It's convention season again. Traveling from event to event ... setting up a booth full of great books and products ... talking to parents from all walks of life. Yep ... even after 16 years it doesn't get old.
These past couple of weeks, as I've stood in a freshly appointed booth space before the crowds came in, it occurred to me that dads and moms really haven't changed a whole lot over the years. As I anticipated the types of family dynamics and questions we would encounter, I realized that Solomon's wise words were never more true than at a homeschool convention. History merely repeats itself. It has all been done before. Nothing under the sun is truly new. (Ecclesiastes 1:9)
Lots of "new" and interesting products and services from year to year ... but homeschool families are pretty much the same. Dads and moms who want the very best educational choices for their children, researching homeschooling to see if it is an option for their family. Some come convinced that this is the best choice for them ... and they're excited but nervous about how to make it work. Others come because friends encouraged them to check it out. Still others are there reluctantly ... knowing that what they're doing for school currently is not working, and wondering just how crazy they are to even consider education at home.
While homeschooling is not the best choice for everyone, it is exciting to listen as families come back to visit year after year to share why homeschooling with Sonlight has been a great decision for "their" students. Here are just a couple great stories I have heard from consultants who have been meeting folks at conventions across the country ...
"I love those podcasts you do!" She and her husband are missionaries with Wycliffe and they have helped and encouraged her so much. Working in ____ is very isolating at times, so she appreciated that Sonlight provides a great curriculum and support. It has kept her and her husband on the field "one more year".
Another family with grade-school aged children were looking at the high school display. The dad asked, "Do you know why we love Sonlight? Because, I see you have this book about the Supreme Court. It is written by Linda Greenhouse. I look on the back flap to see who she is, and see that she covered the US Supreme Court for 30 years as a correspondent and won a Pulitzer Prize. OK, she knows her stuff. I can trust that she understands the Supreme Court. I don't care if she's a believer or not, what I want to know is if she knows what she is talking about. She does. That is why we love Sonlight."
Lots of reasons why so many families find Sonlight, the original literature-based homeschool curriculum, to be a good fit for their students. I never get tired of hearing their stories. Perhaps you can stop by a Sonlight booth at a convention near you this summer, and share your story ... and bring a friend along to introduce them to homeschooling with Sonlight!
Still on the journey ...
~Judy Wnuk
