Hundreds of families take in Saskatchewan Homebased Educators Convention

Homeschool parents check out convention WATCH: A convention in Regina this past weekend gave homeschool parents a chance to connect and view various curriculums.

About 350 families from across the province took in the 31st annual Saskatchewan Home Based Educators (SHBE) Convention in Regina this past weekend.

Numerous speakers touched on a wide variety of topics related to homeschooling.

According to the SHBE, the number of registered homeschooled students in Saskatchewan is at a record high of 5,000 and has nearly doubled what it was five years ago.

SHBE’s past president, Rod Amberson, said the pandemic may have played a significant role in the rise of homeschooled kids in the province.

“I think what happened when there were some shutdowns is that a lot of parents that were really on the fence, they wanted to do it [homeschool] but they couldn’t imagine it happening, they got the opportunity to give it a try,” Amberson said.

“We haven’t really seen much decrease since then. They really enjoyed it,” he added.

Homeschooled teenagers who attended the convention had the opportunity to take in a career fair where numerous post-secondary institutions were on-site advertising what they have to offer.

Parents, meanwhile, had the chance to view various textbooks and curriculums firsthand, providing them the opportunity to learn what options are available to them.

Most home-schooling families choose a different curriculum than the one the province uses.