We are an earthy group of families who homeschool or plan to homeschool in one fashion or another for part or all of our children’s education. Many of us come to this from the perspective of attachment theory or attachment parenting.

Homeschool doesn't begin when a child reaches the age for standard public school admission. Home learning starts at birth, perhaps before. And, it continues for a lifetime, though this group is established mainly to support school age kids (from birth to adulthood).

Many of us have arrived at homeschooling out of a lifestyle and parenting philosophy that can best be summed up as holistic. Some of our non-homeschool interests may include (but obviously not be limited to):

• Attachment parenting (both in infancy and beyond)
• Gentle Discipline, or Guidance Through Nurture
• Child Guided, Initiated, or Motivated Learning
• Play Based Education
• Respectful Parent-Child and Child-Parent Communication Methods
• Cloth Diapering or Elimination Communication (Diaper Free Baby)
• Breastfeeding
• Natural, Holistic Living
• Local, Sustainable Eating/Shopping/Living

The list above is meant to give merely an idea of what we're about. You of course do not have to subscribe to all or any of those things. However, the one overriding characteristic of this community is that we tend to value a continuing nurturance of the child-parent bond throughout its development, carrying strong attachment philosophies throughout childhood and even adulthood. Guidance through nurture is key. We understand that this creates independent (rather than overly dependant) children and adults who are ready to be fully responsible for their actions. 

This group is for homeschoolers of all ages (from birth to college and beyond) and their parents.

Our host lives in Herndon, VA, but our aim is to serve homeschoolers throughout Fairfax and Loudoun counties by providing a place for MANY smaller homeschool groups to publish their schedules and have open discussion. Please feel free to use our calendar to publish your homeschool group events, or to post meetups to generate interest in a new group in your area. In that way, this is a SELF SERVE site.

If you are interested in offering services to homeschoolers (for example, camps, tutoring, homeschool classes), please post in the forum specifically reserved for these topics. If you are providing an open house on a specific day (for instance if you are a stable providing sample lessons on May 2), then please post that on the calendar. If in doubt, e-mail the organizer for guidance.

Please see our Discussion Board for updates on rules and policies regarding posting. In general, it's fine as long as it's not a forward of the obnoxious commercial type promotion (spam or junk mail) and as long as it is on topic and not (for instance) innappropriate for children.

Last, but not least, we encourage discussion and even debate, but keep it polite. No attacks on people's character or creed, please.