another CC post (actually a question) Challenge A

[mom2kando]

oh boy- we were going along just fine. Really...

We left CC after last year. We're so much happier this year- but lonelier.

I'm now seeking advice and tips for making the decision whether or not so send my son (7th) to CC Challenge A.😬

At the beginning of the year it would have been a definite no, but now his sister is going to high school next year and will be gone all day every day and they are BFFs.

Most of his homeschool friends are doing Challenge next year and the tutor is a good friend of mine, this group also gathers for "study hall" on Fridays where they do work together and help each other.

Our other option: He is signed up next year for an online history class (schole academy) and Mr. D math (with the actual Mr. D!  yay!🙂 ) We also have a co-op where he would take science, literature/writing, art, and possibly Latin (all classes we are interested in) but he is struggling so so much with feeling like he has a place that he "belongs".

He would have a good friend at co-op who is not doing challenge and other kids there that he is friendly with so it's not a terrible option and I love the teachers.

We live in an area where there are not many homeschoolers so other options are very limited. I tend toward Charlotte Mason/Classical homeschooling.

So my question is:

Do we sign up for Challenge even though I don't agree with some of their business practices, the pace that they run through information, and knowing that I will have to tweak and supplement just so that he can have the seminar day and a Friday study hall day with his friends? 

or

Do we stick with our original plan and hope that being at co-op all day quenches his need for peer interaction? (He's only there for one class this year)

Is there some sort of form I can fill out that helps moms make homeschooling decisions???🤣

PS- He says he doesn't know what he wants to do- I can't leave it up to him.

[Zoo Keeper]

My 2 cents is ...

If you are both happier without CC, I wouldn't add it back in.   Something that you have to tweak that much just to make it kind of palatable is NOT worth the time or money  (at least it wouldn't be for me...).

What you have lined up for co-op sounds very nice. 

[2_girls_mommy]

co-op!

My odd left for college this year, leaving her two year younger sister alone in homeschool and life for the first time too.  Plus, with Covid our last homeschool group had to quit meeting. There were no musicals that we knew of for her to audition for with theaters being closed down.  The girls in her level of girl scouts stopped meeting due to covid.  Our council stopped having in person events.  She did some zoom scout things, but it isn't the same.  It was a tough transition for us. It was for most people this year. We had periods of quarantine this year on top of things. 

But we did find a totally new co-op where we knew no one that was meeting in person.  They had a theater group, and when they found out my dd is a dancer they added a dance to one scene for her specifically.  She has made new friends. They have had out of co-op get togethers and have enjoyed their friday mornings together.  The co-op is just what we needed educationally (mostly supplemental,) and met our other needs completely. 

So it can work all work without you doing something and rearranging your whole curriculum for the CC.  It did for us, even without knowing anyone.  Your son already knows people. 

Edited March 31, 2021 by 2_girls_mommy

[fourisenough]

Co-Op sounds like a better solution to me!

[PeterPan]

On 3/30/2021 at 5:17 PM, mom2kando said:

We also have a co-op where he would take science, literature/writing, art, and possibly Latin (all classes we are interested in) but he is struggling so so much with feeling like he has a place that he "belongs".

It doesn't sound like you *need* CC because you could do all the academics you want through the co-op. Will CC meet his perceived need to belong, or will it be about the same socially as if he went to co-op? Is it possible he'd make friends through this co-op and be just as happy?

[mom2kando]

On 3/31/2021 at 9:54 PM, PeterPan said:

It doesn't sound like you *need* CC because you could do all the academics you want through the co-op. Will CC meet his perceived need to belong, or will it be about the same socially as if he went to co-op? Is it possible he'd make friends through this co-op and be just as happy?

True- I am not concerned about meeting his academic needs, I've got that covered... my decision is definitely socially motivated. 4-5 kids he knows will be doing CC next year. At co-op he will have one friend and several older boys who he used to play touch football with, however, lately he refuses to play with them because he feels the dynamics have changed. I don't expect new kids to join in his classes because with COVID and the uncertainty of the times the board is trying to keep the classes small. If he winds up doing CC I think his co-op friend will join him in Challenge.

[Lori D.]

2 hours ago, mom2kando said:

True- I am not concerned about meeting his academic needs, I've got that covered... my decision is definitely socially motivated...

I personally would balk at spending $1000+ on something I don't need (the academics portion), in hopes of finding a few friends for my child -- which could easily not happen, because kids don't always click just because we get them together. (Not to mention that I would knowingly be giving that money to an organization known to have very shady financial practices and are non-supportive to their local people who do all the work...but that is a side issue 😉)

What about organizing your own weekly fun outings and activities with the friends he already has from CC and other places?

What about involvement in community activities where he could meet new friends? A few ideas off the top of my head:
- sports club team or swim team
- join in a local public/private school band/orchestra, sports team, or after school club
- join a robotics group, either a school team or community team
- community youth theater
- 4-H
- Scouting
- classes in martial arts, dance, fencing, horseback riding, etc.
- library tween/teen activities like book club
- summer camp or summer classes held by local university or community college for tweens/teens
- volunteering
- community all-ages group -- rocketry, model railroading, Orienteering, Community Gardens, etc.
- church youth group

Edited April 3, 2021 by Lori D.