Not Back to School 2022
September 13–16
Yellow = kid activities; Salmon = parent education. Scroll down for detailed descriptions and Zoom link.
| TUESDAY | WEDNESDAY | THURSDAY | FRIDAY | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 – 9:50 | Welcome Chat |
|||
| 10 – 10:50 | Party Games |
Getting Students Writing |
Making Plastics from Milk |
|
| 11 – 11:50 | Homeschooling High School |
What's a Cat, Really? |
Annual Assessments |
|
| 12 – 12:50 | Lunch Break |
science continued and... |
Lunch Break |
|
| 1 – 1:50 | NBTS Park Day |
Community Programs Q&A |
Drawing: Simple Shading |
Outrageously Rich Brownies |
| 2 – 2:50 | Stories in Paint: Art Appreciation |
Internet Safety |
Parent Partnerships Q&A |
|
| 3 – 3:50 | Chess Tournament |
Teen/Tween Book Talk |
Lapels, T-Pins, and Buttons, Oh My! Color, Shape, and Costume Design |
|
| 4 – 4:50 | Wrap-Up Chat |
Connect to the NBTS Zoom.
Meeting ID: 811 7096 3095
Passcode: 580062
Tuesday (in person)
NBTS Park Day
Wallingford Playfield
4219 Wallingford Ave N.
Seattle, WA 98103
Come celebrate Not Back to School with SHG! We have planned a fun afternoon full of events!
Discover Seattle-area classes, instructors, schools, retailers, and more at the Resource Table
Bring your old instructional materials and/or pick up some new ones at the Curriculum Swap and Sale
Join us for a group photo around 2:30 pm
Play field games like ladder ball and bocce ball
Chat with other parents at the Tea Lounge
Wednesday (online)
Wednesday Zoom Host: Sara Cammeresi
Welcome Chat
Time: 9:00–9:50
Host: Sara Cammeresi (SHG NBTS Committee)
Target Audience: Everyone!
Description: Bring your coffee! Bring your tea! Bring your breakfast! Bring your cat! Ask your questions about Not Back to School, SHG, homeschooling, or just come and say hello!
Party Games
Time: 10:00–10:50
Host: Seattle Flying Squad teens
Flying Squad is small drop-off group for ages 12+ that meets Monday and Wednesday afternoons at a variety of outdoor locations for exploration and open ended fun. The group experiments with how to make collective decisions and how to exist as a community where each individual is valued exactly as they are.
Target Audience: Especially fun for teens. All ages welcome.
Description: Join members of Flying Squad and play some fun online party games like Jackbox, scribbl.io, and Gartic phone. The first 10 or 15 minutes as people are arriving will be a Q&A about Flying Squad.
Homeschooling High School Q & A
Time: 11:00–11:50
Host: Linda Love Gorordo (Love HS to College) brings real-world knowledge and experience into the educational consulting field. When her children were younger, she wrote a successful $500,000 grant for their elementary school, and was hired as a consultant for a magnet program at the school they attended after moving to Washington state. When her children were 5th, 4th and 1st grades, they began homeschooling. Over the subsequent years, she has gained expertise on various forms of school choice, alternative schooling, hybrid schooling, dual enrollment and how all of those things, along with homeschooling can be combined for a successful high school education and college application. Her older children, now 24 and 22 have graduated from prestigious universities, while her youngest, at 20, is finishing his sophomore year at Carleton College in Minnesota. All have followed a non-traditional educational path to university acceptance.
For the past 6 years, Linda has supported all types of families in Western Washington as they explore and choose both traditional and non-traditional paths for high school and college.
Target Audience: Homeschooling and homeschool-curious parents
Description: Longtime SHG friend and educational consultant Linda Love Gorordo will share her knowledge and answer your questions about homeschooling at the high school level. If you want a little background preview, check out these videos Linda recorded for WHO: How to Homeschool High School and The Mystery of College in High School.
For more on homeschooling high school, plus preparing transcripts and documents, and applying for college and financial aid, see Linda’s schedule of Zoom workshops this fall.
LUNCH BREAK
Time: 12:00–12:50
Community Programs Q&A
Time: 1:00–1:50
Host: Family Learning Program (FLP) and Loyal Heights Homeschool (LHH)
Target Audience: Homeschooling and homeschool-curious parents
Description: Join homeschooling parents Carol Chin (FLP) and Joan Chen (LHH) for a discussion of their parent-run homeschool programs.
The Family Learning Program was founded by a group of parents with a vision of a gathering place in which homeschoolers of all philosophies could connect, take classes and share in open-ended activities. Their vision and planning led to a partnership with Seattle Parks & Recreation’s Southwest Teen Life Center, offering classes and community to 20 homeschooling families when it launched in the winter of 2011. Our program is now a thriving hub for more than 70 homeschooling families in Seattle and beyond and continues to evolve. More than just a place for homeschooled kids to take classes, FLP’s multi-dimensional and multi-generational environment offers opportunities for the whole family.
Loyal Heights Homeschool Program (LHH) is a secular community of homeschooling families who gather each Wednesday at the Loyal Heights Community Center in Seattle for classes and free play. We meet from September to June and offer a chance for families to play and connect with other homeschoolers.
LHH is led by a committee of parent volunteers who develop the class schedule and organize events for the families of the LHH community. We partner with the Seattle Parks and Recreation Department who helps administer our program by hosting the registration system and providing the location for our classes. Classes run on a quarterly schedule in the fall, winter and spring. Each quarter is approximately 10 weeks long.
The LHH program provides a sense of community among homeschooling families as we gather each week to attend classes, play, and enjoy each other’s company. However, you do not need to be registered for classes to join us. You are welcome to come any Wednesday we are in session to meet and play with other homeschool families. Please let us know you are coming so that we can meet you and show you around.
Stories in Paint: Art Appreciation for Children
Time: 2:00–2:50
Host: Luc Travers is the author of the recently published art book, Stories in Paint: 50 Moving Artworks from American Museums. He is also the founder of LiteratureAtOurHouse.com which provides live, online classes in literature and art appreciation for students 1st—12th grade. You can learn more about his books and his art museum tours at TouchingTheArt.com.
Target Audience: Ages 6–12
Description: We'll be experiencing a few artworks together and discovering the story in them. I'll also share four tips for making an art museum visit more fun and meaningful.
Chess Tournament
Time: 3:00–3:50
Host: SHG Chess Club, organized by Kristin Ekanger Lo Conte (she/her)
Target Audience: 5-18 year olds who know how to play chess. All skill levels welcome.
Before the Event: Register your kid for an account at lichess.org. Then go to SHG Chess Club (on lichess.org) and click the green Join Team button. Use “chessisfun” as the team entry code. You may also want to go to preferences and put their account into Kid Mode. If you need help with setup, please email Kristin at SHGChessClub@gmail.com.
Description: The NBTS Chess Tournament will be a swiss style tournament with five rounds. Each player will have five minutes on the clock in each round, which means that each round will take about 10 minutes. At the end of the tournament, kids are welcome to stick around to talk, challenge each other to more chess, or work on chess puzzles together.
SHG Chess Club is brand new and open to all kids. For now, we'll have weekly online drop-in tournaments (similar to what FLP Chess used to offer) and may later expand to meeting in person and possibly getting a chess coach to help our players improve. Kristin Ekanger Lo Conte (she/her) is coordinating and wants to make it work for your family, so please reach out to her at SHGChessClub@gmail.com if you have ideas or want to be included on chess club emails!
Thursday (online)
Thursday Zoom Host: Heidi Andress
Getting Students Writing: How to Support Twice Exceptional Students and Other Reluctant Writers
Time: 10:00–10:50
Host: Austina De Bonte is a consultant, speaker, coach, and advocate for gifted and twice exceptional students with Smart is not Easy (smartisnoteasy.com). She is President of the WA Coalition for Gifted Education (wacoalition.com), Past President of NW Gifted Child Association (nwgca.org), President of the Northshore HiCap Parents Council (hcparents.org), and Advisor to The G Word documentary (thegwordfilm.com). A dynamic and engaging presenter, Austina speaks regularly at conferences, as well as conducts parent education talks and professional development workshops for educators about the unique social and emotional development of highly capable (HiCap) or “gifted” children. She also works with school district teams to develop and fine-tune their HiCap program models, especially concerning equitable identification strategies. Her signature style combines her experience as a student, parent, and family consultant along with synthesized research, current district practices across Washington State, and cutting edge neuroscience. She specializes in helping families get to the root cause of their kids’ challenges, looking beyond the usual suspects. Austina received the "People to Watch" Award from Variations 2e magazine in 2020, and has won 3 Outstanding Advocate awards from the PTA. She has a Masters degree from MIT and is a doctoral student at Bridges Graduate School. Contact Austina at austina@smartisnoteasy.com
Target Audience: Homeschooling and homeschool-curious parents
Description: One of the most challenging academic areas for twice exceptional students (and many others) is writing. Learn the four root causes of writing challenges, how to identify what’s going on, and how to support each one. This session synthesizes methods used by Bridges Academy as well as private tutors, and is full of practical tips and techniques.
What is a Cat, Really?
Time: 11:00–11:50
Host: Brandon Hendrickson (Science is Weird) helps kids fall in love with the world. He’s a homeschooling dad who works with homeschooling families — and got his start teaching SHG teens!
He currently runs “Science is WEIRD”, an outfit that seeks to help kids (and especially 2e kids) fall in love with the sciences, but he’s also been an classroom teacher and curriculum architect at a startup Montessori-inspired school in Bellevue. Before that, he and his wife ran a homeschooling enrichment program in Kirkland that taught elementary kids history, philosophy, and cooking. In all this, he’s worked with the knowledge that the world is fascinating, and that kids are more clever than is commonly assumed.
He has bachelor’s degrees in world religions and history, and a master’s in educational theory from the University of Washington.
Target Audience: Kids, ages 8–13
Description: Cats truly are weird — fluffy, fangy, ten-pound super-predators. Somehow, they’re the dictionary definitions of both “cute” and “killer”. But what is a cat, really?
LUNCH BREAK
Time: 12:00–12:50
Bring Your Drawings to Life with Some Simple Shading!
Time: 1:00–1:50
Host: Leanne Markle (she/her/they/them) Leanne Markle Illustration, @leannemarkle on Instagram
“Hi! My name is Leanne Markle. I'm a self-taught artist, illustrator, and creative entrepreneur with a UI/UX design background. I love to draw! I enjoy exploring different media, playing with art, and sharing what I've learned with others! Practice is progress, and I believe art is a lifelong practice that forever grows and evolves.”
Target Audience: 8–99
Before the Event:
GATHER MATERIALS
watercolor paper
regular paper
HB pencil
permanent pen
alcohol markers
Description: Ever feel like you want to add some more life to your drawings? I'll show you some simple shading basics that can help you bring more depth and life to your illustrations and drawings. This class will not be focusing on realism but rather on illustration and/or stylized drawings. I will show you my technique using pencils, pens, and alcohol markers. For this class, we will draw two simple drawings, one we will shade using a pencil, and the other I will show how I use this technique with my alcohol markers.
Internet Safety
Time: 2:00–2:50
Host: Jo Langford (beheroes.net)
”I am a dad, a Master's-level therapist and sex educator for tweens, teens and parents in Seattle, Washington. For the last 20 years, I have worked in that intersection of adolescence, technology and sexuality.
I speak internationally using information, education and humor to help parents and professionals increase their knowledge and self-confidence as a proactive defense against the unfortunate consequences that sometimes accompany teen sexuality, screen behavior and development.
I provde training for organizations and agencies as well as therapy to adolescents and families around a gambit of sexuality themes - with an emphasis on LGBT issues, Internet safety, digital citizenship and comprehensive sex education.
I am the author of the Spare Me, "The Talk", series - guides to sex relationships and growing up for modern teens and their parents. My lastest book, The Pride Guide, is an encompassing guide to sexual and social and development, safety and health for queer youth and their families. This book is - proudly- the first puberty book written with queer (and specifically trans) youth in mind.”
Target Audience: Parents
Description: Coming soon!
Teen & Tweens New and Notable Book Talk
Time: 3:00–3:50
Host: Nic Figley (they/them) Seattle Public Libraries Capitol Hill Teen Librarian
Target Audience: Teens/Tweens and their Parents
”I've worked in libraries throughout my life and been involved in activism just as long. My personal passion is art and culture, current and historical. I believe the library can be the hub of our communities and to do so we must strive towards equitable policy by listening to the voices in our communities. We encourage diversity in our collections, our staff, our patrons but we must practice anti-racism to create a safe space in order to cement long term change.
I'm very passionate about the inclusion of teens in the library so as to create life-long learners and library users. Including the whole family from every age will make a more rounded patronage to champion us in return. I advocate for better systems with a focus on how disability intersects with technology. Libraries are here to help make the future scientists, health care workers, social workers, teachers, and passionate readers.
I am highly interested in placing myself where I can connect to communities, inspire through education, further STREAM endeavors, and advance social justice particularly with marginalized communities. I want to be the example that encourages others to push for change.”
Description: Come hear Nic Figley, Capitol Hill Teen Librarian Extraordinaire, talk about all kinds of new and notable books!
Friday (online)
Friday Zoom Host: Megan Riggs
Making Plastics from Milk
Time: 10:00–10:50
Host: Husky at Home Science
Husky at Home Science (HAHS) was founded in 2021 by University of Washington Chemistry Professor Matthew R. Golder and his research team. It provides a low-barrier opportunity for homeschool children to engage in hands-on experiments with real life scientists!
“HAHS is 100% no-cost program (funded by the National Science Foundation) aimed at bringing the joys of science to families with home schooled children. Our mission is to virtually enrich children (approximately ages 8+) with experiences and conversations through live hands-on chemistry experiments (everything is safe for "at home use") and discussions with real chemists at UW.”
UW graduate students Matt Elardo and Morgan Skala will be leading the demonstration and scientific discussion.
Target Audience: Kids, ages 8–12 (flexible)
Before the Event:
GATHER MATERIALS
11⁄3 cup of dairy milk
4 teaspoons (tsp) of vinegar
Paper towels
2 heat-safe cups
Spoon or fork
Optional: pan to heat milk on the stove Optional: food coloring
Milk Plastic Background
Milk Plastic Procedure
Description: Milk plastic, also known as casein plastic, has been around since the early 1900s. It was used to create objects such as buttons and small jewelry pieces.
In this chemistry experiment we will be creating our own milk plastic and learning about the polymers that makes it possible!
Annual Assessments
Time: 11:00–11:50
Host: Family Learning Organization
Target Audience: Homeschooling and homeschool-curious parents
Description: Family Learning Organization has been providing testing and assessments for homeschool families for over 30 years. Founded by a homeschool pioneer, our mission is to provide information, resources, and assist families in Washington State and across the nation by providing testing and assessment services. We offer a number of testing options and a Non-Test Assessment option.
LUNCH BREAK
Time: 12:00–12:50
Outrageously Rich Brownies
Time: 1:00–1:50
Host: Megan Riggs (SHG NBTS Committee and avid home cook!)
Target Audience: Kids and their Parents
Before the Event:
GATHER INGREDIENTS
1 cup unsalted butter* (2 sticks) (save your butter wrappers!)
1 cup packed dark brown sugar**
1 cup granulated white sugar
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour***
4 eggs****
3/4 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 teaspoons (tsp) vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
Oil or spray oil if your butter does not come in wrappers (or if you just prefer it)
*If you only have salted butter, that’s fine! Just omit (leave out) the salt in the ingredients list.
**If you only have granulated white sugar, that’s fine! Just sub 1 cup white sugar for the brown sugar.
***Make it gluten-free with a GF AP flour.
****Make this recipe vegan with coconut oil or margarine instead of butter and applesauce instead of eggs.
Megan's Outrageously Rich Brownies Recipe
Description: Join Megan to make some outrageously rich brownies! This recipe can be made vegan and gluten free, so it can work for anyone who likes chocolate.We will have time to gather ingredients and supplies at the beginning of class, but it’s easiest to have things already out. Can’t wait to bake with you!
Parent Partnership Programs Q&A
Time: 2:00–2:50
Hosts:
Seattle Cascade Parent Partnership represented by parents Noelle Remington and Kristin Ekanger Lo Conte (she/her)
Edmonds Heights K-12 represented by parent Tracy Banaszynski (she/her) and parent and Equity Team Member Joy MacTavish (she/her)
Renton H.O.M.E. Program represented by teacher and parent Kristie Walker (she/they) and PTA President and parent Colin Walker (he/him)
Northshore Family Partnership represented by former PTO President and current parent Julia Wales (she/her) and ALE Coordinator Leslie Connor
Monroe Sky Valley Education Center represented by outdoor education teacher and parent Natasha Zimmers (she/her)
Target Audience: Homeschooling and homeschool-curious parents
Description: Join parents, teachers, and administrators for an introduction to local school district Parent Partnership Programs/Alternative Learning Environments.
Lapels, T-Pins, and Buttons, Oh My! Color, Shape, and Costume Design with MoPOP
Time: 3:00–3:50
Host: MoPOP Homeschool Days with Chelsey Thornton
Target Audience: Kids, ages 8–14 (flexible)
Before the Event:
GATHER MATERIALS
markers
paper
scissors
tape or glue
Description: Investigate how shapes inspire costume designers and transform shapes to create your own sketch!
Explore character and setting using some of your favorite heroes and villains
Discover composite shapes and shape transformations (flips, rotations, and size) used by costume designers
Practice visual literacy by examining artifacts in the Heroes and Villains: The Art of the Disney Costume exhibit
Apply these ideas to sketch an original costume design
Wrap-Up Chat
Time: 4:00–4:50
Host: Megan Riggs (SHG NBTS Committee)
Target Audience: Everyone!
Description: Final social chat to wrap up our Not Back to School Week. Would love to hear about your favorite and not-so-favorite parts of NBTS.