What are the benefits of HUG? Families, fellowship, new ideas, and a sense of community. Doing more together than you can by yourself. Book swapping, nurture groups, 4-H, classes, gym days, enrichment activities, community service projects, fun field trips, and you! (and so much more).  Activities depend on leadership and membership involvement from year to year. How do I join HUG? First, you have to a be a home school family or if your children are younger than compulsory age (6) then you need to have an intent to home school. Secondly, you have to fill out a membership form and agree and sign the statement of faith. Next, attend the meetings and tap into the resources available and be a contributor where your skills fit. For more information see the contact page and email the new members representative by filling out the form on the getting started page. When does HUG meet regularly? Support Meetings: The third Thursdays of the month from October through May (Except December) Gym Days: 1st and 3rd Fridays of the month from October through May. Nurture Groups: Once or twice a month What topics are covered and how long do the meetings last? Some past subjects are: High school transcripts, math curricula, nature studies, home organization, notification, and many other topics. The meetings start at 7:15 PM and run about one to two hours and the whole family is invited. What is the history of HUG? HUG as a support group has been around for 20 years (early 80's). It was started by a homeschool family in Centerville, Ohio. It started out the first three years as the Centerville Home School Group only having three families in the first year, by the mid 90's it had over 50 families and membership with families all over the Miami Valley.  Today, the group has gone through 9 presidents and hundreds of families have learned to homeschool. E-mail the webmaster for a more detailed history.

Is home education legal? Yes. It is legal in all 50 US states. Ohio is considered a moderately regulated state. Over 2 million families are educating their children at home across the US. (the growth rate is about 7% a year). See the downloads area for the regulations in Ohio. In Ohio, about 65,000 children are home educated with about 5000 children in Montgomery County alone. What about socialization? Are you implying that parents do not have any social skills to teach their children? It depends on what you mean by socialization. If you mean learning to interact with people of all ages (integrated rather than segregated) then home schoolers fair very well. The home education community tends to over-socialize rather than under. What about curriculum? The sky is the limit. You can be structured and follow a rigid set of instruction books. You can do unit studies to supplement. You can find internet sites to create your own curriculum. You can do distance learning with online teachers. You can attend community college or buy videos to supplement hard to teach subjects. The approaches are varied and different as your children and their needs. Another advantage to home education is that you can customize the curriculum as you see fit. What about online charter schools? Technically, a charter school is still a public school constrained with a different set of regulation. Charter schools get funding the same way that regular public schools get funding from taxes.  Homeschoolers are opposed to a socialized form of education and being regulated on the content. The underlying issue with online charter schools is about money and control and the loss of parental freedoms that homeschoolers have worked hard to achieve.  Having stated the above, most homeschoolers are FOR educational choice (pdf file link). See the CHEO website for more information and a more official position on online charter schools or our downloads section. Am I qualified to be a teacher? As a parent, teaching your children is very natural. You've taught them to talk, tie their shoes, read, and many other items. So why not teach them all subjects? Perhaps you are not confident, then the answer may starting with yourself as you teach your children. There are always opportunities to co-op many subjects that you can not teach like music, math, or chemistry etc. or you can register for on-line distance learning at a college. It is mostly about being committed and being resourceful. Oh yeah, teacher certification or education has no bearing on the scores of children, but parental involvement makes a huge impact! There is no better teacher than a loving parent who gives their time. Does home education work? The statistics suggest that home education works. On average home education students score thirty points more than public school students on standardized testing. Why the large gap in test scores? The real answer is why does it matter. The most important result of home education is that parents are forming close relationships with their children and keeping their hearts and minds. The scores and learning are simply a positive byproduct. See the NERI website for research studies and more information on the facts and figures or review our downloads section. How do I get started? First, you need to have dedicated time and be committed. Secondly, you need to be resourceful.   As far as legally in Ohio, you need to notify the state of your intent to home school and fill out a form to provide notice, not asking for permission, while meeting the minimum requirements (most people try to maximize!). Thirdly, you need to educate yourself on the options available. There are books, magazines, support groups, organizations, conferences, and book fairs that will help you gain that education. Join a local support group and fill in any missing gaps. Lastly, have fun and work with your spouse to guide and shepherd your child's heart. What approach to education should I use? No matter what the approach you choice, the approach that works for your family is the best one but read Deut 6.  Since the choice is very personal, do not try to be like another family unless God has directed your family in that direction.  There are primarily six major teaching approaches (philosophy of education) in home education. The six teaching approaches are divided into two major categories. Traditional (schooling at home) and non-traditional (one of the other approaches). Some parents teach a mixture of two or three of these styles.  Here is an link that explains in brief some approaches to philosophy of education. (pdf file link)