the road to inspired learning
I took Simon to a library program in our teeny-tiny town one day. We went through the door; he headed to the left, and I was pulled to the right–to shelves full of library sale books. I saw at least two full racks of picture books. I smiled as I saw familiar, beloved titles such […]
I love when my kids’ interests help determine what I am going to teach at co-op. This homeschool camping class was born because Simon, my youngest son, told me he wanted a camping class at co-op. I didn’t hesitate to say yes. I LOVE CAMPING. This camping class was written as a nine-week course for […]
When art and writing collide, I am a happy girl. When I stumbled upon Show Me a Story at the library, I was thrilled. I immediately knew it was a winner, and I would some day teach a co-op class with all the amazing get-kids-writing ideas found inside the book. This class was such a joy […]
Do you remember the Tootsie Roll commercial from the 1970s? For the young homeschool mamas who have no clue what I’m talking about, the ad slogan was, “Whatever it is I think I see becomes a Tootsie Roll to me!” I feel the same way about homeschool co-op class ideas. Whatever it is I think I see becomes a co-op class […]
In the past I’ve shared some fun classes for preschoolers: Cooking Art, Little Builders, Pet Pals, and Let’s Make a Mess. Those classes focused on science and art. What about a preschool class focusing on social studies? One easy way to do this is with a class about community helpers. Find people in your neighborhood […]
Do your kids love to cook? Mine do! And so do the kids in our homeschool cooperative. We’ve offered seven different cooking classes at our co-op, and it is never a problem finding students who want to be in these classes. Cooking Around the World is wonderful because you get to use a hands-on (and delicious) experience […]
One of the classes our homeschool co-op is offering this spring is gardening for kids. The class is for 1st-3rd grades, and it is being taught by various master gardeners in our area. Many states have Master Gardener programs; you can check this website to find a program in your area. I have found that it is […]
Choosing a Topic for Your Geography Project Once you have committed to being participants in your local Geography Fair, your student will need to choose a topic. Choose a country Choose a state (such as Indiana, Texas, or Alaska) Choose a region (the Northeastern United States, the Southwest United States, etc.) Choose a city Choose […]
Jodi shared her Insects Class plans (K-3rd) with us last week. This week she is sharing her plans for upper elementary. Thanks, Jodi! I taught another co-op class about insects for upper elementary children. We studied a different insect for each of the nine weeks we were in session. You can download the syllabus here. We used […]
Summer is coming, and so are the BUGS! A few years ago, my friend, Jodi taught two insect classes at co-op. I’ve asked her to guest post about the class. Most children are fascinated by insects, and this would make a fun class or club for this summer or fall. For our Fall semester 2012, […]
Looking for a fun preschool class that will keep them learning, busy, and having fun? Little Builders fits all three categories! We started every class with a book about building. Here was our line-up: Week 1: I Want to Be a Builder Week 2: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel Week 3: The Toolbox Week […]
A little bit of science. A little bit of art. And a whole lot of having fun and making a mess! What Is Crazy Kid Concoctions? Crazy Kid Concoctions is a spring class I taught for 1st-4th grade students. It’s kids getting a chance to make their own craft supplies and more! In order to keep […]
My sweet and smart friend, Brandy, created and taught this class last fall. Our co-op ran 12 weeks, so she chose four American Girl dolls and decided to focus on each one for three weeks. Each week, the girls were encouraged to go home and read one book about the featured doll. During the tea parties, […]
I will start with a short piece of fiction. Once upon a time Scatterbrained Mom went to a co-op planning meeting. All the moms were chattering about what to teach and what they wanted taught for the upcoming fall semester. Scatterbrained Mom usually had a lot of ideas. She might even share her ideas once in awhile with the […]
I know. I know. A cooking class with kids sounds stressful, right? Well, it doesn't have to be. I decided to limit this class to six students per hour and to teach it twice (so that 12 students total would be able to benefit). Keeping the class size small made this class great. This was […]
Younger kids are fascinated by animals, and our little students loved this class about pets. The teacher chose one animal to be the star of the show each week, and made sure that animal made a guest appearance. She started the class each morning reading a book about that day's animal (sometimes fiction, sometimes nonfiction). […]
My friend, Nikki (famous for teaching Caring Quilts), constructed this cake decorating class. It was the perfect class for Nikki to teach because she is a master cake decorator. Her students had so much fun, and they made some impressive cupcakes throughout the semester including these: Fishbowl Cupcakes Snowmen Cupcakes Flower Cupcakes And my favorite, […]
It's time to prepare for fall co-op, and I'm going to spend five days sharing ideas for creative classes! When we decided to turn our little Five in a Row co-op into something different, a place with class options and multiple classes in one morning, we knew a few things. We wanted to keep it […]
After seven other creative writing lessons, it was time to take a deep dive into revision. We’ve been discussing revision every week as we review the homework assignments at the beginning of class. These students were eager to see the good and the bad each week; they wanted to improve, and they listened to the […]
Since we’ve covered some short story basics, this week students receive instructions for their big writing projects: fractured fairy tales. Fractured Fairy Tales Creative Writing Lesson Plan 1. We briefly discussed setting and plot. 2. We watched some short fractured fairy tales. You can find various options on YouTube. My favorites are from the Rocky […]