Defined: “There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent.” ~Mahatma Gandhi homeschooling, also called home education, educational method situated in the home rather than in an institution designed for that purpose. It is representative of a broad social movement of families, largely in Western societies, who believe that the education of children is, ultimately, the right of parents rather than a government. Beginning in the late 20th century, the homeschooling movement grew largely as a reaction against public school curricula among some groups. HISTORY • Mid-19th century – apprenticeships and communal activities • Early 20th century - universal compulsory school attendance laws established • 1883 - Hints On Home Training and Teaching by Edward A. Abbott • 1912 - The School in the Home by A.A. Berle • 1977 - John Holt – “unschooling” • 1977-2001Growing Without Schooling magazine • 1980s - 20,000 homeschoolers in United States • Today – 2.4 million homeschoolers “I suppose it is because nearly all children go to school nowadays and have things arranged for them that they seem so forlornly unable to produce their own ideas.” ~Agatha Christie Famous Homeschoolers George Washington, John Adams, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson Jane Austen, Louisa May Alcott, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Agatha Christie, C.S. Lewis, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Joseph Smith, Blaise Pascal Ansel Adams, Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, Andrew Carnegie Frank Lloyd Wright, Alexander the Great, Julian Assange (WikiLeaks) Francis Collins (physician-geneticist, leader of Human Genome Project), Reid Barton (most successful mathematician in contests in history) Joey Logano (youngest driver to win NASCAR), Kaitlyn Maher (top 10 on America’s Got Talent), Tim Tebow • • • • • • • “As regards moral courage, then, it is not so much that the public schools support it feebly, as that they suppress it firmly.” G.K. Chesterton WHY? Not just “No Sex” “No Darwin” Deficiencies in public/private education system Quality time (one on one) Family as mission Religious reasons/Counterculture Moral/Ethical Safety concerns Unique educational, physical, or mental health needs (personalize education) HOW? “Fun isn’t hard if you’ve got a library card” MY STORY I WAS HOMESCHOOLED Library Services and Resources Talk to them Google your city and “homeschool” Homeschool groups Local homeschooling conferences, lectures, fairs Surveys or focus groups • Traditional marketing • Special area in library • Volunteer program • Teen advisory boards • Homeschoolers as library advocates • Extended loan period • Grants Programs “It is the mark of a truly educated man to know what not to read.” ~Ezra Taft Benson Orientation Basic library skills instruction (57 Games to Play in the Library or Classroom by Carol K. Lee) Advanced Information Literacy Skills (Information Power: Building Partnerships for Learning from AASL and AECT) Encourage use of library meeting rooms Handouts listing state laws Programs for parents • Library catalog • NoveList • Reference Books: A to Zoo: Subject Access to Children’s Picture Books • Best Books for Children: Preschool through Grade 6 • Best Books for Middle School and Junior High Readers: Grades 6-9 • Best Books for High School Readers: Grades 9-12 • Other Programs • • • • • • • • • • • Storytimes Book Groups Craft programs Other activities: Back to Homeschool Party Open Houses Literature based programming (book themed event) Curriculum Swap Displays Preparing for College Booktalks Pathfinders Fiction featuring homeschooling Alice, I Think, by Susan Juby (12 & up) Ida B… and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan (10-14 yrs.) Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan (11 & up) What Would Joey Do? By Jack Gantos (10 -13 yrs.) Special Collection Homeschooling collections statement Periodicals Books Curriculum and supply catalogs Teaching Aids, Equipment, and Manipulatives Curriculum kits What Homeschoolers Want from Public Libraries Laws and compliance regulations of state regarding homeschooling Listing of area agencies, museums, park services, educational resources Directory of homeschooling groups in area Booklists of library materials Statewide and national homeschool organizations Contact people in local schools/state superintendent Children’s programs and services Listing of homeschooling suppliers (publishers, correspondence, distributor catalogs) • Library involvement with homeschooling organizations • Bulletin board in library for meeting calendars, contest information, reviews of new books of interest, monthly pages from Chase’s Calendar of Events, dates of book sales • Displays of home school projects, art, hobbies, etc. • Curriculum guides from local schools • Workshops on topics such as various subject areas, new books, etc. • Tours of the library, ILL information, printouts from periodicals • Special programs, reading programs, bibliographic instruction • Volunteer program (tutoring, fundraising, reviewing materials, lobbying, putting on plays for other children) • Access to recent publisher’s catalogs and book review journals • Audiotapes and CDs • Use of library’s meeting room • Use of personal computers or audiovisual equipment • Library column in local homeschooling newsletter • Excellent readers’ advisory service • Special borrowing privileges • Good collection of children’s books, creative materials, historical fiction, biographies, trade books on science, math, and history SUGGESTED READS Anderson, E. (1996).Homeschooling and libraries--An intimate view. Alki. 12, 223. Brostrom, D.C. (1995). A guide to homeschooling for librarians. Fort Atkinson, WI: Highsmith Press. Brostrom, D.C. (1997). No place like the library. School Library Journal. 3, 106-9. Campbell, C.B. (2002). Shelby county public libraries and homeschooling parents. Alabama Librarian. 1, 11-12. Furness, A. (2008). Helping homeschoolers in the library. Chicago, IL: American Library Association. Furness, A. Helping homeschoolers in the library. [PowerPoint presentation]. http://homeschoolingandlibraries.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/helpinghomeschoolers.ppt Retrieved February 13, 2009. Gemmer, T. (1987). Homeschoolers Gemmer, T. (1991). The library response to homeschooling. Alki. 3, 20-3. Isenberc, E.J. (2007). What have we learned about homeschooling? Peabody Journal of Education. 82 (2/3), 387-409. Kaplan, P. (2001). Reaching out to homeschooling families: Services and programs. Illinois Libraries. 1, 44-6. Kleist-Tesch, J.M. (1998). Homeschoolers and the public library. Journal of Youth Services in Libraries. 3, 231-41. Klipsch, P.R. (1995). An educated collection for homeschoolers. Library Journal. 120(2), 47-50. Lerch, M.T. & Welch, J. (2004). Serving homeschooled teens and their parents. Westport, CT: Libraries Unlimited. Madden, S.B. (1992). Learning at home: Public library service to homeschoolers. Alki. 3, 20-2. McCarthy, A. & Andersen, D.L. (2006-2007). Homeschoolers at the public library: Are library services and policies keeping pace? JLAMS, 3(1), 5-44. McLean, C. (2001). Outreach to homeschoolers. Alki,3,13. Ray, B.D. (2004). Homeschoolers on to college: What research shows us. The Journal of College Admission, 184, 5-11. Sheffer, S. (1995). A sense of self: Listening to homeschooled adolescent girls. Portsmouth, NH: Boynton/Cook Publishers, Inc. Scheps, S.G. (1999). Homeschoolers in the library. School Library Journal. 2, 389. Scheps, S.G. (1998). The librarian’s guide to homeschooling resources. Chicago, IL: American Library Association. Slattery, A. (2005). In a class of their own: as more families turn to homeschooling, public libraries can be an invaluable resource. School Library Journal. 8, 44-6. “Homeschooling will certainly produce some socially awkward adults, but the odds are good they would have been just as quirky had they spent twelve years raising their hand for permission to go to the bathroom.” ~Quinn Cummings, The Year of Learning Dangerously: Adventures in Homeschooling Bibliography • Dreher, Rod. Crunchy cons: how birkenstocked burkeans, gun-loving organic gardeners, evangelical free-range • Encyclopædia Britannica Online, s. v. "homeschooling", accessed March 21, 2013, farmers, hip homeschooling mamas, right-wing nature lovers, and their diverse tribe of countercultural conservatives plan to save America (or at least the Republican Party). Crown Pub, 2006. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/270081/homeschooling. • Helping homeschoolers in the library. American Library Association, 2008. • Homeschooling. http://www.conservapedia.com/Homeschooling • Homeschooling. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_homeschooled_people • Homeschooling. Dan Boylan; Joy Chong-Stannard; Colette Fox; Joshua Kamakawiwoʻole; Dan Mather; Lisa Rabe; Stacey Roberts; PBS Hawaii. ; 2007 • Johnson, Abbey. “Make Room for Homeschoolers.” American Libraries Magazine, 2012.http://americanlibrariesmagazine.org/columns/youth-matters/make-room-homeschoolers • Library Services for Homeschoolers. http://www.libsuccess.org/Library_Services_for_Homeschoolers#Excellent_Websites.2FInitiatives_for_Homescho olers • PERLSTEIN, LINDA. "DO-IT-(ALL)-YOURSELF PARENTS. (cover story)." Newsweek 159, no. 6 (February 6, 2012): 46-51. Vocational and Career Collection, EBSCOhost (accessed March 21, 2013). • Scheps, Susan G. The librarian's guide to homeschooling resources. American Library Association, 1998. • Shinn, Lora. "A Home Away from Home." School Library Journal 54, no. 8 (August 2008): 38-42. Vocational and Career Collection, EBSCOhost (accessed March 21, 2013). • Quotes About Homeschooling. http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/homeschooling?auto_login_attempted=true