Hal Young's Blog, page 44

Map Quest from Knowledge Quest

Have you ever been teaching a history lesson when one of your children pipes up with a question: ʺMom, is Carthage a city in Oregon or some other country?ʺ  Oh dear, you think to yourself, and then calmly explain, ʺHoney, first of all, Oregon is a state, not a country. And Carthage no longer exists, but I think it was located on the northern tip of Africa across the Mediterranean Sea from Italy.ʺ After receiving two or more questions along this vein, you realize that you need some better resources.

Actually, you only need ONE!

Map Trek is a historical atlas plus outline maps that allow you to teach geography alongside history. This is a resource that any homeschool parent can use with brilliant success, even if you don’t remember a thing from your history or geography classes in public school.

Grab your children by the hand. It’s time to explore our world throughout history. Let’s take a map trek! This NEW, Hot-Off-The-Press Hardcover + Reproducible CD-ROM contains all five historical Map Trek map sets – Ancient World, Medieval World, New World, Modern World and U.S. Edition – plus includes three additional bonuses, including complete world and continent maps, along with drawing grids to help your children really become familiar with the countries of our world.

“These are really beautiful books,” says Hal. “You really ought to CLICK HERE to find out more.”

Register to win a free U.S. + World set hardcover plus CD-ROM – a $55 value!

I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist Curriculum from Apologia

I Don’t Have Enough Faith To Be An Atheist – book and workbook by Frank Turek and Norman Geisler

Introducing Apologia’s first apologetics curriculum for high school students! Based on Norman Geisler and Frank Turek’s best-selling book I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist, this study will prepare teens and young adults to defend their Christian faith with boldness and effectiveness. During this course, your student will tackle the question of absolute truth, demolish the follies of postmodernism, debunk moral relativism, and march logically and surely toward the inescapable truths of the Christian faith. This 2-book gift includes the text and workbook.

View more information and read a sample chapter on this page. $49.00 Retail

We love Davis and Rachael Carmen, owners of Apologia, they are the real deal — serious Christians who live what they believe. You can’t go wrong with their materials! ~Hal & Melanie

 

Ultimate Homeschool Expo 2012 from Media Angels

This Homeschool Convention never ends. You can access Media Angel’s Ultimate Homeschool Expo Membership Site full of ebooks, audios, articles, and doorprizes from this expo.

only .59 per audio!

SAVE ORDERING HERE! (Regular Price: $99.95)

We have an amazing line-up of speakers! Felice Gerwitz, Meredith Curtis, Cindy Rushton, Cathy Duffy, Andrew Pudewa, Maggie Hogan, Tyler Hogan, Kim Kautzer, Mary Jo Tate, Carol Topp, Israel Wayne, Melanie Young, Hal Young, Christina Gerwitz Moss, Lorrie Flem, Rachel Carman, Davis Carman, Jeannie Fulbright, Heidi St. John, Trish Goyer, Judy Dudich, Jolanthe Erb, Jimmie Lanley, and many more!

Buy Today and IMMEDIATELY RECEIVE:

“Top 10 Mistakes Homeschool Mom’s Make”

“Top Ten JOYS of Homeschooling” by Felice Gerwitz, your host and author at Media Angels

eBook 50+ Pages -Classic Homeschool Advice

eBook Student Planner

Homeschool Mother’s Prayer bonus audio

LISTEN LIVE PLUS Get Access to ALL of the downloads of the ENTIRE Expo

Add Up The Savings! 80+ Audios @5 each= $400 Value

Mommy’s Jammies Nights @ 5 each = $30

Coupon offers and discounts = $200+ Value

20 Keynote Sessions @ 10 each = $200 Value

TOTAL PACKAGE VALUE: $830+

Only $59.97!

 

Welcome to Our Party! Here are the Party Favors!

We are so glad you are joining us!

This party is going to be a little bit different… It’s a PROGRESSIVE FACEBOOK PARTY! Learn more:Meet us on Tuesday, August 14th:

From 7:00-8:00pm Eastern, we’ll be hanging out on Twitter with the hashtag #RRMFB.

 

From 8:00 to 8:45pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Raising Real Men Facebook Page with Giveaways here atRaisingRealMen.com!

 

From 8:45 to 9:30pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Hopeful Stories Facebook Page (the page of one of our new authors, Hope Auer), with giveways on our new book’s page: A Cry From Egypt!

 

From 9:30-10:15pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Children in Church Page (the other new book we’re publishing), with giveaways on the Children in Church website!

 

Learn more about how to participate and the companies sponsoring giveaways here.

 

You are welcome to go ahead and start enjoying the Party Favors below — they are free for everyone! Well over $50 of value!

Hal & Melanie Young

Peace Creek on the Prairie’s Homeschool Forms

Lots of printable homeschool forms designed my a homeschool mom for her family.  From lesson planning pages, to book report and field trip forms, there is a form to meet most needs in the homeschool family.

 



 

Blessed is the Man – The First Unit

The complete first unit of the premier unit study devoted to helping high school age boys become mighty men of God. Contains all instructions and enough activities for a couple of months of school work, covering all basic school subjects as well as Bible and Christian character. Developed by Lynda Coats.

Learn more at the Unit Study Emporium

 

Tried and Proven Teaching Techniques,

mp3 download by master teacher, Joyce Herzog, of The Scaredy Cat Reading System andLearning in Spite of Labels.She also offers us a host of free resources at her website here!

 

Biography Lapbook

from A Journey Through Learning

It is so much fun to read the biography of a person that is well known. A Journey Through Learning made it even more fun with this hands-on approach to biographies! This 2-folder lapbook provides 17 mini-booklets in which your child can record the information he learns about the person he/she chooses to read about.Add the Instant Download to the Cart, on the Check Out Page, enter coupon code raisingmen and it will make this lapbook free!

$11 Value!

Boys’ Book of Battles from Heritage History

This downloadable e-book brings eleven of the most important battles in American and European History to life. The author spends enough time giving interesting background and detailed information to give each battle vital and lively interest. Particularly moving are three eye-witness accounts of the horrors of the Great War, at Verdun, Ypres, and Argonne. Other battles recounted include Saratoga, Yorktown, and Gettysburg in America, and Sedan, Austerlitz, and Waterloo in Europe.  Several different e-book versions are available so they can be read on any e-reader, tablet, or computer.

Vocabulary Bridges from English to Latin and Greek by Harvey Bluedorn of Trivium Pursuit Most of what we speak and read is Latin and Greek. As much as 80% of English Vocabulary is derived from Latin and Greek. If we could recognize the Latin and Greek in English, we would understand our own language better. Understanding English vocabulary from the perspective of Latin and Greek roots gives us the advantage of:1. An increase in working vocabulary.

2. Greater refinement in the choice of words.

3. Greater accuracy in the use of words.

4. Greater appreciation of the way words are constructed.

5. Greater accuracy in spelling.

6. Ability to decipher the meaning of unfamiliar words.

7. Preparation for the formal study of Latin and Greek grammar.Students ages ten through adult can use this consumable workbook.$8 Value!

 Complete Map Trek Ancient World from Knowledge Quest

We are giving away the complete Map Trek: Ancient World. This is not a sampler or a teaser, but the whole Ancient World ebook. Try it and if you would like to collect any of the other time periods, now is a great time to do so. Use coupon code MT25 to save 25% on any Map Trek ebook, CD-ROM or hardcover edition between now and 8/24/12 at midnight.

$14.95 Value!

I just love this product! – Melanie

 
 George Frideric Handel Studyfrom Classical Composers MonthlyMake this the year that you share classical music with your children!  Try our Handel composer resource for FREE!



 

Dramatic Historic Radio Productions

My Audio School is giving away several educational old time radio theater downloads, including episodes from You are There, and dramatic radio productions of Les Miserables, Pride and Prejudice, the life of Louis Pasteur, the Railroad Builders, and more!

AND

Remediation and Accomodation for the Dyslexic Child

In addition to the old time radio downloads, Molly is sharing her teaching podcast Remediation and Accommodation for the Dyslexic Child, in which she shares tips which can help struggling learners strengthen areas of weakness while soaring in areas of strength.

Use Password RRM at the link above to download both!

 

 Stick Figure Study of the Days of Creation from Grapevine Studies

Stick Figures the Days of Creation with your children. This is a fun way to teach one of the first lesson in the Bible!

Click where it says download free lesson

 

 Never Give Up! mp3 Download

by Hal & Melanie Young

It’s easy to get burned out, tired and overwhelmed homeschooling. As the years pass, how can we press on through the opposition of the world, the flesh and the devil and do what we know is right? This funny, hopeful and encouraging session looks at the importance of finishing what you’ve started and making it all the way to graduation.

$5 Value

 

Adjective Exchange Game (with Bonus Goodies) from Write Shop

ADJECTIVE EXCHANGE GAME

Play the “Adjective Exchange Game” to give your children practice choosing interesting adjectives to use in their writing assignments. This activity focuses on the importance of replacing weak, dull words        with strong, colorful ones.

BONUS GOODIES

7 engaging ideas for Writing Activity Centers! Giving your kids interesting new writing activities helps them practice their writing skills in a fun, relaxed setting.

20 writing prompts for all ages



 
 Get one of our most popular workshops ever free for signing up for our newsletter!

Email Marketing You Can Trust 

See You at the Party!

You are invited to an Epic Facebook Party!

What’s a Facebook Party?

 It’s just like a regular party — people meet in the same place to enjoy each other’s company! Only, we’ll meet online at our Raising Real Men Facebook Page. Just like an ordinary party, we’ll have Party Favors (freebies everyone can have) & Door Prizes (giveaways that we’ll choose winners for). You can visit with us (Hal & Melanie) online and ask all the questions you like — and we’ll have special guests, too, including Hope Auer, author of one of the new books we’re publishing, A Cry From Egypt. It’s going to be so much fun!!

This party is going to be a little bit different… It’s a PROGRESSIVE FACEBOOK PARTY! Learn more:Meet us on Tuesday, August 14th:

From 8:00 to 8:45pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Raising Real Men Facebook Page with Giveaways here at RaisingRealMen.com!

From 8:45 to 9:30pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Hopeful Stories Facebook Page (the page of one of our new authors, Hope Auer), with giveways on our new book’s page: A Cry From Egypt!

From 9:30-10:15pm Eastern, we’ll be at the Children in Church Page (the other new book we’re publishing), with giveaways on the Children in Church website!

We’d like for you to get a chance to know our new authors and new books, personally chosen by us, Hal & Melanie Young, for our publishing company, Great Waters Press.

Join us and enter to win (or get just by showing up!) gifts from these great companies…

 

Apologia
Grace and Truth Books


Grain of Truth Bread Company
 JoyceHerzog.com/joycom


Ancient Paths Christian Bookstore
Children in Church


SchoolhouseTeachers.com
 Circle C Beginnings


A Journey Through Learning Lapbooks
 UniversityReady


Classical Composers Monthly
Doorposts


 Trivium Pursuit
Heritage History


Knowledge Quest
Character Corner/The Courtship Connection


Unit Study Emporium
The Home Scholar


  My Audio School
Peace Creek on the Prairie


Grapevine Studies
  The Charlotte Mason Girl


Joyous Home
In the Hands of a Child


Hopeful Stories
Common Sense Press


 

Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death!

As we were leaving our hotel in Richmond one morning after the HEAV convention on our way to visit the disappearing chef (You’ll hear all about it later!), we happened to run into our friends Larry & Sue Pruett of Ancient Paths Christian Bookstore who were packing their van. Sue mentioned that they were going to visit St. John’s Church to see the re-enactment of Patrick Henry’s “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” speech. We decided to head over, too.

St. John’s Episcopal Church is on Church Hill, a lovely spot in Old Richmond. When you step into the gates, there’s not much to clue you in that it’s not the 1770s. I had always pictures a big brick church, but instead, it’s a lovely, small, white country kind of church. Inside, it’s just delightful with very upright, narrow pews with doors, beautiful tall windows, some stained glass and some plain, and “I am the way, the truth and the life” arched over the back wall. While we were waiting for the re-enactment to begin, the organist played and the attendees sang a selection of patriotic songs like the songs of each branch of the services, God Bless America, and the Star-Spangled Banner. I would have preferred that they stick to the patriotic hymns instead of the service songs, as good as those are, since we there on Sunday in a church building, though, of course, it wasn’t a worship assembly. “America, America” would have been a fantastic addition to the presentation.

Once the re-enactment began, it was just perfect! About ten delegates in Colonial garb seated themselves throughout the audience and at the front, and proceded with the events of that momentous day as if we were part of the assembly! It was so real, and so wonderful to hear again those sentiments of liberty and resolve. It was eerie, too, to hear it all as if we were there. You could hardly help but think of all the challenges to our liberty we face these days and wonder what the Founders would have thought of a requirement to buy healthcare insurance, for example. It came alive in a very remarkable way, helping us to remember just how much our forefathers risked to bring forth the freest nation on earth.

The actors were excellent and delivered the famous speeches with the vim and force that was typical of the time — so refreshing! All in all, it was one of the most worthwhile afternoons studying history I can imagine. It was really just like being there! You need to do this. Re-enactments are every Sunday afternoon at 2pm in the summer and on the Sunday nearest March 23rd, the original date of the speech. Free, donations are accepted. Highly recommended.

If you’d like to learn more about our founding fathers, one of the best resources we know is Hero Tales from American History. Written by Theodore Roosevelt and Henry Cabot Lodge to teach virtue to children, it brings out the character of the heroes of America in a wonderful way — and we turned it into an audiobook with sound effects!

For Better or For Worse

Marriage is supposed to last a lifetime, for better or for worse, but these days, when things get tough, people break up. The sad thing is that it’s the innocent children who really suffer when parents don’t get over their problems. I was reading today a very sweet story about a couple that divorced 48 years ago after 20 years of marriage and are now remarrying. It’s a great feel-good story. That is, until you read it a little more carefully.

It was heartbreaking to me to read quotes like this one:

“I’m as excited as some 9-year-old whose parents are getting back together,” Funderbirk said, “and I’m 65 years old.”

The other children reacted the same way. That’s right, 48 long years later, the children of the marriage were still emotionally invested in it; still heartbroken their parents broke up and now delighted they were finally getting back together. Forty-eight years those children hurt. And, why? What tragic circumstances led to that home breaking up? We just don’t know, but we do know that the couple hasn’t seen each other since 1996 and that’s the only time since the divorce. They just decided to get over it, evidently. It’s sad they didn’t decide that in 1964.

Please understand, I am not coming down on this couple, they are finally doing the right thing, but I want all of us married folk to stop and think. When we are angry at our mates, when we want to walk out, who are we thinking about? Are we thinking about the children who’ll bear that burden for 48 years or more? Are we thinking about the mate we promised to love ’til death do us part? Or are we just thinking about ourselves? It’s worth thinking about.

I’m so glad this couple’s children lived long enough to see their parents reunite. Let’s make sure the children we know and love never have to go through that at all!

_______________________

Hey, and if you need some help making your marriage something to enjoy not just endure, check out our Marriage Retreat Online!

Carnival of Homeschooling

“Homeschooling”. To some, the word might conjure up images of un-socialized nerds. To others, it might inspire dreams of perfect students, sitting at the table eagerly learning everything they’re taught and clamoring for more. To most of us, we probably see everything — from the struggles of teaching children of all ages, to the pleasure of watching an older child teaching his sibling. From weariness brought on by bad attitudes and scuffling, to the joy of seeing your children grow strong in the faith, homeschooling parents see it all. Welcome to the July 24 edition of The Carnival of Homeschooling!



The Kids, and how to keep ‘em busy.

Joy at http://www.artfulhomemaking.com/ tackles this issue with her helpful and creative list of 50 activities and crafts to entertain your young children while you teach the teens, answer a phone call, or wait at the doctor’s office!  http://www.artfulhomemaking.com/2012/07/keeping-little-ones-busy.html

If you’re having trouble keeping your children quiet during church services, check out Children in Church: Nurturing Hearts of Worship — an upcoming book from our dear friends Curt and Sandra Lovelace, missionaries in Prague. We’re not releasing the book for another few months, but we have a very limited number of review copies available for sale at http://www.childreninchurch.com/

Christy gives instructions on how to make a Friends Handprint Mural in her post  http://www.eclecticmomma.blogspot.com/2012/02/friends-mural-how-to.html on  http://www.eclecticmomma.blogspot.com/

Restoring Lost Time and How to Rest

Phyllis Sather discusses Do You Need the Lord to Restore the Years the Locusts Have Eaten? http://phyllis-sather.com/?p=3602 on her blog at http://www.Phyllis-Sather.com

Meanwhile, homeschooling mom Kathi Weiss finds herself at home alone (dramatic music, please)…. With Nothing To Do. Her husband and son have traveled to distant lands to pursue the art of rocketry and hike in the Catskill Mountains. Go tell Kathi what to do with this bounty of peaceful time, uninterrupted by projectile launches and explosions! http://www.time4learning.net/blog/homeschool_online/vacation-time-567/ posted at http://www.time4learning.net/blogs/homeschool_online/

Well, perhaps the answer to Kathi’s problem is provided by Jamie Gaddy, who suggests “Taking a Book-cation this Summer”

http://www.time4learning.net/blog/homeschool_online/take-book-cation-summer-568/ also posted at http://www.time4learning.net/blogs/homeschool_online/

History, Geography, and Sports, all in one!

The 2012 Summer Olympics are about to begin in London, and Richard Platt has ideas on how to use the Olympics as a unit study! http://fillyourbookshelf.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/olympics-by-richard-platt/ posted at http://fillyourbookshelf.wordpress.com



Liz decided to incorporate old-fashioned travel into their homeschool! Read about it at: http://homeschoolinginbuffalo.blogspot.com/2012/07/old-fashioned-travel-for-old-fashioned.html  posted at http://homeschoolinginbuffalo.blogspot.com/

Roberta shares how her family studied Ancient China in her post http://lettersfromnebby.wordpress.com/2012/07/15/ancient-china-lesson-plans/  at http://lettersfromnebby.wordpress.com/


Science, Science, Science!

Have you worried about getting your teen’s high school science lab requirement finished? Janine Cate share how she organized a Do-It-Yourself Chemistry Lab Camp! http://whyhomeschool.blogspot.com/2012/07/chem-lab-camp-day-1.html

posted at http://whyhomeschool.blogspot.com

Blog It’s a Boy’s Life outlines the steps to writing and creating your own science units — http://allboyhomeschool.blogspot.com/2012/07/on-writing-your-own-science-units.html  posted at http://allboyhomeschool.blogspot.com/

While the older kids are working on science, how do you teach the little ones the basics? Make Oobleck!  http://blog.denschool.com/adventures-with-oobleck/ posted at http://blog.denschool.com/

…. Or Not

Maybe your child is cut out to be Albert Einstein 2.0, but you have trouble incorporating the classics into your homeschool. Mystie Winckler used Pilgrim’s Progress with great success in her homeschool… and so can you! Read how in her fascinating article: http://www.simplyconvivial.com/2012/pilgrims-progress-in-our-homeschool posted at http://www.simplyconvivial.com

Chris Shaw gives some great ideas on Exciting your Child’s Interest in History in his blog post on homeschoolvspublicschool.com  Read the article at: http://homeschoolvspublicschool.com/exciting-your-childs-interest-in-history/

Writing and history often go hand in hand — either as beloved studies, or dreaded subjects.  Homeschool graduate and newly published author Hope Auer shares a blog article on how to start writing fiction, as part of a 18 week series guiding young writers towards completing their own novel! Hope is the author of A Cry From Egypt, a novel set in an Israelite family during the time of the Exodus. http://acryfromegypt.com/2012/07/week-4-step-4-starting/ posted on http://acryfromegypt.com

Kristen posts about a cheap and easy way to teach your children to write topical paragraphs through journaling: http://www.thefrugalgirl.com/2012/07/frugal-homeschooling-daily-journals/  posted at http://www.thefrugalgirl.com/

How has our concept of Education changed?

Lisa at http://goldengrasses.com talks about how the homeschooling movement — and how we homeschool — has changed since the days of it’s infancy. http://goldengrasses.blogspot.com/2012/07/how-homeschooling-has-changed.html

Should we give our kids busy work, or let them learn at their own reckless pace? Angela Gray of Team Gray! debates “Education: Real vs. Contrived” on her blog! http://graymattersonline.net/2012/07/09/education-real-vs-contrived-2/  posted at http://graymattersonline.net

Lori Jones shares some reasons why homeschooling is the best choice for their family.

http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com/2012/07/homeschooling-why-it-is-best–choice-for.html posted at http://3partnersinshopping.blogspot.com/

Cardamom Publishers posts “why Do-gooders should (but probably won’t) study Homeschooling” http://barbarafrankonline.com/2012/07/18/eek-kids-are-getting-fat-and-dumb   posted at http://barbarafrankonline.com

Also: Greg Field interviews two homeschooled students for his post “To Homeschool or not to Homeschool” http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/education/homeschool-homeschool-questionopinions-profiles-homeschool-students/ posted at http://www.nerdwallet.com/blog/education

Bonus! School Planning Ideas:

Stuck planning school for some of your children? Check out what Annie Kate has planned for her 5, 7, 10, and 12th graders! http://anniekateshomeschoolreviews.com/2012/07/our-curriculum-for-next-year-grades-5-7-10-12/ posted at http://anniekateshomeschoolreviews.com/

Of course, scholastics aren’t the be-all-end-all. Nadene shares how she teaches homemaking skills to her children! http://practicalpages.wordpress.com/2012/07/16/kitchen-connections/ posted at http://practicalpages.wordpress.com

Lynda allows us a peek into the struggles of understanding what’s truly important in teaching her son. http://lynishiskid.blogspot.com/2012/07/homeschool-is-back-in-session.html posted at http://lynishiskid.blogspot.com/

And finally…..

The last post is our own. As our third son prepares for Senior year and college, we give some helpful tips and insights into Making College Visits Count. http://www.raisingrealmen.com/2012/07/making-college-visits-count/, posted at http://raisingrealmen.com

Thank you for joining us for the Carnival of Homeschooling today – be sure to share it with others! While you’re here, we hope you’ll take a moment to sign up for our newsletter (you’ll get one of our most popular downloads free once we add your email if you do!), like us on Facebook, and check out our book (Raising Real Men was Christian Small Publishers Book of the Year this year!) and other resources. Thanks for stopping by!

Hal & Melanie

Making College Visits Count

“We’re off to spend a week tramping from college to college,” Melanie was telling an old friend.

“Why would you do that?” she said. “Seems like a big waste of time and money.”

But then, Melanie remembered the college visit that changed her life.

She and her mother were parked beside the bell tower at a university near their town. “I just don’t feel good about it,” Melanie was saying. “I don’t even like it here. I don’t want to go here!” Her voice got more and more edgy as she realized her plan to stay close to home and go to college with friends wasn’t going to work out.

Her mother simply said, “Fine. Let’s go visit Clemson.”

Melanie didn’t want to. Her father had gone there and she’d heard about it, too much about it, all her life. And it was way too far from home. She didn’t know a soul going there. But that didn’t matter—Mama was going to make her.

To her surprise, she fell in love with it. The people were so nice. It was so beautiful. They talked about stories of her parents’ life there. She was hooked–she felt like she belonged. And she’s still glad she went there. It’s there that she was discipled in Christ. And it’s there she met her future husband.

See, a college visit changed both our lives!

How Do You Sort All This Out?

After your child takes the PSAT or SAT, they will likely be flooded with marketing emails, viewbooks, recruiting letters, and catalogs from colleges all over the country. How can you make sense of all the hype? How can you figure out if a college is really what your child needs?

Obviously, you can rule out the schools which don’t offer your student’s prospective major, the ones that are too far from home, or have some feature your student simply doesn’t desire–attending VMI or The Citadel involve more than academics, for example. But when you’ve narrowed the list down to your student’s “Top Ten Colleges and Universities,” what’s the next step? The answer is to go see them for yourself.

For our first three graduates, we’ve made—to date—about two dozen campus visits, and there are more to come. Here are some things we’ve found that make these l-o-n-g days much more effective:

Don’t Wait For Tour Weekends

It’s best to visit on a weekday during the regular school calendar. That way you can see the normal activity on campus, and maybe visit a class or two. Avoid the first and last weeks of the semester, though—they’re full of distractions from the start of classes and final exams.

Have Your Student Make The Calls

Your son or daughter—not you—needs to call the admissions office and set up their appointments. It makes an immediate impression that the student is taking charge of his or her own life, not meekly following in Mom and Dad’s wake, and it can head off stereotypes of the socially inept homeschooler. The call can be as simple as, “Hello, I’m Sam Studious. I’m a homeschooled junior from North Carolina and I’d like to arrange a visit to your college. Could you tell me who I should speak with?”

Go Ahead And Listen To The College’s Presentations

The admissions office will usually offer information sessions and a tour led by a student (be sure to wear comfortable shoes). These are a useful overview and will help you get a big picture of the college’s mission and vision. Don’t stop there, though—this is the college marketing itself, and you need to take the next step.

Ask Your Own Questions

Besides Admissions, you should ask to meet with the Financial Aid department. To our surprise, many of the small private colleges have very liberal scholarship and aid programs. It was actually cost us less to send our son to an upscale liberal arts college than to a nearby state-funded university. If your student is interested in the Honors College or other special programs, they should try to get an appointment with the leaders of those programs, too.

Watch For Culture Clues

Your student will only spend a few hours a day in class. What will the rest of their life look like? Ask the admissions office if you can eat in the student cafeteria; some will even offer vouchers to take your whole family to lunch. You student may eat twenty-one meals a week here, so it’s good to sample what they’re in for!

Walk through the student center, post office, and dormitory lobbies. What’s on the bulletin boards? How do campus groups try to appeal to students? We visited some historically denominational schools where the campus life appeared centered on sex and alcohol, the same as nearby state colleges; we only discovered this by reading the ads posted in the commons areas. We’ve seen secular public universities with a strong Christian community on campus. Don’t assume anything — look for clues!

Other questions you might ask are whether students tend to stay on campus over the weekend, or if social life focuses on nearby cities. Do fraternities and sororities dominate social activities, or is there a broad mix of “Greek” and “independent” groups?  Does the school have a reputation of hard studying, hard partying, or a balance of the two?

Talk With Real People

Meet with a professor in each major your student is considering. Ask if you can sit in on a freshman class in the major. Look up the campus minister for the student group most like your home church; we always tried to meet one for lunch or coffee, and ask about the spiritual life of the campus. It’s good to look for student clubs and activities that might interest your son or daughter; most campuses have musical groups, intramural sports, and other programs your student might join even if they’re not majoring in the area.

Don’t Give Away Your Heart … Too Quickly

Be sure to thoroughly talk over your visit on the way home or in the next few days. Compare your observations and impressions; you will notice things your student can’t, and they are likely to see things you overlook, too. Remember that colleges are societies of people, not buildings and statues; they change over time, and your alma mater is likely to be quite different than when you were there a few decades ago.

Most importantly, recognize that college is a time of preparation for life. God has a purpose for your child that may be very different than your own, and the college they need to attend may come as a surprise to you. Ultimately, you want them to find the place which is in the center of God’s will—even if they end up at your favorite college’s in-state rival!

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Hal and Melanie Young are the authors of Raising Real Men: Surviving, Teaching and Appreciating Boys.  Their new book on marriage, My Beloved and My Friend, is planned for release this fall. They are the homeschooling parents of six real boys and two real girls. When they aren’t traveling all over speaking about raising sons, marriage and homeschooling, they live in noisy familial bliss in North Carolina. Check out their page on http://Facebook.com/RaisingRealMen

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Is your student on the threshold of college? Are you both concerned about making a successful transition from home and homeschooling, to the institutional challenge of a university setting? Or are you realizing neither of you are quite sure which direction your student should be going? Join us for our interactive webinar series, “Aiming For College,” in conjunction with University Admissions Consultants. CLICK HERE to find out more!

 

Intergenerational Fun

One of the things I like best about homeschooling is the socialization. We went to institutional schools and remember how isolating it is – you hardly even know anyone who isn’t your exact age, except a few the age of your brother or sister. I’d hardly ever even held a baby when our first was born.

Our children, as they move through life along with us, interact with everyone we do and more. They learn to entertain babies, listen to elderly folks and discuss things with adults. It’s neat to see.

Our boys love to go to our local Christian coffeehouse, Melody’s, on Open Mic Night. It’s a welcoming place to try out a new song or to fellowship with friends. Through playing their own music and jamming with friends at Open Mic, the boys got to know the members of Blue Grass Magic and Matt Henry joined the band. He’s the youngest by 50 years! They tell him, “Son, I’ve got blue jeans older than you are!” Here they are sharing some Southern Gospel with Matt as lead singer: Enjoy!

Like Matt Henry on Facebook here so you can see when he posts more great music.

Find out more about raising godly teens in our workshops: Homeschooling is Not Enough, Shining Armor: Your Son’s Battle for Purity, Doing Real Things, and What About Social Media?