The deadline for the early bird registration discount for the "Homeschoolers Only" 4-H Outdoor School is on August 30th, 2013 ($40 per student instead of the regular $50 per student).   Students are not required to be involved in 4-H to participate.

    The 4-H "Homeschoolers Only" Outdoor School is a program sponsored by OSU Extension Service - Polk County 4-H, Oregon 4-H Foundation and Polk Christian Home Educators, and is open to all homeschooled youth in grades 5-8.

    We will be having high school and college age youth (who are or have been homeschooled) to serve as counselors.

    The program is designed to give homeschool youth hands-on outdoor learning experiences with natural science, pond study, forestry, compass/GPS, archery, aquatic insects, digital photography, animal habitat, survival skills, and more.

    Free time activities may include canoes, swimming, swings, crafts, archery, and more. Camp participants will stay in Cottages with living room, bunk rooms, and shower room enclosed (girls) or Cabins (boys), on opposite ends of the campground. This beautifully wooded location is just 6 miles from downtown Salem.

    http://oregon4hcenter.org/

    Cost for the overnight camp is $50 per youth, and students in grades 5-8 are invited to join us for a fun, family-friendly camp.  Early bird registration:  $40 if registered by August 30th.  (Scholarships may be available; call for more information.)

    At least one of the girls' counselors will be a homeschooler from the Roseburg area.  There are usually 3-10 local Douglas County homeschooled students who attend this camp every year.  I've attended this particular camp as a counselor, and it is very organized and well-monitored.  My daughters love it, and I am picky about camps they attend!  (Julieanne)

For more information, please contact:  Judi Peters
Office: 503-623-8395 
Cell: 503-931-2578

2013 TALENT FAIR SHOWCASE!

    Our homeschool community "End-of-Year" Program will be held Friday evening, May 24 from 6pm – 9pm at Pine Grove Community Church on the east side of Roseburg (Dixonville area). Project display set up will be from 5:30 – 6:00pm. The Talent Program will begin at 6:00pm. There will be a time of fellowship with refreshments after the program, and we'll all have an opportunity to admire the projects at that time.

    The Talent Fair Showcase is a time of celebration, wrapping up another homeschool year. Many years ago, our local homeschool group came up with the criteria for this program. We still use these guidelines:

     "To give our children an opportunity for long-range planning where they work toward a goal and accomplish it; To give them a chance to share their God-given talents and abilities in front of an audience and to help them develop poise and confidence; To stimulate them to strive for excellence so they learn to display their very best effort with the motive of bringing glory to God; To encourage pride in their workmanship; And to make a positive demonstration of the joys of home schooling."

    One special aspect of Talent Fair is that when the older students participate with their advanced skills and invested years of practice, they really encourage and inspire the younger homeschooled children coming up behind them.

    Ideas of talents your child can share: singing, musical instruments, memorization, drama, etcetera. Selections do not have to be religious in nature, but we want to honor God and respect others, so make sure what is performed is appropriate for an audience with a wide range of ages.  Please contact David LaLande  (541-679-1251) regarding your family's talent entries.

School projects to display: art, history, science, geography, Awana awards, 4-H projects, handcrafts, Scouting projects, shop projects, academic awards, display boards showing any project the children or family have been involved in, even like a collage or display of pictures of the children at school, field trips, group involvement, the list goes on!

Please bring a plate of finger food or cookies to share afterward. To sign up, email Kathy and David LaLande or call 541-679-1251.

    Local homeschooling students in grades 4-8 have the delightful opportunity to participate in our annual National Geographic Geography Bee! 

    In the Roseburg area, this is for traditionally homeschooled students only.  Unfortunately, due to the legal nature of the term "homeschooler", charter school students who do public school work at home aren't eligible to participate in this local geography bee unless their charter school has its own local geography bee for their own students.

    Participation in the local National Geographic Geography Bee is a wonderful way to introduce your children to a new educational experience, even if they aren't completely "sold out" on learning geography - and even if they haven't really practiced for this Bee! 

    All of the quizzing is completed in a low-key  manner designed to encourage the students.  The first few sets of questions are simple and give each student an opportunity for success.  Students are not eliminated from the Geography Bee just because they get a few questions wrong.  The individual who has the most questions correct at the end of the Bee will be selected as our local winner.

    Because the Geography Bee is formatted in this way according to the National Geographic Geography Bee rules, it's an excellent way for your children to practice being under pressure up in front of a small group.  This is a very important skill to learn!  If your children seem reluctant to participate because they are nervous, haven't studied a lot, or aren't used to being up in front of a small group or audience, this is a perfect way to introduce them to this kind of situation.  The coping skills they will learn from being up in front of an audience will help them as adults when going to job interviews, giving small presentations for work or ministry, etc.  We encourage all homeschooled students to come and participate, just for the fun and practice of it, even if geography isn't their key focus!

    The winner of our local homeschool National Geographic Geography Bee will take a written geography test within a couple of weeks after winning the local Bee.  The score received on the test will determine whether or not the student will qualify and advance to the statewide competition (made up of students from all educational walks of life around the state of Oregon).  Occasionally, a local winner won't receive a high enough score to compete at the statewide level, but we have also had local homeschooled students who did exceptionally well at the Oregon National Geographic Geography Bee!  One year, our local winner came in 2nd place statewide!  Amazing!  We've also had other students finish in the top ten in the state.  Congrats to you all!  Thet statewide first-place winner advances to the national level of competition.

    Our 2013 Homeschool National Geographic Geography Bee is scheduled for Friday, January 11th at 11:00 a.m. at the Roseburg branch of the Douglas County Library (on Diamond Lake Blvd.). 

    Local homeschoolers in grades 4-8 may participate.  You don't need to sign up early to compete.  Just show up a little before 11:00!

    It is also fun for families to come out and watch the students compete!   :)    When you make the effort to come out and observe and cheer on the students who are competing (whether just for the experience of it or to seriously compete), you are encouraging those students who are willing to give it a try.  Please place this event on your calendar for January 11th, 2013 and cheer on all of the students who are making the effort to compete at the local level!

NEW THIS YEAR: prizes for participants!

    If you have any questions about the local Geography Bee, please feel free to email Gabrielle.

    A special "thank you" goes out to the LaLande family and Roseburg Adjusters for sponsoring the Geography Bee again this year!

Hard to believe it's October already! 

Come join us for a hay ride to the pumpkin patch - rain or shine, so dress accordingly.  This activity is for all ages of homeschooled youth!  We usually have a fairly even number of preschool/elementary students as well as jr. high/high school students come out.

What:    Pumpkin Patch Hay Ride + Corn Maze + Juice, Cookie & Fruit
Where:  Brosi Sugartree Farms ~ 540 Winston Section Road, Winston, OR  97496
When:   Friday - October 19, 2012 @ 3:00 p.m. (generally lasts about two hours)

Cost - $3 per child (includes hay ride, pumpkin, corn maze & snack).  Parents riding with their children do not have to pay.. unless you are picking out a pumpkin and having a snack as well.

    It's official!  We're having our first Homeschool Nerf War night on Friday evening, October 12th!  We're starting up our activities for homeschooled jr. high and high school students for this new school year!

    Meet up with other homeschooled jr. high and high school guys and girls at Wellspring Bible Fellowship on Garden Valley Blvd. (across from Cinema 7 and Wells Fargo Bank) at 6 p.m. on Friday, October 12th!

We're going to be making individual mini-pizzas (Boboli-style), so everyone will eat together as a group (unless you have allergies and are wheat/dairy free, etc.).


What to bring:

• $2 for dinner (for pizza crusts, soda/beverages, napkins/cups/plates)
• Nerf darts (20-30 per person) and Nerf gun (if you plan to play Nerf War with the group; if not, feel free to bring a board game or something to do).  Nerf darts/guns are available at Fred Meyer and usually at Walmart.
  
• a pizza topping (sign up by posting here in the "Comments" section what you will bring, or call Julieanne at 440-2122 or email her and let her know what topping your teen will bring)
• Optional:  a separate snack or dessert to share (but not required)
  

    Everyone who will be eating pizza with the group will be building their own pizza(s) sometime around 6:00 p.m.  Julieanne will be helping out with cooking the pizzas and setting up food in the kitchen.  If another parent wants to sign up to help in the kitchen, that would be great!

    If your teen wants to bring home his or her exact Nerf darts after the event, please have the darts with his or her initials on them.  Not all Nerf guns use the same darts, so they might not be able to use whatever they find lying around on the floors.

Please:  Nerf darts only - no Nerf swords, Nerf balls, or other Nerf/foam objects.

    The Nerf Wars will be played inside the church so that the darts won't get lost outside.  We'll cover any additional guidelines that evening before the war games begin.

    Whichever style of Nerf War game we play, we will probably have a "home base."  I'll need 1-2 adults to help monitor that station (can take turns).

    We have some other ideas for this year that don't all involve the "mafia" or "war", so stay tuned!  Also, anyone who has a good idea for a social event for our local homeschooled teens, feel free to let us know!  If you need a location for it to take place, I can usually sign up to use Wellspring Bible Fellowship as long as I have a little bit of notice, so if you have a great idea but want some help planning it or need a location for it, just let me know.

    For this event, please bring junior high and high school-aged students only.  Please, no younger siblings this time.  Thanks!

    Please let me know what your teen would like to bring for a topping.  Please have the toppings already cooked (for meats) and/or already chopped/diced/sliced/shredded.  We won't have time to prepare all of the toppings for the group. 

Here are some suggestions:

*sliced mushrooms
*already grated cheese (mozzarella, cheddar)
*chopped green onions
*sliced or chopped olives
*sliced or diced tomatoes
*roasted garlic
*sliced bell peppers
*fresh spinach
*crumbled, cooked bacon
*chopped, cooked chicken
*crumbled, cooked pork sausage or Italian sausage
*pepperoni
*Alfredo (white) sauce
*diced ham
*pineapple bits

Questions?  Just ask!