Welcome to our cyber-interview here with Christine M Field who is the author of A Field Guide to Homeschooling. She is a homeschooling mom who practiced law for many years before becoming a full time mom. She is also the author of Coming Home to Raise Your Children and Should You Adopt?

She and her husband live and home school in Wheaton, Illinois, where they are the proud parents of four children, three girls and a boy. She is active in her homeschool support group, maintains an energetic public speaking schedule, and serves as a referral attorney for the Homeschool Legal Defense Association.


Joe:
Welcome to our website, Chris. I just wanted to start with a few questions and then we'll move on to an excerpt of your book. What changes have you seen in the homeschooling movement since you began homeschooling? What challenges lie ahead?

Chris:
Thank you, Joe, for inviting me this forum and for the opportunity to address your members. The home schooling movement was just beginning to explode when we began to study it about seven years ago. It was still considered a bit odd then.

Today, home schooling has earned the respect of more people.
Academic success is a big factor in that, as people tend to be impressed with test scores and home schooled children score very well on tests. Although this is not a big factor for me, I think it has "legitimized" the movement. Now, home schoolers come from all kinds of backgrounds with many different approaches. It's a much more eclectic community, which I find refreshing and exciting.

Guarding our freedoms....
Because more people are attracted to home schooling because of its  success, I believe the biggest challenge we have ahead is in guarding our  freedoms. Since it is becoming more commonplace, legislators and those who like regulations are sticking there noses in our homes to have a peek around.  (I am an attorney as well as a mom, so I know how these people think.)

That is a dangerous development,
and we should examine very carefully any state assistance or intervention in our home schools. Tax credits are an example of this. They sound great, but will we sell our precious family freedom for a lower tax bill?

Joe:
As an author, you try to inspire people and help them in their journey. Which authors and which books helped you as you made your journey and why?

Chris:
My personal home schooling heroes are the families I know who have  endured. Their children are fine young adults with intelligence and good character as well.

Because I am a writer, I have read just about every book written about home schooling.

My current favorite is the new Home Schooling on a Shoestring. (see a FREE excerpt of this book) The ladies who wrote this gem really help us to see that you can home school under all sorts of circumstances and be successful. (see the interview with Judith Waite Allee)


Joe:
Could you elaborate on how your "students" have done under your guidance?

Chris:
My kids are so much fun! They are 9, 8, 5 and 2. They are wildly  creative and funny. They love to read and be read to. They dance and sing and play and really seem to have joy in their lives. Our home is very busy with projects, plays, pets and performances.

Most importantly, they love to learn.
They generally treat each other with respect and love. They have warm hearts that make them want to contribute something to the world, rather than just take away from it. They are honest, kind and loving. My passion for teaching them has not decreased. Their passion for life keeps me going strong.Oh, and did I mention that they also score several grades above grade  level on standardized tests? (I only test the older ones so far.)

Joe:
Thank you, Chris, for your advice and now we will move on to an excerpt of your wonderful book that you have graciously given us permission to reproduce here on the website. I also wanted to invite anyone reading this to get involved in the discussion on our discussion groups and by clicking the comments section if they have something to say.

FREE Excerpt from
"A Field Guide to Homeschooling"
Chapter 11: The Homeschool Support Group

Meet the Author
Marty Layne
"Learning At Home:
A Mother's Guide to Homeschooling"
hosted by Joe Spataro
interview & FREE excerpts
Marty Layne is the mother of three sons and one daughter who have never gone to school. She is a former La Leche League Leader, farmer, day-care center director, and nursery school teacher. She likes to read cook, make dolls and puppets, sing, play the recorder, and work in the garden as well as write. In this interview she shares with us the essential characteristics that a successful homeschooling parent needs. She also helps us construct a safe homeschooling environment and features her very successful and talented family all of whom were homeschooled.

Home Learning: Year by Year
Home learning Sourcebook
Meet the author
Rebecca Rupp
"The Truth About Curricula"
more Curriculum Guides
more homeschooling books
Frequently Asked Questions

The Explosive Child
Interview with author Ross Greene
more ADD & ADHD books
more special needs books
more homeschooling books
more parenting books

Teach Your Child to Read
in 100 Easy Lessons
more Curriculum Guides
more homeschooling books
Writer's Support Group

A Field Guide to Home Schooling
by Christine M. Field

This guide offers accurate, reliable information to parents making educational choices for their family. Christine Field's sound advice leads the readers through the maze of teaching approaches, home schooling resources, and learning styles. From setting goals, schedules, and rules to organizing a home learning environment, keeping records, and doing chores, this practical guide leads the way.

Life Skills for Kids:
Equipping Your Child for the Real World
by Christine M. Field

Home is the training ground for life.
We learn practical life skills there, but we also learn relationship skills: how to respect one another, how to compromise, how to fight, how to show love, how to be compassionate. Because we are relating to each other all the time, I believe home schooled children have a better handle on the significance and maintenance of relationships - better than they would have if they were surrounded by the numerous superficial friendships offered in the traditional school setting.

Coming Home to Raise Your Children:
A Survival Guide for Moms
by Christine M. Field

As a trial lawyer, Field knew she would miss the adrenaline rush of the closing argument when she quit law for full-time home nurturing of her two daughters. She didn't anticipate how challenging, exciting, and rewarding her new career would be. While noting that the transition from office to home may not fit every situation, Field describes its benefits--and problems.

Homeschooling on a Shoestring:
A Jam-Packed Guide
by Melissa L. Morgan, Judith Waite Allee, Jonni McCoy

Review from author: Rebecca Rupp, Ph.D.
On cost of homeschooling, this book has a lot of hints and helps for homeschooling frugally - includes chapters on family budgeting, home businesses, simplifying one's life, low-cost learning resources, and so on.