SonshineLearner Posted November 6, 2009 Share Posted November 6, 2009 Ok, So, I'm not sure if we'll have a Classical Conversations Program for Jr High or High School, this next year. I am interested in what people on here think the best co-op type curriculum is. I'm thinking.... One Mom/Dad or a collection (still not sure) taking turns either teaching subjects or weeks.... (not sure about the distribution of work load should work out) I'm interested in only one day, hopefully, although there is a slight chance I could use the building two days. The subjects I care about most are: (at Co-op) History, Science, Logic, Debate, Writing, and other jr high/highschool subjects... The subjects that I have covered are Math, and we do Latin by ourselves... although.... I could have her review Latin at "Co-op". I'd love to hear what the curriculum you use is... (Omnibus etc....) and how your co-op uses it/ divides responsibilities/ or how much you pay... How often you meet.... Everything you want to share, links, too:-) Thanks!! Carrie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted November 6, 2009 Share Posted November 6, 2009 The jr/sr hi co-ops in my area are huge. They are pricey (around $40 to register, and around $175 - 195 per one semester class, plus books and/or supplies). But you can just drop off your child. http://homepage.mac.com/southheights/index.htm http://www.chatclasses.com/ http://www.yeahacademy.net/index2.htm I prefer using them for things I can't do at home or in a small group -- speech is the biggest one. I rarely choose to use them for major subjects, because that brings all the issues of public schools back to my mind -- homework, following someone else's agenda, learning someone else's viewpoint, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda in NE Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 We have over 150 students 7th through 12th grade this year. The teachers and their curricula are linkable from the main page. http://www.lancasterlearninglink.org/ Linda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jananc Posted November 8, 2009 Share Posted November 8, 2009 We have 2 co-ops that our high school kids are a part of. We are members of a TOG co-op that has 5 rhetoric kids in History, Church History, government, and philosophy, and 8 kids in rhetoric literature. Our co-op is free, and is run by the moms (not all rhetoric kids' moms teach rhetoric subjects though -- some of them teach the LG, UG, or dialectic classes.) We meet every week: history/church history/government/philosophy meets 3 hours on Fridays, and lit meets 1.5 hours on the following Monday. Meeting on the following Monday gives the kids the weekend to finish up on their lit reading. TOG is ideal for co-ops, in fact it was written with co-ops in mind for rhetoric kids. The discussion scripts keep us on track and tell us moms what to say, what to ask, etc. Our other co-op meets on Mondays, and they do labs for the Apologia classes, SAT prep classes, an AP psychology class, yearbook/photography, bible studies, and a "teen club" social hour at the end of the day. There is no fee for either co-op, but all parents are required to teach and/or assist for 2-3 hours each Monday. It's not a drop-off situation, and we all pitch in to keep it running. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 There is no fee for either co-op, but all parents are required to teach and/or assist for 2-3 hours each Monday. It's not a drop-off situation, and we all pitch in to keep it running. Wow, have you been able to find two facilities that offer you space for free? Virtually no place around here does that any more. Kudos to them! Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 We have been members of 3 different co-ops in three different states with programs for jr and high school students. They were all very different. In the first state, we had a program where there was only a choice or two. It was parent led but very good. My son, a ninth grader then, took art and Drama - I think Shakespearean based but it has been 7 years so I don't remember that well. There was no cost above maybe a 25 dollar donation to the church and some supply fees. The second was a paid program where we paid for classes, had to work as check in and program helpers four times a year, and the classes were in all subjects. It cost about 250-475 a year for each class. My dd took two- SPanish 1 and Movies and Literature. The Movies and Lit turned out to be much more thorough than I first expected and turned into my dd's 9th grade ENglish class along with some supplemental grammar and voc. The leaders of this program were volunteers and only the teachers were paid. The program we are currently in has three periods, all parent volunteers, and cost 75 a year plus minor fees like cooking supplies. I have it for enrichment for my Jr. High - robotics, cooking, and ANcient Greece, and for my high schooler -credit courses- Novel Writing, INtroduction to Debate, and US Govt/Econ. My kids also have other activities with the co-op that cost a bit more- debate team, Odyssey of the Mind, 4H, and Honor Society. We love the co-ops. That being said, all the co-ops I have seen are Christian and that is one reason we get to have such low cost options. Normally we have a church with a Sunday School wing allowing us to use it. The three I have belonged to have only allowed traditional Christians to be in the program- Protestants, Orthodox, Catholics. ANd we have had families from all three groups but we don't have some people that may call themselves CHristians but don't abide by traditional interpretations- LDS, JW, etc. I think finding co-ops for those people and for non Christians altogether is much more difficult. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted November 9, 2009 Author Share Posted November 9, 2009 Thanks!! I'm reading all of these... and I'd like any others, too. Carrie:-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jananc Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 Wow, have you been able to find two facilities that offer you space for free? Virtually no place around here does that any more. Kudos to them! Julie yes, I know it's hard to believe and we're grateful! However, this morning someone in our co-op (the big one, with 75 kids or more) apparently pulled the fire alarm! We're hopeful this doesn't damage our relationship with the church. The fire department came out, and the pulled alarm was damaged, so it could be costly to the church. I wonder though, how many of those kids have ever been "taught" not to pull an alarm -- I don't think I've ever specifically said it to my kids, come to think of it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G5052 Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 There are several groups in our area that do this in addition to CC, and I have several friends who run their kids around to multiple places to get the classes they want. Every church that I know of charges homeschool co-ops/classes something to use their facilities ranging $200-3000/year. There are TOG co-ops around, but they seem to work "by invitation only" and most meet in homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leanna Tomlinson Posted November 9, 2009 Share Posted November 9, 2009 I run a TOG co-op for all levels. Our Dialectic and Rhetoric kids take a Comp& Lit class and a history class centered on TOG. The history class covers several TOG threads and we have different teachers that cover each thread (history, government, fine arts, philosophy, and church history). We also offer Spanish. In the morning we have a science option for 7th grade and older. Most of the families have their older kids in this and then bring the younger siblings for the TOG classes after lunch. Our co-op existed before we used TOG, but TOG has been wonderful in uniting us and keeping families on the same page. Leanna Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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