Help me understand Classical Conversations

[mamawaabangi]

A local friend is wanting to start up a CC coop in our area...

In theory it sounds right up our alley, and l love the thought of some support and accountability. But, I have read and reread the website and find it HORRIBLY undiscriptive or perhaps sort of ambiguous about what you actually get for the per child fee.

Plus it seems really expensive. From what I can gather we'd spend nearly $1800 just on fees to participate, and that is not including our 5th child once she is the age to participate. I am just confused what I'd actually "get" from it since I'd also have to pay for all our other curriculum on top of that! I am fairly sure I don't spend $800 on all our curriculum at this point... just a tough pill to swallow!

 

Basically my questions are...

 

Is the fee per child?

 

Do you have/need to purchase additional material on top of the listed cost?

 

What does that usually add up to for your family or per child?

 

What is actually covered as far as curriculum/subjects in a given day at CC?

 

What do you like about CC?

 

Do you feel it is "worth" it?

 

What don't you like or find annoying?

 

Other thoughts?

[beth83]

So we are in our second year of CC.  My only child participating is 5 years old, so I have my opinions, but they might change the further we get in.  Also, this is strictly for the Foundations class.

 

1.  We paid about $375 for one child to participate this year.  That fee covers the tutor's paycheck, supply fees, and I'm assuming payment for the director, as well.  We might have had an extra $50 building fee thrown in.  I can't remember if it was folded into the $375, or not.  I am tutoring this year, and didn't actually realize I would get paid.  Having prepared a couple of weeks, I am very glad that I am getting reimbursed for my time.  I really try to provide quality time for my kids and I'm sure I would cut some corners if I didn't feel it was an equal payoff.  And our director -- she works her butt off!

 

2.  The following is the schedule for our day...

 

9:15-9:30   General assembly with all the families (announcements, family presentations, pledges -- US and Bible)

9:30-10      Introduce new memory work

10-10:30    Hands-on Science experiment

10:30-11    Fine Arts (6 weeks rotating through drawing, music theory/tin whistle, great artists, and orchestra/composers

11-11:30    Each student gives a short presentation 

11:30-12    Review old memory work

 

Information on the tutors...  In CC, you don't have teachers, you have tutors.  They try to keep the emphasis that a parent is their child's teacher.  The tutor is there to present new information in a fun way and give the parent some ideas for working with the material at home.  It is the parents responsibility that the student learns everything to the extent the parent wishes.  Some people get all hung up on how a teacher could teach everything they need to in such a short time.  It is because they aren't suppose to necessarily teach, but more present the information, for the parent to later to more in depth and solidify the topics.

 

What you need to buy... Last year, we made it through with the Foundations Guide, the set of cds, and a tin whistle for each student.  Although, I hear all the official songs can be downloaded online if you pay for access to CC Connected.  I don't even buy the timeline cards, but they might be nice, especially if you are digging more into the information.

 

How deep to get in the material...  There are a couple of options.  Some people take the CC work and that becomes the framework for their whole curriculum.  Then there are the people who use it merely as supplemental.  That would be us.  We have a full set of curriculum outside of CC and I just see the CC material as icing on the cake.  Whatever extra the daughter picks up on our CC day will be fine.  Then there are people who fall somewhere in the middle and pick and choose.

 

Is it worth it?  For us, it is.  I love the community that it builds.  It is a true community of varied ages -- parents in different places down to newborn babies.  By requiring a parent to stick around, the families all bond.  I have found some great friends there who have shared life with us.  It is so different from a drop-off co-op in this way.  I have personally gotten to know all the families and all the children.  The 4 year olds run around with the 7 year olds like it is no big deal.  Plus, there is always someone older and wiser to get homeschooling advice from.  On top of the community, there is the hands-on science and fine art component that really doesn't get done at home.  

 

How long will be participate?  That is hard to say.  We will continue to do it until we feel too stretched to fit in all our other school.  Right now, we are light anyways, given my kids' ages.  I will say, that it will be one of the last things we drop. 

 

I do think the community makes a huge difference in your experience, though.  I love ours.  All the mothers are so welcoming, open, and friendly.  My sister-in-law signed up for one and had a completely different experience.  They were a small community and my 4 year old niece, who was new to CC, was in a class with all 6 year olds and one 5 year old.  I can't imagine how intimidating that must have been.  I will say last year, all the 4 year olds just stared at the board most of the time.  Being a class solely of 4 year olds, though, it was okay.  They were all in the same place together.  It has been amazing to see the progress they have all made over the summer.  They are more comfortable with the format and what is expected of them this year.  They seem to be flourishing.  If they have already started, can you attend one day just to check it out?

 

Hope this helps!

 

 

[Mrs Twain]

We joined CC (Foundations) this year for my 5th, 3rd, and 1st graders, so I don't have a long time of experience with it. The previous poster gave a nice summary. As far as cost, you pay the tuition fee per child, plus I also had to pay extra facility fees and a materials fee. Those latter fees added up to about $200 total.

 

I also spent about $230 on materials to help me teach the program (Foundations Guide, tin whistles, timeline cards, science cards, and flashcards.) I joined CC Connected online for a couple of months (at $6/month) so I could download mp3 files of the memory songs, blackline geography maps, and history highlights to teach the history sentences. You don't need to buy all of these things, but I find them a great addition since they allow me to easily teach the background of all of the memory work.

 

CC foundations is meant to be a supplement (to your regular curriculum) which is mostly made up of memory work. The memory work includes history timeline, history sentences, geography, Latin, English grammar, science, math and a Bible passage. If you really can't get your head around it but want to, you could buy a Foundations Guide to know exactly what is taught in the three cycles of Foundations.

 

The CC levels above Foundations are called Challlenge and are meant to cover more of the students' core school curriculum.

 

Even though CC is quite expensive, I am very happy with it because it meets many skills/goals I have been wanting to cover but haven't been able to do by myself at home. These include:

 

More memory work, especially the history timeline

Public speaking (all of the kids do a 2-3 minute presentation each week)

A classroom experience with a teacher and assigned work outside of class

Opportunities to make more friends

Plus--extra art, music, and science lessons

 

Another big advantage I see is that CC is a co-op to which all of your kids can go regardless of age, and they will receive very useful knowledge and skills for their education. I don't know of any other co-ops that offer those benefits.

[thegeyser]

Since you asked, I will answer according to my experience with Foundations. :) I know Sonlight has done something like this, and I found I agreed with their list of reasons NOT to do Sonlight. I love their books and the company, but their list solidified why I didn't want to use their program. In that same vein, I have written a list of 27 Reasons NOT to do CC. My goal is not to slander CC, but in a slightly humorous way summarize and convey some of the criticisms that have been voiced on TWTM boards. As with anything, there are pros and cons to any co-op, curriculum, etc. If any of these cause you to pause, maybe you should do more research on that particular point.

 

 

27 Reasons NOT to join Classical Conversations:

1.) You are required to stay and observe the class if you are not tutoring. You think you’ll be bringing newspapers or a novel to read by the end of the year. Maybe you’ll even brazenly start clipping coupons, because it only takes one other mom to pass out crayons.

2.) You like your history in four or six year cycles and can’t imagine reducing it to three.

3.) You like teaching your children their memory work in context.

4.) You don’t need to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars (depending on family size) for the benefit of a home school community.

5.) You don’t want to choose between “fleshing out the material at home†and teaching memory work out of context.

6.) You like other classical latin programs that use song for teaching your little ones latin memory work much better than what CC offers - and you can wait until they are ready for it.

7.) You think it is silly to compare the cost of trained music teachers to tutors when there is very little training of one compared to the other.

8.) You don’t appreciate the strong sales pitches made to join CC at every turn. (*This may be most relevant to you - as you will feel a need to grow your community/business*)

9.) You understand that while all that is required is the tin whistle and the Foundations guide, to really succeed you need to buy a memory work CD, a CC Connected subscription, pictorial timeline cards, and some cute memory cards on a keychain.

10.) Opportunity cost: you value your time and money. You can buy a lot of books and can afford an online latin class for the cost of CC. You can join a co-op that better meets your specific areas of weakness.

11.) You realize that if you purchase curriculum from classical publishers, they have memory work built into their programs. CC grammar memory and math songs would be redundant.  

12.) You think CC corporate is extremely quirky about their position on copyright. So how many times do you have to purchase their material anyway?

13.) You don’t think CC is the only way to provide a Classical Christian education.

14.) You realize CC corporate exists to serve classical homeschoolers who are members of their communities.

15.) You like The Well-Trained Mind better than The Core.

16.) You lean a little more Charlotte Mason.

17.) You feel like CC Connected is unfairly benefitting from the hard work of its valuable paid members, because the members supply tons of content and to your knowledge receive no monetary reimbursement for their time and effort (CC owns the material and the forum).

18.) You think it is crazy to mandate 4 year-old siblings to register for the program instead of playing in the preschool room. But then again you are paying an extra cost for babysitting your little ones - not a preschool program.

19.) You would have trouble abiding by the following: Thou shalt not say anything critical of or negative about your personal CC experience and why it wasn’t a good fit for your family.

20.) Not all tutors are equal.

21.) You may not like the emphasis on earning Memory Master status, especially if your child has learning challenges.

22.) There is no 100% satisfaction guarantee. All money is paid up front.

23.) You don’t need someone to model memory work. It just isn’t that tough.

24.) Youtube is free.

25.) Twenty-four weeks of six subjects of memory work is a very long time and a whole lot of unrelated information. In fact, it is too fast and too much for your personal taste. Can we memorize a poem or a hymn now (see #16)?

26.) You don’t see how it is possible to really teach quality art, science, and music in the time allotted if the parents aren’t asked to supplement with context at home and the paid tutors may or may not know what they are talking about. (See #7 and #20)

27.) You don’t think the community at CC is somehow academically superior to other groups serving the elementary ages and recognize that people use many different philosophies and methodologies for their child’s education - and God uses them too.

[thegeyser]

BTW, if anything I wrote is unfactual, please let me know. I know things change over time, and it has been a while since I was involved in a community.

 

[mamawaabangi]

That is all super helpful!

Honestly, I didn't know that it was a 3 year cycle... that could be the straw for me! 

Also, parents HAVE to be present??? I wouldn't want or be able to do that every week. 

Hum... 

Super duper helpful!!!

 

 

 

[thegeyser]

Despite my criticism, I have found ways to implement some of their materials in our school. The time line song is available online as a download for $8. I am having my kids learn their portion of the song (1 kid in Ancients and 1 in Moderns) as we drive to soccer. I just want them to know 1/4 of it this year. My 4 year-old picks up on some of it, but I don't have to pay $300+ for her. She also knows most of the First Language Lessons chants (there is an audio grammar CD from SWB too).

 

There are certain materials CC produces I think are helpful, but because CC bundles everything so tightly for use alongside of their communities, I have just sought out other resources that are just as good - if not better. A lot of the memory work on their resource CD is still spoken, so you have to download songs from CC Connected. Thankfully, they are not the only outfit out there producing memory songs. The next best alternative: make your own memory work CDs and drive around with them in your car. :-) Alternatively, you can follow Susan Wise Bauer's recommended memory selections.

 

Leigh Bortins says herself in the Foundations Guide that she borrowed very heavily from a children's history encyclopedia when writing her history sentences. There are so many free resources out there right now. If you are looking for ways to implement memory work in your home school, just know that CC is not your only option or the only way! For me, if your philosophy does not very closely match CC's interpretation of classical you may be pretty unhappy by the 24th week. CC is very impressive if you just go and sit in on a class or hear a 4 year-old sing a history sentence. Dig a little deeper to see if it is a fit for you. :)

[KeriJ]

Since you asked, I will answer according to my experience with Foundations. :) I know Sonlight has done something like this, and I found I agreed with their list of reasons NOT to do Sonlight. I love their books and the company, but their list solidified why I didn't want to use their program. In that same vein, I have written a list of 27 Reasons NOT to do CC. My goal is not to slander CC, but in a slightly humorous way summarize and convey some of the criticisms that have been voiced on TWTM boards. As with anything, there are pros and cons to any co-op, curriculum, etc. If any of these cause you to pause, maybe you should do more research on that particular point.

 

 

27 Reasons NOT to join Classical Conversations:

 

1.) You are required to stay and observe the class if you are not tutoring. You think you’ll be bringing newspapers or a novel to read by the end of the year. Maybe you’ll even brazenly start clipping coupons, because it only takes one other mom to pass out crayons.

 

2.) You like your history in four or six year cycles and can’t imagine reducing it to three.

 

3.) You like teaching your children their memory work in context.

 

4.) You don’t need to pay hundreds to thousands of dollars (depending on family size) for the benefit of a home school community.

 

5.) You don’t want to choose between “fleshing out the material at home†and teaching memory work out of context.

 

6.) You like other classical latin programs that use song for teaching your little ones latin memory work much better than what CC offers - and you can wait until they are ready for it.

 

7.) You think it is silly to compare the cost of trained music teachers to tutors when there is very little training of one compared to the other.

 

8.) You don’t appreciate the strong sales pitches made to join CC at every turn. (*This may be most relevant to you - as you will feel a need to grow your community/business*)

 

9.) You understand that while all that is required is the tin whistle and the Foundations guide, to really succeed you need to buy a memory work CD, a CC Connected subscription, pictorial timeline cards, and some cute memory cards on a keychain.

 

10.) Opportunity cost: you value your time and money. You can buy a lot of books and can afford an online latin class for the cost of CC. You can join a co-op that better meets your specific areas of weakness.

 

11.) You realize that if you purchase curriculum from classical publishers, they have memory work built into their programs. CC grammar memory and math songs would be redundant.  

 

12.) You think CC corporate is extremely quirky about their position on copyright. So how many times do you have to purchase their material anyway?

 

13.) You don’t think CC is the only way to provide a Classical Christian education.

 

14.) You realize CC corporate exists to serve classical homeschoolers who are members of their communities.

 

15.) You like The Well-Trained Mind better than The Core.

 

16.) You lean a little more Charlotte Mason.

 

17.) You feel like CC Connected is unfairly benefitting from the hard work of its valuable paid members, because the members supply tons of content and to your knowledge receive no monetary reimbursement for their time and effort (CC owns the material and the forum).

 

18.) You think it is crazy to mandate 4 year-old siblings to register for the program instead of playing in the preschool room. But then again you are paying an extra cost for babysitting your little ones - not a preschool program.

19.) You would have trouble abiding by the following: Thou shalt not say anything critical of or negative about your personal CC experience and why it wasn’t a good fit for your family.

 

20.) Not all tutors are equal.

 

21.) You may not like the emphasis on earning Memory Master status, especially if your child has learning challenges.

 

22.) There is no 100% satisfaction guarantee. All money is paid up front.

 

23.) You don’t need someone to model memory work. It just isn’t that tough.

 

24.) Youtube is free.

 

25.) Twenty-four weeks of six subjects of memory work is a very long time and a whole lot of unrelated information. In fact, it is too fast and too much for your personal taste. Can we memorize a poem or a hymn now (see #16)?

 

26.) You don’t see how it is possible to really teach quality art, science, and music in the time allotted if the parents aren’t asked to supplement with context at home and the paid tutors may or may not know what they are talking about. (See #7 and #20)

 

27.) You don’t think the community at CC is somehow academically superior to other groups serving the elementary ages and recognize that people use many different philosophies and methodologies for their child’s education - and God uses them too.

 

Without wanting to be too critical of CC (because we made some wonderful friends and met some truly wonderful people there, especially our director and tutors), these were our exact experiences and reasons for not returning after 1 year.  

[KeriJ]

Despite my criticism, I have found ways to implement some of their materials in our school. The time line song is available online as a download for $8. I am having my kids learn their portion of the song (1 kid in Ancients and 1 in Moderns) as we drive to soccer. I just want them to know 1/4 of it this year. My 4 year-old picks up on some of it, but I don't have to pay $300+ for her. She also knows most of the First Language Lessons chants (there is an audio grammar CD from SWB too).

 

There are certain materials CC produces I think are helpful, but because CC bundles everything so tightly for use alongside of their communities, I have just sought out other resources that are just as good - if not better. A lot of the memory work on their resource CD is still spoken, so you have to download songs from CC Connected. Thankfully, they are not the only outfit out there producing memory songs. The next best alternative: make your own memory work CDs and drive around with them in your car. :-) Alternatively, you can follow Susan Wise Bauer's recommended memory selections.

 

Leigh Bortins says herself in the Foundations Guide that she borrowed very heavily from a children's history encyclopedia when writing her history sentences. There are so many free resources out there right now. If you are looking for ways to implement memory work in your home school, just know that CC is not your only option or the only way! For me, if your philosophy does not very closely match CC's interpretation of classical you may be pretty unhappy by the 24th week. CC is very impressive if you just go and sit in on a class or hear a 4 year-old sing a history sentence. Dig a little deeper to see if it is a fit for you. :)

 

This is exactly what we are doing as well.  We are using the Middle Ages portion of the timeline song.  When we were in CC, I downloaded the timeline figures and printed them onto sticker paper.  We have made our own timeline cards using 4x6 cards.  We are memorizing all the history sentences that coordinate with our history readings.  So I really do appreciate some aspects of CC.  

[Mrs Twain]

I can see why a person may think CC is a waste of money if he/she doesn't cover the background of the memory work.  It would seem like a huge amount of unrelated information--unrelated to the family's main curriculum at least.

 

We go to the library for 1.5 hours after CC.  During that time I get a study room with a whiteboard and teach the background of the memory work, and my kids do notebooking to learn the new information for the week.  This makes the information understandable and the time at CC worthwhile.  In addition, since I already read a world history overview book and an American history overview book every school year, the history is relatively familiar to my kids.  If I didn't do the library time or already do history overviews, CC memory work might be too much out of context and not the best use of our time.

 

I actually think it is good for me to be at CC with my kids.  I am learning all of the information as well as they, so I know what I need to teach them.  Also, I enjoy hearing my kids' oral presentations. 

 

If CC doesn't meet important needs that you have concerning your academic goals, I don't think it would be worth it to pay all of that money just for a social group.  Just start a weekly homeschool park playdate instead!

[Mrs Twain]

A couple of other things to add--

 

No one has mentioned the group effect of being in a class.  My kids are especially motivated to do the (large amounts) of memory work each week because the rest of their class is also doing it.  They would not be nearly as motivated if they were memorizing it only for me at home.

 

Formerly I had a very negative outlook on CC because of all of the criticism I read on this forum.  Then one day last year I realized that CC was exactly what I needed.  There were things I really wanted to do with my kids as part of school but had not been able to accomplish on my own.  CC has filled a large gap for me.  So perhaps CC isn't for you, but don't automatically discount it just because others don't like it. 

 

 

[G5052]

I don't regret our years with CC at all, but I was around it enough to know that it isn't a good fit for everyone.  For me, I was willing to pay for what we got out of it at the time.  I also tutored, so it wasn't as bad on us financially as it would be for some.  Some years we gave up our vacation in order to keep homeschooling and continuing our involvement with CC.  It brought together a number of things we needed.

 

There are ***MANY*** different routes to the sorts of goals you might achieve with CC though.  You can certainly get your children into other programs for socialization, handle memory work at home, etc. etc. Don't give into the pressure that they are the only avenue that way.  I used to wince during some of the summer practicum talks that seemed oriented towards making parents feel inadequate about homeschooling unless they signed up for CC.  It just isn't true. And it isn't the only way to do a quality high school program either.

 

 

[2_girls_mommy]

Wow, they say that stuff in the practicums?  I am glad I have never attended one.  I have friends in the program and they do pressure me often about joining and tutoring.

They do seem shocked when I tell them what we do on our own for memorywork, public speaking, and latin and such.  I always thought it was because they felt they couldn't handle it on their own.  Maybe it is because they really feel I can't handle it on my own and must be doing it wrong LOL.

[abrightmom]

Is the fee per child?

Yep.

Do you have/need to purchase additional material on top of the listed cost?

Yes. Materials for the family (some mandatory, some optional though quite useful IMO). There are fees in addition to the tuition (i.e. facility fees vary by location, materials fees, possibly childcare if you have babies/toddlers and need them in a nursery setting).

What does that usually add up to for your family or per child?

A whole lotta dough!

What is actually covered as far as curriculum/subjects in a given day at CC?

We have a group time where we say the Pledge of Allegiance, a Pledge to the Bible, recite Scripture memory work, hear a family presentation, and prayer. Then we're off to our classrooms. In the classrooms we review old grammar (last week's memory work) with activities/games/songs, we learn the new grammar (the new week of memory work), we practice fine arts (drawing right now), do oral presentations, and science. 

What do you like about CC?

The people are fantastic in our community! I LOVE the quality of the materials we have purchased. Well worth the money spent. Tons of ideas and helps to invigorate our schooling and memory work. The accountability to be memorizing is helping me stay on task. The geography work is awesome for us. I buy in to Leigh Bortin's beliefs re: memory work/brain training. I buy in 100% so this model fits for me (with some additions along the way). The drawing lessons have been GREAT and have given me tools to use at home. 

Do you feel it is "worth" it?

I don't know yet. We've only been doing this for 3 weeks.

What don't you like or find annoying?

Mainly, it's the cost. But, I believe it's just that expensive to run this big of a production. We have a pretty big group at a new CC Community and it's a HUGE thing each week to pull all of this together. I'm impressed so far. 

Other thoughts?

See below.

One thing I've not LOVED so far is the science part. I don't want to say any more as it could be my expectations vs. what can realistically be accomplished. I though the first two weeks were lame, especially for the 5th-6th grade crowd. I have higher hopes for upcoming demonstrations and projects. Time will tell. =)

 

We are new to CC this year. I like it so far. :)  Being there invigorates me each week and I love participating in the classrooms. It is a lot of money (we have 4 kids enrolled in Foundations) and while I highly value much of what we are doing/learning the jury is still out as to whether or not it's something we'll stay with because of the cost for 4 students. I have thought a lot about the money and how much pressure it puts on the budget. It's been a lot this year as we spent close to $2000 for 4 kids plus materials. I chose to purchase the science and history cards as I am finding them invaluable in our weekly review.

 

I do like the modeling and have gleaned ideas for incorporating memory work at home. If we are unable to or decide against staying with our CC Community I do see us using the materials at home to continue memory work in some categories.  There is a built in accountability although I suppose one could ignore it. What I mean is that I want my kiddos to be prepared each week for their oral presentations and memory work (both the review and new grammar). It is also important to me that we work on geography each week as we practice "blobbing" and mapping the geography grammar of the week. It's helping me to focus and to follow through because of the financial investment we have made. These things aren't mandatory as I am in charge (as the parent) so I could ignore them (as in not prep my kids or practice memory work or study the geography). It wouldn't make sense to me NOT to invest in our CC studies though. So far, we are learning a lot and enjoying the journey. 

 

The community we are a part of is lovely so far. 

 

 

[talltexan]

 The time line song is available online as a download for $8. I am having my kids learn their portion of the song (1 kid in Ancients and 1 in Moderns) as we drive to soccer. I just want them to know 1/4 of it this year. My 4 year-old picks up on some of it, but I don't have to pay $300+ for her. She also knows most of the First Language Lessons chants (there is an audio grammar CD from SWB too).

 

 

Do you have to download this history timeline song from CC Connected?

 

THANK YOU for all your input on this. I find it very valuable, as I'm considering CC myself.

[KeriJ]

 

Is the fee per child?

Yep.

Do you have/need to purchase additional material on top of the listed cost?

Yes. Materials for the family (some mandatory, some optional though quite useful IMO). There are fees in addition to the tuition (i.e. facility fees vary by location, materials fees, possibly childcare if you have babies/toddlers and need them in a nursery setting).

What does that usually add up to for your family or per child?

A whole lotta dough!

What is actually covered as far as curriculum/subjects in a given day at CC?

We have a group time where we say the Pledge of Allegiance, a Pledge to the Bible, recite Scripture memory work, hear a family presentation, and prayer. Then we're off to our classrooms. In the classrooms we review old grammar (last week's memory work) with activities/games/songs, we learn the new grammar (the new week of memory work), we practice fine arts (drawing right now), do oral presentations, and science. 

What do you like about CC?

The people are fantastic in our community! I LOVE the quality of the materials we have purchased. Well worth the money spent. Tons of ideas and helps to invigorate our schooling and memory work. The accountability to be memorizing is helping me stay on task. The geography work is awesome for us. I buy in to Leigh Bortin's beliefs re: memory work/brain training. I buy in 100% so this model fits for me (with some additions along the way). The drawing lessons have been GREAT and have given me tools to use at home. 

Do you feel it is "worth" it?

I don't know yet. We've only been doing this for 3 weeks.

What don't you like or find annoying?

Mainly, it's the cost. But, I believe it's just that expensive to run this big of a production. We have a pretty big group at a new CC Community and it's a HUGE thing each week to pull all of this together. I'm impressed so far. 

Other thoughts?

See below.

One thing I've not LOVED so far is the science part. I don't want to say any more as it could be my expectations vs. what can realistically be accomplished. I though the first two weeks were lame, especially for the 5th-6th grade crowd. I have higher hopes for upcoming demonstrations and projects. Time will tell. =)

 

We are new to CC this year. I like it so far. :)  Being there invigorates me each week and I love participating in the classrooms. It is a lot of money (we have 4 kids enrolled in Foundations) and while I highly value much of what we are doing/learning the jury is still out as to whether or not it's something we'll stay with because of the cost for 4 students. I have thought a lot about the money and how much pressure it puts on the budget. It's been a lot this year as we spent close to $2000 for 4 kids plus materials. I chose to purchase the science and history cards as I am finding them invaluable in our weekly review.

 

I do like the modeling and have gleaned ideas for incorporating memory work at home. If we are unable to or decide against staying with our CC Community I do see us using the materials at home to continue memory work in some categories.  There is a built in accountability although I suppose one could ignore it. What I mean is that I want my kiddos to be prepared each week for their oral presentations and memory work (both the review and new grammar). It is also important to me that we work on geography each week as we practice "blobbing" and mapping the geography grammar of the week. It's helping me to focus and to follow through because of the financial investment we have made. These things aren't mandatory as I am in charge (as the parent) so I could ignore them (as in not prep my kids or practice memory work or study the geography). It wouldn't make sense to me NOT to invest in our CC studies though. So far, we are learning a lot and enjoying the journey. 

 

The community we are a part of is lovely so far. 

 

 

Katrina, I really am glad it is going so well for you.

 

Even though we left CC, I still find myself recommending it to others from time to time.  It didn't work for us, but I know it has been great for so many families.

[thegeyser]

http://www.classicalconversationsbooks.com/allageso.html

[thegirlwhopaintedtrees]

Here's what I wrote about why CC did not work for us.  I really enjoyed the community aspect and the idea of memory work, but you can read the reasons we left on my blog.   

[shanezomom]

We are new to CC this year and are finding the Challenge A program (next step after Foundations) to be the best choice I could have made for ds's 7th grade. We had the options of doing this solo with me organizing his year as usual, or the option of participating in a co-op for some core classes, or a full blown classical tutoring program where the kids spend 2 full days a week and complete the remaining work at home. We are blessed in this area northern suburbs of Pittsburgh to have lots of choices for our kids. We also have a relatively new but thriving CC community in our area and after only 4 years, the Essentials and Foundations programs are filled to capacity. I was never really tempted to sign ds up for Foundations because I was not able to stay to be a helper, and I preferred to pull our own curricula together and wasn't big on what I perceived as lots of memorization. Besides that, we already had plenty of fellow homeschool families that we are friends with so developing new friendships wasn't a factor at that time either.

 

The Challenge A program is a new endeavor this year for the community, and after I read about it this summer, I decided this might be a good fit for our 12yr ds entering 7th grade. One of the most important factors in my decision was that they made it clear I was still the one controlling our homeschool and in fact we could opt out of any of the materials or sections. The classical model was important, and Christian content interwoven through the curriculum was important. Another big plus was their recent implementation of the Lost Tools of Writing program which I planned on using for ds this year anyway and I welcome any help I can get in working with it. Instead of continuing speech and debate club, I was satisfied that the weekly presentations the Challenge A students give to each other on various research topics would give ds enough ongoing public speaking practice. Finally, when I met the newly hired tutor this summer while she was going through her training, I was so impressed by her enthusiasm and capabilities that it became a very easy decision.

 

Now, 4 weeks into the program, I can say Challenge A has been a lifesaver. I am a chronic "the grass is always greener" mom with curricula and this program takes care of that. I see no need to change anything that we are doing which is a complete relief. It is rigorous and indeed challenging but very interesting. It is giving ds a wonderful structure from which to build independence and responsibility. He sees results and is very pleased with his expanding knowledge base. I had no idea if what we had covered in his earlier education had prepared him for this level of work, but he jumped right in and sees that he is faring well academically in relation to his peers which is building his confidence.  The 6 kids in the group are learning to relate to each other by exchanging ideas because the format is not just teacher talking to students. It's a tutor facilitating conversations and helping them integrate ideas for themselves. Just to clarify, our ds is a typical, silly, childlike 12 year old who would rather play Minecraft or jump on the trampoline than do math. And I am the busy working mom in our family machine shop who gets called away from school to handle work issues all the live-long day. But.....the accountability of the weekly seminar is keeping us completely on track which is exactly what we needed. Ds and I are both feeling really good about this year. It's taken a big weight off my shoulders because I know exactly what ds will be working on every day and I don't have the guilt that I have had in the past about not providing enough structure to his day because of our business. 

 

I know this glowing review sounds like I'm affiliated with CC. I am not, nor can I speak to the Essentials and Foundations programs because I really don't know much about them. I hope this helps.

[sagira]

I was wondering exactly what CC was since a friend had asked us to join as well. Our whole year is planned and full, with monthly homeschool field trips with a group built in.

 

Thanks for the 27 reasons, thegeyser. Now I know I literally have NO reason to join.

[KeriJ]

I don't regret our years with CC at all, but I was around it enough to know that it isn't a good fit for everyone.  For me, I was willing to pay for what we got out of it at the time.  I also tutored, so it wasn't as bad on us financially as it would be for some.  Some years we gave up our vacation in order to keep homeschooling and continuing our involvement with CC.  It brought together a number of things we needed.

 

There are ***MANY*** different routes to the sorts of goals you might achieve with CC though.  You can certainly get your children into other programs for socialization, handle memory work at home, etc. etc. Don't give into the pressure that they are the only avenue that way.  I used to wince during some of the summer practicum talks that seemed oriented towards making parents feel inadequate about homeschooling unless they signed up for CC.  It just isn't true. And it isn't the only way to do a quality high school program either.

 I bumped into a friend at the beginning of the school year.  Her family is still involved in CC.  Her question to me as we greeted each other was, "So how are you all doing this year without CC?"  :)  I know she didn't mean it how it sounded, but it made me giggle, because I had the hardest time explaining to people why we weren't returning.  They never seemed to understand that we really enjoy our homeschool as is, and didn't feel that we needed CC.

[beth83]

Do you have to download this history timeline song from CC Connected?

 

THANK YOU for all your input on this. I find it very valuable, as I'm considering CC myself.

 

Most of the memory work is put to catchy tunes to help the children memorize it.  This material is what the tutors use to present the memory work, and children can use these same songs to practice during the week.  You can either buy a package of 3 cds for the cycle with all the memory work, or you can pay for CC Connected (online service) and download the same songs from there.  

 

The songs cover the timeline (which all the children sang at the family presentation, so your children will want to have a copy of this somewhere at home), history sentences, skip counting, and latin.  A lot of parents have also put the other information to songs and uploaded on CC Connected, as it acts as a sharing center for those who pay for the subscription.

[abrightmom]

Katrina, I really am glad it is going so well for you.

 

Even though we left CC, I still find myself recommending it to others from time to time.  It didn't work for us, but I know it has been great for so many families.

Thanks Keri.  :coolgleamA:

 

Today was our 3rd CC meeting and the love is still here despite the struggles, bumps, etc. And, I liked the science today =). I came away with more fun (and quite useful!) ideas for teaching at home PLUS the blessing of being with the other lovely families. I come home tired but invigorated and motivated. It's been a shot in the arm for me in my 6th year of homeschooling. We literally drug through the last two years and there was so little LIFE to our homeschool. If it didn't cost half a million dollars I'd have my boys in Essentials because I *think* we are going to really like Challenge A and B.  :coolgleamA:

[mamawaabangi]

Wow, this is really great to see everyones experiences and a broader picture.

Thank you thank you!