We’re ready to go again!
Once again, we’re looking forward to seeing everyone at this year’s international Home Education Festival.
HeTof 2009!
HeTof is a contact event for Home Ed families. It gives everyone the opportunity share ideas and experiences, to help each other, and just generally have a good time.
We’re expecting a very international group again this year, including participants from the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and the UK.
Following the success of the first HeTof in 2008, we’ll be organising workshops and lectures covering a wide variety of Home Ed subject matter. There will be plenty for the kids to do in the form of specially organised workshops, and ample opportunity to learn and play.
Programme
For both days of the workshop, we have put together a well-rounded, well-balanced programme. Here’s just a sample.
Lectures
Hildelien Verkuyl will discuss her book Schoolziek (“Sick of School”) • Mike Fortune-Wood • Leah Witmond will discuss her new Home Ed book • Simone de Hoogh will talk about Home Ed for gifted children • Klaartje Claron will bring us up to date on the activities of the Netherlands Home Education Association (NVvTO) • Anke Caspar-Jürgens will discuss her book Lernen ist Leben (“Learning Is Living”) • Henk Blok will expand on research done on Home Ed in the Netherlands in the Autumn of 2008
Workshops
Special activities for children will include a “Heroes” theatre workshop led by Trisha, “theatre sport” with Trisha, and a maths workshop with Ittay. Kids will have the chance to blow off some steam in a variety of organised games, on the trampoline or in the sand pit, or by letting their imaginations go wild with our collection of dress-up clothes.
Home Ed Expertise Centre Workshop
The idea has been put forward to consolidate all knowledge, experience, and research from home and abroad in a new Home Ed Expertise Centre that will be available to everyone. The Centre would offer Home Ed materials to anyone interested. It would be a place where people could take their questions about the various trends in Home Ed such as curriculum education, unschooling, autonomous learning, and more; a place where parents could seek support according to the teaching method they have chosen; where Home Ed parents and experts in the field register with the Centre so they can share their knowledge of a wide variety of subject matter with Home Ed children. It could even set up a database of traineeships intended for HE children. All ideas and suggestions are welcome. We want to use the HeTof Festival to give greater substance to this idea. In this way, we can start developing the expertise centre in the Autumn of 2009.
On Saturday evening we’ll turn on the sound system and take some time off to go mad, and give the floor to some of the wonderful talent amongst us all the time.
Where
The HeTof Festival will run from Saturday to Sunday, 6 and 7 June in Hedel, close to the city of ’s-Hertogenbosch.
Campers will be welcome from 5.00pm on Friday, 5 June.
You can also take part in just one of the festival days if you prefer.
Price for the entire weekend per adult, including the camping site from Friday afternoon if applicable: € 58.00.
Prices per day:
Adults: € 30.00
Ages 5-17: €14.00
Ages 0-4: Free of charge
The price includes a vegetarian supper.
Special Request
We’re making a special call for volunteers:
- In the kitchen — at least one cook and a few kitchen assistants.
- Behind the bar — two or three people for both days who can help behind the bar and with washing up.
- The registration table — someone to greet people on Saturday and Sunday morning.
- Setting up and clearing up — a few people who can help out Friday afternoon and/or Monday morning.
- Interpreters — we badly need people who can act as interpreters: Dutch-English/English-Dutch, Dutch-German/German-Dutch, English-German/German-English.
Can you help us? If so, please email us at mail2009@hetof.nl. We’ll return the favour by reducing your admission fee.
Call for Creativity
We’re looking for adults and children capable of adding to the festive atmosphere in the form of songs, dance, music, theatre, poetry, and anything else you can think of. If you think there’s something you can add, please email us at mail2009@hetof.nl. We’ll get back in touch with you.
