homeschoolco-op

Foolproof Tips To Homeschool Friends Co-oping (And Staying Friends)

March 1, 2017 | 4 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

I love getting your questions and this next question is a very common one because if we have a close friend, we have all thought about it at one time or another. Look at this question I recently got. I have been taking inspiration from your blog for years in my own homeschool journey and wondered if you could help me now with some advice. We would like to combine schooling our kids to see if it will benefit them. Do you have any suggestions of how the mother and I could teach subjects together? Look at these foolproof tips for getting along when you homeschool co-op with a friend and how to stay friends afterwards.

One/Communication.

I cannot stress communication enough beforehand.

Try to resist the knee jerk reaction to decide one week to co-op together and jump into starting the next week.

It’s easier to address potential pitfalls when you’re not in the heat of the moment when it comes to a disagreement. Try to avoid them by communicating well ahead of time. There are so many topics to discuss and it’s best done when everybody is still excited about the meet up.

For example, how will you handle interruptions?

Do you expect the kids to raise their hands? I know this because it happened to me.

When teaching with another mom, I had a more relaxed way of wanting my kids to address their questions while discussing a topic and didn’t want hand raising when I was teaching. I didn’t have 32 kids so I wanted a natural conversation.

However, my friend thought they should raise their hands. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a control freak and certainly wouldn’t let the interruptions get out of hand, but my friend didn’t know that. In other words, I wanted to bring my style of teaching to the co-op.

Another big issue to address is how to handle acting up by a child. I’m not just talking about young kids, but middle and high school kids have mood swings and believe me they can be way more stressing than a 5 year old.

So if you’re teaching with a friend who has kids similar to your children’s age this could be a good thing because she is experienced.

However, too that can make for some preconceived ideas.

Homeschool Comes and Goes, but Lifelong Friends Don’t

For example, with my kids I’ve always expected obedience regardless of their age. I always allowed room for hormones and mood swings because I want allowances for me when I feel bad. Balance is what I strive for and I won’t embarrass my kids or take away their dignity in public even if they deserve it. It just has not been a good parenting skill that ever worked.

So how is a perceived snippy remark going to be handled? For us, we decided that the parent of the child should address their child instead of the one teaching the group calling down the child. This is why it’s so important to decide carefully ahead of time whether you want to co-op with your friend.

As you can see I use the word perceived because a mom who is inexperienced with an older child may have a hard time finding the balance between hormones and flat out disrespect.

I know that two of my best friends Kelly and Cynthia had teens similar to my boys’ ages and would not be offended by some snippy remark. They have big shoulders and can graciously overlook it as I take my son aside and speak to whoever happens to be the offender at the time. I treat their kids with the same respect.

This doesn’t mean anything ugly will happen, it just means you want to be prepared for the ugly side of your child if it comes out.

In a way when you decide to co-op together it’s like co-parenting. You have to set some ground rules and then trust each other when something happens you haven’t discussed.

Two/ Grade level expectations.

Another thing that could negatively affect your fun is when you have two or more kids who are in the same grade level, but it seems like one child is ahead or behind in a subject. Ouch. That can be a sensitive situation to be in.

First, try to remember something very important so that you are not overly critical or judge harshly another homeschool family.

Remember that just because your child has mastered one concept you believe is grade level doesn’t mean he has mastered all of them. Each family approaches subjects differently and focuses on content that is important to their family.

For example, when my boys were young they were less informed about public school grade level geography and history, which most of the time is American geography and history. I didn’t focus first on American geography and history; I focused first on ancient civilization.

When we met with another family, my kids were more informed about ancient civilization than the other homeschool family. But the other kids, which had been in public school had a more comprehensive foundation in American geography and history than my kids.

This was something I knew ahead and we had to discuss which subjects and topics we would cover and at what grade level. It took some time but we came up with a plan that would fit both families.

Three/Length of class, topics and curriculum.

Again, don’t assume you and your friend on are on the same page when you begin your co-op. Remember, you are bringing your style of how you teach your children and we have many different teaching styles in homeschool.

And just like when you manage a large homeschool co-op where you need an agenda or format for the day, a small co-op is no different. Communicating expectations avoids hard feelings and the best part is that all the kids make memories and benefit from another teaching style.

I highly suggest you format your day with a schedule so that everybody has the same expectations. I don’t mean plan every minute and hour, but do plan a flow to the day. What to expect each day should be part of your plan.

Our plan or flow was to start by 9:00 a.m. and study together for about an hour. We had a quick break while we set up for a hands-on activity. We did a hands-on project every time we met and we tried to get it done by lunch.

The afternoon was for play time because our co-op was just as much about our kids making friends as it was learning together. Later on, we would have a snack appropriate to our theme made ahead of time. For example, we studied history and our snack was some themed history food.

Believe me when I say time flies. You don’t need as much planned time as you think and we never covered as much as I thought we would. Working with a group, just like public school can slow you down. But you also gain many advantages when one child’s strengths can help another child’s weakness.

I need to talk about that for a minute because you may realize that though children are on the same grade level they vary widely in ability. I didn’t want my friend’s children to think I was cross-examining them so I chose to not teach the skill subjects.

If you are not sure what the skill subjects are versus content subjects look at my post Skill Subjects vs. Content Subjects: What’s the Difference?

Also, we decided that any type of writing where we wanted our kids to read aloud what they wrote was to be done privately and on our own time. Then the next school day when we met together we opened our lesson by having each child share their writing.

I preferred to work with my sons on skill subjects like the 3 Rs on our own time. I wanted our time to meet together to be about enrichment.

You have to decide if this will be a homeschool co-op or are you meeting to tutor your friend’s kids?

Unintentionally, a homeschool co-op can turn out where you’re tutoring another homeschool mom’s child.

That is okay, if you agree to exchange your skill set for her kids and she does the same for your kids.

But again, this goes back to the whole foundation for you getting together. Just be sure your purpose is clear.

How to Combine Collective Co-op Strengths and Not Highlight Slip-ups

4/ My tried and true teaching tips.

I have done a co-op with a friend and managed a really large co-op. My tip is be clear what your expectations are. I didn’t need another mom tutoring my children. If I needed help as a teacher, I could ask another homeschool mom.

My purpose was absolutely clear that I was meeting for enrichment, socialization and for my kids to be sharpened by another homeschool mom’s style of teaching.

I knew I wanted a clearly defined scheduled in case the kids get bored and I knew I wanted to cover fun subjects like art, geography, history, cooking, photography, literature unit study or any other kind of unit study, crafts or any enriching subject.

I wanted a beginning and end to each class and to the time the co-op lasted. This was just in case it wasn’t a good fit for my family. If I agreed to 6 weeks, I did 6 weeks and then evaluated if it worked for us and I didn’t have to give any explanation if we decided to not do it again. We stayed friends.

Also, I wasn’t going to a co-op for another mom to teach my kids Latin, sight words or algebra. By the way, been there done that and it wasn’t that fun.

The skill subjects were ones I wanted to teach at home so I could be sure my kids were grasping important concepts.

This doesn’t mean though that you can’t incorporate skill subjects into your study. We studied the Vikings and added in a hands-on math project by learning how to measure a boat. This is something all the grades could do while not focused on one child’s weakness in a skill subject.

It’s just the way I roll.

Again, you may have another idea for how to run your co-op but I’ve learned that skill subjects can pit friends against friends when one family is ahead in one area and the other family is not.

Subjects that multiple ages can do together work best to keep homeschooling friends true friends long past the formal homeschooling years.

I hope these few tips help you as I could write a book on this subject but will stop with just this post.

Have you encountered any similar problems and what worked for you?

Also, grab some more tips from Homeschool Co-op: The 5 BIG Questions You Need to Ask (before you join), 10 Homeschool Co-op Subjects That Are Better Learned With a Group and Homeschool Co-ops Turned Private Schools.

Hugs and love ya,

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.

Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

Homeschool Co-op: The 5 BIG Questions You Need to Ask (before you join)

September 24, 2016 | 3 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

When you find a match for a homeschool co-op that seems like a perfect match, the years fly back quickly and you never want the time spent with other homeschoolers to stop. Believe me, looking back now, our homeschool co-ops are some of our most cherished moments.

However, if you make a decision to join a homeschool co-op with pausing to ask these five questions, you can go from cherished to anguished.

And because there is no on set of rules in how any co-op is suppose to function, confusion can exist.

When Homeschool Co-ops Go from Delight to Drudgery

I encourage homeschoolers to ask these top 5 questions before they commit to a co-op or set one up because they are vital to keeping a homeschool co-op that is, a delight and not drudgery, to attend.

1. What is the purpose of the co-op?

Just because a group of families homeschool, that doesn’t mean they are like-minded when it comes to the reason why you meet together.

And unless you are absolutely clear as to your purpose for a co-op, you may actually bring more stress than satisfaction on your family.

2. What are the types of classes and who teaches? Are they for enrichment, socialization focused, field trip oriented or academic?

I very much honed my vision for our field trip and because my vision was clear,the activities I did to lead it were in line with the purpose. When leaders have knee-jerk reactions and change the direction of an established co-op, it can be disastrous.

You too should be able to articulate with detail as to what you want from it. I knew we were a field trip and socialization co-op and that took front and center.

In other words, for example, we didn’t attract people wanting us to teach their kids Latin. I felt like academic should be taught at home by the parents and our co-op’s focused stayed that way.

Oh sure, we did academics in our co-ops, but the emphasis was on learning with a group.

3. What is the age range and are siblings allowed?

There are many more co-ops doing things for young children like going to the zoo than they are opportunities for middle and high school.

However, they are groups that exist for middle and high school though you may have to drive a bit farther.

Stay flexible and especially if a co-op meets once a week or every other week, the added enrichment to your family can be a great resource.

4. What is the cost?

This is an even bigger question now then it was when I started because “co-ops” have popped up where they are looking to make money off of homeschoolers.

I am all for entrepreneurship, but co-ops have been about support systems instead of a money making system.

Recently, when I was a speaker at the homeschool workshop in Atlanta, GA, I had 4 families walk out on me before I started my workshop about co-ops. They were there to only learn about how to make money.

I was glad and sad at the same time to see them go.

Glad because I will not bend when it comes to explaining how co-ops can add much enrichment to your homeschool journey, but I was sad too because many homeschoolers feel that co-ops are mini private schools and outsiders have ascended as if vultures to rack up on our money.

So when asking about the cost, ask specifically questions like where does my money go and who gets paid.

5. Is the group inclusive?

Just because a group is inclusive doesn’t mean you want to attend.

You need to understand what a group means by inclusive. You may want to be part of a group that limits its members to a certain faith, view or not.

You decide, but it’s good to know before you jump in and find the group doesn’t meet your expectations.

Look at these other tips to help you. Homeschool Co-ops Turned Private Schools, Homeschool Co-ops, Support Groups and Regional Groups. How Does It All Fit and Rules for Homeschool Co-ops. Essential or Excessive.

What questions do you ask before you join a homeschool co-op?

Hugs and love ya,

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.

Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

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10 Homeschool Co-op Subjects That Are Better Learned With a Group

March 27, 2016 | 2 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Homeschool co-ops may not be a good fit for some homeschoolers. And though I feel co-ops can be an ill fit when they are ran more like private schools than a homeschool meet up, there are 10 homeschool co-ops subjects that are better learned with a group.

Look at these 10 things, which are more fun to learn with other homeschoolers.

One| History Projects.

When we did our history lapbooks in our co-op, the kids couldn’t wait to get together and work on their lapbooks.

Some of the work they did at home, but a lot of it they did together. This helped my boys who were interested in the history topic, may not particularly like putting a lapbook together.

Two| Learning to Dance.

One of our co-ops to learn about Texas we kicked off the school year by hiring a professional square dance caller. Not only did the kids enjoy it, but grandparents and parents could get involved.

It was a fun activity for all ages, from K to gray, and it set the tone for learning about Texas.

Three| Art project.

Art is another activity which is fun by doing it with a group. Whether it was drawing or making a collage, my boys were inspired when they got together with other homeschoolers.

Four| Book Challenge.

A book challenge is one where I wished we would have done. It was on our list to do but we had so many ideas that it was hard to fit it all in.

But presenting the characters of a book, the plot and telling about the author would make for a great group project.

Not only would reluctant readers benefit, but advanced readers would be challenged to find a new genre to get hooked on.

Five| Around the World Geography Project.

Whether you decide to do a dish from around the world geography project or have each family take a country and present facts about it like we did, this was so much more fun when we did it as a group.

Six| Learning a Foreign Language.

When the kids were little I wasn’t sure if a group sitting was the best way to get an introduction to Spanish. I was proved wrong.

Not only was the homeschool teacher exceptional that taught the class, but she made learning come alive as the kids worked together on presenting a simple play as they learned new words and phrases.

Learning a foreign language was not only natural, but exciting to learn in a group setting.

Seven| Host a Critter Show and Tell.

Just like anything in homeschooling, some of the best things I learned were stumbled upon.

For example, we started off one co-op learning about reptiles and amphibians and realized that having a bring your critter to show and tell about it was the perfect ending to the co-op.

Exciting or Exhausting When Meeting with a Homeschool Co-op?

Looking back now and because the kids were young, it would have been the perfect topic for the whole co-op. Make learning relevant by tying it to a child’s pet. Learning about critters is the perfect activity in a group.

Too, the other kids got to experience a variety of pets from different families.

Eight| Writing Classes.

If your child loathes writing, then a class with other students can sometimes be the best way to inspire him. This is especially advantageous for a kid that is in high school and struggles with writing.

A group setting can be the perfect prod a child needs to bring his writing up to par.

Nine| Photography Classes.

When the boys were little we would go to another homeschool mom’s house to learn basic photography. I can’t imagine my boys learning this by sitting in a class.

Showing up at different hours each time we went, the boys learned about lighting tips during the day and evening and techniques for taking pictures. Of course taking pictures of each other was a big hit.

Ten| Learning to Cook.

Many homeschoolers in one of the groups we were in got together frequently to teach their kids how to cook. My boys were real young then.

At the time I remember being impressed because one of the high school boys was the one that was leading the co-op.

He had a natural talent for cooking and many years later, I learned he went on to be a professional chef.

From humble homeschool co-ops, kids can find a life time profession or just be propelled outside of their comfort zone for learning.

What co-op topics do you find learned best in a homeschool co-op setting?

If you are looking on tips for starting a co-op, then check out my series on Homeschool Co-ops.

Hugs and love ya,

Have you seen this book that I co-authored?

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.

Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

Homeschool Co-ops, Support Groups and Regional Groups. How Does It All Fit?

August 12, 2015 | 1 Comment
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

There is nothing more confusing when you are new to the homeschooling world than to hear veteran homeschoolers use strange and never before heard terms like homeschool co-ops, support groups and regional groups.

The focus can be so much on curriculum gathering that help for you can get lost.

Knowing which groups are which will help you to decide if one is right for you.

A Look Inside

If a focus of a support group could be narrowed down to a few words it would be socialization (yes we do believe in it as homeschoolers) for the kids and support for mom.

Groups serve a very defined purpose even if they don’t intentionally advertise their purpose.

If homeschool co-ops are more academic than fun, the emphasis is still on camaraderie.

That too is a concern for a lot of new and experienced homeschoolers alike. Will my child know how to socialize in a group? Will he receive cultural experiences that I believe will enhance his love of learning?

These are valid concerns and can be successfully met if you are actively involved in support groups.

Take a look at these definitions so you can understand how each one is used in the homeschooling world.

Regional Group – This is perhaps the biggest and largest of support groups. Just like it says, it is regional.

It could be county wide, most of the state or just a portion of the state or even country.

In some larger states, regional groups may host annual homeschool conventions. In some states where local groups are limited, a regional group may host Bible Bees, Spelling Bees as well as Graduation Ceremonies. There is normally a fee to be a member.

The emphasis for most regional groups is to focus on support for the whole family. Though they most host activities, unlike a local support group, their emphasis normally is on preserving homeschooling rights and giving you support through your whole journey.

Tip: Ask the Regional Group what is their mission. There usually is a Board of Directors and some method to their communication whether it’s email, private e-loop, online newsletter and yes even some groups still prefer snail mail of newsletters. Find out and get that communication.

If a group can define their mission and the way it seeks to accomplish that mission, then prospective new members can see if it is a fit for their family.

Support Group – This term is perhaps the most general.

A support group can be anything from a private e-loop on yahoo or google plus groups that plans field trips to a meeting at the park each week by a few families.

It can have fees or no fees. Some groups may want you to sign a statement of faith or may indicate that religion is not a factor in their membership.

Some support groups act more like a group that hosts field trips and part like a larger regional group. Again, support group is a very general term, but it too has a defined purpose.

So find out what it is.

Look at some of these general questions to ask any support group:

What is the age group preferred?

Some groups plan activities for young and old alike and the whole family is involved.

Some groups are formed specifically for tweens, others for highschoolers or preschoolers.

What is the group preference?

For example, is it for gifted children, a specific religion or just Christians or secular?

What are the activities hosted?

Some host field trips. Are the field trips set at regular schedules or just when the members plan them?

Examples: Are there activities to focus on a special skill like Lego building or character development or are the activities varied?

Do they have a board of directors?

This question you basically are asking here is how organized are you without being so blunt.

Let me explain here too before I go on.

Leaders or Board of Directors are not door mats and don’t get paid normally for their service.

They render these services to the homeschooling community for a love of people.

Most Leaders I know spend countless hours planning and hosting activities (all to the exclusion of spending time with their family on weekends or weeknights).

Some Board of Directors may have been lulled into inactivity. So be sure you see a schedule of events coming up or speak to them to see what is planned.

For example some Board of Directors may be slanted by only meeting the needs of one particular group of their members.

For example, are they meeting the needs of the new homeschoolers and not just the veterans?

Are they meeting the needs of the mom with preschoolers and not just highschoolers or vice versa? It is no easy task .

A group may not possibly be meeting all of these criteria as it takes man power or like most groups woman power to do that. That is fine. As long as they meet your needs, it may be a good fit for you.

One group may not be a fit now in your journey while it may in another couple of years.

Homeschool Co-ops, Support Groups and Regional Groups

Co-op. A co-op is a class on ANY subject.

It is a group of families that get together for a purpose. Co-ops are as varied as support groups.

They can be informal and just for fun or serious and supervised more like private schools.

They can be on any topic and can form and dissolve each year based on the needs of the area and those that are willing to lead them.

They can be held once a week, once a month, or every day.

Look at some of these specific questions to ask a homeschool co-op group:

What is your focus?

The emphasis is on fun and socialization on the co-op I was lead.

We have so many members we feel they each prefer their own method of schooling or academics. So when we meet, we spend more time doing games, listening to speakers about certain topics, learning to square dance or even learning to draw.

Some groups are more academic focus and this can be a huge advantage to a mom that is overwhelmed or feeling unprepared on a subject.

For example, the co-op can meet for preparing for the SAT. It can meet to help homeschoolers with math. Too, for science you may dissect an animal.

What is the cost?
How long do they meet?
Do you want parents involved?

The co-op we lead is not a drop off service. We require parents to be involved. Some co-ops are more like private schools and parents are not required to be present.

You can navigate these groups better by defining what you want too from each group.

Remember there is not a limit on how many groups you can join.

Which groups will you belong to this year?

Hugs and love ya,

Check out some more tips!
5 Days of a Homeschooling Co-op Convert

Rules for Homeschool Co-ops. Essential or Excessive?

May 20, 2015 | 3 Comments
This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

Whether rules for homeschool co-ops are essential or excessive shouldn’t depend on whether you are the hard working homeschool leader or the appreciative homeschooling attendee.

Unfortunately, this can be the case when you have a structured homeschool co-op.

There are several things that can affect whether a homeschool co-op has rules that literally fill up a booklet or they have informal guidelines.

One thing that can affect rules, which are hotly debated go to the very root of parenting style.

Understanding why rules are in place always helped my family to not let it sour us about attending homeschool co-ops.

Not only do some leaders have rules in place because a tragic incident may have happened before, but when you rent a room, normally the establishment has rules in place too.

For example, one place we rented had a very busy parking lot. With cars backing up and constantly going back and forth, we had to have rules in place for the kids’ safety.

Though none of the girls serving on the board of the homeschool co-op I led were helicopter parents, we would never want any harm to come to any child. We had to make rules, like a child could not go alone to the bathroom or wander around alone at the building.

Middle and high school kids did not have to be accompanied but you would be surprised at how many parents thought it was okay for a younger children to go accompanied because they felt their child was old enough to watch for traffic. Maybe so or maybe not.

Too, our group was responsible for cleaning the bathrooms after the co-op. Many moms expressed their gratefulness for cleaning a bathroom where young kids were not left unattended. Enough said.

Another rule we were adamant about that would sometimes bristle the hair of new families attending our co-op is that our co-op was not a drop and run place.

We required the parents to be there for the co-op. We were not a babysitting service, the disciplining police or teen dating chaperones.

Some co-ops are very large and have parents assigned for those roles. However, because we chose to run our co-op informally and not a mini version of public school, we required parent attendance.

As the homeschool leaders we went to great lengths to treat every child like our own when they were misbehaving. Kindness and love is always the way to treat every child at the homeschool co-op.

What Keeps Your Homeschool Co-op From Getting Better?

However, when that didn’t work, mom and dad know their child best. Discipline has to be applied in the right measure with each child and because kid’s feelings can be very tender, it is a role for the parent.

Being reasonable is also a must for every homeschool leader. When needed we made reasonable exceptions to our rules.

For example, we had one family that was expecting another child and mom couldn’t attend one of our biggest co-ops of the year. She asked another family to be responsible for her kids who didn’t want to miss out on the fun.

We were more than glad to accommodate this family because all of their kids were so well behaved and supportive of the co-op.

The very basic rule for any of our excursions or co-ops was that children were well-behaved and showed up ready to learn.

Of course for toddlers, it was always okay for them to toddle around instead of mom having to fight and hold them all the time in her lap.

When our older children were still, whether standing or sitting, our toddlers eventually modeled the example of our older children as they grew older.

It is very normal in a lot of co-ops for toddlers to move around and we expect our older kids to learn the same way they do when they are home, which is to tolerate the little ones and learn to listen even if the toddler is a bit distracting.

It is different if a toddler is loud and crying, then our moms would address their needs. However, toddlers can learn early on that when we come together, it is for the purpose of learning together and it starts by letting them see what is going on.

Our toddlers were not in danger of being ran over because older kids did not rough house. We simply did not have to put up with kids that couldn’t behave.

Having a few, but meaningful rules was essential in our homeschool co-op. We always appreciated it when parents would ask the thinking behind the rules because we didn’t make them needlessly.

When the formal part of the homeschool co-op was going on, we expected the same behavior as if they were at home doing school. When the co-op was over and it was time to have fun and socialize, our group still followed the rules.

We were blessed to have a great group of moms and dads who cared about all the kids’ safety and understood that rules were in place as a protection.

How about you? Do you attend a homeschool co-op where you feel that some rules are meaningless?

Hugs and love ya,

Also, look at:
Unlocking the Homeschool Leader Within You
Look at my 5 day series of a Homeschooling Co-op Convert

homeschoolco-op

Foolproof Tips To Homeschool Friends Co-oping (And Staying Friends)

Homeschool Comes and Goes, but Lifelong Friends Don’t

How to Combine Collective Co-op Strengths and Not Highlight Slip-ups

Homeschool Co-op: The 5 BIG Questions You Need to Ask (before you join)