Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 1

Why the com-mon core is bad

for everyone

i Was a perfrectionist homeschooler

HSLDA®

Vol. XXiX, no. 2 Spring 2013The home School courT reporT}{

Homeschooling families adapt to adoption

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Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 3

Table of contents spring 2013 issue

}{

Publisher hSlDAChairman michael p. Farris, JD, llmPresident J. michael Smith, esq.

Editor Suzanne StephensAssistant Editors grace matte, lee Ann Bisulca, peter Forbes, olivia lindeGraphic Designers Todd metzgar, noelle Blankenship, rachel parker

HSLDA Attorneys michael p. Farris, J. michael Smith, Dewitt T. Black III, Scott A. Woodruff, Darren A. Jones, James r. mason iii, Thomas J. Schmidt, michael p. Donnelly, William A. estrada, peter K. Kamakawiwoole

Address p.o. Box 3000, purcellville, VA 20134Shipping Address one patrick henry circle, purcellville, VA 20132Phone 540-338-5600Fax 540-338-2733Website www.hslda.orgEmail courtreport@hslda.org

Disclaimer The articles contained in this publication have been prepared for and are intended to provide information that may be useful to members of the home School legal Defense Association. The Association does not necessarily warrant this information. The reader must evaluate this information in light of the unique circumstances of any particular situation and must determine independently the applicability of this information thereto.

Copyright © 2013 by the home School legal Defense Association.

The home School court report (iSSn 1539-3747) (uSpS 020294) is published quarterly by home School legal Defense Association, one patrick henry circle, purcellville, VA 20132-3197. periodical postage paid at purcellville, VA, and additional entries. hSlDA’s annual membership dues are $120, $15 of which is the Home school Court report subscription cost. Postmaster: Send address changes to the Home school Court report, p.o. Box 3000, purcellville, VA 20134-9000.

Scripture Version unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are from the nKJV.

Columnists The views of guest columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of HSLDA.

Article Submissions See Court report guide-lines at www.hslda.org/Articleguidelines.

Advertisers call Advertising at 540-338-8605, visit www.hslda.org/ads, or email ads@hslda.org.

®

FeATureS

COVER STORY embracing growth: home-schooling families adapt to adoption . . . . . . . 8 • Attachment theory and reactive attachment disorder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 • resource list. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 • legal Q&A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

SPECIAL FEATURE i was a perfectionist homeschool mom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

columnS & DepArTmenTS

IN STOCK new early-learning resources •

laminated wallet diploma • Textbooks and DVDs for debate season . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

CHAIRmAN’S VIEW A lesson from the ski slopes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7

FROm THE HEART giving thanks! . . . . . . . . . 15 • From the director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 • get/give support. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

ACROSS THE STATES • california, illinois, iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 • minnesota, missouri . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 • nebraska, nevada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 • new hampshire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 • new Jersey, north carolina. . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 • north Dakota, ohio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 • rhode island . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 • South Dakota. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

• Texas, Vermont, Virginia. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 • Wisconsin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

FREEDOm WATCH Why the common core is bad for everyone . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

ACTIVE CASES • missouri—state of Missouri v. H Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 • pennsylvania—Ferris v. Hershey Medical Center, et al. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

PARENT TO PARENT enriched by music . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 • Tips from other parents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

GETTING THERE Beyond high school: preparing your teens for the other side of graduation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 • here for you . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 • recommended resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

AbOUT CAmPUS phc moot court team wins national championship . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

THE LAST WORD graduation time. . . . . . . . . 38

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PRAYER & PRAISE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7A CONTRARIO SENSU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16GOOD TO KNOW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 HSLDA LEGAL INqUIRIES . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25PENDING CASES. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29ADVERTISER’S INDEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

8

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32 34

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hSlDA has compiled an exciting array of resources from various authors and publishers to aid you in developing your child’s mind during the formative early years. introduce your child to new concepts in science, geography, history, art, and more. You may view all our products online. And be sure to check back frequently since we are adding new products on a regular basis!

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The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

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Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 7

A lesson from the ski slopes

by Michael Farris

This past winter, I went skiing with my two youngest sons. I taught them

to ski about six years ago, and, at first, I had to ski much slower with them than if I had been skiing alone.

Over the years, they began to catch up with me—and then they started to pass me. On this most recent trip, they had to wait at the bottom of the mountain for their dad finally to get there.

Yes, I am older than I used to be. And, yes, I had a bad ski accident about three years ago that has made me more cautious. But, in reality, they are better skiers than I ever was—even in my “prime.”

This is how our parenting is supposed to be in every area of life. If we follow God in our parenting, our children should be spiritually better than we

are even in our “prime.” This is the outcome of God’s spiral

of blessing described in Deuteronomy 5:9–10 (NIV): “For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments” (emphasis added).

Of course, my children first had to want to learn to ski. Similarly, our children have to want to learn to walk with God. We cannot bypass their free will. But, good parenting makes walking with God seem like a great adventure, not drudgery. Your kids love it when you include them in something exciting. Fol-lowing God is the greatest journey you can invite them to join.

I am content to have raised children who are spiritually better and faster than I. In fact, it has been my greatest desire. Spend time investing in your children, teach them the right things, and watch them go. n

chairman’s View a Word FroM Mike Farris

}{ prAYer & prAiSe{ }Pray for families who are homeschooling their adopted children, giving them the opportunity to succeed in a safe, loving environment. Ask that God give an extra measure of patience and creativity to these parents. (See cover story, page 8 .)

Thank the Lord for vigilant homeschool-ers who have contacted HSLDA about potential local threats to freedom. Pray for students encountering discrimina-tion in the process of obtaining work and driver permits, for families facing school district requests for information not required by law, and for parents having trouble withdrawing their children from public schools. Ask for God’s blessing on homeschool leaders and HSLDA attor-neys as they support these families and strive to resolve legal issues. (See Across the States, page 16.)

Praise the Lord for the help and resources available to homeschooling families who are facing financial chal-lenges in this tight economy. Pray that he will continue to grant these families wisdom as they manage their money and that their local support groups, churches, friends, and family will reach out with encouragement and help. (See From the Heart, page 15.)

Pray that homeschool freedom is not affected by the Common Core State Stan-dards Initiative’s implementation in many states. (See Freedom Watch, page 26.)

Lift up the 2013 graduates who have proven themselves faithful in their studies and are moving ahead in their education and vocation. Ask God to guide and direct them as they make decisions about the

future. (See Last Word, page 38.)

Bless God for His faithfulness to homeschooling over the past 30 years. (See 30th anniversary special feature, page 32.)

Be anxious for nothing, but in every-thing by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.

— Philippians 4:6–7

HSLDA board Chairman

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Homeschooling families adapt to adoption

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Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 9

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sk almost any homeschooling parent why he or she homeschools, and the answer will most likely include a reason that has to do with family. through homeschooling, parents have a unique opportunity to build close bonds with their children, promote healthy sibling relationships, and create a rich, loving family culture that is foundational for their children’s adult lives.

Ask almost any adoptive homeschooling parents why they adopted, and their answer will probably be similar. having experienced the blessing of family through homeschooling, they want to share that blessing with children who might not otherwise have the chance.

With adoption’s rising profile in the homeschooling community, more fami-lies are eager to adopt, and they’re open to adopting older children, children from other countries, and sibling groups. however, as some families are dis-covering, welcoming a new child into a home can involve complex, sometimes deeply painful, challenges.

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10 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

Adoption, homeschooling, and HSLDA

A s a staff attorney at Home School Legal Defense Associ-ation, Tj Schmidt deals regularly with adoption-related questions from HSLDA member families. These range

from routine questions about the adoption process (“Do I need to be concerned about allowing someone into my house for the home study?” “Is it legal to homeschool our adopted child?”) to more serious issues.

Adoption is close to Tj’s heart not just in his professional capac-ity, but personally as well. He’s the eldest of six biological and three adopted siblings. While serving as missionaries in Haiti, Tj’s parents worked for a time at an orphanage. Jeremy, Johanna, and Joshua, now teenagers, were adopted from Haiti within a year of each other.

Tj speaks warmly of his own family’s adoption experience and of the many homeschooling adoptive families he has encoun-tered since then. Because of the great blessing that adoption can be—both to children and to their adoptive families—he has a special concern for those families who encounter difficult chal-lenges in their adoption journey.

In addition to answering the homeschool-related questions that lead adoptive parents to contact HSLDA, Tj hears from families dealing with deeply challenging issues. Parents can

find themselves unequipped for some adopted children’s extreme behavioral problems, unresponsiveness to traditional child-rearing methods, or apparent lack of healthy emotions such as trust and compassion. A small percent-age of situations result in social services’ involve-ment—sometimes because the child poses a threat to other people (including siblings), and other times, tragically, because the parents unintentionally harm the child through misguided discipline or treatment approaches.

“Sometimes families don’t seek help until the situation has deteriorated pretty far down the road,” says Tj. “When an adopted child starts lashing out or behaving uncontrollably, that’s something they initially see as disobedience or rebellion

that can be handled with typical disciplinary approaches. Yet with an adopted child, it may be a bigger issue beneath the sur-face. Sometimes families don’t realize they need help until the situation has spiraled far beyond their control.”

Ten kids, six adoption stories

M ary Ostyn, an Idaho homeschooling mom of 10 chil-dren—four biological and six adopted—attests to the varied blessings and difficulties of the adoption

journey. From her family’s first adoption of a son from Korea in 1998 to the adoption of two sisters from Ethiopia in 2007, the experience has been exciting, challenging, and unpredictable.

Mary and her husband, John, started discussing the possibility of adoption when their youngest biological child was 3 years old. They had thought their family was complete, with two boys and two girls, but Mary began to realize there was room for more. “My eyes were being opened to the kids in the world who don’t have families,” she says. After much discussion and prayer, the couple decided to pursue adoption from Korea.

They adopted their fifth child, a 4-month-old, in July 1998. Initially, the Ostyns didn’t have plans to adopt again. But as their new son settled into their family, they began to reconsider. In early 2000, a 20-month-old boy arrived in the Ostyns’ home.

Because their first adoptee’s transition into the family had been so smooth, the Ostyns were surprised when their new tod-dler didn’t settle in as easily.

“This son’s adjustment—his first year home from Korea—was pretty challenging,” Mary recalls. “He was resistant to affection and it really took him awhile to settle in and get comfortable and really be reciprocal in a relationship—make good eye contact and all that stuff. But after a year, he was doing well.”

Adoption is close to Tj’s heart not just in his professional capacity, but personally as well.

HSLDA Staff Attorney Tj Schmidt (back row,

second from left) with his parents and seven of

his siblings at a recent family get-together.

courTeSY oF SchmiDT FAmilY

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 11

So well, in fact, that John and Mary felt ready for another adoption when their Korean sons were about 4 years old. This time, they adopted from Ethiopia.

Since the 20-month-old Ethiopian daughter was the same age as their second Korean son had been when he was adopted, John and Mary expected similar hurdles in her adjustment to her adoptive family—and once again were surprised. “For three days, she sat there silently and just looked at us,” Mary remembers. “When she’d been home three days, she held out her arms to me, and she smiled, and she just kind of melted into my arms. That was it. She was the cuddliest little kid ever as soon as she got past that three-day period of trying to decide if we were decent people or not. So, her adjustment was really easy.”

A year later, the Ostyns adopted a 6-month-old girl, also from Ethiopia.

“We did think we were done at eight kids,” says Mary. And then she saw a picture of a waiting child in Ethiopia. The little girl had

a younger sister, and the two had recently lost their mother. Mary and John felt a strong sense that God was calling them to adopt again. The sisters, 11 and 9 years old, arrived in Idaho in 2007.

The evolution of a parent

W ith the growth of their family through adoption over the past 15 years, John and Mary Ostyn have seen their approach to parenting change. “We thought that

we kind of had it figured out,” Mary says of their attitude when they first began adopting. “We were successful parents of a bunch of kids who were pretty well-behaved and fun to be around.”

But as children came into their home who had spent the first years of their lives in other families and cultures, the Ostyns began to see that what had worked with their biological children might not be effective with some of their adopted children. Tra-ditional parenting techniques backfired with these children who

Practicallyspeaking,attachmentproblemsaretheneurologicalandemotionaldamagecausedbyabuse,neglect,ortraumasustainedinearlychildhood.Attachmentdysfunctionsexistonaspectrum.Symptomscanbemildorsevere,rangingfromthingslikedifficultysleepingalone,troublemakingeyecontact,andfearofloudnoisestofearofbeingtouched,havinganoverlyhighpainthreshold,orbeingunusuallymanipulative.Somechildren’ssymp-tomsincludecompulsivelying,violence,fearlessness,andinappropriatesexualbehavior.Onthefarthestendofthespectrumisreactiveattachmentdisorder(RAD),adiagnosablepsychiatricdisorder.Itisimportanttokeepinmindthatnot

allchildrenwithattachmentproblemshaveRAD.Also,aswithmanydisorders,thereisdisagreementintheprofessionalcommunityaboutthediagnosisandtreatmentofattachmentissues.Whilethereisnoone-size-fits-alltherapyorsolution,manygoodoptionsexist,andevenchildrenwiththeseverestproblemshavethepotentialforrecovery.AdamandFaith,*whoalreadyhad

onebiologicalchild,adoptedGrace*fromanEasternEuropeanorphanage.The7-year-oldgirlwasseverelyunder-sizedandhadabirthdefect.Shehad

spentallherformativeyearsinaninsti-tution,wherethelackoflovingcareandsensorystimulationhadresultedinemo-tionalandneurologicaldamage.AdamandFaithwerefamiliarwiththeriskofattachmentdisorders,buttheproblemsthatemergedaftertheirdaughter’sadoptionweresevere.AdamandFaithtriedmanydifferent

approachestohelpingGraceovertheyears,includingworkingtorepairthesensorydeprivationshehadexperiencedintheorphanage.“Fromsomeofthewaysshebehaved,itwasclearthatshehadsevereissuesinneurologicaldevel-opment,”saysFaith.“Itwastremendoustoseetheprogressasweworkedonthis.Ifyoucan’tthinkright,howcanyoufig-

ureouttheworld?”AdamandFaithalsohadGraceevaluatedbyadoctorwhoisanauthorityintheareaofadoptedchildren’sissues;hediagnosedRAD.AsGracegrewolder,however,it

becameincreasinglydifficulttotakecareofher.Grace’slackofhealthyhumanemotions,likefearandremorse,meantthatshewasadangertobothherselfandothers.Attimes,thefamilywasafraidfortheirlives,andnormallivingbecameimpossible.EventuallyFaithandAdamfoundatherapeuticboardingschooldesignedforgirlswithGrace’suniqueneeds.“Don’tbeafraidtomakeadeci-sionthat’srightforyourchild,”encour-agesFaith.AlthoughthiswasnotthedreamtheyhadhadfortheirfamilywhentheyfirstadoptedGrace,theywantedtheirdaughtertobeinanenvironmentwhereshecouldbeandfeelsafe.AdamandFaithcontinuetolookfor

God’shandatworkintheirdaughter’slife.“Grace’snormalmightneverbelikeanotherchild’snormal,”saysFaith.“ButIbelievethatherabilitytocareabouther-selfandothersinabalancedwayandtohaveproperrelationshipscanberebuilt.IknowthatGodacceptsandlovesherassheis,evenwithherlimitations.”

AttAchment theory & reActive AttAchment disorder

* Names changed to protect privacy.

12 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

had not established bonds of trust with John and Mary during infancy. “We had a lot of learning to do,” admits Mary.

The couple found that when dealing with difficult behavior, it was essential to first investigate the feelings and emotions that led to that behavior in the first place. “Many parents underestimate the depth of pain that a newly adopted child can be experiencing,” Mary says. “Though it is important to set safe limits on a child’s behavior, extreme gentleness is essential.”

“Adoptive parenting can feel exactly like biological parenting,” affirms Mary. “But in some cases—and many cases involving kids adopted past infancy—the adoptive parents are learning brand-new parenting skills and are navigating very challenging terrain.”

Adoption challenges

A doptions can be complicated by two significant factors. The first of these is attachment: the foundational relation-ship that a very young child forms with his or her parents

before birth and in the first few years afterward. Through having their physical and emotional needs met by attentive primary care-givers, infants learn how to interact safely with the world around them. Proper, nurturing care and stimulation build critical con-nections in a child’s brain, putting him on a path of healthy physiological development. It also builds a child’s emotional “connections,” enabling him to “learn” how healthy rela-tionships work, how to trust, and how to be independent and secure. If this stage of development is missed or incom-plete—such as through abuse, neglect, abandonment, interruption in caregivers, or institutionalization—the child can end up with gaps in physical, mental, or emotional functioning.

The second factor is trauma, which can result in some of the same dysfunctions as poor attachment. In fact, many of the causes of poor attachment (such as abuse) are traumas. For many children, the simple fact that they have lost their birth family is a trauma that they must come to understand and grieve.

Attachment and trauma can be difficult to untangle as they play out in a child’s life. Sometimes infants suffer from attachment problems, despite having experienced hardly any break in caregiv-ing. Plenty of older children settle right into their adoptive family with no problems. For some, what may seem like mild neglect can cause lasting emotional damage. For others, even severe abuse does not destroy their resilience and hope.

The world through a child’s eyes

E lizabeth Jones,* the mother of four biological and five adopted children, says that before her first adoption, she did intensive research. “I felt it was important to be as

prepared as possible, and to expect the worst (and know what that might look like) and hope for the best,” she explains. The first two children she and her husband Paul* adopted (sisters from Haiti, adopted simultaneously) were older than their bio-

logical children but integrated well into the family.A few years later, Elizabeth and Paul adopted a 2½-year-old

from a Chinese orphanage. The little girl didn’t behave like other toddlers. “She would only tolerate my husband,” remembers Elizabeth. “She didn’t like either of us, but she tolerated him much better. She would cry in this very strange cry that I can only think came from being ignored completely—very quiet, very subdued—anytime we tried to hold her. When I would look at her, she would put the back of her hand across her eyes and start rocking. It was obvious that she was really stressed.”

Paul and Elizabeth knew that these behaviors can crop up with institutionalized children, and that toddlers sometimes prefer one adoptive parent over the other. They chose to gradually familiarize their new daughter with Elizabeth rather than force her to accept affection she wasn’t ready for: “We let Paul deal with her needs. I would try to interact with her while he was holding her or she was sitting in her high chair; I would offer her little bits of food . . . She’d have to take it from my hand. She wouldn’t look at me, but that was okay. The whole two weeks in China, she was stuck to Paul like glue. He could not leave the room without her wailing. She was just terrified.”

But on the journey back to the U.S., Eliza-beth’s new daughter started feeling more comfortable with her. “Once Paul went back to work, she was stuck with me. She almost instantly began to attach,” Elizabeth recalls.

“She just completely blossomed. We thought we had this very quiet, reserved, institutionalized child, and she became very outgoing and well attached to everybody in the family very quickly. She is a very resilient child.”

Elizabeth and Paul adopted two more children from China—another toddler and, most recently, a 9-year-old with some physical disabilities and lan-guage difficulties. The 9-year-old had spent years in foster care. Although the couple gleaned as much of this child’s history as possible from the orphan-age director and foster care reports, his behavioral extremes were surprising and frightening. If he felt threatened by someone, he would physically attack them. He was hypervigilant, couldn’t con-centrate, and knew exactly how to push everyone’s buttons. These behaviors all pointed to undisclosed trauma in his past.

“With these behaviors, people tend to think that the child is try-ing to get attention, or that he’s acting up because he’s not getting his way,” says Elizabeth. “We had to retrain ourselves to realize that his behavior was coming from a place of abject fear. When we saw that, it helped us to parent differently, remain calm, and try to build connection with him so that he would learn to trust us.”

“A child with trauma needs to learn to feel safe,” Elizabeth explains. “This is not easy and takes such a long time for some.

courTeSY oF oSTYn FAmilY

* Names changed

to protect privacy.

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 13

They have never felt really safe and have learned to watch out for themselves and not trust others. Our son needed to learn that we would never hurt him no matter what he did.”

Despite Elizabeth and Paul’s efforts, showing grace, love, and patience toward their son is hard on most days. “When I think about what my son’s life would have been like in China, that changes everything for me,” says Elizabeth. “He would have had no future. With no skills and no education, it would have been so bad for him. When I’m having a bad day, that’s what I think about.”

Worth the sacrifice

M ary Ostyn calls dealing with attachment issues “the hardest parenting John and I have ever done.” She explains that traditional discipline approaches—

extra chores, timeouts, spanking—work in part because “children are eager to please their parents.” Ultimately, a well-attached child trusts his parents’ intention toward him; although he may choose to disobey, appropriate discipline makes sense to him and positively impacts his behavior and attitude.

“When you’re dealing with children who have no reason to trust you yet—in their early homecoming period—or who have experienced great trauma and grief, it’s essential you as a parent approach challenges with an aura of calm (even when you’re not

feeling it) and with a willingness to hear your child’s feelings,” says Mary. “Even when you need to give a consequence for misbehav-ior, you have to make it clear you’re on their side, and they’re safe.”

Sometimes, traditional discipline has no positive impact at all. A child who survived severe abuse knows he can handle anything, and may not be deterred by reasonable discipline techniques. Or the child may go into survival mode, reacting to current situations as though they are dangerous. Negative behaviors are often adap-tive survival mechanisms that won’t go away until the child feels safe in his new family, a process that can take years.

As an example, a child who hoards food—typical of those who were malnourished or starved—may respond negatively if the parent attempts to remove the hoarded food, restrict access

to extra food, or even withhold dessert for not eat-ing vegetables. To the child, this simply means that she is being starved again, and she will react out of fear, panic, and desperation. In such a situation, tra-ditional discipline can result in a downward spiral instead of positive change.

“You need to learn to set limits for kids in ways that support relationship building,” Mary says. “It is a

tremendously challenging process.”Is it worth it?“Of course,” states Mary. “They are awesome kids, and they

were given by God to us. It’s definitely been a learning experi-ence; it definitely takes way more patience. It just doesn’t look quite like we thought parenting would.”

Before you adopt

B oth Tj Schmidt and HSLDA Litigation Attorney Jim Mason believe that the types of serious situations that lead to child abuse investigations can be avoided if

families are aware at the outset that an adopted child’s struggles

John and Mary Ostyn with their

busy family of 10 biological and

adopted children.

“You need to learn to set limits for kids in ways that support relationship building.”

Three Ostyn siblings

celebrate a graduation.

14 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

may stem from something other than a disciplinary problem. “It’s important to recognize that although you may have

raised five biological children using traditional, intuitive parent-ing techniques, you also had the opportunity to work with them from birth,” says Tj. “But when we’re dealing with an adopted child, there may be other reasons for this child’s behavior than just what our past experiences have led us to believe.”

They encourage parents to be well informed about the chal-lenges that can arise with adoption. “Not only is it important to understand the adoption process itself so that you can make wise decisions along the way, but also you need to be prepared for the various contingencies,” says Jim.

Do plenty of research. If you are currently working with an adoption agency or other ministry, it helps to see what resources and training they have to offer. It’s also helpful to connect with parents who have already adopted—you can find them on adop-tion websites or through your agency.

Tj and Jim also recommend that families carefully consider the way adoption will impact their biological children. Adoption places unusual stresses on a family, both during the adoption process and afterward. If you already have children, prepare them with age-appropriate information so they know what to expect.

“It helps if your children are all on board,” says Elizabeth Jones. “Be honest with them about what it might be like.” This doesn’t mean turning the adoption decision over to your chil-

dren, but it does mean listening receptively to their concerns—“sometimes they have very valid points.”

The community context

T j advises adoptive parents to be intentional about building two types of community. The first is a network of profes-sionals with whom you have a good working relationship

and who know your child’s history. “In some situations, a child’s extreme behavior can put the parents under suspicion—for example, if the child is harming himself, the parents may be sus-pected of child abuse,” Tj explains. “If you have a good foundation with your pediatrician, with your family doctor, or with other professionals who see your adopted child on a regular basis, then you have a strong network of people who care about your child and who can vouch for you in an investigation.”

The second community is other adoptive families, who can provide support and understanding. “I have a good friend who has seven kids and four of her kids are adopted,” says Mary Ostyn. “I feel like she is the person in the world who I can talk to. I can complain and she can still see that I adore my kids. Our challenges may be a little bit different from each other, but we understand each other and that’s a huge deal.”

Elizabeth Jones agrees. “The most helpful community is other adoptive parents who are dealing with the same things,” she says.

Adoption Nutrition: http://adoptionnutrition.org

Bentley, Vicki. “Teaching Hints for Your Internationally Adopted Child.” The Home School Court Report, Summer 2012, 38–40. www.hslda.org/CRarchives.

Bethany Christian Services’ post-adoption resources: www.bethanylifelines.org.

Empowered To Connect: http://empoweredtoconnect.org.

Focus on the Family’s “Adoptive Families” resource pages: www.focusonthefamily .com/parenting/adoptive_families.aspx.

Greene, Melissa Fay. “Love Medicine.” Good Housekeeping, February 2011. http://melissafaygreene.com/articles.

Ostyn, Mary. “Homeschooling ESL Children.” Owlhaven (blog), November 21, 2011. www.owlhaven.net/2011/11/21/homeschooling-esl-children.

Ostyn, Mary. “Homeschooling Newly Adopted Kids.” Owlhaven (blog), February 3, 2011. www.owlhaven.net/2011/02/03/homeschooling-and-newly-adopted-children.

Purvis, Karyn B., David R. Cross, and Wendy Lyons Sunshine. The Connected Child: Bring Hope and Healing to Your Adoptive Family. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2007.

Texas Christian University Institute of Child Development: www.child.tcu.edu; child@tcu.edu; 817-257-7415.

ResouRce list

— cOnTinueD On pAge 30

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 15

Giving thanks!by Cherise Curby

As the charitable arm of HSLDA, the Home School Foundation helps

hundreds of families every year be able to homeschool through hard times by means of many funds: widows, children of single parents, special needs children, military, emer-gency, curriculum relief, and more.

But we cannot do it alone. Home-schooling families and supporters all over the country partner with us every day to help these families in need.

For everyone who has given, prayed, and partnered with us, these thank-yous are for you as well!

Thank you so much for the Christmas gift! The first thing we got was socks for the whole family . . . Then I got some jeans for my 15-year-old . . . And there’s still money left to buy some gifts just for fun, which will make my 8-year-old happy. Somehow socks don’t thrill him . . . May God bless all the families and individuals who gave to make it possible.

— Renee C.

In a time such as this when everyone says, “You can’t,” a light shines through the Home School Foundation saying, “We know you can, and we are going to help you!”

I am so thankful for the monetary sup-port and the knowledge that those who

give are saying, “We are behind you in your efforts to teach your disabled child at home.” That means the world to us.

— The H. Family

The Home School Foundation grant has helped us tremendously this year . . . Hav-ing experience with the public school sys-tem firsthand, we do not believe they are

equipped to adequately provide for our special needs child, Crysta.

Crysta is 12 years old, has spina bifida, hydracephalus, and is paralyzed. We have chosen the often difficult path of homeschooling so she will get the one-on-one attention that she needs. Because of HSF, we have been greatly encouraged in our endeavors to

homeschool and blessed with the oppor-tunity of a God-centered curriculum.

As Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” I pray that in the future we will be able to give back to the Founda-tion [to thank them] for the years they have provided for our household to [help us] make a difference for our child.

— Dawn E.

When my husband passed away, it was absolutely devastating . . . The last thing I wanted to do was figure out how to purchase curriculum to continue homeschooling my daughter. The help I have received from your foundation has made this aspect of our new lives much easier to tackle . . . My daughter has continued to thrive in a homeschooling environment. We are forever grateful.

— Patty E. n

Cherise Ryan Curby is the HSF website project manager and editor.

From the heart tHe HoMe sCHool Foundation

}{

From The DirecTorit’s a beautiful thing to witness

a child’s growth. While growth is expected as a part of our DnA, it’s still fun

to watch because the results often surprise us. “he has his father’s chin.” “She has her mother’s eyes.” “he looks just like his grandfather.”

Faith works that way too. it’s fasci-nating to watch it

grow . . . and it usually reveals a few sur-prises. You’ll often catch glimpses of what

i mean in the lives of fellow christians, especially from those going through trials. most often they are surprised by the circumstance and then, as they walk through it by faith, even more surprised at what god does. As we observe their gratitude in response, we can almost see a growth spurt in their faith.

it’s truly a privilege when hSF gets to be one of the resources god uses to bless others in hard times. When we see how god always provides, it nurtures our faith.HSF Director

Chuck Hurst

© h

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geT/giVe SupporT{ }>> For more details on how you can help, please call HSF at 540-338-8688, visit www.homeschoolfoundation.org, or email info@homeschoolfoundation.org.

>> If you are a federal employee or a member of the military, make HSF the beneficiary of your Combined Federal Campaign dona-tion. HSF’s CFC number is 10535. For more information, visit www.opm.gov/cfc.

®

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16 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

CaliFornia

What the law really says about spanking

by J. Michael smith

One of the questions social work-ers in California frequently ask

parents during investigations of alleged child abuse or neglect is if they spank, and if so, what they spank with. Parents are often informed that spanking is illegal or that they may spank with the hand only.

One county’s department of children and family services even provided a letter to a member family indicating that it does not sanction the use of corporal punishment, which, it said, can only be administered with an open hand to the fleshy part of the body (e.g., the buttocks). The letter also stated that the use of objects in spanking is not allowed.

To be clear, Home School Legal Defense Association does not take a posi-tion on whether parents should or should not spank. But it’s a fact that spanking is legal in California, and information to the contrary handed out by many social workers is simply false.

Welfare and Institutions Code § 300 (a) provides the legal framework whereby a child can be deemed to be subject to the court’s jurisdiction pursuant to an investigation of abuse or neglect. The law provides that jurisdiction of the court to make a child a dependent of the court depends on whether there is evidence that a child has suffered, or there exists a substantial risk that the child will suffer, serious physical harm inflicted nonac-cidentally by the parent or guardian. The law goes on to state that serious physical

harm does not include reasonable and age-appropriate spanking to the but-tocks, where there is no evidence of seri-ous physical injury.

Further, a 1997 California attorney general’s opinion states that the use of an object to spank is not child abuse unless it produces serious physical injury.

In summary, spanking is legal in Cali-fornia. If it is part of your child-raising approach, it should be calmly admin-istered as reasonable, age-appropriate discipline.

illinois

HSLDA rebuffs demand for meeting

and recordsby Scott A. Woodruff

The bureau, Henry, and Stark regional superintendent of schools

sent a letter to a Home School Legal Defense Association member family ask-ing them to meet with him and bring “teacher grade books, lesson plans, student attendance records, [and] examples of stu-dent work and assessments” so he could decide whether the family’s homeschool program was lawful.

When our member family contacted us for assistance, HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff wrote to the superin-tendent rebutting the superintendent’s claim that it was his job to “monitor” compliance with compulsory attendance laws. Woodruff then explained that since there was no evidence (i.e., no “probable cause”) that indicated the family was breaking any law, it would be inappropri-ate to make them prove their innocence.

Finally, Woodruff reminded the superintendent that, according to the landmark study by Dr. Lawrence Rudner of the University of Maryland, the aver-age homeschooled 8th grader scores the same on standardized tests as public school 12th graders.

The family heard nothing further from the superintendent.

ioWa

What’s the race of your kids?

by Scott A. Woodruff

The Nevada, Iowa, school superin-tendent sent a letter to a Home

School Legal Defense Association mem-ber (and, presumably, others) asking them to fill out a “Home Schooling Checklist.” He said that after the check-list was submitted, the school system would “acknowl-edge the home school-

A conTrArio SenSu{ }Send your story about why homeschooling is the best!

We are looking for humorous, warm anecdotes and true stories illustrating that homeschooling is the best educa-tional alternative around.

All material printed in the Court Report will be credited, and the contributor will receive a $10 coupon good toward any HSLDA publication of his choice. Submissions may be edited for space. Please be aware that we cannot return photographs.

Mail submissions to:

Stories, HSLDA P.O. Box 3000 Purcellville, VA 20134

Or email us (include “Stories” in the subject line) at:

ComDept@hslda.org

on the other hand

Across the States legal & legislative updates

}{

California

illinois

Iowa

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 17

ing application.” The checklist asked the family to identify the race of their chil-dren allegedly because of “new state eth-nicity requirements.” It also asked for other information not required by law.

Our member family showed the let-ter to HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff. He explained to the superin-tendent that homeschooling families are not required by law to identify the race of their children or submit any of the information on the checklist.

The superintendent promptly wrote back, agreeing to no longer ask home-schoolers to submit the checklist unless they plan to be involved in a public school program.

Minnesota

mACHE represented at global conferenceby Michael p. donnelly

David Watkins, executive director of Minnesota Association of

Christian Home Educators (MACHE), attended the first Global Home Educa-tion Conference (GHEC) in Berlin, Germany, with his wife Linda and fel-low board member Eileen Hoffman.

In Watkins’ article on the MACHE website, he said that he “had just been in the presence of modern-day heroes—parents from around the world who are committed to homeschooling their children even during persecution.”

The conference was a tremendous success, gathering nearly 200 individuals from over 26 countries and six conti-nents. Watkins captured the need for continued strength in the face of opposi-tion when he wrote, “It has been so long since we in the United States have had to struggle to gain the freedom to home-school that we take that freedom for granted now. There are new dangers on the horizon for families and homeschool-

ers. We need to pray for wisdom for ourselves and for global homeschoolers. Our work is cut out for us.”

For more information about the con-ference and to watch some of the keynote sessions, please visit www.ghec2012.org.

Missouri

HSLDA clears obstacle to rodeo

participationby Scott A. Woodruff

A Home School Legal Defense Association member family

wanted their son to compete in the Mis-souri High School Rodeo, Junior High Division. The rodeo association, how-ever, informed its members that homeschooled par-ticipants must sub-mit “certification from the Missouri

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Department of Education.”When the family contacted our legal

department for help, HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff wrote a letter to the rodeo association’s secretary explain-ing that, in Missouri, homeschoolers are not required to contact the local school system or the state department of educa-tion. He explained that no “certification” of homeschooling exists in the state.

The association quickly responded and cleared the way for the family’s son to compete in rodeo events.

After tracking the problem to its source, Woodruff learned that the National Rodeo Association’s rules require a homeschooler to be “recognized and approved” by the state board of education. He has urged the association to change its official rules to drop the “recognized and approved” requirement.

nebraska

School’s mistake leads to court

by Peter K. Kamakawiwoole

In compliance with Nebraska law, a longtime member family with-

drew their son from the Lincoln public high school, personally carrying the Rule 12 (nonreligious exemption) home-school notification to the Nebraska Department of Education (DOE).

After they started receiving calls from the school regarding their son’s absence, the family tried numerous times to contact the district to remove their son from the attendance roster, but the school ignored them. The family then asked Home School Legal Defense Asso-ciation for help, and was advised to send a registered letter to the school district verifying that they were legally home-schooling. Their letter went unanswered and the attendance calls continued.

HSLDA Staff Attorney Peter Kamak-awiwoole contacted the Lincoln public school attorney and demanded that the school stop the attendance calls. Within days, both the school and the DOE acknowledged that the family was home-schooling legally and the calls stopped.

Meanwhile, their son’s alleged “absences” had exceeded the number allowed by law if he had been attending public school, so the school’s attendance office notified the county attorney. The boy and his parents were then sum-moned to appear at a hearing for truancy.

HSLDA’s local counsel prepared to defend the family at their hearing and simultaneously worked to dismiss the case, giving the county attorney proof that they had been homeschooling in compliance with the law since they with-drew their son from school.

The day of the hearing, the county attorney agreed to dismiss the case and the family was not required to appear in court.

nevada

busy 2013 legislative season

by J. Michael smith

During the 2013 legislative season, Home School Legal

Defense Association sent our members 20 e-lerts requesting action on important bills in the Silver State. While this is quite an unusual number of emails for a single legisla-tive season and the requests for action may feel over-whelming or even frustrating to you at times, we only alert you to legislation that we feel is crucial to homeschooling and parental freedom. Please take the time to open each email and act on the urgent message inside. Standing together and taking timely, effective action is essential to preserving our freedom.

We asked you to respond to four critical pieces of legislation concerning homeschool freedom. Two were good, and two were bad. One of the bills we opposed—the grandparent visitation bill—died in committee in the middle of the session. This measure would have liberalized visitation, even against the parents’ wishes.

In partnership with the Nevada Homeschool Network, we worked to keep the second harmful bill from pass-ing. This proposal would have lowered the compulsory attendance age from 7 to 5. Parents who desire to enroll their children at age 5 in Nevada can choose to do so already. Thankfully, Senate Bill 182 died when the legislative session concluded on June 3.

We supported both remaining bills, but were actively involved only in passing S.B. 314, the Parental Rights Statute. The statute explicitly estab-lishes parental rights as fundamental rights—the highest rights we recognize

A conTrArio SenSu{ }Paradise in pyramids

We were studying Genesis in our homeschool and doing a review. I asked my son, who was about 5 years old: “Do you remember where Adam and Eve lived, Michael?”

He confidently replied, “The garden of Egypt!”

Claire G. / Santa Clarita, CA

Armed with an imaginationOne of the unique blessings of home-

schooling is that preschoolers can learn right along with older children. We read lots of books aloud so that the entire family can learn together.

Sometimes, however, historical facts can become a bit mixed up with little ones’ imaginations. The other day, we had to laugh when little Joshua, armed with a toy sword, proclaimed, “I’m Stone-war Jackson of the Evolutionary War!”

Paula M. / Albany, KY

on the other hand

nebraska

nevada

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 19

under our Constitution—in Nevada law. HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff spoke in favor of S.B. 314 at the public hearing before the Nevada Senate Judi-ciary Committee in April. S.B. 314 was signed into law by Governor Sandoval on June 5, 2013—a great success for families in Nevada!

Parental rights are under attack across America and in many other countries around the world. Because we believe that children’s needs are generally best met by caring, responsible parents, we wanted to make sure Nevada went on record as a supporter of the right of parents to direct the care, custody, management, and education of their children, and that this right is not burdened unless the state has a compel-ling interest of the highest order (e.g., clear evidence of child abuse). Your calls were critical to the success of S.B. 314.

Thank you very much for taking action on this legislation. You are home-schoolers’ voice to the legislature to help

them form their opinion on bills like these. If you didn’t have a chance to participate in these efforts, please add your voice in the 2015 legislative season—homeschool freedom depends on homeschoolers.

neW HaMpsHire

ACLU challenges tax credit law

by Michael p. donnelly

New Hampshire is the first state in the country to pass a scholar-

ship tuition organization tax credit law (New Hampshire RSA 77-G) that pro-vides for need-based scholarships of up to $750 for home-school and private and public school students.

Senate Bill 372 passed in June 2012 over a veto by then Governor John

Lynch. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued the state in early January, claiming that the law was unconstitutional because it violated the separation of church and state. However, though “separation of church and state” is often used to attack pro-grams that promote school choice, the phrase does not appear in the United States Constitution.

In 2011, the Supreme Court upheld the Arizona scholarship tuition organi-zation tax credit program on which New Hampshire’s law is patterned (except that the Arizona law does not make allowance for scholarships to homeschooled students). In its case filed in Strafford County, New Hamp-shire, the ACLU is relying on New Hampshire state constitutional grounds because it does not have any federal constitutional arguments to make in light of the 2011 Supreme Court decision in Arizona.

HSLDA worked with the sponsors of S.B. 372 and supported its passage.

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House Bill 370 was introduced in Janu-ary 2013 to repeal New Hampshire RSA 77-G. HSLDA opposes repeal of this tax credit legislation and is working with a broad coalition of groups to defend the law. HSLDA supports education tax credits for homeschoolers.

For more information about HSLDA’s position on tax credits generally and to learn more about the topic, visit: www .hslda.org/taxcredits.

neW Jersey

File “application” to homeschool

or be suedby Scoff A. Woodruff

A Home School Legal Defense Association member family

wrote a letter informing the Newark public school system that they were withdrawing their son to homeschool him.

But a school representative called and

told the family that they must have school system approval and asked them to come to a meeting the next day. After consult-ing with HSLDA, the family declined the request for the meeting since they were not required to attend by law.

The school called a week later, threatening the family with charges of truancy, saying, “You can’t just let the school know you are withdrawing—you have to go to the district and submit an application.” At our suggestion, the fam-ily asked the representative to put the request in writing. The representative refused.

In a follow-up letter to the Newark school representative, HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff explained that the family was in full compliance with the law and did not need to attend any meetings. The family has heard nothing from the school since.

nortH Carolina

School official demands “home school license”

by Dewitt T. Black

When a family in Lenoir (Caldwell County) decided to

withdraw their son from public middle school to teach him at home, an official at the middle school refused to remove him from the school rolls until the mother first produced a “home school license.” Until disenrolled, the child would be considered truant by the public school while being taught in a homeschool setting.

When the parents contacted Home School Legal Defense Association for assistance, Senior Counsel Dewitt Black wrote the school official and advised her

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north Carolina

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 21

that the family was in full compliance with state law, having filed a notice of intent to operate a homeschool with the North Carolina Division of Non-Public Education.

Black also informed the school official that there was no such thing as a “home school license,” and, further, that there was no requirement under state law that parents operating a homeschool provide the school district with any documenta-tion relating to its operation. Finally, Black’s letter stated that since the parents had already made a good-faith effort to follow the school’s normal withdrawal procedure, they were under no obligation to take any other action in this regard.

Black’s letter on behalf of the family resolved the issue, and the school official dropped truancy charges.

This is an example of how threatening legal problems can arise even in a state with a good homeschool law. If you are considering removing your children from public school, we encourage you to contact our legal department.

nortH dakota

DPI reverses open enrollment position

by Dewitt T. Black

Home School Legal Defense Asso-ciation recently obtained a favor-

able result for a family denied the right to have their homeschooled children partic-ipate in courses and extracurricular activities at a public school outside of their district of res-idence. The state’s homeschool law expressly recog-nizes the right of students to participate in such courses and extracurricular activities. Further, North Dakota’s open enrollment law permits students to do so in school districts other than where the family resides.

In this case, the family residing in

Northwood sought to have their chil-dren enroll in a foreign language course and participate in music activities in Larimore, a different school district. But the North Dakota Department of Public Instruction (DPI) squelched the idea by informing the family that open enrollment was only available to students who were “enrolled” in public school, not students in a home education program.

After the member family contacted HSLDA for assistance, Senior Counsel Dewitt Black sent a letter to DPI arguing that any participation in a public school course or extracurricular activity neces-sarily involves enrollment of the student in public school. Black also pointed out that even DPI’s own Statement of Intent form for homeschoolers includes a sec-tion to complete if the student intends to “enroll” in academic courses at the public

school. Black’s letter also made note of the fact that the open enrollment law does not exclude homeschool students from eligibility.

In a letter dated November 19, 2012, Matthew Strinden, the director of teacher and school effectiveness at DPI, replied to Black’s letter and notified him that after reviewing all issues and relevant information, it was now DPI’s position that homeschool students were eligible to participate in open enrollment.

oHio

Capitol day event puts face on home-school movement

by Michael p. donnelly

Hundreds of homeschoolers gath-ered at the Ohio statehouse atrium

on November 15, 2012, to represent home education in the Buckeye State. Organized by Christian Home Educators of Ohio (CHEO), Home-school Day at the Capitol was opened by CHEO board member John Elsey. Featured speakers included Lieutenant Governor Mary Tay-lor, State Senator and President pro tem of the Senate Keith Faber, State Representa-tive and Speaker of the House William Batchelder, Ohio State Auditor David Yost, Ohio Department of Natural Resources Director James Zehringer, and HSLDA Attorney Michael Donnelly.

Recognizing that the same day a joint session of the Ohio legislature was con-vening in honor of Ohio’s fallen soldiers, Speaker Batchelder specifically men-tioned fallen soldier Lieutenant David Rylander, a West Point graduate and homeschooler from Stow, Ohio. “Family is so important!” said Batchelder. “And you [homeschoolers] demonstrate that by what you do for your children. I have tremendous respect for homeschoolers

A conTrArio SenSu{ }More than one way

to get thereWhile studying the Revolutionary

War battle that took place in Cowpens, South Carolina, my 11-year-old daughter Laura and I wondered if a town with such an unusual name still existed.

“I’ll look it up,” I volunteered. “No, don’t!” Laura warned. “Remem-

ber—we’ve almost reached the data limit on our phone!”

When she looked up and saw that I was holding our road atlas, we had a good laugh at our technological genera-tion gap.

Evelyn F. / Bertha, MN

It’s in her DNAI was getting out “fuzzy craft sticks”

(aka pipe cleaners) and colored beads one day, when my 14-year-old daughter wandered into the room. She exclaimed, “I remember those!” with obvious fond-ness.

After a pause, she asked, “Do you remember which colors represent ade-nine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine?”

Mimi D. / Canton, GA

on the other hand

north dakota

ohio

22 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

and greatly appreciate the homeschoolers in my district and all over Ohio.”

CHEO Chairman Wayne Clarke was pleased with the success of the event. “I am grateful for the speakers and families who have come today,” Clarke said. “This has been a great event, and as far as I know, the first capitol day CHEO has sponsored in a very long time—if ever. This has been a great day of civic education and encouragement for our homeschooling families.”

Donnelly closed out the day’s event by reminding homeschoolers that freedom demands constant vigilance. “What you are doing here is so important—develop-ing relationships with policy makers,” he said. “We need to work hard together to advance the cause of home education freedom. If freedom isn’t advancing, it is retreating.”

Stephanie Garrett, a CHEO board member and the event coordinator, was thrilled with the outcome. “We had over 500 people register for this event,” she remarked. “There were many tours of the capitol, and our families were able to watch their government in action. One of our young homeschoolers even got to open the senate session by leading the Pledge of Allegiance. It was a tremendous day, and we are so thankful to all who participated and spoke at our event.”

First homeschool grad on state school board

by Michael p. donnelly

In an historic first, Sarah Fowler, a 24-year-old homeschool graduate

from Rock Creek, was elected to the Ohio State Board of Education. The state board reviews candidates for state superinten-dent of public instruction, recommends policy reforms to the legislature, sets administrative policy regulations, and reviews the state’s homeschool laws.

During her campaign, Fowler worked overtime with a core group of family and volunteers, attending over 80 events in three months. She drew on her 13 years of experience on her family farm and as a small business owner, using her skills in sales, marketing, and graphic design to reach potential voters. She won deci-sively, with 60 percent of the overall vote, and her home county, Ashtabula, with 67 percent. The second-place candidate received 26 percent.

Along with her six younger siblings, Fowler was homeschooled from the start by her parents, Kevin and Laura Fowler. Today, Fowler strongly supports home-schooling and school choice. “Parents have the God-given right and responsibil-

ity to direct their children’s education,” Fowler said. “I desire to protect their right to choose whatever educational opportu-nity they deem best for their children.”

Fowler also campaigned on reforming school curriculum and education fund-ing. She seeks to ensure that all school subjects, especially history, provide an accurate and contextual education for stu-dents. She also hopes to move away from an education system funded by property taxes to a more broad-based system.

HSLDA Attorney Michael Donnelly, who represents member affairs in Ohio, said, “I look forward to working with Sarah Fowler and other advocates of freedom, including Christian Home Educators of Ohio, to advance the right of parents to direct the education and upbringing of their children. Her elec-tion is a shining example of what can happen when energy and enthusiasm combine with a good home education!”

rHode island

Privacy protected in Chariho

by Peter K. Kamakawiwoole

In the fall of 2012, Chariho Coun-ty’s school committee denied

approval for a Home School Legal Defense Association member family’s homeschool pro-gram because the parents had not provided their youngest daughter’s date of birth. The family immediately contacted HSLDA.

The family explained that they had homeschooled their older daughter for many years without any problems. When they began homeschooling their young-est daughter, the school superintendent contacted them and demanded more information, including her birth date.

The parents originally offered to provide the month and year of their daughter’s birth, but wanted the actual

michael Donnelly, HSLDA attorney for Ohio, meets with a member family during the CHEO Homeschool Day at the capitol in Colum-bus. Hundreds of homeschoolers gath-ered for the event.

rhode island

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 23

date to be kept private. Since her birth date was not required by Rhode Island law or Chariho’s homeschool policy, they declined to submit it to the superinten-dent. In turn, the superintendent recom-mended that the school committee deny the family’s notification of intent.

Since Rhode Island state law requires school committees to approve home-school programs, a family whose homeschool program is denied can be prosecuted for truancy. In fact, shortly after this family contacted HSLDA, a tru-ant officer visited their home.

After the parents notified HSLDA of the situation, Staff Attorney Peter Kamakawiwoole contacted the school committee’s attorney to discuss the denial of the family’s homeschool program and the truant officer’s visit. By persuading the school committee’s attorney to accept the family’s offer of providing the child’s age, instead of her date of birth, HSLDA averted truancy charges at the last minute.

At its next meeting, the school com-mittee voted to approve the family’s notification of intent.

soutH dakota

Sioux Falls invents deadline for assessments

by Scott A. Woodruff

In February 2012, the Sioux Falls School District assistant superin-

tendent sent letters to homeschooling families threatening to ask the state department of edu-cation to investi-gate them if they did not file their annual assessment for grades 2, 4, 8, and 11 by August 1.

But there was a prob-lem with this demand: August 1 is not the deadline.

Matters related to South Dakota home-schooling are governed by state statutes. State statutes, however, do not set a sepa-rate deadline for filing assessments.

There is no disadvantage in filing early, of course. But the deadline that matters is the first day of school in your local district. That is the date by which students must be in compliance with compulsory attendance law. It is important that the family’s exemption paperwork and the assessment, if due, be filed by then.

HSLDA Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff wrote to the assistant super-intendent and explained that the August 1 deadline was bogus. She received his message but did not reply. However, no Sioux Falls homeschooling families (to our knowledge) were reported to the state department of education, even if they filed their assessment after August 1.

Sioux Falls reported that they will soon be sending another letter about testing. We’ll see if they get it right this time!

south dakota

24 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

texas

El Paso concedesby darren a. Jones

In the fall of 2012, a Home School Legal Defense Association lifetime

member family’s son was ready to take the Preliminary SAT (PSAT). After verifying testing locations with the College Board, the parents chose the local high school in the El Paso Independent School District as the best testing site for their son.

But when the parents contacted the school, the guidance counselor refused to accommodate their request because their son was a homeschool student. Both the counselor and the district director of college readiness told the parents that the local public school only offered the PSAT to public school students.

The family immediately called HSLDA. Staff Attorney Darren Jones found that El Paso’s policy directly conflicted with a 2007 Texas law which guarantees homeschooled students the right to take the PSAT in Texas public schools. Jones drew the school district’s attention to this fact in explaining why the son, as a home-schooled student, was fully eligible to take the PSAT at the local public high school.

Within two weeks, HSLDA received a response from the director of college readiness. Based on HSLDA’s letter, she completely reversed her decision and invited the son to join the PSAT testing. The El Paso Independent School District even posted information on its website inviting homeschool students in the area to participate on the upcoming test date.

verMont

Standing by a mistaken memo

by Peter K. Kamakawiwoole

Homeschoolers continue to deal with the aftermath of last sum-

mer’s damaging memorandum from Ver-mont Commissioner of Education Armando Vilaseca. In July 2012, he uni-laterally decided to impose new, arbi-trary filing deadlines on homeschoolers, contrary to the plain language of the home study statute.

From the outset, Home School Legal Defense Association and the Vermont homeschooling community have strongly opposed this new policy. Unfortunately, our many appeals to the commissioner have fallen on deaf ears. The commissioner has steadfastly refused to rescind or revise the memorandum to bring it into accor-dance with Vermont law, even though he has publically admitted in state board of education meetings and in interviews with local news magazines that the policy was worded more strongly than he intended.

Homeschoolers responded with a peti-tion calling for the memo to be immedi-ately revised or rescinded, and presented the petition to the commissioner and the state board of education.

On January 1, 2013, Governor Peter Shumlin became solely responsible for the appointment of the commissioner of education. Homeschoolers have presented their petition to Governor Shumlin, but so far he has failed to act.

In the meantime, HSLDA stands ready to defend families who are denied the right to homeschool because of this mis-guided memo.

virginia

Hassling stopsby Scott A. Woodruff

Desiring to exercise their right under Virginia law to exempt their

5-year-old from school attendance, a Home School Legal Defense Association member family submitted the proper notice to the Salem School District.

But rather than promptly acknowledg-ing the exemption, the school system

gooD To KnoW{ }HSLDA social services

contact policyWe desire to advise our members in

every contact with a social worker and/or police officer in investigations result-ing from allegations of abuse or neglect. If homeschooling is an issue, we will represent our member families until

the issue is resolved. On 4th Amendment

unreasonable search and seizure issues, HSLDA will advise our members when-ever the privacy of their home is violated by forced or

coerced entry for the purpose of an unsubstantiated inves-tigation. HSLDA membership benefits do not extend to court actions result-ing from nonhomeschooling matters. However, in circumstances where there is a clear violation of the 4th Amend-ment, HSLDA may, as we have done in the past, choose to take the case in an effort to establish legal precedent.

A plethora of formsAs an added benefit to our

members, HSLDA has posted a number of sample forms on our website, including letters for withdrawing from public school, forms for submitting required notices of intent to home-

school, and memos describing the legal

issues involved in homeschooling. To see the forms for your state, go to http://members .hslda.org, log in, and select your

state. By creating these forms, HSLDA did

not intend to burden its members with more paperwork. Rather, the forms are designed for our members’ convenience and to protect them from inadvertently giving more information than their state’s law requires. Members are free to prepare their own documents to comply with the law.

texas

vermont

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 25

asked the family to fill out a form explaining why they did not want to enroll their child in kindergarten and send the form to the local school.

The family asked HSLDA to help. Senior Counsel Scott Woodruff wrote a letter explaining that families are not required to fill out any form to obtain exemption. He also reminded Salem that families do not submit a “request” for the exemption: they merely submit a notice. Finally, Woodruff pointed out that state law requires the school division office—not the local school—to handle exemptions.

Salem quickly responded, agreed that no form was necessary, and acknowl-edged the family’s exemption.

WisConsin

Real deadline acknowledged

by Scott A. Woodruff

On September 22, 2012, a Home School Legal Defense Association

member family received a letter from a rep-resentative of the Platteville school dis-trict, saying that the family had not filed their annual state-ment of enrollment form (PI-1206) and hinting that truancy might become an issue. The family called HSLDA for help.

An HSLDA representative called the district and explained that according to Wisconsin statute § 115.30 (3), the deadline for filing the annual statement of enrollment is October 15. We explained that it was inappropriate to demand that the family file before the legal deadline.

At that point, the representative apolo-gized, explaining that she was new at the job and was just using forms she inher-ited. She said she would change the form letter and not send it out in the future until after October 15. n

hSlDA legAl inQuirieS{ }

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Contact

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Question ToTAl

59 59 138 48 766 1,070

FebruAry 2013 member InquIrIeS

CALIFORNIA 1 6 2 5 96 110

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SOUTH CAROLINA 0 0 57 1 29 87

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GEORGIA 0 1 20 1 33 55

NEW YORK 7 3 0 4 40 54

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NEW YORK 7 6 0 2 24 39

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26

Why the Common Core is bad for

everyoneby Will estrada

A national common curriculum has long been the goal for many in

the education establishment. In the late 1990s, for example, the Goals 2000 ini-tiative proposed an outcome-based, top-down approach, favoring a substantial federal role in education at the expense of local control. Enough people opposed Goals 2000, and it was defeated.

The new Common Core State Stan-dards Initiative (CC) shares a number of the problematic characteristics of Goals 2000, setting national standards in Eng-lish language arts (ELA) and mathemat-ics that will inevitably lead to a national curriculum.

Here’s a little background: The CC got a boost when President Obama’s 2009 stimulus bill included federal funding for a program called Race to the Top. When the stimulus bill became law, so did Race to the Top. This program, funded and administered by the U.S. Department of Education, gave competitive grants to states that adopted the CC.

As the federal government incentivized states to adopt the CC, the National Gov-ernor’s Association and others also pres-sured states to adopt the plan. As a result, in just a few years, 45 states and the District of Columbia adopted the CC. Alaska, Nebraska, Texas, and Virginia declined, and Minnesota adopted only the ELA standards.

HSLDA opposes the CC for three main reasons. First, we oppose a national, one-size-fits-all approach to

education. The success of the home-school movement shows that every child is unique, each learning differently at his or her own pace. The CC does a disservice to children by nationalizing education, taking it out of the hands of the parents and teachers who know their students best.

Second, we oppose the Common Core because, frankly, it provides a poor learning experience. Numerous educa-tors (not just those in the homeschool community) have pointed out CC’s defi-ciencies. For example, the CC standards require public schools to teach a certain percentage of their English classes using “informational texts”—effectively substituting suggested material such as Presidential Executive Orders for the classics. The Common Core also cuts back on algebra. We have even seen examples of curricula implementing the CC that advance United Nations agenda over our nation’s founding principles. It is becoming increasingly evident that the CC can be used to teach a particular worldview—a decision that should be

left up to parents, not central education planners.

Finally, HSLDA opposes the Com-mon Core because it may lead to future regulation of homeschooling. The CC currently applies only to public schools. But, historically, the more the federal government gets involved in education, the more it controls education. Nation-alized standards for public schools could easily become requirements for all students, including homeschoolers, necessitating curriculum and testing aligned with these standards. Colleges and employers may decide to accept only students who have been taught accord-ing to the CC. This would threaten homeschoolers by restricting or possibly eliminating parents’ freedom to tailor their children’s curriculum, schedules, and pace of learning.

What can you do to stop the Common Core? At the federal level, Congress needs to defund the Race to the Top program. Tax dollars should not be used as a carrot to incentivize states to adopt these nationalized standards. Call your member of Congress and urge him or her to leave education decisions to par-ents, teachers, and local school districts. The Capitol Switchboard contact number is 202-224-3121.

At the state level, governors and state legislators need to take a close look at the Common Core in their state. If you live in one of the states that have not adopted the CC, thank your governor and state legislators. If you live in a state that has adopted it, call your governor and legislators and urge them to reexam-ine this decision.

HSLDA is deeply concerned about the Common Core and its

potential impact on home-school freedom. We have been fighting the CC since Race to the Top was passed. We encourage

you to visit www.hslda .org/commoncore to see

updates on this issue. n

If you are a committed Christian, you do not have to violate your faith by purchasing health insurance from a company that pays for abortions and treatments of conditions resulting from other immoral practices. You can live consistently with your beliefs by sharing medical needs directly with fellow believers through Samaritan Ministries’ non-insurance approach. This ap-proach even satisfies the individual mandate in the recent Federal health care law (United States

Code 26, Section 5000A, (d), (2), (B)).

Every month the more than 23,000* households of Samaritan Ministries share over $6 million* in medical needs directly—one household to another. They also pray for one another and send notes of encouragement. The monthly share for a family membership of any size has never exceeded $355*, and is even less for one-person, two person, and single-parent (wid-owed/divorced) memberships.

For more information call us toll-free at 1-888-268-4377, or visit us online at: www.samaritanministries.org.Follow us on Twitter (@samaritanmin) and Facebook (SamaritanMinistries).* As of February 2013

www.samaritanministries.org

Biblical faith applied to health care

Health care for people of Biblical faith

Freedom Watch Federal relations reports

}{

The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

the Common Core does a disservice

to children by national-izing education.

© BigSTocKphoTo

If you are a committed Christian, you do not have to violate your faith by purchasing health insurance from a company that pays for abortions and treatments of conditions resulting from other immoral practices. You can live consistently with your beliefs by sharing medical needs directly with fellow believers through Samaritan Ministries’ non-insurance approach. This ap-proach even satisfies the individual mandate in the recent Federal health care law (United States

Code 26, Section 5000A, (d), (2), (B)).

Every month the more than 23,000* households of Samaritan Ministries share over $6 million* in medical needs directly—one household to another. They also pray for one another and send notes of encouragement. The monthly share for a family membership of any size has never exceeded $355*, and is even less for one-person, two person, and single-parent (wid-owed/divorced) memberships.

For more information call us toll-free at 1-888-268-4377, or visit us online at: www.samaritanministries.org.Follow us on Twitter (@samaritanmin) and Facebook (SamaritanMinistries).* As of February 2013

www.samaritanministries.org

Biblical faith applied to health care

Health care for people of Biblical faith

28 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

Missouri

Aggressive prosecutor halted

by darren a. Jones

In September 2012, Jacinda Haberly (names changed to

protect privacy) withdrew her 8th- and 5th-grade daugh-ters, Karen and Miranda, from their Missouri public school. She opted to send a homeschool notification letter to the superintendent, even though it was not required by law.

The next day, she joined Home School Legal Defense Association and began teaching her daughters.

Within days, the county prosecuting attorney requested Haberly meet with her and bring proof that she was home-schooling legally.

Missouri law requires homeschooling students to attend at least 1,000 instruc-tional hours each school year, and, under state law, proof of attendance is a legal defense against truancy prosecution.

HSLDA responded to the prosecutor on Haberly’s behalf, defending Haberly’s choice to homeschool and enclosing Miranda and Karen’s homeschool atten-dance records.

The prosecutor was not satisfied. In November, Haberly received a summons

to appear in court for her daughters’ alleged truancy.

Representing Haberly in court, HSLDA Litigation Attorney Peter Kamakawiwoole argued that the pros-ecution was premature. He pointed out that, according to Missouri law, in addi-tion to the attendance records already submitted, Haberly had a full calendar year from the day she submitted her Missouri

CASEstate of Missouri

v. H Family

FILEDnovember 2012

“Thank you so much for this course, Dr. Farris! It should be required for every American. I thought my 8th-grade American History was informative—well, not compared to this course! It opened my eyes to what the Founders had intended for this great country. I would recommend it to anyone and everyone.”

— Gabrielle D. / McKinney, TX

“Thank you so much for doing this course, Dr. Farris. I couldn’t wait to get to it! The book was great, your lectures were hilarious, the chats were insightful, and I really enjoyed the interaction. I learned a ton! I’m an ‘enlightened citizen’ now!”

— Stewart K. / Somerville, AL

Active cases litigation suMMaries

}{

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 29

homeschool notification letter to teach the required 1,000 instructional hours. At the time Haberly received the summons, the prosecu-

tor had no way of knowing whether or not the Haberly

children would finish the required hours before next September.

In the last week of January 2013, the prosecutor reviewed HSLDA’s arguments and requested that the court dismiss the case against Haberly. The Haberly girls are steadily making their way through their 1,000 instructional hours.

pennsylvania

Judge: Let’s have a trial

by darren a. Jones

Rejecting requests to dismiss a key parental rights lawsuit, Judge John

E. Jones III ruled that HSLDA’s case on behalf of Scott and Jodi Ferris should proceed to trial.

The Ferrises’ daughter was born in an ambulance on the way to the hospital, not at home as the Ferrises had planned. Once admitted, the Fer-rises received conflicting reports about their daughter’s medical status and encountered hostility toward their desire to direct their daughter’s medical care as her parents.

Because the parents questioned the medications administered, the hospital staff notified social services. The social worker refused to tell Jodi Ferris the allegations of her investigation, and she threatened to take the newborn into custody unless Jodi signed a safety plan. When Jodi Ferris requested time for her husband to review the plan, the social worker took physical custody of the Ferrises’ newborn. The next day, the Ferrises regained custody of their daughter, but only after expe-riencing the heartbreak and trauma of being separated from a newborn with no idea of what was happening to the child and no say in the child’s care or treatment.

On the Ferrises’ behalf, in 2012 HSLDA sued the doctors and social worker in federal court to protect parental rights. The medical defendants and social worker asked the judge to dismiss the case. Specifically, the medical defendants stated that they were not responsible for the events that led up to the Ferrises losing custody of their daughter.

If the judge had granted these motions, the case would have been over. The Ferrises would never have the chance to seek justice. But the judge disagreed and ruled that the medical defendants played an integral part in the Ferrises’ loss of custody of their child. HSLDA’s litigation team is prepar-ing for trial. n

penDing cASeS{ }AZ Loudermilk v. Administration for Children, Youth and FamiliesCA In re: H FamilyFL P Family v. Social Security AdministrationIN K Family v. Department of Veterans AffairsKS BFamilyv.OfficeofPersonnel ManagementKY In re: C FamilyKY State v. A FamilyNE State v. Thacker FamilyNH In re: V FamilyNJ F Family v. Social Security AdministrationNJ In re: M FamilyNY Batt v. BuccilliNY In re: M FamilyNY In re: W FamilyOK C Family v. Department of Veterans AffairsPA Newborn v. Franklin Regional School DistrictTX In re: M FamilyVA B Family v. Social Security AdministrationVA In re: M Family

The prosecutor reviewed HSLDA’s arguments and requested that the court dismiss the case.© m

orgueFile.com

pennsylvania

CASEFerris v. Hershey

Medical Center, et al.

FILEDApril 2012

STAY INFORmED of new developments in cases that may affect your home-school—sign up for HSLDA’s free e-lert service at www.hslda.org.

30 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

“When I am struggling and need to talk, I seek out others who have walked a similar path so I can discuss things that might shock people who haven’t been there themselves.”

Don’t give up! Get help

F or every type of concern you may be facing with your adopted child, there is information and help available. But finding it can be hard, especially if dealing with your

child has become overwhelming. While guaranteed solutions and quick fixes may not exist, there are answers. Do keep the following points in mind so that you can stay balanced and discerning even if your situation feels impossible.

THe ADvice yOu neeD iS prObAbLy SpeciALizeD. Child-raising experts, counselors, and other sources of help are not always closely familiar with adoption issues. Seek advice from people who are trained and experienced in the area of adoption.

expAnD yOur knOwLeDge bASe. Don’t rely wholly on one person’s limited perspective—even if that person is a noted expert in his or her field. Seek a variety of per-spectives and keep an open mind, using your own judg-ment and knowledge of your child to select the answers that seem most helpful.

be fLexibLe. It’s okay to try different approaches. As you

try different ways of helping your child, some approaches will fail even after a good-faith effort. If you can see that an approach is not helping your child—or worse, is actually harming him—stop using it and find something better.

Seek cOunSeL AnD HeLp AS eArLy AS pOSSibLe. Tj Schmidt’s rule of thumb? “Be willing to seek help earlier than you think you need it.”

knOw wHen TO TAke iMMeDiATe AcTiOn. If your child is (1) harming himself, other people, or animals, (2) sexually predatory, or (3) suicidal, get professional help immediately.

Love that heals

“I t’s important for parents to realize that adoptive parenting is a commitment to love a child in a very sacrificial, Christ-like way,” says Mary Ostyn. “Some children settle in really

quickly, and with others it can take years. It takes faith to keep on loving them right through that pain and on into healing.”

Love isn’t always easy, but as parents like Mary and Elizabeth have learned, being a kid is hard, too. They are looking past their children’s wounds to the intrinsic value and potential in each precious child.

“Our kids are worth the sacrifice, worth every effort,” says Mary. “John and I see God’s hand in getting each of them into our lives, and we have confidence that he’s redeeming every tear, every struggle. He has a good plan for our kids’ lives.” n

— cOnTinueD fr0M pAge 14

Can I homesChool my adopted ChIld?

Yes. Once adopted, your child’s legal relationship to you is the same as that of a biological child, and you can home-school in accordance with the laws of your state. See HSLDA state law summa-ries online at www.hslda.org/laws.

Can I homesChool my ChIld durIng the adoptIon proCess?

Possibly. Many states have specific provisions that permit homeschooling by a foster parent. In other states, you may need to obtain the approval of the local agency and/or court. Contact HSLDA for information about your specific state.

WIll the home vIsIt pose a rIsk to my famIly and home-sChool?

Generally, no. A home visit for an

adoption is not the same as an abuse/neglect investigation. The two types of visits have different purposes and goals. Adoption home visits are gener-ally geared toward approving families unless a specific reason is discovered to reject them.

do I need to be ConCerned about Involvement by soCIal servICes or the Courts?

Generally, no. Both social services and the courts are typically following procedure throughout the adoption process, and as long as there is nothing that would prohibit you from adopting a child, you should not encounter difficulties.

Is Corporal dIsCIplIne permIt-ted for adopted ChIldren?

Once adopted, your child’s relation-

ship to you is the same as that of a biological child. You have the same rights and responsibilities with respect to your adopted child’s care and upbringing as you do with any of your biological children. Corporal disci-pline is therefore permitted if it is not prohibited/limited under state law. However, you may want to seek advice regarding the use of corporal discipline, depending on your adopted child’s background and history.

LegaL Q&a

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 31

Enriched by musicby Maryann gaver

Music at our house has meant plenty of tuning, practicing, recitals,

rehearsals, lessons, and much more! Has it been worth it? You bet!Whether by

listening to music, playing an instru-ment, or learning to appreciate great compositions and composers, home-schooling provided an opportunity for our family to enjoy the blessings that God has given us in music.

Because of its sequence and order, I believe music can help our children develop imagination, concentration, and analytical thinking. When I taught math to my twins, I always had a clas-sical music station playing softly in the background. I’m convinced that it helped all of us think more clearly!

For musical enrichment, you might attend a symphony (often free for kids) or listen to CDs of various music genres together. Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, performed by Joshua Bell with the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, is a good place to start. You could also do a unit study of great composers.

Jay and I decided to have our twins take classical guitar and viola lessons from elementary through high school. We started with inexpensive instruc-tion, rental instruments, and plenty of encouragement.

Even if you choose not to invest in music lessons, you can still give your stu-dents the experience of hearing exquisite music. Music appreciation doesn’t have to be expensive or time-consuming.

My kids have learned that music is so much more than simply learning songs. It’s about discovering the value of faithfulness in little things like daily practice, and about becoming confident, consistent, and committed.

What have my kids gained from learn-ing music? Discipline and perseverance. What have I gained from teaching them music? Precious one-on-one time with each son on “music day.” What have our family, church, and community gained? Two skilled musicians.

Here are some helpful tips if your chil-dren are studying music:

• be very patient. Instruments are difficult to learn. It takes a lot of time to progress, so don’t expect overnight results. Violins will screech at first, and you’ll prob-ably get tired of hearing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”

• be extremely encouraging. Phrases such as “Great job!” or “Excellent improvement!” go a long way.

• Find the right instructor. Your child will progress better with an outstanding instructor who is a true professional than with a mediocre teacher who can’t bring your student to the next level.

After countless hours of practicing and lessons over the years, our fam-ily has come a long way since “Yankee Doodle” and the Suzuki method. Yes, there were moments when every-one wanted to

quit, but overall, music has been an incredibly beneficial experience, and one of the biggest blessings in our homeschool! n

MaryAnn Gaver and her husband, Jay, recently celebrated their twin sons’ gradu-ation after 11 years of homeschooling. Both young men are attending Liberty University.

Column host maryAnn Gaver

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By taking lessons on various instru-ments, each of our four children has learned so much more than just being able to play an instrument. They have matured in personal discipline, problem solving, and time management, and have experienced the joy of using their talents and gifts to serve others. By playing together as a string quartet, the siblings have learned to cooperate and respect each other in unique circumstances.

We have taken seriously the quote from J.S. Bach, “The aim and final end of all music should be the glory of god and refreshment of the soul.” We have used our family’s musical gifts as a vehicle to share the good news of the gospel in various venues throughout this area, which has provided many oppor-tunities to meet new people and make new friends.

music has brought joy and blessings as we have home educated these past 17 years, and we look forward to seeing how the lord will continue to use it in our children’s lives after they graduate from our homeschool.

molli o. / Grand rapids, mn

culTIvATInG prAISe ThrouGh muSIc

We try to keep praise music playing all the time in our home. We love walking into the house and hearing “holy, holy,

holy is the lord god Almighty!”especially wonderful is having the

praises playing at night. it is so glori-ous to awaken during the night and hear praises to god.

mary b. / Witter, Ar© imAge cluB

by Kate Kim

I was born in South Korea, but when my father found opportunity to

work in the United States, my family sold everything and moved to Maryland for the promise of a better life. (Education in Korea is not free after elementary school and school expenses are high.) My sib-lings and I grew up watching our parents demonstrate high ideals of hard work and devotion to God.

My parents passed on to me a strong spiritual legacy. As these values became woven into my life and I developed my own relationship with Jesus Christ, I married a wonderful man, and we decided to homeschool. I believe our homeschooling was a response to a call from God. I felt an unwavering determi-nation to home educate, and researched everything I could find about raising and schooling children. This began long before I had my first child in 1996, when our learning adventure officially started.

Although we had the blessing of com-mitted support from my parents and siblings, we faced cultural opposition. No one in our Korean community even enter-tained the thought of homeschooling. Our family defied cultural norms by educating at home and having more than two chil-dren. Viewing us as ignorant and inexpe-rienced parents, some people intimidated us with their loud and persistent criticism.

As a young homeschooling mother, I feared inadequacy and failure. The more my fear grew, the more I tried to secure success by finding the “best” curriculum and parenting methods. My growing collection of books and resources became a burden.

Then my husband was diagnosed with

a rare, incurable disease that had a given prognosis of no more than nine months to live. All my efforts to be the best mother and teacher—to control my own world—seemed empty now. Even the voices of those who would see me fail seemed distant. Until that moment, I had not seen the folly of struggling to make everything perfect.

I cried out to my Father, able only to whisper my helplessness to Him. Clar-ity came as I finally took my eyes off my own effort and shortcomings. I began to see God’s sovereignty and personal love at work in my life.

Just before we found out about my husband’s disease, we moved to a new area where we felt God’s overwhelming blessing. Pain can create sensitivity to others’ sufferings, and a greater compas-sion can be learned from the keen aware-

ness of one’s own trials. As God’s people from our new church and neighborhood ministered to us, we had opportunities to come alongside others in need. More than five years have passed since my hus-band’s initial prognosis. He is healing, and I am still learning that I don’t have to be the perfect homeschooling mother—God is providing for me and my family.

Our strong homeschooling community and the resources of Home School Legal Defense Association have inspired us to take bolder strides in homeschooling. The flexibility of our school schedule makes it possible to easily pick and choose outside learning activities. Glean-ing wisdom from other homeschooling families and receiving solid guidance from HSLDA encouraged me as a teacher and mother. As I have learned that I am not alone in my uncertainties, my children have gained life experience that nurtures their personal growth.

When our children reached high school, learning opportunities under incredible teachers opened up. God’s pro-vision amazes us more with each choice to live moment by moment in Christ. I am able to be at peace with making nec-essary changes to our learning to accom-

The home School courT reporT • Spring 201332

As HSLDA celebrates 30 years of protecting freedom and supporting

homeschoolers, we’re taking a look in this series at a few of the many faces of home-schooling. In the last issue (Winter 2013), Zan Tyler described her family’s journey

as modern homeschooling pioneers in the 1980s and early 1990s. In this article, Kate

Kim shares her experience as a current homeschooler with a unique story and

cultural background. In future issues, we’ll hear from grandparents who are teaching their grandkids and catch up with families

HSLDA helped defend in years past.

i was a perfectionist homeschool mom

SpeciAl FeATure

courTeSY oF Kim FAmilY

ABOVE—The Kim family celebrates life together (left to right): Ruth, Kate, Chung, Zachary, Caleb, and Joshua (front).

33

modate each child’s needs. This was scary to even consider during our earlier school years, for fear of “getting off track.”

As I considered resources that would be vital in case I became a financial provider, I discovered how much help HSLDA makes available to needy homeschoolers. In many ways, this organization has been a clear extension of the grace that God

supplies. Their support and guidance have become even more valuable to me over the years.

The combination of home-schooling and parenting is not unlike faith. It can be a hard, hard thing. There is often no clear or constant affirmation along the way to bolster confidence. Sometimes I wish there were trail markers or road signs to assure me that I am going the right way! But not know-

ing every step ahead helps me see how He is evident in my life, guiding me each moment. Until I was stripped of my sense of security, I did not know the utter sweet-ness of the refuge that is Christ’s victori-ous life in me. I no longer hold my breath for the end of trials and struggles. There is true joy in seeking and finding Christ, who is Lord and our greatest defender! It is far better to resolve to wait and watch and take humble steps toward our Lord.

When I started this journey, I missed God’s intent to draw my eyes toward His love and teach me to abide in Him through uncertainty. My focus on per-fectly teaching and parenting my children created a heavy chain of impossible goals. But now, homeschooling is a privilege that enriches our lives.

While still striving for educational excel-lence, we no longer see it as our means to perfection. Accepting my imperfection helps me surrender to God’s promise to uphold the weak; He does not leave us alone after He has called us. There is such peace in trusting that God’s love and power—not my own wobbly efforts at con-trol—will bring good to our family. n

Kate Kim lives with her husband Chung and their four children in Northern Virginia.

August 26–30 Captured in the French and Indian War! An Interview with Tracy Leininger Craven (Host Mike Farris)

September 2–6 Chivalry at Home and Abroad: An Interview with Zach Hunter (Host Mike Smith)

September 9 –13 The Common Core (Host Mike Farris)

September 16–20 Our Constitution Rocks! An Interview

with Juliette Turner (Host Mike Farris)

September 23–27 Celebrating Autumn (Host Mike Smith)

September 30–October 4 The Etiquette Advantage (Host Mike Farris)

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT

courTeSY oF Kim FAmilY

34 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

beyond high school: Preparing your

teens for the other side of graduation

by becky Cooke and diane kummer

High school graduation may mark the end of homeschooling your

teen, but there’s a whole lot of life after graduation! The high school years are a prime opportunity to prepare your teens for adulthood.

Where do you begin in teaching the skills they’ll need in the years after high school? We’ve categorized some impor-tant ones to put on your teaching list, along with suggested resources to help you along the way.

Why are time management skills so important?

The real world runs on deadlines, so teaching time management skills to your teen will serve him well in both his personal and professional life. Although homeschooling allows much flexibility for family schedules, there is wisdom in helping your teen master the ability to set a pace that gives enough time to meet deadlines. Exceptions to meeting a dead-line, such as an unexpected visit from grandma, a great opportunity to attend a public event, or a family emergency, may occur. But don’t routinely move the finish line to accommodate your teen’s procrastination or lack of diligence. Set-ting such precedent only does your teen a disservice, and the purpose of having a deadline is lost.

Depending on your teen’s maturity

level, it may sometimes be necessary to break up a large assignment—such as a research paper—into manageable seg-ments and then set deadlines for each segment. When you make an assignment, be sure your teen is aware of any conse-quences for missing the deadline, such as a grade penalty. You’ll also save your teen from potential trouble and heartache if you suggest that it’s wise to finish an assignment one or two days earlier than it is due. Does anyone else remember when a deadline was missed because of broken printers or sudden illness? Building in buf-

fer time and shooting for a completion date earlier than the deadline avoids a mad rush and gives every-one a more peaceful environment!

Your teens may juggle many different

areas of their lives—academics, part-time jobs, extracurricular activities, as well as volunteering and church involvement. A personal calendar should be a tool that your teen uses regularly. Offer him

consistent guidance, but turn more and more of the responsibility for managing his schedule over to him during the high school years. Time management does not often come naturally, so provide direc-tion and recommend giving space for time to rest and relax.

What study skills should I teach my teens?No matter your teens’ future plans

(employment, trade school, college, or homemaking), they’ll certainly require good study skills. Include time to practice and perfect these skills in your school day. Note-taking can be useful in many situations outside of college, such as paying attention to a car sales pitch, highlighting important takeaways from a business meeting, or remembering the details shared by a military recruiter. Your teen can practice taking notes almost anywhere—while watching an educational video, listening to a tour guide on a field trip, or hearing your pas-tor’s sermon. It must be practiced in order to improve, so give your teen plenty of opportunity to hone this skill.

Introducing organizational skills in high school results in a more organized student, who will one day be a more organized employee, parent, and spouse! Teach your teen to categorize his assign-ments according to subject and date in a binder or on the computer. A crate or other container to hold school supplies increases efficiency and saves time looking for misplaced rulers, calcula-tors, and other equipment.

What about finances?Money plays a large role in a teen-

ager’s life, and will continue to do so in adulthood. As soon as your teens begin earning income or receiving an allow-ance or monetary gifts, discuss the ben-efits of saving and wise spending. Creat-ing a simple budget will let them see where their money is going. Encourage your teens to cultivate a generous heart by including a category in their budgets for giving a portion of their earnings to

here For youhSlDA members may contact our high

school consultants, Becky cooke and Diane Kummer, for advice on teaching teens. call 540-338-5600 or visit www.hslda.org/contactstaff.

check out www.hslda.org/highschool for more helpful information on teaching teens.

• brochures: For help on topics from developing a plan for high school to preparing your teen for the work-force, go to www.hslda.org/highschool/brochures.asp.

• Email newsletter and archives: www .hslda.org/highschool/newsletter.asp

• High school consultants’ blog: www.hslda.org/highschool/blog.asp

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Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 35

their church and other charities. A good rule of thumb is to set aside these funds at the beginning of each month. This will prevent coming to the end of the month with no money left over. Help them remember that the Lord promises to meet all their needs as they exercise faithful-ness and sound judgment.

Once teens build up savings, teach them how to invest their money. Savings that earn interest or capital gains will be declared as income on tax forms. A les-son on filing such forms will likely be an eye-opener for teens.

The main goal in raising financial awareness is to give your teens the opportunity to form good habits while they are still under your guidance. Even though it’s sometimes scary, let them make mistakes and learn from the conse-quences. Such situations will teach valu-able lessons more quickly than words.

How do I develop my teens’ interpersonal skills?

Advancing technology has made it possible for teens to communicate with-out actually speaking to people. While this may be expedient, there is still a need to interact face-to-face with people, even those they don’t know. This will be true if they attend college, enter the workplace, or join the military.

High school is an optimum time to give teens opportunities to form relationships with their peers, teachers other than mom (through co-ops, online classes, or community college courses), employers at part-time jobs, and supervi-sors of volunteer projects. You never know which of the people in your teens’ lives will be instrumental in opening doors for them in the future.

Forming healthy relationships requires good judgment and discernment based on scriptural principles and experience.

Is your teen growing in faith?In our opinion, the most important part

of parenting is training up children in the grace and knowledge of Jesus Christ (2

Peter 3:18). A biblical foundation is built bit by bit through the years. During high school, encourage your teens to take own-ership of their walks with the Lord.

A. W. Tozer says, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.” Your teens can be challenged to write down an answer to that statement and substantiate it with Scripture. Use this exercise to help your teens see the ben-efits of personal devotions and attending church and Bible study groups. Cultivat-ing a hunger for truth and a relationship with the Truth-giver—Jesus Christ—will guide your teens as they associate with others. Seeing you live and walk by faith will give them confidence of the gospel’s reality in every detail of life.

Your teens are at the stage of life where they may be questioning your beliefs. Don’t panic, but honestly and lovingly allow them to express their doubts. Help them recognize that when they leave home, standing alone on truth is difficult to do, but in a body of believers they will find support and encouragement. Pray for them to find a good church and godly friends who will keep them accountable and encourage them in Christ. Then trust them to the Lord’s care.

These ideas will hopefully help you formulate your own list tailored to your teens. Please don’t expect them to learn and master all of the skills on your list in 9th grade. You will be amazed at the growth and maturity your teens develop between their freshman and senior years. Four years will give them ample time and practice to foster good habits to carry with them after graduation day! n

The book homeschool, high School, and beyond: A Time management,

career exploration, organizational and Study Skills course by Beverly Adams-gordon pro-vides practical tips and suggestions for your teen. “organization” can make an excellent elective course.

if you need additional help and direction in this area, marilyn rockett’s book could be helpful: homeschooling at the Speed of life: balancing home, School, and Family in the real World.

The Stock market Game at Home (http://www.sifma.org/smg-at-home/index.html) is a fun resource to provide financial manage-ment practice before using real money.

create a simple budget at http://www .betterbudgeting.com/budgetformsfree -basicbudgeting.htm, to enhance your teen’s understanding of personal finances.

recommendedresources

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Forming healthy relationships requires good judgment and

discernment.

© BrAnDX picTureS

REmEmbER to support homeschooling while you shop! Visit hslda.org/clicks4hs before you purchase resources online.

36 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

PHC moot court team wins national

championshipby Chelsea rankin

Patrick Henry College won its fifth consecutive national championship

at this year’s American Collegiate Moot Court Association (ACMA) tournament. In the final round, Andrew Ferguson, a senior, and Katie Tipton, a sophomore, defeated a team from the College of Wooster to win the champion-ship for PHC.

“Winning a national championship is not an individual effort,” Ferguson said. “It takes a hardworking partner, a supportive team, excellent coaches, and

most of all, the blessing of a gracious God. Without any of these, winning is an impossibility.”

By winning this year’s championship, Ferguson became only the second competitor in ACMA his-tory to win back-to-back championships—he and his then partner J.C. Cartee defeated the College of New Jersey in 2012. The only other competitor to duplicate this feat was PHC’s Rachel Heflin, who won two championships in 2009 and 2010.

Despite competition at the American Collegiate Moot Court Association

being stiffer than ever before, moot court coaches Dr. Michael Farris and Dr. Frank Guliuzza were confident PHC teams were

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ORAL ARGUmENT

2013 national champions:• Andrew Ferguson and

Katie Tipton

Semifinalists (third place):• James compton and

Samuel Johnson• Kayla griesemer and

J.c. cartee

The “Sweet Sixteen” (ninth place):• James nelson and

John ehrett

The top 32:• cameron etchart and

Sam cordle• Blake meadows and

© phc / ArT coX

FINAL RESULTS FOR PHC STUDENTS

PHC sophomore Katie Tipton and senior Andrew Ferguson, winners of the 2013 ACmA tournament.

Spring 2013 • The home School courT reporT 37

applies to all of us: always say please and thank you, even to those under you; always be on time; always keep your promises; and always finish what you start, unless it would be sinful to do so.

To all the 2013 graduates reading this article, congratulations from all of us at HSLDA. This is certainly a joyful time! We should feel a great deal of satisfac-tion (with humility) and enjoy a hearty celebration.

I have said many times and still believe that homeschool moms (and dads) are among America’s greatest heroes—and so are homeschool graduates. God bless our graduates, their parents, and the home-school movement. n

ADVerTiSer’S inDeX{ }Advertising with us

Contact: Call Advertising at 540-338-8605, visit www.hslda.org/ads, or email ads@hslda.org.

Disclaimer: The appearance of advertise-ments in the Court Report does not imply recommendation or endorsement by Home School Legal Defense Association, and the opinions expressed by advertis-ers do not necessarily reflect the views of HSLDA. Use of any information, product, or service herein advertised is volun-tary, and reliance upon it should only be undertaken after independent review.

Advertisers in this issueAlpha Omega Publications ................... 6Apologia Educational Ministries .....2, 20 Greek ’n’ Stuff .......................................33HSLDA Resources .......................... 28, 36HSLDA’s Generation Joshua ................23HSLDA’s Home School Heartbeat .........33Math-U-See .......................................... 39Patrick Henry College ......................17, 33 Patrick Henry College Preparatory Academy ................................................19Rosetta Stone ...................................... 40Samaritan Ministries ............................27TellMeMore ............................................ 5

equipped to excel at the national tourna-ment.

“I just hope that people understand that winning is not automatic,” Farris said. “We have to work very hard every year and are fac-ing increasingly challenging opponents, including the second-place team from Wooster. The Air Force Academy team was also an excellent team. We are grate-ful to be able to do well and get such qual-ity opponents.”

According to Dr. Guliuzza, about 300 teams competed in nine national qualifying tournaments for the bids to the national championship tourna-ment at Regent University Law School in Virginia Beach. After regionals, over 75% of all the teams were eliminated, creating the field for the championship tournament. Schools that qualified teams for the championship included Duke, Texas A&M, the United States Air Force Academy, the University of Virginia, and the always powerful College of Wooster (a past national champion, and three-time

national runner-up). PHC has now won seven national tournaments and is the five-time defending national champion.

“The Lord was so gracious to allow me and Andrew to capture what everyone on Patrick Henry’s moot court team has worked for over the past six months,” Tipton said. “This was only possible because of hours with Drs. Guliuzza and Farris and practicing with the best teams in the country. What an honor to help give Andrew a second title and to preserve PHC’s streak.” n

Chelsea Rankin graduated this year with a degree in journalism from Patrick Henry College. Excerpted from an article originally published on www.phc.edu, January 22, 2013.

ORAL ARGUmENT

2013 national champions:• Andrew Ferguson and

Katie Tipton

Semifinalists (third place):• James compton and

Samuel Johnson• Kayla griesemer and

J.c. cartee

The “Sweet Sixteen” (ninth place):• James nelson and

John ehrett

The top 32:• cameron etchart and

Sam cordle• Blake meadows and

Ben Williamson• lauren Fischer and

ruan meintjes• claire rossell and

elizabeth ertle

OUTSTANDING INDIVIDUAL orAtorS (top 10)

Fourth place:• Samuel Johnson Sixth place:• J.c. cartee

Tenth place:• Sam cordle

Brief-Writing nAtionAL CHAmPIONSHIP

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Third place:• Blake meadows and

Ben Williamson

Fourth place:• Andrew Ferguson and

Katie Tipton

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Fourth place:• Kayla griesemer

and J.c. cartee

Fifth place:• Samuel Johnson and

James compton

FINAL RESULTS FOR PHC STUDENTS

i hope that people under- stand that winning

is not automatic. We have to work very hard every year.

>> continued from page 38

38 The home School courT reporT • Spring 2013

Graduation timeby Mike smith

Graduation season is truly a time for celebration. One of the greatest

privileges of being in leadership at HSLDA is the opportunity to give homeschool graduation addresses. State organizations often hold their graduations in conjunc-tion with their state conference. But, as homeschooling has grown, many larger support groups are now holding their own graduations, so I get many more invita-tions to speak these days!

There are several things that make a homeschool graduation special. Although growing in size, the number of graduates per year tends to be smaller than that of the typical public or private school graduation, which gives home-schoolers’ graduation ceremonies room for flexibility and creativity. At a recent graduation I attended, each graduate prepared a short video of his or her life to share with the audience. It gave us a peek into the students’ personalities, backgrounds, and future goals.

At most homeschool ceremonies, par-ents hand the diploma to their child. This is doubly meaningful: as parents greet their children and present the diplomas, they feel more than just relief that high school is over—parents take satisfaction in having played a major role in their child’s education and preparation for life. And students feel a huge sense of accomplishment for taking individual responsibility for a part of their educa-tion. These unique dynamics only occur at homeschool graduations. (And of course, one benefit of homeschooling I like to emphasize is that each graduate is the valedictorian of their class!)

Whether or not these graduates remember their commencement address

20 years from now, I try to share what’s truly important, from my perspective, for a graduate’s life. There are two goals that I believe every graduate should set: First, that when our time is up here, we spend eternity with God. Second, while we are here, we seek to make a difference for God. Accomplishing these goals requires faith—both saving faith and living faith.

The way to saving faith can be summed up by Ephesians 2:8–9: “For by grace you have been saved through faith [in Jesus

Christ], and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.”

Living faith is explained in Hebrews 11:6: “But without faith it is impossible to please God. For he that comes to God must believe that He is, and He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him.”

The bottom line for faithful living is to fear God. Robert Griffin III, a quar-terback for the Washington Redskins, was recently asked if he feared getting

hurt. His response was, “I try not to fear anything except God.” That’s a good goal for all of us. This type of fear is not being afraid of God but having the proper rev-erence for God.

Hebrews 11 mentions Joseph and David, two heroes of the faith with traits worth emulating. Joseph exhibits the value of forgiveness and perseverance. He may have been tempted to embrace bitterness and despair because of his enslavement and imprisonment. But he did not hold grudges, rising above every bad circumstance and providing the opportunity for God to supernaturally bless his life. To maximize our potential in living the faith-filled life, we also need to view difficulties as opportunities for growth.

David, despite being only a shepherd boy, the youngest of his siblings, and very small compared to Goliath, was the

only one in Israel brave enough to bring the Philistine giant down. Our ability to achieve does not have to be limited by our intelligence, looks, personality, ability to speak, or our station in life. God delights in using the apparent weak things to con-found the strong and the foolish things to confound the wise. His strength is perfected in us through our weakness. So, I encourage graduates not to let anything keep them from trying things, especially the things that seem impossible, as we can do all things through Christ.

I close my commencement address by giving the graduates four practical tips to success in any endeavor—advice that

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J. michael Smith, President of Home School Legal Defense Association

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