is contract labor? Can I deduct expenses for having an office in my home? Come learn the answers to these questions.