Local & State Groups
Support groups offer a way for those interested in homeschooling or new to home education to get information and support. They also offer opportunities for social activities, group learning, and networking. Find a support group near you in Maryland.
Resources
Not Back to School Camp
Not Back to School Camp is a non-denominational, non-religious homeschool camp. The camp offers workshops, spontaneous events, and special evening gatherings, bringing together campers who are excited about life and willing to be themselves and to reach out and connect with the others.
Local & State Support Groups
Teens, Tweens, & Company of Northern NJ
Teens, Tweens, & Company of Northern NJ is a group that facilitates older activities aimed at middle/high schoolers. This is a network aimed at teens and their siblings. They aim to engage all of the children, but are particularly focused on the older ones, who, many times, get lost in the shuffle. Everyone is encouraged to meet up whenever, not just on meeting days. Teenagers are a social breed & they are hoping to fill this need, as well as get them involved in more formal activities. Members are also encouraged to plan their own activities & events.
North County Home Educators (NCHE)
NCHE is a support group for families in Maryland who have an interest in home education. Most of the meetings are in the northern part of Anne Arundel County, but membership is open to everyone.
Central Maryland Unschoolers
This is list for unschooling families interested in connecting with other unschoolers in DC and central Maryland (Prince George’s, Anne Arundel and surrounding counties). They have casual monthly get-togethers that offer support, conversation, socializing, and playtime for adults, teens and children.
Bolling Area Home Educators (BAHE)
BAHE is the largest home schooling support group in Washington DC, located in the backyard of our nation's capital on Bolling Air Force Base. Their purpose is to provide support to military home education families in Washington, D.C., Virginia, and the Maryland area. Membership into BAHE is granted to military families that pay annual dues and comply with the EMP (Every Member Participates) in-kind volunteer requirement. They offer classes, field trips, speakers, fellowship, information, and support.
Homeschooling Delmarva
Homeschooling Delmarva serves homeschoolers in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia's Eastern Shore, sharing homeschool information, events, resources, and general support.
Capital Area Homeschooling Community
The Capital Area Homeschooling Community is a homeschooling support community which connects homeschoolers of color throughout the Washington, D.C. area.
Maryland Home Education Association (MHEA)
Maryland Home Education Association (MHEA) serves and supports families of all religious, philosophical, and ethnic persuasions. They provide information about homeschooling and networking opportunities.
Columbia Homeschool Community (CHC)
The Columbia Homeschool Community (CHC) is an inclusive homeschool support group for Maryland families. This friendly homeschool support group currently has over 60 families and over 150 children (from birth to age 18) from all over Maryland, including Howard, Anne Arundel, Prince Georges, Baltimore, Charles, and Montgomery counties, as well as Baltimore City.
Southern Maryland Homeschool Network
Southern Maryland Homeschool Network serves all of the southern Maryland area including Prince George's, Anne Arundel, Charles, Calvert, and St. Mary's counties. They are network of homeschool groups and individual homeschool families that encourage and support each other's needs and choices through networking, sharing resources, and group activities.
Montgomery County TORCH Homeschool Group
Montgomery County TORCH is a group of faithful families in and around Montgomery County, Maryland, providing for their children's primary education at home. The group's goal is to support the spiritual, moral, mental, and social needs of Catholic homeschooling families. Offers holiday events, girls' and boys' clubs, field trips, family events, and more.
J-LIFT
J-LIFT stands for Jewish homeschoolers--Learning Is Fun Together! This is an activity based list, dedicated to notification of activities for Jewish homeschoolers in the Baltimore area. The goal is to provide opportunities for Jewish homeschoolers and their parents to get together on a semi-regular basis, through trips, outings, and activities.
SPIRIT ed. Homeschool Group of Maryland (SPIRIT_ed)
Operating out of Waldorf, Maryland, SPIRIT ed. is an inclusive group of homeschooling families encouraging and supporting its members through monthly support meetings, networking, resource-sharing, and group activities.
Appalachian Regional Cooperative
Appalachian Regional Cooperative is an inclusive group of homeschoolers in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Tri-State Homeschool Network
Tri-State Homeschool Network is a support group that serves the northern Delaware, northeastern Maryland, southwestern New Jersey and southeastern Pennsylvania region. Their purpose is to further the cause of homeschooling, with emphasis from the viewpoint of Christian families.
TORCH of Libertytown
TORCH of Libertytown is a chapter of the national TORCH group, a Catholic homeschool group. Offers monthly meetings, boys' and girls' clubs, field trips, a co-op, science fair, and more.
Howard County Home Educators (e-HCHE)
Howard County Home Educators is a network of homeschoolers in Howard County, Maryland. The majority of the members live in the Columbia, Clarksville, Ellicott City areas. Provides support, information, cooperative learning experiences, homeschooling advocacy, newsletter, and friendship.
Culture at Home
Culture at Home is an African American homeschool support group in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area with an emphasis on the older homeschooled student. Culture at Home is a support group for families concerned with the healthy well-being and academic guidance of the African-American child. The purpose of this group is to provide an educational outreach support program and to supplement the curriculum of homeschoolers with children ages 10-18 (grades 5-12), but they also provide some resources for homeschooled children ages 6-10.
Unschooling Family Connection
The Unschooling Family Connection is a support group in Montgomery and Frederick Counties in Maryland. It was founded in order to to provide support for unschooling parents, along with activities, socialization, and fun for the children. They offer field trips, park days, celebrations, and online
support.
Heritage Home School Association
HERITAGE is a group of homeschoolers meeting once a month to encourage one another toward love, good teaching, and an abundant life in Christ. The term HERITAGE stands for Home Educators Restoring In Truth A Godly Education. This support group serves Montgomery County, Maryland, including Rockville, Gaithersburg, Derwood, and Kensington.
Local & State Online Groups
Marylandhomeschool
This is a mailing list for people who home school or are thinking of homeschooling in Maryland, kids and parents alike. Here you can exchange ideas, support each other, and share resources and information.
Baltimore-Washington Home Educators (BWHE)
This list is designed for Baltimore-Washington-Northern Virginia homeschoolers as on-line community for open-minded homeschoolers in the region who are interested in participating in a community that represents a diverse range of religious, political and philosophical beliefs.
FAMILIES News
This is a large group of over 600 homeschool families who want to encourage each other and share information, events, curriculum, fieldtrip, and homeschooling resources, and ideas. This is a Christian group but all who homeschool are welcome to join. Most members are from the Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia area (Delmarva).
CM-LowerEasternShoreMD
This group is for the members of the Charlotte Mason Study Group of the Lower Eastern Shore of Maryland.
Harford, Cecil and Baltimore Homeschooling (BaHaCeHS)
This list is for homeschooling families from Harford and Cecil Counties in Maryland and surrounding areas to join together to provide support, share resources, and ideas.
Southern Maryland Homeschool Network (SMHN)
Email list for SMHN, Southern Maryland Homeschool Network, a network of homeschool groups and individuals home educating in Maryland.
Delaware Classical Home Educators Network Discussion Group
This is discussion loop is intended as an on-line extension of the classical network group forming in the DE-MD-NJ-PA area. This group is for those following the classical homeschooling education model, such as described in "The Well Trained Mind" (Jessie Wise and Susan Bauer) or similar method.
North County Home Educators (NCHE)
This list is for members of North County Home Educators - a homeschooling support group based in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
Delmarva Unschoolers
Unschoolers on Marylands Eastern Shore. This is a secular discussion list and a list for posting activities and get togethers. This group focuses on communicating and getting together with other unschoolers on Delmarva for socialization, support, and information.
Baltimore-Washington African American Homeschoolers (BWAAH)
This group was created for African American homeschoolers in and around the Baltimore/Washington DC/Northern VA area to connect with one another. This is a central place where members of various support groups and/or individual homeschoolers in the area can learn from and help each other.
SMHomeschool
This group is for those living in Southern Maryland that homeschool or are thinking of homeschooling their child/children.
Home-Schooling the Only Child
Homeschooling an only child can be quite challenging at times. This group is open to anyone for support, enrouragement and ideas for those who choose the home-schooling road for you and your child. Although they are based in NC, anyone can join for support. They have a database that you can access to see who is in your state to get together with.
Teens, Tweens, & Company of Northern NJ
Teens, Tweens, & Company of Northern NJ is a group that facilitates older activities aimed at middle/high schoolers. This is a network aimed at teens and their siblings. They aim to engage all of the children, but are particularly focused on the older ones, who, many times, get lost in the shuffle. Everyone is encouraged to meet up whenever, not just on meeting days. Teenagers are a social breed & they are hoping to fill this need, as well as get them involved in more formal activities. Members are also encouraged to plan their own activities & events.
Central Maryland Unschoolers
This is list for unschooling families interested in connecting with other unschoolers in DC and central Maryland (Prince George’s, Anne Arundel and surrounding counties). They have casual monthly get-togethers that offer support, conversation, socializing, and playtime for adults, teens and children.
Homeschooling Delmarva
Homeschooling Delmarva serves homeschoolers in Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia's Eastern Shore, sharing homeschool information, events, resources, and general support.
Capital Area Homeschooling Community
The Capital Area Homeschooling Community is a homeschooling support community which connects homeschoolers of color throughout the Washington, D.C. area.
J-LIFT
J-LIFT stands for Jewish homeschoolers--Learning Is Fun Together! This is an activity based list, dedicated to notification of activities for Jewish homeschoolers in the Baltimore area. The goal is to provide opportunities for Jewish homeschoolers and their parents to get together on a semi-regular basis, through trips, outings, and activities.
SPIRIT ed. Homeschool Group of Maryland (SPIRIT_ed)
Operating out of Waldorf, Maryland, SPIRIT ed. is an inclusive group of homeschooling families encouraging and supporting its members through monthly support meetings, networking, resource-sharing, and group activities.
Appalachian Regional Cooperative
Appalachian Regional Cooperative is an inclusive group of homeschoolers in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.
Tri-State Homeschool Network
Tri-State Homeschool Network is a support group that serves the northern Delaware, northeastern Maryland, southwestern New Jersey and southeastern Pennsylvania region. Their purpose is to further the cause of homeschooling, with emphasis from the viewpoint of Christian families.
Howard County Home Educators (e-HCHE)
Howard County Home Educators is a network of homeschoolers in Howard County, Maryland. The majority of the members live in the Columbia, Clarksville, Ellicott City areas. Provides support, information, cooperative learning experiences, homeschooling advocacy, newsletter, and friendship.
Culture at Home
Culture at Home is an African American homeschool support group in the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area with an emphasis on the older homeschooled student. Culture at Home is a support group for families concerned with the healthy well-being and academic guidance of the African-American child. The purpose of this group is to provide an educational outreach support program and to supplement the curriculum of homeschoolers with children ages 10-18 (grades 5-12), but they also provide some resources for homeschooled children ages 6-10.
Unschooling Family Connection
The Unschooling Family Connection is a support group in Montgomery and Frederick Counties in Maryland. It was founded in order to to provide support for unschooling parents, along with activities, socialization, and fun for the children. They offer field trips, park days, celebrations, and online
support.
National Forums
Work at Home Moms (WAHM) Homeschool Forum
The WAHM message boards provide a forum where you can make announcements, promote your home business, find business services, and much more. The WAHM forum is also a great social network for work at home moms. Share your WAHM stories, find help, support and advice, and meet other WAHMs across the USA and around the world.
Military Homeschoolers Forum at vegsource.com
Connect with other military homeschooling families at this vegsource.com message board.
Adoptive Homeschooling Parents Forum at vegsource.com
This forum at vegsource.com focuses on parents with adopted children who choose to home educate.
Secular Homeschooling Forum at vegsource.com
A message board at vegsource.com for those who homeschool for non-religious reasons.
Charlotte Mason Forum at vegsource.com
Discuss Charlotte Mason's ideas and find new way to implement those ideas at the forum sponsored by vegsource.com.
Black Homeschoolers' Network
Black Homeschoolers' Network is intended to facilitate a network among African American homeschoolers across the country. Here you will also find a message board for general communication as well as an email pal listing for homeschooled kids.
Unschooling Forum at vegsource.com
Unschoolers meet to talk and share ideas at this vegsource.com message board.
Single Parent Homeschoolers Forum at vegsource.com
This is a message forum at vegsource.com especially for single parents who are home educating their children.
Single Christian Homeschool Parent Message Board
Single Christian Homeschool Parent Message Board offers discussion with other parents, widowed, divorced, or legally separated, who are homeschooling solo.
Homeschool Christian Working Homeschooling Parent Message Board
Whether you work part-time or full-time, this board is to support you! It's not easy being a breadwinner and a homeschooling parent. You can find the encouragement you need right here.
National Online Groups
HS1Mom
This is a list for single moms who homeschool their children. This is open to all single moms, no matter what type of curriculum they choose to use. It is predominantly a Christian list -- though others are welcome, also.
Christian Unschooling
Christians can and do unschool. Here you'll find support and more.
Unschooling Discussion
Large traffic email list whose stated purpose is to move out of comfort zones and critically examine beliefs, ideas, and viewpoints about learning, and seek a deeper understanding of unschooling and more respectful relationships with one's children.
Waldorf at Home
This email list is open to all homeschoolers working with Waldorf education (also known as Steiner education, after its founder Rudolf Steiner), as well as those exploring the possibility. Others, such as teachers or parents with children at Waldorf or public schools, who are interested in an open approach to Waldorf in the home, are also welcome.
Secret Society of Unschooling Dads (SSUD)
This group is for Unschooling Dads, Granddads, and Dads-to-be who have attended one of the past 3 Live and Learn Conferences OR who have spouses who attended one of these conferences. Other unschooling fathers (et al.) can also join the group through invitation. Our intention is to keep a running dialog and passion for unschooling our children between conferences.
Jewish Homeschoolers
The focus of this list will be to provide homeschooling support and resources to Jewish homeschoolers of all levels of observance. Topics include curriculum choices, teaching tips, and holiday observances.
HomeSchooling Singletons
Homeschooling families with singletons have issues that are very unique. Join in to offer support and encouragement to other single child homeschooling families.
African American Unschoolers (AfAmUnschool) Email Group
African American Unschoolers email group is for African-American homeschoolers who use the whole world as their child(ren)'s classroom.
Blind Alternative Parenting
This group is primarily for blind parents who are interested in alternative parenting styles and issues. This includes atachment parenting, family bed, baby-wearing, gentle disipline, loving guidance, breastfeeding, healthy eating and living, health prevention, nonviolence, nonspanking, unschooling or homeschooling, spirituality, and more.
Onlies-HS
This list is dedicated to families homeschooling only-children. These families have unique socialization issues and must often be super-creative in their solutions. Join this list if you are homeschooling a wonderful Only.
Pregnant Again
This is a list for all who are pregnant for the third or more time and are having a large family by choice. Discussions include the difficulties of having several at home when dealing with sickness and fatigue, homeschooling, and more. This is a supportive list where people believe that large families are wonderful.
Afrocentric Homeschoolers Association (AHA) Yahoo Group
A discussion group for pro-Black African and/or African Diasporan, Black homeschoolers, unschoolers, deschoolers, home-based educators everywhere. It is also open to non-homeschoolers and non-Blacks who are trying to teach their children about Blacks.
CM4primaryyears
To discuss the Charlotte Mason method of homeschooling elementary age children, and to share the joys and concerns of everyday life.
Unschooling.com Email List
This discussion list is the companion communications forum for the Unschooling.com website.
Magnum Opus
Raising a large, Catholic, homeschooling family is a great work (Magnum Opus) and a great deal of work!
Hopefully this email discussion group will be a place for parents of four or more to help each other with the nitty-gritty details of raising and educating a large, Catholic family.
Sonlight Unschoolers
This email group is for those who use Sonlight curricula but also like the unschooling approach (and other compatable methods). Working out how to mix the two, curricula exchange/sales, and connecting with other eclectic Christian unschoolers is the object.
CMSeries
This list is designed for anyone wishing to learn more about the Charlotte Mason method of education from reading her own books and engaging in discussions of a philosophical nature.
Crunchy Unschoolers
A list for unschoolers who are interested in moving towards a sustainable lifestyle. Topics for discussion may include how sustainability and unschooling complement each other, and how we resolve conflicting values.
Large Family Logistics
The purpose of Large Family Logistics is to help Christian homeschooling mothers with the daily tasks of home management.
Mater Amabilis Teacher Training Forum
Mater Amabilis is a free online homeschool curriculum, which takes the methods of Charlotte Mason and applies them for the 21st century Catholic family. Offering a detailed and flexible syllabus for each age level, Mater Amabilis can be used as a complete curriculum or simply as a springboard for learning. This online teacher training forum provides support in implementing the methods of Charlotte Mason and tips for adapting these methods to today's family.
Catholic Homemaking and Homeschooling
This discussion group/email list is focused on the rich Catholic heritage and how to incorporate the Liturgical year into your daily life as a homeschooling family.
Chevra
Chevra was formed in September 1998 as an online support community for Jewish homeschoolers of all varieties. It tends to be a very chatty place where they discuss Jewish observance, homeschooling, family life, outside interests, and (the favorite topic) why the laundry never seems to get done. If you are looking for a group that discusses only homeschooling and Judaic resources, you may very well be disappointed in Chevra's free-wheeling discussions of everything under the sun, but there is lots of great information here.
CM for One
CM for One (CMfor1) is a message board for families home educating an only child and using the Charlotte Mason Method.
Homeschooling on a Budget Email Group
Raising a family on a single income is tough. When you're a homeschooling family, it may seem like another added cost. But that doesn't have to be the case. This list is for homeschoolers to get together and discuss ways to cut the cost of homeschooling without cutting on the educational and learning experience for our children. This is the place to share all kinds of ideas and tips on budgeting homeschooling costs.
Basically Beechick
Ruth Beechick Style Homeschooling is an Eclectic approach which focuses on natural learning through Real Books and Real Life. Basically Beechick is a Christian homeschool support group to discuss the methods and ideas of Dr. Ruth Beechick. Other authors whose ideas mesh well with Beechick's are discussed as well. These authors include (but are not limited to) Susan C. Anthony, Rebecca Rupp, Jean Soyke, E.D. Hirsch, Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer, Harvey and Laurie Bluedorn, Laura Berquist, Robin Scarlata, Jane Claire Lambert, Valerie Bendt, Clay and Sally Clarkson, Cindy Rushton, Mary Hood, Marilyn Howshall, and Charlotte Mason.
Large Family Moms
This list is for moms only that are part of a large family consisting of four or more children. Large families are wonderful, exciting, and very challenging. Here you will find time and money saving tips, advice and support.
Homeschooling Catholic Montessori
Here is a place for home schoolers, using Montessori Method in their home education, to share and learn.
Homeschooling Creatively
This list is a place where parents can come to understand and give value to our creative children as we home/unschool with them. The focus will be on discussing alternative ways (versus public school methods) to help our creative children learn which best suits their learning style and respects their complex personality traits, taking a look at creating a success-based learning environment that draws on the strengths of our creative learners while providing support-based opportunities to gently guide their intense natures.
CM Curricula
This list is for the buying and selling of resources (biographies,poetry and art books, teacher resources, etc.) that are in conformity with the Charlotte Mason "twaddle-free" philosophy. This is strictly a buying and selling list.
Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum Families
This list is for families using the classical approach to education as outlined in Laura Berquist's book Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum (DYOCC).
ABC Books by Ann
This group consists of two things: 1) a bi-weekly newsletter with articles about living books, book collecting, taking care of and organizing your home school library, using living books in your homeschool, notebooking, book and author reviews, and more; and 2.) a bi-weekly catalog of living books for sale on eBay, plus and some unit studies.
Homeschoolers Teaching Kindergarten
This discussion list is for homeschoolers teaching preschool and kindergarten. Topics include curriculum selection (whether necessary or not), teaching tips, creative learning ideas, time management, unit studies, homeschooling books, neat craft ideas, cooking tips for all occasions, support those who have homeschool burn out, or those who are just starting to homeschool.
Single Parents and Homeschooling
A single mom started this email group to provide a means of sharing the unique problems and solutions a single, working parent faces in their homeschooling pursuits.
Christian Solo - Parent Homeschools
A place for Christian single-parent homeschoolers to find encouragement and support.
Always Learning
Discussion for homeschooling fans of John Holt, whose books Learning All the Time, Never Too Late, and Teach your Own have made unschooling an option for thousands of families.
Only One Child Homeschooling
Are you homeschooling an only child? Or perhaps your other children are grown (or infants) and there's just one whom you homeschool? Or are your other children in public or private school and there's just one at home during the day? Is there such a large age gap between your children that each child feels like an only? Then this group is for you. All homeschoolers are welcome: new, old, school-at-homers, and unschoolers.
Eclectic Home Educators
This is an online support group for families who are pursuing an eclectic style of homeschooling. Although many members of the group are religious-minded, the list itself is secular.
cmason
This list is for persons who are using or are interested in using the Charlotte Mason Philosophy for education (including homeschooling), or to enrich their own lives. Thislist espouses a Christian philosophy and is also a prayer list. It is also a very active discussion list, often 100 posts per day.
Christian Classical Charlotte Mason
This is a loop for Christians who are combining classical education methods with Charlotte Mason ideas in their homeschools.
Living Math Forum
This is an on-topic list dedicated to the discussion of "living math" - mathematics education using living books and materials, as opposed to traditional curricula as the primary learning tool. Discussion applies to mathematics learning from birth to adult self education, with the understanding that arithmetic is only one feature of mathematics as a whole. Math history topics will apply as well. Educators using Charlotte Mason, Thomas Jefferson Ed (relaxed classical), Montessori, Waldorf and unschooling methods may benefit from the exchange of ideas.
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