May 11, 2009

The Coolest Homeschooling Zine (An Interview and a Giveaway)

I found out about Around: The Homeschooling Lifestyle Zine originally from Kris, because she was writing for their first issue. I quickly knew this was a sign that I should buy the first issue!

I was thrilled when it arrived! The articles were fun, and it was so cool to be able to take it around with me in my purse while I was reading it. (This zine totally works for me!)

I was then thrilled to be a contributing writer for the latest issue (which was released at that beginning of April), in which I wrote about our love for the Wii Game System.

You can pick up the issue (and the first issue) at Around on Etsy or you can continue reading with my interview with Laura, the editor/publisher of Around and SeaBird Chronicles.com, and you just might win one of four copies that I am giving away! (Yeah, that’s right — I have four issues to give away!)

Can you tell me about your homeschooling journey?

My interest in homeschooling began a couple years before we even had children! At that time my husband was applying for the foreign service and I was looking into what kind of life that would entail – especially for kids who have to be moved around from country to country and school to school so often. I discovered a lot of foreign service families homeschooled so I began researching that option.

That put me in touch with a woman who was starting a Charlotte Mason school and I eventually attended a week-long seminar at the Ambleside School in Fredericksburg. In the end, my husband and I decided against the foreign service, but our interest in homeschooling continued to grow!

Two children later (with a third on the way), we are convinced that homeschooling is the best option for our family, particularly during the elementary years.

What was your inspiration for starting Around Zine?

I started Around Zine late last year. There are few homeschoolers in my community. In fact, nearly all parents here have their children in preschool every day at age two. So I began looking online to find other people who shared my ideas and philosophy toward education. There are so many wonderful homeschool blogs and sites that are full of resources!

But then, having a bit of experience in zine-contributing, I decided to create my own zine community that was more lifestyle-oriented instead of solely practical and academic how-tos…. something fun (both to create and read!) that is also relavant to the daily lives of homeschooling families.

When will the next issue be released, and what can we expect to see in it?

Around Zine is published four times a year… Issue 3 of Around hatches on July 1 and Issue 4 on November 1.

Upcoming articles include:

ATC / ACEO swap and contest
interviews
South Florida Homeschool Convention review
more Unshelved cartoons
book (and audiobook) reviews & giveaways
DIY yogurt
Etsy for/by homeschoolers
reverse Christmas wish list
original illustrations
and all kinds of interesting submissions from homeschooling families world-wide!

Thanks so much for taking the time to talk with me, Laura!

If you’re interested in winning one of four copies of Issue #2, you have three different ways to win (you can do any of them, or all three!):

1. Leave a comment on this post. I would love it even more if you would tell me something interesting in your comment — a household tip, a homeschooling gem, what you ate for dinner, whatever! It makes it so much more fun than reading, “I’d love to win” with no other comment.

2. Post on your blog about the giveaway or twitter about it! If you do, leave it in a separate comment (than your first one) with a link to the post.

3. Subscribe to the blog by RSS feed (feed reader) or email. If you already subscribe, let me know!

Comments on this post will be open until Thursday, May 14th at 11:59 pm EST.