January is in full swing and all of the sudden... you realize... your child is going to graduate this year!
ACK- what do I do now?!? Do not fear dear parent - this has happened before - to thousands upon thousands of homeschoolers - and there is help available !
Far too often, for those who have chosen to homeschool their children - graduation is a rather unimpressive time. This should not be the case! We have spent years investing in the lives, hearts, and minds of our children, and now it is time to mark that achievement. Graduation should be a time of celebration, of memory making, and of great joy!
We chose to make a big deal about our daughter's high school graduation, and I'd like to take a few minutes to tell you why - and to encourage you to do something special for your graduate as well.
Homeschoolers need a diploma. Not just a nod from Dad and Mom that "you're done" - but an actual diploma. Did you know that even in this day of technology, there are still jobs that require you to present your diploma as proof of graduation? Although this is not as common as it was 15 years ago - it still happens. But more importantly - your child - now a young adult - needs a physical reminder of what they have accomplished. They need to be able to find joy in the accomplishment of this huge task - this finishing of their childhood and the passage to adulthood that accompanies high school graduation here in the US.
There is something else your graduate will need - an event to remember. Now, your event may be really small - only 20 people, or it may be really huge - 200 guests, but you need to plan some sort of event to mark this graduation, and use it to give them that diploma. Too often homeschoolers fail to give their children this special event. It need not cost a lot of money, or require a lot of time - but you - the parents - need to take time to cherish this moment with your graduate.
There are several options as to how to host your graduation event. Many homeschoolers have a group graduation ceremony - all the local (city or county-wide) graduates work together to put on a event similar to what public or private schools host. Another option is to have a private ceremony at your home, community center, or church that you invite family and friends to.
But what if your graduate does not want a formal ceremony? Then work with them - not against them - and find a way to celebrate. Many times we have been invited to homeschool graduation Open Houses when there was no formal ceremony beforehand. At the beginning of the open house, the parents (or at least the Dad) stood up front with their graduate and said a few words before handing them their diploma. Sometime your graduate is really shy, and wants to invite their friends for a party - but does not want the speeches. Then consider having a family graduation time before the open house begins and tell them then how much joy their accomplishments have brought you, and then pray for your graduate and their future.
But please - PLEASE - have some sort of event for your graduate. You have invested 12 or more years in their education, invest some time, and a little bit of money in this milestone. Make it a day for memories. Make it a day of celebration with family and friends. We have attended so many various homeschool open houses, and public school ones too, over the years that I want to share some of those ideas, and a way to announce them well.
Graduation announcements are the first thing you will need to order, and the sooner you get started on it - the easier it will be. If you are joining a group graduation ceremony, you can either all order matching announcements, or you can order your own style (but include your graduate's personal flair to theirs.) When our oldest daughter graduated in 2016, we ordered her announcements from HomeschoolDiploma.com. They have a really wide array of styles to choose from.
Over the years we have received many graduation announcements that I know originated from HomeschoolDiploma.com. Their Tri-Fold announcements and their Christian Education announcements have been the most popular. These cards are the classic styles you probably remember from your own graduation, but updated a bit, and these come with the option to include your own wording - so you can give the credit where it is due - to God. The Christian Education announcements open like a traditional greeting card, and have a slot for your graduate's name card (which is included in the price.) The Tri-fold announcements are the vertical style ones that unfold to reveal the details of the events and have the graduate's name in elegant script at the bottom. Both of these are priced around $3 per announcement, but offer discounts on orders of 30 or more. These volume discounts can lower the price to $1.88 a card for the Christian Education announcement, or as low as $1.14 for the Tri-Fold announcements .
One of the best reasons we have found to use HomeschoolDiploma.com is that their graduation announcements are available in quantities as low as 20, with additional ones available by the 10's. They have a relatively new photo graduation announcement option. These are lovely and highly customizable, and are offered in groups of 25, with add-ons by the 5's. These options allow you to purchase as many, or as few announcements as you need, without breaking the budget.
There are some important steps to take when getting ready to order your announcement, the first being this: make a list! We were on a tight budget when Emily graduated, but we knew it was important to make a big deal out of her graduation, so we opted for finger foods and an afternoon graduation party, instead of an evening dinner-style event. When we had made the list of who Emily wanted to invite - both family and friends, we looked at the various announcements on HomeschoolDiploma.com and decided to purchase their Simply Stated announcements for her Open House. Our budget would allow for a lot of this style, or a much smaller number of the traditional announcements, and we went with letting more family and friends know about her accomplishment!
The Simple Stated announcements are available in three colors: white, black, and navy, and a variety of foil printing colors. We let Emily choose her own, and she went with Hot Pink letters on the white cards. While this is a less expensive option, it is not a cheap card. It is elegant and formal, and you can use one of their popular texts, or create it entirely on your own. There are several fonts to choose from, so this card truly is customizable even while being easy on the budget. This card still comes with the traditional two envelopes, and can be upgraded to foil lined envelopes, just like the other styles.
Recently HomeschoolDiploma.com has added a hand-lettered Hope and a Future announcement option that I think will appeal to a lot of homeschoolers. It is much less formal on the front, while still retaining the elegance of a traditional graduation announcement on the inside.
HomeschoolDiploma.com has a team that is dedicated to making your graduate's day special from beginning to end. They have volume discounts available for Co-ops and Schools that want to order announcements, caps and gowns, and diplomas for the entire gradating class. Whether you are all ordering together, or individually, they will work with your group or school to get you the best products to fit your needs.
Remember I said there were some steps? Making the list comes first, because you want to order all of your announcements at once, along with any other add-ons like foil seals, or invitation cards for the open house if you are using the formal group graduation ceremony announcements. The second step is to order the announcements. Third is gather the address of the recipients. While your teenager may just want to send a text to their best friends reminding them about her graduation party, the Grandparents and Great-aunt Jane are going to expect an announcement in the mail. You cannot mail them if you don't know where to send them. ;) Fourth is to sit down and address the invitations and mail them out.
For some more thoughts on announcements, and why to send them, read this thoughtful post.
Whichever graduation announcement design you choose with your graduate, know that these announcements should bring a smile to the face of the recipients, and the event you are planning for your graduate will hold many memories for all of you!
Next time, we will talk about choosing a diploma, and why you should order one for your graduate that fits their personality! Can't wait? Check out this post about when we ordered Emily's diploma.
No comments:
Post a Comment