Contact: Yvonne Bunn, Director of Homeschool Support, Home Educators Association of Virginia, 804-278-9200  

RICHMOND, Va., June 1 /Christian Newswire/ -- Home education may be "the fastest-growing form of education in the United States,"* with the number of homeschoolers in Virginia having grown to more than 30,000--a 37.6 percent increase since 2002.** The annual Virginia Homeschool Convention, now in its 27th year, has grown along with the movement, from a few hundred back in 1984 to an event expecting more than 10,000 participants from more than 20 states. Why this interest in home education?

"Reasons vary," says Home Educators Association of Virginia's president, Anne Miller. "Some homeschool for academic reasons, others for reasons of faith, and others for the benefits of individualized instruction. What remains a constant is that parents are concerned about preparing their children for the future and have found home education to be an effective option that allows their children to pursue their interests and to develop at their own pace."

The Home Educators Association of Virginia (HEAV), a non-profit, statewide homeschool organization, is hosting the convention on June 10-12, 2010, at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, to both support home educators and offer resources to families curious about this option.

More than 125 workshops will address everything from parenting to time management to helping struggling learners. A used curriculum sale and a 67,500-square-foot Exhibit Hall will offer parents an opportunity to examine educational curricula and resources from around the country, while a special "boot camp" seminar will prepare homeschooling parents for their child’s high school years and graduation. During the convention, 200 students plan to walk the aisle in the state’s largest homeschool graduation ceremony on Saturday, June 12.

For those interested in learning more about home education, there will be four free how-to-begin-homeschooling sessions on Thursday afternoon. A free pass to the entire event is being offered to first-time parents of preschoolers and non-homeschooling grandparents (see website for details).

For more information on the convention and home education itself, visit www.heav.org, or call 804-278-9200.

* Brian D. Ray, Ph.D., "Research Facts on Homeschooling," National Home Education Research Institute, 8/10/2009, click here (accessed May 24, 2010).

** Based on numbers given in Virginia Department of Education, "Home Instruction and Religious Exemptions, 2002-2003" (02/03/2003) and "Home-Schooled Students and Religious Exemptions, 2009-2010" (12/9/2009), click here (accessed May 24, 2010).