What did you like about the last small Seminar or Classical Conversations Practicum..

[SonshineLearner]

Hi There!

 

Whether you have been to a Practicum or some other similar (homeschool) seminar... I'd love your ideas!! We're having our Classical Conversations Practicum (Seminars) coming up this summer. I'm coordinating the practicums in the Oregon area, and this is our 3rd year. I am SOOOO excited. Perhaps it's because I should be doing taxes and this gives me something else to think about. :D

 

I'd love everything to go as smoothly as possible and each family to feel "special" and cared for whether they just come for the practicum... or choose to come to our weekly group. (Of which I am the local Director)

 

I am looking for all types of hints and suggestions from anyone who wants to suggest what was great (or not so great.. and you can pm me:-) with their practicum.

 

Whether you received a little "take home gift" or drank great coffee while at the Practicum.. or had someone walk you back to the Kid Camps... Whatever made you stop and think, "this is a well done Practicum". That's what I want to hear.

 

Suggestions... however small... are welcome!!

 

:-)

[SonshineLearner]

:lurk5:

[SonshineLearner]

:D

[Sonshine]

Maybe someone has ideas about making moms feel welcome, etc. in a similar setting. I think Classical Conversations is kind of new, and not many people maybe in a position to answer your questions. I was reading old posts about co-ops yesterday and people were raving about a chocolate fountain at a co-op mom's meeting with all kinds of yummies to dip in it. Also, I personally like playing easy get to know you games.

[ElizabethB]

I would personally like to see books, especially some of the books from the most recent catalogue. I have Spelling Rules and Spelling Dictation and really like them, I saw them in the catalogue, some of the other books I hadn't seen looked interesting. Also the new flash cards if you are able to get an advance copy.

 

I had been thinking about doing CC but was not sure. What made me decide I wanted to try it was seeing the CC display at a homeschool convention when I was in Arkansas--I had read and liked 80% of the books on display and liked the looks of the few I hadn't seen!

[AFwife Claire]

Well, I'm going to be totally honest here and say that the parent practicum I went to last summer drove. me. crazy. I thought the speaker was pretty flighty, and I didn't like that she talked down to the audience, as if no one had ever heard of classical education before, even though a majority of people did in fact raise their hands when she asked how many people had read TWTM. My kids had a good time at the kid camps, but again, being honest here, they were way too long, and the kids were totally fried by the end of the 3 days. My 1st grader's teacher told me at the end of the second day that he was having little breakdowns in the afternoons, where he would just lay his head down on his desk and cry, but that they would take him out in the hallway and settle him down, and then he'd be fine for another few hours. My 3 year old finally refused to go into her classroom the third afternoon, after having had an accident there the second day (which is so rare for her). It was soooooo stressful for my kids, even though it was also fun and enjoyable. And I guess this is what I didn't like about the practicum: you are telling a group of homeschooling moms how to homeschool better, while you put their children, who are not used to being in a classroom environment all the time, in school for the entire day, 3 days in a row. I can not overemphasize how stressful it was for my kids and me, and it is a primary reason why I am not doing CC again this year. With so many kids, I have to tutor, and I absolutely can not fathom sitting through those 3 8-hour days again. It makes me practically break out in hives.

 

So having said all of that, I don't think there really is anything anyone could have done to make the experience better! My problem is with the whole set-up! I wish the tutor training was in the morning, and then you could decide whether or not you wanted to stay the rest of the day. Half a day is much more manageable for little kids. I am so sorry that I don't have more constructive criticism for you! I wasn't going to reply, since I wasn't too helpful, but finally I decided to, even if just to explain why I wasn't giving any helpful suggestions! : )

[SonshineLearner]

I appreciate the thoughts.... Some parents that I know will choose to have their children either do half days... or stay with g-parents for those days... (or trades with friends...etc.) I know for my little one... (7 this summer) he does better with half days... so perhaps we'll do half at the practicum and have with grammy...

;)

As far as tutors going... I know that they want you to attend all three days... But, the kids are optional.... :)

 

Thanks for the hints... at the very least, perhaps it'd be good to have kids do a "quiet time" for part of the afternoon... just to cut down on the stress and buzz....

 

Thanks Again!!

 

Anymore??

[lindsrae]

We are new to CC this year, and I've never attended a practicum, so I don't know what all it entails. But I taught in a PS before staying home to have my babies (which confirmed my desire to home school!), and I can tell you the kinds of workshops I liked to attend.

 

Treat everyone's time as valuable: start and end on time (even if you have to cut some stuff, because by the end of the day, all you are doing is looking at the time anyway, so you don't absorb any more information!). Have a printed agenda for everyone so that the attendees know what to expect. Schedule breaks (and put them on the agenda!) and provide some kind of snacks, even if it is just coffee/water and some bowls of chips, fruit, nuts. EVERYONE appreciates food!

 

I don't know if CC practicums have different workshop "options," but if they don't, that would be a great thing. It is always nice to have choices so that you can tailor the day to your needs and get the most out of it.

 

Definitely have lots of CC materials for people to look at; ask other moms in your group what they use for curriculum...I don't know about everyone, but I know a lot of HS moms love looking at books and curriculum!

 

A great way to get everyone back into the group after a break or lunch or whatever is to play a certain song (that you identify at the beginning of the day) that you want people to return to. By the time the song is over, have a quick giveaway--you can even just draw names out of a hat. It helps people know when to be back to their seat, and helps YOU keep a schedule.

 

Just some ideas...hope that helps!

[Hen]

I thought it was too long too. I also had to drive far to attend one, the drive was stressful but I had no other choice if I was to tutor. I did not take my kids, since I have older kids to babysit. It would have been too long for them in my opinion.

 

I would have liked to play games to get to know others, and I would have liked it to be just our community, so I could have gotten to know the other moms. We did have one planned for our community, but it was canceled at the last minute because we didn't have enough signed up. I would have liked to have had it done anyways.

 

snack breaks would have been nice, to meet others.