1. Submit the notice of Intent To Homeschool Form (select Option B – Peaceful Worldschoolers Homeschool Umbrella – 2832 Gracefield Road, Silver Spring, MD 20904) to your county Superintendent at least 15 days before beginning your homeschool program. If you are NOT in Maryland, please look up your state’s homeschooling laws on the HSLDA Website.
   • Allegany County*
   • Anne Arundel County
   • Baltimore County
   • Calvert County
   • Caroline County*
   • Carroll County
   • Cecil County
   • Charles County
   • Dorchester County
   • Frederick County
   • Garrett County
   • Harford County
   • Howard County
   • Kent County*
   • Montgomery County
   • Prince George’s County
   • Queen Anne’s County
   • Saint Mary’s County
   • Somerset County*
   • Talbot County
   • Washington County
   • Wicomico County
   • Worcester County
2. Complete the Peaceful Worldschoolers Homeschool Umbrella Registration Form.
3. Book your FREE Homeschooling Pre-Conference with Angela Harders

*=I was unable to find a county-specific homeschool notification form, so this is the generic Maryland Intent to Homeschool Form.

Once you have finished steps 1, 2, and 3, that’s when the fun REALLY begins!

We invite you to get connected with our homeschooling community so we can enjoy living and learning together! We provide a wide variety of support for new and veteran homeschoolers! Check out these additional resources below:

1. Peaceful Worldschoolers of the DMV Facebook Group – We post daily field trips and events in our Facebook Group, and we invite our members to also share your own meet-ups and events so we can build a strong homeschooling community in the DMV!
2. Farm and Forest School – We offer a Drop-Off Program on Tuesdays and Thursdays at a farm in Gaithersburg where your children can learn sustainable growing, planting, harvesting, composting, homesteading, and more!
3. Educational Consultations – If you would like additional one-on-one support for your homeschooling or unschooling journey, book an educational consultation with certified special education teacher, Angela Harders. Together, we will talk through any issues or concerns that you may have and make a plan so that you can create the ideal educational experience for your child and for you!
4. Peaceful Worldschooling Podcast – Listen in as we have conversations with other unschooling and worldschooling families from around the world! If you are an unschooler and would like to be guest on the Peaceful Worldschooling Podcast, sign up here. 
5. Online Courses for Children and Adults – We provide a wide variety of online courses to support you and your children as you learn and grow. Our course list continues to grow, but here is a taste of what we are offering:
   • How To Determine My Child’s Reading Level
   • Unschooling 101 – A Beginner’s Guide to Self-Directed Education
   • Unschooling and Math
   • Unschooling and Reading
   • Reading and Typing Program
   • Gospel-Based Parenting
   • Biblical Cosmology
   • The Truth about PMAs

Developmental Editing

Developmental Editing is also known as “conceptual editing” or “manuscript appraisal.” This stage of editing is usually conducted very early on in the writing process (primarily during the outline stage). A developmental editor will look at your topic, intended audience, and outline and provide you with feedback about your concept or idea and its overall organization. This is the “blueprint” of our house.

Evaluation Editing

Evaluation Editing is also known as “structural editing” or “manuscript critique.” At this stage, your manuscript should be complete so that the editor can provide you with feedback on the structure of your book. Upon completion of this stage of editing, you will receive a memo indicating either:

1. Your manuscript needs a lot of structural work… you need to see a Developmental Editor.
2. Your manuscript needs is structurally sound, but your writing needs work… you need to see a Content and/or Line Editor.
3. Your manuscript has a great structure and does not need much extra work… you are ready to see a Copyeditor and/or Proofreader.

This is the “framing” of our house.

Content Editing

Content Editing is also known as “substantive editing” or “full editing.” A content editor analyzes the sections and paragraphs of your manuscript. They are not concerned with the nitty, gritty details of your writing. Instead, they may move around some paragraphs or sections and may even delete some paragraphs or sections entirely. Content Editors are the equivalent of “adding the drywall and paint” to our house by ensuring that the author’s tone (attitude) and voice (personality) remain consistent and appropriate for the target audience from paragraph to paragraph throughout the manuscript.

Line Editing

Line editing is also known as “stylistic editing” or “comprehensive” editing. Up until this point, the editors have been providing feedback at the “macro” level – the entire book, the chapters, the sections, and the paragraphs. A line editor will analyze your writing sentence-by-sentence. They are focused on word choice, sentence flow, fragments, run-on sentences, and cliche. They specialize in “saying more with less” by eliminating wordiness and helping you to communicate clearly and concisely. This is the “installation” part of the house, adding in the proverbial stove, refrigerator, sinks, toilets, and more that add style and efficiency to the home.

Copyediting

When your manuscript is completely finished, then you are ready for a copyeditor. Copyeditors are meticulous about the details of your writing and are looking to analyze words and punctuation. They will fix your spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes so that your book is ready for publication without any glaring errors. Prior to finding a copyeditor, you should read your own manuscript out loud.

Also, you do not want to have your next door neighbor or your co-worker conduct this portion of the editing process (unless he or she is specifically trained in copyediting). In the Complete Writer’s Workshop, you will learn about spelling, grammar, and punctuation so that you can properly edit your own work, but I highly recommend having a professional (like me) do this part. Even a professional writer and copyeditor can miss their own mistakes which means that it is very common for you to miss your own as well. A copyeditor makes the difference between a professional book and an amateur one. This is the “furnishing” part of the house, adding in sofas, chairs, beds, tables, etc. that add a unique style and professional look to your book.

Proofreading

While many people use the terms “copyeditor” and “proofreader” interchangeably, the truth is that they are actually performing two very different functions. While both a copyeditor and a proofreader will look for any spelling, grammar, and punctuation mistakes, a proofreader takes the finally formatted version of your manuscript (called the “proof”) and makes sure that your manuscript is “print-ready.”

• Are the fonts, headings, and colors consistent?
• Are the chapter headings and page numbers in the right spot?
• Do all of the chapters end nicely on a page rather than having one sentence spill over onto an extra page?
• Are there any issues with spacing or indentations?

This is the “decorations” part of the house, adding in the rugs, the paintings, the lamps, and all the little details that make a house feel like a home.

I created this chart to show the differences in the 6 different types of editing, and I would be honored to help you with all six of the types of editing as you prepare your book for publication. To learn more about my editing services, send me an email at peacefulworldschooler@gmail.com and tell me more about the book you want to write!

Remember all throughout the editing process, you want your editor to tell you ways that you can improve your writing which means getting comfortable with someone telling you “what’s wrong” with your writing and not feeling like “what’s wrong” with me as a writer.

For many people, it can be frustrating or disheartening to see your manuscript with all kinds of markups, comments, and revisions. In fact, I wrote a whole chapter in my book, Tales of a Toxic Teacher, about the trauma that many of us have experienced in school and in life because of “the red pen.” We have grown accustomed to feeling like failures when we get our tests or essays back all covered in red, and those feelings may return to you during the editing process.

You may be tempted to feel or think that you are a “bad writer,” but that’s not true. This is a great time to heal from our own past traumas and false beliefs about mistakes and critical feedback.

We are ALL a work in progress. We are ALL working hard to improve our craft. Even best-selling authors can continue to learn and grow as writers. So instead of focusing on “what’s wrong” with your writing, use this editing process as a way to be grateful that a professional is providing you with constructive criticism – about your writing, not about you – so that you can focus on “what’s right” with your writing.

You have a valuable story to tell, and my job as an editor is to make sure that you tell your story in the most effective and efficient way possible. I promise. I won’t let you publish a “bad book.”