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March 4 Capitol Day
 Last chance to register TOMORROW!
The 81st Texas Legislature is in full swing. Home schoolers should be prepared to participate and protect their freedoms! THSC Association's Capitol Days are a great way to learn about the legislative process and to have an impact at the same time.
Attendees will receive interactive training about how the legislative process works and how grassroots lobbyists make a difference. Tim Lambert, THSC Association president, will educate attendees about a current issue of concern to Texas home schoolers, which will be the topic of discussion during the afternoon as attendees visit legislators. Armed with information packets to deliver, attendees will split into teams and take the Capitol by storm, visiting every legislative office!
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Our Sponsor His Hill Bible School
Trying to decide what to do after graduation? Consider His Hill Bible School, a one year Bible program for college-age students in the Texas Hill Country. Through 23 hours of in-depth study per week, your student will have the opportunity to develop a foundation for life, as Christ is revealed through Scripture to be the center and source of all that we do.
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THSC's 2009 Leader of the Year
Nominate Your Leader(s)!
 The best leaders are those who walk beside you and encourage you in the direction you should go, in such a way that you take no notice of the difficult journey. These leaders lay strong foundations to grow on, make smooth paths out of obstacles and complaints, and do so without thought of recognition or reward. These great group leaders are friends scattered all over this great state who willingly give their time and talents to encourage and serve home school families.
To show appreciation and honor to these support group leaders, the Texas Home School Coalition (THSC) has sponsored Home School Leader Appreciation Week in Texas for the last several years.In conjunction with that week, THSC has presented the coveted Home School Leader of the Year award to outstanding leaders. This award is based on testimonies by appreciative members of their groups.
Now is the time to honor your leader(s) by taking just a few minutes to nominate them for THSC 2009 Leader of the Year. The support group leader/couple who is chosen will be invited to and honored at our annual Awards Banquet April 24, 2009, in Austin.
Get your nominations in early. The deadline is March 20.
Show all of your leaders how much they mean to you by ordering a certificate of appreciation for each of them. These certificates are free, courtesy of THSC!
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Home Schooler Sports Bill Advances in Utah
 A bill that would allow home schoolers to play sports in public schools passed in a 4-2 committee vote in the Utah Legislature. SB61 would permit the students to participate in sports and other extracurricular activities in the schools in their districts. The bill would require home schooled students to prove academic eligibility by submitting an affidavit signed by their instructor, stating they are doing well. A similar bill was introduced last year; it passed the Senate but not the House.
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Speech and Debate Judges Needed in San Antonio Tourney
Community judges are needed for a high school regional speech and debate tournament, March 11-14, at Parkhills Baptist Church in San Antonio. Approximately 100 judges per day are needed for half-day or full-day sessions. No previous judging experience is necessary; training will be provided prior to each round. Students will compete to qualify for the NCFCA national finals.
A typical debate round will take about two hours, and a speech round takes about one hour. The schedule allows for judges' orientation and scoring, so judges should plan about four hours or a half day to judge one debate round and one speech round.
More questions? Contact Susan Macias, (830) 980-8096, or Anthony Pradia, 210-977-5609, for details.
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Our Sponsor
World Math Day
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Get a FREE Unit Study on Texas History!
March is Texas History Month!
 Thanks to Discover Texas, the Texas Home School Coalition is able to make available to our E-newsletter readers two great unit studies, just in time for Texas History Month! These free studies cover Statehood and Constitution and Texas Independence. Also check out the Word document, Introductory Texas History Unit Study.
Discover Texas is a history, geography, and government curriculum written by Lynn Dean, a home school mom from the Waco area. Written from a Christian worldview, it enables the entire family to learn together, with everyone working at his own level and on his own interests. Using real books and real experiences makes this a course of discovery, as opposed to "reading the chapter and answering the questions."
If your family benefits from using these excerpts from the Discover Texas curriculum, you can order the full ten-volume program for $99.95. (Click on the graphic for more information about the curriculum.) However, THSC Association members can receive a $15 discount on this program. This is just one of many benefits of membership.
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We Have a Winner!
 Congratulations to the winner of the "Who Said This?" contest in the February 2009 REVIEW, Jennifer Brooks of Robstown. She will receive a "Free in Texas" T-shirt.
Jennifer correctly identified Newt Gingrich as the one who said, "Perseverance is the hard work you do after you get tired of doing the hard work you already did."
We appreciate the readers of the THSC REVIEW who sent their guesses and hope that the REVIEW is a blessing. Be watching for the next quotation question-you could be the next winner!
Don't miss out!
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Explore the World - At Home and Abroad!
Expand your horizons this summer!
 Explore the world by participating in a homestay program this summer. Develop new friendships and share cultures, customs, and heritages. Open your heart and home to a delegate from Japan, or allow your teenager to travel to Japan for a month-long homestay. The homestays are sponsored by Texas Global Education and Cultural Exchange (TGE) and their partner organizations in Japan. Opportunities to travel to Australia or Greece are also available!
A teen who participated in 2008 describes her month-long adventure. "My homestay in Japan was AMAZING! I don't even think that describes it enough. It was the best summer of my life."
Plan an amazing summer for your child(ren) by applying to be a host family or by encouraging your teen to apply for a homestay in Japan, Greece, or Australia. Deadline for submitting the application is March 1, 2009.
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Lewisville ISD Requires Unnecessary Forms
When a member family from Lewisville withdrew their son in order to homeschool him, an official from Shadow Ridge Middle School called and told them they needed to go to the school and complete withdrawal forms. The family contacted THSC, and Tim Lambert wrote to the school official to inform her of the state's requirements for withdrawing a child to homeschool him.
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Articles and advertisements in THSC's weekly E-Newsletter are included because of their potential interest to the home school community of Texas. Inclusion does not signify an endorsement. We encourage parents to practice due diligence before participating in any program. THSC is not responsible for any material or ads that may be encountered when clicking on links that take the reader away from the THSC website. |
:: staff@thsc.org
:: http://www.thsc.org
:: 806-744-4441
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Home School Speech and Debate
Three years ago brought a bit of a turning point for the Singleton household, when a new speech and debate club was starting in our area. I had heard about the National Homeschool Speech and Debate League (now National Christian Forensics and Communications Association-NCFCA) but honestly felt that it was something only available to those other home schoolers. You know what I mean--those on a more academic track than we had chosen in the past, the families that appear on the cover of home schooling magazines, wear matching outfits, have perfect haircuts, and study at the kitchen table in dust-free homes with fresh-cut-flower centerpieces ... homes that have never seen dirty dishes or piles of laundry and would never resort to frozen lasagna for dinner.
Still, we attended the general informational meeting. As a parent, what I heard intrigued me. Through competitive speech and debate my students could learn logic, analytical reasoning, critical thinking, teamwork, and interpersonal skills and have a broadened life experience. It is about more than just trophies and competition. Home school speech and debate is about being effective, godly communicators capable of bringing about change in the world around us. Who would not sign up for that?!
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Creationist Evidence Museum - Fun for Kids
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IRS Small Business Resource Guide
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Want to Reach Texas Home
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Find out how to advertise.
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