In the four years she's been home schooling, Miranda Warrick said she's found there are lots of ways children learn. Learning what works for her four boys has been interesting, she said.
"My oldest, he loves working with his hands," Warrick, a Chickamauga, Georgia, resident, said. "And he doesn't like to sit and do work, like bookwork. But he loves to go out and work with his dad in the garage."
Another of her sons likes to sit and do workbook work, she said.
Set for Saturday, Warrick has organized a seminar to offer information to parents interested in home schooling - as well as give home-schooling parents an opportunity for support and community. The seminar will be at First Baptist Church of Chickamauga, 603 W. 7th St., from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. There will be several speakers, including blogger Jennifer Kish. Lunch will be served.
"There's been a lot of talk about home schooling since COVID and our society and all that, so I thought this (conference) would be a great opportunity to let our local community know what resources there are available for them in our own community," Warrick said.
(READ MORE: Chattanooga homeschool families discuss changes to community amid pandemic)
Specifically, Warrick said many parents she knows have concerns about what's being taught in schools, religious freedoms and how they want their child to be educated.
Resources are available for parents who home-school, Warrick said, including co-ops where students can get that "collaborative learning" classroom environment for subjects like science, history, art and math. There are also opportunities for students to gather just to have fun.
Some parents don't know that in Georgia, home-schooled students can still participate in many public school activities, including high school sports.
Mindy Giles is the director of the Catoosa Homeschool Co-op. Started in 2002, she said her organization includes about 90 families, educating 180 or 190 children.
Home schooling has become more mainstream since her organization began, Giles said, and has recently attracted families beyond the Christian community.
"It's branched out to more families doing it because it's what works best for their families," she said, not just for religious reasons.
Giles said her co-op focuses on the sciences but also teaches history and writing. At the high school level, her organization also teaches advanced math because that's one of several subjects that can be "challenging" for parents, she said.
Though it's a cooperative, Giles said parents are charged for enrollment. The co-op is cheaper than a lot of other programs in the area because parents are asked to help teach, as well as oversee lunch and recess. Most of the other area home-schooling programs have a more "drop-off" approach, Giles said, which works better for some parents.
For parents wanting to learn more about what's available in this area, Giles recommended visiting the website of the Chattanooga Southeast Tennessee Home Education Association or the Georgia Home Education Association. The organization has a curriculum fair at Camp Jordan in July that offers parents options for how they home school, she said.
Georgia is a great state for home schooling, Giles said, because there's not a lot of requirements for parents. Since her co-op started, she said state legislators have rolled back regulations on home schooling - including making it easier for parents to home school without partnering with an organization. Tennessee has more "hoops to jump through" for parents, Giles said.
Warrick said home schooling can be isolating for parents, so the seminar is a good chance for parents to get together and support each other. Home schooling was always what she wanted for her children, and she said the seminar will also be informative, to encourage other parents who want to learn more.
Contact Andrew Wilkins at awilkins@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6659. Follow him on Twitter @tweetatwilkins.