Diana Waring Extremely happily married since 1979, Bill and Diana Waring homeschooled their three children more than twenty years. The Waring kids (now all grown up) have been the proving grounds for all the concepts and encouragements Bill and Diana teach—the real-life examples of the wonders of home schooling! In 1999, their youngest, Melody, competed against 75,000 other entrants and won the VFW National Youth Essay Contest, receiving the opportunity to read her winning essay before 8,000 VFW members. She is currently attending a Wisconsin university as a Government major, focusing on relief work in developing nations, and frequently travels internationally. Michael, their second-born, just returned home to his wife Ashley and his baby Zachary from a tour of duty as a U.S. Navy Corpsman in Iraq, and is preparing to finish his education in order to do international humanitarian aid work—a lifelong goal. The eldest, Isaac, is a professional musician, teacher, songwriter and actor and is pursuing further education in graphic arts and web site design. He has been working with his parents' business full-time since college, redesigning their web site and assisting in the publication of new materials.      From September 1999 to April 2000, the Waring family traveled together to New Zealand. This fulfilled their dream of having an international, Christian missions experience together as a family before the children left home. For five of the seven months spent there, they attended Youth With A Mission (YWAM) Discipleship Training Schools. In the remainder of the time, they traveled throughout New Zealand speaking and ministering to home schooling families. The winter of 2003 saw the long-anticipated expansion of their overseas ministry into Europe and England.      Diana studied music, drama, and French in college, graduating with a B.A. in French. She loves ethnic cooking, meeting internationals, experimenting with her spinning wheel, and reading. Along with her busy schedule as a wife and mom, Diana has been a featured speaker at dozens of homeschool conventions throughout the U.S. and Canada, New Zealand, Australia, England, Scotland and educational conferences in Thailand and Hungary. She is also popular as a radio show guest. Bill, with a Master's degree in music education, taught music in the school system for eight years, has worked in construction, and is now the proprietor of their business, Diana Waring Presents!, serving as a consultant for home school families. Together, Bill and Diana are active board members of W.A.T.C.H., the Washington Association of Teaching Christian Homes.      Their family homeschool business Diana Waring Presents!, formerly known as "Diana Waring—History Alive!", produces books, CD's, videos, and history curriculum for the homeschool market. Some of these titles include: Beyond Survival: A Guide to Abundant Life Homeschooling, and the sequel, Reaping the Harvest: The Bounty of Abundant Life Homeschooling; The Beyond Survival Homeschooling Class on Video, and audio recordings of several of Diana's most popular workshops. The world history curriculum includes books written at elementary and secondary levels—Ancient Civilizations and the Bible for ancient history, Romans, Reformers, Revolutionaries for medieval, and World Empires, World Missions, World Wars for modern history—as well as audio CD sets including three recently-revised volumes of What in the World's Going On Here? A Judeo-Christian Primer of World History, the True Tales series and Diana's overview of twenty centuries of church history That's Why They Call It Grace.      The Warings sum up their ministry focus in their mission statement: "To serve by encouraging, equipping, and educating families in an entertaining way." Please visit her web site at http://www.dianawaring.com/ . Friday, 8:30 am:  Box Free Living, auditorium Rather than raising children to follow formulas, let us teach them using the principles of discipleship, and then have them "follow me as I follow Christ." And, rather than trying to force your homeschooling to look like someone else's, let's learn to hear from the Lord just what is best for your own family. Instead of falling victim to preconceived judgments, from ourselves or from others, let's learn to find God's way for us in this homeschooling journey.   Friday, 4:00 pm:  Actively Engage Learning and Actually Enjoy Learning,                           auditorium One of the biggest questions people ask is, "How do I get my kids to finish their school work?" The deeper question is actually, "How do I get my kids to be self-motivated?" We will examine the answers to these critical questions, and look at specific ways to encourage and assist our children in developing ownership of their education. Yagottahaveagottawanna is the attitude we want our children to catch, but we must learn the proper approach that will allow them to catch it! That means we must learn the critical difference between controlling and directing; between pushing and releasing; between coercing and facilitating. It is the essense of a master teacher who says, "I cannot teach you how to do it, but I can help you learn to do it." This is an interactive and practical workshop that you can put to use immediately! Saturday, 10:00 am: History via the Scenic Route, auditorium Are you tired of force feeding history to your children? Does history make them yawn? Or, do you have one of those hungry-for-history type students that would devour far more than you could ever dream up to provide? Diana Waring will take you on an extraordinary learning adventure as she shares with you how to make the facts come alive and the learning go deeper! Join diana for her "sit-on-the-edge-of-your-chair-in-suspense" history approach, using literature, msuic, art, science, cooking, and more, that has cativated homeschoolers across seven nations.   Back TODD WILSON Author of Help! I'm Married to a Homeschooling Mom and The Official Book of Homeschooling Cartoons, is a dad, writer, conference speaker, and former pastor. Todd's humor and gut-honest realness have made him a favorite speaker at homeschool conventions across the country and a recent guest on Focus on the Family.      As founder of Familyman Ministries, his passion and mission are to remind dads and moms of what's most important through The Familyman Weekly (a weekly e-mail sent to thousands of dads), seminars, and books that encourage parents.      His articles have appeared in various magazines, including Christian Parenting Today, Men of Integrity, and Stand Firm. Christianity Today also posts his weekly column (The Familyman Weekly) on their web site.      Todd and his wife Debbie, along with their seven children spend several months of the year traveling the country encouraging moms and dads. His humor, realness, and straight talk to men (& women) have become his trademark.      Familyman Ministries started with this mission: "to remind dads of what's most important." How to accomplish this mission has grown, along with the ministry. The original weekly email (the Familyman Weekly) sent out to just over a hundred dads is now sent out to thousands of dads across the country. There are also many encouragement products available for moms and dads. Visit his website at http://www.familymanweb.com . There's lots of cool stuff like top ten lists, cartoons, articles for men, and directions on how to make a potato canon (most of it is stuff women won't get). Remember, being a dad is the most important job you'll ever have, and you only get one shot at it! Friday, 1:00 pm: Lies Homeschooling Moms Believe Your house is a disaster, your kids seem out of control, and you wonder how you'll ever make it through another day of homeschool. Your "get up and go" has "gotten up and went." You used to think homeschooling was the best thing since sliced bread, but now you're feeling like burnt toast. Take heart--you're not alone. No one homeschools because it's easy. You do it because you believe it's best. But there are times when you need to be reminded once again why it's best. Join me as we do just that. You'll laugh and be encouraged in the toughest job you'll ever--love. Saturday, 8:30 am: Will the "Real" Homeschooler Please Stand Up, auditorium Are you convinced that every homeschooling family except yours is great? Do you believe the lie that others are more organized, better prepared, have smarter kids, are wiser parents, and have a child in the national spelling bee? Well, let me set the record straight. That's not the way it is! The truth is most moms feel inadequate. Homeschooling moms fear that they're letting their kids down in their education and in example. They feel like their house is out of control, their children are beasts, and the sizzle has left their marriage. Join us as we demonstrate the power in being REAL. Saturday, 4:00 pm: Team Homeschool, auditorium In the sometimes blean and harsh world of homeschooling, we need each other if we're to make it through in one piece--and impact the world. So, if you've homeschooled for over 10 years, are new to the game, or are about to toss in the towel, you need to come to this workshop. And in case you are a dad and think you're off the hook, you're not! You're needed most of all. I promise that you'll laugh, be encouraged, and be challenged in YOUR distinct role within the homeschool body. Back

Steve Demme  Steve Demme and his wife Sandra have been married for over 27 years. They have been blessed with four boys: Isaac, Ethan, Joseph, and Johnny. With God’s help, they have have all been home educated.      Steve addresses a variety of topics at homeschool conferences to encourage parents in their God-given responsibilities of raising and training their children for His glory. He and Sandra have created the Math·U·See Foundation, a nonprofit corporation to assist and encourage parents and families with cassettes, booklets, and other helpful resources. As a former math teacher who has taught at all levels of math in public, private, and Christian schools, Steve is also the author and founder of Math·U·See. He served in full or part-time pastoral ministry for many years after graduating from Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary.      Steve's desire is to strengthen, teach, encourage, validate, and exhort parents and families to follow the biblical model for the Christian home. He has spent years working with youth as a teacher in schools (public and Christian); as a minister and youth leader in churches; and as a counselor and camp director at summer camps. In hindsight, he is absolutely convinced that the single most significant influence in a child's life is that of his parents. Mentors and coaches have a valuable and influential role in the life of today's youth, but you can't replace Mom and Dad. Outside ministries are helpful but godly parents are essential. You may support the home, but you can't replace it.      That the family should play such an important role in the development of children, and parents, should not be surprising since God Almighty created and designed the family. He commissioned man and his helpmeet to be fruitful, multiply, and fill the earth. The family is divinely ordained. In our day and age, this sacred institution is being attacked on all fronts.      Therefore, Steve has a strong desire to see a balanced biblical view of the family be restored. He believes that God has a wonderful plan for the Christian family and is committed to understanding more about this divine institution from His perspective.      Visit Steve's personal website at http://www.stevedemme.com and take a look at Math U See at http://www.mathusee.com . Friday, 10:00 am: The Family that Stays Together Stays Together, auditorium In this encouraging workshop, Steve relates the positive experiences that he and his wife have experienced in raising their four sons. With plenty of humorous illustrations, Steve shares tried and proven suggestions that have enhanced their family life. ith God's help they are convinced there is hope for the family in the 21st century. Friday, 2:30 pm: Find Hope and Redemption in the Valleys of Life, auditorium This workshop is Steve's testimony of the last twenty years as the father of a child with special needs. he shares what his family has learned as a result of Johnny's disability, and the special, rewarding, and joyful role he has played in their lives. Even in the difficult experiences of life, God proved faithful. His grace sustained them and brought good out of their struggles and disappointments. Back Brad Haines Brad and Deana Haines have been married for over thirty years, have four children and three grandchildren. They have served on the Families for Home Education Board of Directors since 1993, having served as Region 3 Directors for eight years and Executive Director for the past eleven years. During this time, they have attended HSLDA lobbying summits in Washington, D.C., as well as several National Leadership conferences hosted by the National Center for Home Education. The Haines have hosted conventions, spoken at numerous conferences and workshops, and assisted countless individual home school families in the state of Missouri. Brad has acted as a liaison between home educators and the Division of Social Services, as well as the Dept. of Elementary and Secondary Education. In 1992, they founded the South Kansas City Home Educators support group and coordinated many activities and events with that group before taking the position of Executive Director. They successfully home educated their four children, who are now grown. Three children are now married, and the youngest is still in college. Their own children intend to home educate their grandchildren. At the present time, Deana is home schooling two boys, unrelated to the Haines. They are 8 and 15 years old. The Haines continue to serve in order to preserve the rights of their children and other families to make the best educational choices for their children. When not serving Missouri's home educators, Brad is a Senior Designer for a Kansas City engineering firm, and Deana teaches piano. They are both active in their home church, First Baptist of Grandview. Check out the Families for Home Education (FHE) of Missouri website at http://www.fhe-mo.org Saturday, 1:00 pm:  Show Me Homeschools, auditorium An overview of home education in Missouri, including a berif history of home education, home education in Missouri, demographics, events, and opportunities (such as college admissions, etc.). Back Dr. Paul Cates             Dr. Cates has a master’s degree in special education and a Ph.D. in curriculum development.  He is the author of "Neurological Impairment: Important Information for the Special Education Teacher", and he has written and compiled a pre-school curriculum for children ages 2 to 6. In the past he has hosted his own radio program "Strictly For Parents", and he developed the "U-Fly-It" toy, a toy designed to develop visual-motor coordination. Dr Cates has devoted much of the last 18 years to the pursuit of excellence in childhood development, education and spiritual training.                          Dr. Cates feels that God has created each child uniquely with a specific learning style, gifts, and talents that can be used to serve God.  The main focus of Dr. Cates’ work is the educational evaluation of children to determine an individualized curriculum. The curriculum is designed to meet the specific needs of the child, and provide a homeschool or Christian school schedule to optimize the family or school time and effort.  Because of his background in special education and his working with children with learning disabilities, Dr Cates’ testing and curriculum planning is especially important to those families who have children with special needs. He and his wife Isobel have six children: Peter, John, David, Kirk, Linda, and Ann and are blessed with four grandchildren. http://www.faithchristianmin.org/  Saturday, 2:30 to 3:30 pm: Cool it Mom, You're Killing Your Kids., auditorium One big thing we see right now in homeschooling is the fact that younger moms are driving their kids all over the place and doing all kinds of things - ballet lessons, karate, drama, etc. While those things are good in and of themselves, doing twenty of them per kid is a bit much. Then the high school moms are driving their kids to be Harvard graduates by ninth grade - you have to do this or that, or we need to have so many hours of this or that, etc. Dr. Cates will be addressing the fact that academics are important, but a love of learning is more important and the most important goal in homeschooling is to raise a Christ Centered child with a Christian worldview and an upstanding character who wants to follow Christ in whatever direction He leads. Raising a child who is an academic genius and who walks away from his faith in college is just not what we want. Back