Saturday, May 6, 2023 – 8:00 am–5:00 pm. – St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana
PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED AND SPACE IS LIMITED!
Our featured speaker will be Todd Wilson, The Familyman. Other inspirational speakers include Julie Bogart (Brave Writer), Sara Carothers (Rainbow Resource Center), Sarah Collins (Homeschool OT), Matthew Poston (Mr. Science Teacher), Latonya Moore (Joy in the Ordinary), and Eva Goldstein-Meola (Open Tent Academy). The convention will also host numerous exhibitors from various educational forums. An event you will not want to miss!
Registration
We are excited to announce that the 2023 Michiana Homeschool Convention registration is now open!
Ticket prices: $25 per individual and $40 per couple. St. Mary’s meal cards are also available for $13 per person.
We have done our best to keep costs low and our space is limited. No children, only nursing babies, are allowed. PRE-REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED. No tickets will be available at the door. Reserve your spot now!
If you have any questions, feel free to email us.
Convention Schedule
Speakers
Keynote Speaker: Todd Wilson
Speech Topics: "This, We Believe!" and "Lies Homeschoolers Believe" TODD WILSON, is a dad, grand dad, writer, conference speaker, and former pastor. Todd’s humor and down to earth realness have made him a favorite speaker at homeschool conventions, retreats, and churches across the country. As founder of Familyman Ministries and the Smiling Homeschooler, his passion and mission are to remind dads and moms of what’s most important through weekly emails, podcasts (The Familyman Show & The Smiling Homeschooler), seminars, and books and products that encourage parents. Todd, and his wife Debbie, homeschool two of their eight children (six have graduated from their homeschool with four married) in northern Indiana and travel America in the Familyman Mobile. You can read more at www.familymanweb.com
Julie Bogart
Speech Topics: "The Secret to Breakthroughs in Writing (all ages)" and "The Most Important Person In Your Homeschool Is You" Julie Bogart is known for her common sense parenting and education advice. She’s the creator of the award-winning, innovative online writing program called Brave Writer. She home educated her five children who are now globe-trotting adults. She’s also the author of the beloved book, The Brave Learner, which has brought joy and freedom to countless parents. Her newest title, Raising Critical Thinkers, is shaking up how we help kids be savvy in the digital world. Her online coaching community, Brave Learner Home, the Brave Writer podcast, and Julie’s popular Instagram account are lifelines for tens of thousands of weary parents all over the world. Julie lives in Cincinnati Ohio.
Sara Carothers
Speech Topics: “Choosing Curriculum” and “Learning Styles” Sara has been a Curriculum Consultant with retailer Rainbow Resource Center (Toulon IL) for more than 10 years. As such, she answers calls, emails, and online chats from parents looking for help choosing curriculum. With access to over 1,200 publishers and a warehouse with about 50,000 items, they answer a lot of product questions! Sara came to Rainbow with a classroom background as a high school French Teacher, including the International Baccalaureate and AP programs. She is the mother of Nick (Auburn AL) and Adam (Okeechobee FL) who are grown and following their own life paths. Sara is an artist and master gardener. She enjoys boating with husband Les, and golf cart rides with him and the dog around their lake community in Illinois.
Sarah Collins
Speech Topics: “Homeschooling Special Needs” and “What Are Executive Functioning Skills and How Do We Use the Homeschool to Build Them?” Sarah Collins, MSOT, OTR/L is an occupational therapist with a background in both pediatrics and home health, and a homeschooling parent. Sarah was first introduced to homeschooling in 2016 while working as an OT in a client’s home; she was amazed at the learning atmosphere and opportunities within the home. Now as an OT homeschooling her own family, she noticed that parents, though experts on their own children, were invariably asking the same questions and needed resources. As a result, HomeschoolOT was established. Sarah now provides individualized recommendations and resources to homeschool families to help children thrive in the activities they specifically need and want to do. You can find Sarah on line at www.homeschoolot.com on Instagram at www.instagram.com/homeschoolOT and in the Facebook group she moderates at www.facebook.com/groups/homeschooltherapyideas
Eva Goldstein-Meola
Speech Topics: "Homeschooling 101" and "College Prep" Eva Lynn Goldstein-Meola, M.Ed., has been actively involved in the field of education for over 30 years. Not only is she the founder and director of Open Tent Academy, but she has been a writing, literature and geography teacher for homeschooling students since 2001. Additionally, she has been a homeschooling mother, private tutor and, finally, workshop presenter at various homeschooling conferences. Prior to her daughter’s, Shayna, birth, Eva was a classroom teacher and elementary school reading and writing specialist in Western Massachusetts. Eva’s biggest joy was the opportunity to homeschool her own daughter, Shayna, who now works as an Aerospace Engineer for Impulse Space focusing on the Mars Payloader. Eva passionately feels that all children can be given the tools they need to be successful readers and writers. To her, readers and writers aren’t born; they develop over time.
Latonya Moore
Speech Topics: “Homeschooling High School” and "A Mother's Guide to Surviving Homeschooling" Straight to the point and practical, Latonya Moore offers large doses of encouragement through writing and speaking while remaining realistic when finding and maintaining a joy-centered life. Her family started their homeschooling journey in 2009; in 2023, her first daughter will graduate from homeschooling. She's been featured in Focus on the Family, The Old Schoolhouse, and Kiplinger. In addition, she's appeared on Slate's Mom and Dad are Fighting, The Homeschool Highschool Podcast, and NPR Here and Now. Latonya is a wife, homeschooling mom, and life coach who focuses on well-being.
Matthew Poston
Speech Topics: “The Language of Chemistry - Learn how to name chemical compounds using addition and subtraction” and “Teaching Stoichiometry - You got this!” Matthew Poston diligently strives to be the best dad ever! Although he loves science, he treasures his position as a single father to five children and an entertainer of two grandchildren. In high school, he worked on his uncle's dairy farm where there was always something new to learn. In college, he supported himself by tutoring and delivering pizza as he earned his BS degree in physics. For his current day to day pastime, he looks for opportunities in outdoor activities - hiking, fishing, camping, and kayaking excursions are all on the table. Matthew has received an outstanding teaching award from the University of Tennessee where he worked as a graduate student while doing research for the Department of Energy at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. He has been teaching high school physics and chemistry for over 20 years in central Illinois - "It's not work; I get to do what I enjoy!" Matthew has been a featured speaker at several homeschool conventions and has provided assistance to homeschool parents for more than ten years; “I Want to Help You Excel!”
The 2023 Michiana Homeschool Convention is sponsored by:
Garatoni-Smith Family Foundation
VELA Education Fund