Ya, that’s tough for them. It’s ONE HOUR a week, art, book group, math enrichment. But we are after a consistent group of people. Perhaps it will be sufficient to say “priority will be given to families who participate in all three classes”? ETA full participation means you come every week and do try the activities, take part in discussion, etc vs “mom made me come but she can’t make me like it” or “mom made me come but I’m scared so I won’t talk or do what teacher asked” I know i sound cynical right now, but I was very bothered by some of the responses on the FB invitation and want to make sure that people aren’t doing it because THEY (not their children) want it

We’ve already sold it! There’s more interest than capacity. There’s not much going on in this town as far as homeschool groups, and I’m hoping that those who don’t like what we are offering will make their own group. As far as tone, I agree it’s pretty cold/strict sounding. So, what can I change and retain clear expectation that we are after community and not just a freebie class people will be wishy washy about?

I and two other homeschool moms are offering enrichment classes this year, in an effort to build community for our kids. This is not a co-op. The three of us are teaching the classes, the classes rotate each week, one hour a week for three weeks a month, three different age groups, using the library, and not charging anything (just asking for donated arts and crafts materials, telling people they have to procure their own book for the book group). We are having an informational meeting in two days and I want to be sure to communicate clearly (and tactfully) the expectations. Here are some things I thought of, but what am I missing? Or how else could I word things? Where could I be more concise? - We are holding these classes in an attempt to give our kids an opportunity for regular association with peers in a learning environment, without overburdening families with too much commitment. - We are moms, like everyone else, and we have families and homeschools and other outside commitments. We want this to be a mutually beneficial experience, and therefore ask participating families to respect the following the expectations: - Although there are three different classes, participation with our group means participation in all the classes (it is not a la carte). - We expect families to be committed to coming each week - We are not collecting or evaluating any work, but outside work is necessary to fully participate in class. Discussing a book necessitates reading the book; sharing solutions to math problems necessitates attempting the math problems; participating in an art project necessitates bringing any needed materials. We expect families to be committed by being prepared to participate in class - We need to cap the K-2nd age group to 10 kids, and depending on how your child does in class you may be asked to stay and help out, or we may decide that your child is not ready for class yet and ask you find a better suited situation. - Please be respectful of the situation (non-professional mom leading a large group of kids with varying skill levels) and realistic about whether your child is ready and wanting to fully participate in group learning, before committing. Participation is required. - This is not a drop-off babysitting service. You need to remain close by (eg in the library, in the park, at the shopping center across the street) We must be able to contact you by text, otherwise plan to stay in the class with your child. In the event that you are needed to help your child you must be free to come right away. - We expect parents to come to the rooms to get their children promptly at the end of class - In the event there are more interested families than there is room in classes priority will be given to families with children in multiple age groups - Only respectful speech and action will be accepted from participants - Families need to procure their own copy of the books for book club - Families may be asked to donate materials or a nominal dollar amount for art supplies - We will communicate about upcoming classes, photos of projects done in and outside of class, any extension of the activities in class, etc via a private Facebook page. Parents should check it regularly, especially within an hour before class, to be up to date and in case of cancelation - In the event there is any incompatibility between participants or their parents and these expectations we reserve the right to ask you find (or start) an alternate group, and afford you the same right to part ways. Especially after the long thread about parents wanting free, hands off, un-connected programs for their kids, I want to spell it out up front that there’s no free-loading (and really it isn’t a huge commitment). We are doing this because we want to and we don’t have to allow you to participate if you aren’t meeting expectations.

Where’s the angry emoji when it’s really needed.

Absolutely legitimate question to ask. And I like what you are saying about having those balance of tools. Then you run into the "will it sell books" issue with publishing.

I honestly think part of it is age. I’m in favor of waiting until 4th or 5th to start any Latin (although middle dd did SSL1 in 2nd, but in hindsight it was a mistake). If it was a living, spoken, applied language starting earlier probably is fine. As a language of science, history, logical reasoning, and serious grammar starting later means you get more retention ergo fewer years to learn the same amount as someone who started early.

I think that if you’ve been shoe-stringing along through elem and middle this is a huge shock. We gradually worked up to online $$ classes (ie we did seminars or single classes shorter than a semester, a leadership class that was 30 min M-Th that was all about that developing soft skills, etc that also had smaller price tags). But I told my kids early on that I can teach them just about anything but they could choose the high school, dual enrollment, the tech center, or online classes for different experiences. I feel pretty confident about my ability to teach, to create courses, and to provide experiences but I also know that there are others out there who have a different style, expertise, group structure, or physical resources I don’t and there can be an advantage to that well worth my $$. Perhaps if your standards are lower for what a well done course is you have a very different view on price tags?

My estimate for shopping at somewhere like Old Navy or Target (or even Ross) for two pair of pants ($50), 4 Shirts ($60), 8 pair underwear ($15) totals $125

We are close to my family, but he doesn’t always remember MY birthday... it’s just him. He’s amazing, and I love him, but those kind of details don’t seem to stick with him.

Me too. Not to sound like a Luddite, but I think the Internet and a shift generally in society to web- and device- delivered content (news, business info, travel info, banking, books, entertainment, etc) plays a part. There’s a new expectation for on-demand, full-function goods and services that are “free” (aka you relinquish your rights to your personal information, habits, other market research info, and privacy in trade for a good or service which you mistakenly perceive as free). But also, not entirely unrelated, despite all the being “plugged in” in the world there’s greater personal disconnect. People spend less time in-person, face-to-face. And often what transpires in virtual interaction is less personal, disingenuous, or outright false. I think it is detrimental to our ability to fully connect with people, including our children. (Yes I know there are great ways to connect online that do enhance relationships, but I do believe what I said is generally true for most). So there’s an expectation of well-designed and “free” services, and a diminished ability to fully engage with our kids for hours on end each day. There are a host of other factors I’m sure. But this is something that stands out in my mind.

Ya, that’s nuts. Someone was being officious - I think there are some people who feel a need to be important/an authority, and try to make their small square responsibility out to be much more than it is. (As an aside this is one major reason co-ops can go awry) I wouldn’t judge CAP by this woman who was too big for her britches.

When kids are old enough to be more self directed that’s when I have them start doing their own things. Actually, it’s more like this: early on (through say about 3rd or 4th) they work as a family. When they get to middle grades they start to do determine what they want to study and I help them learn to find resources and be accountable through weekly meetings. There’s a lot of “sampling” things at this stage. They still get skills instruction from me (math, writing/spelling/grammar, lit). When they get to 6th grade they can start to choose some outside classes as part of their interest driven work. We do skill-based classes together still, and begin learning how to be accountable to someone besides Mom. By the time 8th grade is here they are doing mostly self-propelled classes (either mom-designed independent work, text written to student, online, co-op, at the public school) with maybe 1 or 2 things needing instruction time from me. They do get soft skills instruction (using a planner or task manager, study strategies, note taking skills, etc) from me. High school they are working almost fully independently- by this time I’m mostly in a support role, with a few exceptions. I check in with them, proofread for them, have discussions, help them if they’re stuck, and do the grading (sometimes they do their own, too). But I also spend a lot of time researching and designing courses that can be self-propelled, chauffeuring, etc. Despite all that gain in independence, there seems to be a steady amount of work, just shifted into different places. All of that was a long answer to say I don’t actively teach more than one content area curriculum, even if my kids are doing more than one curriculum.

You are right. It isn’t epically hard. Nor easy and free. And how much you expend is different depending on circumstances - I’m impressed with your day! That’s me on a good day, but not an average day. I have three 2e kids plus a 1st grader, a spouse who works inconsistent 12-hour (365, 24/7 possibilities) shift work, and until recently had NO family support. Even after doing course design (or even “just” researching and selecting materials/outside courses) I still have to do more than facilitate my teens’ work - there’s grading, discussions, a few classes I still actually teach them, and helping them with continual development of executive skills. My experience will be different than someone educating 7 kids at home infant to teen on a shoestring budget, or someone homeschooling two average kids in a very supportive community and deep pockets, or a single parent working and homeschooling, etc. I do think the unseen mental effort that goes into it is undervalued.

The work of thinking is highly undervalued. Research, study, compare, evaluate, coordinate, synthesize, re-evaluate... and that’s just in the summer leading up to the start of the implement, assess, adapt, respond, evaluate part of the year.

Yes - I think we do need to emphasize responsibilities/duties as much or more than rights! So how do we define those responsibilities/duties without it being authoritarian/dictatorial/Orwellian/oppressive?? It opens up a whole slough of questions. Where’s the balance of expectation and freedom? Have we removed the “natural consequences” of not fulfilling your responsibilities? Is this a “character flaw” in some members of society? Or is it something that can be changed/addresses by outside structure? Is it the role of government to step in? Is it the role of individuals and communities? And if so, how do we ensure the government or the individuals and communities are just?

These attitudes are so concerning to me. My heart aches for children who don’t receive a good education - whatever the context - but it also raises worry about my community and country. So going back to some earlier ideas on this thread, do you (everyone reading this thread) think the homeschool community is partially (or even mostly) to blame for these concerning perspectives/attitudes, with all the of the “it’s so easy, anyone can homeschool, it only takes a fraction of the time of school, you can do it for free, etc” messages circulated by Homeschoolers? And if so, how can we counteract it? Is it our responsibility to counteract it?

Tall icing is messy - either eat it down (look like pig) or try to get it in with some of the cake and it ends up on your face (look like pig). i want to try these https://www.toadstoolcupcakes.com/menu

I hate that thinking, and hear it too often. I work hard! (And happened to be credentialed too) I think, however, that the disconnect is more insidious - people don’t connect what they pay in tax to the services they receive. Teachers, and public school, are “free” in their eyes. And if public school is free then homeschooling should definitely be free too!

I confidently wear jeans, a T-shirt, and flip flops or sandals nearly every day. Sunday’s I wear a skirt to church and promptly change out of it when I get home. Because I want to. I wear make fewer than 5 times a year (and I’m in my 40s), and my hair is either down (straight, plain cut, side part), up (ponytail/messy bun), or nicely up on some occasions. And I LOVE it. It’s who I am and I’m comfortable with that. when I was a teen people tried to dress me up and it only made me self-conscious (wasn’t I good enough how I was??? don’t people see my personality, intelligence, and confidence??? do the people who love me most not even see that???). And when I went away to college I branched out and tried new styles and styling. Free from feeling like someone was observing and critiquing my appearance I was able to explore myself. Guess what - I came back to jeans and t-Shirts (I did move from Tevas to Chacos in 2002 but that’s about the only change). My advice is leave the issue, don’t comment or make a fuss and try not to think about it, just love her and give her the space so she can explore from a state of confidence.

Another request I saw today was for a high school art history class, needs to include assignments and grading, and be free and online. I don't even understand how the dots are not connected that SOMEONE is working to make that happen, and should be compensated for it.

Sounds like you’re half done! Spanish you’ll want to do regularly (daily is best) and Latin too, because they are languages that need use and practice. It might only be reviewing vocabulary some days but 10 min a day 5x a week is much better than one 60 min or two 30 min blocks. I’d Lump typing in there too, for 5-10 min a day. You could have a 30-45 min daily block for Spanish, Latin, and typing. You may find a lot of redundancy in Spanish and Latin and might opt for justbone at a time but YMMV. That leaves Geography, Logic, and fine arts. You could have a looping electives hour every day. Or you could have a given day for each elective. Or you could spend 4 months on geography, 4 on logic, 4 on fine arts. Or you could do 2 weeks geog, 2weeks Logic, two weeks fine arts, break and repeat. Really, there are so many ways to do it. My kids do better with “seasons” of things - right now we are covering geography, in a few months we will focus on science, etc. So, what do you want? What will work well for your child?

Selective keeper here. I’ve been regularly weeding them for years (many moves), so really we mostly only have ones we’ll keep right now. But we’re about to make a mostly-permanent move so I will have to do periodic weeding again.

Yes. Try getting anything done on a military installation ?

dp