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To Do CC or Not to do CC???


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We just moved to TN and have a CC community in our area, which is great! I have so much CC stuff (the foundations guide, timeline cards, laminated flash cards, maps etc.) left over from when we did CC a couple of years ago and I tutored.

 

I'm at a fork in the road now. Do we do CC or not? Since I have so much stuff for it, it seems senseless to not do it even though I know there are a couple of items I would have to pick up for this year's cycle.

 

I'm worried about the money ($1400 plus the cost of the nursery for the little for one year!) I can't tutor this year because we have a baby due at the end of the year. Is it worth the cost in the long run?

 

We already have basic English, phonics, reading, math, writing, geography, and science planned out for next year. A latin program I would love to pick up and throwing CC in the mix seems like overkill.

 

Any thoughts? Encouragement? Ideas?

 

Thanks in advance :)

 

P.S. Kids are 8, 7, 5, 1, and one on the way.

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I think CC is worth it because it covers the things I really wanted to do but couldn't get done by myself at home:

A lot more memory work, including the timeline

Public speaking practice every week x 24 weeks

 

I also like it for these extras:

Great academic homeschool community which I have not found anywhere else (in real life)

Extra science

Extra art

Extra music

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We just moved to TN and have a CC community in our area, which is great! I have so much CC stuff (the foundations guide, timeline cards, laminated flash cards, maps etc.) left over from when we did CC a couple of years ago and I tutored.

 

I'm at a fork in the road now. Do we do CC or not? Since I have so much stuff for it, it seems senseless to not do it even though I know there are a couple of items I would have to pick up for this year's cycle.

 

I'm worried about the money ($1400 plus the cost of the nursery for the little for one year!) I can't tutor this year because we have a baby due at the end of the year. Is it worth the cost in the long run?

 

We already have basic English, phonics, reading, math, writing, geography, and science planned out for next year. A latin program I would love to pick up and throwing CC in the mix seems like overkill.

 

Any thoughts? Encouragement? Ideas?

 

Thanks in advance :)

 

P.S. Kids are 8, 7, 5, 1, and one on the way.

 

We're in almost the exact same boat!  Did CC 2 years ago, have ALL the stuff for it, current 4 dc are even similar ages, and 1 new baby due at the end of the year!  Funny, huh?  

 

We're not going to do CC this year - the cost is really high for what we're getting, IMO.  Also, I know how CC is run, and how to do it CC at home to suit our style better (present with more context instead of as pure lists or memorization sentences), actually did CC at home with 1 other family last year and it worked out great.  So we might do it again at home this year, but just our family since our friends moved away...unless we find a like minded family to do it with.  IMO it's more fun to do it with another family.  =)

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Is your stuff from a couple of years ago the new editions?  There is a new foundations guide and CC now has their own timeline cards and song.

 

It seems like it would be a good way for you to meet like-minded home school families and make friends in your new community.

 

You could talk to the director about partnering with another parent for tutoring.  The other parent can take over once the baby comes.  That could save you some money.

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Is your stuff from a couple of years ago the new editions?  There is a new foundations guide and CC now has their own timeline cards and song.

 

It seems like it would be a good way for you to meet like-minded home school families and make friends in your new community.

 

You could talk to the director about partnering with another parent for tutoring.  The other parent can take over once the baby comes.  That could save you some money.

 

I could talk to her and see what she says. That's a good idea. We have all the updated material plus the old edition foundations guide. I think the community is a great idea, it's just I can pay $35/year for that. I need to know that this will benefit my family in the long run.

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We're in almost the exact same boat!  Did CC 2 years ago, have ALL the stuff for it, current 4 dc are even similar ages, and 1 new baby due at the end of the year!  Funny, huh?  

 

We're not going to do CC this year - the cost is really high for what we're getting, IMO.  Also, I know how CC is run, and how to do it CC at home to suit our style better (present with more context instead of as pure lists or memorization sentences), actually did CC at home with 1 other family last year and it worked out great.  So we might do it again at home this year, but just our family since our friends moved away...unless we find a like minded family to do it with.  IMO it's more fun to do it with another family.  =)

 

I love this idea. I'd really love to find someone to do it with like this.

 

I'm in the middle of the same decision. We've done CC for 2 years and now we've moved to KY and I've got to decide whether we join a new group. And I'm a little tired of having to do everything the CC way with no flexibility. I mean, I homeschool so I can do it MY way and now I'm going to pay $1400 to do it YOUR way? I'm just not sure.

 

What's really getting me is the presentation portion. Most people are as afraid of public speaking as they are of death! I love that my kids have started early and I don't have another way of doing that this year.

 

Sorry, I'm not much help.

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When we switched from a classical private school to homeschool, CC seemed so amazing, and I could not wait.  I loved the idea of memory opportunities.  However, the more I looked into it, the more I realized it may not be the best fit for our family.  You have experienced it yourself firsthand, so you know what it's all about, but I think there are a lot of things I would rather spend $1400 on, such as extracurriculars, field trips, maybe even a family getaway.  My biggest issues with CC were three year cycles vs. four, the memory history sentences just being memorized as a timeline without the context, and taking up one day a week from our schedule from the things I wanted to cover.  I want to do field trips and have flexibility.  This is why i chose to homeschool, and I didn't want to tie myself to CC's schedule.  If you can swing it and really want to do it to meet new people and feel it will enhance your homeschool, go for it.  But you can easily do the memory at home, esp. as a former tutor.  If the $1400 means you have to say no to other things that are important to you, I'd say it's not worth it.  

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Join 4h. Lots of public speaking opportunities.

 

$1400 for anything beyond a top private tutor or high school credit (at a university with a professor and college credit potential)is overpriced. My ds has close to 50 college credits he earned from outside sources and my total expenditure was around $8000. CC doesn't even progress beyond pre-cal or offer multiple APs at the end of their expensive sequence. I just don't get the appeal. Why homeschool?

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No experience with CC so I can't answer about is CC "worth it or not", but just the fact that :

- you just moved

- are tight on money

- expecting a baby

would make me say "NO" to ANY outside-the-home activity that required a full day out once a week. This would be a very good time to settle in, make friends in your new location, do whatever "nesting" makes you feel happy and prepared for the new little one, and spend some extra cuddle time with the older 4 children before the new one arrives.

 

Your children are all so very young, you have years and years and years ahead of you for participating in CC (or in any co-op or extracurricular), so your accumulated CC material certainly won't go to waste.

 

JMO: take a year off to enjoy your family and get to know your new home & town! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

PS -- for the public speaking -- there's more than one way of being in front of a group to practice confidence:

 

- children's church choir

- local children's community theater group / dance group with performances

- go once a month to a nursing home and give presentations to the residents

- meet 1-2x/month with other homeschool families in the area for a Park Day and presentations (also a great way to meet new friends!)

- speech-debate team

- participate with the local public/private/charter school choir, drama, band/orchestra, which have performances (not all school districts allow homeschoolers to participate in extracurriculars or 1 class, but check around and see!)

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I'm basically just echoing the statements of others, but I would try a cheaper option than CC.

 

We're leaving CC because the cost is so high for more than one kid, and my K4 DS isn't ready for what Foundations will demand from him. Ours wouldn't be quite $1400, but that much money would pay for a LOT of cool homeschool extras. Maybe subscriptions to the zoo, the science museum, kits for way better science demonstrations than the CC ones, an organized sport, homeschool choir... I'm just thinking off the top of my head.

 

I loved our CC community, but once you have more than one kiddo in the program, it starts to offer less value IMHO. That isn't to denigrate the hard work of the tutors, at all. For our family, though, we need more for a $1000 investment. We do plan to continue some CC cycle 3 memory work this year.

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With $1400, you could hire someone to come into your home once or twice a week (you'll be paying around $50 a week for 24 weeks or so) for a special art class or science class.  You could even save up the money and pay someone to homeschool your children completely every morning for a month and give yourself a rest when the new baby comes.  I think if you had another family or two, you could have a nice community and each mom could teach a week.  

 

Beth

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OP, you have been a tutor and know exactly what you are getting for your money.  I think you should write down the pros and cons from your own point of view and consider whether or not it is worth it for your family and situation.  

 

I personally regret having taken advice about CC from people on this forum who have never had any experience with CC.

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No experience with CC so I can't answer about is CC "worth it or not", but just the fact that :

- you just moved

- are tight on money

- expecting a baby

would make me say "NO" to ANY outside-the-home activity that required a full day out once a week. This would be a very good time to settle in, make friends in your new location, do whatever "nesting" makes you feel happy and prepared for the new little one, and spend some extra cuddle time with the older 4 children before the new one arrives.

 

Your children are all so very young, you have years and years and years ahead of you for participating in CC (or in any co-op or extracurricular), so your accumulated CC material certainly won't go to waste.

 

JMO: take a year off to enjoy your family and get to know your new home & town! :) Warmest regards, Lori D.

 

 

PS -- for the public speaking -- there's more than one way of being in front of a group to practice confidence:

 

- children's church choir

- local children's community theater group / dance group with performances

- go once a month to a nursing home and give presentations to the residents

- meet 1-2x/month with other homeschool families in the area for a Park Day and presentations (also a great way to meet new friends!)

- speech-debate team

- participate with the local public/private/charter school choir, drama, band/orchestra, which have performances (not all school districts allow homeschoolers to participate in extracurriculars or 1 class, but check around and see!)

 

I think these and 4H are really good ideas. Thank you!

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When we switched from a classical private school to homeschool, CC seemed so amazing, and I could not wait.  I loved the idea of memory opportunities.  However, the more I looked into it, the more I realized it may not be the best fit for our family.  You have experienced it yourself firsthand, so you know what it's all about, but I think there are a lot of things I would rather spend $1400 on, such as extracurriculars, field trips, maybe even a family getaway.  My biggest issues with CC were three year cycles vs. four, the memory history sentences just being memorized as a timeline without the context, and taking up one day a week from our schedule from the things I wanted to cover.  I want to do field trips and have flexibility.  This is why i chose to homeschool, and I didn't want to tie myself to CC's schedule.  If you can swing it and really want to do it to meet new people and feel it will enhance your homeschool, go for it.  But you can easily do the memory at home, esp. as a former tutor.  If the $1400 means you have to say no to other things that are important to you, I'd say it's not worth it.  

 

CC was great community for us for 2 years with our group in WA but now that we've moved and I've got 3 kids going in this year I'm starting to agree with all the things you just said. I would add that the history sentences are not in an easily recognizable order which is very confusing to kids and parents.

 

But I'm still tempted to do CC this year for the community, to hopefully meet other like minded, classical homeschoolers locally, even though a lot of CCers aren't actually classical homeschoolers.

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The good news is I'm going to keep my $1400 but I'm NOT going to sell any of my stuff. I think I'm just going to have to get create and move some things around for next year to fit in memory work. I like the idea of picking and choosing on my own.  

 

I also called our county and the kids are starting Clover Buds (the lower age 4h) in the Fall. I also some how found out about a recent co-op just starting this year in my community that is every other week and only $35 for the whole family, the whole year. Yay! Glad that's over :)

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But I'm still tempted to do CC this year for the community, to hopefully meet other like minded, classical homeschoolers locally, even though a lot of CCers aren't actually classical homeschoolers.

 

Yes, that was our experience at the second campus we joined.  Very few of the new families knew very much about classical homeschooling, and many were not in that vein outside of CC.

 

The good news is I'm going to keep my $1400 but I'm NOT going to sell any of my stuff. I think I'm just going to have to get create and move some things around for next year to fit in memory work. I like the idea of picking and choosing on my own.  

 

I also called our county and the kids are starting Clover Buds (the lower age 4h) in the Fall. I also some how found out about a recent co-op just starting this year in my community that is every other week and only $35 for the whole family, the whole year. Yay! Glad that's over :)

 

Always good to get a decision made!

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Glad you have the decision made! Sounds like you have a lovely homeschool for next year planned out already. That was my problem . . . after oldest doing all 3 cycles, I just can't justify the 5 hours/week being in the Foundations classroom for her or younger dd would take away from their schooling. I can use that time better at home, or they can truly be socializing with friends on their terms, and we can still listen to and review the materials (as deep as we like) at home.

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I'm starting CC in the Fall, going to two practicums this summer and training as a tutor. I have a baby due in September so I hemmed and hawed a lot about whether I would go to community or just continue using the materials. I will be a substitute tutor since with a newborn I can't be an all the time tutor, so maybe I'll get a little back on my investment. Coop classes in my area run 300-450.00 per semester for 3 or 4 classes.. So the cost is about the same. I like the materials, the people, and I like the socialization.

 

The community I'm joining doesn't have a nursery so the littles stay with you (I love this), so you may want to ask if you are required to put your littles in nursery. It's not always required even if the offer it. You could also ask about being a substitute.

 

It is expensive but if you believe in the value and can afford it, I would. :-)

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I like CC for the accountability and for the fact that even on the weeks when all we get done is CC I still feel like they have gotten a decent amount of information.  I think you have to look long term. If you are thinking you would want your kids to to Challenge with CC then I would consider going ahead with the oldest at least. Then again, if you have done it before you can easily do it at home.  Why are you looking at doing it?  For us, we were in a brand new state and didn't know anyone. It was a great way for us to build a core community and make some homeschool connections.  We are in our 3rd year and plan to keep doing it.  I will say though that my oldest did Ch. A last year and we are going to take a break from Challenge this year.  He is doing the same subjects but we are not doing them with a community.  Also, for us cost is an issue but it is not an either/or situation. We can still afford to do CC without having to cut others things from our curriculum or school year plan.

 

ETA: I personally would not join a CC community that "required" me to put my youngers in a nursery. Part of Bortins vision for CC was the youngers learning along with the olders.  It just bothers me when communities require that parents put their kids in childcare. I don't have an issue with them offering it but if a parent wants to keep their child with them I think that is awesome. I say that as a parent and a tutor.

 

 

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