Homeschool mother Beth at Learning Together blog discusses at least five different homeschool co-ops that she has been a part of. Five co-ops! Does that sound overwhelming to you? It might be until you read Beth’s descriptions. Many of the co-ops were very short term or very small with just a few families meeting in a home.
Multi-family Enrichment Co-op
This Co-op met for 8 weeks in the fall, and then met again in the spring with a new set of classes. It was a wonderful experience, exposing my children to a variety of skills and subjects that I might not have attempted – and lots of friendships were planted there.
Multi-Family Curriculum-based Co-op
A little over three years ago a group of friends met together to discuss starting a weekly Co-op based on the Tapestry of Grace curriculum. This Co-op started out with 13 families but has now grown to 18 families, and meets every Friday from 9:30 – 2:30 at a local church where we rent classroom space.
Yearlong Academic Co-op
I have done yearlong science co-ops with both my elementary and middle school kids. When Sarah was in 8th grade and Eric was in 6th, we did Apologia General Science. To keep us moving along and to make things a little more fun, we met with one other family every other Friday to do the experiments together.
Small Multi-Subject Co-op
Those co-op experiences led me to pursue even more similar situations, as I saw lots of good things happening both for me and for my children. A friend and I decided to get our 2 girls together twice a week for writing and Latin – I taught writing and the other mom taught Latin.
Short-term Co-ops
Years ago, when my oldest daughter was really into the American Girl books, I hosted an American Girl co-op at my house, which met once a week for 10 weeks. We read the books of one of the American Girl series.
Co-ops can come in all shapes and sizes. If you cannot find a co-op in your area that meets your needs, why not start your own? My book, Homeschool Co-ops: How to Start Them, Run Them and Not Burn out can get you started.
It is available at Amazon, BN.com and other on-line retailers.
Read more here.
