Co-op Class Ideas Needed: X-post

[mymommy1]

I have a 7th grader who struggles with skills, social interaction, and being very bored and distracted  (dx is HFA, ADD).  We have joined a smallish true co-op this semester, and all of us are enjoying the interaction and day out.  However, my 7th grader is bored and "failing" geography, bored with science but doing it, loves crochet but behind, and blossoming in cake decorating. 

 

Please give me ideas for classes I could teach in 12 Fridays that are fun, hands-on, and challenging, but not dependent on writing and math.  Here are my thoughts.

 

1. Mini-society sounds neat!

 

2. Logic using The Great Chocolate Capers book and other logic puzzles.  His logic ability is pretty good.

 

3. STEM that is doable with limited computer access?  Ideas?

 

4. Some kind of craft that would appeal to middle school boys

[OneStepAtATime]

A hands on co-op class that my DD loved was one that taught retasking of things that might appear to be trash.  For instance, they took broken pots, broke them up further and made art out of them.  They took old cloth and turned the cloth into either polishing cloths or belts or scarves or head bands, etc.

 

They took old discarded paper and made the unused parts into notebooks.  They did something clever with old newspaper but I don't remember what.  And on and on.  The teacher encouraged creativity and brainstorming for how to retask/reuse.

 

Another class that was very popular was car maintenance.  The students learned the basics of how to maintain a vehicle.

 

Also, cooking using basic chemistry principles.

 

Improv where the kids learned to act out various things, such as a car engine, a herd of elephants, etc.  No lines to memorize.

 

 

[Pen]

My ds loved a co-op class that involved visiting a place that was building small huts for the homeless and helping to build, as well as learning about homeless issues and visiting a place that had some similar huts already installed.