Advice re: Classical Conversations

[Guest luckymom2]

I am contemplating joining a Classical Conversations group next year. My daughter will be in 4th grade and I also have a 3yo. While I am very impressed, I also am a little intimidated. Is this curriculum overwhelming? Does anyone ever get behind and all is lost? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

[HerdingCats]

It is really up to you how much you do at home. Some leave it up to the tutors entirely to cover the memory work. It's super easy to just cover the weeks work each day, or just listen to the cd to and from activities while in the car. The only way it could be overwhelming would be if you were trying to go in depth with each topic every week, otherwise you can't really be behind. We try to touch on each topic at home, but keep our own pace with history and science through the year.

[kls126s]

There are a couple of approaches that families take with CC. Some people do make it their curriculum and do a lot of supplemental reading/experiments, etc to go with the topics covered weekly and that's all they do. I guess that could work ok with youngers, but I'm not sure it's thorough enough for olders.

 

Others just treat it as one subject in their daily schedule. That's what we do - we spend about 15-20 minutes per day reviewing the memory work for the current week, then go on to our work in other subjects.

[monalisa]

I wouldn't say the material is overwhelming. I totally agree with kls126s that 15-20 minutes a day is adequate. Even just listening to the CD's in the car can provide enough review.

 

What can feel overwhelming to me is devoting an entire day every week for 24 weeks to attending the group. Makes it hard to card out library or field trip days. If you like having that set co-op type of day, though, it won't be an issue for you.

[kls126s]

What can feel overwhelming to me is devoting an entire day every week for 24 weeks to attending the group. Makes it hard to card out library or field trip days. If you like having that set co-op type of day, though, it won't be an issue for you.

 

I am pro-CC, so I acknowledge my bias up front ;), but for families that choose to participate in Foundations only (K4-6th) - the program is usually 9am to noon, and then lunch together. We do our library runs on the afternoon of our CC day, and even sometimes do afternoon field trips on those days. I schedule the rest of our work in a four day school week.

 

If you have a 3rd-6th grader and want to participate in Essentials (an afternoon writing/grammar intensive with math drills and games) it usually meets from 1pm to 3pm, but that's a different program than the one people associate with CC memory work.

[elfinbaby]

I am also pro CC:D If you are sticking to just Foundations, then it is simply 9-12. The Foundations program is strictly memory work so do with it what you will. It can be an exercise in memorization or you can supplement at home. I've done both. I like supplementing at home but that can get stressful if you aren't studying what's being covered at CC; however, there are LOTS of resources that moms have put together to make that easier on you on the CC website (they are in C3 which you have to subscribe to).

 

Our first year, our studies were in line with the material and I devoted a lot of time to maintaining the memory work. This year has been different. We've had a lot of sickness and hospital trips (dd has seizures) and I just couldn't commit. My children have still retained a remarkable amount of material without my help. Plus, we have a particularly amazing group of families in our community and we love to fellowship and socialize with them (in and out of CC). Either way, I don't feel pressure. It's up to me.

 

This year b/c we've fallen behind in general, I have felt a pinch "losing" the a day to CC; however, it's just 24 days out of your entire school year. The first semester starts in Sept. and ends before Thanksgiving. The second semester starts in January and ends early April. To me, it's really not enough to get stressed about esp. since you don't have assignments (in Foundations).

 

Have you visited? Does the community feel like a good fit?

Edited February 15, 2010 by elfinbaby
add

[monalisa]

I am also pro CC:D If you are sticking to just Foundations, then it is simply 9-12.

 

True, the program ends at 12, but then at least at the 2 campus's I've seen, you then have a group lunch, and then the moms all have cleaning jobs or recess duty. Cleaning or recess duty aren't optional, and only on rare occasion do people leave before lunch. We aren't done until about 1:15 or 1:30, so by the time I get home its 2 pm. The morning is packed, so we are exhausted and don't accomplish anything else that day except for music lessons in the late afternoon. I do sometimes stop at the library on the way home, but I find it hard to get organized enough on a Monday morning to have lunch & snack packed plus plan out a library run.

[elfinbaby]

That is true but on our campus (nursery, supervision, etc.) duties are rotated so there are plenty of moms that are able to (if they choose) to leave at 12:00. Most don't since their kids want to do recess and PE. Plus, we like to visit with the other moms. The only duty we have at that time is playground supervision which includes 2 moms. Everyone else just has lunch or leaves if they aren't in Essentials. Since we have an afternoon Essentials class the bulk of cleaning is done at 3:00. This is our 2nd year as well. We chucked the "assigned cleaning" system and, instead, everyone just pitches in so it goes faster. It's voluntary and it works for us.

[monalisa]

That's nice that your campus is more flexible. It proves that every campus has a totally different setup & personality. We do not have a nursery at all (which is something I wish we did have, because it gets chaotic in the rooms with lots of little kids at times). We have almost a full campus so lots of kids and moms, and lots of cleaning to be done (plus every classroom has an attached bathroom, which gets cleaned) so I guess they decided assigned cleaning was necessary. Plus, our recess is in a full sized gym and with that many kids, 2 recess monitors are necessary.

[elfinbaby]

Wow. That does sound chaotic. Our campus is almost full too - we have 2 of every level of class (so a total of 8 classes). I can't imagine not having a nursery. We have lots of families with 4+ children (26 families total) and I don't think we could manage without a nursery. If it's okay for me to ask, why isn't there one? It's definitely a commitment since it takes 4 moms to hold down the fort but I think it's worth it. We have LOTS of wee ones. For recess, we also have 2 monitors but, with 26 families, that averages out to having duty once a semester. It's the afternoon nursery that has created challenges since we have fewer families yet still need 2 people in there. We solved that problem by hiring a teen and assigning a mother to afternoon nursery once a week. That way we get to be with our children more.

 

As for cleaning, I like our system. When you sign on as a tutor (I am tutoring this year), you agree to clean up your room before leaving (vacuuming, trash, etc.). It's not that big of a deal and, most likely, a thoughtful mother will pitch in if she can. We also eat outside whenever possible so there's no lunch mess. Most of our rooms get reused in the afternoon so the bulk of the cleaning gets done then. Our director is also really great about going through the rooms during afternoon class and collecting trash, gathering up left items, etc. Everyone is pretty conscious of the long day so we all do what we can to help out before class time is up so we can leave at a decent time.

 

I'm wondering how ya'll manage without a nursery!? Since we do have one, maybe it makes it easier for moms to pitch in on their own? I have a 1 yr. old and I know that there's no way I could help out putting chairs away or picking up if I was chasing him around. I usually don't even get to participate in prayer time and the morning meeting (when the nursery isn't open) he's so busy.

 

Oh goodness. I just realized, how do the tutors with wee ones manage to tutor? There's no way I could do it.

Edited February 15, 2010 by elfinbaby
add

[Woodland_Mom]

Don't feel intimidated! ;)

 

Classical Conversations is a program that seeks to encourage and equip parents to educate using a classical model of education.

 

For many parents, the Foundations Program is an opportunity for their children to learn alongside others using fun methods/techniques that they can implement in the home. The time at CC learning memory work is quite productive! The mornings also include time for kids to give oral presentations, get exposure to various fine arts activities/projects, and spend time doing hands-on science experiments.

 

CC is doable! Sure, the program keeps chugging along, even if you get behind on your memory work at home. But . . . the beauty of the program is that there is a 30 minute review period every single week!

 

Some children master all of the material perfectly. Many do not.

And that's okay! Really! (I'm not sure that mine will be memory masters this year.) If memorizing ALL of the material feels like to much, then use CC as a tool--focus on the areas that are most important to you. For example, my first year, I made it a goal for my kids to memorize the 160 timeline cards, the Bible verses, and the math skip counting. We followed the other subjects, but not as diligently. My boys learned SO much and I count that year a a great success.

 

I must say that spending time doing memory work at home was a HUGE weakness in our homeschool until I found CC. Classical Conversations has helped me to integrate some of their material into my everyday teaching and has helped my children to accumulate LOTS of basic facts/information that they'll be able to pull from as they move through life.

 

CC has helped us to establish some strong friendships. We're thankful to have a community of other like-minded homeschoolers to spend time every week.

[Mom0012]

I briefly did CC at a coop and then did it at home for a few years.

 

At the Foundations level, it is a memory program. On your coop day, the memory work will be introduced to you and then there may be a science experiment or art activity. On the other days, you need to make sure your child memorizes the work for the week. I didn't last long at the coop because I didn't want to take that much time out of our school day just to have the work introduced. The only way I would have continued with the coop at this level is if I wanted/needed accountability and/or if I wanted to form friendships with those in the group. The closest group to me at the time was 1 hour away so friendships seemed unlikely.

 

In the beginning, it is very easy because it doesn't take long to memorize for the week. However, there is no point in memorizing one week and then forgetting, so I always wanted to continue to review the prior weeks' work. This became very cumbersome and started to take more time than I felt it was worth, especially after we had covered more than one year of CC.

 

It was hard for me to let go of the program because we had invested so much time in it, but I finally did this year. It was just taking too much time. It really was wonderful for my son when he was little though because he enjoyed it so much and it was a boost to his self esteem. The history sentences, in particular, gave him pegs to hang further knowledge on and really sparked a love for history in him. Now, we're doing IEW's poetry memorization and I find that easier to keep up with and review.

 

Lisa

[monalisa]

Elfin baby, I will PM you

[angela in ohio]

At the Foundations level, it is a memory program. On your coop day, the memory work will be introduced to you and then there may be a science experiment or art activity.

 

This is different than when you do CC in a CC program, which most will do. In CC programs, you have a science activity every week and either art or music every week.

[Woodland_Mom]

Someone mentioned that CC is just a memory program with some science and art projects added to it. . . .CC is more than just memory work! Don't forget the opportunity for weekly presentations! It is sometimes difficult to replicate this in the home. :)

I was a foundations tutor for two years and now tutor Challenge A. I could easily provide the entire foundations program for my children at home. However, I choose to enroll them in the program because CC provides us with so many benefits:

 

• awesome memory work program
  
• hands-on science that ALWAYS happens!
  
• fine arts
  
• presentations
  
• Grammer & Writing program in the afternoons
  
• friendships
  
• time with other homeschooling parents that you have something in common with (CC, Classical Education, Christian worldview, etc.)
  
• Academic focus and plan
  
• I love that I can do CC in addition to what I want to do at home.
  

 

[mommydearest]

The 20-30 minutes we spend daily (split into two 15 minute increments) on review is worth all the fun we have in our awesome CC community! There are weeks where we are extremely lax and weeks where we are on top of everything. Regardless, the kids always seem to pull it off well. They have so much fun with their friends, not to mention the fun they have doing the science experiments, art projects, and PE. We often come across things in our math, grammar, and history at home that we have already learned in CC and it's always fun to make that connection. I have heard that your community makes all the difference and I totally believe that.